Heart Eyes | Unforgettable | Anita Bownds
Hi there! Danni here with a soft and subtle mixed media layout using the stunningly pretty Happiness collection. I still adore all the bright happy colours in this collection and I had so much fun dipping back into it. The colours were a perfect match for the blue floral dress I am wearing in this photo.
I started with the lovely Sprinkles 12×12 patterned paper as a background because it already has that mixed media effect . I applied some iridescent gel medium in a diagonal across my page; this is a really fun medium to play with that adds a beautiful pearlescent finish. While it was still wet, I added some colour with distress oxide ink pads and sprays in a variety of blue and pink shades, using both a paintbrush for splattering and spraying directly onto the paper.
While that mixed media dried I took some butterfly die cuts I had lying around and traced them onto patterned papers, fussy cut those shapes out then glued them together along the centre of the butterfly body, leaving the rest of the shape free to add dimension.
I backed my photo with patterned paper as well as some white crepe paper ruffle along the sides for lots of lovely texture. I popped my photo right in the centre of my page and added the butterflies along that diagonal line of the mixed media. I filled in the gaps with the beautiful little butterflies fussy cut from Bright & Beautiful 12×12 patterned paper, bending them in the middle and only gluing down the centre to make it seem as if they are flying off the page!
I added a few florals and leaves from the die cut ephemera either side of my photo and a simple “happy” title from the die cut titles. I adore the script font of these, it is just so pretty! I went ahead and added several tiny word phrases and another butterfly from the accessory stickers and added a few lines of simple journaling on strips of white cardstock above my photo.
To finish off the layout I added a sprinkling of gold ink; you can never have too much sparkle in my opinion! There is a process video linked below if you would like to watch me talk through the process. Thank you so much for joining me today.
Happy scrapping!
Danni x
Hi everyone!
Anna here with you today sharing a new CVS layout with you, featuring the gorgeous Unforgettable collection. In this layout, I’m documenting a recent family photo. Our girls are growing so fast, so it’s important for me to remember how we are right now.
The assignment for this week was to use a patterned paper for the background, not white cardstock. So hard, I know!! After the little first shock, I went ahead and decided to use the Glorious paper as my background. Bold, right? I folded the top left corner of the paper to the center, so this way we can also see the B side of the Glorious paper. Behind it, I placed the Storyteller paper.
Peeking out from behind the fold I placed some flowers from the Die Cut Ephemera pack. I could never have enough of these flowers. To give more dimension to the page I raised them with foam dots. I also fussy cut a butterfly from the Pretty Bits paper, and stacked it behind the flowers. To finish the cluster I put a sticker phrase from the Accessory Stickers.
I put a thin coat of gesso to fade out the flowers in the center of the paper, to highlight the photo and the title a little more. I used two papers from the 6×8 paper stack to mat the picture. For my title, I used the Foam Title Stickers with this beautiful font. All the words are perfect for any kind of project.
Finally, I embellished the layout with some die cuts, stickers, clear stickers, enamel dots, and a flair button.
And that’s it! I hope it gives you some inspiration and encourages you to try layouts without a white background.
Thank you so much for stopping by today! Have a great week!
Anna xx
Hey Everyone its Michelle back here today with a new layout share for part of our Pattern Paper Background theme. I’ve used the Make a Wish collection for this layout which was perfect to document my recent birthday that we ended up ‘celebrating’ COVID style. I love the colours and patterns within this collection so it was fun to dip into my remaining stash.
Now we all know that I love using white cardstock as my base for most layouts that I create. I love the crisp white open space it provides to make the other elements on the layout stand out, but I also like to step out of my comfort zone every now and then and create something with next to no white cardstock. I think I succeeded today and I may have snuck in a little for the cut file from CUT to YOU but that was all.
The woodgrain design in the Make a Wish collection would have to be by far my most favourite of all the woodgrain patterns that Zoe has designed and its perfect for full page background use. I combined it with a grid of other bright patterns from the collection, including those sweet mini florals, and sewed around the edges of each to secure them to the background.
