A Pretty Paper and Chipboard Story...by Lou Collins

Take 2...

2012-01-26T14:39:00.004Z

Just a quick post to show you how different two layouts can look from the same sketch. If you read the post below, you will see that I used a sketch from Scrap 365 to create my 'Your Eyes' layout. So here is my girly take on the same sketch...

...and this is the sketch that I used...
As you can see I changed the uniform grid of photos to a more decorative cluster of framed photos, and for the groups of embelishments I used blossoms and leaves. Lace around the edge provided a border to hold it all together. I left out the journaling as this is an element that I do not usually include anyway, and I thought it would make the page too crowded.

So its back to Papermaze tomorrow to try to get some more of these orders out, so I hope you all have a fab weekend x

A Confession and a Challenge...

2012-01-25T09:48:00.004Z

First up I want to scream from the rooftops...I HAVE SCRAPPED FOR MYSELF!!! and I loved every minute of it! The past six months have been tough for me at home and this has really reflected on my concentration, motivation and creativity. Scrapping has been limited to DT work only, and in all honesty I don't believe I have been creating to my full potential either.
However...things are looking up and I'm back and ready to make up for lost time!!

My confession is that i needed a kick start to get back into the swing of things, so I scraplifted a layout. I have never needed to do this before, and I do feel like I have 'cheated' but if you saw the layout I used...i'm sure you would be inspired too! It was a beautiful page in the back of one of the Scrap365 magazines by Kim Woods. I absolutely adored it, and so used the basic composition to create this page...

I have changed the colours, and many of the embelishments, but I still cannot take full credit for it.

And a challenge? Well this was another way of me trying to get back into scrapping for fun. I saw a sketch challenge the same Scrap 365 magazine and decided to have a go. It looked like quite a busy sketch, which as you know is not like me usually...I like my white space! But I think I managed to compromise, leaving embelishments to a minimum so that the focus is mainly on the photo and journaling...

So know while the little ones are in school, I am going to have another shot at something creative...wish me luck :)

Update...

2012-01-22T17:19:00.003Z

Since I last posted saying that I would hopefully be back soon, I have had this to contend with...

...yep, both of my two managed to cover the Xmas hols with chickenpox one after the other! Along with oliver having a chest infection, and me...well, lets not go there yet!

BUT...I have been scrapping now and then. I recently decorated a printers tray for Papermaze

And this page was one I did for the Papermaze monthly crop which was held yesterday...

Simple, but the flowers took a while! I have also been doing lots for the Scrapbook Magazine, which I cant show you right now but I am really pleased with what I did :)

Today I got an hour or two scrapping aswell...for me!!! I have almost finished a page which I just need to put a bit of stitching on then it will be up here...yay!!

Top Eleven of 2011

2011-12-28T09:27:00.010Z

As promised, I am going to show you my favourite eleven creations of this year. They are not all Scrapbook pages, as you will see, and I have really enjoyed making off the pages pieces this year too.

Firstly this is a 7 gypsies notebook I altered for my Mum on her birthday. Unfortunately my Step-Dad was diagnosed with cancer this time last year, and she had so many appointments, medications and other things to try to remember for him, she needed somewhere to jot them all down, but needed the notebook to be small enough to fit in her bag. I added some Fancy Pants journal cards inside to to extend the amount of pages.

This I created at the Papermaze crop one saturday. The base of the page was clear acrylic, and I distressed loads of bookpages and corrugated card to mount the photo and embelishments on.

I adore the colours blue and green together, so along with this impromptu photo of my son, and quirky title, this page made mostly with Prima products, is one of my favourites.

For this page I completely abandoned my love of white space and smothered my page with layers, blooms and swirls. I used a large photo and that blue/green/white colour combo again!

This has to be my absolute fave Layout. It stands on an easel in my bedroom. It is one of my favourite photos of my daughter, along with real twigs and a sweeping cluster of floers in loads of bright colours. I even love the faint brickwork pattern on the background :)
Suprise suprise, heres the blues and greens again, but with bold monotones, I like the way the kaisercraft wooden swirls frames the cut out photo.

This is another page with a see through base, using a sheet of acrylic and a BasicGrey doily page. It is really simple but again, with those colours it was sure to be a winner with me!

This page, as was the one below, was created for Imaginarium Designs with some of their gorgeous chipboard pieces. Two completely different pages...

...and I could never get bored of scrapping this photo :)

These were my Daughters birthday tea invitations. I embossed white cardstock and used greens and lilac as accent colours.

Finally, also hanging up in my home, is the heart shaped wooden frame. It was actually a chalkboard but I placed the large photo in the center and grunged up the frame as much as I could, keeping it masculine.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing my favourites of this year, and who knows, maybe things will calm down soon so I can get some new creations posted!

Have a Happy New Year everyone xx

Bad Bad Blogger...

2011-12-27T22:01:00.002Z

Yep, it must have been 3 months at least since I last posted...and I do feel awful! Life has just been so busy, and all the work I do is to be published, or are for friends as gifts, so I can't post pics!
However, 2 weeks ago my DS came down with chickenpox, and needless to say, today my DD has started sprouting spots...everywhere!!! Loads of them!!! So tomorrow whilst my boyfriend takes DS out to the sales (worse than women!!) me and my DD will be curled up in the warm on the sofa and I plan on blogging all my favourite layouts of 2011 :)

Who would have thought....

2011-09-28T17:07:00.003+01:00

If someone had asked me a year ago what I would be doing now, I would have probably said not a lot different! HOWEVER...the past 6 months have been manic, and not just me being busy with coffee dates! Here's a quick round up of what has been going on....

Seperation from a 7 year marriage, house is up for sale, Izabelle started back at school, Oliver started three weekly preschool sessions, a holiday to Greece, potty training...finally sucessful!!, a new man (who you'll here much more about soon ;) ) juggling hot dates, with work, magazine assignments and general mummy duties, my stepdads illness is still ongoing, and i've had a couple of poorly spells myself......sooooooooooo, blogging has been put right on the backburner :(

Because of all this, I am pretty much only finding time to scrap when I get work for Scrapbook Magazine which of course I can not show you any of for quite some time!!

Still, here is one of the LO's that was shown in SBM recently, which I actually managed too get a pic of before I sent it off!!

So, now you all know, I have not forgotten about my poor blog, and hopefully things will soon calm down enough for me to get back into a scrapping/blogging routine!

'Unusual' Mini Album Blog Hop

2011-08-20T05:08:00.003+01:00

*Appologies...Blogger does not want to let my links work, although the addresses are correct!!*

Welcome to the Unusual Mini Album Blog Hop, hosted by Scrapbooking Technique!
The aim of this hop is to inspire you all into doing more with your mini-albums.
The hop starts at Scrapbooking Technique, (www.scrapbookingtechnique.blogspot.com) and goes through 9 inspiring blogs...there may even be some blog candy up for grabs along the way to!

So here is my take on an 'unusual mini-album'...it all started with a plain white, metal tin...

I covered it in multi-medium, and torn bookpages, then a watered down coating of acrylic paint.

To get the brick effects, I had a brick wall embossing folder. Before running it through the machine, I brushed over the raised 'cement lines' of the inside of the folder with a brown inkpad. This then left not only the raised bricks but the coloured cement too.

I used Tim Holtz dies to cut the hinges and lock on the tin. They were inked black, embossed in dark brown, but not a full covering, and then I added stickles for the highlights.

I also cut out some flowers from the new Authentique papers, to add around the tin.

Inside, the album is folded up, to be opened one flap at a time. It goes through photos of my Daughter from birth to now, 6 years. Again I used Authentique papers, along with lace, punched borders, flowers and crystals.

By using all black and white photos, i was able to use any papers i liked, and make it all co-ordinate.

Well I hope you've enjoyed viewing this unusual mini-album, now pop along to www.pammejo-scrapbookflair.com

My Beautiful Sun Angel...

2011-08-07T15:14:00.002+01:00

Just a quick post again today, to show you my 3rd Zva project for last month. This one was created on a corrugated card background which I tore, layered up, inked and painted. It was very messy but lots of fun!

I used a large Zva flower cut in half to make it look as if there are two coming from behind the photo, along with a spritzed Zva rose.

I added the leaves to echo the green in the photo, and a crystal swirl. To balance the page I put my blue and crystal title in the opposite corner :)

I hope you have all had a lovely weekend, and I look forward to sharing something else with you soon x

3rd day in a row...

2011-07-28T21:03:00.003+01:00

yep, i have posted something now for the past three days...so be prepared now for a rather long break!!!

I am just quickly showing you this gift wrapping I made last night...after finding out I was able to visit my new niece the very day she was born, I rushed out to get a present, a card...and forgot the wrapping! So with half an hour before we were to leave, I had to put this together...

It was really simple, I just wrappped a whole sheet of 12"x12" round the gift, and used a second 6"x12" sheet of co-ordinating paper to fill in the gap down the centre. I added lace and a punched trim to the joining edges, a couple of paper doilys, one which I spritzed pink, and then to finish her name with some yummy Zva bling and a huge flower :)

I really must take the time to do more of these...with a co-ordinating card it makes a lovely personal touch!

June Zva Blog Hop Winners announced...

