An Apple Page - Full of Photos

I tend to put a lot of photos on my scrapbook pages.  The fancy pages with one large photo and layers and layers of flowers and bling and other embellishments just don't appeal to me.  I want to include the photos that help me remember an event or occasion and a larger number of photos nearly always works better for me.

This is one of the pages that I completed in the Layout a Day challenge last month.  I started with a template that had 9 spots for photos.

I didn't care for the center stripe of card stock and the torn paper white strip along the top so I changed things up a little.  I deleted the torn paper strip and filled the green rectangle with one of my photos (a close up of harvested apples in a bin) and then added the title on top of the image.

In order to make the title stand out against the apple photo I added a green glow around most of the letters and placed a circle behind the letter "A," filled it with green sampled from the leaf in the image and then changed the opacity to about 50% so the apple background could show through.

I added a very thin mat around most of the photos as a way of making them "read" as a group.  I also like the way the page looks without the mats (above).  One of the great things about digital is that you can keep switching from one version to another until you finally make up your mind!

I changed the background paper along the bottom of the page to a brighter red and added an embossed dotted texture.  Then I shifted the torn paper strips just a bit and created a central medallion image with one more photo.  This was a photo of some apples on the tree and I applied a filter to "sphereize" the image and discarded the clipped corners.  Then I layered three of the images together (two small and one large) and created a cluster to place on the paper strips.

In the end, there were eleven photos added to this page and the apple sphere embellishment can be saved and used for additional projects as well.

The prompt for the page was a mystery book title - "A" is for Alibi, by Sue Grafton.  In our family, A is for apple.  We just got back from a quick trip out to the family apple farm in upstate New York so this page came to mind to share today.

Do you like pages that are full of photos?  What is your "preferred" number of photos on a one page layout? How many on a two page layout?  Please comment with your ideas about how many photos should be shown on a page.  Would it be more (or less) if you were making a paper page instead of a digital project.

We'll be seeing more family this weekend and I will have limited internet time.  I have a few things to finish up today that I can share while we are busy.  It's raining cats and dogs here - I hope your weather is better!

Subscribe to Capadia Designs if you would like to have new posts delivered directly to your email.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product using the link I may receive a commission. I only participate in affiliate programs for products that I use or can recommend without reservation.

A Wrench in the Garden

This page shows what was probably my most literal interpretation of a prompt in the Layout a Day Challenge.  The prompts were inspired by the board game Clue and the prompt (can you guess?) was the wrench - one of the possible murder weapons in the game.

As luck would have it, my husband actually used a wrench on the day that this was the prompt - and he didn't even realize the significance.  We had a new outdoor tap installed at a more convenient location and he needed to tighten the connection.  I grabbed my camera and shot some photos of the wrench in action along with some of the things that were growing in the garden and put together this page.

I began with this very basic template.  The templates save a little time and give you a place to start to create your page.  I adapted this layout to add a third box in the center, making three square spots for photos and journaling with two rectangular images above and below.  I also grouped the entire page and made it smaller, adding a background paper and matting layers.

I deliberately put the bright pink and purple flowers on the bottom row to add some weight to the page and used the lighter colored flowers and the photos that showed some sunlight at the top of the page.  The original design had a white mat with very thin lines between the images.  I added a second mat layer to help the group stand out against the background paper.

Unfortunately, our garden is taking a severe pummeling with a heavy rain all day on Friday - maybe today will be better.


Do you know about Zulily?  Zulily is a daily deals shopping site for Moms, babies and kids and you can find great clothes, shoes and toys there. They also offer some items for the home and there is a special right now on Silhouette products.

Both the Cameo and the Portrait machines are on sale along with many of the accessories (vinyl, tools, blade, mats, pens, etc.)  This advent display frame is also on sale - doesn't it look cute displaying the instagram photos and cards?  The sale prices are up to 30% off regular price and the sale ends Sunday.  You can see what is available and get all of the details HERE.

