Shimelle Laine Love

One of the new blogs I started following this summer is by Shimelle Laine.  I love her style and her content.  I don't know how she comes up with it all!  I first heard her speak on The Paperclipping Roundtable.

She has a number of challenges and sketches and starting points that she posts throughout the week.  As I have been working my way through Mother LOAD, I have found Shimelle very inspiring.

Here are two layout I created based on something from Shimelle.

First, I used this sketch:

Here is my creation:

I also used her starting point for one of my layouts.

Here is her starting point:

And, here is where I went with it:

Both of these layout were also for LOAD.  I've loved finding time almost every day to scrap...I'm also ready to spend more time on a few layouts, just for the fun of it!  6 more days of LOAD!  I'll be sharing more layouts soon.

The Mother LOAD: Week Two

14 layouts done! 

I am starting week three of The Mother LOAD at Big Picture Classes.  I have two weeks under my belt.

I'm so amazed that I have kept up the scrapping, even with work being so busy. Sometimes I come home and I think that there is NO WAY I will scrapbook.  Then, I sit down and think that I'll just pick photos, or the paper, or the sketch...and then boom!  I'm almost done.  It has been very liberating and inspiring.

I'm excited to share my layouts from week two.  I'm trying not to over-think things, and to go with my initial feeling.  If I think too much then I start over-thinking and rethinking and not doing!  Lain always says to change up the prompts as much or as little as you need.  Sometimes I start off thinking that I won't follow the prompt, but I almost always do!  I love thinking about it all day and coming home to create something.

Day 8: Create a page about what you need.

Day 9: Use scraps to create a layout.

This layout is based on a Starting Point from Shimelle Laine.  I've really been enjoying her blog, tutorials and inspiration.

Day 10: Use a kit (and a black and white photo--I didn't do this part)

Day 11: Sketch Challenge

Sketch from Lain

Day 12: Use a sub-par photo on your layout.

I added journaling around the edge of the paper.

Day 13: Ritual

Day 14: Stamp on a scrapbook page

This layout looks better in person.  The dirty looking parts are actually shiny bits of loveliness from Perfect Pearls.  I love how this page looks!  I created a poem based on The Important Book by Margaret Wise Brown.  I highly recommend reading it (the book) if you haven't!

Now, I've got to get to work on week three!  Check back next weekend for a round-up of these layouts.

The Mother LOAD: Week One

On September 1st I started my first LOAD (LayOut A Day).  I was scared and worried that I just couldn't find the time to scrapbook every day.  I thought that there was no way that I could do a layout every day.

Well, I was right and wrong.  Most days I read the prompt in the morning, think about what I might want to do, and then come home and spend about an hour scrapping. I'm doing quite a few single pages, and I'm enjoying that.  Once again, Big Picture Classes has forced me out of my comfort zone and into trying something new.  I'm liking it!

Lain says to change it up when necessary, and sometimes I did.  But, mostly I used the prompts as a starting place.

Here are my layouts for the first week.

Day one: Scrapbook at goal or aspiration.

Day two: Scrapbook about laughing and who you laugh with.

Day three: Find a photo that you have avoided scrapping.

This is from 2007!

Day four: Scrapbook using your bare minimum requirements.

Day five: Break out of your habits and do something different.

Day six: Scrapbook a self portrait.

Day seven: Way back Wednesday: scrapbook inspired by the early days of scrapbooking.

So, I made it through the first week, and I also have days 8, 10 and 11 done (still working on 9).  I'll post about my progress next week.

Initial thoughts: I can scrapbook a little bit every day.  I'm surprised to discover this.