Who Left the Light On?

My next trip was not until March 2019. Jim and I headed to Thomas Edison in New Jersey for a special event (you'll see that next week). We purchased our first NPS Parks Pass as we knew we would need it this summer for our convention trip, and there is a fee to enter Edison. While waiting for the event to begin we took a moment to go outside. I had not realized that Edison also started the motion picture industry. The large black building you see there is the Black Mariah film studio. Built on a track, it can rotate 360 degrees to capture the sun for natural lighting. He filmed acrobats, sneezes, and other day-to-day activities, but not much in the theatrical realm. I got my photo taken with the great man--or at least his statue.

This layout is part of a kit I got from Club Scrap. It's called Industrial Evolution (scroll to layout 3-4) and as soon as they released it I knew it would be perfect for many of my NPS trips. It has not only a historical feel but a touch of gears and industry. The left page was able to hold the brochure and a large postcard I bought which shows the many areas inside, as well as a pantograph of the exterior buildings. I then chose my outside photos and since there was a note about "turning on the light" I added the photo I took of an original Edison bulb--yes still burning all these years later. I normally would have waited and put that in the "room" where the photo was taken but I think it works even better here as an introduction to the space. The original journal box is under the postcard, but I was able to use the 2 small squares on the right for my journaling. You have to love how fast these pages come together!

The Not-So-Glamorous Life

To end my visit I took a walk down the path to the farm section of the plantation. Here the story is wildly different than the mansion. The larger dwelling below is the overseer's house (though it was the original family residence as they built the mansion). The "lower house" includes displays of how the farm was run and focuses on the lives of the enslaved people who worked there. Though they were enslaved at the mansion as well, the narrative is discussed in more detail through the dwellings and workspaces that remain. And many buildings remain even hundreds of years after they were built.

This page is a wallpaper page. I decided to pull my "Farm" materials to work on this part of the story and this is a page I picked up from a scrapbook yardsale. The picket fence at the bottom of the page reminded me so much of the fence around the overseer's house that it seemed the perfect fit. I matted the photos as the blue sky was blending into the background a little more than I wanted. The paper was so decorative that I didn't need to add embellishments. And I had enough negative space left to journal directly on the page.

The farmhouse kitchen had great displays of manikins wearing the outfits enslaved people would have worn. There were also some cut-outs spread around the areas to help visualize the use of spaces. The log huts were the enslaved people's quarters and predictably, had little to no furniture. The contrast of the 2 lifestyles is striking but few people take the time to see the lower farm on their visit.

This layout is based on one of the 101 Sketches (page 102). The background papers are still from the Winter Woods collection. They had a distressed look to them that matched the severe life of the enslaved people. The corners are from a mat that I had from a different collection. The stripes reminded me of the logs in the cabin. Unfortunately, I only had one mat so I had to alternate how the stripes ran in the corners. The journal box is from a very OLD CM collection and is supposed to be a Thanksgiving or Fall accent. But I think it works with the kitchen and hearth here. Across the middle of the page are 2 laser-cut borders. By cutting each in half and stretching them across the pages, I didn't have to worry about having 2 sets (which I don't). I sometimes buy 2 sets of laser-cut borders for matching pages. But if you didn't, here is a trick to stretch your stash!

Ice Ice Baby

Another interesting feature on the grounds is the ice house. This underground chamber was filled with blocks of ice in the winter and the structure held the coolness through much of the summer. I was able to walk to the bottom entrance and jump the puddle on the path to get my photos of the inside.

I based this layout on Sketch #9 from the CM Worldwide Virtual Crop in September 2023. Although the sketch called for a 4x4 photo in the upper left corner, I used a 4x6 but then layered the 4x4 on top using a peekaboo pocket. You can see the pocket flipped open below. I continued using the Winter Woods paper and stickers since the theme was "icy". I thought the title embellishment was perfect for the structure.

Using a peekaboo pocket kept this from being a 2-page spread.

A Winter Stroll

I headed outside to look at the grounds. On the left, I was able to get a view of the back of the house and the orangery (literally a place they grew oranges, sort of like a greenhouse). On the right are the formal gardens and a very old tree. I suppose the gardens are more impressive in the spring and summer

This layout is based on a sketch I saved on Pinterest. I thought about the cold weather so I hunted through my winter collections and found Winter Woods. I used white cardstock as the base and then added some hot fudge ( dark brown) cardstock as the large accent pieces. I was then able to use the leftover pattern papers to create the strips behind the photos. A few embellishments and stickers, and this page came together quickly.

