A little sneak peek....

Hi everyone....I guess you've all been wondering where I got to, eh? 
I seemed to have a run on pumping out the layouts & now I've been all quiet for a week or so. 
Well, I have been busy scrapping, but they're things I can't share just yet! 

Here is a sneak peek at what I've been up to.....

4 different layouts....that I will be sharing over the coming weeks, plus a few more that are still in the planning stages.  Plus I have a bit of scrappy news to share, so I will be back over the coming days to share that too!

Thanks for dropping by today, and also a big welcome to my new followers....it's great to have you following along with me, I hope you are enjoying my work :)

Catch you all shortly..... xxx

Sketchabilities - Sketch # 97

Hi everyone,  just popping in quickly before hitting the hay tonight.   I'm sharing another layout for Sketchabilites - sketch #97.....Using more of some older papers in my stash - American Crafts, Chap  (from a fairly old Paper Stories kit)... I wanted something bright to help lift this not so perfect photo (it's way over exposed....but is still one of my fav's as I think it really depicts us both perfectly - in our element, out there in this great country of ours exploring everything it has to offer!).

Love this CW arrow template on the background....with some Kaisercraft stamping as well.

 

 

Here is Karan's fabo sketch.....

 

 

And some close ups

Some paper rosettes & a few brads & buttons...and a bit of a close up view of the template/stamping work

 

 

Love the banners in this sketch...& I've added some journaling strips

 

 

Some more little banners, badge button & brad

 

 

And a close up overall view.

 

I do have more journaling on the back of the layout, but am wayyyy too tired to type it all out :-/

(maybe I'll add it tomorrow)

 

Thanks so much for visiting my blog & for your comments - I really do love reading them & they always make me smile!  Until next time...take care.  xx

Studio 75 - Prize pack & a giveaway!

 

This morning I was greeted by the delivery man with an amazing package that I won 2nd place for in  Scrap Around The World's June challenge.....the sponsor for my prize was Studio 75 in Poland....and I have to say, the papers are totally gorgeous!!  They are from the Sweet Home collection.....and I am so looking forward to creating with them :)))))

Here is a little peek at them

Don't you agree, that they are gorgeous!?

In my excitement after receiving them, I popped over to the Studio 75 blog, wanting to become a follower, and to my delight, they are having a giveaway of their "Rosalie in the Garden" collection!!! and it's a worldwide giveaway!!

Here are the details....

 

 you can find the giveway HERE

 

Well, you've got to be in it to win it (as they say)....and trust me, if the Sweet Home papers are anything to go by, these will be just as stunning!  Pop over to the Studio 75 blog to check it out and enter!! :))

 

Have a great week everyone...xx

 

Sketchbook 365 - September sketch

And hello again to you all......just popping in quickly to share my layout that I created for Sketchbook 365 September sketch challenge, before heading outside for the afternoon to enjoy the beautiful sunny day that we're having...spring must be on its way!!!

 

So, on with the scrappy business....

 

 

Created using American Crafts "Chap" papers & embellies that have been in my stash for quite a while, and were from a kit from Paper Stories...as well as a few other bits n bobs from my stash.

 

I wanted to create something bright! :)

 

Pic is of our pooch, Oscar, being totally spoilt & getting a neck massage & scratch....while we were camping! LOL...he is one spoilt dog!!!  but we love him to bits <3

Can you see his face in the 3rd photo?  yep you've HIT the spot RIGHT there!

 

And here is the sketch

 

 

Title & journaling (the basics)...and a little bit of background stamping

popping out from under the pp's

 

One of the AC paper rosettes, fabric brad & chipboard frame.

 

And a few brads & flair button...and some drips n splats of different mists

 

I added a little paper/button cluster at the top of the layout....it was just a wee bit too much white space for me without it.

 

And a close up overall view.

 

Journaling on the back of the layout reads:

 

7.4.2013

 

It was a last minute decision to head to Carcoar for the weekend, and we knew that you (Oscar) would want to come too, so of course we packed all your gear up as well and headed off in the van.  Being an inside dog & the weather was starting to cool off dramatically, we needed to come up with somewhere for you to sleep.....so we took your own little tent (lol)...I'm sure people thought we were mad!  You absolutely loved it & each day we'd take you for walks & let you explore the dam & countryside surrounding it.  This Sunday morning, you were being totally spoilt & earned yourself a neck massage, ear rub & a scratch....you were in pure dog heaven & enjoyed every bit of it!

 

 

Okie doke...that's all from me for now.

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend....until next time, take care!  xx

The ScrapBook Store - August sketch

Good morning there peeps.....welcome to the weekend! (for those in other time zones....you're nearly there...lol)

Here I am, back again at an old favourite scrappy haunt, to participate in their sketch challenge :)
I seen the sketch over at Marelize's blog...along with her gorgeous layout, and I really liked what I saw, so I thought I'd join in this with this months sketch challenge at The Scrapbook Store...

Here is what I came up with....

Using Kaisercraft "Pickled Pear" papers

(I love these papers...think I need to get myself some more if I can source any)....and a pic of moi

 

 

 

My cluster....with some 2crafty chipboard - clock face frames & Assorted Arrows, Manor House & The Scrapbook Store flowers, as well as some branchy leaves using my new Dienamites die

(I can see that this one is going to get a lot of use!)

