Summer Scrapbook Ideas You Can Use Now! June Blog Hop Stop Number One

Summer is a great time for taking pictures, and it is also a great time to do something special WITH those pictures! Everything slows down just a little bit in the summertime, and it is so wonderful here in the South to kick off the end of the school year with a family get together to commemorate Memorial Day. Where there is family, there is food, and where there is food there are often photos. That is exactly why I was so excited about the newest collection from Creative Memories appropriately titled Made with Love (oh yeah, and I do sort of have this obsession with gingham!) The collection features beautiful food themed papers, stickers and mats, and it is truly stunning for your scrapbook pages. 

The Creative Memories Made with Love Collection  is perfect for your delicious "foodie" pages

While there are even newer paper packs and sticker sets that just came out this week such as the limited edition Americana and Adventure collections, I was still very excited to work on some recipe pages using "Made with Love." You will see I was fortunate to have a little help from three very special women in my life. I hope I will inspire you to do the same with some of your summer food photos! 

Let's Start with A Very Special Wedding Gift 

When I was engaged to be married, my mother's sister gave me the greatest gift a girl could imagine. It was a collection of recipe cards in the handwriting of my beloved aunts, cousins and grandmothers, and it is irreplaceable. I have naturally scanned them all and stored them in my Forever account in an album called "Recipes" because these are documents I want to keep for generations. I treasure this gift so much and can almost imagine my Nana and my Italian aunts sitting at the table writing them out, and I can practically taste and smell the dishes as I am reading the cards.

Treasured family recipes collected for me by my aunt for a wedding present

My Nana's and my mother's handwriting in one place

Adding Pictures to the Recipe Card Concept

My Mom and my two aunts are such amazing cooks and I always love getting recipes from them, but this Memorial Day I asked a special favor of them. I knew they would be bringing delicious dishes to our get together so I asked them in advance if they would mind if I brought them some Made with Love mats to transcribe their recipes on while we were visiting. They of course said yes, so I brought my camera and made sure to get a picture of them writing down their recipes for me. Seeing who lovingly prepared the dish is just one more element that makes these memories and family treasures even more special. 

"Skinny" sweet potato fries prepared by my Aunt Sherry

An Irish Cream Cake prepared by my own Mom with the recipe written in her handwriting 

A delicious butter bean Greek salad with the recipe written in my Aunt Donna's handwriting (it was a long recipe so I will most likely be using a 4X6 sleeve to include the third card!)

I am so happy with the way this two page spread turned out!

So the next time you are getting together with family or friends, bring your camera and some slide in cards and ask if them if they wouldn't mind taking just a moment to share their recipe with you in their own writing. Do take a picture of the dish as well as the cook!  Preserving memories can happen anywhere at any time ,and they will surely be flattered that you thought of them and want to celebrating their cooking. Can you think of any other way to document family recipes? I'd love to hear from you in the comments below! 

For more ideas on ways you can create scrapbook pages this summer, please enjoy the rest of the "Blog Hop!"

• Stop 1 with Fran Allen Smitherman CelebratingYourBeautifulLife YOU ARE HERE!
• Stop 2  with Sarah Fitzgerald ClickWriteShare
• Stop 3 with Noreen Smith OrganizedandCreativeMom
• Stop 4 with Karyn McDermaid-Rolfe Karyn Crops
• Stop 5 with Lisa Brown Graham Lisa's Workshop
• Stop 6 with Julie Tambrini Julie's CM Blog
• Stop 7 with Stefani Jones CropwithStef

This blog contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated should you make a purchase. Thank you as always for your support of Celebrating Your Beautiful Life and I am always happy to help in any way with your traditional or digital photo preservation projects. 

Father's Day Blog Hop

This Father's Day is going to be very different in our home as a month ago my husband's father, my father-in-law, and the boys' Grandaddy Smitherman died at the young age of 65. It was unexpected, and there is definitely a hole in our hearts as we cope with our loss. We honored Jackie at his memorial service with a slideshow, and seeing people's reactions to all of the photos of him at a younger age was priceless. Pictures are powerful and they tell a story of who you are and what you have loved, and they help connect us to the past in happy times and in sad. I was so grateful that as the historian in the family I was able to quickly access all of our precious photographs so that my husband, Chris Smitherman, could put together a beautiful slideshow for his father.

