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Thursday, January 30, 2014

One Little Word: Balance

The new year is always a chance to begin anew - setting goals and resolutions, planning for new ventures, and plotting just how to get it all accomplished. This year I decided to make one word my mantra:  BALANCE.  I documented this on my blog in early January and decided that it also deserved a scrapbook page as well.  The February JBS Mercantile Kits were the perfect inspiration for getting my One Little Word down on paper.  Here's the layout that resulted!




Using the contents of the Papercrafting Kit (which goes on sale tomorrow at midnight!) I created this layout that features the text from my blog post along with a photo of the bracelet I bought, which is stamped with letters spelling out balance.



I used the kit stencil to trace the small heart pattern with colored pencils. The three circles of stitching help give the design balance and reinforce my theme.


Do you have a word/mantra/theme for 2014? Document it with a special scrapbook page that will help remind you of your goal throughout the year.

Happy Scrapping!

JBS Digital Shoppe Creative Team Call!

Our JBS Digital Shoppe at JessicaSprague.com is having a Creative Team Call!
We are looking for both digital and hybrid scrappers who'd like to work with our digital products.
The information to apply is below, but if you have any questions, don't hesitate to email us at JBSDigitalCall@gmail.com .
We look forward to your applications!

We'd want to thank our 2013 Creative Team for all their inspiring projects!

Amy Kingsford
Anja DeDobbelaere
Audrey Tan
Brynn Marie Dukes
Celeste Smith
Chiara Castelluccia
Chrissy Guido
Nirupama Kumar
Roelien van den Berg
Susie Cannon Moore
Van Nguyen


Tuesday, January 28, 2014

New Furbaby: January kit layout

Hi everyone! It's Amanda here and today I am sharing this layout I created with the January Papercrafting and Mini Album kits. As we're focusing on new beginnings this month, I thought it was a great opportunity to scrap the newest addition to our family: Jackson the Pomchi!


He was only 9 weeks old when I snapped these photos. The kits had some elements which worked really well for this page. The tilted lines on the background and the blurred bokeh effect on the vellum highlight his favourite activity - running around in corcles like a lunatic at breakneck speed ;) The little "hello friend" phrase within the paper pattern is a nod to the fact that we just brought him home.


As a lot of the page elements did the talking for me, I kept the rest of the page design fairly simple, adding just a few small embellishments to draw attention to the focal point of my page: the photos.

What new beginnings can you think of to document this month? We'd love you to share your ideas!

Have a great week!

Monday, January 27, 2014

Doris Sander's Creative Space


We thought it would be fun to share our creative spaces with you all this year, so you can look forward to a design team member sharing a peek into her studio each month.  Doris Sander is kicking off the series for this month . . .

This is my work in progress studio.  We moved to our little house in the country a year ago October, and for the very first time I was able to have my own craft room.  I want to paint the walls white and replace the carpet with wood floors and brightly colored rugs, but the furniture arrangement i love.  I have two big worktables running galley style down the room and the arrangement is so productive.  I mostly work on the left side, but often keep project life open on the right and my son likes to do his homework and crafting down at the end there.  It's also perfect for hosting my own mini crops.  We comfortably seat four and with a card table, we can squeeze in a couple more. 

The other thing I love about these tables is that their workhorses.  The one on the left is a vintage library table (the shelf that runs along top came with it) and the one on the right is our old dining room table.  Both have a few ink/paint stains, and I'm totally okay with that (now the little hole my son carved in one with my exacto knife is a different story).

The first shelf you see here is actually my son's old changing table.  How's that for re purposing?  It's kind of sweet thinking about his fresh diapers and little onesies nestled in those baskets.  The wire basket on the top shelf was a shopping basket from my old LSS.  I guess I enjoy having functional memories surrounding me as much as I do having memories recorded in my scrapbooking albums.

When I first started scrapbooking, I had an uncontrollable obsession with ribbon and trim.  I haven't used it much lately, but I think it adds a fun colorful vibe to my crafting area.  Half the jars are old pickle jars my mom found for me and the others I nabbed in the housewares section at Target.  The other great Target find is those trays on the top shelf.  I use them to contain works in progress (for example, the first one currently holds new stuff, the second is Christmas, the third is my current kit, and the fourth is a merger of the October and August kits that I'd still like to get a little mileage out of). 

This corner was a hot mess, but I cleaned it up for the photo and I'm very glad that I did.  It was the catchall corner, but now it feels more functional and will hopefully never again become quite the mess that it was.  There are lots of tools and basic supplies back here as well as paperwork type items.    The main improvement that I made in the clean up was to put a narrow vintage wooden tool drawer along the wall (you can barely see the front peeking out in front of my computer) to hold notebooks, memorabilia, and such.