2011-07-27T14:00:00.000+01:00

We'd like to congratulate the FIVE June Zva Blog Hop winners! Their names will be found on the following blogs:

Ingrid

Nancy

Guiseppa

Jill

& MINE!!!!

One winner from each of the 5 blogs will receive a Zva prize package worth $30.00. Congrats winners!

So here is my Winner chosen at random by my little girl...

'Alwayscharlie' !!!

Congrats!! Please email me at louizabelle@hotmail.co.uk with your address so Zva can send your prize out to you :)

And here is a quick project I made recently using a gorgeous large Zva flower and some really girly pink bling!!

Hope you all have a good day!

Zva Creative July DT Blog Hop!

2011-07-25T13:25:00.000+01:00

Zva Creative and our talented Design Team welcomes you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is always extra special!

We know that it's a busy time of year with kids home from school and vacations, so we thought it would be more fun to add even more chances to win our blog hop prize! Details below.

It's CHA time which means brand new products. So please keep an eye out for them at your local stores.

As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project.

The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog. She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way.

The Blog Hop starts today, July 25th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, July 26th and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, July 27th on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well (linked above). We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday...plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post...you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners.

To increase your chances of winning:

Comment to let us know that you posted on your Facebook page about our hop (link to any of the blog hop posts)

Comment to let us know that you "tweeted" about our hop (link to any of the blog hop posts)

Comment to let us know that you asked your local store to carry Zva creative products. If they already do, that's fantastic, maybe you can suggest other products that they don't carry

Sooo, you have FOUR chances on each blog to win one of our FIVE prizes! That's technically OVER 50 chances :)

So here is my project created using Zva crystals, flowers and leaves....
It is a clear acrylic album, that I have coloured using inks and paints. The bright blues and greens go perfectly with the brown Zva products for a masculine feel...

This gorgeous black swirl has been cut up into smaller swirls so that i could use it on mutliple pages...Zva crystal swirls are so big, you can afford to cut them into many smaller pieces!

Notice the smaller crystal flower framing the brad??

I didn't want to completly fill this clear album page because I wanted some of the photo to peek through...

More of that black swirl :) These swirls can really go anywhere!!

And as I used on the front cover, these Zva leaves are so realistic. I love to have them poking out from places, not just where there are flowers!

This flower was a white one which i spritzed with Glimmer Mists to co-ordinate with the ones on the front page...the fabric they are made from take the mists really well!!

...and finally a couple more of those crystal flowers taken from a much larger flower and swirl piece.

The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes

Your next stop is here: Maiko Miwa

Thank you SO MUCH for joining us

Imaginarium Designs Chipboard

2011-07-24T18:52:00.001+01:00

Hi all, so sorry for being absent for so long! I have an awful lot going on at home at the moment, and those of you who know all about it will understand my reasons for putting Blogger a little lower on my list of priorities! Still, whilst I am having a well deserved chill on the sofa with my daughter, I thought I would quickly update my poor neglected blog!

So you may recall me showing you a couple of sneek peeks of two layouts I created using Imaginarium Designs chipboard...well over on their blog they are now shown in full, so I thought I would show you here too.....

The first is made using the gorgeous fence piece which comes as a 12" length. However I cut it down into smaller pieces so I could use them within clusters over the page...

The title is also chipboard but I used a black paint dauber to colour it so that it stood out.

For this 'Letting off steam' LO, I painted the swirls in black also but used Silver inks on the cogs. I then added interest to the swirls with some liquid pearls.

I really had fun creating the liquid metal effects on each side of the page. I squirted acrylic paint in a thick line down the edge of the page and held it on its side so the paint could run down. When I was happy with the effect, i quickly covered the wet paint in silver embossing powder and applied heat until it had all melted.

Check back tomorrow at 2pm GMT for the monthly Zva Creative Blog Hop, they are always so much fun and so full of inspiration!

My little dude!

2011-06-24T16:27:00.004+01:00

This is what we are always calling Oliver, and I am sure I have previously titled my LO's this too! But anyway, that is just what he is, especially in that hat!!
These photos are really bad, and edited as best I can to brighten them up, but I have lost a lot of the detail. Sorry, but after spending 2hrs in bed with a tummy bug I am NOT venturing outside to retake them today!!

I cut around the photo to make a change from having the straight edges, and broke :0 a Kaisercraft wooden flourish in two so I could have it frame the picture.

Not saying too much today...off to go and feel sorry for myself again! Hope you all have a fab weekend! X

Quick catch up...

2011-06-23T16:26:00.004+01:00

Hi all! Long time no blog...again!!

Well I have been dipping in and out of scrapping the past few weeks, but family issues, birthdays, plus the dreaded tummy bugs have made crafty times few and far between.

Plus, wat I have made can not be shown on here...yet!

Anyway, I can't do a blog post without some sort of photo, so here are a couple of sneek peeks of some LO's I have created for Imaginarium Designs..

Have you checked out Imaginarium Designs yet? Their chipboard is so beautiful, so intricatly cut, in the most gorgeous designs. For loads of inspiration, take a peek at their blog here.

I am hopefully getting to my craft table tonight (fingers crossed!) so I may have something to share again soon! X

Front Cover!!! 'Happy Days!'

2011-06-02T08:58:00.003+01:00

I was really excited when I was asked to do a cover piece for Scrapbook Magazine recently!

I was sent the papers and photo to work with, so the style wasn't exactly my usual, but it was nice for a change to work with bright colours, and NO FLOWERS!!! I did manage to sneek a butterfly in there though!!! :)

The full page with materials and instructions can be seen a bit further in the mag. Hope you all have a good day :)

Prima May BAP

2011-06-01T07:42:00.003+01:00

Just stopped by quickly before I dash off to work to post this LO I did over the weekend, using the Prima Build-a-Page sketch.

I recently won this competition, and a lot of the goodies Sharon sent me were used on here...I just love the gorgeous teal flowers and different laces!

I framed each of the photos with lace, giving the whole LO a soft feel.

There's loads of texture on this page, which is so hard to show in a photo...and with the transparency background too...this page really needs to be seen properly IRL!!! Nevermind!!! :)

Zva Creative May DT Blog Hop!

2011-05-30T14:00:00.002+01:00

Zva Creative and the Design Team welcomes you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is always extra special!

As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project.

The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog. She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way.

The Blog Hop starts today, May 30th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, May 31st and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, June 1st on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well (linked above). We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday...plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post...you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners.

The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes

Your next stop is the very talented Gail Lindner

Thank you SO MUCH for joining us

Feeling Blue...

2011-05-26T10:32:00.004+01:00

The past few days I have been a bit poorly with a throat infection and all the horrible symptoms that came with it. So when I had a day off from work to recover, I thought sitting at my desk and scrapping might make me feel a bit better.

Needless to say, I wasn't feeling all that bright and cheery, so ended up doing this 'blue' layout!

I had the idea to make a page background purely from photos a while ago, but wasn't sure how to add decoration, until I saw this Zva vine...As the photos are all the same, it didn't matter that some were hidden by the embellishments.

Now I am almost fully recovered, hopefully my scrapping will take a cheerier note!

Don't you just love it...

2011-05-14T06:50:00.003+01:00

...when old school friends get in contact with you on Facebook? Well one particular friend messaged me the other day saying she had seen my scrapbooking album and would like me to do something for her! This is always flattering when the person hasn't even seen my work IRL but what she wants me to do for her is actually pieces for her wedding! Four in fact...what an honour?!

She gave me the colour scheme, and wants these 8" pages to incorporate photos of the happy couple,. They will sit on easels on the buffet table (which the one above is), the card/pressy table, the guest book table and one other which is yet to be decided.

She chose the 'Love is sweet, Please take a Treat' title, as this will be going beside a sweet buffet! How Cool?!

So fingers crossed this is what she expected, I have sent the pics off to her and am waiting to hear back!!! Nerve wracking!!!!

Today I should have been...

2011-05-11T14:30:00.002+01:00

...doing many things besides crafting! I have a whole pile of ironing, and a house that desperately needs a once over with the duster and hoover, so after a quick catch up with a friend this morning, I return home to do it...and end up crafting all afternoon! Nevermind, there's always tomorrow!
The main reason I rushed to my craft desk is because I realised that my daughters birthday is next friday, and I hadn't even thought about the invitations for her small teaparty!

She only wants three friends (that's my sort of party!) so it took me no time at all to knock these up for her, just in time to take up to the school this afternoon!

I decided now she is nearly six, that something a bit more grown up was needed and she really is a girly girl, so I opted to use a lot of pretty Zva stash...

I embossed the backing sheet with my cuttlebug, stitched some white lace to the bottom, and added an eyelet and ribbon to the top. If I had thought about it I could have made four so she had one to keep...doh!!!

Now to go and hand them out! X

Help for Heros Cards...

2011-05-10T13:13:00.000+01:00

A short while ago a friend asked if I would like to contribute a raffle prize to raise money for 'Help for Heros'.

This friend is an army wife herself, and I know another friend who's son was recently badly injured out in afgan, so of course I said I would put something together.

These are the cards I made to put together as a raffle prize...

I used loads of Zva swirls and flowers for these, even a crystal swirl for the little boy card!

Although this is a short post, I am now getting a bit more time to scrap so hopefully I should be back fairly soon with more to show you!

Take Note...

