American Crafts Studio Blog: Guest Designer of the Week: Michelle Clement

I'm excited to announce the guest designer of the week (who is actually now on the Design Team for 2011-2012!): Michelle Clement!

You'll love her assortment of mini projects!

Supplies: Stumpy Meadow Paper (35347) - Campy Trails, Big Pine Creek Paper (35369) – Campy Trails, Powder Point Camp Paper (35368) – Campy Trails, Silver Lake Trail Paper (35346) - Campy Trails, Empanada Paper (35429) - Margarita, Deer (77249) – Patchems, Forest Vanilla (53162) - Thickers, Decorative Tags (85534) - Bits

"I wanted to document a really fun hammock-camping trip my husband and I took because I often forget to photograph our camp set-up (with the motorcycle we travel on) in a shot. The ‘you’re such a deer’ Patchems was perfect, because the mister is patient with me and camping - and the Campy Trails colors went with the photos perfectly! I added some circle punched from patterned paper for pops of color and to draw the eye into the photos, and painted the top edge with watered down acrylic paint for balance."

Supplies: Havana Paper (35435) - Margarita, Stumpy Meadow Paper (35347) – Campy Trails, Powder Point Camp Paper (35368) - Campy Trails, Silver Lake Trail Paper (35346) - Campy Trails, Decorative Tags (85534) - Bits, Super Swell (42193) - Remarks, Deer (77249) - Patchems

"This card was inspired by the Campy Trails Patchems with the mountains and sky scene on it. I cut the house from a tag and set it on there to see how it would look and then I fell in love with the mini-scene and added a tent, a skunk, a tree – and voila! A cute little dimensional scene that’s full of texture. The all-occasion message also makes it great for everything from ‘I like you’ to ‘that was a great trip!’"

Supplies: Delight Paper (35399) – Hello Sunshine, Caramel Candie Paper (35337) – Confetti, Good Golly Gee Paper (35375) – Peachy Keen, Merengue Paper (35438) - Margarita, Big Pine Creek Paper (35369) – Campy Trails, Dainty Paper (35404) - Hello Sunshine, Sunset Blush (53182) – Thickers, Cake (78042) – Details, Glitter Chipboard Clubhouse (77247) - House

"This is one of my favorite photos of little me that my mom took at my fifth birthday party – it’s the look of surprise on my face when I opened my favorite elephant stuffed animal ‘Wrinkles’. He followed me around for years so I love that this moment was captured – it deserves a page of its own! I used bright colors to capture the feel of the party and girly details like cupcakes and glitter shapes to add a little dimension to the page. I didn’t journal a lot – just a few key points – because I think the photo says it all and wanted to keep the focus there."

Supplies: Empanada Paper (35429) – Margarita, Betty Bundt Paper (35324) - Confetti, Super Swell (42193) - Remarks, Forest Vanilla (53162) Thickers, Clubhouse Glitter Chipboard (77247) - House

"I don’t often see a lot of ‘great job!’ cards out there and this notebook sticker inspired one from me. The glitter shape reminded me of the tops of the award ribbons you get in contests so I used stickers to create the bottom of the award as the perfect congratulatory embellishment. I lightly sanded the Thickers and painted them orange so they stood out on the light background paper."

Supplies: Havana Paper (35435) – Margarita, Calypso Paper (35433) - Margarita, Merengue Paper (35438) - Margarita, Delight Paper (35399) – Hello Sunshine, Peachy Keen Rose Brads (85539) - Elements, Getaway (78050) - Details, Super Swell (42193) – Remarks, Macaw Sunshine (53188) – Thickers, Margartia Decorative Tags (85552) – Bits, 4x6" Journaling Cards (64010) - JustWrite

"I fondly remember our house with the apricot tree in the backyard and the summers we spent there with it. This photo is of my sister and I and our grandparents house (I love that Grandpa is in the tree, too!). The bright colors of the Margarita line matched my nineties bathing suit really well and also captured the happiness of this summer memory for me. I used strips of patterned paper to draw the eye across the page and that lovely felt butterfly helps draw attention to the photo and journaling." Supplies: Macaw Sunshine (53188) - Thickers, Forest Vanilla (53162) - Thickers, Campy Trails Fabric Brads (85535) - Elements, Cake (78042) - Details, Campy Trails Decorative Tags (85534) - Bits, Super Swell (42193) – Remarks, Empanada Paper (35429) – Margarita, Peppy Paper (35405) – Hello Sunshine, Breezy Paper (35406) – Hello Sunshine, Dainty Paper (35404) – Hello Sunshine, Frolic Paper (35403) – Hello Sunshine, Big Pine Creek Paper (35369) – Campy Trails, Bow Tie (89398) – Ribbon, Delight Paper (35399) - Hello Sunshine, Dainty Paper (35404) - Hello Sunshine, Peachy Keen Rose Brads (85539) - Elements

"I’ve been working on learning how to use my new digital camera so I had a ton of close-up photos from around my home – the little things like embroidery projects in progress, what I’m crocheting, the edge of my new glasses – and I thought they were really great little bits of life to document for my future self. I decided to call the album ‘Cupcakes of My Life’ because the photos seemed like really special bits of my life, like cupcakes: they’re tasty, yummy treats that you get on happy occasions. I cut the photos down and stitched bits of patterned paper right onto the sides of them for a little color and texture. I journaled about the photos on the back with a marker (so as not to clutter the eye candy), and added a little stitched mosaic of paper bits to the cover (which was made from a saved paper bag). I bound it with a metal ring and crocheted chains, and put my introduction page to the album and the title on the inside of the cover."

We asked Michelle a few questions to find out more about her and here are her answers:

How did you get started scrapbooking?
I got started in 1997 after taking a beginner’s class with my sister and mom at a local shop (complete with Disney stickers and cutting photos into star shapes!). I scrapped with my family after that and then had an assignment in high school to make a scrapbook for English class which is when I fell in love with it in a whole new way. I started scrapbooking regularly then (in a more artsy fashion) and even worked in my local scrapbook store for awhile. It wasn’t until five years ago that I discovered the wonderful online community of scrapbookers and I’ve since had the chance to work with some awesome companies.

What would you say your scrapbooking “style” is?
My style is very artsy, detailed, and layered. I like to say it looks fairly handmade, too. Maybe even freestyle? I use a lot of paint and scrumple my paper edges and I also include a lot of handmade details like stitching and wooden letter-by-letter stamping.

What is your favorite technique?
My favorite technique is painting – actually, any wet medium! Paint, dye, ink, and mist top my list – it’s hard for me to do a page without them!

When do you find time to scrap?
I usually scrapbook at night, after work – though I do sometimes pull out my supplies on the weekend (it’s so nice to scrapbook with sun streaming in my windows!). Often, I’m burning the midnight oil.

On average, how long does it take you to complete a project?
I’m a pretty slow scrapbooker – I like to take my time, push things around, sew, wait for paint to dry – lol. I usually average 2-3 hours per page, but I work on multiple pages at the same time.

What is your favorite thing about American Crafts?
My favorite things about American Crafts are the bright patterned papers (with such cute, eye-pleasing patterns!) that are so versatile they work with every page ‘occasion’! I’m also an embellishment junkie and really love the Patchems, Flair, and glitter Thickers.

Michelle has a really great blog so make sure you stop by and leave some love!