justem: little bits of this and that

Little Red Wagon

Good Morning!  It's almost Friday! ;)  Today I have another Gossamer Blue layout to share!  I must admit, when I began this layout (at the Chicagoland Scrappers meet-up!) I was not diggin' it.  It just wasn't falling together for me. I liked the colors and the way the woodgrain from the wagon was mimicked in the pattern paper...I just wasn't feeling the overall design. Well, after some minor adjustments, I'm pretty happy with the result.  It doesn't hurt that H looks totally adorable in the photos!

Have a great day, and thanks for stopping by!

Thanksgiving

 I have my final Gossamer Blue layout from March to share today!  This was my second "Pinspired" layout this month.  I was inspired by this quilt:

And here is the resulting layout:

I know the chevron trend has been done over and over again, but this was my first time using it in this way.  I was pretty laid back about it all...if you look closely you'll notice that some of my strips are upside down and it's all very imperfect, which is how I like it!! :)

Today is the first day of my Spring Break! Yay!!  What are your plans for this fine Monday? :)

So lucky...

Happy Thursday. This has been a weird week in the Spahn household. Monday was a holiday (C. Pulaski day for all those outside of the Chicagoland!!), Tuesday we had a snow day, yesterday and today I have been home with a sick little dude, and tomorrow I'm off to a workshop. Crazy!  Today I have another Gossamer Blue layout to share with you! I have to admit, I find myself making a conscious effort to make more layouts of Henry!  Part of this is because I have tons of photos already printed and ready to use from over a year or two ago, and of course the vast majority of them are of Mirirelle!  So, she naturally gets picked more often just because I already have the photos!!! So, this is a layout dedicated just to my little guy!

(Published, Scrapbook Trends, October 2013)

I loved the dark woodgrain Glitz paper, but I only had small sheets of it (from the Bits and Pieces kit), so I decided to cut them up and create a little "panneled" section on the bottom. I've had this Silhouette cut sitting in my library for awhile, and this was the perfect layout to use it on!  Also - my most used item in this month's kit??  Those adorable little Freckled Fawn stars from Add-on #2. LOVE them.  

Also, this month Gossamer Blue and Elle's Studio are pairing up for a little scraplift challenge!  Definitely check it out for the chance to win some fabulous prizes!  Have a great day!

My 2 Crazy Valentines

Good Saturday morning!!  It's officially March!  That's crazy! Wasn't it just the New Year??  I have the first of my March Gossamer Blue layouts to share with you today. This kit is filled with so many great colors and the coordinating black color kit fits perfectly! There are brand new Elle's Studio, Glitz, and Echo Park products.  This layout is my main-kit only layout!  

Have a great day! :)

Trendy Triangles

The sweet and talented Teka Cochonneau has post up at write.click.scrapbook today about oh-so-trendy triangle!  She created a great layout and a sketch. I hadn't made a layout in weeks, so I basically invited myself to play along!  My final layout actually looks nothing like her original sketch, but I love it just the same.  I was inspired by this Pinterest image:

(source: Molly Flanders Makerie)

and came up with this:

This layout uses papers from the new Echo Park Everday Eclectic collection. I saw them at my local Archivers and had to pick a couple of them up!  I love the colors! :)  Anyway, to see Teka's original layout and read a bit about my creative process, check out the post over at write.click.scrapbook! Have a great Friday!

CHA favorites...a mega post! ;)

I spent all day yesterday at CHA ogling over the newest product! I took a bunch of photos to share of some of my favorites. I apologize in advance for the wonky color. Every single booth had it's own light set-up...and I was not about to set my white balance in every booth.  That would have taken up precious paper-gazing time!!  It's funny...even though I went to each booth at least twice, I am still seeing things I love on the web that I never even noticed yesterday!!  Be forewarned, I'm a paper lover. So the vast majority of photos I took were of just that!  ;)  For your viewing pleasure...in no particular order...my Summer 2012 CHA faves:

Simple Stories: Their new SN@P line is maybe my favorite thing from the entire show. It's perfect for Project Life, it's colorful, it's fun. I love everythign about it!!

Glitz: So, I'm an honest person...Glitz has never been my cup of tea. It was always very froofy, which is not a verb that is often used to describe me or my scrapping.  The new lines are still rather girly, but I'm loving like everything they came out with.  Maybe that means I am becoming a more froofy scrapper?  Who knows. In any case, their stuff is awesome.  The papers are fabulous...the washi...perfect. :)

love the top paper and the pink w/hearts...

great colors, fun patterns...

that bottom paper...very cool.

Teresa Collins: This normally fits into the same category as Glitz. However, I LOVE this first piece of paper and a lot of the elements of her "Tell Your Story" line.  It's very cute...without being cutesy!

KI Memories: They're back!  I kind of want to do a happy dance. Waaaay back when I started scrapping, KI was like MY paper. I think I owned every single sheet of their paper and nearly every embellishment they had. I may or may not still be hording some KI... ;)  They have one new line they released, and I really love it! It's fun and cute...and there is cloud washi!!

My Mind's Eye: I'm totally in love with their new "The Sweetest Thing" line in Tangerine! I would buy every single piece if I could!

Bella Blvd: They had some totally cute projects in their booth. I especially love their embellishments and chipboard alphabets!

