Sink your teeth into this!!!

Okay there everyone-I know I am a slack ass-it's just been super busy okay!!?? I have lots to share and tell, a Sneaky peeky, and some cards too:)
Firstly though-some exciting news!!! The lovley Sonia, from FOREVER ALWAYS, asked me to be a creative team member for thei r new challenge, that's happening each month at FA. i WAS SUPER CHUFFED, TO SAY THE LEAST!!! The challenge is called "A Novel Approach to Scrapbooking", and each month, we tale inspiration from awell known novel. Now, if you are a bookworm like me, you've just gotta join in. The sponsor, BOOMERANG BOOKS- they are giving a way a voucher for $30, to spend on more reading matter, each month,how cool is that???I'm excited:) This month, we are taking inspiration from the first installment of a fantastic series-you guessed it-TWILIGHT!!!! OMG- I loved those books, and what's more, we all have a natter about the book throughout the month too,so this month,there will be lots of chatter about Edward Cullen,lol! As an extra challenge, this month's layout had to be all red(VERY minimal black and white allowed)with a monochrome photo. I used this one of Nanny and Pop, as Twilight represents to me , the concept of eternal love, and I think that 60 years of wedded bliss is pretty close,don't you? You really must go check it out here www.foreveralways.com.au

I have morer news to share too about FA soon- just uploaded in a wierd order though! Here is a sneaky peeky of the layout I have just finished for this month's Scrapping Word Pictures challenge. I love recipe scraps, so this was right up my alley-using mega cool Motor Grunge papers I bought, made by Creative Memories, of all people. So far , I have created two layouts, and a card from this kit, and still have some left:)Here is my sneak!

I found that mesh in my stash, I think it would be about 5 years old.....but I put it to good use:)

You have already seen the next one- computer challenged me uploaded the wrong file.....d'oh!

Moving right along, and here is the layout I did for LAST month's Scrapping Word Pictures-except I forgot to send my entry-d'oh! again....I thought I had sent it..oh well, I really like the page-Jacob's money pit:)

I am really enjoying being scrappy again-I did this one for the Blind Challenge over at A2Z Scraplets-this layout was created entirely from scraps in my stash-well the pp anyway:) I love the way it turned out, and I used a pre-digi photo too.

Life has been super hectic 'round here-so much going on. Yesterday, the girls and I went to my friend Julie's son's birthday. Her mum made this train cake-it was yummo,and doesn't it l;ook great?? Had to take a photo:) The top part of the engine is a chocolate scroll cake-it was soooooo yum!

I thought it was very cute!! Jackson was turning big 3-I made him a card from bits and bobs-and the girls couldn't wait to give it to Jackson...

Nothing flash, but I thought it came out cute for a little boy card:)

Now for a big boy card-a Father's Day one, made from the CM papers I have used on my layouts.Very big boyish-don't you think;)

My F-I-L is a hoon, so it was appropriate-Happy Father's Day Dad-hope you had a great day:) Jacob did,I think, even though I bought him a Toblerone , which I didn't know he doesn't like, and he already had his present three days ago....motorcross clothes. Aleisha bought him some choccies from the school stall-apparently they taste awful......aaaah well, lucky it's soon Christmas hey??

I had a win over at FA with this layout from the August sketch-I still love this photo, and have entered it into a photo comp. I have also won the honour of being a Guest Designer over at Fa this month-so go and join in my challenges!!!!I have a cool challenge coming up for the Cybercrop next weekend,sure to get the mojo flowing:) Thanks again Sonia, and the gorgeous DT at Fa!!! I do love it there:)

I was going to enter the Design Team competition at my other favourite place to chat and scrap- BON'S SCRAPS. However, with family commitments in a week or so(which I will have looooooaaaaadsss of photos to share from) I decided it wasbest to step aside, and let those that could properly fulfill the duties join in. I think I will just be patient for next year:) The new challenges are up for September at Bon's so go check them out-Charm's challenge is fab, Tam's room is gorgeous,and the list goes on, but I won't give it all away! I won a vouchree for a layout I did for Sandie's Blind Scrap-but Photobucket wasn't playing nice, so I will share that one next time:)

Well, thanks for stopping by my corner of the world-I think I might head for bed now-I went to a Lighting Course today, and studiedSpecular highlights,Polarization,and Umbra and penumbra ratio......so my brain is kinda swirling with lots of info now!!! Think it needs a rest:) Bye for now!

