AWDML Design Team Blog

Fonts for Peas

Like any avid and passionate scrapbooker, I am sure you love fonts!  I have a CD full of fonts that I've downloaded from various sites.  Of course, I do have my favorites which I've already included in my regular fonts.

And as I was searching for yet another set of fonts, I came across this wonderful site -- Kevin & Amanda's Fonts for Peas.

Their fonts are free and ready for download, and they can even make a font out of your own handwriting for free.  Isn't that great!

They have around 7 categories for their fonts.  And each font is called a Pea Font.  Cool!  Among my favorites are Pea Carlisle, Pea Jay and Pea Kate.

Head on over to their site and grab a font or two or more if you want.  They are really so cute I can't get enough of them.

Here's a layout I did where I used one of their fonts.  Enjoy! ~~ Liza

 

Create a Multi-Photo Layout

I had the chance to browse my albums from the past year and I noticed that about 90% of my scrap work are single-photo layouts.  I realized that I am missing out on scrapping a lot more details from our life.  Certain events and happenings in our lives cannot be told with just one photo.

This is a sudden realization which led me to challenge myself.  A challenge to include more photos in my layouts.  It's about time I share my life story with more than just one photo.

And so, this week, I am challenging you to do the same.  Let's add a few more details to this challenge:

-  Use a minimum of 4 photos in your layout

-  Your photos should focus on activity, any activity.  It could be of you, your kids or your friends. There's a lot of possibilities for you.

-  Include a hand-written journal (makes it more personal)

-  Add doodles/doodling on your layout (a great way to add little touches to your layout)

Do share with us your creations.  You can upload them at the AWDML Gallery or you may leave a comment here and include a link to your layout.  This is a great way to jumpstart those scrapping backlogs.

Can't wait to see your creaion.  Don't forget to share it with us and enjoy the process. ~~ Liza

One Sheet Mini Album Tutorial

Your class for this Saturday is making a mini album out of just 1 sheet of cardstock.  I saw this mini book on my friend Erica's blog last spring.  When it was time to do a class here I asked Erica if I could teach her book because it is just so easy and turns out so cute!  The directions may look a little complicated...I almost didn't even try it when I saw it on Erica's Blog ...but as soon as you try it, it will make complete sense!  I promise!  So let's get to it!

Supplies:
* 1 sheet of cardstock
* Some 2 3/4" squares of patterned paper...all mine are for the January Kit!
* 20" of ribbon...mine is from the December Kit!
* Trimmer
* Glue Stick
* Embellishments

1.  Fold your cardstock in half.  Fold each edge to your crease in the center.

2.  Turn your paper and repeat.  Your fold lines should now form a 4 x 4 grid.  I used this yellow cardstock and drew in the lines just for doing the instructions...don't draw the lines! :)

3.  In your trimmer or with a craft knife, cut on the fold line 3/4 of the way down...3 boxes.

4.  Now flip the paper and cut the middle line starting from the opposite side.

5.  Now cut line number 3 from the same side as the 1st one you did.  Your paper now looks like this.

6.  Fold the entire sheet accordian style...folding each square back and forth.

7.  Cut all but 1/2" off the first and last page.  These will become the spine of your book.

8.  Now we have to glue the backs of the pages together.  DO NOT glue the first 2 or the last 2 together! (and we are not counting the 1/2" as a page!)  Glue 3 to 4, 5 to 6 and so on.

9.  Get your 20" piece of ribbon.  This is going to tie your album closed so you don't want it too wide!  Cut a slit in the middle of the fold between the first 2 sheets and the last 2 sheets.

10.  Slide the ribbon through the slits.

11.  Make sure the ribbon is centered and laying flat.  Glue the pages, sandwiching the ribbon in between them.

12.  Trim your 1/2" pieces to fit the spine.  Use double stick tape to adhere these pieces down onto the spine.

13.  Take your 2 3/4" squares and glue them into your album. 

14.  Embellish however you choose!

Check back on the 27th for my finished book...I am using it to make a little book for my son's teacher after we go on a field trip next week!   If you have any questions, leave it in the comments section and I will try to get it answered for you!  And thanks again Erica!  *Lynn*

You get the Best of Both Worlds...

