How are you including our Naturals embellishments and Clear Stamps into your day to day memory keeping?  We know that everyone gets busy with life and even though many people would like to record their memories in a beautiful and elaborate scrapbook, there isn't always the time. 

 

Today we want to show you some simple ideas for using photo sleeves or divided sheet protectors and Little Yellow Bicycle products to quickly document a day in the life...  Not to mention that the Clear Stamps and Ranger Ink totally enhanced the look of this project, were easy to use, and included the right kind of sentiments.

 

This is basically a mini 4x6 layout with the Vacation Clear Stamps as the focus.  I grabbed my Makin' the Grade 6 x 6 paper pad, a fun notebook punch and some of the cork and canvas Naturals embellishments.

Album Page by Liz Qualman

On most of the stamping, I used the Ranger Archival Ink, because it is so clear and true, but on this Naturals canvas tag, I used Tim's Distress Ink in Faded Jeans for a little rougher texture and color that would go well with the whole concept of the poject.  I also had to add one of the little Ranger Idea-ology fasteners shaped like a hanger.

That blue alphabet is part of our Naturals canvas alphabets and it comes in both upper and lowercase letters.  It's so striking with the red Archival Ink.  Again, cork is such a great surface for stamping like on the little star.

These Naturals burlap hearts are so stinkin' cute!  I used some of the Tim Holtz stains to die the largest one and then stamped the sentiments on the other two with black Archival Ink and added a couple of the Idea-ology Memo Pins.

This particular sheet protector is by Becky Higgins and consists of 3x4 and 4x6 inch sleeves.  There are many different manufacturers of these types of photo sleeves, but I chose Becky's because you can order them from Amazon.com Prime, which means I had them in 2 days, free shipping, not bad.

This is a long product list, but I have so much left in each package to keep going with the same themes...

Prizes: We are going to giveaway 2 big boxes of our Naturals on each Friday of the next two weeks (March 8th and 15th).  Just leave a comment here on the blog and/or on our facebook (maybe do both just to be safe) to enter to win. Leave a comment each day and increase your chances. 

AND we are giving away a set of stamps each day on each of our social sites: Blog, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  Leave a comment at each of those sites each day and increase your chances to win some of our amazing stamps.

Also, be sure to visit our friends at Ranger Ink on their facebook page.  They have wonderful inspiration to share on their FB and blog each day.  Check it out.

Don't forget... to use all of the inspiration from our Design Team to enter our Naturals Contest.  See details HERE.

We'll be back next week with more projects.  Have a great weekend and happy crafting!

Today we have a special treat to share from Cycling Team Member Shellye McDaniel.  We have to admit that we get really excited for her projects, because her craftmanship and attention to detail are some of the best in the business.  Forgive us for so many photos, but we HAD to include detailed close ups so you could see all of the special techniques that she includes.  But, let's have Shellye tell you all about her Just Because canvas mini album...

Love This Life Canvas Mini Album by Shellye McDaniel

I love giving mini albums as gifts; with the Just Because Collection you have so many avenues of themes to choose from!  For this one, I kept it more of an everyday-life-theme so that the recipient can fill them with any kind of photos.

First, I started with Canvas Covered Chipboard Album and four of the chipboard inserts.  I wanted to keep the album front clean-and-simple, so I flecked the canvas with just a bit of Sweet Cherry spritz.  From the Chipboard Shapes, I chose the larger royal blue frame, which I backed with one of the 6x6 patterned papers and then embellished with other chipboard shapes, cardstock stickers, canvas borders and a few pearls and trim from my stash.  When layering pieces, I like to use both thin and thick foam dots to achieve different levels of dimension.

For the inner pages I wanted to create areas for journaling, as well as places for a few small photos.  The 6x6 paper pad makes this process so simple!  After determining the base paper, I cut another 6x6 paper down to 5x5 and then machine-stitched the two together.  When constructing a mini album, I try to keep in mind how the pages will lay against one-another, especially if you like chunky/layered embellishments like I do!

The Clear Cuts Shapes are among some of my favorite items from LYB!  Because I'm a 'stitcher' at heart, I found it fun to attach them to the pages by machine-stitching across the design or hand-stitching them with X's.  The glint of foil on the various embellishments adds a subtle pop.

I love, love, love Decorative Stick Pins!  I used two of the pins to mimic a banner holder for the sweet canvas sticker that I used on page 7.  To do so, I left one of the pins intact and to the other, I snipped off the 'pin' part with a pair of wire cutters.  I attached them over the canvas sticker with glue dots.

Just Because Products:
Just Because- 6x6 Paper Pad; 6x6 Canvas Covered Chipboard Album; Chipboard Shapes; Paper Crafting Kit; Vellum Tape: Love; Vellum Tape; Cardstock Stickers: Fresh Verse; Cardstock Stickers: Favorite Pieces/Love; Cardstock Stickers: Favorite Pieces; 10 Things Pocket; Stick Pins; Journaling Cards; Clear Cuts Shapes; Canvas Stickers

Please visit Shellye's blog The Papered Cottage for more details about this album and more inspiring projects from her.

You can find this adorable canvas mini album at many of your local scrapbook stores of buy one from us at our online store HERE.

Have a wonderful day!

Today our Biker Chicks Jen and Tania share some ideas on how to use both our Winterings collection and our 6x6 albums.  It's the perfect time of year to capture those winter memories in one place and the smaller, easy to use, albums are a great way to get started...

Winterings Canvas Album by Biker Chick Jen Chesnick

Acrylic and mixed medium albums are a favorite of mine.  Little Yellow Bicycles 6x6 paper pads make putting together their albums a snap.  For the clear pages I used the vellum tape on one side to create the duplicate look on the other.  Not only saving time, but supplies as well!

Winterings Products:

WI-305 Paper Crafting Kit (48 pieces)
WI- 222 Layered Burlap Stickers (3 pieces)
WI-135 Cardstock Stickers - Favorite Pieces - with glitter and embossing (24 pieces)
WI-140 Cardstock Stickers - Fresh Verse - with foil and debossing (43 pieces)
WI-160 Vellum Tape Strips (15 pieces)
WI-304 6" x 6" Paper Pad (24 pages)
WI-279 Chipboard Shapes (29 pieces)
WI-230 Clear Cuts (30 pieces)

Winterings Burlap Album by Biker Chick Tania Willis

When creating a mini album, you can treat the pages as individuals or as a 6” x 12” spread.  I love how the Paper Pad provides you with two sheets of each of the patterns giving you the ability to have a cohesive spread across two of the pages. 

You see that here on the “you are wonderful” spread.  I applied the same patterned paper torn from the Paper Pad to both pages, then added a photo left aligned.  But, what really helps make this spread cohesive is the application of the Vellum Tape Strip applied to the edge of the photo and the far right edge of the right side of the spread. Layering embellishments across both pages to create a scene helps the eye to see both pages as a whole.

Winterings Products:
WI – 305 Paper Crafting Kit
WI – 308 5 Things Envelopes
WI – 135 Favorite Pieces
WI – 140 Fresh Verse
WI – 160 Vellum Tape Strips
WI – 304 Paper Pad
WI – 279 Chipboard Shapes
WI – 230 Clear Cuts
Burlap Album

Remember you buy all of the supplies our Biker Chicks used for the projects on our online store HERE.

Happy Wednesday!

Biker Chick Jen Chesnick has a really cool holiday project to share with you using one of our chipboard albums, but let's have Jen tell you all about it...

Hey Biker fans! Jen here today and I am going to run through my thought process behind making banners.  To start most of my banners are 5 or 7 pennants.  I try to keep the design of the 1, 3, & 5th banner somewhat the same and the 2nd & 4th banner the same.  If you think of your banner in those increments it wont seem as daunting!

To start I create a good base.  I layered the same pieces for the 1st and 5th banner.  Frame, circle, snowflake.  Use pop dots to get some good depth. 

For the 3rd pennant I created a similar base just using different shapes.  Once the bases were created I added a few layers until I liked it basically :]  Then added "Joy"

For the 2nd & 4th pennant I did the exact same design just flipped for balance.  I cut out the trees and used the paper crafting kit for the bows.  They are SUPER simple and are amazing!  I added "Jingle & " to the pennants to finish off the sentiment.  I hooked everything together using d-rings and finished them off with coordinating ribbon by May Arts. I added a dash of glitter mist and we are all set. 

Thanks for stopping by, I hope the banner inspires you to create your own!

You can still purchase this Chipboard Banner album from us HERE.  Not to mention that you can also purchase the whole Once Upon a Christmas collection HERE.

