Shelter Dogs

Kimmy here with my take on Wendy's colorful, fun page.

I used horizontal photos instead, but I loved her journaling cluster on the corner of the photos and the sideways title with a sprinkling of embellies, and the bright colors of course! Mine is composed mostly of Heidi Swapp products from the September Skies line. 

The subject of my page is near & dear to my heart. I've been volunteering at the local shelter, photographing the animals and posting them on their Facebook page to try and increase the adoption rates and it's working! We have adopted out almost 30 animals since October and no adoptable animals have been euthanized. Our shelter only has so much space so moving these animals quickly is priority. In the past they were adopting out 1 or 2 PER MONTH, you can imagine what that meant for the rest of them. So our newly formed Friends of the Shelter group (started by my best friend Rachel) has really made a difference. We are working towards becoming a nonprofit so we can apply for grants and expand out shelter which currently only has 12 dog kennels.  

The dogs in these photos Rocket (top) & Lola were both adopted. Rocket was adopted by one of my 4th grade students after I shared his photo at school. This type of work is hard (I want to cry every time I leave the shelter) , but brings joy to my heart when I know I've made a difference. 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 

Here's Wendy's page again for more inspiration!

Please play along and share your work with us! 

                                                                     ~Kimmy

November Lift - Happy American Thanksgiving!

1st I want to wish all you a Happy Thanksgiving!
Canadian Thanksgiving was back in October before Halloween. It is still hard for me to get me head around that, since I have always had the Parade on TV while preparing or helping to prepare for the feast.
We are planning to celebrate here in Canada with the American Thanksgiving. That way I can get the mindset and start our Christmas season right! It sneaked up on me last year....

Anyway, on the this month's challenge...you still have some time to link up before the month is up!


I loved Wendy's layout...bright and colorful squares and buttons. I will more than likely pull from this layout again!

I was working on some pages of a day trip we took with the kids over the summer. Since, I had a great shot that I enlarged of my husband with the kids at one of the scenic stops/lookouts! I wanted to include part of a travel map about the scenic drive and stops along the route. The travel map worked out as my photo mat. Even those, the photo and the mat had blues/greens. I went with more neutrals, earthly tones since it reminds me of heritage pages, family and outdoors. Plus, all my accent elements blended well!

Here is Wendy's layout...

Remember to link up on the sidebar for your chance to be our next Guest Design Team Member!

Welcome to November

Hi XOXO fans and welcome to our new challenge for November, albeit a bit late.

 

Firstly I would like to announce that we have recently added a new member to our DT. Can you please welcome Wendy Brassart to the team.

 

 As Wendys first assignment on the team, we have asked her to set the page to scraplift for November and it is adorable.

 

Here it is

We are loving Wendys use of colour on this one.

 

All you need to do is complete a scraplift of this page. You can use the page as a sketch, or be inspired by a particular design element or colour.

 

Have your project uploaded to the blog by the end of the month to join us as a guest DT member for December. We cant wait to see what you come up with. Remember, for more inspiration, keep checking back through the course of the month and see what the rest of the DT have to share.

To see more of Wendy, please head over to her blog and say hello
www.w2.blogspot.com

Do Not Open 'til Christmas

This month I pulled out the Christmas pictures! I had an awesome page to lift from! Used the sketch mainly to start, loved those layered diamond shaped pieces. I created mine using a Square punch and Creative Memories diamond shape cutting templates.
 Here is my page:

Here is Kimmy's page that I used to lift from.

You still have time to play along for your chance as a Guest Design Team Member!

October Lift

The month got away from me, but here's this month's page to lift. 

More inspiration coming from the team later this week! :) 

~Kimmy

September Scrap-Lift...

Hi!  Kim here to help get you motivated to join in our September challenge before it's to late!  I was inspired by Tess's layout by using tattered Angels spray mist on my background and followed her basic design.

Here's Mine.

Here's Tess's Scrap-Lift page!

Hope you'll join us, just link up on the side panel by September 30!

~DT Kim

More September inspiration :221B

IKimmy here with a page inspired by the lovely Tess! I love how Tess used project life cards on her layout and a pup of craft. So, I stole those things along with her splatters in the background & the basic layout. I love how it turned out! 

