Finger Pointing – January 18th

Hello everyone – it’s Carmel here. Hope you are all doing well – I can’t believe we are already over halfway through January!
I just had a quick check and it is just a year since I did my first blog post for Gallery Standouts! I find it such fun looking through the different galleries and picking some great layouts to call your attention to. It’s always so hard to pick just six, though!!

Here are my picks for today:

Linked by Love Blackkathy
Wow!! What more can I say – I love everything about this.
The masking and blending is just stunning – and a great use of the torn frame. The additional of the few small embellishments is perfect. Really wonderful.

Next from Nanascrapper

Such a great layout – I love the shadowed and cut-out effect of the shapes and the almost monochromatic feel to the layout.
The addition of the wordart and the small elements set that cute pic off perfectly.

This next from barbaraj caught my attention.

I love the photo work – just that hint of color and the rest of the page with its masking and blending compliments the soft feel so well.
Again just a few elements finish off the page wonderfully.

I really love Grandma by helenedubois

This is such a great heritage page – I adore the pic and it is set off so well with that stitched frame. I love the brushes and stamps blended and merged into the background and the simple embellishments that add to the overall theme.  Stunning.

 

Another one that jumped out at me was Windy Day by amplantier

This is so aptly named; I can almost feel the wind blowing!!
Great masking and blending of the background to create the wind effect and I love the all-white focal point with the person. Amazing.

and lastly You Color My World by SeattleSheri – so so colorful!!
I love the circular shape with all the different papers, the various paints around the edges and all the elements highlighting the colors.  Absolutely amazing, and all done without the help of a template!!

Well, that’s my six for the day – a bit of a mixed bag – hope you like them.
Why not click on the link and leave some love for these pages, or any others that catch your eye in the galleries.

Until next time – Happy Scrapping

Carmel (caapmun)

 

Finger Pointing – January 9th

Hi everyone, Carmel here for a new year of scrapping wonder.

It’s such a treat to tour the galleries after the holidays! So many wonderful pages, so many wonderful contests, so many wonderful ideas! I’ve spent the last few hours having a look through all the great layouts that are popping up in the various galleries. All my picks for today have a slightly “different” look or effect!

First up for today this stunner from Rosemarythyme
I love the photo effect with the mosaics and just the small cluster and wordart – a really lovely layout.

Next from blackkathy – My Heart – such a sweet layout.
I love the picture blended and faded into the background, the layering of the elements under the photo and the really sweet elements forming the cluster.

Next with a holiday theme Paradise by HeatherPrins – such a cool layout.
I love the different masking and blending of the background especially that boat. Love all the paint and stitching and simple elements. Really a great page.

Next Remembering The Good Times by Oldenmeade – another fascinating layout.
I love the two masked photos combined on the page with the paint and gesso effect. The “lights” and the two word art spots set the page off so well. Quite a stunner – I meant the page not the guy! – although…

Next from Margie I will leave the light on – just amazing.
I’m loving the effect on the photos and the masking and blending of the different background elements. Love the journaling and the framing is pretty clever too.

Lastly –The light will guide you by ginasscraps – so lovely. I love a great lighthouse picture and all they symbolise.
This has great masking and blending into the background and I love the word strip and the backlit text. So much to like!

Well – they were my picks for today – so many good layouts that just picking six wasn’t easy!!
I hope these provide some inspiration for you – maybe to try a few new things with your scrapping this year. Have a look around the galleries – most of then will provide you with tutorials in different formats to learn how to create some different effects in your layouts.
While you are having a look around be sure to leave some love on the layouts that stand out for you.

Until next time

Happy Scrapping

Carmel (caapmun)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finger Pointing – December 5th

Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing okay!
This first week of December is already half way through, can you believe in less than three weeks it is Christmas! It’s amazing to see so many Christmas pages already posted in the galleries, and I couldn’t resist a couple for my picks today. So let’s see what I found!

First up from digigrandma – December Days 3 – I love the simple Christmas feel with the torn paper, brushwork and elements. The wordart quote is a great touch to remind us of the reason for the season also!

