Challenge #273 - week of 23rd October 2017

My! These weeks are flying by...

I haven't found any time recently to make any pages at all :-( but I have a free day tomorrow so fingers crossed for some creative time for me. How are you doing right now?

I'm going to keep it short this week and pick a topic from my standby list of possible future prompts - sometimes, I can be a bit organised!

I'm not a big technique person which you might have got to know about me over the years, but the trend of hand lettering is definitely all over the crafting world right now so let's go in that direction.

This week, I'd like you to be inspired by hand lettering.

If you're like me, you might be challenged in this department and you might think about stamps, digital stamps, die cuts, digital (Silhouette Cameo etc) die cuts, patterned paper or even an alpha set which have a hand written design. Or maybe you've perfected the art of hand lettering yourself - and if so, would you like to teach me?!? - and can include your own creations on your project. You might even take this in the direction of recording your process of learning to hand letter or how you've worked to improve your own handwriting. Maybe your child's progress in learning to write is a topic for your page. There are definitely different ways to take this.

Here are some examples of my use of this technique on my pages - not a single one features my own writing which is probably a good thing!

I've used this Silhouette cut file by Loni Stevens several times 

This paper was so fabulous I got a couple of sheets and love using them. Such pretty writing

What's not to love with this brush lettering font alpha?

And I couldn't resist using this Loni Stevens cut file as an oversized title.

You can add your photos to our Facebook group here - we love it when you share so please don't be shy!

Challenge #272 - week of 16th October 2017

It's been a bit of a whirlwind few weeks round here with at least one first for me!

We were invited to an Oktoberfest party a few weeks ago (yes, we've had a prompt for Oktoberfest before WM#188 so that's not our inspiration today - not directly at least) and then we had a themed dinner here at home - "A trip to Edinburgh".

I was reluctant at first to get into the spirit of these events as I thought it might be a bit silly for me, as an English girl, to get dressed up in traditional Bavarian dress - as you might know, it's typical for women to wear Dirndl in Bavaria. But then I came across some Lederhosen for women and decided to go for it. I've captured this on a couple of pages already.... Anyway, for our Scottish evening, I didn't really want to get a new outfit and then we discovered that Edinburgh's partner city is ... Munich! An idea was born and once again, my Lederhosen were worn for a quirky touch to the evening. My DH got himself a kilt and we completed the full switching of stereotypes - a German man wearing a Scottish skirt and a British woman wearing German trousers. There was much laughter and a lot of fun was had.

So, what's that got to do with us here at Whimsical Musings? Well, this week I'd like you to be inspired by national dress.

Maybe you've got a story to tell about where you come from, the pride in national dress that exists there or in your family. How about school projects where children have to dress up as different nationalities. The colours can be pretty inspiring too - that could be the place to start. Or a particular design feature - those Dirndl for example can be pretty gorgeous for sure with the embroidery, details, colours and fabrics. Perhaps there's a family story to tell about a particular item of national dress. I hope you find a way to get inspired this week.

You can add your photos to our Facebook group here and I'm still promising to try to keep up with the prompts but a week's gone by and I haven't managed my concert inspired layout from last week so let's see how that works out this week!

Challenge #271 - week of 9th October 2017

Oh dear! It's been weeks - literally - since I managed to post here.

I'm not going to try to offer excuses, just know that it's not because I don't want to!

I have actually tried to work on the last prompt here (WM#270 - be inspired by an unexpected stash find) and was somewhat totally unsuccessful so that's still on my scrap table to try to rescue - I'll share it when I do. In the meantime, let's just carry on where we left off and take it from there.

Last Friday, I ventured out alone to a small, club-venue concert to see Justin Nozuka. It was fantastic and I loved every minute of it - he's an amazing artist. I can't remember the last time I went to such a small intimate concert and it definitely made me feel a bit old! But I wasn't the oldest there so that made me feel a bit better. I've been a huge fan for a very long time (first single purchased and fell in love with back in March 2007) and have only come across one other person who has even heard of him (WM friend Pam over in NYC) so it was great to be among fans of his songwriting and unusual voice. I'm still on a bit of a high.

