DIY Patterned Doilies

What can I say? I adore doilies, with their pristine white, delicate laciness. (Yep, totally made that word up.) Often, a doily is just the finishing touch a layout or card needs - that extra little layer that softens up the finished page.

But on a recent trip to the craft store, I saw something that made my heart go pitter patter. Printed doilies! There they were, in the party supplies section, oh so gorgeous and larger than life. Literally large - they were placemat size, and way too big for a scrapbook page. But seeing them got my wheels turning, and I knew I could come home and recreate the look with some of my plain white doily stash. Today I'm going to show you three variations of patterned doilies that I made, as well as the projects I used them on.

Now, I am working with the inexpensive 4 inch white doilies you can get in the cake decorating sections of many big box stores. They come in  packs of 35 or so for a couple of dollars (less if you use a coupon). These are thinner and more delicate than the ones you can get specifically for papercrafting, so you will want to be gentle when working with them.

Printing
The first technique I tried was printing a pattern directly onto the doily. I'm going to show you the step-by-step tutorial for this technique. For the other two, visit my blog and watch the tutorial video.

1. Select your pattern. I had this pattern in some of my digital scrapbooking files, and it was just the color blue I wanted. You can do a Google images search for patterns you like, or try searching the clipart in your word processing program. Size the image to be just slightly larger than your doily. In this case, I set mine to about 4 1/4."

2. Draw an empty box over your background image. Make sure to set the fill to white, then print.

3. Using repositionable adhesive, place the doily inside the box, then put the paper face down back into the printer.

4. Delete the empty box, revealing your background image, then print. 

5. Remove your doily from the printer paper.

I just love the way this one came out! I used it on this layout about the prismatic pools we visited in Yellowstone this past summer.

Distressing
Next, up, I tried distressing with distress ink and a background stamp. Below is the finished doily.

And here is the card I made using it. I love how the blue pops against its complementary color, orange.

Embossing
And last, but not least, I used an inked embossing folder to create this patterned doily.

And here is the card I made with it.

I hope you got some great ideas about making your own patterned doilies today. Be sure and stop by my blog for full instructions on all three techniques.

Till next time, cheers!
Lisa

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

Using Title Strips

If you are anything like me, you will have a stash of cutoff title strips just hanging around waiting to be used..... look familiar?

Well, I would like to challenge you (and myself!) to get rid of some of this pile by turning them into layouts.... don't cut another piece of patterned paper, but rather use what's in your pile and create some new memories.

I have made three different layouts using strips in different arrangements.

On this page I've just added pieces of different strips at an angle and then combined them with stamped aeroplanes and some stickers. I also added one title strip as a border next to my photos.

On this next page I have stuck a variety of title strips in various shades of blue, pale yellow and green together across my page.  Added a strip of photos down the middle and then embellished with stamping, stickers, brads and diamante.

My final layout is a bit more complicated yet fun.  I dug through my pile and sorted out the colours that would best match my photos.  I then lay them in a sort diagonal basket-weave pattern.  Once happy I interwove the strips, cut them shorter where needed and eventually stuck them all down to the background cardstock.  I finished off my page with two photos, more stickers and a little bit of stamping on the edges.

My pile is not greatly reduced but I can safely say that I feel much better now that I have started making inroads into my stash.  I have a board on pinterest just dedicated to layouts using strips which is where I got the ideas for these three pages from. You are welcome to check it out here.

Get creative and show us your layouts using title strips.

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

Here is a twist by Connie...If you don't have title strips or not enough of those title strips just use the  scraps you have to create your layouts!

I made this page using leftovers from a kit class I had given.  I cut the strips and placed on a heart cutout.  After the heart was covered I trimmed the excess paper off.  

Picture is of my youngest Daughter Cherish. 

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

Set the Mood 3 Ways

Hi Everyone I hope you're in the mood for scrapping today.

I set up a simple exercise to show color can set the tone or mood to your layout. I made a sketch; a rather simple, uncomplicated design and used it with 3 different color schemes. All 3 started out with identical, basic layout. The only difference besides color is the placement of the final embellishments.

The Basic Layout

This first layout was done with a navy, aqua and gold color scheme. Lets call this the neutral color scheme. With the basic blue it could be considered masculine, but the gold floral paper could be considered feminine. It could go either way. I choose blue to portray  the sky and outdoors. Its rather relaxing.

Here is the same layout done grunge like. This is a photo of my son from a few years back; it fits him perfectly. Dark colors, worn edges and splatters of paint. The whole mood changes dramatically.

This last layout shifts to the other extreme. It is soft and feminine and the bright green is fresh and spring like, This was my daughter in nursing school and the little pink banner toward the bottom says "spread your wings".  

