design each moment

all I want for Christmas

This layout is reminiscent of a big stack of gifts, and reminds your loved ones that they are the best part of the holiday season.

Materials used: two photos, 12x12 grid paper in white, 2 patterned papers, cardstock, green glitter paper, black ribbon, craft glue, and the Mosaic Moments tools...the one inch square punch, metal ruler, craft knife, Dotto adhesive, Lil Chizler, and cutting mat.

The layout is simple.  Cut two bands of bold polka dot paper (2 1/8 inches by 11 1/8 inches) for the top and bottom.  Mat the photos on green cardstock (4 3/8 by 6 5/8 inches).  Add two strips of patterned paper (1 inch by 6 5/8 inches) above and below the horizontally oriented photo.

The ribbon is attached with craft glue.

The ornament was made by tracing a mug and cutting out a big circle of glitter paper.  I added a band of white cardstock and hand-wrote "all I want for Christmas is YOU!" then topped with another bow.  There are many different ways you could make an ornament.

It's a very simple layout, but the bold patterns and ribbons keep it from being boring.

gift card holder

Gift cards are really great gifts, aren't they?  The recipient of the gift card gets to choose when to use his gift and what his gift will be.  They travel well, too. 

The only problem is that they sometimes feel a little impersonal.

Well, here's a gift idea that will leave your friend or family member in no doubt that you care!

I happened to be giving three movie theater gift cards, (because they only came in $10 increments) but you could modify this style to fit your needs.  You could also easily change the theme to fit a different holiday.

Materials used: 4x6 RTC grid paper in white, four different colors or patterns of paper, three gift cards, alphabet stamps, ink pad, sewing machine, red thread, ribbon, scoring utensil, metal ruler, craft knife, Dotto adhesive, Lil Chizler, and cutting mat.

The first step is to cut your 4x6 RTC grid paper in half.  Then carefully fold it into three four inch long sections.  A scoring utensil and ruler will help.

The next step is to cut one inch strips of four different papers, including a solid color.

Take these long strips and cut them into 3 1/4 inch pieces and lay them out like this:

Next, secure the top strip with adhesive and secure the bottom three strips just on one side to hold them in place.

Using your sewing machine, sew all the way around each group of four strips.  Start on the bottom right-hand side and sew the bottom all the way across (to create a pocket).  Sew a border around the entire card.

When finished sewing, use alphabet stamps to wish your friend a Merry Christmas across the strip of solid cardstock.

Then slip in the gift cards as shown:
Fold the card, tie a pretty bow around it, and slip it into a bright red envelope.

Now receiving the gift cards will be almost as fun as redeeming them!

Atticus' first Christmas

This is my favorite photograph from Atticus' first Christmas (taken by fellow-contributor Nicole Pasquini!).  I wanted to really focus on just this one picture, so I re-created the one-picture layout found on page 78 of Designing Photo Mosaics and more by Tami Potter.  I used the colors in the photograph as inspiration.

Materials used:12x12 grid paper in cocoa, 3 different patterned papers, 3 different solid papers, stamps and bronze ink, rub-on letters, and the Mosaic Moments toolkit--the one inch square punch, metal ruler, craft knife, Dotto adhesive, Lil Chizler, and cutting mat.

The mosaic layout really makes a nice frame for a very important picture and I love how many different patterns and colors I was able to use.

Hay! How did you do that?

What happens when you show your mosaic layouts to your friends and family? For me, the reaction has been immense! “It must have been so difficult and taken so much time!’ everyone exclaims as they gush over the beauty of the page. “Finally!” I think to myself, “I am receiving the Scrapbook Diva recognition that I deserve!”  Nonetheless, I tell the truth and explain that it is really quite an easy technique. The non-scrappers, still awestruck, look at me skeptically while my scrapping friends clamber to learn more.

