Tim Holtz Distress Inks rock my world.

Seriously? Who doesn't love these. I can stare and drool at these colors for days. Am I crazy for hogging 12 colors or what? Well, I doubt I am that crazy as I am sure that someone out there owns all 36!

Spiced up Target Invite

Hello all! Long time no see. I've been so busy that I practically disappeared from the internet (WHAT?). Right. Anyway, thanks to a bunch of my family and friends I've finally wrapped up my wedding invitations! I wanted to share with you today how I spiced up the flimsy invitations from Target!

Here's what Target's Letter Impress set looks like out of the box. It is only 35 dollars for 50 invites (including invitation card, envelope, response card & envelope) Flimsy and blah...but definitely has potential!

I knew I wanted an invitation with pockets that can hold additional information for out of town guests. So off I go to create my own envelope and information cards! In addition, I wanted to "style" it so it's not SO Target-y.

The material I used:

• Bazzil Kraft cardstock (One 12x12 for each envelope)
• Bazzil Espresso cardstock
• Recollection Ivory cardstock (50 sheets for 3 dollars at Michael's. What a steal.)
• Scalloped circle punch
• Corner rounder punch
• Some camping twine

Here are the results!!!

From Craft Now. Eat Later.

From Craft Now. Eat Later.

From Craft Now. Eat Later.

Ruche's look book!

Shop Ruche is one of my favorite places to shop. It's got Anthro stuff for a much more affordable price! Love love love. Not only that, their look book is devine!!! Check it out!



so much inspiration!

Washi tape spotted at Anthropologie!

Ok Washi fans! It's time to hoard! Washi tape is marked down from $22 to $9.95!!! That's a total steal for washi tape. Each pack is 5 rolls of washi! They look just like
THESE

ok. i am gonna pass out from happiness....

Happy Mother's day Mama!

This post is for my mama. Therefore, a picture of her is what you will get :). Isn't she gorgeous? I always tell her she is so beautiful and I would be beyond happy if I looked like her when I get to her age....and then she would giggle like a little girl. LoL.

Weekend Loveliness

It's been a while since I scrapped....until I signed up for Elsie's Art Journaling Class and it really inspires me! It's fun to have a daily dose of inspiration and I find myself looking forward to checking the blog everyday. Anyway I will share some of art journaling pages later. For now, somethings I did with Studio Calico's April kit. I can't believe I waited so long to dig into this kit! the colors are so beautiful. It's instant inspiration!

Mini Album for when I went to a Britney Spear's concert (the Circus Tour).


A page on us :)


More later!

Tuesday Rah Rah Rahahaha!

Aside from having the Gaga song stuck in my head...

o. man. I am READY for the weekend already! And it's only Tuesday :*(. It has been pretty hectic with my whole laptop fiasco...luckily, it recovered! I am SO relieved and ready to spend some quality time with it....like...backing it up and clean up my harddrive...blah blah. I also shipped my first ever photo package this weekend and it was truely packed with love and care! I hope the recipient of this package is happy to receive it. I even included som extra goodies in it since they made a big order.



I also got the March Studio Calico kit in the mail! It's so exciting. Such a beautiful kit. I say that every month....but it is true every month...I promise! I can't wait to dig into it. I am also so fond of the Maya Road Metallic Mists I ordered with my kit this month. I got it in Pink Grapefruit and Latte. It's so pretty on chipboards. I can't wait to use it on the chipboard butterflies and experiment with it.

Ending on a colorful note, here's a pic I took with my point and shoot~ I love pretty skies! This is why I am alway armed with a camera...big or small!

Loooove,
Me!

Pray for my laptop please

Last night- while watching Big Bang Theory, Sheldon made me crack up so hard that I spilled an entire cup of piping hot tea onto my macbook pro. It turned off by itself almost instantly. It was a tragic sight. My dear Jeff helped me pick apart my laptop to dry. Now it's sitting in a bag of rice. I am so sad. I hope it will recover in a few days.

::wah:: mourn with me.

Hello lonely blog!

Oh blog oh blog I am sorry it's been so long since my last post! I guess there's not much I can do to make it up other than to launch a fully loaded ginormous post! Are you ready?!?

About 3 weeks ago I got my first paid photography gig ever. It was so awesome! The event was a Valentine's day event hosted by a local church. It was definitely more work than I anticipated but I had a blast! I had so much fun. Everyone there was very cooperative and supportive! The event was SO sweet. I definitely hope to do more events like this in the future. wow. SUPER exciting...a few shots from the event:



I also got to do a photo shoot for a newly engaged couple. GORGEOUS couple I must say. So in love.



::sigh:: they were so cute.

Anyway, so that was my major photography progress over the last few weeks.

I also got to do some major work with Studio Calico's "Baker's Dozen" kit since rain has been hitting San Diego every weekend:

First a tribute to my favorite dessert of all time: French Macarons. They not only inspire my taste buds they also inspire my art and photography.



Next up ~ a page inspired by an engagement photoshoot. I'll say it again and again. They're the sweetest couple...SO perfect for Baker's Dozen's sweet colors.



Of course I had to document the fact that I just had my first gig.




As many of you may have known, I am currently engaged and my wedding is going to be on Oct 10, 2010! I am just getting the wedding planning part started and it's quite overwhelming! So many things to consider...especially when you're trying to stay in budget!

Anyway...other things going on with me...