Please visit Jen's blog Say Chez for more of her amazing inspiration!

Almost to the weekend.  Do you have all of your holiday baking supplies purchased?

It's day 2 of our Twelve Days of Once Upon a Christmas and Cycling Team Member Traci Penrod will capture your hearts with her wonderful mini album idea.  Traci really impressed us with her last project on our Makin' the Grade Cycling Team.  We are so pleased to have her back again, but let's have her tell you all about her latest project...

As soon as I saw Once Upon A Christmas, I knew it would be a wonderful collection for a mini album showcasing my ornaments.  My ornaments are varied colors of course, which is why I LOVE the traditional red and green in this gorgeous line.  I started with a fun die cut album and then trimmed one side of each page to create a cascading effect -- I wanted to be able to see all of the beautiful papers "falling" from beneath the cover. 

One of my favorite things about this collection, and all of Little Yellow Bicycle's collections, are the Clear Cuts.  They have really fun foil accents and give a little something different to each page.  The reindeer on the cover is my favorite so he had to get center stage!

Every page also had to get some chipboard!  I love the way this frame piece worked perfectly for a journaling spot, especially layered with additional foil chipboard accents and clear cuts !

With this collection, it's so easy to create beautiful projects because everything goes together perfectly.  I didn't have to worry about saving one embellishment to go with a certain piece of paper, because everything matches. 

Here are a few close up shots of all of the fun embellishments.  I added the foil accents to each page for a little shine and the album was done in no time!

Please visit Traci's blog Artsy Albums for more album ideas!

Remember, you can order the entire Once Upon a Christmas collection directly from us right HERE.  Tomorrow we have some Biker Chick projects to share and we will announce the new Winterings Cycling Team.

Here's to election day and thank you for voting!

Today I would love to share a Hello Fall! project and a wonderful experience that I had with some amazing women at my local Senior Citizens Center.  Over the summer, I contacted the coordinator of the center to see if I could volunteer my time and bring a craft project for the seniors to work on.  The coordinator was enthusiastic, but warned me that the last art project they tried was not a big hit.

I'm not sure they knew what to expect.  Maybe they thought it would be construction paper and paste...  But as you and I know, when Little Yellow Bicycle walks through the door, there is a lot of super fun crafting to be done and that is exactly what these ladies did to make this mini album recipe book.

They were such an amazing group and I was told that many of them have severe arthritis and a few are struggling with different forms of dementia.  But you would never have guessed this to be the case from the enthusiasm and engagement from the group.

Because some of the participants have severe arthirtis, I designed a project that required almost no cutting with scissors and really just involved gluing it together.  Little Yellow Bicycle makes chipboard albums that have precut papers, so we used the LYB101 6 x 12 Chipboard Album and the Hello Fall! paper pad with all of the paper cut to fit the album.

Each page is a combination of the Hello Fall! 6 x 12 paper pad, 6 x 6 Decorative Edge Cardstock and the 5 Things Envelopes.  The idea is that you add your favorite recipes on a 4 x 6 notecard and then write a special note about the recipe on the 5 Things Envelope.

Once we got organized, it was easy for the participants to flip through the paper pad, find the papers they wanted to use and then adhere them to the chipboard album.

The colors in the Hello Fall! collection are so beautiful and the Decorative Edge cardstock add a fun and easy photo/recipe mat to each page.

Just add a litle bit of chipboard, some fresh verse stickers and jewel stickers.  The page looks pretty polished and doesn't require any cutting unless you prefer to mat the recipe with another color like I did with the green patterned paper.

The recipe book was so easy to put together, that even my 4 year old son was able to help with some of the project.  He was my sidekick for the day.

I just love the artwork on this collection and the tree is absolutely fantastic. I can't wait to see what some of the ladies write on the notes in the envelopes and I bet their recipes will be fantastic.  One of the women is a phenomenal baker, so I REALLY want to see her finished recipe book.

This woman was so adorable.  She told me that she was not very good at projects, but with a little assistance, she had a beautiful recipe book to take home with her and the smile and appreciation from all of the participants made this activity one of the very best I have ever done.

Everybody was diligent about putting their recipe books together and the coordinator said that she has never seen the group have so much fun working on a project.  All of the volunteers that come each week to work with the seniors  were glad that the project was stimulating the right side of their brains, which is sometimes hard to plan for...

I guess all of us crafters take the right sides of our brains for granted, because we probably over stimulate them with creativity, but we probably need to do a few crossword puzzles and try to reason through why we need so many craft supplies to make sure we stimulate the left side too.

It was such a wonderful day and the best part is they loved it so much that they want me to come back to make holiday cards and of course we'll be working with Little Yellow Bicycle.

Have a wonderful and crafty weekend!

We think that Cycling Team Member Valerie Mangan has created a wonderful mini album to share today.  She has some great ideas for preserving memories with our Makin' the Grade collection.

First Days of School Mini Album
This album features photos of my children on the first day of school. The album is divided by school year, starting with pre-school, up to 5th grade.

How to:
Embellish the cover of a 6 x 6 mini album.
Add fabric border sticker and black twill ribbon to album spine.

Fit 6 x 6 sheet of stitched patterned paper into front cover and add 'this book belongs to' die cut.
Using a variety of LYB coordinating items, embellish the divider pages of the mini album for pre-school through grade 5 (7 dividers all together).

Cut kraft cardstock to 5" wide x 5 1/2" high to make section pages. Punch holes and embellish with photos, stickers and die cuts.

#1 Teacher Card

How to:
Add a 3.75 x 6.75" piece of patterned paper to a 4 x 6 white cardstock base. Stitch perimeter. Attach report card journaling card to top edge, center.  Using papercrafting kit, make green ribbon base, add cork apply with sentiment die cut on top. Secure with glue dots. Apply banners.

Please visit Valerie's blog Paper & Cookies for more details about her album and work.

Have a wonderful day!

We have another great day of blog swaps with Epiphany Crafts and our summer collections.  We are so excited to see how perfectly the Shape Studios compliment our collections and today is no exception.

As usual, there is swag to be had! Just leave a comment here on our blog, and also on Epiphany Crafts' blog, for a chance to win one of TWO amazing prize packs - featuring an Epiphany Crafts Shape Studio tool - with all the accessories, PLUS goodies from the Splash and The Escape LYB collections! 

Make sure to leave comments on our Facebook Page and Epiphany Crafts' Facebook page to increase your chances of winning.

But let's make it a little more interesting....

You may have noticed we just reached 8,500 fans on our Facebook Page. If we hit 9,000 fans by the time the week is up, we'll pick 5 more winners, who will win LYB prize packs including some of your favorites from our newest collections! So SHARE SHARE SHARE already! (And as always, thank you!)

Biker Chick Liz Qualman created a mini album with our Splash Collection, Canvas Mini Album and Epiphany Crafts Flower 25 Shape Studio

It was fun to use the Splash Collection to make a little beach scene for the cover of my album. The Fresh Verse Stickers made a great title attached to the chipboard sun, "Summer Livin' is Easy."

This Epiphany Crafts Shape Studio reminded me of starfish, so I used the Bubble Cap Flower Accessories to make some starfish with the 6 x 6 starfish patterned paper from LYB.

The Bubble Caps have great dimension and make the little starfish pop off the page.

LYB makes great Chipboard Shapes and this palm tree is a fun element included in the Splash collection, not to mention the super cute Fabric Favorite flip flops.

We had a great time at the beach and like the sentiment says, "Life is Better at the beach." 

The starfish Bubble Caps make a great theme for all of the pages in the album and even a little flower center on this blue Chipboard Shape flower.

You can't have a beach day without a proper sand castle.  I love how the Fresh Verse stickers capture the sentiment of the moment perfect along with the dimensional stickers.

Now head on over to Epiphany Crafts' blog for another fun project and another chance to grab some swag!  Don't forget to leave a comment, and we'll be back tomorrow with more from the Biker Chicks!

Also, you can visit my blog My Little Sketch Blook for more details and ideas.

Have a wonderful day!

Liz

Today a few of our Biker Chicks wanted to share some summer projects with some of our favoraite LYB summer collections to celebrate how we are spending our time.  Biker Chick Corrie Jones made this wonderful multimedia page with our Splash Collection.

