Paws Galore

How Cute?

2010-12-20T21:54:00.004Z

To cute is how much, this little masterpiece was made this morning by my son whose only 9 but he certainly worked my threading water punch better than I ever could especially corners, he created it using bits that were on my throw away pile.

I absolutely love it.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Ta-D'ah

2010-12-05T14:25:00.003Z

As promised a few Christmas cards, some mediocre and some better!!

I'll hopefully be making some more this week, however, I need to do a spot of shopping first... more dies, tis a weakness but hey it is Christmas time afterall.

OK, I'll Admit...

2010-12-04T22:13:00.004Z

Its been a while and I promise that by tomorrow there will be some Christmas cards posted on here.

To be truthful its not been entirely my fault, my laptop has had an adventure with the Tech Guys at PCWorld to try and locate an apparently military wiped set of photos. Vanished is whats happened to them and while I'm a £100 better off, I've lost some very special photos of the 2008 Chelsea Flower Show... gutted but hey ho, I'll just have to go again!

Be back tomorrow with a few seasonal creations.

Another CJ Home

2010-08-07T22:19:00.007+01:00

As promised last week here are some photographs of my Make a Birthday Card CJ. The idea of this CJ is to offer me a little inspiration when my mojo has wandered off somewhere and I need to make a card.

The original post and my pages are HERE.

OK then, here we go.

Clare's entry...

Sandra's entry...

Helen's entry...

Denise's entry...

Lesley's entry...

Hazel's entry...

Kirsty's entry...

Jo's entry...

and Fi's entry...

Thank you to everyone who took time to make wonderful cards and a lovely CJ to boot but I'm not taking part or hosting another one!!

Thank You!

2010-07-30T21:45:00.003+01:00

Whoops, scrapbooking has been put on the back burner at the moment as I just don't feel like creating anything, however, half term was catching up with me and I had to make a teacher present and card.

EJ's teacher happened to mention she was an avid reader, much like myself and I decided what better way of saying thanks for a particularly brilliant teaching year than to make her a bookmark.

Instantly I fell in love with this little duck holding a daisy, so I spent many a morning camped by the window cross stitching and I'm pleased with how he (yes hes a he) has turned out.

I also made a 'Thank You' card which I took inspiration from an old copy of Card Trends.

Supplies: Woodware card base, Kaisercraft bling, Hampton Arts stamps, Cuttlebug embossing folder Swiss Dots, Spellbinders labels and various scraps of cardstock.

I'll upload photos in the coming week of my CJ which arrived back home last week.

EVERYBODY UNO!!

2010-06-01T11:54:00.003+01:00

Christmas time in our house is always Uno time, we love the game and my eldest son was busily opening another Uno spin off... this time Uno Extreme in 2008.

I'm not a big fan of scrapping Christmas but I have to admit I quite liked doing this one even though I seem to scrap all my winter & Christmas photographs during blistering hot weather!

Supplies: Bazzill cardstock and Just the Edge, MME Be Merry patterned papers, Spellbinders nestling star dies, Jolee's Christmas decoration, Papermania HoHoHo clip and Making Memories sparkly red alphabet letters.

Until I scrap again,

1973 CJ Home!

2010-05-11T12:21:00.006+01:00

Yes its back home having travelled the length and breadth of the Country and its full of interesting facts and photos from the year I was born, 1973.

A link to my original post with all the photos of my entries etc can be found HERE.

First stop was with Louise in Durham, who chose the Top 5 chart.

Next was Linda who went with mobile phones, I bet you didn't know that in 1973 the first mobile phone call was made.

Jill decided on some of the headlines that were prominent during that year.

Off it went up to Scotland for Angela to complete her entry on Births and Deaths.

Onwards to Lynn who showed me what my parents might have been watching.

Back down South again for Caz to complete her entry on cars.

Nottingham now for Megs to complete her layout on the dreaded fashion of the decade that style completely forgot.

And finally back to Rachael in the South who finished off with a fantastic quiz.

Big thanks to all of you who took part and looked after my journal.

I've also been busy doing a few CJ entries myself, the first called Tiny Teddy. This little lavendar bear has been having her own adventures and we've all had to photograph her so it can be turned into a little story for the owner's young daughter. Teddy arrived at my house just in time for Easter, lucky bear!

Next was one called Milk & Sugar about quaint little coffee shops in your area, sadly Rugeley isn't blessed with any so I blew caution to the wind and decided on Central Perk in New York, I mean whats an aeroplane trip amongst friends looking for a good cuppa coffee lol.

I have also managed to scrap a photograph that I've been pulling faces over for months now. Its a Birthday layout and everyone knows my hatred for doing these, anyway it didn't turn out too badly.

Supplies: Bazzill cardstock, Cosmo Cricket patterned papers, chipboard and die cuts, Hero Arts, Heidi Swapp and Autumn Leaves rubber stamps and KaiserCraft bling.

Happy Easter

2010-04-03T22:19:00.003+01:00

My favourite time of year albeit I would prefer a little sunshine, nevetheless its chocolate heaven time... bliss.

Just a few Easter cards to share.

Supplies: Imaginisce patterned paper, DCWV & Core'dinations cardstock, Slice spring design card for the eggs and little caterpillar, Alota sentiment stamp (I think), Kaisercraft bling and Crate Paper rubber stamps.

Supplies: Rusty Pickle Chocolate Bunnies patterned paper, Bazzill & DCWV cardstock, Prima Got Flowers, Kaisercraft bling, AC ribbon, Doodlebug flock and Slice spring design card.

Supplies: Basic Grey Lemonade patterned paper, Nesties, Sizzix butterfly die, AC ribbon, Alota sentiment stamp, Hero Arts pop art flower stamp, Dewdrop ink and Kaisercraft pearls.

Have a lovely Easter.

Childhood Toys

2010-03-31T11:52:00.002+01:00

Now that evokes wonderful childhood memories of my adorable Li'l Snoopy dog and here he is...

I received the CJ 'Childhood Toys' a while ago and knew once the theme had been chosen who I would be using.

I loved this dog, much to the despair and delight of my poor Mom especially when he accompanied us on a supermarket trip! What makes Snoopy special, well its his feet because when you pull him they go round and make the best (or bestest which I would often say as a little girl) clickety clack sound you've ever heard.

If that wasn't enough, if I walked extremely fast I could make his springy tail wobble and smack his bottom which just added to my total enjoyment of taking Snoopy for a walk.

Now they don't make toys like him anymore, such a shame we've become a horrid plastic nation :( Bring back Snoopy I say.

I've scrapped him using Basic Grey patterned papers which are cute in their own right and added some retro flowers as the owner did not want any journalling in her CJ.

Snoopy Rocked!

A Couple of Cards

2010-03-15T12:52:00.003Z

Firstly my own Mother's Day card for my Mom and I hope she had a lovely day and saves me some chocolates for the weekend!

Supplies: BG Lemonade patterned paper, Bazzill card base, Prima flowers, Alota sentiment stamps, AC ribbon and a small Stamps Away butterfly stamp.

That was going to be the end of my crafting until two buttons escaped and rolled along the floor when I was rooting in the cupboard so I created this...

Supplies: BG Lemonade patterned paper and stamps, AC ribbon, Rymans white cardstock, AL buttons and the leaves were cut badly *rolleyes again* on the Slice.

I might be selling that waste of space die cutting machine, pfft.

Still No Scrapping!

2010-03-03T12:05:00.003Z

I just can't get motivated to sit down and do a 12x12 layout. I blame the Playstation 3 and Uncharted 2 online play!

I have managed some crafting though.

This card was made for a very special friend who would still be on a skateboard I think if he didn't have a dodgy knee!

Supplies: Basic Grey Oscure patterned paper, Hambly transparency brick wall in black, The Greeting Farm Skater Ian rubber stamp, BoBunny stamps, MM brads and Star Nestabilities.

I've also finished a CJ I've been playing around with for a few weeks now. The theme was 'Past Times' and after much thought and because of my love of English Literature it could only be the main man himself, William Shakespeare who was extremely talented but bloody hell he was ugly! I can't imagine it would have been much fun being in a woman in the 15th century with the lack of sexy men, hehe.

Cupcakes

2010-02-17T21:08:00.004Z

No scrapping for me as its half term so I've been entertaining the boys which means loosing at chess with my youngest son who I might add has already hustled me out of a pound and its only Wednesday!

In light of my defeat I thought the safest way for me to keep hold of my money was to tempt the demon monster into the kitchen to do some baking, worked like a treat. We made some chocolate chip cupcakes complete with lemon button cream topping, finished off with some chocolate sprinkles, perfect.

However, no amount of money offered can persuade an 8 year old to do the washing-up!

A while ago I did a CJ page called 'Wish You Were Here', strangely I decided to do my pages about London as there is something about the place that just gets under your skin and you can't help but love it.

Just Cards!

2010-02-03T21:35:00.003Z

Not really done much scrapbooking lately but I have managed two cards.

The first was for my step-dad's Birthday and being a keen gardener it had to feature wellies and plant pots.

Supplies: Basic Grey Granola papers, Woodware stamps, MM brads, Hero Arts sentiment stamp, Fiskars border punch and just plain string.

Next is a card I've made for my Mom to give her friend, it had to be feminine, and have either 'Special Friend' or 65 on it, after hunting high and low for a stamp that said Special Friend and finding none I decided 65 it would be.

Supplies: Prima patterned paper, Bazzill In Stitch'z, Slice (for the numbers), Prima flowers, KaiserCraft bling and Martha Stewart butterfly punch.

More Snow!!

2010-01-13T22:09:00.006Z

So I grabbed a couple of cups of coffee and sat down to finally get round to scrapping while the snow came down and laid a fresh blanket everywhere.

I loved creating this layout of my youngest son taking time out on his brother's Birthday to read a new Star Wars book, I adore the way he's totally enthralled in the story, completely unaware of me and my camera.

Supplies: Bazzill cardstock and Just the Edge, Fancy Pants patterned paper, Quik Kutz apple die, Autumn Leaves & Hero Arts stamps, MM brads and Stampin' Up & Fiskars punches.

My coffee nearly became alcohol after doing the alphabet around the edge, first in pencil then in pen, mind numbingly boring but I like the effect.

