I am finally back in the land of technology...

I'm back! Yay, i cant believe how much one can miss their computer until it is gone!

So i have a new putey, plenty of hard drive for my pics and there is no stopping me now.

So how is everyone, keeping well i hope. I have got a whole lotta things going on around me at the moment, so I'm here to update you all.

First of all Scraptivate has now got its very own forum! Hallelujah. I can't tell you how much i have want one of our very own. so pop over an join up and join in the fun here.

Also, I have start a little photo challenge site here. So pop on over to Shutter also and sign up and join in the fun there too! We are setting a prompt every two weeks, so there is plenty of time to get out into the world and capture it. You can have as many pictures for each prompt as you like, and i know the address is shuttergirls, but it is for boys to! I be willing send a little something special to the first guy to sign up!

Ok a scrapbook up date. I have been working heaps but as I haven't had puter access since Sept I have been really slack as to taking pics of my work, but i took a couple today for you to see. Tell me what you think!

And an Olive update...... She's just about all grown up. She's totally cute and is so much fun. Even though she did knock over the Christmas tree and manage to break a few glass ornaments.

It's amazing how much has happened in the past three months and because you can't tell your stories then and there you forget some of them I am sure. Other random things that have happened......

This is Jen and me on our Big girls night out to see..............

New Moon.

We had dinner out and saw the movie. We had both been hanging out to see this since we'd been to see that last one!

I have had a wonderful Christmas break with all of my families and I'm looking forward to a grown up New Years eve Party tonight! go Jen! xxx

Well that's me till another day, stop by leave me a message, and please pop by Shutter and say hello also! Would love to see you there!

Mel

xxxx

Lost......

Yep, I have been lost in action. But hopefully from here I can get back o the blogging wagon. Just a quick post let you all know I am still alive, scrapping and being my usual busy self.

I am having trouble with my puter, hard drive is full, so i can't upload any new photos at the moment and my camera is getting very full. Hopefully we will decided on a new exteranl hard drive and ill be back in action.

Just going to leave you with a picture of myself, my Mum and my Brother from our trip to Sydney in Sept. That's how slack i have been, It's taken me three months to post a picture! hehe

 

Mel xxxx

Up coming class at Scraptivate...

If you would love to come along and create this gorgeous LO with me simply call Scraptivate to book in. Its a fabulous page for the more formal moment like weddings of school balls. I'll be showing you some stamping, layering and how to use Perfect Pearls on your layouts

Up coming class's at Scraptivate...

Just a quick ad for my next upcoming class's at Scraptivate. 

First we have a beautiful shadow box. Ideal for one of those very special photo's and it would also make a fantastic gift for someone as we get closer to christmas.

And then I am also teaching a Scrapbooking Lo class all about making your own embellishments from scratch. Come along a learn how to make your own faux resin embellishments, make your own flowers and much more.

Massive Update....

So I have been home a week, managed to catch a cold, have worked heaps, got a few goodies finished for classes that I will sneek peak here when I have had a little photo shoot, and Generally had a great time. 

Last thursday was my birthday, went to the movies in the day and then went to dinner with Lawley and his family, and back for cake. It wasn't just a cake, it was an amazing creation that I have been eating for a week now..........Lawley made me a peanut butter pie! I love peanut butter, but no one else in the family does, so it was all mine. There is no photo eveidence, because as Im sure it is the same for all your scrapbookers out there, if your not taking the photo's there is never either any unblurry ones, or they are just so not flattering.

Im teaching a christmas card class next week at Scraptivate so if you'd like to come along and join in the fun, and get your christmas card making under way call the shop and book yourself in.

Also I have managed to take a few pics of some work that I have done resently........I have been so bad at this of late. Let me know what you think. The first is a canvas I did as apart of the Embellished Idol comp. It's a photo of my Grandma. I've been a bit nostalgic with her of late. Things are moving on for her, Im watching her fall in to dementia, having  to move to her a home for the elderly, and her just not being herself. It's hard to watch, and it is hard to cope with. But Im remembering her......... the real her, and that's why I think I need to do this canvas. Scrapbooking is really great therapy isn't it? 