Chalkboard art is very popular right now and if you like this style, the latest Cricut cartridge Chalkboard Fonts will be very useful. 

image from Cricut.com

You can find the digital handbook HERE.  The cartridge includes three different fonts and some of the typical flourishes and ornaments used on chalkboard signs along with bonus words and shadows.

image from Cricut.com

There are some cute project ideas on the Cricut.com site, like this layout by the Cricut Design Team.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend.  We have some special plans so I might not be online very much.  An old friend is celebrating a "milestone" birthday and I have been busy the last few days scanning and editing some photos for a memory book. 

Subscribe to Capadia Designs if you would like to have new posts delivered directly to your email.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product using the link I may receive a commission. I only participate in affiliate programs for products that I use or can recommend without reservation.

Iris Images

The iris are blooming in our gardens.  They don't last long and we have had some heavy rains which shorten their limited season.  I love irises and with my camera I can save them to enjoy year round.

I did a little digital magic with one of my photos.  The edited photo is in the lower right corner above and I used the StoryBook Creator software to isolate just the image of the flower.  This image was a bit trickier to do than some images since the contrast with the background was not as strong as I would like.  With patience, I was able to produce the isolated image at the top left - and then I started to experiment.

I grouped two flower images together and then copied and pasted, rotating the images to create a new shape.  I continued grouping and rotating the images.

After many rotations, this was the final result.  Pretty, but I wasn't done yet!

I copied and pasted the full circle image two times and then made each layer smaller.  I added some circles and filled them with coordinating colors and patterns of paper to make a center for the image.

Would you be able to tell what this image was made of if I hadn't shown you the steps along the way?  I think it looks like feathers!

If you are a Silhouette machine user, there is an interesting new twist on the selling of files in the Silhouette Online Store.

There is a special bundle of shapes available in the Silhouette Online Store this week.  A project by Jeana featured on their blog HERE used these shapes for a very cute applique quilt.  For one week after the blog post (there is a countdown on the page) you can buy the four sets of shapes at a bundled price of $2.79.  This is a discount of about 30% on the group.  If you already own one or more of the shapes, the price will show an adjustment for "your price" under the regular price.

Have a wonderful day!  I am trying to get through some paperwork of the more practical type today so I can get some time to do some creating with paper later on - wish me luck!

Subscribe to Capadia Designs if you would like to have new posts delivered directly to your email.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product using the link I may receive a commission. I only participate in affiliate programs for products that I use or can recommend without reservation. 

Scallop Trim Flower Thank You Card

This thank you card has a special flower - one that is very simple to make.  Today I will show you how I made the flower and share a few other tips.

While shopping at Ink About It (my local stamping/scrapping store) I saw this beautiful ribbon trim.  It is by Maya Road and they call it "satin scallop edge trim."  It comes in several colors - I bought this wonderful teal blue and some of the cream as well.  I think it is more of a silky trim, not quite as heavy as satin, but if you are looking for it search for "Maya Road satin scallop edge trim."

The scallops form perfect  petals when you arrange the ribbon in a small circle.  First, cut a section with six full scallops and part of a seventh to make this flower.  Punch a one inch circle from a medium blue scrap of cardstock to use for a base.

Add adhesive liberally to the circle.

Form a flower shape with the trim and sit it on the circle, carefully overlapping the seventh petal to make a six petal flower.  Use a glue dot to secure the top layer of the overlapping petal.

Here is the flower from the back.  The base circle should be hidden but it is best to use a color that coordinates in case any small part might show.

I had some fun trying out possible centers for the flower.  All of these except for the resin rose at the top right are old Creative Charms flowers that I happened to have in my odds and ends dish.  The rose is from an Anna Griffin set that I bought a few years ago.

Maya Road actually has multi-layered flowers that coordinate with the trim but it is fun to make your own.  I wanted just a simple one layer flower for my card.

While I was shopping, I also picked up a few sheets of this Authentique paper from the Seasons Collection.  This is a two sided paper with enhancements on this side and coordinating papers on the back of the paper.

This is the other side of the paper.  I found that when I trimmed the paper from this side, the alignment of the printing was not perfect.  If you are planning to cut up a sheet of enhancements, it is probably best to cut it with the side with all of the embellishments showing.

