Good morning SCT friends! This is our 11th annual InterNational Scrapbooking Day celebration! We hope you're ready for a fun and inspiration filled day that will last a full 12 hours! Whether you are checking in now and then or have the opportunity to join us each hour we are SO GLAD YOU'RE HERE! Sit back, get a little comfortable and we'll get this party started!

When the media team discussed some plans for today we thought about what we love about this industry/hobby we're a part of. We love the stories our photos tell, we love all the products we have the opportunity to work (and play!) with, we love the art of learning new techniques and we love ALL the inspiration that we're surrounded by. And that last thought brought us to today's theme… "inspired by." Our team works hard each issue to inspire our readers everywhere but you know what? Our team is also very inspired by our readers and their own peer group too. So that then led us to ask our team to choose a layout from the new Spring issue and create a layout based on what "inspired" them about that layout. Each hour you'll see a new project from the team and each hour we'll put out a challenge to you. In the end, we're together celebrating this amazing day dedicated to all of us papercrafters!

Here's when our team will be stopping by to share their "inspired by" artwork:

 9:00 am        Stacy Cohen (you're here!)
10:00 am       Sheri Reguly
11:00 am       Cathy Zielske
12:00 pm       Virginia Nebel
1:00 pm         Megan Hoeppner
2:00 pm         Marla Kress
3:00 pm         Nicole Nowosad
4:00 pm         Nancy Damiano
5:00 pm         Emily Pitts
6:00 pm         Lisa Dickinson
7:00 pm         Vicki Boutin
8:00 pm         Jen Gallacher
9:00 pm         we close the day with an exclusive announcement!

Exciting right? But WAIT there's more! If you've followed us for awhile then you know we like to celebrate these days in a BIG way and if you're joining us for the first time today, then you're about to find out how big! We've invited all of our partners to join the iNSD celebration today which means every single hour you'll see multiple prizes from our amazing sponsors! All giveaways will be open until next Sunday, May 15th so there is plenty of time to share these posts with your friends. We hope you will.

Want one more little piece of information? We're going to do a fun giveaway some time today on both our Facebook page and on Instagram feed (@sctmagazine) so be sure to go "like us" so you can have an opportunity to win there too! We will also have one more chance to win on our website HERE!

Ready to get started? Let's go! Kicking off our day today is design team member Stacy Cohen!  

"I was completely WOWED by Paige Evans’ beautiful “Rome” layout the minute I saw it!  What really caught my eye were the brightly colored circles arranged across the page.  I love how Paige used different circle sizes and added some fun buttons to the mix. 

64-paigetaylorevans

pg 64 – layout by Paige Evans

For my “inspired by” layout, I knew I wanted to focus on vibrant circles like Paige did, so I got out my alcohol inks, watercolors and watercolor paper and went to town.  Here is my “inspired by” layout:

My Love
To make the circles, I first painted rows of rainbow colors on watercolor paper.   I tried to get them in order of how I was going to place them on the page so that could get some 2-toned circles for a slight ombre effect.

My Love watercolor step 1

Once the paper was dry, I die-cut the circles using stitched circle steel dies.   A circle cutter or circle punches would also work.

My Love watercolor step 2

I cut a strip of white cardstock about 5.5 inches wide by 12 inches tall, then I added the circles with 3D foam adhesive. I cut off the edges of the circles to get straight lines on both sides.  I then adhered the circle strip to my background cardstock and I was ready to complete my page!

My Love watercolor step 3

I hope everyone is having a crafty National Scrapbook Day!" ~ Stacy

Your challenge: Pull out those paints or watercolours and create a layout using at least three different colours! Share your "9:00 am challenge" with us three ways: by email at ideas@scrapbookandcards.com, by uploading it to our Facebook page or tag us on Instagram @sctmagazine by May 15! If you do, you'll be entered to win a one year subscription to Scrapbook & Cards Today magazine and a $100 mystery box prize!

 9:00 am GIVEAWAY – Pink Paislee and Heidi Swapp!

 

PP_CestLaVie_Styled_GroupShot 2

C'est La Vie is a sophisticated, new paper collection from Pink Paislee featuring bright colors, rustic textures, and chic typography. Fun new products like mirror stickers, cork glitter heart stickers, and beautiful spiral notebooks allow you to easily create on-trend, upscale projects in a flash. Ooh la la! Enter to win a selection from this beautiful C'est La Vie collection!

  HeidiSwapp

The Heidi Swapp Memory Planner™ is the perfect combination between a daily calendar, your busy to-do list, and a life journal. The Memory Planner™ will help you organize and document daily activities and preserve precious memories all at the same time! There is even a place to showcase your favorite photos of the month. Accessorize your Memory Planner™ with coordinating and super cute embellishments to highlight all of your life’s events!

For an opportunity to win this hour's prize package be sure to leave a comment below by Sunday, May 15th at 6:00 pm. All winners will be announced on Monday, May 16th! Good luck! Please take a moment to give a hearty "thank you," a smile or a wave to all of today's sponsors! They love seeing you on their Facebook pages. If you don't already "like" them, it's a great way to keep up to date on all the amazing inspiration they provide with their products! 

Pink Paislee

Heidi Swapp

Good luck everyone! Be sure to join us in an hour when Sheri Reguly stops in! And don't forget to check out our website for more ways to win a $100 mystery box HERE!