An Album about Me!

I’m probably like many people who scrapbook. Looking back over my albums, you’ll find few layouts that include me. Normally, I avoid the camera, but something happened that made me want to change that. You can find the reason in the layout, “No Way.”

I posted the layouts in reverse order so that the description would read in order from top to bottom. As I said in the first post, “Reflections: I Am Blessed,” I don’t plan to provide detailed descriptions about the techniques or the layouts, just whatever touches my fancy at the moment.

I wanted to use an album that was 11” x 8 ½” so that limited my choices. I’m usually not concerned about how my pages coordinate with the color of the album itself, but I wanted something for the title page and last page that wouldn’t fight with the green album and red paisley highlights. Beyond that, when you look at the album pages together, the style and colors are a little schizophrenic!



Now about the title page . . . Have you ever received a gift where you were almost as excited about the wrappings as the gift itself? The “L” and key as well as the stitched black ribbon under them decorated a gift bag from my friend Holle. I knew that they would find their way to a future project and this was it. I painted the “L” with Ranger Red Pepper Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabber edged with Pitch Black Paint Dabber. I stamped the paisley haphazardly over the letter with Ranger Pearl Adirondack Metallics Acrylic Paint Dabber. The chipboard numbers and key were also highlighted with Paint Dabbers.

The hearts are freehand. I didn’t intend to include two shapes and sizes, but when the first one I cut was too large, I cut the center out. The solid shape heart seemed to need definition, so I stitched around the edge with black thread. (Having first learned to sew in what was then called home ec, I have to concentrate to sew randomly) “Me,” swirls, and arrows as well as all the die cuts in this album are by QuicKutz.

No Way

The seed idea for this album – a newsflash about an “elderly” woman feared to be the victim of foul play. The woman didn’t look elderly to me. After the commercial, I learned that she was 69. Elderly? My mental response: No way!

This caused me to think. Sometimes I wish that I really “knew” my parents and grandparents, the facts and details of their lives and more importantly, the whys of what they did. What did my grandmother think when forced to “retire” from teaching to marry my grandfather. What was it like for my mother to grow up on a farm in Kansas? What were my father’s innermost thoughts when he served in the European theater during World War II? It’s too late for me to get answers to these questions, but with one of those “big” birthdays approaching – one that ends in a zero, I decided it was time to do an album to document this time in my life. I’m not 69, but I want my children to know that I’m nowhere close to elderly. My life is rich and full. I want them to know that, and I want to give them a glimpse of the reasons behind my involvement in the things I do.



I decided to use two of my favorites, paint and glitter, for this page. Ranger Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabbers are so easy to use with foam stamps, and there is nothing more fun than playing with Ranger Stickles Glitter Glue. (I drew with the Stickles and at times smeared it around with the tip of my finger.) It’s amazing the depth that can be added by outlining with black and white pens and with the addition of a little glitter glue. Plain foam stamps gain a three dimensional quality with these simple additions.

I Still Love Being Your Wife

In a few months, we will celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary. What more can I say? After all these years, I still love being your wife!



When I first met other scrapbookers, scrapbooking consisted of flat stickers, paper, and decorative scissors. This layout reminds me of some of my lumpy early attempts and the questioning looks I received when I shared my dimensional designs.

Here, I wanted the focus to be on the title rather than the pictures. Embossing with Ranger Vintage Photo Distress Embossing Powder produced an interesting grunge effect – the result of printing on a laser transparency with an inkjet printer. (The inkjet printer ink sits on top of the laser transparency and seeped under the Distress Embossing Powder when heated.)

It’s difficult to see, but there is subtle tone on tone stamping on the base cardstock. Ranger Distress Ink highlights provide a vintage touch that compliments the patterned paper. As for the rest of the elements, silk flowers and a scrap of inexpensive polyester lace misted with diluted Ranger Adirondack Color Wash complete the pages.

I'm One Proud Mom

My daughters are young adults, and our relationship is in transition. I am proud to be the mother of these two delightful young women.