And finally, two miniature snowmen with lavendar arms. Apparently snowballing was the main objective despite my protests for a nice snowman in the garden and so this was their answer, although I think help might have been sought for the supply of a cigerette!

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T12:26:00.003Z

Wishing you all health, wealth and happiness.

Just a few Christmas layouts I did towards the back end of the year that I never got round to uploading. I used the new Basic Grey range Eskimo Kisses.

T'was The Night Before Christmas...

2009-12-24T18:56:00.008Z

and all through the house, not a creature was stirring. Not even a mouse...but my bloody kids are lol.

I'm here to wish each and everyone of you a wonderful and Happy Christmas and to share the last of my cards for 2009. These few are made especially for family.

Have a good one.

Cheers,

This Is What Happens...

2009-12-14T21:21:00.006Z

When you leave everything to the last minute... MEDIOCRE CARDS!

Here are a few I've managed to make this week and still plenty more to do!

I also managed a CJ entry, this one was called Favourite Book and I really enjoyed putting the page together, hope the recipient likes :)

Proof...

2009-11-28T09:52:00.004Z

Its been a while again but truthfully I have been busy scrapping but its for GottaCraft and the majority I can't share until December.

I've also been busy with a few CJs so I thought I'd share those.

First up is Favourite Building in your Town - I decided on St. Josephs RC Church, mainly because its the only Church I go to and then I have to be forced through the doors kicking and screaming lol, nevertheless it is beautiful.

Next is 1997 - Anything relating to the year, not a hard choice as Labour won the General Election that year promising a New Britain, hmmm least said about that the better.

Finally, one of my favourites If I Were... - A cool theme and for those that know me it really wasn't going to be a hard choice.

Also I made my youngest his Christmas card from the new Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses range.

One Teenager

2009-11-10T21:52:00.004Z

Happy Birthday to my eldest son who has today turned into a teenager, heaven help me.

One lucky lad to have a brand new Sony Ericcson mobile which I have to say is rather swish in a metallic blue finish and has been firmly planted in his palm since he opened it, result.

When would be a good time to tell him his tariff with Orange is MONKEY!

PC Troubles

2009-10-06T13:09:00.005+01:00

OMG if you're looking for a new computer please, please for the sake of your sanity stay away from Acer. We've had the pleasure of having 2 in the last week and both have now gone back to PCWorld and we now have a HP desktop. Acer really have no idea how to deal with customers experiencing problems declaring that its not covered under the warranty...so in other words, 'we'll take your money but if it goes wrong don't bother contacting us' :(

Anyway, I finally managed to chill out and complete a layout I've been trying to do for weeks now. Its not a fantastic photo but I thought it summed up how cold Blackpool Promenade can actually be in October.

Happy Birthday...

2009-09-18T12:50:00.004+01:00

Mom, have a nice day xx

Well I've finally got round to doing a bit of scrapping and created this layout the other day featuring my youngest son on his 7th Birthday. Now if there are two things I hate scrapping about it has to be Birthdays and Christmas because they just end up looking the same. To combat that problem I decided I was going to concentrate on my what son loves at the tender age of 7 and get him to do the journalling. OK little did I know he was going to write so big that the list had to be edited somewhat but I do love the fact I have his handwriting on this layout forever and its something I'm going to continue to do for both boys.

I also managed to make my Mom her Birthday card but I'm still debating about tackling my son's!!

Supplies: DCWV cardstock, BG Lemonade, AC ribbon, Hero Arts sentiment stamp, Martha Stewart butterfly punch and Prima flowers.

Oh Dear!

2009-09-11T19:16:00.005+01:00

Has it really been so long, whoops I haven't really done much crafting as I've become totally obsessed with the PS3 and Burnout Paradise.

However, I did manage to make my Mom & Roger an Anniversary card for yesterday, talk about cutting it fine as I only started it on Wednesday and I'm not the quickest crafter in the world lol.

Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock, BoBunny & Hero Arts stamps, Martha Stewart butterfly punch, AC ribbon, Fiskars threading water punch and Heat It Up sea foam white embossing powder.

I also want to make my son's his birthday card only it fills me with dread cos I want to get it right and usually when I try really hard I end up with a mass mess, I'm thinking monsters but all suggestions welcome.

Time Flies

2009-08-24T22:19:00.004+01:00

Where does the time go, today I scrapped this photo of my eldest son's first day at High School which was nearly 12 months ago and it doesn't seem 5 minutes since he was toddling around.

It never dawned on me that he had grown up so much until I saw him that morning ready to start a new chapter in his life, these moments are often sad but fill me with great pride that he has grown up to be independent, strong and well balanced.

The next one is of my youngest son getting to grips with his camera just like Mom and I couldn't resist snapping him in his camera pose, I'm not overly impressed with the layout and quite possibly another one will be made in the future to replace this one.

Number 2 CJ

2009-08-15T17:36:00.005+01:00

Its finished and all ready to be posted on Tuesday.

Its been hard work thinking of a theme I was happy with especially as its number 5, its been all sorts since I agreed to Host another GottaChat one until I finally decided on 'Make a Birthday Card'. I thought it would be nice to create a little book of inspiration for those moments when the brain and creativity are somewhat lacking.

Shot of the Day

2009-08-04T18:52:00.005+01:00

I love giraffes, there is something so endearing about them yet they have this wonderful inquisitive nature and this one couldn't help a little nosey into the car from the sunroof which made the kids giggle with sheer excitement as he/she wrapped his/her tongue around their hands for a helping of food.

These are just a few of my favourite shots from the our day trip out at West Midlands Safari Park.

Cute Mosaic Coaster

2009-07-29T11:26:00.003+01:00

We made this last night, just me and EJ. Has to be said it took us quite a while particularly finding the little pieces we cut off that flicked everywhere, but we're pleased with the end result and now it just needs a couple of coats of clear varnish to protect it.

Haven't scrapped layouts for a while been busy trying to finish number 2 CJ but I did manage this last week, trouble is now Jay and the boys are on holiday my days seem to be merging into one and I'm spending far too much time on PS3 Home, my new obsession!

Weekly Challenge

2009-07-21T18:38:00.003+01:00

Yesterday was the start of Blooming Pages (my team) weekly challenge over on UKS and we thought we'd keep it really simple to encourage lots of people to have a go.

This is my layout I did which features this adorable little bear that was given to me by my parents on the morning of my Wedding some 15 years ago, shh if you say it fast it doesn't seem so long ago lol. She was made up to be an exact replica of my bridesmaids even down to the little bible that she holds, sadly she is looking a little worse for wear nowadays but she still sits proudly on my dressing table reminding me of the day I married my husband.

The challenge is...

To use 'Love' as the theme of your layout

To include pearls

And recycle something, anything, go mad why not.

I also scrapped this layout of the boys at Dudley Zoo which gave me no end of trouble cos I printed the photos wrong but heck I wasn't wasting them so I had to work with my mistake!

1973 CJ

2009-07-15T18:56:00.004+01:00

Well I've finished one of the CJs I'm taking part in, this one is for my team over on UKS that I'm also hosting with an open theme and mine being the year I was born. It hasn't started its little journey yet and I was already shocked to remember there were only 3 analogue TV channels as I sat glancing at my 32" widescreen HD ready TV and my Sky+ HD box lol.

I wanted to keep the papers in keeping with the 70's era and there was only one manufacturer I could think of...Sassafras Lass and yep I still hate the patterned paper, its so awful its actually perfect!

My front cover

Introduction and Rules pages

My entry, no comments...I know what you lot are like

This is an acetate page I decided to do and then wished I hadn't started it. The clouds give little snippets of events like the who the Prime Minister and President was, who died and who was born etc, front and back.

and finally my sign in page, there are two of these but once you've seen one you've seen them all.

So on the 1st August it will be sent on its way and hopefully I get a little book back containing lots of nice history pages about the year I was born, a constant reminder of how things evolve over time and to highlight that my 2nd CJ is going to be 21st Century namely 2009/2010 so I can compare then and now.

Finally Finished

2009-07-13T13:33:00.004+01:00

Yeah, I've finally finished the baby blanket I've been busy crocheting for my son's teacher who leaves to have a baby at the end of this term.

I've taken time out to make this blanket because she has been the most amazing teacher over the last 12 months. For anyone that knows me and my DS will know I've struggled at times even getting him out of the house to go to School and she has been so understand I can't begin to thank her enough so I'm hoping this goes some way to show my appreciation. Its been an up and down year, to cut a long story short...his brother left to go to High School last September and he just missed him so much that School was just unbearable without him being close by but with lots of encouragement and understanding from his teacher we were able to get him to go and enjoy School again, I'm extremely relieved that I have a happy 7 year old thanks to a special teacher and her soft approach.

And the card to go with it...

Busy Week

2009-07-10T18:24:00.004+01:00

I seem to have done nothing but scrap, make cards, clean the house, tweak the new television, make my CJ and finish a baby blanket off for my youngest son's teacher, thankfully I'm at the tassel stage and will be glad when its finally wrapped up ready to go.

So as you can guess I've made a thank you card to go with the said blanket and took a little inspiration from Card Trends and then added my own twist and it also fitted in nicely with the More the Merrier card challenge which was ABC. I did 'A' for apples, 'B' for buttons and 'C' for Core'dinations.

I've also scrapped two layouts of the London Eye one for each of the boys albums and today I managed to do my teams weekly challenge which goes live on Monday 2oth July and after all that I STILL can't get the television to look right grrrr lol.

Supplies: BG Mellow & DCWV Green stack patterned papers, Prima voile and studded owl, Hambly rub-ons and Doodlebug Loopy Lou alphabet stickers.

Supplies: Bazzill cardstock and In Stitch'x, KaiserCraft What a Hoot patterned papers and bling, Prima bling swirls, BG Mellow alphabet stickers and Sizzix bird die.

Have a nice weekend

My Guitar Hero

2009-07-02T18:46:00.003+01:00

I loved creating this layout of my youngest son rocking hard one afternoon.

He really is my little rock star dude, he has the look, the moves and the little attitude cos he knows he's fanbloodytastic at it...he truly is awesome, OK I'll admit it...I'm terribly biased lol. His favourite songs are Paint it Black by The Rolling Stones, Talk Dirty to Me by Poison and Ruby, Ruby by KaiserChiefs and he was only 6 at the time!!

