Lily Bee Finds

Project Life on Friday | Fun In The Sun

Happy Friday, Lily Bee fans!  Christine here with you today to show you some recent Project Life pages I made using all the awesome Lily Bee collections.

I don't do week numbers in my Project Life album, mainly because I'm not doing weekly Project Life.  Also because I don't want to stick to a 2-page spread per week every single time. 

For this spread, I decided to give it a "Fun In The Sun" title, because it was all about hanging out outside with friends!

 I used a lot of Lily Bee label stickers, chit chat stickers, and circle & tag stickers on my page.  I love adding a circle sticker to a photo, and the label stickers are perfect for Project Life!

 

On the left, I used a background stamp on the 3x4 white card, then adhered some Lily Bee Chit Chat Stickers in the middle.  On the right, I used a label sticker and some letter stickers to make my title on my journal card.

 

The right side of my 2-page spread was about our dinner out, plus watching bicycle races at the velodrome with friends.

Supplies:  Pinwheel Collection (6x6 Tiny Tablet, Letter Stickers, Label Stickers, Chit Chat Stickers, Circle & Tag Stickers), Sweet Shoppe Collection (Marshmellow paper, Pink Mint paper, Salt Water Taffy paper, Candy Stick paper, Strawberries & Cream paper, Letter Stickers, Chit Chat Stickers, Circle & Tag Stickers), Destination Collection (Atlas paper), Victoria Park Collection (ABC Stickers)

I wrote my journaling about our dinner right on top of a card that I got from the restaurant.  I adhered it to the Lily Bee paper underneath in the 4x6 slot.

 

I hope you enjoyed a look into my Project Life pages using wonderful and colorful Lily Bee products!  Have a great weekend!

Cards on Wednesday | Repetition

Hello Lily Bee Fans! Today, my friend and the talented Becky Williams and I are stopping by the blog to share a few quick cards with the theme of "Repetition" in mind.

Becky and I have two completely different takes on this theme.

Here is what Becky had to say about this theme:

There are so many ways that you could interpret the theme "repetition." I chose to do so with the shapes on my cards. Triangles are such a big trend in scrapbooking these days so I decided to jump on the bandwagon and use some on this first card. 

Take a look at what Becky came up with:

Supplies: Pinwheel (6x6 Tiny Tablet, Label Stickers, Chipboard Stickers, Embellishment Bundle), Sweet Shoppe (Embellishment Bundle). 

 I used some metal dies to cut the triangles in the front of the card base and backed each one with papers from the Pinwheel collection. I continued the repetition of shapes by adding a few circle accents. 

Butterflies are one of my favorite shapes so I chose to feature them on this card. I used multiple punched butterflies (Fiskars) as well as creating a border of sentiment and heart stickers to continue the "repetition" theme. 

Supplies: Sweet Shoppe (6x6 Tiny Tablet, Chit Chat Stickers), Pinwheel (6x6 Tiny Tablet), Destination (Embellshment Bundle, 6x6 Tiny Tablet). 

I took this challenge a little differently and decided to put my papers to work. I chose the same patterns from the three newest Lily Bee collections and mixed them each on different cards.

I cut papers from the Sweet Shoppe and Pinwheel collections into triangles for this card, and used a repetitive pattern when laying them on the card base.

Supplies: Sweet Shoppe (Tiny Tablet, Chipboard Stickers), Pinwheel (Tiny Tablet, Letter Stickers, Label Stickers)

I added some fun Lily Bee chipboard flowers near my sentiment.

Next, I made this card by combining Destination, along with the Pinwheel collection.

Supplies: Destination (Tiny Tablet, Embellishment Bundle), Pinwheel (Tiny Tablet), Persnickety (Clear Stamps)

To create the background of this card, I took the similar patterns and punched them with a tab punch and then layered the papers over each other. 

 My last card was created by mixing the mini chevron patterns in Pinwheel and Sweet Shoppe.

Supplies: Pinwheel (Tiny Tablet, Circle & Tag Stickers, Label Stickers, Letter Stickers), Sweet Shoppe (Tiny Tablet, Chipboard Stickers)

For this last card, I simpy cut blocks of paper the same size and layered them over the card base and stitching them down. I added a chipboard banner piece and label sticker along with my sentiment!

