The Birdcage

I've made a couple of cards trying a new (for me) technique. I've used a couple of silhouette files as digital stamps and printed the lines onto patterned paper, I've then coloured in the lines with promarkers and this gives a lovely subtle colour but allows the pattern on the paper to still show through. I've then decoupaged some elements to add interest.

I love the subtle look of these cards, with the flat printed element, they look quite stylish.

I am quite impressed with the passport office I've have to say. The kids dad has applied for a passport for them as he is taking them to Eygpt. They needed some extra info from me and I only supplied it Monday and the passports came today! Mega quick!

Here they are with the passports (I have since cut Joes fringe, he was looking a bit Human League there!!)

The last donkey ride

My husband is lovely, he went down the post office at 7am this morning so that when I came downstairs at 7.30 not only was my usual cup of tea waiting for me but my parcel was too. Jason said that there were about 4/5 other people picking up parcels that early, so god knows what the postie was up to yesterday!

So with my new lovely (half price) goodies I sat down to create. Its another painty, mess one and its one of Joe - Yay!



Its Jessicas sports day this afternoon - Jess has had something on every day this week and something that parents were invited to (uggh!)

I've mentioned before on this blog how much I LOVE sports day, I love that its never the same, I love that it starts on time, I love how well organised it is, I love how short and snappy it is, I love standing on the same spot for 2 hours, I love how crowded it is, it is just HEAVEN to me! I'm supposed to be there in just over half an hour but I have told Jess that I will come for just the last 45 mins or so. The good news is this is my last ever sports day YAY YAY YAY!!!! seriously its cute when the are little tots but after about 15-20 sports days, I am ready for them to be over!

At the toy shop

Hello

I am so cross today with our postman who did the classic, 'put a red card through the door but don't actually knock to see if someone is in' manouver. I was in and now I don't have the parcel I was really looking forward to, what makes it worse is that they won't attempt a redelivery for 48hrs!

Anway here is a layout I did this morning, the picture was taken in The Entertainer the other Saturday when I took the kids shopping and for lunch. A nice bright layout to improve my mood!

We had to go up to the 'Big' school last night for a parents talk and so Jessica could be allocated and get to meet her tutor group, she has been put in a tutor group with her close friend Emily which we are both so pleased about! Jessica was so excited, it was very sweet!

12@12

hmmm this is a little on the bright side! Not sure on the background paper at all, but it was a fun one to make and I LOVE the number border which again (sorry to bore) is a silhouette file, I shall miss all the new files when my sub runs out in a few days, but with a library of over 2200 files there is plenty to keep me going!

Yesterday I made this little space card, I love the bakers twine used as a rope!

Happy post day today, I got the Studio Calico Newsprint stamp that I have been coveting for about a month now. Sally very kindly sold me hers and now it is in my grubby paws and I LOVE it!

Its only a matter of time

Hiya

Its my teams turn again this week over at Twisted Sketches Here is my take on the sketch this week, with the twist of 'time' Go on over and join in!



Right lunch......

That 70's Shot

This was not what I intended to scrap this morning, but my lappy (of under 4 months!) decided to play silly buggers and would not switch on past a certain point, would not find any errors and would not system restore. I was not pleased! After a fairly fraught hour or two I have got it up and running, I have no clue what it was stroppy about, but at least I am back online!





This is a pic of Jason (in the blue stripey) and his brothers that they took to frame for his mothers 70th birthday last month.

I had a marvelous weekend, I took Joe and Jess into town on the bus on Sat, and it was really fun to spend time with just the two of them out of the house. We had a nice posh (for kids) lunch at giraffe, which was a lot more expensive than the usual maccy d's but was lovely as a treat, and I hope it was a day for them to remember! Jess spent all her birthday money, and we spent far far too long in build a bear than I care for but there you go! Jess bought a bear and a Darth Vadar outfit for it, and I was trying not to laugh, but the bear looked more like he had a rubber fetisist really and with his bright red light saber in his hand, it all looked a bit dodgy to me. Still she proudly gave it its own seat on the way home on the bus, whilst I tried not to snigger.

