I came across a photo challenge on FB originally today and was interested in the prompts ... The owner had last February and March I think it was and November on her FB page for the challenge. She produces a list of suggestions in advance for each day but also gives ideas for the suggestions. Likes peeps to share their photos either o their FB or Twitter pages etc.
I spent some time reading her blog and the prompts thinking I can do this when I go out for my daily walk ... new year resolution - take iphone for music and camera and walk in trainers with pedometer.
Its taken me just over 2 days to do just under 7,000 steps when I should be doing 10,000 a day which is really difficult when one is a stay-at-home wife!!
The name of the FB page was @fatmumslim aka Chantelle from Australia.
Sunday 30 December 2012
Friday 28 December 2012
Anything Goes CJ hosted by my self ...
The majority of the ladies involved in this Circle Journals were All My Own Photos or AMOP CJ. This suited me fine as I had a large number of photographs to do with my travels around the Cheshire Ring by canal boat I had undertaken in the summer of 2010 to celebrate the 100th birthday of Girlguiding UK.
The basis of my topic. 100 as in the figure or words featured very much in all sorts of challenges that members did in the UK that year and they were held from Sept 2009 to August 2010 inclusive. 5 canals - Bridgewater, Rochdale, Ashton & Peak Forest, Shroppie Union and Trent & Mersey plus almost 90 locks and 100 miles.
I was one of the core staff for the whole of the trip with another 2 members but we started off with a full boat and then a couple left in Manchester and one joined further on plus a couple somewhere else and then the majority left on the Sunday night and there were just 3 and then one more joined us at Barbridge and then 2 more along the Trent & Mersey and then it was back to base! 12 berth 70 footer narrowboat known as "New Horizons" and it certainly was new horizons for some of us ... hence my many photos too!
I had hoped to join someone else's CJ but just ran out of time with life in general and sorting all the photographs out but a year later I fancied hosting a CJ . Hence "Anything Goes" was chosen by one of the other journallers and it ended up that the majority of us were featuring our own photographs in CJs. We spent about 6 weeks between us putting our CJs together ..
With the increased cost of postage, alot of thought went into how the journals would be presented and sent via the post and how to keep the costs down. Some have sent journals in plastic wallets tied together with ribbon only which is a shame really as you don't get to see their covers. Some ask you to sign your artwork on the back of your efforts or others ask you to sign a tag or stamp at the back of the CJ.
We eventually set off with 15th October being the starting date and the aim is to have all journals back before end of August 2013, as one of the ladies was making a small present for her parents wedding anniversary. Although we were not going to have an actual christmas posting we did use an early December posting but then most peeps have until 15th January to get the next one out. Needless to say I am always last minute - like with this blog - I update every so many weeks ...
This is the start of my CJ. As the ring was an actual ring I decided to go with a Circle Journal - I had one ready made but added extra pages to it and replaced the ring in it with an even larger ring and then decided to use an extraordinatry amount of ribbon to keep the journal together as I had put the photos in envelopes into days of the week but in some days of the week there were extra photos so the rules were just to choose one incident in the days of the week! Sounds complicated? Yes my first journaller didnt actually know what to do ....
Front cover
This is the back page where I want everyone to sign in. I've cut out a map of England, Wales and Scotland basically and attached some brads and twine and I've worked out a journey ring of where the CJ will travel to and then back to me. Most of the participants are actually in the South of England with a couple in North West England so it should be almost a ring when it returns to me next Summer.
I managed to work out from when the photos were uploaded what days the photos were taken and examined everyone of them to ensure I wanted them, made a short list and then checked them again when I uploaded the photos to Costco photo print centre before buying the images. I realised I couldnt have too many photos for one chapter ie a day and I tried to work out what part of the day it was when the photograph was taken eg morning, lunch, evening etc. Harder work to do I felt with AMOP than I had anticipated!
In return ... I have completed "Lavender & Lace" from uks Crackerjack Sandra Dawson from Norfolk. This is the November entry.