Becky and I hope you have enjoyed the cards today - we hope you will share your "Repetition" ideas with us in our Lily Bee Flickr group!

Challenge on Tuesday | Layout Sketch

Hello Lily Bee Fans, Cindy and Patricia here with another fun sketch challenge to inspire your creativity.

Patricia's "Mom is Gonna Snap" layout was inspired by the circles elements within the sketch with lots of details displayed throughout her overall page design. I love how she interpreted the sketch and uses layers of subtle patterns and colors in her background, which allow for her embellishments to pop.

Supplies: Sweet Shoppe (6x6 Tiny Tablet, Chit Chat Stickers, Gumball Paper, Candy Stick Paper, Embellishment Bundle, Label Stickers, Circle and Tag Stickers), Pinwheel (Kite Strings Paper, Embellishment Bundle, Chipboard Stickers, Letter Stickers, Circle and Tag Stickers), Destination (Label Stickers, Chipboard Stickers)

"I love circles in designs, so when I saw Cindy’s sketch, I started thinking of how I wanted to use the circles. I came across this camera shutter in the Silhouette shop, tweaked it by adding “snap” all the way around it."

"With the theme of the layout now set, I picked out my favorite photo I took of myself in the visor of our car. I filled in the spots of the shutter with papers from the 6x6 tiny tablet, layered the title onto stickers, and used several larger sheets of pattern paper to layer under the smaller cardstock sheet."

 "My layout did not come out like the sketch at all, but it was very much inspired by it, but I still incorporated lots of circle elements with the stickers, chipboard, buttons, and brad."

 

I stuck close to the sketch design when creating my "Lollipop" layout and used photos that went along with the circle theme.

Supplies: Sweet Shoppe(Licorice Whip, 6x6 Tiny Table, Embellishment Bundle, Letter Stickers, Label Stickers, Circles & Tags and Chipboard Stickers) Pinwheel(Embellishment Bundle and Cirlces & Tags) Destination(Port)

When I came across these images of my son when he was around five years old, I knew it would fit not only with the sketch but also with the Sweet Shoppe collection perfectly. I love how the deep pink color of the lollipop added extra color to the stark white background.

I wanted my page to have a lots of texture, so I shaved the edges of the white background for a rough, torn look and added machine stitched lines for extra detail. Round flair buttons, circle stickers and circle shaped pattern papers were used to continue with the circle elements for a cohesive look.

For my title, I used the from the "Lollipop" song by The Chordettes, to fill in the space on the page and layered them with smaller circle photos.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. We would love to have you join us in this months layout sketch challenge! We will pick one winner from all our challenge entries this month to win a Lily Bee prize package. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

- Your layout must use mainly Lily Bee products (approx. 50% - 60% older or newer lines to showcase Lily  Bee Design).
- Post your layout to our Facebook Page or Flickr Gallery to be eligible for monthly challenge prize.
- Title your post "8/6 Sketch Challenge" so we can find it easily and then leave a comment on this blog post letting us know you've entered.
- Deadline is August 31, 2013, Midnight CST
- One winner from all the challenges will be announced in next month's Kristen's News feature.

Don't forget, you can enter multiple times! The more you play, the better your chances of winning!  :)

Happy creating and good luck!

Focus On Monday | Anything Goes

It's hard to believe that it's August already. Where has the time gone?  With everyone so busy this summer, we decided this week's focus would be a design team free-for-all, so this week's theme is Anything Goes!

Leslie Ashe has spent a lot of time road tripping this summer and today, she's sharing a bit of her where life has taken her lately. The Destination collection is perfect for documenting her "solo vaca" with her hubby.

Supplies: Pinwheel (Flip Flops Paper, Ice Cream Truck Paper, Circle & Tag  Stickers), Sweet Shoppe (Licorice Whip Paper, Chit Chat Stickers), Destination:  (Luggage Paper, 80 Days Paper, Passport Paper, Souvenier  Paper, Embellishment Bundle, Letter Stickers, Label Stickers, Chit Chat  Stickers, Circle & Tag Stickers, Chipboard Stickers)

"My husband and I just took our first “solo” vacation since before we had  our children (who are now 21 & 22 years old). What was intended as a 5 day trip, quickly turned into a 13 day FUN adventure! We drove from Tennessee to North  Carolina, to Florida (with family) and finally headed BACK to Tennessee, then  home to Texas. It was a whirlwind, full of fun & lots of new things!

