Green Horned Unicorn

Gone to the Dogs

It seems my creative projects and posts have been far and few in between the past few months. With travels, my new job, and a slew of other things going on behind the scenes this last half of 2012 has certainly flown by! One day life will slow down enough for me to catch my breath, whip out a few DIYs, create a few layouts and maybe even catch up on Project Life (which I haven't touched since August). 

With that said, I actually did manage to complete a few digital assignments for JessicaSprague.com. Both layouts feature Echo Park products and fluffy pups :)

HUSKER HOUND | As most of you know, I'm from Nebraska. Nebraska faithful bleed Husker red and I'm no exception. My love for my football team has been forced upon rubbed off on Nate and now Shawna, thanks to my sister, Missy! Journaling reads: 

Aunt Missy sent this adorable Husker doggie jersey to Shawna as a thank you present for a project I helped her with. Shawna totally rocks the red and makes the perfect Husker Hound. Go Big Red! 

MOBLEY | Mobley is the latest addition to our extended fur-family. This page documents how he stole my heart and made his way into Nate's sister's home. Journaling reads:

Mobley stole my heart the second I saw him at the PetSmart Charities Adoption Event, held at my office. While he wasn’t the right fit for our home at that moment in time, he was the perfect fit for Dawn and the kids. I took Dawn and Parker back to the event, where they too fell in love with the apricot colored ball of fluff. We had to go and get Herby to make sure the two got along, which they did. The group photo was taken after Mobley became part of the family. October 14, 2012

Don't you just love fluffy pups? :)

Designer Discovery Contest - Vote For My Designs!

Hello, friends!

Today, I'm switching gears for a moment to ask (beg) for your support in a creative endeavour. I learned today that my digital designs were selected in the Top 25 for the Designer Discovery Contest (hosted by JessicaSprague.com & Echo Park)!! The winner of the contest receives a $1000 cash prize, an Epson Picturemate Photo Printer, and will have their Mini Theme printed and distributed by Echo Park Paper Co.

Yes, you read that last part correctly, HAVE THEIR MINI THEME PRINTED AND DISTRIBUTED BY ECHO PARK!!! Seriously, how amazing would that be?!?

Here is how you can vote for my designs (or if mine isn't your favorite, vote for someone else...but I really hope you vote for mine!!).

 

• Go to JessicaSprague.com and register as a user (this is free). There is a small green + sign in the upper right-hand corner. If you click on that, you can register. They don't ask for any personal info, just your name and email address. Once you do that, they will send you an email with info to activate your account (it may go to your junk mail). When your account is activated, you can vote!
• While logged in, follow this link to my designs: 
  http://www.jessicasprague.com/cpg/displayimage.php?pos=-110290
• Using the star rating system below my design images, click on 5 Stars. You can click on any of the five stars (a vote is a vote the way this works). You should see the number of votes increase by one. Note: You will see two sets of stars, the stars to the above left of the information box (below the designs) is where you'll want to vote.
• Voting closes on Saturday, June 16th at 11:59 Eastern Time

I would also love it if you'd pass on the word (Facebook, Blogs, etc.). Thank you so very much for your support!! Wish me luck :)

PS. I'm not sharing the preview here on my blog because I'm not sure if it's against the contest rules or not. 

April Creative Team Projects + a Winner

Although I'm a day late, as it is already May, I thought I'd pop in to share my last two April creative team projects for JessicaSprague.com. My other projects were part of my Echo Park Guest Designer feature and can be seen here.

First up, a layout titled, "Pounce":

PRODUCT CREDITS: Echo Park - Woof Mini Theme + In the Making Design, It's a Start 5 Template Collection. Click here for full product credits.

This photo was too cute to not be scrapped. I love how Shawna's front paws are both in the air! Journaling reads: 

Shawna caught mid-pounce as she ran to follow Nate inside. She isn’t a fan of the outdoors, unless there is a human around, so she usually scurries as to not be left outside alone. She’s such a sweet, little pup who wants nothing but to love her humans and for us to love her back. 4.3.12

PRODUCT CREDITS: Pink Paislee - Stella Collection + In the Making Design Foto Template Collection. Click here for full product credits.