Its really hard to be the first person
The basis of my topic. 100 as in the figure or words featured very much in all sorts of challenges that members did in the UK that year and they were held from Sept 2009 to August 2010 inclusive. 5 canals - Bridgewater, Rochdale, Ashton & Peak Forest, Shroppie Union and Trent & Mersey plus almost 90 locks and 100 miles.
I was one of the core staff for the whole of the trip with another 2 members but we started off with a full boat and then a couple left in Manchester and one joined further on plus a couple somewhere else and then the majority left on the Sunday night and there were just 3 and then one more joined us at Barbridge and then 2 more along the Trent & Mersey and then it was back to base! 12 berth 70 footer narrowboat known as "New Horizons" and it certainly was new horizons for some of us ... hence my many photos too!
I had hoped to join someone else's CJ but just ran out of time with life in general and sorting all the photographs out but a year later I fancied hosting a CJ . Hence "Anything Goes" was chosen by one of the other journallers and it ended up that the majority of us were featuring our own photographs in CJs. We spent about 6 weeks between us putting our CJs together ..
With the increased cost of postage, alot of thought went into how the journals would be presented and sent via the post and how to keep the costs down. Some have sent journals in plastic wallets tied together with ribbon only which is a shame really as you don't get to see their covers. Some ask you to sign your artwork on the back of your efforts or others ask you to sign a tag or stamp at the back of the CJ.
We eventually set off with 15th October being the starting date and the aim is to have all journals back before end of August 2013, as one of the ladies was making a small present for her parents wedding anniversary. Although we were not going to have an actual christmas posting we did use an early December posting but then most peeps have until 15th January to get the next one out. Needless to say I am always last minute - like with this blog - I update every so many weeks ...
This is the start of my CJ. As the ring was an actual ring I decided to go with a Circle Journal - I had one ready made but added extra pages to it and replaced the ring in it with an even larger ring and then decided to use an extraordinatry amount of ribbon to keep the journal together as I had put the photos in envelopes into days of the week but in some days of the week there were extra photos so the rules were just to choose one incident in the days of the week! Sounds complicated? Yes my first journaller didnt actually know what to do ....
Front cover 
This is the back page where I want everyone to sign in. I've cut out a map of England, Wales and Scotland basically and attached some brads and twine and I've worked out a journey ring of where the CJ will travel to and then back to me. Most of the participants are actually in the South of England with a couple in North West England so it should be almost a ring when it returns to me next Summer.
I managed to work out from when the photos were uploaded what days the photos were taken and examined everyone of them to ensure I wanted them, made a short list and then checked them again when I uploaded the photos to Costco photo print centre before buying the images. I realised I couldnt have too many photos for one chapter ie a day and I tried to work out what part of the day it was when the photograph was taken eg morning, lunch, evening etc. Harder work to do I felt with AMOP than I had anticipated!
In return ... I have completed "Lavender & Lace" from uks Crackerjack Sandra Dawson from Norfolk. This is the November entry.
Its really hard to be the first person
on a CJ for someone as I think everyone likes to look what others have done before them to give an idea of maybe how to "go with the flow" as one might say. These were old aged photos of children and the backing papers are from really old stash that shouts out to me "ye olde", the vase and basket are actual sizzix dies, added silk heather to the vase and felt flowers to the basket that compliments each photograph I feel - and hope if Sandra is viewing this - she approves!
The above is Carpenters' Garden by uks Daisy M - Shirley I think from memory who also lives in Norfolk too and is friends with Crackerjack. I am assuming that they have just exchanged CJs as they both joined as friends with Sadie Girl also from - yes you are right ... Norfolk again!