We had the most amazing week at the beach this year.  Well, every year is an amazing at the beach, but this year we tried something new - 4 wheel driving on the beach.  It was one of the coolest things I have ever done.  We were supposed to be looking for wild horses and we did see about 20, but my favorite part was being out in sun in a Jeep, driving all over.  I HAD to use Splash for this page.  So I scraped together the last pieces I had for this page.  I love the colors in this collection.  It is definitely one of my favorites for this summer!

Splash supplies used:

SPL-133 6x6 decorative edge double sided textured cardstock
SPL-305 paper crafting kit
SPL-230 clear cut shapes
SPL-140 cardstock stickers
SPL-160 vellum tape
SPL-303 mini flag kit
SPL-1100 tear out tickets
SPL-304 6x6 paper pad

Biker Chick Liz Qualman created this mini album with our Sweet Summertime collection for publication in the 2012 summer issue of Scrapbooking & Beyond Magazine.  You can find specific instructions for creating the album there, but Liz included a few tips here in the post...

Remember our Sweet Summertime collection?  LYB created this adorable little Banner Album with all the paper cut to size so the focus could be on embellishments, which is exactly what I did.

Instructions for the Cover:

Even though most of the work was done with the precut elements of the album, I wanted to give it a handmade feel with the custom stitching and twine.

• Use the blue precut banner paper and backstitch around the design.
• Cut smaller shape in red paper to mirror the design
• Add “bring on the sunshine” sentiment from the Fresh Verse Stickers
• Add chipboard pinwheels and jewel stickers
• Add Chipboard Spinner Sticker
• Swirl the Peapod bakers twine around the design and glue into place with clear glue

My family and I had such a great day on the lake and the colors of the Sweet Summertime Collection perfectly compliments the colors of our day.

I love the way twine looks wrapped around pages and cards and thought it would be fun to wrap this mini album page.  I also love how you can twirl the longer ends of the twine around a project, so I used the Tombow glue to stick the longer ties from the bow in a swirled pattern.

For this page, I wanted to combine the chipboard sentiment with the fresh verse sentiment to capture the moment of my kids snuggling in the boat.  The journal card makes a fun photo mat as well as a way to add some specific details from the day.  My husband did a great job of captain and this page is meant to honor his part in the event.  4 x 6 photos were just a tad too big for the chipboard album, but I found if I cropped them to be 4 x 5, they were a perfect fit.

I love scrapbook pages with multiple photos and wanted to create the same effect for this page, so I added three wallet-sized photos to show more of the event.  The Tear Out Ticket sentiment was a great photo mat to tie the page and photos together.

Had to end with a simple page about my son and since the banner page is pointy, I added a lot of round elements to balance the effect.

I tend to love larger journal cards, because they can be a great focal point in a mini album and take the place of a photo.  This one was a fun way to add a thought and then include embellishments that might over power a photo, but not the journal card like the kite and the cloud.  The twine looks fun tied through the chipboard button.

Sweet Summertime Supplies:

Little Yellow Bicycle Sweet Summertime Collection

LYB-106 - Chipboard Banner Album (8 pieces; 5 chipboard pieces, 2 binder rings, 6-inch string)

SS-180 - Banner Album Cardstock Kit (25 pieces)

SS-1100 - Tear-Out Ticket Book with thermography (10 tickets)

SS-168 - Chipboard Spinner Stickers with glitter

SS-134 - Journaling Cards with thermography (10 pieces)

SS-135 - Cardstock Favorite Pieces Stickers with glitter and buttons (53 pieces)

SS-140 - Fresh Verse™ Stickers with debossing (68 pieces)

SS-195 - Dimensional Pop-Up Stickers (16 pieces)

SS-197 - Jewel Stickers (120 pieces)

SS-219 - Flower Button Dots, layered and self-adhesive with buttons (8 pieces)

SS-166 - Chipboard Buttons with glitter accents (16 pieces)

SS-279 - Chipboard Shapes with glitter accents (32 pieces)

The Twinery Bakers Twine

We have some fantastic Escape projects to share today from Cycling Team Member Juliana Michaels who returns for a 2nd ride with us.  You probably remember her wonderful projects with our Hello Spring! collection.  But let's have Juliana tell you all about it...

When I saw The Escape Collection, I immediately knew at least one project that was definitely on my to do list. I had recently gone on a weekend trip with my niece and parents, and of course I had taken a few photos.  What better way to remember this time together than with a mini album?  I wanted to create a mini album for my niece using photos from the trip.

The LYB Canvas Covered Chipboard Album was prefect for this.  I had all of my pictures printed wallet size to give me some room to decorate and embellish each page.  I used the 6 x 6 paper pad for all of the patterned papers and embellished it with various stickers, journaling and chipboard pieces. 

When I create a mini album, I like to keep the design elements similar from page to page.  This makes it easier to design and put together.  For each page I used one piece of 6 x 6 patterned paper for the background. I then cut another pattern 4.5 x 5 inches and layered that on the background paper.  I then used the 1.5 x 6 inch scraps to create the banner strips. 

When I give her the album next weekend, we are going to sit down and fill out the 5 Things Pocket piece and add other journaling to the album to personalize it a bit more just for her!

My husband and I enjoy traveling and would love to do more of it. Our dream is to go to Italy together.  We have both been, but not together.  To help us stay focused on our goal, I create a travel change jar for us to put in our extra change or what ever money we want to help us save up for our next vacation, where ever it might be! 

I created it using an empty and washed peanut butter jar.  I glued a strip of patterned paper around the center and then embellished it with pieces from the Chipboard Shapes.  To attached them to a rounded surface, I first bent and rounded them a little to that shape.  I then adhered them using a glue gun.

I also used the Vellum Tape Strips and Cardstock Stickers.  I am especially loving the Vellum Tape Strips!  I dressed up the lid with a fun flower from the Paper Crafting Kit.  Once it was finished, I added some change and our travel change jar is on its way to helping us save for our next vacation or trip!

Please see Juliana's blog 17 Turtles for more inspiring ideas and details from her.  We are so appreciative of all of the amazing ideas from our Cycling Team, Guest Designers and Biker Chicks.  I am going to start a change jar this week!

Happy Tuesday!

Liz

Biker Chick Heather Leopard has a great Splash idea to share today, but let's have her tell you all about it...

Hi there, friends!!!  I wanted to share this teeny tiny mini that I made using the Splash collection.  We’re going to the beach in a few weeks so I couldn’t resist making this “Vacation Favorites” mini for my girls. It’s a great way to list and showcase our beach weekend highlights.  I created it with my Silhouette CAMEO and a Lori Whitlock 2-page book card file The great thing is that I only used one piece of pattern paper!!!

The cover has a window on the front, which is the perfect size to add my title. Once I had that down as the foundation, I layered clear elements, a banner flag and flip flops. Oh and the file I downloaded calls for a wraparound band to close in the front but I changed it to close in the back so that I could make a more embellished cover and not have it interfere with all the elements. Doesn’t this look fun? Let’s take a look at the inside of the album.

I tried not to over think the pages inside the album.  The tear apart cards were perfect for that. I plan to use the journaling card as a frame for the photo that will go here with our 1^st favorite memory. I used the tear apart tags again for the “2” banner and just added the water splash clear die cuts to this page.   

Pages 3 & 4 are actually threaded through the center of the card so when I was looking at this mini spread, I could see a gap between the pages.  I solved that issue by using the vellum tape strips and layering them over each other. I topped it off with an accordion flower memory numbers.

Again, trying not to over think this last set of pages, I added another tape strip, banner and dimensional die cut and I went to my trusty tear apart tags stash and pulled the July tag out to add journaling for the back page. The canvas stickers and “happy” clear cut wrapped up this spread perfectly.

Now, all I have to do is add photos and maybe a few more embellishments here and there to finish it off.

Tip: When I’m creating a mini album I try to treat each page in it as a single or double page layout, just smaller and in this case, much smaller.  It really helps alleviate some of the stress of wondering what to do with all those pages. 

Splash Supplies:

SPL-105 Skinny Stripe Multi/Deep Blue Sea Solid

SPL-220 Fabric Favorites - self adhesive

SPL-230 Clear Cuts - with glitter accents

SPL-140 Cardstock Stickers - Fresh Verse™ - with thermography and debossing

SPL-160 Vellum Tape Strips

SPL-195 Dimensional Stickers - with thermography

SPL-1100 Tear Out Ticket & Journaling Card Book - with embossing

SPL-303 Mini Flag Kit - with embossing

SPL-305 Paper Crafting Kit

Please visit Heather's blog The Spotted Leopard for more inspiring ideas!

Have a great weekend!