Hey all,

Well, I will be doing a lot of staying in today, stamping, if the kids allow.  It's a balmy -13 right now in Chicagoland...BRRRRRR!  I love snow days, sometimes....depends on how everyone cooperates, right?

I have a quick card for you today, and can I just say how IN LOVE I am with this new Designer Paper from My Mind's Eye!?  It's called Laundry Line, and it's as sparkly as it is adorable!  My Mind's Eye papers, embellishments, and even a few clear stamps are now available in thestore!  They are the featured manufacturer this month, too, so their products are 15% off! 

I made this card for my eight year old DD.  Needless to say, she loves Hannah Montana, but I actually made it for her because she is so awesome that she actually formed her own "design team" and gives us weekly sketches to do on my blog.  Isn't that fun?  I just had to congratulate her on her creativity so I made this for her.

I love how coloring in just a LITTLE bit of a stamp, even if there's not MUCH to color like this one I used, really adds to the whole card.  Have you heard about our COPIC CLUB?  It's the first month of the club, so if you're new to Copics and coloring with alcohol markers (they're the best!), there's still time to join!  Club members purchase 6 markers per month for 6 months, so at the end you will have quite the set!  It's a great (and affordable!) way to build up your collection...I'm a member too, and I LOVE IT!

Won't you come and join me?  The colorful fun we'll have!

Simplify

Lately, I've noticed that most of my layouts are either mini-books or single-page layouts.  I think it's been years since I last tried my hand at a double-spread layout.

I am always daunted by the amount of pictures I have to use and I find it hard to design the layout.  Thank goodness for sketches.  I simplified my life by just following a sketch and not re-inventing the wheel anymore.  There are a couple of places to get inspiration from like My Sketch World and Page Maps.

I say I'm quite happy with the result.  I was able to use multi-photos and at the same time, I was able to added my own touches to the design.  I used here mainly My Mind's Eye papers and Making Memories embellishments.

And since the My Mind's Eye papers are double-sided, I used a circle cutting tool to create my own journaling spot.  It  is still coordinated with my papers and I chose the size I wanted. 

Incidentally, My Mind's Eye is the Featured Manufacturer at A Walk Down Memory Lane for the month of January.  All My Mind's Eye products are 15% OFF from the store until January 31.  There's lots of papers and embellishments to choose from and am sure you'll never run out of inspiration with these.

So try your hand at creating a double-page layout today and enjoy the results.  ~ Liza

 

 

Tell a Story...

Tell a Story with your PICTURES that is!  How often have you taken several pictures of one event and not scrapped them all.  Try placing them in succession of the events.  By placing the pictures close to each other on your layout you are drawing the eye to the story.  Below I posted two layouts I created using this method; one layout I did not need to use journaling since the photos told the story.  Notice how the photos draw the eye through the layout.  I also used different TYPES of alphas in my title which also adds definition to your layouts.  Add a special touch to your layout by adding decorative embellishments, which can help tell the story.
(Materials used to create the posted layouts - A Walk Down Memory Lane's Jan. Kit -Vintage Home)
-Angie

 

Got Pictures?

Piles and piles of pictures?  If you're like me, you have a huge pile of Christmas pictures, sent to you in Christmas cards.  What to do, what to do!  You don't want to throw them out (oh the guilt!) but leaving them in a pile isn't much better.  About 4 years ago I decided I HAD to do something with all the pictures I had been saving and continued to get!  My solution?  An 8x8 album just for these pictures.  I knew that during the holidays or right after, I wasn't going to want to spend a huge amount of time making layouts so I wanted this to be as simple as possible!  I chose black cardstock as my background...I figured I'll always be able to find black paper!  That year for Christmas, my husband had given me some alphabet foam stamps and some paint so I stamped the last name of each family I had a picture from.  I then used my avery label maker to put the first name of each family member...even if they aren't pictured.  I also used the label maker for the year.  Once the name is stamped, there is little to do to add a new picture!  I just trim down the pictures, make a new label of the year, and I am done for the year!  This is such a fun way to see families grow!  Here is one page from my book! (Thanks Tara, for letting me post your family!)