For this page I interpreted the back ground onto the actual cardstock to showcase the beautiful photographs. The left hand side of the journal features a die cut home with a waggon die cut and the backing cardstock is an embossed tree bark (one of Tim Holtz' folders) used on co-ordination paper where one sandpapers the cardstock to show the inner core of the paper. The right hand side features Tim Holtz folder again showing brickwork which has been very lightly inked. The three leaf shamrock under the photo was to signify good luck. The number of the house is on this photograph so I added the rest of the address Carpenter's Arms in sticky cardboard alpha font. Just seemed appropriate!
Wednesday 26 December 2012
As You Like It CJ hosted by uks HL Caroline
Pauline Davidson theme "10 Simple Pleasures" in September 2012
Pauline's theme was about lists ... these are die cut flowers that I bought off an auction site many moons ago .....!
Emma uks Cosmic theme was on music and "J'adore .." had to be mentioned in one's layout ... October 2012. This was mine. Elaine Paige radio show to do with musical shows ...
I've added mini posters from the shows that Elaine Paige sung in on the left hand side and one of my cotton twill printed messages across the top depicting musical notes and a small heart die cut at the bottom. Right hand side, another printed ribbon with Love on repeatedly ... About Elaine and her show and what her past jobs were ...
Sarah uks stillcrafting and her theme was "what makes me smile ..." my entry was about the 2 packets of six in each of mousetraps I received from the famous auction selling site. I knew I would receive more than one, but didnt register exactly how many more - TWELVE!! I wanted at least two so I could take part in the mouse trap altered art on uks next January 2013.
The swap is to be hosted by Chrissie uks Xmasbaby along the lines of an article featured in Craft Stamper mag on an altered rat trap which has enthused some of us to take part in a direct swap
created by SLewis. She has a blog and I will upload the address of it for others who may be interested .... Rat traps are alot bigger than mouse traps as I realised when I took delivery of my mousetraps!
Gingerbread theme
Last weekend in November I and my leaders took some of our guides away for the weekend. It is usual practice to take girls away for the weekend and have a theme. All activities and crafts have a link to the theme. Ours was Christmas and we decided that Friday evening would be Christmas Eve ..........
...... preparing the tree and decorating it, putting the room decorations up which were making paperchains and decorating their christmas stockings which us leaders would fill with little presents, chocolate and sweets later on when they were in bed! Our actual guider in charge hoped for 10 pm but we all laughed at her suggestion and it was more like 11.30 pm before the last one dropped off!
Saturday was Christmas Day,
...... so after a hearty breakfast and tidying up, there was a treasure hunt around the house and gardens and as cooks, we had been primed that there would be someone calling in at the kitchen to ask for a clue ... then it was hot drinks and christmas stockings given out. The girls had work books with a diary challenge and puzzles to fill in. Some of the girls were using the residential weekend as a new experience for their Baden Powell Award so they were reminded that they needed to fill the books in and keep as their evidence!
They also had a felt diecut gingerbread man to put together with blanket or overhand stitch, fill his tummy with hearts and pad him lightly to become a tree decoration. Slightly ambitious project when so many of them were unable to thread a needle and keep the thread on the needle unknotted! Here's one that needed help ...
Lunch later and then it was the Gingerbread Challenge. The real one that is. One of the older guides had made some gingerbread dough in the morning. It was divided between the three groups and they were given the instructions with templates to make a house, get it cooked it the kitchen and then later on they were to be glued and decorated!
It was a work of art trying to cut the templates out and then get them cooked in between making christmas dinner - luckily we had 2 commericalised ovens in the Centre we were staying at. One oven was given over to the cooking and timing of the various templates of dough, 2 x wall sides, front of house, back of house and roof, etc for each three groups. Eventually the 2nd oven was free and we were using that one too ... the dough all had to cooked on the same shelf at the same temperature so it took us a good 2-3 hours to get everything cooked plus the dinner too.
Eventually the dough was done much to our relief and we could concentrate on getting the dinner out and served ...
