YAY!

Wow, what a surprise for me....

this LO



won a category at Black With 2 this month! I'm so stunned, as I never win anything (am thinking they probably made a mistake LOL)
Anyway, if you haven't checked out this great little challenge blog, please do!

Escape

K, so it's not a tropical beach --(actually I'm surprised we don't see penguins running around with the seals)-- but I really love to get away to Esperance. Mostly because it's not Norseman!
I think we've only been there for two hot days (months apart) but it doesn't matter, it's still an escape! And I've always loved the beach in windy wet weather anyway.

I made the LO using Galiscraps' fab eaubleue kit, the gorgeous Paris alpha and a brush from buburus' Ornaments Brushes 4 which I think I downloaded from Brusheezy.

Time After Time

Just recently, on the Hybrid forum, Maria organised a Mystery Envelope Swap, and the idea was that we would only add cardstock and alphas to make a LO using what was in the envelope. I received some lovely goodies and made this LO today -- I added the alpha beads, the white cs, and staples to hold the ribbon to the ribbon slide. I'm really happy with this one, and so is Jules as this is one of his favourite songs!

So thanks Maria and Marie!

Gorgeous kit!!

I spotted this giveaway today at Sunshine Scraps -- and if I dont win I may have to buy it anyhow! It's just gorgeous, I love the colours, the alpha beads and the WordArt!
If you havent visited the shop before, hop over and have a look.

I heart Photoshop!

Lots of scrappers say they really don't think they would use Photoshop much. I guess if you're a good photographer in the first place, you might not -- but I don't take a great photo (well, maybe once or twice by sheer accident) and my photos need as much help as they can get.
Have a look at this before and after. (I snagged this photo from my mum but I have one almost identical - taken in the rainforest so the light was quite dim)



I used various tricks (with layers and blending modes) to jazz up the photo, and then added fairy lights to the lamps. Better?

Esperance

I took this photo in Esperance a couple of years ago, and have never really known what to do with it.
Last night, I used Photoshop to tweak it a little (multiply)and used a Polaroid action, then made the LO using this FAB eaubleue kit from Galiscrap.

South African Butterflies

Look what arrived in the post today!

A mysterious package from a foreign land!! (South Africa)



and inside were...... these!





One had its' little wing slightly bent



but I fixed it in no time.

Thankyou Jacki!! I just LOVE them!

Thursdays

At the moment, Thursday is my favourite day of the week. Katie has kindy all day so the house is mine till 2:45 and I love it! I spend the day cleaning, downloading, scrapping, cooking, and listening to DiG radio.
Today, however, I'm also going to be playing Tomb Raider Underworld on the PS3. I have already finished it on Wii but the PS3 game is quite different and I'm really enjoying it.
Have to say, it's kinda cool playing on the 46inch plasma screen too LOL

My Boy

I did this today, using a template from Sarah Bennett
and this gorgeous kit from Pouyou Designs, called Working Boy.

The quote is from Maya Angelou, and Jules and I think it fits the way we feel about our son just perfectly!

news round-up

Just a quick update -- I sent Jules off to Kalgoorlie over the weekend.
He had some guy to meet and I thought that would be boring, plus I couldn't take Katie near my grandson because the poor little thing (Katie) has had school sores! I nearly didn't type that, I'm so horrified! I'd never even seen them before, and I guess there's still such a stigma attached to things like sores and lice. For me, anyway! So she's fine to go back to school tomorrow, she's been on antibiotics and creams and things for her dermatitis (which is probably why she picked up the school sores in the first place, because her skin is so compromised)
ANYWAY, so we stayed here and what a good thing! as I spent all day yesterday throwing up. I couldn't even hold water down, and couldn't stay awake. The poor kids ran amok so their rooms look like nothing on Earth, and I think they must have fed themselves cos they don't look starved.
Poor Jules got home to a madhouse LOL
But he DID bring a new 46inch plasma TV and a PS3 to replace our old DVD player. He also got me the TombRaider game on PS3 (I have it on Wii but it's different across the various consoles) so if I felt better I would be tremendously EXCITED!
Hopefully I can get in to see the doctor today and then I can play my new game.

Happiness

I did this LO as an entry in the Black With 2 March challenge.



PPs (black and white), rub-on, birds, from Miss Bubbles - une touche du bonheur kit

red PP from the Walk the Plank kit by WimpyChoppers

flowers by LindsayJane Designs (essence of cream kit)

distressed photo overlay by chouk77

bling from mimilou design

flourish is a FlowerPower brush by green eyed butterfly

I really enjoyed this challenge as these are my wedding album colours!

practise random kindness

You know how sometimes you think you will do something for someone, and then you think that maybe it's a dumb idea, they wouldn't like it anyway, blahblahblah....

