Cut and Color...

Hello again :) I've got another project life layout to share using the gorgeous Hello Darling Daily Diary kit.

Keeping to my usual weekly format, these pages document week 17 where we experienced a lot of bad weather which meant more time indoors also might explain the lack of people in my photos.  

As you are aware, we have all been using a 'cut and color' theme for our pages this week and I have used a variety of die cut words to create titles directly over some of my photos. I cut all of the words from plain white card stock and even though the fonts vary, I was able to maintain a uniform look by keeping them all the same color.

I selected cards with the similar colors in the patterns and combined these with various cut apart elements from the kit. Using a black pen to outline some of the pieces helps to make the colors appear more vibrant.

Moving onto the second half of the layout, where once again I used the white die cut words over a few of the photos.

As always I have pieced together my own custom card designs, this time using a little bit of fussy cutting and more black outlines.

Don't forget that subscriptions for the Jul - Dec term are now open!!

Thanks for stopping by xx

Little Girls, Little Girls- a simple technique to make patterned paper toned down!

Happy Sunday afternoon!

I'm wrapping up our "techniques" week here on the blog... have you checked out all the different awesome ways our designers have shared little tips and tricks this week? So many awesome ones!

I feel a little silly sharing this one, but over the years, I've shared so many techniques on this blog, so I've started to feel like I'm repeating myself! This one is a simple one, but a favorite one of mine:

If I have patterned paper that is a little too "busy" for my layout, I will just swipe some white craft paint on top of the pattern to soften it. It helps with making the layout not quite so busy looking, and gives a little place for your eye to rest. I also love the way it looks peeking out from behind other layers! 

I hope you've enjoyed our tips and tricks! 

So you mini-album

Hey guys! Today I'm wrapping up a week filled with favorite design techniques from the Noel Mignon team. I'm going to be honest here - I'm not really a 'technique-y' kind of person. The techniques I use on my pages lean more on the simple side. And you know what? I'm ok with that!

So with that being said, I wanted to share a mini-album I made using that great heart shaped chipboard book from the Love Life Classic kit along with papers & embellishments from the Hello Darling Classic kit and, of course, a few techniques I used to create it.

 Whenever I'm working with a chipboard album I always pick out the papers I'm going to use & cover all of the pages before I begin working on them. I go a bit old school & actually use a glue stick when adhering the pages. Over the years I've found it's the best adhesive. 

Once all of the pages are adhered I like to take a sanding block (mine is from Stampin' Up!) & sand the paper edges off that are overlapping the chipboard. An emery board works, too! Just make sure that you have let the glue dry or you will shred your paper. Also, sand in a downward motion.

You can see the difference between the edge of the book before sanding (left) and after (right). It just gives a cleaner edge to your book. This is also when I'll add any additional glue if I have edges that have lifted. My mini-albums get handled a lot (and sometimes by little hands) so I want to make sure they're going to last!

Once I did that I also added some ink to the edges with that great distress ink pad in the kit!

After adhering all of the foundation pages I'll go back & start from page one adhering photos & embellishments. This is where the fun starts! I've mentioned before that I don't like a lot of bulk on my scrapbook layouts but I am quite the opposite with mini-albums!

To create the journaling I used the patterned paper in the kit that had a grid & ran it through my typewriter. 

I also used my typewriter on the sticker for the back cover. I wasn't sure if it would work but thankfully the ink didn't smear!

Once you start embellishing the pages the process moves pretty quickly! I hope you all have picked up some fun, new techniques this week. 

Be sure to share your creations on the Noel Mignon facebook group and on Instagram (using hashtag #noelmignon).

And don't forget, subscriptions are currently open for the July-December kits. By signing up you get a monthly discount so be sure to head over to www.noelmignon.com before subscriptions close!

Custom cards for your pocket pages...

Hi again, Agnus here with another share from my project life album using a beautiful mix of goodies from the Hello Darling Daily Diary kit.

 This week we have all been sharing a few of our favorite techniques and one of my favorite things to do with my daily diary kits is to cut them up!! Yes that's right, I like to cut up my cards and piece them back together into new custom designs. 

The first thing I do is sort through the cards and papers and chose a few base pieces to build upon. Keeping the base card whole makes putting the pieces together much easier, and when working with a themed page -  in this case Easter, I like my cards to have a common element to help them all tie in together. I decided to use the wood grain pattern featured on a few of the cards to achieve this. 

Once I had my base cards selected it was just a matter of finding coordinating cards with patterns or text to suit the type of card I wanted to create. I then began cutting the cards into simple strips and shapes to layer over each base card.

Next, I headed to my selection of smaller cards, tags and stickers and began building up the layers. 

My title card started with a wood grain base, then working from the outside in I added strips of patterned cards and layered a full 3x4'' card to the center. Once my layers were attached I then went ahead and added a few embellishments to create a focal point. 

Hand stitching has always been one of my go to techniques for adding a finishing touch to my projects, and I love the detail that metallic thread adds to my cards. 

By cutting only what I needed for each card, I was left with plenty of scrap pieces such a the triangle below, which made a great accent of coordinating pattern to add to the card as well as a few of my photos. 

Your layers do not need to be complicated to be effective, and I've found that simple geometric shapes seem to work best with my style of scrapping and that adding contrasting shapes is a great way to add more interest to the overall design.  

I hope you found this technique inspiring, and maybe you will be tempted to created some custom pieces for your next project.

Machine Stitching with Hello Darling

Hi guys! This week, the design team is sharing with you their favorite techniques and probably my absolute favorite would be adding stitching using my sewing machine. I like to finish almost every layout and pocket page spread with at least a little bit of stitching. Another favorite technique of mine lately (if you can call it that), is process videos so scroll down all the way to the end to watch my process of making this spread.

I used the Hello Darling Daily Diary kit to make this spread for the beginning of April. All of my cards came from two 12x12 cut-apart sheets, one from Websters Pages and one from Elle's Studio. Even though the cards are from two completely different lines, I'd say they work quite well together.

I wanted to keep this layout simple yet visually engaging. The cards I chose didn't have a lot of natural space for journaling so I simply used some labels from the kit and from my stash to add a few typewritten words (using a typewriter is another favorite technique of mine!).

I usually just use white thread for stitching so it's not completely obvious but gives the pages a little texture. I vary between zigzag and straight stitching.

Often times I sew through flat layers like my labels or just on the card itself. But don't be afraid to try to sew through things like the Thickers from the Hello Darling Classic kit. I use a denim-grade needle so I can sew through chipboard and multiple layers of paper and it's been quite a while since I've had a needle break on me.

It is often the case that I'm not a fan of my project until after I add the stitching. It doesn't seem like much but sometimes it's enough to change my entire mood about my project. To me, stitching just makes it seem a little more finished.

If you'd like to watch a quick process video (10 minutes) on how I went about creating this spread, you can go here or click below.