Translating Inspiration to Scrapbook Page Stories

 Podfest is a convention for independent podcasters like I am.

I have some photos that I want to use to remember the stories of the event.

One of the owners of my local scrapbook store, It's All About the Scrapbook in Dixon, CA tells me that she likes how I have used ideas from brochures and magazines to generate pages.

At Get It Scrapped, where I am a creative team member, Debbie Hodge has had some classes on ways scrapbookers use inspiration in how one can jump start ideas.

With these ideas in mind, I decided to look through magazines for inspiration.

When I design a digital page, I usually compose a layered template that I can use for future pages. As you may have noted from the examples that accompanied my NSD 2018 freebie template offering, the same template can look very different using a variety of kits, photos, and stories.

Here is the page I designed along with the template I made. I love that the six tracks for the conference matched up with my template journaling spots. That was not intentional. If there had been fewer, I'd eliminate the unnecessary. Elements may need to be resized, recolored or repositioned to fit the photos and style of the page. That is where a lot of the fun happens, of course.

For example, I'm considering whether or not I want to change the font for the word PodFest. I think I 'm going to keep it as is, though.

Page Supplies - Kit - TLP_Snapshots_2018_Collab; fonts - Halogen Flare, Avenir, Bebas Neue, Solomon Normal, Casually, Helvetica; shadows and effects - Mommyish, Fiddle-Dee-Dee

I'd love to hear about your ways of using ads or pages from magazines or brochures in your storytelling. Karens Corner of the web has a Facebook page where you can reply and upload your images.

38: Celebrating National Scrapbook Day with Nancy Nally

Do you know that May 5th is International (aka National) Scrapbook Day? By now, my regular listeners all know that I’m a really enthusiastic scrapbooker, and at the moment, I am busy creating a kit to take with me to Dixon, California, to celebrate this special tribute to scrapbooking. Although I have done more digital pages lately, I still love to take out my supplies and get lost in the world of cutting and gluing. In fact, I love getting lost in the whole dimension of paper storytelling! May 5th is a day to celebrate other things, too. It’s Kentucky Derby Day, Cinco de Mayo, Burgundy Day (the color-not the wine), Comic Book Day, Hoagie Day, and even National Seeing Monarch Butterfly Day, to only mention a few! Most importantly, may 5th is Silence the Shame Day. Mental illness is far too common, and it’s very treatable! So let’s all speak out, advocate for more resources, and encourage those in need of help to seek it. What did you celebrate May 5th? I’d love to know! I’d also really love to know if you found a creative outlet for telling your story.

I’m really looking forward to today’s show with my noteworthy guest, Nancy Nally. Nancy is both a columnist and a journalist. Alliteration in her name could be one reason why Nancy Nally is known, but she is also known for her nose for news. On today’s show, we discover the latest trends in colors, papers, and motifs, from here and abroad. We also learn about the job of a craft journalist, and about how Nancy found her creative approach. I first met Nancy through the craft world, and more specifically, via events of the AFCI (Association for Creative Industries), formerly known as The Craft and Hobby Association. Nancy is no stranger to podcasting and helped host The Paper-Clipping Roundtable, while it was an active broadcast. Join me today, and listen as we take a peek at Nancy’s creative approach, and as we also celebrate creative crafts!

Show Highlights:

• Nancy discusses her career and blog.
• The three craft industry-related websites that Nancy’s company owns-Scrapbook Update, Craft Critique, and the recently launched Chasing Dust Bunnies.
• The kinds of crafts on which Nancy focuses.
• Some of the really hot crafts, along with craft comebacks.
• The way that trends filter down into the crafts industry.
• The ways trends here differ from European trends.
• The latest trends in colors.
• Chalk paints are currently a big craze in Europe.
• The DIY trend is going strong in Europe, and there is much to facilitate this!
• Metallic finishes are very popular.
• How to rubber and wood-mounted stamps fit in?
• Nancy’s purpose-driven crafting.
• How curiosity drives creativity.
• What creativity means to Nancy.

Links:

Nancy’s websites: Scrapbook Update 

Craft Critique

Chasing Dust Bunnies

Please join our Creative Approach Facebook Page, and the Creative Approach Facebook Group, too!

