Scrapbooking in my Sleep

Apologies......

2012-01-19T14:29:00.000Z

Apologies to everyone that Ive not posted lately but Ive been poorly and havent been able to do as much as Id like.
Back to the doctors tomorrow so hopefully I will be on the mend soon.

Hope everyone has a nice weekend :-)

Just For Fun - Looking to the Past

2012-01-06T00:02:00.000Z

This is my entry for this weeks Just For Fun

which is Looking to the Past.

I chose a photo of my Mam form the 60's outside of her first home

after she got married. This was the house I was born in

it was actually a two storey upstairs flat and my Mam still says to this day it was the best

house she ever lived in although shes in a 4 bedroomed detatched now lol.

I sprayed the base cardstock with perfect pearls and it gave it a slight

sheen

I also sprayed a touch of it on these dark red flowers

I added my title , a stamped eye and a a quote

Apologies its a quick entry Ive been busy of late

but didnt want to miss joining in

Thanks for stopping by and for leaving a comment its much appriciated

Happy New Year Everyone and Its Blog Candy Time Again

2012-01-02T18:06:00.000Z

Happy New Year everyone hope its a good one for you all.

Christmas has been quiet for me this year but I havent been well

so it was a refreshing change.

Its blog candy time again over at the Scrapbook Garden

so why not pop over and get yourself entered into the draw.

Its really easy and if you visit and leave a comment every day you can get

an entry every day into the draw, how easy is that?

I cant wait to get back crafting again after having a couple of weeks off

although I know my mojo will be hard to find , it always is when ive had

some time off.

The Craft shows will be beginning again soon and Im sure they will have some

great bargains as usual.

In the meantime pop over to the Scrapbook Garden website and take advantage of the bargains to be had there.

Thanks for stopping by , as always its much appriciated

Just For Fun - Its Spring time

2011-12-11T00:12:00.000Z

This is my entry for this weeks Just for Fun

which is , Its Spring Time.

I love Pansys and Violas and when all the daffodils

start flowering I find myself looking for the little violas

i adore the colours the beautiful purples , lilacs and touches of yellow on their petals .

Ive had this sizzix die for some time, it was one of the first

i ever bought , yet I hardly use it . So I thought this was perfect for this challenge.

I started by cutting out a selection of colours

Then layering the different shades of the petals on a base flower

I took some cream cardstock and matted it onto gold

and added some gold ribbon across the bottom

I used a nib dipped in distress ink to highlight the petals

Added my sentiment and attached 3 flower heads

to my card

I added some purple cardstock to lift it a little

And thats my card finished.

Hope everyones plans for christmas are going well , its certainly very busy here

I dont know where the time is going too.

Thanks for stopping by my blog and as usual its much appriciated .

Hope you all have a lovely week. Please leave a comment so that I know

you have stopped by , thanks .

Just for Fun - Winter

2011-12-03T19:30:00.000Z

Sorry Ive not been able to join in these last

couple of weeks , life has just gotten in the way.

This is my entry for this weeks Just For Fun

which is Winter.

I really love this lampost its one of my favourite dies at the moment.

I love the thought of wintery nights and snowflakes falling around

the glow of the street lights ( when im inside the house of course).

I used a silver pearl dabber to colour up the navy cardstock

before adding the lampost and snowflakes .

Hope you are all having a lovely weekend

thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment as always

its much appriciated .

The Scrapbook Garden - Christmas Cards

2011-11-28T08:45:00.002Z

This is my 7th and final project for this months design kit for

The Scrapbook Garden.

A couple of cards and Im really pleased with the results.

I used the last scalloped square left over from the other projects

that i had painted with the gold dabber.

Made a traditional Santa with a rubber stamp and some red

glitter embossing powder

I cut pieces of Bazzill Rain Forest for the backing for each card

and then cut pieces of Authentique 'Awe' and 'Curiosity'

and added it to the dark green bazzill rain forest.

Then adding the nested scalloped and the embossed santa

to the first one with some holly punched pieces with red stickles glitter berries

and a strip from the Authentique Noteables and finished it off

with some ribbon

For the 2nd card i added a stamped vintage car and a stamped christmas tree

with the noteables strip and punched holly as before and a small red bow

to finish it off.

And thats my 2 cards .....

As Ive now put up my Christmas decorations since the first post

for this months projects I though you might like to see some

photos of the things Ive made as they now are mixed in with

my decorations

The bird house hanging in the tree.......

The wooden blocks on my window sill.......

The advent drawers and the letter 'J' ..........

The little angel on my mantlepiece........

Everything looks lovely and of course the cards will go to someone special

and the gift bag will house a gift for someone too.

Thank you for stopping by my blog as always its much appriciated .

I hope you have enjoyed reading these posts as much as ive enjoyed working with this kit and sharing what Id made with it.

Thanks again and have a lovely week.

The Scrapbook Garden- Wooden Blocks

2011-11-25T08:45:00.002Z

This is my 6th project for this months design kit for

The Scrapbook Garden

I love making these decorated wooden blocks , and with these papers

these ones have to be some of my favourites.

I started with 3 pieces of wood , quite similar in size to each other.

( Thank you to my friend Pauline , who keeps me supplied with wood

from her wood store for her fire)

As I was covering the back and front with paper I only applied

gesso to the edges of the blocks.

Next using my gold dabber i painted the edges

Next I added double sided tape to all of the edges back and front

Using plain Bazzill Kraft I covered all of the backs of the blocks

The fronts I covered with Authentique 'Curiosity' 'Awe' and 'Surprise'

trimming the edges with a craft knife.

Next using some double sided tape I attached some ribbon from my own stash

Once again using the gold dabber I coloured the remaining

Tando scalloped nested squares

Using the smallest one ( the other I kept for my next project)

I placed it over a red embossed December calendar stamp

I attached a punched out holly leaf cut from Bazzill Rainforest

and a drop of red stickles to make the berries.

Using the strip quotes from the Noteables

I added them beneath the ribbon

Using some rubber stamps of my own

which fitted the Christmas theme I added them to the blocks

as finishing touches

And there you have it.

I enjoyed making these and they are really easy .

They make very cheap ornaments and its a great way of using up the scraps from other projects.

Thanks for stopping by my blog, as always its much appriciated .

Hope you have a lovely weekend , I seriously need to rest Im beginning to feel burnt out.

Dont forget to pop over to the Scrapbook garden

to be in with a chance of being entered into the blog candy draw ,

and why not pop over to the online store and start making a wishlist for Christmas

( just in case Santa needs some ideas of what you would like)

The Scrapbook Garden- Square Gift Bag

2011-11-21T08:50:00.003Z

This is my 5th project from this months design kit for

The Scrapbook Garden

My friend Shelagh kindly gave me this template to make these fab little gift bags.

The template is too large to be able to cut 2 pieces from one 12 x 12 paper

but as these papers went so well together it seemed fine to do a plain back and a contrasting front. I used Bazzill Ruby Slipper and also Authentique Curiosity

I folded the paper on the score lines ( both pieces are identical)

Then punched holes in the top of both panels ready to accept the ribbon

which was from my own stash.

Using double sided tape i placed some on all of the edges

and attached both pieces to each other

I added the ribbon and secured it on the inside of the bag.

Its made a lovely little bag which was very quick to make.

Im sure I will be making alot more of these in all different colours .

If you havent been along to The Scrapbook Garden yet

pop over and enter the draw for the blog candy which runs until Christmas

Eve this time, and if you visit everyday you will get an entry every day into the draw.

What could be easier?

And dont forget to pop along to the online store

check out the new products theres some lovely items

at some great prices , so be sure not to miss out.

Thanks for stopping by and for leaving a comment , its much appriciated

Have a good week, and Happy Crafting

Scrapbook Garden - Golden Angel

2011-11-19T08:50:00.001Z

This is my 4th project for this months design kit from

The Scrapbook Garden

Its a cute little angel which was so easy to make

Its a 3D Angel from Tando

I laid out all of the pieces on my non stick craft sheet

I used a gold dabber to colour the base, halo and wings

Covering one side of all of the pieces with the

paper 'Surprise' from Authentique

Once covered i used an emery board to tidy up the edges

]

Next I used the gold dabber and coloured the reverse

side with the dabber

First I assembled the 2 pieces with the wings attached

And then slotted the others into place

Then using the gold dabber , dabbed all the edges with gold

Placed on the halo and thats it

It went together in a moment and will grace my Christmas tree in a couple of weeks time.

