Fir Trees

These photos were taken on our trip to the UP in June. This was the day we decided the rain and cold wasn’t going to ruin our vacation and we bundled up and hiked through the wooded beach. It was so beautiful.

I used the new Fir Tree die from Mosaic Moments to embellish the page. I love this one because you can use it with or without the grid square.

I am imagining a border of these trees all decorated for the holidays, but I can’t do that until after Christmas, when I have photos to use!

Until then, I made a video to show you how easy it is to cut and put together this little tree. Click here to watch it!

Mosaic Borders

One of the biggest natural attractions in Michigan is the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Along 40 miles of Lake Superior’s shore are these incredible rock formations.

On this trip, the weather didn’t cooperate, so we were unable to take the 3-hour boat tour to see all of the rocks, but we did get to view the few that are easily accessible from the shore. This one is called Miner’s Castle. Since I only had a few pictures, I wanted to do something that would really make the pictures stand out and show how unique they are.

I used my favorite die, the 1×1 Mosaic Die Borders, to extend the photo beyond the photo mat. Then I used some paper that reminded me of the colors of the Pictured Rocks in between.

Want to learn how to combine dies to get this look? I made a video! Click here to watch the video and take your photos beyond the border.

NOTE: I do receive compensation for making videos for Mosaic Moments.

Where are the animals?

When I planned my trip to the Upper Peninsula, I went to see the animals. I had visions of hiking a trail for a mile or so, finding a big rock or log to sit on, sitting still for a few minutes, and then watching the birds and squirrels play. I thought, perhaps, I might even see an eagle, moose, elk, wolf or bear. (Well, I really didn’t expect to find one in the woods, but maybe along the side of the road or something …)

I spent a week and was along the shore and in and out of the woods. And I saw less than what I see in my own backyard. No songbirds. No deer. No rabbits. No squirrels. No raccoons. No foxes. No skunks. No coyotes. Not even any roadkill!

Honestly, I’m starting to think that whole bear and moose thing are myths! Probably something they tell us trolls (those who live below the bridge) to get us to travel up there and spend money.

I was extremely disappointed. And, since that was such a big part of our trip, I had to document it … so I scrapbooked the few animals I did see using the Mosaic Moments system.

Want to see how I did it? Click here to watch the video …

Back to Scrapbooking

I’ve been working on what I love … home decor, upcycling and mixed-media, but I still found time to do what I love most — scrapbooking. Here are a few of the pages I completed from my recent trip to the Upper Peninsula. The page above is of the Lumberjack Tavern in Big Bay, Michigan. This is the site of the murder the story and movie, “Anatomy of a Murder,” was based on. We were the only ones in the bar and the self-proclaimed town drunk, and bartender, filled our heads with all sorts of details about the murder and the filming of the movie. It’s a really cool place — and is currently for sale, if you’re interested in owning a piece of history in a very small town.

I was excited to finally use this paper collection from Bo Bunny … I’ve been holding onto it for at least three years! We camped on the shores of Lake Superior.

Two of the trails we explored … one was all boardwalk. The other was through a sandy woods along the lake. It used to be a beach. There was something really strange about being in a forest and hearing the waves lap along the shore! By the way, if you know what this lichen or fungus or whatever it is in these photos, please tell me. It is beautiful! I spent an hour online, but couldn’t identify it. It seemed to occur only in areas that had recently burned.

A highlight of our trip … this was the cutest Sasquatch I have ever had the privilege to meet. The sculpture was extremely well done.

We found this pottery in Marquette. I fell in love. We talked to one of the artists for quite some time and she let me take a few photos. It was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen on a piece of pottery!

This one uses a flip page from Close to My Heart …

Here’s the open flap. The paper is from a new Bo Bunny collection … I love the foiled vellum deer and bear!