~ Picture Perfect~

This photo has been hanging around my craft room for years! I absolutely love the composition of the photo.

The photo is of some fishing boats on the river bank in The Gambia when we went for a Christmas holiday in 2006. I used the Scrapagogo March Kit which I absolutely love! It is perfect for travel photos and I have loads of those to scrap (will have a few more when I've been to Vietnam and Cambodia!) 

I'm on holiday this week so hoping to get plenty of crafting done. I have been working on a Simple Stories album to document my new house (well hopefully!).

Happy Crafting!

~ The love of my life! ~

Well what a horrendous week! ... not only did I have 4 emotional night shifts but the weather has simply been depressing. The light at the end of the tunnel was the delivery of Scrapagogo's April kit. I managed to get a layout done on Saturday.

The papers and embellishments are very vintage and romantic. At the moment I don't really have any photos which would fit that genre so I twisted it round and chose to scrap something I love. Apologies for the photo, I took it when we had the only 5 minutes of sunshine today.

I added a little bit of Tim Holtz tissue tape and a brown Prima alpha to the kit to make this layout. I used the kit stamp along with Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Tattered Rose to create a border along the right hand side of the photo.

This layout documents my 'Love of Food' and is highlighted by a photo of me enjoying some 'shell on' prawns at my local seafood restaurant - Loch Fyne.

Happy Crafting!

~ Canapes at the ready ~

Today it is my mum's Birthday so we booked a canape making class in Matlock bought via groupon. We had to be there for 9am but unfortunately the traffic was horrendous so we were a little late. Thankfully we missed very little. We were part of a small clas (8 of us) which meant it was easy to see the demonstrations.

We had a selection of ingredients on our tables to pick and choose from when making the canapes.

We made quite a few canapes ourselves and also had a few premade ones which we demonstrated only and then we were able to try them.

We made or had demos for:

Potato Blinis

BLT cherry tomatoes

Roast Beef and Watercress Roulades

Roast Beef & Mini Yorkshire Puddings

Puff Pastry Tartlets

Bruscetta

Mini Roast New Jacket Potatoes

Along with suggestions of how to alter the recipes to make different canapes

We added Basil, goats cheese, cheddar, tomatoes and onion marmalade to the puff pastry squares.

There are lots of yummy goodies dotted around the cafe which can be created in other classes 

How pretty are these cupcakes!

All classes are done at Cafe Central in Matlock, Derbyshire.

Happy Crafting!

~ It's oh so simples ... ~

Well this week seems to be flying by at a rapid speed. I had intended sharing this layout with you yesterday but with work, and unexpected visitor and a guiding meeting I just didn't get chance.

The title is taken from the well known TV advert for compare the market.com involving meerkats. When I took this photo I knew immediately what the title would be.  These meerkats at Bristol Zoo were so funny, just running round, playing and having fun.

The papers are from My Mind's Eye called 'On the Brightside'. I love the vibrant colours. The bunting is made from the collection's die cut sheet. American Crafts Amy Tangerine washi tape just adds to the chevron pattern used throughout.

Hoping I might get some more crafting done tonight but it depends whether Holby City and my PJs win the battle after a busy early shift at work.

Happy Crafting!

~ A new blog design for a new start ~

Some of you may or may not be aware that my life has recently been turned upside down and I am now trying to start a fresh!

There for a new blog design to go with a (hopefully) new house and new life!

Let me know what you think.

I have been doing a little crafting this afternoon, will photograph it when I find my camera under my pile of stash.

Happy Crafting!

~ (i) spy - March Scrapagogo kit ~

Happy Easter!



(I hope you aren't all over indulging on eggs of the chocolate variety today!)

Well I have been busy scrapping away this morning, finally getting to use my March Scrapagogo kit. The papers in this month's kit are GORGEOUS! Perfect for so many of my holiday snaps. I used there 'Blueprint to go' sketch as inspiration for the layout below.

