The One with Our 6th Anniversary

We are celebrating 6 years of wedded bliss today!

And by celebrating I mean Chris is going to school and I'm taking the car into the shop :)

But no matter, it's not the extraordinary things that make life wonderful, it's the little ordinary every day-to-day things that make a happy life together. 

In 17 days when we move to Washington my parents are going to watch the kids and we're going on a getaway to Canada to celebrate. Can't wait!

Happy 6th Anniversary Chris!
Love you soooooo much! 

Infinity more to go!

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The One with Cousin #10

My 10th, and probably last, cousin was born the other day!

 I now have two full hands worth of cousins! 

John Jr., Maren, Sara Jayne, James, Elizabeth, Cat, Daniel, Benji, Leah, Naomi.

That's it!

10!

Ten is a good, round number. 

Most Mormons I know have dozens of cousins.

I'm happy with my 10 and that I know them all well.

Fox and Jane already have 6 cousins.
Drew, Avery, Luke, Hunter, Evelynd, and Ethan.
Two of his uncles aren't married yet (but Jay is getting married in July!)
Eric + Tanya and Allie + Tate don't have kids yet cuz they're still newlyweds, but there's another dozen cousins Fox and Jane will eventually have, hehe :)

You know what the weird thing is though?

My Grandpa John is now a newer grandpa than my dad. In other words, my grandparents have great-grandchildren older than their grandchildren. Does that make sense? Get it? Got it? Good.

As they say in You've Got Mail: We are an American family!

Congrats David and Anissa! She's beautiful!

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The One with the Bel-Air Hotel Baby Shower

I worked at a baby shower at the Bel-Air Hotel that needs documenting!

It was a beautiful oasis in the middle of what felt like a tropical jungle.

 I got a peek at the baby shower set up through the trees.

The mom-to-be (this is baby #3) is having a little girl so the colors were pink and purple, naturally!

There were a few tables with gorgeous flowers. Everything was simple yet elegant and oh-so beautiful.

My favorite part, of course, was the candy bar! But just for the record, I'm still off candy, going on 6 weeks now!

I snapped pictures of the preggo mom with each of the guests, they wrote on some prompt cards I made, and everything went into a scrapbook that she loved looking through at the end of her shower. Watching the guest of honor look through the scrapbook is the best part of my job. 

 This swan was amazing to behold!

 Such a lovely time! 1 event down, 2 more to go. We're outta here in just 20 days! So much to do, so little time!

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The One with the American Crafts National Scrapbook Day Blog Hop!

Updated with the winner:

Congrats Love2scrap - email me at paigetaylorevans at gmail dot com and let me know your address so I can ship out your goodies! Thanks to all who left some love :)

Welcome to the American Crafts National Scrapbook Day Blog Hop! I hope you'll be inspired to craft as you make your way through the 20 blogs of the design team members and participate in each of the challenges!

MY CHALLENGE: Fussy cut patterned papers and add the pieces to your layout!

YOU MAY KISS THE BRIDE

Journaling says: Allie asked for a kiss from Fox.

How to: Punch a scalloped border on the top left and bottom right corners of an aqua chevron striped paper background. Dip a toothbrush in bookbinding glue, dilute it with water, then splash it across the layout from the top left to bottom right corner. Sprinkle gold glitter of the glue and shake the excess back into the container. Splatter gold spray mist over the drying glue as well then let it dry. While the layout is drying, cut out flowers from patterned paper. Adhere two photos on the center of the layout and tuck the flowers underneath. Make a title in the center with mini alphabet stickers and gold foil Thickers. Add a canvas bow above the title. Stamp the date on the bottom edge of the bottom photo and write a caption below with a gold marker. Place heart and flower stickers as well as brads around the fussy cut flowers. Tuck a piece of gold polka dot vellum and a cream scalloped border sticker under the outer edges of the photos to finish.

Supplies: Patterned paper, patterned vellum, brads (epoxy, fabric), canvas bow, stickers (flowers, hearts, letters, mini alphabet, scalloped borders), date stamp, adhesive: American Crafts; Spray mist: Studio Calico; Glitter: Martha Stewart Crafts; Ink: StazOn; Bookbinding glue: Paper Source; Scalloped border punch: EK Success; Marker: Sharpie

What's a hop without a giveaway??? Leave a comment on this post by Saturday May 11th 2013 and I'll randomly select a winner to receive these fun goodies from the brand new Mayberry line:

Here is the full hop list in case you get a little lost, or want to open up every blog in a new window right now. Make sure you go through the entire hop, leave a comment on each blog, then visit the American Crafts blog to win an extra super ginormous prize!

***Paige Evans***

Jill Cornell

Corrie Jones

Patricia Roebuck

Leslie Ashe

Becky Williams

Jen Chesnick

Monika Głód

Heather Leopard

Andrea Budjack

Allison Waken

Kimberly Neddo

Diana Waite

Leah Farquharson

Michiko Kato

Melissa Mann

Angie Gutshall

Erin Stewart

Carina Lindholm

Lilith Eeckels

American Crafts

Next on the hop is Jill Cornell! 

