Kiss and Tell Scrapbooking

Scrapbooking Design Team Calls: Bella Blvd's Reveal Day

Hello Scrapbookers! 

I've been blogging about my application process to scrapbooking manufacturer design teams.  There are four that I'm applying to, three of which I have already submitted an application: Bella Blvd., Jillibean Soup, and Jenni Bowlin, and one of which I am planning to send in an application before Friday: Lily Bee. 

(scraplift of a Bella Blvd. layout)

The announcement for Bella Blvd. was supposed to be yesterday, but was set back one day until today.  I haven't looked yet.  I don't expect to make it, not because I am not optimistic, I am; but because I haven't heard from them.  Usually, when  I have been picked to be on a design team, I get a head's up before the announcement, this was the case with Scrapbooking in Paradise, Ella Publishing, and Get It Scrapped; however, Whim So Doodle posted the announcement online and that's how I did find out I was on that team.    I tend to think that the scrapbooking manufacturers give the heads up and get papers signed and bios and photos etc. before making the announcement.  A scrapbooking friend messaged me yesterday to say she didn't get the acceptance email for Bella Blvd.; she is more "in" the scrapbooking industry than I am so I figure she knows that they do send out the acceptance emails and then make the announcement. 

(another scraplift of a Bella Blvd. layout)

Another friend left a comment here on the blog saying that she submits applications to design teams but finds it frustrating that she never gets any feedback when she doesn't make it.  While I understand her frustration, I can also see it from the perspective of the people choosing - it is almost like when a guy asks you on a date and you know you have no interest so you say no but you don't really want to give him a reason - or when we hire employees at work, its hard to say "oh we never even considered you" or "you almost had it except that you chewed gum during the whole interview"  - maybe the feedback would be nice for the applicant but as the interviewer it feels super awkward.

(another scraplift of a Bella Blvd. Layout)

Another reason I don't think I "made" the Bella Blvd. Design Team is that my application didn't follow the rules, I didn't hide that part either, I actually highlighted it.  I think that they are probably looking for someone who can follow the rules on a team, and being a "rule breaker" on the application wasn't probably my best idea - but, on the other hand, I had sort of an unusual idea and if they bit then that would have been fun too. 

(another scraplift of a Bella Blvd. layout!)

Ok, I'm off to go see who they did pick!  I'll report back with how I felt and what I thought after seeing the announcement.

:) Katie.

P.S. I didn't make it - I found Diane Payne's announcement that she made it on my Typepad Dashboard before I made it over to the Bella Blvd. Blog.  One thing I do like to do when I don't make it is to look at the work of those who did; so I'll be surfing the new Bella Blvd. Team on Pinterest so you can go over and look at my soon-to-be recent posts there if you want to follow along.

P.S. My "Rule Breaking" was that I didn't use any of their products in the application and I instead scrap-lifted their current design team and used product from my own vast scrapbooking stash - probably not the most recommended way of doing things - just in case you are thinking of applying for design teams!

P.S. Ben Folds has a new album!  Plus I think there is a video on You Tube for the new Ben Folds' song "Do It Anyway" that includes the Fraggles (I heard about it on The Nerdist).  Check out the affiliate link:

 

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series! Now on DVD!

Ready - Aim - Go Get the Hunger Games on DVD!

Hey Scrapbookers:  The Hunger Games is coming out on video!  If you missed the movie at theaters or if you missed The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series, here are a few links to get you up to speed.  May the Odds Be Ever In Your Favor!

The Hunger Games Scrapbookinng Challenge Series Link List

Layouts Inspired by the Character Rue

Layouts Inspired by District 12 & the Scrapbook Improv Concept of "Taking It The Wrong Way"

There are lots of other posts here on this blog about the Hunger Games - you can search in the sidebar and it will take you to the 30+ posts.

You can also check out The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series on You Tube including the Lumberjack Episode!:

 

If you'd like to support this blog and get you very own Hunger Games DVD, click through to the following Amazon affiliate links:

 

The Hunger Games Scrapboooking Challenge Series (Day 26): "I wish I could freeze this moment..."

