Carnival it

Every year we 'Carnival it'... it reminds us of where we started our life in Leeds and I love it. I've created a slideshow from the snaps I've salvaged from over the years...

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Scrapbooking 'teens'

Scrapbook.com had this nice article on scrapbooking your child's teenage years..I liked it as I've had a problem getting any shots of my son for a while now and the unrepeatable gestures and retaliations from him if i try a sneaky shot are at the best slightly amuzing and at the worst a whole day in ruins...he is a great teenager and I'm learning so these hints and tips and observations were intersting I thought Lou might like a look for some hints and tips for her 'nearly teenager'.I tried to pop the link in my links but it hasn't worked properly yet so here it is again.

http://www.scrapbook.com/articles/doc/34685/327.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=08-26-08&utm_campaign=snapload

Football crazy

Yes the football season is about to begin....here are my little Arsenal and Brazil Edwins...inspired and guided by hubby and son's passion for the game.

I've completed my Challenge

Yep i did it Lou and Linz..Here are my cards that I devoted much of Saturday this weekend to... loved creating them and especially a special one for a friend at work to celebrate a special event for her grandson. I've got a buzz for a little challenge are anymore coming up?

mini albums blogspot

Augusts Albums

These albums were created with further personalisation in mind.I've left tags and pannels less complete so as to be completed by the individual themselves.I do however, love making them more 'bespoke' on behalf of someone else.....its making them truly one of a kind like each person that makes these a real joy to continue to create...

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Making a paper bag album

I hope this makes creating a paper bag album a little clearer, especially for the lady who contacted me via ebay.Instructions are not a strength of mine I'm a bit of a freeflow creator but here we go!




Gather all your bits and pieces together...well the basic ideas about what you'd like to include like favourite stamped images, tags, diamonte's flowers.You can sketch out the design of your album before you start this can be very useful for larger albums.I often do this if creating an album for someone and it is to be highly personlised.









Cut out pages to the dimensions of the paper bag.I often cut out firm cardstock pages on which to put simular sized decorated paper/cardstock this makes a very sturdy book almost like a board book and ideal for younger children's keepsake album(they'll tolerate being handled a lot and this makes revisting and adding more photo's and memorabilia even more pleasurable).Alternatively you can make a pretty good album just adding either decorated cardstock or scrapbooking papers (slightly firmer than your average A4)directly to the paper bag.















Here I hope to be showing you the general way the pages and the paperbag work together..does it help?












Stick your decorated pages to your paper bag with double sided tape.You can embellish further once the pages are stuck but any slots and brads or eyelet decoration has to be completed before you stick.I leave plenty of space on my pages as my hope is that they will be personaised with photographs and personal memorabilia.












Remember to stick your pages on to your bags with the paper bag opening is the outer side to the page and allows the owner of the album to store all sorts of bits in the album.You can alternate the open and closed bag ends in your pages if you wish.












Once your pages are are decorated and stuck to your paper bag with double sided tape you are ready to bind them together.













Punch holes for bindings on each page.This can is time consuming..but is quite relaxing to do..simply measure out carefully the front page hole markings and then punch this first.Then use that page as a template for positioning of the holes on the other pages.I have all sorts of tools for binding but you know a simple single hole punch from the stationers does the trick well.











Finally use ribbon to bind pages together through punched holes,add fibres and co-ordinating ric rac of choice.

The Tilda and Edwin Challenge- progress!

Lou set myself and Linz a wee challenge to get us creating with a bit of focus! I've managed 5 of my 10 cards here's my favourite Edwin... but ccreating with these stamps is such a pleasure they're adorable.I've made a couple of albums as well I couldn't help it!

Cards ..what do you think?

I am becoming a little more confident in creating cards..We are meeting this weekend and the plan is to create some cards as well as scrapbook..here are some very simple beginnings from myself..Linz and Lou will be coming with some stampin up luxuries...thankyou girls.

