Madness in the Desert Part 14--A Lot of Ash

 We were scheduled for a ranger talk so we all gathered at the Amphitheater. The ranger talked about how the volcano impacted life when it exploded over 1000 years ago. What most surprised me is how little vegetation has managed to find root in those years. When you think about how forests regrow after a fire, I had expected more trees and less ash. But the rocky terrain is the most prevalent feature here. 

I based this layout on an idea from Noreen Smith (Organized and Creative Mom). With her move to Creative Memories, her private website closed but you can still see the pin I saved here. The paper is from Creative Memories Adventure papers (2017). I had used a small bit on the right side of one of the mountain papers, but I really liked how that paper matched the park's setting, so I used it with a bit of "white space". The boot print border stickers were part of the pack, but the ranger, flat hat, and volcano came from a Junior Ranger sticker book I received as a gift. 

Madness in the Desert Part 13--Let the Stamping Begin!

Our first stop on the bus tour was Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. They were quite prepared for us and had distributed the stamps across several tables. That was where all the club members started. Luckily the lines were manageable and everyone was well-mannered.

This layout is based on a pin I had saved. I used one of my wooden texture papers for the background and a small square of the Eastern National paper with the passport and stamps on it. I punched the arrowhead watermarks from a separate Eastern National paper to make the cross parts of the design. One of my stash pieces is a sheet with a multitude of National Park-looking sign backs (blank). I added some sticker letters to create the title Those came from an older CM pack that had a nature theme. If you look closely you'll see the faint botanical pattern on the letters. That was always one of my favorite sets. 

Madness in the Desert Part 12--Wish You Were Here

The day after the train trip I had signed up both Jim and myself for the bus tour of two of our host parks and other Flagstaff attractions. (The official convention park is actually a collection of 3 Flagstaff area parks). When we woke that morning though, Jim didn't feel well and ended up staying in bed rather than taking the bus trip. What we only realized with hindsight, was that Jim was having a mild attack of altitude sickness (Flagstaff is at 7,000 feet above sea level). That's probably why he was so tired on the train ride home from the Grand Canyon. 

I loosely based this layout on the pin I saved (just the left page). I wanted the focus of this page to be the stitched-together panorama of the bus crew. As I didn't have that particular set of die cuts, I Googled "free SVG bus" files to fill the gap at the bottom of the page. I liked this one and uploaded it to the Cricut. I used some Travel Log kit to add stickers and mat the photos.

Madness in the Desert Part 11--Bandits!

Too soon, it was time to return to the train and ride back to our hotel. Our club was perhaps a BIT more reserved on the ride back as we were a little tired from our excursions. We had more visitors--singers as well as the sheriff, but.....

This layout is based on a pin I saved. The paper I used is the Close To My Heart Dakota paper. I do like the pattern, but it was difficult to find. I think it was a specialty pack made for one of their conventions (just based on some of the layouts I've seen using it). I cut the title from the same paper using my Cricut. I outlined it in black a bit to give a little more contrast with the blue paper. There is an 8 1/2 x 11 pocket page slipped between the 2 pages of the layout (which didn't really matter as the right page isn't connected to the left significantly). Here is where I cut another piece from the park newsletter to augment the information about the bandits.

Our train was "attacked" by the bandits (who looked just like the characters from this morning's performance) who "demanded" that we fork over our valuables. Essentially this is the way they collect tips and it was sort of funny. I tried putting a dollar bill in my mouth for them to collect but they chose to just pluck it from my mouth (no stolen kisses--drat!) 

The back of the pocket stumped me for a bit but then I decided that it was a good place to store my Junior Ranger booklet (and you'll see more information on that as we get into the Covid years!) The right side page is simply wallpaper. When you use paper from one of the hobby stores, there is often a 1/2" strip that has the bar code printed so that the stores can scan the purchases. They have transitioned the opposite side of that to a decorative border. I placed that along the right edge to finish the page.

Madness in the Desert Part 10--Hopi House

Our visit had 2 areas where Native Americans were highlighted. Hopi House was never a real home but was designed in the early 1900s to resemble traditional Pueblo-style buildings. Inside is a souvenir store, museum, and art gallery. It was a lovely place to explore especially as it was cooler indoors! Outside this structure was a small stage; later that afternoon I enjoyed some Native American music and dancing.

This layout was made for the Scrap Your Stash 2019 October class. It's a 1-2-3 from Noreen Smith but as it was a paid-for class I cannot show you the sketch. I always like it when paper stretches across the fold of a layout! Nothing brings the 2 sides together better! The paper I chose is from an older CM pack called "Fall In". Even though this page has nothing to do with "Fall" that paper worked for my design!

I made this layout 5 years ago and am trying to remember where the stickers came from, but I bought them to decorate this type of page. The title stickers are from a Club Scrap kit. The background of the sticker matched the long strips of paper near the bottom. I of course needed more letters to spell what I wanted. I turned a "3" upside down for the last "e" and then used a blank sticker to add the "H" for House. It's too bad I didn't have one in black.

Bonus Post--USA in 1945

Once again this month I'm playing along with Lasting Memories. This time the "word" to use to develop a layout is Summer. You can see details of the challenge here.

This layout is the first of several pages of a December 2019 trip I made to the Gateway National Recreation Area in upper New Jersey. I have previously visited to see the lighthouse but this time I came to see the remnants of the army base. Specifically, I came to participate in a 1940s Christmas party at one of the houses. I was too early to go into the house, so I explored some of the remaining structures and that MASSIVE canon!

I will credit Lasting Memories as this page's total impetus. I sorted through my stash and found a sheet with the stars and stripes (I believe that is Scrapbook Customs paper). Since I only had one piece of that pattern, I cut it in half. I struggled with the layout before realizing I needed to turn the right page 90 degrees. Then it all fell into place! Here's how I worked SUMMER into this layout:

S-Stars and Stripes, and the "shell"

U-USA sticker on the journal box

M-Medals border

M-Memorabilia (the 2 brochures)

E-Enamel dots (again--I know! But I really tried to find something else and I couldn't)

R: Red in the medals and in the artillery shells I made for the right side

The artillery shells were cut on the Cricut. I wanted them to resemble one of the larger shells in front of the house on the bottom right page. The background is Latte' cardstock from Creative Memories. Do you like the od-time kraft photo corners I used to mount the brochures?

Madness in the Desert Post 9--Pretty as a Picture

One of the places we stopped was the Museum of the Kolb Brothers. They had become famous (and wealthy) by taking photos of people as they descended into the canyon (this was before the area became a national park, though they continued in some fashion even after that declaration). I enjoyed seeing their old cameras along with the prints they took. The boat was from an expedition to try movie cameras.

This layout is from Scrapbook Concierge. Though it isn't in their current product list, you can see this on their Amazon page. Their kits come unassembled and the bottom of the left page felt like putting together a jigsaw puzzle (and I'm missing a piece!) I don't often use their kits, though I do like them. They tend to have a giant element like the canyon piecing, which takes up valuable real estate on the pages. I can use peekaboo pockets to add material of course. The "Pretty as a Picture" title was cut on the Cricut. The Grand Canyon title on the bottom right was part of the kit.