Hit the Beach - Or the Lake!

I am hosting this week's Bitten by the Bug2 challenge - "Hit the Beach - Or the Lake!". This was a fun project to make - I knew that I would have the perfect photos for it (as I took them to fit the layout lol). 

I used a combination of images - the title is from Miss Kate Cuttables - and I love the retro font. I added beach elements like the the waves (part of the surfer image from Create a Friend), starfish and shells (Pack Your Bags), hermit crab (Pet Shop) and sunglasses with flip flops (Pack Your Bags) - and the guy on the blanket (sunbather on Pack Your Bags) and Bracket Label (Phrases) for the journal box.

I wanted to share my layout process, just for fun. I began with some beach photos from this summer and found a patterned sheet of paper that reminds me of sand:

Then I chose my cricut cut shapes and priced them together. This is the part of the process that relaxes me. 

 

This is the drying time because I added stickles and glossy accents. I am starting to see the layout come together now.

But I hit a bump in the road with my textured sand. Either one would have worked out, but it's all dried out! I wanted to use it on the word beach in the title and on the bottom, next to the waves.

Here is my finished layout: