Well it is officially here... summer 2009! To celebrate I am sharing a cute page featuring my niece looking so pleased with her new bathing suit. Hopefully things are now warm enough in Ottawa that she has had a chance to wear it somewhere other than the swimming pool! Patterned paper is Fancy Pants, rubon is My Minds Eye. TFL.
So I don't go another big chunk of time without a post I have set a few posts to go live while I am enjoying the 30+ temperatures in the Tarn and then Rhone Valleys in southern France!
This one features paper from GCD Studios and My Minds Eye and an adorable photo of my tossle headed niece and used as its initial inspiration another sketch from Becky Fleck. If you are wondering why the photo looks a bit odd, I distressed the background with a file (picked up the trick from one of the SD girls) as it was a bit distracting and I wanted the focus to be on Roo... I really like the sort of painted artsy look that resulted. TFL.
Smiling a big smile as I am off on holiday today! Spent last night struggling to get through the list of final tasks (work and household) and pack my suitcase so I could just get up and go this morning.
So off I go... 10 days in southern France with my parents who arrived there from Canada yesterday. The naked kitties will be staying home and are being treated to a live-in cat sitter who I have to add they have already fallen in love with (Oonagh has decided Sara is 'it' and has turned into a tenacious velcro-kitty). I have to say it makes me happy to know they will receive more than once a day cuddles while I am gone. One of two days is fine but longer than that and I think they really miss human comfort.
Well I fed the addiction this weekend (LOL!) Withdrawal symptoms are greatly diminished and I had a great weekend with the Scrap Delight design team members - lots of laughter, too little sleep, too many treats and quite productive. Although I only actually finished three layouts, I started 13 and in addition to the three completed ones have another three that just need a few last minute touches and several others that are not too far off. Unfortunately no scrapping has occurred between the weekend and now so I will spread out the three completed ones over the next ten days and finish the others when I am back from France.
So I share only one today - featuring Moo & Roo and using paper from Die Cuts With a View (DCWV) using a sketch by Becky Fleck as inspiration.
Work has consumed me for the past few weeks and May a month which was originally supposed to be quiet after the first week when compared to March and April took on nightmare proportions as we faced one pressing deadline after the other! I am tired, worn out and have not scrapped other than to make a card or two since April 19th!! I am very much looking forward to my parents arriving from Canada next week as it will signal the beginning of 10 days of holiday because I need a break! I honestly have no idea where the first half of 2009 has gone!!
And obviously not only did I not scrap, but I did not find time to blog or to keep up with the few message boards I frequent... missed posting the 'three things' challenge at ScrapDelight and will now be doing my layout along with everyone else... all in all May was a bit of a right off from a balanced life perspective! I am going to have to work on getting back to normal patterns as I certainly don't want this to become the norm...
I do have a couple of layouts to share today, but they are from the Scrap-a-liscious weekend in April and I just found time to scan them in this evening. I head off for a Design Team retreat this weekend so I should have more projects to share - if I am good I will even set things up so they go live while I am away on holiday... and then am hoping that after that I just get back in the swing of things and being scrapping and posting regularly again!
The first LO uses Cosmo Cricket, KI Memories and Bo Bunny paper and is of my sister and niece the day Rachel came home from the hospital!
The next one is a two page spread using paper from DCWV and My Little Bicycle, a cute new diecut from Quickutz and photos of my two youngest nephews.
The final one uses Cosmo Cricket and Bo Bunny paper and features my nephew Calvin and his Grampa Lloyd.
Happy Mother's Day to all mother's everywhere, but especially to the special mothers who are part of my life!!
A mother's love...
A mother's love is a prize untold
When her arms are around you in cuddly hold.
She draws you in and holds you there
Just listens to your tale or helps clear the air.
Even when you are grown and her lap is now small
A mother's praise still makes you feel so tall.
A mother's love is a glorious thing
She soothes all ails and takes out the sting.
Bigger hearts than this do not exist
And countless kissed boo-boos attest to this!
And when life's challenges grown up become
She is a prized friend as well as your Mum!
Yes a mother's love is a prize untold
And when God made mine, he broke the mold!!
(Poem dedicated to my Mum Judith M. Macdonald 10-05-09)
I finally got some layouts loaded up to share and others to follow over the next few days. I've realised that my schedule is no less hectic for the next two months so not sure how posting will be. I am off to Hungary on Tuesday for a few days for work, back for about 24 hours and then off to Germany for almost a week of work. I then have a busy week back here in Amsterdam before flying to Wales for a couple of days, then a FUN FILLED weekend for the Scrap Delight design team! The week after that I fly to meet my parents in Southern France for a holiday together and then the day after I return I am in the UK for a meeting and then home for three sleeps and then back to the UK to my Aunt's 80th birthday weekend. I then have a few days back in Amsterdam before flying to Israel for a couple of days meetings and a couple of days playing tourist. Thankfully after that life calms down for a bit as I will need to catch my breathe.
