Two Peas in a Bucket

10 Scrappy Things to Do on a Rainy Day (or any day!)

Sources: 1, 2 & 3 by Shannon Tidwell , 4 by kristinanw on Instagram & 5

We woke up to a little rain here in PeaTown this morning and I thought it'd be fun to put a helpful little list together for you.

1.  Organize your photos!  Go through photo boxes, albums or the library on your computer and file them.

2.  Write down your thoughts.  Whether you're catching up on Project Life, needing to get down a memory you don't want to forget, or just that last little bit on a layout, now is the perfect time to do it.

3.  Clean off your scrap desk.

4.  Create something with the scraps of paper and embellishments you have lying on your table.

5.  Put your layouts in an album.  You know, that pile you have over there in the corner. It will feel so good to give your pages a home.

6.  Print photos.  Upload them to an online service or print at home, you'll be glad you did!

7.  Make a card.  That someone you've been thinking of will be touched.

8.  Catch up on Two Peas.  You know we have to throw this in here. :)  Browse the latest products.  Catch up on the Design Team projects or a video.  Take a workshop. :)

9.  Try something new.  A new technique, new product, new topic to scrap, anything.

10.  Start from scratch.  You may have a handful of other projects you've started.  It's okay to begin something else for a change of pace.  Then watch the creativity spark!

A moodboard...

...just for fun.  Inspired by Pantone's color of the year:

1 - 3: My Mind's Eye Indie Chic Collection  4:  Source  5.  Hand-embroidered tags by Amy Tangerine  6.  Source  7.  Carefree collection by Authentique  8.  Tangerine glitter by American Crafts  9.  Fabric Flowers by Prima

Today at Two Peas:

* Adventures of Glitter Girl Episode 022: Sketch in Your Style

* Deal of the Day: 25% off select Tombow adhesives

Trends Watch: Airmail

The iconic red, white and blue diagonal stripe along with postage script and stamp designs are popping up everywhere these days.  We love the airmail trend!  Here are a few projects we've spied as of late incorporating this trend:

Scroll down for the winner of the Through the Kaleidoscope Workshop giveaway!

Sending You My Love by Laura Odonnell

A coin envelope is the perfect "mat" for Laura's choice of focal point embellisments: a stamped image layered over loops of twine.  She's customized her sentiment by adding a heart where the letter "O" belongs.

Hello, New York by agomalley

This trend is perfect for travel!  Agomalley uses the new Story Teller line from Crate Paper, which combines airmail designs along with maps, cork and other fun icons suitable for both documenting adventures and the everyday.

Missing You by Julie Campbell

Smile LIke You Mean It by Kimber McGray

Pair these designs with a bold, deep black like Julie and Kimber for a pop of contrast.  Use it to emphasize the distance between friends in a "Missing You" card, or for a playful feel in an everyday greeting.

Pit Stop by Gina

Carousel Fun by agomalley

Use this pattern in small doses like thin borders, or in bigger blocks of pattern.  Have fun with it!

Wanting even more?  Follow our board on Pinterest!  Our buyer, Kristina, has begun to curate these boards following the different trends we're seeing.  Enjoy!

And now for the winner of last week's Garden Girl blog hop giveaway!  Congrats to MicheleD_Utah, you are the winner of the Through the Kaleidoscope workshop with Amy Heller.  We'll be in touch with you shortly!

Today at Two Peas:

* Deal of the Day: 50% off select The Girls' Paperie

* It's Tuesday!  That means a new digital kit relase; see the 18 brand new kits here.

* We'll be sending out our weekly newsletter!  Look for it later today here, or subscribe from the 'My: Account' section to get updates on coupon codes, new products and events in the community!

* Kitty's filming her Weekly Warehouse Walk video.  Look for it this afternoon on her video series page!

Pieces of Me Workshop Sneaks!

Hello and happy Monday!  Our Pieces of Me mini album workshop with Studio Calico and Maggie Holmes is just a few days away (begins June 1st)!  Here are a few sneaks from Maggie's contributors Elise Blaha, Jen Jockisch and Marcy Penner:

Don't they look fabulous?!  There's still time to sign up, and if you'd like to take the guess work out of pulling supplies together for your own album, you can purchase the workshop kit too!

