Double Page Layout - A Tutorial

Hello everyone! Hope you guys are enjoying the winter holidays with your near and dear. Few more days left of 2011! Wowza!! Before this year comes to an end, I would like to share a picture tutorial with you which I've been planning for a while. So let me get on to it, ya?

As soon as I received my Amy Tangerine goodies, I decided to make a layout. My initial plan was to do a one page LO, but then I wanted all the photos to come together in one project. So I decided to use Shimelle's sketch that I received as a part of her online class called 'Pretty Paper Party'. When you have many photos to work with and don't know how to go about with it or when you simply don't know where to start, having a sketch really helps. Whenever I find a sketch online, I bookmark or save it on my pc it and use it whenever required.



©www.shimelle.com



As you must have noticed, this layout is about my husband and son. All of these photos were taken during our trip to Italy in 2010. They are 4"x4" in size. I had seven photos to work with and decided to use this design for the photo placement. I just couldn't fit the seventh photo in here and decided to leave it out. Oh, and I also changed the sides here - in the sketch the photos were supposed to be on left, but on my layout I kept them on right.

Then I used the washi tapes and fabric patterened paper (which has adhesive backing) to form a grid design. I was still playing around with the placement of photos and this is what I had in mind after the grid was done.

  

Who can resist Amy Tangerine's sticker book? I decided to use couple of stickers from the book to fill up the grid. Then I adhered the photos with my adhesive (which, btw, I bought from Daiso for just seven dirhams!).

I also used a layered embellishment (from the same collection). I love the picture of a key on it. It symbolizes 'key to my heart' for me. ;) This is a double page layout right? The right side of this layout is done and it's time to move onto the left side.

I adhered the patterend paper and also a strip on the bottom to sort of give it a finished look.

A bit of washi tape. ;)

Decided to stick down the title - I pondered on the title for atleast half an hour before deciding on 'two peas in a pod'.

For me journalling is an important aspect of scrapbooking. Ofcourse, when I'am feeling crafty and playful I don't bother much about journalling. But here, I had already decided that the left side would be for journaling. Nothing else.

Well that was the idea, but then I remembered that I had one photo which I had left out as there was not enough space on the right side. I decided to use that photo here, sort of as a part of the title. And I love that photo so much that I just couldn't let it go. heeee ;) I also used a sticker from the book (that I showed above). I love the quote on the sticker - some journey cannot be put into words. Oh my! It matches the theme of this layout perfectly!

Now it's time for journalling. This took me another hour or so mainly because my daughter woke up from her nap and needed her mommy. When she was happy playing around, I sneaked back into my room and wrote down whatever I had in my mind.

Once the journalling was done, I decided to use my brand new (ahem ahem) brad setter tool and the set of brads that I had bought from Daiso (again for seven dirhams!).

I placed the brad in the middle of the sticker (again from the book) to give it an added dimension.

And ta-daaa! My double page is done! Pretty simple right? Sometimes I prefer to keep it simple and finish quickly. And sometimes I want to take it slow with ink, paint, mists, stamp and everything I can grab from my supplies. :))

So there you go, a finished double page layout for you.

I hope you enjoyed my tutorial and would come back for more. If you have any questions, please feel free to drop a question in the comment box.

See you soon!

A Design Team Call

Would you like to receive free goodies to play with? Would you like to build up your craft resume? Then head on to Lightbox Creative - an online craft supply store. They are having a Design Team Call which will close on January 1st,  2012. So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and apply!!!

Good luck!

@two peas: you just made my day!!

Clear, White and Aqua

are the only Zing embossing powders I have. And I love playing with them alongwith Tim Holtz Distress Inks, Stains and my water colour pencils. Shall I tell you a bit about each of these cards?

Ok, so the first one is pretty simple. I stamped the background image on watercolour paper with Versamark clear and heat embossed with white Zing. Then I ran Broken China Distress Stain to give it a light blue background. The sentiment is from Hero Arts' Say It digikit (it's a lot cheaper than buying separate sentiments stamp, I tell you).

Second one is the same background stamp on watercolour paper. I used aqua Zing this time. And the background lime colour was actually done with my watercolour pencil. What you do is, you wet a painting brush with water and simply rub it on the watercolour pencil's point and then paint on the paper. As simple as that! The sentiment is from the same digikit.

For the third card, I coloured the water colour paper with Worn Lipstick Distress Ink. Then I stamped the background with Versamark and heat embossed it with Clear Zing. I couldn't decide which sentiment stamp to use for this card and decided to leave it alone for the time being. Hope you liked my cards. :))

two peas in a bucket love

oh my!!

A bit of Mixed Media in scrapbooking :)

I've been experimenting with different stuff since I started scrapbooking. And I'am loving all the imperfect but perfect creations that I'am coming up with. ;) Hope my layouts inspire you in some way.

the two of us

This is a layout I created for Creative Scrappers' Sketch #187 Challenge. I love sketches that allows multiple photos and layering. Had fun playing with Amy Tangerine, Pebbles and Studio Calico's Memoir collection.

Do check out Creative Scrappers' blog. It's such an awesome place. Loads of sketches and inspirations. It will surely blow you away!!

I can't sit still!

No I can't. I've been receiving one goody bag one after the other since the beginning of this week.

First it was the pack from Studio Calico. Brooklyn Flea and Salvaged Add-On arrived along with few other supplies that I had bought from the store.

Then came the parcel from France! I had participated in an International Goody Swap at Monica Wright's i love it all blog. I received all this goodness from Faustine all the way from France! I love that charm. I can't decide whether to use it on my handbag or keychain!!

