"Snow at the Beach" and "Angel" layouts

I am very excited to post my first blog entry for Upsy Daisy Designs!  What you can't afford to miss with the releases from Upsy Daisy Designs are the great selection of patterned papers that coordinate so well with each other, but still allow you to show your own style in your scrapbook layouts. 

"Snow at the Beach"  12x12 Layout 

Below, I utilized the "Hot Chocolate" collection to create a layout with somewhat difficult photos to scrap.  The pictures are actually from a Caribbean island, Disney style!   We went on a Disney Cruise last time my husband came back from Afghanistan in 2005.   It was December, so at Disney's private island, we were at first surprised to see "snow" and huge Christmas decorations, but of course, that is what you should expect from Disney, right?

It was actually windy that day, so Kayla had a little red jacket on over her swim suit, which turned out perfect for a Christmas color-themed photo.  The decorations had a lot of pink in them as well, which made the Upsy Daisy Designs "Hot Chocolate" papers so perfect for these photos!  I also utilized a clear journaling stamp from the UDD "My Guy" set, and beautiful jeweled brads from UDD ("Bebe Girl").   And yes, that is flocking on the title that I cut with my die cut machine!  I love to mix patterns, so that is what I did for the little accents around the page.  Hope you like it!

UDD Products Used:
#UDD0151. Cocoa
#UDD0150. Cinnamon Stick
#UDD0152. Dash Away
#UDD210. My Guy Clear Stamps
#EMB002. Bebe-Girl Jewel Brads
#EMB004. Man About Town Brads

"Angel" 12x12 Layout

For my second layout, I was thrilled to use the Upsy Daisy Designs "Spirit" collection!  RED is my favorite color, so I love it when I can use it somewhere in my layouts.  When I first saw this angelic paper in the "Spirit" collection, I thought of the perfect photo I had from when my daughter, Kayla, was three.  This picture was actually taken on her third birthday.  She received a "ballerina" dress-up outfit, and in this photo, she really does look like an angel.

I edited this picture in Photoshop (I use CS3, but I believe you can do the same thing in Photoshop Elements).  First, I created a background layer that was black, and then I carefully erased the photo layer all around Kayla to get rid of a distracting background.  I used a softer brush for the erasing, with some more intricate parts using a little "harder" brush.  I also used a lighting filter so that her face would really "light up".   

After I was pleased with the look, I scanned in the angel from the Upsy Daisy Designs "Spirit - Peace" paper.  I then used the Photoshop "magic wand" selection tool to select just the wings from the paper scan, and dragged them in to my picture.  I then played with filters and opacity, and also changed the size and rotated the wings a bit to make the look how I had pictured it in my mind.  I had to erase some parts of the wings, as this was my top layer, and I wanted the wings to look really subtle. (Because my daughter is not really an angel in heaven, but to me, an angel here on earth! :)

After the photo looked right I printed it and matted it on the red "Spirit-Love" paper, making sure to keep the beautiful white snowflake pattern on the mat. Next, I used a larger piece of more of an off-white patterned paper (also from the Spirit line), and I printed my quote right onto the patterned paper.  I used a few different fonts and text colors to highlight appropriate words in Photoshop CS3, and then I printed it on a plain "practice" piece of paper to see if it lined up correctly.

After printing the quote, I went to carefully cutting out the angel from the patterned paper.  I used a "fingertip" blade which I think works really well on a self-healing mat.   Then I used the S-shaped filigree UDD clear stamp from the "My Guy" set to stamp a border in white ink across the top of the red paper.

I finished by highlighting some of the angel and paper designs with whit, gold, and silver pens, as well as pink soufflé markers, used a UDD rub-on near the angel's horn, and scattered a few clear star jewels around the text.  I used some pop dots under the top angel wing and the horn, and added a few more embellishments, including a "love" circle stamp and heart shaped rub on... also from UDD, with embossing powder.  I matted it all on a piece of patterned cardstock from the UDD "Hot Chocolate" line (I just love scallops!!)... and that's about it!  This is one of my favorite layouts!

UDD products used:
#UDD0158. Love
#UDD0159. Peace (front and back)
#UDD0153. Frosted
#UDD208. Chic Bebe Clear Stamps (LOVE circle stamp)
#UDD210. My Guy Clear Stamps
#UDD185. Baby Love Rub Ons
#EMB004. Man About Town Brads

I know this is a long post, but I hope you get some helpful tips for your layouts!  Upsy Daisy Designs paper can be hard to find here in the U.S., so ask your local store to carry it or order some online...you won't be sorry with the quality, double-sided cardstock and patterns that are available... as well as the clear stamps, rub-ons, and beautiful brads!