Lily Bee: They had some of my favorite layouts of the whole show in their booth!!  I especially liked their Persnickety line...that yellow paper is my favorite!

Jillibean Soup: They had a  ton of people in their booth...making it hard to get any product pictures, but they, too had some fabulous projects I managed to snap!

how crazy cool is this wreath?! (says the girl that never makes anything buy layouts w/her scrapbook supplies)

October Afternoon: I will be honest, I really only "loved" one of their lines: Midway.  It includes one of my favorite papers of the entire show!  The other three lines were just okay for me.  

this is the paper i love.  the circles, not the slightly spooky faces...

Pink Paislee: This is another brand that is always really hit or miss with me. I remember when they first began, I was in love with everything. But lately, they have moved over to with the froofs...but I did really like a couple of things in their booth!

Echo Park: I loved their first "For the Record", so I knew these next ones would also be a hit in my book. Theirs was another very busy booth, so I didn't get photos of everything I wanted, like the new Everyday Eclectic line.

Queen and Co.: Um, washi, washi, washi...!

i'll take one of each, please!

Lawn Fawn: I'm not a stamper, but I am loving their Dewey Decimal paper release. It's so cute and fun with great colors!

how cute is this apple paper!

speaking of cute, who are those cute girls?!

Elle's Studio: It was so awesome to see Elle and her products at CHA.  I love her tags...these were fabulous!

Basic Grey: I love, love, love their Soleil line. It's funny...I probably would never use half these papers because I wouldn't know how to use them, but they sure are gorgeous!

some fab artwork at the bg booth, i think...it's all beginning to blur together in my mind!!

Studio Calico: Yearbook...I knew it would be a favorite based on the sneaks.  It didn't disappoint. This is probably my favorite SC wholesale line of all time! I want to buy it all up this instant!!

American Crafts: LOVE the new Amy Tangerine line. It's perfect, in oh-so-many ways!!!

those hearts??  must have them! and the orange and green thickers?? must. have.

I also really like the new Soho Garden line. I wasn't too sure when they revealed it on the blog, but the papers are SO pretty in person!

Crate Paper: Another (probably too) honest remark...when I first saw the three new lines on their blog I was so disappointed.  I just didn't like them at all...they seemed just a little too crazy and colorful...and I'm like crazy and colorful's #1 fan.  But in person...man, my mind has been changed.  My favorite is Acorn Avenue, followed closely by, gasp, their holiday line. As a rule I don't do holiday papers...but it's so versatile and fun!!

paper lust...

Pebbles: Okay, so I know I'm supposed to openly declare my love for Pebbles now that I'm on their design team, but honestly, even if I wasn't...I would still rave about their new lines.  It was awesome to see them in person. I keep pinching myself...I can't believe I am going to get to work with such amazing product!!

clearly this was meant for me, right? ;)

Jenni Bowlin: Usually Jenni Bowlin papers are a little too vintage for my taste, but boy does she make some awesome embellishments!  These were some of my favorites...

feathers...very popular. i like these, though i have no idea what i'd do with them!

a pinwheel punch? genius!

And finally, a fun little photo of my partner in CHA crime, Valerie O'Neill, who is a fellow w.c.s'er.  We met for the first time yesterday and had a blast walking around together! :)  Here she is next to the Craft Wars house.  If you watch Craft Wars you know what I'm talking about. If you are like me and you don't have cable or crafting shows just aren't your thing...well...it's just a cute picture. ;)

It was a super fun and full day...I was happy, but exhausted!!  What are your favorites from this summer's CHA?  Did I miss something you love?

Beauty School Drop-Out...

Tomorrow is the first day of July, and that means two things! First...Happy Birthday Mom! ;)  Second...there is a new gallery up at write.click.scrapbook!  This month's theme was "5 products."  This really wasn't too much of a challenge for me...since I'm not a big embellisher to begin with! ;)  In fact, I ended up adding the doily because I needed one more "product." (I didn't think staples counted!)  My five products were: patterned paper, thickers, doily, washi tape, and 1 button!

This layout totally makes me smile. Last summer my stepmom found a bubble recipe online and made it for my daughter to try.  Unfortunately, Mirielle was way more excited about "washing her hair" with the bubble solution, which was quite the mess!!  I think her hair produced suds for about the next three baths!!  As I said on the layout...it's a good thing she's so cute! :) This layout uses the Studio Calico City of Lights kit.

Be sure to stop by the gallery and check out the layouts of all my talented teammates!
Have a great weekend! 

Everydaily...

It's May 1st!  This means a brand new gallery at write.click.scrapbook! This month's theme was "Everydaily." I decided to create a layout about Mirielle's morning routine, which is NOT a pleasant experience for anyone involved. I love how the bright colors in the layout make it seem much more cheerful than it really is. Ha! ;)  This layout uses an older Studio Calico kit, Brooklyn Flea. I've really been trying to use them lately! I have a bunch that are still untouched (embarrassing, I know!) in my scrap room!! Hope you all have a great Tuesday! :)

Thankful. Every single day.

I have a challenge up at the Ormolu blog today...

Today I am off of school...
Planning on a little family time...
A little shopping...
A little cooking...
Maybe some kisses and snuggling...
It's going to be a good day. :)