Got Silly Pet Tales? Themed Scrapbook Supplies Not Required

Ever get into the mood to scrapbook the same subject over and over again? You might notice that, from time to time, my choice of subject follows a personal trend. You probably do the same thing although you may not realize it. Perhaps you just went on vacation or felt inspired by the photos you took last Christmas.Right now, I am finding the urge to scrapbook about my cats quite a bit.

Often when we have a specific subject in mind, we reach for a themed kit. Over time, that same kit can feel repetitive. Sometimes, it just doesn't have the right motifs or elements to convey the story properly. You might find that limiting yourself to that kit might very well crush your creative stamina.When that is the case, it's perfectly fine to step away from themed supplies. I have been doing quite a bit of that lately(take this layout for example) and I must say I am very happy with the way my silly pet tales are being told.

Let's Get Those Bad Guys by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper: Amy Tangerine: Letters: Basic Grey, American Crafts; Wood Veneer: Cocoa Daisy; Sequins: PinkFresh Studio; Other: twine; Based on Scrapbook Challenges Sketch # 159












For Let's Get those Bad Guys I opted for bright neon colors mixed with emoticons. I felt like the fun text paper and bold color choices better conveyed the playful energy. Sometimes I feel like pet themed kits have too much brown in them.

A Game of Get the Bug by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper: Crate Paper, Fancy Pants; Letters: SimpleStories, American Crafts; Flowers: Making Memories, Freckled Fawn; Jewels: Making Memories, Pinkfresh Studio; Acrylic: Studio Calico; Other: Die Cut, Paperclip; Based on Scrapbook Challenges Sketch # 443










This page is all about the exploits of our female cat. It's the perfect opportunity for me to slip in the soft floral print with the bold black canvas. The hints of pink and red in the embellishments keep the playful nature of the page.

Sometimes pet kits are perfect. Other times they feel a bit like a cliche. Challenge yourself to find other options within your supplies. There are no rules that state every pet page needs to have traditional motifs.

Both of these layouts are based on sketches from Scrapbook Challenges. Be sure to stop by for additional inspiration from the SBC Sketch Crew. If you create a page based on one of the sketches, don't forget to link up on the Scrapbook Challenges blog. If it's a pet themed page, leave me a link here as well. I would love to see it!

This posts contains affiliate links when possible. Please shop your stash first, but should you find you need something, consider supporting MSE.

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Follow My Scrapbook Evolution's board Theme: Pets on Pinterest.

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Princess of Purr

   She is very happy here. The evidence is the frequent, almost non-stop purring. Sometimes I swear she purrs for hours on end, just happy to play and share some time cuddling. So, I decided to dub her the Princess of Purr.

Inspiration Challenge #41 from Paula Gilarde
Artsylicious Chipboard Alphas
Maya road stick pins
Prima Stamp in Colorbox Ruby Satin ink
Basic Grey Rub ons, black magic glimmer mist
Making memories button
Crochet flower- found in a thrift store, antique button
leftover packaging- photo matte, chipboard border

   At first glance, one might not notice that there is absolutely no pattern paper on this page. I used the package backing from an embossing folder for the matte. I covered the text using some ribbon scraps and the crochet flower. The chipboard alphas were chosen, in part because they cover the price tag. I noticed the alphas had this awesome border on the bottom, so I cut it off and used it here on the page. A very thrifty page that does not look thrifty at all!

Calvinball update:
1st time player- 1 point
late to the party- 1 point
1st time sub- 1point
layouts-3 points
spreading the word-1 point
daily blogging- 1point

total: 8 points

A Kitty Comparison Part Two

  I am generally not one to go back and re-do pages. I kind of get to a point in which I accept what I did and move on to the stacks of photos I have yet to scrap. However, there was always something about this next page which just begged for a little more attention.


Basic grey papers,border stickers, stickers from the
Max and Whiskers collection
Click here to see the page this was lifted from.


Overall, I liked the design. It was made for a Scraplift challenge last December at Sketches 4 all. The page has a lot of good elements in it. So I chose not to completely re-do the page, but rather to add in some of the missing details.

Pens and markers have become my go to product for giving pages a more finished look. I used my Bic Mark it in tuxedo black for faux stitching and for drawing basic lines. A paper piercer also helps give the impression that the stitching is real. The pennants seemed a bit bare so I chose to add some twine to add a little more dimension.  Hand stitching is another of my favourite ways to make a page feel more finished. Adding it to the darker patterned paper gave the page a warmer, cuddly feel.

  So if you have a page that needs a little something more, I invite you to go back and maybe try adding a few small details with pens and markers. You might just find that a quick doodle or a drawn line adds a more polished feel to your page.


Don't forget to submit your "redo" projects at Scrap Our Stash for a chance to become an upcoming guest designer!