I used some elements from the latest Studio Calico kit & Heidi Swapp Project Life cards for my layout about my fan girl neediness (anyone else out these love BBCs"Sherlock" ? This photo was taken where they film it! 

Ready to show us your page? Link us up here or on our Facebook page! 

September's Lift - Skipper's Martini

Well, school is back in swing now and I find that I have finally got the chance to sneak in my scrap room a bit.

I have to say Tess's page definitely got me inspired to scrap one of my favorite photos capturing our mischief-est (is that a word?) dog, Skipper!

Using a fun drink recipe paper and my photo of Skipper with his Martini glass caught in the act. I loved how this came together.

Remember don't forget to play along and upload your scraplift page to the linky tool on sidebar. Hopefully we will see you as our next Guest DT!

Check out the original post here! 

Thanks for visiting us! Let us know you have been here!

Hello September!

We are now on a quick downhill run to the end of the year, and in Australia it is starting to warm up again. I'm sure in the North it is starting to cool off, but I hope you are keeping a tight grip on the last of the warm days.

 

Here is the challenge layout for September. Tess has set this one and has kept it nice and easy.

 

Remember the easiest way to use the layout for scraplifting is like a sketch. You can also draw inspiration from the project be it colour combinations or photo theme.

 

 

Yum

Don't forget to upload your scraplift to the linky tool on the blog and keep calling back throughout the month to see the gorgeous inspiration that the rest of the DT put up for you.

XOXO August Scrap Lift Challenge!

Hi Friends!  It's not to late to enter our Scrap Lift Challenge here @  XoXo Scrapbboking.  Our GDT this month is Wendy and she gave us all a fabulous page to lift!

Our GDT Wendy

XoXo Scrapbooking

You have until August 31 to get your layout entered!!!

~DT Kim

'One of his'

Tess here today with my take on Wendys August challenge. I have been really struggling with the mojo at the moment and this page felt really good to get done.

 

One of his

And here is the original page

 

 

 

There is still a bit of time this month to get your layout submitted for a chance to be a guest DT member for September.

Hello Awesome!!

Kimmy here with my lift of Wendy's page! Such a fun design to scrap lift!

Another page from my summer vacation to the UK.
Seeing Les Mis from the 4th row in London, was AWESOME!
 Love the gold & pink color combo, not one I normally use.

Here's Wendy's original page. I loved that she had the title sideways and rounded corners. 

I also stole the cluster between the photos, turning mine into a subtitle. I wanted to add a journaling bit too, but I just couldn't make it fit with my photos. 

Now it's your turn! Create your own layout inspired by our pages! 

Be sure to share it here for your change to win a guest design spot! 

August XOXO Lift - Bucket Boy!

I loved the sketch Wendy used for our August Lift! I had three pictures waiting to be scrapped of my busy little man! I ended up going with the two photos just like the sketch, since one was a little blurry! Had some fun papers added to the photos that reminded me of a old time gas attendant!

I titled the page "Bucket Boy" since at the time that was a daily event. My son would explore behind our house see what he can collect to pretend he is on some type of job using his new finds. My Brother-in-Law drives big rigs and there is a number tractor trailers, parts, supplies and etc. behind his house which is next door to us.

Here is Wendy's page for this month's challenge:

There is still half the month to go to get your challenge done and linked up for your chance to be a Guest DT!

Hello August....... Where did you come from?!

Welcome to August at XOXO Scrapbooking. Are we the only ones left wondering where August came from? July went way too fast!

 We have another wonderful layout to scraplift this month thanks to our gorgeous guest DT member Wendy.

 

I love how the more you look at this page, the more you see. Remember to use it like a sketch or just be inspired by individual elements of the page.

I am working on my Christmas pictures from 2011. I decided to pick two of the best pictures from Christmas morning to start my page. When I saw this paper from Bo Bunny, I thought it was perfect and I wanted to highlight the words Christmas Traditions in a subtle way. From that everything else fell into place. The little Santa is ceramic and came on a gift that I received. I have been saving it (too cute to throw away) and this was a perfect home for him.

Don't forget to get your take on the challenge uploaded to the link tool in the sidebar by the end of the month, and you could be joining us as a Guest DT, just like Wendy.

