cheryl - 11/18 - Chelle's Creations

Scrap Skills: Using Borders

June 26, 2013
Scrap Skills
cheryl

Hello, digital scrapbook loving friends! Our subject today is borders, and it is my hope that you will be inspired to use borders in a way that maybe you hadn’t thought about before reading this post. Borders on scrapbook pages are great for guiding the reader’s eye in the direction the creator wants or for separating photos. Take a look at the pages Roxana made. She has used Chelle’s Choo! Choo! kit to make two pages with borders on each, but the borders have slightly different uses. On the first page, the border forms the bottom of her page and gave her a place for the title of her page. On the next page, her border separates the small photos from the large photo and helps the eye travel down the small photos first before moving to the large one. I love how she has accented her paper borders with small clusters of elements from the kit, and the title of her second page is perfect! Looks like someone has seen the Superman movies, right?

Jenn used a border on her page, but she made it from elements in the kit instead of paper. She used Chelle’s Berry Berry Blue kit and the matching alpha for her page. Her border is made from a ribbon as the main piece, and it is accented with other elements in the kit. I love that blueberry muffin tucked behind a flower, and I like that she attached a word art piece to the other end to balance it visually. The whole border makes a great anchor for her page about her daughter making a delicious treat. This page is seriously making me hungry, it is so yummy!

Finally, Wanda has a great example of using a border as its own decoration on the page. She used Chelle’s Play the Game and In the Pocket {strips} . She likes to make pocket-style pages with stuff in the pockets as well as on top of the pockets. Since she is digitally making pages, this works out easily! She used one of the Play the Game Quickies as a decorative accent inside the pocket on the lower left, and then she added another of the quickies as the border across the middle of her page making the perfect spot for her title. And, now I’m starving because she also has yummy treats on her page!

I hope you are inspired to scrapbook like I am after viewing the team’s creative use of borders. I think I’ll help myself to a snack and use some of their great ideas. Why don’t you?

Tea for Two | Digital Scrapbooking Classics

June 18, 2013
Classics
cheryl

“You’re invited to a tea party: It’s Tea for Two. Soft feminine colors & sweet elements highlight your sisters, friends, & grandmothers…a sweet kit for all of your treasured relationships.” That’s a quote directly from Chelle’s Creations store regarding the classic Tea for Two kit I want to highlight today. It is adorable and perfect for a host of digital scrapbooking projects.

Chelle’s creative friends have been playing with this kit, and their pages are adorable! Leslie had tea with her mom in England and took some photos of the yummy scones and the beautiful locale. She made a gorgeous page about this special event using Chelle’s Tea for Two kit and the matching word art. The theme of her page matches the theme of the kit perfectly. I love how she used the pink and yellow floral paper pieces separated by lace and ribbons to make the background of her page, and her shadowing of the flowers and leaves makes them look real enough to touch.

Jen (supergirljennie) wanted to use this same kit to make a page about one her favorite pastimes: enjoying a cup of tea and a good book. And, even though she used this classic kit, her page is very modern. I love that her photo shows a digital book reading device, and her journaling is in the form of a hashtag. Pages that show current trends are some of my favorites, and I love how Jen has used a modern-feeling quilt pattern with a classic kit for her page.

Another of Chelle’s team members named Jen (GrahamLiketheCracker) wanted to create a couple of special scrapbook pages about her precious little baby girl, and she also chose Tea for Two. Her pages are a collection of portrait photos of her daughter, and this kit complements her photos perfectly. The colors are soft and sweet, just like her little one. Take a close look at her two pages: I love how she used the tea cups as a banner on the second page.

Finally, Helen has a page to show us that made me chuckle. Her daughter refused to believe she couldn’t get into her baby doll stroller. I’m sure it was great fun for mom taking photos and watching this silly one try every possible angle of entry. Looks like she managed to get her feet in and was quite proud of herself! I love the word art strips she created around the page to tell the story.

Do you need this kit? You can see it is perfect for lots of occasions. I’m planning to go to a certain theme park in Orlando this summer, and I’ll use this kit to make pages about one of my favorite rides that involves spinning around in some crazy teacups. Can you guess what that might be? I can’t wait! Take a closer look at it in the market, and I’m sure you’ll see why I’m planning to use this kit.

Scrap Skills: Using Hexagons

June 12, 2013
Scrap Skills
cheryl

Hello to all Chelle’s friends and fans! It’s Cheryl, again, ready to look at some hexagons. I remember when I bought my first hexagon template for a paper scrapbook project. I had to be oh so very careful tracing the pattern onto my page or the pattern would slip, and then my hexagon patterns wouldn’t line up evenly. Digital scrapbooking hexagon patterns are SO much more user friendly! Chelle’s Creative Team members have been playing with hexagon shapes and have some awesome pages to show you.

