Hello my lovely blog readers! I am long overdue for a blog update! And I am thrilled and delighted to announce what has been keeping me so busy- I just found out a few days ago that I am going to be part of the Clear Scraps Design Team!!! YIPPEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!! I am so excited to be a part of this fantastic, talented team. So you guys can look forward to seeing some new clear albums and chipboard albums from me very soon! I have also been sooo busy working on new scrapbook layouts and greeting cards. Here is one of them:

Mike & I love making blender drinks with bananas, coconut milk, oranges, and other assorted fruits- whatever is on hand. Sometimes strawberries, blueberries, and limes- sometimes not. Actually I am thinking of creating a brand new mini album featuring tropical drink recipes. Perhaps that would make nice gifts for friends, plus I think that it would be a fun project!

I originally meant to include some drink recipes on this layout, but I ended up not adding them because the stamp set I wanted to use hasn’t come in yet and I got impatient to get the layout done. Which, to my way of thinking, is much better than having unfinished projects hanging around! I am so happy with the way this turned out, and I must say that it’s a lot less cluttered than it probably would have been if I’d put the recipes on as planned. At any rate, this is a memory I definitely wanted to record, because making blender drinks has been such a significant part of our lives lately. We recently got a Champion Juicer, and ever since then we have been juicing and making tropical drinks constantly.

Scrapbooking Supplies For This Layout are Mostly By Reminisce:

• The letter stickers are from the “Tropical Fusion” collection by Reminisce.
• The “Blue Hawaii” patterned paper is also from the “Tropical Fusion” collection by Reminisce.
• The tropical “Hula Girl” patterned paper with colorful hibiscus flowers is also from the “Tropical Fusion” collection by Reminisce.
• The Palms green shimmer paper is also by Reminisce; it is from the “Beach Party” collection.
• The yellow banana printed paper is called “Goin’ Bananas, and it is from the “Monkey Business” collection by Reminisce.
• The “Going Bananas” sticker is from the “Wild Things” journal sticker sheet by Reminisce.
• The turquoise blue / yellow / green striped patterned paper is called “Denise” and it is from the Stripestock collection by Reminisce.
• The flower is one of the “Painterly Petals” / Cavalier 2 by Prima Marketing. There is also a hydrangea petal in the center (I got that at Michael’s) and a flower-shaped epoxy and metal brad by Autumn Leaves from the Foliage collection.
• The turquoise patterned ribbon is by Basic Grey from the Romani / Gypsy collection.
• The lemon ribbon- I can’t remember who made that or where it came from, but if you have any idea, please comment because I sure would love to get more of it. Thanks!
• The green patterned ribbon is RibbonFX.

The “Tropical Fusion” collection is one of my favorites- aren’t those letter stickers in the title just the coolest thing? LOVE how colorful and creative they are! That has got to be my favorite part of the whole layout. Love those stickers! If you need some supplies to make a similar layout or project, check out this Tropical Fusion Kit for sale by a seller on ebay. I have purchased from that seller before and received great products and fantastic service, and her kit is priced very attractively.

I also wanted to show you a tropical themed card that I made a few days ago. I went on a cardmaking spree, and completed quite a few greeting cards, but I wasn’t all that happy with how most of the cards turned out. So at this point I am not sure I want to show them to you. Out of all the cards I made that day, this one is my favorite:

This is an everyday, all-purpose type greeting card that you could send anytime. It is colorful and fun, and it was very simple to make.

Supplies Used To Make This Greeting Card:

• Blue Hawaii patterned paper by Reminisce, from the Tropical Fusion collection
• The orange patterned paper is “Wave Rider” by Reminisce, from the Surf Shop collection
• The letter stickers are from the Tropical Fusion collection by Reminisce.
• The aloha sticker is from the Surf Shop collection by Reminisce.
• The Prima flower is one of the Painterly Petals from the Cavalier collection.
• The epoxy brad in the center of the flower is by Autumn leaves, from the Foliage collection
• The orange, green and blue ribbon is by RibbonFX
• Bazzill cardstock

If you make a dark-colored card like this, make sure you have a white or light colored pen or pencil so that the ink will be visible when you write on it. I love using white pens to write on dark cardstock! Check out this Milky Way White Marker by American Crafts– one perfectly chic solution for writing with white. Love it! You can also stamp your sentiment with white ink if you prefer to stamp the inside of your greeting card.

Thanks so much for dropping by, and for your interest in my work. I really appreciate it that you took a peek. Hope you found some inspiration! Please come back soon!