Heading to CK Convention

I am so excited....I will be leaving work in just a few moments and heading out to Lancaster for CKC.  I am going with my sister in law, and will be meeting up with several friends there!! I am taking several classes and cannot wait to go shopping!! Should be a great time and hopefully I will see some new products that I havent seen before!! That is what makes convention more fun :)

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Scrapped my Day Away

Hello,

Today was an awesome creative day for me.  I have been lacking mojo lately.  I planned on going to Scraputante's Fundraising Crop for Second Chance with Saving Grace, but wasn't sure how much I was going to accomplish.

When I got there and was chatting with the other ladies, I  could feel the mojo building...About an hour into the crop I finally sat down to start my first page!  I had such an amazing time.  The ladies were awesome, the food was amazing, and we were pampered throughout the day!

Here are the layouts that I made today.  Many of them are for different challenges.  This always helps me when I am having issues and struggling with my creativity!!

This first layout is a photo of my dad and I's dance at my wedding...I also took a photo of the handkerchief that I gave my dad on my wedding day, which says "Today a bride, Tomorrow a wife, Always your little girl"  I used Echo Park paper for the background and for the photo mats and the circle is a Jenni Bowlin die cut paper...For the Dusty Attic Chippie, i first painted it with gesso, and then misted it with red and black glimmer mist....

This next layout is a photo of my mom who is having a tea party with her doll...I think the photo is just so sweet.  I used the AMAZING new Graphic 45 Ladies Diary papers for this one.  I fussy cut the teapots out of one of the patterned papers...the teapot in the upper left hand corner is a prima resist canvas, that i misted using Glimmer Mist Vintage Pink.  Some of the flowers were already colored, and the others I misted.  I also added a vintage metal chair from Prima on the bottom.

This layout features My Minds Eye Nostalgia collection and hexagons.  They are all the rage lately, and this is my first layout with them.  I inked the edges using Quick Quotes chalk ink, which I am absolutely loving!  Many of you who follow my scrapping know that I do not journal nearly enough.  This photo is so dear to me that I did do journaling.  Although its a pretty basic layout, and not my usual style, I am extremely happy with how it turned out.

This is a fun layout featuring Authentiques Glory Line...Its not just for 4th of July!!  This is a photo of my Aunt Sis holding me and I am guessing Im about a year and a half old here...(my dad's beetle is in the background)...The banners are from Heidi Swapp and I colored them with Tim Holtz Distress Markers...

I also completed a card for fathers day, but have no idea where it landed when I was packing up LOL...I will post photos of that if I find it!!  

Thanks for stopping by and looking at what I did today...hope you are having an awesome weekend!!

Scraputante Reveal Day and Blog Hop

We are having an amazing staggered reveal for this Months June Cotillion Kit over at Scraputante.com.  If you are stumbling here then you need to start our blog hop over at Dawna's Blog!!

Here is what the amazing kit looks like as it comes to you:

So full of Basic Grey, Simple Stories, and Fancy Pants Designs....the embellies are just as amazing and seem to never end!!  Get your's while supplies last, they are going fast!

Ok, here is the schedule for reveal by our esteemed Design Team

Dawna Scharff will reveal  June 1st, and her blog can be found here:  http://www.dawnasplace01.blogspot.com

Kelly Shoaf will reveal on June 2nd :  the scraputante blog with all instructions will be found here!!http://blog.scraputante.com/

Holly Corbett will reveal on Sunday, and she does not have a blog, so go to her FB page and comment that Courtney's Blog sent you by clicking here Holly's "blog"

Courtney Villari reveals on Monday, you can comment on her blog here: http://scrapsandchachki.blogspot.com/

And finally Amelia Crowe will reveal on Tuesday.  She can be found here: acrowe111.blogspot.com

Thanks to all and happy scrapping! :)

I will be posting my layouts later this evening when I get home from work....you can see them here and over at scrapbook.com...but you must comment on our blogs to be eligible to win this amazing kit!!

And without further a do....here are my layouts...Sorry for the delay

This is a layout of my mother and it has always been one of my favorite pictures!!

Here is a picture of my brother and sister....i don't remember where we were, but they were being goofy as always!!

This is a layout of my mother at great adventure around 1996...