Welcome Scrapbookers to the 26th day of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series:

Note:  We're almost done!  I've planned 31 posts or a month's worth.  I'll pick this challenge up again near the time of the release of the next movie Catching Fire.

The Hunger Games Quote: "I wish I could freeze this moment, right here, right now, and live in it forever."  Let's interpret this as scrapbooking contemporaneously or the present day, scrapbooking the here and now.  There are several ways to do this, most of them are ideas from Creative Keepsakes and Simple Scrapbooks:

Project Life (Becky Higgins):

 

A Week In the Life (Ali Edwards):

December Daily (Ali Edwards):

30 Days Hath September (Stacy Julian):

That was such a silly day, I'm glad I took the time to record it.  My kids love to hear funny stories about themselves when they were little and pages like this are their favorites.

I've also seen projects by Ali Edwards for a Day in the Life; Stacy Julian has also done "May Everyday"; and I think Becky Higgins has something about Project Lifetime which encompasses someone's entire life - which is not present day scrapbooking but it kind of expands out these time based scrapbooking projects.

If you'd like to support this blog and learn more from Ali Edwards, Becky Higgins and Stacy Julian, please click through to one of the following affiliate links:

 

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 25): "May the Odds Be Ever In Your Favor!"

Welcome Scrapbookers, to Day 25 of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series.

Today we are using the Hunger Games Quote of the Day:  "May the odds be ever in your favor!" as scrapbooking inspiration.   got to see the movie recently and there was a new twist on this quote (spoiler alert):  the people in the Capitol bet on the Tributes and there was a big ticker wall like you'd see in a horse track or Las Vegas with all the odds.

I typed in "May" to my picture search and found this Project 365 / Project Life summary from last May - although, this looks more like April than May since my cousin had a baby on April 6th and the 6th looks like the hospital. 

So what has changed since last year?  We lost our black lab Duke, we are going to little Owen's first birthday next weekend, and I've gained some weight back; but other than thtat, everything is pretty much the same around here.  The kids are a little older, but not drastically older.  I've been thinking about doing a "Leap Year" album as opposed to a Leap Year time capsule, which we intended to do along with Ella Publishing; we took the pictures but never completed the capsule.   My point is, things change a lot around here in 4 years so it would be interesting to go back every 4 years and have 2 or 4 layouts for each Leap Year - you could even do that for your entire life.  It would be an interesting perspective I think.

"Odds":  It is fun to use numbers as themes for scrapbooking, here are a few of my odd numbered pages:

First Grade Party:

Third Bird:

Five Years Old:

7th Birthday Party:

"Favor":  Lets turn the word into the word "Favorites" for some scrapbooking examples of favorites layouts:

Favorite Christmas Ornaments:

Favorite Foods (this page was done in 2008 as party of the "Have More Fun" Class with Big Picture Classes' Stacy Julian "30 Days Hath September Album Project" and I don't think a lot has changed for either one of them in the food department):

If you wish to support this blog, please click through to one of the affiliate links:

 

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 24): Finnick Odair

Welcome Scrapbookers to The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Day #24!

I don't think we get to see Finnick until Catching Fire, but I'd join Team Finnick and if I had to choose a District, it would be District 4: Land of Fishing, boating, the Gulf of Mexico (whatever they are calling that in Panem), and true love. 

   

 (The Hunger Games & Catching Fire SPOILER ALERT):  Finnick Odair:  The male tribute from District 4. He won the 65th Hunger Games by using a trident he recieved as a gift from sponsors; District 4's trade is fishing. Finnick is described as being one of the most stunning, sensuous people on the planet. He is known for his attractive emerald eyes and golden hair. During the Quarter Quell, a jabberjay recording of his one true love, Annie Cresta, screaming is used as psychological torture. Katniss was hesitant to make Finnick her ally, but he proved to be valuable when he helped Peeta off his plate and then administered CPR after he hit the force field. Finnick was a key person in the rebellion, as revealed to Katniss in the hovercraft at the end of the book.  Victor of the 65th Hunger Games. Originally from District 4, Helped in the rebellion against the Capitol. He and Katniss help each other keep sane when Peeta and Annie aren't there. He marries Annie Cresta after she is rescued from the Capitol, but is killed by rose-scented lizard mutts during the mission to assassinate President Snow. He and Annie have a child. (source The Hunger Games wiki)

Themes for scrapbooking that we can take from Finnick include: 1. True Love, 2. Crazy, 3. Rescue, 4. Water, 5. Lizards, 6. Secrets, 7. Gulf of Mexico, 8. Boating, 9. Fishing, and 10. Sea Creatures.

