October Afternoon

Trick-Or-Treat!

Hello everyone and Happy Halloween!  I'm here today with my last guest post for the OA blog.  I'm sharing a layout I created using a few photos of my daughter dressed up in her Halloween costume and a small decorative Halloween banner that I created using the Public Library and Apple Cider collections. 

I used a Photoshop template I had on my computer and placed three photos on one 4x6 sized piece of photo paper.  If you don't have Photoshop or Photoshop templates, you could easily re-create this look using a circle punch or by cutting your photos out in circles (or any other shape you want!). 

I added some punched stars directly onto the 4x6 photo and around my page using patterned paper from the Apple Cider collection.  I also used the negative paper from the punched stars on my layout and flipped the patterned paper over to the opposite side for some color contrast.  

I journaled on a small label sticker and placed it underneath the "Trick Or Treat" square.  I finished my page off with a few brown mist splatters and a litte machine stitching for a homespun feel.  

Next, I have a small decorative Halloween banner that I created using the Public Library and Apple Cider collections. 

I didn't decorate for Halloween this year, but I wanted to create a small banner I could hang on my mantel shelf in our living room.  I adore the 12x12 sheet of alpha stickers from the Public Library collection, so I used them to spell out the word "spooky" for my banner.  

I layered the alpha stickers on top of a few banners and pennants I cut out from some Apple Cider patterned paper.  

I embellished some of the letters with Pop Drops and my Tiny Attacher staples and after I was done embellishing, I punched tiny holes in the pennants and strung them up on some baker's twine I had on hand. 

It's small, but the banner is the perfect addition to my mantel shelf! 

I want to thank all of you for following me this month here on the OA blog and for all of your kind words and comments on my posts.  It's been a true pleasure and I have really enjoyed working with October Afternoon's amazing products and sharing them with you!  I hope I've given you a little inspiration and some creative ideas that you can incorporate into your own projects and layouts. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a very happy Halloween! 

 

 

***ETA: Hasn't Adrienne done a fabulous job this month as guest?!!

Her designs and inspiration here have been amazing! Please be sure to leave Adrienne a little love in the comment section below and if you haven't been following along this month on Fridays, be sure to take a look back at her earlier posts here on the blog! I guarantee, you will want to get your scrap on!

 

Thursday Sketch

Hi everyone! Alex here today with this week's sketch challenge.

I prefer to make my sketches in the Silhouette Studio. I often use existing cut files in my designs which is pretty handy. In today's sketch, I have used the Love Arrows shape designed by Karla Dudley.

And here is how my layout turned out.

I have used the lovely Daily Flash Snapshots collection: Focus and Aperture patterned papers, one of the papers from the 6x8 paper pack and Flash Blurbs. I wanted to make my photos pop out of the layout, so I used 3D dots to stick them down with.

I added a few pink buttons from the Midway collection, an Eggnog Pop Drop heart and yellow Dandelions alphas. 

I sent my sketch to my dear friend Suz, knowing that she would amaze me. She always does. Here is her beautiful layout.

 

 

 

Suz says:

I stacked my photo and journaling card as depicted in Alex's sketch (one above the other) and the large acorn and sentiment as the title work. Instead of the heart, I added the small tag with the Pillow Puff acorn on it. Then I embellished and stitched away! My favorite part? Making the falling leaves from the B side of the Hayride patterned paper from the Daily Flash Apple Cider collection, sewing them down, and leaving some of the thread to dangle down like the falling leaves' paths to the ground!

  

Suz's lovely layout is made using the Daily Flash Apple Cider collection: Pillow Puffs, Squirrel washi tape, Hayride patterned paper (both A & B sides) and Snap Caps. She also added some cute Travel Girl buttons. 

I hope you guys feel inspired to play along with this sketch. If you do, be sure to share it with us! Tag us on Instagram @octoberafternoon and use the hashtag #oasketchday, share it on our Facebook wall or upload it to our Flickr gallery! We love seeing your work! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Workspace Wednesday | Roree Rumph

Hi everyone! Roree here with this week's Workspace Wednesday post.

For today's post, I thought I would share with you where I photograph my projects. My scrapbook room is in the formal dining room of my house. We are not really "formal" people and we have a breakfast room off of our kitchen where we eat, so the room would go unused if I didn't take it over for my scrap space. Besides, I really like have a separate space for my craft room but being close enough that I can still be a part of what is going on.