This kit is so versatile and just awesome to work with...I am hoping to get a few more layouts done this week with these amazing papers...Don't forget to check out Amelia's Blog tomorrow!

Scrapping Moods

Hello Everyone,

My blog has been totally neglected lately as life has gotten in the way of me even being able to sit down and create.  I had a few hours this past weekend, and wow did it make me happy.  As a matter of fact, I did a layout featuring Lily Bee Designs Buttercup collection.  For anyone who knows me, they know this is not the usual type of layout that I do.

I usually like to grunge, distress, and ink everything.  Not on Sunday, I was feeling like a bright cheery layout.  Maybe because it was 75 degrees and the sun was shining brightly. Here is the layout I created:

When I first saw these papers at the scraputante.com store, I thought...hmmm these arent really my style, but they are cute.  So I bought them "just in case".  Well just incase came and I love these papers.  I would never but teal and yellow together but they look awesome!

I lifted this layout from Steph Devlin.  Her original layout can be found here.

So does your mood effect what you scrap? or your style of scrapping?  I would love to hear how your mood changes your scrapping.

Here are some close ups

50% off Cotillion Kit at Scraputante!!!

 PURCHASE NEXT MONTH'S KIT AT $40, and get this month's $48 Cotillion for half price--$60 worth of goodies for only $24.00.  If you already own it--try our Ultimate Easter Kit instead.  How can you resist?? Open the attachment to preview the entire May kit before anyone else! Interested?  Use coupon code LOYALTYHALF at check out.  Happy Scrapping!


What a great deal...Head on over to Scraputante.com now before they run out!!

Fabulous Friends

Hello, it has been a while since I have blogged. I just haven't created much lately. As soon as I saw the Heidi Swapping Sugar Chic papers I thought of this photo of me and my scrappy bff Kelly.

Here is what I came up with usuIng Sugar Chic papers, Dusty Attic Choppier, and some flowers all from the Scraputante store.

The Chipboard was first embossed with shabby pink embossing powder. Then I filled in the spaces with myTim Holt's Distress Markers. Really happy with how this came out

Scraputante Announces Woodables!!

Would You Use Wood If You Could??

Scraputante proudly announces it has acquired the exclusive international rights to a line of wood embellishments.  These “Woodables” are made of 1/8 inch thick solid wood and are a perfect medium for paint, mist, stain, glitter, ink, artist medium, embossing powder and more.  

“In my own paper-crafting I have noticed that when I use popular materials, sometimes I am dissatisfied with the results.  Either my colors are off or the piece falls apart after too many applications of paint or stain,” said Kelly Shoaf, Creative Director.  “I was on a quest to find a better product--one that would stand up to my creativity and end up as a beautiful embellishment--the answer was to upgrade to wood.”  

The Woodables line will offer scrolls, flourishes, frames, and small objects like clouds, doves, fleur de lis and more.  As new paper lines arrive, our agreement with Woodables enables us to create wood elements which will coordinate with them for a very custom and quality feel.  The embellishments are proudly made in the USA.

Focused on the best paper crafting products the world has to offer, Scraputante carries lines from Australia, Canada and Sweden in addition to lines produced in the U.S.  Some of their designer manufacturers include: Authentique, Bella Blvd, BoBunny, Crate Paper, Dusty Attic, Echo Park, Fancy Pants Designs, Glitz Designs, Graphic45, Harmonie, Heidi Swapp, Jenni Bowlin, Jillibean Soup, Maya Road, My Mind’s Eye, Nikki Sivils, Pion Designs, Prima, Teresa Collins, The Twinery, Webster’s Pages, Tattered Angels and more.

A few designs are pictured below.  For more Woodables, visit the store site at www.shop.scraputante.com today!

Scraputante is truly the one stop shop for scrappers who want the very best.  The blog and gallery are active pages with posts from the Design team--featuring ideas for clients and non-clients alike.  Members can register their information with scraputante.com in order to receive advance notice of new releases, specials and challenges.

Spring Cleaning at Scraputante.com!!

Scraputante.com is doing spring cleaning!! That's right they are making room for all of the new inventory that is coming into the store!!!  So from today until Midnight EST on Friday March 30th, the entire store is 25% off!!! Thats right, the entire store!!! EVEN BRAND NEW ITEMS FROM CHA!!!  The only exclusion is the new Tim Holtz Distress Markers.  Those are not eligible!