Supplies: DCWV patterned paper, Bazzill cardstock black and white, Prima photo strip, BoBunny stamps, MM eyelets, snaps and photo corner, Hero Arts black bling and Doodlebug Loopy Lou alphabet stickers. The 'Guitar Hero' title was taken from the box and played around with in adobe, printed onto plain white glossy cardstock, cut out and edged with a clear glitter pen.

Little man you ROCK MY WORLD

Legoland Fun

2009-06-25T18:14:00.004+01:00

Last year we finally got round to taking the boys to Legoland in Windsor and had such a wonderful time and the weather was perfect.

Anyway I've only just got around to scrapping the photos...mainly because I really didn't know what to do with all the photos. Eventually after playing around in Excel I decided to do a long border with a few of our favourites, I did two one for each of the boys albums although if I'm honest I prefer the first one better using the Crate Papers.

Supplies: Crate Paper 'Zoom' patterned papers, Bazzill cardstock, In Stitch'z and Just the Edge finished off with a supply of pinched Lego parts...shh they'll never notice lol.

Supplies: K&Co Danny 'O patterned papers and little car, Bazzill cardstock and Just the Edge and more Lego, this time I used the pieces I had already purchased at Legoland in the pick 'n' mix.

I've also managed a card for a challenge on More the Merrier, the brief was to use at least 1 flower, a torn edge and a cat...this is what I came up with using Basic Grey Eva patterned papers and Rusty Pickle cat stamp and sentiment.

And by no means least my Father's Day card, I finally after much admiration used my prized DCVW Green Stack, its so gorgeous I just love it.

A Good Giggle

2009-06-18T18:43:00.004+01:00

Don't you just love it when kids get the giggles for no apparent reason and they can't tell you why they're laughing and the more puzzled you look at them the more they giggle, well here is my youngest son giving it his best shot.

It has something to do with Pringles but what I'm not sure I will ever know, but what I do know is I love the relaxed photo of him clutching his Pringles.

Supplies: Crate Paper patterned paper, Prima felt border, Bazzill cardstock, AL buttons, KaiserCraft bling, Sizzix tree die, DMC thread and Stampin' Up little deer stamp.

Awesome Arrows Saved my Day

2009-06-15T12:17:00.008+01:00

Yesterday was the annual RAF Cosford Airshow and we'd bought our tickets, cameras were charged and kids were armed with sun cream, however, this story has a very bleak tale of woe!

Cosford is 45 minutes drive away, so we set off about 8.30am, everything was on course until we were diverted off the motorway at junction 2 instead of junction 3 to take a trip around the back streets of Wolverhampton. Well, little did any of us realise heading to Cosford that morning that we would be caught in 4 hour tail backs that stretched 6.5 miles, the highlight of our journey was doing a whole mile in an hour.

At noon and still stuck in traffic we had our picnic in the car while watching the start of the show from afar, we were listening to the local radio station where it was announced that the car parks were now full to capacity and they were closing the gates to all cars regardless of having a pre-paid for ticket. By this time I'd turned a lovely shade of red, and promptly told Jay to abandon the car and we'd walk, which we did a whole mile and half :(

Everybody was fed up and cars were being parked anywhere anyone could physically squeeze them.

We finally reached the grounds at 1.30pm and desperate for the toilet we went our separate ways, now organising is obviously not what the RAF excel in, 2 cabins for the ladies and 4 for the men...yes that's right some idiot decided men needed extra toilets hence I stood in a queue for 30 minutes to spend a penny, I was still not amused nor was I entertained with a day promised full of family fun.

I know you're wondering if it gets worse, well yes it does! Anyone who knows me knows I'm a little fanatic at hygiene so imagine my horror having been to the toilet and attempted not to touch anything other than absolutely necessary that when I got to wash my hands with a temporary water pump system it had actually ran out of water...I was a livid and was ready to take on the whole of the RAF single handily.

Lucky for me Kyle had a bottle of Vittel water in his pocket and I quickly nabbed it and soaked all four of us with water as the mens toilet was all dried up too!!

Thankfully my anger wained once the Red Arrows shot over us to begin what can only be described as awesome. They don't disappoint and I was so pleased we got to see their display which was just breathtaking and so here are a few photos of the engineering greats of yesteryear and present day, enjoy...

This had thrust burners that made the ground vibrate under us, boys thought that was 'well cool'.

The Vulcan, she...yes she is a 'she' is absolutely mind blowing, not the fastest by any stretch of the imagination but size and grace leave you with your mouth wide open in awe.

She flew over us with the bomb doors open, she was last in action during the Falklands and has had to have £1,000.000 raised this year just to get her off the ground, and wow was it worth it.

And off she flies.

The Apache - quite a sight.

Get ready cos here they come.

My absolute favourite shot of the day.

Scrapping the Age Gap

2009-06-08T14:14:00.007+01:00

Just a few layouts to share with you, together they really highlight the differences of my boys...I suppose its what comes of having a 5 year age gap!

Attitude was taken in the local park and I have to confess I do love the looks Kyle gives me, makes him so handsome I could pop with pride.

Supplies: Dream Street Club House and Urban Lily patterned paper, Prima voile, MM & BoBunny rub-ons, AL stamps and Heidi Swapp tape

Colouring was one of those rare moments when EJ put down the computer games and found a doodling book and asked me to help, of course I'm only too happy to colour but I have to bite my tongue when he scribbles out of the lines or mixes colours that should never be seen together lol.

Supplies: Cosmo Cricket Cogsmo, Queen & Co pearls, MM acetate flowers, Doodlebug Loopy Lou alphabet stickers, Bazzill flowers and pompom trim.

Hey, Hey Its Friday

2009-06-05T18:26:00.006+01:00

And rain is forecast, now theres a surprise!

Had a run of Birthdays through May so I've been stock piling today.

Supplies: BG Lime Rickey patterned papers, Hampton Arts greeting and Hero Arts PopArt stamps.

Supplies: SU cardstock, Bazzil card and Just the Edge, Prima flowers, Pebbles sentiment, Dovecraft gems, AC ribbon and October Afternoon stamps.

Supplies: Basic Grey Mellow patterned papers, SU cardstock, AC ribbon and October Afternoon stamp.

Supplies: Prima patterned paper and stamp, Cuttlebug flower die and Hero Arts sentiment.

Supplies: Basic Grey Granola patterned papers, Hero Arts stamps and AC ribbon.

Supplies: Basic Grey Mellow patterned papers, October Afternoon and Imaginisce stamps.

The last one I took inspiration from Card Trends and a lady by the name of Lisa Truesdell, if you have a copy of the magazine then look on page 112, far better than mine but I was a bit lost for ideas today.

CJ Home - Yeah

2009-05-29T17:47:00.005+01:00

Well bang goes another 10 months and my little book of black and white has finally arrived home.

I have to say a huge thanks to everyone whose taken part and produced a stunning CJ for me which I love...so BIG thanks to you all, I hope you all love yours as much as I do xx

Time to share I think...

We'll start with my own entry

Fiona aka Angelfish

Sandra aka GottaCraft

Clare aka Clare33

Pat aka Pinkfairy

Lesley aka Mrs Hedgehog

Hazel aka Hazgizz

Kirsty aka Kirsty262

Lyn aka Lyn55

and finally but by no means least Denise aka Pinkbaglady

It took me quite a while to convince some of you so I really hope you've enjoyed taking part in GottaCraft's first CJ and look forward to starting all over again in August with a few extras!!

Smiler

2009-05-27T17:32:00.005+01:00

I do love a gorgeous smile especially a natural one off my boys, this one is from my youngest who has the most adorable little dimple on the one side of his face, not two just one which makes him look oh so cute, shhh 7 year olds aren't cute apparently!

Supplies: Cosmo Cricket Cogsmo, Chip Chatter chipboard letters, Kaiser bling, AC ric-rak, October Afternoon & Autumn Leaves stamps and Bazzill In Stitch'z & Just the Edge.

I've also been playing with my camera while enjoying a spot of sunshine and snapped this photo of my poppies, I really like it so I thought I'd share.

Bloody Purple!

2009-05-13T18:36:00.004+01:00

This layout is so far out of my comfort zone I'm in a completely different continent, oh how I hate purple... I come out in hives as the mere thought of the colour but today I find myself scrapping with it!!

I've tried for the past month to find alternative colours for this photo, I've scoured online shops to find something suitable but I failed miserably and ended up using the dreaded colour and was surprised how much I found in my stash!

It features my little dude disguised as Slinky Malinki for Character dress-up day and I knew that purple t-shirt was going to come back and haunt me.

Supplies: Bazzill In Stitch'z cardstock & blossom, MM felt and stickers, AL stamps, Cuttlebug Embossing Plate, Coredinations and Kanban bling.

This is the follow up layout to the Christmas one I did below, made from the same MME patterned papers only this time hes getting to grips with his new phone and the joy of text talk.

That's all Folks

Christmas Layout...blah!!

2009-05-06T21:07:00.005+01:00

I'll confess I love the season but if there are two things I absolutely hate scrapping about then its Christmas and Birthdays and I hate twee titles like, HoHoHo, Tis the Season etc you get the idea!

So it was with a huff and puff that I sat down to scrapbook these photos of my eldest son for his album which incidently I do in date order hence why I scrap Christmas. I used MME Be Merry range of papers from a GottaCraft kit last year and few bits of my own stash including a gorgeous tree stamp from Autumn Leaves...see I told you I was obsessed.

Strangely enough I quite like the outcome...result!

I'm also taking part in my first card challenge, I never considered myself good enough but I was invited and nothing ventured is nothing gained and this is the 2nd challenge which is a sketch and it must have a masculine feel...oh heck, thank goodness for BG Granola!

Supplies: BG Granola patterned papers, AC ric-rak ribbon and AL stamp.

I also managed to pick up a Scrapbook Trends magazine in my local WHSmith so you won't expect anymore posts until next week will you lol.

Nature

2009-05-01T20:25:00.004+01:00

I have a serious addiction with nature just lately whether it be trees, owls, birds, deers or woodgrain patterns I've just got to have them, hence the cards I made today, OK not this one in particular lol.

Supplies: Doodlebug patterned paper, Bazzill Just the Edge & cardstock, Hero Arts sentiment stamps and Little Claire Design clear silhouette cat stamps.

