It's been one of those days...

A gift idea this Christmas...

I love Christmas.  We don't have many 'holidays' here in New Zealand so I make sure I enjoy everything about the festive season.  I love the sparklies in the shops, the Christmas songs playing, the gorgeous foods and the extra attention people pay to each other in the way of gifts and Christmas cards or letters.

Like everyone else, I do have stressful moments, which is why I thought I'd share my idea for creating gifts for that not-so-easy-to-buy-for person.  We've all got one or two of those!

Handmade cards.  And before you write the idea off as an old one, I know that people have been giving sets of blank handmade cards for years.  BUT how about this tip for going that leeeeeettle bit further.

Say - hypothetically just incase Mum is reading my blog - just say, that I want to buy my Mum a present but I have no idea what to give her.  I could hypothetically, once again, incase my mother is reading my blog not watch X-Factor one night and whip up about a dozen cards.  Handmade.  Some boy ones, some girl ones, some my Grandmother would love, just a whole lot of not-too-tricky kinda cards. 

But here is the cool bit.  I find out friends and family's addresses that she might normally send to.  I write them on envelopes, ready for her to choose a card, write a sentiment and pop it in.  The COOLEST thing though is where the stamp goes - I write the date of the recipients birthday.  I arrange them all nicely in a box in date order to be sent and my Mum would always be organised. 

I know.  Too easy.  And something my Mum would truly appreciate.  If this were her gift, that is.

Laters

(Supplies: All papers/layered chipboard/stickers etc from KaiserCraft Technologic range available March 2012)

A page without teal? Seriously?

I’ve just received the coolest package of newer products.  One of my favourites is a collection of “Carolina Breeze” from Teresa Collins. 

When I first saw this collection for sale I loved it.  I placed it in my cart with a happy sigh – can’t wait to work with that!  Now that it’s arrived I’m a little apprehensive.  I mean, where is the teal?  I’ve got this collection spread all over the desk and I have no idea where to start.  Teal is my go-to colour.  I can usually find teal in any collection.  Not a chance with this one.  It’s going to be a real challenge.

Talking of teal – I’ve scrapbooked my brother’s wedding pics dozens of times this year, and this photo is one of my favourites.  When Becky Fleck asked me to create a layout for Scrapbook & Cards today magazine for the “From the Heart” column, I knew this pic would be perfect.  This layout appeared in the Summer issue of SCT.

Funny story though.  Seriously.  Those of you that sit in on my classes know I always ask you to cut the advertising strip from your papers.  We wouldn’t want to finish a layout and find it still on there, would we?! Who would do that?

So anyway, Becky was staying at my house when I was creating this layout.  I was to create it and send it home with her as she returned to the USA.  On the day she was to leave, it still wasn’t finished.  I admit to having a few insecurities about the editor of the magazine watching work on the layout. 

Finally, it was done.  I stood back and went PHEW and Becky gave her approval.  That, right there, was a huge milestone for me. 

And then I tried to put the layout in a page protector.  It. would. not. fit. 

After trying a few times I flipped it over and you should have heard the gasp that came out of my mouth as I realised – what a duffis – that the advertising strip was still on the back, making the layout 12 x 12.5”. 
The layout is not even square.  All done in front of the editor of the magazine.

Who started laughing.  Really hard.  First at my stooopid mistake and secondly at the clear devastation I was showing.

The fun thing?  Apparently she still has a little giggle every time she thinks about it.  Me too… now.  Yea, it’s funny now.  At the time though?  Not so much.

Laters.

Supplies: Papers Bo-Bunny Gabrielle collection.  Letters are from Prima.

Scrapbooking, mud, cold chisel and t-shirt love

Yes I played.  I played with the 7Dots papers – Dreamer style layout already on it’s way to a magazine.  So proud to be able to let Finnabair know her designs are going in a mag.

Talking of Finn, I see she has posted about the Tattered Angels DT on her blog, congrats to all the girls joining the team… applications from 28 countries, see that just makes me smile.  Back in the day (we are talking 7-8 years ago) I used to be such an advocate for allowing international designers enter competitions and apply for DTs.  It’s incredibly cool to see such an international flavour in our representative scrapbookers these days.

