Christmas Specials

Hi everyone,
The silly season is well and truly upon us so we are having a silly season sale on all things christmas. There is a new category in the shop for christmas and all stock is HALF PRICE.
Grab a bargain and help me to make room for all the new goodies coming in the new year...

November Uplift

Hi Peeps,

BB here.......:)

I had the great pleasure of the uplift challenge this month and I picked not ONE but TWO layouts by the incredibly talented HEATHER JACOB
I have been awe inspired by her work ever since she joined the BOXX just recently and I just love the clean lines and small details in her layouts - oh well I really just love them all to be honest.

Here are the 2 layouts of Heather's that are my absolute favourites -

So........Since christmas is upon us I chose to go with the festive theme.

The following products that I have used can all be purchased at the BOXX shop

- LILYBEE Designs Christmas range
- MANOR HOUSE Creations incredibly gorgeous flowers
- KAISER Sparklets and
- AMERICAN CRAFT Thickers

And here are my uplifts -

For close ups you can visit my blog

Last but not least I did a few simple cards out of some of my leftovers -

I would like to wish you all a very merry christmas and may your mojo follow you all to 2012
Be merry but stay safe

BBxx

Featured this week...

is this beautiful LO by Bellaidea titled 'natural bond'...

I love the soft, fresh colours and her hand journaling and stitching, it's so pretty..

Congrats Bellaidea!

Gina x

Journaling 101 : tip#1

Hello Friends!  Today I want to share a new series about journaling here at The Boxx.  I hope to encourage you all to share more of your stories, document your family history and have instant recall when you look back at your pages in the future.

Is that asking a bit too much? LOL!  Believe me though, it is possible.  And with a few hints and tips, you will all be journaling like old pros before you know it.  :D

This is certainly a busy time of year for many people.  And I know sometimes... scrapbooking gets put on the back-burner during the silly season.  So let's make it easy for us to get something started.

Tip #1 is to use a prompt.  These are great as starting points.  Of course though, you need to be motivated by it too.  Think about what the words from the prompt mean to you.  A good rule of thumb is to go with your first instinct.  Here is our first prompt:

This season what do you need to "remember to" do...  Or what do you need to "remember to"  think about.  Maybe it's a list of things you need to remember, like recipes and Christmas presents...

If there isn't enough room to journal all your thoughts, consider putting in some hidden journaling to help the process along.  "Remember to" add the details as well.

 

Good luck with your first journaling challenge.  Please leave a link here in the comments if you complete it.  I'd love to see your ideas..x

November Book of You Kit

Hello Lovely Ladies! 

The Next Book of You installment is all about....

The kits are out and, for those of you who have them and are keen to get busy, the instructions are now available to all kit subscribers in the Book of You Kit Group at The Boxx.  A lovely blend of 7Gypsies Off the Wall, Basic Grey Out of Print and Bo Bunny Forever Fall papers, not to mention the AWESOME Prima resist canvas shapes.  The 7Gypsies Rubbings, Pyramid Brads and Carolee Creations alpha stickers finish this kit off just nicely.

I tried to look past the obvious things that would be common to all of us and really thought about the things that keep me going when everything around me seems to be falling apart.  The things that make me realise that my problems are only fleeting and that there are so many more important things to focus on.

I believe wholeheartedly in the power of laughter.  I laugh a lot... at almost anything!    I think my children have inherited the giggles from me and their joy is most definitely music to my ears and one of the things that I could never live without.

Music of Laughter

Layout two is totally predictable, yet unavoidably true.  It is all about the one person that I couldn’t do without.  My best friend, my sounding board, my comforter.... my guy.

Mine

There we have it!  I hope you have enjoyed this months’ BOY projects and, as usual, I’d LOVE to see what you make from it, so don’t forget to upload into the Group thread.

I am totally in love with the December kit and can’t wait to start playing with it!!

Cheers for now,

Jules
x

Featured this week..

is Lisa Amiet's wonderful layout titled 'You are so Special'

I just love the amazing texture and layering she's created, the pops of aqua and gorgeous photo...

Congrats Lisa!

Gina x

What's Hot Hot Hot????

Hello All...

Michelle here with my first official DT post! Oh I hope I live up to the brief..... What is Hot Right Now in the Scrapping world????!!!!

Well after much research ie prowling the net....( under the guise of fulfilling obligations that's what I have been telling DH anyway!)

 Art Journalling! I know it has been around forever but is making a big surge of late. Scrapbookers are tuning into this, I think, due to the fact that making our own backgrounds (another "in" thing) is totally hot and probably will be for a long time yet.

Art Journalling is a great opportunity to try out all those new techniques on a smaller scale. I have wanted to start one for years and have finally given it a go  and I have to tell you, it is really fun to play and let the juices flow! You start with something then it turns into something completely different.

This is my first shot at it using my scraps to play with collage.

Then I started to splash a bit of paint around, play with the stamps and other bits in my stash. It really is a great release with no pressure of producing that perfect page to match a treasured photo.

This one was inspired by Donna Downey and if you haven't visited her blog yet.... do yourself a favour girlfriend, hop on to that creative wagon and enjoy that inspirational ride..... awesomeness at your fingertips.

And before I bore you all stupid this is the last page I did, more fun with paper, tissue and paint!

 I love quotes so this form of art helps me keep track of some of my faves, but you can record anything or nothing if you like... remember there are no rules!!!!

I will be writing up a few tips and tricks I have learnt along the way in my Blog (not that I am an expert, just started myself you hear) in the next few days so if you have questions head over there (not too quick though gotta give me time to write...)

There's loads of inspiration out there, here are a few great ones I have found in my travels:

Dina Wakely

Kate Palmer

Journal Artista

That should wet your appetites and get you started!!!