I  wanted my layout to portray just a few things we saw on the “open road”. In  these photo’s – there are a few scenes from the Blue Ridge (“Great Smoky”) Mountains in N.C.

My title says it all...we definitely hit the open road. We loved it!

Thanks for stopping in today. Make sure to visit tomorrow as we reveal last month's sketch winner and this month's new sketch layout challenge.

Digital Download | Digital Cut File Freebie

Hello Lily Bee fans!  Patricia and Nicole here to continue our pattern play using digital cut files.  

I created a a cut file you can download here using circles, triangles, and arrows.  You could cut these as is or cut the ones you need since they are individual cards.  I cut all three designs and then backed them with pattern papers from the 6x6 tiny tablets.

I decided to mix patterns of red, yellow and orange with accents of brown and grey.

Before I adhered everything down, I painted on a layer of watered down gelatos and splatters of mist.

The chipboard and circle and tags embellishments were a great way to finish off the page.

Supplies:  Pinwheel (chit chat stickers, circle & tag stickers, 6x6 tiny tablet, cherry blossom paper, lemonade stand paper, apricot tree paper, embellishment bundle); Sweet Shoppe (letter stickers, label stickers), Destination (chipboard stickers, 6x6 tiny tablet, embellishment bundle)

Nicole has created a beautiful layout using lots of patterns in just the right amounts so that the photo is still the focus.  Here's what Nicole has to say about her layout: "I used the circular punch out pattern from the digi download. I cropped it to the same square size and repeated the pattern with some fun woodgrain papers from Destination, and then added pops of color behind the circles from Sweet Shoppe and Pinwheel from more patterned paper and even a few fabric brads :)" 

I love how Nicole used just the circle design card from the cut file to create a competely different look.

Supplies: Destination (Tiny Tablet), Sweet Shoppe (Tiny Tablet, Lemon Drop paper, Embellishment bundle, Letter stickers, Chit Chat stickers), Pinwheel (Tiny Tablet,  Flip Flops paper, Kite Strings paper, Embellishment bundle, Chit Chat stickers, Chipboard stickers)

Thank you for coming by today and hope you are inspired to try out the free digital file yourself and mix patterns together for your next project.

Guest Designer | July | Mitchell Kraft

We're back today with one last project from our July guest designer, Mitchell Kraft. He has WOWed us with his projects all month long and this little mini album is no exception. Take a look at what he created.

 

Pinwheel collection (Lemonade Stand 12x12 paper-PWP302, Cherry Blossom 12x12 paper-PWP303, Apricot Tree 12x12 paper-PWP304, Sprinklers 12x12 paper-PWP307, Jump Rope 12x12 paper-PWP308, Lime Rickey 12x12 paper-PWP309, Pinwheel Label Stickers-PWS316, Pinwheel Chit Chat Stickers-PWS318, Pinwheel Letter Stickers-PWS317) Sweet Shoppe collection (Gumball 12x12 paper-SSP283, Sweet Shoppe Label Stickers-SSS297, Sweet Shoppe Letter Stickers-SSS298) Destination collect (Destination Label Stickers-DSS335, Destination Chit Chat Stickers)

Mitch said, "Minibooks are my favorite thing to make. I really like the smaller scale and how you can extend the design from page to page."

For this mini, I stitched old book pages together and adhered them to chipboard. I then added white acrylic paint and black ink spots, before I had any design in mind.

I let each page design come naturally, based on the photo. To complimented the colors in the photo, I stuck with two colors on each page.

This mini is just so fun, Mitch. I love all the little details so much that I keep going back to the pages to discover more each time. Thanks so much for all the wonderful projects and inspiration! 

Join us again next Thursday as we reveal who our August guest designer will be.

Sketch revisited | Splashes of Color

Hello! Diana Fisher and Diane Payne here with you today as we revisit the sketch challenge for the month of July. In case you missed it, this is July's sketch.