The photos are of our first Tiger sighting whilst at Ranthambore National Park. It was in the distance and this was my camera at full zoom. I used this months stamp to create a focal point on the  photos to highlight where the tiger is sitting. I cut out some of the hexagonal hybrid shapes to add smalller hexagons to complement the larger ones which had been cut from a piece of patterned paper. I used 3D foam to make these small hexangons stand out. I love the Amy Tangerine American Crafts Thickers.

I hope you all manage to do something crafty with your bank holiday weekend, unfortunately I am working a long day tomorrow.

Happy Crafting!

~ Gogogetaway March 2012 - Class no.5 ~

As promised yesterday here is the final class from Gogogetaway no.8:

Class no. 5

'Cotton and Calico Chronicles'

By Sheena Rowlands

This is an absolutely gorgeous little book. Sheena made the canvas books herself. We created our own masks using a template and a sheet of acetate.

We placed the masks on the canvas and then sprayed mists over the top. We had to leave the books overnight to dry. In the meantime we created mini layouts which could then be stuck directly on to the pages when dry.

I cut out 16 leaves from patterned paper and then created a vein by sewing along the centre with brown embroidery thread.

I added some star embellishments from the thickers set. All items were glued on using Bostik.

I'm really pleased with how this class turned out. It is a bit different to what I would usually do but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It's been a sad few days as I have been packing my craft room up ready to move house. On the positive side, I will still have my essentials to hand whilst I'm in limbo staying at my parents house.

Happy Crafting!

~ Gogogetaway March 2012 - Sunday Round up ~

A little later than planned here is an update on what I got up to on Sunday at Gogogetaway no.8. I had an absolutely fabulous weekend and the ladies did a great job teaching.

Class no. 6

'How Tweet, Can you resist?'

By Rebekah Day



The technique used in this class was to make a image resist on the canvas bird using clear embossing powder and stamps. We used a real life twig and wrapped twine round it to create the branch effect. The photo is of my 2 kittens having cuddles with a friend. I just need to add a little journalling.

Manufacturer/sketch challenge

This challenge was to use the sketch provided and at least one piece from the MME 'On the Brightside' Collection.

I absolutely love the bold colours in this collection, especially the wood effect patterned papers. The photo is of Millie chilling out on the windowsill.

Manufacturer/sketch Challenge

This challenge was to use the sketch provided and at least one piece from the Prima 'Songbird' Collection.

The photo is of a yummy hot chocolate I had when we visited Castleton, Derbyshire. I really love these papers as the colours are really subtle. A complete contrast to the layout above. I love how buntings are in fashion at the moment. 

Class no.7

'Tagged to Transfer'

By Sheena Rowlands

We used a mixed media technique to transfer images from laser printed copier paper on to the cream tags. This was such a simple technique and very enjoyable. Just need to get my hands on some acetone soon. The photo is of me and mum in our Saris at Sangam, India in 2009.

I'll photograph class no. 5 tomorrow once it's dried and upload it tomorrow evening. 

Happy Crafting!

~Gogo Getaway Saturday Evening Round up ~

Well it's another late night here ath Gogogetaway no.8, there has been lots of fun and scrapping throughout the day. Here is what I have been up to this afternoon:

Class no. 4

'Come Dine With ...'

By Nicola Kerridge

For this class we learnt how to use masks and mists. We used knives and forks to create the element seen above. This was quite a simple page but very effective and enjoyable to make. The photo is of me eating some Japanese food in London before we went to see a show.

This layout is a sketch/ manufacturer challenge which I have done using Pink Paislee 'London Market' collection. The papers are just stunning! I decided to use the papers to scrap the photo that was in the local paper of my friend and I receiving our Queen's Guide Awards.

Class no. 5

'Cotton and Calico Chronicles'
by Sheena Rowlands

Unfortunately this minibook is unfinished at the moment as it required lots of mists and masking. I will show this next week once I have been able to stick the elements on to it using Bostik. This was a fabulous messy class.

Group Photo Challenge

We had a group photo taken this morning @ 11.30am and were given a copy to then use for this challenge. The challenge was to use a white and kraft 12x12 cardstock and any items left over from your classes.

I'm really pleased with how mine has come out and I cannot believe how different everyone's layouts look even though it is the same photo.

