A Flair For Buttons Scrapbook extraveganza!

Hello and welcome to the A Flair For Buttons Blog Hop!!

I'm so excited to be part of this team.

I genuinely love Shelley's flair- the color- the variety of designs and themes.

I love to add the word flair as part of a title or layering patterned ones to add pop to an otherwise flat page.

A Flair For Buttons Script Words Flair - Bright and Funky Flair
I used American Crafts die cuts, wood veneer and enamel dots from Cocoa Daisy kits and
paper from Crate's "DYI"collection which I bought for 5 bucks at TJ Maxx.

I love this pre-school portrait photo. Not sure Lola's 12 year old self will agree but I still love it.
A Flair For Buttons flair- Chalkboard School Days flair, and one of my all time most favorite sets ever
Paper Airplane Flair.
I love that fox sweater from Gymboree! Only now do I realize the Fox and Owl flair would have been perfect for this!

It's been great being part of this team for the last 2 years. 

Thanks Shelley for being so supportive!

On to creations by the rest of the team!

Erica Weinstock

Michelle Hernandez

Joy Taylor 

Mary Ann Maldonado

Ashli Oliver

Diane Payne

Els Brige

Sherri Funk

Daniela Dobson

{a flair for buttons}

Have a great weekend!

Michelle

Inspiration Elevator Challenge- Letter to your Teen Self.

Hello happy people!!!

I've been sooo busy avoiding any and all crafty pursuits. My mojo is gone fishing for the moment.

This latest Inspiration Elevator challenge freed me up a bit.

I started thinking about what I would write, how to make it relevant to my life today and to my primary audience (always Miss Lola) when suddenly the page's design mattered less.

This is a good thing as I usually get so wound up making an "original" design, my story (the whole point of making a page) takes a back seat.

AHA!!!! Here is how the page appears when I link up to my Flickr! 

You can also see everything else in my Flickr account... excuse me as I learn the internet.. again.

Here I'm using an iPod Touch and the AfterLight app to shoot and retouch my pages.
Blogger seems to be compressing the files and rendering them incorrectly.
You can try clicking on it to get a clear look- my apologies.
I started off with the 2 A Flair For Buttons flair and a Crate Paper background.
I didn't want the page to look like one of my usual scrapbook projects so I resisted
adding a photo at first but I have a bunch of these under exposed Instax Mini shots
lying around- each of those prints costs a dollar so you better believe I'm using them all!

Basically the text reads- don't sweat the failures- you get one thing right and it's the most important thing of all. 

I was talking to a past and even MORE resistant version of me so I get pretty stark in my words.

If you think I'm overly pessimistic and broody at 40 you would have LOVED me at 16.

The teen years are hard for everyone, your moral values and ideals are mostly set in place but you fall all over yourself either trying to prove you are independent and grown up or running away from doing so.

So without getting bogged down in the details (which my teen ear would have rejected anyway) I decided to give my past self some comfort. I'm not the walking error machine I was convinced I was. 

I was -am- pretty freaking great at figuring things out.

I'm almost ready to give up the hunt for perfect design and just keep doing this in all my other pages.
Scrapbooking has gotten too complicated.

And now a word from our sponsor:

You may recall that the purpose of this challenge group is to take our scrapbooking to the next level, to stretch our creative process and to grow as artists by embracing challenges that make us think, work and extend ourselves. You can view all of the challenges at our Inspiration Elevator Blog, here. 

Our challenge this month was posed by the very talented Ann Jobes. Here's how she expressed this month's challenge:

My daughter subscribes to Dance Spirit magazine and I sometimes browse through it, too. One of my favourite monthly features is an article that features a different dancer each month, some photos of that dancer, and a description of their current work, and (the best part!) a letter. The theme is a Letter to My Teenage Self. The content ranges, depending on the dancer and his/her experience, morals, ideals, etc. So this month's assignment is to write a letter to your teenage self. You can take any approach you'd like to this - scrapbook page, art journal page, canvas. However the prompt inspires you. And your content is of course up to you, as well. Some topics might be: what would you try to teach yourself? Or, what would you counsel yourself to do or not do? This does not have to be a page about regrets. It could be about congratulating yourself on something you did right that has contributed to who you've become today. 

