Waiting ... Waiting ... Waiting!!!

Hi Everyone,

This month's challenge over at Scrap Around The World inspired me to capture a happy long ago Christmas in a fun scrapbook page. Here's the inspiring mood board put together by DT member Anna Komenda ...


There are loads of fab prizes to be won, and just for this month you can enter tags or ATCs as well as scrapbook pages, canvases and art journals. There's also a special prize sponsored by Yours Truly for combining inspiration from the mood board with this brilliant sketch from Stuck?! Sketches ...


Twenty-five years ago this week, my little boys would have been SO excited!!! They would have been on best behaviour for at least a couple of months, because Father Christmas used to send a robin to our garden to keep a beady little eye on them from around September onwards, just to make sure they were being good boys (I always thought this little addition to our family folklore was a stroke of genius on my part!!)

They loved helping with all the preparations - making paper chains, decorating the tree, wrapping presents and baking - but by this stage, the waiting was starting to seem endless. I really enjoyed remembering those happy times as I put this page together, using the sketch and several elements from the mood board ...



You don't have to use the mood board colours for this challenge, but I LOVE the combination of icy blues, snow white, biscuity brown, dark chocolate and cherry red - perfect for my theme! Starting with a couple of sheets of cardstock in kraft and white as a background, I then rummaged through my paper scraps and pulled out a few possibilities (now that they're all organised into colour families this is so much easier and they're nearly all used up now) ...


Next I chucked in some Papermania doilies, wooden ruler paper and freebie die cuts ...


 ... and dug into my drawers for some other bits and bobs inspired by the mood board ...


... such as snowflake stickers, kraft photo corners from HobbyCraft and these fab chippies I found in Poundland which I thought could be altered to look like painted wood. I always pull out far more stuff than I end up using, but for me is such a necessary and fun part of the process :o)

Next, I added some fluffy wool, a crocheted doily (thanks Lizzy Hill!), a handful of vintage buttons, two kinds of washi and a pack of Papermania bottle tops - picked out for the colours and the chevrons ...


Finally, I threw in a few different lettering options as I wanted to mix the alphas for my title ...


And so at last I was ready to begin. I started by distressing the edges of the white cardstock before adhering it to the kraft background, then I used one of the stitching pieces from my Georgie stamp set to add some interest ...


... applied some embossing paste applied through starry punchinella for texture and some stencilled Distress Inks to add a touch of colour and start to map out the design ...


Then it was just a matter of following the sketch and piling up the layers, taking care to balance the design by echoing the larger grouping with the smaller cluster and continuing until I was happy with the overall effect ...


... then going in again to add the bits and bobs ...


A tangle of fluffy fibre across the page, then some twinkly stickers and a spritz of Heidi Swapp Color Shine to remind me of tinsel and fairy lights ...


... and  now I was ready to add my pictures ...


Just look at these photos of my sweet boys and our home made Snowman Cake waiting for Christmas ...


... bless!! I used the photo corner from my Georgie stamp set to create a coordinating frame and some scraps of patterned paper to make a hinged flap like this ...


... which opens up to reveal the second photo like this ...


When I have a minute to myself, I plan to write some fairly extensive journaling and tuck it into and envelope which will sit just here underneath the pictures - get some of those happy Christmas memories down on paper! How strange it is that I blinked and suddenly Richard (on the left) is 32 and Tom (on the right) is 31! Where did it go??!!?

Anyway, all I had left to do was to add my title - I used a mixture of alphas ...


So, from the mood board I took my colour scheme as well as several other elements - chevrons, wool, wood, fairy lights, texture paste, snowflakes and mixed alphas AND I used the sketch, so I can enter this page over at Stuck?! Sketches as well as Scrap Around The World - BONUS!! :o)

Thanks for visiting my blog today, see you again soon!

Annie xxx



Comments

Unknown said…
Such a fab page and I soo enjoyed seeing your process! Great elements and a fun memory! Maybe you invented the idea of elf on the shelf with your robin! lol Thanks for playing along at Stuck?!
Such a delightful scrapbook layout, Annie! Your clustering is faultless - I was never really good at it myself. I immediately recognized some of your Georgie stamps;) Cute little boys you had - Christmas 1987! Gosh, I remember so clearly! That was the very first time I had visited Britain! I was an au pair near London!
Lizzy Hill said…
Loooove seeing ur step by step... I'm such s sticky beak when it comes to how peeps scrap!!! And this is a stunning page! Adore the colours, the layering, the clusters--- new fave alert!!!
Tracey said…
Absolutely adore your page!! Awesome!!
Val-Belle said…
I love your creating process. I wonder if that is why i have no mojo cause I don't know what the hell I do or don't have in my stash. I seriously need to get my act together. Love the colours of this one and soooooo clever to get a Robin each year ;P Love this Annie and that you could use your fab stamps on it.
Our strike is supposedly off now and I want to order your stamps ;) Have yourself a Merry merry Christmas <3
Tracy P said…
Love the tutorial and I love your photo! Great take on the sketch. Thanks for joining in with us at Stuck?!
Great tutorial and beautiful layout! Love the photo!
Thank you for playing with SATW!
langeatheart said…
What a beautiful page! I like that you shared the process with us always love to see how a page comes together! Love the layering! Great details! All the best from SATW! :) And remember to be eligible for some of the prizes you must become a follower of that designers blog! :)
langeatheart said…
What a beautiful page! I like that you shared the process with us always love to see how a page comes together! Love the layering! Great details! All the best from SATW! :) And remember to be eligible for some of the prizes you must become a follower of that designers blog! :)
Татьяна said…
great layout! I love it! Thanks for playing with SATW!
KerrynF said…
Your page is gorgeous, love the interpretation of the mood board. Thanks for playing along with Stuck?! Sketches this month.
Jinny Newlin said…
What a BEAUTIFUL page! So many fantastic elements, I couldn't possibly pick a fave! Yum! Thanks so much for playing along with us at Stuck?! Sketches!