#327 - be inspired by water

Alongside the restart of new prompts and inspiration here on Whimsical Musings, I've realised I have a bunch of layouts to share that I've made to fit multiple prompts and design teams. So as well as trying to make up pages from the current prompts, I'd like to share those on a regular basis. I've scheduled them here on Wednesdays for the next few weeks so I hope you'll also feel free to share any layouts you make for any of the WM prompts. Sometimes an older prompt speaks to you directly and I say, go for it! There's no such thing as being behind on challenges here - any prompt and layout is good to go.

Here is my first to share today.

It's a layout for WM#327 - be inspired by water.

I made this page for my Creative Team over at the wonderful Simple Scrapper using a sketch from a few months ago as well as a Story Starter™ for the current month. Simple Scrapper offers a premium subscription membership where you can find hundreds of sketches and Story Starters™ as well as many further resources inspiring you to create beautiful pages and tell meaningful stories in a supportive, communicative community environment. You can find out more information here.

My story was inspired by a water based prompt and as I was thinking of what story to tell, my eye fell on this classic 1986 photo from my time living in the South of France. I can almost feel the wind in my hair and the memories came flooding back. A great water-based story.

The sketch I used was simple with just a few tags sticking out from behind the photo. I know you know me well enough now that I needed a couple of layers at least, so I headed to my scrap box and grabbed a couple of pieces that provided good contrast between the photo and the wonderful October Afternoon sunburst paper that I've been saving for that "special" page.

The sketch called for journalling along the sunburst lines which was perfect as I knew that I had quite a lot of story to tell. In fact, this time around, once I'd identified the photo I wanted, I spent about 30 minutes recalling the details of this day/weekend and wrote it all down. I then knew that I needed a sketch with a bunch of space for a lot of journaling but that I only wanted to use a single photo. This helped me narrow down the sketch to select. The sunburst paper was integral to the sketch and it all fell in place. I keep a section in my paper storage just for sunburst papers so it was easy to find a suitable pattern. Unfortunately, I only have one of this design - I'm sure I could use it a dozen times for different pages!

Minimal embellishments were needed so I added stitching detail to give it a little more dimension. interest and texture.

And there you have it. Simple and easy to pull together. This took me very little time and makes me happy. When I looked through my albums for this part of my life, I realised that I've only told one or two stories so far which makes this all the better. What stories have you been holding off telling? Just imagine all those pool, lake or ocean-based memories needing a place in your albums. Is this the week to tell one of those?

As always, I love it when you share too and if you've been inspired to create, don't forget that you can add your own creations to our Facebook group here. Please don't be shy! Tag your entry with #WMXX so we know exactly which inspiration you've taken. 

Or simply tell us in the comments where to find you... :-)

** This post includes promotion for Simple Scrapper's premium subscription membership for which I am on the Creative Team.

Challenge #319 - week of 18th February 2019

I don't know about you but I love love love looking through the photos on my phone when I have a few minutes to kill. Having those memories right there in your hand when you're in the mood is one of the best inventions ever! And of course, there are Apps that support that desire to look back in time while you're standing in queue at the supermarket. One of my favourites is "Timehop" which reminds you of photos you have in your photo stream or on social media in previous years.

Last week I had just such a reminder - one of my favourite ever photos of my beautiful niece from 6 years ago popped up and I realised that I had a brand new one of her that I could match up with it for a "Then & Now" shot. Now that makes me happy

So this week, I'd like you to be inspired by then and now.

How you could take the prompt this week:

• a then and now composite photo such as the one I've posted above using an App or make your own collage to use on your layout.
• just take two photos and bring them together in a then and now concept on your page - like we did before reminder and photo collage apps ;-) 
• take a now and then story and compete two times - technology or growth are typical topics for these types of pages.
• Compare your own story at a point in the past with that of a child of the same age today - it's the same principle but a different comparison point of view.
• make a photo or a story heavy page with your comparison.
• My Mind's Eye had a collection line called "Now & Then" which you might have in your stash - this could be the time to use it up (heading over to my own MME supplies to see!) and I noticed that there were several digital kits featured online when I entered the search criteria "then and now"
• how about combining old and new products to give the prompt a different twist. 

I hope you'll give this prompt a try and find ways to look at "then and now". It would be great to see what you make.  You can connect with us in our Facebook group here. Tag your entry with #WMXX so we know exactly which inspiration you've taken.

Have a great day everyone!

Challenge #298 - week of 30th July 2018

This week's prompt was brought to my attention by our Whimsical Musings friend, Leslie (find her blog here).

