GOOD DAY...BAD DAY...

Today has been a good day and a bad day... Good because I finally sat down and figured out how to use my Bind-It-All and came up with these little beauties...

They are notepads based on the cards that I did earlier in the week and are filled with lots of lovely kraft paper to jot down all your little notes and random thoughts (or maybe that's just me!!!) that pop into your head from time to time...I was really pleased with how they turned out and they are now in my etsy shop (or at least one of them is at the mo...spent quite a bit of time today sorting out shipping profiles and trying to track down one of those fancy measuring thingies that the Post Office uses for calculating how much postage you need to pay!!!). These are my first and third attempts at using the Bind-It-All - not bad I thought - I only ruined two pieces of wire...lol... I have also finally started on my Simply Create Design Team stuff after much pondering, ideas being jotted down (not in my posh new notepads tho - only made them today!!)...I have been too busy shaking with nerves at the thought of teaching my first class over at Simply Create tomorrow night - I have to say I am 'bricking' it (Jacqui...lol..)...I am sure it will be fine once I get started but if I don't get asked back again you will know it all went pear shaped!!!

Bad day - my kids have been a total nightmare since picking them up from school...Aberdeen football training at Garthdee tonight - Asda shop I think - NO....thinks Ellie - she was a total pain and wouldn't go in the shop so it put me in a really bad mood - Niamh was howling for about 1 1/2 hours and I had said they could have McDonalds for tea after training but that didn't happen as I was totally stressed from all the crying and moaning so it was home for a quick tea and straight to bed!!!! Let's hope they all wake up in a better mood tomorrow.... Aunty Audrey is doing the football run and tea as I have my class...Good luck with that...they will probably be on their best behaviour for her...

Right of to bed now as I want to feel refreshed in the morning as I am getting my hair done 1st thing as horse riding is cancelled this week, then I will have to go get some shopping since we didn't get any tonight....x

MORE SHOP STUFF...

This is the latest addition to my wee shop...got something else in mind using the same design that I have been mulling over for a couple of days...watch this space.... Not much else to report...Allan's sister came home from Kuala Lumpa (sp?) this weekend for a couple of weeks - had a family dinner last night with his family and all the kids were very well behaved (including Kelly...lol...). Got a busy week running in and out to Aberdeen with Morgan for his football (they won 16-0 on Saturday...yayyy) as Allan is away and the boy whose mum usually takes him on a Tuesday and Wednesday is away on his P7 trip this week so it's a bit of a scutter but it has to be done and I will cope!!!

JUDY'S CLASS AND SONJA'S BIRTHDAY...

Yesterday afternoon was spent over at Simply Create doing a class with the very talented Judy...It was Sonja's birthday and the class was my treat to her...

These are the two cards that we made...not sure but I think I did better with the Scooter Boy...I think this is definitely something that with practice, practice, practice you could get much better at but the pencils are quite expensive and I am not sure I am willing to fork out for them for something that doesn't come easy to me....

This is the card I made for Sonja which was inspired by one of Elaine's samples that I seen at the SU party I was at the other week...The trees are from my Unity KOTM...I cut the hills from the Cricut and the lace is stripped from the matchbox I received in the swap a few months ago...it's so pretty, the buttons are from Jacqui's vintage stash and I printed out Happy Birthday using the Dymo label maker...x

SOME MORE STARS...

Okay...I know, I know it's ages til Christmas yet but I am really trying to promote my wee etsy shop at the mo (I should be doing housework but this is much more fun...lol).

Why not pop over here and have a look for yourself???

Also...the postie arrived this morning with the first Simply Create Design Team stash...very exciting...will be getting stuck into that later....still got toilets to clean...lol....xx

CHRISTMAS IS A COMING...

Thought since I have my first ladies night in a couple of weeks I had better get a wriggle on and make something....This will also be available in my etsy shop. I decided this year that I was fed up painting the stars and hearts as it's very time consuming waiting for the layers to dry so thought I would try something a wee bit different....I have previously experimented with this before for just me and this is the first time I have made them to sell...

The papers used to cover these are 'unknown' (sorry can't remember the make as Susan and I split the pack and she must have the packaging)...I then distressed the edges with Tim Holtz Tattered Rose Distress Ink which is a really lovely colour...I added the small star which I painted with a Cranberry Paint Dabber, then coated with Glossy Accents and sprinkled with glitter...it is finished of with some distressed raffia....

Thanks for looking!!!

NEW IN....

Another new item for my etsy shop....not sure I will do as well as Judy as I haven't sold anything yet...boo hoo...but if they don't sell I have been persuaded to do a couple of ladies/craft events so hopefully they will sell there...