Here is what Diane made and what she had to say about her process:

"Although my layout looks nothing like the sketch, I did start out with the sketch in mind. My original plan was to use one photo with a large title to the right of the photo and substitute the triangles with circles.

As I started to cut circles I decided I wanted the circles to look more like an extension of the lens flare in the photo which resulted in small scattered confetti. 

The large strip of paper underneath the 3 photos in the sketch was replaced with small stripes and I finished it off with a summer quote from Pinterest. I love seeing how people interpret sketches. Don't be afraid to let it take you in a different direction, they are meant to inspire and spark ideas, regardless of the outcome.

Supplies: Destination Collection (Luggage 12x12 paper-DSP322), Pinwheel Collection (Lemonade Stand 12x12 paper-PWP302, Aprico Tree 12x12 paper-PWP304, Jump Rope 12x12 paper-PSP308, Lime Rickey 12x12 paper-PWP309, Cherry Blossom 12x12 paper-PWP303, Embellishment Bundle-PWB315, Letter Stickers-PWS317, Circle & Tag Stickers-PWS341), Sweet Shoppe Collection (Letter Stickers-SSS298)

I love what Diane made, and I love that we both took such a different approach to the sketch and the color splash. Here is what I made.

I tried to be true to the sketch because I generally do use a lot of white space and I wanted to use the sketch as inspiration and get away from my usual layout. I even used the little triangles in the sketch as triangles. I cut them from the 6x6 paper pad from Sweet Shoppe, and they are really tiny!

I used nearly all of the black or grey patterns in the Sweet Shoppe and Pinwheel collections — I love how they mixed and matched so well together. The Cameo came in handy for cutting my title in only the colors I wanted.

The layered word bubbles from the Pinwheel - Flip Flops pattern paper and the Label stickers added some fun layering to all of the patterns on the page.

Supplies: Pinwheel Collection (Pattern Paper - Jump Rope, Flip Flops, 6x6 Tiny Tablet,Label Stickers, Chit Chat Stickers), Sweet Shoppe Collection (Pattern Paper - Licorice Whip, Strawberries & Cream, 6x6 Tiny Tablet)

I hope you've been inspired to use the sketch, and who knows, maybe even try adding a splash of color to your page, too!

 

Focus On Monday | Splashes of Color

Welcome to this week's focus on splashes of color! All week long, we'll be highlighting some of our favorite techniques for adding lots of vibrant, saturated color to our projects. Today, Stacey Michaud and Lisa Dickinson are sharing layouts with bright, happy shades and telling us their favorite ways to get lots of color on the page.

Stacey says, "One of the easiest ways to add splashes of color is to start with a neutral background. In my case, I used white cardstock. I then stuck with one overall color scheme, mainly using primary colors."

Lily Bee Supplies:  Pinwheel (Papers:  Jump Rope, Lime Rickey, Kite Strings, Ice Cream Truck, Flip Flops; Chipboard Stickers; Embellishment Bundle; Label Stickers; Letter Stickers; Chit Chat Stickers; Circle and Tag Stickers)

"I am Type-A so I like to use at least one element on a page that includes all the colors such as a stripe or this pie-chart circle in the right hand corner. I make sure to use bold colors like yellows and reds in small doses, paying attention to creating a visual triangle. Even a simple touch like using three different colored fonts can add that splash to any page!"

 

Next, Lisa shares an energetic page using stripes of various Lily Bee patterns. "Incorporating stripes into a page is a great way to add bold color to your design," Lisa tells us. "And so many of the Lily Bee papers are perfect for this!  I selected some of the brightest patterns from the Sweet Shoppe and Pinwheel lines arranged them in rainbow order across my background."

Lily Bee Supplies: Pinwheel (Papers: Sprinklers, Apricot Tree, JUmp Rope, Flip Flops, Lime Rickey; Circle & Tag Stickers, Chit Chat Stickers); Sweet Shoppe (Papers: Jujubee, Pink Mint, Gumball; Circle & Tag Stickers, Embellishment Bundle)

"After matting my photos on a postage-stamp edged cardstock and patterned paper matte, I added speech bubbles (cut from the Flip Flops paper) down the center of my page. I also mixed in lots of little bits of color from the Chit Chat stickers and Circle & Tag stickers."

