Girl Friday Journaling Prompt: Love the Everyday

Another year ends and a new one begins. Truth be told, I actually take out a calculator when I'm asked my age to make sure I got the number right. (Yes, blame it on early senility.) My point? Age is just a number and the years that pass by are also just years adding up, coming and going.

But that's also why age-old wisdom goes, "Time is gold." It is important for us to capture the everyday, what gets you excited to start a new day, a new year.

Today, my wish for all of you is that you start 2011 loving every single day.

For me, these two are my reason for waking up excited to face a new day.


This is my husband AR and my son Matt six years ago. Yep, I've scrapped these photos before. (Thank goodness I used copies and not the original photos. Maybe next year I'll be brave enough to show you my first scrapbook. =p)

AR was swinging Matt to and fro and pretending Matt was an airplane. =p

Tip: If you're stumped on how to scrap a photo, take the theme (i.e. this layout was all about "airplanes") of the layout and grab your supplies together.

To break the monotony of airplane papers and buttons, I added a man sticker and postage stamps from Queen Kat Designs' Going Postal Stamp Set.


What makes you look forward to a New Year? Think about it, scrap it, write about it. Love the everyday!

*hugs*,
Nina

December 14 Blog Hop: Color Challenge

For this week's Royal Kat Tuesday, we invite you to check out the Royal Court's creations on the color theme: Green, Black and White.

And here's the Blog Hop order in case you get lost along the way:

QKD Blog --- You are here. =)
Lara's blog
Shannon's blog
Dark Ink Sorority Blog
Chris' blog
Jan's Blog
Whimsical Ink Sorority
Linda's Blog
Penny's Blog
Roni's blog
Queen Kat Designs Store

And here's my take on it:

These were a ton of fun to make. It felt like I was eight again and playing dress-up.

Some close-ups:




Stamps: Walk Down the Memory Lane Stamp Set, Asian Postage Stamp Set, Going Postal Stamp Set

Template found here.

Now off you go to the lovely Lara's Blog HERE. Till next time!

*hugs*
Nina

Girl Friday Tutorial: Altered CD Christmas wall hanging

Hi! Nina here starting my Girl Friday Tutorials. We hope that these project ideas inspire you to make something lovely and give you ideas on working with Queen Kat Designs Stamps!

Project: Christmas Wall Hanging

Supplies:
3 never-to-be-watched-again old VCDs; Christmas patterned paper; gel medium; Christmas-themed embellishments; ribbons/trim; cheesecloth; glue gun; Ranger Inkssentials Glossy Accents; double-sided tape; foam tape; white acrylic paint; stamp ink; Queen Kat Designs Stamps (Asian Postage Stamp Set, Going Postal Stamp Set, Aged Text Background Stamp)


CD 1
1. Get 3 never-to-be-used again CDs. Trace and cut patterned paper to size. Use gel medium to adhere.
2. Gather your Christmas embellishments. I got my vintage images from an advertising brochure. Some of the trim, the leaf, and cherries I got from the notions section of the department store. I got some of my trim from a dressmaking shop.
3. Stamp on the tag. Ink and distress edges. Position and adhere elements using double-sided tape. Use foam tape to adhere vintage image. Use Ranger Inkssentials Glossy Accents to adhere hard-to-stick items like the plastic star.
4. Swipe white acrylic paint all around the edge.

CD 2
1. Stamp postage stamp images using Versafine brown and black ink and Memento brown ink.
2. Adhere vintage Santa image on white cardstock, then use double-sided tape to attach it on top of the cheesecloth. Then attach the cheesecloth on the patterned paper with double-sided tape.
3. Use Ranger Inkssentials Glossy Accents to attach the leaf trim and cherries embellishment.
4. Swipe white acrylic paint along the edge.


CD3
1. Adhere ribbon with double-sided tape.
2. Tie twine and metal charm to small tag, then stamp and adhere with double-sided tape at an angle.
3. Use foam tape to adhere vintage image.
4. Adhere Maya Road felt bird and bingo chip with double-sided tape.
5. Swipe white acrylic paint on edge.


To adhere CDs to "hanging" ribbon
1. Position the 3 CDs front to back on a table in a vertical row. Position the red "hanging" ribbon on top of them. Simply fold red ribbon in half so that two lines of ribbon would support each CD.
2. Use glue gun to tack one CD at a time to the red ribbon. (You're supposed to have two ribbon parts on each CD.
3. For added endurance, use double-sided tape to adhere black cardstock on top of the ribbons at the back of the CDs.

