The NEON Challenge!!

2012 is the year neon came back!
I'm seeing it everywhere.

Even on the lace bows of expensive french lingerie! 

Who wears neutral underwear with blindingly bright pink bows that cost 200 just for the bra?

MATERIALS: Bazzill grey card stock, Cocoa Daisy stamp, Cosmo Cricket’s DeLovely paper,
Crafter’s Workshop 6x6 chevron stencil, SC Mister Huey in white and chipboard from
Crate Paper, Sakura Gelly Roll pen outlines in fluorescent yellow,  neon pink twine,
Cosmo Cricket Heart In The Dark alphas and Jenni Bowlin flying bird punch.

To celebrate, I'm hosting a challenge over at DO MORE WITH LESS.
Yvonne Yam's awesome scrap style is both clean, modern and full of messy techniques such as paint, upcycled items and glitter.
How does she manage to pull it all off with nary a finger print or stray pencil mark on the page???
I aspire to that kind of control over technique.

This project was shaping up so well! Those finger prints are
UNINTENTIONAL and decidedly UNHAPPY accidents!

Perhaps you have some generic price stickers or neon pink twine lying around?  Most of Hambly's entire inventory qualifies. I've also found lots of great neon in Basic Grey (Out of Print) and Crate Paper's Random line.
Cosmo Cricket totally saw the trend coming because the entire DeLovely line is neon and it came out last winter.

Martha Stewart NEON GLITTER! EEEE!
25 dollars for the pack! Coupon time!

If nothing else Sakura makes neon gellyroll pens. (EEEEE!)
I tend to buy these every time I go to the scrap store because I use them on everything.
And there's always the 89 cent bottles of craft acrylic paint from the kids section at the arts and craft store.

Price stickers, 89 cent paints and thread.
At 5 bucks a pop perhaps thread is the purchase you want to save till
you've decided you love neon.

Swing by Do More With Less- you probably are already a follower- she's that awesome.
Thank you so much for the opportunity Yvonne!

My second project-you can do better I'm SURE! I do like the border. REDO TIME!
Materials: Basic Grey Life of the Party, Ki Memories NYC puffy, woodgrain fabric circles, Hambly
woodgrain washi tape,  EK Success peg alpha stamps, Scrap FX flying bird chip board, American
Crafts Zing embossing powder, K & Co Smash tape, Tattered Angels Glimmer Glam in Mermaid.

Ah bribery- the BEST way to drive traffic.
Here's what you get if you win the challenge:

GRATUITOUS TODDLER SHOT!!!!

MuChoS SmOoChEs!
Michelle

Project Life (or 365) and why it matters

I'm seeing lots of scrappy goodies in all my CHA spying! So far I'm most inspired by what I see from Hambly- I love the bright color, the trendy prints. I'm also super excited by the new Crafter's Workshop stencils and Heidi Swap's Pink Paislee collections. (Office supplies in neon? LOVE!)
Quickie page made with a pad I found in Staples (while shopping for a new computer chair)

75 pages of these awesome mini goal pages- so ready for a mini book!

I wish this notebook was 3 by 5- it's PERFECT for Project Life! Alas it's 5 by 7 so I will be adding these pages to my Project 365 binder sans page protector.
Here are my 2 latest pages for 365.

Week 3- Lola turned to me one night after having spent 3 days indoors due to poor weather and asked- Mom let's go on an adventure. And pointed outside. She's TWO! I blame PBS! So I had a total brain wave- how do I make Lola's idea of an adventure more visual? A wheel of fortune! But mine is made from a View Master reel- (my latest obsession) This also covers visits and phone conversations with Grandma, the birth of a new niece and my visit to the Art Library.

Week 4- This week's highlight was a visit to The Highline Park- a park made on an old elevated train track. (!!) LOVE that place! I feel like I'm in some sophisticated European city without ever leaving the L line!  I also shot Lola eating sushi, journaling about our wonderful (not) trip to the Food Stamp office and the first snow day this season. 

I've been shooting every day and really wish I had pages that allowed for more detail- isn't that funny? I thought I would be hurting for "stories" but to an open mind (rather a blabber mouth) stories are EVERYWHERE. I'm seeing some debates on whether Project Life interests people outside the subject's immediate family.

After all, do you really want to see us brush our teeth?

Here's my theory- my own family doesn't care! Seriously! I couldn't get my Mom or husband to look at my binder come hell (pizza) or high water (beer) so I'm shooting just for me. In fact I think of my binder as my personal diary even if I post it online- here's why:

There are some very real reasons why doing a Project Life or Project 365 type projects is good for you-

1. Commitment and responsibility towards growth in your craft. Yes you can fussy cut, layer and embellish like a mad woman but can you finish an extended project? Why not? Things that make you go: hmmmm. Not a judgy HMMM!!!! Just Hmmm?

Week 1 (redo)- week one always bothered me- the canvas heart I thought was DA BOMB- well- bombed. 

So I took it out and you know what? It's fine! Still can't get photos of this page to focus!

2. Keeps you shooting. Do you think your life is boring? Who's fault is that? Sorry- it's YOURS. Make your life the FUN READ it is! No don't shoot the feet again! Don't shoot that cup of coffee- AGAIN. Find the individuality in your routine! Do you wiggle to top 40 songs while doing the dishes? HELLO? Put that camera on a timer! No kids? I already have one I want to see YOUR kidless life! Lots of kids? I only have one, wanna see how you manage yours! SHOOT YOUR STORY!