We hope these vivid layouts inspire you to create your own kaleidoscopic creations! Be sure to stop back tomorrow for more splashes of color!

 

 

 

Guest Designer | July | Mitchell Kraft

I'm so delighted to share some cards that our July guest designer, Mitchell Kraft, created.

Supplies: Destination Collection (Tickets 12x12 paper-DSP325, Destination Label Stickers-DSS335, Destination Chit Chat Stickers-DSS337) Pinwheel Collection (Cherry Blossom 12x12 paper-PWP303, Sprinklers 12x12 paper-PWP307, Lime Rickey 12x12 paper-PWP309, Lemonade Stand 12x12 paper-PWP302, Jump Rope 12x12 paper-PWP308, Pinwheel Label Stickers-PWS316, Pinwheel Chit Chat Stickers-PWS318) Sweet Shoppe collection (Sweet Shoppe Label Stickers-SSS297, Sweet Shoppe Chit Chat Stickers-SSS299, Sweet Shoppe Circles & Tags-SSS341)

Mitch said, "I love cards because it's a relatively small area to work with, but you can pack a lot of punch on them (and product in this case). For these cards, I decided on a base design and then had fun with the embellishments. In the end, I love the dimension that both cards have."

Well, we love them too, Mitch . The mix of patterns and embellishments with the multi-dimensions is just fabulous!  Thanks for the inspiration. 

Mitch will be back again with us next week to share a mini album he made. I can't wait for y'all to see it!

Monday Focus On

Happy Monday everyone!  I am here to kick off a new week on the Lily Bee blog.  Today, I am sharing a layout which focuses on a simple pleasure mixed in with some retro love! During a family visit last month, my dad opened his garage and rolled out his beautifully restored Schwinn bicycle.  He then proceeded to take each grandchild for a ride.  It was an everyday moment worth capturing.

 

I decided to mix up the Destination and Sweet Shoppe collections to make my own retro color scheme.  I wanted to match the colors in the photo so I went with cherry red, browns and yellows.  I simply began layering a bunch of different patterns and hand cut elements.

 

I love those speech bubbles because they always add a personal touch to any page.  I repeated the theme of hearts to match the idea of favorites!

To add some pizazz to the tag, I used the small chipboard triangles along one side.  I also used the negative space on the chipboard packaging as a stencil, tracing and making other triangles.

 

Supplies:  Destination (Papers:  Port, Passport), Sweet Shoppe (Papers:  Lemon Drop, Cotton Candy, Candy Stick; Embellishment Bundle; Circle and Tag Stickers; Label Stickers; Chipboard Stickers; Chit Chat Stickers; Alphabet Stickers)

Be sure to head back here all week for more projects and don't forget to check out the monthly challenges!

 

A Fun and Sunny Project Life

Hi, Diana Fisher here with you today for the end of our Fun in the Sun week. I'm happy to be sharing my fun and sunny Project Life pages with you today. 

We had a fun 4th of July at home with family and I managed to get some great pool photos of the boy having some water fun. The dog made her project life debut as well with some sunny lounging around photos.

I used the Destination collection as well as the Pinwheel collection 6x6 paper pads for my papers.

I also made a 4th of July studio file, as you can see above on the red and white polka dotted paper called Tickets from Destination. You can download the free studio file HERE. A little freebie from me to you…enjoy!

For continuity between the two pages, I used the same Kite Strings patterned paper from the Pinwheel collection 6x6 pad for my journaling spaces. It had a more neutral pattern that I could write on while still being bright and colorful enough to go with the theme of my pages.

Thanks for visiting here today to see my project life pages! 

SUPPLIES:
Destination Collection (6x6 Tiny Tablet, Chit Chat Stickers, Circle & Tags Stickers)
Pinwheel Collection (6x6 Tiny Tablet, Chit Chat Stickers, Circle & Tags Stickers, Letter Stickers, Label Stickers)
Sweet Shoppe Collection (Chit Chat Stickers, Label Stickers, Circles & Tags Stickers) 

Guest Designer | July | Mitchell Kraft

Mitchell Kraft is here again to share a sneak into the day in the life of his pooch as he basks in the sun. Here's what Mitch had to say about this week's Fun in the Sun theme. 

