A Girlsie in Boise

 My other new state page is for Idaho. In June 2023 I hosted a meetup for National Parks Across America. While I did not get enough members to make it an official meetup, the 5 of us who got together did have a great experience. We had a ranger talk and then explored several of the overlooks. One couple and I had lunch at a nearby diner before heading on our way. That event is now the 2nd Saturday in June so if you want to join us, check the forums. We are already planning the 2024 event!

I based this page on a layout I found on Pinterest. The background paper on the original layout reminded me of this yellow vacation paper from Old CM. I like the cartoon nature of the paper--it is such a happy design! I used a Cricut to cut the border for the state. While I couldn't make it a frame to my selfie, I was able to use it for the backdrop to one photo and as a journal box as well. The baked potato and title were also cut from the Cricut. The baked potato usually requires some explanation when people look at the page. Hopefully, now that I have a photo of a baked potato next to it, people will figure out what it is supposed to be.

Misery Loves Company--that's why it's such a crowded state

We're going to take a little detour from my travels to add to my 50-states album. First up is a page from July 2022 when I made my first visit to Missouri by attending the NPTC Convention. The host park was the Gateway Arch but we also visited a few other parks such as Grant's home. The Arch was my 150th park so it was great to be able to hit that milestone with friends. There was a LOT to see inside the visitor center in addition to our car ride up to the top of the Arch. The ride itself is memorable. If you've been there, you know what I mean!

The idea for this page came from a kit. While I didn't buy it, I did pin the image so I could recreate it myself. I don't remember exactly what paper pack this background page came from but the ombre effect was a great way to make it look like sky. I made this well before I had photos so it was serendipitous that my photos matched so well. The bottom border is a punch from CM. I used the CM Custom Cutting System to make an oval ring and then trimmed it to resemble the arch. It's not quite the same but you get the effect. The cut-out of the state shape turned into a perfect journal box. Since it was black cardstock, I used a white gel pen. The state name is in stickers. Amazingly I had enough to spell out the state without "manufacturing" letters!

50-states Album Part 32--Wyoming

This is the last page in my 50-states album. As I visit additional states or find photos of the trip, I will post more pages. I've been to 39 states and have shown you about 32 layouts. Next week we'll go back to my chronological albums and trip albums.

Wyoming was a state we passed through on the Great Western Loop in the summer of 2017. We flew into Denver, rented a car, and drove to South Dakota. We had GREAT fun going to Fort Laramie (tip--do not follow your GPS unless you like driving on dirt roads!) We also got to visit Devil's Tower (go ahead with the Close Encounters theme in your head now). Wyoming is a wild place and you really should visit. We enjoyed our time there and have lots of memories to look back on and laugh.

This layout is based on this sketch. Clearly, I used only 1/2 of the page. I owned a sticker of barbed wire, wood-grained paper and the appropriate card stock so I could really do this one justice. The cowboy/cowgirl and horse were cut on the Cricut. I had actually used them once before in a different album but I thought them a perfect fit to a story about Jim and I traveling out west. The state shape of Wyoming is not that interesting so I jazzed up the state name by finding a font that looked like a rope. You can look at DaFont.com if you want to find some really different free fonts for cutting or writing. This time I used a pen in the Cricut--not something I do a lot of but it made the rope look real to me. I had to trim each letter by hand but I think that made it work on the page better.

50-states Album Part 31: Wisconsin

I've only been to Wisconsin once. In the summer of 2012 I drove from Pennsylvania to Wisconsin for a National Park Traveler's convention. It took me 2 days to drive out because I stopped at several other locations along the way. On the return trip I stopped at the Osh Kosh air show--one of the largest in the country. Even that was not enough to get my husband to travel with me to Wisconsin!

I never really had an inspirational layout for this page. I started with a die-cut image of a mouse wearing a Packer's cheesehead. But as I looked through my stash, I found that I had this piece of Wisconsin themed paper and that's all I needed! Truly the easiest of the 50 pages to put together. (Not that I didn't have similar pages for other states, I just resisted using them--Wisconsin was the hardest to locate a themed page to copy.) Other than the photos, all I contributed to the page was the diecut of the state in Packer Yellow and a couple of Packer stickers (also leftover from scrapping this trip).

50-states album part 30: West Virginia

West Virginia has always been a transit state for me--a way to get to Virginia and points south. There are only a few trips to West Virginia that I remember. Of those 3 trips, there is only one photo of me with a landmark and that's this trip to Harper's Ferry. The landmark is called Jefferson Rock because it is supposedly where Thomas Jefferson stood to survey the area (when it was still part of Virginia).

