Bella Blvd Studio Blog

Journaling on Your Pictures

Hi there Bella Blvd Fans! We've been exploring creative journaling techniques all week and today I am here to share an idea with you! When there's white space in your picture, why not add your journaling there? This works especially great with a layout with a big picture on it! Let's take a look!

I printed my picture in a big size for this layout. That left room in that upper corner for me to add journaling. I opted to have my journaling be an appropriate quote. When my pictures don't have a major story to go along with them, I like to just use a quote to tell the story!

I've said it a number of times and I will say it again: the Florence Alphabets are simply marvelous!  They are great for journaling and titles and card sentiments and, well, pretty much everything!

Knowing that I wasn't going to have a lot of room for embellishing, I decided to focus on hearts for my embellishments! In this section alone you can see nearly all the different types of hearts that Bella Blvd makes: Heart Hugs, stickers, ephemera, Acrylic Hearts, and Puffy Hearts. I love the selection and the ability to be able to add so much texture to my projects!

Want a close-up look at how I created this layout? Here's a process video that will walk you thru!

 

Thanks so much for visiting today!

Acrylic Shapes, Heart Hugs, Let's Go On An Adventure, Bella Besties Freehand Graph & Dot, Ciao Chip, Home Sweet Home, Squeeze the Day

Fuzzy Bunny layout

Good morning everyone!

Sarah here this morning to share a new layout with you for Bella Blvd. This week we were to find different ways to journal on our layouts. For me this was a bit hard because I don't usually journal on the front of my layouts. I usually write on the back of my layout or on a piece of paper and stick it to the back of my layout. I'm not big on my hand writing.

So, when I decided to do this layout, I thought that I would journal on the leaves. But I decided against that when I started folding them and adding the gold around the edges. It got to messing. But looking back on it now, I think that would have really worked,lol. Maybe next time, huh?

Well I started this layout with a white background and started playing with some gold spray, while I let the background dry, I decided to add some more gold to all the leaves I had already cut out. I chose leaves because they felt like fall, but the colors were still fantastically bright, so I went with it.

I didn't add any layering behind my photo when I put it on my background. I wanted the leaves to be the embellishments on the layout. Once I had my photo down, I started to layer sliding the leaves under the sides of the photo. Once I had the first layer where I wanted them, I stuck them down and started on the next layer. Placing them here and there, till I was happy with how they looked and stuck them down and moved to the next layer, until I had them all down.

I liked the look of the gold spray on the background showing threw, so I played along those lines to do my journaling. Like I said, this isn't something I normally do, so I thought keeping it small and not clustered together might make it easier on me.

When I had my journaling done, I added my title with two different colors of Florence alphas. Just a simple title, Fuzzy Bunny. The I remembers some of the extra pretties that go along with the Squeeze the day collection and I pulled them out too! I love the epoxy hearts and matte enamel dots, I don't think I could ever have enough of them. If I didn't watch myself I would have already used them all! Like I said, I pulled those out and started placing some of them in the centers of some of my leaves and tucking some here and there under other leaves.

I decided at this point that I wanted there to be something other than just a while background, so I decided to do a bit of ripping and cutting of the sides of the white cardstock, ruffle it up some and add a piece of Bella Besties behind it. I went with the gulf color, I mean blue is one of my favorite colors! And then I was done. I hope you enjoyed this layout!

Squeeze the day collection: 6x6  paper pad, Doohickey sticker sheet, Epoxy hearts, Matte enamels-Fruity mix

Bella Besties freehand:

 6x6 paper pad, 12x12 Graph and dots-Gulf

Florence Alpha Stickers: Punch, Black

Creative Journaling with Kelly

Hello everyone! It's Kelly here today sharing a layout featuring creative journaling:

I chose to document a photo of my girls and I during one of our many trips to our favorite place...Biggby! I started by making some coffee ring stains to use as a grounding point for my photo on a piece of white cardstock.

I then journaled around the coffee rings naming all of our favorite drinks, and placed my subtitle in the center.

I enhanced my project with the super adorable Squeeze the Day collection, and enamel embellishments.

This layout pushed me outside of my comfort zone a little, and I love how it turned out! What are some creative ways that you include journaling on your layouts?

Thanks for stopping by today!

Bella Besties: Freehand Graph and Dot Orange; Squeeze the Day: Doohickey, Ephemera Icons, Ephemera Words, Epoxy Hearts, Matte Enamels; Florence Alphas: Black; Designer Washi Tape: Make Your Mark; Word Salad

Creative Journaling Pocket

Hey Bella Blvd Friends! It is Leanne here today sharing a super cool, interactive layout pocket in which to house your journaling. Can you see it on my page?

I always make it a priority to include some form of journaling on my layouts. If you can't see it, then it's hidden behind the photo (or written on the back of the page!!). True story! But for this layout I had a lot to say and wanted to create a feature without the clutter. The easy solution was to slide the documented story between the paper and cardstock layers. The bonus - the title is guaranteed to capture the reader's eye!

