Even though these two pages use the same product set, they each have a very different feel to them. The page below, featuring photos of festive store window displays at a local outdoor shopping center, has a calm and simple vibe to it. I added a few splatters of Studio Calico’s Calico White Mister Huey – a perfect complement to these product picks!

My second page, “Winter Treats,” gets totally artsy and layered, reflecting the decadent selection of seasonal treats that are featured in the photos. I added a layer of white paint (I still have a bottle of Making Memories paint that I absolutely love to use for messy photo “mats”) behind it all to tie everything together, and though it’s not clearly visible in the photos, there’s a layer of Studio Calico Calico Shine adding some sparkle to the pile of pennants and embellishments.

Though both of these pages have very different feels to them, they both incorporate a gray background that sets off both the bright colors and the white tones without overpowering or interfering.

As a quick reminder, here’s a list of the items I chose for both the Merry and Bright main kit at the Deck the Halls add-on kit, along with convenient links should you wish to assemble and order your own kit.

Main Kit – Merry and Bright

Add-on Kit – Deck the Halls 

December Daily is here, and if you’re still undecided on the products you want to use, these might just be the perfect picks for your album!

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Making Memories Vintage Findings Medium School Collection Findings #1 -Kimberly C. @ 8:44pm on 10/30:

I love the idea of kits, I sell them all the time to my regular customers! They come to my house & put them together… it’s alot of work to prepare the kits, so I love the idea of having kits for myselft!

Making Memories Vintage Findings Medium School Collection Findings #2 - Ginika @ 9:59am on 11/01:

Wow! I love the mimi travel kit! Sooo cute.

Making Memories Vintage Findings Travel Mini Kit – Rean C. @ 9:34am on 10/30:

I love kits! The MM vintage kits are a great combo. Saves me time and effort in choosing paper and embellies..

If you are one of the lucky winners, please email me at scrapbookupdate@gmail.com from the email address you supplied with your comment. Include your mailing address so you can receive your prize!

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I am a slow scrapper. It takes me days usually to make a layout. There’s digging through supplies and making choices, deciding on the layout, and creating titles and journaling. I push paper around. I contemplate. I evaluate. At length.

But this layout was made in a single sitting, in only two hours. Thanks to a kit.

The kit that helped me do it (Making Memories Vintage Findings Medium School Collection Findings) didn’t even provide the majority of the elements on the layout. But it provided me two key things: a starting point of coordinated items as a base, and a layout suggestion to work from.

My finished layout doesn’t look exactly like the inspiration layout from the package. It takes several key elements from it (the photo placement, the block of patterned paper & ribbon at the bottom, and the placement of the bingo card) and then gets creative from there to create something that works with the page size I’m using and other elements I had on hand to incorporate for the theme and style.

What inspired me to use this kit for this photo? I happened to have come across this photo while moving some things from one storage unit to another the day before I was in my local Michaels shopping. I saw the kit and it struck me as perfect for that particular photo, my most favorite ever of my daughter’s school pictures. I took it home, and started scrapping. Two hours later, I was done, thrilled with the page I had created and feeling a major sense of accomplishment for doing it so quickly – a minor miracle in my scrapping history.

That is why consumers love kits. That is why kits are important to the scrapbooking industry. They facilitate ease and speed of scrapping, and help keep consumers (even experienced ones) from getting overwhelmed. Kits help keep engaged those consumers who might otherwise abandon the hobby out of feelings of frustration or inadequacy.

Some people think of kits as a cheat or a shortcut. In fact, they can be an important tool, for both the consumer and industry. Treat them with the respect they deserve.

Layout supply list – Cardstock: Bazzill Basics; Patterned Paper: text (unknown), Cut N’ Paste Collection by K & Company (pink); Embellishments: Making Memories Vintage Findings Medium School Collection Findings (ribbon, paperclip, clock, crocheted flower, bingo card, report card, alpha tape), Target (rhinestone brad), Making Memories (sm brad), BasicGrey Recess (Rub-Ons), Making Memories Mixed Ledger (sm alphabet), Marcella by K Sophie (Lg Alphabet), Autumn Leaves Scrap Metal PH Corner Intricate (photo corner).

So, since kits are so awesome…let’s give some away!

I picked up a few extra of those Making Memories Vintage Findings kits while I was out shopping and bought mine–and the extras are to share with Scrapbook Update’s readers!

I have two of these Making Memories Vintage Findings Medium School Collection Findings kits to give away:

And if you’ve got travel pics to scrap, I’ve got one of these Making Memories Vintage Findings Travel Mini Kits to give away too:

All you have to do to be one of the lucky winners is leave a comment on this entry before Midnight U.S. eastern time next Monday night, November 2nd. (If you are reading this post via an email subscription, click on the title of the entry and it will take you to the giveaway on the Scrapbook Update website where you can leave a comment to enter.) Make sure you include your email address in the line reserved for it on the comment form (for your own protection, don’t put it in the body of the comment, where it will be visible to the public – just in the line labeled “email” in the form where only I can see it). You will need to use that email to verify your identity if you are a winner. One entry per person. Good luck! [Please note there may be a delay in drawing the giveaway winners next week due to my having surgery on Monday.]

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