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Thursday, 30 April 2020

Elle's Studio: April Sketch Day!



Hi Friends!

Welcome back to the Happy Arty Days blog!
I am so excited to share today's fabulous sketch for Elle's Studio!
It's such a fun design, and I've even made a process video of this one too 
but before I get too carried away, here's what the sketch looks like...


Told you it was fun! Love this!

Sketches are a great way to remove the 'I don't know where to start' vibes, or even loosen up a design block! They discourage overthinking, and allow us to just simply enjoy the creative process! Here's what I created,

"Love This"


Love this, indeed!


Other Supplies: Bazzill cardstock - avalanche, watercolors, sewing machine, cotton thread, & doily.

Here's a closer look at my layout....


Gosh, this is so pretty!!!
The colors and designs in the April Kit are really something!

When it comes to creating with a sketch, I always approach it with my photograph as the focus. For this particular layout, my photograph encouraged me to rotate the sketch by 90 degrees. You'll notice that my darling girl is positioned on the right hand side of my photo, & looking out to the left. By rotating the sketch I was able to compliment the movement in my photo, and flatter the directional flow. 


My photograph also dictated the color scheme for my layout too! 
When I looked through the April Kit note cards and the Flourish 6 x 8.5" Paper Stack papers I noticed that there were lots of coral & vermilion reds, peach, and mauve patterns which were not only really pretty, but also complimented my photo. The 'let the good times roll' sentiment card was the perfect descriptor of the memory associated with the photo plus it was also a clever camouflage to hide the join of the butted together pattern papers
 (A great trick for maximizing the 6 x 8.5" papers for 12 inch scrapbook pages).


At this point in my creating, I decided to 'mix things up' again and I rotated that sentiment card back to its original position. I diverted from the original sketch to make the design work better for me, and my storytelling. And that's the great thing about sketches - they get you 'started', but there's no rules and you can make it what you want! 


To add a bit more interest to my page, I machine stitched & foam mounted the mauve pattern paper layer. This soft and subtle texture really lifted the design. I also foam mounted my photo cluster for added dimension. Following on from the sketch, I embellished with lots of the Beautiful Day Die Cut florals, and Lovely Puffy Stickers. 


I mimicked the banner at the top of the original sketch with the floral banner note card, which I further embellished with more of the Lovely Puffy Stickers and some cotton twine. 


For finishing touches, I ventured away from the sketch once more. I featured a bit of journaling with the Life Right Now Stickers, and the Lovely Puffy Stickers and added lots of watercolor splatters to complete the look. 

For a more detailed approach including all the paper measurements, and to hear more of my thoughts on creating from a sketch, please watch my process video here: 



Or watch in Full HD HERE 

I hope you enjoyed watching my video and feel inspired to create along with today's sketch! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!
til next time, 

Sunday, 19 April 2020

Hip Kit Club: March Kits - Recipe Challenge!

Hi Friends!

 Welcome back for more Hip Kit Club inspiration!
For today's post I am sharing my take on the Recipe Challenge being hosted in the 
This challenge is super fun & works with both the March 2020 & April 2020 Hip Kits!

Here's a list of what you'll need to include:
  • Photo corners
  • 2 or more photographs
  • 3 papers
  • Something shiny
  • Multi font title
  • Frame
  • Stitching
Wow! So many awesome ingredients to mix up your creativity with! 
I opted for a really  bright and playful approach to this challenge, but enough chatter, here's what I created....

"So Much Fun, You Go Girl"

HKC-AmandaBaldwin-April17th-Blog-02

How pretty! Light, bright, fresh & oh-so-happy! 
This page is full of whimsy and joy! 
And, if you know the story behind my darling girl's photos you'll understand why I needed such a pretty & carefree vibe! These photos document her first pair of glasses (which initially was not a good thing! Let me tell you, there were many tears shed about getting glasses!) but after the first day, no more headaches and many, many compliments later, she decided that having glasses was worth celebrating! (Hooray!) So while her mood was high, I snapped these quick pics, and went about telling this story - most of which is in a letter on the back of my page, but you get the general idea & theme of my page. 
Here's a closer look....