Which got me thinking to our prompt and this week I'd like you to be inspired by concerts.

I recently (gulp - it felt like recently but was actually December last year!) made a layout about a particularly memorable concert when I had the ultimate luck to get to see David Bowie on his Serious Moonlight tour back in 1983. In fact, I need to update this layout because I came across the precious concert ticket which I'd like include on the layout in some way (perhaps just a scan, not sure right now!).

I've also recorded several Elton John concerts over the years - my husband and I have limited mutual middle-ground music but I have learnt to totally love Elton since the early days and we get to see him whenever we can! Of course I can't find a picture of a layout right now but if I track it down, I'll be sure to share!

So you could follow my lead and record a momentous concert you got to see at some point in your life. Or you could scrap about any concert - pop, rock, classical, school, brass band, choir, whichever takes your fancy! - that you have attended. Maybe you didn't get to see a concert that you wanted to or is there someone you'd like to see in concert one time in your life that's a total bucket list item. You might be a proud mummy who attends plenty of school concerts of varying quality which might bring  back fabulous, emotional or something less than positive memories! How about participating in a concert if you're a musical genius? I think there are several different ways to take this prompt.

Anyway, if you're still here and still following along, I'd love you to be inspired by concerts and to share any creations that you make.

You can add your photos to our Facebook group here and I promise to try to keep up with the prompts! It's LOAD month so I might even get a layout or two done with WM prompts. Watch this space. :-) 

Challenge #270 - week of 28th August 2017

I've been organising and decluttering over the summer. I've been though all my scrapbooking stash and have tried to let things go that I'll never use and find new ways of storing my products. You might remember our prompt WM#268 which asked you to be inspired by unfinished projects (yes, mine are still unfinished but at least identified!).

But another find got me thinking and moves me to give you this week's prompt.

I'd like you to be inspired by an unexpected stash find.

My unexpected stash find was this dated but still fabulous kit. It was the "Bella Boudoir" kit from my sister's online scrapbooking shop Bellaboo - back in 2007 I think. Look at the fleur de lys, the rub ons, the eyelets, the Making Memories alphabet and of course the Jenni Bowlin shaped papers - all very 2007 but I still like the individual items and am sure I can do something with it.

Your find might be something new, something old, something received or something you just can't bring yourself to let go. It might be something you'd completely forgotten you had, something you wish you didn't or even something you found lost behind your cupboard. Maybe this is a good prompt to encourage you to "tidy" up your scrap area which is bound to unearth some surprises.

This prompt might also inspire you to go back to WM#33 which was our "be inspired by old stash" challenge.

Whatever this prompt means for you (and you can guess that I'll be trying to use this kit!), I'd love you to share over at our Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery here with the tag WM#270 or at our Whimsical Musings Facebook group also using the tag WM#270.

Challenge #269 - week of 21st August 2017

Time flies.

Both right now, through this year (a reason for missing a week or more!) but also though life.

This week marks 32 (!!!) years since I first passed my driving test. 32 years. When did that happen? This actually seems to be a theme running though my life right now as I look back and realise how long ago things happened.

So, this week, I'd like you to be inspired by driving.

You might love or hate driving. You might like to talk about your own driving experience, when you passed your test, a funny/great/bad story related to driving. Perhaps you'd like to capture a road trip you've actually experienced or one you'd like to take. You might even have car or driving themed products that need to find a home on a page which you could follow through for this prompt.

This is a layout I've made in the past about the way back home to Germany after a trip home to the UK and the road trip routines I have.

And then there was this one I wrote about driving on the "wrong" side of the road since I moved here featuring my little car complete with Rudolf nose!

Where will the week's road (pun intended) take you?

We'd love to see what you make with this or any other prompt and you can share over at our Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery here with the tag WM#269 or at our Whimsical Musings Facebook group  also using the tag WM#269.