Sunday - Boxing Day
Most of the morning was spent in putting the Gingerbread Houses together. Three were made and they all stayed upright long enough for photographs to be taken and then apparently two of them fell .... But here is the one that managed to stay upstanding to the end!
and then all too soon, it was time to pack up and go home.
...... preparing the tree and decorating it, putting the room decorations up which were making paperchains and decorating their christmas stockings which us leaders would fill with little presents, chocolate and sweets later on when they were in bed! Our actual guider in charge hoped for 10 pm but we all laughed at her suggestion and it was more like 11.30 pm before the last one dropped off!
Saturday was Christmas Day,
...... so after a hearty breakfast and tidying up, there was a treasure hunt around the house and gardens and as cooks, we had been primed that there would be someone calling in at the kitchen to ask for a clue ... then it was hot drinks and christmas stockings given out. The girls had work books with a diary challenge and puzzles to fill in. Some of the girls were using the residential weekend as a new experience for their Baden Powell Award so they were reminded that they needed to fill the books in and keep as their evidence!
They also had a felt diecut gingerbread man to put together with blanket or overhand stitch, fill his tummy with hearts and pad him lightly to become a tree decoration. Slightly ambitious project when so many of them were unable to thread a needle and keep the thread on the needle unknotted! Here's one that needed help ...
Lunch later and then it was the Gingerbread Challenge. The real one that is. One of the older guides had made some gingerbread dough in the morning. It was divided between the three groups and they were given the instructions with templates to make a house, get it cooked it the kitchen and then later on they were to be glued and decorated!
It was a work of art trying to cut the templates out and then get them cooked in between making christmas dinner - luckily we had 2 commericalised ovens in the Centre we were staying at. One oven was given over to the cooking and timing of the various templates of dough, 2 x wall sides, front of house, back of house and roof, etc for each three groups. Eventually the 2nd oven was free and we were using that one too ... the dough all had to cooked on the same shelf at the same temperature so it took us a good 2-3 hours to get everything cooked plus the dinner too.
Eventually the dough was done much to our relief and we could concentrate on getting the dinner out and served ...
Sunday - Boxing Day
Most of the morning was spent in putting the Gingerbread Houses together. Three were made and they all stayed upright long enough for photographs to be taken and then apparently two of them fell .... But here is the one that managed to stay upstanding to the end!
and then all too soon, it was time to pack up and go home.
Friday 16 November 2012
Ribboned Christmas Tree Craft
I visited Makerfield's Trefoil Guild. The Guild is a group for Girlguiding leaders from age 18 years to 70+ years etc and is for active or retired or inactive ladies. Three of them are active guiders including myself. "Active" means that they are younger than the retiring age of 65 years as a leader with a unit pack. However, it does make for interesting conversation and sometimes the majority of the times are held around a table outside the host's house in a restaurant or pub!
Last week we were shown by Susan Hughes, who is the owner of Past Times in Ashton-in-Makerfield near Wigan and a new member to the group. Susan has always had the November meeting to show us a christmas craft. This year it was how to make Christmas Trees from some Baker Ross polystrene cones, 4 yards of christmas ribbon and a small collection of short pins and a metallic star!
Some made all red or all white ribbon but I fancied two tone with more white at the top as if it was snow .......! This is my creation!
Last week we were shown by Susan Hughes, who is the owner of Past Times in Ashton-in-Makerfield near Wigan and a new member to the group. Susan has always had the November meeting to show us a christmas craft. This year it was how to make Christmas Trees from some Baker Ross polystrene cones, 4 yards of christmas ribbon and a small collection of short pins and a metallic star!
Some made all red or all white ribbon but I fancied two tone with more white at the top as if it was snow .......! This is my creation!
Owls from pillow boxes
Have just come across this website http://www.cardalacarte.com/2011/03/owls.html and as I own the said die and have various sizzix die circles and hearts that I can use in the making of these owls, I think I will be making these, maybe for next week for my helpers on my guide holiday! Would be very appropriate as we were all originally Brownie leaders before branching out into Rainbows and Guides! MMmmm yeah we'll see I can see Leanie nodding ...
