Blog challenge

So, first thing's first, I've been challenged by Jo to do the following:

1 Open the 4th file where you store your photos

2 Pick out the 4th photo and publish it to your blog

3 Explain a bit about it

4 Pass this challenge to 4 other blogs

Now, luckily, it's a good photo, and even more fortunate is that it's not of me!


It's of my darling daughter, a.k.a. Tink, when she was 9 months old. She's still got the same grin, though now with teeth, and also with more hair! Gotta love her. No, I have to, it's down in writing ;)

I challenge Trees, Janice, Lisa and Debs to do the same.

A secret mission from the no-stress scrapper

So, there I was, browsing my email the other day when I got a request from Shimelle Laine. She was wanting to host an inspiration party on her blog this weekend, and was looking for some contributions. I was very honoured to be asked to contribute, and I was sent an assignment forthwith. Be warned if you've come here from Shimelle.com: my photos are in no way as arty and beautiful as all the other party-ers, though I am working on it :)

I tried printing out the cupcakes and one of the quotes on shrink plastic, but the only stuff I had was clear - the ink on the cupcakes was taking AGES to dry, and I'm really not that patient!

Shrinking them resulted in a bit of a messy mini-cupcake fob, which, though still useable (only just - see keyring) was not what I wanted. So I traced the original cupcake onto the plastic, dabbed white opaque StazOn over the back, and then coloured the front in with my alcohol markers.



These shrunk really nicely, so I threaded them onto a ball-chain and used this to hold my second project together. This project (a minibook) involved lots of copies of a journaling tag printed out onto cream card: I then cut then out and punched a hole in the top left corner. Easy peasy. I'm going to pick out a selection of my favourite indulgent recipes, and write them in the minibook, probably with a photo on the left-hand page.


The cover of the minibook has a cut-out chocolate cupcake stuck on it and a shrink-plastic "indulge" title, also found on the printables sheet.


So, onto the card. Cupcakes, and lots of them, deserve to be presented nicely, and so I cut a cake stand out of some white card, keeping it simple, drew a brown rim on the plates, chose some co-ordinating paper, glued it all down, added the "indulge" title and voila! One tasty-looking card.


Then finally to the easiest project of the lot. This photo:


I enlarged the printables file (opened in Adobe Photoshop Elements, not in Adobe Acrobat), and copied the cupcake quote that I wanted. This was then placed on a new layer of the photo, printed out to A4 and framed. Job's a good 'un!

It's been so useful to have this challenge, it's given me loads of ideas for future projects, but alas, there was only so much time to spend crafting this week. Mind you, I think that 4 projects in about 6 hours is pretty good. So, cruise on by Shimelle's blog this weekend, take a look at all the other blogs that she's linking to. Who knows what you might find? And if you can't make that, maybe I'll see you in the classroom for Go To Press!

Are you joining us?

I feel oh so privileged to have been asked to contribute to Shimelle's inspiration party this weekend, as part of the pre-class fun. She's asked many, many talented scrappers and crafters to join the fun, and now we'd like you to join us too, for a weekend of "challenges with a chance to win a prize, free downloads for both digital and paper scrapbookers, new projects, tutorials, bargains and some surprises along the way." Read all about it HERE!

New class ahoy!

My favourite time of year - a new online class at Shimelle.com! Shimelle's classes are always highly enjoyable, and this one looks like no exception. It's all about taking the stress out of scrapbooking, and this definitely rings true for me. Go take a look at her blog, if you haven't been there already (though I'm guessing most of my readers probably know me from that site anyway, so I'm preaching to the converted as it were!).

Still, worth a pop, and at about £15 (depending on exchange rate) well worth it in comparison to some of the more expensive classes around at the mo. Maybe see you in there?

And this one....

...was on page 70 of this month's Scrapbook Inspirations, in the Readers' Gallery section. This is my second layout that's been published in that section (I think!). The other was this:

which was in the June issue. Two very different styles, I'm sure you'll agree! I don't think I've settled on a style as yet, I am still definitely in the experimental stage. How about you? Do you have a style that you seem to scrapbook in? Do tell ;)

I'm famous(ish)!!

Go see - My layout featured on the Scrapbook Inspirations blog here. I recently completed their Ready Steady Scrap challenge, and they've featured my layout on their blog. How chuffed am I?
Really quite :)


I guess since they've published it on the web, I'm ok to publish it here. The bit I particularly liked making for this layout? It's a toss-up between the hand-cut picket fence and the owl peeking out of the layered hole in the tree! No journaling as such, but I think the title says it all.