I have more on color mood  HERE

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

Using a Single Sketch for Cards and Scrapbooking Layouts - One Sketch, Three Ways

Hello Everyone

Today I'm sharing the idea of either taking a card sketch or layout sketch and creating layouts and cards based on those sketches.  You really can take any sketch and use it for cards and layout by just tweaking it a bit.  For my post today I created a sketch of a card I have created in the past.  It has been a design I have loved and have used it on many cards I have created for card classes.  I took that design and 'stretched it' to create a sketch for my scrapbook layouts.  You can see by the two layouts and card that the design/sketch of them all are the same.  I just added different embellishments to suit my project for each one.  This was also a great excuse to take out some of my older paper collections and use them.  I encourage you to do the same.  I had thought about purging all of my older things (believe me I have purged a lot already)  and decided that some of it were collections I really did love and had purchased with the intention of using them so that it what I did! :) A few years later but who will know or care that I didn't used the newest collections when I did these layouts. LOL :) Except you and me!!!

The Sketch

12x12 layout

8 1/2 x 11 layout

card

I encourage you to take a sketch that you love and try this idea of using it for multiple layout sizes or cards and to use what you love even though it might not be the newest collections that have just come out.

Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY SCRAPPIN'!

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Members Blog Hop... Inspired By

Hello Everyone

Today some of the design team members and I wanted to share a layout on something or someone that has inspired or influenced us or been a part of our lives since our childhood/ teenage years.

I don't think that we as scrapbookers tell our own stories as much as we would like to sometimes so this was a way for me to do that on a personal level.   

As I was doing my daily walk one morning (this is where a lot of my thinking happens! ;)) and listening to U2's thirteenth studio album "Age Of Innocence" I was taken back to my early teenage years and when I started listening and loving U2 in 1983.  The songs are very reminiscent of their early work and I started to think about the fact that they (their music and humanitarism) have been a part of my life for over 30 years!  Their music has always 'spoken' to me and through them I became aware of groups like Amnesty International.  Their music is something that I have always connected with.  I wanted to document this (my love for U2) in a layout.  So this was the story behind how our Scrap Your Scrap blog post came to life.

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

My music teacher in high school was Victor Tallarico, the father of Aerosmith's Steven Tyler.  Mr. Tallarico taught us not only music theory, but also music appreciation.  I could listen to him play the piano all day.  From him I learned that music comes in all forms and styles, and there is more to music than pop.  He taught me to broaden my horizons and take it all in.  This concept has impacted my entire life, and I am more open-minded because of it - and because of him.  I wish I'd had a chance to tell him this in person, but he passed away some years ago.  This layout is a tribute to him, and I'd like to think that somehow he knows just what he meant to me.  Thanks, Mr. T!

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

There are a very few things that I still have that I received as a child.  I guess it makes sense that one of the things that I do have would be something very special to me.  In my religion we get baptized at the age of 8 years old.  When I was baptized my mom and dad bought me my very own set of scriptures with my name engraved on them.  On the front inside cover they wrote their testimony and their hopes and dreams for my life.  As I have grown, gotten married and had children of my own I have always gone back and read what my parents wrote.  I feel so blessed to have such amazing parents that have taught me about God and service and being a little better everyday.  I hope to continue this tradition with all my children.  

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

My Husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary last September.  Our Daughter was playing Soccer in Hawaii and we turned the trip into a better late than never Honeymoon.  My Husband is my person and  "My Love"

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

Here is my blog hop entry for Scrap Your Scraps!  For our theme I decided to focus on my first love, art.  I have, in one way or another done art my entire life.  The last year though has been tough, and I had pretty much given up doing any illustrating or drawing, but I decided to make this page so that I could look at it and be inspired again.  It was a way for me to remember what I have done and to hopefully motivate me to keep going!

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

My layout documents my walk with God.  I committed my life when I was 6 and have been very blessed to know and feel God's hand on my life through good and tough times.  I wouldn't be who I am today if it wasn't for God.  I am truly blessed.

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member

I hope we have encouraged you to create some layouts about YOU!

Thanks for stopping by and Happy Scrappin'! :)

Scrap Your Scraps Design Team

Candace Perkin's Blog

Cathy Martin's Blog

Cathy Sanders' Blog

Connie Hall's Blog

Jeanette Giancaspro's Blog

Mandy Reedyk's Blog

Old to new. Upcycle Cricut Cartridge Box.

Hi Everyone.  Connie Here. I am currently getting ready for a big purge of my supplies. I am condensing storage and trying to utilize my space better.  I had a bag full of Cricut Cartridges my nephew was using as building blocks and I knew I could come up with a fun way to transform the boxes. Here is what I came up with.

The embellished Box

Close up of Box with Flower Cluster

Inside of Box. I used Washi Tape. Mini Tag Album fits inside.

Box and Mini Album.

I am working on several more of these to give to my Daughter's Teachers.

Thanks for looking and I hope you find creative uses for your old Cricut cartridge boxes.

  Scrap Your Scraps Design Team Member