Off with the Pixies

Twisted Sketch #91 is up

2012-01-29T10:46:00.000+10:00

I am really enjoying the challenge of creating cards for Twisted Sketches. I took the opportunity with the twist of "old" this week to use a product I'd had lying around for years: the bird rub ons by Maya Road. I remember when I saw them at the Papercraft Expo in Brisbane and I just had to have them. I hadn't even opened the packet until I made this card! I thought the mirror images would look cute for this week's sketch. I've also used a Basic Grey paper pad and Kaisercraft acetate. Here's the sketch over at the blog. Have a look at the gorgeous creations of my fellow Twisted Sisters while you're there and why not join us in having a go at the challenge? You'll have fun! Don't forget to link up your card in the comments if you do.

Something a bit different

2012-01-26T20:08:00.000+10:00

I've really been getting into mixed media over the last year and have begun to incorporate it into my scrapping sometimes. I had my friend Mandie over to scrap today and got out one my favourite, one of a kind papers to make a layout but felt daunted. I was in a more playful mood so I grabbed some stamps, inks, paint and a few paper scraps. I'm really loving the washi tape trend at the moment so I got that out too. In fact it was my inspiration for the whole page. Only two of the strips are actual washi tape. I just cut paper strips to the same width to achieve a similar look. Mandie loaned me her Tim Holtz rosette die and now I know I have to buy one. They are great!

Finally...

2012-01-25T18:59:00.000+10:00

...I got around to scrapping these super cute photos of Holly! I've had them for quite a while but never seemed to have papers that suited them. I had a bit of a splurge when The Little Scrapbook Shop had a sale recently and stocked up on Crate Paper and Lily Bee Designs. Their collections really suit the sort of style I'm getting into now. They were just what I wanted to tell this little story. The photo with the frame around it is what I got when I asked Holly to make a "serious" face. If you like her adorable hat, make sure you check out Cupcakes and Sunshine. My lovely friend Shannon is one very clever lady and she takes custom orders.

Chockie Grin!

2012-01-23T10:37:00.000+10:00

Here's a layout I made over the weekend. I adore this photo of Holly! I think most of us will remember getting to lick the spoon while making cakes or cookies when we were kids. How good was it?

While I love working with all Kaisercraft products at work because it's so easy to coordinate everything, I really enjoy being able to mix up my brands when I'm scrapping just for fun at home. I've used a bit of Kaiser in this one (the die cut page), but also Prima (blue doily paper), October Afternoon (flowers), American Crafts (thickers), Lily Bee (little alphas) plus a Sassafras heart sticker. I just love going through my stash to see what works together. Sometimes I only have a small window of time in my craft room, so I spend it just choosing papers and embellishments to go with photos. I put them away as a sort of kit so that when I do get time to create I can just grab one and start. Sometimes I like to work from sketches too so I'll make a note of which one I want to use for a photo. I find being organised like that helps me make the most of my creative time. There are of course days I just go where the mood takes me and start from scratch. I do have to be in the right frame of mind for that or I'll end up just moving bits of paper around and not sticking anything down. I think we all have those times, don't we?

New layouts

2012-01-21T21:14:00.000+10:00

It's been pretty quiet at work lately and I've actually had time to scrap. Sometimes people think my job involves scrapping all day every day. I wish! Many of my customers get to do more of it than I do. There's so much more that goes into running a store. I do love working there though. My favourite part is meeting so many lovely people. Scrapbooking has certainly opened up a whole new world for me. I've never had a job that allowed me to be this creative before. I can't imagine doing anything else now.

Because we don't get to run classes as often as we'd like in the store, I'm making up kits to sell for all three of these layouts. I just need to write the instructions and pack the kits and they'll be ready to go. I think I'll move on to cards next, and maybe even some beyond the page items. Watch this space!

"Hummingbird" card

2012-01-19T18:58:00.001+10:00

Here's my official first card as a Twisted Sketches DT member. The sketch comes from this post and the twist is "sparkle". I've used the new Kaisercraft collection Hummingbird. I just adore red and aqua together. In fact I've decided that will be the colour scheme for decorating my mish mash of a craft room. There will be before and after photos I'm sure! Kaisercraft sparklets and rhinestones were an obvious choice for this card. I'm really enjoying working on the next couple of sketches and look forward to sharing them soon!