Here is a photo of a recent magazine feature, if it inspires you:

Please visit the other Inspiration Elevator designers' blogs and see how they solved Ann's challenge:

Ann Jobes 

Laura Whitaker

Lisa Moen

Cathy Harper

Joanne Burton

Jodi Wilton

Michelle Hernandez

We would LOVE to see you take up Ann's challenge this month, so if you do, please share it at our linkup on the Inspiration Elevator blog.

Get writing mi gente!

Pumpkin picking madness.

Inspiration Elevator Challenge- Christmas photo memories

Hello hello!

Perhaps you've been wondering where I disappeared to for a month.

I started a new full time job with a schedule I haven't been able to squeeze spare time from.

I've wanted to get back to blogging and creating but this hobby sucks up time like no other.
Or maybe that's just my process- I knew what I wanted to do with this page- I just needed 4 hours to do it in- lol!

One of my all-time favorite Christmas spot is Macy's Department store in 34th street.
We won't  be in New York until Thanksgiving so I used a photo from last year.

That's Lola scribbling a "Letter to Santa" from our visit to the store last year.
She's literally just making lines but I LOVE the look of intense concentration on her face!!!

For this page I used some Studio Calico paper I got at TJ Maxx, wood star buttons from Prima,
red tag from Cocoa Daisy and a star flair from A Flair For Buttons.

You may recall that the purpose of the Inspiration Elevator challenge group is to take our scrapbooking to the next level, to stretch our creative process and to mature as artists by embracing challenges that make us think, work and grow. You can view all of the challenges at the Inspiration Elevator Blog.

I have a very odd ideas about proper/good parenting.
One of my biggest quirks is the tell no lies rule.
It's absolute and can land me in plenty of social hot water.
Lola has no idea who Santa is- funny how this doesn't seem to interfere with the magic
and meaning of the holiday.
Here she's writing "Santa" a letter.
She has no idea why but that doesn't take away from the fun.

We are thrilled to welcome guest artist Misty Russell and her eclectic, artistic style to Inspiration Elevator this month.

 November's challenge comes from the very talented Joanne Burton. Here's the challenge she posed:

"November's Challenge: Back in Time.  I love looking through old photos (or not so old photos!) and remembering the great memories that go along with them. Some pictures evoke a strong emotional response while others just bring a sweet smile to our face as we recall the details of when it was taken. With that in mind, I would like each of you to pick a favourite photo and go back in time! I want you to take your photo and actually revisit the place where the photo was taken. Then take a 'picture of the picture' in it's original setting and scrapbook your new photo. **If you are absolutely not able to revisit the place where the photo was first taken, then pick a favorite picture with lots of memories attached to it and scrapbook that. 

In either case, I want you to journal the story behind your photo. Make your journaling and photo come together in such a way that we feel like we are back in time with you!"

 I hope you will stop by and see what the rest of the incredible Inspiration Elevator designers have created:

Joanne Burton 

Jodi Wilton 

Michelle Hernandez 

Ann Jobes 

 Laura Whitaker 
Cathy Harper

Lisa Moen 

Lisa Spiegel 

Guest Designer Misty Russell 

If you feel inspired to play along with our challenge this month, please share it using the linky tool on our Inspiration Elevator blog and/or our Inspiration Elevator Facebook page. We'd LOVE to see what you made!

Have a great weekend!
Michelle

A Flair For Buttons and DCWV Blog Hop!!!!

Hello  Hello HELLO!

I am SO EXCITED to be sharing a couple of pages with you today.

DCWV was the first scrapbook brand I picked up back in 2009 when I started looking for pretty paper to make decorations for future Lola's room.

Off to Joann's I went and there it was- cue angels singing- The Mariposa Stack.
Suddenly I had a million ideas that only needed a pair of scissors to bring to life.

Since then I've had fun creating with their new Adhesive Fabric stack, The Colorful Life Stack, The Snapshot Stack and here's an oldie but still a favorite- Downtown Loft which is full of mod prints and Manhattan themed papers.

The lucky DT members of  A Flair For Buttons each got a stack to create with.
I got The Glam Rock stack.

I made this card:

Some pop dots, fussy cutting and 20 minutes later I had a party invite.