Happy National Scrapbooking Day, again and again and again!

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The One with the 2Peas NSD Layout

NSD just keeps on going! I made this layout as a Garden Girl for the National Scrapbooking Day event going on at twopeasinabucket.com where a new project is being released each hour until 7pm central! My product focus was to use American Crafts Glitter Tape in a fun and unique way!

Here's what I came up with:

DISNEY'S CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE

Description: I made this layout for the National Scrapbooking Day event going on at twopeasinabucket.com where a new project is being released each hour until 7 pm central! My product focus is glitter tape by American Crafts. The glitter tape is super bright, colorful, sparkly, shiny, and fun! Just like these pictures and the memories they bring from our day at Disney's California Adventure! I wanted to draw attention to my photos so I created four clusters of starbursts (mimicking the starburst on Mickey's Fun Ferris Wheel) and then made each one stand out by trimming the glitter tape into chevrons and pointing them into the grooves of the starbursts. With a neutral tone background, the glitter tape really pops! You could also weave the glitter tape and make a fun focal point, layer it in strips and place a die cut shape over it for that fun trend, or use it like washi tape to adhere photos down. So many possibilities!

Journaling says: We usually go straight to Disneyland but on this morning we went to Disney's California Adventure and we had so much fun discovering rides we'd never been on like the bugs land rides and Monster's Inc. We'll definitely be back soon!

How to: Die cut four starbursts from scrap cardstock, place them on each corner of a gray cardstock background, then spray over each starburst with a neutral colored mist; remove the starburst masks then stitch around the edges using a bright color of floss. Stamp chevron borders pointing into the starbursts. Trim glitter tape into chevrons and adhere them between the sunburst rays. Adhere a photo on each starburst and make a title on the right side using an assortment of Thickers. Use a black pen to write journaling on the left edge then fill in all the gaps of letters with a white pen. Stamp a sentiment and the date below the journaling. Drop black spray mist across the layout and add a few black jewels on top.

Supplies: Cardstock, glitter tape, letter stickers, stamps (chevrons, date, sentiment), adhesive: American Crafts; Jewels: Recollections; Spray mist: Studio Calico; Ink: StazOn; Pens: American Crafts (black), Uni-Ball Signo (white); Floss: DMC; Die cut machine (Cameo), starburst die (Silhouette): QuicKutz

Happy National Scrapbooking Day (again!)!

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The One with the Favorite Technique Layout for American Crafts

I had a layout go up on the American Crafts blog this week and I thought, while I'm in the midst of sharing a bajillion layouts, let's include this one :) 

6 MONTHS

Journaling says: Sitting. Rolling from front to back. Not sleeping. Always smiling. Happy.

How to: Place a large heart doily on a pink patterned paper background, spray over it with light pink mist, then remove the doily. Punch heart confetti from an assortment of Dear Lizzy patterned papers and gold foil paper then adhere them in a grid across the layout. Sew down each row of hearts and bend up the edges for dimension. Add a heart doily on the top left and bottom right corners. Place three photos across the bottom of the layout and add a bit of pink scalloped velvet ribbon underneath each photo. Type journaling on a typewriter, trim it into strips, and adhere them on the top heart doily. Stamp the date below and embellish with a piece of pink sprayed doily, button, paper clip with a felt bow, flower stickpin, and branch sticker as shown. On the bottom heart doily, add the title and a bunch of embellishments.

Supplies: Cardstock, patterned paper, gold foil paper, buttons, ribbon, chipboard (chevrons, tree), stickers (branch, flower border, letters, number, "today"), date stamp, adhesive: American Crafts; Paper clips: American Crafts (heart), Studio Calico (with felt bow, with fabric pennants); Stickpins: Making Memories; Doilies: Wilton; Bow: Crate Paper; Heart punch: Martha Stewart Crafts; Sewing machine: Brother; Thread: Coats & Clark; Typewriter: Smith Corona; Ink: StazOn; Spray mist: Studio Calico

Happy National Scrapbooking Day, yet again!

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The One with the Shimelle.com NSD Layout

I made this layout for Shimelle.com for National Scrapbooking Day!

EASTER SUNDAY

Challenge: Use any current paper line from the American Crafts family - that includes American Crafts, Crate Paper, Pebbles, and Studio Calico. Perfect challenge for me :) I chose to go with the Sundrifter line by Studio Calico. The pastel color palette paired with pops of brights and black/white matched perfectly with my Easter photoshoot pictures. I've never scrapped about Easter before so I was really excited to make this layout! The scalloped background die cut looked like stacked Easter eggs and I thought it'd be fun to back the shapes with patterned papers for a unique focal element.

Journaling says: Oh, you know, just a little pre-church Easter photoshoot.