I added 3 black and white photos, printed slightly larger than the pattern paper squares and adhered using foam tape to raise them up off the background just a tad. To the right of the photo above I’ve created a mini cluster using ephemera pieces, cut apart tag and glitter enamels.
I added the title to the bottom half of the grid mixed with older alpha stickers from both this collection and one of the very first collections Cocoa Vanilla Studio released.
I created a couple of mini floral clusters diagonally across from each other using pieced from the ephemera pack and some fussy cut party hats from the cut apart sheet. I didn’t add to many bits as the layout itself is already quite busy with all the different patterns and colours.
I also added a couple of bits to the bottom left corner to coordinate with the mini cluster of bits to the photo above the title. This made the layout look complete and balanced all the elements out just nicely.
Lastly I added a sprinkling of gold ink around the layout, I’m going to be super sad when that little bottle runs out as its the perfect finishing touch to almost all the layouts I create using CVS products.
For now thats all from me, thank you so much for stopping by today. As always be sure to share your amazing creations with us in the CVS Facebook group. We love to see what your inspired to create!
Until next time, Happy Scrapping!
Michelle xx
**PS Please note If you’re hoping to get your hands on this sweet collection sadly theres only a couple of papers left in physical form in the CVS shop, and its not been released in DIGITAL form. Maybe you might already have a good stash of it at your place and you can keep creating with it.
Hi everyone. Its Tarrah back with you today on the Cocoa Vanilla blog sharing a new layout featuring the gorgeous Bohemian Dream collection!
I am not normally a purple person when it comes to clothing or scrapping but when it comes to the Bohemian Dream collection, how can you go past that gorgeous purple?! The dress that my niece is wearing in this photo together with my Mum was the inspiration for my layout today. The colours in Amelia’s dress were the perfect match with the Bohemian Dream collection!
To start my page, I chose my background, which is the Dreamer paper and then started to build from the background up. I cut 2 strips of paper from the A and B sides of the Flower Child paper and placed them horizontally, I then trimmed the blue with white spots paper and cut it into a rectangle shape. Next I layered a paper doily underneath my photo, one of the journal cards from the Beautiful Mess paper and also layered one of the die-cut frames from the ephemera pack under the photo. The photo and frame have craft foam underneath them to add dimension to the page.
To embellish my layout, I took some of the florals, feathers and butterflies die-cuts from the ephemera pack and tucked them into various places around the page. On the left of my photo, I added one of the gorgeous flair buttons and the ‘Beautiful’ die-cut became my title for the page.
Thank you so much for stopping by the Cocoa Vanilla blog today! I hope you can take a little inspiration from my layout today.
Happy creating!
Tarrah x
Hey all Rachel here! I recently realised I had never used the pre cut cut files, so I decided it was time! This geometric heart cut file from the Happiness collection it is so gorgeous and all I did was add some machine stitching! The photo is of my girl caught on our bed, but she looked so cute instead of telling her off I grabbed my camera!
I love the black foam sticker titles (from the Unforgettable collection) and against pinks and florals it creates a stunning contrast and visual impact. I plan ahead where I am going to position them as I wanted to add several.
I matted my photo on the frame of mind paper using the green side (all papers from the Happiness collection). I added it with foam tape as I wanted to tuck elements under it. From the Happiness die cut ephemera I added a floral bunch and two of the tassels and finished off this embellishment cluster with a gorgeous Happiness flair button.
On the other side of my photo I added a floral bunch that I fussy cut from the so fresh paper finished off with fussy cut butterflies from the bright and beautiful paper which I adhered with foam to create a 3d effect.
I next created my title using a mix of the foam titles (and hearts) and accessory sticker phrase sentiments. I added a Happiness clear sticker paint brush strokes over the sentiments.
I added another foam sticker title which I slightly curved to fit the shape of the heart. Lastly I added another row of machine stitching to border the page.
I love how this turned out and it’s just perfect to document my much loved girl! Thank you for stopping by today and I hope you all have a wonderful week and manage some scrapping time.