And this page:

I love paper strips so this page came together quickly after I cut the foiled silver "belts" out.
I used flair from the following packs:
Rock On Flair 1,
Arrows kraft and black 1,
and Dartboards flair- I will be ordering 20 more of those black and white striped beauties!

I did get a little stuck when I first opened my package because I have a 4 year old who's still listening to "Old McDonald" and "The Wheels on the Truck".
So I don't have a rocking out photo to use- yet.
Then I found that photo of Lola and her cousins and a page popped into my brain instantly.

That's what I love about DCWV packs- you can use the themed packs for almost anything- all you need is scissors, glue and a couple of hours.

Joining my today in this fun smash up are:

Erica Weinstock

Me! :)

Mary Ann Maldonado

Diane Payne

Ashli Oliver

Please swing by each blog to check out how we used our packs- I sure there will be a delightful surprise in each blog.

Before I forget- here is the coupon code to get 10% off your next A Flair For Buttons order:

Thanks for stopping by!
Michelle

Skissedilla and DCWV & A Flair For Buttons Blog Hop sneak peeks

Hello!
Been gone for two weeks. OOPS!
There's lots of scrappy paper crafting going on in the background.

This Saturday I'll be participating in the first ever DCWV - A Flair For Buttons blog hop.
I made a couple of pages that took me out my usual color scheme so I'm excited.
Here are two a sneaky peeks at my projects:

I looked at the large record page on the DCWV stack FOR-EVER till this subject  idea rose up.
Whew! No need for a photo of   Lola rocking out to Van Halen after all.

I made a card- an actual CARD!!! And one I like- very rare indeed.

Then on Sunday, my guest designer for the October Skissedilla sketch challenge goes up.
I'm honored to be part of this group which has introduced me to so many incredible scrappers.
Sneaky peek:

I used a butterfly punch garland I've had in my stash for over a year as well as my
absolute favorite mini feathers chipboard from Scrap FX. My page won't be the only one
posted either- it's gonna be fly mi gente.

I've been doing a lot of soul searching as of late.
I write posts in my head but because I committed to a path of positivity (wait- is that even a word?) here I haven't been able to truly capture how I feel.
How much do I reveal?
How much detail do readers care to know?

It's hard to find the middle ground between honesty and pure emotional detritus.
So I'm keeping my trap shut for now.
Frankly- how I feel changes so frequently shutting up is probably the best idea- when I figure things out I can  tell it all with some perspective or just laugh at all the internal drama and move the effer on.

Anyway if you have some time this weekend please swing by and say hello.

We stumbled across a pumpkin farm on the way home yesterday- lots of  last minute Fall themed photos ensued.

Have a great week.
Michelle

A simple page for Scrap FX

Hello and happy Labor Day folks!

The last couple of weeks I've been trawling galleries looking for inspiration.

I felt my pages were starting to get a little repetitive.

I came across CFlattop's gallery over at scrapbook.com and was incredibly inspired.
I  love how she reduces details to the essential and how she uses flashes of color to focus attention on her photos.

I decided to stop trying to make technique fireworks happen and start focusing on editing again.

Here is the resulting page:

Please excuse the grease stain. I laid the page down on the table after
I was done only to find half a peanut underneath.

Foiled in my quest for perfection yet again!

I used Scrap FX Fern Flourish and mini wings chipboard.

I also used Home 2 and Big Words flair from A Flair For Buttons.

The card stock is from American Crafts and the stencil from

Stencil1. The feathers were cut from an Echo Park print.

It's funny what we sacrifice in search of "progress".

My definition of forward motion doesn't include material things.

It's time with my family, being a Mom. 

Have a great day off!!!

Michelle

Using gesso and Scrap FX chipboard for Project Life

Happy Friday folks!

Today I want to share a page from my moribund Project Life album.

 I readily admit my album currently holds 16 pages- 8 from 2012.

Scrap FX  Triangle border stencil on the yellow washing tape, stripes flair
from A Flair For Buttons.

I love the idea of a daily crafty photo  journal entry. 

It's keeping up with the daily deadline and printing photos that's killing me.

Scrap FX kraft 3x4 pocket inserts, Art Nouveau set C and the punchinella from
 a Scrap FX mini apples chipboard set.