Check out this episode!

National Scrapbook Day 2018, A Digital Scrapbook Template Freebie

 This is a post to celebrate National (International) Scrapbook Day. I'm offering a free layered PSD template that you can download through the end of May 2018 at https://www.dropbox.com/s/vmuzpauq3s8jdqx/template_NSD_2018.psd?dl=0
This template is for personal use only. No commercial use. No obscene, pornographic nor illegal use. This file cannot be used in whole or in part to be shared, redistributed, sold or to create commercial products. Copyright ©Karen Poirier-Brode 2018.

My studies of medieval and renaissance art inspired my use of an arch window in my design.

I was inspired by a creative team task at Get It Scrapped. We were given the assignment to create a page within a page design. That led me to create a two-page layout with an area off to the side for part of the story.

I hope you'll try the design; I'd love to see what you do with the template. Tips - note that the paper clip is duplicated so you can create a faint image to have the clip appear as if it is under the clipped items.

Here's an image of the template:

Here are the pages I made with this template:

Kit -lgrieveson, cherish; Fonts, Chalk Line, Carpal Tunnel, Traveling Typewriter

Kit - DawnInskip, Good Fortune; Fonts - Bohemian Typewriter, ChalkLine,

Kit - lgrieveson- Hester; fonts - Avenir, Bebas

fonts - American Typewriter, Halogen Flare, bird - lgrieveson_tweet; yellow button - one little bird_one for the album; template, heart brads, tiny round brads - my design; all other papers and elements - lgrieveson_headintheclouds

 one little bird_origin: flag, flower, floral, patterned paper, rubber heart, button & and star brad, date tag, label, ribbon, bow, wood tag, staple, stitching, word strip with heart, word art - one little bird_scoop ; lgrieveson_harrison: Two patterned papers, asterisk, banner, gear, two transfers, button flower tag bit brad - jjstsept2014, fonts - zag regular, Bebas, halogen flare, Avenir

Love,

Karen🐞

Product Review - Lenny&Larry's The Complete Cookie

I liked a product from The Lenny&Larry's Complete Cookie company. Lenny&Larry's included one of their Snickerdoodle cookies in my BlogHer Health 2018 conference SWAG bag.

I read the 8 grams of protein on the packaging and thought, "That's pretty good."

Turning the unit over I noted the serving size of 200 calories. I evaluated that half of one of these cookies had decent nutritional value as a quick energy boost. Cookies are processed food, and my philosophy is to limit processed food in one's diet. Half a cookie as a serving seems right. The foil-lined plastic packaging is quickly sealed with a rubber band or piece of tape. Like most sweets, I could not recommend it as a regular part of one's diet; however, reviewing the packaging made me think this might be a decent treat. The taste would tell. 

The product tasted delicious. I noted great cinnamon and sugar chewiness like I'd expect from a well-made Snickerdoodle. 

The main ingredients are enriched flour, protein powder, palm oil, and sugars. There is a long list of ingredients on the label that are not in the product. The "nonpresent" items listed are the subject of several current dietary concerns. While the cookie is vegan and Kosher and avoids what many consider food no-no's, it contains gluten. In my mind, this is fine, except for those who get extremely ill when they consume gluten, almost always as a genetic problem - celiac disease. I know, many will swear by the reduction of inflammation by avoiding gluten hypothesis, but there is no convincing evidence of this. Well-documented scientific reference replies are always welcome; personal anecdotes are not. The last person who said she believed the gluten inflammation premise and felt this was important to her was eating a bag of Cheetos at the time she lectured me. Sigh! One of my relatives who is gluten intolerant tells me that she cannot fathom why people who can tolerate gluten attempt to avoid it. As she states, "The gluten food tastes so much better; if only I could eat it."

Great taste and the protein content make me feel I can recommend an occasional serving of half of this cookie from Lenny&Larry's The Complete Cookie. 

Enjoy!

Cookie Decorating and me

 When I was at AFCI in Phoenix in January I got a few sample products to try. Manufacturers like bloggers to try their products and post our results on our blogs and social media accounts. Of course, they are hoping we had success and have favorable things to say.

