Challenge #315 - week of 21st January 2019

Morning! I hope you're having a great start to the new week and I'm happy to report that we've had some simply wonderful winter weather round here - blue skies with a warming, bright sun and thick frost that stays all day! I think the ducks outside where we live are a little confused, as always, as to why the water is totally frozen over suddenly!

But I'm up and out early this week because I have a check up at the doctor's which gave me the idea for this week.

I'd like you to be inspired by checks.

Checking off items from a to-do list 

Checking progress on health and fitness goals

I can hear you scratching your head from here but let's think about how you could interpret this:

• doctor's check - this could include an update in a baby book through to a regular yearly routine that you'd like to record. It could be a funny anecdote, something that you'd been dreading that turned out fine or if you are recording a difficult story or journey, something from that timeline. 
• a check list - this might include any kind of list making such as Christmas lists, present lists, Monday to do lists, yearly goals and everything in between.
• quirks - we all have them and sometimes they include regular checks that you do at certain times or at regular intervals or before you do something else. Maybe you check that you turned off the iron five times before you leave the house, or like me, check that you have your passport with you every five minutes on the way to the airport.
• travel - travelling is full of checks. Packing lists, places to go, planning the trip with a guidebook, airport security checks, checking off the things you've done throughout the trip.
• household - part of running a household is having checks - mental or written down. Regular checks of equipments, supplies, things to do. Winter checks, summer checks. Clothing, cleaning, gardening, storage.
• paper supplies - I've seen many supplies which include check lists which could be interesting to  include on your project this week - paper, journalling cards and embellishments. Sometimes there are even full collections based on this style - Daily Grind from Simple Stories back in 2013 for example! Or how about a checked paper design - gingham, plaid, grid, geometric.
• general checks - I'm sure you can think of stories where something needed to be checked. Maybe even checked twice!

I hope you've got ideas churning and maybe that will turn into a page which I'd love to see!

You can connect with us in our Facebook group here. Tag your entry with #WMXX so we know exactly which inspiration you've taken.

Happy Monday everyone, let the games begin!

#73 - inspired by organization

It is ironic than on organization week I feel more disorganized than ever.

I guess that is how it works.

I had to really pull it together this week to bring you a layout and so I changed up the size, used only one photo and kept it super simple. But I got it done. If you have been struggling to kick start your creative year I suggest you give yourself a break and keep it simple until you find your groove again.

And here is my page.

and there you have it. I hope you found some time this week to get your Whimsical Musings layout checked off your to-do list. *wink*

xo,

Pamage

#70 Inspired by Lists - Guest Designer

This week we were lucky enough to have Tara Mesonides join us in designing for this challenge.

I will jump right into her fantastic layout and what she had to say about her process. I am sure you will enjoy it.

*****

My list....I have a bucket list at least a mile long. I love it! There are so many things I want to do, see, and accomplish. So, I will continue to make my list and check twice. In my 39th year...as I approach the big 40...I have some items that have moved to the top of my list.  In capturing them, I created this page and had so much fun doing so!

The This Is Me title was fun for me. I used sticker felt and cut out with stencils which is way out of my comfort zone. I enjoy using different papers in many of my layouts and this one is no different. The contrast of pink and blue was fun for me and kind of symbolic of my personality of being a very "outdoorsy" yet feminine person.

*****

Lisa and I both love this design and direction to take the prompt in. We can both appreciate Tara stepping out of her comfort zone to create something for her girls to get to know her better. I particularly love the girly yet outdoorsy elements. Well done, Tara.

This is probably something we will incorporate more of in the coming year, so look forward o seeing other guest designers featured on our blog.

Have a very Merry season.

xo,

Lisa & Pam

Challenge #70 week of 17th December 2012

Time is flying, the reindeer are warming up and this time next week, it will ALL be happening!

Especially where I am as Christmas Eve is the big day and therefore,  I get to have two big days which makes me happy. When I have time, I am a Christmas freak and love every single bit of it.

But as you know, we have slowed things down a bit here this month and are giving us all time to breathe but still engage in some creativity when time and energy allows. We hope you are enjoying the different pace here on WM and we aim to be back up to our usual brain stretching next month :-)

Now for something completely different.

This week's prompt is to be inspired by, "He's making a list, he's checking it twice..." Which is just one of my favourite songs for Christmas. I remember it from my childhood, the Phil Spector version, and whenever I hear the word "list", I say this phrase in my head (which can get embarrassing if I'm in a business meeting!)

It often makes its way onto Christmas cards:

But I've realised I don't make many layouts with lists and they are too easy a technique to miss out.