How to: Use a circle punch to trim away the corners of a cream cardstock background then go around the edges with a black pen, adding a few trios of "x"s here and there. Die cut a scalloped background from white cardstock and back most of the shapes with patterned paper as well as patterned vellum from the Sundrifter line by Studio Calico. The 6x6 patterned paper pad is great for cutting tiny shapes because the patterns are smaller. Add photos behind Polaroid die cuts and adhere them on the layout. Embellish around each photo with matching colored elements like jewels, pearls, crocheted doily trimmed in half, acrylic flower, additional die cuts, a brad, a badge, and more as shown. Drop matching colored spray mist around each photo cluster. Create a title on the largest photo using Thickers and gold mini alphabet stickers. Stamp the date below the title on a pennant tag. Type journaling on a typewriter, cut it into strips, and glue them on the empty space of the photo.

Supplies: Cardstock, pen, gold mini alphabet stickers, chipboard letter stickers, date stamp, adhesive: American Crafts; Patterned paper, badge, epoxy brad, acrylic flowers, die cuts (feathers, geotag, pennants, Polaroid frames), chipboard speech bubble, spray mist: Studio Calico; Jewels, pearls: Recollections; Crocheted doily: We R Memory Keepers; Ink: StazOn; Die cut machine (Cameo), scalloped background die (Silhouette): QuicKutz; Circle punch: Fiskars; Typewriter: Smith Corona

 Happy National Scrapbooking Day! Lots more stuff to share today!

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The One with Instagram 5.3.13 Edition

Life via Instagram (@paigetaylorevans) - 5.3.13 edition:

Janey's hair is getting long enough that it needs to be swooped to the side with a little clip. Oh my goodness I think she looks just so adorable and pretty :) Pony tails before we know it!

 It's National Scrapbook Day tomorrow! American Crafts is having a blog hop to celebrate and here's a sneak of the layout I made for it:

 Jane @ 9 months.

 Fox's latest thing is "bugs" and he doesn't mess around when he's trying to get a good look at ants, or as he calls them, "amps". 

 These two. The lights of my life.

 Shameless selfie.

 Fox is really into Aladdin lately and despite looking tipsy in the photo, he was so excited to meet Aladdin and Jasmine in "real life.". We went and saw the Aladdin play over at Disney's California Adventure for the first time and it was AWESOME!

 I got to see Amy Tan's scrap space with mine own two eyes! So inspiring! The things that have been created at this very desk :)

 Fox makes friends so easily. He just jumps right into the crowd - something I've never been able to do. I admire his confidence.

 Trying to get a picture of her two bottom teeth!

 Take time to stop and smell the flowers! 

Since tomorrow is National Scrapbook Day, I've got lots of projects to share throughout the day! 

And I'll be co-hosting a chat with Melissa Stinson at twopeasinabucket.com at 7am Pacific Time so if you have any burning questions, be there or be square!

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The One with the Garden Girl Photos-Themed Layout

It's the first of the month which means new projects from the Garden Girls! This month the theme was "photos" which was pretty open-ended so I decided to frame my photos with pretty fabric "polaroids" from the Maggie Holmes collection by Crate Paper. Check it out:

LOVED

Description: I've been waiting for the perfect photos to use with these fabric polaroid frames by Maggie Holmes and when I saw the colors in these pictures of Jane I was so happy to find a match! The "polaroid" and "instagram" look is so "in" right now! The colors in the Maggie Holmes collection by Crate Paper are so bright and fun, I had a blast layering embellishments in matching colors in these four quadrants. Birds, butterflies, ribbons, bows, jewels, and sequins all add to the girly nature of this layout. I added an artistic feel that's also trendy right now by adding a whitewash background to tone it down so the photos pop more. Colored spray mist emphasizes the different colors and the black India ink drops draw the eyes across the page and brings out the black chevron background.

Journaling says: Just a few pics of sweet darling Jane on a cold morning at Disneyland! She melts my heart!

How to: Whitewash a chevron paper background and distress the edges. Add four fabric polaroid frames on top. Place a picture in the top left and bottom right frames. Embellish each frame with matching colored elements (stickers, die cuts, chipboard shapes, jewels, sequins, etc.). Drop matching colored spray mist across each frame then drop India ink across the layout and let it dry. Journal on a die cut card on the bottom right corner.

Supplies: Patterned paper, hairpins, chipboard (bird circle, bow, flowers, butterflies, frame), fabric frames, ribbon bows, stickers (banners, journaling spot, scalloped border, sentiments, tabs, word), die cuts (butterflies, journaling spots): Crate Paper; Sequins: Craft supply; Jewels: Doodlebug Design; Spray mist: Studio Calico; India ink: Artworks; Ink: StazOn; Paint: M. Graham & Co.; Pen, date stamp, adhesive: American Crafts

The next Garden Girl debut is June 1st - see you then!

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