The first person I shared my mosaic skills with was my sister Kathy Williams. We sidled up to Tami Potter’s Mosaic Moments booth at the Orlando Scrapbook Expo and loaded up with supplies. I guided her towards the self-healing mat, cork-backed metal ruler and repositionable glue. She also chose a few packs of grid paper in her favorite colors. Her first page came out beautifully, but I really love her latest ‘Pumpkin Patch’ creation. I’m fighting hard to retain that Scrapbook Diva crown!

I like how Kathy cut some of her photos into one-inch squares while leaving some in strips. She matted photos of her and her friends and anchored her page by placing them in the corners. A photo without any distracting elements makes a great backdrop for her title and the page is further enhanced by a sprinkling of pop-dotted pumpkin stickers. Journaling circles the page creating an informational border.

“I get great reactions from my friends,” says Kathy. They ooh and aah over the page and all want to know how I did it and everyone in my crop group says they want to do a page like that too!”

Of course word of mouth is the best advertising, but let’s not forget our Internet friends. Rhondarae and I met online in a scrapbook forum where she also admired my mosaics. I convinced her that it was easy to do and pointed her to www.SnapNCrop.com.

“What attracted me to your mosaic pages was the fact that they use primarily photos,” says Rhondarae. “They have a crisp simplicity yet they look very intricate. I like that you can highlight small details that would get lost in a regular layout with complete photos.”
 

In Rhondarae’s ‘Say Hay’ layout, she was able to fit photos of each member of her family and fill in around them with squares of her hay photos for a pleasing effect. She loved using the metal ruler with cork backing claiming that it really held her photos in place without any slippage while she cut. She also liked the repositionable tape which allowed her to play around with the arrangement of the squares. For further inspiration, Rhondarae checked out Tami Potter’s book on making photo mosaics called Designing Photo Mosaics & More. “I got it through interlibrary loan and liked it so much that I ordered one for myself from the SnapNCrop website.”
 
Rhondarae plans on making many more mosaic pages. “I have found that they lend themselves well to scenery photos as well as photos that aren't taken real close up,” she says. “Another nice feature is that you can use ‘imperfect’ photos and mix and match your pieces.
 
“My father actually commented on my mosaic page when I posted it on Facebook. It is the first time he ever commented on one of my layouts. It made my day!”

Well, it looks like another Scrapbook Diva is born. I guess I will just have to share that crown!
 

 

winter wonderland

These photos are actually from March of this year, but hey, I'm dreaming of a white Christmas, so I wanted to include this layout in December.

To help capture the glittery splendor of fresh fallen snow, I decided to create my own patterned paper.  Using photo safe glue, I made swirly lines all over a white piece of cardstock.  Next, I covered the glue in clear plastic glitter. I pressed down gently using a clean sheet of paper and then let it dry while I  composed the rest of my layout.

Materials used:  12x12 grid paper in white, blue cardstock, white cardstock, glue, glitter, 3 photos, the free download Everyday Journal Blocks, the Clearly Calendar stamp set, and the Mosaic Moments toolbox...the one inch square punch, metal ruler, craft knife, Dotto adhesive, Lil Chizler, and cutting mat.

I used the P is for Pumpkin layout from page 59 of Tami Potter's book Designing Photo Mosaics and more as a starting point, because I really wanted to use the phrase "W is for Winter Wonderland".
I wrote this phrase by hand on white cardstock, which I mounted on a 3 2/8 inch square of blue cardstock.
  

I really like how the scenic photo looks larger in mosaic form and it also reminds me of looking out the window. 

I matted my favorite photo on a 4 3/8 inch by 6 5/8 inch blue mat to emphasize Atticus' blue eyes and coat.

I punched the one inch squares out of the glittery patterned paper once it was dry and used them to fill in the empty spaces.  It really gives the impression of snow!

I also added a journaling block and a snowflake I made using the classic fold-and-cut method which I then mounted on a 2 1/8 inch square block.
 
Brrrrr!  Makes me want to bundle up!