May SKETCH Challenge

[Cassel]

 

Learning scrapbooking is often done with practice, looking around for inspiration, and trying to recreate projects we admire. Sometimes, we can be inspired by finished projects, but sometimes, we also have to use our imagination to interpret something.

 

This challenge will give you an opportunity to envision something from a "boring" base, and you will have to imagine the end result differently. The sketch is only a written idea, and you can fly with it, modify it, and customize it to fit your vision, your photos, your supplies.

 

Here is the sketch you will want to start with. You can use the rectangles to place photos or decorative papers or something else altogether.

 

The difference with this sketch is that it suggests a double page. Why not?

 

 

And if you want more information on using sketches, check out this article.

[Minka]

I played with this one.  I remember seeing a story on tv once about a place in Canada where over 70,000 snakes come out of the ground pretty much all at the same time.  It's a snake persons mecca and they congregate there to watch, see, and handle.   Anyone ever been there?  Well, I am from a place that all snakes are okay ... so we played with them.  But now that I have moved to Florida, I do not know their snakes so I play with none.  I know they have just as many bad ones down here as good ones.  I did have my first run in with one just last week.  Went to step outside the door and he was writhing all around on the back step.  Apparently in the process of shedding and using the edges of the bricks to help pull the skin off.  Smart snake, huh?  Interesting to watch and I have to admit I filmed it with my ipad.  Knew my brother would like it as we were snake kids.  Not so down here.  Anyway, I have been trying to learn more about Florida snakes and which ones are okay and which ones you want to urge to go away or at the very least not have anything around that makes him want to linger.

[Bonnie Ballentine]

Wow, Minka! Never would have thought of snakes...great job on your sketch. I have mine well on the way to be completed. Here in VA we have lots of "good" snakes and 2 venomous...copperhead and rattle. Copperheads love the cicadas so we are being especially watchful. The cicadas are beginning to come out...I haven't found any around here...but soon.

[Cassel]

I am not particularly fond of snakes. When I was a kid, in Montreal, we rarely saw any. A couple of years ago, my adult son came back home with 13 snakes. He was getting into the idea of breeding them, and such, but something happened shortly after when he was unable to care for them and I had to. I had NO knowledge of how to care for snakes. I found a group online and someone came, driving 3 hours to show me what to do. It turned out that I was totally not equipped for them so she offered to bring them all home (yes, 13 snakes) to offer foster care for them. She did a wonderful job, for a year, after which she ended up having to move, and neither myself nor my son were able to get them back so she gave them away. I am not too sad, although I had become at least a bit curious about snakes as pets. Not sure I want one, but I am not afraid if I ever had one in my hands.

[Cristina]

Minka, like Carole, I am not afraid of snakes, at least the non-venenous ones, but they would not be my first choice of pets. :)  I like the sketch (something to use in the future), and you created a very nice and interesting layout with it. Great work!

[Ann Seeber]

When I was a teenager I had a few garter snakes in aquarium tanks in the basement of our two-family and my boyfriend/fiancé/soon-to-be husband was much impressed that his girl was a snake lover. He was big on wildlife and such, himself. My first job was at a newspaper and I was asked to write a column for the Outdoors so my debut was "Snake Lovers Anonymous!" I was surprised how many people responded. I think it was a secret society! :-D

[Anne Lamp]

I have handled snakes that belonged to a friend but I don't care much for them.  There are a lot of different kinds of snakes in my area.  I guess I will never think about snakes without remembering something my Grandmother said.  She was deadly afraid of snakes.  She said if she was ever bitten by one, it wouldn't make any difference if it was poisonous or not, she would die of fright either way.

 

 

[Corrie Kinkel]

Minka what a interesting page about snakes! For the Netherlands snakes are not very common and we have only 3 spieces of them.  Only one of them is poisonous for small animals, but for humans it is not dangerous. I have only once seen one young snake in our garden, called a "ringslang" which is a grass snake.

 

I have made a completely other LO and stuck to my wild flower theme that I use this year. I made an ode to the humble dandelion from its beginning to the seeds flying through the air. I hope it is visable in the resized form.

[Minka]

I tried again on a subject not so "squirmy".  LOL  I was thinking how lucky we are to have resources available to us to "visit" foreign places without ever leaving our chairs and without opening our wallet.  Of course it will never be the same as actually being there ... but with the world situation, I suspect loads of people are not too excited about leaving their confines anyway - especially long distance travel.  I have always dreamed of going to some of the beautiful places on the globe ... but with age and walking limitations, I have a healthy skepticism that I will fulfill that dream.  Google images goes a long way to letting you see amazing things ... Earthcam lets you see some of it in VR.  And our own Annie T let's us see that colorful wildlife that she shares with us!  Probably every tourist place has it's downside, too ... and you are not likely to see those broadcasted all over google - but seeing and dreaming isn't the least bit hurtful to the body, mind or wallet!  I would have a hard time honing down to just where I would want to go.  Where would YOU go?