It's always lovely to see your creations.

Challenge #268 - week of 31st July 2017

A little late but the reason is linked to our inspiration this week!

I'm trying to do a serious reorganisation and purge of my scrap room. It's a multi-purpose room and not only houses my scrap supplies but also my work books and files, and serves as our guest room, too. And the things in the flat that don't have a home elsewhere? Well, they seem to find their way in here too! Now, I'm not complaining, I'm so lucky because it's a great room with lots of natural light and is a real haven for me. But it needed some serious sorting. I've been working on moving some stuff around, decluttering a lot of stuff out of my space and generally generating some "space'. That feels good.

But in all that moving around, I discovered some dirty secrets! I've always prided myself that I don't have scrap UFOs (unfinished objects)! I make pages one after the other and generally don't move on to the next until the previous one is done. Well, more or less! But... I discovered that this isn't strictly true. I came across not one but four unfinished projects that rather shocked me.

Two mini-books, one technical scrap page and a set of pocket pages for a December Daily from 2014. ALL unfinished. Or even hardly started!

So this week, I'd like you to be inspired by unfinished projects.

There's a summer mini-book, a Learn Something New Every Day 6x8 album,
a December Daily set of project pages and a Christmas page which
may or may not make the cut of being finished!

I want to take this prompt to get at least one of these items listed above finished but you could create a page about some sort of unfinished project in your life in general. A home renovation perhaps, or work in the garden or even something more intangible such as becoming a more organised person. We are all unfinished projects after all. There's many interpretations for this so let's get finishing off!

Share over at our Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery here with the tag WM#268 or at our Whimsical Musings Facebook group  also using the tag WM#268.

Challenge #267 - week of 24th July 2017

Summer, it would seem, is in full swing. School is over, people are going on holiday, the sun is out - more or less. I'm still working but I know that many of you are making the most of this sunny time of year to slow down and take some time out.

So, let's have a summery colour scheme this week to get our summer layouts going.

I'd like you to be inspired by this deck chair colour scheme.

{ color holiday } image via: @zoepower / Design Seeds

As always, Design Seeds have the best seasonal photos and this combination of blues, red and shingle is one that we haven't featured before. It's still summer but fresh and feels more sophisticated than the bright candy colours we've been inspired by before. I particularly love that dark grey blue next to the bright red.

Be inspired by the photo or stay true to the colours. Either way, I'm sure there's a way for you to incorporate this week's prompt into your summer scrapping and we'd love to see.

Share over at our Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery here with the tag WM#267 or at our Whimsical Musings Facebook group  also using the tag WM#267.

Have a great week everyone!

Challenge #266 - week of 17th July 2017

Did you see?!!?

I not only posted an older prompt layout last week (WM#261 - inspired by loss) but I also managed to get the most recent prompt page done too! (WM#265 - inspired by bees). I'm feeling pretty good about that.

One of the main reasons that I managed it last week is that our wonderful Whimsical Musings friend, Pam, challenged me to play along with the Shimelle 25 days of scrapbooking words which runs from 7th through to the end of July. The timing is pretty good for me and so far, I'm on track with a layout for each of the word based challenges. If you're not already playing along, why not join in. It's really low pressure and I'm loving it. And it's always better to play along with friends, isn't it?

I'll be sharing a few more of my layouts soon as many of them have been made with my trusty Counterfeit Kit Challenge kits. Great to see them getting used up. Double win.

I was tidying up my desk yesterday when my eye fell on a wonderfully pretty pocket page that I received out of the blue from my sweet fellow CKC Master Forger and long time internet friend, Clair (find her glorious makes over on her blog here).

I don't think I managed to share it yet and so I took it into some better light to take a few photos. One of the "things" with pocket letters is that you should include some mini goodies for the recipient and sure enough, tucked in and behind the pockets are a handful of typical Clair items!