Thanks alot for stopping by my blog and for leaving a comment its much appriciated.

The Scrapbook Garden - Advent Drawers

2011-11-15T08:50:00.001Z

This is my 3rd project for this months design kit

for the Scrapbook Garden

Its a set of advent drawers made with 24 matchboxes .

I started by emptying out all the matches into a tub.

I have no idea what i will use all of the matches for but ive

enough to light my candles for years (although no box to strike them on now)

next I used some red acrylic paint and painted the inside of each drawer

and the end that was to be the front of the drawer with the red paint.

I must admit it felt a bit like a Blue Peter special and

unfortunately I didnt have some Id made earlier

as they used to have.

next I took all the outers of the boxes and glued them together

in groups of 3's.

Making a note to keep all of the sandpaper edges on one side.

Next I used a sheet of chipboard and cut myself a base and a top

just slightly bigger than the boxes.

Next i used the largest of a scalloped nested square from a Tando pack of 3

I used a gold dabber to colour it down

Next I covered my base chipboard with some

Bazzill Ruby Slipper

a delicious colour which went perfectly against the gold dabber

coloured square.

Next using my hole punch i added small brads to the front of the drawers

to look like little handles.

Next i added some strength to the boxes with double sided

tape before covering one side with

the Authentique paper Surprise

You only need to cover one side as thats all

that will show when they are joined together

After glueing the boxes together i added some double sided tape

to give extra strength all around the outer edge of the formation.

Doing the same with the next level i added

double sided tape to the inner of the structure

so that when joined together there was double strength

tape on each bottom and top

Layering them up, as they came together they

became very sturdy.

I added the top , using the

Authentique paper Expectation

I printed some teeny numbers on my computer

1 - 24 and cut them out. Although you cant see on the photo

I matted them onto French Vanilla cardstock to give added

strength and make them a bit more hard wearing.

I was quite pleased with my little set of drawers

although I wont be taking orders as they took 9 hours to make.

But i was very pleased at just how strong they were not at all

flimsy which was what I was worried about at the beginning.

I added a couple of Authentique noteables to the sides just to give some extra detail

and they will stand out with my Christmas decorations pride of place.

I did enjoy myself and it took me right back to my youth , making homemade

furniture for my dolls , although my dolls never had anything as grand as this .

Thanks for stopping by my blog and for leaving a comment

as always its much appriciated .

JFF - Whats your favourite colour?

2011-11-12T10:35:00.000Z

This is my entry for this weeks Just For Fun

which is 'Whats your favourite colour' ?

Mine is purple but at the moment im loving this turqouise colour too

and they both go so well together.

I started out with a basic flat wooden frame , which was a

birthday gift and its been sitting waiting to be altered for a while

and I thought it was perfect for this project.

I took some card and made templates for the frame

A separate one for the width and length

Then shaped them around the frame to get the card template creased

I took some lengths of foil tape that i had in my drawer for ages

and cut out 4 pieces using the templates i had made.

2 from each one.

Next i used some odd chipboard letters to make the word PARIS

it didnt matter that they didnt match as they were going to be hidden.

I added the tape to the frame and used a childs rolling pin to smooth it out

as i dont have a brayer

When i got to the wording i used some kitchen towel and pressed

the adhesive foil tape around the letters to allow the shapes to

show through

I used 3 alcohol inks to just dab all around the edge of the frame

not forgetting to do the inner and outter edges also.

I kept my applicator in the same position so the

design repeated itself so that i didnt loose the colours.

When i had finished i rubbed the letters with a little blending solution to remove

the ink from the wording , I then used a soft cloth to buff that up.

Against the coloured background the wording shines beautifully.

I need to find a better 'PARIS' photo to go inside though, I have plenty

but for now i just popped in a snap i had on my desk and a couple of quotes

I love my frame and i think i may make some for gifts

Thanks for stopping by and for leaving a comment its much appriciated ,

have a lovely weekend whatever you are doing.

Scrapbook Garden- Birdhouse Tree Decoration

2011-11-11T08:45:00.003Z

This is my 2nd project for this months design kit for the

Scrapbook Garden

I made this little house last year for Halloween and fancied

trying it in a slighty different capacity, so the spooks and ghosts,

witches and pumpkins have gone and ive made a cute little birdhouse instead.

With just a couple of minor moderations

I cut out the main part of the house in Bazzills trusty

French Vanillia this cardstock never fails to work with all manor of projects ,

a must to keep in your kit.

I scored the edges once it had been cut, and folded them all ready to glue

Next I ran the front through the cuttlebug to get a circle cut from it

due to the shape of the card it wouldnt go right through the cuttle bug

so i reversed ever so carefully and it worked.

I covered a piece of thick card from my stash with some

Curiosity paper from Authentique

a lovely contrast to the french vanillia .

I added double sided tape to the bottom of my house

and fastened it to its base.

Next I used some Bazzil Ruby Slipper

a gorgeous rich christmas berry red , perfect for this.

I used the crop a dile and added 2 eyelets either side of the roof fold.

Next added my ribbon and secured it inside with 2 knots.

Some german scrap to the edge of the roof to finish it off

I then glued the roof into place

I added some Prima Flower Market North Country Flowers

to each side

and some punched holly pieces using the Bazzills red slipper

and also Bazzills Rain Forest both perfect christmasy shades.

I also popped on a 'HoHoHo' from the

Authentique Noteables

a fab little collection of elements which match in perfectly.

I used some green distress ink to give a worn mossy feel to the edges

of the french vanillia main body just to tone it down a little.

I did it quite messy hoping it looked like a natural bird house.

And thats it, it will hang on my Christmas tree and fit in perfectly with the other decorations.

Thanks for stopping by my blog and for leaving a comment its much appriciated.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Pop over to the Scrapbook Garden and have a look at all the bargains.

Scrapbook Garden- J is for Jaqi

2011-11-07T08:45:00.001Z

This is my 1st project for this months Design Kit

for the Scrapbook Garden

I really thought I had died and gone to heaven when I opened the pack this time.

truly beautiful papers from Authentique.

This month Ann asked if I could make something other than

scrapbook pages , a great idea as it goes to show that these fabulous papers can be used for lots of other projects and not just for the scrapbooker out there.

I must admit though........the ideas started flowing for layouts instantly

but i quickly started to be inspired to make other things too once I had a word with myself hehehe

I decided for my first project I would work with a lovely chunky wooden

letter 'J' that my friend Pauline bought for me for my birthday last year, and I have

been waiting for the right papers to come along to do it justice.

Ive seen these letters around in a few places and they look great altered in many ways.

I started by cutting the strip for the depth of the letter

out of this gorgeous paper called 'Curiosity'

a lovely rich cream and green checked paper.

The quality of these papers is brilliant and they were a joy to work with.

I next added glue to the front of the letter and laid it onto the paper.

For the front I used 'Expectation' which matches beautifully.

I trimmed around the edge with my craft knife.

I didnt cover the back of the letter as its designed to be hung

on the wall although its chunky enough to stand on its own if need be.

Next i glued the inside and fitted the curiosity strip.

Did the same around the outside and across the base .

Next I sanded the edges to give a worn look which i then inked with distress ink

to give it a finishing touch.

Lastly I added some Prima Flower Market North Country Flowers

on the bottom corner.

Im really pleased with my letter and I am so glad I waited for these papers

as now I cant imagine it decorated in any other way.

My Christmas theme is red, green and gold, as Ive always

loved the traditional colours at christmas, so this is going to fit right in.

I cant wait to get my tree up now since ive been working with these papers ....

But I need to hang on a couple of weeks yet I think.

Thanks for stopping by my blog as always its much appriciated.