Especially now I don't have an actual computer just my trusty iTouch and the local Walgreen's 1 hour photo kiosk.

 The page in planning stage. I printed the photos at
Walgreens so they are way too dark and contrasty.
Scrap FX chipboard and pocket inserts make for a great looking page but all white backgrounds are in
Vogue so I jazzed this up with some gesso. 

The less I worry about PL rules and make pages when I feel like it, the better the final product.

No dates, no random life detail photos no one cares about, no expensive dedicated paper kits that I drool over but never use.

I focus on the daily emotional moments (believe me- there are many in all families) and my journaling.

I hope you have an adventurous weekend!

Seize the Saturday and Sunday!

Michelle

Pattern and layers- A Flair For Buttons post

Hello and happy Friday!

Today I want to share a page I made for A Flair For Buttons.

I started with the fantastic circles pattern in the background and quickly decided I liked this pattern with the b/w chevron. After that is was just about playing around with window and pop out details.

The photo in this page is a good reminder- having fancy filter apps to add titles and effects on your photos is great but if your original image was already low rez, adding effects to the image will only highlight it's lack of focus.

Since I'm working without my beloved Mac I have no choice but to take images with my ipod and print to Walgreens.
It's an awful substitute to printing images at home where I tweak everything in photoshop but that's how I'll have to work for the foreseeable future.

I'm finding great American Crafts product bargains at TJ Maxx (Amy Tangerine, Studio Calico, Dear Lizzy) and Tuesday Morning (Crate Paper and Cosmo Crickett) 

Picking flair buttons for this page was easy!
Deciding which ones to keep and which ones to use somewhere else was hard.

Please swing by the Flair buttons blog and check out Ashley's fantastic series: "No More Floating Flair" where she talks about different ways to incorporate flair into your layouts without making them look totes random (a particular issue with my pages- lol!)

Have a great weekend!
Michelle

Stencil Girl Blog hop sneak peek AND blog hop WINNERS!

Hello!

I am SO SORRY I forgot to pick a winner for last weeks A Flair For Buttons blog hop!

OOPS!

The winner is Staci of  This Black Butterfly!

YAAAYYYY!!!
Thanks for being a long time supporter Staci. I hope you love and use your flair right away!

If you'd like to know who the winner was for the Scrap FX/Ruby Rock It hop please tune into the SFX blog here.

And the SNEAK for Stencil Girl Products:

Art journal page. I also have a scrapbook page. Swing by the see what Nat's
amazing team of mixed media artists did.

Wow- that's 4 blog hops in 5 days!!
BUSY BUSY BUSY!

Hope you are having a great week!
Michelle

Flair button love! A Flair For Buttons blog hop.

Good Friday morning folks!!

Welcome to the A Flair For Buttons blog hop!!!

Shelley's designs keep getting cooler!

Swing by the A Flair For Buttons Etsy shop to see the variety.

You can use the ILOVESUMMER13 coupon code to get 10% off your next order.

If you leave a comment on each blog you will also be entered to win a free pack of flair. 
I just completed the hop- the projects will make it worth your while- promise!

It's been a fun week for me.

I stayed up all Wednesday night reading a modern sequel to Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" called "Mr. Darcy's Daughters" by Elizabeth Aston- it was a page turner.

Then last night I saw Erica Badu totally blow up her usual smooth jazz hits on stage and a long held regret of mine was finally put to rest.

Back in 2004 I had tickets to her show but bailed because "Who was Erica Badu?" Who indeed.
I kicked myself for the following 10 years or so.

But there you have it- proof.

Life is full of second chances.

In honor of a good lesson learned, I decided to give my paper stash a second chance.

I also finally let go of flair I was hoarding for my dead as a door nail Project Life album.

Here's my project for the hop:

I had a hard time with this concept! I wanted to play with layers. The page got remade several times before I decided this was the final. I love the idea of frames and paper strips so I may try this concept out a few more times.
I used the following flair for this page:
 My Life Words 3 pack (turquoise so you)
My Life Words 2 pack (turquoise today)
Phrases 2 pack (royal blue totally rad)

Some close ups:

I didn't bring my typewriter or sewing machine with me for the move and I've sorely missed both. Here I was just going back to basics- fussy cutting and bending the items so they gave depth to the page.

