Happy Dance!

If you've been following my blog the last few days, you'll know that I'm taking the course, Now We're Rockin', over at the Jessica Sprague website. It's such a cool course, I can't say enough about it. You should just go look! Lesson 2 was phenomenal and here's my digital layout.



These photos were taken at my son's wedding last October (2008). It is entitled "Happy Dance" because there was a time in my life that I could barely walk, let alone dance! After having both knees replaced back in February 2008, being able to dance at Andrew's wedding was like the "icing on the cake".

Come back tomorrow 'cause I'll have a card for you. I'm going to make a card tomorrow so I don't forget how! LOL!

Digi Challenge at The LilyPad

Today's challenge at The LilyPad had me using some of my newly acquired skills from my classes at Jessica Sprague. The LilyPad challenge was all about summer weddings, Tiffany Blue (I really don't know what this is), and beachy-style weddings. Well, I had just the photo as one of my son's got married in Cuba in December of 2007. Take a look.



All the products needed to complete this digital layout are from The LilyPad, with the exception of the grunge mask I used on the actual photo itself to soften up the edges. The paper, the underlying white mask (it was originally black, I just changed the colour), the flowers and the butterflies are available at The LilyPad. You should go take a look at the amazing array of product available for digital scrappers. Thanks to MandaKay and The LilyPad for this week's challenge.

I may have to re-name by blog if this keeps up!

Maybe it should just be "Barb's Creations" and leave it at that. I'm in deep into the digital scrapping now. I have started another class, Now We're Rockin', on the Jessica Sprague site. Everything required to complete the page below has been provided and then some. I've been working on Lesson 1 off and on all day and finally finished just moments ago. Okay, so presenting my first work in this particular class, is Owen playing in his yard. This photo is from last year when he was two years old, but I used it because it was the right shape for this layout.




Even though this is only Lesson 1, I'm pretty sure I'm going to take another course when this one is over.

Digital Scrapbooking - my newest love!

I have been busy this week taking the Photo Editing: Frame-Ups and Special Effects course being offered by Jessica Sprague. It's been a fantastic trip and I want to share with you some of the photos and/or pages that I have created. But, before I do that, I want to give huge kudos to Jessica Sprague for preparing such terrific and, more importantly, easy-to-follow, tutorials. Okay, on to projects completed using the techniques I've learned.

This is my DH, John aka GrampaStamper, on his beloved tractor. It was taken when we lived in Thunder Bay and had close to an acre that needed to be mowed.



Next up is one of my very favourite pictures of grandson James enjoying his favourite pasttime: eating! I made this a 12 x 12 scrapbook page. In this lesson we took a colour photo, turned it into black & white then highlighted a specific image within the photo.




Another fave from my trip to England is this photo of DD Kirsten and grandson Owen. Here we are taking a walk along the beach in Christchurch in Dorset. Owen loves being there and enjoys finding shells and such to take back to nursery school to use in crafting projects.




And last, but not least, is a picture taken at North Lake in Prince Edward Island. North Lake is located on the north eastern shore, very close to East Point. This is also a 12 x 12 scrapbook page and I'll let the photo speak for itself.

Happy Birthday Jackson

We had so much fun yesterday at Jackson's birthday party. It was held at Valens Conservation Park and it was a wonderful day weather-wise. The day started out poorly with dark clouds and rain, but by noon it was bright and sunny, just perfect for a picnic. There were lots of kiddies there and it was great fun watching them just running around and playing together. There were lots of water balloons for older kids and slippy water slides for the younger ones. There were babies in strollers and babes in arms. There was even a 2-month old from Switzerland! Aunts, uncles, cousins, and all parents and grandparents had a terrific time. Here's a few pictures to support the above claims.





Today is also our 12th wedding anniversary! Happy Anniversary to my DH, GrampaStamper. You know, the guy who hi-jacks my blog from time to time. (See entry below.)He definitely keeps me smiling

GrampaStamper muses again

Okay … so it’s been a while since I’ve hi-jacked this blog but really, I didn’t have much time and less to bark about.

First, this here is a link to YouTube for some background music. Right-click on it and open a new tab (or window) and come right back so you’ll hear the music but you’ll still be reading this entry.

Da dee da … dum dee da dum da …

You’re back … good.

Nice music, eh?

Our anniversary is coming up and I thought some mushy music would help GrammaStamper forgive me for the years so far …

This year will be even more difficult than past ones as I’m really limited in mobility and she handles all the finances so there’s almost no way I can surprise her with anything. More home improvements are probably the gift that really says “I Love You”.

Already, I’ve been busy around the place fixing this and that and up-grading a few things …

All the door knobs have been replaced with those neat lever type ones and they look good. As it turns out, changing door knobs is best done sitting so it was a job I could perform myself and I’m quite proud of it.