Liz 

It's our country's birthday today and to celebrate we pulled out our Saturdays collection because of the Red, White and Blue elements.  Check out what our Biker Chicks Corrie, Liz, Tania and Jenny made to share...

Biker Chick Corrie Jones made this super fun layout complete with fireworks.  We love how she made them from bakers twine.

Biker Chick Liz Qualman created this Fun on the 4th Card with the Saturdays collection and star stick pins from the Head of the Class collection

Biker Chick Tania Willis created these cards and has a few tips and ideas to share...

For this particular card, I wanted to play on the whole theme of July being the month of fireworks, so I quickly transformed one of the felt & burlap flowers into a firework by inserting stick pins in a blue, red, blue, red pattern. I then loosely coiled some silver leather ribbon on either side of the firework to create a wonderfully dimensional semi-custom embellishment.

“July” Card Supplies:
ST – 133 6x6 Decorative Edge Cardstock
ST – 222 Felt & Burlap Flowers
ST – 277 Stick Pins
ST – 135 Favorite Pieces Stickers
ST – 140 Fresh Verse Stickers
White Cardstock
Silver Leather Ribbon

There is nothing particularly special of note about this ‘Freedom’ other than a quick mention looking for ways to make your supplies work for you.  In this case, instead of overlooking the alphabet stickers at the bottom of the ST – 140 Fresh Verse Cardstock Sticker pack because there is only one of each letter, I found a way to put them to use and convert the ‘3’ to and ‘E’ by simply turning the ‘3’ upside down.   If you’re ever short on an ‘O’, you can substitute the number zero or any round sticker or chipboard button in its place.

“Freedom” Card Supplies:
ST – 133 Decorative Edge Cardstock
ST – 222 Felt & Burlap Flowers
ST – 135 Favorite Pieces Stickers
ST – 140 Fresh Verse Stickers
ST – 1100 Tear Out Ticket Book
ST – 102 Rustic Red Linen Patterned Paper
Tan Cardstock

Biker Chick Jenny Chesnick created this Saturdays mini album that is perfect for recording memories from this 4th of July.

Have a wonderful day with family and friends.

Liz

We are very happy to share the talent of our Biker Chick team with some seriousl fun ideas for a mini book with our Hello Spring! Collection.

Biker Chick Shanna Vineyard made this fun album.

I was so excited to create a mini album using Hello Spring!  I designed this with a friend in mind who just gave birth to her first baby…. A GIRL!  This line and all the fun embellies works perfectly for a baby girl or even a baby boy album.  There’s endless possibilities really.  I hope you enjoy it.

Please see Shanna's blog Art Made with Heart for more pages of her wonderful album.

Hello Spring Products:

Canvas Covered 6x6 Chipboard Album (painted yellow)
Hello Spring 6x6 paper pad
Hello Spring Chipboard Shapes
Hello Spring Clear Cut Shapes
Hello Spring Decorative Edge Cardstock
Hello Spring Fabric Favorites
Hello Spring Crochet Butterflies and Flowers
Hello Spring Cardstock Stickers Fresh Verse
Hello Spring Cardstock Stickers Favorite Pieces
Hello Spring Dimensional Stickers
Hello Spring Stick Pins
Hello Spring Chipboard Slider
Hello Spring Felt Stickers
Hello Spring Paper Flower Kit

We also have a mini book from Biker Chick Robbie Herring.  Here is what she had to say about her book...

I really love how bright and fun this collection is and how it fits so perfectly with Easter pictures.  I used the Canvas Covered Chipboard Album.  This album is great!  The inside pages that you can choose to cover yourself are 6x6 which is great because you can use the 6x6 paper pad.  It's so easy to use!

I used the Favorite Pieces to build the sticker tree.  I added some foam dots behind a few of the flower for extra dimension and added a few jewels, too.  I cut down the paper for the front because I wanted some of the canvas to show.

This page includes a couple of the Journal tags for the design.  Instead of listing the answers for the questions on the card, I cut it to make it appear longer behind the picture and used it as a design element.  More foam dots allow for layering and clustering the chipboard pieces.

You can see that this picture is from a different time.  If you don't have enough pictures of an event, consider using pictures from several different times to tell your story.  All of the pictures in my album are from Easter activities, but taken during different times and activities.

Be sure to leave room for journaling in your Mini Albums.  I like to do a page or two that is decorated, but with plenty of room left over to journal.  I made the center paper by using Word and adding lines and a matching border.  I like to have lines to journal when possible, so I decided to include them here.  To keep them from overwhelming the embellishments and other pretty details, try making the lines a very light grey.

Please visit Robbie's blog Just the Scrap for more detais and pages of her mini book.

Hello Spring Products:

Supplies:
HS-104 Flutterby/Sunshine Dots
HS-279 Chipboard Shapes - with glitter accents
HS-133 6" x 6" Decorative Edge Double-sided Textured Cardstock - with glitter accents
HS-220 Fabric Favorites - self adhesive
HS-222 Felt & Fabric Flower Stickers
HS-305 Paper Flower Kit
HS-230 Clear Cut Shapes - with glitter accents
HS-277 Stick Pins
HS-135 Cardstock Stickers - Favorite Pieces - with glitter and embossing
HS-140 Cardstock Stickers - Fresh Verse™ - with glitter and debossing
HS-195 Dimensional Stickers - with glitter accents
HS-197 Jewel Stickers
HS-1100 Tear-out Ticket & Journaling Book - with glitter accents
HS-304 6" x 6" Paper Pad
LYB-107 6" x 6" Canvas-Covered Chipboard Album

Biker Chick Jenny Chesnick shares this super creative and festive mini book.

Tip from Jen:  Mini albums do NOT have to be stressful.  I actually most of my mini albums without photos first! Instead of stressing over the perfect photo I focus on creating something I love.  You can always go back with that "perfect" set of photos later!

Please see Jenny's blog Say Chez for more pages and details from her mini book.

Hello Spring Products:

HS-109 Pretty in Plaid/Tulip Linen
HS-106 Bloom & Grow/Sweet Pea Vine
HS-107 Pom Pom Stripe/Teal Linen
HS-104 Flutterby/Sunshine Dots
HS-102 Garden Rows/Lilac Love
HS-279 Chipboard Shapes - with glitter accents (35 pieces)
HS-220 Fabric Favorites - self adhesive (14 pieces)
HS-222 Felt & Fabric Flower Stickers (4 pieces)
HS-223 Crochet Butterflies & Flowers (8 pieces)
HS-230 Clear Cut Shapes - with glitter accents (34 pieces)
HS-277 Stick Pins (15 pieces)
HS-308 10 Things Pocket - with glitter accents (11 pieces)
HS-135 Cardstock Stickers - Favorite Pieces - with glitter and embossing (50 pieces)
HS-140 Cardstock Stickers - Fresh Verse™ - with glitter and debossing (72 pieces)
HS-195 Dimensional Stickers - with glitter accents (8 pieces)
HS-197 Jewel Stickers (96 pieces)
HS-1100 Tear-out Ticket & Journaling Book - with glitter accents (24 pieces
HS-304 6" x 6" Paper Pad (24 pieces)

One more mini book idea by Biker Chick Greta Hammond - she created this one for our last CHA trade show in Anaheim.

We cannot wait to see some of your mini book creations with our Hello Spring collection or any of our collections.  Please be sure to share them on the blog.

Have a wonderful day!

Liz

It would seem that we cannot get enough of Shellye McDaniel and we hope you feel the same way!  Shellye rode with us on our Head of the Class and Hello Fall teams and now we have invited her back to take a spin with our Saturdays collection.  But let's have Shellye tell you all about it...

"Enjoy" Mini Album
by Shellye McDaniel 


Using the 6x6 Decorative Cardstock Pack, trim each sheet down to size (the top portion only).  I like the staggered look, so I trimmed the first three pages and left the last (larger) two pages as-is.
Next, match the tops of the pages together and decide on the placement for your holes; punch holes.  For each page I used a large circle template and traced onto patterned paper;  trim to size (as shown on pages 2-4).  For the last three pages you will need to extend your circle by creating straight edges; trim as to the desired length (as shown on pages 5-9).

Ink/distress around the perimeter of your circle and then machine stitch to create a border...DO NOT machine stitch directly onto the 6x6 Decorative Cardstock sheet, instead glue into place.  Embellish each page with the beautiful accents from the Saturdays Collection and your own sweet photos :)  Note:  I used a 2" square punch for cropping all (but one) of my pictures down to size.
With Mother's Day coming up, this would make the perfect gift!

