Guest Designer Call 2017: Let's Get Sketchy

It's a new year! Let’s Get Sketchy is having a Guest Designer Call for 2017!

The deadline is today, and after round two of sickness in our household, I was scrambling to get this posted in time. I prefer to complete projects early because I stress too much when deadlines start approaching and I feel unprepared. Still, the sketch was calling to me and I knew I had to use it. Sometimes a little stress can be good, kicking you into high gear to get into the scrap room and get creative. That's what happened this time...a few days ago I looked at the calendar and suddenly realized January was marching by a little too swiftly.

For this call, I created two different very different layouts, and I love how both of them turned out!

Here's the first of the two: A Wonderful Life.

 And here's the sketch from Let's Get Sketchy:

The sketch was a great jumping off point, leaving some room for interpretation and creative license. The first thing I thought of when I saw the sketch was that I had to do something bright and colorful. And I also had to use my latest die for this cute bunting!

You know your husband "gets you" when he doesn't bring home flowers and instead brings home a Bigz die! Mr. 67 decided to stop by the craft shop after he had his haircut the other day, and he brought home this bunting die cut for me. It was so fun to create this layout using the new die cuts!

I had also recently made a large order of goodies from Blue Fern Studios, lots of chipboard and some new embossing powders. On this layout I used "Breeze" sprinkled with a little magic from "Santa's Suit". You might be thinking...Breeze and Santa's Suit are polar opposites; one inkles at summer while the other screams Christmas. But rules go out the window when you create. 

Sometimes polar opposites meld together to create something wonderful. Of course, the opposite can be true...sometimes they just plain clash. I've been there a time or ten...but if you don't experiment, you might never have that "happy accident" that leads to something beautiful. Besides, it's all about what makes you happy {baby blue and red make me happy--one of my favorite color combinations, this is close to the color scheme in our living room}

Okay, marching onward, here's the second layout using the same sketch:

This one is titled {you guessed it} Love You, My Heart. 

You would hardly guess they come from the same sketch until you look closely, would you? I love entering challenges, using the same inspiration as others, and seeing what everyone comes up with. As different as your own creations can be from one another, the creativity of others' blows my mind. There's nothing I like better on a Sunday evening than roving through Pinterest or my favorite blogs to see what others have created. Sharing my work with others is something I have only really begun in the last year, and I am so glad I did. I have discovered so many wonderful people, from all across the globe, with so many ideas and styles.

I was finally inspired to use this cool poppy die cut overlay I have had for a while but never found the perfect use for. It was 12x12, but I cut it into several pieces and tucked it here and there and I love how it looked with these rather vintage Crate Paper prints from the DIY Shop collection. I am a little obsessed with this paper collection. 

First post of 2017, and it also happens to be my sister's birthday. Happy birthday, Sarah Belle! 

Thanks for stopping by. I hope your new year is starting off on a great note :)