One of my new favorite reads is Canadian Scrapbooker ... just love that magazine.  They have monthly challenges and this was this months:

Cute, right?

What's a sketch without an interpretation?  Here's mine:

So much fun!  

Canadian Scrapbooker will be posting a new sketch tomorrow, June 1st.  Why not play along - http://canadianscrapbooker.ca/

See you there!

Wow! Has it really been 8 days since I've blogged!  I gotta get better at this!

It's been a busy 8 days.  Mostly, when not working, I've been finalizing plans for our September retreat.  If you haven't heard, we're having a party, and you're invited.  You can see the details further down on the blog. It's going to be a fun time, and in true BASF fashion, just a tad different from the ordinary! To summarize:  September 14, 15 and 16 at the gorgeous and historical Colonial Inn in Concord, MA.  We've added a second room, so that means there are still some seats available.  Check it out and come join in the fun!

Twisted Sketches has also put up another layout sketch.  It's sketch 152 and the twist was "Mother."  This is my take:

And, I finally picked up an album for all of Avery's layouts.  I hope to have it finished before Summer's end.  But, for the meantime, I'm enjoying the precious photos of Avery and working in pinks (not my usual color scheme at all!).

Most mornings, I sit and sip my coffee in front of the computer.  Usually, I'm poking around looking for interesting things to bring back to our forum members.  This morning I found these really ca-ute free printable BINGO cards on Scrap 365.  I just love that magazine but it's difficult to find as it's a UK publication.  Anyway, here they are:  http://res.trapletpublications.com/trapletimages/Bingo_Cards.pdf   I can't wait to print them out.  While you're there, check out the other cute printables, there's a few calendars and some adorable journaling cards!  Enjoy!

Woot Woot!  Our September retreat is almost at full capacity.  I am hoping to meet with the Inn to get us a larger room so that more folks can join us!  Stay tuned!

In the meantime, so far we have folks coming in from New Jersey and Pennsylvania.  I wonder who will travel the farthest to join us.

Be sure to let me know the address of your starting point because there will be a special prize for the person that travels the most miles to be with us!

There will also be a special prize for the person that brings the most people with her to the crop!  Don't you just love prizes?

For further details on the retreat, scroll down.  There's a full description of the event listed on this page!

Beep Beep!  We're having a party and you're invited!  9/14, 9/15 and 9/16.

Here's the details:

The party starts on Friday, 9/14 at 10:00am and goes round the clock, non-stop until Sunday 9/16 at 6:00pm.

Location:  The beautiful historic Colonial Inn in Concord, MA.  You can see the Inn here: www.concordscolonialinn.com

Cost: $99.00 - includes:

- a generous welcome gift that will include a tool tote, a Kaiser album and Kaiser embellies
- 56 hours of non-stop cropping with 24 hour crop room access
- a sit down country breakfast on Saturday
- a sit down country breakfast on Sunday
- a pizza party on Saturday night
- 4 make and takes
- snacks and beverages throughout the weekend

Payment, in full, must be received by me no later than August 15th.  Credit card payments will be accepted.  Your seat is only guaranteed once payment is received by me.

Room accommodations must be made separately.  When calling The Colonial Inn, mention that you are with the BostonAreaScrapFanatics.  Our reduced room rate is $150.00 for a double room consisting of a queen and a twin bed.  It is permissable to have up to three in a room.

Day only croppers will be considered after August 15th and based on available space.

I have had an overwhelming response and the crop is already more than half-full.

Other fun stuff includes:

*** designer extraordinaire Lynette Carroll.  She will be designing a project EXCLUSIVELY for us.       Lynette promises a sneak peek sometime in mid-summer.   Her incredible work can be seen at www.lynettecarrolldesigns.typepad.com.  She designs for G45, My Mind's Eye and K and Company.  Lynette is well known both here and abroad for her beautiful and extensively detailed work.  I have taken several workshops with Lynette and I can tell you that her teaching style is relaxed and fun.  She is considerate of her students, helping wherever needed.  Both Lynette and her assistant, Danielle, are fun loving spirits that fit in perfectly with the personality of BASF.

NOTE:  Lynette's workshop is not included in your crop fee.  A separate amount of $55.00, payable to me by August 15th reserves your space in Lynette's class.

*** A geocaching expedition.  Geocaching is the hottest trend right now in outdoor adventures.  Our very own Mishe is working behind the scenes to create an adapted version of this fun activity for our enjoyment.  Further details will be available when you check in at the crop!

And, of course, we will have vendors for your shopping convenience:

Memories and Moore with our very own Maria Moore.
CTMH with Joyce Combs coming down from Portsmouth, NH.
31 Gifts with Janice Guazzo
Simply Tasteful with Melissa Lamy
Jewelry with Melissa Lamy

As always, BASF is committed to bringing you fun and unique scrapbooking events that rank slightly "above the norm."  So what are you waiting for - c'mon and join the fun!

Email me at onlycarol1@comcast.net for payment options and any questions that you may have regarding this event.

It's that time again.  The new Twisted sketches are up at www.twistedsketches.org.  This time the twist was flowers, any way, any how.  Here's my interpretation:

Head on over to www.twistedsketches.org to check out the rest of the team's sketches.

Happy National Scrapbooking Day to all my scrappy buddies.  And, in true fashion, there's some fun going on over at www.bostonscrapfanatics.com.  If you've never checked us out, you really should.  We are a fun-loving group that extends far beyond the Boston area.  We have folks from Canada, Pennsylvania, and Michigan to name a few locations.  So what are you waiting for ... c'mon and join us!

And, because it's National Scrapbooking Day and I needed to work on a project, I've done another cute little something something with my favorite scrapbooking subject of late.  This is for Avery's Nana for her desk at work.

If you've ever been to a restaurant with me, you know that one of the things I do first is collect the coasters.  And, yes, I've been known to take them off of the surrounding tables as well as my own.  Then, one day I had an idea ... we were at Texas Roadhouse and I simply mentioned to our waitress that there was a special tip involved if she could snag me a stack of coasters!  Bingo!  She brought me an entire unopened package.  Score!  For an additional $5.00 I had 100 brand new, never been used coasters!

Here's my latest project using some:

This is the inside of a tri-fold desktop photo frame.

And this is the outside.

I bought those little hinges at CK Manchester last weekend, but I know for a fact that you can purchase the very same things at Home Depot.  I touched mine up with alcohol inks in Citrus and Ginger and finished them off with a little bling.

It was such fun to make.  I love making little minis!

So grab some coasters and give it a try!

It's a rainy day here in Boston.  But I'm thinking it's okay because I know we need the rain and the few plants that I have planted already will be happy.  The only drawback is that I'm not able to bring my projects outside to take pictures.  I was hoping to post the album I made at CK Manchester in my class with Sophia Trujillo.  I will be able to post the Clear Scraps tri-fold frame though.  So here goes ...

I just love it.  I have all kinds of plans for it too! LOL - a favor for the family reunion in July, (so much nicer than the usual teeshirt, don't you think) and then adjusting the colors a bit and making some for Avery's Christening.

Who's Avery you ask.  Avery is my favorite scrapbooking subject, at the moment.  Meet Avery Grace Lakin!

That's it for now.  Until the weather clears up, I won't be able to take any photos of my layouts.  I swear, one day I'll learn how to use my camera indoors!  But for now, I rely on Mother Nature's cooperation.