Noodle Soup

What's going on?

In case you're wondering what I've been up to lately while things have been quiet on the blog, here's the rundown. You might want to pull up a chair and grab a beverage!

Spring Training at Ella Publishing

I was thrilled to be invited to participate in Spring Training this session as a Scrapbooking Fitness Coach! Aside from the chance to relive my favorite 80s fashion trends (ha!), I was given the opportunity to help spread some inspiration on two things I'm really passionate about: memory keeping and creative fitness.

I really love the format of this event -- very doable, inspiring, bite-sized assignments with accompanying videos. Everyone can spare 20 - 40 minutes a day for a week-and-a-half in the name of creative mojo, right? 

If Spring Training sounds like just the thing to shape up your photography, organization, scrapbooking techniques, and design principles, you can click on the banner below and enter the code LEOTARD for a 10% discount. 

And be sure to check out my article over at the Ella eZine and a sneak peek of one of my motivational vidoes on the Ella blog.

 

Kidding Around at Big Picture Classes

My Kidding Around summer art journaling workshop for kids is back by popular demand and just opened for registration! I've been having oodles of fun putting together a whole bunch of new content for this class, and recording a series of videos with supply and technique ideas for the kids who want to branch out a bit more. For those who are unfamiliar, it's six weeks of art journaling fun, to keep kids busy, entertained, and using their brain cells over the summer. The content is all in an online classroom, with prompts delivered via email Monday - Friday. I'm recommending the blue Smash book for this class, which will be available for separate purchase through Big Picture Classes. (But any journal can be used.) Class runs June 14 - July 25 for the screamin' deal of $30. Click on over and check it out!

 

Upcoming classes at Timeless Treasures

The Timeless Treasures class preview event is this Sunday, April 22 from 2:00 - 4:00 pm. Come on by to see what all the great teachers have in store! There's a discount for those who sign up for classes at the preview event, plus you get a goody bag, so win-win! 

I'll be teaching my Phoneography class again on Saturday, May 19 from 4:00 - 5:30 pm for $15. It's a lecture-style class with all kinds of useful tips for taking photos on your smart phone and using them on your scrapbook pages, followed by a short photo walk to try out what you learn.

I'm also teaching a beginning kids' art journaling class for kids age 7 and up on July 11 from 1:00 - 3:00 pm. It's slightly different from my online class, with the added bonus of in-person instruction. For $30, kids will get an introduction to art journaling that includes a super cool Artterro art journal. (I love their eco-friendly policy combined with Strathmore quality and fun colors!)

We'll decorate the cover and complete 2 - 3 pages in class, plus everyone will go home with lots of ideas to continue art journaling on their own. It's great either in conjunction with the Kidding Around class at Big Picture as a way to get some additional in-person instruction and hang out with other creative kids, or on its own to just beat the heat for an afternoon and create in the air-conditioned store while giving Mom a little break.

Space is limited in these in-store classes. If you're interested, swing by the preview event, or call the store at (949) 888-7151.

 

Somerset Memories

I was asked to contribute artwork for a really fun article in the Spring issue of Somerset Memories, on the Halftone iPhone app. (Which, incidentally, is one of the apps I talk about in my Phoneography class!) The issue is on newsstands now, if you want to check it out. Here's a sneak peek, from the Stampington website:

 

Creative Crop

Big Picture Classes and Creating Keepsakes Magazine have teamed up to bring you a fun-filled FREE event for National Scrapbook Day. The event will feature hourly creative challenges by 12 awesome Big Picture and Creating Keepsakes regulars.

Here's a sneak peek of my challenge page, which goes live at 7pm Pacific time on May 5. 

There are also some amazing giveaways, like this grand prize that would make any scrapbooker/organization freak swoon!

The event runs live from 9am to 9pm on May 5, but you don't have to be there live to win prizes or partake in the challenges and inspiration. Everyone who signs up is eligible to win, and you'll have forever access to all the content, to refer to at your leisure.

CHA trend spotting: mason jars

Just a quick follow-up to my mason jar trend spotting from last week. Since that post, I've seen a few more mason jar images pop up in CHA previews. I think we have a bona fide "next big thing" on our hands here, folks! ;)

American Crafts/Dear Lizzy

 American Crafts/Dear Lizzy

American Crafts/Dear Lizzy

Crate Paper

Creative Imaginations

 

I'm a long-time jar junkie. I use a variety of them for storage in my home and studio (I'll share pics of that in another post, soon!) and I've been pinning mason jar eye candy on Pinterest for a while. I've noticed the trend has been big in weddings lately, too. In honor of the recent crafting industry mason jar love, I started a dedicated Mason Jar pinboard to collect all my fun finds in one spot. Check it out if you're a jar junkie, too!