These are a few photos from my Mom's visit back in March. Journaling reads:

A trip to Sas & lunchwith Nate at the SDL Airport were just a few stops on a busy day filled with shopping and crafting during Mom’s visit. 3.10.12

And now for the moment you've been waiting for - the winner of the Green Horned Unicorn giveaway from Diana's blogiversary hop is:

Patricia, please email me at greenhornedunicorn {at} gmail {dot} com with your address and choice of two embellishment kits listed in the GHU Shop. Congrats!

Echo Park GD Projects and a Freebie

As promised, I'm back today to share the projects that were featured on the Echo Park blog yesterday. 

First, are my two digital pages:

I'm not going to go into any detail on how I created these, since I know those who create digitally know how and my traditonal friends will just be bored :) If you really want to see the steps (along with the product credits), you can find them here. 

I will, however, share the details on my hybrid page.

Step 1:

While I love the look of a paper-pieced chevron border, I don’t like the time it takes to cut, align and glue each piece. My time-saving (and sanity-saving) solution was to create my own chevron pattern in Photoshop and use the This & That Graceful digital papers to create the same look, without all the hassle. Here are the steps I used:

• In Photoshop, open a 12x12 canvas.
• Use the shape tool to create a row of rectangles, aligning each new one just below the previous.
• Select all rectangles, group and use the rotate tool to rotate to your preferred angle.
• Use the rectangle marquee tool to select the group of rectangles and trim off the uneven ends.
• Duplicate the grouping, flip horizontally and align with the original grouping to create the beginning of the chevron pattern.
• Duplicate and repeat until your pattern is finished.
• Add a light grey or brown stroke around each shape (this will create division between the patterns).
• Add digital papers, using the shapes as clipping masks.
• Once the design is complete, cut a piece of 12x12 white cardstock down to 8.5x12 and print.
• Cut out the design and set aside to use on your layout.

Step 2:
Another digital element I created in Photoshop and printed to add to my layout is the framed photograph, which I used a journaling card to create. Here are the steps I used to create the framed photo:

• Open the Chevron Journaler card.
• Use the Magic Wand (tolerance set at 50) to delete the text lines from the card, leaving the top and bottom borders and the flower.
• Place the photograph on a new layer below the journaling card (because of the placement of the flower on the journaling card, I had to align the photograph slightly off center to the right to avoid placing the flower on Bugsy’s face).
• Print the framed photograph onto photo paper.  
• Trim off the left edge of the photograph (about ¼ inch or so), cutting carefully around to the flower.

Step 3:
To assemble the hybrid page:

• Use the traditional (paper) This & That Graceful Collection Kit to create a matted background.
• Adhere the digitally created chevrons to the background.
• Mat the framed photo and add chipboard or pop-dots for dimension and adhere to your layout.
• Cut the center from a journaling card to create a journaling spot and add journaling.
• Add alpha stickers, embellishment stickers, buttons, etc.
• Add baker’s twine, gluing as you go.
• Add paint splatters.

For those who may not want to spend time creating your own chevron pattern in Photoshop, I have a fun surprise for you! I'm offering the 12x12 PSD file as a freebie here on my blog. Click here to download the zip file: 

Download Chevron-AntoniaKrajicek-GHU.psd

I hope you enjoyed my projects and have a wonderful weekend!

Echo Park April Guest Designer

That's right, friends, you're looking at Echo Parks April Guest Designer! Imagine my surprise, one random Saturday morning in March, when I awoke to an email asking if I would be interested in guest designing for Echo Park. Interested? Me? I promptly replied, "YES! Sign me up, please!" Ok, maybe I worded it a just a little differently :)

Needless to say, I am delighted and honored to have been invited to guest design for such an amazing company! I had a blast working with their amazing products! I love both their traditional paper and digital products, which is reflected in the digital and hybrid projects I created. Here is a peek at one project: 

You can see the full hybrid layout, plus two others, on the Echo Park blog. Head on over and check out the post then, tomorrow, stop back here for a full post on the projects, which will include step-by-step details and a free template download, just for you! See you then :)

Sunday Scrapbook Update

Before we leave the month of March too far behind us, I thought I'd share the remainder of my JessicaSprague.com Creative Team layouts for the month. I have three very different layouts, featuring three very different events - hopefully I don't lose anyone as I bounce around!