Rachel X
Hello Cocoa Vanilla friends !
It’s Sophie back with you to share a new layout featuring the gorgeous Unforgettable collection !
My assignment today was to use a Foam Title. Quite easy with the enormous and beautiful choices that we have with the Unforgettable Foam Title Stickers !
I was inspired to use this collection to highlight a beautiful photo of my sweet little girl Sabrina.
I started my layout by applying a bit of watercolor paint on white thick cardstock so that we can see it pop in a subtle way behind my photo. I also added a few splatters of the colors with a brush.
I cut out two large strips of the Natural Beauty Paper and two thinner strips of the diagonal striped Sprightly Paper and put them on both sides of the layout.
I embellished the base of my photo with a huge cluster of flowers from the Die Cut Ephemera pack. I also added a few leaves that I created with watercolor to mimic the ephemera leaves.
My title is from the Unforgettable Foam Title Stickers. The butterflies, arrow, camera and labels are all from the Die Cut Ephemera Pack.
Finally, I added the date, a little bit of journaling, a Flair Button and a few Enamel Dots as the finishing touch.
Oh how I love how it turned out ! The color scheme of this collection suites my style so well, I just can’t get enough of it !
Anyway, here are more close-ups. I hope you like my page and that you felt inspired by it !
Thank you so much for passing by, and have a great week !
Sophie xx
Hey everyone, it’s Raquel here today sharing a new CVS layout with you. For today’s layout I have used the gorgeous Unforgettable collection. I absolutely adore this collection; the colours, the embellishments, just perfection! In this layout I am documenting my beautiful babes.
Recently my family and I went on a short trip away together and my youngest, who is 5, shared that he felt his big sister didn’t love him or want to spend time with him anymore. My daughter who is 7 has this year had less tolerance towards her brother but I still see how much she loves and adores him at the same time. I think this is just a sibling thing right? But it really broke my heart that he perceived things to be this way. We have spent a lot of time chatting, playing games and trying to help them reconnect and I am drawn back to moments captured like this. Where their love for each other is so evident. I want to make sure to capture and document these moments more in the future so they realise how lucky they are to have each other, to look out for each other and help each other through the good times and the bad.
Here is the layout that I am sharing with you today. Isn’t the Unforgettable collection just perfect for this black and white photo. It just screams sweetness and love.
I used a gorgeous feature title cut file by Paige Evans on this layout. I am a big fan of statement titles and this one surely does pack a punch. I chose to add my photo to the ‘o’ in the centre of the layout to back the cut file I chose to use the amazing pretty bits paper . I loved that from the one piece of paper that I could have such a variety of patterns behind my cut file.
I printed my photo approximately 3×4” in size to pop behind the cut file. The composition of the photo fit perfectly – a tip is to make sure that when backing a cut file with a photo that your focus in the photo and subjects are centred – especially if you are using a curved cut file design like this one. Otherwise, it can result in you losing too much detail from your photo.
When backing the cut file with patterned paper I tried to make sure that I balanced out the colours and complexity of patterns so that the layout is pleasing to the eye. For example, I avoided having two busy patterned papers on letters next to each other.
When using a statement title cut file I like to use the open spaces to create embellishment clusters like in the image below. To create this cluster I used a combination of the ephemera, clear stickers, enamel dots and the accessory stickers. I use a variety of adhesives to create and add depth and dimension to the clusters.
Here is another cluster I created. I fussy cut this butterfly again from the Pretty bits paper. To add string to the tags in the ephemera packs I use a crochet thread from a craft store, I love the thickness of this compared to a twine. It is much thinner.
To add dimension to the whole page I used a foam adhesive. For those of you who may be in Australia I actually use a foam adhesive roll from Bunnings which is the Syneco brand and is 40metres long for only $10.
Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today. I hope you have been inspired to create using your Cocoa Vanilla products.
Take care
Raquel xxx
Hey Creatives! I hope you are all well. Gwen up on the blog with you today sharing and I’ve dug deep into my stash for this share, using the ‘Wild at Heart’ collection. I paired it with this happy snap of Miss C and myself which was taken a while back while we were just hanging out. I love these pics, so fun and so ‘us’ and they work so well with this sweet collection.