1. True Love:

 

2. Crazy 

3. Rescue

4. Water

5. Lizards

 

6. Secrets

7. Gulf of Mexico / Pass-a-Grille Beach is on the Gulf of Mexico

8. Boating (Christmas Boat Parade)

9. Fishing

10. Sea Creatures / Beach Cleanup

If you wish to support this blog, please click through to one of these affiliate links:

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 22): Rue

Welcome to Day 22 of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge!

(Hunger Games Spoiler Alert):  Today's inspiration comes from District 11's tribute, Rue "small and meek, you wouldn't assume that she could last long; but her knowledge of trees, plants, and hiding keeps her alive. She warns Katniss about the tracker jacker hive, and they later become allies. She is later murdered by the boy tribute from District 1, Marvel. Rue has dark eyes and is of African decent.  (The Hunger Games wiki)

Today is the release of the movie The Hunger Games and my 8 year old daughter wants to see it and I'm on the fence about when I should go to see the movie to avoid the swarms of teenagers and whether I should bring my daughter. 

I've told her that its PG13: She's OK with that. 

I've told her there's lots of kissing: She says she'll cover her eyes - my kids still think kissing is yucky. 

I've told her there is blood and guts and killing:  She says she likes that sort of thing. (hmmm. ok.)

What I'm most worried about is when (spoiler alert) Rue dies.  From the reviews I've read it seems like they have toned down the blood and gore and violence - for a movie all about teenagers killing each other.

My 8 year old girl is more comfortable with picking up creepy crawlies than her big brother, is always the one who wants to see it when something is bleeding, and is someone who gets the bigger concepts. Haunted Mansion is her favorite ride at Disney's Magic Kingdom.  She seems to genuinely want to see it. 

If you have seen the movie, PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT to let me know whether an 8 year old who is comfortable with guts and blood could / should see it.

Ok, back to the scrapbooking challenge, the SCRAPBOOKING THEMES we can take from Rue include: lullabies, singing and music, tree climbing, birds, and little sisters. 

Lullabies:  This layout incorporates a couple of the songs I used to sing to my girl when she was a baby:

And here's another of my sweet baby girl:

Birds or Boobs:  This page was about whether the chamber would support the bird sanctuary or the breast cancer reconstruction charity:

Angry Birds & Geocaching:

 These next two layouts are about me and my own little sister over the years:

If you want to play along, please leave a comment with a link to your scrapbooking layout or project inspired by the themes of The Hunger Games.  If you've seen the movie, please leave a comment to let me know what you think and how kid appropriate it is - Thank you!

    

If you'd like to support this blog, please click on through to one of the above bird scrapbooking affiliate links.  Thank you!

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge (Day 21): Effie Trinket

Welcome, Welcome, to Day 21 of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge!  Today we are taking our inspiration from Effie Trinket!  She is the highly made up picker of Primrose's name in the reaping ball on The Hunger Games movie trailers.  She is the one who says "May the Odds be Ever in Your Favor!"

I don't imagine there are many on Team Effie, but there was something about her that I liked despite her being outwardly despicable.  For me, I felt like maybe she was just misunderstood.   

Effie reminded me a bit of my first year of highschool, a time when girls are desperately trying to fit in.  A time when I was labeled a "freshman airhead cheerleader" or at least that what the upperclassmen mean girls called us.  My BFF Katie R. and I would then pretend to be completely dumb and have ridiculous conversations like we really were freshmen airhead cheerleaders and then we'd giggle ourselves silly; but really, this was just a clever and fun defense mechanism we devised because some of those girls calling us names we would have looked up to.  Highschool - ahhh the lessons of conformity and breaking the rules.