Little Yellow Bicyle Saturdays Collection:
-6x6 Decorative Edge Cardstock Pack
-Fabric Favorites
-Paper Flower Kit
-Felt & Burlap Flowers
-Cardstock Stickers: Fresh Verse
-Stick Pins
-Tear Out Ticket & Journaling Book
-Clear Cuts: Shapes
-"Pick-a-Posey" Patterned Paper
-"Lovely Labels" Patterned Paper
-"Reverie Garden" Patterned Paper
-"Rustic Red Linen" Patterned Paper
-"Meet Me In The Meadow" Patterned Paper
-"Well Worn Wood" Patterned Paper
Misc. Product:
Hand-cut burlap heart, wooden buttons, jute twine, kraft border, baker's twine, ribbon and two (1.5") large rings
Supplies Used:
Round 4.5" template, brown distress ink, crop-a-dile (or hole punch), piercing tool and heavy needle, sewing machine, foam dots, quick dry glue, scissors and paper trimmer.

Please email me if you have any questions about this project: shellye819@aol.com

Wow!  What a beautiful mini album idea with Little Yellow Bicycle's Saturdays 6 x 6 Decorative Edge Cardstock.  Please be sure to visit Shellye's blog The Papered Cottage for more peek inside her creative brain!  Thank you Shellye!

Have a wonderful day!

Liz

We are so excited to introduce our newest Cycling Team Member Kay Rogers.  Kay's clean and simple style gives our Paradise collection a fresh look.  Here is what she had to say about Paradise, "I think Paradise was so versatile because I could accomplish outdoorsy, fun, subtle, and pretty all with one line! Thanks for the opportunity to be on the Cycling Team!"

For this layout of Jenna and her cousin, I wanted the soft blues and greens to make the picture shine.  The blocks of patterned paper are a nice compliment to the photo and the simple, clear cut tag is a great journal spot.

The Clear Cut shapes, not only come with glitter accents, but they are also easy to write on and add a very different look than cardstock.

This page has one of my favorite pics of Jenna. I really wanted the layout to be more "pretty" and serene in nature to make her shine through. The plaid paper makes a great border and contrast to the black and white photo.

The Paradise garland embellishment is such a fun addition to a page or project.  Just add some pop dots and the dimension shines through.

This layout with Jenna up on the pile of hay playing was inspired by the quote on the card. She was having such a little adventure that day, and I wanted to convey the fun with a more random feel to the placement of the elements on the page.

Kay also made this adorable project with our Paradise Medley Album.

I thought the papers were perfect for a series of photos I took with my photography club kids. We were outdoors and Jenna came with us on the trip.  I snapped so many pictures that day so a mini album was perfect!

For directions, I just printed my pictures 2x3. I used the mini-album kit, and supplemented the pages with the shaped papers. I then laid out all of the LYB stickers and embellies and went to town!

Thank you Kay for so many inspirational projects with our newest collection.  I am pretty sure that you can already find Paradise in your LSS, and if not, then I bet it is on the way.  What better way to take a break from the cold snap of winter than to play with a little Paradise???

You can visit Kay's blog How Did I End Up Here for more beautiful work and inspiration from her.

Stick with us this week as we gear up for CHA and share some more projects with our new collections from our Biker Chicks and our Guest Designer Izzy Anderson.

Have a wonderful day!

Liz

Hello blog readers! Are you done salivating over those fantastic cards Liz posted yesterday featuring the upcoming Paradise collection? I don't know about you, but I for one can't *wait* to get my hands on it. Don't worry it will be in stores soon enough (psst ... we start shipping it in a couple weeks!), and for NOW I am here with another frosty fun project from our wonderful Winter Twig Guest Designer Jenny Chesnick - and of course you can find Winter Twig at your LSS right now!

Before I get to Jenny's project, let me share a little more LYB Q&A with you!

LYB:  What is your favorite color (or colors) to use in your pages? 

JC:   Yellow!

LYB:  How long does it typically take you to complete a layout? 

JC:   About 45 minutes.  Sometimes as fast as 30.  I am a super fast scrapper!

LYB:   Do you use any tools that are not specifically designed for scrapbooking? 

JC:   A dremel drill.  I stole it from my husband! Along with his wire cutters.

LYB:  What’s the oddest embellishment you’ve ever used on a page?

JC:   A flyswatter, no kidding.  I was in a contest and it was one of the items we had to use!

LYB:  Do you scrap chronologically or out of order? 

JC:   I scrap whatever I want.  I never even knew people scrapped “in order” until a few years ago.

LYB:  Events or moments scrapbooker? 

JC:  Moments.

LYB:  Sit down or stand up scrapbooker?

JC:  I sit down.  I want to stand up, but because I am so tall it hurts my back.

Flyswatter? Really? I would LOVE to see that layout, wouldn't you? And now onto Jenny's project. This CA-UTE little skate mini album-m-m-m!

Here's Jenny to tell you all about it!

I have wanted to make an Ice Skate mini album for a long time.  I have been waiting and waiting for one to be made!!  Well I got tired of waiting and decided to make my own.  Little Yellow Bicycle paper is the perfect weight to create stand alone albums and pieces. I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out the Ice Skate.  I layered two skates together to make the skate thicker. 

I cut the blade part separately so I could use a coordinating color to create the blades.  Once all the pieces were put together I used eyelet to set my punched holes of the album (just to be safe!) and I finished it off with some distress stickles to mimic ice on the skates.  The skate is fairly large so I plan on using 2x3 or 3x3 photos in the blank backsides of each skate.

Products Used:

TG-108- Winter Plaid/Mocha Java Sweater

TG-107- Winter Words/Brown Skate Scratch

TG-101- Snowy Window/Ski Sweater

TG-165- Chipboard Words

TG-279- Chipboard shapes

TG-220- Fabric Favorites

TG-134- Journaling Cards

TG-230- Clear Cuts Shapes

TG-140- Cardstock Stickers- Fresh Verse

TG-145- Cardstock stickers- labels

TG-219- Snowflake Button Dots

__________________________

So cute! Love this Jenny! Listen ... I can hear our blog readers firing up their Silhouette Cameos right now to make their own skates! What a fun project for a winter weekend. Who's in?

Don't forget to stop by Jenny's blog and say hello (also check out the pics of her kitchen which she rehabbed last weekend ... so pretty!)

Have a great weekend!

-Peg

Wow, what a busy couple of weeks it has been on the blog lately! How can we top all of the fantastic work of the talented women on our Cycling Team? How about another Guest Designer?

I'm so pleased to introduce Jenny Chesnick, our Guest Designer for the Winter Twig Collection! I first met Jenny at CHA-Winter last year, and I was wowed by her friendly and vivacious personality and - of course - her talent! So I was thrilled when she agreed to Guest Design for our Winter Twig collection.

In addition to maintaining a blog that is just jam-packed with fun and inspiration, Jenny is a Garden Girl on Two Peas in a Bucket, and on the Maya Road and American Crafts Design Teams. 

To help you get to know Jenny a little better, here's a little LYB Q&A!

LYB:  Do you prefer cardstock or patterned paper? 

JC:  Pattern Paper for sure.  I rarely if ever use cardstock!

LYB:  What kind of music gets you in the scrappin’ mood? 

JC:  It depends on my mood.  I have several channels on Pandora.  Sometimes silence is best too.

LYB:  Do you like to go to crops or prefer to scrap alone? 

JC:  I can scrap at either.  I am one of those crazy people who gets a ton done at crops believe it or not!

LYB:  What are your favorite types of projects—pages, mini albums, cards, altered projects, etc? 

JC:  Altered hands down. 

LYB:  Do you have a favorite scrapbooking snack? 

JC:   Nope! I don’t snack while scrapping unless I am at a crop and then anything within reach really doesn’t stand a chance.

LYB:  Any unique tips or techniques you use? 

JC:  I like quality over quantity.  I feel like projects don’t need to have a lot of stuff on them for them to be amazing.

Jenny has created 4 awesomely wintery projects with this lovely collection and I just can't wait to share them with you.  I'm going to start out with this mini envelope album. You'll find versions of this album in both the Winter Twig and Wonder & Wishes collections - they're wonderful little keepers for your favorite memories - and they make great gifts too!

Here's Jenny to tell you about it:

Little Yellow Bicycle made this cool Medley album for the Winter Twig line.  I am a sucker for minis!  They made it really simple by having the base pieces already cut and ready to go, so all you need to do is embellish! 

I focused on using layers on each page as well as having nice repetition through out.  I used twine on each page to keep the look cohesive. 

