ATC/ACEO ROUNDER DIVIDERS FOR THE SEASONS!

Oh how I love creating ACEO/ATC's. So as I am getting ready to fill a new rounder of fun things that I have created, I realized they all pretty much go by the seasons. So that is why I made these four dividers. I love to tell a story with one little ATC. Many people pass thru here and are able to take a quick look at what we are up to rather then 12 pictures of how cute the baby is riding his bike. Or Morgan in the play, just one will do to tell her story. A photo on front and a little journaling on back and bing bam boom it is all done.

The reason for the seasons really stems from the colors of paper used to document the time of year as well as the event attended. I have mixed a combination of die cut letters, stamped and hand written letters. As much as I hate my own hand writing, it is not so much for me. It is for that person 2 or 3 generations from now that get a peek into who their relative was. I know, I know how much you truly don't like your own hand writing. But down the road it will be a way for another generation to feel a bit of attachment to the past. Example time...My grandfather(my dads father) built the field stone fireplace in the home I grew up in with his own two hands. There was a piece of one of those stones that was out and I have kept it with me ever since we moved. It sits here on top of my computer screen. This is a man that passed away before I was born, but I have something I know for sure he laid is hands on. Connection is important I think. And a strong family is built on connections. Isn't this why we scrapbook in the first place, so we can connect with our pasts. So from my rock to your memories, always leave at least some journaling for the future generations to enjoy.

When ever I create dividers for my rounders, I like to make them a little bigger then the normal 2 1/2 x 3 1/2. So what I do is start with the 2.5 x 3.5 as a base and then add to it to plump it up. The SPRING 09 card I added a orange card stock to and then fringed it with scissors to give dimension.

The SUMMER one I added rounded corners to the back layer and stamped the letters on curves.

FALL is my favorite time of year. I love, love, love the colorsof autumn so I kept it simple so they would shine and layered multiple solid colored textured cardstock. With this one I used my FAV Souffle pen in white to mark the season.

And finished this all up with WINTER. Lots of glitter here. I love doing snowflakes in blues and whites. But here I did snowflakes with some more of the traditional Christmas colors to account for the winter as well as the holiday.

Anywho, just some fun ways to make your ATC/ACEO rounder flow as well as being able to sort out the year!

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FLOWERS ARE BLOOMING ON THE LANE

SWEET SPRING LAYERED FLOWERS

The flowers are a bloomin here at Brambleberry Lane. I love making layered flowers. They give that extra something to the page while keeping you interested with dimension. I layer these tasty little nibblets with a cute little crystal brad that gives them that extra shine. They are sure to catch your eye.

The first set pictured above, is perfect for spring and summer. The wonderful greens and yellows are made to pop with the addition of orange. I love anything orange with summer lay outs.

LAYERED FLOWERS WITH THAT VINTAGE LOOK

This next set will work great with anything that you want to add that vintage look to. Maybe you are doing a western theme and want to add a bit of dimension. These are perfect because there is nothing too girly about these flowers. I know you will love them.

NEW LA CREME CARDSTOCK SET

I have been waiting for these beautiful papers that where back ordered on me. They are 6 x 6 and there are 24 different patterns of black and cream to off white. They even feature some great flocking. I am sure you will be happy with these as well. Oh and yes they are card stock weight!

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ALWAYS START WITH SOMETHING SIMPLE...IT JUST WORKS!

I am teaching a beginners class this week. I love teaching beginners in the spring because you can use happy colors that are some times unexpected. I love combining red and purple. The two colors make each other pop. When ever I do a beginner class it is cut and paste. I pick great colors(that all match) and then the work speaks for itself. When someone has never done scrapbooking or really hasn't created anything like that, it is a big task to then ask them to pick papers and colors. If they don't make the first project turn out well they can turn away from creating all together. Especially the first timers want to have a great result. We all know how much fun and how great it is to add paper and photos to show the wonderful times our family has had together. But passing on that pleasure to others can be just as rewarding. What are you going to teach a friend to do?

Well I must be off to spend Mothers Day with my mom, sister and cousins. To all of the moms out there, especially my mother in-law, sister in laws and girlfriends. Happy Mothers Day!

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SOMETIMES THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS YOU CAN DO WITH ONE PAPER!

I grab a hold of something and just can't let go sometimes. This paper is a example of that pig headed way. With out a doubt, these are the most perfect wedding papers I have seen in a long time. They are a beautiful combination of black and cream. They could be used for anything from the background to the table numbers to a accent on the place cards. If you are making your own invites, you could print all of the words on a lovely paper and then use this as the background to stick them to.