I’m a bit slow off the blog mark this week, I’ll update again soon though.  I’m recovering from far too much travel in not enough time.  The latest trip was a birthday pressie from my hubby (and a once in a lifetime-wouldn’t-miss-it-even-if-we-had-to-sell-a-child-to-get-there) trip to Aussie to see Cold Chisel.  Concert was fab, but I feel like I have unfinished business.  Instead of the day soaking up the sun listening to 3 different bands on a blanket in the sun with wine and cheese and good friends, it was torrential rain, we stayed in the car til Cold CHisel came on and then I lost the good friends in the crowd.  Awesome concert but I feel like I need to re-do it sometime.  We had a lot of fun in the mud though.  I feel like perhaps I got to tick off the ‘concert in the mud’ part of my bucket list…

 

I had my flame trees t-shirt, hubby had his ‘shipping steel’ t-shirt and we completed the trio of matchy matchy matching t-shirtness with Suz wearing ‘Forever Now”.  Unfortunately we had them covered up with Ponchos, but the people that did see them loved them and I enjoyed showing my Cold Chisel energy.   

(If you want one with your choice of Cold Chisel song, email Lucy – she’d busy making them to order so drop her an email [email protected] )

Scrapbooking - I’m working on some stuff right now.  Loving the scrapbooking process.  Enjoying the time to create without knowing I’m leaving again on some trip somewhere.  Time to settle into the office for a while.

Oh!  If anyone has some cool digi-template links for Chrissy cards, let me know. Link us up!

laters

Birthdays, flowers, chocolate and 7dots studios...

I love birthdays.  I love the week before when I can finally see "15th Nov" as a best-before date on the milk bottle.  I love walking into the bank and seeing the big "15th Nov" up on the wall.  I tried to take a photo of it this year and they wouldn't let me.. I must have looked like a scary hold-up-a-bank-type.  I love feeling special.  Just for a day. 

This year I was spoiled.  I got flowers, I got chocolates, I got cute little decor items and running gear.  And all-round-amazing-clever-person Jen made me birthday cupcakes. 

When I have my own birthday it's always a reminder to make sure the birthday card goes in the post, that the text gets sent, the message on facebook is left or that the phone call is made when my own friends celebrate.  Each and every sentiment made me smile on my own day - hopefully I can return the love when others celebrate.

I am currently caught up in all my other commitments - my other work stuff, my accounts, my paperwork and even my study - I've completed 8 papers in Sports training and Development, I'm just waiting to see if I've passed.

So what is one to do?

These papers from 7DotsStudio currently spread all over my desk are a start.  Finnabair designed these, looking at them you'd think she designed them especially for me, don't ya think?

Laters

 

 

Whatever happened to Vellum?

There was a time when I didn’t dare attempt a layout without putting vellum on there somewhere.  The semi-translucent charm of a paper that you could layer and layer to achieve amazing …well… layering effects was the essence of very page I created.  Looking back through old layouts today and I wondered.  What ever happened to vellum?

Take this layout.  So simple.  Multiple photos.  Two colours of cardstock, a few stamps,  and layers of vellum was all I needed to accent what I wanted to say.  This page is 6 years old and I still love it today. 

 

Or this page.  I created layers and layers of flowers with different coloured vellums and embellished with a few buttons for contrast.  This is a page that looks better IRL.  I scanned all my pages 5 years ago and the scanner made this one look dark around the embellishing.  Once again, I still love it.  It’s classic.  It has everything I love.  Pic, story, and classic embellishing.

At this point in my browsing I almost, almost, started shuffling through older supplies looking for my vellum stash.  I know I have it in a variety of pretty colours, somewhere. 

 

But on with the layouts.  No time to browse supplies.  I love this one.   Not much has changed with the boy, he still has this same fun, cheeky attitude. Except these days he is more likely to say something like “You know I can’t touch your ghost chips” or “I’m internalising a complicated situation in my head”.  And I love this page enough that I’d be happy to create it today.