A welcome respite

I've had a marvelous day, a new assignment from The Scrapbook Magazine (and its an assignment I am LOVING!) and a brand new big box of stasharama in the post. I have not had new stash in eons, its been about 4 months since I cancelled my kit club sub and its been about 2 CHA's since I put in a fun order for supplies. I put in the order after the most craptastic of days, and even that did not cheer me up, but i'm glad I did it now!

I've enjoyed using up some of my paper mountain, but lets face it, we scrapbookers need new products to feel inspired! It was so exciting when I opened up my box, I couldn't wait to get started. I've made a LO but its for the aforementioned assignment so I can't show it!

Its been a funny old week, Bruno has been scent marking a couple of spots in our house and its really gotten me down, the smell is horrendous. Add on to that the fact that Jason has been really rather poorly all week and has been at home with a gastro type illness. TMI alert (you have been warned!): I have had rundowns all week on the state of Jasons ilness, the type, the colour etc etc, he really does like to talk about it, I have been affectionatly calling them 'The Poo Monologues' (all done in a little boy/pathetic/ I think I am dying voice) I once, ONCE mentioned that I was going for a number 2 and he says "I'm not sure I needed that much information" I swear I nearly LAMPED him one! He is luckily slowly on the mend now and is walking about and starting to eat again, which is lucky cos frankly my sympathy was perhaps beginning to wane a bit (I have actually been superwife this last 5 days!), and I am running out of air freshener.




And I will finish this post with a lil pic of a card I made yesterday, early doors on the old teachers thank you card - superwife, supermotherofstudent (or something!)

Roll on the weekend

I really need to get out thats all I'm saying! :)

Here is a card for Jason on Sunday (he is currently poorly sick and has been at home all week)
The brick wall is yet another silhouette file that I printed out.



Just another little tree card, feminine one this time!



And I made this today with a spare 30 minutes I had.



That is all - I am off to stick my head in the oven! Not really but its been one of those days!

I love these trees!

Hello

I've been whipping up some cards in the last couple of days, and they all had to be mens cards (ughh!) 3 fathers day cards (2 made!) and one birthday card

I have to say that I love these print and cut trees. They are a file on the silhouette/craft robo that you print out and then feed through the silhouette and it cuts it out. I could use these trees over and over they are so pretty and versatile, and they look great on masculine cards!

Then I just made this card. See the background chicken wire print? Thats another cut file from the silhouette, this time I asked it to print the lines in a dark grey instead of cut them, I ran green cardstock through the printer and ended up with a card background that looks like it was stamped. Thats what I love about the Silhouette with a bit of imagination you can use it in so many ways. The little fathers day label was printed out with the sentiment typed in and I cut it by hand.

Finally this one was made quick smart, its a fun whimsical card for the kids to give their dads on Sunday, not too much thought and effort, its not my best work this one, but sometimes you just want to get it done!

I've had a very crafty morning, I was up at Jessica's school for a family craft event, where we painted and decorated little boxes - great fun!

Water Works

Hello, nice to have a bit of sunshine this afternoon after such a dreary weekend.

I have Jason home today, he is not feeling very well. God he is a grumpy bugger whens he ill, you can't get a civil sentance out of him at all, I am hoping he will be working tomorrow!!

I needed to escape from Jason today so I took myself off to the kitchen to scrap and made this Layout, its really cute in real life but has not photographed too well despite the sunshine!



I got into such a mess with the mist, my hands are now a fetching shade of blue!

Jessicas drama performance was so cute! There was a really good atmosphere in the hall and she really shone, it was nice that her dad and stepmum came to watch too.

Dig a Hole - and new hair

Afternoon

Nice quiet afternoon here, Jessica is at her school summer fayre, I am not going because Jess is not bothered and if I am truthful I HATE things like that, I feel like I have done my years of trawling around fayres full of tat and spending a fortune on things I have no interest in and getting bothered by crowds of people- ugh! I've realised over the last year that I do not like crowds, I do not like too many other people all trying to get to/see things and I am slowly stopping doing activites like this, or limiting the time I will be there, they just make me throughly miserable! (Only one more sports day to go through as well!!! yay!!)