Supplies: Bazzill card, October Afternoon stamps, AC patterned paper and Stampin' Up sentiment stamp

Supplies: BG Mellow patterned paper, October Afternoon stamps and Pebbles Inc sentiment rub-on

Supplies: AC patterned paper, October Afternoon stamps

Have a lovely Bank Holiday weekend.

Back in Business

2009-04-29T18:54:00.003+01:00

Thankfully it was a faulty printer cartridge and all is well now so yesterday I spent the afternoon sorting and running off a few shots and today I finally got to scrap.

Last week I treated myself to the new Basic Grey Lime Rickey range of patterned papers thinking they would be fab for cards but perfect for layouts...how wrong was I. Now don't get me wrong I love the papers but bloody hell they're not easy to work with and match embellishments too so after many hours I eventually came up with this...

I've scrapped this photo many times but I always use black & white papers and I did debate about going back to my comfort zone and there were times when that looked highly likely but I wanted a zingy look for it as its going in my youngest son's album and he's such a colourful little soul I wanted it to resemble his personality...all I can say is thank heaven its done and comfort zone here I come!!

New Day, New Name

2009-04-17T11:06:00.005+01:00

Time for a change, even though I liked my old blog name someone managed to get the link to it through my Facebook account and decided it would be fun to stir up a little bit of trouble even though nothing malicious is to be found on this blog so I have taken the decision to rename and it was my son that came up with, wait for it...Paws Galore, which is kinda cute so there you go.

I did this the other night, the story behind the miserable son is that I needed a victim to pose for me to practise on for an online photography workshop I was doing in the Summer of 2007. By this point I had already taken lots of shots and I was silly enough to say 'just a few more shots' and the reply that came with the screwed up face was 'No Way' and the little frog has my muttered reply lol, kids eh!!

I have another one to share later, but first my floor needs to dry and then I can take a photo so I'll be back later.

Here we go the missing layout I photographed earlier, again featuring Kyle this time on his 11th Birthday unwrapping his UBFunkeys Starter Kit, these are just the cutest little dudes on the block.

Supplies: BG patterned paper, Core'dinations cardstock, Hambly rub-ons, Prima bling, Sizzix dies and KaiserCraft bling.

Cosmo Cricket Cogsmo patterned papers, die-cuts and blackboard, Bazzill chips, 7Gypsies 'observations' stamp, Thickers & Doodlebug alphabet stickers.

Easter Frog Obsession

2009-04-11T17:37:00.004+01:00

Yep its true I've ditched the cute bunnies and fluffy chicks in preference for frogs lol, don't like them in real life but I do love the new Penny Black stamps and this adorable Sizzix die :)

I wasn't happy with my youngest son's BunBun card and so this afternoon I set about making him a colourful frog one and I absolutely love the end result, a bit unusual for me to actually like a card I've made!

I also spent Good Friday night scrapping away with this layout again of my youngest son on his 6th Birthday so engrossed in the latest Nintendo game that he never noticed me take this shot complete with his big toe curled in concentration...bless :)

Layout Supplies: Core-dinations cardstock, Fancy Pants Papa patterned paper, AL & BoBunny stamps, Bazzill Just the Edge, Adornit alphabet stickers and KaiserCraft bling.

Card Supplies: Imaginisce Twitterpated patterned paper, AC ribbon, sentiment stamp Sizzix frog die, Hero Arts black bling and Slice Design Cards for the scalloped circle and greetings plate.

Happy Easter

Easter Cards

2009-04-08T18:33:00.003+01:00

Just some family Easter cards I've made. The BunBun one is probably going to be redone as I prefer the one with the frog on which I've done for my eldest son, I think I prefer the bright colours as opposed to traditional Spring colours.

Supplies: Penny Black BunBun stamp, Imaginisce patterned paper, Maya Road flower, MM brad, AC ribbon.

Supplies: Crate Paper patterned paper, BG patterned paper and Itsy Bitsy stamps, Penny Black greeting stamp, MM flower and brad, Kaisercraft bling.

Supplies: Imaginisce Twitterpated patterned papers, Penny Black Toadily T for Transparent stamps and AC ribbon.

Enjoy the forthcoming Bank Holiday weekend.

Whoops...

2009-04-05T17:50:00.005+01:00

Its been a while ago since I uploaded anything, it appears my days are just running away with me.

I have managed to catch a few hours to do some scrapping in the last week.

I love Fish & Kids purely because the title is just perfect for the photo which was taken on Cannock Chase Sculpture Walk where kids are encouraged to interact with art.

Supplies: Basic Grey Archaic patterned papers, rub-ons, brad and stamps, Adornit, Doodlebug Loopy Lou and Thickers Playhouse alphabets, Bazzzill Just the Edge and Flourish Slice design card.

Just Chillin' is another one taken on Cannock Chase capturing my eldest son watching what his little brother was up to on the other end of the fallen branch.

Supplies: KaiserCraft What a Hoot patterned papers & bling, Prima felt, AL Stamps, Hambly rub-on owl, Bazzill Just the Edge, Doodlebug Loopy Lou and Thickers Playhouse alphabet stickers.

Hopping mad with frogs and my youngest son on the cargo net at the Adventure Playground on Cannock Chase, he's such a sweetie and has the most adorable smile that I wanted to create a fun feel to the layout.

Supplies: 3 Bugs in a Rug patterned paper, stickers and die-cuts, Queen & Co felt border, Bazzill pompom ribbon, flower and In Stitch'z, Maya Road chipboard swirl and KaiserCraft bling.

Claire x

Quick Post

2009-03-27T19:08:00.004Z

Just as it says, a quick post of the cards I made earlier today.

I love this little Penny Black stamp made up to look like an opticians examination chart.

Now this one I'm going to have trouble parting with it, I love it so much I might have to make it twice lol.

And finally this is for my youngest son for Easter who at the age of 7 still loves all things cuddly and furry, however, its going to be a challenge to make my eldest son's card whose not really into bunnies and fluffy chicks!!

Gotta Craft Kit Layouts

2009-03-24T20:20:00.005Z

Thought I'd share my layouts I did with the March kit from Gotta Craft featuring the gorgeous MME Penny Lane patterned papers. I was particularly fond of the bird paper and I have a really weird obsession at the moment for all things bird/owl related, strange really as the cat often brings them back home dead!! Birds not owls...yet lol.

Spring at 36

2009-03-20T19:02:00.003Z

Well today is the first day of Spring and what a glorious day its been but more importantly than that I turned 36 today, yep its my Birthday and I've had a wonderful day and had some truly splendid cards from my UKS friends.

These all take pride of place in my living room on the window sill, good job its a bay window!!

My husband has spoilt me yet again with a gorgeous Olliepops laptop case in brown with black swirls across the front, J'adore perfume, a voucher for iTunes, a Nintendo DS game called MillionHeir Mystery Case Files, just perfect for someone who loves solving puzzles, some cute pyjamas, Milk Tray and Liqueurs...how fab :)

I had a gorgeous black trouser suit, grey cardigan (to help feed my addictive of cardigans), Larkrise to Candleford book, a bullet style personalised pen, a T-Bar bracelet with a little love heart and some precious mascara which I seem to go through by the barrel load from my parents and a box of Ferrero Rocher from their cats Lily and Claude :)

I also spent a couple of hours shuffling paper and created this layout of my eldest son showing off his newly acquired tramlines.

Supplies: Fancy Pants Papa patterned paper, Bazzill Just the Edge, BG Archaic & tattoo rub-ons, Kaisercraft bling, K&Co Life's Journey tape measure sticker and AL stamps.

All in all a really good day which is going to be finished off with a glass of Bailey's and ice.

Mr Moody

2009-03-17T21:37:00.003Z

How cool is this...

At my youngest son's School they've been discovering Mr Men even though we met them many, many years ago, anyway they were asked to write a story and design their very own Mr Men and that was the result, I think its modelled on his dad!!

I also went to the NEC on Saturday with a good friend and we had such a fantastic time giggling together and picking out which stamps I should buy and which ones she should, and between us we kept the Hobby Association in work for another couple of months!

My lovely husband surprised me with the Big Shot at the end of the day, he knew I wanted one from the last time I went but I talked myself out of it saying my Cuttlebug will suffice but honestly its green, ugly and just won't do...sorry Bug users :(

Kid K'Nex

2009-03-03T13:23:00.004Z

You've gotta love having boys, you get to play with K'Nex and Lego...cool!

This is my youngest son playing happily with his Kid K'Nex, I love these photos that I took but I wasn't keen on scrapping them. I couldn't seem to make any papers work with the bright colours and I didn't want to change the photo to black and white. Then it struck whilst tidying his room one morning when I came across a little idea sheet and decided it would make the perfect back drop once I'd scanned and printed it and it did.

Supplies: Bazzill blossom, Just the Edge, pompom ribbon and cardstock, Fancy Pants Celebration patterned papers, DCVW ribbon and cardstock, BoBunny stamps and rub-ons, AL stamps, Papermania brads and Stampin' Up border punch.

And finally a few cards I've been making.

Supplies: DCWV pink cardstock, Dream Street polka dot paper, American Crafts Ribbon, Kanban bling, Bazzill chip flower and Penny Black sentiment stamp.

Supplies: Stampin' Up cardstock, Hero Arts dandelion stamp and sentiment, American Crafts polka dot ribbon.

Locked On

2009-02-24T19:04:00.004Z

Today I've been trying to get on top of the Birthday cards, last year I did everything at the last minute and so this year I'm trying to have a selection in the drawer so all I have to worry about is the stamp and to remember!!

This is a layout I did a few weeks back (still this year) but never got round to uploading for one reason or another.

Every Summer if the British weather obliges out come the water pistols, I of course remain out of view, well at least I thought that until I spotted him locked onto his next target...me lol. I manage to use my Slice for the title, we have a kind of love/hate relationship...its been a rocky road to die cutting successfully!!

Supplies: Dream Street Colour My World papers, Bazzill In Stitch'z and Just The Edge and BoBunny stamps.

New Look

2009-02-20T23:18:00.004Z

How fab is this...I love it and its all thanks to Rhonna Farrer and her beautifully designed Blog Couture range, you can check them out at House of 3.

I had a little trouble with uploading this design and the lady herself came to my rescue earlier this evening and helped me with the upload which I'm totally grateful for.