I wish I had gotten the yellow "today instead". Next time I'll just get that phrase in all colors-
it's so versatile. Charity race we walked (ha!) was named "Color Me Rad". This button was
perfect for the theme page.

Please take a few moments to swing by the all the blogs participating. 

The level of creativity and innovation exhibited by this team is truly inspiring.

Diane Payne

Michelle Hernandez

Mary Ann Maldonado

Leslie Ashe

Ashley Harris

Ashli Oliver

Erica Weinstock

I hope you have a fantastic creative weekend.

Get out there and kick regret's butt!

Kicking life's butt is a family affair.

Michelle

Scrapping the city 5 ways. The cityscape trend in my scrapbooking.

Hello from cloudy (YAY!) Utah!

Today I want to share different ways I've used the cityscape theme in my scrapbook pages.
You've probably seen some of these pages before but it's nice to have them all collected in one page.

For me scrapping the city isn't about keeping up with scrapbook trends but more about reflecting my environment and finding ways to capture my reality visually.

Now that my family has moved to Salt Lake City, these pages have become deeply nostalgic and important to me.

One of my new realities is having to explain why we left.
I open my mouth, I get questions about my accent.
I show my id or give my zip code to make a purchase, I get questions.
I like talking about it but it's also making me feel a bit self-conscious.

Here's the skinny:
NYC is awesome!
It's also expensive, dangerous to the unwary and challenging to raise children in.
Can you get with this wild galloping beast of a place?

My family wanted to start a business and New York with all it's opportunity was actually not the best place to do so.
I'm grieving- give me a couple of months.

Anyway- onto the show!
I didn't upload those photos to my ipod (or bring my actual computer) so I have to use screen captures for this post- my apologies.

My Get It Scrapped page (swing by to see how the rest of the DT used the city as a motif in their pages)
For this I used Sassafras Lass paper and stickers, Amy Tangerine embroidery stencil

I wanted to use a larger cityscape here as well so I added the empire state building using
an old chipboard I had in my stash as a guide. The numbers in the photo are my old zip code

Photos- the easiest way to get it done.

I have so many photos of the Empire State Building I try to switch things up and make pages without a "street feel". Here I likes how the butterflies matched the colors in the photo.

Ephemera- in this case a tag from a pair of pants from Jones New York:

The canvas tag was too awesome to throw away.
This page is about Project Inside Out which is a giant camera in a van.
Check out their facebook page to see when they will be swinging by your state!

Scrap FX Chipboard (which I usually use unfinished):

A page for an article on finishing chipboard that I wrote for Shimelle.com.
I used Scrap FX chipboard, A Flair For buttons flair
and liquitex acrylic spray paint.

Crafter's Workshop stencil and LOTS of vintage buttons:

I love this last page. I almost threw it out mid way because aI thought it was too dreary.
I added the buttons to liven it up a bit. This is Ronda Palazzari's Urban Landscape stencil from
Crafter's Workshop.

I'd love to see how you've incorporated cityscapes into your projects.
Leave a link in the comments section and I'll swing by!

Have a great week!
Michelle

Light molding paste fun with Scrap FX stencils.

Hello!

It's been raining everyday here in sunny Utah. 

I'm loving it!

Rainy humid 100 degree days remind me of New York which I miss terribly.

Want to know something weird?
Lightning scares the bejesus out of me!

I'm not used to seeing actual ray strikes.
How weird is it to see multiple rays lighting up the sky!
And cloud to cloud lightning?
FREAKY!!!!
I'm used to seeing lights and maybe the occasional zig-zag in the sky directly over head- seeing the whole thing from sky to land makes me jump and scream every single time.

AND? ALSO???
I saw a dust devil!
Wait- no- I saw THREE!

We were on the highway heading home after the Yellowstone camping initiation/ hazing ceremony
(98 degrees during the day- 30 degrees at night- wooooot!- Also- bears.)

FIRST my sister in law's car was almost pushed off the highway by a flying tire fragment from a truck's tire blow out.
Just as we got over it, I look out the window to the fields and hello
MINI TORNADO!!
TWO!!!
LOOK! THREE!
AAAAAAAAA!!!!!!

Oh no worries I was assured- those are just caused by dust and wind currents.
WHATEVER!!!
GET. ME. HOOOOOME!