This LO is the one I did for April's Three Things challenge on Scrap Delight. The things were: something lacy - could be real lace or paper lace, buttons and something metallic. I used paper lace, some little wooden buttons and then added metallic gold pen to edge of the paper, the flowers, the frame and the buttons and then tied the buttons with gold thread. The patterned paper is Pebbles Inc.
This LO uses more of the Pebble Inc. patterned paper and features my nephew and his new friends.
I am not 100% happy with this one - I think the blue pinked circles need to be moved down or something as visually it is not quite right and I love how my little polar bear turned out but don't like that he back legs are floating. And perhaps worst of all the title made me homesick!! Patterned paper is Prima Marketing and the photo is of my sister and family enjoying a winters day up at their cottage.
This next one is a bit busy so not a favorite either, but I wasn't going to start all over again (sometimes you just live with a creation because you don't have the energy to fix it!!) You will also guess that I got a new die of a frame given that is is showing up in a second layout LOL! I do love new toys! The patterned paper is Bella Blvd and the photo is of my friend and family on her daughter's confirmation.
Last layout today is of a sweet moment between two of my nephews (cousins to each other) using patterned paper from WeRMemories Keepers and ProvoCraft.
I finish off with sharing the little card I made for a colleague's recent departure from work. Our organisation's logo includes a kite hence the shape of the card, and each member of the team did a little message to go along with their photo and those are in little envelopes. The photos aren't great as I took them in a hurry the morning we gave it to him, but you'll get the idea and he loved it which made me very happy.
Well life has been hectic again but all my hard work over the past few months comes to a head tomorrow with the European launch of the Child Safety Report Cards. If you are interested, they can be found on the European Child Safety Alliance website after 5 AM (4 AM GMT). I have a number layouts waiting to be uploaded and shared and some completed mini-books to take photos of... the problem has been finding time! Long days make for non-productive evenings as I cannot wait to lay down my weary head and that has meant few posts... hopefully things will pick up after tomorrow!!
This past weekend was spent helping out Michelle as she officially launched a storefront for Scrap Delight. I spent Friday helping her price and stock shelves, chase after missing parcels and anything else that needed doing before the Grand Opening the next day. The opening was lots of fun, champagne, shopping and tributes and I was in charge of the prize table which was great when people won but not so much when they didn't! We had a celebratory dinner after the store closed and then some of us stayed over in the store that night - an interesting experience :-) and then spent a relaxing morning drinking tea, eating left-over goodies, restocking the shelves and dividing huge packages of buttons into sell-able amounts. I think it was a great start to Michelle's new venture and I was happy to be there and help out...
Speaking of Scrap Delight, it is a new month so a new sketch is up on the Scrap Delight blog. If you scroll to the bottom you see May's sketch. Here is my take on it using patterned paper from Prima Marketing. TFL.
We've been experiencing a stretch of wonderful weather right now so between getting out to enjoy it, being crazy work (happy to report all 49 documents done, printed - or in progress thereof) as we prepare for the launch on May 6th with two EU Commissioners and a member of the European Parliament and getting ready for and experiencing the Scrapdelight Scrapalicious weekend this past weekend I just didn't get a post in last week.
The weekend was great - lots of laughter, fun and creativity. I got little sleep and did manage between helping out with organisation and preparing meals, etc. to get quite a few pages done. I'll post those over the next while as soon as I have them scanned in. Today I am happy to finally share some photos of my workshop, which was a little mini book that was 4" x 4" all folded up with a magnet closure, but flipped open to about 12" x 12". I used Cuttlebug embossing folders in various ways to embellish along with rub-ons and ink. It was well received despite being given in English or my broken Dutch and people really seemed to like the creations that resulted so that was good.
The first group of photos below is the version I did using the fun papers from BoBunny's Flirty line that were used for the actual workshop and the second group are from my prototype which used papers from Paperworks Florabella.
Well obviously the answer to that is who would ever in their right mind question good news? Considering my recent Basic Grey contest win I guess I have to say I got more of it! When I checked one of the Memory Box blogs after work today I learned I actually won another contest - and again NOT a random draw, but a contest where they judge your work against all the other entries!!! This one had a lovely prize worth $100US in their product. Woooooohooooo! The little happy dance is shaking my neighbours ceiling!!! LOL! Imagine my delight to come home check a link and see this!! I was totally chuffed!