Challenges galore!

Under extreme duress from Janice, I am posting again this month! Personally I think that she is desperate for me to reach my 100th blog post, so that I'll have another giveaway.

Anyhoo. Back to the challenges. Shimelle has just posted a photography challenge involving water on her blog here. I had a go, and pulled a rather fetching little snippet (snappet?) out of the vaults. So, strictly speaking, it's an old photo, but it fulfills the brief quite nicely I feel. I pumped up the contrast to really highlight the flowing white water.


Not only that, but Julie Kirk and Kirsty Neale have set a delightful challenge on their joint blog Copy and Paste. It involves secrets. Now, I am AMAZING at keeping secrets. The feeling when you realise that someone trusts you enough to tell you what weighs heavy on their mind -my mind boggles with the honour. Consequently, I don't much like gossip, which is surely a good thing for a secret-keeper? Despite that, I'll happily share one in the name of creativity.

Font by me, photo mask by Rhonna Farrer.

It's probably a very common feeling for many women, we probably don't give ourselves enough credit for the things we do in our home life and work life. I desperately tried to think of a lovely juicy giggly secret to share with you all, and perhaps this one will open the floodgates to a whole host of them. Watch this space!

So go on, tell me a secret. I promise I won't tell a soul. x

Blog candy link

Blog candy! Not mine for a change. Go here for a chance to win the above goodies!

Look what I found on my macro setting!

That title isn't strictly true. I'd found them before I got the camera out, but it gave me a chance to play around with the macro setting, which I have only just discovered after owning the camera for well over a year. Manual? Me? Pah. I laugh in the face of such sensibilities.
Though perhaps I should read it, 'cause I'm fairly sure I managed accidentally to get a picture with actual BOKEH on it:

and if I'd realised that was possible with my cheapish digicamera, I might have planned the snap better. Still, I'll include a prettier one of the DD, just in the vain hope of prompting some "aw, she's cute after all" type comments.

SO back to the caterpillars. They're apparently Gooseberry Sawfly, and I seem to remember it happening last year, with me just thinking it was slugs/snails. It also explains why I've had no fruit this year - apparently it knackers my chances of getting fruit next year. There were loads of the little blighters, and if I'd have realised what they were, I'd have squished them, instead of putting them gently in the grass a long way off, thinking "Ah, don't kill the potential butterflies". At least now I know what to look for, so roll on 2011, I might actually get some gooseberries.

How long since?

Blimey. I think this is the longest gap between posts in my blog's short history! Suffice to say, I've been busy doing worky-type stuff with the people at my placement (see last post), gardening, woodwork and general vocational fun. Current project involves helping the trainees all make a personalised clock out of wood and printed images. All good!

So, in my little craft world, I've been watching Shimelle's Month of Colour which is rapidly nearing its end. The challenges have come thick and fast, and I've been biding my time and thinking which ones to attempt, mainly because I have very little spare time at the moment. I had a go at Kirsty Neale's guest spot challenge last night, after being inspired by her pants (that is not as dodgy as it sounds, I promise. Check out her guest post here, and you'll see some fabulous customised vest/pyjama pants sets). So here is my card, inspired by the fab colour/graphic combo on one of her creations.


I'm definitely not a pink/green girl, but I think this looks pretty funky. I reckon I'm also going to have to get myself a few square envelopes, as this may well be my choice of shape for cards in future.



Another little project I've been working on is these little menu magnets for my fridge. Every week, I make a list of what food to cook, in order to reduce waste and to keep me sane! It usually ends up on a tatty bit of paper stuck to the fridge, and then in the bin at the end of the week.



I thought I could make a set of reuseable labels, and got these natty little magnets to hold them. I had some resin vegetables that I'd been saving for a recipe book project, but I thought they'd look good on this instead. The lettering is some plain American Crafts Thickers in chipboard, and I haven't yet decided whether to paint them. I might just matt varnish them instead... whaddya reckon?



(For those that are in the know, I'm now aware that canneloni actually two 'l's. And I'm still trying to get another two magnets for Fri and Sat - wish me luck, as I bought them over a year ago)

Lastly, my blog-buddy Trees has reached the grand total of 100 posts on her creative blog, and is giving away a generous bundle of gorgeous goodies. She's firmly convinced that only 3 people read her blog, and it's most definitely a shame if this is the case. Feel free to cruise by her blog here and leave your mark. Though if anyone else except me wins, I shall hunt them down and nick the bundle off them ;)