So anyway it's been awesome- nature is so amazing
especially when you witness all it's glory while sitting nice and warm at HOME.

Here is a page I made despite serious lack of spark, mojo, focus, IDEAS

Water color paper is awesome. I messed the back up so I just turned it over and started again on the back. I painted a sunny circle and then pushed bits of paper around for hours till I got this configuration.
Materials: Scrap FX urban stencil, Crate Paper The Pier paper, American Crafts Thickers Glits gold alphabet stickers, flair from A Flair For Buttons, canvas hexagons by Studio Calico, Martha Stewart gold and turquoise paint, Paper Studio ATC pack. Flowers by Making Memories- stashed since 2009- glad to be rid of them finally.
Photo by Saidy Lopez.

I was casing Pinterest (yet again- I spend so much time pinning I leave no time for blogging- exactly ass backwards.)

I saw two pages by Denise Morrison which blew. me. away.
Check out her bloggity blog- Life Is Yummy

Denise was using light modeling paste on transparency material to add texture and see through stencil patterns to her scrapbooking.
ZOMG! GENIUS!!!
SO. MANY. IDEAS!

One of the reasons I rarely use modeling paste on my pages is because it takes a while to dry and it's so expensive I really don't want to "make a mistake".

One note- find a glue that works on plastic or get ready to be annoyed.

HELLO genius technique!
Using it on a transparency means I get to layer it wherever and if I make a "mistake" I can scrape it off and start again or move the piece somewhere else on the page.
Before you ask- yes it sticks- and no it doesn't crack even if you staple over it.
It's really a great solution!

Here I am trying it out with the Scrap FX roses stencil- LUSCIOUS!!

What's more- molding paste takes color mediums beautifully- that's what it's meant for after all. (Sorry my no art practice just history background means I just stumble on this stuff randomly through other blogs- you probably know more than I do)

I'm in looooove!

July snow and shorts. Yes. it's Utah. Cottonwood Canyon- Cecret Lake Trail.
I wonder why it's spelled "Cecret".
I'm thinking some gold miner got it wrong and no one bothered to correct it in 200 years.

Chells out!

A remote post!!!

Hello from Salt Lake City!

I wrote a whole post and added a bunch of photos but forgot to hit save!

whoops

It's 103 degrees today!

Isn't that awesome? 

I feel baked.

My skin is literally cracking from the dry air and hard water.

But this is an adventure right?

(Say yes)

Last week I got to cross an item off my "bucket list" (that over used term finally applies to me)

Some pix: 

And:

Not to mention:

The nights at Yellowstone were FREEZING! 30 degrees!

Hello??? It's june!

But whatever,  it was awesome.

There are many more photos but they will have to wait until I figure out how to post lower resolution photos via my iTouch.

I hope this isn't slowing your browser down....

My first SLC scrapbook page:

Ooo I can't choose how big these photos will appear on the blog post... Or write proper captions! 

Feedback please.

I took the photo of this page using the "Afterlight" photo app so I could control the resolution (800x800 dpi) but for all I know it will look tiny compared to the monsters above that I uploaded using my iPod  photostream. They are the highest resolution available since I want to be able to print reasonably good looking photos.

I'm using the free blogger app- it's not very detailed and I can't seem to add links- bad for SEO...

Oh oh- none of my images are optimized either- no one will ever find this post!! GAH!!!

For my page I used:

Scrap FX pirate pack (compass)

 Scrap FX white tags

Scrap FX pointing fingers packI 

flair from A Flair For Buttons 

A FABULOUS new stencil from Natalie Kalbach's Stencil Girl line.

The chevron stamp is from a fantastic Etsy shop- DrumChickDesigns. 

The stamps are hand carved and mounted on thin wood for optimum storage and usability.

Love her shop!

(PS- II'm not affiliated with this business at all. I was impressed with the spectacular customer service and thought it should get props.)

I really hate not being able to add photo captions. This is Nat's background stencil. The 9x12 design is really easy to use. I like to include borders in my stencil play so this smaller size is fun for my style.

Let me know what you think about this post.

Did  it load quickly? 

Do you care about personal trip photos?

Did remote posting work?

Have a great weekend!!!

Michelle.