BASEBALL | First up, a layout simply titled, Baseball. 

Most products from the Echo Park Grand Slam Mini Kit. Click here for a full list of product credits at JessicaSprague.com.

As you are all well aware from my baseball ramblings each year, in AZ, March is bustling with Cactus League Spring Training. Being a baseball lover, I try to make it to as many games as possible during the month-long season. It's my favorite time of the year in the Valley. Journaling reads:

I kicked off the 2012 Cactus League Spring Training Season watching the Cubs vs. Rockies at HoHoKam Park with Kate and Andy (who were in town visiting from Hawaii) and Ben. The 80-degree weather was perfect, as was the company, the Old Style and the Napa Noodles. Even better, the Cubs walked away with an 11-4 win! ~March 6, 2012

LOVE | Clearly, I must not have been to creative in my title work in March as I am realizing my second title is even more simple than the first layout. But, really what else should you call a page about love?

Most products by Elle's Studio. Click here for a full list of product credits at JessicaSprague.com.

This layout highlights a few select photos from my sister Molly's wedding back in November. I had hundreds of lovely images to choose from, taken by my Aunt Judy. Hopefully, I'll get around to scrapping more of them this spring. Journaling reads: 

Photographs & memories from Molly & Greg’s wedding day, November 11, 2011. It was a day filled with family, friends memories & love. 

CATTOP | Lastly, but certianly not least, is a layout about Baxter. The one word title on this one is a little more creative, unfortunatlely, I wasn't the one one who came up with it. Nate did (thanks, babe). 

Most products by Echo Park & Elle's Studio. Click here for a full list of product credits at JessicaSprague.com.

As I'm sure you've discovered the title is a play on words, Cat + Laptop = Cattop. Since our cat Baxter has an affinity for all things electronic, it's not surpise that he lovingly adopted my work laptop as his. Journaling reads:

I had plans of working from home, Baxter had another vision for my work laptop...a napping spot. From the looks of it, it’s comfy from almost any angle! 2.9.12
 

That wraps up my digital projects for March! You will see more coming your way in the month of May, along with traditional projects and Project Life. I'll also be picking back up with my GHU52 and Pixel to Paper, plus I have a few other projects to share. Whew, it's going to be a great month!

Three Years

Now that March is coming to a close, we've welcomed and said goodbye to our last group of visitors this past weekend. With one last baseball game to enjoy this coming Monday, the offical season of madness is past us and it's time to resume life as normal - or at least as normal as it gets around here!

I have so much to say and so many photos to share, but in order to keep this post shorter than a Steinbeck novel, I decided that I will share the stories and photographs as I document them in my digital scrapbook pages, traditional scrapbook pages and in my Project Life. Yup, you read that right, I decided to start my own version of PL! I be sharing a post about that soon.

One event that occurred amidst all the chaos was Nate and my third anniversary. Three blissful years. It's sounds cliche, but they really have been. He is certainly my perfect match. The peanut butter to my jelly, the cheese to my macaroni, well, you get the point! 

Click here for full product credits via jessicasprague.com.

This photo was taking during our anniversary lunch at the Twisted Lizard, one of our favorite patios to hang out on (aside from our own). I had a yummy lavosh, while Nate had a burger. We both washed our meals down with some refreshing beer. Unfortunatley, I got sick right after this photo was taken (not from the food) and spent the rest of our anniversary sleeping on the sofa. But, at least we were able to have a little fun!

The design of the layout was inspired by this amazing collage by Fred One Litch. There is just something about this one that drew me in. While my page doesn't really do the original justice, I still love how the design turned out. Most of the products used are from the Echo Park For the Record collection. Image post processing was done in Photoshop CS5 using Totally Rad Labs.

There you have it - my first page in over a month! I'm excited to start getting back into the creative groove :)

Birthday Documented

My day today was a whirlwind of travel and exploring. Two things I LOVE! Having not been to the DC area before, I must say I'm pleasantly surprised with what I've seen. I'm in Old Town Alexandria, which is quaint, cute and full of unique shops and eateries. Just today, I fulfilled my cravings for fried pickles (hard to come by in AZ) and tasted my first Guinness cupcake -- a recipe I must learn myself. Amazingly good!