Pop over to the Scrapbook Garden blog and get yourself in with a chance

to win that fab blog candy its easy to enter.

And why not pop over to their online shop and check out all the goodies and bargains that they have there too.

Have a great week and more projects will follow soon with this months kit.

New Blog Candy at the Scrapbook Garden

2011-11-01T12:42:00.000Z

More fantastic blog candy this month over at the Scrapbook Garden

the usual easy rules apply so dont miss out .

Pop over there now to be in with a chance.

Also check out the amazing bargains and fabulous papers and other goodies over at their online store

Sorry Ive been away from my blog these last couple of weeks ive been mega busy

and have added an extra day to my working week for a short time.

But I havent stopped crafting , Im still working on my sons wedding album along with cards and mini books etc.

I will be posting again later in the week

Happy crafting :-)

The Versatile Blogger Award

2011-10-03T17:45:00.000+01:00

Thank you to Ann at The Scrapbook Garden

for the Versatile Blogger Award.

I need to pass this on to 3 other people so I nominate

Denise , my good friend who has been a blogging friend now for years

and picks me up in an instant when im down.

Florence , who always leaves comments on my posts and is very supportive of my work.

Karen, who never ceases to amaze me at all of the fantastic creations she comes up with , a true inspiration.

Thank you to all of you .

Now I need to tell you 7 things about myself.

1. I have 3 gorgeous Children and 3 gorgeous Grandchildren.

2. Crafting is my life , I love it , it gets me through life and keeps a smile on my face, its the best therapy ever.

3. I adore anything vintage and am busy working on a set of vintage family albums.

4. My favourite film is ' The Prince of Tides' starring Nick Nolte

a moving film with lots beneath the surface .

5. My favourite books are autobiograhpys and its a tough choice between

Barry Sheenes Autobiography and David Essex ' A Charmed Life' .

6. Im single now but live in hope of meeting a man who owns a string of craft shops

( my idea of heaven lol)

7. My favourite City is Paris, which will always hold a special place in my heart

although I would like to visit Italy .

Hope the 3 people I have nominated can pass this award on themselves to other

fellow bloggers .

Thanks for stopping by my blog.

Leave a comment so that I know you have stopped by .

Blog Candy at the Scrapbook Garden

2011-10-03T16:52:00.000+01:00

Well its the beginning of the month again and that can mean only one thing

its Blog Candy Time at the Scrapbook Garden

Pop over and get yourself in with a chance of being included in the draw,

its really easy and im sure you will agree the candy is delicious.

Good luck everyone hope one of you are lucky to win .

JFF - Anything but a card

2011-09-30T10:13:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks Just For Fun

which is anything but a card.

I have chosen one of the recent pages from the wedding album i am busy

putting together.

Although the page is mainly showing the bridesmaids as the happy couple

passed by while confetti was being thrown, there are 2 small heart

shapes on the left of the page.

One shows my grandson Joe gathering up all of the confetti and the other

a formation of planes flying passed as they left the church.

It was the same day as the Sunderland International Air Show

and we had joked earlier in the day wondering if we would get a fly past as both of my sons used to be in the air cadets.

We giggled when we did actually got just that , as we were having photos taken later outside the

Beamish Country Park Hotel before the reception we had another one .

Thanks for stopping by my blog its much appriciated, leave me a comment so that I know you have passed by, have a lovely weekend.

Scrapbook Garden Cards

2011-09-26T08:30:00.000+01:00

This is my last post for this months kit from

The Scrapbook Garden

I have made a set of cards with the bits and bobs left over from the beautiful

Prima Printery Collection and Two Scoops Papers along with

some Dovecraft cardstock that i used for the previous 3 layouts.

I decided to make a border down the edge of this card using the

Prima Printery Clear Rubber stamp - Keys

its a fab little stamp which gives a good clear image and its a

bargain at only £1.99 a must buy item if ever I saw one.

I masked off a section with ordinary masking tape

and then stamped my image down between the 2 rows of tape

using Distress Ink

Next I added some strips of Two Scoops and Dovecarft cardstock in wicker

and a monogram from the Prima Printery Monogram paper,

a sentiment and small left over piece this time the reverse side of

Emperor across the corner.

This one i cut some die cut flowers and added a flower from

the Prima Marri Collection Botanical Flowers

Similar idea here, the Two Scoops comes in amazing rich colours

and it sands beautifully revealing the additional colour beneath.

This one is a more delicate shade , I used the reverse side of the

Monogram 12 x 12 which is a gorgeous shade of duck egg blue and cream, again

I added one of the flowers from the botanical collection.

Im pleased with the set of cards I have made.

There was no waste from any of these papers

I was able to use even the teeniest of scraps . They are delicious papers

and would say they are a must for any kit.

If you havent seen the range at the Scrapbook Garden

why not pop over now and take a peek, you wont be dissapointed

theres some beautiful papers there and at fantastic prices too.

Also dont forget to visit their blog to be in with a chance of

winning this months super blog candy. Its so easy to be included in the draw

and well worth it.

Hope you all had a lovely weeked and Im looking forward to getting some crafting done this week when I hope to get some more of my Sons wedding album done .

Thanks for stopping by my blog , leave me a comment so I know you have passed by

Thank you and Happy Crafting .

JFF - A shape with more than 4 sides

2011-09-24T10:16:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks Just for Fun

which is a shape with more than 4 sides.

Its my second attempt , I dont know what I was thinking yesterday

I used those sugary papers and before i knew where i was

I had added a little mouse and ended up with a cutie card ( which isnt allowed)

So I set too last might and made another on the same principle

but this time made it with darker papers and an image stamped with distress inks.

Its made a very grungy looking card which i love , a completely different

feel to yesterdays even though its exactly the same

Thanks for stopping by my blog and for leaving a comment its much appriciated .

Hope you have a lovely weekend.

Cutie Card

2011-09-23T12:07:00.001+01:00

I started by making my little cupcakes

Folded my card and added some coloured paper

Then my large label

stamped the smaller one with this cute little mouse

and added my cakes and a bow

Next added a strip of cupcake ribbon and some craftworks candi pieces

to hold the shape

Its made a sweet little card , very sugary colours but perfect for a child.

Thanks for stopping by my blog , your comments are much appriciated.

I hope you have a lovely weekend whatever you are doing .

Happy Birthday to Joan Jarrett

2011-09-21T08:30:00.000+01:00

Happy Birthday today to Joan Jarrett.

Joan is a fan of Coronation Street so her Granddaughter Natalie asked

me to make this card for her.

I had fun putting it together and used some of my own photos of the Street

when we were there a few years ago and did the tour.

Natalie gave me a picture of Joan which I cut around the table and Joan herself

so that I could place it in front of the bar at the Rovers to make it look as though Joan

was sat right there, enjoying a birthday drink.

Hope Joan likes her card , and hope she has a fab 65th Birthday

Thanks for stopping by my blog as always its much appriciated

The Scrapbook Garden - Grandas Ledger

2011-09-19T08:45:00.001+01:00

This is my 3rd layout this month using my design kit for

The Scrapbook Garden

This has to be my favourite layout this month but I imagine thats because it features my Dad .

Its coming up to the 7th anniversary of his death and i still miss him very much.

Ive created many pages featuring my Dad and to be honest love them all .

This one features 2 of my favourite photos of my Dad with my children.

He adored his grandchildren , as they did him and hes a huge miss in all of our lives.

When I saw this paper I knew straight away what my title would be before id even picked the photos to use.

'Theres no charge for love in Grandas Ledger'

My Dad did alot of book keeping due to his job so this was perfect.

This time finding a sketch to use wasnt so easy, so i decided to create my own

as the ideas flowed to easily.

The 12 x 12 I used was from the

Prima Printery Collection and its called Love Ledger

its the most beautiful colour of a delicate duck egg blue and it has tones of cream

and brown, its absolutely gorgeous.

It has the most perfect quote in the top corner

which was an inspiration in itself.

I challenge anyone to read this quote and not instantly know

who to scrapbook about on this paper, its fab.

