Scrap Whispers challenge #80 - Wish/Dream/Journey

Have you ever looked out of your window and seen something that made you do a double-take? That's what happened to us when we arrived at our house in the UK. Then we wasted the next hour and half just watching, captivated.

Do you remember the mother deer that I saw back in June, lying on the lawn in our garden with her flanks tightening every few minutes? I thought she looked as if she was in labour, and a week later, the neighbours confirmed that they'd seen a baby, and even showed me its "nest" in the hedge between our gardens. On my last evening there, I popped in for a cup of tea with the neighbour on the other side, and she told me how she'd rescued the baby when it ran into their chicken wire fence the day before, and got its head stuck.

I was completely charmed of course, but still unprepared for our welcome on this trip.

 

What a stunning sight! Mum and her triplets - she had three! - just sitting on our back lawn, right under the open window that I'm dangling a camera out of. They're just nuzzling together, having a quick rest, not fussed at all. After a while, they got up, poked around the flower beds, chewed a few plants and wandered off down the garden. The two sitting together began prancing around like lambs, and sparring like the adult males do. That photo of mum and baby under the cypress tree has to be one of my all-time favourite shots. How completely beautiful.

So here we have Creative Memories papers, with my new corner photo punch from EK Success, and Webster Pages journalling cards. The tree stamp (if you look closely, you'll see there's a stag under the tree!) is from Inkadinkado "Utopiary" and the deer stamp is from Shimelle Laine's Banana Frog range. The chipboard lettering is from Heidi Swapp and Bella!, inked in white and Sticklesed in copper.

This week's Scrap Whispers challenge is to use any or all of the words Wish, Dream or Journey in your title. Does that inspire you? Got something in mind? Link us up to your creation, and you'll have a very good chance of winning this month's prize, because so far there's only been one entry. I suppose getting the kids back to school and settled into their new year has kept most folks pretty busy. The new place to link up is now at the top of the blog on the right hand side, or click here.

Here's the prize you could win - "Like Father, Like Son" from Fancy Pants! How cool is that?

Come on, let's play!

Give thanks

Yet another, and possibly my final autumn card for this year!

Simon Says "give thanks" (so of course I will!), Stampin' for the Weekend wants Hallowe'en (which I don't do) or fall, and Basic Grey is asking for autumn/harvest. And this precious Sugar Nellie image, which was a present from Georgina about this time last year, was perfect for the job.

As I didn't have a sketch to follow I was able to go free-style, so I also used my new Kanban Autumn Silhouette stamps. Colour the image in with Copics, add a bunch of Basic Grey scraps punched with my dollar store leaf punch, a few Stickles Diamond sparkles and a Lili of the Valley Sentiment, and there she blows in the autumn winds. Adorable.

One Christmas card, 6 challenges

Our little Henry has really worked hard for these challenges - 6 of them. I think that must be a record for me. I really wasn't sure whether this distressed look would work, right up to when I stuck it down. But I'm very happy with how it's turned out.

These are the challenges:
Colour Create: purple, aqua and white
Creatalicious: white only except for the image
Quixotic Inspirations (recently changed - check out the new format!): Christmas is coming
Whiff of Joy: Distressing
Scrap Jazz BC October Card challenge: a holiday card featuring unconventional colours, an element "popped" off the front, and a fabulous inside as well as the outside
Cute Card Thursday: this sketch:

And heeeeeeeeere's Henry!

And the inside. The card blank looks pink in this photo, but it's actually a frosted white:

All I've used on here is plain ole white scrunched-up paper, and white card run through the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots, Paisley and Lace Christmas Tree embossing folders. Henry is coloured with Copics and gel pens, and inked with Artnic Amethyst and Color Box Verdigris inks on and old piece of washing-up sponge. My elderly emery board was pressed into major service, and I used American Crafts brads.

Scrap Whispers Challenge #79 - black-and-white

Another post on the same day? Wow, betcha never expected that.