The layout is based on this page. I liked the subdued colors and the burlap feel of the original. But I'm not one to use a heavy fabric like that on a page. I found a sheet of paper from the Creative Memories Textiles "Cloth" pack which worked well and then a strip of a wood grain paper across the bottom. The tag used as a journaling box is a real kraft tag. The title and the state shape were cut on the Cricut. I wanted to add a touch about one of my other visits--the Beckley Mine Museum--so I used a cut I made previously (check out the Pennsylvania page) to give a little more "identity" to the state. The banners at the top were made of scrap paper. And I was glad to use up some very old flower stickers to complete the look.

50-states part 29: Washington DC

How appropriate that the post for the weekend of Independence Day features our Nation's capital! There have been so many trips to DC that it was hard to find just a couple of photos to highlight. I ended up choosing one of my visits to the National Mall when I got to have a book signed by my favorite author--Diana Gabaldon. The other image is from the monument on the Mall that means the most to me--the WWII monument (honoring my grandfather).

The idea for the layout came from this page. The background paper with the faint image of the US in gingham is a sheet from Creative Memories "Star-Spangled" paper pack (a retired line). It was actually a remnant from another project but that was perfect because I could add the red and blue borders. The top border is one I had made YEARS ago. I either found an idea sheet or blog post and copied it with what I had available. The strip across the middle is vellum which helps soften the dark navy blue of the paper. I planned to use that for some Cherry Tree visits but hadn't used it by the time I got to this page. So I used the cherry tree elements to carry through onto the journal box. Pink is a nice match for the bright red and also tames the dark blue. Quite patriotic on multiple levels.

50 States Part 28--Washington State

Jim and I have been to Seattle twice each. But only once together! This page focuses on both of my trips. The photo of us at Boeing is actually a green screen photo but when you tour you cannot take a camera so it's the only way to get a photo of the massive plane construction complex. In downtown Seattle, I took a selfie with the Space Needle and I think it was a great addition to the page. Lastly, on the left is Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park. It's a massive park and I enjoyed my stay but I'll have to go back to see more!

This layout was based on an idea I saw posted on Facebook. This page uses all the same elements but by adding the mountains behind the city border, it makes it "Washington" even more! This page could have skewed patriotic but I think the bottom border keeps it in a vacation feel instead. The top border uses the CM Border Maker Cartridge system. The 2 bottom borders are free-standing border punches. Layering punches is a great way to change up the feel of the border. I left enough space at the bottom of the city border to add the title.

50 States Album part 27--Virginia

Virginia, as anyone who has driven the entire length of I-81 knows, is a VERY long state! We've made quite a few trips over the years, especially when my uncles lived near Charlottesville. This page features one of my solo trips to the beach where I stopped in Richmond for some touring to break up the trip to North Carolina. That's the Maggie L. Walker NPS unit. The other photo is from Mabry's Mill which is along the Blue Ridge parkway. I highly recommend a stop at the restaurant near here and if you can get the blackberry cobbler--do so!

My inspiration for this layout came from this page. The cut-out of the state was one of my trickier bits of fussy cutting. I did have the Cricut cut the outline shape in blue. I mounted that on white and fussy-cut around leaving a small border, then mounted that on red and did the same thing.

I found it amusing to place a sticker of "We the People" just like the original (which hardly ever happens) but then augmented with some civil war and colonial stickers I had on hand to demonstrate the age of the state. The small informational piece on Maggie Walker is from the Eastern National scrapbook kit. I had cut a framed piece out previously for Clara Barton so this was an easy way to add more detail on a rather obscure historical figure.

50 States Album Part 26--Texas

This was a trip from May 2015 when I went to a surgical technology conference in San Antonio. We also took some time to do additional sightseeing and we drove to the LBJ ranch and the state capitol in Austin.

The inspiration for this layout is from this page. The giant Texas image is perfect to me because EVERYTHING is bigger in Texas! The state name is cut on the Cricut. The background paper is a piece of paper from the Paper Loft. The remaining stickers are from a package of Texas stickers from my stash. The stars are punched from some leftover paper and cardstock.

50-states album part 25--Tennessee

We've had a couple of good trips to Tennessee. This one was the road trip to Mississippi for the NPTC convention. We sort of went backward--we drove to the bottom of the Great Smokies and drove through the park going north, exiting by Pigeon Forge. Then we had to head south again to Mississippi. Still, the park was a lot of fun, even if I about killed myself hiking up Clingman's dome! 😊

This is a fairly simple page, though it was modeled on this page. It helps that Tennessee is a LONG state and so it spreads across the middle nicely. The background paper is just an old piece of CM with pale stripes. The title and state shape I cut on the Cricut. The stickers across the state are from a Junior Ranger sticker album I received as a gift. The journal box is from a sticker pack I bought featuring the park. I had already scrapbooked this trip (see this post) so I was glad to be able to use up more of the stash.