A new card with a twist

2012-01-11T21:25:00.000+10:00

Here's my latest card for the Twisted Sketches DT. Anam has had a small break from designing new sketches, and asked us all to choose our favourite sketch from the last year and create a card from it. I chose sketch #64 with the twist of "wood". I thought this would be a great way to use one of my new Kaisercraft wood flourishes. I love the colours in the Madame Boutique collection and I still have a thing for doilies. Check out Twisted Sketches to see what the rest of the team came up with.

Keeping it simple

2012-01-09T13:11:00.000+10:00

I've noticed I've been getting into a habit of not journaling on my layouts. I get used to making fancy pages to showcase products at work which is nice, but I mustn't forget the reason I started scrapping in the first place: to record memories for my family. Of course I love the challenge of creating for other reasons and within criteria. It's important that I also make time to create layouts for my family albums. They don't have to be fussy or loaded with heaps of product. They just need to capture the moment and how I felt about it. These pages might not be the most technical, but they sure are the most fun! I love to think of what Holly will say when she looks back on them in decades to come.

"Dream" tag

2012-01-07T20:33:00.000+10:00

I've admired tags before but never really felt the urge to make one myself. I had a bit of a splurge on new goodies at Christmas time (thanks hubby) and they all arrived in a lovely big box in the mail this week! I thought a tag would be a great way to try out some new products and techniques, combined with some older ones. This is the result...

I've used:
Ranger kraft tag
Prima script stamp and mask
Kaisercraft sentiment and border stamps (plus paper butterfly)
Tim Holz kraft core cardstock, Tattered Flower die and Distress Inks
Spellbinders foliage die
Cuttlebug embossing folder
Basic Grey brad
Seam binding

Here's a close up of the flower:

I made the flower using a technique I'm pretty sure I saw on youtube once. I first cut out three flowers with the die in my Big Shot, then I embossed them with my swiss dots folder. I gave each one a light sanding on top and then distressed the edges with my new Ingvild Bolme/Prima tool. I love that thing! The next step was to apply "Vintage Photo" Distress Ink with a dabber around all the edges and lightly over the top to colour the dots. Then I sprayed water on each flower, scrunched them up and opened them back up again. Poke a hole in the middle with a craft knife, layer them onto a brad and there's your flower!

The background was created with layers of stamping and masking. I'm really happy with how this turned out! I can't wait to try these ideas on layouts and cards. I think I'm in the mood for a play in my art journal tomorrow though. I hope you're having a great weekend! Thanks for stopping by.

I've been scraplifting

2012-01-01T15:45:00.000+10:00

I'm often inspired by the work of others and will incorporate ideas and elements into my own designs. It's not very common for me to want to almost replicate someone else's work though. I came across this gorgeous layout by Rachel Hall on Pinterest and fell in love with it! I just adore the sweet, girly feel of it. The folded circle part is really cute but didn't suit the paper I wanted to use with this photo so I tried something different. I do plan to try that technique on something else though. It's the first time I've used my Pink Paislee mask on a layout (I mostly use it for art journaling) and I'm quite happy with the result. Maybe I'll be brave enough to try ink splatters soon! I love the way the whole layout turned out. Thanks for the inspiration Rachel!

Wonderful news!

2011-12-23T22:16:00.002+10:00

I am very excited to announce I've been accepted as a member of the Twisted Sketches card design team! I am so honoured to have been chosen to interpret Anam Stubbington's gorgeous sketches along side a very talented group of ladies. This is something I've wanted to do for a long time and I can't wait to receive my next sketch so I can get started!

I discovered this blog about a year ago and often use Anam's sketches as inspiration for both cards and layouts. One week she will publish a layout sketch and the next week there's a card sketch. Each sketch has a "twist" that must be incorporated into the design somehow. I often recommend it to friends and customers who find it hard to get started creating. A bit of help deciding what should go where is a great way to cure scrapper's block.

Here is the sketch I had to use to create my card for the design team call. The twist is "number", and here is my card...

I have some time off to look forward to over the Christmas break and I am planning on spending a large part of it in my craft room. Merry Christmas everyone! Thanks for looking.

Christmas cards

2011-12-05T17:22:00.001+10:00

Here are a few cards I made that were featured in Kaisercraft's Workshop Magazine back in September. The instructions and materials lists for these plus many other beautiful projects can be found here on the website.

Just a few more layouts...

