New "Starting Point" Layout: "Your Time to Shine"

The coolest thing about this page is that I didn't use a sketch.  What?!  I know, right?  I've been stuck in this mindset where I feel like I can only create a page using a sketch, but why?  Habit, maybe?  Anyway, when I read my good friend Alison's post, reminding me about Shimelle Lain's "Starting Points", I decided to break free and just go for it.  Here's what I ended up with:

This was surprisingly easy - I started with a 4.5"x12" strip and a 4.5"x6.5" rectangle layered onto my background cardstock.  The two smaller border strips were also part of the original starting point recipe.  From there it was just a matter of figuring out how I wanted to layer my photos and what embellishments to add.  That part was relatively simple, too - I only needed to dig into my Counterfeit Kit to find some suitable die cuts (the lacy border, doily, stars and title) and then ink them up to match.  

I've been wanting to scrap these pics for a while. I took them last spring when the kids were visiting my mom-in-law at her long term care facility.  I know it's hard for the kids to visit her there: there's lots of older folks who are less independent than their grandma, which can be kind of scary.  But they did really well and got her laughing so hard with their antics - definitely a memory worth preserving!

Well, I hope you enjoyed stopping by my blog today.  If you are stumped lately with your scrapping, I highly recommend trying a Starting Point layout - I will certainly be using this process again!  And considering it's only Saturday, I might even try it again this weekend!