Nothing says summer like bright bold colors. I am a huge fan of the vibrant colors and bold patterns of Lily Bee Design's papers. 

Supplies: Pinwheel Collection (Apricot Tree 12x12 paper-PWP304, Lemonade Stand 12x12 paper-PWP302, Lime Rickey 12x12 paper-PWP309, Flip-Flops 12x12 paper-PWP311, Pinwheel Label Stickers-PWS316, Pinwheel Letter Stickers-PWS317, Pinwheel Chit Chat Stickers-PWS318, Pinwheel Circle & Tag Stickers-PWS341) Sweet Shop Collection (Gumball 12x12 paper-SSP283)

Often times summer-times photos are very warm, but for this layout I edited my photos and gave it an overall faded cool tone. Combining both warm and cool tones in the photo and the paper/embellishment selection, give the layout an overall balance.

I just love how Mitch layers all the paper and embellishments to create such dimension. Soo fun and playful! 

He'll be back again with us next week and we can't wait for you to see what he's got in store for you!

Cards on Wednesday | Sunny & Bright

Hi Lily Bee fans! This weeks focus on is all about having fun in the sun, something I hope to be doing with my little ones later this afternoon, if the weather permits. Today, I have three sunny and bright cards I created to go along with this weeks focus on theme.

For each card, I used my Cameo die-cutting machine and embossing folders to add additional texture and depth to the cards background. My color scheme here is yellow and I used plenty of it for each card with touches of gray, black, greens and blues.

My first card, "Fun in the Sun" uses papers and embellishments from the Pinwheel collection. I love how the green text and grey floral patterns add a subtle touch the bright yellow and how it all pops. Kept it simple with little touches of chipboard and chit chat stickers for more depth.

Supplies: Pinwheel(Lime Rickey, Flip-Flops, Chipboard Stickers, Chit Chat Stickers)

The second card, "Hello Sunshine", was created using only papers from the Destination collection. This cards was kept simple with little touches of embellishments to compliment the bold mix of geometric shapes.

Supplies: Destination(Atlas, Port)

Lastly, my "Hello, You Are Sweet" card showcases goodies from the Sweet Shoppe collection. I adore how big and bold the sunshine anchors atop of the card. It pops nicely against the zig-zag black pattern and polka dot backgrounds. Very simple and striking at the same time.

Supplies: Sweet Shoppe (Lemon Drop, 6x6 Tiny Tablet, Chipboard Stickers)

Thanks so much for hanging out with me today. I really enjoyed making these cards and hope they inspire you to add a little more sunshine to your next card project. Cheers!

Focus On Monday | Fun In The Sun

Happy Monday, Lily Bee fans!  Hope you had a fun and relaxing weekend with your family and friends!  Christine here today, along with Becky, to kick off Fun In The Sun Week here on the Lily Bee blog. 

Becky and I decided to use some of our vacation photos to make some pages that are about fun in the sun! 

Becky's fun layout features awesome colorful vacation photos and super-cute embellishments.

Supplies: Destination (Landmark, Boarding Pass, Port, Postcard, 6x6 Tiny Tablet, Circle & Tag Stickers, Chipboard Stickers, Chit Chat Stickers, Label Stickers, Embellishment Bundle), Handmade (Index Journaling Cards)

Becky used the Eiffel Paris cut file in the Silhouette online store to cut her Eiffel tower out.

Here's what Becky said about her layout:

Ever since my girls read the "Fancy Nancy" book about a boy from Paris they have wanted to visit the city of Paris, TX to see the Eiffel Tower with the cowboy hat on top. Just a few weeks ago we were able to cross that little trip off of their bucket list and it was so much fun! One of the kids was disappointed that the tower wasn't taller but sure got a kick out of seeing it up close. 

I love the new Chit Chat stickers and used a bunch to my page along with one of the new metal badges. Layering and clustering embellishments is a great way to bring added visual interest to your project.

While we weren't able to travel all the way to Paris, France, this "Landmark" paper from the Destinations collection was perfect for this page. In order to make the background more subdued I added some white spray mist which allowed my pictures and embellishments to stand out better on the page.

 

For my layout, I used a photo from our December 2011 vacation to Oahu.  We went on a hike to the Makapuu Lighthouse and enjoyed some gorgeous views along the way.