50 States Album part 24--South Dakota

Another layout based on our summer 2017 "Great Western Loop" trip for the National Park Travelers Club convention. These were just 2 of the parks in South Dakota. We also went to the Minuteman Missile complex, Wind Cave and Jewel Cave. But these 2 do say "South Dakota" the most I think. My favorite mental image was in the Badlands and Jim was so intrigued by the structures we had to stop the car so he could go out and touch the rocks to see what it was all about.

The inspiration for this page started with this idea. No, it doesn't really resemble that page. What I took from the initial layout was the rope idea. I started looking for a rope theme and found a paper similar to this one (but a little curvier). Since I was looking for a rope across the page, I cut off a single strand. Since I had ruined the paper I decided to cut out more strands and then started playing with them until I figured out the rope border was really all I needed. The state shape became a mat this time. The Mount Rushmore die-cut in the upper left is a Cricut cut from a cartridge I own called Destinations. The title under our photo at Mount Rushmore is from a sticker pack someone gave me.

50 States Album part 23--South Carolina

Most of my forays into South Carolina were trips to go somewhere else (mostly Atlanta). But one trip was to a conference in Charleston and we took time on our last day to go and see Fort Sumter. This is the first park I distinctly remember picking up a National Parks Passport, looking at it, and then setting it down without buying it. Since we haven't been back in over 10 years, I wish I had gotten my first stamp then! It was February and we were out on the water so it was quite chilly--hence the winter coat!

I struggled with what layout to use. I ended up deciding to base it on one of my ideas for a Civil War theme page (appropriately enough--for Fort Sumter). The brick corners were scraps as is the middle section (it's from the Timeworn Texture pack from Creative Memories). I think the sticker grouping in the bottom right was all I needed for the Civil War theme. The state cut-out in the upper left was a free cut that I found. I liked that it incorporated the shape of the state and the state flag all in one simple cut. The state name was a simple Text Font from Cricut. I've about given up on using sticker letters--I hate having to manufacture letters from leftovers.

50-States Album part 22: Rhode Island

Rhode Island was part of our 2018 National Park Travelers Club convention. While the host park was in Massachusetts, the distance to the other New England states is small enough that we had a bus trip that included several Rhode Island sites and was still back to New Bedford by dinnertime. We saw not only the Roger Williams NM but the state capitol and Tuoro Synagogue--one of the oldest temples in the US.

This layout is based on a blog post from Creative Memories. While the original post was clearly the Golden Gate Bridge, the paper can be used for any suspension bridge. I turned the laser-cut die-cut bridge over so the red wasn't the prominent feature. It helped that we went to Newport as the bridge is a feature of that city. Otherwise, I would have struggled with a theme for the page.
On the upper left is an image of the state I cut on the Cricut. It was a nice change having a striped state and the state flower included. The state name was sort of an accident. The font I chose to cut (also on the Cricut) was very narrow and tore into shreds when I tried to remove it. But looking at the "negative" space I realized with little effort, I could turn THAT into the title!

50-states Album part 21--Home Sweet Home: Pennsylvania

I knew Pennsylvania would be a tricky state to do for me since it is less a "destination". But I've lived all over the state so I wanted to include as much of my history as I could. I ended up including photos of 3 of the houses I've lived in as well as a couple of other notable spots like where I went to school.

The color palette had to be yellow and black of course since I'm a fan of all the Pittsburgh teams. The letters for "HOME" were cut on the Cricut. A look at the "top" level shows my first home and my current home. You can see that there's more underneath and you can see a star in Erie (one of the places I went to school).

Opening the first two flaps you can see highlights of where I visit. Primanti Bros. restaurant is always a favorite stop when in Pittsburgh. On the right is me with the Drexel Dragon on the day I dropped off my dissertation for my doctorate.

In the middle view, you can read more of the journaling and you can see more cities. I found small icons to represent the various locations. The steel mill for Pittsburgh was a good find for me. The pine trees in the Poconos area are a Creative Memories punch.

Lifting the journal box you can see the expanded view of the state and the first home Jim and I bought together in 1994.

The overall idea for this page came from this layout. I like what I've made. I do wish that I could have included more but I think it would have made the state too cluttered. Given all the flaps, it's one of the heaviest pages in the album now.