I want this thing off me...a Pagerize this challenge!

A very short time ago, we had a very sick cat. He had several surgeries and fought off severe infections and complications from kidney crystals. At one point, we thought we would lose him. In January, I got these photos of him trying to take the cone off of his head. It was one of those defining moments when I knew he'd be ok. Boo was back to being his clown self. He has since gained back all of the weight he lost and his personality is as playful as it ever was. When I saw Joni's page, I knew it would be perfect for this series of photos featuring Boo's attempt's at taking his cone off.

papers- We R memory keeper's Grandma's kitchen
DMC floss
Colorbox chestnut roan ink
Basic Grey alpha stickers and cat ctickers from max and Whiskers line
Making Memories Tiny type alphas in choc. and white
Bic marc it in woodsy brown

  I chose the papers for their fun, but cozy feel. I stitched under some of the title words to add some emphasis to them. The brown marker was an inexpensive and fast way to add a little detail and a more finished feel to the base paper. I used adhesive foam to add a little dimension to the paisley's.

  Now it's your turn to find the right photos and papers so that you can play along with the Scrap Our Stash Pagerize This challenge!

Add a little fur...

and this month's Counterfeit kit was purrfect! I truly love everything in the Counterfeit kit I made for the month of February. However, one of the reasons some of the things have sat in my stash is due to the fact that I had no clue how to use them. I admit, that I was stumped for a little bit...until I realized I could make these supplies work with photos of my sweet cat on one of her prissy days.

Sketch Inspiration #206

She is a steadfast companion and is often nearby while I scrapbook. Most days, she hangs out on a chair. On this particular day, she chose to get into my scrap basket. Keep in mind, she is not supposed to be on the table. She had been removed several times and deposited upon the chair or the floor...only to persistently hop back onto the table. I decided to snap these photos of her after she had defiantly crammed herself into the little basket.

sketch inspiration #207

I felt like the color palette of my kit lent a prissy, refined tone that these pages seemed to call for. I got the idea for the silver frames from the Counterfeit kit blog. Unfortunately, I did not have all of the same materials used in the recommended tutorials. So instead, I used a sizzix folder to emboss a piece of scrap pad cover. I then painted it silver with acrylic paint and inked the edges with Colorbox black ink. I think my version is quite passable and I love the texture it adds to the page. I also loved the ease of making a bling flourish with my i-rock and a Bazzill flourish  stitching template.

  Now that I was on a roll with my kit, I  pulled out some photos of my dog running around after a bath. After all...furry cuteness is a good thing. Admittedly, some of these shots were not the best. It's hard to get your dog to pose for photos when he's busy running around the house and rolling on the rugs. I took care of bad lighting in the shots by converting them to black and white. The movement in the photos was something I loved. The photo in which part of my dog is cut off only serves to emphasize it...at least in my opinion.

I will admit, I added an extra glimmer mist color to my kit. The moonlight blue just worked so well with the blue papers from the Bayberry cottage pad. I loved the way it looked splattered across the page. I used glossy accents on the hole punched circles to make my own mini pebbles. I also added some as droplets on the photo of my dog shaking.

I wish my camera better emphasized the blue of the papers in these pages.  It makes such a nice pop of color with the black and white papers.

  I am really enjoying using my kit. It's been so much fun rediscovering things in my stash and finding photos to use them with. I am really looking forward to using more and to making up a kit for March( WOW...it's almost here!). Stay tuned for more creations with my counterfeit kit...

Just in the Nick of Time

First off...pardon the appearance of my blog. I am still getting the hang of this. I am trying to personalize it a bit, but found I haven't had much time to play with it. We are getting ready for a week long trip, which is part of the reason the blog is a work in progress. Of course, when given the choice for my spare time, I chose to scrap rather than play with the blog settings. I just managed to finish the latest Sketchy Thursday challenge:
http://sketchythursdays.blogspot.com/2010/05/513-sketchy-thursdays-challenge.html

I chose to use some photos of my pets sitting together. Some of the photos had some goofy shadowing in them, so I used the title tag to hide it. The tag is from My Mind's Eye...one of the great pieces I scored from a peachycheap purchase. All of the PP is DCWV from the pet stack(one of my favorites). The stack is literally in tatters. I really hope to get the new Max and Whiskers collection on my trip. Anyway, back to the LO. I had some red ribbon that I had bought in the dollar bin. I managed to use up some EK success fibers too. The fibers look so good in the package but always seem to be a challenge for me to use. I so prefer ribbon.

And without further digression, my LO:

A Sketchy Thursday challenge

I have been learning about all of these new blogs lately and found myself on the Sketchy Thursday blogspot. I love page maps and sketches, so when I saw this sketch, I immediately thought of the photos I had of my cat. So here's my take on the latest sketch.