I added my subtitle using Dovecraft 12 x 12 in Wicker

which matched perfectly .

It seemed to blend in rather than stand out which was the look I was going for

as I wanted the main title to stand out , but all the same wanted this part to be there in the readers mind. I feel Ive achieved that .

I added a strip across the bottom of the page which was the reverse side

of the Prima Printery Collection - Emperor

another gorgeous paper .

I always find it hard to know which side to use as they are all so lovely.

Guess the answer is to buy a few sheets , then thats the problem sorted.

I matted my photos on Bazzills French Vanilla

which i use alot as it goes with everything its a beautiful cream.

The photo of my Dad with the boys was taken when my boys were just young

before my daughter was born, I love this photo and you can tell by the look on all of their faces

how close they were.

The next picture is years later , my daughter with my Dad

dropping the crumbs from a near empty cornflakes packet into the canarys cage.

My daughter gets her love of animals from my Dad as he had experience with horses , dogs

and birds. He also had alot of patience, and never more so than with the children.

I cut my journalling tags from the bazzill french vanilla

and then stamped them with the

Printery Clear Stamp - Keys

i love rubber stamps and these ones give a great clean image first time.

I cut tags also and stamped them in the same way.

After laying everything out I added the main title

And thats my layout all done.

To be honest this one may end up in a box frame as I dont really want it hidden away in an album as I love it so much Id like to be able to see it all of the time.

To me this is what scrapbooking is all about, creating something which keeps those priceless memories alive i wish i had twice as many hours in everyday and yet id still

want more. I cant imagine life without scrapbooking its the most amazing therepy there is.

Thanks for stopping by my blog, as always its much appriciated .

Have a lovely week , whatever you may be doing.

JFF - Shades of Green, Uncle Eddie

2011-09-15T13:34:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks Just for Fun which is 'Shades of Green'

I cant begin to tell you how pleased I was as yesterday i just recieved my order from

The Scrapbook Garden of some delicious papers amongst which some of them were green.

The delicious new range of Two Scoops papers is gorgeous, I thought the colours looked fab on the computer but they are even better close up.

This sketch was featured on the Scrapbook Garden blog yesterday and again today

after being one of the sketches used by another designer from our team

Jules over at Scrapping Mojo

its a sketch from Pencil Lines, i liked the look of it and thought id give it a try for this challenge.

I decided on another of my vintage photos , one of my Dads Uncle Eddie.

He loved his garden, so green felt as though it was a good colour for a layout

featuring a picture of him.

This green Two Scoops paper was perfect as the little flowers

showed up well once it was sanded , yet I didint feel as though just

because it had flowers on it was a femine card stock.

I had a large tag which i smeared with glue and then rubbed with distress

inks to turn it green once the glue was dry

I added a stamped image of a gentleman with a cane, Uncle Eddie used a cane

as he had injured his back and had a long road to recovery.

Then after choosing various shades of green cardstock I layered up my design

adding the tag on which I had added a quote too also.

My journalling, Eddie was my Paternal Grandmothers Brother, my Dad was

named after him.

I added his name and some cherries in place of the flowers

on the original sketch, not sure if you can get green cherries

but his surname was Cherry , and the theme was 'shades of green'

so i decided to give it a whirl.

I sanded the edges of the two scoops to distress it a little

and added some craftworks candi pieces to all of the corners.

And thats my layout all done.

Thanks for stopping by my blog , its always much appriciated .

Its nearly the weekend so I hope you all have a nice time, Autumn is approaching fast

but the autumn colours are fab.

If you havent been to the Scrapbook Garden lately , pop along

theres some amazing goodies in stock

Design Kit - Scrapbook Garden - The Kells

2011-09-12T08:55:00.001+01:00

This is my 2nd layout for this months design kit from

The Scrapbook Garden

Its using a photo of my Mams cousin Amalia (this lady who used to be on the stage)

and her Husband Billy , who looks like hes having a laugh

whilst they are on a day out .

I used this sketch which was from

Scrapbooking Sketches Aussie Style

I must admit I found using a sketch a bit easier this time.

I cut out my half circles, punched a hole in them and added some ribbon.

Cut my strips of co ordinating paper from

Bazzill Two Scoops Black Cow

and also The Prima Printery Collection

Signature 12 x 12

I added my photo , and journalling

and a monogram 'K' for Kell from the

Prima Printery Collections 'Monogram' 12x12

I added my own little key charm as I had used the

Prima Printery Clear Stamp 'Keys'

on 2 of the circles which edged my paper strips .

All of the Bazzill Two Scoops was sanded to reveal the

gorgeous dotted effect .

And thats my layout complete.

Why not try the layout yourself and see how easy they are to follow, let me know if you do I would love to see your take on it too.

Thanks for stopping by my blog, as always its much appriciated

JFF - Timeless Vintage

2011-09-08T20:02:00.001+01:00

The challenge this week over at Just for Fun

is Timeless Vintage.

I decided to use this set of photographs of my

Grandmothers brother Dick ( Richard) who went to sea.

The photos show not only him, but one on deck on

HMS Northumberland which was one of the ships he served on ,

and another taken of the ship from the quayside.

The one on deck is fab, the detail is amazing , it really is brilliant and I am very lucky

to have such a wealth of family photographs.

Sadly Dick was killed at sea , like his father before him .

His parents were Benjamin and Isabella Smith .

They had 3 children before Benjamin was lost at sea, then Isabella only being young married

again to Eddie Cherry (my great Grandparents)

they went on to have another 2 children, one of which was my Grandmother.

Ive had this map paper for a while but because I have other Sea faring pictures

Ive cut it in half so I can get more use out of it.

I inked the edges with brushed corduroy distress ink to

give it that aged feel

Next I rubber stamped a lighthouse and sailing ship on the bottom of the 12 x 12.

Instead of matting my photos with a straight edge

I tore the edges and then inked them with the brushed corduroy too

I then rubber stamped and anchor in the same manor

And some compass corners too

I added some destination edging strip

A few seagulls here and there

My Journalling

I used the compass corners to make it look as though they were holding the

pictures in place

And thats it , all complete.

Im pleased with my layout and its another to add to the ever growing collection.

Thank you for stopping by my blog , as always its much appriciated.

Have a lovely weekend and if anyone is off to Harrogate this weekend

let me know and I will watch out for you .

Here comes the Bride.........

2011-09-07T19:03:00.000+01:00

This is one of the layouts from my Sons Wedding album

that ive been working on for the last few weeks.

Im sure for the amount of photos I have its gonna take about 3 albums at least

enough to keep me going a little while anyway .

Thanks for stopping by my blog its much appriciated.

Design Kit for The Scrapbook Garden - A Moment in Time

2011-09-05T08:55:00.002+01:00

This is my first design for the September design kit for

The Scrapbook Garden

I was drooling when I saw the papers this month,

after the design team having a holiday month in August I couldnt wait to get started

and couldnt have been happier with the papers in this kit.

I always have trouble deciding which side to use when i have double sided papers

and these were no exception as both sides were fabulous.

This month the design team are using Sketches for inspiration for the layouts that we produce.

Sketches are something Ive not used in the past , so that in itself was a challenge for me.

I found this sketch and decided to go with it , it was just listed in google images under sketches for scrapbooking

I decided to use this photo of my Aunt , it had a little damage to it ( looks like its been folded at some time or another) but i thought all the same it added to the vintage feel.

I matted it on the new Bazzill range called Two Scoops

I used a colour called Black Cow

Its gorgeous and its been designed to be sanded , torn, distressed, as well as inked

or embossed. Its a lovely textured 12 x 12 and the colour range is amazing

I used some light sandpaper to distress the edges after the matting.

I used some Dovecraft 12 x 12 in wicker as my

base, adding some Bazzill French Vanilla which is fast

becoming a personal favourite as it just seems to go with everything.

I added a metal charm on some ribbon

Next i added some Prima Printery Collection - Emperor

cut down to match the pieces on the sketch.

This is a gorgeous paper , the quality is fab, I really like this alot .

