Bella Blvd Studio Blog

Inspiration Unlimited Week: Sunshine & Happiness Collection

This week while we are in California at the CHA Trade Show debuting all the brand new products that we revealed over the past 2 weeks, we are going to share with you projects, projects and more projects with everything new! If you are starving for new inspiration and ideas, you're in the right place! The Bella Design Team have done wonders with the new products and now we can finally show you! Each day we will be featuring one of our new Collections and/or Embellishment products and showing you some great ideas! Get ready for a fun energy boost ... here we go!

Today, we are featuring layouts using the Sunshine & Happiness collection!

"I {heart} Summer", by Megan Klauer.

This may be my favorite layout so far that I've created with the new collections. The bright colors are just so bright and fun! Makes me wish Summer was here already!

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Happy Clouds, Popsicle Kisses, Cute Cuts, Borders, Alpha+Bits, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniatures Stickers; Designer Tapes: Jail Bird; High Five Alpha: Black & White; Flags: Summer, Vacation

"A Kiss From Her Puppy Is Happiness", by Kimberly Neddo.

I’ve always wanted to try this quilting design on a layout, and I’m so happy with out this turned out. If you punch a circle and fold it down on 4 sides, you will create this fun look of dimension, and also show off some great styles of paper at the same time. I found by stitching it into place in some area’s it flattened it down a little bit more to add embellishments and my photograph.

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Sunny Side Up, Play Date, Borders, Happy Clouds, Popsicle Kisses, Miniatures, Ciao Chips; Sophisticates: Ciao Chip Borders; High Five Alpha Stickers: Blue, Pink/Red; Designer Tape: Blue Gingham; Buttons: Aqua Flowers; Crochet Flowers: Dahlia, Juniper

"Yum", by Katherine McElvain.

When I first got a hold of the Sunshine and Happiness collection I was excited to team it up with these photos I took of my daughter making a watermelon smoothie last summer. I love the pink woodgrain pattern on the back of the Play Date paper, so I punched out a variety of circles, layered and rotated the grain pattern to make a pink pop on the top of the page. I also wanted to use the other delicious pinks and greens that the line has to offer and added some to the bottom of the page in strips. A few black paint sprinkles, and the layout is as yummy as the smoothie itself. But not as messy, because the first time my daughter made her watermelon concoction she twisted the blender from the bottom and the smoothie poured out all over the counter and the floor. Wish I would have got some photos of that, but we were too busy cleaning up...Yikes.

Supplies:
Sunshine and Happiness: Petal Power, Play Date, Happy Clouds, Borders, Cute Cuts, Chipboard Icons, Alpha+Bits Stickers; Sophisticates: High Five Alphabets Pink-Red, Simply Simona Alphabets Oreo; Designer Tape: Teal Stripe

"Summer Fun" card, by Gretchen McElveen.

I mean, what is not to love about this line? It might be my most favorite Bella Blvd line to date! I love the bright colors, fun patterns, and all the flowers!

Supplies:
Sunshine & Happiness: Borders, Happy Clouds, Chipboard Icons, Alpha + Bits

Inspiration Unlimited Week: Baby Boy Collection

This week while we are in California at the CHA Trade Show debuting all the brand new products that we revealed over the past 2 weeks, we are going to share with you projects, projects and more projects with everything new! If you are starving for new inspiration and ideas, you're in the right place! The Bella Design Team have done wonders with the new products and now we can finally show you! Each day we will be featuring one of our new Collections and/or Embellishment products and showing you some great ideas! Get ready for a fun energy boost ... here we go!

Today, we are featuring projects from the Baby Boy collection!

"Our Sweet Boy", by Brook Stewart.

My youngest is just over a year and a half old and I still have LOTS of baby pictures that I haven’t scrapped yet and this new Baby Boy collection was just amazingly perfect to get some of those finished up! The colors are so vibrant and the patterns are fun!! The new Designer Tape in Pickle Juice Dots coordinates perfectly with this line too!

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Momma’s Boy, Baby Blue, Borders, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits, Ciao Chip Icons; Sophisticates: Blue High Five Alphas;  Designer Tape: Pickle Juice Dots; Button Market: Wood Mix

"Sweet", by Gretchen McElveen.

How sweet is this new baby line! Here are my two favorite things about this line: 1) I love how it coordinates so well with the new "We're Expecting" line. The ruler paper on this layout is actually a piece of the "We're Expecting" paper, but you would never know it wasn't a sheet of "Baby Boy" paper! And 2) I love the bright pops of green, orange, and yellow in this line! Those colors make this line unique from other baby lines I have seen recently and they also help make this line more versatile than just for baby projects!