2011-05-08T18:20:00.004+01:00

My wonderful Mum will be having her birthday later this week, so I decided to create her a notebook to add to her gifts. She has had a really rubbish 6 months, and was saying just the other day that she has a lot of times, dates and appointments to remember...but usually tells others to prevent her from forgetting! So hopefully a little note book like this will be ideal for her to jot things down on the go!

I used a 7 gypsies album and covered it with BoBunny Gabrielle papers. I added some thick metalic paint to the edges.

I added some different sized journalling cards and some kraft envelopes for her to slot contact/appointment cards into.

Some of the pages I left fairly plain to allow for more writing, and others are quite decorated.

Just about everything got spritzed or inked!!!

So hopefully she will like it, and keep an eye on the Papermaze Blog, Scrap, Paper, Scissors as I shall be writing up full instructions there soon x

scrap-what-ing???

2011-05-06T16:18:00.005+01:00

Yep, that's how it feels at the moment. I have not only neglected my blog, but my craft table hasn't seen much more of me either lately! There are a few reasons for this...

1. The weather has been gorgeous and we are spending a

lot of time out making the most of it...

2. Most importantly, I have a lot of issues at home and with close

family which are preventing me from being able to concentrate...

3. My LSS where I work has been soooo busy,

I haven't even had time to browse and buy

the newer products coming in...

and 4. I have just had the kids off school for the best

part of three weeks, and they are not the most

understanding when it comes to 'mummy scraptime'!

oh, and 5. We also had a lovely week away...

just couldn't take all my stash with me,

but I did get loads of gorgeous photos to scrap!

So for now I shall just have to show you some of my Zva projects for April...

I fully intend on doing some scrapbooking tonight...or at least over the weekend, so I SHALL be back much sooner than next time...for tonight I am thinking mini-album with Bo-Bunny Gabrielle papers...we'll see!!!

Prima April BAP

2011-04-14T10:42:00.003+01:00

This is one of those photos that says an awful lot if you know the story behind it! It was actually taken just after my sisters wedding, where she is taking a breather and reflecting upon what just happened!!!

I used Primas Build-A-Page sketch for April to make this page. I loved the balance between the vertical lines and horizontal embellishments.

I decided to mix my fonts for the title, simply using three words to describe her feelings.

I cut strips of book pages, folded them and stitched them down ones side, curling up the top layer to add dimension and interest.

I am off for a family holiday on Monday so shall not be back until at least next weekend...I hope you all have a wonderful Easter break x

Mothers Day Cards...

2011-04-04T12:01:00.000+01:00

These are the two Mothers Day cards I have made this year, as promised. They are totally different, in both style and colours,which then made it difficult to decide who give which to!

When I make a card, I always add some layering inside for the message to go on. I think it makes the card stronger, but also adds as a lovely finishing touch.

Headband for my Daughter...

2011-04-03T12:01:00.000+01:00

Izabelle has a tendancy to break headbands, without even trying. So I thought I would try to get her a really thick,strong one that would put up with her a little better! The only one I could find was a plain red one. That was ok, but it was boring...very boring. So I waved my magic wand,and usingmostly Zva products, I prettied it up a bit!

I used hot glue to stick two layers of this pleated ribbon over the red plastic, and simply stuck these gorgeous flowers on top. I also cut up a pearl swirl, and stuck it down on top of the ribbon for more detail.

She loves it,and fingers crossed,she won't break it either!

Finally, a page...

2011-04-02T13:48:00.003+01:00

...after a few days away from blogging, I have finally sat down to type up some things. This is one of my Zva projects for March. I loved how the big red flower was similar to the one in the photo...

I used a mix of old and new papers...there is new basic grey, and echo park. I went for a black punched edging to add contrast.

Tomorrow I shall be posting another of my Zva projects, and begining of next week, I hope to show you the Mothers Day cards i made.

Enjoy your weekend x

March Zva Blog Hop Winners announced

2011-03-30T14:00:00.000+01:00

We'd like to congratulate the FIVE March Zva Blog Hop winners! Their names will be found on the following blogs: Lou Collins Camilla Ekman Angelica Franssen Windy Robinson Gail Lindner One winner from each of the 5 blogs will receive a Zva prize package worth $30.00. Congrats winners! Yep, you do see my name there, so my winner is... JENNIFER RZASA!!!

Congratulations Jennifer! Please email me at

louizabelle@hotmail.co.uk

with your address so Zva can get your prize out to you!

Reuse, Recycle...Reveal!!

2011-03-28T22:07:00.005+01:00

Over on the Prima Blog, two of their fabulous DT have shown how they have used Prima packaging to create gorgeous projects. I thought I would have a go myself, and created this house to celebrate us being in our home over three years now...(and boy the time has flown!)

I used so much packaging, that the whole thing would have only cost me pennies to make! Even the window boxes, bushes, vase and clock are recycled!

March Zva Creative Blog Hop

2011-03-28T14:00:00.000+01:00

Zva Creative and the Design Team welcomes you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is always extra special! There is now an added twist to our blog hops, YAY! As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project. The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog. She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way. The Blog Hop starts today, March 28th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, March 29th and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, March 30th on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well (linked above). We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday...plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post...you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners. Here is my piece using gorgeous new orange and ginger products... The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes Your next stop is the lovely Jolanda Thank you SO MUCH for joining us

Altered Book...

2011-03-21T19:40:00.005Z

My daughter is a total bookworm...fact! So it is no suprise that I have loads of photos of her either reading or being read to! A simple scrapbook page didn't really seem enough to house all the photos I have so I decided to try altering a book instead...

I searched the charity shops for some old books and only found 4 suitble, from 8 shops! This one I chose to use was made in 1931! I couldn't decide between adorning it with pretty colourful flowers, or old twigs and leaves so I used both. The twigs are 'sprouting' up from inside the spine of the book. The leaves attached are really old Prima ones I have, but have no idea where I got them!

The fence was die-cut them embossed to make it slightly metalic, although I made sure is wasn't shiny and new looking! I added bookmarks made from packaging, a metal charm, a metal cage with text inside, and even berries made by sticking Prima E-line pearls together!

The photos that I chose to use are stapled on to hold them securely, and most other things are held with hot glue.

The whole thing is mounted on a circle of strong cardboard. I used three sticks of hot glue and burnt myself four times!!!

If you watch the slideshow, you will see the little details. I even made a tiny little book, and bound it with thin twine to sit in a little basket! Cute or what!?!

Thanks for looking!

Taking Time...

2011-03-18T22:29:00.003Z

This LO I was saving for a DT call, but have decided not to send this one in, so you peeps get to see it first instead!

I adore this picture of my daughter smelling the daffodils last spring. I also have a similar photo of my son doing the same!

I hope you all have a good weekend. Fingers crossed I will get some scrapping done and haave more to share with you soon!

Some confusion!

2011-03-16T09:28:00.003Z

There seemsto be some confusion about this giveaway!
The very talented Tracie is giving this little lot away on HER blog HERE, not me :)

If you would like to win a set of 12 Sassafras Apple Jack papers, a packet of Sassafras In a Stitch Blooms, one Prima Build a Book and some Bakers Twine to create one of these minis for yourself them just leave a comment on this post....its as simple as that :)

The draw starts today and closes at midnight on 29th March - She will announce the names of the winners on 30th March 2011.

3 Going On 13...

2011-03-14T12:12:00.003Z

...that's how we used to describe my daughter! Now, it's 5 going on 15! lol! The frown she is demonstrating in this LO used to be a common occurance as soon as she got the hump!

I am so hooked on using zips at the moment so you will be seeing loads more when I get to a harberdashery! (Wow, can you imaging a layout covered in them....?)

I adore Tim Holtz metal embelishments, only I hardly dare use them in case I use them up too quickly!

I am also getting into using my crop-a-dile more now, it's so simple to use!

I love Mondays because I don't have work and I generally stay in, catch up with a bit of housework and do a fair bit of scrapping. Now I am off to have a go at the new Pencil Lines sketch that went live last night...back soon!

Prima March BAP

2011-03-13T16:30:00.003Z

For this months sketch, I decided to do two pages, one for my son, and one of my sister...

Not much time for chit chat today, attempting to cook a roast dinner, whilst scrapping and updating this blog...gotta go!

Prima Product Picks...

2011-03-11T19:59:00.004Z

...this gorgeous bunch of products are all yummies from Prima and, perfect for March, their Palette for this month is some lovely shades of green...

I am really into my greens at the moment so I shall definately be having a go at a page with these colours!

New LO, New Era, New Discovery!

2011-03-09T21:53:00.004Z

First a new LO...

This one was created for a submission which I will explain at a later date. I am assuming I probably didn't get on the team I wanted with it, so I should think it is safe to post by now! I think the woodgrain paper is from the new MME stella & rose collection. I really wanted lots of bright, bold contrast but didn't have any really bright orange flowers that I would have liked. So instead I mixed up some paints and slapped it on these paper flowers.
The zip is an accent I love to use on my pages at times, but they are not easy to adhere, especially if I want it part way open!

A New Era...My baby boy has now started his education! Ok, so it is only preschool, but it seems so early! They are now taking children slightly younger than before when Izabelle went, which makes him seem too young, but he loves it and I am sure I shall enjoy a few hours peace each week! He was really super excited about going and walked around with his backpack on for a goo half an hour before we had to leave!

