It’s been a while since I last wrote on my blog . . . it was a very busy summer and fall is almost over and has been just as busy (with a couple of illnesses thrown into the mix) . . . I do want to say something right up front . . . I am not an ORIGINAL designer . . . I cannot look at paper and know exactly what to do with it . . . I take classes, buy kits and get ideas from layouts I see on the internet, magazines, where ever . . . I don’t always follow the examples I am given or see but they are close enough so that I do not claim them as my “original . . .

So that being said I would like to share some of the layouts I have done since my last blog (way back when) . . .

When my mother-in-law passed on I was told to choose one item that had very special meaning to me . . . it was a very hard thing to do as I had known this women for over 46 years and considered her to be the mother I never had and always wanted . . . there were so many memories wrapped up in “things” around the house . . . I choose the wooden duck sewing box that her father made for her shortly after she was married . . . my mother-in-law hated to sew and when she found out that I did sew . . . well every time I was over at her house she always needed something hemmed or a seam fixed or even a button sewn on . . . . sometimes she even called me to get me over to do a little project and I was only just dating her son . . . so it seemed very natural for me to choose this duck as my special memory of her . . .

Now I knew that I would be doing a layout about this little box . . . but I kept on putting it off . . . that is until I saw a layout that Robbie Herring did with the July 2009 Limited Edition kit from My Creative Scrapbook club (Robbie is on the MCS design team) . . . I just fell in love with the layout she did using Graphic 45 Fashionista Collection paper . . . so here is the layout for the “sewing box” . . .

The next layout I am sharing is of pictures of my daughter and granddaughter from their annual “mommy & me” beach trip to Santa Cruz, California . . . this layout was from a kit I purchased at Magic Moments & Keepsakes in Chico and was designed by Stephanie Southam who also happens to be a Close to my Heart consultant . . . as is usual I didn’t follow her design exactly . . . instead of using beige paper for the “turf” on the beach I used regular old sandpaper from my husband’s workshop . . . I think it makes the beach look more sandy, don’t you . . .

Layout number 3 is about my granddaughter getting ready for her 1st day of preschool . . . she was sooooooo excited (can you remember how excited you were very year . . . how you couldn’t sleep the night before and then you were up at the crack of dawn making sure that you looked perfect and that you would not be late . . . I sure do!!!!) . . . well Kyra has followed in her mother’s and YaYa’s footsteps . . . so being the good little YaYa I look pictures of her getting ready . . .

Inspiration for making the owls for this layout came from the paper itself . . . the owl below that was used on the layout came from a kit I purchased at Magic Memories & Keepsakes way back in May 2008 (only made the owl & used the strip of owl paper from that kit) and it had to be pieced together . . . and yes I did actually sew a running stitch around the edge of the owl . . . I decided to make a couple of baby owls for the second page of the layout – with one of them taking flight . . .

Inspiration for this layout came from a challenge from Inspired Blueprints using one of their drawings (www.inspiredblueprints.typepad.com) which I meant to enter . . . but I got very sick and missed the entry time . . .

Okay sooooooooo only one more layout to share . . . and this is a very special one to me . . . my friend Christie taught her last class in Paradise (before moving to Idaho at PSB) using Graphic 45 “Baby to Bride” paper . . . she designed 3 beautiful projects – a single page layout, a card and this wall hanging (which hangs above my computer at work and every time I look up I see my smiling/happy granddaughter and all it bright & sunny in the world) . . . thank you Christie . . .

Well that’s all for now . . . thanks for stopping by . . . hopefully my next blog will not be soooooo long and wordy . . . til next time . . . hugs and kisses . . .