I cut myself some flowers in a selection of papers

the Back Cow two scoops, the Prima Emperor

next sanded the two scoops to reveal that gorgeous spotted

effect that shows through after sanding.

After adding my photo and the first big flower I added an 'A'

monogram also from the Prima Printery Collection called Monogram

a gorgeous sheet of all of the letters of the alphabet in Monograms.

A swirl , gave a nice feminine feel

and even more so with the addition of some

Prima Flowers - Marri Collection , Botanical

Next added my own metal clock face to carryon the time theme

My sub title

and main title

My journaling

and that was it all done. Ive used photos of this Aunt before so any regular visitors will remember she used to be on the stage hence some of the fab costumes she wears in alot of the pictures.

I hope you liked this layout, and maybe you will use the sketch and try it out for yourself. With your own image and choice of papers it will look very different im sure. It was certainly a challenge using a sketch but im glad i gave it a try .

Hope you all have a lovely week and happy crafting . Thanks for stopping by my blog and for leaving a comment as always its much appriciated.

JFF - Say it with Words

2011-09-02T16:36:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks

Just For Fun which is 'Say it with Words'.

I really like this quote and its a while since I used it.

I added some turquoise embossed card to the front of my card, and then added a vellum wrap around. I matted my quote on some deeper card and attached it

to the vellum.

I then added some flowers and a sentiment, and some black gemstones to the flower centres.

And thats it, I really like these colours at the moment.

Its an easy card this week as I was poorly last week and I

have eye strain, so Im limited to crafting in the afternoons only as thats

when i feel at my best until I get my new glasses which should be ready sometime in the week.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend , and thanks for stopping by my blog , as always

its much appriciated.

Spooktacular Blog Candy over at the Scrapbook Garden

2011-09-01T11:09:00.000+01:00

This months blog candy at the Scrapbook Garden

is spooktacular, why not pop over and take a peep and see what its all about.

You dont want to miss out on this fab collection of goodies.

JFF - Black, White and Silver

2011-08-20T10:36:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks Just for Fun

which is Black , White and Silver.

I used some gorgeous black A4 card which has the most beautiful silver

flourishes on it, however the silver is like mirror card and its picking up colours

as its been photographed.

I used an old favourite of mine a rubber stamped quote,

matted it on black cardstock and then silver foil

and then on a bigger piece of black.

Added some black and white spotted ribbon and a birthday wishes

quote and i ripped the bottom of the black card as i

like that finish.

And thats it a very simple card, but im loving all this black and white at the moment.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Thanks for stopping by my blog and for leaving a comment its much appriciated .

A Little Less Conversation

2011-08-13T08:26:00.000+01:00

If you have visited my blog regularly you will know that my Birthday

Aug 16th is also the anniversary of the death of Elvis Presley

who died on my 17th birthday back in 1977.

I was a fan back then and have continued to be so since then.

Since I started scrapbooking every year for my birthday ive made

a page to mark our shared date.

This is my page for this year.

I used some images from an art magazine and some rubber stamped images of my own to create my layout.

American Pop Art maestro Peter Mars has released a stunning portfolio

of four limited addition prints to mark what would have been the 75th birthday (Jan 8th)

of the King of Rock n Roll.

These were created in collaboration with Elvis Presley Enterprises, the aptly

named 'Elvis 75' collection has an equally fitting issue of just 75 hand signed prints each filled with phrases from Presleys 'A Little Less Conversation' song.

The prints exude Mars hallmark punchy Pop Art style mixed with a compelling Warhol

undertone and epitomise his endless facination with Elvis. He is a huge fan of his music.

His work caught the eye of Pricilla Presley and Elvis Presley Enterprises and he

was granted unparalleled access to a vast collection of Elvis photographs known and loved by the public as well as many from the private archives, having access to over 60,000 images of Elvis from Gracelands.

On Tuesday I will as usual , be sat at my tv from 5 am and I will still be there at 5am on wednesday morning. A full 24 hours of watching Elvis films and concerts, the champagne is chilling already. Its been a bit of a ritual for years now and I cant think of a better way to spend my birthday.

Thanks for stopping by my blog as always its much appriciated.

JFF - Black and White

2011-08-12T16:12:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks Just for Fun

which is Black and White.

I bought these fab stamps from Cutting Edge Crafts

and Ive been dying to try them.

I started by stamping this beautiful gate onto some acetate

my only complaint about this is that you only get one side

of the gate in the stamp set, you do however get the fence panels so you can

extend the fence , but i think it would have been better to have the opposite

gate too.

Next I stamped some roses, a quote and a tattoo stlye

heart and scroll onto some white card.

I used some silicone to attach the acetate to the white card

Added it to a black mount , added some white corners

and a Happy Birthday topper.

Im pleased with the finished result .

I think it has a bit of a Gothic feel to it, Im sure these stamps will be well used

Thanks for stopping by my blog , I hope you have a lovely weekend,

its back to work for me tomorrow after 3 weeks off...........sigh.......

(the quote is from a set of Tim Holtz stamps)

JFF - White on White

2011-08-05T19:53:00.001+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks

Just for fun , which is White on White

I feel like I cant get out of wedding mode.

Ive made a card and added a white embossed

paisley panel which I made with my cuttlebug.

Along the edge of it I added some white lace and some white

ribbon. I cut my topper and embossed it with a

Bride and Groom and added a teeny diamond over

their hands to symbolise a wedding ring.

Then finished it off with a few drops of liquid pearls around about.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend, I will hopefully be scrapbooking as Im still on holiday from work this weekend. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment as always its much appriciated

August Blog Candy at The Scrapbook Garden

2011-08-04T19:22:00.000+01:00

Dont miss out this month

Pop over to the Scrapbook Garden and check out this great blog candy giveaway

Whats even better , if you visit everyday , you get and entry into the draw everyday. What could be anymore simple than that? Go on....you know you want to.......Good Luck

Wedding Guest Book

2011-08-03T14:27:00.000+01:00

This is the Wedding Guest Book I made for my Sons recent

Wedding. Most of you who visit my blog regular

will know I dont like sewing, in fact it makes me

very short tempered and cross. I only ever sew if I really have too.

However my future Daughter - in - law asked if id make a guest

book for their Wedding and I didnt want to refuse........

So it was time to face my demons .

So with the very kind help of Karen from Scrapz

who very kindly kept me going in the right direction

with her excellent instructions and inspiration

I just about managed to get a book done that I hope fitted

the bill.

After covering my bind it all cover with wadding

I added some satin, lace and ribbon.

I buckle from Scrapz

The first few pages had headers to start off the book

in some kind of order

After that Guest pages all individually stamped

by hand with champagne glasses

I even used my Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen

dark purple lace that i was saving for a special occassion

which matched perfectly to the colour of the bridesmaid dresses.

I added some liquid pearls into the holes on the lace

and added a huge satin bow to the front cover

with some charms from Scrapz attached to it

Im hoping to get all caught up on my crafting as im on 2 weeks holiday now

and I hope to be joining in the challenge this week at JFF

Thanks for stopping by my blog and I hope you are having a lovely week

Yesterdays Family Wedding

2011-07-24T21:36:00.000+01:00

Yesterday my cousin Emma got married

I was working so I was unable to go but i made these

cards for her.

Its ages since i used the big embossing folders

Id forgotten how much i liked them, they gave the card a lovely texture .

I love this little stamp of the wedding cake too

its from the Scrapbook Garden. I used foam pads

to make it stand off the card .

Its a gorgeous rubber stamp and I know I will use it alot

I also stamped some champagne glasses on a tag

and attached it with some ribbon between the layers

to allow the tag to hang loose from the card.

I used mirror card behind the french vanilla

to add a little feel of bling and some

sentiment ribbon as a finishing touch

with some card toppers.

Hope you have all had a lovely weekend, its my Sons wedding next weekend so ive been busy
getting ready for that , decorating and the like, but i hope to get some serious crafting done after the wedding as i now have nearly 3 weeks off work.
Thanks for stopping by my blog its much appriciated as always

Maureen & Gordons Golden Wedding Anniversary

2011-07-21T22:18:00.000+01:00

Tomorrow sees the Golden Wedding Anniversary of

two very good Friends.