For this page, I was really inspired to use up some of the ‘Chipboard Frames’ from the collection. I had an unopened pack in my stash so pulled them out and set out a plan to layer them onto my page. I just mixed and matched them with my photo until I was happy. At this point nothing is stuck down, I just needed to get an idea of where everything was going to go.
Next, I went about backing my photo. For this, I’ve used the ‘Memento‘ paper and ‘Luscious’ paper, I’ve also added my signature stitching here. I’ve then gone ahead and recreated my design with the photo and the chipboard. Once I was happy with the position of everything, I’ve glued the frames to the photo (not the background) so that everything is in one piece and easy for me to move around.
Now it was time to work on my mixed media background. I’m going for a subtle look here and used some mixed media shimmery spray and the packaging technique, not fussing with it too much, just letting the spray drip a little and move around the page, then set it aside to dry. Once dry, I’ve added my photo and frame pieces on top.
Before sticking everything down, I’ve added in a large die-cut doily from the ‘Ephemera Pack’ to the right of my photo as well as a tag from this same pack, sticking out the top edge of my photo. My page is a central design so everything is working from the centre of the page outwards.
It was now time to embellish! I’ve started by fussy cutting out some of the elements from the ‘Fussy Cuts’ paper and pulling pieces from the ‘Ephemera Pack‘ and ‘Accessory Sticker Sheet’. Adding bits and pieces to the main structure of my page. I’ve also used a bow die in my Sizzix machine to create some fun paper bows and added these for dimension and interest. This is a great way to use up paper scraps if you have them.
Next, I’ve added in a flair button from the ‘Flair pack‘, some typed sentiments from the ‘Accessory Sticker Sheet’ and some ‘Enamel Dots’ in gold to add a pop of sparkle. These smaller elements help round out the page and finish it off so nicely.
I hope this page has inspired you to pull out your collection of ‘Wild at Heart‘ and get creating! It’s always great to stash bust a little before a brand new collection arrives! As always, be sure to share in the Cocoa Vanilla Studio community, we love seeing what you make :)
Until next time,
Gwen
xo
Hey y’all! Laura here with a really fun take on this amazing mandala design on the Explorer paper from the Legendary Collection. I wanted to see if I could use both the inside and outside of this gorgeous design on two separate layouts! This idea has been floating around in my head for ages, so I decided to dive in and give it a go!
Once I finished fussy cutting out the mandala pattern inside, I pulled together two different sets of photos, one for a busy layout and one for a simple layout. I figured the contrast between the two designs would be a fun juxtaposition! For the first layout, I layered in plenty of scraps and even used the part of the orange One Way paper that wouldn’t show to mat my photos! Love when I can get the absolute most use out of my papers, especially the gorgeousness from Cocoa Vanilla.
I had quite a bit of journaling to add to these photos, so I ended up using three label stickers from the 6×12 accessory sticker sheet to create spots for the details around the page. Anime is a huge interest for two of my kids at the moment, so the opportunity to see people dressed as their favorite characters was a thrill! And this wild, layered background was the perfect backdrop for these photos, pulling the bright orange and blues in together. Adding in the very appropriate “So Epic” title and the little stream of stars around each of my two clusters was a fun way to finish it off!
For my second layout, I backed the frame of the mandala with the Epic Tales paper, then adding a border of the bright orange One Way paper to give that blue a pop of excitement! Using many of the circle elements in the ephemera pack, I backed a few with scraps and layered them in with my photos of a Scouts fishing trip. My goofy son’s silly antics are some of my favorite pictures to scrap and these were no different! I did have to take the design all the way to the edge on the right to cover up where I cut through to the mandala, but overall, I think it turned out pretty cool!
I hope this double layout from one pattern inspired you to look at your patterned papers a little differently! It’s fun to see how you can use every little piece up in a new way. If you’d like to see the So Epic layout come together, I have the entire process in the video below!