All you have to do is visit www.scraputante.com and go shopping....when your finished, enter the promo code SPRING25 and you will get 25% off your entire order!!!

Have fun I am running over there to see what I need!!!

Pion Designs For Scraputante

Hello all!

I finished a layout tonight where I used the beautiful Pion Designs Pocket Watch paper as my background. This fabulous paper comes all the way from Sweden and Scraputante has so many of their gorgeous papers!!

I used some beautiful Prima flowers and Dusty Attic chipboard.  The crown, I simply misted with Juniper Glimmer Mist and then, Tattered Leather Glimmer mist....the Large flowers were created with Tim Holtz Sizzix Die Tattered Floral....

Here is a close up of the Glitz Design Title Chipboard Stickers that I used on this layout:

I distressed the strips of paper with the Prima Distress tool, water and ink and applied the chipboard stickers.

Here is a closeup of the Dusty Attic Crown

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog.  Stay tuned for Scraputante's April Reveal day of their beautiful Mega kit!!!  The great thing about Scraputante's kits is there is no obligation.  You can get one month or as money months as you want!! Head on over to see whats new in the store.  There are new things coming in just about daily!!

Design Team Work for Scrap-A-Doodle-Doo

Hello all!! It has been a while since I have had a minute to actually write a blog.  This layout is the first one for me for Scrap-A-Doodle-Doo in Ramsey, NJ.  I was shocked and delighted when they asked me to be a guest designer.  I was excited to receive my box and see these beautiful Simple Stories 25 Days of Christmas in there!! So, with out further a DOO, here is my layout!

The journaling reads: 

Christmas 1994

This would be the last Christmas that we were all together.  Rick and Chris 25 Years, Courtney 18 Years, Brian 9 Years, Taylor 8 Years.

I wrote over the words "I'll be home for Christmas" with my Martha Stewart Markers.  Every time I hear that song it reminds me of the amazing Christmas' past where my entire family was together.  They were the most amazing times in my life and the memories I hold the nearest.  

Thank you for visiting my blog!

Scraputante Reveal Day

Yesterday was Reveal Day for the Design Team at Scraputante.com.  Here are the 5 layouts I did with the March Vintage Kit:

This 2 page layout (which I very rarely do) is of my moms Baby Shower for ME!  I do not have many pictures from my childhood, so these are a pure treasure to me.  The colors of these Glitz Happy Travels papers are so rich and beautiful.

This is a layout of me at about 3-4 years old. Apparently it was early in the morning because my hair was a mess, and my mother would never stand for that LOL....I did some tearing and water distress on this layout, and put burlap behind the rips.  The rosettes were all made using my Pazzle, and they were a lot of fun to play with.

The above layout I titled Moulin Rouge.  It is a photo of a friend that I danced with in my earlier years.  She is now a Vegas showgirl and just an amazing dancer.  When I saw the papers of these kits, I immediately thought of these photos that she had posted on her Facebook page. I used this layout as an example for my March Feeling French Challenge over at Scrapbook.com

Here is a close up of some of the details:

This is the Leaky Shed Eiffel tower, which is not part of the kit, but I did purchase it separately at Scraputante.com.  The woodable in the lower right hand corner is a Scraputante EXCLUSIVE.  All hand carved and such a beautiful addition to the kits!  There will be many more designs of woodables to come in the near future!

This is a close up of the Dusty Attic Fleur di Lis that i simply covered in white acrylic paint and then I used Pink stickles to give them some sparkle. 

Here is a closeup of the flowers and scroll in the upper righthand corner of the layout.  The flowers came from my stash, but the Leaky Shed scroll is part of the kit.  I used stickles and glimmer mist on the flowers to make them the right color and make them pop a bit.  The Scroll, I covered with white acrylic paint and then used Tattered angels Glimmer Glaze to color it...I used Plumeria and Fuzzy coconut on this scroll.

Here is a closeup of the lower right hand corner, where I used some more flowers from my stash.  The Chair is from Prima's Mistable package that is available at Scraputante also.  I used Lindy's Stamp Gangs Mist and Tattered angels Tattered leather glimmer mist on the chair.