I had to show you this though, because I absolutely LOVED doing this week's Scrap Whispers challenge, and I bet you will too. So.... ready?

Your challenge is... to create a LO or card where EITHER the image/photos OR all the papers and embellishments are black-and-white. But not both. Good one huh? Hehee!

OK, you've probably worked out by now that it was me who thought of this one {grin} but I had no idea just how much a of a challenge it would turn out to be. I thought Ha, of course I can just use my usual coloured papers and embellishments but with a black-and-white photo, no problem. Then I changed my mind. What kind of a challenge is that? Out came all my black-and-white embellies and papers all over my table. OK, I had a few, not an awful lot except ribbons - bucket-loads of those. Which is ironic because I ended up not using any ribbon at all. {face-palm}

But choosing the photo was interesting. My first thought was a bright, colourful photo, but the one that jumped out at me was this hazy, smoky winter view of one of the prettiest parts of the UK's Surrey Hills.

And here I'm showcasing my new doilies from Bizzy Becs, and this absolutely darling Cuttlebug owl embossing folder. I'll be honest, this LO is my current favourite!

So which way round will you do it? Black-and-white photo, or black-and-white papers and embellishments? Link your creation up to the Scrap Whispers blog, and you'll be in to win our fantastic monthly prize.

House Mouse in monochrome

These days I seem to have time only to craft on a Friday, after I've got the bedding washed and out on the line, and have run the vacuum round the house. What happens to the rest of the week I wonder?

Well this week was a little busier than usual, because the church work began half a day late, and I spent all yesterday on a magical mystery picnic tour with the ladies' choir I've just been accepted into. I was introduced to it by Glad in church, and it's such a giggle, even though we worked out I'm the youngest by 17 years! I had my first rehearsal last week, and this week was a performance - one of the songs without music - so it was a challenge. OK, that's where half my week went, learning music.

But this afternoon I managed to sneak a little fun with Monica and her mum on this card. This week's theme at House Mouse is "monochrome", and I used this sketch from Sketch Saturday which I flipped horizontally:

I used Kaiser Craft papers, paper and stickers from the Rebecca Sower Spring kit, Prima flowers, American Crafts brads and ribbon from my stash. The sentiment is from Lili of the Valley, and the image is House Mouse of course, coloured with Copics.

New Scrap Whispers round

The last Scrap Whispers game was superb! Well I would say that, wouldn't I, because my team won - yay! Here is the winning sequence of LOs, starting with Georgina's, which all the team leaders began with:

I created this, changing the elements but keeping the design pretty similar:

Next it went to our digi queen Kimberly, who simplified it with this delightfully cute LO:

Mary was up next with her impressive interpretation:

Telah's adorable kids stole the show on her version:

And Mindy's bright double LO finished the round:

The whole team (even I!) got to choose one of three fabby prizes. Well done team, you did me proud!

And on November 1st we're back with another game, and more fun. If you want to join in this new round, please send Georgina an e-mail at gh26@sky.com even if you played in the last game, so that we know who's in. New players are always welcome, and keep an eye on the blog for some exciting announcements coming up!

Scrap Whispers Blog Hop

Hellllllllllllllllllo, hello, hello, hello, hello and WELCOME to another Scrap Whispers Blog Hop!

This month's tutorial has been written by your very own blog host {bowing left, right and centre} and if I say so myself, is rather nice! I watched the advent of the Kindle, and the iPhone electronic book apps, and experienced a slight worry that the printed page would die out, but thankfully books are as popular as ever. And they don't take batteries. ;-)

So, do you fancy making this pretty dust jacket, a complement to any book-lover's Christmas stocking?

Go for it. Show us what you can do!

If you came straight here, swing over to Scrap Whispers first, and take a couple of hours out to make a masterpiece. Link your creation up to the Scrap Whispers blog (or e-mail it to Georgina at gh26@sky.com if you haven't got a blog) then follow the links through the DT's blogs and leave us each a nice comment. Your next port of call is the lovely KELLY.

