Sustainability, Travel, Scrapbook Pages and My Podcast

I have been thinking about sustainability. It's scary to think that some human beings do not care about the planet. I also feel that some people who deny climate change in public, in private think the decline of a healthy environment for humankind is inevitable. I think they do not want public alarm and just want to make a profit and enjoy those benefits as long as possible. I know that is a cynical point of view but when you know they have been presented with the facts and otherwise seem reasonably intelligent what else can you believe. There are plenty of unscrupulous people around. On the other hand, I do see that many businesses and individuals believe a sustainable approach makes sense both for the world and for the bottom line. I hope they are the majority and end up winning. I was encouraged today when I read that public opinion is for sustainability and investing is committing to green technologies and not fossil fuels.
Sustainable creative approaches interest me. I just got a badge in an introductory class in biomimicry sustainable design and I think of studying this more. One of my concerns is the health of our local environments. I took a class for EcoDistricts certification but have had little time to study to take the exam. It's on my to-do list. I'm also considering attending another GreenBiz sponsored meeting. I learned a lot at the last one I attended.
Right now I'm planning a trip to San Diego and another to Great Britain and Ireland. Travel is stressful and exhausting many times but the thrill of learning and experiencing new things more than makes up for the inconveniences. I'm trusting myself to a good tour company in Europe to make the most of the brief time I can spend. One of these days I'll take a semester abroad and actually learn about a foreign land in depth while I study art. It is not easy to travel when you have some physical limitations but I'm always learning how to adapt and I allow time for recovery into my plans.
Of course, the experiences and photos should make for some exciting scrapbook pages as I recount the stories of my travel. I am also considering taking my podcast on the road and talking about my trip. It's a creative approach to my podcast, introducing travelogues.
Speaking of scrapbooking, I've used my travels to inspire some of my recent page design stories. Here's one from my recent visit to Arizona.

And another from my visit to Coit Tower in San Francisco.

Do visit A Creative Approach Podcast and listen to some fun episodes including this latest one with Elena Lai Etcheverry.

Using Templates when making Scrapbook Pages

 On DSD (Digital Scrapbook Day) this year I taught a class at Get It Scrapped about using templates to design pages.
Even if you follow a sketch or design exactly, including supplies and title, one would not end up with the same page as a designer since your photos and story would be different.
However, in my pages that follow, you'll see how I used extra photos, and rotated the sketch to make four different pages from one layout. Definitely not a cookie cutter approach! I usually use a lot of different patterned papers and embellishments. This time I only used that style on one layout. My idea was to change the look by using different color schemes and sketch alterations. Template - Scrapbook Coach 21, Top Heavy, Layout 4 from GIS Template Library.
I hope you enjoy reviewing these ways to vary the look of your scrapbook page using one basic design.

This is a template variation from my challenge using Scrapbook Coach 21 Top Heavy Layout 4, in an analogous color scheme. I advise limiting colors in this scheme. While 5 can work, three is the most eye-catching. Here I've used four colors - yellow, yellow-green, green and blue-green. I eliminated one photo from the top band changing that to a slightly smaller and lower positioned journaling block and added a stock photo as a repetitive element in place of the original journaling. The title uses the template font Butterscotch regular with a Mommish glitter style in Ocean, shadow styles - Mommyish, ephemera, and string/brad, speech bubble and brad from the template with brad and ephemera recolored. Geo tag brad - Gennifer Bursett, My Happy place, Grape wreath - Kimeric Creations, Making Memories, wine bottle  and glass stamp - Stella, tag - gennifer Bursett, Now, Fonts - Avenir Medium regular and Traveling Typewriter.

This is a variation in a split complementary color scheme of yellow, orange and blue-violet. The modification I used here was my signature using a photo as an embellishment attached with a paperclip, Again I've kept a few of the templates elements in place, recoloring and texturizing the papers in Adobe PSCC, wood star clip - OneLittleBird, This Magic Moment, star - TheDailyDigi, Let's Get Messy, arrow brad - WMsquared, XOXO; styles - Mommyish, Scrapaneers Champions; fonts - Bohemian Typewriter, Avenir Oblique

This is a monochromatic layout in yellow. If you check your color wheel you'll see that olive green is a shade of yellow. I did need to recolor the green in the camera embellishment to make it dark olive. Neutrals, like black, white and gray, of course add contrast without color and I did add a low opacity wash of yellow to the ephemera in background. Many consider beige tones neutral, too. I tend to be more narrow in my definitions so I did add the light opacity wash.

Supplies: Papers - recolored and texturized in Adobe PSCC; Bow - Mommyish, I've Got A Plan; camera brad - A Sweet Caroline Amanda Yi Collab, Focus,Click, Repeat; Paper Dolls - The Daily Digi, My Life of Wonderful; Fonts - Myriad Pro, Traveling Typewriter, Bohemian Typewriter; Brade and speech bubble from the template, Scrapbook Coach Top Heavy/Layout 4 from the GIS Templates

This variation of the template challenge, that I demonstrated on DSD, is made in a variation on a triad primary color scheme where the blue is augmented by using blue-green. Brown functions as a neutral and also balances the predominance of blue hue. If using a complex color scheme it's probably best for those less experienced with color to use mainly materials from a single kit as I have done here. I altered one of the photos by making it a 2 photo collage. DDE Playful Kit by Gina Cabrera, brown sticker - justjaimee, September Storyteller 2014, tag - Sweet Shoppe, Studio Basic Designs, Adventure Begins, logo - ShePodcasts, some embellishments from the original template, styles Mommyish, fonts - Avenir Medium, Avenir Roman Italic, Lobster 1.3 regular. Template - Scrapbook Coach 21, Top Heavy, Layout 4 from GIS Template Library

Update

 It's been a while. Life just comes in torrents, at times. Doctor appointments, classes, friends all add up but while a busy life, I am not complaining.

