March 30/31st Pencil and Crayola Crayon Days!

As you know by now, I look to the days of the year website to find inspiration for my posts.  Well, as luck would have it, March 30th is Pencil Day and March 31st is Crayola Crayon Day so I thought it would be the PERFECT time to share this little RTC layout I created (5x5 squares on a 6x6" RTC paper).  I plan to use it as an accent on a traditional scrapbook page layout about an art show or alongside artwork my niece and nephews have created.

And if you want even more inspiration, check out this Journella post from Design Team Member, Andrea Fisher.  I just LOVE the way she did the crayons!!! 

**In case you aren't familiar with it, Journella is a free website where Tami Potter encourages members of the Mosaic Moments Design Team (and any mosaic fans or online journalling fans) to share their creations.

Niagara Falls Runs Dry Day????

March 29th commemorates the anniversary of the day in 1848 when Niagara Falls ran dry, well frozen, actually.  Yes, it's really a day - Niagara Falls Runs Dry Day!

Well, they sure weren't dry when we were there!  But that's ok, all that water made for a great Mosaic Layout.  I created this layout with traditional 4x6 (not panoramic) pictures using the technique of aligning the horizon.

Have you ever tried that technique?  It's a great way to utilize those shots we all take at grandiose places where you stand in one place and pivot taking a series of shots to capture the breadth and expanse of the place.  (The Grand Canyon comes to mind?)

Fridays with Friends

It happened again!!!  I was vending at a crop in Northern Kentucky and some of my former students and customers were eager to share their Mosaic Moments creations with me!  I just love giving and receiving inspiration from these layouts!!! I was gifted with the sharing of several layouts but in celebration of Spring Equinox and Easter, I chose these to share first.

This is just a gorgeous blend of garden flowers and family pics.  Love it!

I think this is a great example of blending mosaics with traditional layouts.

I like this one because it makes use of an adorable embellishment as well as coordinating papers, but still keeps the focus on the photos!

If you have layouts you would be willing to share for a future Fridays with Friends, I request that you see me at any crop or event, or post them to my FB Page:  Minerva Mosaics with Tami Potter's Mosaic Moments

Technique for Tuesday, March 24, 2015

When I sell the Mosaic Moments cutting mat, I always give the buyer a free "Quick Glance Cutting Guide" which is a clear transparency paper that allows you to see where your cuts will fall.  This is particularly helpful when cutting photos with a face in them.

Here is a Cutting and Cropping Video from the Mosaic Moments website that helps you understand a little bit more about how and where to make your cuts so your final mosaic effect is most perfectly aligned.

Poultry Day!

I just love Peacocks.  I came across these peacock pictures on the internet and I just knew they would make a great mosaic.  I made this on the 6" square RTC (Ready to Cut) paper, available for purchase through the SnapnCrop link to the right.  It has 5 one-inch squares x 5 one-inch squares.  

And yeah, Poultry Day sounds like as good of a reason to post these pics as any, right?  (I mean, I don't have any pictures of chickens.  I'll have to work on that!)

Fridays with Friends

I walked into a crop last weekend in Northern Kentucky to set up to demonstrate the Mosaic Moments technique.  As I did so, I had not one but TWO former students approach me to say "you have to see this mosaic I made" - I cannot tell you how this makes my heart soar!  I love the inspiration that comes from seeing other people's creations.  It fills me with joy to see that they are using their products to create their very own masterpieces.  I am so blessed that these ladies share their creations with me and allow me to share them with you!

The Glacier Bay mosaic was created by Betsy Lewis Gully and the Owners Club mosaic was created by Janet Beck.  Both of these ladies are fairly "new" at creating their own mosaics from scratch (instead of working from page kits or class kits), but look what a fabulous job they each did!  

International Scrapbooking Industry Day

So, as you know, I've been working my way through some fun dates on the Days of the Year Website.  Some have been quirky.  Some fun.  Some just utterly bizarre.  But how on earth could I pass up the chance to celebrate "International Scrapbooking Industry Day."  I mean, I've been scrapbooking for more than 20 years and I never knew such a thing existed!

The website says: "Celebrated all over the world, International Scrapbooking Industry Day is the day when lovers of memories, paper, photos and glue come together to celebrate this immensely popular hobby.

Scrapbooking is all about preserving memories whether they’re in paper, photo or letter format, or even items such as pressed flowers from your first date, ribbons from chocolates on Valentine’s Day or even an airline ticket from your first holiday with the girls, guys or without your parents, or even with the kids. All that’s needed is some glue, a decorated book or album, and some time to sit down and start sticking! Some towns and cities even have their own Scrapbooking Clubs where like-minded people meet to chat, scrap, and hold fairs where you can choose your next scrapbook design, see the latest trends in scrapbooking, and try new products."

In honor of this momentous occasion, I am sharing a mosaic that I created to celebrate my scrapbooking/craft room - affectionately known as the "scrap cave."  It is a total disaster area these days, but the pics I used were taken back in the good old days when it was clean and mostly neat!

March 2, 2015 - It's Dr. Seuss Day

Well, if I was a poet, I would write a fun poem to celebrate Dr. Seuss Day.   But I'm not.  So, I thought I would celebrate this fun Dr. Seuss mosaic layout instead!

And my favorite Dr. Seuss quotes (as they pertain to scrapbooking) are:

"Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory."
"Today I shall behave as if this is the day I will be remembered."
"Don't cry because it's over.  Smile because it happened."
"I always knew looking back on the tears would make me laugh.  But I never knew that looking back on the laughs would make me cry."

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRIFFIN!

Happy Birthday to my spoiled rotten little nephew, Griffin!!  This layout showcases his first birthday, but he is turning THREE tomorrow.  (We're celebrating his birthday today with a big party at Chuck E. Cheese, so that's why I posted this today instead of tomorrow.)