Scrap Big

Gearing up to Picture Summer

  

Summer is more than a season, it’s a state of mind. Fun and sun are the name of the game which makes me love the idea of summer but truth be told, I’m not the biggest fan. My family and I live in a coastal town where we not only get good weather all year along, but beach days are a part of our lives in every season. Perhaps that’s why I don’t feel the urgency that others feel for summer; it’s not such a dramatic shift in weather or landscape than it might be for other people. More than that, I know I’m the kind of person that thrives with a routine, a schedule, a regular day to day agenda and summer for me means the loss of the “I know what tomorrow holds” program that school so perfectly sets into motion during the rest of the year. I feel that I thrive during the school year (my kids being squared away and me working from home) while during the summer I feel almost suspended. 

 

Fast forward to this summer—which will have officially begun by the time this post goes live—where I’ve deliberately decided to make this summer different! Thanks to a change in perspective and a desire to really make the most of the season by enjoying the moment (whatever it might be), I created Picture Summer! The best part? I’m asking all of you to join me! 

No matter what your favorite season might be, if you love photography, you will love Picture Summer. Whether your summer boasts a blur of activity or a serene seasonal slowdown, encouraging your creative spirit to soar this summer is a perfect way to open your eyes and warm your heart to all the delights this season can offer. I for one, can hardly wait!

 

Class starts tomorrow, don't be late!  Register now! 

Tuesday Tip

  

Socks, socks, and more socks. Where do they go when they go in the washer? To make it easier to pair socks after washing and drying (and hopefully eliminate the "lost mate syndrome") I purchased inexpensive lingerie bags for every person, and labeled them with their names. When they take their socks off, they go in their bag. When it's time to wash, I just throw the bag in with everything else, and it comes out of the dryer with all socks that went INTO the bag still there. (Disclaimer: I am not responsible for what happens to the socks from the time they leave their respective owner's feet until the time they go in the bag.)Then the kiddos just have to match and roll and put away.  It's working well, as long as said owners remember to put them into the bag! It's a learning curve!

Hope these tips can help someone, even if they don't get published! Have a great day everyone!

Lisa English

Do you have a tip for your fellow BPS friends? We’d love to hear it! Please email your Tuesday Tips to [email protected]. If your tip is featured here on our blog you’ll receive a $10 BPS gift certificate!

It's time for Picture Summer - 30 days of splashy seasonal celebration!

If you look through your collection of photos, I'll bet you'll find a lot of summer; vacations, beach time fun and cookouts. There's something about summer that just makes you want to capture the moment. We are so excited to have Tracey Clark back again for Picture Summer.  Picture Summer is a 30-day photography project intended to encourage and inspire you to celebrate the season of sun and fun by playfully engaging your creative spirit. 

If you’ve taken Picture Spring, this is your opportunity to keep going and expand your awareness of the world around you through your lens. If you’re new to Tracey Clark we invite you to visit our Inside Access page (sign up is free if you are not already a member) and try out one of Tracey’s photo prompts designed exclusively to give you a glimpse of Tracey’s inspiring teaching style.   

We are giving away one seat in Picture Summer.  If you’d like it to be yours, here’s your assignment. Post one of your favorite summertime pictures in the Photos I Love gallery and comment below about a happy summertime memory.  As a bonus the first person to spot my happy summertime photo in the Photos I Love gallery and send me an email at [email protected] correctly identifying it will get some Happy Mail!  (Hint – it was used in an older blog post.) 

Happy Summer Photos!

And our winner is Arlamo

ArlaMo said:

I posted my photo! Favorite summertime memories from childhood mostly involve trips to Holland Lake, MT with all my cousins. Lots of time in the water, playing on the beach and fun meals with my huge extended family (51 cousins on that side!)

 

First Day Friday

Camp is officially in session!

May Flaum's latest class, Camp Scrap, has just started and there are already 60 layouts in the gallery!!! It's not too late to join the fun!

Here's a fantasic layout that elinjanne created on the first day...

Congratulations elinjanne on being our First Day Friday WINNER!

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We love your enthusiasm and want to reward you for posting in the galleries on the first day of class.  We will randomly scan the classroom layouts galleries the day after a new class opens (Friday morning) and select a winner.  The winner receives a $10 BPS gift certificate and their masterpiece is featured on the BPS blog on First Day Friday! 