Pam makes a list every year of things to accomplish before her next birthday and I joined in last year. Ok, so I might have failed miserably and only managed half a dozen or so (am too ashamed to actually count up what I actually got to do right now!) but the principle is one I love. And one I intend to do again. And I have the excuse that my list is a LOT longer than Pam's and obviously, it gets longer every year.

And Pam has enchanted us with these over the months.

So what's so different about this prompt then, I hear you asking?!?

Well, we decided to ask one of our trusty WM friends to join us on this challenge and be our very first Guest Designer. We got our heads together, approached Tara and were thrilled when she agreed to play along with us this week. Tara is a more than regular contributor to our Flickr Gallery (here) and has gone back to older prompts and has delighted us with her interpretations of them again and again. It's lovely to see these previous subjects inspiring new layouts.

Let me allow Tara to give a short introduction:

Hello! My name is Tara Mensonides and I am thrilled to be the Guest Designer here at Whimsical Musings this week!  

I started scrapbooking after the birth of my first daughter 10 years ago. Then I stopped scrapbooking after the birth of my second and life was crazy. I started dabbling back into the scrapbooking world about a year ago and it was at that time that my dear friend Lynnette guided me towards the wonderful Whimsical Musings family.  Since joining, I have been motivated and inspired and am thrilled with all of the progress I've been making and the people I've had the chance to get to know through story telling and photos.

Tara made this layout for WM#44 - Thank Heavens For Little Girls

Tara has had a heads up on this week's prompt and now you REALLY have to tune in on Sunday to see how she has interpreted it. :-)

An extra incentive for you to come on over next Sunday (as if you need it!)! I know you will love where she took the prompt this week.

#61 Inspired by Adjectives

pages like these are so fun for me to make. I could make one for each of my friends and family members...

but I chose to make my subject someone that doesn't ge featured a lot in my scapbooks - my little cousin Francisco.

As the middle child, he hardly gets any attention and therefore has developed a knack for causing trouble. But it is that same knack that lends itself to his very defined personality.


I chose a favorite sketch from Simple Scrapper's Premium Membership and went to town with my alphas.  

I tried to choose colors that would make the colors on the layout pop. The touches of red were subtle but the choice of the two red alphas bring out this color on the page. I also chose to showcase these traits by making them red as they stand out more.

I kept my clusted on the top simple, but tried to incorporate all the colors on the layout for continuity. 

I didn't have a tag that matched, so i traced an existing tag unto the grey dot paper and cut it out.

How did you fare with your list of adjectives?

Until next week,
Pamage

#38 challenged by Mondays

Ok, so confession time.

Mondays make me feel like this  {click here for image source}-

 

Always have, since I was in school. 

Originally, that was the story I wanted to document... but as I thought more about it, I couldn't think of pictures to express that... so I sat on it.

Then it occurred to me that my current circumstances don't lend themselves to that feeling. And so the final result was inspired by the title and end scene of the movie "10 things I hate about you"

... in case you've never watched it, here is the link {10 things I hate about you end scene}

And here's my page -

design wise I kept it really simple. Didn't really need any pictures to tell my story. Just focused on the journaling, and in case it is hard to read, the list goes like this: 1.       Ends the “weekend” – for everybody else, 2.       Everything seems closed - favorite restaurants, hair salons…, 3.       Everyone is back at work and can’t hang out, 4.       I’m done with school, so no real reason to go into the city, 5.       It’s theaters day-off, so no plays, 6.       Commuters create traffic and busy streets, 7.       Most errands happen on this day, 8.       Usually no coffee although I don’t get to sleep in,  9.       Most office holidays happen on this day, 10.   But the truth is, I don’t hate this day, not even a little bit, not even at all. It is my third day off!

Thanks for playing along for another week. Can't wait to see what you all come up with in our flick'r gallery. Please remember to tag your layouts correctly as WM#38 for this challenge.

Oh, and ps: Happy Monday!

xo,

Pamage

#29 Inspired by Dr. Seuss

Well, I have to say that I have been blown away this week by the response from you, our readers. I have browsed our gallery and loved the projects you have come up with this week. They have exceeded my expectations of where I thought this inspiration could lead us... And as such I have been inspired to create as well.

I have to say I had to narrow down my choices of story. I really felt there was a lot of material I could explore with this. Ultimately the three stories I told feel real to me and go right along with my style and have a home in a albums.

I Do Not Like
This layout was inspired by "Green Eggs and Ham" - something I posted in the Discussion board on flick'r sparked this idea, since my name - Pam, rhymes with "Sam, I am" and "Ham". We often do pages about our faves, but I thought how fun it would be to also make one about our dislikes.

