Adventure in Pearl

Well, thanks to Janis, I made another layout for this month. For Kaya, she challenged us to use pearls, her birthstone (and mine), in our layouts, and here's what I came up with.


Journaling:
These are the magic years, and therefore, magic days, and therefore, magic moments. - Anonymous

Materials Used:
CS - DCWS; PPS - Heidi Grace; Alphas - American Crafts; Diecut - K & Co.; Flowers - Prima; Chipboards - Maya Road; Paint - Ranger; Stamping Ink - Colorbox; Pen - Sakura; Adhesives - Ranger, Saunders.

I didn't have too many pearl embellishments. So it was a lucky break (?) when one of my pearl necklaces broke - my daughters were playing with it. I still have to have it re-strung but I don't think one bead would be missed. I used it for the center of my flower. I also used seed pearls I bought in one of my many trips to the south to form loops around the flower.


I don't often use crackle paint but I love how this one turned out. I used Ranger Tattered Rose and then dabbed it with red-violet Colorbox inkpad.


This is based on a Page Map so I was able to finish it quickly. The longest part was waiting for the crackle paint and the adhesive I used to attach the pearls to dry.

TFL. N ow back to writing that blasted annotated bibliography. Oopppsss...I still have to actually read something before I can do any annotating. Oh, scrap!

Irony

Unlike last year, there wasn't much discussion this time.

Me: Do you think I should join Idol again?
DH: Wag na...di ba nag-aaral ka na? Concentrate on your studies.
Me: Yun na nga, eh. I might be so focused on my studies I might not have time to scrap. With the challenge, I am forced to make time for at least one layout each week.
DH: Hmmmm....
Me: Uh-hmmm...

And that was that. The next day, the day before the deadline, I sat down to make my layout using this ad inspiration.


I was really supposed to be reading "The Political Heritage: From Wilson to Waldo" but my mind kept wandering to scrapping and so I finally succumbed and came up with this in record time.


My first time to do masking, first time to use KI lace CS, first time to use Adirondack Dabber (made a neat discovery that unlike acrylic paint, if you apply it lightly, any design underneath would still show through), and first time to use Perfect Pearls to put some shine. And oh, look, I used old (circa 2001) photos.

Quite satisfied with the outcome of my scrapping after 3 weeks of drought, I finally focused on my readings. Which I didn't finish before it was time to leave for school, so I was glad classes were cancelled due to Typhoon Feria. Yipee! More time to scrap and since mojo was up, finished two more layouts.

I've been joining Idol since its first season. I can still remember the stress I went through, especially the first time. It got better last season although it was still a bit stressful. And now. I can't believe I'm planning to use the Idol competition to de-stress. Isn't that ironic?

I invite you to view the participants' gallery here. Lots of new faces and some old ones too. And as usual, awesome work.

Back to School

Summer vacation - the days of confused weather - is officially over. Last week, the KiDS went back to school. So that meant waking up at 5:00 in the morning to have them up and running. The days of homework have officially began.

The same is true for me as I decided to pursue further studies at the U.P. DH was encouraging me to enroll in the Creative Writing Masters program but I decided to go for my doctorate in Public Administration instead. I think I must have been temporarily insane.

In Theories of Administrative System, we are required to write one annotated bibliography of a book or an article each week until September 30, 2009. Not to mention the critical review papers and other requirements. That's like making one layout a week for the Scrappin Moms Idol Contest - do or die; pas or fail. Nerve-wracking.

I don't know yet the course requirements for the Seminar on the Administration of Political Development but I am thinking it would be just as heavy. Our visiting professor from Korea kept on telling us that we were an advanced group of students so more was expected from us. Well, maybe, my classmates are in that advanced category seeing that they are Vice-Chancellors of state universities, directors of government agencies, Commissioners, etc. But me, I am just a SAHM and when I was asked where I was connected, I could only say "I am connected to my husband and kids." Having said that I thought to myself that would make a great scrapbook layout.

And in truth, as Professor Kim droned on and on about a class field trip in Seoul at the end of the semester, I was designing layouts in my head. And of course, I was thinking that I should get good photos of the Seoul trip so I can make a mini-album.

Not a very good start I know. But I am hopeful that as my brain adjusts to the intellectual stimulation I would be able to submit reports that are not smudged with paint or put together with glue.

So help me God.