 

 

My title....and a bit of a close up of the machine stitching - a couple of rows on top of each other to help it stand out a bit better...plus you can see some of my template work around the edges and some light stamping.

 

 

I'm not sure if you can see the arrows a bit better in this one...with some added texture & painted in glimmermist

 

 

Another angle of my cluster

 

 

 

 

Again, I've done my main journaling on the back of the layout, and it reads:

28.4.13

This was our 2nd visit to Mayfield Gardens...the first being in spring, and now our 2nd visit in Autumn.  This beautiful Birch forest is one of my favourite spots at Mayfield....it just has this magical feel about it, and I imagine that in summer, it would be a lovely spot to sit to escape the heat, as it is so very cool looking and inviting.  The ground cover plants & the meandering track through the forest is just gorgeous & adds to the magical & inviting feeling that the forest gives.  I would really love to be able to incorporate something like this in my own garden at home (but on a smaller scale), as I love Birch trees, but unfortunately, it gets a little too hot for them here, as they are more of a cold climate tree.  We had a few years ago, and they all ended up dying :( 


Thanks so much for dropping by to see my work....enjoy your weekend! xx

Scrap Friends - August sketch

Hi there scrappers...thanks so much for visiting my blog today.
I am back to share another challenge layout...for Scrap Friends August sketch #16 that I completed on Sunday.

Before I get started though, I'll fill you in on how my background chevrons came about.
Originally I had wanted to do them as in the sketch (like 2 halves of different papers to form the one chevron...and then some of them just left as halves)....well, OMG....I sat attempting it for I don't know how long, but it was totally doing my head in!!! LOL  I don't know what it was, but I just couldn't get the angles and the pieces to work...plus they all kept moving on me! grrrr 
So I gave up & went with this style of chevron.....solution solved & it was much quicker! Plus my head was very thankful! LOL

so anyways...here is my layout....

Using some fairly old (a few years) Echo Park papers - Victoria Gardens

Because the photo is a fairly colourless & dull looking pic, I felt the page needed brightening up with some colours, so that's why I went with these papers :)

Pic is a selfie of DS & I....all rugged up on a bitterly cold day.

Here is the fabo sketch, which I have turned on its side

I've layered papers, tickets, paper doily, journal cards & spots as well as a 2crafty chipboard circle around & under my photo.  I also used a few stamped images - my trusty typo camera stamp (this is starting to become something I put on just about every layout....great value for a $2 stamp!!!) as well as a few Technique Tuesday "with flair" stamps (the round ones you can see in a few different places around the page)

I also put trimmed down strips of washi tape along my rows of chevrons

Here you can see one of the Technique Tuesday stamps....the OMG (for the bitterly cold day that it was! LOL) and a really old My Minds Eye ticket poking out from under the doily) with a few glimmermist drips & splatters

Here you can see an overall view of the chevrons...which I have distressed & inked the edges to give them a bit more POP off the page


I really do love to journal on my layouts, but usually find I have to condense it so much to fit on the layout. I think I will continue to do this, but, I've been inspired lately by a lovely online friend, Val Thorpe, who adds a whole heap of journaling to the back of her layouts....so I've decided I need to do this too!!!  The story really does need to be told, in my opinion....not just photos & pretties on the page.  After all....isn't that what scrapbooking is all about?!?  So, as I said, I will probably still do a bit of condensed journaling on the front of the layout (because I do love the look of this) but also tell the story in a lot more detail on the back of the layout...although I may not always share it here on my blog, depending what the journaling is about :)

so, this is the journaling that I've added to the back of this layout....


4.8.2013

It has been quite a while since I last came to a track day with you for motocross, and oh boy, did I pick the perfect day for it! {said with jovial sarcasm}.  It was a bleak ol' wintery day...the wind was howling at about 30kmph...straight up the gully to the top of the hill where the spectator area & pits are.  It was a "keep your woollies on all day" kind of day.  The temperature reached a maximum of about 9 degrees.  The sun poked out here and there for a few minutes at a time, and wow, you could really feel the warmth from it when it did.  But as the day went on, it seemed to get colder and colder....and yep, I kept those winter woollies on all day!  We did get a little bit of relief for an hour or so when it was our turn to flag down on the track.  Being down in the gully, it seemed to be sheltered from the wind...especially compared to the top of the hill where we had been sitting all day. By the end of the day I felt so wind battered...and once we got in the car to come home, my face was then burning from wind burn, but oh how good it felt to be so nice & warm in the car and out of that dreadful wind :)

But on to other things besides the weather....it was a really great day, and I really did enjoy it despite the bitter cold.  You rode fantastically without any incidents - which is always a bonus!  This was only the 2nd or 3rd time that you have ridden the Bathurst track, but you seemed to know it like the back of your hand.  Of course, I took about 100+ photos of you at various positions throughout the day (something to help take my mind off the cold!), which will no doubt end up on scrapbook pages at some point in the future.  All in all, we both had a great, fun day and I'm so glad that I didn't let the forecasted cold weather stop me from coming & spending the day with you <3


Okie doke peeps, until next time....take care!  xx

Inkido - August challenge

A big hello to everyone out there...happy Monday! :)

Somehow I came across the Inkido sketch challenge for August...I can't remember how, but I'm guessing it was from someone elses blog?  Anyways...I really love the sketch, so last night I thought I'd give it a go :)  And I don't know if anyone else is like me, in that the design of a sketch determines the style of the layout you want to create?  Well, for me, this one was calling for something pretty!

