It sure Feels Like Winter

Brrr... It sure feels like winter right now with temperatures in the low 30's but at least there's no snow to speak of right now. I can't believe how quickly fall has come and "feels like" gone. All the leaves are down now and with the temperatures below freezing it feels like winter. Brrr... It hasn't been that long ago that my trees looked like the one you'll see in the page below. Believe it or not I took the picture with my camera phone. It is a little LG Rumor phone. Not too bad but my digital camera would have captured the light coming through the leaves better. I used the color challenge kit "Pumpkin Spice" from Dana Conditt and Lorene Hill over at Deco Pages. It's free for Club Deco Members or during the month of November you can purchase it for $1.99.


Here is the preview to the starter kit!


I've really been having fun with the challenges at Deco Pages...when I've actually had time to participate in them. There is a challenge called scrap by numbers which is three seperate challenges and three rewards but it uses one starter kit which you don't have to use but have to have a set number of elements in the pages. The three different challenges are called Scrap By Numbers, Material Girl Challenge and Holiday Challenge. There is an add on kit reward for each challenge that you participate in.

Here is the preview of the starter kit that as a Club Deco Member you can get for free or purchase in the store for $3.00.


This page below is the page that I created for the Material Girl Challenge. The challenge was to use a recipe card and I thought I would mix it up a little by not using an actual recipe...instead creating a recipe for "Love" The journaling reads: 1 cup of enthusiasm, 1 cup of devotion, 1 cup of unselfishness, 1/2 cup of affection, 1 tsp affection, 1 tsp benevolence, a pinch of attachment. Mix together in a heart shaped vessel and bake a lifetime.


This next one is the one that I created for the Scrap by Numbers challenge. There were a list of elements that you could choose 4 from to complete the page. I chose ribbon, metal brad, scalloped edge, and three papers. It was fun to do too! Of course with a subject like my dear grandson, all the challenges are fun for me.

I still have to complete the holiday challenge to complete the three of them. I can't wait to see what I wind up doing....

Family Book with Color Technique

I have finished the family book that I started with the splash of color technique in the Photography challenge over at Deco Pages. I have never done anything like this before and am learning how to use Photoshop Elements so it was an interesting thing to do. I really enjoyed the experience. So starting with Mary, my grandmother...



She is a wonderful Grandma too! I spend as much time with her as I possibly can and try to ask her questions about my heritage and family. Not to mention that I just enjoy spending time with her. This page was made with the November Club Deco Kit with contributions from Amy Passmore. Fonts used were Engravers and Freestyle Script.

Her oldest son is Dale. He is a great Uncle. He always has lots of funny stories to tell.




This page was created from the November Club Deco Kit: Heritage Blessings with contributions by Dana Conditt. Font used was Freestyle Script.

Then there is Aunt Sis. She is a wonderful lady, I just love her to pieces. It's too bad that she doesn't live close enough for me to see her more than once a year.



Her page was made with the same November Club Deco Kit iwht contributions by JBurkhart of Burkhart Scrapzone Designs. There are so many wonderful pieces in this kit! It has been such fun to work with. The font is Freestyle Script.


Aunt June follows third in the progression of children. This wonderful lady has survived breast cancer not once but twice and currently is being treated for Cancer on her spleen. She is my hero and my friend.



Her page was made with Heritage Blessings November Club Deco Kit with contributions by RoseMadeDesigns. I just loved the rich colors for her. Font is Freestyle Script.

Following Aunt June is Uncle Ronnie. He is so funny as well as talented and artistic. Closer to mom's age, he was her favorite brother.



Same Club Deco Kit: Heritage Blessings with contributions by Deb Ammerman. Font is Freestyle Script.

Last but not least and obviously my favorite is Connie, my mom. She was the youngest of six children even though you will only find five here. Uncle Jack died when he was sixteen playing Russian Roulette.
Moms page was created with contributions from Paris Designs, RoseMadeDesigns, Lori Staton and Jennifer Rassi. Same font was used: Freestyle script.