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Momma's Boy, It's a Boy, Borders, Alpha + Bits, Just Write Journaling Stickers, Miniatures Stickers; We're Expecting: Baby Boy Bump

"Baby Love", by Shannon Tidwell.

This photo has always been one of my favorites and combined with the new Baby Boy line it's a favorite layout.  I used one of my go to techniques on this layout, circle punch borders.  For the first layer I punched 2" circles and adhered them into an uneven scalloped border. Then I added a border of 1 1/2" circles folded in half. By just adhering one side of the circle down you can add a bit of dimension without the weight or bulk. I love the bright colors of green and orange mixed with the sweet baby blues in the new Baby Boy line ... not to mention the animal prints! 

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Momma's Boy, Borders, Wild About You, Cute Cuts, Alpha+Bits, Miniatures, Just Write Journaling Stickers; Simply Simona Chipboard Alphas: Saltwater; Crochet Flowers: Juniper

"It's A Boy" card, by Kathy Martin.

This collection was so fun and easy to work with that I think it brought out my best work! The pretty pastel colors are just right, not too pale nor too bright and the patterns, like these little onsies, are absolutely adorable!

Supplies:
Baby Boy: Momma’s Boy, Cute Cuts, Borders, Alpha+Bits, Miniatures

Live From CHA:i Set-Up Day 1

Ciao Ciao Bella Fans! How are you? Have you been following us on Facebook, watching our set-up updates? (PS-We're literally 11 fans away from 5,000 and would love to get there!) We're enjoying the sun (okay, well the small walks to & from the convention center and the view of the palm trees while the back garage doors are open during set-up) in California & can't wait to give you a peek of the CHA Winter 2012 Booth! Are you ready?

When we arrived Friday morning at Booth #1287 our beautius crates were waiting! And the non-existent booth is mapped out with metal poles and also with these not-so-beautius curtains!

The crates are huge! So huge that 20 peeps could probably picnic inside ;)

While a picnic in sunny California would be wonderful and relaxing, setting up this booth is definitely not a walk in the park! One by one the walls go up...

every now & then we snap a couple photos...so we can say hi :) to you!

Back to work as the details come together. Assembling the product panels is time consuming and meticulous, but is so rewarding when finished! After all, CHA is the end-all after months of organizing, planning, designing, executing and creating! 

* PS---No matter what you do you should always wear socks & tennis during set-up. After nearly 8 hours poor Therese needed to let her little piggies breathe. We confined her to the booth so that she wouldn't step on nails, screws or glass! Even though she probably walked out with a couple Glue Dots on her feet by the time we were finished with this Embellishment board. :)

The best part is left to complete on Saturday: displaying all the breathtaking and incredibly creative layouts, cards, mini albums and altered projects by the design team! Just you wait....

Well, that's all for now. We've got to get some shut-eye before Day 2 of set-up. In the meantime, be sure to enter to win our new products for free by checking out the Sneak Peeks/Reveals from the past several days. All you have to do is leave comments to have a chance to win!! For all of you scrapbookers our there watching and reading at home...we're missing you and wish you were here to see it all in real life!

Ciao Ciao for Now!

- - - S t e p h a n i e

Sneak Peek Week: Collection Kits

We made it! Today is the last day of our two week long Sneak Peek Week feature! Before we get to our last reveal, I want to thank each and every one of you for joining us here on the blog and sharing in our excitement over all of the fabulous new products that Stephanie has dreamed up for us! We appreciate every single comment that you took the time to leave for us, and we cannot wait for you to get our new products in your hands and onto your projects!

We've had request after request for more than a year now to sell Collection Kits! We are happy to introduce these 7 collection kits, including the newest paper collections we've revealed over the past 2 weeks and also the more recent Winter Wonder, Spring Flings and Easter Things and Sophisticates collections also! These new Collection Kits feature papers and stickers from the collections! Contents are a bit different in each kit and are geared at a retail price of $15.99 with exception of the Sophisticates Collection Kit which includes slightly more products for your everyday needs, retailing at $19.99

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And now for giveaway time! We want to give two lucky blog readers a chance to win one Collection Kit of their choice, before they even hit the stores. Just leave us a comment to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of our giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Remember to check back here on Sunday, when we will announce all of the winners from the last 2 weeks of giveaways. Also, next Monday, we will be kicking off our two week long "Inspiration Unlimited" feature. We will be sharing tons of projects from our CHA designers, using all of the new collections and embellishments! You won't want to miss it!

Sneak Peek Week: Flags

Welcome back! I hope you got a chance to check out our Crochet Flower reveal from this morning. We have our last embellishment reveal to share with you this afternoon. I loved hearing the story, from Stephanie, about how these came to be. Let's check it out!