Here he is FINALLY leaving the house...

Spot the favorite teddy in tow?

...and here he was after! From what I understand he had two and a half hours of almost uninterrupted sand play, battling off any other poor child who dared to try and play with it too! Not quite got the hang of sharing yet!

Finally, a new discovery? Well, it is totally non-scrapping related, but I have noticed the past few years that I cannot stomach caffeine, and the longer I have been without it, the harder it hits my body when I do indulge a little! However, after a cup or two today (thinking I would be ok!) I have discovered that not only do I get the usual upset tummy still, but also it triggers off panic attacks, which I am already prone to! So tonight as I write this, I am very anxious, downing water to try to flush it out and cursing myself as much as I do when I get a hangover from alcohol! So note to self: Just one cup will NOT be ok, so don't even think about it! Rant over!!

I Watch You Bloom...

2011-03-08T10:29:00.004Z

This page, I think is going to be one of my favorites to date. I collected a whole load of thin bendy twigs that had been blown off trees when walking home from school last week. I then used a hot glue gun to make them frame this circle I cut from some Prima packaging.

I think it helps that this is one of my fave photos of Izabelle too!

I spritzed some white cardstock in blue and pink before printing my journaling onto it so that it would blend with the background.

I hope you like it. Next up will be my Prima March BAP entry!

Pencil Lines Sketch 228

2011-03-07T12:15:00.003Z

I can't seem to create a page lately without some sort of challenge or inspiration. Thankfully, I always love the Pencil Lines sketches, and even if I don't always blog them all, a lot of my pages will originate from a sketch of theirs, old or new!

But I am trying to keep up to date lately, so here a page based on the most recent one which went live yesterday...

I bought this die-cut sheet from the new MME Stella & Rose collection {amongst others :)} because I liked the teal coloured reverse. Iam not a huge yellow or orange fan, especially not so flowery as this is!

BUT I completely messed up some Crackle paint effects on the reverse so it was either use this side or chuck it...well I don't chuck ANYTHING!

It is so dull in my room this time of day, so the photos arte not great :(

The page took all of an hour, because that is all I had, but I may be using this sketch again shortly when I have more time!

Altered table lamp...

2011-03-06T11:02:00.004Z

Yet again, another innocent household item falls victim to my gluegun! This time, I took a very plain cream table lamp, and decorated it with lace, leaves and flowers to within an inch of it's exsistence!

I may have gone a little overboard this time though, probably should have stuck to adorning just the base or the shade, but hey, if a jobs worth doing....!

I wanted it to look as if the leaves were trailing up the inside, and over the top of the shade. However, for safety reasons, I obviously didn't put anything too close to where the bulb would be!

I arranged and stuck down the ribbons, then tucked half flowers under them randomly (well, sort of in a colour order!)

Well, I hope you like it. I am now off to sit at my scrap table...I have a whole hour free!!! Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!

Pencil Lines Sketch 227

2011-03-05T16:34:00.003Z

As soon as I saw this sketch over at Pencil Lines, I knew just what photo I would use!

I stitched real canvas to a cardstock background, and used a new technique I have found for transfering patterned paper print onto material (more of that another time!)

Yep, they are real twigs. not sure how they will age, but they look pretty good! The leaves are not real, but I have spritzed them to get the colours I wanted.

The butterflies were found in my local harberdashery AGES ago!

The entire page only took abut an hour once I had finished transfering that gorgeous lace pattern from a sheet of BG Curio paper. I couldn't work with it again til it was dry! Still, I love the rough, worn look...shame a lot of it is covered over! :)

Thanks for looking!

Altered heart chalkboard...

2011-03-03T11:54:00.004Z

You may start to notice that I am soooo into altering things lately. I am still scrapping, but it is a nice change to be working in 3D! I even went to my local craft & hobby store a few days ago and stocked up on things to play around with and alter, and I could be spotted collecting thin bendy twigs on the way home from school this morning :) (That's another post completly!)

So here is my lastest that I made last night, and I love it. As always, it looks so much better IRL, but still the close-ups should give you an idea of all the little details!

I had originally had in mind to do a flowery, pretty, little girly thing with it, but when I remembered I had this photo, I started to get a fresh heap of inspiration!

The frame was an aged, almost whitewashed wood already but I added some white paint splats, spritzing and some script stamping in dark brown. A lot of this is now covered with embellishments but if you look closley you may spot some!

I wanted to show his personality through the embelishments...

Leaves for his love of outdoors & the charm speaks for itself :)

Bookpages, twine and the photo printed on canvas just suited the style I wanted to use...

...Paint splats show his need to be messy, plus he loves anything arty, hence the letters and numbers too...he loves to try to write and draw...

and the key symbolises his curiosity!

I used some Prima packaging layered up as tabs, and cut out a barcode. I love these as a masculine embellishment!

I think this is going to hang in my craft area for the time being until I get sick of admiring it!

I also have a table lamp that I have adorned MASSIVELY but I shall show that next time!

February Zva Blog Hop Winners announced

2011-03-02T13:58:00.003Z

We'd like to congratulate the FIVE February Zva Blog Hop winners! Their names will be found on the following blogs:

Teri Anderson
Jillian Deiling Cassity
Carole Maurin
Jolanda Meurs
Susan Lui

One winner from each of the 5 blogs will receive a Zva prize package worth $30.00. Congrats winners!

Giveaway Winner...

2011-03-02T13:46:00.003Z

So I thought it was about time I awarded my Blog Giveaway to one of my lovely followers. So here is my randomly generated number...

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
96
Timestamp: 2011-03-02 13:46:41 UTC

...and that makes it SUSAN ROBERTS!!!

Congratulations Susan! Please email me your address to louizabelle@hotmail.co.uk and I shall get the goodies sent out to you.

And can I send out a HUGE thank you to all my followers new and old for all of your lovely comments, not just concerning the blog giveaway, but all the time. I really do appreciate your messages, and wish I had the time to reply to each one!

Zva Creative February DT Blog Hop!

2011-02-28T14:00:00.002Z

Zva Creative and the Design Team welcomes you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is always extra special!

There is now an added twist to our blog hops, YAY! As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project.

The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog. She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way.

The Blog Hop starts today, February 28th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, March 1st and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, March 2nd on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well (linked above). We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday...plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post...you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners.

My colours were the very romantic Red and Black...

The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes
Your next stop is here: Angelica Franssen

Thank you SO MUCH for joining us x

Altered Canvas Bag (Photo heavy!)

2011-02-27T13:27:00.009Z

This weekend I have taken a break from the usual scrapbooking, and chosen to make this canvas bag for my little princess.

I found this plain canvas bag for just £1.75 in my local garden & craft centre. I just wish I had picked up more than one now!

Before I started, I needed to shorten the handles and the bag length itself, but this was simple with a sewing machine!

The decorating was a complex process, with lots of messy play, but here are the brief instructions...(making it sound easy now!)

Firstly I had to decide on some sort of fastening for the top. It needed to be a simple attachment that Izabelle (5 years old) could do up and undo.

I found this Prima Canvas tag in my stash, which went perfectly.

I chose to cut off the pretty embroidered design to use on another project, and stitched the blunt end on the inside of the bag, so it could fold over and secure on the outside of the front...see?!

I then needed something long and thin to go through the eyelet. I found the silver key, and dug out a safety pin to attach to the bag. I used clear thread to hold these in place where the eyelet would sit.

Next it was time to get messy! I spritzed the bag with Peacock coloured Glimmer Mist, from the bottom left and top right corners. I laid a swirly mask down first under where the bulk of the embellishments would be.

When this was dry, I stuck down a paper doily and with black t-shirt paint, I painted through some of the holes to leave a circle pattern on the bag.

I also stamped a few black swirls using Prima Build-a-Swirl Set. These were carefully placed for embellishments later!

Next I laid the foundations for my flower cluster and title to sit on. I spritzed some Prima Lace with Glimmer Mist to match it to my colour scheme, and layered this up with some other ribbons. The May Arts Net was folded as I stitched it on to give it a pleated effect.

So this is what I had so far!

For my title, I really would have liked some of the large Prima letters that I've seen used before, but have none. So instead, I took an assortment of rather large chipboard letters in any colours. I then peeled off their plastic covering which left the underneath white and slightly felt-like...perfect!

I painted the edges with a pale blue colour acrylic...

...and stamped a script pattern on top of the letters using a fairly dried out black ink pad for a subtle effect.

To seal and protect the letters I covered with a few layers of mod podge.

Then it was just a case of attaching flowers, crystal swirls, leaves, the title, and that gorgeous chipboard birdcage. I did ink it black to make it stand out. I found a small length of chain hiding in my stash which I used to hang the cage from (or at least look like it! ;) ) Izabelle wanted the birdcage and butterfly to swing, so the chain is only stitched to the actual bag through the top few hoops.

To balance the black birdcage and title, I inked a Tim Holtz Grungeboard piece and attached it with jewelled brads to the opposite end of the ribbons.

To attach everything and hold them in place I used a mixture of clear thread, Fabric Glue, and a hot glue gun...sometimes two of these things to hold bits securely!

Izabelle is really pleased with her bag, and doesn't she look gorgeous?! Now all that's left to do is find a safe place to keep the bag away from her little brothers hands!