I am definitely trying to be a little more organised at the moment what with Morgan doing training with AFC THREE times a week in Aberdeen....It's quite hard juggling everyone as the girls have something on 2 of those nights as well and while my mum is good at babysitting she doesn't drive so I then have to organise lifts for them as well...

On Friday I went to a Stampin Up party at my friend Trish's demonstrated by Elaine...we made a funky little cupcake card which I forgot to photograph (ooops!) and then I posted to Sharon for her birthday and I think that's what inspired these cards as I came home from there and made them....

Had an email from Jacqui at Simply Create yesterday to say the Design Team Kits are ready to be posted out today...will be pacing the hall waiting for the postie tomorrow and Wednesday (oh no just realised that Susan has just booked us into Body Attack (help!!!!)at the Sports Centre tomorrow so let's hope the postie is late!!!)

Thanks for looking today....xxx

AUGUST 365 CALENDAR PAGES (AT LAST!!)...

At last my August 365 Art Journal Calendar pages.....a bit late but as they say better late than never....I don't know why I am running so far behind this month...I can only put it down to being on holiday - I am also 3 weeks behind with my Claudine class too....hopefully have time to do a bit of catch up this week.... For the background I wrapped the pages with some raffia (a technique I seen in an old copy of Craft Stamper) and then sprayed with inks or rather alcohol inks mixed with water as I don't have any spray inks yet!!! I then used co-ordinating ink pads to stamp various images round the pages which I quite like...

For my squares this month I cut them from a Dovecraft 6x6 paper stack called Funky Village...I haven't been in the habit of decorating the squares as I think there is enough going on in the backgrounds but I think this is the first time I have used such patterned papers apart from January....I quite like that too....

The month is done using Making Memories Vintage Findings Stamps which I found over at Simply Create the other week and I though it was like stamps you would find on postcards in keeping with August being the holiday month!!!

I stamped Summer Days with chalk ink and then went over it with a Versamark pen and then Perfect Pearls to create the slight sheen which I am not sure you can see on the photograph!!! That's it for this month, hopefully will manage to catch up as I am almost finished prepping the September pages....

At last I have found a link for everyone on the Simply Create Design Team...all except Pauline who I believe is Angela's sister and someone said they possibly share a blog (feel free to correct me if I am wrong about this!!!)

Angela and guest designer Pauline
Carol
Debbi
Elizabeth
Jane
Judy
Kat
Kath
Katy
Sarah
Shelly
Sonja
Tina

Okay...sorry I can't find the link for Angela now but as soon as I have it I will link it....why not pop over and wish the ladies luck and check out their blogs....

Edit...Found the link to Angela...

DESIGN TEAM ENTRIES....

Jacqui has said it's ok to post these now so here goes.... This is a 7Gypsies Printers Tray that I bought at Art From The Heart last October which we visited when we were on holiday in the Lake District... It's been sitting in my Things To Do box ever since and I have picked it up a few time lately thinking it would be a good place to show some of the Stampotique stamps that I have acquired recently...I didn't have any real plan and just went with whatever came to mind when I was working on it...I wanted to use kraft cardstock as the background so inked and stamped and splodged a couple of sheets and then cut them up to fit the trays...everything else just seemed to slot into place...the flowers were a last minute panic addition as what I had originally planned just wasn't working out...the flowers were something I had just been diddling about with (as you do) and they were lying on my desk and I just thought why not!!! I have used lots of different techniques in the tray and really enjoyed doing it....

Secondly was my July pages for the 365 Calendar Challenge which was already a work in progress - I now have to play catch up with the August pages - not even started them yet - thank goodness for my little red filofax that Allan bought me last year and I got mad about cos I thought I would never use it!!!!

This one is a variation on one I did last year for Scrap Attack...you had to pick your favourite stamp and then send it on to the next person on the list and you would get one from the last person....I think a lot of people struggled with my choice...lol...well it did have to be challenging...!!!

This last one is actually going to be my class over at Simply Create and there is a tutorial to go with it but that is saved for another time....It is totally different to what I had originally planned for the class but it worked out - I am very nervous about doing it so if you do happen to be coming, please be gentle....

Now I, like the rest of my teamies am just waiting for my first box of goodies to arrive...Jacqui was giving a couple of hints yesterday and telling us about some of the exciting things in store - Can't wait to get started and I hope I do her proud as I feel very proud and honoured to have been asked...Thank you again Jacqui....x

MORE GOOD NEWS THIS WEEK...

Well this has certainly been the week for it in our household...not only has mum (that's me!!) been selected for the Design Team over at the most lush of lushy shops Simply Create but Morgan (No 1 child) has been signed for Aberdeen Football Club in his chosen position of goalkeeper and Ellie (No 2 child) has landed a part in the junior chorus (again) in our local pantomime...so it's been a week of highs and everyone is well chuffed with their achievements...


Will try to catch up with some crafty photos tomorrow...