Grilled Chicken Taco Salad

~ Here's another recipe page creation, designed for my Iron Chef swap. I had several challenges to meet and was able to fit most into this one design. The tag is topped with a tab punch (stamp and punch by Stampin' Up!) and embellished with a flower cut from Sam & Hailey Designs' Itty Bitty Flower Garden file.
Yum, yum!!
Jessica in Kansas

purple + orange...

~ Purple + orange = outside of my comfort zone...but I did it anyway!


Below are a few projects I put together when I was in a very strange mood. I'm not sure why, but I felt inspired to use this color combination...and just ran with it. I also challenged myself to use some tabs on these projects...some of those supplies I had to have, but hadn't yet put to use!! The stamps used are Stampin' Up!, purple felt flowers are by Paper Studio, orange punched flowers are actually a Martha Stewart wedding supply, tabs by ColorBok, corner punch by Fiskars, Stickles in various colors, & miscellaneous brads, cardstock, & patterned paper. The card bases & envelopes are from Target.

Enjoying spring,

Jessica in Kansas

magenta + teal

~ Interesting color combo, huh?!?! Somehow I was inspired to give it a try, and it grabbed me!!! I made a few different cards and a recipe layout while I was at it! The magenta decorative border was fun to pair with some stamped images, Primas, silk flowers, buttons, my new favorite Scrapper's Floss by Karen Foster, and of course...some Stickles!


= FUN
Jessica in Kansas

Winter, Winter, PLEASE GO AWAY!!

~ This Kansas winter has been worse than I ever remember, and I'm soooo ready for it to pass (she says as it's snowing and sleeting the first of 6" expected before the end of tomorrow)!!! I've stayed extremely busy this cold season, as you may have guessed by my absence! I have, however, attended a few crops and spent some time in my scrap room being productive. The projects below are winter-inspired, and this snowy evening seems like the perfect time to share them!
These winter-themed Post-It Notes Cover were super simple to cut and create from a file designed by Shirley Clark. I used my KNK to cut the outer wrap and band, then just embellished with ink, 3-D snowflakes, and some bling-y Stickles, of course!!!

This recipe page was inspired by my new Cuttlebug folder & this shimmery white & bronze cardstock from Cutcardstock.com. The little hats were cut from patterned paper and embellished with Stickles. A small snowflake stamp filled in the open areas, and these were done!! I love simple & cute!

That's my winter inspiration for ya!!
Jessica in Kansas

Family recipe

~ My mom has always made the BEST homemade chicken noodle soup...complete with homemade noodles. I asked her, a while back, to record the recipe for me the next time she made it...and she did!! I have enjoyed having it so much that I decided to put it into a special recipe page. I made extras for my mom and my brothers!! I know that the family recipe will be treasured long after my mom leaves the earth!

It's a good day for soup,
~Jessica in Kansas

Stuffed (pizza & envelopes)

~ This recipe page was created for my monthly Iron Chef recipe page swap. The challenges were to use the same color on color, add some dimension, and find inspiration from a provided sketch. This is what I came up with!I was in the mood for brown, paisley, and punches the day I created these!!! My Cuttlebug did the paisley embossing for me, and I simply punched out the squares and inked the raised images to distress them a bit. The paisley pieces on the bottom left were punched from a Creative Memories punch. Mini brown envelopes and some crinkled dark bronze paper made their way onto the pages, too!

Ready for a new week!!
Jessica in Kansas

Romantic Valentine's Day Recipes ~

~ Yes, I have definitely been hit by cupid this year!!! I'm loving all of the Valentine's Day themed cutting files I'm getting my hands on! These coordinating recipe pages all use cutting files by Carrie's Creations: the Love Words line, which I got as part of her Love Pack. I am excited about the variety of words, arrows, clippies, and dramatic heart shapes I was able to coordinate in these pages. I also cut a Valentine Muse (background on the 3rd page) for the first time, which cut smoothly, as all of Carrie's files do! Using the same papers, font, and color theme made several pages come together very quickly. All of these recipes are tried and true, so feel free to lift them if you're in the mood for some easy yum~yum this Valentine's Day!!

Hugs to you,
Jessica in Kansas

Creamy Seafood Pasta - It's All Fun Stuff!!

~ I created this recipe page for the monthly Iron Chef recipe swap I host. My challenge was to find a yummy fish or seafood recipe that used the secret ingredient of mushrooms! I was successful!

I followed a sketch, which was not an easy one to use. I also challenged myself to use various coordinating patterned paper. The adorable button mushrooms and bird were cut with my KNK from a file designed by Carrie's Creations: It's All Fun Stuff! They are both simple, girly, and fun...the theme I was shooting for on this layout. The shimmery pink paper that I printed the recipe on is from CutCardstock.com.

Jessica in Kansas

Snowflakes, clippies, and recipes...oh my!!

~ I was busy last week working on some wintery recipe pages inspired by this cold, cold weather that won't make its way out of Kansas!! This set of three coordinating pages was based on the color combination in a ribbon collection (by American Crafts) I purchased, and I used all kinds of fun snowflakes cut from my Klic-N-Kut. The cute "Snow"flake Clippies were designed by Carrie's Creations, and the elegant snowflakes of various shapes are from Jan Bryson's Itty Bitty Snowflakes file. All of the "snow" was cut from Ice Gold metallic cardstock purchased from CutCardstock.com.