Although it is now summer here “downunder” in Australia I do love a good winter page and my next pick is a stunner. December Delights by beaute. I love the soft feel of the layout with the picture perfectly blended into the background. The wordart and simple embellishments just set the page off so well.

I’m hard pressed to resist a doggie layout and the next is so cute – Plaid Coat by Heather Prins. Such a great photo blended well into the background and that corner peeled back to show a Christmas scene is amazing. The cluster and journaling is placed just right to create a perfect page.

Next a great scenic layout – Beautiful by nollipap – I love the scenery in Scotland and this layout is just so aptly named – just beautiful! Great choice of background and the picture is masked and blended so well – again with just a few embellishments all together making a stunning layout.

Next from mcurtt Keto Eggs – a great food page. The topic appealed to me as I love eggs and am just starting to look into the Keto lifestyle. But apart from that this is a great vibrant and colorful page which really draws the attention. I love the layering of the elements with the cluster on top and the wordart with the different colored alphas.

Now to my last pick for the day – this great page from matijke is really wonderful. I love the photo treatment, masking and blending with the torn edge also. Great choice of background and simple embellishments and the perfect framing of just a part of the photo. Inspirational!

Well I have enjoyed my tour of the galleries today – hope you like my picks. Why not spend some time having a look yourself and leave some love on those layouts that you love? Until next time – Happy Scrapping.

Oh – I nearly forgot – Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year – I will catch up with you all again in 2019!

Carmel (caapmun)

 

Finger Pointing – November 22

Happy Thanksgiving!! for all our USA readers. Hope you are all enjoying the day with family and friends.
I’m just about to set off on a tour of the galleries – always a great adventure with some stunning sights. I will be showcasing the six layouts that really appealed to me.
Hope you enjoy!!

First up Delight and Joy by janedee – I love the masking of the photo and the overall textural feel. The wordart and embellishments just add a perfect touch to a great photo. Very impressive.

Next – going back to autumn with this layout by KayTeaPea – Autumn Colors. This is a great multi-photo layout – love the varied textural background and the layering of the various embellishments with the photo block. Such a great choice of elements used in the clusters to highlight the autumn photos. Don’t you just love that cute fox?

How could I not put a Thanksgiving page in today’s picks!! This one jumped out at me from the gallery – Happy Thanksgiving by Okate – it’s a great layout that would also be wonderful as a card! I love the layered background, the watercolor wreath with the added elements and the banner is just wonderful.

This layout with its vibrant colors jumped out at me – Prom Queens by Electra. I love the paint and brushwork and the blending of the photo. All the elements scattered over the page beautifully highlight this great layout.

Next a great art journal style layout I Am Invisible by NAdams. I love the expert blending to make the background and the quote – who hasn’t felt invisible at times. The soft shadow work around the figure is just astounding and the addition of just that one shadowed leaf as an element – just amazing.

Last in my journey I discovered this layout – Me! by Ferdy – a great self-portrait. I love the white-space feel to the page with the emphasis on the right side. The photo is wonderfully masked and highlighted by the frame with the addition of the cluster and wordart. Just stunning.

Well, we’ve come to the end of the tour – I hope you like my picks for today. Be sure to visit the galleries and leave some love for those layouts that appeal to you.

Until next time – Happy Scrapping!

Carmel (caapmun)

 

 

Finger Pointing – November 7th

I am just about to set off on a tour of the galleries – always a favourite thing to do. The hard part is picking just six great layouts to showcase!!

There are quite a few gratitude themed layouts appearing in the galleries and I couldn’t go past this one from Dady – Thankful I love a big picture layout and this is so effective with the papers overlaid over half the layout and the paint and cluster.

Next from tammielsmith another gratitude layout – I love the sentiment but I am also intrigued by the “whitespace” style of the layout. I love the clustered frames and the simple but effective elements used to highlight the autumn landscape.

Another gratitude layout which caught my eye was Beyond Measure by Roxana. I love the large photo faded on the background and the simple edging and elements with the wordart standing out.