2011-11-27T09:54:00.000+10:00

Cards from CHA

2011-11-17T08:30:00.002+10:00

I'm a bit late in sharing these! Back in June I was asked by Melissa Kennedy to create some cards and layouts for the Kaisercraft booth at July CHA in Chicago. Needless to say I was thrilled to bits! The first six were created from my new favourite paper pad from the Timeless range mixed with a bit of Velvet Ensemble, and the rest were made from the gorgeous Miss Nelly collection, I had fun trying out my new sewing machine on them. I think I sew more paper than fabric these days!

Published!

2011-10-06T19:58:00.001+10:00

This week I finally achieved a goal I have had for a long time: a magazine has published one of my layouts! It's in Scrapbooking Memories Vol13 No12. I received confirmation a few months ago that it was going to be in this issue, so I've been trying to wait patiently. What a buzz! Here it is...

A few recent layouts...

2011-09-26T20:15:00.002+10:00

I've been in a very scrappy mood lately. The pile of photos to be scrapped is getting smaller! I'm starting Soul Restoration 2 in a few days so I'll mainly be working on that for the next month or two. This Saturday is my 40th birthday (see my layout about that) and I'm really looking forward to celebrating with family and friends. I'm on holidays for a week after that. I can't wait for some quality craft room time (and to enjoy my family's company of course)!

I'm still here!

2011-08-21T23:25:00.004+10:00

Yes, this is my first post since March. Now that I'm blogging without obligation, it's ok! Of course work has kept me busy but I've also been doing some online courses in my spare time. I started with Christy Tomlinson's She Art and She Had Three Hearts workshops. Right now I'm particpating in Brave Girls Club's Soul Restoration 1 and it's just amazing! I never really saw the appeal of art journalling until now. I've been finding lots of inspiration on Pinterest as well and when I make something I'm ready to share I'll post it here. For now I just wanted to share a layout I've made recently. It's about my favourite girl. :)

My Beautiful Mother

2011-03-04T18:28:00.003+10:00

I finally cut into some of my "good" papers! By good, I mean the non-Kaiser ones I have to pay full price for. I've had my Basic Grey "Curio" collection pack sitting untouched in my stash since October. I had a lot of old family prints made recently and so many of them work perfectly with this range. I've used Graphic 45 and Webster's on this one too, plus one of my Jenni Bowlin trinket pins that I just adore. I can't wait to show it to Mum!

Bubblegum Hills: new Kaisercraft

2011-02-28T10:08:00.000+10:00

I had fun yesterday creating this layout with the new Kaisercraft range Bubblegum Hills that will be released tomorrow. The other new range, Nan's Kitchen, is just as lovely and I can't wait to have a play with it!

Vintage style cards

2011-02-21T15:53:00.001+10:00

I just finished making these for a March workshop to teach at work.

"Pearl" vintage photo frame

2011-02-13T17:14:00.002+10:00

Wow... two blog posts in a week! I'm on fire! (ha ha)

When these photo display frames arrived at work recently I immediately had my heart set on doing one in a vintage theme. I decided to make it a tribute to my Nana and I realised the English Rose collection would be the perfect choice. I think this project really captures the essence of the elegant lady that Pearl was. She was always immaculately presented and when she was young she wouldn't dream of going to town without her hat and gloves on. Nana passed away when I was 21 and I was fortunate as her only female descendant to inherit many of her treasured items, including her crystal, silverware and jewellery. I'm so glad I now have a daughter I can pass these beautiful things on to. I remember Dad actually offered me the fox stole Pearl was wearing in the photo on the left. I was so grossed out I didn't want anything to do with it! I guess they must have been all the rage in the 1930's.

Cards are the next thing on my agenda. I'd better hurry up and make a Valentine's one for hubby. It's 5pm on the 13th! I'm feeling very inspired lately by all the beautiful new Kaisercraft products. It's so exciting waiting to see what's coming next!

February already!

2011-02-08T18:18:00.001+10:00

Well those few months since I last posted have flown! Between work, Christmas and floods I haven't done a lot of craft. Christmas was lovely and relaxing. I had 10 days at home with my family and was very surprised that my mojo was nowhere to be found. Maybe I needed a break from creating? I'm happy to say the ideas are flowing again now. I've been looking at lots of blogs and galleries and I'm feeling very inspired.