Thanks for your time with us Wendy. It has been great getting to know you and we would love to see you still playing along with us at XOXO. We hope you have enjoyed your time with us too.

July Lift - Kinderstart

I had this picture my daughter had completed during her Pre-School Health Check and wanted to include it in her Scrapbook Album. The nurse gave out the cute little girl sticker with the kid's written health check. Since that was red I used a light pink to tone down the bright red and played off the colors on my daughter's drawing.

There was another drawing my daughter made while I answered the nurse's questions. Since it was not as colorful. I placed it underneath. I also wanted to be able to see my daughter's name she wrote on the back of the drawing. So I layered the sticker to act as a flap to hold down the drawing.

I mainly played off of the banner from Phillis's page. I wanted to use the striped paper too but it was too busy with my daughter's drawing. I had to move my elements around the page to fit the size of the drawing. I had fun doing this page and saving my daughter's artwork too!

Not long left in July...........

There isn't long left in July to get your entries in for our gorgeous scraplift set by Phillis. Just as a reminder, here is the layout that Phillis put together for us.

Today we are giving you a double dose of inspiration from the team. First up is Joanne. Joannes layout has been inspired by the stripes, bunting, string and colour scheme.

Secondly is Tess. This layout started out with great intentions of being a 'pure' scraplift, but ended up using the base layout and expanding from there. This is proof that a scraplift is just a jumping off point for your project!

You still have a few days left to get your layouts uploaded to the linky tool in the blog sidebar. This will put you in the running to be a guest DT with the XOXO team and have your work showcased.

Bring on a challenge . . . .

Hey All!!! Heather here!!  I had a great time lifting this layout based on GDT Phillis' inspiration!!!

 

 

I have gotten in the habit recently of using 1 pic on pages, so I found it a challenge to put 2+ pictures on a layout!  The other challenge for me is using patterened background paper!!  I hate covering up pretty paper!!!  HAHAHA!!!  But I did it!!!  And not only that but this page then inspired 2 more soccer pages of the other 2 triplets!!  Guess what!  One of the pages even has 3 pics on it!!!

 

Thanks Phillis for your awesome inspiration!  Great getting to know you while being our guest!!  And thanks to all of you for stopping by our site, checking things out and leaving comments on all of creative scrappiness!!!

 

~ Heather

Meet our July Guest DT.....

Please say a warm XOXO welcome to our guest DT for June and July...

Wendy Brassart

Let me introduce myself, my name is Wendy and I live in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I have been married for almost 22 years (gasp) and we have two children, Evan (12) and Elizabeth (10). I love trying new techniques and therefore I really do not stick to one particular style of scrapbooking. I am on a mission to get caught up on my photo albums (a girl can dream – right?) so I have challenged myself to try to complete a layout a day! I find tons of inspiration online! Feel free to check in on my progress at my blog: W2 (http://w2spot.blogspot.com)!

Here is the layout that Wendy put together based on the inspiration page by Phillis
 

 

 And the original inspiration from Phillis

Why not have a go... There is still plenty of time and we would love to see what you come up with. Don't forget to link it to the linky tool so that we can call past your blog and leave some love!

The Great Kait

Kimmy here with my take on Phillis' layout. I loved her use of pastel colors, two photos, layered photo matting, and the title on the bottom. We hope you play along with us this month at Xoxo! 

Kim's XOXO Scrap-Lift July...

Hi Friends!  DT Kimberly here to give you my lift of GDT Phillis layout this month.  I really loved how she stapled the string and I did the same on my layout.  I also used her basic design only moving a boarder to the side of my layout instead of across the top.

I hope we can inspire you to join in this months challenge here @ XOXO!  You will have until the end of the month to get your layout entered and become the next GDT!

~DT  Kimberly Fordyce

WINNER..... June Challenge

Our May challenge winner is.............

Wendy B

Here is the page that Wendy entered with

 

 

Wendy, can you email me at tessatmybest@hotmail.com and we will get you into the behind the scenes so you can meet the DT.

Hello July

Welcome to July at XOXO Scrapbooking. We have another wonderful layout to scraplift this month thanks to our gorgeous guest DT member Phillis.

Personally I love this one as it is easy to interpret however you choose. It can be portrait or landscape photos if you spin it on its side! Remember to use it like a sketch or just be inspired by individual elements of the page.