Squishy hats- I love 'em! Do you care? Probably not. But that's ok.

3. Gives you "ideas"- I will say it right here right now- your Project Life DOES NOT have to look like everyone else's! Does your LIFE look like fill-in-the-famous-scrapper's name here? NOPE! But does that make it less valuable? NOPE!!! You rock. You are unique and your story IS interesting- use your individual verve and humor. Be frank. Be introspective. I believe your kit can set you free! Just paint outside the lines a bit and you'll see! Uhhhmmm- channeling Dr. Seuss there for a bit.
I got several ideas making my latest page:

This first started as a chart, then turned into a "Ooo let's use that Studio Calico stamp!"
then I thought- here's something I haven't seen yet! I didn't even have to buy anything-
that's a scan from an old View Master reel!  Project Life keeps your creative flow going!

I really wish I had done a Project Life for Lola's first year- it would be SO AWESOME to look back on her first days now with full notes. A kit would have been PERFECT for me then too- I was so confused by all the scrap product choices to be made!

AAA! Look at that perfectly round head!! 2010

Ahh well. That's life.

A long walk- recorded. 

When you're ready. You're ready.

MuChOs SmOoChEs!
Michelle

Fall colors, beautiful light

Ok I can dig this Fall season- 78 degree weather and rain at night? It's perfect! We went into tree country last weekend to pick apples but the fall colors are not showing fully yet so I decided to get warmly cheerful in my current Punky Scraps layout:

Be
MATERIALS: Gauche Alchemy woodgrain punchinella (that's right WOODGRAIN) and Lady Marmelade orange mixed media color kit, Dusty Attic chipboard, Hambly Studio tranny, Studio Calico paper and tag, Mister Huey Hot Dog, Making Memories metal letters, Basic Grey brads, Mesh origami paper (!!!) and black acrylic paint.

The prompts were many and diverse for this "Get Picky" challenge so I procrastinated LOVELY the entire week. Finally, last night, after 2 bottles of Pacifico beer and a bag of Blue Cheese Kettle Chips I was ready- who cares if it was 1am?

The Mighty List:

Tamara - Hessian/Mesh

Kat - A Tag

Cheryl - steam punk imagery

Kerry - your own handwriting

Marie - black mist

Jolanda - a picture of your eye(s). what do they say/mean to you?

Celina - lace of any kind

Ashley - Doodling

Misty - metal

I was supposed to go deep with my journaling but what I really needed was a page I could hang on the wall and use as a touchstone while I worked- it reads: Do what you want- people will decide they don't like you anyway.
Not to sound like Michael Jackson who I thought spent entirely too much time being defensive (and dangling babies off hotel balconies) instead of concentrating on HIS WORK.

Thank you Shelley J for the beautiful Studio Calico paper!

I took a photo of an image I had opened on my computer desktop using the Hipstamatic app on my iTouch and my favorite lens filter- Watts. 

I then changed the contrast, color and added a round blur using Instagr.am. 

The paint splatters were made by watering down some acrylic paint and using a mascara brush to sprinkle tiny dots all over the page- I don't trust the spray nozzle on those bottles one bit.

                                                               *************************

'I also wanted to repost these tags that I linked over at Flashback Fridays. Amy sent me a nice email reminding me I'm not supposed to backlink an older post since the whole point is to show how much you have improved- yikes- sorry about that. I love these so I'm glad to have a chance to show them off again.

I made these for a tag swap over at Kreatorville Krafts using some old office folders, some scraps of
favorite prints from Sassafras Lass and Girl's Paperie, Making Memories metal tag rims and some buttons-
it took over a week because I kept over thinking the process but I loved the final product.

You can check out the original post here: Going Tag Crazy

Please swing by Punky Scraps and join the challenge- there are 2 prize packs available this month and only 1 person in the running for both- does that sound fair to you? Go up in there and give her some competition!

This year she actually rode the pony AND I managed to get an
eating apples shot where she didn't look like a zombie.
I can't believe that beanie still fits- It's 2 years old!

MuChOs SmOoChEs!
Michelle

Scribble scribble

Lola drew all over the toilet cover.... and all over the sink cabinet... and on several towels.
1 box of crayons and 10 minutes in the bathroom while I was trying to take a shower- that's all it took.
As my Mom would say "PRIMERISA!"
First timer!
Never look away during the crayon phase!! Which means I'll be staring at her till she's about 6, doesn't it?

But I guess I'm weird (or limited edition- heh heh) because the crayoned up toilet cover is staying- I like it- it's unique. The towels were fine after a good wash. No photo of the toilet- the idea of showing it skeeved me out- sorry.

I'm trying to find different ways to organize shapes on my pages- I feel this one hasd too much white space in the middle and looses the viewer- what do you think?
Materials: Jillibean Soup folder, Pink Paislee border strip, Sassafras border strip, Studio Calico exclusive red woodgrain, journaling tag and doily from K and Company

Also, over at Gauche Alchemy, fellow team member Christina is showing a gorgeous mixed media piece she made with with an old t-shirt, seed beads and a few strips of punchinella- it's really great work click the link above to check it out.

Salt Lake City mountain and sky

MuChOs SmOoChEs!
Michelle