Phew - Laptop Home

2009-02-17T18:17:00.004Z

Who would think a broken 'tab' key would need the Tech Guys in Birmingham and a whole new keyboard, not me that was for sure but its back and I was so pleased I nearly kissed the delivery driver cos I was having a nightmare time with the desktop.

Well its half term and I certainly won't get any crafting done this week as they already have my days marked out for me!!

Instead I'll share with you another digi layout I did for the weekly challenge on UKS. I used Rough & Tumble Reloaded designed by Studio Flergs and Dude by Juno Designs. Its all getting a bit addictive.

Digi Scrapping

2009-02-07T18:33:00.006Z

I never thought I would enjoy digi scrapping as much as the playing with papers but its true I'm totally hooked and I love it.

Its so flexible, room for loads of errors and misplaced elements cos you just delete the layer if you are unhappy with anything, and best of all no mess.

These are a couple I was playing about with the other, they are by no means perfect but I'm just enjoying learning something new each time I turn the lappie on.

These pages were both done with kits by Joanne Dain Designs and purchased from Pickleberrypop (link on the side) and a few extras from Shabbyprincess.

I've also been playing with some new Inkadinkado cupcake stamps trying to get ahead of the Birthdays for a change!

A Little Birdie Told Me...

2009-02-02T18:34:00.003Z

You're Gorgeous.

Is the title of my latest layout. I captured this photograph without my son realising it and loved it instantly, its so natural and of course it shows off his cute dimple.

Supplies: Bazzill cardstock and chipboard photo corner, Dream Street Birdie Bits patterned papers, AC ribbons and Thickers (rootbeer), Doodlebug Loopy Lou stickers, KI Lace cardstock and various blossoms.

Thanks for stopping by,

Weekly Challenge

2009-01-30T14:11:00.006Z

Monday was the turn of my team, Blooming Pages, to set the weekly challenge over on UKS. We tried to keep it simple and choose the Chinese New Year celebrations as our theme.

So if you fancy having a go then you need to...

Scrap an animal - 10 points

Use traditional Oriental colours of black, red or gold - 10 points

Some form of stitching - 10 points

I must admit it took me a while to find the right photo and even then I had to change it to black and white, I finally settled on this little otter who look liked he was attempting to do the Mexican wave lol.

I also managed to scrap a photo for my eldest son's album, I love this photo and I really didn't want to desaturate the colour so after a bit of searching I remembered I had an old kit from GottaCraft with Birdie Bits from Dream Street which I thought would work perfectly with the backdrop.

It took me quite a while to cut the scallops out and a whole week to stop finding escaped seed beads lol, its not the most masculine page I've done but they are standing in front of a garden and in my defence gardens have flowers so why not the layout :)

Sudbury Park Layouts

2009-01-20T18:27:00.005Z

Where does the time go...20th January already and whoops I haven't blogged since the 5th, in my defence I have been crafting behind the scenes and enjoying the peace and quiet now everyone is out all day.

GottaCraft's January kit went on sale on Friday and sold out pretty much instantly, not surprising really as it contained the gorgeous Lemon Grass papers from Crate Paper. I loved these papers when they were released last year and couldn't wait to start playing.

Both of the layouts feature my boys playing in the gounds to Sudbury Park and I knew they matched the papers perfectly...well a Mom's gotta try and co-ordinate her boys lol.

I love this photo of my youngest, its just typically him... full of fun and mischief.

Finished!!

2009-01-05T18:53:00.004Z

Yep I've finally finished my Journal Your Christmas, Shimelle's prompts continue until the 6th January but I decided to end mine early namely New Years Day. I don't think I've ever scrapped as much as I have done in December clocking up a massive 32 layouts!!

Day 30...

Day 31...

New Years Day...

And my finished Journal complete with ribbons and bells...

I also had to whip up a quick Birthday card that I had completely forgotten about for a friend over on UKS and have also managed to complete 2 CJ entries, and sent one of them back home to its owner while I'm waiting anxiously for mine to be returned back to me.

So everything returns to normality today...Jay back to work, boys up early for School and me... to have some precious time all to myself, I love having them at home but a week is enough and its nice to have a quiet house for a few hours.

Happy New Year

2009-01-01T18:49:00.005Z

I hope 2009 brings you Health, Wealth & Happiness in these difficult times :)

Well here are my penultimate entries for my Journal, these are pages 27, 28 and 29 and my last entries will be 30, 31 and the 1st. Its been a quick December and I've loved doing it and will definitely be gearing up for it again next...err this year lol.

Day 27...

Day 28...

Day 29...

First Digi Layout

2008-12-30T23:10:00.004Z

Yeah I've finally mastered digi scrapping :)

I know, its a simple page featuring Lacie and yes it matches my blog header when I finally figure out how to remove the white background!!

The kit is from Shabbyprincess called Gabby

Thank you for stopping by and your comments whether good or bad would be really welcome.

Still Journalling

2008-12-28T11:26:00.006Z

I certainly am and I'm really pleased with myself and I love the way my Journal is coming together even though I doubt I'll go as far as the 6th January, preferring to finish on New Years Day.

I hope you've all survived the Christmas madness and have found some precious 'me' time, we've had a fab holiday with lots of surprises which is always good.

OK here are my pages for my journal that I've been working on, some are a bit ropey but some I love like the stockings page, probably because its the first sign that Santa has been for my boys and that Jay says he's only able to fill the toes on mine and that's a total fib cos its always full of nice smellies and goodies :)

Day 21...

Day 22...

Day 23...

Christmas Eve...

My favourite day of the whole year, I love the anticipation and the excitement of the boys and well me too lol.

Christmas Day...

Excuse the cotton wool in Kyle's ear...bless he woke up Christmas morning sobbing in bed with earache, however, he is now my proverbial pain because I'm having to repeat and yell everything twice and when he's watching the telly its on full blast and makes the house vibrate!!

Boxing Day...

Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T14:08:00.003Z

Merry Christmas :)

Just a quick update with some pages pages I've done for the Journal.

Day 18...

Day 19...

Day 20...

Be back after Christmas, stay safe

Trying To Catch Time!!

2008-12-22T18:15:00.004Z

Yep, its getting busy now...what with shopping for the food and those last minute pressies, not to mention baking cakes, mince pies, jam tarts and cookies...its all go in our house, so you won't be surprised if I tell you I'm about 5 days behind on my journal lol.

Here are all the days that I've managed so far from 12.

Day 12...

Day 13...

Day 14...

Day 15...

Day 16...

Day 17...

We went to the Hippodrome lastnight to see John Barrowman in Robin Hood and it was absolutely amazing and even better when he got the giggles...btw he's as sexy as Robin as he is Captain Jack...I wish he was behind me lol.

Happy Christmas,

Days 10 & 11...And Even Further Behind Now!!

2008-12-15T13:21:00.003Z

Yes its true...my cold has really taken a hold now and my nose is as blocked as the M42 at rush hour so I'm now way behind but I've finished work for Christmas now so I hope to have an afternoon of playing catching up this week, hopefully!!

Day 10 - 'Wrapping' the job I'm always keen on doing until it actually comes round to doing it and by the time I've finished I've lost all interest and most corner become round lol. I made little parcels with the wrapping that the boys presents are wrapped in and tied with little bows.

Day 11 - 'Christmas Tree' and I love my artificial one that stands tall in the corner decked out in co-ordinated baubles which in turn match my living room decor.

That's it for today and only 10 more sleeps until that magical moment :)

Days 8 & 9...And Still Behind!!

2008-12-12T12:57:00.004Z

I blame the cough for falling behind...its back with a vengeance today!!

Day 8 - 'Can You See What I Can' namely all things around you turning Christmassy how things take on a whole new look at this time of year. I just took some photos of things I've got around the house, there are lots of houses around the Crescent with lights up but its just too darn cold to venture out :)

Day 9 - 'Traditions' and we certainly have a few of those that we do every year. Also the journalling had to be hidden away from prying eyes. My traditions are...

Always unless its raining have an early morning walk on Cannock Chase.

Take the Escort for a nice car wash and hoover, our present to the car!!

Open our family cards together.

Split into teams and make up the Puzz 3D baubles for the tree upstairs.

Play carpet ten pin bowling in the evening with Santa/Snowman pins and a Christmas pud for the ball.

Christmas Day Traditions

Have a nice coffee and Jay has a big bowl size mug of tea in beds while its still peaceful.

And now its time for me to go and get the rest of the pages finished.

Claire xxx

Merry Christmas

2008-12-10T19:23:00.001Z

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Days 5, 6 & 7 and Still Behind!!

2008-12-09T13:06:00.004Z

OK I'm trying to keep up, honestly I am but its such a busy time of year and not helped by a cold that was outstaying its welcome and a poorly little boy whose had a cold and now has a nasty tummy bug...Bah Humbug!!

Anyway day 5 was 'Counting Down' to Christmas and I have a lovely little chalk board that comes out every Summer and hangs proudly in the kitchen until the jolly fella has been and so that's what my page is about, didn't think it needed journalling as its pretty self-explanatory.

Day 6 was 'Memories - Good & Bad' which was a little difficult for me as I like to keep things cheery so I've gone back to Christmas 2005 when Great Grandad Santa got it all so wrong but would he listen...oh no!!

My journalling reads...

Christmas 2005 and Great-Grandad insisted that my boys needed these Crazy Frog singing toys.

Despite all our best efforts Great-Grandad was insistent on giving Grandma the money and sending her out into the cold to get these annoying toys...any you don't argue with a determined man in his 80's!!

So Christmas afternoon and the frog was open singing his annoying frog song and this was the face that spoke volumes and I cried from laughing that sometimes Santa gets it so wrong...Bah Humbug!

Day 7 was 'Lists' which again I don't do lists...I'm one of those really annoying people that shop in January and by December I'm pretty much done apart from little stocking fillers and most are wrapped so I can sit and chill with a glass of Baileys with ice. Instead I included just a few of my receipts from a shopping spree I had on Saturday in Derby :)

Anyway things to do like another 2 pages so I'll be back again soon xxx

Day 3 & 4

2008-12-04T21:38:00.004Z

Here are my two pages for days 3 and 4.

Day 3 was about cards, not being a great cardmaker myself I pinched one I made from a Basic Grey kit and my journalling is hidden as an insert in the card.

Day 4 was to imagine a 'Perfect' Christmas...not hard as long as I have my boys with me then Christmas is complete and pretty perfect.

