Tigers, lions, and bears..Oh my!

Weekends for us is usually spent with family. We manage to fill in all hours with eventful visits, whether it be with cousins or hanging solo with grandma and grandpa. Either way, getting out on the weekends is a good thing for the both of us. I'm not one to sit still very long. I enjoy getting out often and keeping busy. In no way shape or form am I a homebody. Having to spend all day at home would send me to the madhouse. So this weekend, we made a routine trip to the city zoo, Como Park, and we also spent a full day with all three of Ethan's younger male cousins. He had an absolute blast!

While at the zoo, he made a mess of himself with a big'ol lollypop and visited with the animals. Ethan's favorite was by far the ducks. There had to be at least a hundred of them hanging out in the duck pond. He kept trying to talk to them..it was hysterical! He couldn't figure out why they weren't responding to his stream of baby babble. I had a good laugh while watching him communicate with the ducks. I think if the fence hadn't of been there to hold him back, he would of found himself straight away into the water. He wanted so badly to hang out with them up close and personal. It's amazing that out of all the animals on display at the zoo, Ethan fell in love with the ducks. Always the little things that capture his attention...not the lions or bears. Laugh.

On Sunday, I brought Ethan to my parent's house after finding out that both my nephews were there for the day. Ethan played with both J.J. (my brother's son- 2 years old) and Myles (my sister's son - 4 years old) for a few hours. They're finally at an age where they can interact with each other and enjoy each other's company. Together, they played basketball, hung out around grandpa's pond, and chased each other around the yard. They kept laughing and giggling. Some how, I got all three of them together on a small bench in front of my parent's place and took a photo. Can't wait to share it with them when they're older. It's always fun to look back at old photos from childhood...especially those photos taken with cousins and friends.

Yum. Yum. Yum. Finally, they've been released, the new Basic Grey Chocolate/Dark Chocolate Chipboard Albums. I think the concept of "chocolate" and "dark chocolate" is brilliant. The name alone is enough to get my attention because I have a debilitating weakness for chocolate. Besides the name, the albums themselves are beautiful. These albums don't require a lot of work to feel "finished". In a way, some of the work has already been done, in that you don't have to paint or cover them with paper. I chose one of these albums to use in my "Golden Harvest" class. I will be using my standard amount of product on these, including lots of paper. This is still an option though for those scrapbookers interested in creating a "simple" less-is-more kind of album. They're available in a variety of shapes..and if you don't want to use a whole album "as is", switch out pages or use a single page for a project or on a layout.

This page sat on my desk for three days. It haunted me in my sleep...laugh. Am I allowed to say that? Laugh. Seriously, after finishing half the layout, I lost direction and wasn't sure where to go with it. The original concept was to build layers utilizing the circles on the KI Memories Sheer Delight vinyl. I backed the sheer vinyl with white Basic Grey distressed pattern paper. I then adhered orange circles to the white paper to coincide with the circles printed on the sheer vinyl. It had been my plan to further embellish the circles with other items, though it never really happened. I started focusing my attention on the photo and the layers sitting on top of the sheer vinyl instead. I quickly became overwhelmed by what was going on around the photo vs. below the photo. I ended up sacrificing the original idea just to get the project done. This is the end result.

Before starting a layout, my first plan of action is to come up with a new technique or "concept" I want to use on a layout. I typically refer to my subject matter and materials when deciding on a new technique. Sometimes, if my creative drive is running high, the technique is obvious. Usually, when this is the case, the entire layout comes together quickly. I'm able to finish the layout within a short period of time. If I have to search for a technique idea over a period of a few days, the layout takes me quite a bit of time to complete. I struggle to get through the creative process for those layouts that take me longer. Sometimes, I don't feel "up" to creating a layout, though I do it anyway. I will take a break on occasion. I'll open a home decor magazine or search the web for inspiration and new ideas. The downtime gives me an opportunity to relax and reboot. Once I've rebooted, I'm back at my desk..with a whole new set of ideas.

For those of you wondering how I start a project, I focus my energy on technique and concept first. The remainder of the process is unplanned and spontaneous. I'm never totally sure how a layout will look until it's finished.

Comments

[Kelly]

Oh my goodness! Christine- you are a genius, strategically placing the red inked circles under the various patterns to show off their designs! I LOVE IT!!

I did find out that you have a larger, nicer Archivers therein MN: I was at two of them in WI and neither had that particular KI design nor did they have the Amy Butler butterflies (I checked this weekend!!)

What a pretty kitty, too.
Glad you were able to get out and enjoy some Ethan and family time!

