Kicking My Heels

Just kicking my heels today (excuse the pun!), raring to go with the prompts starting tomorrow.

Zoe & I took the boys to Horseworld near Bristol today (hence the title!), a great place, staff were friendly, cafe food was great, animals were living in lovely conditions and obviously well cared for. There was stuff for Ethan to play on, he even had a "Bull-ride" (a sort of quad bike with 5 trailers behind with the kids were strapped in whilst the driver went around a bumpy field!).
Ethan had a great time feeding the horses, and was really taken with "Popeye" a one-eyed pony - he kept checking "it's OK isn't it that he's only got one eye!" , when assured Popeye was not in pain. he then told Popeye he was gorgeous and going to be alright LOL!
It was a productive day as we also checked out where Zoe was going to College from next week and where her school placment was going to be, saved in the SATNAV so all is well.
Really looking forward to tomorrow, note to self, put new batteries in camera as it stopped working today so NO photos take!

PS Update
...... Maude did pass her MOT so is saved from the scrapheap LOL!
...... new batteries were placed in camera!

Slow Day - Bank Holiday Monday

Slow day today, sat & SKYPED with Maggie for a few hours whilst doing some colouring of some Prima Paintables I might use in my LSN album. Have picked a few blackberries (about 1lb) so may make some jam later. The weather here is beautiful  - sunny & warm, but living so close to the seaside (1 mile away) we don't venture out on a BH Monday due to traffic, it's a nightmare on the M5 (we live 2 miles from J22). My hubby has gone out on (Maude) the elderly motorbike (32 yrs old!) as it's MOT time tomorrow for the 'old gal' and he's doing a few checks to make sure she passes - bless!

Really looking forward to Wednesday and the 1st prompt, - bring it on since my MOJO's returned, and off to PaperArts on Saturday for a CWF (Crop with Friends) session, Fiona & gals, hope you remember what you're letting yourself in for LOL!

& Crafting!

This is what I did with all the heart embellishments from the previous posts - I made an envelope (with a deep gusset, such a lovely word gusset!) and a see-through window so that I could put any Bits & Bobs in that I collect throughout September!  It's my birthday on the last day so there maybe some memorabilia from that - not sure I could fit 54 candles in there though LOL!

Close up of closing for envelope, made it myself with 2 buttons & embroidery thread!

Heart Embellishments

Heart embellishments for my inside back cover, numbered for descriptions: -

1. white felt heart, black blanket stitch edge, embroidered with beads & heart
2. Art from the Heart stamp on shrink plastic
3. white adhesive felt hearts with black thread highlights
4. Craft Stamper free stamp onto white card, mounted on black card and white doodle edging
5. stamped heart as (2) on white card
6. punched hearts (2 sizes) from pre-printed shrink plastic after shrink process
7. Maya Road shapes, painted & stamped with Petite Script from Delish Designs
8. beaded black & white heart
9. heart shaped brads

So what am I going to do with these? ...... Watch this space for post!

Cooking

Made Smoked Mackerel pate today, easy to make and keeps well in the fridge (unless eaten by husband!)

We have a small grape vine in the garden, planted about 3 years ago, NO grapes for 2 years, last year we had a few tiny bunches, this year better but unfortunately the wasps beat us to the harvest and we were left with about 1.5kg of usable grapes, quite nice to eat but some very small and they have pips in them.

So..... not enough to make wine LOL! but enough to make some Grape Jelly using a recipe from an American Cookbook I have in my Vintage Recipe Book Collection along with my treasured illustrated Mrs Beeton.

Chocolate Mousse Recipe

I can't believe the restraint you guys are showing, only Melissa has asked for the recipe so far - enjoy Melissa, enjoy LOL!

Surprise Birthday Tea!

The reason for the chocolate mousse yesterday can now be revealed, it was for a surprise birthday tea for my sister-in-law Terry. She was visiting her daughter & family and they had arranged the surprise, everyone enjoyed themselves and the chocolate mousse and the gorgeous fresh fruit pavlova that Emma made went down a treat!

Inside Front Cover

Today's scrapbooking efforts, I finished my inside cover - a mixture of stamping, rub-ons, punching, doodling & painting. I really love my signature on the journal card (yet to be completed!) I wrote on some shrink plastic, then shrunk it and stuck it!

After some thought I decided to do a numbered tab for each day to go inside the pocket, on which I will write a word or a thought that best describes how I feel each day.

I'm finding the B&W theme quite challenging but enjoyable, have yet to decide whether photos will be B&W or Colour!

Things to do! Complete journal card when appropriate & doodle on numbered tabs.

Pippa's Scrummy Chocolate Mousse

I made Chocolate Mousse today, can't say why! A really simple recipe for chocolate mousse, one I have refined over the years I've been using it - even more useful as it has many variations - who wants the recipe?

