~ Love is in the air ~

On Sunday, I had a fab time at Monica Gale's Stampin' Up class. It was great to see her as I hadn't managed to get since before I went to Vietnam.

As per usual she had an array of fabulous projects for us to do, 2 cards and a gift holder. She used some of the new stamps from this years catalogue. Some of which I desperately need!

We created a lovely pink elephant card which I have already ear marked for a friends birthday. This was such a cute and easy card to make. Next we made the bunting card using a technique which creates a chalkboard style background. Finally we made a Valentine's gift holder which was so cute and quite simple to make.

Happy Crafting!

Terri
X

~ Creative flow~

On returning from a trip to Budapest I couldn't sleep so got up around midnight and went in to my craft room. I made this card using last years Stampin' Up products.

The card is for a colleague who has recently had an operation and is recovering. I posted it to her the other day do it should arrive soon.

~ 427 steps ... ~

This is another photo from Halong Bay. This photo shows me about to walk up the 427 steep, uneven steps to the viewing point at the top of the island.

There is some hidden journaling behind the photo which documents the medical emergency I was involved in at the top.

Yet again I've used a Scrapagogo kit. I absolutely love these papers from Amy Tangerine. I just added a little washi tape and abit of ink from my stash.

I normally have my layouts with straight lines but tried something new with this one. I have also tried to embrace the sketch style of the papers by adding my own borders in pen.

~ Halong Bay ~

Something a little different for me. I've seen shimelle do this kind of layout a few times so thought I would give it a go. I thought it would be a quicker layout but it actually took me longer.

Again another Scrapagogo kit used. I absolutely loved this kit, think it was March 2012. Lots of layouts have already been made with this kit.

The photos show how people live on Halong Bay.

~ Mother and daughter ~

Well yet again I have managed abit of scrapping. Mum and I had a day together on Wednesday, I always seem to get more done when we are together.

I love this photo of us both whilst away in Vietnam. Again I am trying to use up my Scrapagogo kits. I used this month's blueprint to go as a sketch idea for this layout.

~ Tailor made ~

This is another layout from Vietnam, this time documenting the purchase of a tailor made dress.

In Hoi An they have streets full of tailors, however Yaly is an internationally acclaimed shop and we were encouraged to look there due to the quality of their work . I had a long dress made and it cost $75 which didn't seem bad.

I have used another Scrapagogo kit for this page. I absolutely loved this kit, it had all cute little sewing related embellishments and the beautiful lost and found paper. Hopefully I'll get some time this week to do a bit of crafting.

~ I want to ride my bicycle, bicycle, bicycle ... ~

Good afternoon, I've been on nights and really don't want to get out of bed.

Whilst in Vietnam we chose to do an optional bicycle tour of a local village. You cycle round and stop off at various people's homes to see the traditional crafts they do. I hadn't been on a bike for over 10 years, so that and the fact that it was raining made it interesting.

I have used yet another Scrapagogo kit for this layout.

~ Long time no blog! ~

It's been a long while since I posted anything remotely crafty so with my new iPhone at the ready I'm aiming to get back on track.

With a new fella to keep me busy I haven't had much crafting time but plenty of photo opportunities.

So while the weather has been awful I have managed to get a few layouts done which I will share with you over the next week.

This is the first layout of my trip to Vietnam last year. I'm trying to use up some of my ScrapaGoGo kits which seem to be taking over my craft room.

This photo was taken after a very long flight from the uk. We went to a local restaurant with our guide and had a traditional Vietnamese breakfast - chicken noodle soup.

~ Hoi An - Part 1 ~

A little behind but desperately trying to catch up with myself.

 

On Sunday we had a morning walking tour of Hoi An. This is a gorgeous old town with architecture from french, chinese, japanese and vietnamese influences. The main centre and aroundthe dock is pedestrian, cyclo and motorbike only so the bus dropped us on the outskirts and we walked in.

 

 

Firstly we stopped at Phuoc Kien Assembly Hall which is a Chinese Temple used by the local community. Above is the gateway in to its beautiful courtyard. Inside the temple were tens of spiral incense sticks which hang fromt he ceiling, each one has been donated by a family and has a message hung in the centre.

Unfortunately due to a tropical depression which has been affecting Vietnam's weather it began to drizzle with rain during our tour. Second on the sightseeing list was the Japanese Covered Bridge, only 1 of 2 in Vietnam.

 

 

We then visited Phung Hung which is a house of architectural importance as it contains French, Chinese and Vietnamese designs. I was abit disappointed as it was more like a selling opportunity. The lady of the house was more interested in showing us table cloths than actually showing us the house's features.