Happy Memorial Day!  Thank you to all who have served, are serving and will serve our country, as well as the families of those in service.  We are so grateful for you!

Today at Two Peas:

* There's a new batch of Garden Girl projects up!  Which one has you itching to create?

* See the latest episode of Memory Keeping Monday!  Shannon talks about combining patterned papers while making this super cute layout, "Photo Shoot Weekend."

* Deal of the Day: 30-50% off select Imaginisce

This Week's Challenges 5.26.2012

Here is a new round of challenges!  We love seeing how these inspire you to create your own project and hope you can play along this week.

Remember each challenge gives you a chance to win a $5 gift certificate, as well as earns you a badge for your Two Peas profile page.  Just click on the title of each challenge for details on how to enter, and scroll down to see last week's winners!

Weekly Scrap Challenge | Sketch Challenge with Amy

From Amy, "Oh, man, do I love orange right now! Not sure what it is, but I am just wanting it in everything! So, it's no surprise that I created a page that uses LOTS of orange in it to feature this picture I took last week of my lil' guy playing at the playground, and on the move as usual! :D 
To balance things out, I used many of my favorite neutral papers right now and trimmed them into squares then laid them out so that just peeks of color came through, but wasn't too overwhelming. I really wanted the image of my son to really shine in all of his tie-dyed, vibrant glory, so the neutrals really helped to do that. :D 

 

The Challenge: This week, I thought I'd bring you a sketch challenge! The sketch is fairly basic with lots of squares that you can do a lot with - place journaling inside, use for photos, or as I have done, create a patterned paper collage with! It's up to you!"

Weekly Photography Challenge: Old and New with Wilna

From Wilna, "So, the theme OLD and NEW can be interpreted a million ways... and I thought about the progression of time and that lead me to interpret it in terms of old pictures and new pictures. This is my oldest girl Tia... in 2009 and 2012. I love to see how she is growing into a little lady... it makes me sad and happy at the same time."

Saturday Card Sketch Challenge with Kimber

From Kimber, "Buttons, buttons, buttons! I was reorganizing my desk and I had a HUGE pile of buttons. Man alive. I can't resist them because they ALWAYS work on cards. Sooo... this week's sketch utilizes buttons a lot. You can easily use punched circles, stamped circles, or not any circles at all. Repeat a shape or embellishment across your card for a great, fun border."

 

Congrats to ellymew, eagertoretire, and mommapaparazzi  - we'll be in touch with you shortly on how to access your gift certificate!  And thanks to everyone who played along!

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Looking for more challenges?  We've got you covered!  Each weekly project video invites you to play along, and we've partnered up with our vendors to bring you amazing prize opportunities!  Of course, you can see them all in one place all the time from our Challenge homepage.

p.s. Our giveaway for Amy's new workshop, Through the Kaleidoscope, is still open!

This Week's Class Videos 5.25.2012

We've wrapped up another week of classes here at Two Peas!  Here is a look back at what we saw go live this week:

Memory Keeping Monday | I Miss Those Piggies by Jen Gallacher

From Jen, "I love patterned paper. Ok. Seriously like LOVE patterned paper. But one of my favorite ways to use patterned paper is to select pages from my favorite 6" X 6" paper pads. I stock up on these like they're a hidden chocolate stash. 

For this layout, I cut several pieces into banner shapes and hung them from the top of my layout. I decorated them with some fun embellishments. Then I added a die cut photo border at the bottom of the layout and then added some wooden "girl" pieces to complete the look. 

This layout is dedicated to my sweet niece who has the cutest "piggies" around. 

Watch this helpful video on creating this layout start-to-finish:

 

 

The Adventures of Glitter Girl | Episode 021: Scrap Yourself!

From Shimelle, "This week Glitter Girl explores ideas for starting a scrapbook about yourself, something currently being discussed here  on the General Scrapbooking message board. This week her adventure takes her through a few sample layouts from her albums and the creation of two pages: one with an old photo from school days and a 'right now' page with a current photo. 