I also used some sketches as layout inspiration (see below), Stickles (waterfall), stick-on jewels, & cardstock/patterned papers by The Paper Studio.

Inspired by Sketches!{by tamara}'s Card Sketch #65.

Inspired by Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #36 sketch.

Inspired by Laura's Sketch #10 from 2Sketches4U.

Wintery hugs from Kansas,
Jessica

I'm back!

~ Sorry it's been awhile! I was first busy balancing work with preparing for the holiday...then I was busy trying to recover from several days of wonderful family get-togethers. Now I'm ready to settle back into my routine of work and play...papercrafting play, that is!!!

I finished a couple of recipe pages, but hadn't had time to post them. The first is a slow cooker recipe page, which follows a sketch on Page Plans. This was created for the Iron Chef recipe swap I host on a monthly basis. I love this ribbon and was excited to find these chipboard button pieces and the perfect-colored flowers to use with it.

The second is a more simple page, for which I challenged myself to use stickers. I tend to keep my stickers put away, but a special girlfriend sent me these fun cardboard cooking stickers, which I could not wait to put to use. I love the distressed look of them!! I also added a touch of ribbon and pulled out the Fastenator to staple it on.

It's nice to be back,

Jessica in Kansas

Chunky Apple Cake

~ I love the way this simple recipe page came together! I used a great swirly tree stamp by Little Paper Shop, some fun embroidered collage paper, and cute little mini apples cut with my Klic-N-Kut (apple file by Carrie's Creations). Coral pink and lime green is one of my favorite color combinations...it just makes me happy!!! I used Fruit Punch Stickles to embellish the tree, which I stamped with a SU! Cotton Candy Kaleidoscope ink pad. Coral chalk ink around the edge created a nice border...again, pretty simple, but I love it!!!

It's a delicious recipe, too!!

Jessica in Kansas

Another chicky ~

~ My Hey Chicky stamp set by C.C. Designs made the blog again!!!! How cute is this one...holding the flower?!! This design started with the strange patterned paper in the background, which I was determined to use! I really like the colors (Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Cameo Coral, and Natural Ivory). The adorable chicky is colored with my SU! markers, and I added Stickles to the blue flower she's holding, in addition to the brads and the handmade flower, which was easy to create. I simply punched a large 5-petal flower, used my thumbnails to accordian-type fold each of the petals, inked the edges, and added Stickles to the centers of the petals. It almost looks like a Prima in real-life (pictures never do these projects the justice they deserve)! The blue and bright coral flowers are silk.

I hope you find inspiration here,

Jessica in Kansas

The Colors of Fall

~ I was looking for inspiration for a recipe page layout I needed to complete for a swap, and I found it in "The Colors of Fall" contest being hosted by CutCardStock.com. I just LOVE fall color combinations, and am reminded by the goodness of God during this season, in particular!! How refreshing it is to see the beauty of what surrounds us...especially during such a chaotic time for our nation!

For this recipe page, I used a version of Card Sketch #67 posted by Sketches! {by Tamara} for the layout design. Copper colored Stickles, chipboard buttons by Colorbok, ribbon from Hobby Lobby, border punch by Fiskars, and a swirly background stamp by SU! help complete the design. I love the red patterned paper, designed by Sunburn. The picture just doesn't do the page justice...but do they ever?!

Enjoy,
Jessica in Kansas

There's a new sheriff in town!!!

~ I got a new stamp set from The Cat's Pajamas line of "Clearly Swanky Stamps", and I could not wait to put them to use. I love this wild western version of Poochie!!! This recipe page was inspired by this week's The Cat's Pajamas stamp challenge and by a card sketch posted on Di Hickman's blog.

Besides the new stamp set, I used a SU! paisley stamp from the Fresh Fillers set. Ink colors include Night of Navy, Golden Wheat, and Holly Berry Red. Marker colors used are Rose Red, Night of Navy, and Creamy Caramel. "Bang" is applied using a dimensional adhisive dot.

I almost forgot to mention that this is a very yummy recipe if you're interested in slow cooker soups this fall!

Have a great day, Pardner!

Jessica in Kansas

Not-so-spooky Halloween recipe page

~ I created this recipe page for a monthly swap that I host. Since it's October, I wanted it to be Halloween themed, but I didn't want to use the traditional holiday colors. So, I mixed orange with a little cranberry, gray, white, and a touch of black. I like the combination!! The web die cut is actually part of a collection of challenge files I received from Chris Durnan of VisualDesignsbyChris. She is another fabulous designer of cutting files that I use with my KNK.

I also used a spider stamp, some two-toned cranberry and orange ribbon, my Stampin' Up! oval punches, and a hand-drawn simple web. The sketch used as inspiration is from Page Plans.

Happy Friday!!

Jessica in Kansas

Spooktacular Recipe Pages...and more challenges

~ I've had so much fun this weekend creating three sets of recipe pages for some swaps I signed up for. Each was inspired by a sketch that came across my inbox last week!