[Sue Thomas]

I will be taking part in the sketch challenge, I could do a snake layout. Seeing as Minka has already covered  that subject, I will be doing a  double page of Sparrows of the open Prairie.  I love snakes. Here in Saskatchewan, we have 2 species, the bull snake which can grow up a length of 6 ft, they fascinate me,  I have watched them go down  one gopher hole and come up another one, with it's tail  still in view as it disappears down the  hole, and emerges the other end.  Garter snakes are very common.  I've seen them emerge from their  dens after a winter of hibernation in their hundreds.  They favour derelict houses with basements. They are completely harmless, living on  insects like grasshoppers, mice and voles. Although, if they are threatened they will excrete a horrible smelling chemical through their scales.  I know, as it took me days to get rid of it off my hands.  Now I wear old gloves when I handle them  Here are two shots from this year.  In the UK, we have the Adder,  (poisonous) and slow worm (grass snake) which is harmless.

[Sue Thomas]

Wonderful layouts ladies.  The dandelion, is probably a gardener's least liked flower, regarded as a weed. Yet every part of the dandelion is edible, and  contains  so many  vitamins, beneficial to our health.  When I was a child I was told not to  handle dandelions as they will make you pee.  Although handling the  dandelion won 't actually make you pee, but when  digested it  is a natural diuretic.

[Sue Thomas]

I have a one legged Savannah Sparrow, who has been here for 13 days. His disability doesn't inhibit him in any way what so ever. I felt I had to feature him in this layout. It's so dry and dusty here, there isn't any standing water anywhere, the closest is 7 miles east of me. Lake Diefenbaker. I have an oasis which provides food and water for all living creatures. The native Sparrows won't feed at the feeders, I have to scatter it on the ground for them. The Goldfinches and Siskins arrived on Monday. Only the Wrens left to arrive now, they are always the last. For the background paper I used one of my photos, of a Savannah singing his heart out in the horses field. I manipulated the image a little to fit the whole page.

[Sue Thomas]

Lots of wonderful different takes on the same layout.  Each one is inspiring.  Well done ladies.

[Bonnie Ballentine]

It is amazing all the different results all of you have created for the same challenge! Beautiful work, one and all! Here's mine. Our pickleball courts are in a park and all the things on this page have been seen flying over the courts during play. There are others also...I just didn't get a photo.

[Bonnie Ballentine]

Here the right side...

[Sue Thomas]

Corrie,  I love your word art you create.  I've noticed that you add word art to most of your pages now.  I do too.  I always feel it gives that added special touch to every project, especially when the  quote has relevance  to the page.

 

 

[Sue Thomas]

Bonnie, I like the  added feature of the out of bounds technique.  I  use the effect when I can. It's an easy technique. In my opinion it always catches the views eye.

[Corrie Kinkel]

Sue thank you and so encouraging that you noticed that I'm trying to make my own word art. I think I will use it mostly when I can make or find a relevance to the idea I work with.

 

Bonnie again a lovely pickleball LO, you can come up with one whatever the challenge is!

[Lynda DiGregor]

A little late.. but here it is!

[Ann Seeber]

Following the sketch, this is what I came up with _ Mandala Babies! I got the mandala from NicePNG and I’ve shown Magic’s giraffe totem, Sonja’s elephant and Logan’s bear within it. I got an element showing 3 clouds which I cut apart and made each into a mask for the photos using Cass-Raster-to-Mask script. The font is Birdy. Magic and Sonja will be one in June and Logan will be 4 months at that point. We are all getting together for my granddaughter, Jackie’s, wedding June 11.

[Sue Thomas]

So many wonderful layouts.  well done  all! To many to comment on each one individually.  I find double pages are very useful.

[Annie Tobin]

Wonderful work everyone.  Same template and such different results ... love it.

 

This is what I have created for the sketch challenge.  I stole Minka's idea and did it on snakes ... thanks Minka.  We aren't much into snakes here in Australia because there is a 37 year old list that says 21 of the 25 most toxic snakes in the world are all from Australia so we totally respect and shy away from them.  I do think the tree snake is lovely and the way it changes colour from juvenile through to maturity is wonderful.  So, my sketch layout is a tribute to the beautiful green and yellow tree python.  Thanks for takin a peek my friends.  ;D

[Sue Thomas]

Annie, again you have created a masterpiece, to honour this beautiful snake. You have put so much into it. It really is an impressive piece of work.

[Annie Tobin]

Thanks dear Sue. You know this second one took no where near as long as the first because I had been working on them as if they were the same project. So I only needed to do a colour change on the background paper and the frames, and select different photos to insert. I guess the most tedious tasks for both projects were the journaling strips! Always appreciate your comments dear friend, thank you. :)

[Annie Tobin]

Minka ... lovely pages you have created for snakes and travel. You inspired me with your snake page so I decided to do one on the green tree snake. Thank you my friend. ;D

Corrie ... beautiful page on the humble dandelion ... I love them ... and your word art is very clever. I will have to get more into it. You and Sue are a great inspiration for me to get creating them. ;D

Sue ... I think sparrows are plucky little birds and your one legged little fella is so endearing. A lovely page my friend. ;D

Bonnie ... I really like your 'all around the pickleball court' page. Cool idea to put clouds into the cloud shapes, and the out of bounds technique has a good effect, well done. ;D

Lynda ... nice showcasing of New Orleans and the cloud background paper is really cool. ;)

Ann ... your Mandala Babies are toooo cute my friend. The background paper is excellent and the elephant, giraffe and bear stamps on the mandala are a good effect ... very nice. ;D