 I chose to use quirky whimsical shapes to replicate the Seussical feeling. And I added other little lines from the book to reinforce it.

 The stamped flowers were from a technique I picked up this week from Studio Calico Blog {here} of embossing an image and then coloring it in with markers.

 Oh The Places*
This layout was born of a strong memory I have attached to this book and the boy in this picture. I had never told this story and I really wanted to remember it. I recently received a care package from him {don't you love snail mail...?} So I thought it was perfect to document him/us/this memory while the feelings were fresh on my mind.

 I tried to use color, shapes and patterns that resonated with the theme of going places. The book is filled with graphics of flowing mountains and these travel papers were perfect for it. I started with the bottom paper and then worked myself up from there choosing coordinating papers.

 I have been focusing less on embellishments these days, so it was hard for me to come up with something to add to this corner, but I found a little flair button with a seuss-like creature and the ever present butterfly and buttons to round things off.

 A&P
Not a lot of journaling on this one. it doesn't need it. This one is all about fun. In looking for quotes to use, I found the one below and immediately I knew which pictures to use. This friend brings out the child in me. The layout I featured on the Challenge post was also about her. She is like a big child and when I am with her, I am too. This quote was perfect for us.

 Again I used colors that reminded me of the books and with the quirky stamped letters mixed in with my handwriting, I think I achieve the playful and whimsical look of a children's book. Simple page under 20 minutes straight out of my scrap bin. Just the way I like things.

Thank you so so much for playing along this week. If you haven't already, please upload your Seussical creation to our gallery with the tag WM#29. {which is coincidentally my favorite number}.

Have another great week and see you soon on the message boards.

xo,
Pamage

#18 inspired by the details of Christmas

Well, Lisa has done it again. She has inspired me to create another overlooked story. I take lots of pictures at every family event, but here's a little secret about me - I don't actually like themed products and I rarely use/own any. I also quickly get bored with telling the same story over and over. But then Lisa asked us to take a look at the details that make this season special [here].

So I looked through my pictures and found the ones I took last year which I still haven't gotten around to scrapping them. And I looked closely at all the reasons why those pictures make me smile. And a page was born.

 A short word about the tags - I was dying to use my Ormulu tags which came in my Studio Calico December  Kit - Brooklyn Flea. I am not one to endorse vendors often, but I simply cannot get enough of my Studio Calico kits and all the wonderful trinkets they find. I am so glad they introduced me to Ormolu's tags. I am in love. {I am no way affiliated with Ormolu or Studio Calico, but I am a big fan of their products}.

And a quick note about theme product {from my soap box} - guess what? You don't need it! Like I said, I don't have any. But by scrounging through my overflowing stash I was able to find items that would fit the theme either through their color or their shape: buttons, red/green papers, bling, felt, silver pen. And it works! So if you're like me and don't own the entire My Mind's Eye Merry Days of Christmas line {as gorgeous as it may be} you can still create pretty Holiday pages. Get a little creative.

So, I hope you were able to take some time this week from your busy Holiday preparations to play with some paper, glue and baubles. If you did, I look forward to seeing your creations added to our flick'r gallery with the tag WM#18. I am looking forward to seeing what Lisa creates.

And remember to check this space next Monday for a new challenge from yours truly. Now, get back to enjoying those details that make this season so special.

xo,
Pamage

#10 Inspired by Fall

Lisa's challenge was to be inspired by fall... except right up until this year I wasn't really crazy about fall. So I decided to take her prompt seriously and ponder on the things I do like about fall and came up with this layout.

I just made a list of all the things I love, of course an off-numbered list. I also challenged myself beyond the theme to  honor Lisa - and include a "cluster" or my version of one. I was inspired by the look of leaves collecting almost everywhere around here.

I hand-cut some leaves from fabric scraps and felt. Then I added a few buttons and presto.

But you know me, I need my white space. I chose this Amy Tangerine paper for the background because it reminded me of fall, but every time I use a patterned paper background I feel overwhelmed. So I misted some white to try and recover some of the balance. The final result, with the leaves peeking through actually worked out quite well.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you guys can find ways to be inspired by fall.

xo,
Pamage

#7 Inspired by Stacy Julian

I just loved this challenge and was excited to play with this page. I stumbled upon this photo of my best friend and I ... so instead of making it about someone I love, I made it about the things I love about us.

I cheated a little and used more than 9 words, but I relied on that 9 item list to convey the story. Choosing the products was the most fun because I just picked up unrelated items that I loved and pieced them all together. And for the techniques, I kept it to ones I usually use. Didn't try anything new here. Didn't re-invent the wheel. What I did do was have a lot of fun making a page I feel expressed exactly who we are.

xo,
Pamage