Since then I've always had a soft spot for girls who are a bit misunderstood like Legally Blonde's Elle Woods and Clueless's Alicia Silverstone - what was her name, Cher?  Its the whole "don't judge a book by its cover" and you don't know a person "until you've walked a mile in their shoes" thing.  And it is fun to get all dressed up sometimes right?

{That's me from a couple years ago when we had a Pirate Themed Murder Mystery Party at our house - so very Capitol right?  I even wore hair extensions and was the Queen of something.}

While reading the books, I always wanted to know a bit more about how Effie got her job.  Was it assigned to her?, did she seek it out?, was she just playing her part in fear of what would happen if she messed up?, and did she secretly have a crush on Haymitch?  Something I loved about the way Suzanne Collins wrote her characters was that all of them were shades of gray, none were black or white.  So while Effie seemed like the worst of the worst in the superficial department since she was from The Capitol, I couldn't help thinking there was a little more to her under the surface and under all that make up. 

Spoiler Alert for the Hunger Games:  Effie Trinket:  The District 12 escort, who was happy and bubbly. She wore many different colored wigs and helped Katniss and Peeta get sponsors in the Games. She constantly bickered and argued with Haymitch. Very proper, she hated it when people did not have proper etiquette. Katniss was shocked when she found out Effie was a rebel. (source The Hunger Games wiki)

Scrapbooking Themes Inspired by Effie Trinket Can Include:

1. High School

2. Conformity

3. Misconceptions

4. Glamour Shots

5. Hair & Makeup

6. Winning the Lottery, and

7. Ettiquette. 

Here are some of my scrapbook pages that fit those categories:

High School Dating: From The Quarterback to the (dare I say it) Comical Nerd.  (20 plus years later: P.S. I love nerds.  And P.S. The Quarterback turned out to be an amazing guy too.  Much admiration for both of these guys.) 

 

 Ahh the glamour of a Disney Princess - here is my daughter with my BFF from highschool Nancy's daughter - on their way to learn the lessons of appearance and glamour and what's real:

And on excess in general, so very Capitol, here's a page of mine from 2007 - before the recession.

P.S. I still have most of this stuff give years later, and that clock still hangs on the wall in my scrapbooking room, it says "Scrap Happy - Think Big" in hot pink letters, an otherwise serious clock got glamourized, I love that.

If you make a page inspired by The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge - please leave a comment with a link.  The movie comes out tonight at midnight - who's going?

If you wish to support this blog, please click through to the affiliate links - and check out The Hunger Games Nail Polish collection, wall decal and triology boxed set!

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 20): Primrose Everdeen

Hello Scrapbookers and Welcome, Welcome to Day 20 of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge!  May the Odds Be Ever in Your Favor!  Today we've drawn the name of "Primrose Everdeen" out of the reaping ball!  Happy Hunger Games!  Today we're scrapbooking flowers, goats and cats in honor of Primrose Everdeen.

 

If you wish to support this blog and get The Hunger Games products, please click on one of the above affiliate links.

The Hunger Games Spoiler Alert!  Don't read this unless you've read the books and/or want to know all about Primrose Everdeen:  The female sibling of Katniss Everdeen. She was originally chosen as the girl tribute for the Games, but Katniss volunteered to take her place. She owns a goat named Lady, and a cat named Buttercup. Unlike her older sibling, Prim has a heart full of compassion and for healing. She was named after the Evening Primrose, as mentioned in Mockingjay. In Mockingjay, Primrose went to the Capitol to save children that were bombed. Primrose found a child lying and the round close to where the first bombs exploded, Prim took off her coat and wrapped it around the child. Katniss called her sister, Prim turned and saw Katniss just as the second batch of bombs exploded, Katniss had to watch her sister turn into a human torch and die. It took a long time for Katniss to heal from the loss.   Katniss' little sister, who helps Katniss keep sane when Peeta is not there. Prim works as a healer in District 13, and died during a bombing by Coin's soldiers when a hovercraft with parachute bombs dropped on a large group of Capitol children. Prim was working as a doctor in the explosion. (Source The Hunger Games Wiki)

 

The scrapbooking inspiration we'll take from Primrose are flowers, goats and cats.  Here are my pages:

 

If you'd like to play along, please leave a comment with a link to one of your pages!  And may the odds be ever in your favor.  Its only a couple more days until The Hunger Games movie premiere!