I’ve also been working on the ensuite bathroom. The sink had a rusted drain; the faucet leaked and the counter-top had a peeling side. “Repair it!” says I. Because the ensuite is only a 2-piece, replacing the counter-top, the faucet, and the sink meant it was pretty close to a renovation rather than a repair (we replaced the toilet when we moved in so it was already new). That really only left the mirror and the light. Well, the new counter-top was about ½ inch taller than the old one so the mirror didn’t fit anymore so … new mirror. That leaves the light, which I told GrammaStamper was fine and would stay. After all, this was essentially planned as a repair, not a remodelling job. GrammaStamper didn’t like the old one but I held firm to my budget and my “repair-not-remodel” scenario and confirmed myself as “Master of the Ensuite”,

Well, that’s about it for now. More things to fix …

I hope you enjoyed the song.


And by the way. the new bathroom light looks good …


- GrampaStamper

Exciting News!

If you look to the right-hand side of the blog, you will notice a new picture about being published in Scrapbook News & Review. YES! YES! YES! I received an email last night saying that one of my cards will be used in the upcoming publication. Well, you could've knocked me over with a feather. I'm thrilled beyond belief. I believe the publication will be available on July 18th, if you want to check it out. It's an online magazine (I like because no paper to accumulate) and the subscription prices seem to be extremely reasonable for what you get in the magazine. Please, go check them out.

I'm now taking a FREE course in photo editing currently being offered by Jessica Sprague. I've taken a couple of her classes and, let me tell you, they are terrific. Her instructions, via video, are clear and in language I understand. Believe me, not all online courses are so friendly. We're into Day 2 and here's three pictures I will share with you.

Day 1 ~ Working with frames and word art.




Day 2 ~ Working with brushes.



That's it for today. Drop by tomorrow to see what I learn next from Jessica Sprague.

One Card....Two Challenges!

Now that's what I call efficient, baby! I absolutely loved the challenges from Color Throwdown, which is challenge #49 and the Sketch Saturday challenge, #58. I had no choice but to combine the two.

The colours I used for CTD #49 were Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip and Soft Sky. Is this not an amazing colour combo. And the sketch, well, it's just perfect with this flower image. I had fun doing it and now I'm off to clean up my stamping area because DD is coming over with her friend and we're going to design some invites for her friend's birthday party invitation. See you soon.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip, Sky Blue
Designer Paper: Walk In The Park by SU
Stamps: Autumn Leaves, SU
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Embellies: Primas and Brads
Colouring: Copic Markers

My favourite challenges are sketch challenges!

I'm pretty sure it's because I have such a difficult time with layouts and sketch challenges do all the hard work for me. Today I'd like to thank Sketch Saturday for their Challenge # 57.



This is a 5" square card, but methinks it should have been a 6" square. By the time I got through adding embellishments etc., it was feeling a bit cramped to me. Doesn't matter, I still like the whimsical feel of the card. It makes me think of sun-filled days at the beach, sand-in-the-toes walks by the ocean and being lucky enough to see a pod of whales playing just for the fun of it!

Supplies:
Cardstock: PTI Spring Moss, Aqua Mist, Sweet Blush
Designer Paper: BoBunny
Stamps: SU - Silly Sea Life, Happy Everything
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Embellies: Glitter Dots, Primas, Brad, Glamour Dust
Colouring: Copic Markers

Friday Sketchers and a Happy Mom!

I have four grown children ranging in age from 25 to 37. Just recently, my daughter, Tiffany, took possession of her new condo. All of my children are now homeowners! WOO-HOO! I feel quite a sense of accomplishment for each of them.

Not only has Tiffany climbed onto the property ladder, but my daughter, Kirsten (the one who lives in London, UK), moved into a larger home just this past Wednesday. They have moved into a very spacious four-bedroom, semi-detached house in South Woodford. I was fortunate enough to have had a tour when I visited them back in April/May and I'm sure the grandsons are running around the house with glee. They will have lots of room to run now. So, what does a proud mama do; makes cards to welcome them to their new homes, of course.

This card will be going to Kirsten, John, Owen & James. This card is also my entry for the Friday Sketchers challenge # 58. It's a 6" square card and the base is Prism c/s in a colour very like Bashful Blue. The DP is called Houses in the Park by Heidi Grace Designs and I thought it totally appropriate. I used the CB on the Gable Green strip of c/s using the embossing folder with the tree branches. If you don't recognize the image and sentiment, they are from Gina K. Designs. I used Copics to colour the image and added some Prima flowers with little button brads for the centre. My DH thinks these are the best owls I've ever coloured. Thanks, honey!