A lot to share

Well, it has been ages since I blogged, I know. Everything has been so hectic of late, and there never seem to be enough hours in the day anymore!So, I got to it tonight, and decided to overhaul the blog, and post too!
I haven't been scrapping as much recentl;y, as a matter of fact, I hadn't been in my room much for WEEKS( unheard of)but the last two weeks have seen my mojo return:) Lovin it!! I have been pottering around with some different stuff, and also using stash that I have had for yonks too- always a bonus!!!
Today, we went to a Cool Companions party for one of Aleisha's school friends. The kids had a ball- there were three lizards, a Shingleback, a Blue Tongue,and a Spiky Tailed, also two snakes( shudder) a turtle( which slept through the party,lol) and a CROCODILE!!! His name was Snappy Tom, and he was a huge hit with the kids! Any how, I took the camera along-really hard spot to get decent shots, and I couldn't ask the dude to move all the critters for camera position,lol. Aleisha loved Stripey the Blue Tongue, and had a hold:) Bianca was zooming about too, and she loves the snakes-so she had her photo taken with one- the kids had to stand like "trees", hence the folded arms,lol!

I can't remember this snake's name- but it was only a wee one:) I decided to be brave- more for the fact that all the kids there are in Aleisha's class, and I help out, and they would never let me live it down if I didn't have a go- I am so proud, I held a SNAKE!!!!!! For those that know me, I am PERTIFIED, SCRAED S #*tless, of snakes, and of course, I enede up with the BIGGEST ruddy one there-her name was Flower.....an Olive Python, and I think about 5ft long-what was I thinking?????? I forgot to upload the photo,der, so will share next time...still can't believe I did it.

Now, for some exciting news- BON'S SCRAPS IS LOOKING FOR DESIGN TEA MEMBERS!!! Could it be you? The comp starts this week, and there are a few things you need to know before you put your name down to try out!!

*** You must be a regular forum user, chat like you would if on the team,start discussions,etc.

*** There are two spots available.

***There are four rounds to the competition.

***Registraiotn is on now- so get over there and register, chat as you would regularly, and give it a go!! Bons is a lovely place to visit- great forum, lots of laughs, and an inspiring gallery too!!!

I have done some layouts for some recent Bon's challenges-firstly Sandie's August class- this was fun, and I love having a laptop now!!

I didn't have the kit, so I improvised with what I had for this one- but such a fun layout to scrap!!! Thanks Sandie:)

I also did this one for the August sketch:) I apologise about the bad photo- long story, but the little camera I used is crap:(

Love how this turned out- used some old pp for it, and bitsand bobs from my stash- lov it!!

Now for my oops- I uploaded the wrong file....I am such a doofus with a computer!

Well, I am off to scrap some more! More coming to share, so stay tuned!!!!

SOME PHOTOS,SCRAPPING,AND MORE PHOTOS!!!