Change- on going for it. Also, my opinionated self is back.

I'm down to the last few days here in New York City.
On saturday I will be leaving for Salt Lake City with Miss Thang in tow.
We will be very happy to be reunited Dave.
Apparently there are many nasty storms coming this weekend?
I foresee fun times stuck at the airport with a crabby Lola.

We'll see if my residence is permanent in Salt Lake City.
I am tempted by the idea of having a backyard and a vegetable garden to worry over.
Perhaps if I can focus on my carrots I will stop being so neurotic over my scrapbook pages.
Can you grow carrots successfully in the SLC summer?
The climate seems rather severe- AHA! A challenge!

I will admit I have huge HUGE concerns about moving.
The first and foremost is diversity- of all kinds.

I am very comfortable in Brooklyn where if you swing a hoola-hoop you will hit someone from a random and fascinating part of the world you've always wanted to visit. 
And a young person who grew up in the midwest but is now running around wearing ironic 80's hair band t-shirts, ripped jeans, thick framed glasses and a mustache.

I'm not sure what I'm reacting to so negatively.
I've traveled lived in Oklahoma City, Detroit, Denver and even a tiny town in Texas where the movie theater was a 20 mile drive "into town".
I liked all those places.
Perhaps it's the reality that I will most likely not return to New York which is now the most expensive city in America.

Salt Lake City is beautiful and lively.. and COLD... and SNOWY... and spread out in all kinds of distressing ways which never include public transportation.
I will be trapped in the home we are staying until I learn to drive.
ACK!
The last time I visited there weren't any sidewalks because it was assumed everyone drove.
There is another place that does that.
LA.
I HATE LA.

It is my opinion that you are a true New Yorker if you do the following things:

1. You know what a Egg Cream is and you take the subway to some random neighborhood in Brooklyn because "it's the best one around". You can substitute pupusa, canoli, bagel or curry goat for egg creams which are also popular in Baltimore and Philly.
2. You've pushed hard to get into the crowded subway train car at 8:45am expecting to get to work on time. Actual physical distance of work to home be damned.
3. You hate LA. 

Los Angeles is the anti- New York. 

A vast shinning wasteland of stuck-in-traffic cars, smarmy "agents" looking for the next rap video girl (this actually happened- I'll tell you about it someday- and yes- I declined), smog and people INSISTING they are happy because they sun sets there.
No one walks in LA unless it's in some strange gym machine that takes up half a room.

Life is best where you are happiest, where you feel most productive and centered.

It is my deeply held belief that I will be happy wherever Dave and Lola are.
Ok so there won't be decent pizza or Polish pastry available.
I think that might be ok too.
I can try to make my own right? (hanging question mark- we all know that ain't happening)

A scrap page:

Perhaps I wasted this gorgeous thick Crane's paper meant for
fancy wedding invites? It really would have taken press embossing well.
Materials: Scrap FX graphic circle and Playground alphabet set, A Flair For Buttons "yes!" button,
Sassafras Lass sticker, My Mind's Eye enamel dots, Webster's Pages triangle paper, My Mind's Eye pink
striped paper, My Mind's eye alphabet sticker sheet. Numbers stencil from Plaid. Yellow plastic
triangles from Freckled Fawn.

Layering doesn't have to be a million little things.
Here I created a grid background with a few sheets of
leftover sticker sheets. It goes alphabet sticker sheet,
journaling sticker, black paper to cover journaling lines that were distracting,
"Go for it" sticker from Jillibean Soup, Sassafras heart, title.
The trick is to try to choose items that have at least 1 color similar and
vary the edge shapes.
Stenciling things into the backgrounds also helps- if you make a
"mistake" it's easily covered by your layers.

A quick sneak peak of what's coming on saturday- Inspiration Elevator reveal day:

Dang it- I have to get a better shot.
The challenge is "Before and After" and you have to do a LOT of journaling.

Just as I leave, a new park opens- Bushwick Inlet Park. 

The views of the Empire State Building are INCREDIBLE-  check it out.

This was taken with my crappy ipod camera. Can you see the rain falling in the Bronx to the right?
 SEE MOM? TOLD YA! The weather is different borough to borough! We just had really cool waves.
This place is AMAZING.

Have a GREAT week everybody!
Michelle