The recent floods that swept through the region we live in were certainly a shock. I never would have imagined something like that would happen here. We were very lucky to only have minimal damage to our home. We lost a few belongings but it was mostly junk in the garage that we needed to get rid of anyway. Seeing the photos and footage of the devastation and hearing the stories of those who've lost their entire homes and even loved ones is just heartbreaking. I am so very grateful we came through it all relatively unscathed.

This project is something I made for a workshop we'll be teaching at work this month. It's actually meant to be a clock but I like it as a photo frame. I'm feeling very inspired to make some more things just for myself, but it's just so hard to fit into my schedule. Holly is at an age where she needs a lot of attention, and she's not quite at the age of not getting into mischief every time she enters my craft room! I'm working on a really special project for her right now. She happily painted beside me for a little while today while I made a bit of progress. Photos coming soon!

Something special

2010-11-06T20:03:00.001+10:00

My goodness time flies! Matt and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary last weekend. My stepson Jayden was with us for the weekend which was great. We had a lovely family lunch at the restaurant where we had our wedding reception. The food was delicious and the gardens there are even more beautiful than this time last year. It was such a perfect day!

I wanted to give Matt a special gift to mark the occasion, so I made this mini album for him. There is hidden journaling on little tags behind a couple of the photos. The photo on the second page (inside the cover) was taken on the night we met! Even then, we knew already it was the beginning of something really special.

I've used the new Kaisercraft "After Five" range.

A recent creation

2010-10-04T20:32:00.000+10:00

Here's a little something I made recently. It's been so long since my last post! I have holidays coming up soon, so there'll be plenty of time to get crafty. :)

Sunday drive

2010-07-19T13:22:00.000+10:00

It was a beautiful winter's day yesterday. We thought it was too good to spend indoors so we hopped in the car and took a drive out to Warwick. I've been wanting to do a country themed photo shoot of Holly for a while now. As any mum will know, it's not easy to get a two year old to co-operate. I just let her do her own thing and snapped away! I'm really looking forward to scrapping these photos.

My beautiful girl

2010-06-21T09:27:00.001+10:00

As all mothers know, it's very difficult to get a two year old to stay still for a photograph! I'm really happy with how this one turned out.

Long time no post!

2010-06-19T11:35:00.000+10:00

I knew I'd be busy returning to full time work, but wow: I haven't posted since I first started my job six months ago! I actually decided to delete this blog a few weeks ago. I have, however, had a change of heart. I'm glad there's a cooling off period in which you can still resurrect blogs! I do love my family and my job, but I've realised how important it is to take time out just for me. I really enjoy the endless inspiration the world of creative blogging provides.

I attended my very first papercraft expo in Brisbane last weekend with my friend Therese from work. We had such a great time! We got to meet some lovely ladies from Kaisercraft head office, as well as some others I had only "met" on Facebook. It was awesome being surrounded by so many talented, inspirational women (not to mention all the products)! I've come home with a freshly re-ignited mojo and plenty of goodies to play with. I'm about to order the prints from our wedding photographer (it was SO hard to decide), so I can get started on the wedding album. I think a couple of wedding themed BTPs would be nice too.

Anyhow, I have a little something to share: the first non-Kasiercraft layout I've completed this year! I'll be back soon to post some pics of things we've been making at work.

More news...

2010-01-08T20:36:00.001+10:00

I've decided to close my madeit.com shop and cancel my Facebook fan page. I'm going to be way too busy with my day job and family to make things for sale now. That idea was just something to keep me busy while I was at home anyway. I wasn't expecting this amazing opportunity to come along and it's way too good to pass up. I'll still be doing plenty of scrapping and card making of course. Only one more week until the store I'll be managing opens!

Here's a layout I made the other day...

New layouts!

2010-01-02T13:38:00.001+10:00

After a few months of concentrating on cards, it's so good to get back to scrapping! I really enjoyed doing ths one. It's the very first photo from the wedding that I've scrapped. We'll be getting the professional pics back soon and I'm getting really excited about working with those!

I wanted to get in and do this layout while the photo was still fairly recent. Now I guess I should go back and do some with Holly's baby photos. I think I've even got some pregnancy ones I still need to do!

My exciting news...

2009-12-28T09:45:00.001+10:00

... I've got a job! I can't say where it is exactly right now but let's just say I'll be managing a scrapbooking store! Oh my goodness, I am going to be in my element!