Here is what I came up with....

Using papers from the super gorgeous 7Dots Studio - Domestic Goddess collection...along with some Prima & Manor House flowers and a few other bits n bobs.  Pic is of my gorgeous DD that I changed to black & white to suit the colour scheme better (the pic has lots of greenery in the background & really wouldn't have gone with the pretty pinks & yellows).

Here is a close up of my main cluster....with some thread bunches that are the trend at the moment

(my first attempt with these)

 

 

 

My title ....I used my Gelato's to alter the colour of the 7Dots Studio letter stickers.

I love that these things can alter the colour of just about anything!

 

 

 

My smaller cluster

 

 

These next 2 pics, I'm hoping you can see the texture I created

with the CW Cherry Blossoms template? 

 

To add some texture I cut off a small piece of gyprockers tape, then using my finger dipped in some gesso, I then smooched it into the template, with the tape on top, to give the grided texture of the tape.

 

 

 I quite like the effect...even with the bit of bleeding from under the template :)

 

 

 

 Here you can see a bit more template work...but with a more softer effect, using CW Circle Explosion template

 

 

Loved working with this sketch, and I love my finished layout :)

Thanks so much for dropping by.... & for any comments you leave - they are greatly appreciated!

 

Have a great week ahead...xx 

 

Scrap Africa - Sketch # 20

2 posts in 2 days....go me!! lol

It seems that I am venturing back to a few of my favourite scrapping places...after not having played along in quite some time!  This time I'm playing along with sketch 20 at Scrap Africa....you can see the fantastic creations from the DT HERE if you're needing some inspiration :)

Here is my take on the sketch....

Ive used some fairly old October Afternoon papers - from the Sidewalks & Sasparilla collections....and the green piece I've backed my layout with is even older!  From MME "Wild Asparagus" collection....anyone remember that one?!

 

 

This is the sketch

 

 

And now for some close ups.....

My cluster, using 2crafty Lucy's flourish frame, Manor House & Prima flowers, Cheery Lyn die cut leaves & Martha Stewart punched butterly

 

 

Title...and journaling (which doesn't stand out too much, but I'm happy with that!)

 

 

 

Some more 2crafty chipboard ....cut up pieces of chicken wire panel.

And you can see a bit better here what I've done on the background....using gyprockers tape as a mask & a yellowy coloured gelato...I quite like the effect.  Plus there's some chickenwire template work using gesso applied with a sponge.

 

 

The pics were from when I was participating in the FMS photo a day challenge a few month ago.

 

 

And a better close up of the journaling

 

 

So, as you can see....the planning, booking etc is done!!  All we have to do now is wait until the big day....just under 2 more months - I can't wait!!! 

 

This will hopefully be the first of many layouts about our trip to Ireland.

I am so looking forward to getting over there, taking heaps of photos (we all know I will...lol) and then being able to scrap them (although I'm thinking maybe for the majority of the photos a Project Life type thing might be the go?)

 

Okie doke....that's all from me for now

Lets hope my mojo keeps going the way it is, because I'm having so much fun creating again :)

 

Take care & thanks for dropping by...xx

 

Sketch # 96 - Sketchabilities

Hi there peeps....happy Friday to you all :)

I haven't played along with a Sketchabilities sketch in such a long time, so this afternoon when I felt like getting creative, I thought I'd best change that & have a play along with the current sketch!

So here is what I came up with...sticking true to the sketch, except I moved my title over to the other side of the bottom cluster where it seemed to fit better....

Using Kaisercraft 75cents papers & die cuts...along with some Prima, MH & Kaiser flowers, Joy Crafts die-cut leaves, with a bit of textured bubble wrap stamping on the background

 

 

 

And here is Karan's gorgeous sketch

 

 

and now for a couple of close ups...

 

 

My main cluster

 

 

 

My title....which way?

(why, the dangerous way....of course!!)

 

 

 

Another small cluster of flowers, leaves & a stamped camera on canvas.

 

 

 

My journaling....about our daredevil dash through these rocks that were up against a 10 storey cliff....it was a wee bit scarey, but we didn't want to have to turn around & walk back the couple of km's we had come along this beach.  After we did it, we both just looked at each other and said..."OMG - we are crazy!!!"  lol - oh and we made sure the return hike was back on the track as was meant to be!!!

 

 

 

Here you can see the texture in the bubble wrap stamping a bit better...also with some stamping using Kaisercraft checkerplate stamp.

 

 

Enjoy your weekend everyone....and thanks so much for dropping by!

 

And also a HUGE thanks to all the regular gals to always visit & leave me such wonderful comments....you all know who you are!  mwwwahhhh  xxx