This shelf holds embellishments and such in a variety of containers.  I didn't have a clear idea of what I wanted my scrap space to look like when I first started collecting storage containers, but I guess I had a subconscious sense of style.  I tend to gravitate towards glass, stainless steel, baskets, and natural wood.  I think I like the neutrals (and mostly open storage) because it provides a nice backdrop for my colorful scrapping supplies.

I'd also like to point out even more sweet vintage memories like the button jars from my grandma on the top shelf, the hatbox (holding the re purposed Prima jars) that was an Easter basket for me once in my teen years, and the old rickety child's table and chair (holds my cameo) that Santa brought when I was six or seven.

And more vertical storage holding smaller embellishments, ink pads, and colorful, fun, technique stuffs.

I hope you've enjoyed my tour!  It has sure been fun conducting it.  This is just a brief overview (although I feel like I've written a novel!).  If you notice something specific that you'd like to hear more about, please leave me a comment.  I'll be checking those over the next week or so and would be more than happy to answer any questions that you might have.  Thanks for dropping by!  :)

Thursday, January 23, 2014

A Banner for January!

I love banners and garlands - how lucky I am that banners are still popular in the scrapbooking world!

I've made quite a few banners for my house over the years. Here are just a few:

a Christmas garland

a lucky banner

a quilt star garland

a little mini banner


Banners and garlands are just HAPPY, aren't they?  So this year I've resolved to make one banner or garland every month.  Something to keep the "happy in the house" all year 'round.  And to start this off in January I used bits and pieces from the January Mercantile Kits to create this happy banner celebrating the new year.


It hangs on an old painted mirror in our dining room.



The die cut numbers are sooo pretty (from the Artisan Kit).  I used the gold pen in the Artisan to embellish the wooden buttons and die cuts.  And aren't those felt flowers great?


Here's hoping 2014 is a wonderfully creative one for you!

There are still some kits left in our January collection.  Head over using this link to see them!



Tuesday, January 21, 2014

So Many New Beginnings

January is a time to focus on new beginnings. It's kind of obvious since it's the start of a new year. However, there are fresh starts and new adventures all year long. After viewing the soft palette of January's kits, I wanted to focus on something that was just as gentle and beautiful.


In 2004, my family rescued several orphaned kittens. They were quite tiny with their eyes just barely open. We ended up keeping two of them. In those early months, we met with many new beginnings. This particular layout focuses on a newly forged friendship between our older dog and our cats. I entitled it Love Etc. because love encompasses so many things including friendship, acceptance and comfort. 


Each stage in life is a new start. Birth, learning to walk and play, maturing... all of these are a beginning we can mark and document. Our new kittens sort of regarded my son as a litter mate. I wanted to capture this stage of life marked by the endless cycle of playing, eating and sleeping. I added white sequins and punched circles to the swirling background. These help convey this cycle and the energy young children possess.


How do you begin your day? Each morning is, after all, another new beginning. Though it may seem a bit boring, it does tell the story of your life right now. For this layout, I took a few photos of my son and his cat sleeping. I used a block foundation and  added a bit of the bleached woodgrain tape to symbolize the stability of our current morning routine.

What are your new beginnings? Are you documenting an everyday beginning or perhaps a big event?







Monday, January 20, 2014

new year, new life


There's something about the new year that always prompts thoughts of fresh starts. Lots of people make resolutions, and we try to turn our thoughts to the things we're aspiring to accomplish in the coming months... I'm taking on all kinds of new things, including a series of teaching posts for women wanting to start a handmade business.


One of the big projects that I'm taking on this year is starting Project Life. I'm planning to add lots of mixed media touches, and use my monthly JBS Mercantile kits and my stash to supplement the basic midnight card kit that I bought.

I'm just loving the January kits with all of the fun touches of "radiant orchid". I think there's something magical and hopeful about the color purple. It came slowly and took me by surprise, but I'm definitely loving it now!

What fun projects are you pursuing this year?

~ Leah


Wednesday, January 15, 2014

JBS Mercantile January Flea Market and Gallery Updates!

The next little holiday is approaching and Jenni is ready for it with lots of heartfelt treats in the mid-month Flea Market!  The vintage Valentine's are all so charming! And, of course, there is much more . . .

Also, don't forget to swing by the Design Team Gallery for more inspiration with the January Papercrafting Kits.  The Design Team has been busy and the gallery is full of fabulous projects.  January is one amazing kit!

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

My 2014 One Little Word

I have been thinking about this one little word thing for awhile.  What word would be one that I could focus on this year?  There were so many that I could choose...  discipline, love, intentional...  The list goes on.  To wrap it all up in one word...

hmmm...