Friday 9 November 2012
Girlguiding UK
I've been a member of Girlguiding UK in North West England for a number of years. I originally joined when I was just 6, almost 7 years as a Brownie in Thelwall, near Warrington - it was in Lancashire then but is now known as Cheshire. I loved it in Brownies. My Brown Owl was the vicar's daughter at the time Judith Biggin. I have never met her since she moved out of the area. I was a Fairy Sixer towards the end.
Remember learning to balance on upended flower pots and moving them across the floor ... great achievement when one wore NHS glasses that had "jam jar lid lenses"!! Remember learning some songs ... Animal Fair ... Red Men (this is considered racist now) and the canoe song which was lovely but with my barth voice I now sing it under my breath ... don't want to hurt my neighbour's ears with my tone deaf voice!!
I then progressed to Guides but didnt stay long - about 6 months! We met in Baden Lodge in Thelwall near the old Post Office. I believe its still in use today some fifty years later with the scouts but the guides meet in the Parish Hall which is near-by.
And then went onto Rangers which met in Lymm then but again that didnt last long but for my service I helped out at the local brownie pack which I did enjoy ............. so roll on when I married and had children of my own and put their names down for Beavers, Cubs and Scouts and then the Rainbows were started in 1987 and my daughter started as soon as she was 5 years old ... a bossy little madam she was as well .. and hasn't changed 25 years later on ... but I digess. She went into Brownies, then Guides, then left around 13 and then joined the Venture Scouts when 15 and left after a year ...
However I was roped into her Brownie pack as a parent helper when Lisa was 7 years old and after a year I was asked to go into uniform. I probably would have left if I hadnt been asked as I was getting bored in turning up but being used as a general dog's body. After a year I was warranted and then decided I wanted to know about Guides and moved onto the next unit for experience. I was there about a couple of years and was offered the Brown Owl leadership out of the blue and accepted there and then. The Guide Captain was sorry to see me go but understood as my daughter was joining Guides it was better if I went as we didnt get on well!!
So ... from there I went to Brownies and then back to Guides after a few years and then back to Brownies. Roll on 17 years ... and I am still a Guide Leader with the original Guide unit in Golborne with a new leader team. Spookily the assistant leader with me now was the Brown Owl in the original Brownie unit ... we have come full circle and rekindled our friendship once again. Its almost as if we have kept in touch without any breaks as we seem to read each other's minds at times and quite often say snap!
All my children have grown up, left the nest and moved on too. But am delighted to say that I will shortly - well next May 2013 and to be exact the 13th - be a nannie for the first time ... I wonder will Lisa's baby be female or male and whether she will insist that they join one of the uniformed organisations eventually .....!
So today ... my assistant and my boating friend Jane and another leader met to look at a holiday house that we will be taking some of our guides to for their first indoor holiday weekend ... our theme is "Tinsel & Turkey" which translates as Christmas with party food and games, decorating the tree, hanging our stockings up, opening presents around the tree, making gingerbread men and houses, eating chrissy dinner, having a sing song and then packing up on the Sunday and cleaning the house out before making one sugarpaste polar bear and then waving good byes. Along the way we hope to have lots of fun and laughter - and co-operation of course from them when we ask them to do the washing-up!!
As well as guiding, I also narrowboat. I got the bug in 2004 when as a guide leader a guide offered us her father's narrowboat to take the guides out. I and my co assistant wanted to know more about narrowboating before we took the guides out and it took me about a year to find someone who would accept us on her training weekend.
In the event, it took me 18 months to get my licence and then another 18 months to act as crew before I and friends felt we were brave enough to go it alone. From 2007 when we held our first guide weekend afloat we have gone from strength to strength becoming known as Bridgewater Boaters and training others with our enthusiasm.