I saw the job advertised over a few weeks but thought there was no way I'd be able to get Holly into daycare full time. When I saw the position hadn't been filled I took it as a sign. I also took it as a sign when I called some daycare centres and found out the one right near our house had one vacancy left. I've asked around and they have an excellent reputation. They agreed to hold that spot for me and I applied for the job. The very next morning I got a call asking me to go to an interview. The lady I met was so lovely and we had a good old chat. I took in lots of my work to show her of course.

Well I got a call the next day to say I've got the job! I am thrilled to bits because I've dreamed of working for this company for a while. I never thought it would happen while I lived where I do though! The store opens next month and I will be sure to post about it!

I'm sure going to miss this little one! It is sad but it will be the best thing for our family. Holly is at the age the age where she really needs the social interaction. I hope it doesn't take her long to adjust. I'll send her to daycare for the first time on a day when I'm not working. That way I can come home and cry in private!

What a wonderful Christmas!

2009-12-27T18:06:00.001+10:00

Jayden arrived on Christmas Eve and it was so nice to have him here so we could all wake up together the next morning. There's nothing like watching the pure joy of the kids opening and playing with their presents! After that we all went outside so Holly and Jayden could play in the sandpit and pool that Santa had left them. My Dad came over for lunch and we all enjoyed a lovely, relaxing evening at Dennis and Tracy's (my brother and SIL) place. This year the emphasis was on togetherness and a lack of fuss: just the way I like it!

Some more cards

2009-12-21T14:02:00.001+10:00

I made these two cards on Saturday as part of a special, secret project. I'm hoping to have some very good news to share later this week!

A touch of whimsy

2009-12-14T14:20:00.001+10:00

After making so many things to sell, I wanted to create a little something just for me yesterday. I've had the song "Build a Little Birdhouse in Your Soul" by They Might Be Giants in my head lately and that was my inspiration for this little collage. I also spotted some adorable birdhouses at the hardware store the other day and I'm going to buy one. I don't know if any birds will actually go near it, but I'll still enjoy seeing its cuteness in my garden!

New cards!

2009-12-12T20:00:00.001+10:00

I had a very busy day of cardmaking yesterday! I've just listed lots of new ones in my madeit.com shop. Here are a few of my favourites. There are Japanese chiyogami cards, patchwork-style cards and others with stamped images. Why not pop on over and have a look at the rest?

18 months old!

2009-12-03T18:38:00.002+10:00

It's 18 months today since my little ray of sunshine came into the world! I can't imagine life without her. There is certainly never a dull moment with Miss Holly around. The poor little thing hasn't been well. She woke up from her nap yesterday with an unexplained fever. She doesn't have the sniffles or a cough and she's not teething either. It must have been a 24 hour thing because she seems better now. She hasn't had much of an appetite so I'm about to order her favourite dinner: pizza. I will be very surprised if she doesn't eat that!

Just had to share...

2009-11-29T14:15:00.001+10:00

I am so excited! Our wedding photographer, the very talented Lisa Mattiazzi, called yesterday to say our photo book is ready to collect! She emailed us a few shots to choose from to go on the cover and this is the one we chose. In a couple of the photos you could see a bat in the sky, which is quite fitting seeing that it was Halloween and all!

I got married!

2009-11-03T15:24:00.003+10:00

Matt and I were married on Saturday October 31 at the Japanese Gardens near our home. We also incorporated our daughter Holly's naming day into the ceremony. My bother Dennis and his wife Tracy are Holly's guardians. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I made my dress as well and Naomi's (my MOH) and Holly's. It was a truly magical day and I'm so happy with how it all turned out!

A day in the mountains

2009-10-20T13:27:00.001+10:00

Sunday was such a beautiful day we decided to get out of the house (and out of town) for the day. No phones, no screens, no toys (except my camera): just the four of us and nature. We went to the Bunya Mountains, which are about 90 minutes drive northwest of Toowoomba. I love the way the lush, green mountains are right in the middle of flat, dry farmlands. We had a picnic as soon as we got there and then went on a 5km bushwalk. The rainforest did live up to it's name and we got rained on a bit, but didn't get drenched thank goodness. It was sad to see the waterfall has dried up. Obviously they haven't had much rain out that way. Matt was such a champ and carried Holly almost the whole way! It was so nice to do something fun while Jayden was here.

