October... really already?

whhiiiiiizzzzzzzzzzz.

That is the sound of life flying past me at a great rate of knots.


So along with welcoming a new month in we also welcome a new scrapjack, and this month is an exciting little layout from Julie Winks

My name is Julie Winks and my husband Troy and I live in Central Queensland with our four incredibly active kids, Maddison 16, Claire 13, Cooper 9 and my little man at home, Lachlan 4. 

Whilst whatever style I have is constantly evolving, some aspects remain constant.  I love to layer with plenty of detail, I adore white space and I am really colour driven.  Colour combinations in design are always the things that catch my eye and are inevitably what inspires me when I create a layout... no doubt a hangover from my interior design days at uni, which is now far too long ago to admit to!! 

I have been on Design Teams for Dusty Attic, The Scrapboxx and The Colour Room and have also been on the Creative Teams for challenge sites Kraft It Up and Stuck! Sketches.

In the last 12 months I have started to dip my toes into the wonderful experience of teaching this amazing craft of ours and I think I am just as hooked on sharing the passion as I am with the creative process.   Most recently I was lucky enough to scrore a gig teaching at the ever popular Brisbane Scrapbooking and Papercraft Expo and have also taught classes via video tutorials for Miss Art’s Papercrafting School.

I am thrilled to be scrapjacked and can’t wait to see what all of you creative goddesses come up with!  J

I do believe this layout is sunshine and spring all wrapped up in a bundle of goodness here are a few close ups that will help you gather some more ideas...

I will be back tomorrow with the design teams takes on Julies layout and you are going to be blown away with what they do..

dont forget to go have a peek at our Pinterest page for a little more inspiration if you need it....here

cheers 

Nx and the Scrapjackers

drumroll for our winner please

Firstly can I say thank you, thank you, thank you for coming to play at the new scrapjack studio... I have loved getting all the mail in my inbox and I look forward to alot more.

It has been a busy busy month here at home base with the computer deciding to fry earlier in the month and I have not been able to do half the things that I orginally wanted to with the launch of the new site.... but never fear, that is life in all its glory and it paves the way for more things this month.

so winner winner chicken dinner...... thanks to our random selector at inlinkz, beause if it was up to me you would all be winning. It is the fairest way to play I think..

September Scrapjack award goes to Natalie Elphinstone

please go check out Natalies blog and send her a big congratulations and we will be in touch to get her this months prize of goodies....

stay tuned for this months scrapjack......

Thank you and play hard
Nx and all the team x

the wonderful incredible 'Imaginarium Designs'

Can I shout it from the rooftops..... This product rocks.

I had to get that out of the way before I direct you to their amazing blog and lose you for the evening as that happened to me.

I have spent many a night looking through blogs admiring this chipboard product and wondering how I was going to get my hands on some of that goodness... and you know what I got some and I love it.

but let me tell you a little secret.... this is the best part it is a rocking Australian business, homegrown in Adelaide founded by non other than the awesomely talented Jane Tregenza and her son in 2010, and in such a short time 'Imaginarium Designs' has gained a reputation for its lovely classic designs and intricate details. All design work is done by people who use the product, whether for there own designs or for teaching....This gives Imaginarium Designs its uniqueness and sets it apart from the rest by far...

Please go lose yourself in these blogs if you have the time... you wont regret it and will walk away with a world of inspiration and an itch to create.

owner founder and extrodinaire.... Jane

And the talent doesnt stop there. A quick look at the design team will tell you that Imaginarium Designs   is all about providing a wonderful chipboard product for scrapbookers, cardmakers and memory keepers of all talents! 

Here are some of the homegrown talent on the design team....plenty of opportunities to hijack some ideas and inspiration out of these girls. 

the fabulous Ms Nelson.... Natalie may describes her as gods gift to paint and paper and I tend to agree with her. Please drop into her blog and see how she turns the ordinary into extraordinary here..

what can I say other than this chickie ticks all the boxes and she would have to be one of the hardest working scrapbookers in the industry it is our very own Happydaks

well what can I say Steph is a classic, shabby chic scrapbooker who has a style and class to her pages that I could look at FOREVER... check her out here

and if you dont fall in love with Heathers style I will be a monkeys uncle... check out this amazing blog here

check out the amazing heritage pages Sandie does here

Nadia her talent is amazing and never ending...she also has a great challenge site too.

The design team continues with an amazing roll call of peeps which I will let you go an discover at Imaginarium Designs.

Honestly go pressure your LSS to get some of this product asap....hahahahahaha

and if you cant You can purchase ID products Here ...http://www.seriouslyscrapbooking.net.au/brands?brand=1020

ok lovelies I hope you jacks are coming along nicely... remember to post them before the 30th.

cheers

Nx and the scrapjacking team x

Technique Friday! ........

Happy Friday people!

Natalie here sharing just how I created my page and card for this month!

You'll be surprised how ridiculously easy it is!