I used Basic Grey Wassail & Figgy Pudding patterned papers on all and I played around with my swirls card for the Slice, which I love now I've got to grips with it.

Supplies: Basic Grey Wassail/Figgy Pudding, K&Co stamps, MM Slice, Autumn Leaves stamps and Fiskars Threading Water punch.

Take Care,

Day 1 & Day 2 of Journal Your Christmas

2008-12-02T18:52:00.004Z

Today I finally got round to doing some crafting for me as opposed to making Christmas cards which I love but scrapping is what I enjoy doing most.

So I've complete both entries for Shimelle's Journal Your Christmas and this is day 1...I'm not keen on the word Manifesto so I've completely left it untitled, Manifesto always seems a bit white collar for this time of year and I want my journal to be full of fun for the boys to look back on in years to come.

My journal basically tells of my enjoyment for the festive season and that I don't need to take 15 minutes out to spend time doing something I enjoy cos for me every little detail running up to Christmas is a pleasure...whether its chillin' with a glass of Baileys or frantically getting kids to performances, going to Nativity Plays or Christmas fetes etc... I love it :)

The prompt for day 2 was weather...hmmm now you see I like to see snow and deep snow at that but we really don't get any at Christmas time. Instead I decided to copy the weather forecast and ask Santa if there is a snow dance I can perform to guarantee me some magic on Christmas Eve...well every girl's got to have a dream even if they're 35!!

Basic Grey Christmas Cards

2008-11-26T14:20:00.005Z

Hello, apologies I've been a bit busy to try and clear my December duties so I can commit to Shimelle's Journal Your Christmas and I've been wrapping the Advent Swap pressie up for UKS...I do hope my victim likes my choices :)

Just a few cards I made this morning.

Supplies: Basic Grey Figgy Pudding patterned paper and a Penny Black sentiment stamp.

Supplies: Basic Grey patterned paper, Hero Arts sentiment stamp, Penny Black brush stokes stamp and Marvy Le Plume pens.

Supplies: Basic Grey Mellow patterned papers and Figgy Pudding, American Crafts ribbon, Penny Black brush strokes stamp, Stamps Away stamp and Whispers ink.

Be back soon.

Journal Your Christmas

2008-11-17T18:15:00.004Z

Yep I decided to join in the fun with Shimelle's Journal Your Christmas and have been busy creating my front cover. I decided to use a 7 Gypsies 6x6 in keeping with my CJs so they all look pretty on the book shelf, yes I know I'm anal lol.

I thought I might include a few acrylic pages along the way but we'll see...I get easily distracted!!

I'm using Basic Grey Wassail range. I wanted a really Christmas feeling front cover so used a nice deep red/burgundy paper, added some Playroom Thickers and used my Bazzill In Stitch'z for the holly and berries and used a white journalling pen for the rest of the title.

The inside covered was decorated with distressed white paper cos I didn't like the pattern on the front lol, and I added some embossed snowflakes sadly I did that after I had stuck it down and it wrinkled a bit, never mind. I used my new Sizzix die to create a reindeer which will probably feature quite a lot in my journal as I absolutely love deers and living where I do I can see them quite often when I go walking on Cannock Chase.

I've also done my page dates but only up to Christmas Day so far, I will probably go up to New Years Day but doubt very much I will continue until the 6th January. I used a 1" Woodware scallop punch and a EK Success 1 1/2" and used some red ink just to take the plain white off...OK so I went a bit mad with number 10 but I'm hoping once its on the page it will look alright lol.

When its finished it will have a selection of ribbons through the rings to make it look all festive but for now its just a working progress :)

Stash, Stash and Stash

2008-11-15T19:20:00.003Z

What a fab day I've had out at the Hobbycrafts Show at the NEC.

I took lots of spends with me including Jay and his wallet just in case and I spent, spent and spent like a woman possessed lol.

I met Sandra aka GottaCraft and her lovely husband Simon and we've had such a fantastic day.

My only regret and disappointment of the day was seeing some gorgeous Bazzill pompom ribbon in Christmas red, green and white and thinking I will come back for that and when I did get around to going back it was all gone...totally gutted but on a plus side I did get the Doodlebug flock I've been after for ages, some gorgeous Penny Black stamps and of course more Basic Grey Wassail :)

On a Roll Now...

2008-11-12T18:31:00.006Z

Indeed I am, I made 2 Birthday and 3 Christmas cards this morning. I now have the grand total of 8 Christmas cards which has taken me a whole two mornings... hmm not a natural born cardmaker lol.

Supplies: Papermania patterned paper, AC ribbon, DCWV textured cardstock and a stamp I love but haven't a clue who its by, sorry.

Supplies: Hero Arts Dandelion stamp, Anita's sticky ribbon, Marvy Le Plume pens, Stampin' Up! sentiment stamp and purple Bazzill (yep I used purple Bazzill and I've come out in a rash lol).

Supplies: Penny Black stamp, DCWV textured cardstock, Rhonna Farrer patterned paper, Marvy Le Plume pens, glitter twine from my box, Bazzill cardstock, Whispers Ink and Stampin' Up! sentiment stamp.

Supplies: Penny Black stamp, K&Co patterned paper, Marvy Le Plume pens, Whispers Ink, some ribbon and charm I've had for donkeys.

And finally this one is my favourite and I love it.

Supplies: Basic Grey Mellow patterned paper and rubber stamp, DCWV textured cardstock, AC ribbon and Hero Arts sentiment stamp.

Birthday Wishes & Kisses

2008-11-10T13:48:00.003Z

I'm not sure where the times gone but my eldest has officially turned 12 this afternoon, he's shooting up day by day and the attitude grows at an alarming rate but I do love him loads and loads and wish him a fab Birthday and here he is opening his cards this morning (its a card from the cat in case you're wondering lol)...pressies after School :)

I've been trying to get on top of my Christmas cards this morning and have managed the tremendous amount of 5 lol. I can only show you 3 because one is for a special friend and of course she reads my blog and the 2 are the same.

Supplies: Cuttlebug Winter Scene embossing folder, AC ribbon, Sakura glitter gel pen, K&Co Christmas paper and Catslife Press 'Merry Little Christmas' stamp...sorry its not that clear.

Supplies: BG Mellow patterned paper, Stampin' Up sentiment stamp, EK Success punches, AC velvet ribbon and a Penny Black stamp.

Supplies: Stampin' Up cardstock, AC ribbon, Rhonna Farrer patterned paper, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder and Penny Black sentiment stamp.

Don't forget tomorrow night sees the launch of November's kit from GottaCraft and its gorgeous, perfect to compliment any Autumnal photographs :)

Coming or Going...Absolutely No Idea!!

2008-11-04T12:48:00.003Z

Its that time of year when my feet never seem to actually reach the floor!!

Back from holiday which was nice but the washing pile isn't so pretty to look at and the washing machine is groaning at me again lol.

Kyle is 12 on Monday and you'd think getting age 12 balloons or even Happy Birthday would be easy wouldn't you...well not if you live in a little town, we have 6 card shops and not one has any balloons, can you believe it and the woman says 'we've got 11 or 13' yeah that will work cos he's 12!!! Can't write what I actually wanted to call her this morning...blah.

I'm also in 3 Christmas swaps one of which is the big Advent one over on UKS so I'm busy scribbling lists of who I've got, what they need, want or have and to add to that I fancy taking part in Shimelle's Journal Your Christmas, well I never said I didn't like a challenge lol.

I want to take a trip to the NEC for the Craft Show so I'm busy nagging my husband to take us and HIS credit card...bless he did buy me the new Making Memories Slice thinking it might shut me up...nah didn't!!

Right before I go and yes I know its late but here are a few Halloween layouts I did using the kit from GottaCraft...go on buy one and scrap your pumpkins or even your monsters :)

Slater xxx

Holiday Time...Whoo Hooo!!

2008-10-26T14:42:00.003Z

Well I'm all packed and ready for our 4* luxury mid week break away at The Imperial Hotel in Blackpool starting tomorrow.

I know its probably going to be freezing cold but who cares its Blackpool and if you can't enjoy yourself there then where can you. The boys are really looking forward to seeing the lights in all their splendour and me and Jay are just going to look forward to the break after spending 2 and half years renovating our house without a holiday, I think we've well and truly earned this one so who cares what the weather throws at us, we're not bothered!!

I will leave you with a layout I did last night using a kit from GottaCraft featuring Crate Paper. I pretty much used everything in the kit apart from the flourish stamp from Basic Grey. Claude the cat belongs to my Mom and Roger and he's just so scrummy and very heavy but loves to stop by for a fuss especially off Kyle!!

Have a nice half term week, and I'll be back with plenty to talk and scrap about :)

Blinding Fun

2008-10-19T19:39:00.003+01:00

A bright and bold layout I've created for the House Challenge over on UKS. The aim was to use a fun photo and scrap with as many patterned papers as possible.

This is my youngest son at the park blinking at the complete wrong time but the photo (in my opinion obviously lol) oozes so much fun and pleasure just from the wonderful smile that it begged to be scrapped.

All the patterned papers are from BoBunny Star Struck range, Autumn Leaves stamps for part of the title and Doodlebug Loopy Lou letters scribbled on to match the page, Bazzill pompoms for a fun element and BoBunny Urban stamps and basically I just cut everything out and mounted a few bits on 3D foam for extra dimension.

Hunting

2008-10-14T14:40:00.003+01:00

Finally I have a layout to share with you, no don't faint I know its been a while lol.

Truthfully I've been scrapping layouts ready for a page kit from GottaCraft to celebrate the wonderful high jinks of Halloween.

Right, back to my layout which is an Easter one minus the traditional Easter embellishments which I don't use since I developed more style. We were having a egg hunt at Gran & Grandad's home...good job the sun shone that day lol.

I have to say I'm totally addicted to this pompom ribbon and don't mind confessing I have it in several colours cos its just fun and funky and very, very tactile :)

I've used a kit I purchased from GottaCraft featuring Crate Papers and the Blue Hill collection and embellishments and of course my pompom ribbon. I normally avoid Easter, Birthdays and Christmas pages because they all become a bit samey but I really do like how this turned out, a bit different without any sign of a bunny, chick or egg!

Pinch, Punch, 1st of the Month

2008-10-01T13:06:00.003+01:00

Yep the 1st October, before you know we'll be unwrapping Christmas presents lol, its a quick year and blimey its getting cold out there.