As if this wasn't enough pampering, I received another pack from none other than Amy Tan. I knew she was sending me goodies in the USPS flat pack. But I never knew I would get SO MUCH stuff! Oh my, I think I'am gonna faint!! haha ;)

Here are some of the layouts I created with all the new stuff. I'am in a good place now and I'am gonna make full use of my mojo. :))

Apple and Walnut Salad

Fresh, crunchy, simple yet yummilicious salad. Need I say more?

Ingredients
Salad
2 cups apples chopped into bite-size pieces
1 cup cucumber diced

1/2 cup orange bell pepper cut into chunks
1/2 cup tosted walnuts

1/2 cup dried sweet cranberries (optional)

MethodCombine all the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Mix the dressing ingredients separately. Toss the salad with enough dressing to coat.

Dressing
Juice of one lemon
2 tbsp mint Leaves finely chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp honey
Salt

 

Recipe Courtesy: Kothiyavunnu

Thank you!

Dear readers

I received a comment today on my Lamb and Pumpkin Couscous from a fellow food blogger stating that she had tried my recipe, loved it and had actually blogged about it! I felt so happy when I read the comment. I do get good comments on my recipes. However, this was the first time someone had actually tried a recipe and then blogged about it. :))

I also noticed few days back that my blog has twenty five readers. I know twenty five isn't a huge number for most of you out there. ;) For me, it is. When I had started blogging, I remember trying to get followers and asking my friends to have a look at it. I also used Networkedblogs on Facebook back then to get more readers for my blog.

After coming back to blogging after a year's hiatus, I just didn't like the way my blog looked. There were too many widgets and the template just wouldn't let me adjust anything. Finally, I decided to give up on the blog and start a new one. But loosing all those posts also worried me. That's when I came across the import/export feature of blogger. And in few days time I had my new blog.

  

I kept the design really clean and simple. I told myself not to get carried away with widgets, buttons and all those accessories that later gives my blog a cluttered look. I've been pretty successful so far. ;)

Few months into my new blog, I felt it was time to reward myself (or rather pamper myself) by getting my blog designed by a professional. I love what Becca has done to my blog. I love how it is still simple and clean and yet colourful. Whenever I view my blog it feels like I'am home and that makes me happy.

I also reminded myself that this time, I'am not going to advertise about my blog. I knew that if I worked hard and wrote well, I would get readers. I've felt like having giveaways or competitions on my blog where I would ask particpants to 'follow'. But then I would tell myself that I should never 'force' anyone to follow my blog and should just rely on my posts.

  

I've been working hard on writing good posts and keeping it simple whether it is about recipes, scrapbooking or random thoughts. And I'am glad that my hardwork is paying off. Slowly but steadily, number of my blog readers is increasing. And I would like to thank all of you for taking time to read my blog, try my recipes and leave encouraging comments. I'am truly grateful to you for having faith in me. :)

hugs

Neelu

Garlic Prawn and Marrow Noodles

One of the things I love about technology is how easy it is to access information regarding any subject under the sky. Few years back, if we needed a recipe, we had to rely solely on pictureless recipe books. Please don't get me wrong - some of them were (still are) very informational. However, there is something about seeing a glossy picture of the dish or reading a step by step photo tutorial of a recipe. Watching a video tutorial makes the cooking experience even better! And the best part is these are available anywhere and everywhere all the time!

Few days back, after carefulling cleaning and deveining a fresh kilo of prawns, I wanted to make a quick dish. I was tired and smelly. I was also real hungry and impatient since I didn't have any breakfast. As prawns cook in no time, I could make a simple kerala style prawn curry. But I was in no mood for the same old same old. So I washed myself up and sat in front of my pc. I logged onto Pinterest and simply typed 'prawn recipe' in the search button. And voila! I came across this yummy looking easy garlic prawn pasta recipe. I was sold!

The recipe calls for angel hair pasta. I didn't have any and decided to replace it with my trusty pack of Maggi Noodles. :) I had few marros in my fridge and added them to the dish to give it an extra texture.

Ingredients

1 Pack of Maggi Noodles (or 200 grams angel hair pasta)

50 grams butter

1 tbsp olive oil + 1tsp for cooking noodles

5 cloves garlic, sliced

2 teaspoons dried chilli flakes

1 tablespoon shredded lemon zest

12 (raw) prawns (shrimp), peeled, cleaned and halved lengthways

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2-3 marrows cut in semi-circles

¼ cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly torn (I didn't have any greens left, so skipped them)

sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Method

Cook the noodles in loads of water with a tsp of olive oil. (Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of boiling salted water for 3–4 minutes or until al dente.)

Meanwhile, heat a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter and oil and cook until the butter has melted. Add the garlic, chilli and zest and cook for about 2 minutes.

Add the prawns and marrow. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until the prawns are tender. Turn off heat. Drain and add the noodles (pasta), lemon juice, parsley, salt and pepper to the pan and toss to combine. Serve warm.

I love everything about this dish. It's easy and simple to make. Heat of the chilli flakes and tanginess of the zest and lemon juice is such a great combo! I ate it for both breakfast and lunch. :D There was nothing left for my hubby. So I made the dish again in the evening when he was home after work. This time I didn't have any marrow and used red bell pepper instead. :))

Note: Recipe from Life is Great

Ugh! I'am stuck!!

Made this layout today with some scraps from Studio Calico's Field Guide kit and scraps from their packaging. I'am not able to come up with a proper title or a spot for journaling.

Help! Please!!