A Sneak Peek inside @Home with Claudine!

I have been hard at work on my online class for this summer and I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am about it!

@Home with Claudine is coming together wonderfully and is loaded with techniques and projects! I think I have worked harder on this class than I did when I wrote my books, and if you have read my books, you know how full of information they are!

Well you are in for a treat with this class! If you sign up, we'll be spending 12 weeks together, making art, learning techniques, creating projects – you'll come away refreshed and loaded with new inspiration and ideas! Think of it as an arty summer adventure for your creative soul!

Big Picture Scrapbooking helps the instructor create a stellar class! This online class isn't just a blog with a password; this class has audios, videos, slide shows, handouts, chats, a message board and a gallery.

 

I will be there with you to guide you along and it will be a truly interactive experience.

 

For an extra special treat: login to Big Picture Scrapbooking (or create a FREE account if you don’t have one) and on the Inside Access page you’ll find a little example video to give you just a tiny peek into some of the fun techniques and projects we’ll be creating together this summer!

Enjoy! See you this summer!

Tuesday Tip

 

I wish I got time off for summer, but I work in an office and it seems that summer is just as busy as every other time of the year.

I was finding that I was not getting to my projects and feeling frustrated that I wanted to be creative but did not have large chunks of time to create or crop. I have been working on a class with BPS (52 card pickup) and found that if I did just one thing on the project that would be enough. I did not have to do the entire project.  So I broke the project up into smaller pieces (and it was already pretty small).

All while watching a T.V. show for an hour each night: I cut all the paper for the 47 cards. The next evening, I rounded the corners of those cards. The next evening, I did one project and so on. Before I knew it, I was caught up for the week. Now I am working on an assembly line approach and that is getting me to do some of my projects. It also helps me to feel creative which was lacking during the week.

Hope that is helpful to someone else wanting to be creative but feeling like the weekends get too full with chores, errands, etc. and not enough creative me time during the week.

Sharon Fletcher

Do you have a tip for your fellow BPS friends? We’d love to hear it! Please email your Tuesday Tips to [email protected]. If your tip is featured here on our blog you’ll receive a $10 BPS gift certificate!

Spend your Summer @Home with Claudine!

Claudine Hellmuth is an acclaimed artist, and product designer living in Washington D.C. This summer, she is inviting all of you into her home studio! (Okay...online of course! There isn't really room for all of you inside her apartment!)

Claudine is taking part in our 4 Expert Series, and is offering a 12-week workshop that is full of new techniques and projects. Each week you’ll get inspirational e-mails, a mini project handout, three new slideshow presentations and a video, where Claudine teaches you how to use her line of products (Claudine Hellmuth by Ranger). You’ll make multiple mini projects each week, and some amazing larger projects that use all the techniques you’ve learned!

If all that wasn’t enough, you will find Claudine’s conversational personality refreshing, enjoy hearing about her kitties, and learning more about her art and her processes. If you’re interested in learning how to use paint in a new way, creating some fun gifts and home décor projects, and spending your summer with an amazing artist, then check out the class description for @Home with Claudine.

Would you love to take the class @Home with Claudine? Leave a comment by 8:00am 6/23 telling us why, and I’ll choose a random person to win a free spot in her class!

Congratulations! The randomly generated winner is:

Heather Owens said:

I admire Claudine's art, and have always wanted to try my hand at mixed media. I also love her products - have used her paints on many of my scrapbook layouts. So excited she's come to BPS. Can't wait!

May Flaum is here! Getting you ready for Camp Scrap.

I don't know about you, but around here, it’s been crazy town and I’m the mayor. Sometimes I think I should just lay down my paper trimmer and walk away from my stickers for the months of June and July except for one thing: I don’t wanna!!

 

In fact, instead of forgetting about it I want to encourage everyone to keep their creative groove on. I want to have a class where inspiration is provided five days a week – and the pressure to complete assignments is non-existent. 