One of the products I got was fondant from Satin Ice. Another item was edible glitter Disco Dust. I like how my project turned out and can recommend the products.

Satin Ice Fondant tastes sweet and does not have that intense flavor that many folks dislike about fondant.

I used a recipe from Joy of Cooking for iced sugar cookies. It's a little less sweet than a cookie recipe to be used without decorative toppings.

My little grandson, DC, enjoyed his space treats.

37: Using Creativity to Impact Future Generations with Patricia Newman

The creative process of storytelling is both fascinating and inspiring. The stories we share and the ones we create play such a huge role in how we capture memories and shape the future. No one understands this better than Patricia (or Patty) Newman. Patty has a passion for telling stories, but her passion doesn’t stop there! I am excited for you to hear all of her thoughts on creativity!
Patricia Newman is the author of the Sibert Honor-winning Sea Otter Heroes: The Predators That Saved an Ecosystem as well as Zoo Scientists to the Rescue; Plastic, Ahoy! Investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, and Neema’s Reason to Smile. With her books, she hopes to empower kids and to share stories about people who create change around the world. Patty is our first children’s author on the podcast, and her stories about social justice, careers, and the wide world around us are just fabulous. It is clear that Patty has the heart to use her creative gifts to empower our future scientists, business owners, and world leaders. We have so much to learn from her in today’s episode!
More creativity in this episode:

• Patty shares her unique point of view on children’s stories.
• Why Patty tends towards environmental themes in her books.
• The journey behind Neema’s story.
• Children are often very perceptive when it comes to more difficult topics.
• Patty shares stories of her own childhood.
• Making the leap from reading to writing is big but natural.
• Patty wants to teach children to connect what they have learned to the rest of the world.
• The main reasons why Patty picks her stories.
• We need to share with our children that their voices matter.
• It is easy to see creativity in fiction, but nonfiction requires it too!

Resources:
Patricia Newman
Books are available online!
Reason 2 Smile

Check out this episode!

36: Ireland Travelogue Highlighting Irish Coffee

It's always so tempting to travel! When my husband called me over the other day to check out a fantastic tour of Ireland that he found while looking at his tablet, it reminded me  that I had  not yet continued with the tale that I'd started in the podcast a while back, about the wonderful adventure we had last year, while touring around Great Britain and Ireland. So today I continue my story and I'm also going to let you listen in to a fun interview that I recorded on my trip, where I ask a host manager of a hotel for some information about Irish Coffee. Listen in- I really hope that you will enjoy the interview!
I'm occasionally a little shy, which I know is an odd admission for a podcaster, but on certain occasions, like trips abroad, it does tend to happen. Chatting to the local residents does tend to help me get over it, and this is one of the reasons that I really recommend that everyone takes some time to get to know the local people when traveling. In my experience, even taking the time for a brief chat can often prove to be the best part of an adventure! Listen in today to find out more about our tour of Great Britain and Ireland.

Show Highlights:

• Taking tours can be very demanding, so be sure to leave on time and try to be the first ones there at any major attraction.
• Some of the highlights of London.
• Traveling to Windsor Station- a grand, English, industrial revolution, Victorian-style building, much of which is now a tourist mall.
• Exploring the grounds of Windsor Castle.
• About Canterbury Cathedral and the Black Prince.
• The pastoral countryside was dotted with buildings with names like 'The Croft' and 'The Old Mill'.
• The ancient castles and grand stone churches are reminders of Great Britain's long and fascinating history.
• Touring the Royal Pavillion in Brighton.
• Gaining a sense of the magic of Stonehenge.
• Traveling in Cornwall.
• The Priory of Saint Ives in Cornwall.
• Taking a cruise up Plymouth Sound to Plymouth.
• Bath- often the setting for titillating tales of Regency society.
• Wales- a land of low mountains, tidy farms and signs with unpronounceable names.
• Crossing St George's Channel to green, green Ireland.
• The history of Irish Coffee, a recipe to make it- and even how to drink it!  

Check out this episode!