Next Easter will be the first time I havent been away with Brownies in about 5 years and as my husband works in retail and only has easter sunday off, I'm slightly at a loss as to what to plan to do. My friend Jane and I have decided that we want to go away on a different canal on a smaller boat for the weekend. Our problem at the moment is finding a suitable boat at a suitable price and a suitable canal because the Trent & Mersey has a BIG and I do mean BIG hole in the canal .... suitable boat as we are use to hiring a charity boat which is alot cheaper than the usual hire boat and suitable price it WILL be more expensive but can we afford it between just 4 or 6 of us!
Apparently there are no boats that we can hire at Scarisbrick or Rufford Marina but to try Burscough we have been told ................. so Jane has promised me that she will ring them - next week!
To be continued ............
Remember learning to balance on upended flower pots and moving them across the floor ... great achievement when one wore NHS glasses that had "jam jar lid lenses"!! Remember learning some songs ... Animal Fair ... Red Men (this is considered racist now) and the canoe song which was lovely but with my barth voice I now sing it under my breath ... don't want to hurt my neighbour's ears with my tone deaf voice!!
I then progressed to Guides but didnt stay long - about 6 months! We met in Baden Lodge in Thelwall near the old Post Office. I believe its still in use today some fifty years later with the scouts but the guides meet in the Parish Hall which is near-by.
And then went onto Rangers which met in Lymm then but again that didnt last long but for my service I helped out at the local brownie pack which I did enjoy ............. so roll on when I married and had children of my own and put their names down for Beavers, Cubs and Scouts and then the Rainbows were started in 1987 and my daughter started as soon as she was 5 years old ... a bossy little madam she was as well .. and hasn't changed 25 years later on ... but I digess. She went into Brownies, then Guides, then left around 13 and then joined the Venture Scouts when 15 and left after a year ...
However I was roped into her Brownie pack as a parent helper when Lisa was 7 years old and after a year I was asked to go into uniform. I probably would have left if I hadnt been asked as I was getting bored in turning up but being used as a general dog's body. After a year I was warranted and then decided I wanted to know about Guides and moved onto the next unit for experience. I was there about a couple of years and was offered the Brown Owl leadership out of the blue and accepted there and then. The Guide Captain was sorry to see me go but understood as my daughter was joining Guides it was better if I went as we didnt get on well!!
So ... from there I went to Brownies and then back to Guides after a few years and then back to Brownies. Roll on 17 years ... and I am still a Guide Leader with the original Guide unit in Golborne with a new leader team. Spookily the assistant leader with me now was the Brown Owl in the original Brownie unit ... we have come full circle and rekindled our friendship once again. Its almost as if we have kept in touch without any breaks as we seem to read each other's minds at times and quite often say snap!
All my children have grown up, left the nest and moved on too. But am delighted to say that I will shortly - well next May 2013 and to be exact the 13th - be a nannie for the first time ... I wonder will Lisa's baby be female or male and whether she will insist that they join one of the uniformed organisations eventually .....!
So today ... my assistant and my boating friend Jane and another leader met to look at a holiday house that we will be taking some of our guides to for their first indoor holiday weekend ... our theme is "Tinsel & Turkey" which translates as Christmas with party food and games, decorating the tree, hanging our stockings up, opening presents around the tree, making gingerbread men and houses, eating chrissy dinner, having a sing song and then packing up on the Sunday and cleaning the house out before making one sugarpaste polar bear and then waving good byes. Along the way we hope to have lots of fun and laughter - and co-operation of course from them when we ask them to do the washing-up!!
As well as guiding, I also narrowboat. I got the bug in 2004 when as a guide leader a guide offered us her father's narrowboat to take the guides out. I and my co assistant wanted to know more about narrowboating before we took the guides out and it took me about a year to find someone who would accept us on her training weekend.
In the event, it took me 18 months to get my licence and then another 18 months to act as crew before I and friends felt we were brave enough to go it alone. From 2007 when we held our first guide weekend afloat we have gone from strength to strength becoming known as Bridgewater Boaters and training others with our enthusiasm.