Well I had that idea a little while ago. And I thought all those things. And I nearly didn't do it.
Then I thought -- what the hey! go for it!

So I made up a Friendship Kit for a lady in South Africa, who I know through her blog. Her name is Jacki and she has had some terribly sad things happen in her life, and not long ago, lost a good friend.

The Friendship Kit certainly wasn't my idea -- I read about it years ago in one of Barbra Johnsons' very funny books; and I had given one to another good friend of mine when she was at a real low point in her life (it made her cry but in the best kind of way)

I don't know why I don't do things like this very often... goodness knows, there are plenty of opportunities! Right now without straining my brain, I could think of at least half a dozen of my friends who could use a little kindness right now.
Maybe kindness is one of those things that you use or lose!

Anyway, if you would like to see the Friendship Kit, and see Jackis' reaction to it, head on over to her blog. It's ALWAYS worth reading anyway! And then think of someone you know who could use a little kindness.

TREASURE

How amazing are these yummy papers and elements???? They are all from a kit called Walk the Plank by WimpyChompers.
I also used this fab brush from the Boystar kit by Mindy Terasawa at Designer Digitals.
and template 125 by Michelle Filo from the Pencil Lines blog

Mr Cool

I found this awesome kit called Let It Rock at Sweet Blossom Designs -- it has the COOLEST papers and elements! So I put this LO together using it and the fab Scraplift Challenge 3/9 template from here

I love this photo of Jack even though it is technically not very good. I added an Urban Acid wash and grunge frame to the photo, to give it more of a rockstar feel.

TFL!

my sister Sandie

I am very blessed to have 2 sisters and I just can't imagine life without them -- this is my sister Sandie. I tried corner-rounding for the first time to make this LO, and I used:

flourish from Galiscraps' Eucalyptus kit
alpha charm from the Bohochic kit at Snap and Scrap and designed by Landi LeRoux.
papers and elements from the Bohemia kit at Sweet Blossoms Designs -- this is run by a WA lady so get in and support her!
the small alpha stickers I made myself.

If you like what you see, please leave a comment. :)

folded corner

Mum sent me a tutorial on how to fold a corner over in Photoshop, so I gave it a whirl. It's very small but that's because of a highly-technical reason (I forgot I had the zoom tool on so I thought the corner was quite large)
Anyway this LO was quite fun to do, and I shall def be folding more corners in the near future.
If you're wondering, I used papers from a kit called Burnin Love and Jules has a black eye and stitches :(

the gingerbread girl

This is another LO for our holiday "slideshow night" -- Granma brought lots of gingerbread people and decorating supplies on holiday with us, and the kids spent hours making their people all beautiful! As an activity, it was a huge hit!

I used:

template from bao
papers are Romantica by Bibouscrap
overlay by chouk77
alphas from the bohochick kit by Landi LeRoux
fonts are Ravie and Courier

Bushfires

Today I posted off some blank LOs I did for Sarah Gladmans' scrap-pages appeal, and also the Hybrid auction has finished and we raised more than $400! The fires were an absolute tragedy, and it is so heart-warming to see the way people are helping one another in this time when so many need so much.
I have loved being able to help in this small way.

Carousel

Using:

template by hannah - papers from the Cupcake Princess kit by Andrea Victoria at Designer Digitals - and the butterfly and gems from Pimp Your Scrapbook -- I think this one has expired but there is a lot of great stuff on there.

TFL!

Time has no meaning

Tried out a Photoshop action tonight, called PanosFX BigPicture2 and I just love the effect!
I used Galiscraps' un idee du bonheur kit and retrodivas' birds of a feather kit as well.

This is one of the many many beautiful scenes of peace along the Murray River. Sigh.

The Princess gets ALL the room.

When we travel, Kates' stuff takes up half the backseat! Toys, blankets, snacks, sippy cups, sunglasses, handbag, shoes... a girl can't do without the necessities!

the Amazing Jack

This is my latest digi LO -- I'll have to have a look through and post the materials list later.

Isn't my boy gorgeous?

Little girls

I did this today using a kick-butt tutorial by Amanda and I am completely in love with the way it looks. It was a bit of work but the result is so cool!

Tha background paper is from Lindsay Jane Designs and I have had the brushes forever and a day and not sure where they came from.

Thanks for looking!

March at Hybrid

Anns' challenge this month is to scrap in 2 colours ONLY and no black! I used this photo of my lovely greyhound, Paris -- she is so much prettier than that OTHER Paris!

I used some beautiful digi elements in this LO, the papers, bling, flowers and leaves are from here and the stitching from tootlebugz and the alphas (which were originally white but I neede to colour them a little) came from Stolen Moments Designs and are called Fresh.