What happened to my little baby?

2009-10-08T20:34:00.002+10:00

She's growing up so fast! *sigh*

Wedding dress sneaky peek!

2009-09-20T20:42:00.002+10:00

After making a toile on Friday and making the necessary adjustments to the pattern... I finally started work on my wedding dress yesterday! It was a little scary cutting into the lace but once I started to put it together it looked perfect. I bought all my gorgeous fabric at Gardams. I've been taking plenty of photos because I intend to do a scrapbooking layout about the making of my dress. I've been waiting a long time to make this dress! It's all starting to feel real at last.

The wedding is all falling into place!

2009-09-11T16:05:00.004+10:00

I'm having so much fun doing all this planning. I'm in my element creatively speaking! The invitations are finally sent out and this is what they look like:

Matt and I really enjoyed working on these together. We make a great team which is a good sign if we're about to be married!

Our reception co-ordinator Tegan is just wonderful! She's very enthusiastic and definately on our wavelength. She's excited about doing the lolly buffet. She actually took Holly and I for a drive out to her friend's fudge shop this morning. Isn't that lovely of her? I bought a bit of fudge to try and a few bags of lollies that are just perfect. I'll go back closer to the big day to buy the fudge.

Matt and I have a big day ahead of us tomorrow. We're shopping for clothes for the boys, our rings and a few other bits and pieces. I have an appointment with a Clinique consultant to try out some make up.

Right now, Holly is sleeping so I'm going to put my feet up, read a magazine and enjoy some rest while I can!

OTP for Mum

2009-08-31T12:15:00.000+10:00

Mum of course can't get enough of photos of Holly. I made this little BTP for her birthday gift.

Mum's birthday card

2009-08-30T10:57:00.003+10:00

This card was made almost entirely with Kaisercraft products from the Duchess range. Mum is a dressmaker so I thought it was fitting to add some stitching to her card. I really enjoy sewing on paper because it combines two of my great loves. I'm planning on doing a lot more of it in the near future.

Some of my cards...

2009-08-27T22:16:00.002+10:00

These are just a few cards I've made recently for special occasions for friends and family.

Basic Grey sketch challenge

2009-08-21T14:56:00.004+10:00

This layout is my interpretation of the the above sketch from the Basic Grey challenges blog. That's my Mum in the photo.

Tracy's album

2009-08-20T16:50:00.003+10:00

I made this little album as a birthday gift for my sister-in-law. I've used Kaisercraft's Aztec album and the Loire Valley range. I just wanted to keep it simple and let her add her own photos later.

2009-08-20T16:48:00.001+10:00

Spring is almost here!

2009-08-15T18:07:00.005+10:00

It was such a beautiful day today! We went to the park and left our jackets at home. Holly loved it at Webb park, but of course there were tears when it was time to go leave!

Cuteness

2009-08-14T08:58:00.003+10:00

He he... Holly loved the fruit that had been in this container so much she went back for the juice! Cute or what?!

Kaboodle wedding style board

2009-08-12T18:12:00.002+10:00

This style board was lots of fun to put together! Nothing on it is *exactly* the same as the real thing, but it gives you an idea of the general theme.

Maria and... by indigobloomdesigns

Scrap your summer!

2009-08-09T12:15:00.012+10:00

I was so excited when Kaisercraft released all the their new Q1 ranges recently! They are all perfect in different ways for various projects I have in mind. I've started with Offshore and Pina Colada. I'd been searching for the right products to scrap these beachy photos and I'm very happy with the results.

ETA: Woo-hoo! Kaisercraft have just featured my beach LO on their blog and on FB! :-)



"My Girl"
2009-08-07T15:42:00.010+10:00
Yesterday's layout...




"A Day in the Country"
2009-08-05T16:41:00.009+10:00
I've got my mojo back! I got caught up playing a silly game on Facebook but reaslised the time would be better spent scrapping. So, I deleted the game, got my photos out and got busy!

I thought this Kaisercraft "What a Hoot" paper suited the theme perfectly. I had a lot of great photos we took that day so it was hard to decide which ones to use. I've saved a couple of the others to use on single layouts.