 

There are some great resources right here in the Pea community with lists of all sorts of things you can scrapbook about yourself. Check out this list of page topic prompts and this extended challenge to scrapbook your childhood. Interested in scrapbooking your family's life in addition to your own? Check out A Year of You [twopeasinabucket.com]. And if you fancy a minibook all about you, then sign up for the upcoming workshop Pieces of Me - there's a link here with all the supplies, so just scroll down...

And here are (listed) some of my favourite 'scrap yourself' projects from my Two Peas bookmarks.

Come along for the adventure, won't you?"

 

 

Finally Friday | Tulips by Kandis Smith

From Kandis, "Today we are using the fabulous new Sweet Day Paper pad by Echo Park along with a darling Newspaper Tulip stamp by Hero Arts. See how easy and fun it is to make this cute multi-purpose card. Thanks for joining me! 

Your Challenge: Use a frame in a unique way!"

 

That concludes this week's classes and videos!  We'll see you tomorrow with a new batch of challenges.  Enjoy the Holiday weekend for those of you celebrating Memorial Day!

Today at Two Peas:

* Deal of the Day: 25-75% off select Fancy Pants

* Reminder: Our giveaway for Amy's new workshop, Through the Kaleidoscope, is still open!

* Finally Friday Card Video: Tulips by Kandis Smith

Garden Theme Round-Up: Florals Part 2

Yesterday we took a look at how some of the Garden Girls have used florals in their recent projects; today we have another batch to share with you using this timeless and favorite embellishment!

 

Always Spring by Jill Sprott

Jill creates a collage of favorite floral patterns instead of narrowing down her choices - the more florals the merrier!  She's careful to repeat designs in a few different places on her page to create visual triangles.  I love how this page makes me feel I'm in the midst of a lush garden!

April Loves by Wilna Furstenberg

Is just-the-right flower difficult to find in your craft supply?  Try making your own!  Wilna used her Silhouette Cameo to to create these delicate vine borders, layering them on top of each other and changing up the colors.

Such a Happy Day by Laura Craigie

Grouping together accents of similar colors and placing them in close proximity to your focal point embellishment will create a cohesive look in a project.  We love the aquas in Laura's blossom, brads and buttons!

Pink Fish and Our Girly Girl by Shannon Tidwell

See how Shannon challenged herself to experiment with florals in these two videos she did for our Memory Keeping Monday series.  A little fabric, a bit of paint, and some whimsical stitching can make quite a statement on a page!

Love Lives Here by Jen Gallacher

Jen also played along with the topic in her video this month and shares techniques for changing up your florals.  Don't be afraid to alter pre-designed embellishments!  I also love the way the white in her accents match her title and pop up against her navy blue paper.

That concludes this edition of our Garden Theme Round-Up: Using Florals. I hope this sparks some ideas for you!  And remember, we have over 300 florals to browse in the store if you want to search by just this category alone!

Today at Two Peas:

* I've got a new Personal Shopper video up!  This week we're talking about Summer collections.

* Deal of the Day: 25-75% off select We R Memory Keepers

* Reminder: Our Through the Kaleidoscope: Making Sense of Color 4 Scrapbooking Giveaway is still open!

Garden Theme Round-Up: Florals

Flowers are a timeless embellishment.  We love using them because of the beauty we see in them in nature, and the variety and possibilities are endless!  Perhaps that is why we have over 300 blossoms to choose from available in the store.  

With the recent warm weather we have experienced in the changing seasons, we challenged a few of the Garden Girls to have fun playing with florals in their recent projects.  Here is what they came up with.

Also, don't forget our giveaway for Amy's new workshop is still open!

In the Moment by Becky Novacek

An eclectic batch of florals pop against a chic mix of white and cream.  Canvas florals like these can be altered with spray mists or other color mediums, or left alone like Becky has done here.

That's My Girl by Jaime Warren

One way to get mileage out of the blossoms in your stash is to cut them out of your favorite floral patterned paper.  Give them dimension by lifting them off the page with pop-dots, and cluster them with clouds, stars and doilies for a whimsical feel.