Next Easter will be the first time I havent been away with Brownies in about 5 years and as my husband works in retail and only has easter sunday off, I'm slightly at a loss as to what to plan to do. My friend Jane and I have decided that we want to go away on a different canal on a smaller boat for the weekend. Our problem at the moment is finding a suitable boat at a suitable price and a suitable canal because the Trent & Mersey has a BIG and I do mean BIG hole in the canal .... suitable boat as we are use to hiring a charity boat which is alot cheaper than the usual hire boat and suitable price it WILL be more expensive but can we afford it between just 4 or 6 of us!
Apparently there are no boats that we can hire at Scarisbrick or Rufford Marina but to try Burscough we have been told ................. so Jane has promised me that she will ring them - next week!
To be continued ............
Sunday 23 September 2012
Felt Tee Decorations samples!
Well of course the above figures are sizzix dies, the old red ones I should add! Samples I have produced for my Guides to have a go at making for their Christmas Fayre in early December. There will be more samples to follow soon!
Thursday 20 September 2012
Button Swap on uks - are you interested?
I've recently come across unusual buttons that aren't round for a change and have been thinking of doing a button swap on uks.......Blue flowered and hearts - large & small are from Past Times in Ashton in Makerfield near Wigan.
The fizzy buttons are American Crafters which I picked up for peanuts from the QVC outlet in Birchwood, Warrington about a year ago. I have them in a variety of colours - these are the brights but they also came in shades of browns and pinks too.
The vintage style type buttons came from Sarahscards Ltd online shop and I bought these last November at the retreat to use on a layout!
Recycled Ribbon Tip!!
When ladies buy new t-shirts, cardies, jumpers, dresses and skirts, sometimes there is ribbon sewn into the shoulders of the garment. If one isn't careful, sometimes you can have trailing bits of ribbon once dressed! I bought a load of ribbed t-shirts for my summer hols to Benidorm in August and cut them off and hung them up on my ribbon rail convinced I would find a use for them eventually .... well I didnt have long to wait as I joined uks Gemma Steele's Christmas Felt Tree Decoration swap ... I chose angels and when I was looking for thin ribbon for hangers, my eyes fell upon the above .... !
Wednesday 19 September 2012
Blue Brads Fun Night
Leanie, deputy leader of the Blue Brads House set us a challenge to produce something in blue and first to upload to the forum would receive a little something. Well it wasn't me as the first picture I uploaded was too big so had to go back and resize it and then I forgot what folder I had saved it in ... !Anyway this is a sizzix die called "Bird with a Wing". Its done in felt with a flower button for the eye, white glittery felt for the wing and Portabella Road Jubilee ribbon for her legs .... If you fancy some birds in cardstock or material, let me know and we can negotiate a price.
CJ As you Like it - August 2012
My page was based on "bird carers" - the bird on the left featured a swan that myself and friends had spotted whilst out narrowboating on the Bridgewater Canal in Runcorn, Cheshire. We had stopped the boat to have some lunch. We were surrounded by a family of swans, parents and their almost grown cygnet swans - they still had their grey feathers. There were 5 cygnets but one was having difficulty eating. We noticed that the cygnet put his beak in the canal, one leg came out of the water repeatedly and on closer inspection with a camera, we could then see he had fishing wire wrapped around his leg and there was a coloured fishing float in the water too ....."Proud to be British" by Pinkstar aka Sara
There was no way we were going to attempt to get the wire off the leg as the parents were aggressive towards us as we tried to separate it from the family. One of the parents bit one of the girls on her bare arm without warning so we backed off. She was slightly shocked as she had been leaning against the side of the boat watching others trying to separate the family. I went to look in the boat cupboard to see if we had a phone number for the local RSPCA centre. We found a phone number in one of our canal map books. One of the girls rang the number and it was one of those answerphones where you have to listen to a series of questions and push x button for x service. Eventually Boagie got through and explained exactly where we were ie which canal and tried to give a landmark - a passerby had noticed the cygnet too and was able to tell us exactly whereabouts we were and also tell us where the nest was.