Homemade Embellishments

My attempts at playing with the tip that Karen gave me, I'm very pleased, I used a black distress ink pad and Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist (Black Gold) with the Petite Script stamp from Delish Designs on plain white ribbon and flowers, can't wait to use them. I've also booked to go to PaperArts on a Crop With Friends session on the 4th September with my mate Penny Kafai from Penally's, I know we'll end up chatting for England as we haven't seen each other for a long time LOL!

Plans today!

Need to finish the inside front & back covers of my album and make a few more embellishments, thanks go to Karen from Artcards who gave me a super tip for decorating white flowers with distress ink pads and paint, so I'm off to try it out.

New Order

I'm afraid another order did come on LOL! This time with another UKS Sponsor ScrapShed  - naughty me, well my hubby did promise me some extras as well as my leisure club membership for my forthcoming birthday, bless him, he's a sweetie.

Embellishments for LSN 2010 Album

Things I've done today - made felt shapes, painted & stamped swirls, sorted flowers, buttons, brads, beads, rub-ons, acetates & other odd things. Unfortunately realised I still need more black & white flowers, an Opaque Cotton White StazOn ink pad & a Snow Cap Acrylic Paint Dabber - I feel another order coming on LOL!

LSN Covers

Front cover, in Black & White, using Teresa Collins - Damask papers, with flowers, handmade punched flowers, painted & stamped jigsaw pieces, LLB Tassle and various sundry lettering on punched tabs stamped with Petite Script from Delish Designs.

A collaged view of the front and inside covers of my "Learn Something New Every Day 2010" Album. I particularly like the punched flower with September in the middle, with the tassles. I was so lucky I had this off cut and that September was available to punch out!

American Crafts Album & Mini Order

Well a busy day, my order from UKS Sponsor "Sarah's Card's" came ... super quick as usual, with my American Crafts Modern D-Ring Album - Black, along with some extra page protectors.

So I'm going to decorate the covers (inside & out!) over the next couple of days and sort out a title page, I've cut the cardstock and put into my album, I've done a mixture of 6 @ 8"x8" + 10 @ 11"x8", that gives me a page per day + 1 for the title and 1 extra (might be for the last day which is my birthday!).

Decided I needed a few more black & white embellishments - buttons, a white pen and a sheet of  Black Market Paper - "The Way You Look Tonight". I've ordered them from UKS Sponsor "Artcards" as Karen lives just over the back garden fence so very handy......

May take me a couple of days to complete the covers & title page, but I'll post when I've finished. 

WATCH THIS SPACE!

Cardstock & Patterned Papers

Album size: A4 Portrait, so I can do 8"x8" LO's intermingled with A4 LO's, so I'm using an American Crafts Modern D Ring Album (Black) 8.5"x11"

Colours for my album: BLACK & WHITE

Cardstock: Black & White

Patterned Papers: Rusty Pickle (Popstar) - Vanessa, MME (Andrea Victoria) - Black Damask, Teresa Collins (Damask) TC2120, TC2106 & TC2113, Urban Lily Mini Book Black , KI Memories Pop Culture Perm Black & Hambly Screen Prints + 2 papers I can't name.

Sundry Papers: Prima Paintables & Prima Clear Paintables + saved offcuts from my stash

Letters: Black & White - Assorted alphabets (all sizes!)

Embellishments: Black & White - Buttons, Brads, Ribbon, Eyelets, Beads, Flowers & Felt

Sundry Extras: Black & White - Paint, Stickles, Embossing Powder, Ink Pads, Thread & Shrink Plastic + Alcohol Ink & Various Assorted Stamps (Mostly Banana Frog!)

Equipment to use: Cropadile, Cricut, Sewing Machine & a variety of Punches

Learn Something New - Shimelle

Well here we are starting to think about this year's LSN in 2010, I completed 2008, ducked out of 2009 because my MOJO went walkabouts and to be honest I haven't done any scrapbooking since I made a couple of mini books for Christmas presents for family members.

So ........ I've decided on my album size, decided on my papers and therefore chosen my cardstock, most kinds of embellishments, stamps, paint and anything else that co-ordinates.

Nothing like being organised LOL!!!! and this has stirred me into action, after a very difficult few months with health issues, family commitments and no work (therefore no money!) I am determined with a best mate to complete LSN 2010.

I have gathered everything together and moved it from the craft room to my office and plonked it in front of the computer!

Maggie & I are going to SKYPE and crop together as often as we can during September, so we could be on for hours at a time LOL!

I can see light at the end of the tunnel (and it's not a train coming towards me LOL!) a lift in my spirits and an ease of my depression.

Can't wait for the 1st September and as for the 30th September - well that's my birthday so a great day to complete LSN 2010.

Happy scrapping!