justem: little bits of this and that

Favorite layouts of 2016*

I only scrapbooked for about six months of 2016, but I didn't actually share any of those layouts on this blog!! I went back through the projects I created before I began my break and chose a few of my favorites to finally share here!  I've always joked that I don't have a style - but looking at these layouts, I'm shocked to see that I kind of DO have a style! White cardstock. Lots of color. Lots of stuff. Cool. I finally get a style and then I give up scrapbooking!!  Okay, kidding. I swear it's just a break! Seeing these layouts really makes me want to run up to my scrap space and make something...and make me want to finally figure out white balance and how to properly edit photos, ha!!

I always love seeing everyone's "best of" posts...if you are reading and have one, I'd love for you to link me up! ;)

Every Single Day {OLD Gossamer Blue Pinspired!}

Good Morning! It's a balmy -11 in Wisconsin this morning, and the kids have a day off school, so we are cozy in our pjs and just hanging out! I have a ridiculously old layout to share today - like... a year old!  Remember when I was trying to post layouts alphabetically to get "caught up"? Never finished that, obviously. So, I am going to try again to share some old stuff mixed in with the new stuff!  This was the Pinspired layout at Gossamer Blue back in February of 2015, but I never shared it. The title work was inspired by a some graphic art I found on Pinterest. It's a little (okay, a lot) different than my usual style, but it's fun to step outside the box once in awhile!  I also love that my son has his next eye doctor's appointment (as featured in this layout) next week!  That's one of my favorite parts of scrapbooking - looking back at old layouts and seeing how much my kids have changed!  

For more information and a peek at the original inspiration piece, check out the blog post on the Gossamer Blue blog! Have a great Monday, and stay warm!!

Snow Love {Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop}

Hello, and welcome to another edition of the Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop! Have you noticed that in the world of kit clubs it's always go, go, go and often before you've even received your kit in the mail there are is already buzz about the next kit? It can be frustrating. We at Gossamer Blue want you to know that we feel your pain and are here with some January inspiration for those of you who are currently knee-deep into this month's kits!

The January kits at GB have historically been "Valentine's Day" type kits - lots of love and hearts and pink. This year, however, there are some really fun additions to the kit, like bits of yellow and blue and some funky black and white accents. I decided to create a layout that would work with these "themed" products, even though it's not actually a Valentine's layout!  This photo of my kids and their cousins jumping in the snow on Thanksgiving is a favorite. I love their bright snow gear against the white snowy background. I wanted to mimic this look in my layout, so I used white cardstock and included a few colored accents. (The color looks a little wonky in this photo, bummer.) It was a short and sweet layout to make, but it's probably my favorite this month! 

To hop along with everyone, here is a list of the blog hop participants this month!  Remember you can always reference the Gossamer Blue blog for a full list of participants! Have a great day and a fun weeekend!

Alex Hunter
Anabelle O'Malley
Andrea Gray
Brenda Weaver
Chantal Philippe
Diane Payne
Emily Spahn **That's me!**
Eyoung Lee
France Wisniewski
Heather Leopard
Jill Keller
Joy Taylor
Kasia "Antilight" Petrus
Kathleen Graumüller
Kellie Winnell
Kelly Xenos
Michelle Wedertz
Olatz Garaiyurrebaso
Sandra Dietrich
Sian Fair

Books, Yay! {Gossamer Blue Pinspired Layout}

Hello blog readers...all two of you. ;)  Happy New Year! I would love to say that one of my goals this year is to really try to bring back my blog, but let's be realistic...it's probably not going to happen. I will try to blog more often though, really, I will! ;)  To start off the year with a bang, I have a fun photoless Pinspired layout to share. This was featured today on the Gossamer Blue Blog. It was fun to make a layout without having to worry about a photo or journaling!  Not to mention, these Seven Paper journaling cards were so fun to use!!  This layout basically "lists" all of the books I read in 2015. In 2014 I started reading again after taking a five year "break" of being busy parenting and working. I read seven books in 2014 and challenged myself to double that in 2015. I met my goal and read 19 books last year - though only 18 are on the list because one was a terrible book club read that I'd prefer not to remember, ha!  Here she is...

Be sure to stop by the GB Blog for some more info about how I made my layout and a peek at the original inspiration!  Have a great weekend!

Bloom {Gossamer Blue Pinspired}

 

Hi! I was up last week on the Gossamer Blue blog with my monthly Pinspired challenge!  I used a fun piece of typographic art as my inspiration.  All the letters piled up along the bottom spell "We Love Bloom Bake Shop," which is our favorite local bakery!  

I included little bits of wood veneer all over the layout - the flowers the exclusive "favorite" circle!

I outlined the letters of the title, while leaving the extra letters plain. I hoped this would help draw the eye to the title!

This was a really fun layout to make. I love all the letters and colors!  To see the original piece of inspiration, check out my post on the GB blog. Have a great day!

Determination {Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop}

Hello, and welcome to another edition of the Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop! Have you noticed that in the world of kit clubs it's always go, go, go and often before you've even received your kit in the mail there are is already buzz about the next kit? It can be frustrating. We at Gossamer Blue want you to know that we feel your pain and are here with some November inspiration for those of you who are currently knee-deep into this month's kits!