So what DID happen to vellum?  It somehow became uncool.  Perhaps some of the see-through effects started happening digitally.  That first layout could easily be created digitally, right?  Perhaps something that wasn’t so mainstream 6 years ago.  But how do things become uncool?  Is it just a time thing? 

I especially ask this as my 12 year old casually says “Shot Mum” as I pass him his forgotten lunch as he walked out the door this morning.

Shot?

Shot what?

Roll of eyes.  “You know.  SHOT.  Oh my GOD Mum it means thank you.  Don’t you know anything?” Distinct frustrated attitude followed by a look of oh-my-god-you-are-so-uncool, mother.

Apparently not.  “Thanks” isn’t cool anymore.  Kinda like vellum.

laters

Finding inspiration online.

I don’t know how many times I’ve been asked “Can you just whip up a insert incredibly time consuming creative craft item here”.  You know.  The friend that has pics that would be fabulous in a mini album or a bunch of tags or other crafty stuff for whatever reasons.  And I understand.  It’s just coloured pieces of paper stuck to other coloured pieces of paper.  That’s what it looks like, right?  It can’t take long to throw together.

Wrong.

Some of us scrapbook to get stories on pages, and those that have followed me for the past 12 years know I am a huge believer in getting true and real stories on pages.  Like the time my (then) 9 year old son asked me to wash his lollipop so he could still eat it – it didn’t matter that it was the urinal he had dropped it in, right?  Or the time my (then) 2 year old daughter bought me a piece of cotton in her cute itty bitty little fingers.  Well.  It was cute until I looked past her and realised the cotton trailed all the way to the sewing machine 3 rooms away.

Some of us scrapbook for the stories, and some of us scrapbook to play.  I do both.   And playing is Ok too.  Creativity is awesome.  It’s a reflection of our inner child.  Scrapbooking is playdough for grown-ups.  Right?

It’s not always easy to be creative though.  Anyone with me on this? 

Sometimes I struggle incredibly with how to start a page.  Unless I’m doing a page specifically for a manufacturer and have to start with my products first, it is the photos that I start with.  What I do next is the hardest thing for me and I think many people are the same, which is why I’m showing you this page today.


A double page layout created for Big Picture Classes “Double Take” which I have just finished teaching online.  This layout was made with a sketch created by May Flaum. 

Close up of the first page

And the second page.

I’m happy with it.  In fact, I did a crazy kinda arm-pumping YESSSSSSS and jumped around a little when it was done.  Because it caused me grief for about 3 months.  See those photos?  How many times do you think I had those out and on paper, trying to make them work?  Oh. My. Goodness.  About 1800 is the answer.  Because they were high contrast photos I was trying to put them on lighter coloured paper to make them stand out.  I didn’t want to busy them up by putting them on busy or high contrast papers.

I was being driven freakin crazy.

And then one day I was browsing LG’s blog.  This woman has some clever kinda colour sense.  She used similar coloured photos on dark papers like this.  I realised the trick was to make the photos blend with the papers somewhat, make the pinks in the photos the brightest on the page and use other pinks that helped Abby stand out.

And so I scrapped.
And I succeeded. 
And I did so with help of inspiration on another blog.
And I LOVE that.
Which is my reason for taking time each day – just a little – to browse other blogs in the scrapbooking community.  I love this craft and I love how much we can inspire each other. 

‘Cos that’s all part of this crazy little craft, right?
Laters.

 

Supplies: Papers, borders and cut-outs by BasicGrey.  Chipboard flourishes by ScrapWare.  Small pink lettering by Sassafras Lass.  Larger foam letters by Queen & Co.  Machine sewing.  Page created for Big Picture Classes, Double Take by Nic Howard and May Flaum. 

Climbing trees. Beaches. Miracle hangover cures. Ahhh good times. Good times.

I’m alone for the first time in 10 days.  There are no little people beside me asking if they can go to the pool or go buy a mocktail.  It kind of eerie.  I miss the company. 