Sprinkles and sparkles...

a hand-beaded element...

some tiny banners...

a cute clip...

and some stamped and fussy-cut labels and tickets.

I emptied them out and realised that this would be perfect for today's prompt.

I'd like you to be inspired by labels.

Of course, the obvious route to go this week is to get happy with labels on your project.  I have a sheet of paper from the Memorandum collection which I am using purely for cutting out the pre-printed labels - love how they are turning out. There are a myriad of label supplies and printables that you could use on your pages - use them for journalling, use them for the title, use them for the date, use them just for decoration! Or maybe you have a labelling story that you'd like to capture? Cute home-made labels for jars of jam or how you reorganised your space and had fun labelling everything. Perhaps you have a story about being labelled as something or other and how true/untrue that is.

As ever, I think there's different ways to take this prompt and I'm excited to see what you make.

If you'd like you can share your layout with us over at the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#266 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group again with the tag WM#266.
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WM#265 - be inspired by bees

I've been thinking about this layout all week - mulling it over, thinking about how to tell my story, considering which photos to use.

Today I made it happen. Go me!

I was challenged by our wonderful Whimsical Musings bestie, Pam, to play along with Shimelle's 25 days of scrapbooking words so this layout also features "so much colour" - a colourful title. We are both on track with at least one layout each day since July 7th and are scrapping up a storm. It's simply glorious to be scrapping "with" her again after so long.

Along with the Shimelle challenge, I've been using up some much older Counterfeit Kit Challenge kits and today I killed my September 2016 kit, Sundance with this layout. That also feels good and that now means that I "only" have 5 kits left to finish off - yes, still too many.

Here's my layout for WM#265 - be inspired by bees.

Using my Counterfeit Kit Challenge September 2016 kit, Sundance, lo#10

I wanted to tie the story of our balcony to the observation of the increasing bee traffic which makes me happy and is something that's been increasingly on my mind over the last few years.

I created the design of the page before deciding on which photos to use on the centre panel. I then went to town with the journalling, printing it out to save space, and finally embellishments. It took my longer than it should have because I was faffing a bit but finishing off the kit brought this together more quickly than others in the last week.

Overall, I'm really happy with this and the story captured. Win, win.

I'd love to know if you've recorded something inspired by this - or in fact any other - prompt. Don't forget you can share in the following ways!

Use the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#XXX 
or post in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group with the tag WM#XXX

WM#261 - be inspired by loss

I know I'm not the only one who uses scrapbooking to work through feelings and emotions and this prompt was perfect for exactly that.

I created a page about the loss of someone very important in the life of my family. And it really did help.

I used my June Counterfeit Kit Challenge kit "Blush", and picked out the darker elements from what at first glance is a colourful collection of product, to bring a quieter, calmer feel to my page. It's simple and to the point. The meaning in the page is there for me to see and understand. The design is simple and classic. It felt right.

Were you inspired to have a little creative therapy using this prompt? I'd love it if you shared your creations with us.

Use the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#XXX 
or post in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group with the tag WM#XXX

Challenge #265 - week of 10th July 2017

10th July marks "Don't Step on a Bee Day" which I was reminded about on Facebook by the Royal Mail who posted photos of some gorgeous stamps they had released in 2015 (find the post here).

I'm hearing more and more about the endangered status of the humble but oh so important bee and therefore...

This week, I'd like you to be inspired by bees.

Many many years ago, the very first Counterfeit Kit Challenge kit I played along with featured bees and I made a very bulky but sweet layout using the print outs that had been included on the blog along with the inspiration.

I really need to redo this layout - love the photos, love the sentiment but it's waaaay too bulky!

Bees featured on the BasicGrey paper which I know that I've used at least once.

Maybe you have a story to tell about filling your garden with bee-friendly flowers or your own attitude to the problems bees are facing at the moment. Do you have bee hives or is this a dream you have that could be captured this week? Or maybe you just have some bee-themed product you could use on your project.