The first is for Home-Baked Macaroni & Cheese...an incredibly easy and delicious recipe from Kraft. The layout was inspired by Laura's Sketch 9 on the 2 Sketches 4 You blog.

The second recipe page was for a swap which required me to use a bat, ghost, or witch on the page somewhere...be it stamped, die cut, etc. I also challenged myself to used the Weekend Sketch Challenge #59 from the Fresh & Fun blog. Here is the sketch and how I interpreted it.

Finally, the third recipe page design followed a Sketch #83 from the CardPositioningSystems blog. The recipe is Chili Casserole with Cornbread...mmm...mmm...good!

I've had a fun weekend. Hope you have, too!!! Can you believe that October...and Halloween are just around the corner??!!!!!

Hugs to you,

Jessica in Kansas

Two-Bean Minestrone - a fall slow cooker recipe page

~ Another recipe page completed...and this one is for fall! I love soups...and I love using my slow cooker...so this is a recipe I have used over and over again. Therefore, I decided to make a 6X6 recipe page of it to add to my collection! For this layout, I was inspired by Card Sketch #63 on Sketches! {by tamara}'s blog. I put a bit of a twist on the layout by cutting a silk leaf in half and using it in place of the swirl element. I tried different kinds of leaves, but liked the look of this one the best. The scalloped square was cut with my Klic-n-Kut. Some leaf stamps, inked edges, subtle corner punches, and doodling around the edges completed the simple layout.

Thanks for letting me share,

Jessica in Kansas

Monkey business...and orange banana cheesecake

~ I think I mentioned before that one of my favorite types of swaps in which to participate is for 6X6 recipe pages. I enjoy making these so much, as they go together quickly and allow me to easily try new stamps, techniques, etc. without feeling too committed. That may or may not make sense, but I know what I mean!! ;-) They also serve another purpose by allowing me to collect all of my favorite tried and true recipes in one format...and in one place.This recipe page is for Orange Banana Cheesecake...mmm...mmm!! It was great fun to create, and yes, I used some sources as inspiration! First, Sketches! {by tamara}'s Recipe Challenge #16 for this week encouraged me to used the following on a layout: real or faux stitching, ribbon, and paper tearing. The white background, rather than the light yellow I originally intended to use, was called for in this week's challenge by Sisterhood of Scrap, which was to create a card or layout using a white or black background. I felt that the white had no borders, so I used some orange ink around the outer edge and was much happier!! Last, but certainly not least, the layout was inspired by Page Plans' Week 23 Sketch. My new stitching stamp and the spotlighting technique added extra layers of cuteness to this fairly simple design.

Hugs to you,

Jessica in Kansas

Creamy Vanilla-Caramel Cheesecake

~ This recipe page was also created for a swap. I was inspired by the Scrapping Recipe Challenge #14 posted Tuesday on the Sketches! {by Tamara} blog. It called for the use of lace, buttons, and flowers on a project. This was just the encouragement I needed to pull out that lace I've never used! This 6X6 page was easy to create. I used a subtle corner punch, some inking on the edge of the cream colored Prima, Sharpie marker to draw the stitch lines onto the buttons, and subtle inking/distressing (applied the ink pad directly to paper) to the cream cardstock. I love the look of buttons in the center of flowers!!

Recipe:

• Cardstock: The Paper Studio


• Patterned paper: ScrapWorks


• Font: Berylium


• Primas: gray/black/cream


• Buttons & lace: source unknown


• Ink: SU! Classic Black


• Other supplies: corner punch (source unknown), Sharpie marker, mini glue dots, tape runner

Enjoy,

Jessica in Kansas

White Wine Cake - using House Mouse

~ This recipe page was created for a swap. I had three sources of inspiration:

1. The first was from a weekly challenge posted by an e-mail group, to which I belong {Scrabookers Anonymous}, which encouraged me to use punctuation on the page somewhere besides the text/journaling.

2. I also accepted Challenge #4 - On a Budget on the House Mouse Monday Challenge blog, which required me to not only use a House Mouse & Friends stamp, but also to make a card/layout for under $2 in cost...excluding the price of ink, stamps, punches, and other tools that I already owned. A breakdown of the cost for this project is included in the recipe below.

3. My personal challenge to use the paint chips I've been collecting.

Recipe:

• Cardstock - light green and shimmer purple, source unknown ($.75)


• Ink - SU! Classic Black


• Markers - SU! Always Artichoke, Blush Blossom, Elegant Eggplant


• Colored pencil - purple, source unknown


• Stamp - House Mouse & Friends


• Fonts - CK Vogue & CK Man's Print


• Punches - SU! 1 1/4" & 3/4" circles, decorative corner punch source unknown


• Paint chips - Home Depot ($.00)


• Brads - Making Memories ($.25)


• Flowers - Michael's clearance stem ($.50 for a handful of them)


• Brackets - designed and cut on my Klic-N-Kut

Grand total of project: ($1.50)...and that's being generous

This was a fun project...I hope you enjoy it!!

Hugs to you,

Jessica in Kansas