Christmas Tags

Hi there. Thought I would share the Christmas tags that I have made to adorn our gifts this year. I have been having fun playing with a digi kit by the lovely Zoe Pearn called Winter Wonderland, you can purchase this kit and others of hers at Sweet Shoppe Designs. There are lots of great digi kits and things there! The tags are quite simple, but more personal than buying them, not to mention I can now use the kit for lots of other things too!! Well, today marks the end of an era with Scrapbook City opening and closing its door for the last time. It is both a sad and happy time. Sad for those of us who like to pop in to see what is new and have a chat but happy for Leisa and Kerri moving on to the next stage in their lives. For those lovely ladies who I have passed on my details to, I have updated my side bar links with all the challenge blog sites that I like to visit! So I expect to see some of your work there with mine as we use these blogs to kick start our own scrapping! I must say I am greatly looking forward to scrapping for myself for a little while. I have to admit since knowing about the shop closing there had been a fair bit of panic buying and collecting going on, so I really do need to sit down and start using all these new products and tools! The latest of which is a Gypsy to go with my Cricut! I am hoping that I will have lots of down time soon with work and shopping slowing down and of course our renos nearly complete! OK, enough rattling on... I thought I would do a quick digi page while I was in the mood too. I have used a free kit that came when linking up for a regular newsletter from Zoe. Not sure if it is still around, but it is a great versatile little kit, and who complains when it comes for free!! Well, that's all for now. Catch you later. Katie

Back Again!

I know, back again so quickly??!! Unheard of really! But I am killing some time while my new Gypsy updates so I thought I would amuse myself by uploading more to my blog! I thought I would share with you the last class that I taught for Scrapbook City. Now this was no ordinary class, it was an all day, catered, exhausting and head full of stuff kind of class! And it was so much fun it was run twice! Each time with about 25 ladies in attendance! Curious as to what it was about??!! Well, you all know how inspired by Tim Holtz I have been this year, well we decided to do our own version of his 12 tags of Christmas. I created 12 Cards of Christmas based on techniques he had used in previous years of tags and using our own home grown stamps from Dark Room Door. The results were some pretty great cards (even if I do say so myself!), a lot of techniques learnt and a lot of fun had by all. So here is my little collage of the 12 cards to show you what we did. There was lots of distress inks, alcohol inks, paints, crackle paints, masks, grunge paper, embossing and perfect pearls involved and some very dirty hands too. It was a really fun class and I am glad I had such a great way to finish my time teaching with Scrapbook City. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Leisa and Kerri for the wonderful times that I had while working for them. It was a such a fantastic time and I know I will be seeing you both regularly even after the shops doors close for the last time. Well, that is about it. My downloads are almost done and it is getting close to bed time. Til next time. Katie

Santa Photo

Well, the kids had their photo with Santa the other day. I am not sure how much longer this will continue. Niamh is already saying she is too old for Santa! Anyway, I will keep pushing as long as I can! I have some more renovation photos too! As I mentioned the tapware is in place, and here is the shower I was talking about... pretty amazing hey! And the tapware on the vanities, simple but effective... And most importantly, a second working toilet in the house... You know you have picked good colours and fittings when even the builders make a comment on how good the ensuite looks!! As we speak undercoating and prep work for the painting is going on. So by the end of the week the bedroom should be all painted and next week the outside, and the deck sealed. Yay! Some where in there too the electrician will be back to give us power! Then the hard work begins... the sorting, culling and moving (not to mention carpets, but that will be after Christmas now). That is all for now. Catch you later. Katie

Scrapping!

I have done some scrapping!! Yay for me!! I decided now that I am no longer busy doing things for Scrapbook City that I could join in some blog challenges again. I have created an entry for the White with One blog challenge. The December criteria was White + Grey + Masking. So this is the result. My beautiful little nieces, with butterflies and flourishes! I created my own mask from some masking paper and Tim Holtz's flourish Sizzix dies, and I had some great My Minds Eye papers that were perfect in shades of grey and white! The next challenge was for Kraft It Up, a challenge blog that I have heard about but not participated in before. The idea is Kraft is the basis for your layout. The rest of the December criteria was Christmas photo, non-traditional colours and knots. This is the result, a dun page I think. Again I had fun with a Tim Holtz technique to create the flower. It is over on his blog under one of his new 12 tags of Christmas. So many wonderful ideas and techniques on his blog! Oh, and speaking of Scrapbook City. They now have a closing date, 18th December. So if you are in Brisbane it is worth your while to drop in one last time for some amazing bargains!! Well, that is it for now. Catch you later. Katie

Schools Out for Summer.....

