010116 Archi-scraps January Challenge

Well, another new year - another clean slate - another opportunity to resolve to improve...

Use watercolours. 

I don't mind if I do!

At first, I was thinking of something artsy & challenging.

I can really spend a lot of time thinking about this stuff without doing anything, lol.

I found this fab yet easy-peasy technique on Pinterest:

LINK

As usual, my vision took a few detours. 

I wanted to use these photos with this quote.

I tried a few combinations with the doily paper I created but wasn't happy with any of them.
And that washi in the first photo left a nasty sticky residue, sigh...

Do you ever reach that point when you have to stop forcing something to work & move on?
(That happens to me a lot - I guess you could call me a random scrapper.)
I reluctantly put the photos & sentiment away & went in search of a new image to scrap.

I still loved the doilies, though, so I decided to fussy-cut them & make a banner.
That would help me knock out another Whimsical Musings prompt #181 - be inspired by banners.

Well, the fussy-cutting went well, but my banner idea went South... sigh.
 I started all of this so early & was now getting nowhere FAST!
Here's the image I chose (which of course I forgot to photo until the page was done)
I went downstairs to scan the original so I could adjust the exposure.

This was where I was heading but was not liking the colors with my doilies...

I continued to sub in papers until I was happier, then went to check them with the photo.
Yet that impish little photo that had run off & hid somewhere - seriously???

I had just about given up & was going to throw a card together but decided just to go to bed
& work it all out in the morning (well, later in the morning as it was 2 a.m.)

Amazing what a good night's sleep will do for your creative brain.
Also what it apparently can do to cause an impish little photo to reappear - whew!

Without further ado...

Although this photo is truly one of my all-time faves, I'm not sure how crazy I am about the layout.

I added some hand stitching for texture & a custom stamped border lifted from my uber-inspiring scrappy friend, Susan. Visit her blog Little Things, Big Days for a mega dose of creativity.

Even my photographs turned out poorly.

I hope you have better luck than I did!

Please share your creation with us at Archi-scraps.

Thanks for stopping by!

121715 My December Daily Progress

It's been a quiet month here on the blog. Busy, busy, busy with shopping & parties & visiting the Saginaw area sharing the gospel &  inviting people to First Baptist's big Christmas program.
If you aren't in the area please join us via livestream Sunday, December 20th 6:00pm EST!

My post over at Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog about my December Daily
includes a slide show of my pages but I wanted to add some personal & crafty details here.

Day One: This year we are going with a much more neutral & natural Christmas decor.

Day Two: Such a precious shot by El of the boys in a sweet moment.

Day Three: We are trying to invite the entire community to our Christmas drama this year.

Day Four: It's always so much fun to get the first Christmas card in the mail! 

I even saved the cute stamp & included it on the page.

Day Five: First party, so I crafted a festive shaker pocket.

Day Six: I used a patterned transparency to get two titles on this one day. 

Where the letters showed from the other side I added some hearts.

Day Seven: I love this bicycle propped by the fence, so this year we decided to string it with lights!

Day Eight: Favorite eatery in Gladwin where we are greeted by a black bear at the door.

Day Nine: Sally surprised me with goodies! 

Day Ten: Sad day - Blondie & Barbara moved on to greener pastures.

Day Eleven: Our little man is 4 years old today!

Day Twelve: Finally getting the tree trimmed - it has stood there bare in the living room for a week.

Day Thirteen: Finished decorating in the living room.

Day Fourteen: Dara's party! Made some new friends :)

So much inspiration out there, but I especially love Let's December Daily.
Be sure to visit the link!

It's been a great December so far!
Enjoy the season of the Saviour's birth.
He IS the reason for the season.