A very productive five days!

Well, I haven't posted in several days, but don't think I've been snoozing!

Friday night I headed to my new LSS, which is a half hour away in Foley, AL. Gigi's Scrapbookin' and More has a huge variety of product, plus some stuff I hadn't seen before, and owner Gigi (who would have guessed that was her name? LOL ...) and her staff were very welcoming. So, I look forward to shopping and cropping there in the months to come. As a matter of fact, I already registered for their three-day crop in January at a local beach resort here. Maybe I won't have to go through scrappy withdrawals after all!!!

While I was at Gigi's I did manage to get a couple of projects done. One was with Krew Kit #7, which, I am sorry, I can't show you yet, since the kit won't be released until next month. BUT, I did manage to finally create a mini book of my boys' April birthday party at Scooter's Jungle with Krew Kit #6. This kit is perfect for birthday parties, summer activites and more! The best part: It comes with five panels of 8 x 10 (yes, 8 x 10!) acrylic. Great for albums or home decor - you decide! So, here is what I did:

Photos just don't always do acrylic albums justice, and the layers can be confusing in the 2-dimensional world, so I will do my best to explain what I have done. Everything seen here, with the exception of the o-wire for the Bind-it-All and anything liquid (paint, ink, Stickles, adhesive) is included in Krew Kit #6, so you don't have to wonder where I got it. I got it in the kit!

I used Adirondack paint dabber in Cloudy Blue to "distress" the edges of all the panels. I find that this helps the different clear layers stand out better. And you only have to paint one side, since it IS clear and will be seen through both sides. With paint, ink, Stickles, etc., remember that on acrylic, less is more. Less product means it takes less time to dry through the non-porous plastic and you won't have to worry about buckling paper or embellishments.

Then I took one of Teresa Collin's journaling cards to give a brief synopsis of the album's subject: My boys' 6th and 2nd birthday party at an indoor play gym called Scooter's Jungle. I LOVE these journaling cards. Well, any journaling cards, really, Cosmo Cricket, 7Gypsies and other companies also have some great ones and they make journaling fast and much easier! Even though I was a copywriter in a former life, I still hate to take time out to journal, although I know how important it is. Plus, as much as you may "hate" your handwriting, it is important to have samples of it around for the sake of future generations. These journaling cards make it easy to leave some "samples" around.



I backed the title stickers with what I would call a sub-title, to cover up the blank, sticky sides of both sides. This might take some planning on your part. I started with the title, and then worked on a sub-title that was appropriate, and fit the more-important title on the cover. I also backed the cover journaling card with another one on the inside front cover and added a paperclip for fun.

The scalloped manila-colored paper behind Xan is actually the back side of a Teresa Collins journal page that come die cut in a set of four in a 12 x 12 sheet. You'll see more of it on the next page.



There's the front side of the journal page... and a lot of fun little details such as silly canvas tabs, mini file-folders and orange dots created with Sukura's Souffle pens. Have you tried these on non-porous stuff? They also have gel pens that are just beautiful.

In this album, I used a "mirror-image" technique, by covering photos on one side of the panel with others on the other side. This is the easiest way to design with acrylic, and the technique I encourage newbies to use until they get the hang of acrylic. The scalloped journaling page is an example of a "layering" technique, where items on either side are layered over each other in different areas to hide the adhesive holding them on. This method takes a little more planning, but can be a lot more interesting to the viewer as they try to figure out what is where in the album.

I also added a felt cut-out to the top right corner. I liked the additional texture, plus it is a functional addition - it adds additional protection so the pages don't slam together as much as the pages are turbook is handled.



I love the acrylic circle forming the clock! My first idea was to have the clock be more in the middle of the page so it could turn the "hands" of the clock for an interactive feature. But, if I did that, I would not have been able to have all the photos I wanted, so I had to give the idea up this time, but I filed it away for a future project! Instead, I used Tim Holtz Tonic Scissors to cut a straight edge on one side so that the circle wouldn't interfere with any binding. I still punched a hole through the circle and the paper clock I cut out from a journaling card and then sent a brad through both. I used Scrapbook Adhesives foam squares (very sticky) to raise the clock up a bit when I adhered it to the page. Because of its long reach, I used the Crop-a-dile II Big Bite to punch the holes. (Please note: If you are using the Bind-it-All to bind your album, please be sure to punch your pages before you put any 3D embellishments on! Wire bind after you put the 3D emebellishments on so you know how big of a wire to choose. For info on this, visit the K2R Tips and Tricks page.)



Here I bound in another journaling page and, well, journaled. I love the fact that Scooter's not only encourages, but GUILTS parents into participating. If other adults are playing, I don't feel like such an immature brat for sliding and bouncing as much as the kids do!



I only adhered the top, bottom and right side of this photo of Will so that I could slide the tags in the "pocket" created. More journaling and/or photos can go on these! Who said mini-books don't ever hold enough photos? Hidden and interactive elements are a great way to display dozens of photos in one small book!

Need more ideas? Check out with the K2R Design Krew has done by checking out their blog... you never know, they might be announcing a RAK soon!

As for the rest of my time, I am working on my "homework" for CKU Provo, tying up loose ends on the SoCal 2 Provo CKU Bus Shopping Tour and getting ready for the San Diego Scrapbook Expo. I will be updating my calendar soon, so be sure to check it out!