Actually, had a procedure that has reduced my pain some and now, at least temporarily, I can increase my activity a bit. Maybe I can lose a bit more weight. I've kept off the big weight loss but still want to lose more. I recognize why I've not made more progress - too many calories in and not enough out. I'm anticipating a knee replacement the end of May so have that goal to achieve more. Less weight and more active now will help with my recovery. Then, when fall comes, I'll hope to be healed and have even more mobility.

PCO Dialogue digi kit, font Avenir

Digi Kit: The Sahlin Studio Shine Bright TDF72, Font: Charlemagne Standard Bold, Mommyish Glitter Silver Style and extra shadow styles, Yin Template 413 TDF 69

I do keep scrapbooking though not nearly as much as I'd like to do. Thank goodness for team assignments at Get It Scrapped, I get those pages done. The community gallery is welcome to all. Be sure to leave at least one comment on other pages for every layout you post. We are all about community there.
Scrap productivity may go up as I'm planning to attend a crop with scrappy friends soon at my LSS, It's All About the Scrapbook. March is also the month for a productivity challenge at Get It Scrapped. We play a wacky game called "Calvinball". Just like the games at the wonderful historic comic strip, Calvin and Hobbes, the rules change. The main rule is that there are no negative points. There is no prize, just one's own creative spurt, and we acknowledge that Celeste will win but Doris, and maybe some others, will give her a run for the money. Totally free and welcome to all. Do join us for this crazy adventure!
My goal, as always with the blog is two posts a month. I do sometimes post more but like to keep the stress down and the goal reasonable.
There's always a lot to do. Going to visit a couple of my granddaughters and attend a hockey game, too, soon. Trying to take a number of photos with my new camera. I've wanted a full frame camera for a while but the size and expense of those has been intimidating. I've been paying attention to the favorable comments about the Canon 6D with the 24-105mm IS STM lens. I took the plunge when the shutter on my Canon EOS xSi needed a repair and I love it. I did get the Rebel fixed but it will be a back up. The new camera is not much heavier than my Rebel (chosen for lightness because of my neck issues) and the pictures it takes are wonderful. Since it's still me taking the photos, and they look so much better, it has to be the camera! I do shoot in manual but the auto features on this camera would make anyone look like a pro, I'm sure. I'm so tempted to learn all the auto modes but really want to improve my camera skills in general; so, I'm going to wait on exploring those.
I'll try to post a few of my faves in the near future. I'm learning a bit more about editing, too.
Do be sure to join us at The Digiscrap Geek Podcast each week. It's not just digital scrapbooking, though we do talk geek, often. We have a lot of fun. Our guests are wonderful, too. Do leave us comments at the DSG blog. We love to hear from you!

Scrapbook Pages

 I've been making a few scrapbook pages recently and decided that I've not been spending as much time at my hobby as I'd like. Truthfully, once I get creating art, it's hard to get into my crafts. Not from too much creative energy but more of "What a mess!". Lots of stuff needed in creating. I know, "Isn't that why you digi scrap a lot?"
It doesn't create a mess anyone can see but it does mean a bit of searching and organizing. That's one reason I'm becoming more of a digi kit scrapper.
I'm going to post a few of my recent pages here. Be sure to check out Debbie Hodge's Get It Scrapped
where this heritage page is shown with several other examples of scrapping heritage photos with contemporary product.

Paper: Pink Paislee Switchboard, Studio Calico Lemon Lush, Teresa Collins Something Wonderful, Pocket Card: Studio Calico, Flower: Prima Flowers Coffee Break, Paper clip: Freckled Fawn, Stamp: Freckled Fawn/Hero Arts Sept 2014, Alpha: AC Thickers, Small alphas, glitter stickers, wood veneer banner, puffy sticker, paper clip, clear doodle stickers all Freckled Fawn (from kits Jan 2015, Dec 2014, Nov 2014, Sept 2014)

Some other layouts done recently:

Kim Watson Template from GIS files, Just Jaime Storyteller Sept and October 2014, styles and brushes Mommyish, Karla Dudley and Just Jaimee, font - Garamond

Mommyish Best Summer Ever, Im So Fancy;  TMartin Missing You, One Little Bird Crazy for You; PCO Focus, Click, Repeat, Karla Dudley Rad Bundle, Just Jaimee/Mommyish Year In Review; CD Muckosky Bootiful Night, My own designs (gingham, blue cardstock) Fonts: Oswald Book, Avenir Medium, Adobe Garamond Bold,  treed machine stitched sampler, pco dream, dde backyard splash

Jbarette's Perfect Fit, styles Mommyish, template by Amy Kingsford - MSD 11-2013 Sketch Inspired by Kelly Noel

Scrapbook Coach_Sprawl01_Template, Amanda Yi_TheDarndestThings, Studio Calico_Jan_FarFarAway, Mommyish_Shadow Styles -BohemianTypewriter, PasticheBrush

Check out the Scrapbook Coach videos http://masterfulscrapbookdesign.com at Get It Scrapped. I get a lot of inspiration there. The "You Love Football" page layout was inspired by a class there and the template/sketches for many of the layouts in the classes are available free for members at Get It Scrapped.