Been a bit too busy to blog, my youngest son turned 7 on Saturday, where does the time go. We've been building Lego castles and when I've not been entertaining him I've had to sort the bedrooms out otherwise we will have to turn Santa away :(

Next on my to do list is the cupboard containing all my stash, apparently I have to sort it all out and put it in the tote my husband bought me for Christmas...ooops!

I have squeezed in a CJ entry and I'm working on some Hallowe'en stuff for GottaCraft which I love especially as Jay does the most amazing pumpkin carvings, I do love Autumn :)

Until next time xxx

Septembers Kit

2008-09-23T18:43:00.004+01:00

Just a few of the layouts I did with Septembers kit from Gotta Craft featuring Sweet Branch from Crate papers, wow they are gorgeous and so easy to work with. I decided not to feature my boys this time as they get everywhere and I needed a break from them!

Also a little card I made for my friend Fi who was 40 yesterday using Bazzill In Stitch'z.

Until next time xxx

Happy Birthday Mom

2008-09-18T13:09:00.004+01:00

Yes she's the grand old age of 62 today and she doesn't look a day over lol, have a lovely day and heres the card I made. I used Stampin' Up cardstock, AL single flower stamp, butterfly and bee stamp that I have no idea who they are by and a Hero Arts 'Happy Birthday' stamp and coloured them with Sakura glitter gel pens.

Next is a CJ entry that had me stumped since I found out the theme...The Most Memorable Place in the World for Me. I thought I would my honeymoon to Tunisia but then when the CJ arrived it couldn't be a Country it had to be a place in a Country that was memorable, with that in mind I did the Medina in Hammamet. Now if you've ever been there you will know how terrifying and intimidating the place can be, beautiful and very intriguing but definitely not for the faint hearted. I was 21 when I decided it would be a good idea to explore what was behind the enormous walls and something I'm really proud I did despite being scared. However, I was pressurised into buying a Chinese rug that I probably could have done without but I still have it today as a constant reminder of my mini adventure.

Until next time xxx

Crash Bang Whallop!!

2008-09-10T12:34:00.006+01:00

I've been looking at some photos of our old Escort that was wrote off last year by some idiot who decided to drive with his head stuck up his arse and as a result drove straight into the back of us and caused £1,200 damage and we are still trying to win the case even with two witnesses...its been a serious battle of wills between them, me and the Solicitors!!

I was absolutely gutted the Insurance Company decided to write it off, it wasn't young, had rust spots over the wheel arches but it was a limited edition and never let us down, no matter how cold it got it used to purr every time the ignition was turned, so it was a sad day when it was towed away but not before I had removed the 'Escort 16' off the back while my husband just looked on and rolled his eyes lol. So to mark this day I did a layout for the weekly challenge over on UKS.

The challenge was to use the sketch provided which was easy as I love following a sketch, use black & white, 9 embellishments and some sort of stamping. I decided to stamp the white Prima flowers as they looked a little dull and turned out really well, my 9 embellishments came in the form of the letters which look OK now they've had a wash and really make the layout have a personal feel, my patterned paper is actually scanned pages from the Haynes manual for the car just inked and punched, I really like the finished page and yes we do have another Escort :)

Until next time xxx

Birthday Wishes

2008-09-04T13:26:00.004+01:00

Happy Birthday to my good friend Sandra aka Gotta Craft over on UKS, if I believe what she tells me, which honestly I don't, then she's 23 again today lol.

Here's the card I made for her as she just loves pottering in the garden just like myself so I thought Veggie Bella would be perfect (and was purchased especially), I used a combination of Derwent Watercolouring and Inktense pencils to colour in Bella and the greetings stamp I have no idea just ended up in my basket one day while I was browsing a shop!! American Crafts ribbon just to pretty it up and finish off... hope you like hun :)

Now my eldest son started High School this week and I wanted to share this photo of how totally grown up he looks and how handsome he is... yes I'm his Mom and I'm allowed to be proud and biased and I really am, although I might add he did not come home looking quite so pristine!!

Until next time xxx

Layout with Attitude

2008-08-27T18:01:00.004+01:00

Finally I have managed to get all of my eldest son's new uniform sorted... yesterday was shoes and shin pads and being a non-footballing family I was a little stunned at the price of a piece of polystyrene to protect an already mottled shin!!

Anyway onto my latest layout where he and his younger brother are chillin' on top of a climbing frame. The photo isn't the greatest quality but it just sums up my boys, just a smirk never a full smile, they really don't do cute in my house lol. I wanted the layout to have a grungy feel with a little attitude so I've distressed lots of paper, ripped it and inked quite heavily around the edges. Probably one of my favourites to date, it really did turn out how I'd imagined it and that rarely happens!!!

Materials: Bazzill cardstock and The Edge in black ric-rak, BoBunny Extreme papers, Heidi Swapp fuzzy rub-ons and flame foam stamps, Making Memories skull rub-on and brads, AL Stylin' stamp and various chipboard shapes.

Until next time xxx

Bank Holiday Movie

2008-08-25T17:14:00.007+01:00

We've been to the cinema today to watch The Mummy 3 Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. To be honest it wasn't a patch on the original two but still hugely enjoyable although the absence of Rachael Weiss is really noticeable as Brendan Fraser just doesn't seem to gel with the new Evelyn. John Hannah still makes me laugh albeit not as much, the talented Michelle Yeoh shines once again and Jet Li really is looking old but can still kick ass. If like me, you like lots of action then its worth a trip to the cinema.

Onto my scrapping which is once again, of my youngest son in the park one cold morning which meant it was just me and my boys so a prime opportunity for getting the camera out. Sadly I managed to snap this shot with a lovely bright red bin in the background so before I could scrap it I had to spend a bit of time cloning it out!!

Materials : Bazzill cardstock, Bo-Bunny Star Struck, DCWV orange cardstock, American Crafts ribbon, Cuttlebug 'man' die, MM brads and Bazzill In Stitch'z templates.

Until next time xxx

Snow Cute

2008-08-21T17:48:00.003+01:00

It maybe August but you can't beat a bit of snow.

I scrapped this lovely photo of my youngest son playing in a generous foot of snow in February 2007, it was so cold and had snowed for most of the day while they were at School (the only School open in the District!!) but once those doors were flung open it was time to play. We got home, flung the bags down, grabbed the camera and headed out the front for battle to commence, just to watch the sheer pleasure on their faces made me smile. Sadly the photo isn't crash hot up close but I just had to scrap it.

I used non snow theme papers instead choosing BG Archaic range, Stampin' Up spiral bound punch to edge the paper, 7 Gypsies & photograph facts stamps, Making Memories snowflake foam stamp covered with Stickles, Bazzill The Edge white wave and Thickers Sprinkles.

Until the next time xxx

Playin' with Fancy Pants

2008-08-18T18:46:00.003+01:00

Well this can only mean one thing, I've been scrapbooking. I have and its the design work I did for Gotta Craft's August kit which featured Fancy Pants Designs, Celebration.

She did it to me again, terrified me with the kit. There are two things I don't like scrapping, Christmas and Birthdays because they always end up looking the same so again filled with fear and dread I limped to the printer and there I had a light bulb idea...I would do one Birthday layout because its the theme of the papers and another one completely irrelevant.

So I did and ended up having a complete hissy fit at the printer trying to work out how to do the block printing (Chelsea layout) on Word, on screen it looked fine with all the borders the same yet every time I printed it, it closed the border between the top two photos...aarrrgh. Jay finally came to my rescue (I think purely because he feared for his life if he didn't calm the situation lol) by adding text in between and changing it to white. Now I know there is bound to be an easier way but I was just relieved it finally worked after the ink and paper I had wasted.

Here we go then the layouts and a small card I made while waiting for something to dry.

Until next time xxx

Paws TV

2008-08-13T13:45:00.004+01:00

Well after working on my design work and CJs I finally got round to doing some layouts for the boys' albums, and this photo is my Pablo the night before he went through the cat flap and disappeared in 2007 :(

He was such a character and it came as no surprise when he snuggle down under the duvet with Kyle to watch a DVD before bedtime and of course I had to capture this moment and I can honestly say he stayed there for a quite a while, didn't watch the whole of the movie but a good chunk, so cheeky!!

I used mainly K&Co Mira range and added the orange for impact and because Pablo was pure ginger, Thickers for the title and some American Crafts ribbon.

Also I'm selling some of my Magnolia stamps over on the Marketplace on UKS if you are interested, they are Party Tilda, Tilda with a straw hat, two cupcakes and the cat, all apart from Tilda with a straw hat are brand new and still sealed in their original packaging. I would like £20 for them all including P&P.

Black & White Everything

2008-08-07T15:07:00.005+01:00

Is the title of my new CJ. I'm hosting a team one which kicks off on the 1st September so I'm prepared way in advance. I love photographs printed out in black and white they seem to speak volumes as well as being easier to scrap with which is where my theme developed from and I like the idea of co-ordinating the whole CJ...I like to be organised!!

I really enjoyed completing it and its going to be rather hard to part with but equally its always exciting to see how everyone else has interpreted the theme. I used mostly Hambly papers including the acetate overlay and even for a girl who loves nothing more than chopping into a 12x12 sheet of paper it was hard to put scissors to these papers and the handle can only be from 7 Gypsies.

Killer Shoes

2008-08-04T14:45:00.003+01:00

I can't share any scrapping projects, I've been busy doing Design Team work and I can't share yet...no Hazel I really can't lol.

Went shopping to the Ventura Retail Park in Tamworth this morning to get Jay suited and booted for his first interview on Wednesday, fingers crossed for that. Anyway I fell in love with some gorgeous killer shoes and here they are...how cool are these at 4" high, I have absolutely no idea when I'm exactly going to wear them but what the hell when they look this good :)

I also got through to the final of the photography competition over on UKScrappers if you fancy voting, its the Big Ben one...shameless pimping lol.

Hopefully I will have something to share with you soon, keep checking back xxx

Christmas Scrapping!

2008-07-27T14:04:00.003+01:00

Again it happens the next photo to be scrapped for Kyle's album is Christmas again and I hate doing Christmas pages, it always seems to be the same iykwim!!