Maureen and Gordon Jarrett used to live in Boldon

and moved a few years ago to be near their Son Nigel and his lovely

family.

Many years ago they bought the house where I was born from my parents

and they have remained friends ever since.

Maureen has kindly commented on alot of my layouts

when ive linked them to facebook, so it was with this in mind

I thought it would be nice to do a layout this week with a photo

of Maureen and Gordon on it.

This is me with Maureen and Gordon

at the caravan , aprox 1963 / 4

I used my Dads old typewriter again for the journaling .

The top 2 photos on the layout are me with my Mam

taken on the same day .

These are the Golden Wedding cards I sent down for them , I hope they have a Wonderful Golden Wedding Anniversary , they are a lovely couple and I know they are missed by alot of people in Boldon. ( And Maureen makes the most amazing cakes.....I know they are missed too, she makes the most gorgeous wedding cakes and birthday cakes)

Have a lovely weekend everyone , Im busy getting ready for my Sons wedding next week so I apologise Ive not blogged much this last week. Im on nearly 3 weeks holiday starting on Monday so I fully intend getting plenty of crafting done in that time.

Have a nice weekend , and thanks for stopping by my blog :-)

The Scrapbook Garden - Golfing Cards

2011-07-10T08:55:00.001+01:00

Well day 7 is here and this is my 7th and last design for

this months kit 4 for the Scrapbook Garden

I Started with my card blank and the remainder of the

Bazzill Guacamole 12 x 12 cardstock

Next I added the remainder of my torn

Glitz Design Afternoon Muse - Carte Postal

( the reverse side) which was left over from my 2nd design

featured on Tuesday 5th

Harlequin always reminds me of golfing , and sat next to this guacamole cardstock

it reminded me even more of grass and golfing.

I have a harlequin rubber stamp so i stamped another

Bazzill Just the edge strip with some green ink and

layed it across the bottom

Next I took some bright blue embossing powder and

covered some thickers letters and set them with a heat gun

It gave them a fantastic shine , this has to be my favourite way to colour these thickers letters.

I added them to my card

And finished it off with some golfing embellishments

I also mad a smaller one in red using the same Bazzill edge

but inked in red and this time I inked the thickers letter with Distress ink

and added some golfing die cuts and a metal golfing tab

And thats it all done

Thank you so much for popping by this week and allowing me to show you what I have

made with this months design kit.

Its been a beautiful kit to work with and I have made some lovely layouts for my albums to add to my collection.

The blog candy on the Scrapbook Gardens blog will be there till the end of the month so keep popping by each day to get another entry .

And pop over anytime to their online store theres always fantastic bargains and some fab goodies to buy you can find it all here

Once again Thanks for stopping by my blog its always much appriciated

Happy Crafting :-)

The Scrapbook Garden - Angel

2011-07-09T08:55:00.005+01:00

This is my 6th layout for kit 4 for the

Scrapbook Garden

This layout shows my Mum and her Great granddaughter

(my granddaughter) Edie at only 3 days old.

Edie has her own scrapbook already and I have scan photos

and a collection of gorgeous pictures to fill the album.

I started with some Bazzill 12 x 12 Dotted Swiss cardstock

in the colour Salt I adore this dotted cardstock

its fab quality and comes in a gorgeous range of colours that

just seem to always look good.

As Edie is only little I wanted to keep this layout very simple

I added 4 squares of contrasting pink card & and paper.

But I set one off to the side.

I used a Tando Creative Word - Angel I left it white

but rubbed pale pink Stickles over it to make it sparkle

I laid the Angel title over the square I had set to one side

Added my photo without a matt as i didnt want to cover

too much of the squares, then added a quote

which i matted on some matching paper from last months kit

Basic Grey Sweet Threads paper pack

I added some abc's ( sorry this picture is blurred slightly)

And a cute little mouse stamp

And thats it, all done

Its made a simple , and quick layout which looks very sweet, just like Edie herself

Shes a little bigger now, heading for 7 months and doing really well.

Thanks for stopping by my blog as always its much appriciated , but Im reminding you again
check out the blog candy here its easy to enter and you can be included in the draw every day
just follow the instructions , and check out the goodies in the shop here and let me tell you they are not to be missed.

Have a nice weekend , happy crafting :-)

Scrapz New Blog, and Blog Candy up for grabs

2011-07-08T12:52:00.000+01:00

Over at the Scrapz new blog theres a lovely load of blog candy here for one lucky winner (draw will be made on 20th July).

To be in with a chance of winning all these lovely goodies please can you FOLLOW their blog, LIKE their facebook page, mention the blog candy on your blog and /or facebook page and add your details to the Mr Linky on the Scrapz Blog (only UK residents to enter please).

Included is over 30metres of ribbon on a large hinged binding ring.

8 rubber stamp plates (including Lost Coast Designs - Praying Angel Rubber Stamp and 7 Innovative Stamp Creations plates as pictured)

6 Diamante ribbon buckles

8 Key tassels

K&Co Chipboard Tag embellishments

Imagination Project Chipboard Save the Date Coasters

Good Luck everyone

The Scrapbook Garden - Family Wedding

2011-07-08T08:55:00.000+01:00

This is my 5th layout from design kit 4

for the Scrapbook Garden

Its a while since I did a double page layout and I forgot just how much I like doing them.

Sometimes if you have a selection of photos relating to one event

its hard to choose which one makes it to the scrapbook.

By doing a double page layout it enables you to get more images onto the layout .

I had 3 photos of this wedding but 2 of them were very similar

so in the end I decided to just use the 2 of them.

Its the Wedding of my Grandmothers cousin Hannah Cain

who was in the Salvation Army and was married in her Army uniform instead of a wedding dress.

Another example of how the times have changed

as even todays weddings in uniform are very elaborate occasions.

Looking at the pictures there were no signs of lace or wedding extras that you normally see

so i decided to go with a darker more plain layout.

I started with the Bordeaux cardstock 12 x 12 from Dovecraft

its a lovely rich colour, I teamed it up with the

Glitz Design Afternoon Muse - Block

which contrasted perfectly.

I cut the 12 x 12 in half and then diagonally to get the large corner pieces

Then adding some Prima 12 x 12

paper from the Botanical collection called 'My Love'

this paper was left over from my first design kit

I made up the 2nd side to match the first

I used Thickers for the word Family in the title

and inked it with Distress ink to give it that cracked look which I love

I then used the Prima Botanical collection paper

for the remainder of the title

I inked the heart as I felt it needed something

lovely dovey on it seeing as it was a wedding

I cut some tags from the Bazzill French Vanilla

12 x 12 and embossed them with a wedding cake and some wedding bells

instead of using a brad in the top of the tag I added

a couple of lillies , Hannah was carrying Lillies in her boquet

and although a slightly different shape to this lily i thought it matched in ok.

some champagne glasses , 2 love birds, my photos matted in the Prima

paper and then the french vanilla and my journaling.

and thats it........

I enjoyed making the double page , and it really helps to fill up an album if you have alot to do.
Thanks again for stopping by my blog , dont forget the blog candy over at
The Scrapbook Garden and remember to check out the bargains at the online shop here as theres too much you could be missing if you dont .........

The Scrapbook Garden- Dance Night

2011-07-07T08:55:00.003+01:00

This is my 4th layout for kit 4 from

the Scrapbook Garden

I had this picture of my Mam and Dad, my Uncle Tom ( mams brother)

his wife my Auntie May and her brother Ronnie Lavery (who were

both also my dads cousins)

They were at the Miners Hall in Boldon at a dance.

The Miners hall has gone now, knocked down years ago but

at one time was somewhere for the people who lived around about to go

for dances , weddings , or parties in general.

I remember going there as a child and it was huge inside

(well it felt like it at the time, maybe it was because i was young)

For this layout I used

Glitz Design Afternoon Muse - Banner

but the reverse side. The other side is fab and its always at this point i wish

I had 2 sheets of a particular paper, I often buy 2 sheets for that purpose.