Hope you enjoyed my Girl Friday Tutorial today!

Do subscribe to the QKD Blog, the Whimsical Ink Sorority Blog, and the Dark Ink Sorority Blog so that you don't miss out on the fab inspiration from the Royal Court!

Till next time!

Girl Friday,
Nina

August 31 Blog Hop: Anything But a Card

We're stepping out of the box today so be ready for some fun altered action going on with the creations of the Royal Court.

This week's challenge is: anything but a card. Create 2 ATCs or an art journal page.

And here's a road map of the Blog Hop in case you get lost along the way:

QKD Blog --- You are here. =)

Shannon's blog
Dark Ink Sorority Blog
Meredith's blog
Whimsical Ink Sorority
Penny's Blog
Jules's blog
Roni's blog
Queen Kat Designs Store

Here are my take on the challenge:

Virgo Goes Postal ATC - Virgo Stamp and Going Postal Stamp Set


Kiss the Cook ATC - Satisfaction Dragon Stamp Set and an old QKD "Kiss the Cook" stamp

And since I've dusted off my art journals for 2010, I decided to do a re-listing of my everyday goals for 2010. It's not such a bad idea to reassess those New Year's Resolutions past mid-year. (And yes, sadly, I'm waaaay behind my goals.)

Stamps: chair from stamp set with May/June 2010 Findings Kit, cage from Every Season Stamp Set, strawberry and sentiment from Satisfaction Dragon Stamp Set, Virgo Stamp
And here's a close-up of the wonderful Virgo Stamp and Satisfaction Dragon Stamp Set stamps:


Now off you go to the lovely Shannon's to see what she cooked up today. Enjoy the inspiration! =)

Updates and taking time to scrap

The holidays have been incredibly busy and bittersweet for us. My older brother's family left for the USA last Sunday and although I'm incredibly happy for their new life there, I already miss them so much.

It occured to me that I haven't sat down and made a diary entry or a scrap page or anything. And I just know I don't want to miss any of these crazy things going on in our life now. Thank goodness they're all good.

Here is a close-up of the fabulous images from the Going Postal Stamp Set.

Here's wishing that you and your loved ones are enjoying the warmth and magic of the season.

*hugs*
Nina

Priority Travel

I saved a luggage tag from hubby's luggage and fully intended on using it on a layout. I wanted to document how it feels to be the wife of someone who works in the airline industry.

Journaling:

At first I was going to write about how being married to someone who works in the airline industry is far from a "Priority" travel experience or lifestyle. Sure we get to travel in business class. But it's a panicking feeling I feel knowing that we are always the last priority to board. Still it feels a little ungrateful to complain about that.

And then there's the people who make remarks, snide, envious or otherwise, how "easy" our life is because we travel. Come back to me when you're a stay-at-home mom and homeschooler who has to endure weeks without a husband.

But the truth is, I didn't even expect to still be traveling at all. When we married, AR wasn't in Philippines Airlines yet. And I had resigned myself to think my travel days were over.

So what is so wonderful about travel? Truthfully? It's that for the duration of it, no matter how long or short it is, you have that feeling that you've taken a temporary break from the ordinary and everyday routine. And that makes any complaints or snide comments more than worth it.

* I used Queen Kat Designs Going Postal Stamp Set for this.

Going places

I got these self-laminating bag tags and had a little bit of fun with some of my favorite QKD Stamps.

And these are the back with my name on Dymo tape.

These are just so fun and easy to make. Think ATCs but for a practical purpose.

What I love about scrapbooking is discovering little ways we can incorporate little sources of inspiration in our daily lives.

For these bag tags, I used QKD's Russian Dolls Stamp Set, the bicycle and cat from the Ride With Me Stamp Set, the Going Postal Stamp Set, and Random Text Background Stamp.

{i} was here

The more I take tons of photos, the more I write down my thoughts in my journals, the easier it is for me to forget the details of the everyday things or even the most special of occasions.

Sometimes a photo is not enough or even a hurried note on the calendar. Sometimes you have to reach out and connect with something -- eat a local delicacy, touch, take a moment to just let everything sink in.

I may not remember the date of this photo. (I can easily look for it in my digital file folder.) But I do remember the precise moment I did this. It was a chilly weekend and I was freezing. But I reached out and touched a post from the outside steps of the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan.

I love how the pointing finger and the postage stamps from the QKD Going Postal Stamp Set just go so well together.

May we also find ways to remember and capture precious memories.