Next up is the card I made and gave to Tiffany last week. This was a very clean and simple card. I used the Pure Luxury 120 lb c/s from Gina K. Designs and followed the technique for embossing which was on Stamp TV a week or so ago. If you haven't checked out Stamp TV yet, please, do it soon. You won't be sorry! The image on this card is from TAC. I coloured it with Copics and after it was done I thought it looked like a Christmas card, but I like it anyway. I added a little red fibre with some metal do-dads (very technical name, I know) on the ends and it was ready to present to Tiffany.

Well, this is the end of my post and I want to thank Friday Sketchers for giving us such a terrific sketch to work with this week. I've added it to my Google Reader so I'll be sure to get the challenges as they happen.

Color Throwdown # 48

I just love the colours for this week's Color Throwdown # 48. Cathy chose a fantastic combo of colours and, thankfully, I had them all. Here's my card.



I'm in love with this Rachelle Ann Miller stamp and these colours are perfect for this image called "Giving Shelter". I used Kraft for the base. The first layer is Pink Pirouette which has been run through the Cuttlebug using the Swiss Dots embossing folder. Next, I embossed and cut two pieces, one in Baja Breeze and the smaller piece on the DP with clouds. I used the Nestabilities Labels 2 for these bits. I stamped the image onto the clouds paper and coloured it with Copics. Here's my tip for the day: keep a scrap of the paper your image is on to test out the Copics, especially if the paper is very thin because the colours will change dramatically as they dry. I mounted the image onto the Baja Breeze c/s and attached it to the Pink Pirouette piece with brads from Basic Grey "Two Scoops" line. The sentiment was computer-generated using the CK Becky font. The flowers were from my stash and I used a button and some ribbon for the centre. All in all, I'm pleased with the outcome and I hope you like it too! Thanks Color Throwdown team for another great combo!

Do you want one of these?

If you do, just go on over to SCS and sign up on the Canadian Group 1 list. I'll make it even easier for you; here's the link. This is my first swap on SCS, so I hope it's not cancelled. Oh well, if it is, then I'll just turn these little Love Bugs into birthday cards or thinking of you cards or some kind of card.

That's all for today, just a short and sweet little post.

A Huge Thank You to Alma

This card is long overdue, but as the saying goes, "better late than never"! When I was in England in late April/early May, I had the pleasure of spending a day with Alma. Now this lady is a feisty, tiny, don't-mess-with-me Irish gal. I think she's great and will be forever greatful to her for introducing my lovely daughter, Kirsten, to her husband, John. I can relax in the knowledge that my daughter has found her true love. However, I digress. I'm thanking Alma because she took a day off work to squire me around the Victoria and Albert Museum. We saw the Hats Through the Ages Exhibit and the Fashions of Yesteryear (my own name because I can't remember the proper one). We had a lovely lunch and coffee during the day and just had a super time. That's why I made this card, to say thanks.

The only thing I know for sure about this card is that the stamp I used was from Pickly Pear and I used Copics to colour. All the rest of the card was made from papers I had in my scraps drawer. The flowers and little centres in the middle of the flowers, along with the ribbon, were sent to me in a bag of goodies from Debbie. I won the draw on her blog for the Sketch Saturday birthday celebration. Thank you, Debbie, the bag of goodies was extremely generous and will be put to good use.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Owen!

This picture was taken at TGI Friday's in London, England during my recent visit. It was the same day we went on the London Eye. It's hard to believe that it's three years since my first grandchild was born. All too soon he'll be ready for school. I hope to visit Owen for his fourth birthday next year. Have to spread it around, you know, to be a fair grandma. Or, maybe I could just have an extra long visit and be there for James' and Owen's birthdays. There only six weeks between them. That would be a delightful trip for me. I can always dream.

Anyway, just wanted to say "Happy Birthday" to a very special little boy. I hope you have a wonderful birthday, Owen.

Happy Birthday Sketch Saturday

Today Sketch Saturday is one year old and I wanted to participate using Sketch #53. I've had this idea for a child to be looking at a chalkboard, but couldn't quite get the layout right. This sketch was perfect to help me bring my idea to life. Thank you, Sketch Saturday!

The name of the stamp is "It shouldn't hurt to be a child". All proceeds from the sale of this stamp are going to "Victims of Violence" and it is still available from Heather's Stamping Haven in Ottawa, Canada. I used my favourite colouring medium, Copic Markers, on this image.




Hop on over to Sketch Saturday's blog and take a look around. There is some serious blog candy being offered to participants of this week's sketch challenge.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Bazzill Lemongrass, Close to Cocoa, Black
Designer Paper: BG's Mellow
Stamps: SU - All in the Family, In the Loop Alphabet; It Shouldn't Hurt to be a Child by Heather's Stamping Haven; Paper Pretties sentiment
Ink: SU Craft Ink, Memento Tuxedo Black
Embellies: Papercraft Mini Brads, Hobby Craft ribbon
Colouring: Copic Markers

My entry for Color Throwdown # 44

It's been quite a while since I did one of the Color Throwdown challenges, but I really needed some incentive and challenges help me lots. This is for Color Throwdown #44.