I wanted to use recent pictures of my daughters, but the ones we’d taken on their last visit didn’t turn out well. When I looked in my stash and found these papers I’d created on a play day, I decided to tint my pictures to match. I painted the chipboard letters with Ranger Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabbers to complement the surreal effect of the photos. I’m satisfied with the artsy effect and the poor photography is no longer the focus.

That’s What Teachers Do

When I started this album, I planned to do a layout that revolved around my teaching assignment. While I would rather not be in the spotlight, I hope that my daughters will look back in the future and see this as confirmation of the important part that teaching has played in my life.



I knew that I wanted the eye to be drawn across the page through journaling, but I also knew that I would have a difficult time in creating balanced text boxes. I experimented on the computer until I achieved the look that I wanted adding doodling around the printed text boxes and in “waves” across the page. Of course, after I covered the paper with Ranger Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabbers, I had to go over the printed text and doodling again. I was pleased with the playful effect.

Unbelievable

My teaching assignment involves seniors, but I also serve as a volunteer “academic coach.” This means that I spend my planning period and time before and after school working with athletes. This is a hodge podge of that part of my life. The improvement that we’ve seen in the GPAs for student athletes has been “unbelievable!”



A simple stamped background supports the playfulness of the title.

Absolutely Worth It

Ever found yourself doing something that you didn’t anticipate? I taught in the church weekday preschool and Sunday School over 20 years ago, but I never considered that I might be working with preschoolers at this stage of life. When I look in these pictures and see myself in strobing glasses or wearing a tiara, I am reminded anew that these precious little boys are worth it!

The background papers were created by scraping paint across the cardstock.

But I Don’t Even Like Punch

I should probably have added an exclamation point after the title. There is a pocket behind the punch bowl that explains how a woman who doesn’t like punch – that would be me – has ended up making the punch for church social occasions. (The recipes are hidden there too.)



The leaves were stamped with Ranger Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabber, and starbursts were added to the striped patterned paper with Ranger Adirondack Dye Ink. I like the way the jewels in the punched circles and on the leaves pick up the sparkle in the punch bowl.

This World Is Not My Home

Sometimes I feel the need to wax philosophical – to try to make sense of things that don’t make any sense at all.



I'm not sure why the background pages look like they are different colors, but they really aren't. The title was printed on a laser transparency with an inkjet printer. (Using a laser transparency allows me to heat set the black embossing powder. I intentionally overheated in several places to warp the transparency so that it wouldn’t lie flat.) The background was created by applying gesso for subtle texture changes and colored with Ranger Adirondack Dye Inks (Mountain Rose, Peach Bellini, and Sunshine Yellow .)

Technology Shapes Friendships

Ten years ago, the computer had no bearing on my relationships other than when I typed an occasional letter. Five years ago, I participated in internet groups that revolved around common interests. Now, technology plays an integral part in my friendships (documented further in a page not included in this album) and provides an easy way to maintain contact. I can’t help but wonder what twist technology will bring in the next five years, but I plan to be ready!



Deli paper was painted for a textured “grass.” After I dabbed the Ranger Adirondack Copper Metallic Acrylic Paint Dabber onto the background cardstock through Punchinello, I liked the effect on the Punchinello and tore it into pieces to include in the layout. The houses were constructed from scraps with pen added details.

If You Think Zoning Doesn't Matter

Our home of 16+ years is in a small subdivision in a rural area on a lot that is about an acre. The location is picture perfect for our simple lifestyle. (Well, not everything’s perfect. It’s probably a good thing I don’t know whose idea it was to construct the one entrance on a fatal curve over a part of the creek that is prone to flooding, but that’s another story.)

We are not golfers, but our lot backs against a public golf course and provides a serene country view. A developer bought the golf course and unbeknownst to us, last summer received approval from the planning commission for annexation and zoning for multi-family construction. That’s when the struggle began.