Enjoy the hop!

I left autumn behind in the UK

I'm an autumn girl. Always have been. I love the autumn more than all the other seasons: the colours, the crunchy leaves, those blue and gold, cold, crisp days, and even our west country coastal storms when the sea roars and the wind flings rain and seaweed at the windows, and we cuddle up in front of the TV with the heating on for the first time. Two years ago I was lucky enough to spend most of October in the UK's beautiful south with my family, and we all delighted together in the leaves turning, long walks through the woods and up hills - and even the earliest snow in Mum's lifetime. Nature put on a particularly good show for me, and I took photos as if it would be the last autumn I ever saw.

Because other than that, living in the perpetual Singapore summer for the last five years we've missed autumn again and again. And I've really missed it. When we left the UK last week, the weather was just starting to get cold, wet and windy, the annual signal to the trees that they can start putting on their magnificent clothes. After we'd flown back to Australia's spring. Spring-ish. Ho hum.

But nearly all the challenge sites have had an autumn theme over the last few weeks, and I'm revelling in it. Not that I've had the chance to craft until today, but I've been drooling over everyone else's creations. And today I managed one of my own. I don't think I'll ever get tired of Basic Grey's Indian Summer colours.

This one is for:
Basic Grey: Sparkle
Stampavie: Autumn colours
Stampin' for the Weekend: Autumn inspiration
and Friday Sketchers with this sketch:

 And my card:

Here we have a Sugar Nellie image coloured with Copics, a sentiment from Lili of the Valley, Prima and punched leaves, and brads from my stash. The brads, leaves and the leaves on the image have all been Sticklesed (I might just patent that word hehee) with my favourite Diamond. They do sparkle, honest. But it's a dewy sparkle rather than a frosty one. Early autumn I'm thinking. Maybe around next week.

Am I letting my imagination run away with me....?

Bizzy Becs

Have a look at this?

Bizzy Becs, my newly-discovered "local" (haha!) Aussie on-line crafting store, has opened a new blog - and to celebrate they have this fabulous lucky draw blog candy to give away.

Anyone world-wide can enter. Just click on the link in my side-bar. ------------------->

We're back

DH and I have been in the UK for the last 3 weeks working on renovating our little house for when we move home. We flew back to Australia yesterday, and have been spending today catching up on sleep and laundry. (Why is it that even when you have access to a perfectly good washing machine, you still accumulate laundry so quickly?) Spring in Perth has been sunshine, wind and showers, very much like the weather we left behind in England's beautiful autumn. I got one load hung out and almost dried before the showers out-weighed the sunshine. Ironing next I guess. {sigh}

So I've done nothing creative since mid-September, except hold the vacuum cleaner underneath DH's drill as he chased walls and put in ceiling lights. He did think my outfit for this was very creative: an over-sized face mask, a pair of safety goggles and... a shower cap. Well he told me to cover up! Luckily there is no photographic evidence of this, hehee.

My internet access was limited and patchy, but I picked up an e-mail from The Craft Stand to say that I won September's card-making challenge. That made my day! This is the post showing my Poor Henry card, and here is the other one.

And the inside.

I get a $20 voucher to spend in the store, so I'm just off now to check out their latest stock...

Scrap Whispers fun challenge - if you're happy and you know it

"If you're happy and you know it... Create a happy layout - a happy day, a smiling face, something that makes you smile."

Hehee! And I know just the photos for this one! They weren't taken at the same time, or the same ball-pit, or even taken by me - in fact I was in a different country at the time. But MIL sent them to me and I grinned and grinned. I was reminded of that Simpsons episode with Maggie in the ball-pit ("the babies are looking unhappy sir" "Add more balls")

Here are Basic Grey Kioshi papers and as many different letters as I could find, coloured with inks, Stickles and Copics.

What can you do with this one? Isn't it a great challenge? Post your creations at Scrap Whispers.