I choose you.

A new Inspiration Challenge is up on the October Afternoon blog! You'll have to hop over there to see the inspiration piece, but here's my take on it! :)

I'm a hopeless romantic if you don't know that already. Ha!

The first thing I did on this layout is the random rectangles machine stitching. There was no template or any guide at all. It was fun! Then, can I have a 'YAY!' for labels? :D I rounded up all my Daily Flash Double Take sticker sheets and stamped on the labels. I started with one and just keep on stamping until my sentences were complete. I didn't even pay too much attention on making them straight! I couldn't if I wanted to anyway as I was using my old wooden stamp set from studio G, just in case you're curious. 

You can say the labels made the layout. The rest of it came together pretty fast. Some chipboard embellishments (arrows), Daily Flash alphabet stickers (xoxo), some stamping (once upon a time,✭✭✭✭✭, date stamp) and a couple of pop drops and my layout is complete. I added the two bicycle wood veneer because well, marriage to me is a journey where two people try their best to balance each other. It's a ride for sure. :)

Let me know if you play along, I'm @sashafarina on Instagram. I usually post sneaks and my layouts with #octoberafternoon in the description. You can also share your creations with us via the October Afternoon Flickr Gallery.

xoxo

Daily Laugh. Laugh Daily

March 2015.

A wedding. My youngest sister got married. 

A funeral. My uncle passed away. 

On the same day. 

I chose to leave the wedding celebration to say goodbye to my uncle for the last time.

Bittersweet I must say. 

One week after the wedding and the funeral, the people of Singapore lost Lee Kuan Yew. The nation wept and was in mourning until yesterday. Another funeral. 

A wedding and two funerals.

I don't feel like laughing much right now, but that's just why this layout is so important. :)

I used Simple Stories Layered Template No.10 as the base of the whole layout. Instead of using it purely in digital form as I did the Selfie layout, I decided to use the template as my stitching guide.

How?

Simple!

I worked in Photoshop so first, I added the text, the Audrey hepburn quote in this case, then I linked all the layers and resized the whole template until it looked like what I have in my head. I lowered the opacity for the circle frames and turned the photo frames into white with light grey stroke and I printed the whole thing onto a piece of 8.5 x 11 cardstock.

I then take my paper piercer to all the circles and get to stitching. This is tedious but if you do this while watching a movie, it's painless. When the stitching is done, the layout practically scrapped itself. :)

Let me know if you ever try using a digital template as a stitching guide!

xoxo

Thanksgiving Morning

My first two page layout in forever, I think. I sure had a lot to say on this layout :) While I knew I wanted to use this photo with my layout, I didn't plan for this layout to be so 'wordy' actually. I just kept on typing whatever I can remember, then I realized my story had taken almost a full page. That was when I started thinking about design. 

I'm digging the large photo. I could've used any photo of the bands or the many giant balloons we saw, but I chose this photo of my boots. I love this photo for many reasons - I don't wear boots in Singapore, our weather is way too hot for boots and on that very morning, this was my spot until the parade ended. I didn't budge even though it was so cold my belly button was shivering. Haha.

I turned the 'morning' digital stamp from AM/PM Digital into a cut file then I layered some papers, added my title and stitched them all onto the photo.

The true story and nothing but the truth came from For The love Of Words brush pack. I spared nothing (LOL!) - from the little people hammering nails onto my skull from the inside to when I was absolutely clueless on where to go to watch the parade. :)

It was a good Thanksgiving though. I had my girls with me, we were in New York City, we caught the parade and we even went to a playground at Central Park after that. It was a mighty fine Thanksgiving. 

I miss New York :)

xoxo

SFO - Guest Designing for Feed Your Craft

Hi everyone :)

Elise from Feed Your Craft invited me to be their first Guest Designer and I couldn't have been more honored to do so! I used one of the flair from the Travel Mantra set for this layout :)

Just look at that 'See The World' flair and how it is 'at home' on my crushing-on-yellow-machine-stitching layout. :) To be honest, I think I really have a 'thing' with travel embellishments - they're so easy to fall in love with. I also have a thing for travel, especially with my girls. I love discovering new places with them,  or revisiting old places and seeing the wonder of it all through their eyes.

That quote - I read it once and it stayed with me for a long time. How true and how smart is Mr. Bourdain?

On traveling with children, I have been asked "But how did you get around New York/San Francisco? Taxis are so expensive!" I said "Subway/BART and we walked a lot!" Then they told me that they can't do that to their children because that would be torture. LOL. I rest my case, then :)

I tell my girls - you want something, you better be prepared to work for it. :)

Elise was so generous and sent me more than one set of flairs. You definitely will be seeing more Feed Your Craft flairs on my layouts in the near future.  :)

I urge you to give Feed Your Craft a try! Use SASHA20 coupon code for 20% off until Saturday midnight EST.

Thank you Elise for having me!

My Hero

I'm hosting a scrap recipe challenge on the October Afternoon today.  Ink splatters and white background optional, I just really, really love them! ;)

My take on it

I used the Saturday Mornings Journal Cards patterned paper to cut the title from 4 'journaling cards' and make it the focal point of my layout. Just look at those beautiful colors!

I typed my journaling with my manual vintage typewriter and stamped the cute bird and scissors with perforated line with black ink to kinda balance up all the sweet colors in this layout and added some pink pop drops, a pink heart chipboard and a pink brad. 

I machine-stitched all around the layout, part of my title and my journaling several times, then hand-stitched some pink straight stitches onto the letter H E R and O :) I really, and I mean really love how this layout turned out. 

Our Everyday Moments

“It has taken awhile, but I certainly do know it now ­­– the most wonderful gift I had, the gift I finally learned to cherish above all else, was the gift of all those perfectly ordinary days.”

Katrina Kenison

I was going through the photos the other day, feeling all nostalgic. We used to spend many days at the park during their younger years. It was something mundane at that time, but definitely special now. I'm glad I have some photos of them at the park.

I made my own 'patterned paper' for this layout. I used Everyday Life Cursive brush pack by Ali Edwards. In photoshop, I stamped it to fill my 8.5x11 canvas, then printed it out and using it as I would a normal piece of patterned paper.

I absolutely adore the gray on white on this layout. Subtle and oh so pretty if I do say so myself.

Brave

The stitching challenge is up on the October Afternoon blog, hosted by my super talented friend, Patricia Roebuck! Go check it out please! Her layout is beyond amazing!

Here's my take on it :)

You might say, stitching? that's not much of a challenge for Sasha! While you may be right if I decided to hand stitch on this layout, the same can't be said when I'm machine stitching. Haha!

I love adding machine and hand-stitched elements onto my page and have been doing so for a long time. If you've never tried stitching before, you should. You have to let go of some things though. 

You have to be able to accept and see the beauty in imperfections, at least for me. My sewing machine is quite temperamental. But hey, that's what I love about it.

On this layout about my brave girl, I cut out the letters from Encyclopedia patterned paper from ourPublic Library collection to form my title, then I stitched around each hand-cut squares and layered them with various scraps leftovers from previous October Afternoon layouts.

 

My three photos were cut into circles and added to the layout before I typed out my journaling strips and adhered them to the page. I added a tin pin,  a couple arrows, some chipboard stars, because, really, for her bravery, my girl deserved all the stars in my world. :)  For even more fun, I sprinkled some sequins, stamped some phrases and splattered some paint onto my layout, then I stitched all around it with my sewing machine.

Tag me on Instagram if you play along! I'd love to see it!