Loved Every Minute by Amy Tan

Amy created her own custom embellishment by layering punched vellum, a strawberry brad and velvet-y leaves in the center of her layout.  She finished off the layout with some subtle stamping of a teeny tiny floral design.  Lovely!

Thanks for Everything by Kandis Smith

Do you need some inspiration for mixing products from different manufacturers?  Kandis shares how!  She's created a beautiful focal point in this card set by layering a trendy woodgrain label with delicate lace florals and fun stick pins.

You Are My Sunshine by Wendy Sue Anderson

Wendy has selected a handful of beautiful printed florals for this texture-filled page.  Prima Marketing often does the work for you by adding centers to their flowers, but you can just as easily add buttons, twine, punched paper, etc to give your embelishments a bit more character.

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We hope you enjoyed seeing what projects were made with this theme!  We'll be back with Part 2 tomorrow - there is just too much to cover in one post!  :)

Today at Two Peas:

* Look for two new videos being added this afternoon - another Adventures with Glitter Girl episode and Kitty's weekly warehouse walk!

* Deal of the Day: 20-50% off select Jillibean Soup

* Don't miss out - see all of our current gift with purchase promotions!

* Our Through the Kaleidoscope: Making Sense of Color 4 Scrapbooking Giveaway is still open!

Gardeners' Digest Blog Hop + Giveaway: May

It's the 22nd, which means it's time for another edition of Gardeners' Digest!  In this blog hop from our Design Team, the Garden Girls, you'll see sneaks of what they've been up to, what's currently inspiring them, as well as their favorite projects.  You may even find a giveaway or two along the way!  Scroll down for our giveaway and the links for the hop.

 We get to kick off the fun with a little collage of eye candy:

(Photos by Kristina - find her on Instagram by searching the handle "kristinaw".)

Pictured: Kristina's lovely art journal pages + new Studio Calico mistables in Thickers, cameras & clouds, Whisker Graphics bitty bags and lots of washi tape!  Tons of fun products coming into the warehouse, and lots of creativity happening around here. :)

Now on to the giveaway.  We're giving away a spot to Amy's workshop, Through the Kaleidoscope, a self-paced class available in the store now!  Just leave a comment with your Two Peas username here on this post  by the end of the day on Monday, the 28th, at 11:59 pm CST.  We'll draw a winner and announce it on Tuesday!

Your next stop on the hop is the lovely Shimelle. Here is a list of links in case you get lost along the way - happy hopping!

Jen Gallacher

Amy Tan

Jill Sprott

Lynn Ghahary

Amy Heller

Laura Craigie

Kimber McGray

Nancy Damiano

Wendy Sue Anderson

Becky Novacek

Wilna Furstenberg

Shannon Tidwell

Kandis Smith

Tutorial with Amy Tan: Let's Go to Brooklyn

Hi everyone - it's Amy Tan here. Excited to show you the step-by-step process behind a gallery layout called Let's Go to Brooklyn.

I started by gathering the photos and papers I wanted to use. These Instax photos are the perfect size and have a built in border on the print. I adhered the cluster together.

Then I took a white piece of cardstock and wrote the words "let's go". Using a paper piercer, I poked the holes for the stitching.

I back-stitched the letters using yellow thread.

I took my cluster and adhered it onto the white cardstock. I used some mists for the ink droplets.

Because I knew where I wanted my title, I spelled Brooklyn starting with the N.

I stamped the date onto a scrap piece of cardstock.

Wrote the journaling and added the "TO".

Decided I wanted to stitch the letters down using the sewing machine to sort of make them look underlined.

Then I got a bit carried away and decided to stitch a skyline.

I added New York state, which was the finishing touch.

Hope you enjoyed seeing the behind-the-scenes process of how this layout came together!

- Amy Tan

Today at Two Peas:

* A new batch of Garden Girl projects went up!

* There's a new episode of Memory Keeping Monday: I Miss Those Piggies with Jen Gallacher 

* Deal of the Day: 25% - 75% off select K & Company