First, Carol used some really large hexagon shapes stacked as mats for her very special photo, then she used some smaller ones as paper accents around the page. This is a great way to add the various patterns and textures of the papers in a kit without using the old standard rectangular shapes. I love how she anchored some of them with little buttons and clusters around the page.

Kayla also used hexagons filled with the paper textures and patterns from the kit she was using (which happens to be Chelle’s latest Berry Berry Blue kit). Kayla has her hexagons in an interlocking pattern that seems to anchor all the pieces of her page together.

Chelle has a product called CU Hexagon Layered Patterns that are the most versatile and easy to use, if you want a super quick way to get lots of hexagon shapes on a page. Jenny has made a page with some of these layers to show you one of the hundreds of possibilities of uses for them. I love how she slightly overlapped the layers of hexagons filled with paper. It’s a unique way to make a background for her clusters of flowers and frozen treats from the Beat the Heat kit.

Finally, Erica used just a couple of hexagons to accent her page. She stitched the shapes to her page and put the date on one. I love how she mixed the pattern papers from Love Grows on her page.

Feel like using some hexagons with Chelle’s kits? I hope you’ll share your pages in the gallery at Scrap Orchard. If you use any of Chelle’s products, tag your pages with #chelle or #cc. I’d love to see them and leave you some love!

Through the Year | DIgital Scrapbooking Classics

June 4, 2013
Classics
cheryl

Today’s feature is a cute little element pack that is one of the most versatile kits in my digital scrapbooking stash. It’s called Through the Year, and it includes a tree with 4 seasonal toppers. Chelle also created some seasonal trees assembled and shadowed to make for quick and easy page embellishing. These trees are the perfect complement to photos of cherry blossoms in the spring, leaf raking in the fall, botanical gardens in the summer, snowy play in the winter, or just about any outdoor activity at any time of year. And, check out the price. It’s a bargain for such versatility!

Check out a couple of layouts Chelle’s creative members have made. Here’s a precious page Kassie made with photos of her son climbing a tree. It looks like the perfect climbing tree with its thick, straight branches, and Chelle’s felt tree is the perfect complement to Kassie’s page and her use of the Gnome Sweet Gnome Collection. I love that she added the red bird to the tree, and that yellow circle behind it makes me think of the sun on a bright summer day.

Lynett also used the Gnome Sweet Gnome Collection with Through the Year for a totally different look. I love her large photo with the silhouette of a tree in the foreground, and the tree from our featured kit looks fabulous as an accent to her page. I also got a silly kick out of the fact that Rome rhymes with Gnome, so I think she chose the perfect kit to use.

Roxana used the same tree topper acccent on her page as Kassie and Lynett. I like how Roxana used the tree, off the page and forming a border for the left side. I also like that she has used it with the Leafy Treetops kit; they go so well together!

Don’t forget, there are also spring and fall tree toppers in the kit, so the possibilities of use for this little element package are endless. Here’s a closer look at it in the market.

I’ve been taking photos of summer’s arrival in my neighborhood, and I think I’ll add a tree or two to my next scrapbook page.

Scrap Skills: Using Quickies

May 29, 2013
Scrap Skills
cheryl

Have you ever wished you could get your favorite designer to make a digital scrapbooking page for you? Or, have you ever needed to scrap to save your sanity but not had enough time to sort through your stash, cluster, and then shadow everything to make a perfect page? Chelle’s Creations has the perfect tool to help you. She makes quickies for many of her digital scrapbooking kits, and they save tons of time in scrapbooking, plus using them is like having Chelle make a scrapbook page for you! Chelle’s talented friends have made some pages to show you how to use some of her quickies to get your memories recorded quickly and beautifully.

Take a close look at the page Lynett made with the Big City Quickies, and then look at the preview of the quickies in the market. Do you see how she used one of the paper stacks for the background and a frame cluster for her photos? If you can imagine looking at this page in Lynett’s scrapbooking program, you would see only a few layers: the paper stack on bottom, then the 2 photos, then the frame cluster above that, and finally her journal layer and her title layer on top. It was super fast for her to build the page, and it looks fantastic. I love how she chose a photo of a road sign for one of the photo spots.

Next, Jenny used the E-I-E-I-O Quickies to build her page. Again, she started with a paper stack, then added her photo, then the frame cluster, and finally the title. Notice, she also added a date onto the tag that was already included on the paper stack. Pretty convenient, right? It couldn’t be more simple.