What are you up to today?

2011-02-23T17:44:00.002Z

I have seen this sort of thing on a few blogs, and more recently on Tracie Hudsons, which is much shorter than others I have seen!

listening - to Hubby's phone conversation
eating - licking the curry off my fingers as I prepare dinner
drinking - err...not enough!
wearing - trackie bottoms, and hubby's sweatshirt & socks
feeling - pleased I have a certain DT application written up and waiting to send ;)
weather - cold and wet
wanting - to scrap this evening...
needing - to phone my dad
thinking - What shall I put in the oven for the kids
enjoying - hearing the washing machine whirring and smelling dinner cooking
wondering - Can we turn CBeebies off yet? :)

This is just a lovely way to summarise and record the day. So why not have a go and let everyone else know what you are up to!

Blog Giveaway Photos!

2011-02-22T19:32:00.003Z

As promised, here are the lovelies I shall be giving away to one lucky Follower!

There are Foam Thickers, Papers, Cardstock, Doilies, Blooms, Leaves, Fancy Pants Brads, Stickles, Basic Grey stamps, LYB Pins, Buttons, Maya Road Kraft Envelope, Heidi Swapp Bling, Jillibean Soup Journaling Sprouts, Scenic Route Chipboard, Ribbons including some Prima, Love Elsie Rubber Frames, Queen & co felt Fusion, 2 sets of Kraft Letter Sheets and Prima Journaling notelets - Phew!

As you can see, there is a mix of old and new, and yes, some I am having second thoughts about giving up! :)

For the Giveaway details, see the previous post...

Blog Candy Giveaway!

2011-02-20T08:40:00.002Z

I am celebrating today because upon logging onto Blogger this morning I noticed that I now have 71 followers, which is the same amount as I had on my old blog when I accidentally deleted it! So to thank everyone who has found me again, and to celebrate my new peeps, I am going to put together some blog candy for one lucky follower to win!

I was thinking about some papers, matching cardstock, flowers, bling, buttons, ribbons, stamps...

(I shall be getting a photo up on here very shortly!)

So to be in with the chance of winning, simply follow this blog (if you are not already!) and link this giveaway up on your own blog...easy!
International entries very welcome!

I shall randomly choose a winner from my followers who linked me up on 28th Feb 2011.

Good Luck everyone xx

Prima Feb BAP

2011-02-16T22:37:00.005Z

As I bought myself some yummy new Prima 'Botanicals' Papers the other day, I thought I would have a go at their February Build-a-Page...

I cut out a heart from some plain cardstock, and covered it in wet glue. I then randomly stuck down some small red flowers until the whole shape was covered. When it was dry, I spritzed it lightly with brown glimermist to tone down the brighter red shades. Lastly I added some brown pearls and gems to some of the flower centers.

I wanted to give my page balance by having some of the grey colour (see the gate shape below) in my title. I used some raw chipboard letters and very gently dabbed an old black inkpad onto the letters I needed until they were the shade I wanted.

This frame is actually from Kaisercraft but the colours went well with the creams and browns, and I wanted to focus in on 'the kiss'!

I also needed to balance the strong red of the flowered heart, so I added this red date tab.

...and this was Prima's sketch!

2011-02-12T14:16:00.004Z

Forgot all about this LO! I made this for the January Otley Crop Kit using Bo Bunny Midnight Frost papers...

I now have a pile of Design Team projects to get through, and four orders to do so I best get scrapping! X

Wish it was always this easy...

2011-02-09T07:09:00.000Z

You know those times when you muddle papers around for hours and you just don't seem to have the right ones for a particular photo? Well this was NOT one of those!
I started rummaging through my patterned paper box and this brown lined sheet was on top, seemingly, in the way! So I chucked it onto my desk and as my photo fell out of the printed it landed perfectly onto the paper...Voila! The rest was reasonably easy!

The photo is one I started scrapping last year, but the page just wasn't working for me. I put it away and tried to forget about it!

I just love this tape measure patterned paper from Cosmo Cricket, and could use it on almost every LO!

If I had more time I would have added some stitching, and I still might...

Fly Girl!

2011-02-08T06:38:00.000Z

Such a corny title but I couldn't think of anything else!

This LO was done very quickly when I had the sudden urge to scrap (yes, that happens often!) and I only had about an hour to spare...

The photo is not fantastic but needed scrapping as it was my daughters first plane ride.

I was inspired by this LO by the fantastic Nic Howard. Obviously mine is nowhere near the standard of hers!

I used a lot of older papers and embelishments, which I haven't done for a long time, In fact I haven't really mixed manufacturers much for a while...and it was very refreshing!

Color Room #44

2011-02-07T11:33:00.003Z

I have been admiring the Color Room Pallettes for a while but have only just been able to get round to making a page using one!

The latest is this gorgeous Whitewashed palette...

Now the 'whitewashed' palettes basically mean the colours will be teamed with white, but they are not to be used with an of the other netural colours usually allowed, ie. black and kraft ~ i think!!!

So here is my page using photos of Oliver trying to blow bubbles at the recent wedding we went to...

I started off using the sketch, but got carried away! And in any case,. my handwriting is not neat enough to journal all the way down the edge, so this sort of thing will have to wait until I have my A3 printer (yeah, right!)

I did change the title because I wasn't happy with the first, and I had forgotten that I had some raw chipboard letters waiting to be painted!

I did a lot of inking and stamping to get the colours just right. The circles were stamped using a glue lid and the end of a hair roller!

Now I just can't wait to play aging with the next palette!

Loved this line!

2011-02-05T19:01:00.006Z

Although it was more pink/red than I would usually go for, when the new Making Memories line 'Je t'Adore' came into work I just had to have a play with it...oh the perks!! :)

So I took some home and very shortly after I had made these two pages...

I hope you have all had a good weekend so far...We went to a fabuulous wedding yesterday, here are a couple of pics but I want to find time to edit the rest...

She still looks gorgeous on her side!! :)

My babies all dolled up!

Thats me on the right

I am now recovering from lack of sleep and too much wine but it was all well worth it!

Boy Pages

2011-02-02T16:06:00.005Z

If you know my style then you will know that I will usually opt for pretty flowers and bling on a page, whatever the subject! But during the last two crops I attended, I managed to create a couple of masculine pages to add to my albums...

This one holds my favorite photo of Oliver from a few professional ones we had done recently. He looks so grown up!

I added acents of orange and blue for contrast, and staples, stitching and twine added to the 'boyish' theme

This quote from a 7 Gypsies sticker sheet was very fitting and the perfect colour!

And more recently I made this quick page whilst at the January crop. I really am not 100% happy with it but the text sums Oliver up perfectly...

So this friday I have a family wedding to go to but hopefull after that I shall be able to get out in the garden and photograph a few more pages I have created recently. I also have some to share soon using the gorgeous new Je t'Adore line by Making Memories, which will also be up on the Papermaze Blog soon.

Nana & You

2011-01-28T09:14:00.000Z

The last Otley crop I went to, I did manage to complete three layouts, but unfortunatly I was only really happy with one of them! I wonder if it is the pressure of other people being about to see what you are creating, whilst you are doing it that makes me unable to relax and 'perform'!

Still, this is the one I was happy with...the photo looks old but it is of my Mum and Daughter on a beach in Jersey, when they went on holiday last August. I used a mix of 'pound shop' flowers, and more pricey Prima ones.

I also cut up a Maya Road envelope, and 'doctored' it so that it wrapped around my photo.

I couldn't find a & sign to match my other title letters, so I improvised with a white one and some brown stickles!

The flowery panel is part of a Basic Grey Doilie, but I usually use them as complete backgrounds. I thought the colour went really well with the rest of the page, but too much would detract from the detailed flowers.

This folded over corner effect I saw (and loved!) on a page by Emma Trout. If you haven't heard of her before her pasges are amazing and so detailed, there is certainly something for every style of scrapper within her designs!

This top edge I felt needed a little more detail so I added some eyelets using my new-ish Crop-a-dile and some ric-rac ribbon.

I shall share my 'not so good' pages from this crop soon x

His Princess

2011-01-27T12:06:00.003Z

This is the name My hubby always calls our Daughter so it was just fitting that it be the title for this page. I created this with lots of Zva Products, including the title, butterfly & swirl and flowers!
The Maya Road Kraft envelope hold details about the meal we were at when the photo was taken.
The background was created with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist and the peeled off backing from a Prima Felt border! Reuse & Recycle all the time :) !!!

I have loads more to show you that I have made over the past few weeks (I have just spent all morning sorting all the photos out!) but I think I shall space them out over the next few days so check back again soon x

Welcome 2011!

2011-01-11T19:52:00.003Z

Ok, so most blogger's posts that were titled like this one were actually posted within the first few days of January! I have unfortunatly had lots on at home...and very little of it has been scrapping time!

On a bad note, We have all had the dredded 'winter flu' that managed to spread itself from Dec 22nd through til Jan 3rd, at varying degrees between us four plus almost all of our family! Poor Izabelle copped the worst of it feeling really rotten over Xmas Day and even the invincable Hubby managed to bag himself a nasty ear infection from his! I really do not cope well with illness and freak out at the slightest inkling of a bug so you can imagine what fun I had!