The second is a Kaiser mirror I did for a DT project a few months back at Scraptivate.

I'll Hopefully be back over the weekend to have a little picture update of my trip.

Mel xxx

And the winner is......

I got my trusty little helper Olive to help me choose......and without suspence, the winner is FI!!!!

Congrats........send me your post details to lissyk@iprimus.com.au and I shall get the box out to you in the next week. 

I have had such a good birthday, and am in such a fantastic mood, I have decided to add more stuff to the RAK box and I am also giving a small something to the second name drawn out by my Partner Lawley.

That Person is Dorothy C!!! Yeah. Email me your post details also to address above and a little something is on its way to you.

Have a great afternoon, and I shall be back soon with some pics from my trip.

Mel 

xxx

Rak.....

So as I am not going to be here for a few weeks, I thought I shall leave a RAK post. Now Im doing this for a few reasons...... 1. it's my birthday soon and I love to give presents on my birthday, 2. Im coming up to having 10 thousand visitors to my blog which is so amazing. I love that. and 3. it wll give you all something to do on my blog while I am away.

So here's the deal....... you need to leave me a post, tell me the last time you were truly surprised.

You have until the 9th Sept to leave your post, and I shall draw a winner on the 10th Sept. 

What do you get....... well I have made up a very large box full of all kinds of crafty stuff. I would post a pic, but someone left her camera at a friends last weekend, and I still haven't been able to pick it up. But trust me it will be worth the post. Any one can enter, no matter where in the world you live.

So that's it for now, create, have fun, and leave me post while I am gone, and see you all on the 10th Sept!

Mel

xx

Honestly it's a really big vase.....

I have had a few concerned emails regarding Olive in the vase. It's a really big vase, plenty of space for her to roll around in and she gets in and out very easily. She even stopped to have a bit of a bath at one point. hehe...... she's so cute. She gets in and out of everything...... it's her thing. Leave a bag or a box around and she claims it and gets in. So she's fine, all well and just having much kitty fun.

Mel

xx

A new day....

Before I forget again, I didn't add a link to Kayla's blog, pop on over and check it out, she is very talented and such a beautiful person.

So.......... how do I start??? Lets just say that I haven't been in a good place for most of this year. I have felt gloomy, dark and overcast. But I have been feeling the stirrings of a new beginning coming. I need to throw open the curtains and let the light rain in, get out into the wind and blow the stink off so to speak. My creativity and my creativeness has suffered terribly I feel, and I need to get a whole new outlook on it. 

I think I am going to set my self little tasks, to help crawl my way out of this hole. I really haven't been taking any photo's really much this year, and I need to just get out into the world and start taking pictures. So that is what I am going to do for the next few weeks, take heaps of photos! I think that's a good start!

I have been taking part in Embellished Idol for that past few weeks which has been great. It's getting me to think outside my comfort zone and I think the gates of creativity are starting to open again. Here's the first three weeks LO's I have done for the comp, let me know what you think?

Week one

Week two

Week three

So there is a week four, but I haven't yet got a photo to blog, but I will sometime this week.

I am off on a small holiday this weekend with my Mum and Brother. We are off to Sydney on a family holiday which we haven't done since I was about 10 I think, so Im really looking forward to just hanging out with them and having some fun.

Have fun yourself!

Mel

xx

Sunday Randomness....

I saw this on Kayla's blog, so thought I'd give it a go:


Outside my window...... Sun setting in an over cast sky.


I am thinking..... That I need to cull my creative stash. It's starting to slide of my bench.


I am thankful for....... Love.


I am wearing.... Jeans, and a really bad over sized, but so warm wooly jumper.


I am going..... to keep cleaning tonight, done the floors in the dinning/kitchen, now to vacumn the carpet.


I am hoping..... that tomorrow will be sunny!


I am hearing...... the sounds of the street, a bird chirping, and a kitten purring.


Around the house....... football being watched, chocolate macaroons baking, and the tapping of keyboard keys.