A few hours later we had another call from the RSPCA Inspector who told us he couldnt find the family but had found the nest and was going to have to go and get a bigger cage for the cygnet and take it back to the centre to have the hook and wire removed.
Another call later from the same RSPCA Inspector who told us that he had managed to remove the cygnet without upsetting the parents, get it back to the centre, put the bird out, examine it and discovered that there were 3 fishing hooks altogether with one down its throat and get them ALL out without too much trouble. He managed to bring it round and put it back on the nest and the parents accepted it back into the fold with no problems which we were all eternally grateful as if the cygnet had been away from the family too long, the parents would had seen it off.
The 2nd page is about the human dove-like cyclist soaring into the air at the beginning of the London Olympic 2012 and the reason behind using human doves and not real doves. The British really DO care about bird and animal cruelty.
"Amber" Home Alone
This is Amber who is a Blenheim Cavalier Spaniel with a posh pedigree name "Janessa April Showers" ... she was a rescue dog of sorts ... her owner is my middle son James or Jimmy as he's sometimes known as. Amber is 9 years old, daft as a brush, thinks cats are dogs and don't mind being sniffed up the bum whereas my Tigger takes exception to that. Loves to go on walks but hates the lead, fights with the lead whilst barking loudly and shaking her head until she's puffed out and starts running ahead on her extending lead nose to the ground sniffing all the exciting smells ....... !!!
Tuesday 18 September 2012
"The Railway Children" by uks Weaselwise aka Suzie Hart
I received this little domino book in the post this afternoon. I love the train on the domino piece. I know Suzie had plenty of problems with it but at the time wasn't aware it was my theme - until the closing date began looming up very quickly and there were just a couple of us waiting for our books to reach us ..
Domino Book swap hosted by Chrissie
Direct swap on ukscrappers from an idea seen by the host Xmasbaby aka Chrissie.
We all decided on a theme. Chrissie jumbled us all up and then got - I think it was him indoors aka hubby - to pull out names and sent us a private posting telling us who we would be creating for. I sent to uks scrapnanny aka Chris whose theme was "All Our Yesterdays".
Prima lace edging stamp for a normal playing child's domino and Crafty Individuals Elements CI-239 for the inside and outside of the concertina card. 5 different distress inks, stampin cardstock and pleated satin ribbon to tie. Tim Holtz alcohol inks and stazon for the domino itself.
We all decided on a theme. Chrissie jumbled us all up and then got - I think it was him indoors aka hubby - to pull out names and sent us a private posting telling us who we would be creating for. I sent to uks scrapnanny aka Chris whose theme was "All Our Yesterdays".
Prima lace edging stamp for a normal playing child's domino and Crafty Individuals Elements CI-239 for the inside and outside of the concertina card. 5 different distress inks, stampin cardstock and pleated satin ribbon to tie. Tim Holtz alcohol inks and stazon for the domino itself.
CJ As you like it hosted by HL - July 2012
This is ukscrapper Hot Luca's CJ What are Words. HL chose to use tickets with various one words on. The idea is to give the definition of the word and then scrap a picture relating to the word. My chosen word was SOAR which reminded me of the lone human dove-like cyclist soaring into the air at the opening of the London 2012 Olympics. I found a photo on the tinternet and copied it plus using a dove sizzix die cut to emphasise the dove. This was July's CJ of As you like it.
CJ As You Like It (uks scrappers)
This is my CJ of my adorable, delightful, funny, protective ginger Queen Tigger - she came to us as a Tom cat from the Dairyman's Farm in Leigh Lancashire approx 13 years ago ... we found out that she was female when she suddenly produced 4 kittens!The vet says that to have a ginger female cat is highly unusual.
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