Plus, My Stepdad (who is wonderful) was sadly diagnosed with Cancer, and not just one, over Xmas so he has started some treatment this week. We are all so worried, especially as he and my Mum live just over an hours drive away so we can't even pop in!
AND to top it all off on a not so serious note, the Ruddy bath started leaking AGAIN over New Year...AAARRRGGHHHH!!!!

But enough moping! To get away from it all I did manage to grab a few minutes yesterday to do a LO and forget the stresses of the past few weeks...

I am quite pleased with this one but mainly because I ove the colour combonation rather than the Layout! I dug out a lot of old goodies and it really is amazing how much 'stuff' I have that I had forgotten about!

Best of 2010...

2010-12-31T08:18:00.002Z

So here it is! My favourite Scrapbook Pages from this year. I certainly think my scrapbooking has turned a corner in the last 12 months and I really can't wait to see what I create in 2011!

And I think I would also add my recent Zva pages 'Together' and 'Swing' to this list too! :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE XX

Zva Creative Projects

2010-12-30T20:10:00.002Z

In addition to my 'Swing' LO that I posted earlier this week for the Zva Blog hop, I have another two LO's to show you for this month...

You can't see it but the bottom of this page has a black scalloped edge!

I felt like doing a summery LO whilst we were sitting in from the snow, shivering and wishing it would warm up!

I think I have proved that these gorgeous Zva products can go on any themed page!

Next I am going to attempt to upload my fave LO's from 2010 on my new laptop...this could take some time!

Zva Creative December blog hop winners announced!

2010-12-29T11:59:00.000Z

We'd like to congratulate the FIVE December Zva Blog Hop winners! Their names will be found on the following blogs:

Angelica Franssen
Tanya Tahir
Debbie Olson
Windy Robinson
Gail Lindner

One winner from each of the 5 blogs will receive a Zva prize package worth $30.00. Congrats winners!

Zva Creative December DT Blog Hop!

2010-12-23T12:08:00.004Z

Zva Creative and the Design Team welcomes you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is always extra special!

There is now an added twist to our blog hops, YAY! As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project.

The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way.

The Blog Hop starts today, December 27th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, December 28th and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, December 29th on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well (linked above). We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday...plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post...you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners.

I used some Gorgeous lilac and white roses and a Beautiful purple and lilac pearl leaf to frame my page.

The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes
Your next stop is here: Susan Lui

Thank you SO MUCH for joining us

Slipped through the net...

2010-12-15T13:52:00.003Z

Here are a couple of LO's that I think have missed the 'blog boat' so to speak. Some are recent, and some are new but all for some reason didn't make this blog when they were created...no idea why though!

'Born to Cuddle'

This one was created recently for Papermaze's Blog using a colour combo.

'Nana'

You can guess who this one was for! I used MME Lost and Found papers...LOVE this collection!

'Ruben Joshua'

This is for a friend who had their son in September. It will be a Christmas Gift, framed, in colours that suit their living room.

'Just Being Oliver'

I remember making this one a long time ago, and I was so into it that I took it round to the in-laws one weekend so that I could sit and stitch the leaves and buttons on!

'Two against One'
And this is also a very old one but I found it the other day when I was sorting my albums out. I was just really pleased with how the layered photo came out, and the flowers were made from scraps of the photos!

Well that is something to keep this blog going for a little while! :) I had better go check on my sniffy, snotty, coughy, hot little boy!

Zva Creative First Play!

2010-12-11T21:41:00.003Z

So when I finally got to have a play with my new Zva DT goodies, I was so excited I didn't know what to use first!

I was a rush to get a few pieces done by the end of the month, but I did manage a LO and a card, plus the Zva Blog Hop Project 'First Snow Play', which is here

For my LO 'Picture Perfect', I used the yummy new BG Curio papers alongside some beautiful Zva black gem scrolls and flowers to match. The photo was printed onto canvas paper so that I could pull threads from the edge to distress them...cool or what?!

My card uses a gorgeous pearl swirl and white roses. It is quite simple but the swirl makes it look more special.

So this was just half the monthly requirement so keep an eye out at the end of December for a whole lot more Zva yumminess!

Long time no blog!

2010-12-09T16:31:00.007Z

But then what's different? I have been busy with family stuff, working and getting ready for xmas, so what little craft time I get seems to be totally devoted to Design Team stuff!

Still, here are a couple of bits I can show you...

Firstly, a page I have wanted to do for a while (about 18 months!) with lots of photos of Oliver from birth to a year old.

I am not thrilled about it, and the photos took forever to get ready for printing, and then cut out, but at least I now have them down on paper! The journaling talks about his likes and dislikes at this stage of his life which was really important for me to get down before I forgot the little things!

Secondly, a small xmas gift for Izabelles teacher...

In case you can't quite read it, it says 'Pens & Things' one side, and 'Mrs Waldron's' the other. Simple but pretty. I just covered two different sized tin cans (after washing them out!) and glued them together. *HINT* make sure you use some pliers to smooth the cutt top edge.No-one will appreciate sharp bits!

And I want to make something a bit more xmassy to go with it. Just saw this on Wendy McKee's Blog so might steal her fab idea!

My friend's birthday was yesterday (EEEK!!!) so I quickly made him a card today, but despite not having much time, I went a bit far with the envelope too!

And lastly, just a couple of very quick wedding acceptances I made. Both very similar but the recipients do not know each other so it doesn't matter!
I think that is me all caught up for now! Back soon with my first Zva pieces! X

November Zva Blog Hop Winners announced

2010-12-01T10:00:00.004Z

We'd like to congratulate the FIVE November Zva Blog Hop winners!

Their names will be found on the following blogs:

Camilla Ekman: http://camillaslillasida.blogspot.com/
Ingrid Danvers: www.ingriddanvers.com
Jolanda Meurs: www.jolandameurs.blogspot.com
Susan Lui http://www.luv2scrap-pages.blogspot.com/
and mine is the 5th :)

One winner from each of the 5 blogs will receive a Zva prize package worth $30.00.

So my winner randomly chosen by my husband was....

BETTYBEE said:

Great layout! I love the ghost letters for SNOW, the misting in the background, and the great ZVA snowflake. Darling little one in the photo, too :) This layout really invited me to stay and enjoy all of it.

So Congrats BettyBee, please email me at louizabelle@hotmail.co.uk with your address so we can get your prize sent out to you.
Thank you to all of you who left wonderful comments too.

And here is a quick project I did for my craft room door using a gorgeous Zva swirl and flower!

Zva Creative November DT Blog Hop!

2010-11-29T09:55:00.004Z

We have a NEW Zva Creative Design Team and we welcome you to join us this month for a blog hop that we feel is extra special!

There is now an added twist to our blog hops, YAY! As you know, Zva offers so many beautiful color groupings for pearls, flowers and crystals. We want to make sure that they shine bright for you, so each designer was asked to share a creation using a specific color or color combination on their blog hop project. We anticipate that our hops will become even more breathtaking with such stunning products to showcase by concentrating on color..

The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, just follow along the blog path. I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. Be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on FIVE of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package ...YAY! Winners will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way.

The Blog Hop starts today, November 29th and runs through midnight US Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, November 30th and the 5 winners will be announced on Wednesday, December 1st on each of the five winning blogs. The full list will be found on Kim Hughes‘s blog as well. We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday...plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post...you do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path though, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners.

The blog hop begins here: Kim Hughes

Your next stop is here: Jillian

Thank you SO MUCH for joining us

Just put a big red cross on our door!

2010-11-16T21:08:00.001Z

Yep, we have poorly people in the house again! And so I won't be writing much, just that I have a couple of pages I did a while ago and haven't had time to share. So here they are, and I shall be back soon with a more detailed post soon :)

The Big Event

2010-11-06T18:37:00.005Z

As I have mentioned before, I shall be teaching a class at 'The Big Event' in Suffolklater this month. I now have my page prepared,so I wanted to show you all a sneek peek of what we shall be doing with the kits that will be available to buy on the day. The kit is made up with the gorgeous Echo Park Everybody Loves Christmas papers, plus other embellies!

If you live local enough I really encourage you to pop along. There are four different classes to choose from, plus a day long crop, and local craft businesses attending so you can topup your stash! You can turn up on the day, but places are selling out fast so if you would like more info, or to book your space, check out the blog here

I can't wait and I look forward to seeing some of you there!

Toot Toot!

2010-11-01T19:30:00.002Z

Today, being monday started off slow and tiring, as all mondays do! by late afternoon I had had enough and wanted to curl up on the sofa for the rest of the day!
That was until I got an exciting email!

The new Zva Creative DT shall be...

Lisa Johnson - US
Teri Anderson - US
Windy Robinson - US
Debbie Olsen - US
Jillian Cassity - US
Angelica Franssen - US
Nancy Doren - US
Guisepps Gubler - US
Tara Orr - Canada
Benedicte Raphalen - France
Carole Maurin - France
Ingrid Danvers - Netherlands
Jolanda Meurs - Netherlands
Julianne McKenna - Australia
Gail Lindner - Australia
Tanya Tahir - Australia
Tokomo Takahashi - Japan
Camilla Ekman - Sweden
Susan Lui - Singapore
Louise Collins - UK !!!