Finally, Jennifer used Winter Thrills Quickies for her page. Using the paper stacks and frame cluster left her time to journal her story about her sledding mishap. Don’t worry; she’s ok, but it sure makes a great story for the kids to tell their children later. Notice how she used the stitched ribbons quickie and the border cluster to frame the journal area. With her photo and the frame cluster she needed only the title to make the page complete.

Chelle’s Quickies are always a great value. Be sure to look for them in the market. They are great items to have in your stash.

Beat the Heat | Digital Scrapbooking Classics

May 21, 2013
Classics
cheryl

Wow, it is HOT in the south suddenly! The extreme heat and humidity has me scrambling to find ways to beat it and cool off. Speaking of which, Chelle has an adorable digital scrapbooking kit perfect for hot weather activities called Beat the Heat. It is loaded with ice creams and other frozen treats but without all the calories and mess! Her creative team members have made a couple of great pages to give you a taste for this great kit and its word art package.

First, Leslie had some delicious photos of her boys and her friend Valerie eating at the Denville Dairy, a restaurant in New Jersey famous for its home made ice creams. Her use of the Neapolitan colors from the kit scream ice cream, and the little touches of blue she used form a perfect visual triangle to guide a reader’s eyes around the page. I love her use of the conversation bubble for her journal spot.

Mel chose to use the brighter colors in the kit, and look how different her page is from Leslie’s! Isn’t this kit versatile? I love how Mel has used a pink flower and frame for her daughter’s picture; it really brings out the pink in her cheeks. I also love the way she split the words of the title and has them going up and down opposite sides of the page.

Did you notice the words on sticks on Mel’s page? I love those, and I want to show you a closer look of those as well as the preview of the kit in the market. In case you don’t have this classic kit yet, the images are linked to the market.

Scrap Skills: Using Spritzers

May 15, 2013
Scrap Skills
cheryl

Spray paints and spritzers are all the rage in card making and traditional scrapbooking right now, and they are super easy to use in digital scrapbooking. In fact, they are far less messy in digital, and they look the same or better than traditional materials because they are easier to control. Chelle’s Creative team has been busy making some pages that include spritzer elements, and I know you’ll be inspired by them.

First, Jenny has made a page with her photos of her children making caramel apples. She used the Apple of My Eye {bundle} which includes the spritzers and that cute buttoned alpha on her page. The spritzers give a hint of the fun mess involved with the caramel apple making without actually making more mess. It’s the best of both worlds!

Next, Kairyn has made a double page spread of her Easter photos, and she has used Chelle’s newest Easter kit Hippity Hop Hop. It doesn’t include spritzers, so she has used Chelle’s CU Spritzers with the kit. The CU spritzers are a great value as they can be used with every kit you own, and they are a great way to stretch your stash. I’ll show you Kairyn’s double page first, and then you’ll see each side separately so you can better appreciate the details.

Kassie also used Chelle’s CU Spritzers to stretch her stash. She used them with E-I-E-I-O. The spritzers add dimension and texture to that white background paper without the mess of actual paint.

I hope you are inspired to grab some digital paint and start spritzing your layouts. If you don’t own Chelle’s CU Spritzers, you can pick them up in the market and use them to stretch any kit you already own to make it have a whole new look. The download includes 10 different png files and 1 abr file.

Leafy Treetops | Digtal Scrapbooking Classics

May 7, 2013
Classics
cheryl

It’s starting to get green, finally, where I live, so my everyday photos are beginning to have some fresh flowers and new growth in them, and I can’t wait to make some spring digital scrapbooking pages with them. I’ve found a perfect mini kit in Chelle’s store to use to capture that refreshing feel on my pages: Leafy Treetops. It has trees, fountains, birds, butterflies, some perfect word art cards, and one of the best banners in existence. Her fabulous team has been playing with this classic mini kit this week, and they all think that banner is tops, too. Let’s take a look at how they each used it (plus all the other goodies in the kit!).

First, Ophelia had some of the most adorable photos of her little girl discovering a new leaf. She captured the wonder in her eyes so perfectly, and she used this cheerful mini kit to draw attention to that sweet face. Isn’t that banner the best? She has used it well to bring out her daughter’s eyes, and I love the bright word art tag she has used for a title.

Next, Erica also had an adorable photo of her little one, and she used the banner to draw attention to her little one’s face. His grin is contagious! And, the bright colors in the kit perfectly match the cheerful mood and sunshine evident in his smile. I really like how she has bordered her page top and bottom with the plaid paper from the kit.