Like magic, accessing the story changes the outlook of the layout. And it is as simple as using a cut file, vellum and strategically placed double sided tape! Here's a closer look at how my page came together.

step 1. Gather your supplies. As mentioned before, vellum (or alternatively, clear acetate) has been used to prevent the journaling card from catching on the title alphas.

You will also need extra cardstock scraps, the same width as the top layer of cardstock; a cut file title (I used the standard fonts in my software program) and coordinating patterned papers and embellishments.

step 2. Decide how much journaling you want to include and then size the title cut file to fit over the top of the story. Once you have cut out the title, flip the cardstock over and secure the vellum/acetate to cover the cut out alphas. Adhere any inner alpha pieces for "O" and "R" directly on top of the vellum. 

step 3. Trim a 1" circle notch from the right side of the title. This allows easy access to the journaling card.

step 4. Mount the journaling onto cardstock for extra strength and durability as it slides in and out of the journaling pocket. Next sit the journaling on top of the reverse side of the vellum to measure the width of the pocket. Place and secure the cardstock scraps on either side of the journaling card to form a channel. Finally adhere the cardstock firmly to the background patterned paper and test the journaling card sliding feature. It is much easier to fix any issues at this stage, before photos and embellishments are added.

step 5. Complete the layout with small clusters of embellishments that relate to the journaling. I have delved into the Let's Go on an Adventure collection and the Word Salad sticker booklet.

Touches of Alex patterned paper and Oh My Stars Gift Tags are used to compliment my photos' colour story. I just love how versatile Bella Blvd collections are! Thanks for visiting the blog today.

Freehand Graph & Dot: Blueberry Graph & Dot; Let's Go on an Adventure: Ephemera Words; Alex: 6x8 paper pad; Sticker Booklet: Word Salad; Heart Hugs: Rainy Day; Puffy Stickers: Oreo Puffy Stars; Oh My Stars: Gift Tags; Illustrated Faith Basics: paper pieces.

 

Fall Cards with Corri

Hi everyone! Corri here today sharing a couple of Fall themed cards using the Bella Besties Collection and some of the cutting files. 

For my first card, I cut the Leaves from some Fall Colors and printed my sentiment using the print and cut feature in the Silhouette Studio software. I mounted the leaves with some foam tape to add some dimension.  

For my second card, I made a shaped note card using the adorable fox cutting file. I created the card base by first creating an offset, then mirroring and welding the base shape of the fox. Shaped cards always have a big impact and look like you put a lot of work in. 

I left this cute little guy without a sentiment since I think he's so cute all on his own.  

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Check out all the Bella Blvd cut files for more great icons to use on your cards! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fall-ing for Bella Blvd Cut Files

Over the last year, Bella Blvd has started offering cut files and they sure do add some flexibility and options to your projects. Today I am using the most detailed of all those cut files - the Tile Background Cut File from the Home Sweet Home Collection! Christine joining you with a layout packed with details and time featuring this gorgeous cut file!

Cut files like this take a long time to cut. You have to set them at a slow speed and then just be patient. In this case, it took about 35 minutes to cut! Planning for that, I set it to cut and then did other things!

Once it was all cut, I pulled out my Bella Besties and my circle punch and started backing it! I knew I wanted lots of fall colors! A fine tip glue pen made this job a little bit easier!!!

Because the layout already has lots of detail and color I knew I wasn't going to have to do a lot for embellishing! I created my title using a combination of an Acrylic World and Florence Alphabets.  Then I added some Heart Hugs and punched out vellum leaves to my design. I opted for vellum here because it would still let the colors and cut file show thru while adding a little bit of texture!  

Head on over to my YouTube channel to check out the full process video for this layout today!  Thanks for stopping by!

Bella Besties Freehand Graph & Dot, Acrylic Words, Cut Files, Heart Hugs

Love Fall

Hello Friends! It's Dorymar with you today. I’m so excited to share with you my first project as a Designer for Bella Blvd, it’s a dream come true!!!! Today, I’m sharing a layout I created using the Let’s Go on an Adventure Collection mixed up with the Bella Besties. Fall is a wonderful time of year; I love all the colors, the weather and the pumpkin smell everywhere. Fall is one of my favorite seasons!

This collection has very beautiful bright colors and they are very easy to use. One of my favorite things about this collection is the variety of touches of green and how the beautiful patterns match together. To create my projects, I love to incorporate several layers, this gives me the opportunity to match every pattern.

The collection is dedicated to outdoor adventures and to be able to incorporate it in the autumn season, I cut several sizes of leaves in different patterns of the papers. Then I added sewing for texture to the paper leaves. They look so beautiful!

My photos are 3"x4" and are matted with the Bella Besties Graph & Dot Pickle Juice. The ephemera words have a ton of wonderful sentiments, I added some closer to the photos.