Night night....zzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

Happy Crafting!

~ Gogogetaway Saturday Morning Round up ~

Good Afternoon. It's been non-stop here at Gogo Getaway, Lots of fabulous layouts created so far. Here is what I've done so far today:

Class no.2

'First edition'

By Nicola Kerridge

This is an absolutely gorgeous altered book. It was a little fiddly in places but think the effect is amazing!

The indentation is made using foam board which we cut to fit inside the book once 190 pages were removed. It was then covered in those pages pulled out to ensure it flowed.

I chose to scrap my Graduation as the brief was to bring photos of something memorable. I think I might create some more of these for wedding gifts.

This layout is for the Sketch challenge using at least one piece of MME 'Miss Caroline' Collection. The photo is of my kitten Oscar on his first day in our house. I can't believe how little he was!

Class no. 3

'Paperie Patchwork'

By Janice Warren

This class used lots of stickers by 'The Girls Paperie' and faux stitching to create a patchwork quilt effect. The flower was made by sewing along a piece lace and ruching it up. The photo is of my grandad who I didn't really know as he died when I was a baby. I absolutely love this layout and still have lots of stash left.

Well off to class no 4. ...

Happy Crafting

~ Full steam ahead @ Gogogetaway ~

Hi there! As promised I'm back, although it is now the early hours of Saturday morning but I am pleased to say I have 2 layouts under my belt.

The first Class was:

'And did those feet...'

by Sam Ball

This layout really took me out of my comfort zone it's a kind of scrapping I have never really tried. We used the photo to create a similar background using fabric and texture paste. I've never used texture paint to that was an adventure. Not going to be my favourite supply I don't think.

The photo is of Fishguard Harbour in Wales and I am really pleased with the effect the background has created.

My second layout completes the Pre-crop challenge No.3 which had 8 elements that had to be used:

Photo

Ribbon/Thread

Journal strip

8 Letters

Button

ink/Paint

A date

A die cut or punch

So here is my page using Scrapagogo's April 2011 kit which contained Stella Rose collection papers which are gorgeous.

This photo was taken in 2010 when we had a Mother and Daughter Photoshoot.

Right I'm in need of my beauty sleep before tomorrows onslaught of exciting classes.

Good Night and Happy Crafting!

~ It's Gogo time! ~

Apologies for being absent this week but I have been on nights. But I'm ready and raring to go at Scrapagogo's Gogo getaway. So over the next two days expect plenty of photos containing everything Gogo.

We are doing 7 classes so I'll schedule a post for each day next week to showcase each one individually. The weekends post will cover everything else!

Must dash ... the crop room opens in 20 minutes!

Happy Crafting!

~ Little Claire Stamp Club - March ~

This is Little Claire's Monthly stamp club kit - Man squares! This is a fab card, perfect for Father's Day!

The addition of 3D elements is a perfect addition to the card. I coloured them using promarker. This stamp set is so versatile, it would fit ANY themed card including those hard ones like retirement, birthdays, thank you. I'm looking forward to April's falling through my door.

Happy Crafting!

~ A splash in to spring ~

Welcome to Spring! Today has been an absolutely gorgeous day here in South Yorkshire. Shame I have been at work all day. Today I am sharing another gorgeous card made from a cute Little Claire Stamp:

This stamp was shaded using promarkers. Again the papers are from my scraps bag (it is slowly going down! Yey!). The sentiment is from craftwork cards. I can't wait to send this to one of my friends for their birthday, I think she will love it!

Happy Spring Crafting!

~ Happy Mother's Day ~

Today is Mother's Day here in the UK, unfortunately I am working a 14.5 hour shift so won't be seeing my mum. But I thought I would schedule a post to show you the card I made for her.

This card was made using the February Scrapagogo kit. I love the stamp from the kit it is so cute. The patterened papers are some scraps I had left after I made the challenge layout I posted yesterday. The stamp background was made using worn lipstick and broken china distress inks sprayed with pearlescent mists.

Happy Mother's Day and I hope you get some crafting done!