I justcan't wait to get started...I just can't get enough of bling now-a-days!

seeing clearly!

2010-10-30T22:01:00.002+01:00

I just love transparancies,but do not often use them. So when I found the box of old BG 12"X12" doilies at work, I knew exactly what I would do with some of them!

I backed this one onto clear acetate first so I had a good base to stick bits to, and to make it more sturdy. The stitching around the edge was nerve-racking...had to make sure my sewing machine didn't have one of it's tempers half way through and mess it all up! I also needed to ensure the stitching underneath would not show through!

You can't really see the Prima Crystal Swirl but it is gorgeous! Sorry about the poor photo...tis night time here but wanted to upload asap!

I love that you can just about see through it, and the acetate gives it a bit of a sparkle as you move past it! It does look so much better sitting in front of me so maybe I shall try some pics out in the garden tomorrow! :D

Out of my stride...

2010-10-28T14:43:00.003+01:00

Having been a bit poorly lately, which is really not usual for me, I have tried to rest more than usual in the form of doing more scrapping :D However, I have found that the constant need to get warm drinks and painkillers has slowed my creativity, and I don't seem to have that natural eye for the design of my pages that I tend to find comes easily. In fact, it has been hard work and my final pieces are 'less than satisfactory' (ever have that in your school report?!)

Still, since I have pondered for hours over these two pages, especially the first, I thought I would share them anyway...

For this one I was trying to use up some of my old stash that has been forgotten!

Well I have been to the doctors and he has confirmed I have an infection in my windpipe :( but it should clear itself in a few days...so much more scrapin' and relaxin' is on the cards!

2010-10-24T10:29:00.002+01:00

Hi all! I hope you are all enjoying your weekend!

I am so excited to have been anounced as Papermaze's new DT member this week. Obviously I knew about it before then, but still, to see it up on the blog is fab!

I gave you all a sneek peek of this LO, which was my very first as a DT member.

I used the new Lost and Found Papers from My Minds Eye...absolutley gorgeous! They totally suit my scrapping style! Pop over to the Papermaze Blog for close-up details of this one, and loads more gorgeousdesigns from the rest of the DT!

3 LO's in 6 hours!

2010-10-17T11:01:00.008+01:00

Yesterday was the best day in the month for me...the Papermaze Crop at Otley.

I made a lemon sponge the night before (which went much quicker than I had expected!) and managed 3 whole LO's. All bar the stitching which I needed to come home and do!

This page was really simple, and quick to make. I used an old sheet of prima, both front and back, and a plain piece of cardstock put through a cuttlebug. I have wanted to do a page with these colours for a while!

This one was my 'not sure' page! I love the photo, and liked the placement, but I think I didn't quite have the right alphas and letter stickers, and prbably went a bit overboard with the butterflies!

Now I am not usually into halloween, and do not have any halloween photos but I just loved these papers from the Girls Paperie when they came into Papermaze and had to domething with them! The cobwebs are stitched with yarn for a slightly worn, fluffy effect, ratherthan proper thread which would give much cleaner lines.

I also have a couple of sneek peeks for you...firstly, in Scrapbook Magazine soon will be this...

and keep an eye out on Papermazes blog for my two favorite pages latetly...

a few bits...

2010-10-10T15:39:00.002+01:00

I actually got to sit and scrap for a little while yesterday, and so here is what I created.

The Monster page was made with the 'Monster Stew' papers from Jillibean Soup. I spent around half an hour cutting all the shapes out!

This box was a last minute pressy for my daughters friend (Eek, almost forgot about the party she had to go to today!)

The box was £2.99 from a discount store and I so wish I had more time to decorate it but fingers crossed, Aliyah won't mind!

finally a couple of pages...

2010-10-08T18:08:00.005+01:00

As I said, I have been doing very little scrapping for myself lately, but these two are ones which I have managed.

Ruben Joshua

This was made to frame and give to our friends who have recently had a babe. I was nosing around their living room the other day and I notices that everything is quite modern and the colour scheme is cream and red. So I decided that a flowery, babish page would not fit,hence the more grown up, masculine style. I hope they like it!

Happiness

These pics were taken when we went away last weekend. Each of the flowers besides one is handmade, using three different techniques. It is really busy with such a patterned background, but I love the colours.

(Not sure what happened to the first photo...will retake next time I am photographing LO's!)

Update...

2010-10-05T15:43:00.004+01:00

Normally within a post like this I would ramble about how I have still been scrapping but been too busy to post, along with a promise to blog more often. However...I have not really been scrapping much, and certainly very little for myself, so I thought I would update you on what I have actually been doing instead.

Well...

On the August Bank Holiday I held a stall at a local-ish craft fair. With the dismal weather, numbers were low but the feedback from those I did chat to was very encouraging.

Then in September I had my birthday. We had a lovely weekend to ourselves, topped off with a great night out.

At the end of September I had to surrender my position on the Sarah's Cards DT. This was sad but it is because I am now working for Papermaze in their shop...Yippee! I have worked two days so far and am loving it!

This last weekend we went away to Surrey for a birthday meal in a hotel. We had a lovely time but unfortunatly Oliver decided to wake up in the night and walk into a wardrobe,resulting in a rather large gash above his eye and half a day trying to get a doctor to see him! :(

Finally, at the end of November I shall be teaching at an all day crop/scrapbooking day in Henley, Suffolk called 'The Big Event'. It promises to be a good day with many other classes, shops,refreshments and a kit to buy which the classes are based around. If you are local enough, then check out all the details here http://www.yourcreations-event.blogspot.com/

I have a few pages I have finished lately but I have not gotten around to photographing them. The weather doesn't really make me want to go out there with my precious paper pages and camera anyway!

So along with:

Ear infections
Tooth Extractions
Car puntures
Grandad in hospital
Three friends having babies
Bathroom tiling
Dress making
Childminder hunting
Parent's evenings
Computer/internet problems
Fence erecting
Water coming through ceiling

it really has been quite an eventful few weeks!

A promise is a promise...

2010-08-21T14:06:00.003+01:00

...and I did promise to be back soon with this Baby Boy LO!

I used Bo-Bunny Chipboard swirls, but they were originally brown so i painted them with cream acrylic paint, inked the edges, then spritzed them with Tattered Leather Glimmer Mist.

I did start out trying to create more of a baby-ish page, (a bit softer and cuddlier!) but I couldn't resist getting carried away and started distressing everything! I really wanted to finish off with some pure white flowers, but had none (!!!) so they may be added on later!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2010-08-17T07:27:00.004+01:00

Yep, that's me! I am just so glad that I don't have to worry about school runs at the moment too!

I am still drowning myself in getting this new little business venture up and running, and haven't had a moment to stop! At the mo, I am preparing for a craft show I managed to get the last table for, which is happening on Bank Holiday Monday. Ok, so it is two weeks away, but after browsing the web for creative craft stall ideas, I have made the not-so-executive decision to totally revamp mine. BIG JOB! I have spent the last few nights making some pretty bunting to hang above the stall, showing off lots of the different styles and techniques I use. And now, i am currently trying to create a baby boy page, to show off as an example of a birth/christening gift...Phew!

Anyway, I shall take loads of photos of the stall when it is all assembled, and post them soon after.

As for scrappy 'me' time? What's that again? I would love to sit down with no guidelines or orders to do, but that will have to wait! I have recently made these pages....

2 are commisions, 1 is an example for the stall, but I have really enjoyed doing all of them.

I will show the baby boy one when it is finished, and have a whole load of Sarah's cards work to let you see...so I shall be back soon...promise!!! :-)

New Website!

2010-07-20T22:14:00.003+01:00

Where have I been? Well, actually I have been setting up a new website (and hopefully my new business!) This has taken ALL my time lately, so please do pop on over and have a look.

Basically, I am offering non-creative people to have their most precious pics doctored, as we do, and framed to display as a keepsake, or give as a gift.

www.originalkeepsakesuk.co.uk

Fingers crossed it will all go OK, but I am totally open to any suggestions concerning the website, business, or whatever. Please do comment, I take CONSTRUCTIVE criticism very well :)

Finally, a page!

2010-07-11T08:32:00.004+01:00

Yep, the weather has been GORGEOUS here, so scrapping time is limited. If I do sit down at my desk, I feel like I am wasting quality garden time!

So the other night when hubby went out and the sun went down (and knats came out to play!) I set to do a page for the first time in weeks...

A fab day out!

2010-07-11T08:19:00.004+01:00

Now Hubby is feeling much better, we have been makng the most of this gorgeous weather and taking a few more day trips out. Last weekend we met up with some friends in Leiston, where they have a small caravan parked up for the summer.

It was lovely to be able to walk the beach, get some lunch, then relax in the shade of the caravan, with cool drinks and a paddling pool for the kids (not to mention the massive water fight the kids had!)

The day was perfect, and I thought i'd share a few pics to prove I have not vanished off the face of the planet...

Keeping me going...

2010-06-29T09:48:00.003+01:00

...is my happy chappy! Along with my little princess and their wonderful Daddy! It is fair to say that I have not been on top of the world lately, in fact, quite the opposite.

I am sure you have read previously how poorly all the family have been, except myself, so I won't go into details, but they are all much much better now.