Priceless memories

With these memories fresh, I found it hard to focus on Jackie at this time - instead I am highlighting Chris and the many ways he is a good father and husband himself, just like his own Dad. He deserves more than a Lowe's gift card this year - he has taken on a great deal of additional responsibility with his mother, sister and nieces now that his father has gone, yet he still provides for his own family. I want him to know how much we appreciate him, and to honor what he does for us on a day to day basis! With a busy few weeks ahead, I needed some simple projects that I could knock out in a short amount of time. It doesn't take much to give someone a gift from the heart when you have the right tools and a few printed photographs! I am going to show you a few gift ideas you can pull together before the big day using some of Creative Memories' latest products.

Telling someone you love them as a husband and as a Dad with pictures is easy if you just set aside a few moments to do it

Commemorate a Special Time Together
Before Chris was a father, he was a husband, and while we try to make time for ourselves, it is pretty difficult without formal "date nights." This page layout commemorates one of my favorite trips we took this year - I used the wood grain paper from the "Hello Baby Boy" paper pack, as well as Creative Memories' brown cardstock for mats and decorative touches. The wood grain paper looks perfect with the rustic seafood restaurant as a backdrop - I can never get enough of it! I cannot wait to show my husband these pages. 

I love the way this turned out! The wood grain paper from Creative Memories' Hello Baby Boy paper pack and brown cardstock are perfect for a masculine page for a special man in your life!

 With the wood grain paper from Creative Memories' Hello Baby Boy paper pack it is easy to make a masculine page to highlight a favorite father in your life! I threw in some Brown cardstock for mats and decorative touches and journaled right on the pages as well as in a journaling box created with the Hello Baby Boy Slide In Pack and some numbers from the Year in Review sticker set. 

Not one to waste any space, I journaled everywhere! Stories are so important

The band's logo is actually a photo we took of the screen before the show started - take pictures of signs and logos, they make your pages work so much better! :) 

Hello Baby Boy paper pack (first side)

Hello Baby Boy paper pack (second side)

Creative Memories' brown cardstock

Help Him Celebrate His Children Everywhere He Goes
Now that the school year is over, are you left with stacks of professional photos (school, soccer, basketball, dance, etc...) and nothing to do with them? Don't just put them in a box- cut them up and put them in a little mini album for yourself and for others! Creative Memories is selling these cute little 2X3 Navy Pocket Albums with pages for just $7 and I have always found them to be great gifts for parents and grandparents. I went and looked on Chris' desk and he has the loose photos standing up against his computer monitor - his other mini albums are full already, so I am going to surprise him with this little gem for the newer photos!

Professional photos everywhere?

2X3 Navy Pocket Album with pages holds 16 photos

Fast, easy gift for a Dad

Get those little professional pictures in a book

Wallet sized photos, credit cards, or business cards can easily fit in this affordable little album

Encourage Him to Tell His Own Story! 

Another quick gift is a Fast2Fabulous album. I have talked about these in my blog before, but if you still haven't had the chance to check them out I would definitely do so. I have created some quick pages capturing Chris as a husband and a Dad using the "Stitch in Twine" album pages. Seeing how simple it was to do so, it made me think that a gift of a Fast2Fabulous album, a pen and a tape runner (maybe with a stack of photos) would be an excellent gift for any man this Father's Day. Photos are universal and while men (or busy folks for that matter!) may not care about using elaborate techniques to create pages, they do care about their photos. Why wouldn't they want the best for their memories? Put a pen in their hands and let them tell their own stories!

A Creative Memories Stitch in Twine refill page with a banner strip cut from the Fresh Picks paper pack

Hand that guy a pen!

Stitch in Twine Fast 2 Fabulous Album

For more ideas on ways to honor the fathers in our lives, please continue to Diana Brinsley's blog - the full list of the Blog Hop is below so enjoy getting inspired and have a wonderful June!

Home Creative Memories' Blog

Stop1 Fran Smitherman's CelebratingYourBeautifulLife YOU ARE HERE!