> Trying to become Yelp Elite so if you are on Yelp too... friend me and rate my ratings (if that makes sense)
> Looking to do a balloons inspired photoshoot....I need to find a model!
> Revamp my photography website
> Start a wedding website
> Find hair and makeup artist for my wedding

Ok! that's it for now! I hope everyone had an excellent weekend. I am watching the Oscars on my DVR. I will pop back in soon to share my thoughts!

I am back. I think? And some not so scrapbooky scrapbooking goods

Ok. So for about 2 weeks I was really upset over some health issues I've been having and as a result I couldn't get anything done and couldn't focus on anything I enjoy. First I was upset at myself for not taking better care of myself, then I was upset that I didn't appreciate my health before and finally I was mad at how slow and mistake-prone our health care system is.

2 weeks later, I still feel the same way about the health care system and I still don't have my health issues resolved. BUT, I am TIRED of being stressed out about this. I am ready to let go and just live the life I want and not let this worry get in the way. There's really not much I can do until further tests are done and if that takes a month, I am not going to worry myself sick for a whole month.

Anyway, rant over. Studio Calico January kit awaits at my front door (Do I hear a woohoo?) and I got my first photography gig coming up this Saturday. I am happy for the first time in 2 weeks! And why shouldn't I?

If something is bothering you for long time, re-evaluate! Make the change and move on!
Don't worry yourself sick!

and off course I can't leave a post w/out posting something related to crafting...

I think part of what makes scrapbooking wonderful is that it's a hobby that allows you to use anything and everything your heart desires. Don't let the scrapbooking industry take over your imagination, use what's around you! Don't be limited be what's available in a scrapbooking store! Here are some random household items that I found to be awesome for scrapbooking -

Wood grain contact paper- Isn't this delish? Totally wallet friendly. A whole seemingly never ending roll for 6 bucks. How many albums can you cover with this? I think I lost count.
Gardening burlap - These really add an earthly feel to your craft projects...and it's SO cheap at Home Depot.

Any other ideas? Do share!

<3 Me

Oh how I adore these! It inspires me to do some tone on tone layouts!

From Palomas Nest

::sigh:: white is such a beautiful color.

Anyway, not being super creative lately. I am having vision problems that's really stressing me out. I hope it gets resolved soon and that it's nothing serious. In the mean time, it has really reminded me on how precious life is....must live each day to the fullest!

-teh g33k

Reduce Reuse Recycle

One of my new year's resolution is to reduce, reuse and recycle...and what better way to kick it off than a fun crafty project?

I accidentally found that my Copics fit perfectly into the little Coffee Bean tea bag tin container and this immediately triggered a tin makeover and here it is!

Before:


After:

I felt so accomplished dressing something up that would've otherwise ended up in the trashcan. It's like I gave it new life or something...haha. Maybe I am just easily satisfied....but I am totally addicted! More to come for sure!

What have you dressed up lately?

Warm thoughts

Not only am I completely smitten-ed by the lushness of this scarf...I could really use one of these right now!If only I could afford such luxury!

Hello long weekend!

Must do:
1. Photo shoot
2. Catchup with wedding planning tasks
3. Get some photos framed and hung
4. Go to a bridal dress trunk show! ( I am excited to do this one!)
5. Get some scrapbooking work done.

Nice to do:
1. Design my "Save the date"s
2. Create Claudine Hellmuth's Sitting Pretties.

I'm probably not going to get to everything but will try!

Anyway, I also want to share some layouts I did recently~

Unifying photo and paper

One thing I really like about digital scrapbooking is that you can "blend" your photo into your layout - creating a seamless look. However, I spend enought time on my computer during my day job that I really don't want to be spending more time on my computer for my hobby as well. Therefore, this past weekend I experimented on how to recreate this look on paper scrapbooking. I found that painting seams between the photo and the paper gives me the best results. After you adhere your photograph to the card stock, pick a shade of paint ( I used Claudine Hellmuth's Studio paint) that is somewhat close to your photo and the card stock and paint liberally on the seam. Blend out away from the seam to create a gradient/seamless look.

Here's a layout I did using this technique:




In the 3rd photo you can really see how the paint kind of "morphs" the photo in to the paper.

Europe Mini Album

Last year in October I had taken a 2 week trip to Europe and I had the most amazing time! I hit 5 cities - Paris, Berlin, Prague, Venice and Rome- (actually 6 if you count Vatican City!) and went hog wild with my camera. I racked up approximately 3000 snapshots. Even to this day, I am only done sorting through 2/5 of it. Awesome. Anyway, the idea of scrapping every worthy photos from that trip really scares me. You have got to work up to it, you know? So here's my warmup round - 5 city mini book -

I am still trying to figure out a way to scrap about 1000 travel photos efficiently....any ideas?

A little fun project to do

I am someone who prefers to dine in the comfort of my own home. When I am not cooking, I like to do takeouts. In my humble opinion, it's more cost affective ( no need to pay for tip!) AND I can eat in the comfort of my PJs. Needless to say, I have accumulated quite a few takeout menus from restaurants around my neighborhood. Before today, it has been sitting loosely in a drawer...but never again! Check this out

I present to you - the take out menu book!








This book is created almost entirely out of Studio Calico's "Over The Rainbow" kit. This kit has got some amazing color combos in it. At first I was intimidated since I am more of a "Neutral" girl but this didn't turn out half bad! I also coated the covers with a sealer so it won't tear nor fade. Now my takeout menus have a colorful home. Yay!