You can find the Designers at Deco Pages and as a Club Deco member you have access to the monthly Club Deco Kits for Free as well as other kits and gifts that are exclusive to Club Deco Members. There are wonderful challenges that stretch the imagination and teach wonderful techniques such as this one in the Photography challenge. It is a great community, I hope that you will come and join us.

Thanks for looking! Hope to see you at Deco!

Heritage Blessings

Heritage Blessings is the November Club Deco Kit and it is awesome! I love all of it! Just look at what I did with just a few of the pieces of the kit. I used pieces from Lorene Hill, Paris Designs, Deb Ammerman and Amy Passmore. I created this page for the November Photography Challenge: Splash of Color.
The technique of adding the color to the photo was so much easier than I had imagined it would be. Or at least maybe Deb's tutorial is so good that it would be hard to mess it up. I just love the way that this turned out. Who knows, maybe in a few days I'll put the page up as a QP freebie! Stop back and see! :) In the meantime, if you would like more information on the Club Deco kit, stop over at Deco Pages and see what's going on!

Thanks for stopping in!

QP Freebie

I have been working with Early Autumn by Deb Ammerman at Deco Pages and really am enjoying her kit! I created the page Cherish of my DGS and modified it to a 12X12 QP and am giving it free here on my blog. Credits for the page are:

Kit Used: Early Autumn by Deb Ammerman
Sunflowers: Paisleys, Potpourri and Pizzaz by Deb Ammerman
Fall Colored Leaves: Autumn Splendor by Deb Ammerman

I hope you like the page! You can download it here: http://www.4shared.com/file/69801151/5d5085cd/mc_early_autumn_blog_freebie_QP.html

New Challenges, Club Deco Kit and layouts

Well it's November already! I haven't even really realized that it was October and it's already gone! I must really be getting old as fast as time is flying! LOL!

November brings great challenges and a brand new Club Deco Kit which is so totally cool! Fifteen designers have posted their contributions so far and I am sure that there is more to come. Here is a preview of what is already contributed.

With 15 contributors so far this is just a small portion of what's available. Free to Club Deco Members and becoming a member is so easy! They've added one month trial membership to the choices and even if you are only a member for one month it is definitely worth it! You can find membership information here in the forum. There are so many talented designers that contribute to this wonderful kit every month.

We have new challenges too! Some really challenging in and of themselves. For instance in the Photography Challenge this month we are using B&W and color in the same photo! Playing with effects is kind of cool! I've never done anything like that before so I am excited to learn how to do this! The creative team has some new challenges and rewards too! Check out the journaling challenge for instance....Journaling about holiday preparations! Thanksgiving is just around the corner and then there is Christmas and the New Year! What do you do to ready yourself for these holidays? Prizes for participation in this challenge are two QP's made with PatinParis's Art Nouveau Surprise kit.
There are two more creative team challenges that have their QP's from the same kit as well. You can check out the full kit Art Nouveau Surprise here. Here is a preview of just the papers in the kit and you wouldn't believe the amount of elements included. It's huge!

I'm enjoying the fall season so far this year seeing the colors changing and then with halloween! Fall is such a wonderful time! I love the stillness of the water with summer over and the colors!!!! Check out these pages that I did with Deb Ammerman's Early Autumn

Everything in this page is from Early Autumn.

The sunflowers came from Deb's Paisleys, Potpourri and Pizzaz kit and the autumn colored leaves from her Autumn Splendor kit but everything else was from Early Autumn.

kit and her Halloween Treats! My grandson was Handy Manny for Halloween! I had never heard of Handy Manny, I thought it was a fancy name that my son made up for his little handy man but turns out it is a character on the Disney Channel. Who would have known!


He is certainly one of the cutest little handy men I've ever seen!

Thanks for stopping by, I hope to see you over at Deco Pages!