All That Glitters--No Foolin'

Happy April Fool's Day! It's time for a bonus post in my tradition of "No Foolin--it's another scrapbook layout!".

Another parlor (really, how many does one family need?) is again lavishly decorated and then overlaid with the trappings of Christmas. I had not seen the painted window screens before. I wish I could have gotten a photo of the full screen but you can see how beautiful they look with the light coming through them. This is a new rug since the last time I visited. 

This layout is based on Meggan and Tessa's May 2021 Power Hour layouts. I chose to use white for the background (which is getting to be a rare event for me). I chose gold foiled paper (from the gold and silver collection) and accented it with a little red to match the furniture in the photos. The journal box is SUPER OLD, and I'm glad I finally found a place to use it. One of the problems with black-ruled paper is journaling so it can be seen. I used a white gel pen (not CM I'm afraid) and recently had to replace mine. They last for years, luckily.

Moving upstairs we see the bedrooms. A lady's bedroom was a place not only to sleep but to meet with friends so there were tables with tea laid out. In the children's bedroom, we see one of their stockings hanging on the mantle (truly one of their stockings!) On the chest at the foot of the bed, you can see what would have been inside the stocking.

This layout is based on one of the CM Virtual Crops (October 2023). I didn't complete it in October so I didn't have to post it to the CM Blog. That's a good thing as the papers here are all from Paper Loft. Given the photos of the children's room, I thought the stocking border maker cartridge was the perfect choice for the top row. Between the print at the bottom and the prints in the photos I didn't need much in the way of embellishment but there are a few cut-apart pieces spread across the layout.

From Dining Table to Kitchen

The formal dining room is one of the rooms off the main hall. It was set for a lavish Christmas feast. Not only are the dishes fancy, but the tableware and room ornamentation is rich and vibrant! I remember from a previous visit that the house has been examined by historical paint analysts (I'm sure they have a real title but that's as much as I remember). They take chips of paint and analyze the colors dating back to the original coat, so this is likely the original color of the room. It's rather bright for my tastes though.

I made this layout based on a sketch that was part of Tammy McEwen's 2023 end-of-year challenge. It was also a sketch from the September 2023 Worldwide Virtual Crop by CM (See sketch #5). You've seen it before in the Scrimshaw layout I made for the New Bedford Convention. To pick the colors of the papers I analyzed the photos. I chose the blue cardstock background to match the blue walls in the dining room, and the distressed red to match the wooden pieces of the room. The yellow is a natural match for red and blue (think of a brighter-hued red and how that would resemble a childhood-type layout). The borders are stickers I've had from a formal sticker pack (not CM).

From the dining room, I headed to the kitchen. As this is not seen by the company, it is much less decorative in appearance. However, you can see that all of those fancy dishes came from here! And what astounds me is that all of it was created on a fireplace or in boxes heated by coals. I wonder how long it would take me to figure out how to cook in those circumstances!

This layout is another double use--it was part of the CM virtual crop and also part of the 2023 Tammy McEwen challenge. In fact, you've seen this one before too! Remember the President's dinner from my New Bedford trip? Same layout but different papers. Because I was dealing with the kitchen I dug out my "Food" theme box of papers and embellishments. I thought I would use a wood texture paper to represent the table tops and cutting boards. I again matched the background cardstock to the walls of the room (sort of a muted yellow). As there was a bit of fruit on the table I decided to add some of the last pieces of "Locally Grown" papers with their citrus theme. The last sheet is a coral cardstock that helps tie in the citrus flesh. Instead of a photo in the circle, this time that became my title box. 

Christmas Spirit

I moved into a larger hall, which may have been the original entry hall. From here there were entrances to various rooms and access to the upstairs. The period-appropriate decorations were wonderful but I also enjoyed the standard adornments such as chandeliers, curtain tie-backs, and the paintings. I was interested to see that the park had provided a harpist for the event and she played almost directly under the portrait of one of the daughters with her harp. There were costumed docents in period costumes as well.

This layout is another double-use. I created this as part of Tammy McEwen's end-of-year challenge, but it was also part of the February 2023 Virtual Crop Challenges (scroll to challenge 4). It looks totally different than the layout I made for that event. If you don't recall it, check out this layout from my Dayton trip. This layout uses some very old CM materials. The tan border across the bottom is a decorative 12" paper strip that I cut in half (so that I had enough for both pages). the green papers use up more of the Reminisce papers. The remaining stickers are from a matching pack that coordinated with the 12" tan strip. I used cranberry cardstock for the base to pick up the red in the photos. I added a couple of pink mats for the larger photos to make them pop a bit as well.