As you can see, I have had a ball making them into two different versions of stickers. I am a big fan of the round seals. But these fleur de lis patterns of die cut are right up my ally. They will really stand out what ever you use them on. Personally, I like to use something like the fleur de lis set on the front corner as well on my envelope. Try them I know you will love them!

Tonight is a family tradition that I always did with my mom and dad and still do it to this day with my kids. This is the only week of the year that Golden Krust Bakery makes Paska(or Bobka). It is a Easter tradition. I take all of the kids up to pick out the biggest one they can find. Every year a different child gets to carry it to the car. I am not sure why that is so exciting for them but it is so we do it every year. I think it is the grounded feeling you get when you have family holiday traditions. I think giving them this teaches them how important it is to remember to put family first because they are the ones you can come back to over and over again. This bread is big and the only way that I can describe it is it looks like a big mushroom. But it is always tasty and it always makes you feel like home. What traditions will you have this week with your family? Find one and make it your own, they will thank you some day!

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What Are You Working On?

It seems like I am never done. I always have something else to do. For this I am so lucky. I see so many people that just hang up life at a early age. They go through the motions like that is good enough. Not said the blond(freshly highlighted) girl! The list is never ending and always expanding. What is on your list? I start mine with family of course. They are the circle I swirl around all day long. To help get more energy for this I am starting a big exercise mission. I am approaching 40. Yes, there is still a year and a half to go. But I want to take this trip in style. I have finally let go of the dance in the back of my head of having just one more baby. Not that I was planning on it mom. I just think when you have a large family it just seems to be the natural thing to do. Unfortunately for me, I am not a good pregnant person. Things go a bit wrong and my health always comes into question on that 9 month journey. I am always totally blessed with beautiful healthy babies, but 4 is the limit. So it is time for the next step. The step where they all join me on my journey to change and my next 40 years. I see all of these people that say life starts at 40...I am jump starting that today.

I have been tearing my house apart as of late. Adding furniture and taking things away. Cleaning House so to speak. Moving and re purposing and all that goes along with it. It has been a mess just trying to accomplish all of this but it is coming together. Mirrors and pictures are being hung and moved and hung somewhere else. New wall adornments have been entering our home with the fear of commitment to a picture that is simply hanging on the wall falling to the wayside. Next is outside the house. Our yard is only 2 years old so things really have not started growing in a big way yet. This is OK but I need to add more. Plus all of my Brambleberry Lane stuff has been making its way all into my office/studio. Somehow things find there way around the house as I go through my day. I try to involve Noah in what ever I am doing so if he is in one room so am I.

So what does all of this mean? It means that as with spring, I new awakening is happening for me as well. A sort of total life change. The kind that will take a enormous amount of work, dedication and yes COFFEE. I am taking a journey to change many things about myself and I feel like that little train...I THINK I CAN! So stay tuned, maybe with these changes will come some more creative ideas and products that will be fun to play with and create with!

I don't think I showed you guys these cute little boy stickers. Check them out over at my shop!

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PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE COME SPRING!

Well, Valentines Day is over and this is always my indicator that SPRING is on the way. All of the seed and plant catalogs are arriving daily. I LOVE the SPRING. I can't help myself. The new life thing with baby birds and passing by a farm with baby lambs always gets me excited.

I started this set of journal tags a couple of weeks ago and just released them on Sunday. They are actually my first set of Kraft colored paper. I love the black on them. I am for sure going to make more of these. I have some great old Easter decorations. And I love to add to them. I stopped by a great country store that had the cutest Easter stuff. It makes me want to go home and change everything. I love change and that is why I love SPRING!

I also brought back my Easter Flashcards set. How exciting to have holiday flashcards. I also like tucking these guys in behind a picture in an unexpected area on a page. I love using them vertical. That really draws your eye in.

And how can I have all of this SPRING and Easter happiness without some darn cute Easter stickers? Well I can't and I think these ones are going to go over really well. The picture does not do them justice that is for sure. Some of them have glitter( the kind that doesn't come off all over you). They would be so great to seal and envelope or add to a Easter Basket.

So here are a few new things for you to look at over at http://www.brambleberrylane.etsy.com/ so check these and other great handmade items out. I as always would love to hear what you think or if there is something else you are looking for but don't see here!

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