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 18): Gale Hawthorne

Welcome Scrapbookers to Day 18 of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series!

The purpose of this series is to gain inspiration for scrapbooking from a source outside of scrapbooking.  In this series, I use the districts and the characters of The Hunger Games trilogy for themes to use in scrapbooking.  It is a way of using story first in scrapbooking to tell more interesting stories.  It is also a way to include my recent obsession, and I'm not alone in this, in my love of scrapbooking.  I hope that makes sense and I hope you'll play along.  There is a flickr group called "The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge" where you can post your pages and the Big Picture Classes blog recently posted information about my first page in this series, here are the links:

The Pinterest Board for The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Flickr Group 

Big Picture Classes Blog: Pop Culture Scrapbooking: The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games Spoiler Alert - if you haven't read the books you might not want to read this character summary:

Today the source of inspiration is Katniss's hunting buddy, Gale Hawthorne: "The best friend of Katniss. She and Gale met when she was only twelve and he was fourteen and both of their fathers died in the same mining explosion. Gale hunts with Katniss in the forest, usually everyday but in Catching Fire, he only hunts with her on Sundays (before the 24-hour electric fence arrives). Gale calls Katniss "Catnip," a nickname that was created after the pair first met.  He is nineteen years old, fierce, hates the Capitol, and wishes to start an uprising as the people of District 8 did. Katniss must pretend that they are cousins to keep him alive, or President Snow could order to have him killed.  He is in love with Katniss, but they don't end up together because Katniss can't take how he designed bombs that ended up blowing up Prim (he indirectly killed Prim by making the bombs) and can't stand to look at him. She also realizes a relationship with Gale is not what she needs; she chooses Peeta. He ends up working successfully in District 2." (Source The Hunger Games Wiki).

Gale is a bit of a complicated character, he is the third point on the love triangle, and in the end he does something really questionable.  Here are five ideas for themes for scrapbooking from Gale's character:  1. Hunting, 2. Forest, 3. Fathers, 4. Sundays, and 5. cousins.

 1. HUNTING: Its a bit hard to see in this photo, but there is a deer in the path and this photo was taken by my dad who was a hunter.  I think this is the page I made during a ustream video - the one where I didn't talk a lot; I linked it under the layout.

 

 2. FOREST: We don't get to many forests so I don't have a lot of scrapbooking pages involving the forest, but here is a favorite from last September when my son and I climbed the Precipice Trail of Mount Champlain and we spent a lot of time in the forest of Acadia National Park that day.

3. FATHERS:  I don't always remember to get photos like this every Father's Day, I'd like to get a photo of Allison with her dad and grandfather again this Father's Day.  It would be fun to get similar photos and then make a page with the same design and similar colors.  Making a mental note to do that in June.

4. SUNDAYS:  We go shopping on Sunday evenings just about every week.

5. COUSINS:  This two page layout is an oldie but a goodie - this simple and basic design makes it easy to include a lot of photos and highlight one photo at the top, I've got to try this design again sometime soon.

So tell me, are you Team Peeta or Team Gale?  Personally, I'm Team Katniss!

 

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 19): Haymitch Abernathy and 8 Scrapbooking Layouts

 Hello Scrapbookers!  Welcome Back to Day 19 of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge.

I've been blogging a lot about Ice Cream for Breakfast Day on 3/21/12 - March 21st is Ice Cream for Breakfast Day. Here's Why.   We are hoping to reach 10,000 members of the Facebook Event "Ice Cream for Breakfast (March 21)" created by Bruce C. Rosenberg before he passed from cancer, 3/21/12 marks one year from his diagnosis date, he passed away 9 days before the holiday he created.  Please go join now if you haven't already, and if you have THANK YOU!

I'm thinking Haymitch could have taken a page from my friend, Bruce's playbook.  Instead of drowning his sorrows in alcohol like Haymitch, when dealt a life challenge, Bruce decided to go forth happy anyway and to spread his joy by creating "Ice Cream for Breakfast Day." 