So have you got that song in your head now? I have!! Well, the kids have finished another year at school so we now brace ourselves for 6 weeks of holidays. But as things seem to be going lately this will disappear all too quickly too. The Christmas countdown is well and truly on and we are also looking forward to the finishing touches of the renovations being completed so we can begin the moving around. (Not to mention great big clean up and purge!) I have some more photos to share of the renos too. Since last time we have an almost complete deck with railings and screening all but done. Just sealing the timber and lights and fan fittings to be done. The room too is close to completion with tiling in the bathroom complete and the vanities, tapware and toilet in place. Painting and electrical fit out along with wardrobe doors, mirrors and carpets are the last things to be done. We can't wait!! There is now a roof on the deck and external walls on the bedroom, along with louvers and windows. The screening on the deck is underway here. Looking pretty swish and we cannot wait until it is usable. Railings on the stairs make them safe now! Tiles in the ensuite start to finish this area off. Here are the vanities, one each with ceasarstone tops. I need to take more photos showing the tapware! The shower looks awesome!! Remember last post I mentioned Liam had lost another tooth, well here is the toothless boy. And Niamh did pose for a photo with her cast on. We were lucky to find after a week in plaster and a second lot of x-rays that there didn't seem to be a break, just possibly some tendon damage. So no more plaster, which is a relief in this heat. I have also been playing around with some photoshop actions I purchased from here with a "hipstamatic" look. I have enjoyed seeing people with their i-phone versions but as I don't have an i-phone nor any desire to own one I thought I would look for a photoshop version! Here is another one with lovely Erin. This next one is following a "forumla" in Lightroom to create a similar effect. It has its own appeal too, so I turned it into my own Lightroom Preset. I think Liam in his funky glasses added to the effect! Here is another snap I took a couple of weeks ago. We had just come home from shopping to find a rainbow across the sky, and here it looks like it is landing at our house. I searched for the pot of gold but had no luck finding it! And lastly, I celebrated my birthday this week. Aside from the cricut I mentioned earlier I received some great cartridges to use in it, some gold class movie vouchers and a steam mop! I know a steam mop isn't that exciting, but it was something I really wanted and I can't wait until the building work is done so I can clean! Sad really, isn't it??!! Oh and I received these when I was least expecting them! Andrew can be so sneaky sometimes! So that sums up things here. I am sure I will be back soon with more reno news! Til next time, Katie

More Photos

Hello! Life is getting very busy here as we start winding up the year at school and continue with our building works. I feel like I spend my time split between home answering questions about what way to do something or what colour and so on or down at the school at one of the kids activities. Well, I guess we will be on holidays soon and the building will be over so then I will be complaining about moving rooms, and kids at home!! No winning really is there??!! So, what has happened since I last updated. Well, Scrapbook City is on its way to closing its doors for good. Which is sad, but the right thing for Leisa and Kerri. I will miss having a little haven to go to and just chat if nothing else. But I have gained many wonderful friendships out of my relationship with this shop and I know these will continue. If you are in Brisbane and want a bargain however, I suggest you head over as they currently have 40% off storewide (with a few exceptions like cricut cartridges and the like, but these are still at fabulous prices!) and stock is almost walking out the door! On the Scrapbooking bent, I am now the proud owner of a Cricut machine!! This is my birthday/christmas present from Andrew and the kids! Cool hey?! I was told, that since I kept talking about this machine and that I was hard to buy for that perhaps I should just buy one!! Who was I to say no! I am also getting a Gypsy to go with it from my in-laws for my birthday! I am feeling like one lucky girl at the moment. Now I just need five minutes to be able to sit down and scrap! Liam lost another tooth. I feel like we have a hot line to the tooth fairy at the moment, between Liam and Niamh I think six teeth have come out in about two months! Speaking of Niamh, she has just come back from camp, where she was not allowed to do very much as she has a cast on her arm! Last Sunday while scootering at her cousins house she had a fall and now has a suspected fracture.... So Monday we go back to the doctor, get the cast off, go back to x-ray then go back to see if we need to put another cast on. No wonder I am exhausted all that running around! (I am trying to get a photo, but she doesn't like the camera very much at the moment! I only have one on my mobile so I will have to download that!) The house is coming along. We are starting to get to the details now. The room has walls inside and out, the bathroom has been waterproofed and tiles will start to go down (hopefully) tomorrow, the roof is on over the deck and railings should start to go up soon. So it won't be too long and we will have a functioning room and deck! I can't wait for the deck to be done. I have a photo to share, but it is a little behind with where things really are. I have photos on the camera, just need to download them! Roof frame for deck is up and getting ready to clad the outside of the bedroom. I had a chance to visit my newest niece Alice. She is lovely, so small and basically just slept the whole time we were there! I have some photos of her with various combinations of people. Proud Grandma with Alice New big sister Jasmine with her baby Alice and big cousin Niamh. Life is tough when you are little...... I took some Christmas photos for my sister in law last weekend so she could make cards. I always seem to get a classic photo of my niece Rachel when I do this. I had the giggles when I saw this photo in camera, let alone after I had added to it! And not to be left out, brother Dan had a classic too! Til next time! Katie