I realize that in many areas of the country development of this nature would be welcome, but we have serious concerns. We’re past the fact that we bought a home with a golf course view that would be encircled by other construction. What we question is the nature on the development and the impact on our property values.

At this point in time, single family “attached” housing is planned. I realize that there are many parts of the country where condominiums are attractive, but this is not one of them. We have serious concerns about the market for this type of product. An unoccupied condominium project stands within a few miles of our homes. Construction was halted months ago, and no buyer has been found for this eyesore. Closer to town in an area that we would have considered highly desirable, a comprehensive plan that included retail, business, and condominiums was abandoned recently for lack of interest. Based on sales in our area over the last five years, we have every reason to fear that condominiums will not sell. We also know that could mean a quick change in zoning to apartments. So much for the value of homes set on large lots in a peaceful little neighborhood. We could always hope that the market would improve for multi-story multi-family living in an area with minimal amenities.

The five month struggle documented in this layout is now nine months long with no end in sight. The city council subsequently rejected the annexation/zoning recommendation from the planning commission for lack of a general plan, a requirement under their own zoning laws. The planning commission took care of that this week by a change in wording from a prerequisite “general plan and any applicable local area plans” to a ”comprehensive plan or applicable local area plan.” I’ve always heard about the power of words, but this change in conjunctions is more than a subtle shift in meaning. So much for state law. We don’t have a local area plan either, but I’m sure it will take little time for the planning commission to whip one up since citizen input and state statutes for studies that should be considered in planning have always been ignored. After all, we’ve always done it thus way.

One positive change has resulted. The required legal notice can no longer be hidden in unreadable mini type in the local paper. We’ve just begun work on a blog to provide information on this issue. I’d rather spend my time on time on other things, but we’ve got to do what we can to protect the investment we have in our home.

I scanned a few of many newspaper articles for the background for this layout. The “icicles” were cut from the plastic liner that comes under our favorite pizza and painted with Ranger Adirondack Silver Metallic Acrylic Paint Dabber. “Zoning” was also stamped with the Silver Metallic Dabber, outlined with white and black pens, Use of the silver paint to edge the picture added to the starkness of the layout – my intended result.

A Few of My Favorites

It can be difficult to scrapbook things that don’t go together. The challenge is met here through the red QuicKutz subtitles, random doodling with red and white pens, and stamps that draw the images together.


Recognize the gold bow? That was around a box of Valentine candy. By outlining with a red pen, this became the perfect titleholder for rub-on “favorites.”

Notice that these pages appear wider than 11 x 8 ½? They are. All my “favorites” wouldn’t fit on two pages, so I added a page that was just 3 ½ inches wide between them. I used the “hot knife” point from my Walnut Hollow Creative Versa-Tool to trim the page protector to the proper size. (Think a very hot Exacto knife.) Cutting with the hot blade fuses the pages together, an easy way to cut the perfect size.

An Unexpected Pasttime - NASCAR

People are generally surprised to find out that I’m a NASCAR enthusiast. My interest started in an attempt to share one of husband’s favorite pastimes, but now I have to admit that I’m a real fan. I have plenty of clothes with the number 24 to prove it!




Two things: Check out the stamping on “Fan.” This enhances the title and ties nicely to the patterned paper under it. The chipboard “24” was painted with Ranger Distress Crackle Paint. For big cracks, apply a thick coat as I did. A thinner coat will result in smaller cracks. The key is to apply Distress Ink when the paint is dry to highlight the cracks.

Reflections - I Am Blessed

This is the final page of the album, but I’m going to start here so that anyone reading will find the information in order from top to bottom. I don’t plan to provide detailed description of the techniques or layouts, just whatever touches my fancy at the moment.


A simple page. QuicKutz title and “Reflections” journaling on a transparency. (Looking back as I write this, I realize that all die cuts in this album are by QuicKutz.) The “flowers” were cut from patterned paper and attached with eyelets. The strips of patterned paper and hand “stitching” at the bottom lend the appearance of fabric.