Here is another layout featuring my beautiful friend Amy and her gorgeous photos.  I used lots of mists, paint and embossing powder on this layout.  The frame around the photo is also an EXCLUSIVE Woodable, chick I painted with white Acrylic paint, than I used embossing powder to stamp and then put perfect pearls.  I then misted with Bahama Blue Glimmer Mist.

Here are some closeups:

Here you can see the Woodables, and the amazing Chippie from Harmonie.  The dress form I simply painted it white and then distressed it with sandpaper.  The flowers are teeny tiny flowers by Zva Creative.  They started out white and were colored with Plumeria Glimmer Glaze, and added some tulle I had in my stash.  The design in aqua is embossed using my cuttlebug and then inking over the embossing.  The lace is also part of the kit.

 This shows a closer view of the Woodables, as well as one of the stamps and Tea Dye Distress Embossing powder I used.  I do not heat emboss enough...and want to attempt to utilize this technique more.  I also used Adirondack Acrylic Dabbers for the brown paint you see here.

 Here is a butterfly that I also used the Distress embossing powder and stamps.  This is a CTMH stamp that I recently picked up

This month has been my favorite so far. I hope you have enjoyed looking at my design team work this month.  Head on over to www.scraputante.com to order your kit today.  Quantities are limited so make sure you run don't walk!! You will not be sorry!  You can also see some of my fellow design team members work there....So much talent on this team!

Thank you so much for stopping by! I would love to hear what you think!

We have a Winner!

Hello All,

Sorry for the delay in announcing the winner of my giveaway.  The winner is..........Izzyb..and here is what she said:

IzzybFeb 27, 2012 10:38 AM

I follow your blog and Scraputante's! Great project. My style started out clean and simple but is ever evolving.

Izzy, please send an email to me (courtney@barracudasbait.com) and I will get you your $10 gift certificate to Scraputante!

Thank you everyone who participated...Watch for March 5th which is Scraputante's Reveal Day

Today is the last day.....

....to enter to win a $10 gift certificate to Scraputante.com.  They have gotten so many new items in!!

Make sure you read my previous post and leave a comment so you can be entered. 

March 5th is reveal day for the new March Kits....cannot wait for you to get your hands on it...its absolutely fantastic!!  Happy Leap Day!!

The Girls Layout and A Giveaway!

I managed to squeak out a layout with a house full of people the last few days.  We have been pretty busy entertaining this weekend.  Last night we had a Trivia Night Fundraiser for our local Business Association.  It was a great time, and we had such an awesome night.  Dom and I won the Grand Door Prize....A BRAND NEW $400 Grill!!! woo hoo...on top of that our team came in second and we won $100 (to split between 8 people lol)....Doms BFF from Grad school has been visiting since Thursday and it was fantastic to see him.  I guess it is a good thing they slept late because I got to do some creating!!

Here is a layout I did of me and my bridesmaids.  I used Teresa Collins Freestyle line that I got from Scraputante.com's store.  These papers combine 2 colors that i would NEVER think to put together....Orange and Pink.  But I actually love the way this one turned out. Here is what I came up with:

I first distressed and inked the background pattern paper.  I used Tim Holtz Tea Dye and Rusty Hinge Distress ink to get the color I wanted. Then I cut the circle out of the next layer and water distressed.  Next I took Tim Holtz Wild Honey Distress stain to ink the inside of the circle.  For the flowers I used several different Distress Stickles to give them some dimension and color.  Here are some closeups of the flowers:

The flower in the right hand corner I made using a Spellbinders Donna Salazar Carnation Die and more of the awesome papers from the Teresa Collins line.

Now....don't forget the giveaway I am doing here at my blog!  I am giving away a $10 gift certificate to Scraputante.com to one lucky person.  Its very easy to win.  All you have to do is be a follower of this blog, then become a follower of Scraputante's Blog, (theres a great new challenge posted over there too), come back over here and leave me a comment.  Tell me a little about your scrapping style, or anything you feel you want to tell me!  Thats ALL!! The contest will run through Midnight on Wednesday February 29th.  I will pick one lucky winner via Randomizer on Thursday March 1st.