This year has gone so quick, and I’ve noticed a few of the stores have started releasing Christmas kits in preparation. So there are a few layouts of a festive theme popping up – this one – Jingle – from kayleigh being one. I love the circular multi-photo layout with all the paint, brushwork and embellishments  adding such a bright tone!

The other product appearing in the stores is everything you might need to make your own calendars for the coming year. I loved this layout by CharlotteM Calendar June which uses such product – an inspiration to try this myself. I love the soft background and the masked photo for the top of the calender along with the smaller elements.

This next layout caught my eye – New Adventures by wombat146 – I love the black and white photo laid over the great paint and brushwork background. The addition of minimal elements highlights the photo and journaling to make an outstanding layout.

Well – that’s my picks for today – why not have a browse through the galleries yourself. They are great places to get inspiration – make sure you leave a comment or two on the layouts that appeal to you.
Until next time – “Happy Scrapping”
Carmel (caapmun)

Finger Pointing – October 24th

I don’t know about you, but autumn has to be my favorite time of year. Although it is actually spring here in Australia, I love the beautiful fall layouts that are filling the various scrapbook galleries! And we are also starting to see the Halloween layouts popping up as well!

My first pick is an autumn one – Central Park by LyndsayJane
I love the masked photo, the brushwork behind and the great placement of the wordart and cluster. Stunning!

Next Strange Madness Within by NAdams which really caught my eye in the gallery. I love the soft feel from the great blending of the brushwork and the background. I love the idea of the multiple photos also blended so well and then highlighted with just the few journal strips. I can feel a scraplift coming on!!

Another great blended page is Moments by helenedubois.
Great blended background and masked photo, highlighted with the great mixed media cluster and quote. Love it!

This next one struck a chord with me as I also suffer with migraines. Life with a Migraine by carrie1977. I love the messy mix of paints and stamps on the background that gives the overall feel of pain and seems to flow to the layered elements on the one side. Migraine – certainly is terrible, terrible.

I love a dark background layout and the next is a spectacular mix of black and green! Skeleton Juice by rache77. I love the fun feel with the layering of paint and paper, frame and elements – particularly that little green frog – so cute.

My final pick is this stunning layout Good Times by Dady. The photo treatment is just spectacular and then the simplicity of the background paper showing through and just the addition of wordart makes for a great page.

Well, that it from me for today. I hope you like my picks – why not spend some time looking through the galleries and leaving some love on the layouts that appeal to you. We all love the parise and encouragement.

Until next time – happy scrapping!!

Carmel

 

 

 

Finger Pointing – October 4th

Hello again everyone – it’s a clear sky, spring day downunder here in South Australia. I’ve spent a couple of hours strolling through the galleries to bring you my six picks for today.

There are so many autumn pages appearing in the galleries – my favorite season! So my first pick is Change by rache77. I love a photo-less page and this one ticks all the boxes. Great blending in the background, word art and journaling with great shadowing on the elements! Lovely layout.

It’s October – are you preparing for Halloween yet! There are a few pages popping up in the galleries with a decidedly spooky feel! I love this – Beware Poison from Kayleigh. I love the very pale background brushwork, the great shadowing to make the layered effect and all the little embellishments which set those pics off so well. Wonderful

Next a stunner from Margje – 2gether BFF – You could look at this for a long time and still see something new and astounding! The great photo extraction and treatment, but then the overlayed lettering which picks up the photo too – how was that done? Then the number 2 which appears to be under the photo but also part of it? Brilliant work – great layout.

Next pile of leaves by Rollinchen – I love the simple photo and the leaves that seem to be spilling out of the frame – the soft blended background and simple embellishments. It all together makes a great autumn page.

Just Breathe by *gina* is another eye-catching layout  – I love the photo blended into the background and then the circle frames highlighting parts of it. The simple embellishments and brushwork make for an overall outstanding page.

and finally Summers End from Chickie – showing the use of circle frames again. I love the repetition of the photo but what drew my attention was the wonderful blended background. Great work and I love the simple elements used to finish of a great page.

Well, I hope you have enjoyed my picks – you really must have a browse yourself through the various galleries and leave some love on the layouts that grab your attention.

Until next time – happy scrapping!

Carmel (caapmun)