 

We then walked aside the river where the dock was. All along the riverside were brightly coloured lanterns hanging in trees.

 

We stopped at a local restaurant for a drink and then some lunch. Mum and I shared White Rose Dumplings and a chilli and gorgonzola pizza (not very vietnamese but very tasty!).

 

In the afternoon we took a boat trip across the river to one of the islands. The inhabitants have set up a co-operative to give cycle tours of the are to the tourists. I hadn't really been on a bike properly for about 12 years.

 

The bikes were rickety and rusty but worked well. I really enjoyed the tour even though it was raining and we got very wet! On the tour we stopped off at a Conical makers house (local fishing boat), a bed mat maker, a mandarin's house and a woodcarvers. In total we covered about 12km. It was a nice ride as most of the journey was flat.

 

In the evening we visited 'Morning Glory' for our evening meal. It was a lovely meal although some bits were abit greasy for me. I loved the BBQ chicken with lime leaves. Above I am eating the local speciality of crispy pancake wrapped in rice flour pancake.



~ Ha Long Bay ~

A bit behind time but here we go! Our next part was an overnight trip to Ha Long Bay which I must say is breath taking. So after a 3.5 hour bus journey we joined a boat for 2 days.

 

 

Unfortunately the weather on the first day was a little hazy so the islands were not clealy seen by the camera. We had a fantastic 3 course lunch before heading off to Luon Cave. We went via a small wooden boat through a cave in to a small lagoon.

 

After this we sailed for a little while before going to Tiptop island, which has a man-made beach and the opportunity to walk up 427 steep steps to reach the summit and its amazing views (unfortunately this was hampered by being involved in a medical emergency, thankfully someone took some photos with my camera for me!)

 

The views from the top were stunning and you could see for miles!

 

I was fortunate to catch a quick glimpse of the stunning sunset over the bay.

 

One of the chefs showed us how to create decorative objects from food such as tomato roses. We had a leisurely evening of food and a lovely massage.

After getting up at 5.15am to see the disappointing sunrise (as it was too cloudy!) we had a session of Tai Chi on the deck of the boat. This was highly amusing and certainly woke us up.

 

The final part of our trip to Ha Long Bay was to visit the Surprise Cave which is a hugh cave system containing 4 very large spectacular caves. We then had breakfast and set sail for the mainland and Hanoi Airport.

 



~ Hanoi - A day in the Capital ~

An early start today to beat the crowds at the various monuments we were visiting. First up was a short bus journey to Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum. It was an amazing building in beautiful grounds. (Although I have to say visiting a dead person was not what I would call a holiday attraction!). 

 



 

The mausoleum, palace and house on stilts are all governed by the Honor Guards, who were rather scary with their bayonets.

 

We had lots of insight in to Vietnam's history today including Uncle Ho's huge role in Vietnam's independence from the French. We visited the service quarters which Ho Chi Minh used instead of the Presidential Palace and then the house on stilts which was built for him by the people. After this we briefly stopped by the one pillar pagoda.

 

 

This beautiful archwayis at the Temple of Literature which is where Confucious lived and taught his disciples. This is a very important place for Vietnamese people and many try to follow in Confucious' teachings.

 

 Many people visit the Confucious Temple to worship his statue and ask for assistance in exams. Many people come here to have photos taken when they graduate from college.

 

We then had some free time where we had lunch (Hanoi spring rolls and Beef fried rice), a leisurely coffee and wrote postcards home.

 

The evening was taken up by a walk through Hanoi's Old Quarter to the Water Puppet Theatre. The show was interesting but once you had seen a few of the sketches I had had enough. Luckily it only lasted about 45 minutes.

 

Tonights group meal was at 'Little Hanoi' and consisted of a 4 course banquet. Pumpkin soup, Spring Rolls, 5 spice chicken, catfish with dill, Caramelised Pork, Grilled aubergine and steamed rice. Dessert was a selection of fresh fruit. All of which was washed down nicely with local beer.

 

All packed and ready to set sail in Ha Long Bay tomorrow!

~ Cha Ca ~

Tonight the whole group (14 of us) went out to a local fish restaurant which serves only one dish - Cha Ca. Which is a speciality of Northern Vietnam.

 

 

It consists of fish that is fried at your table, then you add vermicelli noodles, peanuts, chilli, spring onions and dill. Then finally add a dash of fish sauce to the mix.