Anyway this side won this time.

Its got all these fab music notes on it just perfect for a dance night photo.

I also used a Bazzill Just the Edge strip

inked down with Distress Ink to blend in with the paper

I used a music note punch and some black cardstock

which contrasted well.

I used Thickers for the 'Dance Night' title which

I embossed with Black Embossing powder

which gave the letters a finish which looked like patent leather

which reminded me of dance shoes.

I matted my journaling on some

Basic Grey Sweet Threads paper from last months kit

( this paper pack has gone for miles and is well worth having in your kit)

and then black card to make it match in with the rest.

I then added a rubber stamp party girl in a glass

and a small wallet cut from black card , inside the wallet i put some white card

on which i used the Tando Music Mask

from last months kit and some black soot distress ink

to colour it down.

I wanted to creat a dance card idea although I know they looked

nothing like this at all. I then added some white music notes

to it again just for detail.

Lastly I made a record , I cut a black circle and then used a 5p piece

and cut out some printed paper ( i found this bell which I thought

looked like a record label) punched a tiny hole in it so the black card

showed through and voila one record.

I enjoy making my own embellishments I think it helps me

to personalise the pages more.

With a few music notes scattered around to finish it off.

all done.......

Thanks for stopping by my blog, and dont forget

the blog candy at Scrapbook Garden

and have a peep at the online shop here

pick up some bargains theres loads ..........

The Scrapbook Garden - Happy Birthday.......21st

2011-07-06T08:55:00.002+01:00

This is my 3rd layout for kit 4 for

the Scrapbook Garden

It shows my grandparents and my Aunt Edna as she

celebrates her 21st birthday.

As many have pointed out, the photos are entirely

different from those celebrating a 21st birthday these days.

For this layout I used the

My Minds Eye, Market Street 'Happy Birthday'

tapestry paper and title

gorgeous paper and fab title card.

I love the way the paper has a slight red colour across the edges

very delicate, it looks as though its been brushed with distress ink

and it softens the paper even further.

I took the tag and using some Bazzill French Vanilla cardstock

(which is an all time favourite of mine as it goes with everything)

and cut myself 2 more tags the same size.

I coloured them down with Distress ink

and concentrated alot more on the edges

to give a similar effect to that on the paper.

I added my journaling to one and Ednas name

and 21st to the other.

I used thickers for the 21st and inked the numbers

with the same distress ink so it all blended in.

Next using the French Vanilla card again i cut a similar tag

this time I rubber stamped an old fashioned

cake stand with cup cakes on it, and added

various shades of stickles to the cakes to give the effect

of frosting.

I inked the edges of this tag also so that it matched the others

Next i used some Prima craftable flowers

I put 2 together with a brad and inked the edges of the bottom one with the same distress

ink, just a little so it still kept its delicate look.

I matted my 2 photos with the french vanilla cardstock

and added them to the layout.

and thats it..........

Edna died just as I was born, I never met her

I wish I had, my grandmother always said I was sent to replace her

I would like to think thats true.

Thank you for stopping by my blog its always appriciated.

If you havent entered for the blog candy at the Scrapbook Garden

do so now, you can be added to the draw every day simply by

leaving a comment on their daily posts and becoming a follower

of their blog (link your blog to theirs also if you have one)

or pop over to the online shop here and browse around theres some fab bargains

Have Fun ........

The Scrapbook Garden - Keep Smiling

2011-07-05T08:55:00.002+01:00

This is my 2nd layout for design kit 4

for The Scrapbook Garden

I used 2 photos of my Dad and my son while they were

on a day trip to family in Leeds.

I started with some 12 x 12 Bazzill French Vanilla

and also some Glitz Design -Afternoon Muse

Carte Postal

I tore up the carte postal and added it to the corners of the french vanilla.

Next I added my photos which i matted

on Bazzill Guacamole and also some matching paper

from the Basic Grey Sweet Threads paper pack

Next I added some Prima flowers which went

beautifully with the paper, and some punched leaves of my

own from the guacamole paper , and some tiny hearts cut from the basic grey

paper which i had used for the matting.

Once again I cut my journaling a little more fancy

than usual and used a double matt.

I used thickers letters for the title and inked them down with some

green distress ink

And thats my layout, I hope you like it .

The papers match beautifully with the photos and the flowers

Im very pleased with the finished result.

Pop over to the Scrapbook Gardens blog and be in with a chance

to win some fab blog candy , and why not

pop over to the Scrapbook Garden online store and check out these fab

products.

Thanks for stopping by my blog as always its much appriciated .

The Scrapbook Garden - Smile Jaqi

2011-07-04T08:55:00.002+01:00

This is my 1st design for the Scrapbook Garden kit 4

This month each designer has a weeks showcase , one

item each day and this week is my week so there will be a post each day to

show the pages ive made with this months kit.

I started with this gorgeous 12 x 12 Glitz Design Afternoon Muse

paper named Polka .

The colours are gorgeous my photo doesnt do it justice.

I had the idea to use only half of the paper

i took some Bazzill French Vanilla 12 x 12 cardstock

and layed some sequin waste down one side.

I used a double width to create a wider area.

I joined it so that it made a pattern down between the 2 layers

if you want a continuous pattern you need to lay the sequin waste

up a hole so that it runs alternate dots when finished.

I used a selection of distress inks in colours that blended

with the polka paper

Next i added my polka paper

I coloured some thickers letters with distress ink

and added some stickles glitter glue to give it a little sparkle

I used a card form my own stash with 'Happy times'

on it but added some thickers flowers coloured

in the same way as the title

I stamped a doll border on some french vanilla cardstock

using one of the distress inks id used to colour the

sequin waste, i used this to tie in the fact i have a doll in my hand

in the picture.

I punched out a few flowers and inked those also

I cut my journalling slighlty shaped as i

thought it helped to soften it on such a pastel layout

And thats it ........

Im really please with it, as always lovely papers to work with

and the colours were fab.

Why not pop over to the Scrapbook Garden and have a look at the range of

papers and other goodies they are lovely.

Once again Thank you for stopping by and I hope you are able top pop

back each day this week and see what else ive been up too.

Blog Candy at the Scrapbook Garden

2011-07-02T17:16:00.000+01:00

July's BLOG giveaway: Prima Floral Quartet! That's right - four delicious packs of Prima flowers. This month the blog candy contains 1 x Prima Essentials 10 - Reflections; 1 x Prima Gianna Collection - Botanical; 1 x Prima Marri Collection - Botanical; 1 x Prima Craftable Flowers.

Pop over to the Scrapbook Garden and follow the instructions to be in with a chance to win
this fabulous blog candy , theres easy to follow instructions so dont miss out pop over now

Just For Fun - Anything goes

2011-06-30T23:14:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks

Just For Fun

which was 'Anything goes'

I made this for my friend who had a photograph

of herself with her sisters with these fabulous masks on them,

and she was stuck for an idea to show the photograph.

The design came together brilliantly and I titled it

'Girls Just Wanna have Fun'

which is exactly what they were doing .

I added some rubber stamped masks which I got from Scrapz and a stamped chandelier on a tag to help add a little glitz i dotted some stickles on the masks.
I used Bazzill Random Striped Glaze - Pomegranate which was an excellent base
for the gold and glitz of the layout.
The large mask was from a scrapbooking magazine featuring a range of masks and backing papers all in that theme.

Thank you for stopping by my blog as always its much appriciated.

JFF - Steampunk

2011-06-24T19:39:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks Just for Fun

which is Steampunk.

How on earth it turned out as light as this I really dont know ...............
I inked my atc with distress Inks then added the cogs using a Tim Holtz mask,
stamped on my Victorian Gentleman, added this lovely key which was from Scrapz
(Karen has a fantastic range of charms , just perfect for every occassion) and some grungeboard wings inked down with Aged Mahogany Distress Ink, and finally my quote.