This week's colours are: Bordering Blue, Elegant Eggplant and Barely Banana. I was fortunate enough to have all the colours and was eager to participate. The stamp set is SU's Woodland Cottage. I've had it for quite a long time, but don't use it often enough. As you can see the base is Bordering Blue. I used my newest Nestabilities, Labels Four, cutting them out in Elegant Eggplant and Barely Banana. The stamping was done with Elegant Eggplant ink. I added some flowers and a little flower crystal in the centre.

As the sentiment does not indicate any type of occasion, I would like your suggestions as to when you would use such a card. Just curious to see what you all would do with it. Thanks for looking.

Grandmas have lots of time....??

I found this stamp at the Hobby Craft store at Haskins Garden Centre, Snowhill Lane, Copthorne, RH10 3EY in Dorset. My DD's in-laws were kind enough to take me there because they know I love to make my own cards. Being as I was visiting grandchildren, this stamp really spoke to me that day. I also picked up the ribbon and flowers there. too. Yesterday I made this card and used SU's All In the Family set, as well.

Today I'm off to visit my BFF, Hazel, for lunch. We've been friends for a very, very long time and it feels so good living close enough that we can get together whenever we want. There is only one thing that could possibly improve this friendship and, it would be that Haz takes up scrapbooking or cardmaking. Just kidding because I know she can't for several reasons, but I love her anyway! Haz does faithfully read my blog and supports me in all other ways with this crazy hobby. I can't ask more than that. Besides, if we did this together we'd never accomplish a single page or card because we don't stop yakking from the moment we get together until we part. I'm going to enjoy her company and our lunch today and plan our next get-together. Maybe we'll include our DHs next time and go to a pub or something.

See you soon, Haz. Put the tea kettle on the hob! (She's Irish!)

Here's the pics I wanted to post yesterday.

Here is the thank you card for Sue, a Lighthouse ATC and an MFT ATC.



I met Sue for lunch at Bluewater Mall during my visit to England and she gave me a lovely gift. It was a stamp, some brads and lovely scented soap (albeit the tin is gorgeous, too). I just wanted to say 'thank you', so I made this card using the stamp. I hope you like it, Sue.

Next up, are the ATCs.




For the Lighthouse ATC, when you make your own background, you can be absolutely guaranteed that each of the nine cards will be different!

The MFT ATCs were easy-peasy. Just stamped, coloured with Copics and added a little FlowerSoft and it was done. I thought the scalloped, circle Nestie was a nice touch. Just a little different for an ATC.

I'm finding it tough getting back into regular blogging, but if I just stick to it, I'll return to the habit, nay necessity, to display my cards. I just hope people will return to read and see them. Being in a "creative vacuum" isn't any fun at all but I can feel the excitement returning with each new card I make. Thanks for hanging in with me. I'll try not to let you down.

It's been a while since my last post!

Well, I'm home from visiting family and friends, "Hi, Sue" in England. Since I've been back, I've completed a couple of swaps at The Stamp Shack and made one card. Can you believe it, I just went to upload the pictures and they're still on my camera. I'll have to get them onto my computer and then post them here. In the meantime, I do have a video of Owen, who will be 3 years old in a couple of weeks, enjoying a slice of his brother's birthday cake. Enjoy!

HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY, JAMES!

Isn't he adorable? Have you ever seen such a cute little guy? Of course I'm biased...he's my grandson and today is his first birthday. I'm fortunate to be here, in London, England, to celebrate with him.

This is the card I made for him. I just recently acquired the Martha Stewart train punch and thought it was perfect for James. The layout of the card is Recipe #13 by Wendy Johnson and can be found in "The Joy of Cardmaking ~~ Collector's Edition". It was also a challenge on The Stamp Shack which Joanie hosted.

The card base is Brocade Blue. The circle is a very dark blue and the image was stamped with VersaMark and then heat embossed using Silver embossing powder. I punched out some squares in scraps of primary colours, stamped Happy Birthday and hand-wrote James. More primary colours for the circle punches, some star brads and colourful ribbon and it was done. I hope my daughter puts it in James' baby book so he can look at it when he's all grown up.

If I can, I'll post some pictures while I'm here in the U.K. because I have another darling grandson, Owen, who is also gorgeous and deserves face-time here on my blog,too.

I'm also excited because on May 6th, I'm going to me a fellow-Shackie, Sue/frankiesue, at Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent. It's fabulous being able to meet Shackies wherever you go in the world. We're quite a community of crafters and love to meet up. Sue, see you in a few days.

Okay, gotta go now and have some cake!