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It really is fun, isn't it?! 
I used the beautiful Bazzill Petalsoft Cardstock from our gorgeous March 2020 Cardstock Kit, as my background base. To incorporate the 3 papers into my design, I used a 6" x 12" trim of the B side of the Pebbles: Hey, Hello: Birdies pattern paper, and a half inch strip of the Heidi Swapp: Storyline Chapters: Daily Dose paper to trim the sides of my layout. I secured both of these papers to the Bazzill Petalsoft Cardstock with machine sewn, zig-zag stitching.
 For the third paper, I couldn't resist fussy cutting some of those gorgeous roses from the Pebbles: Hey, Hello: Yellow Roses paper. Stunning! 

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I framed my main photo with one of the die cut frames from the Storyline Chapters ephemerapack, and then added fussy cut photo corners (in a similar color) to my smaller photo. In keeping with my playful and happy vibe, I used a confetti spray of stickers, puffy dots, die cut ephemera and faceted gems to decorate my page.

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With so many sunglass stickers in the Pebbles: Hey, Hello collection, it seemed a no-brainer to use them all for this glasses celebration page! I also added in a ton of hearts and some shiny gold accent stickers too! 

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Yay! Right now is my favorite! (My momma bear heart is so relieved!)

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 I created my multi font title with a mix of the Vicki Boutin: Let's Wander: Paperwork Thickers, the super sweet Paige Evan's Bloom Street: Flutter Phrase Stickers and that tiny sentiment sticker - You Go Girl - from the Hey, Hello Sticker Book. I even adorned a few of theThickers with the sunglasses embellishments too! The March Hip Kits coordinate and compliment each other perfectly, and really make memory keeping so beautiful! For finishing touches, I added a few of the Bloom Street: Dimensional Butterflies and voila! 

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A super sweet 'n' fun take on the Recipe Challenge using the March 2020 Main, Embellishment & Cardstock Kits
I hope you feel inspired to play along with us at Hip Kit Club! 
Please upload your creations in the
  Hip Kit Club Facebook Group HERE - I can't wait to see them all! 

Thanks so much for visiting today,
til next time, 


AMANDA BALDWIN-01

Friday, 10 April 2020

Elle's Studio: April Kit & Process Video!




Hi Friends!

Welcome back for more Elle's Studio inspiration! 
I know I say it every month, but oh.my.heart, this month's kit and new releases are so pretty!!!
Before I share what I've been creating with them, 
Here's a quick look at all the new products...



Told you it was pretty! 
Just look at those Spring inspired colors and patterns! 
La la LOVE!!!!



April showers bring May flowers!
So many beautiful new products!

And let's not forget our awesome Digital & Printable products too....




And just a reminder that you can still purchase the 
Title Builder Vol4 Stamp & Bundle Sets this month too! Yay!!!

I just adore this bundle set! 


Here's some inspiration for you....

"Bloom Today" 


Mint, gray & daisies for my darling girl!
Could it get any prettier?
So light and fresh! 

Other Supplies: Bazzill cardstock - Avalanche, WOW 'Em Embossing Pad, WOW 'Em Embossing Powder - Bright White and Misty Sky, black & mint stamping ink, doily, & sequins. 

Here's a better look at my layout...


So very lovely, indeed! 
From the pretty daisies to that fresh color scheme - it just screams Spring!!! 

And even better, I made a process video for this layout too! 
Watch it below or, click the link HERE to watch on my channel in Full HD. 



Thanks so much for watching! 
I hope my video has inspired you! 
Here's a few more close ups too....


I love this journal cluster on the left of the page!


So gorgeous!!!



Such a super sweet page!

My second layout is really striking and totally gor-jus...

"Favorite"


Wa. wa. WOW!!! 
Isn't this something?!!
Hard to believe that the tiny hexagons die cuts in the April Kit inspired this whole design! 