50 states album part 20--Oregon

The photos here are from my 2013 trip to Portland for my cousin's wedding. I traveled with my Mom and that always is a fun time. In addition to the wedding, we had time to do some sightseeing. We saw a lot of waterfalls in the Columbia Gorge, but Multnomah is truly awesome!

I scraplifted the idea from this layout about the Oregon Trail Museum. We actually did visit that museum on this trip but the photos didn't make the cut for the layout. I chose a lighter background print that coordinates with the cut-out of the state shape. I made the wheels a little bigger as well. The title is cut from the Cricut Destinations cartridge. I stretched it into the large oval and backed it with the same red as the state shape outline. Fairly simple to construct actually.

50-States Album part 19--Oklahoma

I've just had one trip to Oklahoma--my first HPN conference. We visited the memorial during our trip--several people in the group knew one of the victims which made for a very emotional tour. I also went to Chickasaw as well as the State Fair. Luckily I got a selfie with one of the weird characters walking around.

This layout is based on this image. The background paper has a leathery look to it and I found denim, bandana and some red houndstooth to make the layers. I used a tearing tool to get the rough edges. It gives it a  bit of a rustic look. I thought cutting the shape of the state from Denim helped tie the top and bottom of the page. I also like that I just used the state abbreviation instead of writing out Oklahoma.

50-states Album Part 18--Ohio

This post highlights a trip from last year in which I made an effort to get photos of myself as I did my travels. I was returning from an HPN conference in Cincinnati. While I had been to the Taft park unit previously, I had no photos of my visit which included ME. Hopewell Culture was a new park for me. Ironically I SHOULD be returning from this year's HPN conference except that with COVID-19 we held it electronically and I stayed home.

This isn't the most updated photo of this page. I took the photo and posted it to a Facebook group where we share scrapbook layouts and someone commented that I was missing something from Ohio University--a Buckeye. So I searched the internet and managed to find a cut file and made their mascot from cardstock. It's just above the state image.

The page idea came from this layout idea. I only used the left-side ideas. Cutting the state flag and shape turned out to be relatively easy. The lettering on the state is from a plastic template I have with an alphabet. I've used it a few times, and it makes a nice title.

50-States Album Part 17--North Carolina

 Jim's family traditionally takes a week vacation in North Carolina each summer so I've made many trips to that state--generally in the Atlantic Beach area. That is very close to Cape Lookout so I've made several visits to the visitor center as well as the lighthouse which is on an island offshore. The Old Burying Ground is in nearby Beaufort and is another favorite spot to visit while we are in the area. There are some very interesting characters buried there.

The background paper is from Keller's Creations. I discovered that company at a scrapbook convention in Lancaster. They teach a class on quick layouts with their paper packs. They have some pre-cut shapes that help things come together quickly. I used the 6" square technique to create the background.
The polaroid looking photos on the left were from a different kit that I used and had leftover. The center one with the die cuts was meant as decoration. The other 2 were empty. I matted them with coordinating blue cardstock and added some embellishments from the cut-out page included with the paper. The letters were also part of the kit and I like the way I arranged the state name.

50-states album Part 16--New York

Some of my favorite trips to New York are shown below. Mom, my sister Sue and I took a bus trip to New York City for a day and we got to go to the Statue of Liberty. This was pre-9-11 and you could just take a ferry over and line up to get inside. Another trip was when Jim and I took a long weekend and drove randomly to the Finger Lakes and then ended up in Niagara Falls.

The basis for this page was this quilt block. I know that's a bit unusual, but you can get inspiration from just about anywhere. I know I've seen challenges where you interpret a magazine ad and transform it into a scrapbook layout. In reality, it isn't much different from following a sketch. What I took from that block was the icons for Niagara Falls, the Statue of Liberty and the state shape. I used a piece of paper that has a watery look to it so the backdrop behind the Cricut cut of the falls would be more realistic.

The top of the page is a  border maker cartridge from Our Memories For Life (OMFL) which was an offshoot of the original Creative Memories. The pattern in that direction echoed the falls to me. The  Statue of Liberty cut came from a Destinations cartridge for the Cricut.

50 States Album Part 15--New Mexico

My foray into New Mexico has so far been limited to my NPTC convention trip in 2015. The convention itself was in El Paso, TX, but our weekend events extended into the surrounding area. El Paso is not that far from the New Mexico line and I spent a full day exploring various NPS sites.

This page is based on the elements of this layout. I merged the state flag and the state cutout so I could include the photo of the Welcome sign--even though I'm not in it. It serves as the title of the page in a way. I rather like the desert structures in the bottom right corner It was a free cut and I think the tones of yellow give it depth for such a simple cut. Yellow mats tied the rest of the page together. It was a fairly quick layout.