Having my room in this area of the house means that I have a large picture window in my workspace that is perfect for taking pictures. I get a lot of indirect sunlight in the late morning and afternoon, which is when I normally take my pictures. For those pictures, I use a Nikon D40 camera with a Nikon AF-S Nikkor 18-200mm lens.

I can just swing my chair around when I am finished with my project and take a photo on my little sewing table that normally houses my Cricut machine. (I moved it, along with a BUNCH of other things, for today's post. It is a catch-all for everything!)

I get really good light coming in at this angle. Here is a project picture with the photo untouched:

After that, I use Photoshop Elements to crop and lighten & brighten my photos. That is where the real magic happens. Here is my project after being touched up:

So where do you take pictures of your projects? Is there a special spot in your home that catches the light just right? Do you use a light box or something else altogether? We want to know! Just use hashtag #oaworkspacewednesday to share your space with us.

Tuesday Inspiration : Typographic Poster

Hey everyone! I'm back with another inspiration piece, this time I have the talented and fun Ginny Hughes joining me!

(source)

I personally 'pin' a lot of typographic posters because I think they're just beautiful. I want to buy prints of them and have them around my house, if possible. Not only that, most of them are good jumping off points for layouts too. 

This is Ginny's interpretation of the poster 

Ginny said :

"When I first saw the inspiration piece that Sasha chose for today the big number 2 was what really caught my attention, so that it the direction that I took my layout. I had taken a photo of a school project my son had done about his family and I really thought the idea of the numbers running up the side of the photo was a cute idea. I know that I can’t keep every piece of memorabilia from my kids school days, but I think this is a fun way to keep some of their artwork!" 

Here's my take on the above poster

I concentrated my design on the lower right hand side, just like the poster. I used a mixture of Daily Flash Apple Cider and Public Library for this layout. Those Snap Caps and Flash Blurbs are really really fun! I like how I'm able to add lots of layers onto the layout without actually having to deal with bulk later on when it's time to slip this one into the album :)

I finished the layout with title made with Daily Flash Nightfall alphas, some stamping (how cute are the 'instagrammed' stamped word!) and machine stitching. 

Share what you make with us in the OA Flickr Gallery.  You can also share with us on Instagram. Use the hashtag #octoberafternoon and tag me @sashafarina as I'd love to see your take on this piece of inspiration.

 

Monday Challenge: DIY Halloween theme

Hello Everyone! :)

It's Laura here today with a new challenge for you, and that is to create something "Halloweenish" from supplies that were not originally intended to be so.  This all started when I was looking at my Public Library label stickers and saw the big orange one and thought to myself if I added a face I could probably make it a cute jack-o-lantern.  So that's what I did, and it is the focal point of my card. 

I used a sharpie marker to draw on the eyes and nose, and then I cut the smile out of black cardstock and glued it on.  I could have just used a marker but I didn't want to ruin the sticker if I made a mistake.  Then I just added a brown stem, and curled some white floral wire and colored it green.

The rest of the card uses Daily Flash letter stickers in Halloween colors, and I pulled out the actual Halloween line, Witch Hazel, and used it to create a little scene around my label sticker pumpkin.

For a little bit of added fun I pulled out some black glitter glue and coated the pumpkin's face, and the bat stickers.

I also have the amazingly talented Roree playing along with me, and she made an amazing jack-o-lantern card from the 9 to 5 line. I think it's just adorable and I know you will too!

Here's what she had to say:

I loved Laura's idea for using non-Halloween theme products for a Halloween theme project. I definitely tend to buy more product that I can use for multiple occasions than not. I went searching through my OA products and thought that the 9 to 5 collection would work well for just such a challenge. I created my pumpkin using Boardroom, Girl Friday, Meeting Minutes, and Steno Pad patterned papers. Instead of going with a classic black for the Jack-o-Lantern look, I opted to use the Boardroom wood-grain pattern. I then added some orange stitching on the Meeting Minutes layer to give it some texture and finished it by adding a Flower Sack die cut sentiment and a couple of buttons from the collection. I did fudge a little by adding a sentiment sticker from the Witch Hazel collection. But all-in-all, I think I came pretty close to meeting Laura's challenge.

Thanks so much for stopping by today, I hope you are inspired to turn some of your other supplies into Halloween fun!  Please share your projects on our Flickr group, and use the hashtag #octoberafternoon on other social media platforms so we can see all your awesome designs!