Stop 2 Diana Brinsley's DBrinsely'sMemoryKeepingBlog

Stop 3 Stefani Jones' CropwithStef

Stop 4 Sarah Fitzgerald's ClickWriteShare

Stop 5 Lisa Graham Brown's Lisa's Workshop

Stop 6 Noreen Smith's Organized and Creative Mom

Mixing and Matching Paper Packs for Gorgeous Page Designs

When it comes to paper packs, Creative Memories is the top of the line. Their 12X12 paper is double sided and you get 12 different patterns to choose from in each pack. They are a fantastic value, and the only problem you might bump into is having to pick sides (literally!) Whether a paper pack is limited edition due to its seasonal nature (such as the Trick or Treat or Christmas Joy paper packs) or it is simply time to make room for new designs, these wonderful sets come and go so it is never a bad idea to grab a pack or two when you see one you like. Several favorites are on their way out right now so now is a great time to think of fun ways to use the ones you have (and possibly purchase a few more before they are gone!) The cute names such as "Sunshine Getaway", "Strut Your Stuff" and "Trick or Treat" make them fun to talk about but they are even more fun to use, especially when you combine multiple packs in your page layouts. That's what we're going to talk about here in this blog post. Resist the urge to "pigeonhole" a paper pack - you might surprise yourself with new uses for that patriotic or neutral paper that you thought were only good for the Fourth of July or wilderness pages. This is best demonstrated with photographs so let's see what I am talking about.

My first set of page ideas involves the Sunshine Getaway, Bright and Neutral paper packs. They work very nicely together as you can see in these photos:

Who knew that the Bright, Sunshine Getaway and Neutral Paper Packs could be so versatile? They look beautiful when you combine them on your pages.

The CM watercolor palette works well together, no matter what combination you decide to play with!

How about combining the burlap from the Neutral paper pack with some of the beautiful designs in this year's Christmas papers? Perfect for shepherds and the innkeeper's child if you ask me! 

Neutral Paper Pack Meets Christmas Joy!

Nice combination here!

Let's go even further out on a limb. Would you have expected to combine the Be Bold and Flourish paper pack with the Trick or Treat pack? That is what I did here with the bold combination of black polka dots and spider webs. I cut out some of the cute bats, ghosts and pumpkins from other papers from the Halloween pack to add just a little bit of fun to this Halloween page.

Trick or Treat Meets Be Bold and Flourish!

The Trick or Treat sticker set is super cute, but here I simply cut up some of the spooky critters from the paper pack to add to my page as embellishments

The Halloween paper also looks good with the black swirls from the Neutral pack...

Trick or Treat meets Neutral

...and believe it or not, this is the black from the Trick or Treat pack and the red ribbon stickers from this year's Christmas stickers (and holly from this year's Christmas slide in packs.) Halloween and Christmas in perfect harmony!

Halloween paper and Christmas Joy stickers and paper - who knew? 

I'm obviously obsessed because here I am back with the Sunshine Getaway pack! It is gorgeous for its large floral prints, but some of the "b" sides have more muted patterns such as this taupe page with scallops on it. The bolder prints here on this layout actually came from the Bright paper pack. I had fun using my Scallop Place 'n Punch and my Jumbo Hexagon pattern to make this page. 

Sunshine Getaway Meets the Bright Paper Pack Take Two

A two page spread using the Bright and the Sunshine Getaway paper packs

While the Red White and Blue paper pack is no longer available, I am assuming that some of you might still have it and want a fun idea for it. I am also trying to make the very important point that paper packs that you don't think are relevant to you (think Pastel paper pack for someone not having a baby) could have just the pattern you've been waiting for. What do you think of when you think of the Red White and Blue paper pack?

This is probably what you picture when you thought of the Red White and Blue Paper Pack

Bright patriotic  colors right? Stars and stripes? Just for the Fourth, right? Wrong! Turns out the Red White and Blue paper pack had tons of my very favorite pattern in the world - GINGHAM! I love it! Point being...just because it's a Halloween pack and you don't have trick or treaters, or just because it's a Red White and Blue pack and you don't have pictures from your most recent Veteran's Day parade, don't exclude the pack all together. Check it out - see if the patterns might appeal to you for "outside of the box" ideas! Here's one I came up with combining the Be Bold and Flourish pack and the Red, White and Blue paper pack. What do you think?