I had decided to use a kraft cardstock card base but I needed a teal blue layer to frame the pink floral on the card.   It is fun to go on a treasure hunt through your supplies to find a piece of paper that coordinates even though it is from a different company and a different year.  I found a great option in this older DCWV stack, "Garden Party."

I cut the teal layer at 5 1/4 x 4 inches, the pink flowered layer at 5 x 3 3/4 inches and the striped strip is about 1 3/4 x 5 inches.

The "thanks" sentiment is one of my favorite quick and easy cuts made with the die from the Cuttlebug A2 Combo set "With Gratitude."  The small flower shape is right next to the "thanks" on the die and I decided to try it as a layer for the center of the flower.

 I used a piercing tool to start the hole for the pink vintage brad for the center of the flower.

After securing the brad, I added some ScorTape to adhere the paper circle base to the card.

I inked the edges of the pink floral and the teal background layer with Broken China Distress Ink.  I also inked the flower center and the sentiment slightly - just to try to cover any exposed white edges.

I chose the kraft cardstock for the card base because the pink paper is fairly heavily distressed.  I thought it looked rather rustic and the contrast with the silky flower and gem makes the card more interesting.

Here's a quick tip - if the 12 x 12 paper you buy has an extra margin for the price and stock information, take a look - there might be a usable piece or two along the strip.  This one had a nice image of a hand holding a pen and the phrase "to everything there is a season."  You can add these bits to cards or pages.  I tried it at the top...

...and the bottom inside the card.  Be sure to check the edges for these little extras!

I bought a yard of this trim so I can make a lot of flowers.  I think the trim cost around $2.25 a yard - it was definitely under three dollars.

You could make a group of flowers, experimenting with different center items, and save them.  Then it would be easy to make multiples of the card for a gift set, with each one slightly different.

Do you collect paper - particularly 6 x 6 pads with all of those wonderful designs?  It's time to sign up for the June Free Scrapinar hosted by  Lain Ehmann.  This month, Lisa Echerd will be showing us how to use those 6 x 6 papers on 12 x 12 pages.  As always, the Scrapinar is FREE and there will be a replay made available for a few days if you can't attend the live session on June 12th.  You must register ahead of time to have access to the recording, so sign up HERE today!

Have a wonderful Tuesday! 

Subscribe to Capadia Designs if you would like to have new posts delivered directly to your email.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product using the link I may receive a commission. I only participate in affiliate programs for products that I use or can recommend without reservation. 

Summer Weather and a Yellow Iris

Happy Monday and Happy June! 

I've been away for a few days and came back to incredibly hot weather - summer has arrived here in New England.  The weekend was busy with family and neighborhood events.  The heat has brought many more flowers into bloom.

The Layout a Day (LOAD) challenge is finished and I took a bit of a breather this weekend.  I am happy to say that I completed a page every day - plus a few extra ones.  I did all of my pages digitally and I'll be sharing more of them here on the blog from time to time.  It was good to have a daily dose of digital crafting and I learned to do a few things that I hadn't done before with the StoryBook Creator software.

I made this stylized yellow iris from one of my photos.  The "posterize" effect applied to the flower image exaggerates the differences in the color on the flower and divides the image into sections.  You can see the difference between the original photo on the right and the posterized version on the left if you look carefully.

The digital paper I used in the background closely resembles the actual background in the photo - it was just a lucky coincidence that I had this paper.  It is from the Creative Memories Enchanted Digital Power Palette (available in Universal format HERE and StoryBook Creator format HERE).

I'd love to see what you have been up to.  If you leave a comment with a link to a recent project, I'll be sure to take a look.  I hope that the tornadoes and other extreme weather events have not affected you or your family and friends.

I am planning to get back to some die cutting projects this week.  I am might try to do a print and cut of this iris image for a card.  We have some construction due to happen in our house so things may be a bit hectic.  I hope you have a great day!

Subscribe to Capadia Designs if you would like to have new posts delivered directly to your email.
  
This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product using the link I may receive a commission. I only participate in affiliate programs for products that I use or can recommend without reservation.