 

The restaurant was recommended by our tour leader and was well worth it. We enjoyed ample food and a drink each for the measly price of 170,000 VND (Approx £5). It was abit of a DIY meal as all the ingredients were in individual bowls, but that was ideal for me as it meant I didn't end up with too much green stuff!

 

Mum and I then enjoyed a cocktail and a milkshake in the hotel bar (which cost nearly as much as the meal!)

 

Busy day with an early start tomorrow so off to bed now and hoping the jetlag doesn't affect me too much.



~ Good Morning Vietnam! ~

Hello there ... it's been a long while since I used my blog, not sure where the time has gone. I have just arrived in Vietnam for a touring holiday and am going to use this as a travel journal to try and jog my memory for when I scrapbook the photos. So if this is not of interest to you then please bear with me.

 

We traveled to Gatwick via train on Monday 12th November 2012 and stayed overnight at the Hilton. We then boarded a Vietnam Airlines Boeing 777 at lunchtime on the 13th November. The journey took around 11 hours and the highlight was the Vietnamese 'pot noodles' available.

 

On arrival at Hanoi we were met by our tour leader, Long and after a short bus journey we arrived at our first hotel. As the rooms were not ready to check in we all went for a traditional Vietnamese breakfast of Chicken Noodle Soup - I have to say it was gorgeous even though I wasn't hungry.

 

 

We checked in and settled in to our rooms. I checked the wifi connection was working. The hotel room is beautifully decorated.

 

After a short break we decided to go for a wander around Hanoi, starting with the Truc Bach Lake. It was very hazy and humid here. 

 

After we wandered the streets, practising our road crossing technique, as you simply have to walk out in to the traffic and keep going at a steady speed. So far so good.

 

Throughout the streets are little bird cages with finches dotted around on shop fronts and across pedestrian walkways. Not sure of their significance at the moment.

 

One thing is for sure, if living in Hanoi you must travel by motorcycle. Everywhere you go there are hundreds. You can't even walk on the pavement as they have them parked all over it.

 

Off for a traditional fish meal at 'Chaca' tonight.

~ A jar of hearts ~

These cards were made using the Scrapagogo April kit, as I said I'm trying to use up as much stash as I can (then I can buy more!). These cards were inspired by Scrapagogo's Design Team member Nicola Kerridge's fabulous card.

I used a Stampin' Up flower stamp and a Papermania Urban sentiment added to the monthly kit. These cards were so simple to make but I think they are really cute!

Well unfortunately this weekend I'm working so no fun and games for me. Looking forward to a few days away next weekend!

Happy Crafting!

~ Quackers! ~

Well I'm back in full swing so expect more posts from me over the next few weeks. I must say I'm getting absolutely fed up of the delightful British summertime but at least it means i have had time to sort my craft room.

I have finally managed to crack open my Scrapagogo June kit, which is full of lovely Amy Tangerine patterned paper! I love the Amy Tangerine Thickers.

(Apologies for the photo quality!)

The photo is from Girlguiding UK's Centenary Event called Fusion which was held @ Harewood House near Leeds in 2010. Whilst walking round I came across these Policemen posing with Centenary Ducks on their heads?! It just had to be scrapped.

Happy Crafting!

~ Wall decore ~

I have finally gotten round to updating my decorative frames since moving in a few weeks ago. Didn't reslly want lots of photos of myself around the place so I decided to use holiday snaps for these layouts, even though I have scrapped my tigers numerous times!

I couldn't decide whether or not to put titles on them but decided they looked unfinished without. 'A walk on the wild side' was created using the Scrapagogo March kit, which I think has been my favourite so far. Really versatile. I justadded a couple of extra embellishments from my Tim Holtz collection.

'A little fall of rain' is again created with another Scrapagogo kit but one from a long while ago. I'm really trying to use up some of my stash mountain. I love this photo as it is the Taj Mahal in the rain, stunning even in a monsoon!

Both layouts are quite simple but I didn't want too much as they are going on the wall in my living room. I have a few more frames to jazz up over the next few months.

Happy Crafting!

~ AWOL ~

Well it has been along time since I posted on my blog, my apologies for being AWOL however I have had good reason. Mostly it is because I have been moving in to my own house and before I could do so it needed some work doing.

Then obviously comes the mammoth job of unpacking my craft stuff and trying to organise it in to some sort of useful order (I really must go on a stash diet!). So I have 2 wonderful Scrapagogo kits and some lovely Stampin' Up goodies to play with. I haven't been completely useless over the last few months as I have managed to get quite a few photos taken in readiness. So watch this space ...

Happy Crafting!