So, I told you it wouldn't last!

The regular blogging that is! But it is only just over a week, so it's not too bad. So since last time, the reno has come along some, we now have a roof!!! Something we feel very relieved by. Plumbing and wiring has gone in, and there is a big hole in the wall where windows and doors used to be getting ready to be closed off! Aside from this, I have a new niece! My brother and his wife welcomed a second little girl to their family. I am really looking forward to meeting her this weekend, so until now I haven't been able to take any photos myself. But thank goodness for the digital age and facebook, which means I have seen lots of photos of little Alice already. Niamh is so hanging out to see her new cousin, I just hope Jasmine doesn't get jealous! I have scrapped a little. With so many other things going on it has been hard to find time to sit and do anything, even though there have been times where I really wanted to! So lets do some show and tell with photos. From the front, you can see our new roof peaking out! From the back you can see the safety rail and most importantly all those lovely tiles over the new section!! So, this is one of the big holes in the wall! It is covered at the moment, but not finished. The outside is clad with builders paper as we wait for external cladding and then the internal walls to go in..... things are happening! So, some scrapbooking! Using some Easter photos taken with my mobile phone. New baby Alice. Photo taken from Facebook from Richard or Jenny's album, edited slightly by me! Another photo "borrowed" from Facebook. Love this moment between Jasmine and her new baby sister! And this is little Edith! Well, not so little now in comparison to Alice. She is growing so quickly and every time I see her I swear she has grown just a little too much. So that is us for now. Til later. Katie

Lots happened this week!

Wow, I think this is my third post this week! Pretty amazing. But I am sure it won't last! A few things to share. My youngest, Liam, lost his first tooth this week. It came as a bit of a shock to me, as I only discovered he had a loose tooth about a week or two ago! As you can see by the grin, he thinks the whole thing was pretty cool! My sister in law gave birth on Friday 5th November to her second child. My brother is now the proud dad of two little girls. We can't wait to meet little Alice so rest assured there will be photos soon! I have also been the lucky recipient of a cherry on top award. This came from the lovely Michelle. Thanks Michelle! The rules are: 1. Thank the person that gave it to you. (see above) 2. Post it with pride on your blog. 3. List 3 things you love about yourself. Three things that I love about myself - well - I am generous, have a slightly wacky sense of humour and I am fiercely loyal. 4. Post a picture you love. Well, I have a lot of pictures that I simply love for many reasons, but I think this one is one of my favourites. I love this one for the memories it holds and the people who are in it. Not to mention it is simply hilarious too! 5. Tag 5 other people for the award. 1. Anne P - http://scraptastic-stuff.blogspot.com/ 2. Rita - http://budtobloomcreations.blogspot.com/ 3. Sandra - http://buttonsandbowsandmore.blogspot.com/ 4. Ronnie - http://ronniedoll.blogspot.com/ 5. Nicole - http://nicole-paperharvest.blogspot.com/ So thanks again Michelle! These kind of things are always good to make you think a little! I have done some scrapping too! Can you believe it?? I have just completed the November challenge for Out of the Hat. This month the criteria is: 1. Corrugated Card 2. Painted Background 3. String My result is this: I have white washed the background paper to tone it down and added paint in for the journalling spot and used it with a mask. The corrugated card I cut into scallops which I then wrapped the string around. I also used my fabulous new around the page punch from Martha Stewart! While on a roll at my desk I did this one too. This has some of my favourite photos of Liam it it too. We were playing with his "invisible writing pen" and a slow shutter speed, I love the fact that his arms were so fast too that you can't see them!! It makes me laugh! And lastly I am going to finish with a photo of Erin. Caught yesterday after she had finished eating a vegemite sandwich for lunch. How an almost 10 year old can still wear so much of her food I don't understand, but it makes me laugh! I can also see just how grown up she is starting to look too. Till next time!