Brace yourselves ladies and gentlemen, this here is a mammoth post!!!So much has happened the past month...no idea where to start,so I will start with the bad stuff. I haven't been around much due to the untimely hospital stay that Bianca and I had. Before I go any further,a HUGE thankyou to all of the staff in Surf ward at the Royal Children's Hospital-thanks for looking after Bianca so well,and being such Wonder Nurses!! To Dr McBride, and Dr Alex-thankyou for performing the surgery...Bianca has done so well, and chats about how nice you both were to her;) Bianca had to have her appendix removed , as they had ruptured-very scary, very agonising for her, and a lengthy operation due to an abcess that had formed behind the appendix.With the recovery, and the fact that I have just been plum tired trying to catch up again, this is why i haven't been blogging as regularly as I promised. But I'm baaaack!!
Oh, I finished my camera course-boohoo. I would go there all YEAR if I could!!! We had a great time again, and I learned heaps from the camera guru himself,Peter. Here he is , receiving his thankyou bottle of refreshment, and no-one has seen him since,lol!!!I reckon that white bear bottle would be very yummy...... I made him a card,using my Darkroom Door Photography stamps,he loved it:) I put a shot of our class in the card for him too, and we all chipped in for his Bundy,but I got him the good stuff,he deserves to be spoiled! This man is such a great teacher, I can't thank him enough for changing me from a timid camera owner, to a person who wants to take their camera EVERYWHERE!!
Thanks Pete!!!
I have finally been scrapping again-OMG I have missed it heaps!!!I went to my friend Julie's last Saturday night, for a scrap session, and got two layouts done,gotta love that. I have also been chatting up a storm at FOREVER ALWAYS, and at BONS SCRAPS too. So many lovely ladies to chat to!!!
I have tackled my first sketch challenge for the month, at the FABULOUS FOREVER ALWAYS. Renae inspired this fabulous sketch over at FA- drop into the gallery and check it out-it is GORGEOUS!!! I would give you all alink, but I dunno how to do that:( One day I will get the hang of it,lol! But go and see the July Sketch, it is fabulous, and there are heaps of other lovely works of scrappy art to inspire you at Forever Always too,oh and it's CYBERCROP time this weekend as well!!!Oh, here is my layout that I did for the July Sketch, I turned it to accomodate my photo. I got to use my Glimmermist that I bought at the expo(Nic you super saleswoman you-so glad I watched your tutorial!!!)I used it on the Grungeboard flourishes.

I really need to start photographing my layouts with the Canon.They don't look as sharp on the little point and shoot! Loved this sketch Sonia, and Renae, and thanks for inspiring me like you always do!!!:)
Here is my layout for SONGBIRD SCRAPS first July challenge-the song is "MINT CAR" by The Cure.I haven't jouranlled on this yet, as I want to put some special stuff on there for Aleisha-this was taken on her birthday:) Yeehaw!!I did this one at Julie's , it just kinda fell together, definitely not how it started out!!!

This is my July layout for the first sketch of the month at Black Magic .This month we have a palette of Burnt Orange,Green,Cream,red, and Black.the technique is embossing.Here is my take on the first sketch:-

Love the Webster's alphas on here! Lucky the sheet has heaps!!!I think I will use them alot! I bought them with my winnings from Bon's May sketch:)

On the weekend I went to the Abbey Medieval Fest, with Chris and Julie from my camera courses.OMG-I had a ball, tok heeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaps of photos too! Here are some faves,in no particular order, these are just some of the many that I have uploaded from my camera. Let me just say, if you have never been to one of these,go the next time you get the opportunity-it was great fun!And the photographic topics!!!! This Turkish Dancer was just gorgeous....

Her costume was beautiful, very detailed, and she danced so elegantly too. The costumes were divine!!!
I also watched the Turkish Oil Wrestling-very funny-to think that in Medieval times, men did this until some of them died of exhaustion...roflmao...the gist of this is, they get smeared in Extra Virgin Olive oil(only the good stuff,lol) and then they wrestle in these pants that weigh 13kg or so. If they can't get a hold on the opponent properly, they can stick their hand down the opponents pants(?) and grab them by the bottom hem, and throw them to the ground. When these guys did that to eahc other, the crowd got very loud, and laughed so hard, that in the end, they cracked up laughing too!!!It was very entertaining, and I had a good chuckle!!

The Tourney of these men was great to watch-men fighting in chain mail-YAY!!! I really loved all things Medieval when I was younger, and it was my faveourite segment of Ancient History,next to Egypt. seeing the period costumes was fantastic, and some of them looked so authentic. All day ,I was spoken to in Ye Olde English-buying a drink was like you were royalty-m'lady! Very funny!!

The combat was awesome to watch!!!^^^^^ this is one of my faves from the day.

I think these guys fought the longest! One guy took three attempts to be "killed off", he just kept getting back up with smaller and smaller weapons,roflmao. Here is another dancer-this was taken just before the grand finale.Again, the most exquisite costume:) I am just sad her eyes aren't a bit sharper,but with a long lens,zoomed up, I was just happy to have her in the shot,lol!Especially hand-held:)

Now for my MOST FAVOURITE PART of the whole day-the fantabulous JOUST TILT!!!!!!! These riders were nothing short of spectacular to watch,my only regret is that we weren't higher up in the Grandstand, so we didn't have bars to contend with:( But this was where my camera lessons came in soo handy, using autofocus on a point,switching to manual, and panning with the horses-the shots were pretty clear considering. These competitors hit HARD, and the horses were so stunning-one a huge Percheron Black Stallion...he was magnificent. The regalia was just perfect,the horses looked like they had stepped out of a castle somewhere. These guys(oh and ladies too)travel the world doing this, one of them is an 8 year world Joust champion.... it was fantastic!!!!