Hope you can get all your pictures organized this year!  Have a terrific Tuesday! *Lynn*

Love Sketches??

Who doesn't ..lol

Here is one I made with a layout I did from the Jan 09 Kit 

 

I would love to see what you do with the sketch. Upload it into the AWDML Gallery and link it back here

Lucy :)

CardMaking Challenge: COLOR ME HAPPY!

  Hello everyone!

Welcome to A Walk Down Memory Lane's VERY first DT challenge of the New Year!

If you haven't already heard, we have a couple of FABULOUS new Kits this month.  Our Design Team has been hard at work with some fabulous new Layouts, and we are also very proud to debut our first Card kit!  Using the papers and embellies in the AWESOME kit, I created this card, shown here.

In addition, we have one more VERY exciting kit club to offer you.  Have you heard of Copic Markers?  They are ALL the rage right now, and I tell you for VERY good reason!  There is NOTHING like the way these special alcohol markers blend and shade together, and the color choices are PRACTICALLY endless at a whopping 322 markers right now!

The Copic Club offers 6 markers in coordinating shades per month for 6 months.  It's a great and affordable way to gain a collection over time! Be sure to check out more information HERE and email Lisa with any questions!

To kick off our FIRST DT challenge of the New Year, I simply challenge you to COLOR SOMETHING!  We want to see your awesome shades of talent whether its on a layout or card!  Can't wait to see what you come up with and be sure to Upload to the Gallery so we can all oooh and ahhhh over your beautifully colored creations!

Have fun!

Jessica :)

In My Mind's Eye...

...I envision a world similar to my favorite movie, Alice in Wonderland.  In fact, it's my ALL TIME favorite movie.  I don't know about you, but I, myself, can learn a lot of things from the flowers :)

I guess this was the perfect way to tell you about some of my new FAVORITE paper...and it just happens to BE from My Mind's EYE!   It's called Laudry Line.  Glittery, funky and fabulous, I can't get enough of this paper.  I LOVE it.

It's available now from A Walk Down Memory Lane and there are tons of colors and styles.  They also have some beautiful ribbons and even a selection of clear stamps, so check em out...you NEED some, trust me!

I'll be back on Sunday with a "colorful" challenge...STAY TUNED!

Vintage Home Love!

Well, my co-DT's can't stop raving about the Vintage Home kit from A Walk Down Memory Lane.  And I can't stop too! Seriously!

This kit is just so full of scrappy goodness that I had so much fun creating layouts for this.  I just love the mix of colors and the possibilities it offered.

Here are some of the layouts that I finished from this kit:

 

 ~~ Liza

A little more...

about this kit!  I know Lucy talked a bit about it yesterday and last week you got some good sneak peeks but I honestly can't say enough about this kit.  First let's look at everything you get:  You will receive 8 sheets of gorgeous patterned paper and 6 sheets of some of the coolest cardstock colors ever!  You also get an entire puffy alphabet with polka dots...my favorite and a double cardstock sticker alphabet in yellow and blue!  For embellishments there is a huge assortment...you get a super fun ball trim ribbon in black, some chipboard shapes, some cream brads, black bling, and these really cool candy dots in yellow...they look just like the candy dots we used to eat!  And if all that isn't enough, you also get a tube of Antique White paint!  Imagine the possibilities!  Here are a couple layouts I made with my kit and in case you are wondering I barely made a dent in the kit!  I have tons more product left to play with...which I intend on doing as soon as I finish this post! :) 
Head on over to the store now to get your kit before they are all gone!  Have a terrific Tuesday! *Lynn*