I have to admit a nice way to start what will be a scrapping weekend. I want to/need to do up an 'examplar' of the workshop I will teach next weekend at the Scrapdelight Scrap-a-licious weekend using the paper line that those who purchased 'total' kits will get. The original concept used other papers and I know that I like to see an examplar that will somewhat match what I end up with at the end of a workshop! Although the one I designed initially is still a fave I think the one using the papers selected by Michelle will still be 'stinking cute'! My plan is to post some sneak peaks before I head back to work on Tuesday.
I also need to do a 'memorial' piece for a colleague who is leaving the organisation (the whole crew is writing notes that I will marry to photos and make into a lovely 'tasteful' minibook or layout (tbd) for our friend who is heading out for the more challenging realities of private practice!!
Finally, as Easter cards were a real washout this year, I need to move to birthdays and Anniversaries in May (of which there are substancial numbers!!) So life will definately be lively for the timeframe of April 11-13th, 2009. Am I not blessed?
I received an email a week or so ago from one of my scrapbooking heroes, Kelly Goree. That was pretty thrilling, but the added pleasure was that she was writing me to say that my layout using fabric had won Basic Grey's contest! I was just thrilled as I had decided after looking at some of the other entries that my chances were slim to none. I had to keep the happy news to myself until the Basic Grey newsletter came out announcing the winners and the wonderful prize was a package of beautiful Basic Grey fabric that is now winding its way over here to me - cannot wait to play some more! Anyway the newsletter came out yesterday so I can share my winning layout. TFL.
I am rocking it down to Jesus Christ Superstar right now... it seemed like appropriate music for the afternoon. Sun is shining, cats are lazing in the window and I am coming to grips with the fact that my delaying Easter cards hoping a certain ordered die would arrive in time now means that cards are likely not going to get to Canada in time. So the discussion I am having with myself is do I come up with another idea spend the afternoon making them and have them arrive late (new idea not hard but the lateness somewhat negates purpose of sending something to celebrate the holiday) or do I send electronic greetings so that at least they know I was thinking of them or perhaps both is an option. I think the deciding factor will be how motivated I feel when I sit down at the 'crafting' table in a bit. But there are other things to fit in today - a walk to enjoy the sunshine and get some sort of exercise, a call to Canada as my little sister's birthday is tomorrow - she is getting up there in age '29' again (LOL!) so calling her 'little' makes me smile - and I have to do a bit of work before tomorrow too! If I am honest though I already feel myself leaning toward the 'easier' option here, so the guilt monster is waking up and stretching. Sigh...
Several layouts made over last while to share. A couple having been sitting waiting for journaling, which finally got done this morning and a few others from this week's evening efforts. However most of the week's crafting time was spent on a minibook inspired by one Cate posted on her Memory Box blogs. It is done now except for adding photos so will try and get that done so I can post some photos. Speaking of Memory Box, the contest entry I shared the other day was posted on another of the Memory Box blogs yesterday - kind of fun to see your work somewhere other than your own blog ;-)
So back to layouts... the first one I am sharing uses, funnily enough, Memory Box papers (a little bit of a love affair of late. LOL!) I split a piece of Simply Syrup from the Sugardrop 6x6 collection and inserted some lace embossed looking sections and slim strips of My Mind's Eye patterned paper to extend it to fit my 8x8 page. I tried stitching on the larger flowers, it was actually not so easy but I am guessing it is a matter of practice. The sweet photo is of my friend's daughter from a couple of summers ago.
The next one has a reference to something that my Dutch friends may not get as I am not sure if the Energizer Bunny is relevant over here? At any rate, the title and journaling on this one are a play on the Energizer commercial jingle. The patterned papers are Sassafrass Lass and Bo Bunny. I traced a chipboard tree shape from Maya Road and then extended the trunk so it was taller and then used my Cuttlebug embossing folders to emboss both the trunk and foliage. The cute little birdie was a windfall... a freebie from a kind seller on ebay as a thanks for an order. It came pink and I inked it to match this LO - very satisfying LOL!
This one is my take on this month's Scrapdelight sketch (scroll to the bottom of the link to see April's sketch). I used Papermania (scalloped), the Paper Studio (striped and swirled) and Scenic Route (brown). The title and cute penguin and birdie are dingbats that I printed off in a large point size.
The last one I share is another inspired by the talented Kelly Goree. I used Chatterbox paper and some old Basic Grey paper. I coloured some Basic Grey white chocolate chipboard letters and then stamped them to try and tie them into the texture in the patterned paper. TFL!!