I made my own banners from border stickers and the envelopes sticker set. 

I used stick pins to create a cute dimensional embellishment with the banners.

Products Used:

TG-306-Medley Album Kit

TG-165- Chipboard Words

TG-279- Chipboard Shapes

TG-133- 6x6 Decorative Edged double sided cardstock

TG-201- Canvas Borders

TG-220- Fabric Favorites

TG-230- Clear Cuts Shapes

TG-302- Mini Pom Poms

TG-305- Paper Snowflakes Kit

TG-308- 5 Things Envelopes

TG-135- Cardstock Stickers

_____________________________

Love this little mini! Thanks so much Jenny for sharing this beautiful little album with us. I'll be back next week with another project from Jenny. Meanwhile why don't you go head over to Jenny's blog and say hello!

So much fun for a Friday! Hve a great weekend!

-Peg

We are very excited about our NEW Winter Twig collection! It's perfectly chilly in every way and the winter wonderland cousin to our Twig collection from last sping.   We think the frost factor of this collection is about as cute as it gets and we can't wait to show you what our Biker Chicks have created for this amazing collection!

Biker Chick Renée Foss kicks off our reveal with this brrrr-tiful page!  We love how happy and chilly this page feels and Renée did a fabulous job with the Paper Snowflake Kit - this is a must have item!

Biker Chick Greta Hammond created this gorgeous winter wreath showcasing the patterned papers in this collection. Greta also created a cool cluster of Decorative Edge Cardstock, Favorite Pieces Stickers and Pom, Poms.

Greta - also created this adorable mini with our Winter Twig Medley Album to record winter month activities and festivities.  Bet there is a picture of someone drinking cocoa in there somewhere.

Biker Chick Tania Willis created these beautiful winter cards.  I think the mitten theme and the winter people are adorable.  These are such cute ideas!

Biker Chick Vicki Boutin created a happy page with Winter Twig.  I love how cold the colors and elements feel, but how happy they look combined with winter memories.  Vicki spotlighted the Chipboard Shapes with Glitter Accents.

Vicki also made this happy card with the fun wintertime sentiment.  The Canvas Borders are alwasys a great emebellishment for pages and cards.

Biker Chick Liz Qualman (me) took a stab at creating the little mittens with my Cricut as part of a banner, mostly because I am in love with the miniature clothespins.

This makes a fun little project to hang up for a special winter event.

I also created this page of my daughter playing in the snow.  I love the patterned paper with all of the winter words as the background. Plus I had to add the I'd Melt With You sentiment mostly because I am a product of the 80s and loved Modern English...remember that song - LOL.

Renée made these adorable little block to add as a home décor item for this time of year.

We will have more Winter Twig projects from our Cycling Team and a NEW Guest Designer.  Stay tuned!

Thank you for stopping by -

Liz

Happy Saturday everyone! I hope you're finding some time for crafting this weekend! I have two awesome projects to share from our Game On Cycling Team members KimberlyRae Forde and Cari Locken.

First up is an adorable little mini album from Cari, for all you soccer moms out there. What a great way to save the memories from the soccer season? This perfect, simple little mini album is just right!

And here are Cari's easy instructions!

I created a mini album - with only the paper provided. NO chipboard album or pre-made album was needed.  This was a super easy & inexpensive way to create a mini album with just patterned paper & embellishments.

-  I cut 12" x 6" pieces of patterned papers (5 different papers).

-  I folded them in half so I would end up with a 6" x 6" album. After folding them I just simply put them together to form a booklet.

-  I embellished each page

-  When finished I opened up each page (to 12 x 6 wide) and then punched 2 holes down the center of each page approx. 1" in from the edges.  I then re-assembled the album & tied it together with green twine.  I added 2 smaller pieces of black & cream ribbon to embellish the edge of the album a little bit.

Thanks again for inviting me to help out with this.

It's been super fun!

_____________________________

Love this album Cari! I think it is so cool, and I just may have to make one for all the pictures I took of my soccer team this fall!  Don't forget to check out more inspiring projects on Cari's blog by clicking the link!

My other favorite fall sport is football! And on those rare fall Sundays when I'm not out coaching a soccer game, you will find me at home with the TV tuned to one of my favorite NFL teams. So I definitely need this:

Coolest-ever Kickoff Gift Set created by KimberlyRae Forde!

Here's KimberlyRae to tell you about it!

_____________________________________________

For my second project I choose a Football theme!


 
 Ingredients:

  Little Yellow Bicycle 'Get Your Game On' Collection

• eCraft personal cutter by Craftwell
• Acylic Large Salad Bowl
• Football slip Cup Adult size
• Ball Wide Mouth Canning Lids and Rings
• Fiskars Paper Trimmer
• Jewelers Wire 12 gauge
• Aleene's Collage 'Pauge Matte
• Cork board adhesive Paper sheet
• Hot Glue Gun

Snack Bowl Instructions :
1.  Choose and adhere stickers  and elements you want to show through around the bowl.  You can add the team's name here.
2. Measure from under lip of bowl down to the rim of the bottom.  Mine measured 6"  [I purchased the bowl from Dollar Tree].
3.  Select your papers and trim to 2-3" strips
4.  Modge podge one strip at a time and place at one end and work your way around the bowl.
5.  Modge podge the entire OUTside of the bowl, using your fingers to smooth out any bumps.
6.  Hot Glue Cork paper on the bottom [this will help keep from sliding].

You're done!






Cup Instructions :
1. Measure from just under the lip  of the top of cup down to where the cup rests and trim paper.

2. Measure around cup [mine measured 6"] and adhere paper to cup.

3. Add chip board elements and stickers.

4. Liberally, brush on modge podge.
5. Let Dry and add Banner [the 'football' banner was a perfect fit]!

6. Adhere cork paper and hot glue to the bottom of the base and  you're done!
 

Coasters / Cup Holder Instructions :
1. Hot glue all lids to the inside of the rings-upside down [this is your cup holder base] and set aside.
2. Cut 12" wire and curl with paint brush handle or a pencil.
3. Cut out 6" circles and clip the outsides about an inch around.
4. Liberally, brush on modge podge to the paper circle and place over your cup holder base [that you made earlier]
5. Press the paper inside  the base and smooth starting in the center and bring the pap
6. Now, shape one end of wire in an 'L' shape with the '_' part going underneath the base and hot glue in place
7. Choose a chipboard element and hot glue to the wire
8.  Cut 3.5" circle from the cork paper and hot glue to the bottom of the base and 
Now you're ready to place the cup in the cup holder and you're done!
 

___________________________

Wow. Now that's really thinking outside the scrapbook, isn't it? Click this link to hop over to KimberlyRae's blog for more cool projects!

What will the Cycling teams come up with next? You'll see next week, when we kick off posts from the Hello Fall! Cycling Team (did you get that little football pun there? hope so....)

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

-Peg

Hello,

We're excited to share our first post from from our first ever Cycling Team Member Shellye McDaniel.  Get ready to pedal because Shellye is going to wow you with this Head of the Class Corkboard mini album. I believe you will mark this as a favorite Friday Find. 

The covers are made out of cork.  How cool is this? 

Cork?  Yes. The cork really makes the primary colors pop. Don't you think?

I love the primary ribbon that Shellye uses throughout the album...again, it's all in the detail.

Every page is like this...

A true work of art...

Each page holds special detail. The stitching finishes each page in such a smart way.

Many, many fun embellishments to work with. Chipboard paper clips, dimensional stickers, fabric favorites...  I really want to hold this album in my hands!

A close up for you.

With just the right amount of grunge for good measure.

Even the back cover is a masterpiece.

Here are the detailed instructions on how to create your very own Corkboard mini album.

Supplies:
Little Yellow Bicycle’s Head of the Class Clear Cuts Shapes, Stick Pins, Journaling Cards, Chipboard Shapes, Dimensional Pop-Up Stickers, Fabric Favorites, Canvas Stickers Mini Banners, Alphabet Stickers, Fresh Verse Stickers, Favorite Phrases Stickers and Patterned Papers

Other Supplies:  Ribbons, Baker’s twine, buttons, three loose-leaf rings and two 6x6 corkboard squares

Using a craft knife, trim both corkboard squares to 5”wide; reserve one of the 1” strips.  Dress the reserved piece of corkboard with Fabric Favorites “Ruler” sticker; cut to size.  Punch holes into all three corkboard pieces at 1”, 3” and 5” increments, leave at least a ¼” margin from the edge.  Adhere the ruler piece to the edge of the top corkboard sheet with a fast drying tacky glue (I use Aleene’s Quick Dry).

