Saturday, September 19, 2009

Scrappy Projects

I hope your weekend is off to a good start! I picked up my car from the dealer (it was getting serviced) and I got a manicure. Now I'm at home, catching up on stuff before we head to dinner with our BFF's later tonight. My DH is visiting his sister, Roxana, at the convent where she's been staying since April. So far, she still wants to continue to be a cloistered Carmelite nun.

Here's a close-up look at the bird album I put together for the Scrapbook Designs Beach Retreat. It's called "Love Birds." I used photos of my Godparents, who celebrated 50 beautiful years of marriage. These photos were taken in July when we visited my family in Puerto Rico.

Funny thing is my DH saw the cover and he thought I was making an album about us, so he asked me, "Who are the love birds?" When he found out it wasn't about us, he was like, "Well, aren't we love birds, too?" LOL! Of course we are, honey bunny, but we have albums about us already! He was just being silly... cute, but silly!











And here's a Prima-inspired layout that I also created using my favorite photo of my childhood home in San Sebastian, PR.



That's all I have for now. I have TONS of layouts that I've created, but I haven't photographed them yet. I'm also busy finishing my Puerto Rico album so I'll post pics soon.

Peace and happy scrapping,
Vanessa

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Weekend Retreat



This past weekend, I got to scrap and hang out with some amazing women. Damaris hosted Scrapbook Designs' first annual retreat and she went all out. The hotel was fabulous, the food was yummy and the goody bags were awesome! We got so much product, it's amazing! The best part for me was spending some time with my BFF and my closest scrappy friends who are all very special to me. I'm so thankful to have met each and every one of them through this shared passion of ours. I love them to pieces!

Here's Damaris in the Island Room, a beautiful, bright room with water views from every window. Those beach bags were full of goodies, including a Prima kit, for each of us.



And this table had some projects on display for classes and ideas. I made the little bird album as a sample for the retreat... That was such a fun little project!



And look at these cutey patootie aprons personalized with our initials!!! Aren't they adorable? I loved mine :-) We each got one and we got to wear them all weekend long. (Of course, when I walked around the hotel's common areas, I think people thought I was serving something... I even got asked if I was in a cooking class! They obviously don't know me... LOL!)

Strike a pose!




The meals were delicious, too! On Saturday, we all ate together in the veranda overlooking the pool.




And if you used self parking to save on valet costs, you were rewarded with this scenic walk along a picturesque bridge... too bad it rained most of the weekend!



Some of my friends brought along their beautiful families...




And my BFF and I snuck into the "Back Room"... shhhh!



If only I were rich, I would have taken this beautiful little puppy home... Look at the little bow we tied on his head. He was auctioned off that night at a black tie event (turns out the highest bid was $2,000). One day, I will once again own one of these adorable, furry little pups!



The weekend ended way too fast... But I guess all good things must come to an end. I only wish we could have been there all week! (But I think Damaris would kill us all off after 3 or 4 days! LOL! Nah! We were a good group of girls... Weren't we, D?)



I was so sad to say goodbye to my friends, but it was a very productive weekend for me. I created 17 layouts, which is a LOT for me because I am a slow scrapper. Damaris put a lot of heart into this event and we truly appreciated all her efforts! Thank you, my sweet friend. I look forward to next year's retreat!

xoxo,
Vanessa

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Lovin' my glimmer mist!

This is a layout I created with my July Cocoa Daisy kit. I LOVE this kit. I think I've made about seven layouts with it so far. :-) This "Friendship" page has these beautiful lace butterflies from the add-on kit, which I sprayed glimmer mist on to turn them from white to bright pink and yellow. I'm very happy with the result...



On a TOTALLY different subject, something just happened and I have to share. My aunt from California called me earlier today while I was at work, so I figured I'd call her back this evening. She called again and left me a message, saying she needed to talk to me. I called her from home and she asked if I was okay. I found it odd, but I told her I have been having a very rough week and that I just about had a nervous breakdown late yesterday (loooong story!). "Why?" I asked. "Because Mami has been telling me to call you and she won't leave me alone until I do. I have this feeling that she thinks something is wrong." Oh my God! I get goose bumps all over again! You see, I've thinking about my Mami a LOT lately, as this week will mark the one-year anniversary of her passing. I miss her so much!!! More than words can ever say. But I know she is with me, and to this day, she's still looking out for me. I love you my sweet, beautiful Mami.

xoxo,
Vanessa