Attention, phoneographers!

If you are local to the Rancho Santa Margarita area (or will be in Orange County for CHA next weekend), there are a few spaces left in my January 28 class at Timeless Treasures that you might be interested in!

Phoneography 101: Getting the most from your phone photos

Are you taking more phone photos than ever these days? Improve your smartphone photography skills and learn how to scrapbook and display your phone photos with style. This class includes an informative presentation with lots of handy tips, app recommendations, and examples, followed by a fun guided photo walk to hone your skills with some hands-on practice. Bring your charged smartphone!

You’ll learn:

• How to use exposure, composition, & filters to maximize the quality of your phone pictures
• Favorite field-tested apps for enhancing and sharing your phone photos
• My favorite ways to get prints from phone photos
• Tips for making phone photos look awesome on a scrapbook page
• How to document life more authentically with phone photos

(The class is based on my experience with the iPhone, but many universal tips apply to Android users, and app substitutions will be offered wherever possible.)

Saturday, January 28, 2:00 - 4:00 pm for the screamin' deal of just $12!

If you're interested, you can call Timeless Treasures directly at (949) 888-7151 to register. Spaces are filling up fast!

CHA early trend predictions

The CHA winter show sneak peeks have really started flooding in this week! If you haven't checked out the Scrapbook Update Winter Sneak Peek page, you should. It's my go-to source for all the latest product info.

I'm the type of person who gets a lot of inspiration from product. I know I'm "supposed" to say I'm inspired by my stories and photos, and I definitely am. But if I'm completely honest, it's usually the desire to use a particular product that lights the fire under me to actually pull out those photos and tell that story I've been meaning to tell. So you can imagine how pumped I get when CHA rolls around!

I've only seen a fraction of what will be offered at the show so far, but I am already noticing a few trends emerging, so I'm going to go ahead and call them. Here are some predictions of what we'll be seeing a lot of on the show floor.

Motifs

Spring and travel motifs will abound as usual at the winter show, and in particular there will be a lot of map motifs within the travel category. Florals, birds, and butterflies will continue to be standard issue spring fare. Keep an eye out for loads of bicycles, kites, and honeycomb/hexagon shapes all over the place. Bicycles in particular seem to be the motif of the moment...it seems there's a bicycle something-or-other in just about every line I've seen so far. Banners still seem to be still going strong, so look for them to continue to be incoporated into product lines, both as a printed motif and as an actual embellisment. Ditto for tickets, doilies, and baker's twine. Are you a lover of chevron zigzags? You're in luck, because it seems even more manufacturers are jumping on that bandwagon.

Crate Paper

BoBunny

Studio Calico

 

 

Prima

Jenni Bowlin

My Mind's Eye

My Little Shoebox

Prima

Webster's Pages

Studio Calico

Moxxie

My Mind's Eye

Jenni Bowlin

Jillibean Soup

Dear Lizzy/American Crafts punch-out banners

Prima

Studio Calico

 

Jenni Bowlin

GCD Studios

American Crafts

My Mind's Eye

 

Despite the current phoneography craze, classic and vintage camera images could capture a spot as the next big product icon. I predict that the newest offerings from Amy Tangerine and Studio Calico will spark a camera trend that will carry over to the next show. Vintage telephones also seem to be making a good showing this time around.

Amy Tangerine/American Crafts

Amy Tangerine/American Crafts

Studio Calico

Jillibean Soup

Nikki Sivils

Wendy Vecchi/Studio 490

Claudine Hellmuth/Stampers Anonymous

 

Another trend I believe could be on the cusp is mason jars. I spied one in Cosmo Cricket's Tea For Two diecuts, and a whole sheet of them from Jillibean Soup. Based on what I've been seeing out in the world and on Pinterest, I think we'll see a lot more mason-style jars both in print and as storage or home decor in coming releases. And I wouldn't be surprised if they popped up at this show in booth design, as well.

Cosmo Cricket

Jillibean Soup

 

Products

Washi tape continues to gain popularity, and we'll be seeing it from even more manufacturers in a wider array of patterns at the upcoming show. Also be on the lookout for mini mixed-media books and accessories that capitalize on the Smash craze and make art journaling more approachable for the scrapbooking crowd.