The horse on the left of this shot was called Goblin-he was gorgeous too. He and his rider are the Champions at present, and have been 8 times...his horse would rear on command, made the whole thing more theatrical. Just awesome!!!The best $2 I ever spent!!!Needless to say, I took lots of the Jousting:):):)

Well, that's all from mre for now-be back soon, with more photos! Take care, and thanks for stopping in:)

AC/DC, Convention, prizes, and more.....

That has been what my last (month-has it truly been so long???) has consisted of. I have sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo many exciting things to share, and a few bits of scrapping, but not much:( The last few weeks have flown by, and I can honestly say, I haven't scrapped for nearly two weeks......I really miss it!!!
Firstly-huge thankyou's to a few peoples, whom are very special to me!!! Two lovely ladies I met at the convention in Brisbane-Lovely Louise Nelson, and Nicole Finlayson- two special scrap buddies, and truly inspiring , smashing people to spend the day with!!! I went in to the convention, my first time, on the public holiday, and met Lou and nic in real life, and they are SOOOOO FABULOUS!!!! Had an absolute ball, spent all my money(;) as you do!) and came home with Glimmermist and lovely stuff to play with-who could ask for more??? Thankyou for making my day so special Nic and Lou, and I just know it won't be the last time we meet!!! Another thankyou to Sue from ORANGE JELLY STAMPS!! My card above, won the Owl challenge that Sarahj from Inkurable Stampers featured on her blog recently-I took a photo of the stamps that I won, but Jacob has the little camera at work with him today, so I will share them later. They are awesome, and thanks again sooo much Sue!!! Can't wait to scrap again, and actually get to play with my stamps!!!!

I have still been chatting at my two favourite haunts, BONS SCRAPS, and FOREVER ALWAYS. Have an absolute swag of scrapping to do, and hope to get lots done before the end of the month!I did the Kitefest layout for FA'S 6th Birthday Extravaganza-I find bright colours so hard!!!

Well, in other news, Jacob and I got tickets to AC/DC!!!!!!!!I cannot wait!!!!This will be my second time to see them live, they really are just mind-blowing!!! Only another 8 months to go,lol!!! we are going along with our friends Carmen and Troy, so it will be a hoot! I know I will come home without a voice, oh, and with a new shirt of course:)

I started another course with my camera a few weeks ago, and I just love what we have been learning. I met up with some of my previous classmates, and we had a field trip to the city on Saturday. Took some great shots, one of which I absolutely love, but alas, I cannot share. We started the trip in Roma St Parklands, and while we were there, a wedding party came through-the bride looked absolutley STUNNING, and her bridesmaids had the richest ruby coloured dresses, just gorgeous.well, there we all were, cameras in hand as they came around the corner-the poor bride nearly died!!!Our instructor, Peter , asked the photographer and bride if we could take some photos, and they said yes, butwe aren't allowed to put them on the net or anything. I took one as they were "waltzing" and he spun her around and laids her backwards-I love the shot, and was so stoked to get it!!! We all had a great time, and watched the photographer in awe of her equipment!!!! Anyways, here are some I took on the night section of our trip-

Treasury Casino-all the people on the railing are people in my class-they had all finished snapping away, I had loaned my tripod , so took a few more when I got it back;) This one was taken from the river side.

My LSD photo,lol! I had a few attempts at this, zooming on a long shutter speed-my first one looked very psychedelic!!!A little TOOO much zoom!!! Good fun though! This is the casino from another side, don't know the name of the street, always get lost in Brisbane!!!

Light trails on North Quay. Unfortunately , no-one came toward me when I had the star filter for this shot;( But I still loved learning how they work, and playing!!!

