Scrap the Boys and Stick it Down collaborative challenge February

The design team at Scrap the Boys have been invited this month to collaborate for a challenge at Stick it Down, with this sketch:

There is a cut file available for this challenge, but I don't have a silhouette, so had to go my own way with the challenge. I really struggled with it, I don't know why, but perhaps I was trying to keep to the sketch too much, and not do my own interpretation of it. So once I switched my thinking, it started to fall into place. 

I used this photo of my niece and her little family, I really liked it to represent love. 

I created the background with lots of spraying in different blues and browns, and added some stamping. Setting the heart off to the side was the best thing I did, and then adding my small cluster to the left hand side of the layout helped to tie it in to the sketch. Some die cut leaves in my clusters seemed right, as well as the Charms Creations heavenly heart. 

In the end, I grew to love this layout, despite the troubles I had at the start. 

Love

Show Us Your Stuff February 2018 challenge

Our new challenge at Show Us Your Stuff for February, is this awesome sketch:

I loved this sketch, and it was the cluster in the graphic with the leaves and flamingo, that helped me to choose a photo for this challenge. I created the background with texture paste, and lots of different colour mediums, including Ken Oliver colour bursts, and inks and other sprays. It got quite wet, lot. I also did a bit of stamping over that. 

I used Scrap FX chipboard circle with palm tree, perfect addition to go with the sunset photo, taken in Hawaii on our holiday in 2016. 

The handmade items include lots of bits and pieces from Rainbow Splendour, who is the sponsor this month. I have also added some paper and printed phrase from Kit the Habit. 

I am very pleased with the way this one turned out. 

Sunset

Scrap the Girls February 2018 challenge

The February challenge at Scrap the Girls for February is this sketch:

It's a nice sketch, and it was a bit of fun to create with, I even used my most despised colour on my layout, purple, lol. The photo I used dictated my choice of colours. I don't have a lot of purple items in my stash, so I had to get creative. I found some acetate, and one of my new favourite products, alcohol inks, which I used to colour the acetate. I then die cut some alphas from the acetate. I also used a piece to mat behind my photo. 

I used some ink sprays to colour the background paper, and added other die cuts, and acetate embellishments. I also included a Charms Creations heavenly heart, in the perfect blue for my layout. 

Sisters

Scrap the Boys 2018 February challenge

So I finally made it to the design team at Scrap the Boys. I tried a couple of times to get onto the team, and made it last year. So this is my first blog post with the team.
So the February challenge, is this:

Wow the possibilities are endless, just with 3 words. Not only the words, but the colours are awesome. I pulled out a variety of different photos that could have worked for this challenge. I finally decided on this one of my son when he was a baby, exploring the beach for the first time, so much joy on the little face. 

I really wanted to keep the beach theme going, so I found lots of beach themed bits and pieces - wood veneer, twine, muslin, beach images. The background is a gelli plate lift, which looks like water, so it was perfect to use. I also added a Charms Creations hessian arrow, in the perfect colour. I decided the words in the graphic, were perfect as a title. 

I loved creating this layout. 

Explore, dream, discover