Prima

Cosmo Cricket

Studio Calico

Prima

Prima

Fancy Pants

Studio Calico

 

Colors

I think we can expect fun, happy rainbow brights to dominate the offerings. Hot pink seems to be particularly hot this time around.

 

I'll be tweeting from the show floor January 29 - February 1, so be sure to follow me on Twitter for the latest updates and photos. And let me know in the comments if there's anything in particular you'd like me to report back on!

Lucky 13!

According to Random.org, lucky commenter #13 is the winner of the True Scrap registration fee...

Congratulations to Carol in Seattle! Email me (the link's under my picture over there in the sidebar) and I'll hook you up!

And as for the sneak peeks I promised, here's one of the phone photo layouts you'll be seeing in my class if you're signed up for True Scrap:

I had a blast jam-packing this class with info and ideas that I can't wait to share with you. 

And...

Here's a teensy tease of another fun project I'm involved in which will be revealed very soon. Exciting!

 

Phone pics, freebies, and other fun stuff

I've been busily working away on my phone photo class for the True Scrap event. I'm such a fan of phone photography lately, so I'm really excited to share how I'm using phone pics in my scrapbooking!

 

(one of the crazier phone pic examples from my class)

For the uninitiated, True Scrap is a unique, LIVE, online papercrafting event. We bring amazing A-list instructors direct to your computer. You'll have the ability to learn, interact, and experience the excitement and inspiration of a live event, all from the comfort of your own home -- all for one low price! With 17 cutting-edge classes, five virtual make-and-takes, and a pre-event virtual crop, attendees get the best of live scrapbooking events without the hassle -- or the high price tag. For more information and to see the newly released event schedule, just click here.

And! If you register by this Friday, 9/30, using one of my affiliate links in this post, you also get a spot in your choice of either my Take Note or Mo-Mints self-paced class at Big Picture Classes, courtesy of yours truly. Just click on my link, sign up, and email me a copy of your True Scrap receipt along with which class you would like, and I'll hook you up.

But wait, that's not all! Act quickly (by 9/30) and you also get a set of amazing Ginsu knives! a chance to win one of a dozen fabulous prizes, such as

 

• Simple Scrapper download - 1 year Simple Pages / Simple Projects subscription to 1 winner
• 1 free class (choice of Keep Calm & Stay Organized, Light Your Fire, or any class in the next year) to 1 winner (courtesy of Jennifer Wilson and Erin Bassett)
• Hero Arts digi goodies (courtesy of Jennifer McGuire) 
• Paperclipping membership (courtesy of Noell Hyman)
• Digital Scrapbooking Basics (courtesy of Paula Gilarde)
• "Exposure" online photography class (courtesy of Katrina Kennedy)
• Jenni Bowlin October kit, plus vintage holiday release (courtesy of Lisa Dickinson and Jenni Bowlin)
• Scraphappy membership (courtesy of Lain Ehmann)
• 4 classes in each of Online Card Class and Inspiration Showcase (courtesy of Jennifer McGuire)
• Pass for two to Shimelle.com class of your choice (courtesy of Shimelle Laine)

 

Enticed yet? Because I have one more awesome prize opportunity for you! Visit the True Scrap page via one of my links, and then come back here and tell me which of the 17 classes sounds the most irresistable to you. On Sunday, I'll choose one commenter at random to win a FREE PASS to True Scrap! (If you've already purchased, your money will be refunded).

I can honestly tell you I would not be participating in or promoting this event if I wasn't 100% convinced of its fantastic value. The inaugural event last spring was an amazing experience for instructors and students alike, and the fall event promises to be even better!

So click, comment, and I'll be back on Sunday with a winner and maybe a sneak peek or two at some other stuff I've been working on. ;)

Today's the day!

Spawn of True Scrap, the sequel to the wildly successful True Scrap spring event, is OPEN FOR REGISTRATION!

If you're familiar with True Scrap, just click on the awesomely retro-chic poster to check out all the great instructors we've got lined up this time around. If it's all new to you, read on...

 

The True Scrap events are a groundbreaking and unique way to experience the fun and education of a scrapbooking convention, without travel expenses or the inconvenience of lugging all your stuff to a convention center.

Through the magic of the internet, we're able to assemble an amazing array of teachers from all over the globe in the same virtual venue, Oct. 20 - 22. 