I’ve travelled a lot for work this year.  I’ve been away from home a huge deal.  In the middle of the year when the kids started to notice that I was away to exotic places without them, I made a promise to have some family time later in the year.  When we were invited to a wedding in Rarotonga on the 1st Nov, it seemed the perfect place to go as a family. 

And perfect it was:

This was taken right outside our room. 

As we went through customs on our way out of Rarotonga the customs lady stopped and chatted to us.  There is your first indication that the Cook Islands are very different.  She chatted.  She asked our favourite parts.  She told us of family she had back in New Zealand.  Most of all though, she asked us to spread the word about how fabulous Rarotonga is.  If we liked it, please tell our friends.  I got the feeling everywhere we went that Rarotonga would love more tourists, they bring money into the island and it all helps the island economy.  I promised I’d go home and let everyone know just how amazing the place was.

(I loved a t-shirt I saw somewhere, it said “If you love Rarotonga, tell your friends, we love tourists, the last ones were yummy”.. lol…

From the Coconut tree climbing lessons:

Notice poor Braden ripped his pants attempting – in front of everyone – didn’t stop him having a second go.. the coconut tree was not going to beat him.  He was back outside our villa at 6am the next morning practicing as well…

To the lessons on how to de-husk and get milk from a green coconut.. so much nicer than the old brown ones…

This is my hubby, chosen for the job for his muscles apparently.  He was declared a honorary Cook Islander for his uncanny knack to open green coconuts without having to learn… Teacher, Bruce,second name Lee apparently, looking on…

And then this is the result.  They passed out straws and we enjoyed a true Cook Island treat.  Apparently it is the full-on amazing hangover cure too.  Sadly on the day when I really needed it,the thought of getting out of bed was far too hard, never mind scaling a 20 foot coconut tree for a miracle hangover cure.

Island life is amazing.  50km/hr speed limit everywhere you go.  Which is lucky because half the people there ride motorbikes.  With no helmets.  And one hand holding on to the shopping one one handle bar while the other reaches around and holds the baby on the back of the bike. 

Things are most definitely slower there.  A lot of the stuff around the Island wasn’t as maintained as I would expect at home.  Funny though, it was immediately relaxing.  Even when we needed a doctor for Abby – ear infection – that’s what happens when you spend 6 hours a day swimming – it was cruisy.  Walk into the hospital.  Walk out 30 minutes later with antibiotics, ear-drops and only had to hand over $30.  Awesome.

 

It didn’t slow her down though.  Seriously.  Around six hours a day swimming.

I was there too, but not so much in front of the camera.

I was too busy capturing scenes like this…

And like this – not edited – water seriously that colour when the sun was out… the guys are snorkelling right by the restaurant.  Those are fish in the water.  So big that Abby freaked as they brushed past her legs on the first day and didn’t spend any more time in the beach.  It was the pool after that for her…

Notice the dog.  There are lots of dogs in Raro.  They roam everywhere.  You have to watch for them when driving.  This one was digging up the sand looking for breakfast.  Those dark things in the water are fish.

 

I have so many more photos I could share but I’ll spare you!  Pats on the back for me, I have uploaded/edited/sorted them already and hope to have a digital photo book printed by the end of the week.  You heard me.  I’m sending them all off to be printed in a photo book.  I’m including text from the kids.  Its going to be photos and pics.  And that’s it.  Does that shock anyone?  I’m waiting on a few pics from the wedding we went to, and I’m searching for a few photos we missed (anyone stay at the Rarotongan and get any of the staff?  Anyone that has travelled to Raro got any of the Air NZ plane?).

I think I’ve done Rarotonga proud.  I think I’ve fulfilled my promise to the customs lady.  It’s an amazing place and we already have another coin jar to start saving up to go back. 

Especially when you come away remembering moments like this:

And like this:

And people like these – all people we’d never met before but all people that became a highlight for me.

The experience would have been nothing without this group that found each other through a common love of relaxing, hanging out with our collective group of 8 kids, and watching the sun go down on a tropical island with drinks in hand.  Of all the things I loved most about Rarotonga, it was the friendships we made that stands out for me.

Good one Raro, and thanks for the good times.

laters.