The first thing I do is prep my cardstock or base.
I like to use chipboard or cardboard for my base as it does not buckle and holds shape really well.

I coat the whole background in Gesso.
Gesso is my absolute favourite tool at the moment.
What Gesso does is works as a sealant on the background so that the paints and mists dont soak into the background. This is fabulous for chipboard!
Gesso comes in a couple of different forms but I like to use the Gesso Spray - it's a little harder to find and bloody expensive but ... it works a treat and gives a smooth finish. If you are using Gesso paste, make sure you get it on in a nice even layer.

 

Next I choose my mists.
At the moment I am seriously addicted to using Mister Hueys by Studio Calico - the colour is bright and vibrant and one spray is all you need.
The difference between these and Glimmermist is that Mister Hueys is a flat colour rather than a glittery colour.

I gather a few flowers together next ... I use Green Tara which are available here and I use what ever colours I have floating around. Once the mist goes on, the colour of the flower is covered! Perfect way to use those odd colour flowers you might have hanging around.

Next give them a spray and either put them aside to dry in the sun or hit with a heat gun.

For the background, I use my hi-tech spray booth - otherwise known as cardboard box - stand your background up on an angle and start spraying.
I spray one of each colour then go back over each layer once the drips have started!
Stop when it looks good!


Dry in the sun or whit a heat gun.

With other mists, you may need to dry between coats , especially Glimmermist which will require a lot more layers to get the colour nice and rich.


Next add your flowers. I find a hot glue gun works best the glue them on! No waiting for glue to dry and instant results! You can pick one up from Spotlight for under $10 - BARGAIN!
 

 And now you're done! Add a photo and some embellies and you have created your own piece of brilliant!

Have fun and I look forward to seeing all your results!

Natalie May
xxx

Design team take on Natalie......

So the girls have been working hard and fast to come up with their layouts after I sprung the new format on them not so long ago..... (sorry sisters about the short notice but OMG they rocked it)


To recap we have our  September #1 Jack from the talented Ms Natalie May....

pppsssssttttt... don't forget to click on any of the photos because it will give you a slideshow of all the photos used in the blog post all in a bigger format so you can see the details so so much better.


................................ 

And this is what our Design team have created this month....

'Little girls are heavens flowers - Deb

I totally loved the design of the page, inspired by the runs/drips down the page, the flowers across the top and the sweet photo........all ”jacked” with a shabby/vintage feel.

...........................

'The colour in my life' - Bec

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'bloom & grow' - Lisa

.......................

'we call her happydaks' - Kylie

loved this Jack......the colours are amazing

.......................

'Be true to who you are' - Naomi

As a colour addict this is one of my favourite layouts ever to try and copy in my own style... I have one question for Natalie how on earth did you get all your dribbles running in a straight line????

.......................

'In Colour' - Dana

I LOVE the September inspiration piece!  I can't wait for the reveal and launch of the new site!

..............................

and lastly a surprise entrant and our new design team member makes a cracking entrance into the scrapjacking world with this card

it is of course from our hijacked Natalie May...... I was so excited that Natalie accepted the offer to come and join us at scrapjack with her incredible talent and flair, that I could resist the urge to ask her to 'go jack herself....' sounds a little rude, but it had me laughing and snorting for a while.

So welcome aboard Natalie and I think I will move this card on to our new Cardjacked studio for the month as our inspiration... 

As you can see from all the various takes on Natalie's original layout there are so many many ways to take inspiration from one layout....

It could be the  

COLOUR

DESIGN

TECHNIQUE

TITLE

ELEMENTS

It is your stepping stone so to speak, to try something new, to adapt it to your style, to break you out of you rut, but mostly to have a little fun.

I hope your feeling well and truly inspired to go pick up the paper and glue and get creating over the next couple of weeks... Remember to upload your takes on this jack to the email or leave a comment on the blog with a link.

cheers 

Nx and the team 

hello september...

and welcome to our first jack in the new studio.....

Lets bust into this because there has been so much talk on the blog so far and not much in the way of layouts and ideas. So without further ado here it is from a wonderful, inspiring lassy from South Australia......

My name is Natalie May.
I am a 30 something mum to a gorgeous 9 year old daughter, Jessica {otherwise known as Happydaks} and a wife to a very supportive hubby.

I am a full time paper crafter, working in Adelaide's best Scrapbooking shop, Seriously Scrapbooking,  teaching around 15 classes a month and designing chipboard for Imaginarium Designs. I am also an Intermediate Certified Copic Designer and love everything inky & color based.

I have been a card maker for about 16 years and discovered Scrapbooking late 2006. It’s such a brilliant creative outlet, with no restrictions as to what you can do and VERY addictive! {but hey ... you already knew that!}

I don’t believe have a particular style - I let the paper guide me ...  I love to experiment and try new things ... and I create what my students are asking for too!   My theory is…. “ If it looks good – Stick it down!” 