If you'd like to catch up on The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Blog Posts, here are some links:

Links to the Beginning of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series & Districts #12-3

The Hunger Games District #2: Masonry

The Hunger Games District #1: Luxury

The Hunger Games: The Capitol

The Hunger Games District #13: The Rebels

The Hunger Games: Cinna

The Hunger Games: Team Peeta!

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Videos!

Ok, back to The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge for real:

Haymitch Abernathy:  "Haymitch is Katniss' and Peeta's mentor. He is drunk at almost any given time, with a glass in one hand and knife in the other. He drinks to forget the memories the 50th Hunger Games, which he was crowned victor of. He promised he would sober up long enough for Katniss and Peeta to play the games and help them. He sends Katniss gifts throughout the games to help her survive, and sometimes Katniss believes that his gifts always seem to have good timing and there might be some kind of connection between them. He won during the second Quarter Quell, where double the tributes were required to participate in this deadly game.  Katniss and Peeta's guide in The Hunger Games. Has an addiction to alcohol, and gets drunk to escape the world around him. He was the only living victor in District 12 before Katniss and Peeta. Haymitch is their mentor throughout The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. He is the one that sends the gifts from sponsors as well." (source The Hunger Games wiki)

So what can we take for scrapbooking inspiration from Haymitch?  Here are five themes: 1. Coach/mentor; 2. victor/winner; 3. life challenges; 4. games/sports; and 5. gifts.

1. Coach / Mentor 

 

2. Victor / Winner

3. Challenges / Life Lessons

4.  Games / Sports

 

5. Gifts.

Scrapbooking Blog Temporarily Hijacked by The Hunger Games

Here's a link to the blog post that explains when The Hunger Games took over this scrapbooking blog.

So my mind has been on upcoming movie The Hunger Games and I haven't done a ton of scrapbooking lately, I am planning on getting some layouts done tonight after Bikram Yoga so my scrapbooking desk won't be so lonely.

Don't worry scrapbookers, The Hunger Games Scrapbooking challenge is really about the process of scrapbooking and my concept of applying concepts from improvisational comedy to scrapbooking.  I'll get back to blogging about scrapbooking all the time soon enough after The Hunger Games movie premier later this month.  So in the meantime, bear with me, ok?

For those of you that are Hunger Games fans, and those of you that would like to learn more without having to read the books, here are some really awesome links for The Hunger Games:

1. The Hunger Games Fan Podcast is amazing!  I've been listening on my iphone, it is seriously giving The Paperclipping Roundtable some competition for my podcasting attention.  The Hunger Games Fan Podcast is hosted by a husband and wife team named Cliff and Stephanie Ravenscraft, they have dozens of podcasts and an online community called the GSPN (Generally Speaking Production Network) and they are fun to listen to since they banter a bit.  They do give very accurate summaries of each chapter so this could almost be an alternative to reading the book or listening to the audiobook if you were really against reading; but if you have already read the books and want to brush up before the movie, this is a great and easy way to go through it all again - you'll catch little details you might have missed before.  P.S. I listened to a few of  the other podcasts, like Mockingjay.net and it was fine but a bit too unorganized even for me; The Hunger Games Fan Podcast is entertaining and organized and very professional done, I think its the best one.

2. The Hunger Games Second Quarter Quell Fanmade Movie.  This is an amazing video made by fans of what the Second Quarter Quell video would have looked like; if  you haven't read Catching Fire yet, you might not want to watch it until you do.  It is seriously well done and worth checking out.

3. MTV's video interviews with the cast of The Hunger Games.  I learned a lot about the story and the back story of the books and how they have been gaining favor over the past several years; this was especially interesting since I just recently learned about The Hunger Games triology.  You might need a flash player to watch, but they are extremely good.

4. The Hunger Games Movie Official Website.  There's lots of information here and a countdown to the movie and a Facebook game link.

5. The Hunger Games Universe on Wikipedia.  I used this as a resource for many of my posts in The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge series, it is an easy reference for just about anything to do with The Hunger Games, like what the industries in each of the districts are, summary of the books, and character summaries.  There is lots of information and easily searchable.