The October True Scrap event features a live keynote interview with the fabulous Cathy Zielske, 17 live classes from industry favorites, plus 5 make & takes...all at set times over the three days, just like at a scrapbook convention. You'll receive all the date/time/supply info ahead of time via email in a pdf event guide. The difference with this virtual event is you participate from the comfort of your home! Schedule some "me time" in your jammies and a mud mask, arrange a mini retreat with some girlfriends, or tune in while the kids play nearby...this is your chance to craft your very own, tailor-made event that fits perfectly with your lifestyle.

If you aren't available to play along live for each and every session, no worries. You'll also receive recordings of the whole shebang afterwards, so you can catch up on any sessions that you missed, or re-watch your favorites.

Intrigued? Click on over to the True Scrap website now!

 

**When you use my link to sign up for True Scrap, I receive a percentage of the sale. This is my only compensation for teaching at the event. I would very much appreicate you using my links so I can continue to bring you fun and informative classes through this venue!

 

Everything's bigger in Texas...

...including scrapbooking, if last week's Great American Scrapbook Convention is any indication.

I spent several days teaching there on behalf of Big Picture Classes, and seriously had so much fun! You should've seen the crop room...adhesive and photos as far as the eye could see.

...and that's only about half the room!

This was a particularly fun group of students from my Mo-Mints class. Laughter is 99.9% guaranteed in my classes, by the way!

I also taught my Take Note journaling notepad. Check out the colorful array of supplies awaiting stamping and border-punching shenanigans from the next group of students...

And I had the pleasure of co-teaching a Top Titles class with the fabulous Elizabeth Dillow, instructor and hotel roomie extraordinaire!

 

Oh, and also fellow Mexican food lover and goofy photo poser!

As if that weren't enough, I got to test-drive my brand new suitcase that I'm completely gaga over, and got this fun shot while waiting for my shuttle at the Dallas airport.

But wait! There's more! I got to hang out with the adorable Monica McNeill, who acted as our chauffeur and tour guide for an evening. She hooked us up with some adorable shops and some truly awesome Texas BBQ.

 

Wishing you could get to a Great American Scrapbook Convention, but there isn't one near you? No worries, Big Picture Classes has you covered! You can take all of the fun classes we taught there (and are teaching again in a couple of weeks in Chantilly, VA) as BPC self-paced projects. Just follow my links above. You'll have to find your own BBQ, though. ;)

Happy National Scrapbook Day!

I am proud to be spending today honoring the hobby that supports my philosophy of reflecting upon, appreciating, and celebrating the little details that matter in life.

I'll be frequenting the Creative Crop at Big Picture Classes today, and hosting a challenge and chat from 2:00 - 3:00 Pacific time.

I'll also be eking out a little bit of time between my Saturday obligations to create at least one page. I've already got my photos on deck!

If you're the scrapbooking type, how are you celebrating National Scrapbook Day? What page are you working on right now? What's the last scrapbooking supply you purchased?

Leave me a comment answering one or more of the above questions, and you'll be entered to win a fun little package of creative inspiration from me! I'll choose a winner Sunday evening.

Have you heard about Postagram?

If you love iPhone photo apps as much as I do, then you're gonna dig my latest find!

Postagram is a free app that links to your Instagram account and sends a postcard of your Instagram pic anywhere in the world in 2 - 5 days for just 99 cents. 

Just choose an Instagram pic...

 

...and add a message, up to 140 characters. The default is what you uploaded with your Instagram pic, but you can edit it to fit the recipient, or delete it altogether if you'd like.

 

The Postagram arrives as a laminated, glossy postcard, white on the address side, black on the photo side, with your Instagram avatar in the upper corner. I found them to be rather fingerprint-y, particularly on the black side, but they do wipe clean nicely. The photo itself is 3x3, and is perforated to pop out of the card. 

 

(images courtesy of Postagram)

It's a great way to send an inexpensive memento of a fun day, or a personalized hello to a far-away friend or relative. You could literally send photo thank you notes from a birthday party as the presents were being opened!

Aside from the picture-sharing possibilities, Postagram is a fantastic way to use those sometimes-less-than-stellar phone pics in your scrapbooking. Add an Instagram filter, and a so-so pic becomes artistic and cool. Send a Postagram to yourself, and you've got an artistic and cool 3x3 print to scrapbook, with the snippet of journaling you composed in the moment right there for reference.

(my actual Postagrams)

Postagrams are printed on specialty cardstock at 300 dpi with an HP Indigo inkjet printer, so if you're worried about archival quality, these should measure up. HP Indigo has a display permanence rating of 45 years, and an album/dark storage rating of greater than 100 years.

I love the way technology just keeps making it easier and easier to capture memories wherever, whenever!