Well, I chose one.

Care.

I thought about taking care, caring about, careful...  Care seemed to sum up everything I needed to do this year.  Care about my girls, my husband, my house, my commitments.  Care about my job, my creative side, my emotions.  Care about my community, my friends, and what I can do.  Care seemed intentional and disciplined and focused to me.  So that is what I am setting out to do in 2014.  Care.

To create one page about "care" seemed to big of a project, so I focused this on the caring for my girls part.


I used the January kits for this page.  The alphas  and flower and parts of the transparencies and the vellum pockets.  The "OLW" was punched out of some of the awesome Lisa Dickinson exclusive paper.  The background I created using Chewing Gum and Speckled Egg re-inkers.




So here I go.  Off to live this year.  Remembering to intentionally care each day.

What is your One Little Word?

~ Corrie

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Modern Mercantile Goes Digi

This weekend we released Modern Mercantile in our Digital Shoppe!



Designed by Lisa Dickinson, this is truly a line for all seasons.  I'm in love with the colors and images in this kit!  You'll get Lisa's 13 gorgeous full resolution patterned papers and 12 journaling cards.  If you're not one who likes to fiddle with digi elements for printing, there is a printable pdf included to make printing those journaling cards oh so easy.



Susie Cannon Moore went block style with her layout using pieces of the cropped patterned paper and journaling cards.  Using a journaling card to house a photo is a great idea!

Luv Ya by Audrey Tan
Jenni Bowlin Studio: Modern Mercantile, Days of the Week, Bird And Branch, Country Fair, Edges And Headings, Watch Faces, The Writer's Collection, School Days Alpha

Anna Aspnes: Doily Edge Overlays No3
Font: Pea Annalee Script



Audrey Tan created a beautiful and artsy background on one of the patterns and designed her layout with a casual strip of journaling cards.  I just love all the elements she pulled together for this layout and the tactile feel she created with digital elements.

This kit is 25% off this weekend.  Grab it now if you want to have Modern Mercantile in your stash forever!


Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Love from Jenni Bowlin

Today we're featuring a classic layout from Jenni Bowlin.  She's used the Papercrafting Kit and Antiquarian Add-on for this sweet composition.  The exclusive vintage inspired lotto cards stamp makes a subtle background for the photo, vintage bits and exclusive wood veneer buttons.  A die-cut title and few scattered snowflake sequins completes the page as it sits on another of Lisa's fabulous patterned paper designs.  Thanks for the inspiration Jenni!


Monday, January 6, 2014

A Year-in-Review Album

As one year ends, and a new one begins, we do not just look ahead but back, reflecting on the 365 days that brought us to where we are today. 
What better way to document the highlights of a memorable year than with the January JBS Mercantile mini-album kit
That's just what I did, compiling photos and memories of 2013 on every page of my album. 
Each page of the album is dedicated to one month of the year, and is divided into four blocks: one title block, one accent block, one journaling block, and one photo block. 
I selected one photo to represent each month, and compiled a list of events, milestones, and highlights.
It can be a challenge to recall all that occurred over a single year, so I jogged my memory by doing a bit of research, going through my photo galleries, blog entries, and status updates from 2013. 
Page by page, month by month, the album became a keepsake.  
The full album may be viewed in the JBS Mercantile gallery

Thanks for visiting today! 

Sunday, January 5, 2014

JBS Mercantile January Reveal

The January JBS Mercantile Kits are an amazing way to start out the new year with inspiration!  Betsy has used one of Lisa's exclusive papers to create this dynamic layout about her niece's dance class and I love it!  I also love the bit of Pantone's 2014 Color of the Year, Radiant Orchid.

The January color palette is a perfect blend of watercolor hues against a backdrop of black and white with a touch of gold.  So festive in a New Year's Eve party scene kind of way.

This month's exclusives include 2 patterned papers designed by Lisa Dickinson, our signature stamp and stencil combo, NEW wood veneer buttons, and vintage songbook flatbacks.

The Artisan Add-on is the perfect addition to the Papercrafting Kit.  It brings a confetti burst of numbers, an extra set of fabric alphabets, cork punctuation, a matching overlay, charming wooden hangars and frames, and a metallic gold pen to sign off on your work!

The Antiquarian this month is an irresistible mixture of XL vintage labels among other things.  So irresistible, in fact, that it is sold out already.  Sad.

And here is the Historian packed with four sets of journaling cards, an extra alpha, rub-on and stamped sentiments, bling, tags, and washi tape.  Perfect for Project Life.

And don't forget the Flea Market!  This little doll would love to come home with you!