March 5th is reveal day for the March Scraputante.com Kits...make sure you head on back over. The March Kit is my favorite so far...its absolutely GORGEOUS.

Hope everyone had a fantastic weekend!

Friday Giveaway!

So much exciting news happening at Scraputante.com.  Just in from Sweden's Pion Designs is the Fairytale of Spring collection...It is absolutely GORGEOUS!  Also recently received Zva Creative and Harmonie from Quebec.  There are so many different lines available at Scraputante.  Kelly is hopeful she will get all of the new product entered in this weekend, so make sure you head on over to Scraputante and see whats new!

Also, Scraputante announced a new Design Team member today....Miss Holly Corbett!! What a fabulous addition to the already awesome team Kelly came up with.  Can't wait to see what she does with these kits. Im sure she will not disappoint.

There is one big announcement coming from Scraputante on March 1st so make sure to check out their blog.  To make sure that you don't miss the big announcement, I am going to do a giveaway! Its simple! All you have to do is head over to Scraputante's blog, become a follower, and leave a comment.  Then become a follower of my blog and leave a comment here on this post.  You can tell me anything you want, your favorite paper line, your favorite style, anything about scrapbooking you want to tell me...

You have until Midnight on Wednesday 2/29 to do this.   And on Thursday, I will randomly pick a winner of a $10 gift certificate to Scraputante.com. 

Thank you all for all of your support, I truly appreciate it!  Here is a sneak peek of my Design team work from the March Vintage Kit.  Reveal Day is March 5th!! Make sure you check out all the great work by the fabulous design team:

Scraputante's Ultimate Black and White Kit

This was not a very productive scrappy weekend for me, but I did get this layout done featuring the AMAZING Ultimate Black and White kit from Scraputante. This kit features the awesome Bo Bunny Enchanted line as well as Teresa Collins' Timeless papers.

Here is what I came up with:

I used some red paper from GCD Studios that I have had in my stash forever to mat the photo.  The black and white velvet flowers came in the kit, as well as large gem that is part of  the Bo Bunny trinkets.   The red flowers were created using white flowers I had in my stash that I misted with Tattered Angels Candy Apple Red Mist.  The tag was made using a sticker from the kit and some small white flowers I had left over from my January Vintage kit from Scraputante.  I used a template to mist the brick wall  on the left using Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist and a stencil from The Crafters Workshop.  

Here is a close up of the flowers:

Thanks for looking.  Head on over to Scraputante and check out what is new and exciting in their store! New stock is coming in all of the time!

Exciting News!

I am so pleased to be able to announce that I was chosen to be on the design team for Scrap A Doodle Doo.  I will encourage you all to stop by and visit their store!  I am humbled by this opportunity and am super excited to see what great goodies I get to play with!

Head on over to their blog and check them out! Scrap A Doodle Doo!

Hope everyone is having a great week!

New CHA Releases Available

I just got word today that there are several new CHA releases now available at Scraputante.com!! WOO HOO!!  Head on over there and check out was it new.  There is new stock every week.  Scraputante prides itself on keeping up on the latest and greatest in the scrapbooking and cardmaking world!

While your browsing the site, don't forget to stop by and see what the Design Team is up to!! They have all of their work with the latest February Vintage and Cute Kits as well as projects with other papers available in the store.  It is a fantastic place for inspiration!

Don't forget all Valentine's themed products are on sale from now untl February 14th.  Plus you get free shipping.  Just use the code made especially for my closest friends COURTNEYFREESHIP.

Thanks for stopping by!  I am currently working on a great project for a friend of mine's daughters.  I am so excited and will post it as soon as it is complete!  Have a great day!

Great Deals available at Scraputante!!

There are all kinds of discounts going on over at Scraputante.  Kelly is offering 25% off all Valentine's Themed Products from now until February 14th, with the purchase of $25 or more!!  Also you can still use my free shipping code COURTNEYFREESHIP and save there!

So you may want to know what great new lines Scraputante has right?  Well, here you go!! Here is just a small glimpse into the new inventory coming in!

PLUS!! the entire Spring line of Anna Griffin which is sure to be a pleaser!!  Head over to Scraputante now and check it out!!

And the Winner is........

My first blog giveaway is complete, and I am proud to announce the winner of the Heart Box AND a  $10 Gift Certificate to Scraputante is...........

