Catching up

So, on Thursday I posted some of my recent DT work for Papermaze, today I thought I would update some of the pages I have made for the magazine recently.

First up, we have a page I created along with a bunch of themed embellishments for the Just the Thing article that the magazine runs. It had to be spring themed in my case, so I went with these gorgeous Heather Bailey papers made by Autumn Leaves. The lyrics and title are inspired by one of my favourite Moody Blues numbers.

The second page was a challenge to use a particularly bright piece of paper from the Basic Grey Urban Prairie line. I used it as a backdrop to this photo of me and Ed out last year when I sprang a kiss on him. Yes, I was a bit drunk at the time! This layout was a bit of a pain in the making - I just couldn't seem to get it right, and ended up chopping it up with a guillotine a few times before I was happy...

Only one more day of my holiday left - I do feel like I've had a good break, but I also don't know where this last week has gone. I've been very unproductive and will have to make up for that in the next few weeks unfortunately. Back to work on Monday, but at least I have the second episode of Ashes to Ashes to look forward to - the plot thickens...

Some DT stuff

Thought I would share a few layouts that I've made recently for the Papermaze blog. Well I say recently, some of them are quite old now but I've been so bad at blogging I've never shared them on here!

First up, we have a layout inspired by the terrible snowy weather we had earlier in the year. The flowers were trying to start their growth and then got covered in ice. The papers were Dream Street I think, and I created some little springs out of them by cutting rough spirals by hand.

Next is this layout, using the same range of papers, about the Pottery cats my mum bought me. I'm a bit mad about cats, so what better than a money box shaped like one! They sit on the windowsill in the study/scraproom/spare bedroom so I thought they deserved a layout (and of course, the colours went perfectly with the papers!).

Finally, we have a layout I completed yesterday, All Bar One. Its just a random collage of photos from our night out on Valentines day this year. They were all bad photos, so this was the best way of displaying them - none of them too big or prominent. The papers are Cosmo Cricket Girl Friday, which is a gorgeous range.

What else have I been up to? Getting the garden tidied up for spring. Well, I tell a lie, I've been watching Ed get it ready for spring! I've also been doing a bit of spring clothes shopping. And I've been watching the first episode of Ashes to Ashes on Monday - yay, the conspiracy is back! Back at work on Monday, not so yay, but at least this time I feel like I've had a proper holiday to recharge the batteries, and some lovely weather to enjoy the time off. So it shouldn't be too bad...famous last words!

And breathe!

What a manic few weeks its been! Appallingly bad blogging again I'm afraid, but when you are desperately trying to get year 11 and 12 prepared for exams something's gotta give, and unfortunately my hobby was that something. No worries though, I've now got two weeks in which to scrap to my heart's content (as well as writing a 2500 word essay, but I'm pushing that to the back of my mind for now).

So, we West Midlands teachers only broke up for Easter last Thursday - that meant one very long term behind us, but a very short one to come. It also means that as my Easter hols fall later than most people's, I'm hoping that the weather will be better than normal (unlikely, I know).

What have I been getting up to since I last blogged? Well, other than working, I've been engaged in the serious business of turning 27. I have been 27 for approximately two weeks now. It was the first time I approached a birthday with feelings of trepidation. I'm now officially in my late twenties - I don't think I can hang on to mid-twenties any longer - and it feels like thirty is just around the corner. And thirty just seems ever so grown up to me. So I had a bit of an early mid-life crisis, but have now managed to get over it.

This was helped by the absolutely fantastic present I received - a Wii fit! This little baby is so much fun - me and Ed are ultra competitive so we have been hula-hooping and ski-slaloming like gooduns in a bid to get to the top of the leader board. I need to lose about 5 pounds to be at the ideal weight for my height - which for 5 foot 7 is apparently 10 stone - so I'm hoping I might be able to achieve that this holiday with regular Wii fit sessions. The Easter egg eating probably hasn't helped in this goal though. My theory here is that if I eat all the chocolate now, I can start with a clean slate. Or something like that...

I do actually have a few pages to share still, mainly because of my terrible blogging. I've had a couple of pages published in SI magazine, and another coming up (so there is proof that I have actually scrapped a couple of times in the last few months) and I also have a couple of layouts that are just made for no reason but to please me (the best kind). Here is one of them:

Got the Lurgy

Feeling sick and sorry for myself today - am off work with a horrible headcold that I've had all weekend. However, seeing as I've dragged myself out of bed and feel mildly better after a lemsip, thought I would finally get round to updating my blog with another page to share. This one is about a night out in Coventry last November with my sis and her boyfriend Ross. We were a little bored with the live band that night and entertained ourselves by taking stupid photos instead!

In other news, I havent' been doing that much scrapping, though I do have a few pages to share on here still due to poor blogging recently. I have, however, been getting excited at the prospect of series 2 of Ashes to Ashes which will be arriving on our screens again mid-April. I have become just a little obsessed over the last week, including watching my dvd box set of the first series several times in preparation. Roll on Easter...

We're going down the pub...

My third layout of the weekend was this one - taken in a pub in London last November when we went for a walk to blow the cobwebs away the day after my grandad's funeral. It was a real old-fashioned pub - dark, dingy and perfect! This layout was made using some October Afternoon and Sassafrass papers - the little collection of flowers and animals were cut out from a Sassafrass paper.

Speaking of October Afternoon, I can't wait until their Cherry Hill collection comes up - I love the embellishments that go with it. In the meantime, I think I will satisfy myself with the new Sassafrass ranges which are winging their way to me at the moment...

Carousel

Time for another layout completed last weekend, this one is called Carousel and the subject matter is pretty self-explanatory! I took this shot last year on the Southbank when out walking with my mum and dad. It took ages because it was so busy and people kept walking in front. This was the best of a bad bunch!

The paper is gorgeous Sassafrass, and the colours were perfect. I have also used some BG Offbeat chipboard shapes and rubons. Its quite a simple layout all told but with such a busy background paper it would have been unwise to add too much embellishment.

In other news, check out the Papermaze blog for another of my latest layouts using Dream Street papers - I will add it here later in the week, but for now you can see it at Scrap, Paper, Scissors. You should also check out some of the gorgeous new stock, especially the My Mind's Eye and Cosmo Cricket Girl Friday range (which may have slipped into my shopping basket yesterday, having seen it in all its glory last weekend).

Now I'm off to eat chocolate dessert...

Starting to share...

I have managed to create seven layouts this weekend, which is a bit of a mammoth amount for me as I tend to be a bit of a slow scrapper. I know I will never create as many as my friend Leanne who has me in awe at the speed with which she can put a gorgeous layout together, but I'm getting more decisive and procrastinate less than I used to. So, I will now start to share my layouts.

Today, we have this lovely photo of me and my mum, taken last half term at a pub we went to for lunch. I couldn't remember if it was called the Ramblers Retreat or Ramblers Rest as we always call it the Ramblers, but I guess I can always change it when I find out!

The papers are mainly Basic Grey Offbeat (which is my absolute fave Basic Grey line!), but the flowers at the side are a Scenic Route paper which I cut out with a craft knife. I actually find the cutting out process really relaxing, hence starting with this layout on Friday night when I really needed to wind down. The letter stickers are American Crafts Thickers, the Platform range.

After this weekend, I have come to the realisation that I am absolutely obsessed with orange! It features on half of my pages...

I absolutely loved the opportunity over the last few days to relax, forget about work and scrap all day - I hadn't scrapped in two weeks due to lack of time and a busy schedule. Sometimes you need a bit of a break away from your routine to kickstart your creativity. So thanks to my friends who made my weekend a very fun one!