This brand new embellishment was inspired by the Design Team themselves. Little do they know that I've been working with local Artista, Sheri Feypel, on developing these cute little flags. About a year ago, I noticed that Sheri was constantly creating handmade flags with stick pins and various Bella Blvd stickers - usually the Miniatures stickers. Then, as time passed, I realized when we started seeing projects by the new 2011-12 Design Team members that several of them were doing the same thing ... espeically some of our card designers! So I thought to myself, "self ... we gotta make those!" And here they are, in real life!

These darling little stick pin Flags are available in 24 different themes for all occasions, seasons and everyday too! Even better, they mix and match with all of our newest collections, and previous! We know you're going to run out and buy every single one because they'll only be $1.75 each at your favorite local or online scrapbooking stores! All the work is done for you with these darling little flags. No need to handmake them anymore girls ;)

"I {Heart} U", by Diane Payne.

For this layout featuring a favorite photo of myself with my daughter I wanted a fun and whimsical design so I created a banner that included my photo and capped it off with flags. The flags are adorable on their own but to customize them I wrapped the pin in twine and finished it off with a bow.

"Friends", by Laura Vegas.

I am just loving these new little flag embellishments! I have been tucking them onto just about every layout and card I have created for CHA. Whether you use just one, or use a fun mix of flags, they add that little special touch to your projects. There is such a wide variety of designs, that there will always be a flag to fit what you're looking for! 

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

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And now for giveaway time! We want to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own 10 Flags of their choice, before they even hit the stores. Just leave us a comment to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of our giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Sneak Peek Week: Crochet Flowers

Happy Thursday everyone! We have a busy day on the blog today, for you. We have two super fun embellishment reveals to share with you, and we have split them into two seperate posts. So make sure you stop back by, later this afternoon, for the second reveal ;)

At Bella Blvd we've been making flowers for a couple of years, and now we have a new texture! These hand-embroidered Crochet Flowers are so dainty and full of cuteness that you'll want to give them to all your friends! Add them to a card, stitch them to a T-shirt or headband....the ideas are endless. They are sure to cheer up your layouts and add elegance to any card! The Crochet Flowers come four to a package and are approximately one inch in diameter with a cute button center! Again, another great retail price at only $3.25 each!

"She Is So Silly", by Laura Vegas.

I love using flowers on my layouts and cards. They rank right up there with buttons and ribbons, as some of my favorite "go-to" embellishments that I use over and over. These fun little crochet flowers are so small and adorable. I love that they're layered, with the two colors, and that they come with the buttons threaded on there already. Simply pull them out of the package, and they're ready to go on your layouts and cards!

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And now for giveaway time! We want to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own a set of our new Crochet Flowers, before they even hit the stores. Just leave us a comment to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of our giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Sneak Peek Week: Sophisticates High Five Alphabet Stickers

Welcome back to Sneak Peek Week! I cannot believe that we only have two more days of product reveals left. Although, we are making tomorrow a double post day. We're squeezing two fun embellishment reveals into one day for you! On Monday, we revealed the new Sophisticates Sprinkles & Lace patterned papers and the new Sophisticates Chipboard Elements. Well, today we have our new alphabet stickers to go along with those! 

These new High Five Alphabets are sure to be an even bigger hit (if that's possible) that our previous "Quattrofina" alphabets. Why you might be asking? Because there are FIVE super versatile alphabets on only 1 sticker sheet! Watch out - before you know it, you'll be hoarding these! Available in 5 different colorways and retailing at only $3.99, you're going to love all the options!

"We Love Our Awesome Little Family", by Laura Vegas.

I was a huge fan of the previous Quattrofina alphabet stickers, so I knew I would love the High Five alphabet stickers just as much! I love to create longer titles, using a mix of alphabet stickers of different colors, fonts, and sizes. So I really love that I can get a good mix of alphas, all on one sheet. It makes mixing and matching super simple!

"Sweet", by Becky Williams.

One of my favorite things to do on a scrapping project is to mix and match my stickers using different fonts and colors so you can imagine how excited I was to see the new High Five Alphabets from Bella Blvd. I love that there are so many new sizes and shapes and they are so perfect for mixing for various kinds of projects. On this page I tried to use as many of the new stickers as I could and got most of them on there!

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And now for giveaway time! We want to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own all 5 of our new Sophisticates High Five Alphabet stickers, before they even hit the stores. Just leave us a comment to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of our giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Sneak Peek Week: Sunshine & Happiness

Today, we have our last paper collection to reveal to you. Don't worry. We still have a few more days of exciting new products to reveal and share with you. But right now, we have a super fun and colorful new collection in store for you. We hope you love it!