I have to admit that I often just skim through Instagram and probably wouldn't have noticed this photo and especially the text below it. I find the photo itself terribly inspirational but the quote is so perfect. Especially for us as memory keepers and tellers of our stories. I always find myself justifying why I scrap so many layouts about myself with: "If I don't, then who?" I am part of a bigger story. My current will be the history of the future. I am what my history has made me. I can see my own history in that of those around me. It's all so intertwined and I'm so grateful to Leslie for highlighting this so that I didn't miss it!

Source: screenshot of Crate Paper on Instagram

Therefore, I'd like you to be inspired by history.

I don't think I need to tell you that there are a million and one ways to take this prompt - one of your own stories, your direct family, your ancestors. Your love of history, learning, historical fiction. Be inspired by this beautiful photo, the colours, the layout or the tree die cut.

I hope you can find somewhere to take this this week and that you'll share! You can do that in our Facebook group here. Tag your entry with #WMXX so we know exactly which inspiration you've taken. 

Or simply tell us in the comments where to find you... :-)

Challenge #277 - week of 29th January 2017

It's like I blink and it's Monday again. And Mondays seem so busy and I'm behind on my prompts! But I'm getting there. I have a couple of layouts from the last prompts in the making and LOAD is starting at the end of the week so that's a good thing. I'll be joining in from 5th but that is still lots of potential pages!

Anyway, this week marks my granny's 96th birthday (! wow !) and I feel like we should link that in to this week's prompt.

So, this week I'd like you to be inspired by the older generation.

Whenever I go home to the UK, I make sure that no matter how busy my schedule is, there's always half an hour free to go and visit my granny. She's in good health even though she's so tiny and frail these days. We sit together, have a cup of tea, take a photo together and just chat. She likes to hear all my news about life in Germany and particularly loves to hear about my DH who she simply adores. It's a special connection that we haven't always had and I'm making the most of it while I can.

I'm sure that you have an older person in your life, your family or maybe even your past who needs to be captured on your pages. Maybe one of those "just because" layouts with no particular story to tell - just a treasured photo. If there is a story, all the better. Interview them and capture some details that you haven't before or recall a story that they always used to tell you when you were young. Perhaps there's a list of stories you'd like to know that you could record on a page. A vintage photo that you've found about which you know nothing except who it is.

The first of my two example pages features the birthday girl herself and is a page I made to record our most recent time together. The second layout features a very special vase given to us by my German Oma who is no longer with us. Even though she's not directly featured on the page, it gives some insight into the type of person she was.

If you're inspired to create this week, don't forget that you can add your own creations to our Facebook group here - we love it when you share so please don't be shy! Tag your entry with #WMXX so we know exactly which inspiration you've taken. 

Or simply tell us in the comments where to find you... :-)

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Challenge #256 - week of 9th May 2017

The world is in voting fever right now. Or so it seems. And while this blog is not the place to talk about politics, I'm more interested in the results around me than ever before.

Alongside Brexit last summer, the US in November, and my adopted home country of Germany's General Election for Chancellor this coming September, we also have a Federal State election here in North-Rhine Westphalia next Sunday. And today, France went to the polls to elect Emmanuel Macron as their new, and youngest ever, President of France. It was a monumental election as were each of the others I mentioned. I'm sure there are many more happening around us right now but these are the ones that seem to mean the most to me for one reason or another.

As always, today's result got me thinking about the changes that may come but also about the national motto of France that I'm sure you're all familiar with and a prompt was born.

For this week's prompt I'd like you to be inspired by "Liberté, égalité, fraternité".

France used to be where I thought I would end up living. I used to be able to speak fluent French. The French culture is all its own and one that I loved. The land itself is beautiful and Paris is a dream. So there's always been a connection for me with the country and maybe that's the direction I will take my project this week. You might have been to France, learnt French or even have a thing for vintage French black and white art films you'd like to record.

But maybe I'd like to think a little deeper and consider the meanings of the infamous motto of freedom, equality and fraternity. If you'd like to find out a little more about the motto and its origins, head over to Wikipedia here. We've tackled some of the more serious prompts such as civil rights (WM#119 here) or even woman power (WM#199 here) before but this might be a time to really go deep about what these mainstays of society mean to you.

But whether you go light or deep, join me in a little je ne sais quoi this week and get creative with your projects.

We'd love you to use this prompt and hope you will share your creations - there are now two ways to do this!

You can either upload your layout into the Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery with the tag WM#256 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#256 in the write up text so that we can find it.

I headed over to Flickr today and found a bunch of layouts there that I'd missed - I'm so sorry for that. I had assumed that most of you joined us on Facebook but now that I know you're still there, I'll check it out more often!

And many thanks for your sweet comments about continuing the blog. I want to. Really I do. And I will continue as long as I can. But it makes me sad that somehow I don't even get around to making my own prompts. And I know that I've said this sort of thing on a regular basis over the last couple of years. Let's see how we get on ongoing and I will make more of an effort!