Photos First

At the Creating Keepsakes Convention, I had the opportunity to take the Photos First class with Marnie Flores. If you ever have a chance to take one of Marnie's classes, do so. Not only is she a fantastic teacher, she is very funny and upbeat. The thing I loved about this class was that I completed three layouts using a total of 27 pictures!!! Those are my kind of layouts. None of those single photo layouts with lots of flowers. After all, I've got years and years of pictures to get on my pages. The other thing I liked about this class is that the projects depicted in the registration information were the projects we completed in class. There were no surprises here! And Marnie posted very detailed directions on how to crop the pictures. While I waited to cut my pictures down to size at the crop, this information was very helpful in picking my photos. So on to the layouts...

When I first saw the Side By Side layout on line, my initial reaction was "Ack!" Where was I going to find nine pictures that would go with bright green and pink papers. Making my pictures black and white was the perfect solution. What I like most about this layout is that it includes pictures from all different events

All materials are from the class kit except the green and white sticker that I ran along the bottom of the pictures to cover up a cropping mistake. This turned out to be a happy accident because I love how that strip grounds the photos.

The journaling reads: Separated by age and by miles, the Iandoli cousins are always close in each other's hearts. Side by side are Thomas, Jennifer, Mike, Jenn, Paul, Jim, Joe, Lisa, Mark, Sarah (with Athena), and Melissa.

Layout Two used one 5x7 (landscape) and eight smaller portrait photos. This time, the challenge was finding eight portrait images that would still have impact in this smaller format. I pulled my pictures from a Tiffany lamp exhibit that I attended last year. Voila! I had the perfect match. (Please note that the kraft card stock did not photograph well.)

All materials are from the class kit except the brads and letters. I swapped out the letters from the class kit for these Making Memories letters and the Tim Holtz ink I used to distress them.

Finally, the last layout showcases another nine photos -- this time on just one page! Seeing the bright rainbows, I was drawn to my pictures from our float trip down the Colorado River. I like how Marnie designed this layout using the scalloped edge from the Sasssafras Lass paper. I also liked how there was a lot of journaling space so that I could add a lot of details about this trip.

This layout may look relatively simple but let me tell you that these photos were difficult to line up. Thank heavens for repositionable tape! In the end, it was worth the effort. I love the result.

Journaling reads: Starting at Glen Canyon Dam early in the morning, we set off amidst the shadows of the canyon for a 15-mile float trip down the Colorado River. The 55 degree river temp chilled our feet as they hovered above the cold water. After enjoying spectacular views of the sandstone cliffs, petroglyphs and Horseshoe Bend, we arrived at Lee's Ferry, the gateway to the Grand Canyon.

All in all, I would give this class two thumbs up. I REALLY liked the designs of each and every layout. We got a full set of chipboard alphas (both positives and negatives) and their was plenty of glimmer mist (green for the second layout and blue for the third) to go around to alter the letters.

Can't wait to see what Marnie will be teaching next year!

If you've read this far, you deserve a little reward. Here's a link to some blog candy over at Tami Mayberry's blog: http://tamimayberry.blogspot.com/2009/09/little-update-via-blog-candy.html