Since my body is accustom to AZ time, I'm having a hard time fall asleep, so I thought I'd put together a post on the pages I created to document the memories of my birthday last month. In all, I ended up creating three layouts, each using some amazing new (and new-ish) kits from JessicaSprague.com (credits below each layout). 

PRODUCT CREDITS | Carina Gardner + Queen of Quirk

35 | This was a quick and simple page, created to document the memories of my 35th birthday on June 22. I'm quite happy with the way this one turned out. It's simple and sweet, with emphasis on the photo (taken by Nate, edited by me) and the journaling, which I copied from my blog post here. 

PRODUCT CREDITS | Echo Park + Paislee Press 

GOT YA! | Sneaking in a quick kiss while Nate and I attempted some self portraits after my birthday dinner. I love the expression on Nate's face. He's such a cutie!

PRODUCT CREDITS | Carina Gardner (NEW kit available 7.18.11) + Kitty Designs

SODA STREAM | This layout highlights my favorite birthday gift from this year...a Soda Stream! I'm not a soda (pop) drinker, but I do love my bubbly water. Now, I can have club soda anytime! I'm so happy to finally be able to reduce the amount of plastic bottles in our recycling bin (and not have to lug home liters of soda from the store). All of the papers used on the layout are by Carina Gardner and are new in store Monday 7/18!

And that my friends, is my birthday documented! I hope you all have a great week :)

Kickin' It

Another perk about my trip back home, was the opportunity to attend one of Caden’s soccer games. He’s quite the little athlete, and at age 7 keeps very busy with baseball, football, basketball and two soccer teams. It was so fun to see the speedy little man dash up and down the field. He is really fast and has great foot skills for someone so young. Plus, he’s just so stinkin’ cute in that little uniform (he's number 2 in the white and green uniform)!

 Page Credits Here

At the game, I was the paparazzi. For real. I took 200+ photos in 50 minutes. For those who have shot a fast-moving sports like soccer, you know how hard it is to get a perfect shot. And, I was trying to get more than one perfect shot. Not only did I want to scrap a few pages about Caden playing soccer, per a very special request, I’m also creating a book for him.

Page Credits Here

You may recall the Princess Kylee book I created for my niece this past Christmas. A few weeks ago, my sister, Missy, was reading the book to the kids and when she finished, Caden asked, “Mommy, do you think Aunt Toni would make me a book about me?” When you receive a request like that, how can you resist? So, a book about Caden the Sports Super-Star he will get!

I hope everyone in the States had a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend. In doing so, I hope you took a moment to remember and honor the men and women in our Armed Forces, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice to make our wonderful nation what it is. A big thank you to all of our military personnel and their families.

The Birthday Girl

One of the highlights of my trip back to Nebraska was being able to attend my niece Kylee's 5th Birthday celebration. This is the first time I've been to any of her birthday gatherings because her actual birthday, May 26, usually falls on Memorial Day weekend (tough weekend to travel standby). Fortunately for me, my sister decided to have the party early!

Page Credits Here

As I mentioned in my last post, my sister and her husband bought Kylee a Shorkie pup (Shih Tzu + Yorkie) as her present. Kylee is an animal lover, much like the rest of the Krajicek clan, so the pup was the perfect gift and perfect addition to their family.

Page Credits Here

As you can see in the photos the pup is ADORABLE, and not much unlike an Ewok (which is exactly what I thought of the first time I saw him)! Because of this, I suggested the name Wicket (the main Ewok character, who you see in Return of the Jedi and the Ewok movies). The kids liked it and it stuck! I must admit, I got a good chuckle from my dad's suggestion of Chew"barka" (since he does look a little like Chewy too!). Ok, enough Star Wars geekiness!

This little guy is the same one involved in the barfing incident. But seriously, how could I get upset at face like that? He adaped so well to his new environment. He wasn't even scared when he popped out of the cage into a room full of screaming children and "aww"ing adults. He had a blast chasing the kids outside and has the cutest little run/hop I've ever seen. It melts my heart. And makes me want a puppy!