Have a great day!

OA Saturday Shares | Box Tops For Education Collection Container

Hello everyone! Happy Saturday!

Suz back today to share a little project I made for my youngest's school; a Box Tops For Education collection container. This was a simple little project and would be a great project to have your little one/s help you with!

I started by using a repurposed protein powder container that I had on hand. With a heavy duty craft knife, I cut a small opening (for the box tops to be slipped into the container) into the lid of the container. Next, I stripped off the product label and the began trimming papers to fit. I used the Daily Flash Milk Money Collection almost exclusively for this project. I placed the Daily Flash Milk Money Penmanship washi on some white cardstock and trimmed to run aroung the sides of the lid. Then I added strips of the numbered washi tape from Cakewalk to the top, trimming such that the opening was not covered up. I used a hot glue gun to adhere everything except for the Daily Flash Flash Bulbs, which I adhered with Glue Dots to the top of the lid.

Here is an image of the lid "in progress". I added more strips of washi tape to completely cover the top of the lid minus the opening as you can see in the top photo.  Quick and simple project that can be made in short order!

 

Have you been creating with OA today? This week? Share your creations on Instagram with the hashtag: #oasaturdayshares. We would love to see what you have been creating with October Afternoon products!

 

 

 

Four Cards and A Creative Space

Hello everyone!  It's Adrienne back again this Friday to share a few fall inspired cards I created using the Public Library and Apple Cider collections.  I also have some some photos to share of my creative space and a peek at how I organize all of my October Afternoon goodies! 

 I love making cards using the smaller scraps I've collected after I've worked with a collection.  The smaller pieces make it quick and easy to create coordinating cards and helps use up leftover scraps.  

I mixed embellishments and stickers from the Apple Cider collection with some patterned paper from the Public Library collection to create these cards. 

The Apple Cider Memory Cards are the perfect size for using on a card.  I used a few of the square and rectangle Memory Cards and placed scraps of patterned paper from the Public Library collection behind them.  I embellished on top of the Memory Cards using some Pillow Puffs, Pop Drops, and Stickers from the Apple Cider collection. 

For this next card, I ran a piece of patterned paper from the Public Library collection through my die cutting machine and cut out leaves.  I layered the leaves on top of a piece of cream card stock and stitched through them using my sewing machine.  Then I added a button and some ink splatters to finish it off.

I like to mix styles and trends on cards so I can have a wide variety to choose from when I need one for an occasion. 

Here's a peek into my craft space to see how I organize my OA supplies.  I like to keep my set up fairly simple.  When I'm guest designing for a specific company, manufacturer, or kit club I like to keep all of the items I'm sent together and in plain view behind my craft table. 

I use this wire organizer to hold all of the embellishments and smaller packaged ephemera, stickers, and alphas from a collection.  I like how the organizer descends down so I can place the taller items in the back and the smaller bits in the front, which makes it easier to see most of the items.  

I keep all of my patterned papers, stamps, and larger sticker sheets in acrylic shelves like these...

If I need more storage to house my finished projects, I just add a few more of these stackable shelves on top of each other and I'm set. 

As I said above, I like to keep the items I'm working with in plain sight so these organizers and containers are perfect for my style of organizing.  

I'm very, very lucky that I have a whole room in our house to devote to crafting.  Last year, I moved my craft room to the main level of our home from the basement which has made all the difference! 

Thanks for joining me today.  I hope you have a wonderful weekend and I'll be back next Friday for my last guest post here at OA.  

Happy weekend everyone!

Thursday Sketch

Hey everyone! Roree here with today's Thursday Sketch Challenge.

I created this sketch while playing around in Photoshop:

I started with a square layout and kept it fairly simple to leave it more open to interpretation.

Here is the card I created using the sketch:

I stayed pretty true to the sketch and used lots of Daily Flash products, primarily the Snapshots and Girl Talk mini collections.

I used patterned paper, Snap Caps, and stitching to replace the strips in the sketch and layered the Partly Cloudy chipboard clouds and a patterned paper sun in place of the photo squares in the sketch.

For the sentiment, I searched way back in my stash and found some great letter stickers from the Campfire collection, Dandelions "Story Book" alphas, and a puffy heart from from Apple Cider Pop Drops.