Onw of my faves of the night-the Southbank Ferris Wheel. I am framing this one I think!!! We are now planning to meet up once a month to go out taking shots. Graeme, one of the other students, has bought a South East bushwalking book, so who knows where we will end up,lol!!!? I have another field trip this weekend, which will be fabbo!

I was especially lucky to be chosen for the Guest DT for AUSSIE SCRAPJACKED this month, by Gorgeous lou!!! Here is my take on the "jack". If you haven't checked them out-do go have a looksee!!!!

Lastly, but by no means least, here is a shot of me and Lou at the convention!!! Love you Lou, and I will be reloading this one, as I uploaded the wrong one, and now we are sideways,roflmao-sorry Lou, but it could only happen to me!!!!!!mwah-love you!!!

Well, best be off-two sick kiddies at home, one is asleep, and one is very quiet, which generally means she is into something,lol! Have a blast, and thanks for droppping by!!!

Aaaargh- it's a purple lobster!!

I went to the Kitefest with the girls today, and of course, I just HAD to take the camera along,lol! I took stacks of photos, but I have only uploaded a couple, as I am still trying to master Photobucket. This giant lobster was one of the kites there- he was HUGE!!! Took this one of Bianca and Aleisha- Aleisha thought she was going to end up in the ocean, so she was petrified!! She was actually a good distance away, but she got scared, poor missy!

I think it will get scrapped,lol! Here is my layout for the second challenge over at BLACK MAGIC SKETCHES-awesome sketch designed by Nat!! Go check it out and give it a go- the colours really rock with this layout!!

This layout I did ages ago for a tag challenge at Savvy- I finally remembered to upload it!!!It accidentally got deleted in the computer meltdown,so I had to take another shot.

Made this card with scraps, and another 3d sheet. I did this one for the ribbons and lace challenge at Inkurable, but then I changed my mind and did another one:)

I am trying out for the design team at ARTY PANTS. Each week we have challenges to complete, and then the new team member/s will be slected. Here is my take on the week one bonus challenge, which is the current Arty Pants sketch.

We also had to complete a layout inspired by an ad. I took these shots of Mr Grasshopper at my S-I-L's house. It's a shame the second photo looks so dark, as it isn't on the actual photo, but I suck at editing that sort of thing, so I left it alone:)

Well, I am in the middle of cybercrop this weekend at the fabulous FOREVER ALWAYS, so lots of mojo flowing!! Have a scrappy weekend!

Brace yourselves!!!

I know I promised a post DAYS ago, but things have been hectic, and I just haven't gotten around to it. I have done literally heaps of scrapping, and it's all stuff that I am really chuffed with too-bonus! Over the weekend, I got heaps done, one sitting had me up til three am!Without further adieu-here are my latest creations! First up, is my May layout for AUSSIE SCRAPJACKED. I absolutely adore the jack for this month-the super talented Ruby Bisson. I just had to have a go- and I don't think Renae would forgive me if I didn't,lol! I love this photo, and have been pondering how best to scrap it. As soon as I saw the challenge for this month, I knew it woulg get scrapped!!! I get to meet the gorgeous lou next month-which reminds me- I have to sort out the day I am going, and SMS the lovely lady, so we can meet up. :) Cannot wait!!!!!
Next is someone very close to my heart-my gorgeous little feathered friend,Smurf. He is a recent addition to my family:) This is my layout fro the first challenge at SONGBIRD SCRAPS. Don't be shy, drop by the blog and have a go- the lyrics this month are FABULOUS!!!!! An awesome prize is up for grabs, so why hot go check it out. If I were more computer savvy, I would copy and paste the lyrics here, but alas, i am a dunce with puters, and copy and paste NEVER works for me, I don't know what i do wrong:(

Isn't he just the cutest thing with feathers? Oh, and in other news, see the little owl stamp in the corner? I received that the othe day from ORANGE JELLY STAMPS. I have ben selected to take part in a challenge using that stamp, in conjunction with the gorgeous Sarh's INKURABLE STAMPERS blog. I have top create an item using that stamp, to be in the draw for some totally beautiful Orange Jelly stamps.........I went and checked out their site, let me tell you, I will be going shopping there- value for money, and some really funky designs too:)
I recently joined up at Bons Scraps. Yes, I know, I probably don't NEED to do any more challenges, but, after winning a prize from Bon, and fence sitting, I thought why not join? A few familiar faces are there too. Well, last week, they had their cybercrop, and Sandie set an awesome Blind challenge. I absolutely adore these!!!I collated my bits, and after placing toothpicks on my eyes, got it done in the wee hours of the morn. Another recent photography specimen. I dig bugs......