I have a great series of photos of my daughter going across the monkey bars. I decided to print them all out and include them on my page. I overlapped them imperfectly on purpose to give the sense of her moving. The only complicated issue is that they actually go from right to left!  I loved so many of the Life Pages cards this month - so many fun prints and patterns! I decided to use four of them to make some colorful stars for the top of my page - the plaid is my favorite! On a whim I added a few lines of black pen to each star, only to realize that it almost mimics the idea of swinging like in the photos. It was totally unintentional! Finally, to add a little more color to my layout, I included some fun rub-ons over my journaling!

To hop along with everyone, here is a list of the blog hop participants this month!  Remember you can always reference the Gossamer Blue blog for a full list of participants! Have a great Sunday!

Amy Challis
Andrea Gray
Diane Payne
Emily Spahn
Eunyoung Lee
France Wisniewski
Jill Keller
Kasia Przybyt
Kellie Winnell
Kelly Xenos
Michelle Wedertz
Olatz Garaiyurrebaso
Sandra Dietrich
Stephanie Buice

Home {Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop}

Hello, and welcome to another edition of the Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop! Have you noticed that in the world of kit clubs it's always go, go, go and often before you've even received your kit in the mail there are is already buzz about the next kit? It can be frustrating. We at Gossamer Blue want you to know that we feel your pain and are here with some September inspiration for those of you who are currently knee-deep into this month's kits!

My favorite part of the September kits is the adorable Crate Paper puffy house stickers that come in the September Life Pages kit.   I decided to create a layout using those houses, and I thought it would be fun to share the story of how we came to own our home, which we moved to two years ago in November. The journaling was the key part of this layout, and it takes center stage with the large title and the photo.  Or course, by the time I finished the layout, I didn't have a good space for the puffy houses, so they never even made it on the layout!  It's funny how you can start a layout with a specific item in mind and then change it so drastically that you don't even include that item! I love it nonetheless, and while it's super simple, it tells the story!

To hop along with everyone, here is a list of the blog hop participants this month!  Remember you can always reference the Gossamer Blue blog for a full list of participants! Have a great day!

 Alex Hunter
Andrea Gray
Anabelle O'Malley
Brenda Smith
Brenda Weaver
Caylee Grey
Chantal Philippe
Diane Payne
Emily Spahn
Eunyoung Lee
Jill Cornell
Jill Keller
Joy Taylor
Kathleen Graumüller
Katie Ehmann
Kellie Winnell
Kelly Xenos
Michelle Wedertz
Michelle Wooderson
Olatz Garaiyurrebaso
Patricia Roebuck
Rebecca Luminarias
Sandra Dietrich
Sian Fair

Wonder {Gossamer Blue September}

With all the hustle and bustle of back-to-school and birthdays last week, I totally forgot to share any Gossamer Blue September layouts!  I ended up not making a main-kit only layout this month (I usually create one out of courtesy to those who only buy the main), so this one is a mix of a few different kits. The kits are full of color, but I decided to step outside the box and instead focus on the blacks, whites, and grays in the kits!

I love that when I posted this on Instagram, people thought it couldn't be mine because it had no color. I do love color!! But, it is fun to go without once in awhile, too!!

Delight in the Details {Gossamer Blue Class}

I am so excited to be contributing a layout to the upcoming Gossamer Blue class "Delight in the Details" with Jill Keller. Jill has a stellar group of contributors and the class will contain tons of fabulous projects, process videos and even a FREE stamp with registration. 

Here is the official little blurb:

Join Jill Keller and her contributors, Monika Wright, Heather Conklin, Emily Spahn, and Sabrina Alery, in Delight in the Details: a class focused on taking your layouts from good to gorgeous! Learn to layer and embellish while focusing on techniques for enhancing page backgrounds, clustering embellishments, creating dimension and all of the little things that will make your finished projects stand out and be noticed. Register now, as class begins September 28th!!

Here's a peek at the class kit that is available:

And here's that FREE stamp set.  Seriously. Adorable. I'm in love with those clouds!

Hop on over to Gossamer Blue to check out it all out! I can't wait to see you in the classroom on September 28th!

Hello Summer {Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop}

Hello, and welcome to another edition of the Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop! Have you noticed that in the world of kit clubs it's always go, go, go and often before you've even received your kit in the mail there are is already buzz about the next kit? It can be frustrating. We at Gossamer Blue want you to know that we feel your pain and are here with some August inspiration for those of you who are currently knee-deep into this month's kits!

Today I am actually sharing my Main Kit only layout.

When I began this layout, I had no intention of using the three colors in the way that I did.  However after arranging my photos numerous ways, I found I liked that I could create four mini monochromatic sections and that there were embellishments and patterned paper that would match nearly perfectly!  Red, aqua, and yellow are some of my favorite colors to use on layouts, so this happy little collection of color makes me smile every time I look at it!  I love how you can home something completely different envisioned for a layout that what it ultimately looks like!  

 

To hop along with everyone, here is a list of the blog hop participants this month!  Remember you can always reference the Gossamer Blue blog for a full list of participants! Have a great day!

Alex Hunter
Anabelle O'Malley
Andrea Gray
Brenda Smith
Brenda Weaver
Diane Payne
Emily Spahn **That's Me!!**
Erin Taylor
Eyoung Lee
Felicitas Mayer
France Wisniewski
Heather Leopard
Jill Cornell
Jill Keller
Kasia Przybyt
Kathleen Graumuller
Kellie Winnell
Kelly Xenos
Laura Rahel Crosby
Michelle Wedertz
Michiko Kato
Olatz Garaiyurrebaso
Patricia Roebuck
Rebecca Luminarias
Sian Fair
Stephanie Buice
Yana Smakula