American Crafts Studio Blog: Mix'n'Match Guest Designer: Cindy Liebel

Our guest designer for Mix'n'Match week is none other than Cindy Liebel!

Short bio: Hey there, my name is Cindy Liebel. I'm wife to my wonderful and supportive husband and mom to two lovely little ones, Tyler and Corinne, who consistently inspire me. I love creating, especially scrapbooking and jewelry making. I enjoy cooking - experimenting in the kitchen is quite theraputic. I'm known to be a homebody, but I also enjoy being outdoors biking, working out, reading, and being around people I love.

How did you get started scrapbooking? I started scrapbooking when my son was 9 months old. I was inspired by other moms who shared their stories on paper by creating beautiful pages. Once I was lead to Two Peas in a Bucket and a local scrapbook store, I've not looked back since.

What is your favorite American Crafts product? Dear Lizzy's Lucky Charm papers, My Girl papers, Chalkboard Stickers and Matte Puffy Stickers... I couldn't just pick one.

SMORES THE GOOD STUFF by Cindy Liebel

I've always wanted to create a layout using a variety of bubbles. Each word bubble is filled with a word/phrase and were cut out using my Cameo die cut machine. Instead of using pop dots for added depth, I cut another set of plain word bubbles with cardstock and backed each one up with it for thickness.

Supplies: Remarks, Accent & Phrase Stickers (42400) -Remarks, Fabric Stickers (42361) - Remarks, Chipboard Stickers (42396) - Remarks, Matte Puffy Accents (42397) - Cardstock, White (71259) - Lucky Charm, Little Trinket Paper (35983) - My Girl, Marvelous Madeline Paper (35914) - Yes Please, Fulfill Paper (35936) - My Girl, Sunny Savannah Paper (35910) - Lucky Charm, Doting Dots (35964) - May Berry, Sweet Splash (36023) - Yes Please, Hopeful (35946) - May Berry, Miss Betty Paper (36020) - Lakeside, Boquet (751467) - Lakeside, Wild Flowers (751464) - My Girl, Tender Tessa (35912) - May Berry, Berry Blossom (36012)

PAPER BIRDHOUSE by Cindy Liebel

This paper birdhouse was created using my Cameo die cut machine. My daughter has been wanting a little birdhouse to display in her room and the Mayberry and Lucky Charm patterned papers were perfect and to her liking. I layered the roof paper with cardstock for sturdiness and to make machine stitching easier. Quick and easy!

Supplies: May Berry, Shady Lane (36014) - Lucky Charm, Little Trinket (35983) - Lucky Charm, Doting Dots (35964) - May Berry, Front Porch (36016) - Remarks, Epoxy Stickers (42398)

LIPGLOSS by Cindy Liebel

When I started this layout, I wasn't really sure how the design was going to come about. So, I decided to scraplift a previous layout I had created, this is something I love to do when the mojo is lacking creativity. I added patterned papers and an array of shapes and kept with a tone-on-tone affect using a mix of elements to add flow and texture.

Supplies: Cardstock, White (71259) - (Details, Adhesive Ribbon Bows (85621) - Bits, Die Cut Cardstock Stickers (85667) Bits, Decorative Tags (85617) - Dear Lizzy, Adhesive Backed Flowers (85651 0 - Remarks, Epoxy Stickers (42398) - Matte Puffy Accents (42397) - Details, Adhesive Layered Embellishments (85673) - Thickers, Junebug Chipboard Letter Stickers (53466) - Remarks Accent & Phrase Stickers (42400) - May Berry, Strawberry Lemonade Paper (36018) - Lucky Charm, Wishing Well Paper (35961) - My Girl, Beautiful Bella Paper (35908) - Yes Please, Understand Paper (35939) - My Girl, Cute Chloe Paper (35905) - My Girl, Sunny Savannah Paper (35910)

LIFE IS BETTER WITH YOU CARD by Cindy Liebel

This simple card has a lattice background, which adds a lot of texture to the overall design. I also used the leftover tiny circles from the die-cut circle pattern as well as adding the striped patterned paper to the bottom of the card, which adds a bit of contrast. I love how the smooth texture of the fabric sticker looks against the solid pink paper and the lattice background.

Supplies: My Girl, Cute Chloe (35905) - Lucky Charm, Wishing Well (35961) - Lakeside, Boquet (751467) - May Berry, Shady Lane (36014) - Remarks, Fabric Stickers (42361)

HORSIN AROUND IN STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT by Cindy Liebel

Inspiration came from the motif on the horse in the photo. I kept with a plain background and used large geometric shapes to be the main focal point of my design. Each hexagon is layered with contrasting colors of patterned paper to continue to create flow from the photos. To fill in the space, I punched out tiny hexagons from chalkboard stickers. I love that they are self-adhesive and can create a simple embellishment with them.

Supplies: Cardstock, White (71259) - My Girl, Marvelous Madeline (35914) - Lucky Charm, Novelty Paper (35974) - May Berry, Shady Lane Paper (36014) - May Berry, Lemonade Stand Paper (36015) - Yes Please, Consistent Paper (35931) - Yes Please, Hopeful Paper (35946) - May Berry, Front Porch (36016) - My Girl, Beautiful Bella Paper (35908) - Remarks, Matte Puffy Accents (42397) - Whittles, Shaped Wood Buttons (85669) - Whittles, Sentiments ( 85663) - Remarks, Fabric Stickers (42361) - Remarks, Accent & Phrase Stickers (424004) - Remarks, Chalkboard Stickers (42399)

Visit Cindy's blog, tweet her on Twitter (@ct2designs), follow her Pinterest boards, and check out her photos on Instagram (@cindy_liebel)!