In fact, now life is returning to normal, it seems I can relax a little and my body is telling me that I have exhausted myself with all the nursing and worrying i've been doing so 'down in the dumps' is a pretty fair description of how I am at the mo.

However, things will pick up, especially with all this gorgeous weather, and I am going off to do a spot of scrapbook supply shopping shortly to help encourage my mojo back!

Until then, here is a page I did of my previously mentioned 'Happy Chappy'

Not very good photos but you get the idea!

I wanted loads of dimension so I lifted each layer with squares of thick cardboard. The house isn't really relevant to the photo at all but I loved the bright colours, so it stays!

Time for a change.

2010-06-19T09:44:00.002+01:00

I am a little ashamed to admit I think I have fallen a little out of love with my blog lately. So to get me back on track, I have decided to send a little time updating the look.

Please bear with me whilst things look a little 'building site-y'!

I will be all shiny and pretty again soon!

page 42!

2010-06-17T14:19:00.006+01:00

In Scrapbook Magazine is this page....

I also wanted to show you this quick page I did...

More to come soon....!

so much to show...(photo heavy post!)

2010-06-17T13:59:00.006+01:00

Even though I have just about found the time to scrap lately, I have really not had time to take pics and post them! I have been doing a LOT of gardening whilst the weather is still ok, and I am still playing nurse to hubby :(

So today I shall share some of my Sarah's Cards DT work...

This is what I created with the gorgeous Pebbles June Kit...

...and more recently I have been busy doing some blog work,
so here are a few pages that are up on the blog now...

This is a class, it is more of a wall piece than a page!

Tomorrow I shall post a LO that is in the most recent Scrapbook Magazine,

and if get time to photograph them, a few pages I have done for myself!

Back at last...

2010-06-09T10:44:00.003+01:00

I have been away from blogger for so long I had almost forgotten how it worked!

So what's been going on to keep me away from my beloved computer and scrap desk for so long?

Well, Hubby got viral meningitis, he is still off work and suffering, poor thing! DD got a virus, then a chest infection, and DS got the same virus, then we think he got Slapped Cheek Syndrome too. Maybe we should just paint a big red cross on our front door!

Me...? I don't like to tempt fate but I have had to stay healthy to play nurse for the past few weeks!

However, I have recently found a little time to play with my Sarah's Cards Blog Kit this month. I can't show you all I have done, but I can reveal that this piece is now on the blog, along with full instructions on how to make it!

And keep an eye out for Scrapbook Magazine. I should have a page in there again this month...

Sarahs Cards May Kit

2010-05-25T09:17:00.003+01:00

I little while ago I showed you all sneeky peeks of the work I did with the Sarah's Cards May Kit. And now I can finally show you the complete pages!

I loved that so many effects and styles could be acheived with this kit, and being my first one from Sarahs Cards, I couldn't believe how much stuff was in the box!

It's done!

2010-05-25T08:51:00.005+01:00

I have finally finished my bedroom and scrapping corner, and even taken the photos to prove it! Just click on the 'My Craft Corner' tab at the top to see all the details.

I have been busy with family suff too, organising the kids birthday's and their BIG party that was on Sunday (only 33 kids...a doddle!) and now my little girl has Parvovirus and is too poorly to enjoy her pressies!

Anyways. I am crossing my fingers for an evening of scrapping tonight. It will be the first in nearly two weeks, so I am reall looking forward to it, and have ll these new photo's to play with...

but while I am here...

2010-05-18T10:01:00.000+01:00

I just remembered to direct you over to Sarah's Cards Blog where they have just set a fab new challenge. This is my page above, but I am sure you will have fun with this one, in MANY different ways! :)

I'll be back...

2010-05-18T09:56:00.000+01:00

No, I am not a terminator fan, unlike my husband, but I just wanted to explain my recent absence! I am redecorating my bedroom, PLUS getting a new craft space in the corner. We have been to Ikea, painted the walls...and when it is all completed, I shall be posting pictures. Of course, all my scrapping stuff is packed away at the moment, :( and my computer has only been plugged in to deal with an urgent email!
I am also trying to organise my childrens big birthday party for this weeked, and both their birthdays coming up in the next week - phew!
So fingers crossed, I shall be back by the end of the week with some photos of my spangly new scraproom (oh, and the rest of the bedroom!)

Elle's Box

2010-05-09T13:46:00.000+01:00

This is another one of those projects I have had in the pipeline for a while, but not had the enthusiasum to complete.

I had the box (£2.99 from QD Stores! ;) ) but I was then a bit stuck!

That was, until my Bo-Bunny Prize arrived this morning! The box was packed full of goodies, most Sophie products...so I got to work.

I even covered parts of the inside of the box with paper, and now I am off to give it to my friend who asked for it...hope she likes!

New love...

2010-05-06T23:15:00.000+01:00

One hobby I really enjoy, but rarely have time to do, is playing with photo editing. I love to sit and play with the effects on this blog, which I can do for hours, and I really enjoy editing photos, and discovering new effects I can acheive.

I am a little annoyed that I didn't go for an iphone when I recently upgraded, especially since the new 'hipstamatic app is available. I would LOVE to put that to use!

So instead, I have been playing with my good old Paint.NET, and these are a couple of similar effects I managed...

...and I have also been constructing my own frames to place over photos before printing..

I am not into digital scrapping, but I do love to print of origial photos for paper scrapping, so you may soon be seeing some 'old fashoined' style photos on my pages very soon!

Scrap Paper Scissors Colour Challenge

2010-05-06T12:46:00.000+01:00

A while ago, Wendy put a call out on her blog for some help with examples for a colour challenge tthat she would be holding over on Papermaze's 'Scrap, Paper, Scissors' blog.

Of course I jumped at the chance of a little challenge, so I offered this...

In response to this colour combo...

You can see all the other inspiration, and take part in this, and other colour challenges, over on the blog.

The sweetest photo ever...

2010-05-05T23:27:00.000+01:00

...and I just couldn't do it the justice it deserved! I have had a nasty bout of that 'scrapper's block' that has been going around, and it has been over a week since I managed to sit down and actually complete anything!

I printed this photo off recently, and even found a die-cut backing paper that went perfectly with it...

So after a long hot bath tonight (reading lots of old copies of scrappy mags for inspiration) I sat down to get this one done...

Excuse the awful photo, it is very dark in my little room this late at night! I raised everything up to try to give it added interest. It just didn't quite come together as I would have liked, but hey ho, I should know better than to scrap tired anyway!

On a brighter note, I did manage to get my bathroom floor laid last week. I was up until midnight, and went to bed with blisters...but I am really pleased it is done...and I did it by myself! So what are men for, really???

We still have a bit to do, but it will soon be our first completed room of the house! Thank goodness we do not have to wash in the awful 'apricot' coloured suite anymore!

Sarah's Cards Sneek Kit

2010-04-29T21:01:00.005+01:00

When I was recently asked to join the Sarah's Cards DT, I was thrilled.

So much so, I didn't think I could be happier.

That was, until my first Kit arrived just days later.

It was GORGEOUS.

In fact, that is an understatement.

I actually had the box opened on my desk so I could have another look each time I walked past.

There were a lot of things in the kit that I have wanted to get my hands on for ages...and now I had them to play with to my hearts content.

So I did.

Within a few days, I had completed my new DT assignments, and was all scrapped out (as if!)

I found this kit so easy to work with and co-ordinate, and yet, I managed to produce four very different styles of layout.

Honestly, this kit will just suit everybody!

So here are a few sneeky peeks of the Sarah's Cards May Kit....

So if you are interested in subscribing and getting a fabby kit like this on your doorstep every month, click here to see the details.

Now I am off to play with my scraps....I have so many left, I just don't know what to do next!

2010-04-22T20:57:00.010+01:00

It amazes me how a simple evening walk after dinner for half an hour can result in so many gorgeous photos just waiting to be scrapped!

I guess we are just very lucky to live near such a beautiful meadow,

church and woods!
Oh, and have such gorgeous children...that always helps!

...and this is my favorite of all!

opinions please....

2010-04-22T20:11:00.003+01:00

I made this LO today, whilst little man slept. Knowing I only had a short while, I rushed it a bit. Now I think it still needs something, but don't know what. Or do I just leave it and avoid the risk of overdoing it? It just doesn't seem quite finished to me....so I am leaving it to you to help me decide. I trust your professional opinions!

And a bit of blurb about the page...I used a Prima calligraphy stamp, and white acrylic paint to add detail to the background....I stitched the word 'teddy' onto a piece of felt and cut it out (maybe it is that the title is too casual for the rest of the page?) ....and I distressed the photo by sanding the edges until they were white. On some photo papers, the top layer will actually peel away as you sand, leaving you with a slightly torn look too, which I love but this wasn't going to happen with this paper :(

I really appriciate any comments, not just on this post but all of my posts. You are all a fabulous source of confidence and inspiration, and I am grateful to every single one of you (even if I just don't say so enough!)

Yippee, Yay, Whoooooppie !!!!!!!!

2010-04-20T15:59:00.003+01:00

Can you tell I'm excited? So much so I can barely type this properly! I had an email today asking me if I would like to join the Design Team for Sarah's Cards! This is only the Team I have been admiring, and wishing to be part of for AGES! So yes, I accepted!

(Excuse my state of ecstacy, I should calm down in the next year or so!)