I love working off sketches and I am heavily influenced by all the amazing talent in this industry.

I love using a variety of techniques on my pages from dry and wet embossing, stamping & masking, Glimmermist, inking and more recently I have enjoyed adding Mixed Media techniques to my scrapbook pages. I like to experiment with Gesso and Texture Paste and I have a very soft spot for chipboard.

I have been published in all 3 Australian Scrapbooking magazines and have recently been part of the Scrapware Design team as well as a couple of online DTs. Currently I am the Design Team Co-Ordinator for Imaginarium Designs Chipboard, Sassy Scrapper and have just finished with Once Upon A Sketch plus design kits for Blue Bazaar in my spare time!. 

I have recently taught at a couple of Australian fairs and in the next 12 months, have a couple of retreats and conventions coming up that I cant wait to teach at! I am also heading to New Zealand to teach at the country’s  biggest Scrapbooking retreat, Autumn Escape in October!

I love this industry … the opportunity to teach a new technique…. Meeting so many amazing people…..and to be able to CREATE everyday is quite a blessing.

You can see more of my bits & pieces on my blog .....www.happydaks.blogspot.com

Hmmmmm.... just another little thing I hijacked.
unbeknownst to Natalie. Such a cute photo of you and your happydaks...Nx

I am so proud to have Natalie be our first Scrapjack... she is a wonderful ambassador for our australian scrapbooking industry. Scrapjack will be looking into Imaginarium designs more this month as we do our best to support australian businesses.Thanks Natalie for being apart of this months jacking....

Here are some more snippets of her beautiful layout..

I hope you enjoy our first jack, so get those mists and paints and colours out of the stash and get to work... Tune in tomorrow as I unleash the Design team's take on the layout and a few little surprises too....

And don't forget to look in at our Pintrest page for more inspiration bases around Natalie's layout

Cheers Nx and the team

play hard 

help required apply within.....

In the era of text and email receiving a card via (god forbid) snail mail are few and far between, and often it is easier to buy a card than make one..... but I know which one I would rather receive how about you?

So I had a thought about milking all those talented card makers in our midst to help me get some ideas and build up a stash of cards so I am no longer buying a store card, thus making my husband happier, because he huffs and puffs that I have a room full of s(crap) and I still buy cards.

Design team requirements....

Scrapjack will give you the occasion and you will give us the inspiration...(hehehehheheh) In the form of one card (and possibly a gift set once in a while)

Easy-peasy really.

If you are interested please send me a photo of three cards that you are most proud of and ones that show off your strengths in design, creativity and style... You don't need to be famous, published or even have a blog, just a love of making cards and sharing it with our growing little community.

So what do you say , Do you fit our bill?

Look forward to getting some inbox mail soon....

email your applications to .......... scrapjacker@me.com

cheers 
Nx

to our new site.....( I had to move due to a little disagreement with blogger in that I couldn't get it to do what I needed so I packed my empty bags and moved to here.)

Firstly I need to say thank you to Bec for all your hardwork at keeping the australian scrapjack site up and running over the last couple of years, I have loved playing along and I honesty can't wait to get the show on the road.

The site and rules will generally work the same as they have in the past, but with one little twist. The new format will mean that we will 'Jack' an Australiasian scrapbooker and a specific layout. I have decided to take it back to the original format for a couple of reasons, personally I love to surf and adapt my own layouts from talented scrapbookers and this country has the most diverse styles of scrapbookers that we don't have to look too far to be challenged by a new technique or a new view on this ageless hobby.

so how to play......

1. Tune in on the 5th of every month for our Scrapjack Hijack.....

2. Read about our talented scrapbooker, surf their blog, have a look on our new monthly board on Pinterest which we have collected a little bit more inspiration to help you nail your jack.... really this is an excuse for me to surf a little more....

http://pinterest.com/scrapjacker 

(PS.... if you have no idea what Pinterest is I am going to apologise to your family in advance because it is an abyss of inspiration, DIY, and quite seriously the best magazine you have ever happened across. if you need an invite please shoot me an email and I will sort you out quick smart...)

3. Break out the paper, glue and all the wonderful things in your stash and get to sticking down you memories and stories.

4. Now when you have completed your hijack you can do as you have in the past load them to your blog and then send us a link in the comments section by the last day of the month

and/or

you can send them directly to the scrapjack email to which I will display them in  our gallery. Eventually I will set up a permanent  gallery on picasso /flicker so that everyone can play not just those with a blog..

email address...... scrapjacker@me.com

5. then at the end of the month a prize or two..... now who doesn't like a prize or two, seriously...

6. PLAY AGAIN.......and again and again, and for twelve months of playing I have a really really big prize.

look out for lots of new things happening here over the coming month.... competitions, games and of course lots and lots of inspiration...

so here is the first hint of what our first hijack is...

Ok Scrapjackers..... enough info for now, see you tomorrow with some more hints and some more changes...

Cheers
Nx