Incorporating your favorite cutting tool, cut six 4 ¾” W x 7 ½”H tags from selected Head of the Class Patterned Papers.  Embellish as desired before gluing the front/back pages together.  Be sure to line the pages up with the bottom of the corkboard pages before punching holes.  Add eyelets to page holes to ensure stability. 

Finally, insert the three loose-leaf rings through the holes and thread carefully through pages. It may be necessary to enlarge the holes of the corkboard to allow the rings to move freely.  Add ribbons to the rings if desired.

Please check out Shelley's Blog and let her know how much you appreciate her craftsmanship!  Welcome again Shellye to our first LYB Cycling team.  And thank you for sharing your talent with all of us.

Happy Friday!

Lori

Before you read this post ... go make yourself a cup of tea!

No really.

Go ahead.

I just did.

Don't worry - I'll still be here when you get back - sippin' away!

Personally I'm a coffee person. Got to have my cuppa joe (or three!) in the morning, but lately I've taken to enjoying a cup of tea every day. I think in our hurry-up world with our too-much-to-do lists, the coffee culture contributes a little extra caffeinated craziness to our everyday rush.

[Think about it ... the very act of placing an order at Starbucks can be stress-inducing to some people ... "I'll have a decaf-non-fat-double-tall-latte-no-foam-no-syrup-extra-hot ... please"!]

On the other hand, a cup of tea says:

"Take a moment. Relax. Enjoy. Appreciate."

Not to mention it's loaded with antioxidants, so it's good for you too. Tea makes you happy. I guess that's why the Maya Road chipboard teapot makes me so happy. For instance, didn't you love how Liz used it on the cover of her album in yesterday's post?

Well guess what? It's back again today! Biker Chick Greta Hammond used it to make a beautiful banner! So scroll down to take a peek, and then at the end of this post, find out how to win Your OWN Maya Road Teapot Chipboard Album - plus a perfect pairing of Little Yellow Bicycle goodies!

Here's Greta!

_____________________________

I’ve always been a big fan of Maya Road and was thrilled to be a part of this Swap! I loved the little Maya Road Teapot Chipboard Album we received and immediately thought of LYB’s Elizabeth Park and a springtime theme. I covered three of the teapot pages and then layered them on top of 6x6 decorative edge papers from the EP line to create the base for this spring banner.

I also used the little tea cups on top of some journaling cards to fit in between the larger pieces.

To embellish, I started with paper doilies for texture and then layered on embellishments including the felt and candy striped blossoms from Maya Road, chipboard, dimensional butterflies and fresh verse stickers from Elizabeth Park. 

The combination of products provided some great variety in texture and dimension to the project!

Thank you Maya Road for letting me play with your fabulous product!

Greta

______________________________________

Love it Greta! So pretty!

OK so here's your chance to win...two actually...Leave a comment telling us your favorite project that we've shown so far in the blog swap (...now don't worry about offending anyone...they're all amazing but you're allowed to have a favorite ... or if you can't choose a favorite, tell us which one you're most likely to try to make yourself!). For your second chance to win, leave another comment on our Facebook page too!

Wonderful Maya Road sent us a few extra Teapot Chipboard Albums ... and when I first saw them, I thought of our Savor collection. So leave your comments and on Friday I'll pick TWO random winners (one from the Facebook comments and one from the blog comments) who will win a Teapot Chipboard Album PLUS some fabulous goodies from the Savor collection.

Now go enjoy that cup of tea!

And don't forget to check out Maya Road's blog for their post a little later today!

Peg

It's Little Yellow Bicycle/Maya Road Blog Swap Week Day 2, and I have some GREAT projects to show you ... this time created by Biker Chick Liz Qualman!

But first, let me thank everyone who has left a comment here and on our Facebook page! And very special thanks and welcome to our new friends and fans from Maya Road. We love how Maya Road's products add beauty and rich texture to our projects - and it's so much fun teaming them up with our favorite Little Yellow Bicycle collections!

Don't forget to leave a comment on the blog for a chance to win some wonderful Maya Road and LYB goodies! We'll be picking a winner at the end of our Blog Swap Week. And while you're hopping, be sure to hop over to Liz's blog, and check that out too [maybe tell her we sent you ;) ]!

You're going to love how Liz combined Maya Road's albums and embellishments with the whimsical Twig collection to make some must-have cards and an album cover too!

So let's take a peek! Here's Liz...

After looking through the gorgeous loot that Maya Road sent to the team, I thought it would be fun to play with some TWIG.  I like to keep the design of my cards simple with the focus on the sentiment and major embellishment.  This card is a simple 6 x 6 inch base with two of the Twig patterned papers (Leaf A Note/Topsy Turvey and Woods/Pleased Plaid) along with some of the Paper Lace Stickers, Fabric Favorites and Fresh Verse Stickers.  The sentiment steals the show, but I added the fabric leaves and the Maya Road Candy Stripe Blossoms to frame it for a dramatic effect.

I just adore the Twig Bird Song paper and thought it would be a fun element to add to another simple card.  You can see all of the lovely and decadent design in the paper along with the beautiful birds.  To complete the look I added a Twig Canvas Sticker Border, Chipboard Stickers w/ Glitter, Epoxy Stickers and the Maya Road Felt Pearl Blossoms.  Super easy to make and such a lovely card to send to a special friend.

Maya Road also sent us this adorable Tea Pot Chipboard Album.  Instead of making the mini album, I decided to incorporate it into this larger Maya Road 8 x 8 album.  I thought the Twig Bird Song paper looked like porcelain and was perfect for the tea pot. 

I added a combination of Twig patterned papers, Fresh Verse, Paper Lace, Favorite Pieces stickers, Paper Doilies, Fabric Favorites, Bag of Feathers and a Maya Road Gingham Fabric Blossom in brown.

The Chipboard Tea Pot was a nice way to add some dimension and character to the project, plus it looks gorgeous in Twig. 

All of the element layer so well together, it was almost as if these Maya Road blossoms were made especially for the Twig collection.

________________________

Thanks Liz! I think I'm going to make some of these cards TONIGHT!!! But wait! There's a BONUS!

Liz also made this adorable card, using elements from LYB's Tiny Princess collection - accented by a Maya Road gingham flower! So cute!

See you tomorrow with more goodies!

And don't forget to leave a comment for more chances to win!

Peg

Biker Chick Greta Hammond made this beautiful Twig portfolio for CHA Winter, and for me ... it was love at first sight! I thought "Wow. Now if I had one of these to jot my inspirations in (or even my "to do" list), well, things just might get done around here!" Take a look:

Our team has been teaching this little project at a few workshops here and there, so maybe you were lucky enough to make one for yourself. And if not, well guess what? You can download the instructions right here! Take a look, get inspired, get the instructions, and go create! You'll be so pleased you did!

Download Little Yellow Bicycle Twig Portfolio

So cute. Don't you just have to have one? Have fun!

A recent cyber-stroll through the blog-o-sphere turned up a bunch of great Twig and Elizabeth Park projects! So hop on the Little Yellow Tourbicycle with us for today's ride through Blogland and we'll show you what we found!

First up, Biker Chick Tania Willis posted this beautiful layout on her blog, featuring the Twig collection and her handsome hubby:

Here's a close up:

We keep telling you how versatile the Twig collection is - doesn't it look great with this photo of Tania's husband? And we certainly don't think he'll complain that it's too frou-frou, do you? For more info and photos of this layout, check out Tania's post here.

Next up, did you know that Biker Chick Liz Qualman writes for ScrapStreet.com Magazine? Yesterday, they ran a great article by Liz talking about how to use stickers to add polish and dimension to your pages. It featured this page by Liz, created using the Elizabeth Park collection:

Love it! Here's another close up:

Click here to read the entire article by Liz, and to see more photos of this adorable layout!

Next up, we travel back a couple weeks to the Archiver's Blog - for a fun feature on many scrapbookers' favorite topic ... scraplifting! Archiver's took this Twig album:

And scraplifted it to create this Elizabeth Park album:

According to the blog post, (which you can read in its entirety here), you can see a sample of this Elizabeth Park album at your local Archivers! (Be sure to scraplift it!)

And finally we travel back in time to a blog I bookmarked way back in February! This post, from Scrapbook & Cards Today Magazine's blog features Karen Grunberg. I started following her blog after I saw this post. She got it in her head to take a family photo every week and it's so much fun to read her posts all about her weekly successful (and sometimes not-so-successful) family photo shoots - as well as her every day posts about a busy, creative, working mom's life (Can you relate? Yes I think so!)...an ambitious undertaking, to say the least. But such great results, I must say!