I want to make a fun camp type environment with fun, prizes, and lots of art time just for my favorite people on earth – my fellow scrapbookers. So guess what? It’s called Camp Scrap and it’s starting June 24th. You can read all about it here and get more details. If you’re thinking about class but aren’t sure here’s a few things you might want to know about me and this class:

I work almost exclusively with 4” x 6” photos, and I only tell my real stories. I only use black and white photos if I have them printed already (due to loving a photo in B&W), I don’t stage photo shoots. What you see is my 100% real life scrapbook layouts.

My classes are interactive, and I encourage you to seek me out. I’m not just handing you lessons here – I make time every week to comment in gallery, interact on board, and have chats now and then too.

This is the first ever class I’ve offered (or heck, even seen it offered!) where I will have skype “instructor hours” where you can call me here in the studio (it’s free!) and video chat with me. One on one. Scrapbooker to scrapbooker.

If I had to sum up Camp Scrap I’d have to say it’s FUN. It’s about scrapbooking your memories, working from a happy place, being inspired, and not worrying over doing a specific assignment or anything – unless that’s fun to you.

Today, in honor of camp I’d like to share a layout sketch idea of mine that has been a favorite the last few weeks (all you need are a few scraps + two 4” x 6” photos!).

This has become my #1 go-to layout lately! I mean – just a few scraps of ribbon or patterned paper or border stickers and I’m good to go! Bonus on the space for journaling and there is SO much room to mix it up and interpret this page.

I really love that I can get a good amount of story on the page without sacrificing style. By using a sheet of neutral cardstock and skipping any real patterned paper I saved time, supplies, and created an insta-base for my journaling as well.

Supplies: The Girls’ Paperie ribbon, clock die cut, and sticker; Pink Paislee letter stickers; October Afternoon photo corner; Catslife Press stamp; Prima rhinestone and flower; American Crafts pen

 

If you try this idea I hope you’ll share, and I also hope to see you in camp! If you’d like to see more of my work or get to know more about me you can visit me at www.mayflaum.com.

Happy Crafting!

 

Summer Fun!

Thanks for all your great responses.  It looks like a fun summer is being had by all! 

Our winner today is Beth Kohl:

"I am looking forward to just spending some down time with my three kids. The school year is overloaded with homework and after school activities. Summer is our time to reconnect! Yea!"

Beth please send me an email at dawnj@bigpicturescrapbooking so I can add Camp Scrap to your account!

Do you remember as a kid looking forward to summer? The weather, the break from school, and the fun activities all led to an enjoyable few months. Yeah for summer break!

Oh, how to fill those lazy days of summer. Ok… I’m guessing your days aren’t so lazy anymore?   Wouldn’t you like to have that feeling again? That “schools out for the summer” anticipation?  

Well, we’ve got something you can look forward to this summer.  It’s time for camp!  Camp Scrap that is!   Our camp director is May Flaum.  May loves to take you on scrapping adventures and this one is packed with a collection of new ideas she’s always wanted to share with you.   A place where you can bring your enthusiasm, your energy and have unlimited fun!   

Camp Scrap is a place where prizes, inspiration, instructor interaction (including visits from eight celebrity guest camp counselors) and all the excitement of summer camp are delivered right to your computer.   If you’re interested in a sneak peek, May has just added a preview Camp Scrap project to Inside Access! Check it out and then go ahead and sign up.  Don’t let the summer pass you by with out a little fun for yourself!

If you’d like the free seat in Camp Scrap, share with us something you’re looking forward to this summer. We will randomly pick a winner, Thursday, June 17th.  Please have your comments posted to this blog by 10:00 am June 17th for your chance to win.

Happy Trails!  

Tuesday Tip

Wow! We've received some great tips...thank you so much for sending in your ideas for keeping life simple! We will be sharing your tips each and every Tuesday here on our blog. If we didn’t use your tip this week don’t despair, we are saving them all and could use it for a future Tuesday Tip.  

Keep all the great ideas coming!

Today’s tip was sent in by Amy...

 

"Suck it up and spend the money 'cuz you're worth it - buy the veggies precut and in the tray and put them in the fridge on the shelf closest to eye level.  Then they are visible and READY whenever you are hungry and go scavenging in the fridge!  Easy on the prep, easy on the waistline."

Amy I.H.

Do you have a tip for your fellow BPS friends? We’d love to hear it! Please email your Tuesday Tips to [email protected]. If your tip is featured here on our blog you’ll receive a $10 BPS gift certificate!