Tasnims Wedding Keepsake card

'Wishes for you' keepsake cards lovely to create

I adore the shape of this template! I keep creating small albums and keepsake cards with it.I've a couple more creations coming with the beach in mind!!I'm hoping a trip to Saltburn and Whitby will inspire me to complete my beach and seashore projects I've had them cut out and prepared for a long time!The annual leave coming up will enable me time to scrapbook some family memories and complete these beach albums..a big thankyou to Tasnim for putting to use my first keepsake card in this Lily Kate cardstock by basic grey..it is so delicate with soft and subtle shades..I have to admit I've had a little stash of it but the 6 x 6 is now coming to an end, I'll be surfing the net..or perhaps have to use my 'two scoops!' (Basic Grey cardstock fans will know where I'm coming from on this)

Albums using K and co cardstock with a shabby chic theme

Immaculates album ....

Immaculates album is completed, packed and ready to be shipped to Uganda.God bless her and all at Watoto.

Discovering Tilda!

I've become attached to little Tilda! how crazy this stamping is..I have completed my first ever Tilda creation with Immaculate in mind this is the progress with her album...I have made it bright and breezy with room for her own pictures and will show the finished product later as it will be completed and sent to Watoto by the end of the month..I received a letter from her teacher some months ago and am so desperate to reply but wanted to complete her album first..

mums words of wisdom

Read this today....needed a little reminder ..that life is what you make it...as some aspects of life feel pretty rotten at the moment.In my teens mum always sent me some clever and kind prose for birthdays...and you know you always need a reminder of those comforting words some weeks..this is at the back of my first ever scrapbooking album entited 'you can only give to others what you have inside yourself'

Workshops...workshops...

My pal Louise and her stampin buddies and myself and a couple of my buddies ...and a lovely new buddy Joy... met last week at a Stampin up workshop in Leeds.I am starting to get into these products they're gorgeous the colours of paper and ink pads co-ordinate and the stamp sets are lovely! visit Lou's blogspot for more info www.louiseedwards.blogspot.com. Linda and I carried on creating this weekend workshop..with baby in mind ... and the next workshop here is Saturday 2nd August 1p.m 'till 4 or 5 ish..I'm hoping to look at making cards as inspired by Lou. Linz and Stampin up of course!
I'm also a little happy as I sneaked a craft session in with a group at work! it covered all agenda's of course.. but this felt like a real achievement and pleasure ...it was a little bit under the radar though!
The mums loved creating keepsake boxes and some chose books...sometimes its so much easier to talk and support each other when doing something with your hands.. and the items were all so lovely to take home and call your own! More of this please!

Celebrating graduations

I recently created two albums and my friend snapped them up it's lovely to find that something you created was just what someone wanted! Here's a glimpse of these two graduation albums.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Celebration albums

I've recently made som 6 x 6 albums for a friend to celebrate girls and boys 18 th's and 21st's...thanks for this as I've enjoyed putting them together..I forgot to photograph the first album it was a burst of prima flowers, diamond brads and pages and photo mounts created out of cardstock from Basic grey latest range Two scoops. However, I made this masculine album and am just about to bind it so took a couple of snaps.It has less fancy panneling and simple but roomy pages for photographs to celebrate a young man's coming of age! I have another two on the go so will post piccies of these later.

Watoto tags for the Album

All tags can be finished with complimentary inking and 'tag hole reinforcer' as shown in the second picture.

Celebrating Dad

I rustled up this 4 x 4 album for my Chel for Father's day ...I consider him to be a great dad to our son..Yesterday the boys spent a couple of hours choosing Mel's first shirts..a small thing but something that wouldn't have been the same if I'd been the one to do it!It's not cool to be seen with parents, and especially your mother when your 15!! especially not in town.. Anyway this little album was quick to create using a making memories 4 x 4 ready made inner pages/cover, textured Bazzill cardstock, some photographs through the years of dad and son and some sentiment stamps (alongside a few dad themed embellishments. Colours where greens, mustards deep reds and browns.