To create the title of the project I used the “Love” word from the So in Love Chipboards and painted them with light blue ink for an ombre look and finished the title incorporating the “Fall” word from the wonky alpha puffy stickers. Closer to the title I added the beautiful leaves and to give the final touch, I added the cute fox from the ephemera with dimensional tape and the results was fantastic!

I hope you enjoyed my layout and could find some inspiration in creating your own layout using the Let’s Go on an Adventure Collection. Happy Fall to one and all! Have a great day!

Let’s Go On An Adventure Collection, Let’s Go On An Adventure Collection Ephemera words, Let’s Go On An Adventure Collection, Doohickey 12x12 Stickers, Let’s Go On An Adventure Ephemera Icons, So In Love Chipboard, Wonky Alpha Puffy Stickers Orange

 

Falling Leaves | Family Scrapbooking Layout

Hi everyone! Heather Leopard is here with a photo tutorial for a really fun fall layout featuring lots of leaves. Come take a look at what I created...

My idea for this originally started by thinking I'd layer leaves from the top down as if they were falling but as I was playing around with this Bella Blvd "leaves" cut file, I started thinking the concept would pair well with a round photo. That got me thinking of this alternate design. It cut the same leave in 3 different sizes - small, medium and large and in multiple different colors and patterns.

Starting with the largest leaves, I adhered them to the page in a sort of circle.

Next, I added the medium leaves and then the smaller leaves on top, moving in with each "row" I glued down until I had enough to create a border for my photo.

I printed a 3.75" round photo and placed it in the center of the wreath of leaves. As you can see from the photo, I only glued the bottom part of the leaves to the paper so that the ends of the leaves could have some dimension.

I tucked a few pieces of chipboard and ephemera under the photo and also added some embellishments to the top right.  

Lastly, and to create a diagonal type design, I added the title and a few more embellishments to the bottom left of the page. I'm still deciding where to put my journaling but I'm thinking maybe I'll add journaling strips on the bottom right.

Let's Go On An Adventure Border & Wildflowers 12x12 patterned paper, Ciao Chip, Ephemera Words, Ephemera Icons; Squeeze the Day Borders, Zesty, Fruit Salad 12x12 patterned paper, Bella Besties Graph & Dotty Pony, McIntosh, Orange 12x12 patterned paper, Wish Big Borders 12x12 patterned paper, Heart Hugs Earth, Heart Hugs Sunshine, Acrylic Word Family, Wonky Alphas Orange, Bella Blvd cut file "leaves" in Silhouette America store

World Cardmaking Day - Dimensional Flowers Card

Happy World Cardmaking Day Bella Blvd Fans! If there's one thing I love to add to my projects it's dimension. And when I can create dimension in a unique way, well, it just gets me so excited!  Christine joining you with what just may be one of my favorite cards that I have ever made! Check out all the details but also make sure to catch the quick process video at the end of the post for a close-up look! 

Dimensional Flowers Card

When I looked at the Bella Blvd Blue Flower Cut File, it occurred to me that it could beyond initial appearances. I thought with the right layers, I could give it the look of a fall mum. Here's what I came up with!

For my patterned paper I opted to use the 6 X 6 Freehand Graph and Dot pad. This gave me lots of color choices and would allow me to choose more fall-like colors.  

I cut the flower base in three different colors and then I cut the tendril-like petals in three different sizes. By varying the size and adding 3D Foam Adhesive in between I was able to create a fuller dimensional flower! I used a metal die to cut out some leaves and attached those in just a few spots so they would have the same delicate look of the flowers.

Of course, I can barely make a card these days without using my Florence Alphabets. They are simply the perfect size and you can always coordinate with the right color!

Let's take a close-up look at how I created this card and these dimensional flowers in my quick process video!

 

Do you ever think outside the box with your cutfiles? We'd love to see what you are creating with Bella Blvd files on this World Cardmaking Day! Thanks for stopping by!

Bella Besties Freehand Graph & Dot 6 X 6 Paper Pad, Heart Hugs, Florence Alphabet

 

World Cardmaking Day - Heart Hugs Background

Happy World Cardmaking Day Bella Blvd Fans! What is your favorite Bella Blvd embellishment? If I had to narrow it down to just one, it would definitely be Heart Hugs. I find myself using them on EVERYTHING! Christine joining you today to show you a quick idea on how to use your Heart Hugs to create a background for a card!

Heart Hugs Background Card

As I was sitting and looking at my packages of Heart Hugs, it occurred to me that they would make a really neat background. I opted to create a monochromatic one - but I definitely think they would look amazing in ombre or rainbow colors!

Although it looks like there's a lot going on, there really isn't a lot to this card! In fact just four products: Heart Hugs, Squeeze the Day Patterned Paper, an Acrylic Word, and some Nuvo Drops!

Let's check out how I created it in this process video:

What do you think? Can you see yourself making a background with these hearts on one of your crafty projects? Thanks for joining me today!