LOVE the way this turned out- and it got me hooked on some new things too:)

Another challenge was set by Bon, a colour challenge. You had to use grey(omg was my first thought)pink, black,purple, with minimum white, and a quirky title:-

Oh, and fabric too......with stitching. I actually did this one in the middle of the day. What is so bizarre about that? I NEVER scrap thru the week, in the daytime, always do the night owl thing.I was so stoked to get this page done.....Anna is a long time friend, and she is soooo much taller than me, and for many years she has been Miss raffe to me, hence the title.

Now, as if that wasn't enough to get me scrapping my head off, FOREVER ALWAYS, such a special place,hosted a SUPER CROP , for National scrapbooking Day, on the weekend.Sonia and the gorgeous girls issued heaps of challenges over the weekend, and one of them was to make cards with all of your scraps, before you clear the desk for the next layout, was suggested by Sonia. So that's what I did.I got so much done, and I am now going to try to do this each time I create now. Love the notion!!!

This one here, I created only from scraps- I got two layouts out of the lace cardstock,plus this card.BARGAIN city!!!Oh, the Heidi stamp is one I chose from my winnings from the lovely FA store. Thankyou Sonia,mwah!

My layout for the May colour combo at Forever Always. I would never have put those colours together, but I think they look fabbo.

One of the technique challenges was dare to tear. No cardstock( I was quaking in my boots) 3pp, 2 journalling blocks, and 1 stamp. Another one of Jacob on his new toy:)

I got a card outta that one too!

I have heaps of that Kbots pp left, it's awesome! Great for little, and big boy stuff:)

My fave of the weekend woould have to be this page I think. This challenge was the current criteria for SCRAPPING WORD PICTURES. Another Blind scrap- the site is awesome too!!!!I have had these Darkroom Door papers for awhile, waiting for the right project. I love their range-sooooo yummy!

I am a huge music nerd, love to listen to just about anything. I have been like that ever since I can remember, so I thought it was high time I scrapped about it!!




Here is my card from the leftovers:)

I also did the challenge for the first may sketch at Crafty Sketches. This is a gorgeous, elegant sketch, and I used up some pp that have been sitting, patiently waiting to see the light of day:)

Bianca has been on a no photo rampage of late, which is why I have scrapped this shot twice- take what I can get,lol!My card from this one was supposed to look like shrub, but try as I might, I only see an ice cream now:( I used some flower stickers that the gorgeous 'Nae sent me in a rak-they are bright and foily, and very pretty;)

Well, that's about it for now peoples. I have a couple more to photograph, and a few more that I didn't upload this time, just in case my mojo runs off!!! Take care, and thanks heaps for dropping by my cornmer of cyberspace! Next time won't be such a mammoth post!!!xo

I'M BACK!!!

Well- there is so much Scrappy goodness out there to do- firstly the new challenge over at BLACK MAGIC SKETCHES. This is a layout I did , based on my sketch.You need to use Black, Pink, white, Silver, and some bling for this one....if all of the new challenges out there aren't enough to get the mojo flowing, nothing is!!! I can't wait to see the takes on the sketch, and the CT has come up with some gorgeous layouts!!!! It is a supercrop weekend over at FOREVER ALWAYS, and I have had a fabbo time completing some of the challenges- will have to take some pics in the morn!So far I ahve done three layouts, and three cards- totally happy with that!!!

I have had a few layouts that i haven't been able to share- this is one of them, for the April A2Z Scraplets blind challenge last month. I am really lovin recipes, and loved this page too.I haven't liked much Basic Grey for a little while, but love the Bittersweet range- and their new Lime rickey looks cute too!

I still have last weeks recipe from Sonia to do- gosh- where to start???? I have done two of the Bon's CC challenges too, but Blogger won't let me upload them, so i will put them up tomorrow too. It will be a big post,lol! One of them is another blind challenge- oh, so cool!!!