Pamala!

Please send me your address via email to courtney@barracudasbait.com and I will get your prize out to you this week!!

Here are the results from Randomizer

1. Pamala
2. Sharon
3. Sue
4. Misty
5. Sugar
6. Janet

Thank you again for participating!! I am going to try and do a monthly giveaway, so keep on following my blog.

Last Few Hours for the Giveaway!!!

The Giveaway of the heart box and $10 gift certificate to Scraputante.com runs until Midnigh tonight!  Tell your friends about it.  Leave a comment on my previous post and you will be all registered.  Tomorrow morning I will pick the winner through Randomizer.com!

Don't miss out on this great prize!! Thank you to everyone who has participated to make this a really fun giveaway!

GIVEAWAY!!!!

I am so excited to announce my first ever Blog giveaway!! I am so excited to be giving away the Maya Road Heart Box that I designed for this months Altered Project over at Scraputante.  But, thats not all!!  The winner will also receive a $10 gift certificate to Scraputante.com!! Thats right one contest, two great prizes!!

Of course, the one I send you will not have my wedding photos in it!! Tell all of your friends!!

How do you win? Its simple! Become a follower of this blog, become a follower of the Scraputante blog, and then come back here and leave a comment that you have become a follower.  I will put all of the entries into Randomizer.com and one lucky winner will be announced!!

Don't wait this contest will only run through Friday February 3, 2012!!

PS If your shopping in the Scraputante store, don't forget to use COURTNEYFREESHIP for free shipping on your order!!

Ice Castle and Big Announcement

This is my final layout for this month for Scraputante.com.  This February Vintage Kit was such a blast to work with!  There is so many great items in these kits and I still have some scraps to use later on!!  The best thing about these kits is that you don't have to commit! You can buy this month, and if next month doesn't tickle your fancy, you can skip it (although I don't see how that could happen)!!

This is a photo we took in Disney when we were there in November.  It was all decorated for Christmas and just absolutely gorgeous!!!

For this layout I used the fabulous Authentique and Teresa Collins Papers from the kit.  I punched the edges of a couple of the pages.  I used a Prima Flower from the main kit and the rose lace.  The Leaky Shed Chipboard is part of the Chipboard add on!!  I covered it in gesso and then colored it with Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze and Silver Glimmer Mist.  Thank you so much for looking!  

Don't forget to come back tomorrow for a big announcement!!

Heart Box Altered Project

This is design team work I did for Scraputante.com.  This is their altered project kit for February!! I had such a fabulous time with this kit!! Here is the top outside of the box!

The first thing I did to the Maya Road Heart box was to glimmer mist it with Tattered Angels Scarlet Glimmer Mist.  I took the papers from the kit and punched out little scraps with a Postage Stamp punch. I layered the punch outs haphazardly around the border of the box.  Also the "Cherish" was included in the kit. I layered it with Gesso and then misted it with Tattered Angels Vintage Pink Glimmer Mist.  The next thing I did was cluster the roses and pin from the kit in the upper left corner.  Here is a close up of the flower cluster and pin and the Cherished Chipboard:

Here is a close up of the side of the box.  I placed the lace from the kit around the side of the top of the heart box.  For the bottom of the box, I cut 3/4" squares out of the different pattern papers and applied them in a quilt like pattern around the entire outside of the bottom of the box.

When you take the lid off of the box this is what it looks like:

And here is a closeup of the inside of the box:

Inside the box I cut some of the beautiful Authentique papers to fit in the bottom and then I created 2 mats for my photos.  I chose to include 2 of my favorite photos from our wedding.. They are the photos of us exchanging our rings.  I took a few more of the flowers from the kit and glued them to the bottom of the heart.  The stamp was  one that I had in my stash from Technique Tuesday.  I distressed the edge of the pp with the stamp on it with Vintage Pink Distress Ink from Tim Holtz.

Thank you for visiting my gallery and I hope you enjoyed this project.  You can get this amazing kit at Scraputante.com!! Don't forget to use your free shipping code COURTNEYFREESHIP. and you have a few more days to get a 20% off coupon code over at Scraputante's Facebook Page! Head over there today:

http://shop.scraputante.com/