So here's the page she created using the Elizabeth Park collection:

And a close up:

M-m-m!! You can read the entire post here - with more photos! And you can follow Karen's blog (and see more of her amazing photography) by clicking here to go to Karen's blog!

... And thus ends our tour of the blog-o-sphere for today. We hope you've enjoyed the journey and it has inspired you to pull out your paper, scissors, and glue! Please be sure to "tip" your driver by posting a comment if YOU spy one of LYB's collections out there in Blogland! Happy trails!

We are so excited March is here! So much going on. Later today, we'll be announcing the winners to February's Twig sketch challenge and in a couple of weeks...Elizabeth Park starts shipping (with any luck, just in time for spring here in the Northeast)!

One sad note about welcoming March is saying goodbye to our February Guest Designer, Iris Babao Uy. We have loved the way Iris has inspired us applying her unique style to our Twig collection. This last share is just as lovely ... it's Iris' take on our Twig envelope album....enjoy!

Little Yellow Bicycle just thinks of everything to make crafting very easy and lots of fun - even this mini-album kit. With a kit like this with pre-cut pages and papers to go with it, plus the beautiful embellishments in the Twig line, it becomes so easy and so fun to create an album for yourself or as a gift for a friend.  Here is the cover of the album I made and pictures of some of the pages inside.

So pretty! Thank you so much for sharing your talents with us for month of February, Iris!

We have many more exciting things planned for March so be sure to come back!

Biker Chick Jen Gallacher is back with another treat for you! It's an envelope album featuring the beautiful Twig collection!

This mini album makes a beautiful keepsake or gift - and the Twig collection is so versatile - it can be masculine or feminine. Take a look at the video, and be sure to scroll down for more photos and to download the pdf instructions.

Page 2:

Page 3:

Page 4:

Page 5:

Page 6:

Page 7:

Page 8:

And the journaling page inserts:

Download Be Yourself Twig Album Instructions

Have fun!

Last night we posted the latest Training Reel - Greta Hammond's Christmas Delight Chipboard Mini Album and promised to post photos and directions today. We keep our promises here at LYB and we know you've been waiting all day! So get your supplies ready because we have a feeling you're going to be kicking off the holiday season by makin' this little beauty:

In case you missed it yesterday, here's the video again. In it, Greta walks you through the album page by page, and gives you step-by-step instructions for making the sassy little pinwheel flower on the cover!

And what better way to spend the day after Thanksgiving than with a little scrapbooking? No need to cook ... you can live on leftovers and focus on creating cute little pocket pages like this one:

And fun little circle tabs like this:

Don't you just love how Greta extended the album by adding little mini pages? They're easy to make using pieces from the Christmas Delight Journaling Tablet - practically all the work is already done for you!

Make it to give away or be selfish and keep it all for yourself (don't worry, we won't tell)!

And download the instructions right here:

Download Ghammond_Christmas Delight_training reel album

Have fun!

As the next in our "Biker Chick Spotlight" series, we thought we'd tell you a little bit more about Greta Hammond, before we introduce her Christmas Delight Mini Album Training Reel (yes we'll wait while you scroll down to take a peek) ... OK!

Greta Hammond is a creative force who really needs no introduction in the scrapbooking community! We have been lucky to have her on our Biker Chick team since 2007 and she's responsible for some of the amazing creations you've seen at trade shows, on our website and here on our blog... like this beautiful Christmas Delight Envelope Album: 

[In case you missed it, download complete instructions from an earlier blog post!]

And from the Savor collection, this tray:

and these decorative boxes:

Greta also made these cupcakes that literally look good enough to eat using our Cupcake Love collection (which ships next week!):

But there may be a few things you might not know about Greta ... we asked her a few questions and here are her answers!

LYB:       What is your ‘go to’ embellishment?

Greta:    Chipboard, buttons or string/twine seem to be what I reach for if my projects needs a little umph!

LYB:    Cardstock or patterned paper?

Greta:    Both!!  Ideally, I have both available to do my project. I adore pattern paper but definitely use cardstock to offset the patterns and give a bit of texture to my projects.

LYB:     Crops or scrap alone?

Greta:    If I want to get anything done, I have to scrap alone at home. However, I do love the occasional retreat or crop with friends!

LYB:    Favorite types of projects—pages, mini albums, cards, altered projects, etc?

Greta:    All of them! My creativity flows best when I can do a variety of projects. I get tired of doing the same thing so I like to mix it up!

LYB:    Chronological or out of order?

Greta:    All out of order!! I’ve never been good at the Chronological thing. I think I work best if I can work on the pictures and stories that speak to me at that time. Plus, working on assignment makes it difficult to do any sort of order!

LYB:    Sit down or stand up scrapbooker?

Greta:    Again, both! I typically sit when scrapbooking but I don’t usually sit for very long. I like to stand up to get a different view and I tend to be a bit ADD and have to go change a load of laundry, make a phone call or check emails in between working on a project!

LYB:    Are you a neat scrapbooker or is your space a mess?

Greta:    I’m messy. Can’t help it. I absolutely HATE cleaning up after scrapping and my messy room would attest to that!

One more thing you may not know...Greta's also a published author! She co-authored the book Kick it Up! Add Spice to Your Scrapbook Layouts last year (you can take a peek by clicking here)

And now ... here's the latest Training Reel, featuring Greta Hammond's Christmas Chipboard Album (and come back tomorrow for more photos and downloadable PDF instructions)!

Consider yourself warned ... you will have to run right out and get your supplies when you watch our newest Training Reel, featuring LYB Biker Chick Tania Willis and her incredibly adorable Savor Recipe Book Envelope Album!

What a fun way to save your favorite family recipes ... or to give to the bride-to-be or as a housewarming gift (along with some tasty treats) to warmly welcome a new family to your neighborhood!

Tania used the envelope album kit from our Savor Collection, along with some extra papers and embellishments from the Savor collection, which she details in the video (or you can look at the full list of supplies in the downloadable instructions, which appear below the video link)!

Take a look ... but don't say we didn't warn you!

Download the instructions here: Download LYB_Training Reels_Savor Recipe Album Instructions

Now, here are page-by-page close ups for while you're working!

A view from the top:

Inside "flap page" and shown with the flap opened up (love it!):

A cute little pocket:

And another pocket page!

One of Tania's favorite recipes!

The recipe card opens up so you can fit the whole recipe!

A whimsical touch ... untie and open up a special journaling fold-out page!

Tania shows this step-by-step in the video!

A short page holds a picture:

Back of a short page!

Have fun folks! Oh and here's one more tip ... if you do decide to make one of these to give away, make sure you get enough supplies to make two, because you will want to keep this one for yourself!

Well, the dust has settled a bit after all the activity of CHA (which was very upbeat and positive!), so I wanted to take a moment to just sit down and share some great little projects.  I'm sure there's at least a few of you who could use some last-minute inspiration for a great Valentine's day card or gift, right??!:) Check out these great projects, featuring our SWEET LOVE Valentine's collection...... I had so much fun designing this line, and hope you have fun playing with it!

This page features the very popular "10Things I Love About You" Pocket with cute little tabs, perfect for jotting down the things that you adore about your sweetie (or whoever you're sending your love to)!  Wouldn't that pocket make a fabulous card?? Talk about easy!! Thanks, Renee, for the sharp page!

This adorable little Tag Album features pages from the Sweet Love Journaling Tablet, simply punched and bound together with a pink binder ring!  Lots of yummy little goodies from the rest of the collection were added to finish it off. Talk about a quick, sweet gift!  That's so do-able!  Thanks, Greta, for the idea!

Here's a quick-and-easy card idea... Sweet Love papers, journaling card, Clear Cuts shape, Fresh Verse cardstock stickers, Sticker Jewels, that's all you need, besides your own dec-edge and corner punch and ribbon... Who wouldn't LOVE to get a little card like that? Jen, nice job on the design!

Look at this little lovely, created by Laura Vegas, using the Sweet Love Chipboard Spinner. How cute is this?  Thanks for sharing, Laura!

Hope these little goodies inspired you! And whether you're creating little tokens of love for your sweetheart or your sweet kiddos, HAVE FUN! It's such a treat to celebrate how much we love the special people in our lives!  

Okay, back to the drawing board now... Working on next year's Christmas line!  Fun!

Until next time~
Sharon