So my scrappy friends out there in Boxx Land have a go... get yourself a journal and play!

Keep Happy Everyone,
Michelle

Featured this week..

is this amazing layout by Kim, titled 'Life'...

Just love the vintage feel, clustering and texture paste alpha Kim's created as a background...

Congrats Kim!

Gina x

Hideee ho.... whats happening out there...

hideee ho everyone.. its just me back with a Manufacture/Product watch..and what are we watching tonight..well Pink Paislee thats who....

and what..

the MISTABLES...... these are fantastic..... i have created a layout using.....

Mistables paper pack.. {just between the two of us..SO much better than the first lot of mistables..so much thicker so no leaking through to the back...woot woot}and....

these canvas scollop mistables.. super handy.... AND...

these fuzzy do dahs.... AND....

this SUPER fun Mask......and this is what i created......

"I Love You"

can you see everything...... i really love the way this came together.. {yes i know unfortunately it all isnt Pink Paislee.. i seriously struggle with one brand..i try..hehehe} and then some closies...

i made the flower by misting a strip of the medium sized scollop strips with two different colour glimmermists and then did the whole pull the ends together with thread to create a flower.. added one of the fuzzy vinyl stickers and a button..sweet hey......... AND then...

some more scollops... 1 strip glimmered and the other left raw and then drew with pen to create an outline..
and there.. can you see the mask.... the black bit.. hang on .. maybe scroll back up the top and have a closer look.. but i first up misted the mack black through the middle..and then stuck the fuzzy vinyl tree on there and it was just alittle white.. so i just squirted some yellow for alittle extra zing.....

so there you have it.. what did you think..

there is still some of all of these products left in store..so go out and get them now and have a play..they are WAY to coolio....................

so

Happy days.........

October Book of You

For those of you who have not yet gotten your hands on a Book of You Kit this month .... hurry, hurry, hurry!!  lol

I had a lot of fun putting this one together with my absolute fave CHA release, Bo Bunny's Et Cetera range.  I absolutely love it!!

The Theme for this month is:

Not such an easy task, I soon discovered!

The things that define us are an accumulation of experiences, how we have dealt with these experiences, the people that have shaped us and why we do the things we do.  Not just what we like and don’t like, but why?  How do you put into words what is at your very core?

I think you just have to start writing and hope that, somewhere in between the lines, lies what it is that makes you tick.  That is what I did anyway... and this is by no means exhaustive.  I think you just have to start somewhere and break it up into smaller tasks.  What defines you could be a ‘Book of You’ all of it’s own... maybe a mini album?

 {Defining Me}

For my second layout, I thought about the things that play a role in shaping who we are.  For me, the biggest indication of a person’s nature has to be the types of people they choose to have around them.  How many times have we heard the saying “You can tell a person by the company they keep”, or words to that effect?  Our friends (unlike family..lol) are around us because we have chosen them.  For whatever reason, we have gravitated toward them.  This page then, had to be about my bestie, whom I would like to think speaks volumes as to my character, and I love her to death!  :)

{In Good Company}

I hope you have enjoyed this month’s installment.  Full tutorials on both pages are available to Kit subscribers in the BOY Kit Group at The Boxx.   I’d love to see your pages, so please feel free to upload them to the BOY Group thread, regardless of whether you have followed these instructions or not.  :)

Cheers until next month.

Jules
x

Tips? Tricks? or just advice?

Hi Peeps,

BB here - I'm back - did ya miss me?

Anyhow you will be seeing me around a bit more frequently now ( Oh come on - im not that bad - he he), I have finished uni for the year and technically have until March off - that is of course unless I fail a subject ( but shhhhh about that ) - oh before I forget thankyou all so much for your best wishes before my exams it meant a lot to me.

So, what am I bringing to the table today? A tip? A trick? or just some advice? I really don't know where to classify it, but I was working on a page last night and got a little bit stumped, I stared at my page for a second and then had a minor brain wave.

How do you create texture without it dominating your layout?

I know there are a million different brands of texture paste out and they are all different in the effects that they give. I wanted to create dimension that wasn't overpowering - this is what I came up with

I used one of the Crafter's Workshop templates ( that you can purchase from here )
Put my texture paste over it
Before it dried I sprayed a mist all over it
Gave it a 5 minute dry with the heat gun
And then gave it another light spray

So as you can see by the final product -

The texture is there but it does not take over the page.

I hope I have been of some help - but if you have anything that you would like some advice on please leave a comment and I will do my best to help you out.

Happy Scrappy Days

BBxx

Featured this week..

is this gorgeous layout by Helen Wallace titled 'Two Precious'...

I love the misted background, colours combo and adorable photos!..Congrats Helen!

Gina x

November Sketch Challenge

A new month, a new sketch!

This month, yours truely has set the sketch challenge....  :)  So let's get straight to it.

The lovely Wendy Kaye, our Featured Member for this month, was given the opportunity to be the first to take up the challenge and has certainly done that!  How is this for inspiration?

Just so dreamy and beautiful.  Thanks so much Wendy!!

Entries must be uploaded to the sketch challenge thread over at The Boxx by midnight on Wednesday 30th November, to be in the running for a full month's feature in The Boxx gallery.

Have fun!

Jules
x

October Sketch Challenge Winner

Hello November!

With a new month comes the end of one sketch challenge and the start of a new one over at The Boxx.

Just to refresh your memory, here is the amazing sketch provided by the awesomely talented Michelle Fowler last month.

Michelle was also charged with the task of picking a winning entry from an amazing array of gorgeous pages.  After much deliberation, the winner of a full month's feature in the main gallery is.......

Jessica MacKenzie!!!  Congratulations Jess.

Here is her masterful work:

Thanks to all those fabulous Boxx ladies who participated this month.  As I suspected, we were completely blown away!

Jules
x