6. The Scholastic Publishing Site for The Hunger Games.  Did you know that Scholastic - you know the Scholastic that does the book fairs at elementary schools - is the publisher of the Hunger Games?   It is!  These books are really well written and this site has interviews with the author Suzanne Collins in which she explains that her inspiration for The Hunger Games was from popular tv shows like Survivor combined with actual war coverage and the story of the Minotaur from Ancient Greece.  These books are well thought out, bring in concepts from the ancients and from today, and will make you think;  its a new twist on an old concept with lots and lots of themes to consider,  I think that is why I got so hooked on them.

If you wish to support this blog, please click on one of the affiliate links to learn more about The Hunger Games:

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Videos

Here are links to the You Tube Videos for The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I thought I'd put them all in one place.  I haven't watched them myself but I might take a look while I do some scrapbooking later tonight.  Or maybe I'll just make some more without looking.  More videos are coming soon.

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 17): Cinna

Welcome Scrapbookers, to Day 17 of The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge. 

Today we are focusing on the stylist Cinna, played by Lenny Kravitz in the movie, for our scrapbooking inspiration.  You do not need to have read the book to play along, but the book is pretty awesome and the movie will be out very soon, so you might want to check them out just for fun.

 

Cinna - Katniss' stylist. A sly and witty man, Cinna is clever with his fingers and even smarter in his mind. His incredible designs for Katniss help her popularity with the audience. He's the most normal person Katniss met that was from the Capitol.  Katniss's stylist, who risks his life to turn the wedding dress President Snow forced her to wear into a mockingjay outfit. He is captured at the beginning of the Quarter Quell. It is believed that he died during interrogation. (source The Hunger Games wiki)

So the inspiration we can take from Cinna for scrapbooking inspiration is most obviously fashion, costumes, and wedding dresses.  You might also take inspiration from him for themes of fire, secrets, and helpers.  I'm taking the easy route and going with fashion and costumes, as in Halloween costumes:

Cinna also makes wedding dresses in Catching Fire, so here's a layout I made about the Royal Wedding last year:

And here's one more layout about dressing up a favorite doll:

The Scrapbooking Challenge based on Cinna of The Hunger Games is to create a layout about fashion or costumes or wedding dresses.  If you do make a layout, please leave a comment with a link.

If you wish to support this blog, please click through to one of these affiliate links:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 16): Peeta Mellark

Hey Scrapbookers, we're still on The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series, but we're switching from the Districts and locations to the characters for scrapbooking inspiration.

First up is the love interest Peeta Mellark:  "The District 12 male tribute as well as the baker's son,  he is loyal and brave, and will do whatever he needs to for Katniss to survive, for he has been in love with Katniss since they were five years old. Katniss, however, has to act like she's in love with him in order to keep both of them alive. Peeta is described as being medium height, strongly built and has ashy blonde hair." (source The Hunger Games Wiki)

Scrapbookers - if you haven't read this book, I highly recommend it.  If you haven't read it, you can still play along.  The movie is going to be big and it is coming out in 9 days, so unless you have no access to tv or movies, chances are you have heard of it or at least seen the movie trailers.  The point of using The Hunger Games in a scrapbooking kind of way is just to get a fun and diffenent starting point for a theme for a page or project, it is not to make scrapbooking pages about The Hunger Games (although I have done a few of those).  Using The Hunger Games as a prompt is to switch up your creative process in a fun way.

Scrapbook Layouts based on the Peeta theme could include:

1. Bread / Baking / Daily Bread / Eating

On Eating Cookies:

On Baking Cookies:

 This is a stretch, but this layout features photos taken at the restaurant named Panera Bread:

2. Starcrossed Lovers / Crushes / First Love / Love Notes

My daughter's first love is her Daddy, here's a layout about how she writes love notes to him all the time:

My son normally favors me a bit so I was so surprised one Valentines Day when the only love note he brought home was for Daddy - seems  like Daddy gets most of the love notes around here!