Whichever way you see the inspiration this week, I'd love you to tell us where it took you. If you'd like you can share your layout with us over at the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#265 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group again with the tag WM#265.

Challenge #264 - week of 3rd July 2017

It's July. Shocking but true. And I know this sounds dramatic but I've already noticed the mornings are getting ever so slightly darker. It would appear that the days really are getting a little shorter. I love the flow of the seasons.

Anyway, onto today's challenge.

Time for a prompt based on product and one of my go to items to finish off a layout. In fact, Shimelle posted that she has a small basket full of gems, dots and pearls that she used to finish off her gorgeous creations so maybe that's what brought it to mind just now. Or perhaps due to the fact that I finished off three cards earlier this evening with a sprinkle.

Whatever, this week, I'd like you to be inspired by enamel dots.

Add one or a whole packet. Make your own. Use shapes or sparkly ones or wood effect ones. Whichever way you use them, for me they really are the perfect finishing touch.

Here's just a few details of enamel dots I've used recently.

Whichever way you see the inspiration this week, I'd love you to tell us where it took you. If you'd like you can share your layout with us over at the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#264 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group again with the tag WM#264.

Challenge #263 - week of 26th June 2017

Midsummer's Day has come and gone here in the northern hemisphere and hard as it might seem, the days are already getting shorter! But we've already had a prompt for that (WM#174) so maybe you'd like to head back to that one if you are inspired by the long, heady evenings at this time of year.

But it meant that I needed to come up with something different for our prompt this week.

I headed over to my Pinterest board and noticed several trends in my own pins that got my brain working and this one won out.

This week, I'd like you to be inspired by bar carts.

Pinterest source here

Pinterest source here

These are just two stunning carts have caught my eye and I'm simply determined that I'm going to get one of my own for our home. I want to introduce a weekend cocktail hour round here and bring back a little glamour with something as inspiring and pretty as these. I just need to track down a bar cart first to get me going.

How can you interpret this prompt this week? Go the straight cocktail route or maybe some routine you would like to introduce in your own home. Take either of these photos as a sketch or inspiration in itself, or a single element they highlight. Both of these photos have beautiful colour schemes and provide stunning elements such as roses, gold pineapples, pink champagne or cut-glass crystal glasses. You could even make a layout about how you use Pinterest to inspire you. There's a lot of paths you could take this week. 

Whichever way you see the inspiration this week, I'd love you to tell us where it took you. If you'd like you can share your layout with us over at the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#263 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group again with the tag WM#263.

Challenge #262 - week of 19th June 2017

Back from another short trip - this time to the wonderful North Sea coast in the Netherlands.

Fresh, salty air; soft sand between my toes; the sound of the waves lapping on the shore. It was perfect and reminded me of this.

Pinterest source here

And if that wasn't enough, I was there with two scrappy friends Sylvia and Silvia and so creativity was also very much on the cards. So much fun.

We went walking along the beach, splashing in the water and of course, collecting a few seaside treasures. And I did a lot of creating - all very good for the soul.

Anyway after all this seaside therapy, I'd like you to be inspired by seashells.

One of my favourite layouts of the last 12 months was actually about a single shell I collected when I was at the Dutch coast last February so you might decide to follow that lead.

Tell a story about collecting shells as a child. Talk about a favourite seaside holiday. Perhaps the most exotic shell you ever found. You love of the beach. Take it any way you like.

Whichever way you see the inspiration this week, I'd love you to tell us where it took you. If you'd like you can share your layout with us over at the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#262 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group again with the tag WM#262.

Challenge #261 - week of 12th June 2017

I'm afraid I'm in a sad mood and therefore, this is a sad prompt. Of course, I'm sure there's a way to interpret this in a way that makes sense for you - and that may not be sad at all - so please feel free to take this in any direction you feel right.

This week, I'd like you to be inspired by loss.

On Friday, we lost someone in the family who was and always will be, someone very important to us and I will no doubt take this prompt as an opportunity to make a tribute page to them for our album. Of course, I feel very sad but know that this will be therapeutic for me.