Jenn took a different type of photo, an indoor photo of two very special people on a special day. You might not think of this kit as one for your prom pictures, but look how perfectly it goes with Jenn’s photo of her lovely young lady in that gorgeous blue gown. Did you spot the banner? There it is doing its best to draw my attention to that great photo, and “One fine day” truly is a perfect title for this page.

I have one last page to show you that is a hybrid project. Leslie has a display board in her house that she uses to post a calendar each month. She made her May calendar from Chelle’s Leafy Treetops mini kit, and she printed it and uses it to organize her days and keep her happy in the process. I love the bird sitting on the bird bath and the little worm crawling away from him. And, there’s that awesome banner again, hanging out at the top, perfectly accenting the title.

Be sure to check out this great kit in the market. The preview image below is linked to the market.

EIEIO | Digital Scrapbooking Classics

April 23, 2013
Classics
cheryl

Today we’re looking back at a favorite kit, EIEIO. You can see a preview of it just below here (and the image is linked to the market). But, be sure to check out the additional items in the market like the quickies and the Felties, and the Bundle is always a great choice if you like to save some money.

Want to see some inspirational layouts with it? I thought so! First, Leslie has some pictures of her two cute boys feeding the horses on a recent outing. The chicken wire is a perfect backdrop, and the buttoned stars form a nice visual triangle. Also, notice how effectively she used the alpha in the kit. The first word in her title is all caps, and she mixed that with a font, and then the word horses is written with the upper and lower case alphas.

Ronnie also had some photos of her children feeding horses, but these horses were miniature ones in Kentucky, the land of horses. She tells the story of her children wanting to take one home. They are adorable, almost as adorable as the page she made. That border of paper pieces shows a great way to use lots of papers from a kit on a page, and the corn stalk and fence help to anchor her photos. They add the perfect accent to the layout.

Helen had some photos of her children at a petting zoo, and EIEIO is perfect for these kinds of photos. Look carefully at the little felt animals she has tucked in around the photos on the page, and the banner she made with the pieces of the kit is simply amazing.

Finally, Carol’s page is not about animals at all, really. Her husband is a school teacher, and we all know that good teachers will go to great lengths to reach their students. Dave had a fake tattoo of a pig drawn on his arm to fulfill a student’s wish to see Dave’s rumored tattoo, which he didn’t have. And, Carol got to make a great scrapbook page to record the event. I love how she told the story on that card attached to the ribbon hanger.

I hope you’ve been inspired to check out this classic kit. If you make pages with it, I’d love to see them! Just pin them in the Scrap Orchard gallery and tag them with #chelle or #cc so I can leave you some love.

Scrap Skills: Black & White Photos

April 17, 2013
Scrap Skills
cheryl

One of the greatest things about most digital scrapbooking programs is the fact that photos can be edited within the programs in a host of ways. One of my favorite ways to edit a photograph before using it on a page is to convert the picture to black and white. I do it for dramatic effect, but I also do it to eliminate distracting colors in the photo. Changing a color photo to black and white also allows me to choose any scrapbooking kit I want, regardless of color scheme, and my photos will look great with it. Chelle’s Creative Team members have made a few pages as examples to show you.

First, we have a page by a guest member Debbie. She has some adorable photos of her daughter in a Halloween outfit that would be complimented perfectly with Chelle’s Cowgirl Up kit. Removing the color of the photos allows the focus to be on her sweet face, and it allowed Debbie to use the kit full of pinks, browns, and black without clashing with any colors in that flowered shirt she is wearing.

Next, Jenn wanted to use one of Chelle’s newest kits, Choose the Right {TREK}, but she was making a page about a trip to Disney. Even though the theme of the kit is different than the theme of her photo, they are a perfect match with the wooden paper and elements and the rustic feel of the photo. I really like how she made that photo very large on the page and used the kit elements to compliment it, not overwhelm it.

Finally, Leslie has done something a bit different with her black and white photo. She also used the color change to enable her to pick a kit at will, but she went a step further. Her photo of a street at Bar Harbor has been changed to black and white, but she changed the blending mode to Darken which cased the blue paper below the photo to show through and replace the white parts of the photo. It’s a perfect technique for a page about a seaside town, I think. By the way, she used Chelle’s Letters from Home kit for her page.

I hope you’ve been inspired to scrap with a favorite kit regardless of the colors in your photos. You’ll still have a perfect page capturing your memories if the photos are black and white than you would if the photos were in color, and you’ll have tons of fun using that kit!