Other Supplies: Embroidery threads, sequins, staples, & black stamping ink. 





For this layout, I used the negative from the hexagon die cuts to trace onto the Flourish Paper Stack papers. I then fussy cut out all those tiny hexagons and arranged them in a fun and modern honeycomb design. 
I also created a sweet photo cluster by backing my photo onto a few layered note cards, and then embellished on & in-between my darling girl's photograph and each of the layers. 


For even more wow factor I added some hand stitching, sequins and stamped sentiments on and around the hexagons! SO cool! 



I couldn't resist using one of the Beautiful Day Die Cuts for my title - the bold black, and fun script font, really pop against all those hexagons! Love it! 

I hope my projects have inspired you to get creating today! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!
Be sure to stop back a lil later in the month for more Elle's Studio awesomeness!!!
til next time, 

Friday, 3 April 2020

Altenew 6th Anniversary Blog Hop Day 2 + Giveaway



Hi Friends! 

Welcome to the Happy Arty Days blog! 
I am so super excited to be participating in Day 2 of Altenew's 6th birthday celebrations! Yay!!! 

If you've just arrived here from the amazing Lilith Eeckels blog, then you're in the right place!
If not, or you're feeling a lil confused, here's the entire Day 2 Blog Hop List:


Wow! What a line up!
& so many amazing Altenew projects to be inspired by!

Like all good blog hops there are some fabulous prizes too!

Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners and one Altenew Academy class to 10 lucky winners.
There are also 14 awesome companies/crafty friends who are celebrating with Altenew!

These incredible sponsors are offering the following prizes:

Be sure to leave comments by 4/12/2020 for a chance to win one of 37 prizes!
To make the hop more exciting, start your comment with,
"Hi from (city or country where you're from)!".
37 winners will be chosen at random from the comments left on any of the blogs listed in the hop line up, and will be announced on the Altenew Card Blog on 4/18/2020. Goodluck!

And, as if that wasn't enough, Altenew are also offering the following special deal....


Enjoy FREE U.S. shipping with code HAPPY6TH
or $5 OFF international shipping with code ANNIV20 at checkout.
Offer valid from 4/2/2020 at 12:01 am EDT through 4/5/2020 at 11:59 pm EDT.
Not valid on prior purchases. Cannot be combined with other promo codes.

With all the formalities taken care of, here's a look at my scrapbook page created for this milestone event, 

"So Pretty"


So pretty, indeed! 
I've gone for some monochromatic magic with this stunning layout! 


Let's take a closer look at this mixed media delight!


Ga ga gor-jus!!!
Such a pretty page for my darling girl! 
How divine are those floral decals?! I've backed them onto some white paper & fussy cut them out to adorn my photo with!  
The brand new Rose Petal Washi Tape totally dictated my color scheme & looks amazing partnered with the Fine Frames Diamond Die Set,  and the B-A-F Canterbury Bells Die Set too! 

Please watch how I created this scrapbook page (including that delicious berry background) in my short process video below:




Alternatively, you watch it on my channel in Full HD here. 

Thanks so much for watching!
I hope you enjoyed my video & have subscribed to my channel to see more Altenew ideas & inspiration!

Here are a few more detailed and close up shots of my project....


Those 'rose petal' colors are just spectacular! 
It's hard to believe that the diamonds are all made from that washi tape set!


Those Fine Frames Diamonds are perfect for creating argyle patterns with! Love how effective they look! 

For the title, I used the fabulous Live Your Dream Puffy Alphabet Stickers. 
These puffy alphas are super glossy and really pop against all those berry hues! 



Amazing products make for amazing crafty projects!
Thankyou Altenew & Happy 6th Birthday!

***Please remember to leave a comment on this blog post to go in the prize draw & Good Luck!***

Time to send you hopping on over to the incredible Mindy Eggen's blog HERE - she has something really special to share with you!

Thanks so much for visiting,
til next time,