[Shaun Paddock]

It is time to find a way to make Ethan stop growing up so fast. I just cannot believe him. Every post he looks a little bigger and more like a little boy. It makes me sad and I am sure it does you. My baby boy got his drivers license today, talk about making me sad.
The layout is absolutely gorgeous! I love everything about it. The circles play of the cute kitties eyes and how his/her head is turned.
I am still in search of the butterflies. K&Co. thought the MN Archiver's had them and so I need to call them and see if they will ship them to me. Cross your fingers.
Thanks for the inspiration!
Love and God bless,
Shaun

[Tara Van Moorsel]

Just stunning! I'm wondering how much you do to your photos before you print them. Do you play with them in Photoshop? Have any favorite actions you use? Or do your photos just come out looking amazing right from the camera? If so ... I need that camera!

[Shelby]

Fantastic. Love the layout.

[elaine t]

Love your layout Christine - I know I always say this but I absolutely love how you embellish your pages - stunning! Ethan is such a cooch - wish I could meet him in person. :) Thanks so much for the email reply too!! :)

[Julie]

I love spending time with family too.....well some of them,LOL. It sounds like Ethan had a great weekend.

I love your layout regardless of how it came about.You overcame your fear!

[Katja Schneider]

I have been reading your blog for a few months now and wanted to thank you for continuously inspiring me and others. I especially love all the close up shots to reveal all the little details of your LO's.

[MARILYN NIMMO]

WOW - what a wonderful layout. Glad you had a great weekend with family. Thanks for the creative ideas. I always WANT to try ideas, but start the layouts and the new techniques go out the window. Now, I will start working with the new technique first and work the layout around it--or at least try that out!

[Sylvie]

You are so inspiring.... and I love to see all the details/process of your creations.

Those pictures are so nice. And it's true, Ethan is growing so fast...

Enjoy family time!

[Francesca Di Leo]

hey Christine, nice to hear you had a fab weekend. Ethan and the little blondie beside him look sooo much alike. They could be brothers!

That's really amazing how you think up new technique ideas as a starting point, I think I'll give this a try...

I'll be in the U.S. again this weekend, and I'm going to try to hunt down some of that KI sheer vinyl. I've been thinking about how to use this, and I think you did a fabulous job. The circles underneath just make it pop! I hope I can find me some.

Have a great week.

Francesca

[Wendy McKee]

i am a huge fan of your work and i think this one has to be my fav!!!!!!!!! gorgeous page and i love the photo.

[anna]

beautiful layout Christine, sounds like a lovely weekend:)

[briana]

That circles and kitty layout - wow- i'm in love with that. Just blows me away and you said you weren't even going in that direction at first - wow!!!!
Briana

[briana]

That circles and kitty layout - wow- i'm in love with that. Just blows me away and you said you weren't even going in that direction at first - wow!!!!
Briana

[Louchia]

This page is awesome!! I like it a lot, love the colors. It cold and warm at the same time

[Mara-May*]

You are insane! And I LOVE every minute of it! :)
xoxoxo

[Wendy Treseder]

OMG! This page is gorgeous. Thank you for explaining your techniques and including the close up detail photos too, it's very helpful and inspiring. Can't wait to get my hands on some of those new "papers" from KI.
Wx

[Sarah]

The page is fantastic! It's wonderful when you have your head wrapped around an idea or concept- and you start in that direction- but then in the creative process- you take another path at some point and end up with something fabulous...like THIS! Lovely work.
And Ethan looks so BIG playing with his cousins!
~S

[Sarah]

The page is fantastic! It's wonderful when you have your head wrapped around an idea or concept- and you start in that direction- but then in the creative process- you take another path at some point and end up with something fabulous...like THIS! Lovely work.
And Ethan looks so BIG playing with his cousins!
~S

[All Moments Remembered]

WOW!!! This is simply just gorgeous! You are still one of my most favorite designers!! I can look and look at your work all day long!!
STacey

[Eva]

Such a gorgeous layout with all your details. You are so amazing on figuring out creative ways of using things. Stunning!!

[Susanna]

I can't believe that this wasn't the original idea! I love (love) (love) how this page turned out!

You were the Scrapbook Page of the Week at Card of the Week.com. You can see the original post here: http://www.cardoftheweek.com/2008/09/scrapbook-sat-3.html.

I did use a picture from your post, with links back to the site and the original post. I hope that is OK. Please feel free to email me if you need me to change anything.

I also have an “I was featured” on badge for you if you want it :D

[Baba]

Cette page est très mignonne!!!
Ton doodling est vraiment sublime!!!