Kick off your summer Sunny Side Up with these brights and playful new products! Pack your picnic basket and capture your next Play Date .. It's sure to be a Juicy Good Time! Dance in the flowers, splash in the pool, and enjoy a fresh popsicle! Sunshine & Happiness is fabulously delicious!

"I {HEART} Summer", by Laura Vegas.

I have always been a huge fan of color. I love bright and fun colors and patterns, when it comes to scrapbooking. So when I saw the new Sunshine & Happiness collection, it made me smile! This is such a happy and playful collection, and I just love the fun mix of colors. While it's such the perfect collection for those summer memories, this is definately a collection that I can see usng on an everyday basis!

Double Sided Patterned Paper:

Cardstock Stickers:

Chipboard:

Flags:

And now for giveaway time! We want to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own our new Sunshine & Happiness collection, before it even hits the stores. Just leave us a comment to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of our giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Sneak Peek Week: Sophisticates Sprinkle & Lace, New Chipboard Elements

Sneak Peek Week continues with a second full week of our new product reveals! We've created so much fun stuff that we need another entire week to show it all to you! Remember, if you're loving what you're seeing, make sure and let your LSS know, and ask them to order Bella for their stores!

It's colorful, full of class & and just plain pretty. The Sophisticates collection has quickly become one of the industry's favorite everyday product collections. With something beautiful for everyday, Sophisticates classis Sprinkles & Lace patterns have THREE new colors to their family. Check out the FIVE new Sophisticates chipboard elements, including trees and clouds, family words & more.

"Sweet Sisters", by Becky Williams.

The Sophisticates collection is so much fun, and with even more new colors added to the collection it will match anything! I wanted to showcase all of the colors in this line so I created a chevron stripe pattern and then used some of the cute new chipboard that you'll love so much! The new chipboard is so versatile and cute and adds so much fun to pages, cards and anything else you might come up with.

Double Sided Patterned Paper:

Chipboard:

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And now for giveaway time! We want to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own all the NEW and the old Sprinkles & Lace papers, along with all 6 new chipboards. This is a great chance to get it before it even hits the stores. Just leave us a comment to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of our giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Sneak Peek Week: Itty Bitty Stamps With Unity Stamp Company

Thanks for joining us on a special Sunday Edition of the blog, as we continue our Sneak Peek Week. So far, we have revealed a few new collections, along with buttons and designer tapes! We have more papers, stickers, and chipboard to show you in the next week, along with even more brand new embellishments. But today, we're showing you something different. Stamps!

Along with Unity Stamp Company, we are introducing 9 new Itty Bitty stamps to match with our newest paper collections: Baby Boy, Baby Girl, We're Expecting and Sunshine & Happiness. Each rubber stamp includes a great coordinating card sentiment for your greetings. Along with these new stamps comes a new announcement from both us and Unity Stamp Company. 

These newest Unity stamps will now be available for order directly from Bella Blvd for retailers and distributors. That means when we ship your product order, the stamps will be included as well! In efforts to be more efficient we are happy to be stocking Unity stamps in our warehouse for order fulfillment. And, in an effort to please scrapbookers worldwide, Unity Stamp Company will be selling these stamps individually on the Unity website for consumers also! Now you have the best of both worlds. If you can't find the Unity stamps at your LSS, be sure to visit Unity Stamp Company and order them online. 

"100% Boy" card, by Alice Carman.

For today’s card I am using Bella Blvd/Unity stamp called, It’s a boy! This is such darling itty bitty stamp.  I stamped my image onto a few pattern papers using Bella Blvd’s Baby Boy line and cut them out instead of coloring them. You’ll notice that my stamp image is missing something. Can you guess? 

I inked up my stamp and then I cut a  small circle to cover my sentiment.  Next I stamped the image on to paper and you’ll notice the sentiment part of the stamp did not show.  This process is called, Masking.  You can do this with any of the Bella Blvd/Unity stamps to change it up.  Isn’t this cool?

"A Little Birdie Told Me" card, by Alice Carman.

Here’s another great stamp by Bella Blvd/ Unity called, Birdie Told Me. This is also another itty bitty stamp I got to play with today that you’ll want to get to match the Baby Boy line form Bella Blvd.

On this card I did a little paper piecing. Paper piecing is when you stamp an image on a few different patterns and cut out what you like and piece it together to create an image. You’ll notice I cut out the wing and the sack using different paper from the Baby Boy line and pop dot them on to my card. So what do you think? Great use of the stamping and no coloring needed. 

And now for giveaway time! We want to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own a few of our new Itty Bitty Stamps from Unity Stamp Company. If chosen, you will receive 3 stamps of your choice, before they even hit the stores. Just leave us a comment to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of our giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!