One of my favourite things....... potato. I did say it was random sunday! hehe


A few plans for the rest of the week..... bit more cleaning, a bit of work, a bit of creating, and then packing for my trip to Sydney next Sunday.


A picture to share.....Inside the vase is clearly the best place to be! xx

A quick Olive update.....

She is getting so big. I can't believe she is almost a grown up cat. It's only a few weeks now and we have to take her of to be sterilized. Oh...shed a tear, as my baby kitten is almost gone. On the bright side though, she is such a character. Still loves her boxes and plastic bags. Here's a little collection of pic of her over the last month or so.

sigh....... she still heaps cute and super fun. She pretty much keeps me entertained. I have been doing quite a bit of creative work over that last few weeks, so I shall be back soon with a bunch of pics of my work. Till then have fun.

Mel

xx

August Scraptivate Design Team Project....

Here are two layouts I have done this month with my Design Team pack from Scraptivate. I was fortunate enough to get the Limited Edition Great Escape range from Making Memories. It's a gorgeous range with stunning papers and transparencies, bamboo wood letter, boxes of paper flowers and buttons....the list goes on really.

 My first Layout is of a photo I took as we were approaching Lake Tekapo in New Zealand. This range was perfect for this photo, especially the Destination transparancy. I have also used one of the new Martha Stewert border and corner punches, a crafty lady mould which I filled with melted UTEE from my Ranger Melt Pot. I gessoed and painted then rub and Buffed it. I think think it came out amazing, but then I am a little bit bias.

My second layout using the same Great Escape travel range, I wanted to use this photo of my friend Heather at her birthday, the range had the best colour pallet to go with it, but I have been able to alter a few items to make them less tropical and more suited for a birthday. The first thing I did was crackle paint the hibiscus flowers with Tim Holtz copper crackle paint. This made them more just like large metallic flowers. I also loved the edge of the postage stamp/map paper, but I covered up the centre map part with this bright floral piece of paper from the same range. I also stamped on the plain blue colour paper with embossing ink and used perfect pearls to add a pattern to the plain sheet.

Let me know what you think?

Mel

xx

She's a good watch cat! ....

What more can I say?...... she keeps watching TV even when I fall asleep.

A little bit of new work....

This is  sneak peek at a class that I will will be teaching soon. If you would like to come along and join in the fun, pop on over to here, and give us a call.

It's a gorgeous quote canvas with a delightful tree, butterflies, bling, pearls and topped off with a huge bow. What more could you ask for. Come on into the store to see the canvas in it's entirety and let me know what you think.

Just a LO I have completed in the last week.

Where's the best place to sleep on a cold winters night..........?

Right here, in her mummy's jacket.

Craftroom Kitty.....

So someone is making herself very much at home in my craft room. It's lovely, she follows me in, scopes out the best possy and watches........ for a min, and then everything is far to exciting and she wants to help. On top of the Cuttlebug basket is her fave spot if I'm in the room, (she goes in and plays with things when I'm not home, find ribbon and brads on the floor sometimes) and the window sill is fast becoming the spot to sleep. 

Poor Olive is nursing a bruised ego this morning though. She comes everywhere with me. Literally, she sits on the side of the shower and waits for me (getting wet the whole time), sleeps with me, come to the toilet with me........ and this was her down fall today. She is usually very careful, wants to check everything out, but this morning got a little too cocky and before I had a change to put the toilet lid down, Olive jumped up....... and this was priceless, as she is starting to come down I can see she is going "wholly crap where's the lid" and subsequently ended up in the bath. It frightened her, poor little thing, but the most traumatic part was I had to give her a bit of a bath to clean her up. She didn't love it and is a bit grumpy and not really talking to me now.

Oh wait, she's just jumped into my lap....... must have gotten over it already.

Mel

xx

Standing on my LO's......?

Creative at last!!!!!

I had a day of free flowing creativity yesterday! Finally, something to show, something that I am proud of.

Pop on over and check out what everyone else did the for the latest challenge at Aussie dares.

Here it is, my Rub-ons dare......

Let me know what you think?

Mel

xx