Phillis has given us some tips for her page: I used patterned paper and then solid embellishments. I also like texture. So sewing or just string or ribbon works well for that. Lastly don't be afraid to cover some of your photo with the title or embellishments. Head over and leave some love for Phillis on her blog

 Don't forget to get your take on the challenge uploaded to the link tool in the sidebar by the end of the month, and you could be joining us as a Guest DT, just like Phillis.

Thanks for your time with us Phillis. It has been great getting to know you and we would love to see you still playing along with us at XOXO. We hope you have enjoyed your time with us too.

'XO Scotland'- Kimmy

Kimmy here, with my lift of Joanne's page! I was inspired by the overall layout, the tag, and the grungy/painty look of her background. Glimmer Mists and a toilet paper tube to create the circles, the edge of my tag for the lines, and then an eye dropper for the big splotches.  I also used the new Market Street collection by My Mind's Eye. Loving this paper line, so pretty!

Here's Joanne's layout. :) 

You've got less than a week left! Let's see those lifts!! :)

"Nerves of Steel" - Michelle

This month Joanne's page got me inspired to get my son's 4th birthday photos scrapped. My son will be 5 in September! I have carried these photos with me to two retreats and never got the motivation to do them!

Used heat embossing, which is something that I haven't done in awhile. The motorcycle, diamond plate, tire track, little star circles, wing and tag were all heat embossed. Added some distressing using a paper edger and ink!

Here is Joanne's page:

COME ON AND JOIN US! THERE IS STILL TIME TO PLAY ALONG! 

Meet our June Guest DT...

Please say a warm XOXO welcome to our guest DT for June and July...

Phillis Walrath

I am an elementary librarian at a rural school in Northern New York. I live with my husband of 19 years and my 15 year old daughter and my 17 year old son. All are taller than me. I began scrap booking when my kids were little. Now that they are teenagers I continue to create keepsake LOs to save the memories of my husband, me and the kids. I scrap mostly chronological because that is how my brain works and how I organize my books. Scrap booking has become an obsession for me. Since I have part of my closet as my scrap space I can leave my materials out and work on a LO or card whenever I have a few minutes or half a day to work. 

 

Here is the layout Phillis put together based on Joannes page

 

 

And Joannes inspiration page

 

 

Why not have a go... There is still plenty of time and we would love to see what you come up with. Don't forget to link it to the linky tool so that we can call past your blog and leave some love!

Another XOXO Reveal...

Hi! Kim here to share my scrap-lift of GDT Joanne's layout for our June challenge here @ XOXO.  As soon as I saw the page I was excited to join in.  I was inspired by the fun page and I knew I wanted to scrap-lift using a similar photo with the motorcycle.

 Here's my layout-

Here's Joanne's layout-

Looking forward to seeing what you were inspired by!

~DT Kim

'This Happened' - Tess

Tess here today sharing my scraplift of Joannes challenge page for June. I had so much fun putting this one together and really wanted to use all of these photos (which wasn't easy). I have tried to keep the diagonal flow and a lot of the basic elements that were on Joannes page, but added the extra cluster down the bottom.

'This happened'

This is a photo of a good friend of mine and I at the Colour Run in our home town in Australia. It was so much fun and we came out covered in colour.

Here is Joannes page that it has been lifted from

Why don't you have a go at the challenge and have the chance to become a guest DT and set a challenge for us like Joanne has?!

WINNER.... May Challenge

Our May challenge winner is.............

Phillis Walrath

Here is the page that Phillis entered with

Phillis, can you email me at tessatmybest@hotmail.com and we will get you into the behind the scenes so you can meet the DT.

Welcome to June

Welcome to the June challenge, brought to you by our gorgeous Guest DT Joanne Jouannet.

 

Its starting to warm up in the Northern hemisphere and we hope that your summer is treating you well. For those of us in the Southern hemisphere, its finally starting to get cold, after a very warm autum.

 

Here is your scraplift challenge for this month.

All you need to do is be inspired but Joanne's layout. That simple! Just remember to upload it to the link tool in the sidebar to be in the running to be our guest DT. We love seeing what you all come up with.

 

And if you love what you see from Joanne, call past her blog and check out more. Don't forget to leave her some love!