Like I said it was my intention that it would look alot darker than this.......but it wasnt meant to be .
Thanks for stopping by my blog and I hope you have a lovely weekend.....think of me im working

The Scrapbook Garden - Birthday Book

2011-06-24T08:55:00.001+01:00

This is my 8th design from the Scrapbook Garden

kit 3

Ive tried to make this birthday book completely

from papers form the Basic Grey Sweet Threads pack.

With the exception of the actual book which was made

with my Bind-it-all , some Prima flowers

in vintage green some liquid pearls of which you can find a fab selection here

and some rubber stamped quotes from my collection

all of the pages have included die cut shapes using the

Basic Grey Sweet Threads paper pack.

Ive often been asked to make a mini book that is ready

to just accept some photographs by people

who are not crafters, but then thought this was

actually a good idea to make to give someone as a gift

enabling them to choose their favourite pictures to be included in it themselves.

The pages dont need alot of decoration like a Scrapbook

just something to enhance the photos , whatever the size.

I used a bind-it-all perspex cover so that the design

on the front page could be seen.

I thought a birthday book would be a good idea

as I for one am always forgetting birthdays .

I started by punching the holes in my pages , I chose black pages

so that the colourful papers from the Basic Grey Sweet Threads

stood out well.

I cut out some months of the year to put onto the alternative pages

to record the birthdays .

I decided to make these pages all very similar and added

the flowers and some punched butterflies to each

of them. I added the liquid pearls to the centre of the

flowers and left them to set overnight.

I also cut a selection of long tags to have between the pages.

I decided to put my quotes on these just in case

when the photos were added the quotes didnt quite match up.

I fastened them into the bind-it-all wire and placed them at

various heights in various pages. I also added some ribbon to them to finish them off.

I then went on decorating the pages with various die cuts using the

colourful papers.

I tried to keep the die cuts to a minimum

leaving plenty of room to add photos if needed

I finshed by adding a handmade label to the back cover.

Im pleased with my little birthday book Im sure it will come in very handy.

I imagine I will make more of these for little gifts

Thanks for stopping by my blog as always its

much appriciated.

The Scrapbook Garden - Music Icon Card

2011-06-22T08:55:00.001+01:00

This is my 7th project for this months

design kit for the Scrapbook Garden

Here Ive been working with one of the fab Tando Creative Masks

I used the Musical Mask which was just perfect

for a special someones birthday.

I started with some Dovecraft cardstock in Whipped Cream

and placed my mask over the card.

My initial idea was to use one colour of Distress Ink

to colour over the mask, but then i added a 2nd , and a 3rd

and 4th .......until I go totally carried away and lost count with

how many colours Id used as the colours just all blended together

creating a very rich colour in itself.

I was very pleased when i lifted the mask from the card.

The deep tones were perfect for what i needed.

I used some Blue Dotted Swiss 12 x 12 and some Gold card

from my stash and matted the Music Panel.

I added one of the dominoes I altered earlier using the

Mountain Rose Alcohol Ink you can find a range

of inks here , added the name David and that was

it all done.

The card has been sent to the David Eseex Fan Club

and along with others and will be put into a leather wallet and

sent off to him from his fans for his birthday.

Im sure you have all seen him lately in Eastenders

and anyone who knows me well will know

ive been a fan since I was 14 years old.

I hope he likes his card, and if he messages me and asks

about it I will be sending him to the Scrapbook Garden

for the Tando Mask and Inks so he can make one just like it lol.

Thanks for stopping by my blog and for leaving a comment its much appriciated .

The Scrapbook Garden - Fridge Magnet Card

2011-06-20T08:55:00.001+01:00

This is my 6th project for this months design kit

for The Scrapbook Garden

One of the little gems in this months kit was a bottle of

Ranger Alcohol Ink in Mountain Rose

I started by inking some dominoes and embossing them with images .

Taking the one that I had used the Mountain Rose Ink on

I then stamped it using the centre of the rubber stamp

from last months kit which was

a flower within a flower- Autumn Leaves

I used stazon Ink as it needs to be permanent ink to dry correctly

I added 3 adhesive magnets to the back of it.

Next I used some Bazzill Dotted Swiss paper

you can find a range of colours here

Added some magenta coloured card from my stash

The some paper from the

Basic Grey Sweet Threads Paper Pack

and some beautiful

Bazzill Tulle Ribbon

On the same paper I stamped my 'Happy Birthday'

and mounted it on the navy dotted swiss cardstock.

I attached the fridge magnet with adhesive pads

Lastly I used some die cut corners to finish the whole thing off

The tulle ribbon is gorgeous

Ive added some from each colour to my stash as I was so pleased

with it when it was in the last kit.

It ties beautifully first time around so theres no

worry about having to get it tied right.

These papers are so lovely and work equally as well when matched with dark cardstock as they do with delicate cardstock, for male or female projects .

Why not pop over to The Scrapbook Garden and have a look at the range you wont be dissapointed.

Thanks for stopping by my blog , its much appriciated , Happy Crafting.......

JFF - Getting Tangled up , Doodles

2011-06-18T11:22:00.000+01:00

This is my entry for this weeks Just for Fun

which is Getting Tangled up - Doodling

I used a die cut from my stash with a jigsaw theme

and a large jigsaw piece from a punch that I have.

Completed my doodling on both pieces and the larger of the

two had a circle cut from the centre

so I placed the smaller piece on adhesive pads to raise it

above the other. (Hope thats clear)

On this 2nd picture I noticed the bit where I had

added my initials which put me in mind of a

doodle my daughter did a few weeks ago.

My Son was so over the moon with her design

he had it tattooed onto his leg

As you can see its the full size of the top of his leg

two of the tiny turtles in the design

have my daughters initials in them.

It took 5 hours to tattoo onto his leg but it looks very good.

Mind you I bet he doesnt get my doodle tattooed

its not anywhere near as good as hers.

Thanks for stopping by my blog its always appriciated .

The Scrapbook Garden - Summer Birthdays

2011-06-18T08:55:00.000+01:00

This is my 5th project from this months

design kit for the Scrapbook Garden

They are all made from papers from the

Basic Grey Sweet Threads Paper Pack

These ones all have a lovely delicate summery feel to them

and i thought they were perfect for summer birthdays

Thanks for stopping by my blog its much appriciated.

The Scrapbook Garden - Sweethearts

2011-06-16T08:55:00.003+01:00

This is my 4th layout for this months design kit for

The Scrapbook Garden

It is My Paternal Grandfathers Brother Bill and

his Wife Isabel.

I started with the Bazzill 12 x 12 cardstock

Berry Blush you can find a range of Bazzill here

Using some papers from the Basic Grey Sweet Threads

paper pack of 6 x 6 papers I cut out my title

an placed it up the side of the 12 x 12 .

This is a gorgeous rich colour and it matched perfectly

with the patturned papers.

I rounded the corners on the photos to soften them

and also on the patturned paper but chose not to matt the

images but to just layer the paper for a different feel.

I added my own script paper to contrast with the pinks

and lighten it a little.

Ive never been one for sewing but my Mother does the most lovely

embroidery and has done for years.

A friend gave me a whole collection of magazines

that you collect monthly about sewing .

Each month you get a free sampler and it builds up a collection.

Alot of them were not suitable for anything I needed

but a few were similar to the one below.

I thought it would be nice to combine them into the family albums

and a way of including something that my mother

had made also.

Ive used these samplers before , but this one matched

perfectly with the colours i was using.

I had some chipboard pieces so attached the sampler

to the back of one piece which looked like a frame.

Turning it over its made a nice embellishment for

my page.

I dont know alot about some of these family members

so i feel i need to use things which reflect the period

as specific embellishments are sometimes hard to find.

I stamped a couple of word definitions and placed them around the page

Added my journalling and thats it. Again I feel that this bright pink paper is maybe not one I would have chosen for a mans photo , but teamed up with the picture of his wife and a few simple stamped definitions both the pink bazzill and the floral paper work well I feel.

Why not pop along to the Scrapbook Garden and have a look at the great range of products they have and most of all the really great prices.

Thanks for stopping by my blog its much appriciated . Have a nice week hope you get some sunshine where you are.