So going with the theme of love notes to Daddy/my husband Charlie, here's a love note scrapbook layout I made for him:

3. Partnership / Teammate / Working Together

This layout is an ode to the paperwork I do at the office:

These two layouts about work and play are side by side in my December Daily mini book:

And here's a Picasa collage of the scrapbook layouts I've made about work over the years:

4. Bravery / Loyalty / Survival

Here's a layout about how brave my girl is about picking up jellyfish and all sorts of things:

This next layout is about our loyal labrador retriever Dandy:

And a layout about our late black lab Duke:

Those four themes should give you some ideas for scrapbooking pages.  If you do make a page, please post a comment with a link.  Or just comment if you are following along and didn't make a page.  Have you read the book?  Are you looking forward to the movie?  What do you think about the cast?  I would love to hear from you.

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The Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge Series (Day 15): District 13 The Rebel

Welcome Scrapbookers to the Rebel District 13 of Panem, land of The Hunger Games:

If you haven't been reading The Hunger Games, here's the scoop on District 13, a district of Panem that was supposedly destroyed by the Capitol during the first rebellion; said to be uninhabitable, the ruins still smoldering from the toxic bombs dropped on it. However, the district actually agreed to pretend to be dead in exchange for the Capitol leaving them alone. Its industries were mining graphite and nuclear science/technology. This is the reason that the Capitol agreed to leave them alone.  In Catching Fire, Bonnie and Twill tell Katniss of the mockingjay that is always seen flying across the corner of the screen when the Capitol is supposedly televising new footage of District 13. The ruins are always smoldering, the same news reporter is talking in front of the rubble. The Capitol never shows the current state of District 13, instead always replays old footage. Bonnie and Twill believe that there is a civilization living underground. At the end of Catching Fire, Katniss learns that District 13 is the base for the new rebellion. District 13's leader is President Coin.  In District 13, citizens are on a strict schedule everyday printed on their forearm, it shows the specific activity, and time showed in 24-hour time. Activities include meals and other activities are the Command, where citizens of 13 write down what they want changed or added to the schedule. The schedule depends on the age. If you are a teen, you go to school where you study classes on history or other subjects. If you are old enough to work, you work in the kitchen, or the hospital. During the day, you are arranged a strict 30 minute down time with family. People are not allowed to have outside pets, as a precaution. But in a exception established by Katniss Everdeen, she asked for permission for her younger sister, Primrose Everdeen, to keep the small tom cat named Buttercup she took care of in District 12. Buttercup is let outside to find food, but his comings and goings are strictly controlled. Katniss also requested special hunting time. President Coin accepted, but stipulated that she could only hunt within a strict 2-mile radius for a time span of two hours. She could only hunt with Gale Hawthorne, use the catch for the District 13 kitchen. They each had a GPS attached to their ankle, and if they ran away, they would be executed. (source The Hunger Games Wiki).

I wasn't sure how I would interpret this district so I searched for "rebel" in my photos which are organized in Picasa and all of the photos taken with my Canon Rebel came up.  Last night was the actual premiere of the movie with lots of paparrazzi and cameras flashing.  So I thought I'd FOCUS on picture taking for this challenge.   

This is a 12x12 scrapbook layout I made about being the one missing from the photos because I'm usually behind the camera:

This 6 photo 12x12 layout highlights my picture taking in the mirror trick

This next one photo 12x12 layout features a favorite photo of my daughter taken with my Canon Rebel:

Ok and one more one photo 12x12 layout featuring a photo taken with my Canon Rebel:

 

Ideas for Hunger Games Scrapbooking Challenge For District 13:

* Photography (Canon Rebel) or Picture Taking in General

* Wearing Uniforms

* Strict Schedules / Routines / Your Planner Calendar

* Pencils (graphite) / Homework / Taking Tests

If you make a layout, please leave a comment with a link. There is a Flickr "The Hunger Games Scrapbook Challenge" Group if you wish to upload your layouts there.

If you wish to support this blog, please click through to check out the following affiliate links:

If you are thinking about a DLSR, the Canon Rebel is an awesome pick.  If you already have a Canon Rebel, the 50 mm lens is an afforadable and amazing add on.