However, you may find that you don't like to include the sad or difficult parts of life in your scrapbook pages, and that's fine. There are even ways to take this prompt in a more positive direction. Perhaps talking about things from your childhood that you miss, a favourite teddy that went astray many years ago, even the loss of things that have affected you positively such as weight for your health for example. But if you feel that sad these events also have a place in your albums, you might want to think about someone who you've lost and make a tribute page. You don't need to share if it doesn't feel right but think about just letting us know that you have.

I made these pages a long time ago about my grandfather who remains one of the most important male figures in my life - and he died 27 years ago. He is still missed every day. But I can look back on our time together and smile in a way that was difficult for me for many years. I still miss him every day but it's not such an aching pain. Even if I'm not such a fan of the style of these pages today, layouts I've made about him have proved good for me and have a special place in my albums.

Whichever way you see the inspiration this week, I'd love you to tell us where it took you. If you'd like you can share your layout with us over at the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#261 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group again with the tag WM#261.

Challenge #260 - week of 5th June 2017

Happy Monday and Happy June! Here's to another month full of sunshine, inspiration and hopefully, some creating too.

Last week I had the pleasure of spending some time in Spain and while I was there, I had a little time in Barcelona. Now I promise you that the trip to Barcelona was planned and booked first but imagine my overwhelming joy when I heard that a certain exhibition about a certain musical hero of mine that I'm still obsessing about was going to open on the day we arrived. Of course, I had to go online on the first morning of ticket sales to secure a ticket for myself for the first opportunity I could get there - early on the very next morning!

As you can imagine, it was fabulous and I'm still overcome with joy and sadness and hero worshipness - again.

So this week, I'd like you to be inspired by the poster for the exhibition.

The poster features just one of the many iconic images of this incredible man as his alter ego Aladin Sane, by Bowie photographer Duffy.

There are several ways you could take this inspiration and maybe I need to make a layout for each one! There's the lightening flash which could be incorporated into your design, or maybe just the colours. There's the layout design or the font - several to choose from. The exhibition originated from the V&A Museum in London and the current one is is Barcelona so a travel layout could make an appearance. The music direction is an obvious one as is the subject of the great man himself. Or perhaps, you'd like to take the "David Bowie is... " idea and adapt it to a subject of your own. The exhibition is a retrospective which gives a further option. See, I told you there were several!

Whichever way you see the inspiration this week, I'd love you to share and as always you can either upload your layout into the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#260 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group. We've decided that we'll save albums for special occasions so just load up your photo to the group with the tag WM#260 in the write up text so that we can find it.

Challenge #259 - week of 27nd May 2017

Well look at me and my three or four prompts in a row - on time even!

Welcome back to another week of inspiration. It's great to see you here and I hope you've been creating recently.

I try to change up the prompts from week to week, moving between more random inspiration to scrapbook specific and this week, I decided to pull out a technique prompt because I don't think we've done one for quite some time.

This week, I'd like you to be inspired by fussy cutting.

I'm not a big technique girl but once I'd got the hang of fussy cutting, I found that I loved it. This is definitely a way for me to use some of the more difficult, large patterned papers and it never takes as long as you think it's going to take. I go through phases where you find it on almost all my pages, but then I might go some months with nothing at all, until I remember it and off I go again. But I always love the result.

Here are just a few from over the years.

Use a tiny piece of fussy cut paper to embellish your page or make it a main feature. Get bold with that paper that you find hard to use and see if just a single cut out element can make it easier to scrap. Pick a word, a single flower or the whole sheet - it's never as difficult as you think.

Once you've fussied your way onto a scrapbook page, please share - you know how much I love that!

Remember that you can either upload your layout into the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#259 or you can post it in our Whimsical Musings Facebook group. We've decided that we'll save albums for special occasions so just load up your photo to the group with the tag WM#259 in the write up text so that we can find it.