Mel Blackburn played along with my sketch this week, and here is the amazing layout she created and what she had to say about it:

“I’m so excited to be here today, contributing to Roree’s amazing sketch! I really enjoyed the versatility of the sketch. My initial thought was to figure out how to incorporate the strips of papers underneath the pictures. My idea was to use the Public Library border stickers, but I decided that I need to add a bit more bulk and dimension to my page. I therefore cut strips of pattern paper on an angle, letting the angle of the strips of paper really bring emphasis on the picture. Afterwards I added stitching for more dimension and proceeded to raise the edges of the paper. Of course I finished the design with brads and other small embellishments. To create this layout I used the following supplies: Public Library Collection, Egg Nog Pop Drops, Daily Flash Picture This Stamp Set, Daily Flash Photo Booth Chipboard.”

I hope you enjoyed today's sketch and the samples Mel and I created using it. If you get a chance to play along, don't forget to post your project in the OA Flickr group.  We can't wait to see how you interpret it.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Workspace Wednesday with Shanna Noel

Happy Wednesday! I am so excited to be back here with you today! Last time I was on for Workspace Wednesday I shared where I keep my October Afternoon goodies, today I wanted to share a different storage option I am loving in my craft space! 

 

 

I love these old pepsi crates (and don't tell the others this but THIS yellow one is my fave!!) they are perfect for an open storage solution that is just SO much fun to look at. When I decided to use this in my craft space I took out the dividers (they just slipped right out) so it provided for more storage options. 

 

Then I slipped three cigar boxes in the crate (my husband picks them up for free at a local shop) they just make great little containers for soemthing like this! I used the back space (that didn't have containers) to put all my alphas in. I love that they all fit perfectly (I also use this as a guage for when it is time to purge) and they are super easy to flip through. 

Then I used the three boxes to store all my roller date and design stamps. These don't fit in my traditional stamp storage options so they needed their own home and let's face it, they look adorable peeking out of this box!! The October Afternoon decade stamps are perfect to have on hand for some of the vintage projects I am working on! 

 

I hope you are having fun in your workspace on this beautiful Wednesday. Share on instagram #OAWorkspace and I will make sure to leave you some love!!! 

 

xox

Shanna

 

 

Tuesday Inspiration : Inspired by Stitched Lines

Happy Tuesday everyone! How is your week coming along? Nicely I hope. Today, I have the honor of hosting the blog, together with my talented friend, Alex.

I was browsing Flickr the other day and I found this! ↓ At that very moment, I was so inspired that I started to work on my layout straight away. 

Here's my take on it

I decided to use that beautiful map patterned paper (Daily Flash Milk Money - Social Studies) as the main element on my layout. I wanted to mimic the wavy stitched lines of the inspiration piece and did just that, with the help of my Silhouette Cameo and a cut file. I layered a piece of chipboard from To The Point Flash Chip set on a circle label, added a heart sticker and a stamped tab, all adding pops of red across the layout. 

Here's a close up. You can see that I machine stitched some of the wavy pieces onto the white background. Beside being inspired by the stitching in the inspiration piece, I also love stitching down stuff on my layout because then you'll know they're not going anywhere. Stitching is a great way to adhere bits and pieces to your layouts.

And here's Alex's interpretation of this week's inspiration ↓

Alex said : 

"Okay, I have to admit one thing: sewing machines freak me out! I have one and I so wish I knew how to use it, but it scares me so much I've never even touched it! Despite that, the inspiration piece Sasha sent me instantly got the ideas spinning in my head. I interpreted messy stitches as strips and start cutting some white cardstock. I placed the strips on top of the Library Card paper from the 8x8 Public Library paper pad going for that messy look, and voilà - easy as that I had my background done. I have also used bits and pieces from the Public Library miscellany pack, a tin pin and a tidbit. Besides Public Library, I added a flash blurb from the Daily Flash Snapshots collection and a tiny little Eggnog pop drop heart. Gotta love how easy it is to mix and match among all OA collections ♥ 

Sasha, thank you so much for this fun challenge! I had a blast playing with it!" 

 

I am absolutely in love with Alex's layout, you have no idea! I might have to create another layout based on this piece now. We'll see if I can make that happen. :)

I hope we've inspired you enough that you're running to your scraproom to start a layout now! :D Share what you make with us in the OA Flickr Gallery.  You can also share with us on Instagram. Use the hashtag #octoberafternoon and tag me @sashafarina as I'd love to see how this piece inspired you!