"Swing" : Scrappies Supplies challenge entry
2009-08-04T16:48:00.011+10:00

I completed this layout as my entry for a challenge at scrappiessupplies.com.  The challenge was to use predominantly fabric for the embellishments. I made the flowers and branch from felt, the leaves are linen-look fabric and the grass is velvet. I've had the Sassafras paper in my stash for a while now. It felt good to finally cut into it! I think it added to the feeling of whimsy I was aiming for.

UPDATED TO ADD: I won the prize for this challenge! :-) Thanks Julz!


Holly at the park
2009-07-22T16:21:00.004+10:00



I can't believe how gorgeous the weather has been lately! It sure doesn't seem like the middle of winter. Holly and I just love to go to the park at the end of our street. We like to feed the ducks and Holly always waves and calls out hello to them. The ducks enjoy the stale milk arrowroot biscuits I have lurking in my handbag or pram (as many mums do).  We stopped there on the way home from the scrapbooking shop the other day and I let Holly out of the pram so she could have a little walk around. She was so stoked!


A decision has been made at last!
2009-07-19T19:06:00.003+10:00
Well I'm very pleased to say my mojo is back and the wedding invitation design is finalised! Thanks to the lovely Shirl for her help. I've combined some of her ideas with some of mine and it works! I can't post a pic until after they've all been sent out of course. I'll be off to the LSS tomorrow to place an order for 200 brads, amongst other things...


Yummy chiyogami!
2009-07-18T14:08:00.006+10:00


I thought designing my wedding invitations was going to be easy. Boy was I wrong! I guess the problem is that I'm a libran bride, and librans are typically creative and indecisive. It took me a LOT of searching to find the perfect japanese chiyogami paper to use. It had to have cherry blossoms on it in the perfect size and shape, and in shades of pink and green. After looking at literally thousands of designs I finally found it at beckoningdesigns.com and bought 10 pieces. It's just the next step I'm stuck on. I've played around with a few ideas but I don't LOVE any of them. A kind friend has given me some inspiration and I think I will incorporate some of her ideas with my own. I just got back from my LSS with some new cardstock, ribbons and brads to play with. Wish me luck!


'Mummy" and "Daddy"
2009-07-14T11:54:00.004+10:00



A couple of layouts I did back in May. The top one is a semi-scrap lift of a layout by Donna Wild. I loved the woven heart technique she used!  



Winter's almost over!
2009-07-12T18:47:00.003+10:00

I couldn't help but feel happy today when I noticed the very first peach blossom of the year on the tree in our front yard! This tree seems to bloom a lot sooner than all the other peach/plum/cherry trees around. I just adore those delicate little pink flowers and can't wait until there are enough to bring inside to put in a vase. I like the way the blossoms come out right in the middle of winter. It's as though mother nature is sending a little message to say "hang in there, spring is just around the corner..." 



My gorgeous family
2009-07-09T14:26:00.002+10:00










Some of my favourite recent Holly pics!



"It's Fun to be One"
2009-07-08T16:02:00.006+10:00













"Holly's Party"
2009-07-08T15:54:00.006+10:00










I recently wrote a letter to Scrapbook Creations magazine, and not only did they print it, they chose it as their star letter! Some of the gorgeous Kaszazz papers in my prize pack were just perfect for scrapping the photos from Holly's birthday. 



2009-06-27T16:19:00.002+10:00


















Jordana and Adam's mini album
2009-06-27T16:12:00.005+10:00















I created this mini album back in March 2009 as a wedding gift for Matt's brother Adam and his wife Jordana. I'm going to be making a wedding album for them soon. 



Getting started on cards!
2009-06-11T15:40:00.000+10:00



Up until now I've only made cards to give to people. My friend Tamara has a shop in Camperdown, Sydney called Venus in Furs - Couture and Curios, and she encouraged me to make some cards to sell in her shop. I've finally gotten started this week and I'm having lots of fun! I'm going to concentrate on building up my stock over the next few months and then seek out some more stockists closer to home. 





"Your First Year" mini album for Holly
2009-06-09T18:23:00.002+10:00













Holly's album
2009-06-09T18:21:00.000+10:00


















2009-06-09T18:15:00.002+10:00















I created this album as a gift for my darling daughter's first birthday. I wanted to make her something that will become a cherished keepsake as she grows up, and to show her just how special she is. 
It's created almost entirely from the Basic Grey "Sugared" range. I've also used Tattered Angels glimmer glass and some Kaisercraft products, along with lace given to me by my mother and grandmother.