Supplies:  Destination Collection (Atlas paper, Luggage paper, Tickets paper, Boarding Pass paper, Souvenier paper, Postcard paper, Letter Stickers, Label Stickers, Chipboard Stickers, Embellishment Bundle, Circle & Tag Stickers, Chit Chat Stickers), Sweet Shoppe Collection (6x6 Tiny Tablet)

I made the large sun on top by cutting out a half circle and mounting it on foam adhesive.  Then I pierced some holes in the shape of lines radiating from the sun, and used the twin in the Destination Embellishment Bundle to create the sun rays.

I mixed some banners that I cut out from paper, along with a chipboard banner to create different textures and depths.

I used this Fun In The Sun cut file from the Silhouette online store and cut it out using the yellow airplane paper from Destination.

A few Chit Chat Stickers and Label Stickers scattered on the layout completed my layout.

 

We hope you have a wonderful week full of fun in the sun, along with some creative time!  Should you feel inspired to create using some awesome Lily Bee products, please share with us in our Flickr group or on Facebook.

Guest Designer | July | Mitchell Kraft

Happy Birthday, America!

We're back this month with a new guest designer. I'm super excited to see what Mitchell Kraft created with our newest collections. Mitch has a fabulous style and always portrays a fresh look that will inspire you.  We'll be showcasing his designs every Thursday in July but first let's get to know a little about Mitch.

Mitchell Kraft is a graphic designer, marathon runner, proud pet owner, aspiring foodie and avid crafter. He is a 2007 Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame winner and has worked in the Scrapbooking industry for 8+ years. His unique voice, in a predominately female dominated community, has allowed him to develop and instruct classes at many venues in the greater Twin Cities area.

Currently, Mitchell is employed full-time as a graphic designer, working primarily in print. He finds scrapbooking an easy evolution of his design craft. As you can tell in both his graphic design work and crafting, Mitchell has a passion for texture, depth and detail.

A native Minnesotan, Mitchell lives in Minnetonka with his partner Jacob, their dog Shawn, and cat Lexi.

How about a little Q&A with Mitch:

What is your favorite Lily Bee Design product and why?

It’s a toss up between the label stickers and the alpha stickers. The labels are so great for tucking under layers. They are simple, but graphic and come in great shapes. The Alpha stickers are some of my favorite on the market. I love the variety of colors you get, the small size is great, and the typeface is classic. 

What is your favorite subject to scrapbook about?

I always joke, that since I don’t have kids, I make scrapbook pages about my cat – which, to be honest, isn’t really a joke. Most of my layouts are about my pets or fun things I am doing or what I am enjoying at the time. The stuff of life, I guess.

What is your favorite technique that you like to use on cards or layouts?

Right now, I am all about layers, layers and more layers. I am obsessed with combining papers and stickers and embellishments to create depth, dimension and texture. I love the shadows that the different layers cast on top of each other.

I asked Mitch to create something for this week's STARS & STRIPES theme. Take a look at what he created.

For this layout, I wanted to have a patriotic feel, but not be over-the-top themed. To do that, I chose simple, graphic red and blue patterned papers and embellishments that coordinated. I decided to print my photo in black and white because the colors were very bright - they didn't fit with my patriotic theme. 

To tie in the cool grey tones from color from the photo, I mounted it on the first layer of great patterned paper. I carried the elements of grey through a few of the embellishments, but kept my overall color scheme red and blue.

Supplies: Destination Collection(Tickets 12x12 paper-DSP325, Postcard12x12 paper-DSP33, Destination Label Stickers-DSS335, Destination Letter Stickers-DSS336, Destination Chit Chat Stickers-DSS337) Pinwheel Collection (Jump Rope12x12 paper-PWP308, Flip-Flops12x12 paper-PWP311Pinwheel Label Stickers-PWS316, Pinwheel Letter Stickers-PWS317)

So are you as blown away by Mitch's creativity as I am? Seriously swoon-worthy!

Make sure to leave him some love here and follow him on his social sites:

• Twitter: @mitchkraft
• Pinterest: @mkrafty
• Instagram: @mkrafty

Check back next Thursday to see how Mitch likes to have fun in the sun!