So. This month I'm a guest on the creative team for Trixie Scraps Designs... a great honour for me that I'm striving to deserve. Tracy, the genius behind Trixie Scraps, has the most brilliant templates and a design style that suits my scrapping mojo very well. These are the layouts I've put together so far using only Trixie Scraps products.

Brittany's Lap Dog uses A Tender Heart ( a Pixel Club Exclusive at Gotta Pixel) and a template from Star Struck Vol 9 Bree (http://www.gottapixel.net/store/product.php?productid=37387&cat=0&page=1).

Hockey Hitmen was a fun layout for me. It uses a variety of Trixie products (I'm SO not a kit scrapper!) including cardstock from Change your Fate (which was a freebie), Feelin' Flakey (not currently available), Stamped Dated and Stated (also not currently available), Stars and Stripes minikit (http://www.gottapixel.net/store/product.php?productid=40228&cat=0&page=1) and a template from North Meets South Studios October 2012 Templatetopia (http://www.gottapixel.net/store/product.php?productid=41191&cat=177&page=1).

This layout of one of my coworkers makes good use of another of North Meets South Studios October 2012 Templatetopia templates and a collaboration kit from NMSS as well called One Haunted Evening ( http://www.gottapixel.net/store/product.php?productid=41121&cat=0&page=1).

This layout and the only following it are done using a kit that releases today called After 10 Years. Both templates are from NMSS October 2012 Templatetopia too. This one is from Standing Alone Vol 2; the photo was taken at Amanda's wedding on September 2, 2012. 

I used one of the templates in Star Struck 16 Stacey A for these photos of Amanda, Micah and their sisters with their beaus that were taken during the wedding festivities. Who's next?

There are more new layouts coming as soon as I can crank them out. I'm having SO much FUN!!

I have a few new layouts that I'm really pleased with. This is one of them.

Stepping out of my comfort zone

Back in February, Kat Hansen challenged all of us who hang out at DHD to step out of our boxes and try some layout styles we don't usually use. I've always found white-space and art-journal styles to be difficult, but art-journal more so. I had in mind to do a layout someday about Adam's dread disease, histiocytosis X and since art-journaling is more about feeling than seeing, I decided this would be a good time to do it. It was cathartic...

This month's journaling challenge... to write a note to my younger self... created the opportunity for me to do something to bring this full-circle, completing a two-page spread.

Since I was already stretching my art-journal muscle, this month's Inspiration Challenge let me bulk it up a little more. We were asked to use 'paper dolls' as our inspiration. I chose word art that reflects how I need to start thinking about myself, as I get older and it becomes more and more unlikely that I'm going to change. "Love Who You Are"... words to live by!

Wow... THREE art-journal layouts! On a roll?

Lagging behind the Creativity Parade!

I can't believe so much time has passed since I last made a post here! It's not that I haven't been creating... But Where do I start? I guess I should go back to last summer and start posting some of the layouts I've done since then.

So! Here's an even dozen.

 The challenge for this layout was to use song lyrics as the journalling. The Rascal Flatts song Stand suited the thngs happening in my life at the time so I opted to use it. I took the photo of the candle, and I created the book with the torn-out page - NO books were harmed in the creation of this layout. Looking at the layout now, I think I should shadow the journalling blanks so they look more like vellum...

 ... and a movie poster.

 I did some very complex clustering here! The photo is from Darci's university graduation in 2006.

 This layout is a counterpoint to the one I did of Carolyn Dawn Johnson.

Bucket list, anyone? Who knew when I did this layout that I'd be planning a trip... to walk in the footsteps of my ancestors... before a year had passed?? I sure didn't! But I'm planning a bus tour of Ireland for June 2013.

 I managed to use a rather feminine kit for a layout with Adam's photo in it and it doesn't look too girly at all.

 These photos seemed to go well with the papers I selected for this Twisted Pixels layout. I like this template so maybe I should use it again.

I recoloured the word art to pick up the colours in the kids' clothing - and to make it work in a two page spread with a blueprint challenge from DHD.

Oh, another concert layout! I love to do these. I blinged up the font so it looks like sequins. Not that Keith Urban is a sequin-y kinda guy...

 I took these photos out in the country east of Cold Lake when I was there for my sister's retirement luncheon. The layout needed to be simple so that the photos would be the focus.

Trixie Scraps Designs used to run a monthly Show Me the Mini challenge. The goal was to use only the parts of the mini-kit - but to use them ALL on a layout. (Handsome is a SMTM layout too.) This mini kit had 4 papers in it that I layered for the background. Then I clustered all the embellies.

I don't know if all the flowers on this Twisted Pixels layout really belong. I wanted the photos to stand out and I think they do.

This journalling challlenge layout was the first one I used a Jumpstart Designs template for, if I remember correctly. It's hard for me to write about myself.