I used BG Fruitcake papers again, gutted the cardstock to make the photo mat, Heidi Swapp ghost letters in red matted onto the patterned paper and cut out to make them pop a little bit more than they did when left plain red, Pebbles inc Christmas fetti, MM tag and some AC ribbon ruched for a different look. I also doodled a little round the edge with white Signo pen and yeah Christmas layouts all done :)

I have also been working on my CJ which is Black & White Everything, I've been using Hambly papers and wow its very hard cutting them up they are so lush but I'm getting there, anyway off out into the garden now with a cooled glass of Pimms, enjoy the sun xxx

London Eye - Amazing

2008-07-24T19:07:00.003+01:00

Yep it sure was, the highlight of my trip. We boarded at 7.30pm after a nervous car journey through the centre of London...thank heavens for Tom Tom lol. I didn't really know what to expect but once you get up there it is absolutely awesome with 360 degree uninterrupted views for miles and miles with stunning iconic landmarks.

We stayed in The Christopher Hotel in Eton which is beautiful and so peaceful with Windsor Castle standing prominently on the hillside and cobbled streets with quaint antique shops and just the odd famous face including John Nettles who was recording a scene for Midsumer Murders, it was so surreal walking by seeing all the Police, cars, bloody people and forensic experts...had to pinch myself a few times lol.

LegoLand was just that...it was lovely and very busy, lots of queuing but lots of fun to and now my house looks like a shrine to all things Lego but I have two very happy boys who passed their Lego License which my youngest son thinks gives him the right to drive our car lol.

Three handsome boys, well maybe two the big one is terribly annoying lol :)

No scrapping, but who cares when you have had such a lovely few days...will be back soon xxx

London Calling!

2008-07-21T14:18:00.004+01:00

Hello, apologies for the lack of blogging I've done recently...it seems there just aren't enough hours in the day to do everything I want to!!

My eldest son has now left Primary School...onwards and upwards to High School, I had his Leaver's Assembly on Friday which was very unorganised, funny and sad all in equal measure and despite me realising sometime ago he was ready to move on I still ended up biting my lip and shedding a tear. He also walked away with some great SATS results and as a reward is now the proud owner of a silver ball stud earring!!

Knowing what I was like at School I did allow him to get everyone to sign his shirt and wow they certainly did including teachers and dinner ladies and it looks lovely hanging on the coat hanger so I couldn't resist a couple of shots.

I also managed to scrap a layout of my youngest son during Christmas 2006, yes I know its July but I scrap the boys albums in date order and it always seems to fall that way. I used BG Fruitcake and some of their Christmas stamps, a 7 Gypsies stamp, and some Making Memories Christmas twill used on the reverse to make the layout look like a present. The title is small and is called 'Delight' from a stamp set by Hero Arts.

Now I really must disappear as we are heading into London tomorrow for an overnight stay. We're taking the boys to Legoland and the London Eye as well as a little sight seeing. I am also meeting a very special friend from UKS for coffee, cake and plenty of chat so I will blog on my return :)

Enjoy the sunshine while we've got it!! xxx

Teacher's Card

2008-07-14T10:33:00.006+01:00

I'm after your opinions today...I made this card for my youngest son's teacher whose in her early 20's and while I like the look of it I'm not sure whether or not its too girly for him to give her...so what do you think?

I used my new Ladybug stamp coloured in with water colouring pencils the patterned paper is BasicGrey LilyKate (I think), white Liquid Pearls, for the sentiment I used Stampin' Up Circle of Friendship 'Thanks' stamp just matted onto some punched scallop circles and their wonderful spiral bound punch, which I'm totally in love with.

Until I craft again, have a fab day xxx

A Long & Bad Week

2008-07-10T14:16:00.004+01:00

Well its been exactly what the title says which is why I've been missing for a while. Marshalls Limited who are a very famous Block Paving Specialist have decided completely out of the blue that they are to close two of the plants and sadly one of those is where Jay works, so from the 18th July he will be unemployed and not a thought he really relishes. I have no doubt in my mind he will get another job but one that pays such a good wage is another matter and of course we all live up to that income, he does have lots of qualifications courtesy of Marshalls who trained him intensively over the 13 years he's worked for them. Its so sad, we have some wonderful friends who've already gone but because Jay is lower Management he is able to work longer meeting orders that still need to be fulfilled. Its been a very hard pill to swallow as some of you will know Marshalls sponsored Chelsea Flower Show and are the length and breadth of the Country with Head Offices in Halifax, what does, however, niggle is when they announce that against sales figures for this time last year they've made an extra 1M, which is fair enough but totally inappropriate to draw attention to that now. There will be more closures I'm sure especially as they are directly linked to the building trade and we are only too aware of how that is struggling at the moment...but life continues and so does scrapping :)

This is the first time I felt able to sit down and do some crafting, I was finding it a little bit of a challenge concentrating on anything other than Jay being out of work, but thanks to some lovely friends over on UKScrappers I can smile again and know that something better is around the corner and that people do care how you feel and can always bring a smile to your face...you know who you are and I love you crazy mad fools loads xxx

So this is my youngest son desperately trying to learn the art of skimming, something me nor him can actually do and this photo was taken 2 years ago...I think its a stupid man thing because Jay and Kyle can both skim, we prefer the more technical way of plopping stones and seeing how big our splash is lol.

I used mainly BG Mellow range because its gorgeous and just screams outdoor at you, some Rootbeer Thickers for some of the title the rest was cut on the Robo, my flowers were made using my scallop punches in 1", 2" and 3" then screwed up several times while I was trying to get my head around Bonekickers, never again lol, lightly inked and put together with a brad, some stitching and a Prima birdie inked to finish off.

Right time I shut up before your eyelids get heavy...look after yourselves and never take anything for granted not even your job however much you hate it xxx

Top Ten

2008-07-01T17:51:00.003+01:00

I wonder if you were asked this question for a CJ what would your Top 10 be...I mulled around with men, films and songs but everytime the list grew beyond 10 and I couldn't make up my mind which to ditch and to keep lol. Eventually while cleaning the windows I had an idea, my Top 10 of Stash, there are certain things that always seem to make an appearance on my layouts and it meant no photographs as my Epson is crying out for a drink but at £32 a time it can die of dehydration for the time being lol.

So theme picked, just need the embellishments which I decided to keep red, black and white and I have lots of red because its just the best colour ever invented. I choose in no particular order...blossoms, PP, Bazzill, punches, stamps, ribbons, rub-ons, brads, buttons and sewing...I just hope the owner approves of my choices.

Here it is in its glory, I do love the red, black and white combo.

Right I have a meeting at the High School in a bit for when my eldest goes in September, quite looking forward to going as last time I walked through the corridors it was in 1989 :o I loved my School years especially High School so I only hope Kyle has as much fun as I did.

I've also slow roasted at the School Sports Day today, well worth it as they both came home champions and I escaped the dreaded Parents sprint, well I say sprint it was more like a slow crawl lol.

Enjoy the sunshine, its bloody gorgeous isn't it :) xxx

My First Baby Card

2008-06-26T14:34:00.003+01:00

One of my team mates, Vix aka Chunky Munky over on UKScrappers gave birth to a baby girl called Molly on Tuesday evening and so I just had to make a pretty pink baby card to welcome the new arrive to the world of paper crafting.

I started with a pink card and matted on some Basic Grey Sugared patterned papers...I adore the one with the giraffes on, its so cute. I was going to use a Magnolia stamped image of Tingla but I matted the paper too far down and couldn't fit her sitting on the ribbon without her head popping over the top lol so I gave up on that. Instead I stamped the greeting 'Congratulations' Circle of Friends stamp set from Stampin' Up and matting it several times on co-ordinating paper and card stock using my beloved scallop punches, ran a velvet ribbon across and tied a little bow with a white safety pin through the knot for a finishing touch...now its just got to be posted and weighed because its a little chunky with all my layering and you never know nowadays with Royal Mail!!

Until I craft again xxx

Doodling

2008-06-24T18:22:00.006+01:00

My youngest son loves nothing more than playing on the PS2 but on those rare days you might also find him doodling in Paint on the computer and this was on one of those occasions.

October 2006 and it was howling down with rain and hadn't stopped so off he disappeared and was very quiet, always a bad sign lol, so I went to investigate and he'd been creating a picture of our two cats at that time, Pablo and Lacie...I immediately knew it was going to be one of those moments that would be scrapped eventually and here we are June 2008 and I've finally got round to making a page about it.

I didn't want to change the photo to black & white but I really didn't have any papers to match so I foolishly decided to colour in some Doodlebug paper, well I started at 9pm thinking it wouldn't take me long...oh how wrong was I and was still colouring in at 10.30pm but I stuck with it and eventually loved the overall feel that the colouring produced.

I kept to the doodling theme by adding a border around the edge with the Marvy Le Plume pens in the red, orange and blue and doodled my own title...I choose the colours to match with the cat bows and his name. I added three brads in opposite corners again in the three colours, added a Doodlebug frill for the date and a crayon button at the end of the title. Printed off his picture and a smaller scale and used a paperclip to anchor to the page, I also used to the Spiral Bound punch for Stampin' Up to look like it was ripped from a book and after a hard nights scrapping I'm really pleased with how its turned out and not a blossom in sight...amazing lol.

Take care xxx

Snow Dome!!

2008-06-22T14:57:00.003+01:00

OK steady yourself, I know we're in June...albeit we might as well be in December weather wise but this is a layout I did of Kyle when we went to the Snow Dome in Tamworth back in 2006. I have to say it cost a fortune and while they did get to play in the snow, it wasn't for very long with folks hurrying you along and so for £60 we had all of 15 minutes in the snow and then we had to sit through two episodes of Brum...now if ever there was a kids programme I refused to have on in my house it was that so at this point I was really wet, cold, and bloody annoyed I had to sit and watch it (they could have left me in the snow lol)...anyway I did manage to get this shot and thought I'd better scrap it to be a constant reminder never to suggest going again lol.

I used Bazzill card stock, BG Blitzen & Flourish stamps, Thickers vinyl alphabet, KI Memories Ice Candy, Jolees snowman, MM Snowflakes eyelets and some opal Liquid Pearls to hide the fact that again Heidi Swapp rub-ons let me down and I had to make amends...getting really brassed off with naff rub-ons, anyway its finished and I like the end result even though I didn't like Snow Dome!!

Until next time xxx