Would you have ever guessed this lovely soft blue gingham was inside the Red White and Blue paper pack (or that it would look so beautiful when combined with the gorgeous peach tones inside the Be Bold and Flourish paper pack?) 

I hope some of these ideas have appealed to you and that you might be encouraged to look through your own stash of paper packs to come up with interesting and unexpected combinations. Have a wonderful day and until next time, keep scrappin'! Fran

CM's Be Bold and Flourish Paper Pack

CM's Bright Paper Pack

CM's Christmas Joy Paper Pack - Ltd Ed.

CM's Trick or Treat Paper Pack - Ltd. Ed.

CM's Neutral Paper Pack

CM's Sunshine Getaway Paper Pack

Halloween Blog Hop Stop #5

Welcome to Stop #5 of our Creative Memories Halloween Blog Hop! 

Isn't Halloween fun? I love being a part of this blog hop with my fellow CM Content Contributors - what a creative group of ladies! Today I am going to share some ideas I came up with a few months back that I hope you will be able to use yourself. My projects are pretty simple if you have the right tools (and I try my best to use scraps so nothing gets wasted!) Today we are going to work on some spooky Halloween faces and a two page layout featuring "Spooky Eyes." Let's get started!

Spooky faces using CM cardstock, the Shape Maker System and scraps from the Border Maker System's Film Strip cartridge  

A fun layout using CM cardstock, jewels from the Floral Embellishment kits, Gold ABC/123 letter stickers, and the fence that comes with the Border Maker System

1. Spooky Skeleton and Spooky Pumpkin

To get started, you will need the Custom Cutting System's mat and the green blade, a tape runner, and the Jumbo Hexagon Pattern. You will also need the Shape Maker System with the Square and the Fancy Circle cartridges and the Border Maker System with the Film Strip Cartridge. For paper I used our Shades of Bright and Shades of Neutral Cardstock packs to get my orange, black and white cardstock (one sheet of each.) Right now Creative Memories also has for a limited time 10 sheet packs of White and Black cardstock (not a bad idea - I know those are two colors I use a lot of!)

The CM custom cutting system, blades, mat and tape runner

                                      

Creative Memories tools: The Border Maker System and the Shape Maker System

"Shades of" cardstock packs and Flower and Jewel Embellishments

One sheet each of black, white and orange cardstock

Begin by using your Green blade to make the smallest hexagon possible with the inside of the Jumbo Hexagon Pattern. Do this with both the Orange (the pumpkin) and the White (skeleton) cardstock.

 Next, take your black sheet of cardstock and make two film strip borders. Save the scraps!

Finally, using the Shape Maker System and the rest of your sheet of black cardstock, make four Fancy Circles and two squares. Cut the squares in half to make triangles.

Assemble the pieces you have cut as follows - the Fancy Circles are the eyes, the triangles are the noses and the cheekbones, and the rectangles that were the scraps from the film strip cartridge border become the mouths. Adhere with your tape runner and voila, you have a Spooky Skeleton and a Spooky Pumpkin!

Spooky faces using CM cardstock, the Shape Maker System and scraps from the Film Strip cartridge (used with the Border Making System)

 2. Spooky Eyes

My second project came from being the mother of two boys. I loved the paper flowers and the jeweled embellishments, but struggled with how I could use them for my pages. After staring at the adhesive jewels I realized they could be used as spooky eyes staring out from the dark and that is what I did to create this fun layout! I used a sheet of grey cardstock from the Shades of Neutral cardstock pack  - the black picket fence from the Border Maker system and the Gold ABC/123 letters as a title added a little something extra!

                                        

I hope you are enjoying all of these fun ideas for your Halloween pages.  Now it's time for you to go see what Diana has brewed up for you at Stop 6 on this Blog Hop, Diana Brinsley's blog. If you started at my blog but want to see the previous Halloween ideas, here are all the links:

Stop 1 ClickWriteShare

Stop 2JuliesCMBlog

Stop 3 Scrappinjpegs

Stop 4 LisasWorkshop

Stop 5  CelebratingYourBeautifulLife <==YOU ARE HERE!!!

Stop 6 Dbrinsleysblog

Stop 7CropwithStef

Enjoy the rest of the blog hop and as always, keep scrappin'! Fran