Reno's continued...

Warning....this post is image heavy!!! So I am back with some more photos from the renovations. Things are stalled right at this moment while the rain is here. Which ordinarily wouldn't be a problem, but given they took roof tiles off yesterday for adding the new bedroom roof and we only have a tarp covering said missing tiles area I am a little more concerned about the rain! Especially since we are expecting storms today and tomorrow! Oh well, we cross our fingers and hope for the best.... So here are some more photos to show the progression... The new stairs go on and flooring starts to go down. The framing goes up for the bedroom. The 2D drawings finally start to take shape in 3D! Poles up for the roof supports for the deck and more framing for the bedroom. My kitchen gets cut up to put in the door access from house to new deck. My poor kitchen.... at least this means I will get a new kitchen soon too!! Then there was a large break as we waited for roofing structures to be ordered and delivered. I haven't added these pictures onto the computer yet so you will have to come back and check them out later! But I thought I would share some photos of my garden as well. A little while ago I thought I would put a rotting tomato into a pot and see if it would grow. Well grow it did! We now have about 40 tomato plants growing strong and now flowering and fruiting from that one old tomato! To this we have added capsicum and lettuce and it joins capsicum and silverbeet we already had growing! It has been a great thing for the kids watching their food grow, and we can't wait to try the tomatoes. I am thinking there will be a lot of bruschetta being eaten (just have to get some basil into pots now!!) not to mention salads galore and pasta sauces!! Lucky these are some of our favourites. One of the tomatoes full of fruit. These are all roma tomatoes one of my favourite varieties. We also have a few cherry tomato plants happy in another corner of the garden, yum! Cucumber starting to fruit. You can just make out the little cucumber behind the flower! I love fresh cucumber and I can't wait for these to be ready to eat! And one of the capsicum hopefully growing big enough to turn red and be eaten! OK, enough from me today. Catch you soon with some more updates!

Renovations underway

Another busy month or so has flown past here for me and there has been a lot happening! Our renovations have finally begun and it won't be too long (weather permitting) before Andrew and I have our new room to move into and the new deck will be ready to be christened! The kid's have been particularly interested in the whole process watching everything the builders are up to and checking progress every day after school. I have been recording the progress myself (as any good scrapbooker would!!) and have a few photos to share showing the process. Well, this is the "before" shot. Just how it looked before the work began. It doesn't take a long time to remove something, and the house just looked plain odd without the deck there! The area now level with holes dug for posts and channels for plumbing, just waiting for the slab to go down. And then it rained and it rained and it poured! See the holes where the poles are, that are to the top with rainwater? Well these holes were about 2m deep!!! There was a lot of rain! I reckon that the plumbing channel would have been around half a meter deep and it was full too! We joked that it was a new lap pool just the right size for Liam! Slab finally down, poles in place and the sun out again! It didn't take long for joists and framework to go up! Well, that will do for now, there are still more to come, but there is only so many construction photos you want to share in one go! On the scrapping side things have been busy. I did two all day classes last month focused around Tim Holtz's 12 tags of Christmas techniques. I used some of his ideas and techniques to create 12 cards using the wonderful Australian Dark Room Door stamps and lots of Ranger product. It was messy and plenty of fun and exhausting all in one go! Here are a couple of my favourites from the 12 cards. Using mini-misters with the re-inkers and perfect pearls and the gorgeous flourish mask. Playing with alcohol inks and embossing for this one. Lots of layers in this one! Blending, stamping, distressing not to mention getting those flowers right! And last of all, make sure you head over to the Scrapbook City blog for a great sketch challenge. There is a great pack of brand new Bo-Bunny papers up for grabs for this challenge. You have about a week to get your entry in! This is my take on the sketch: OK, that is it for now! Catch you soon.