Jess also has her performance tonight which although again involves too many people, I am looking forward too, and its good its only for an hour, even I can cope with that! She's so excited and has practised so hard, it will be lovely to see her do her solos



Jason is yet again stripping paint in our bathroom, so I have spent a quiet hour or two scrapping and have come up with this very very bright page (it was almost in the bin at one stage!!)

And here is a pic of my new hair (sans make-up urgghh! sorry!!!) that I had done on Monday, I can only cope with my long locks for so long!

Beside the Sea

I'm using a lot more colourful card backgrounds at the moment and trying to steer clear of my usual white card choice, this was made easier by sorting all my cardstock into one huge bag in rainbow order.



I absolutely love the little wave border that I cut on my craft robo, I used it on a card the other week too! This was a lovely easy one that made itself using a Bella Blvd line.

Im really doing well using up lots of older paper lines, I haven't bought ANY of last CHA releases and only a small bit of the one before! I don't even get a kit anymore. The downside to this is it is harder to get inspired, but at least I am using it up a bit now.

We've had a bit of a manic week this week. Jessica is in a performance on Saturday night and there have been lots of last minute rehersals in the evenings this week (inc tonight) and lots of ferrying around. Tonight is the dress rehersal, it was only Monday we were told of all these extra rehersals along with the dress requirements (only white top and black leggings, but typically Jess does not have a white top and her black leggings have a hole in arrgghhh!!) so she has been pinned into one of mine and I have sewn up the hole. Tonight I will hopefully be able to pick up one of each in Asda for the real performance on Sat.

Also she is on the committee for the summer fayre on Sat daytime and has had lots to sort out for that and her teacher (rather unfairly) has been giving her a bit of grief about it. Also her birthday so the poor girl has been in a bit of a whirl all week and tonight and tomorrow will be a complete panic I am sure! Jess has over committed herself a bit!

Turning back the years

Yesterday was Jessicas 11th Birthday and so I was naturally thinking back to her birth and her baby years and was inspired to scrap one of her baby photos, well a toddler photo as she was about 18 months in this photo.

Its a different style to my normal but its nice to change things up from time to time.

And here she is last night in the outfit my mum bought her (that is already so badly stained, I don't know how its going to come out - mum, have you ever met my daughter, WHITE? really?) and playing with the ipod touch I was foolishly conned into buying her (how much!???!!!)

She had a lovely day and was so thrilled with all her presents. She is still very much into teddys and she got the Selena Gomez bear from the bear factory and a gift voucher for there too, and more cash then any child should ever really have. I ALWAYS buy books for my children for christmas and birthdays and luckily they are always appreciated. We had Fajitas and ice-cream cake for tea at Jessicas request - all in all a lovely day!

Splash, Swim, Sun

Hello, I've been having a quiet week this week, after the manic mega crafty one I had last week, I find myself uninclined to scrap at all!

However I am here today to share my take on this weeks sketch over at Twisted Sketches this week



Pop on over and join in!

Good friends and Chocolate

I am on a scrapping roll these last few days!



(bit of glare off the doily overlay in this pic)


Jessica had a sleepover last night and I promised the chocolate fountain - I am NEVER EVER using that damn thing again, it is almost impossible to get it up and running, and when I did the chocolate tasted fowl! Still it was good for a photo op, and lets face it, thats the main thing!

Also I am never using those glittery letters ever again, cosmo have put absolutely no fixadent on them and now I am covered in purple glitter - I hate working with glittery things!

Rise of the Machines

Joe and I are both HUGE fans of the Terminator films (I let him watch them last summer, these days Dr Who is scarier!)

When we saw this Terminator behind a glass case at the new pier at Weston we had to have a pic. This man walked over and said "what does it do?" and I said "not much hopefully or I am OUT OF HERE!!!" he wasn't impressed with it, I think he wanted it to break out and start shooting or something!

Anyway here is a layout I made with my scary robot friend in it (this has possibly the longest title ever!!)

Some robots are cute, like this little fella!

Wish me luck I have a sleepover for Jess tonight, although the girls are all fine really and are currently off at the swimming pool, I will have a houseful in about an hour!