Stamps Ahead

Here is my final layout the last 1-2-3 recipe challenge entry over at Mystical Scrapbooks.  The recipe was 1 mixed media product - 2 photos - 3 embellishments. This week a friend gave me a tin of Lyra Aquacolors, that had been given to her also by a friend.  My friend did not think she could use them so passed them on.  I had to look up Google to find out how to use the crayons.  I have used them to make my background and I think I have a lot more to learn.  They are more vibrant that Distress Crayons and Gelatos.  In hindsight I should have put gesso the cardstock before using them.  Oh well!  My embellishments are from my stash. Below is a close up of my watercolouring. Thank you for looking, Margaret

This is a layout I have completed today, it uses product from Kaszazz Beachy Boho collection  Whilst Kaszazz no longer has any consultants they have released this collection Beachy Boho that is in their webstore .  There is a great bundle available with papers, stencils, chipboard and more. Check it out and there is reduced price on a lot of other products. I love anything beachy - and this photo was taken, by my sister, on a recent beach walk along Coolum Beach Queensland Sunshine Coast.  I had a great time making the beach chipboard - I mixed up texture paste and Liquid Pearls to make the rustic sign.   Do you know the meaning of the name Margaret?  It is derived from Latin Margarita which from the Greek Margarites meaning 'pearl.  So, I was very happy to see a pearl on one sheet of the paper  I highlighted the pearl with some Glossy Accents.  Thank you for looking, Margaret  

Another layout completed today (hopefully one more before the end of the day) for Recipe challenge 1-2-3 Cyber Crop Challenge at Mystical Scrapbooks.   The recipe was1 piece of chipboard (the table setting top right) add 2 photos and lastly a 3 word title.   Mel and I (bottom right) worked together and when Mel and family moved to North Queensland and then Sunshine Coast I have caught up with her and her family several times.  During my recent visit to Coolum with my sister, we had dinner with them one wet and windy night. It was fun to catch up and when I printed the photos we had a little photo bomber right in the centre of the group photo!  He was sitting at the next table with his family and during a short ceasing of the rain he and his sister went outside and walked the brick wall - he looked like he enjoying his moment in our photo! A little bit of stash busting here - papers, ribbon, and chipboard from Celebr8 Bon Appetit collection. Rubons and foam title all just enjoying life

This is a layout I created for the May Mystery Bag challenge at Soul Scrappers Challenges The challenge was to add an umbrella or umbrellas to your page.  This photo of my niece taken when she was about 3 and half when we visited her Dad on a building site he was working on - if I remember correctly it was in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney.  I have recently been looking through old photos (to scrapbook, of course) when I excitedly came across this one - Yay, I can do the challenge!  This became a small stash busting challenge for me. Read on..... I delved into my stash - and found the painted kraft cardstock that I was going to use for challenge many moons ago - didn't use it and there it sat waiting for its day in sun! So I cropped it down to a 10" square. Then I found the background paper that I am calling the little umbrellas you put in drinks! The cut out umbrellas were all I had remaining from 2 sheets of Dare 2B Artsy paper and the felt embellishments were from a very old

 I completed this layout for a 1-2-3 recipe challenge at Mystical Scrapbooks Chat This was for a recipe challenge - 1 photo, 2 patterned papers and 3 die cuts (I did only use 3 - the leave I cut in half to balance up the design. The photo of Reta was taken at Freycinet Lodge, Tasmania in 1995.   I first met Reta on 3/10/1990 when we said "hello" on an European Tour and we became firm friends from that time on.  I visited Reta several times when I visited USA  - no USA trip was complete until I either rang her or visited her.  We had great little adventures together visiting places of interest - with me doing the driving on most occasions. Reta did come to visit me in 1995, we met in Tasmania and toured there and then she came to Sydney and we caught up again and then she took off to Cairns and Uluru. Reta was married, however her husband did not want to travel so she took off on her own. On one trip to USA, after her first husband had died, Reta shared with me that she was &#

Week 4 of the Retro TV Show Challenge at Mystical Scrapbooks.  This week Beverly Hillbillies. Here is my layout: Here are the requirements for this week - settle back for a long post. I have written many times on my blog regarding a suitcase of family photos and memories.  Dad was alive at the time and was able to fill me in on many of the photos.   A bit of background, my fathers parents had a dairy in Morriset delivering to residents and shops in the area.  They were considered an essential service during the 2nd World War and my Dad and his brother worked the dairy. Dad told me he made this horse cart to assist in the deliveries.  Crawford Road, Morriset was named after my grandfather.  Some information about the photos. My dad, on the cart - he even wrote his name on the side. This was before he was married to our mother, so I would say in these photos he is in his mid-twenties. He would later leave the farm to join the Police Force and he was there until his retirement. Dad, my gr

From 29th May and throughout June, in Australia, is The Biggest Morning Tea - a community event to raise vital funds for to make a difference to those impacted by cancer.  This week I held two card making events with the community groups where I lead card classes.   Here are the cards that I designed  Participants could chose the Designer Series Paper (DSP) and the stamp sets they used. I was inspired by an American Stampin' Up! demonstrator "Stamp your art out with Rachel"  that I found whilst searching for cards using DSP and stamps from the New Horizons collection that I fell in love when when I first saw it.  The workshops, that I lead, were open to all and some ladies and included some had not done card-making or stamping before (I tried to get the men to make a card at one of the groups but alas they did not make one - there is always next year) so I wanted a card that was relatively easy to make and provided a WOW.   I did leave Rachel a thank you and she replied s

Here is a layout I completed today for a challenge over at White with 1 challenges.  They currently have a 'water' cyber crop.  Challenge 3 theme was "Children having fun with water" and the colour to use was either blue or green. I have gone for a minimalist design inspired by the beach ball I am holding in the photo of my sister and I taken when we were much, much younger.  The papers come from various collections in my stash on a white background (even though in the photo it appears blue).  Thank you for looking, Margaret

 Here is a layout I created for week 3 of Mystical Scrapbooks Retro TV show competition This week's inspiration - Lassie (a female Rough Collie dog) that ran from 1954 to 1974.  I remember as a family sitting down to watch together the tales of Lassie and her friends, both animal and human. What I here you ask - you have not a dog on your layout?  The design team were inspired by Lassie and the beautiful scenery in the show and that is what they used for their challenge. I have used Kaisercraft Marigold collection.  The photo of me was taken earlier this year and the papers suited the Boho dress I was wearing.  I have fussy cut flowers from 2 sheets of paper and layered them up on my layout. The string was used to create a banner. There was a sticker sheet in the paper collection I have used words that inspire me as I live my life.  Of course, I could not let the layout go without some 'bling'! Below you can see the layering of the fussy cut flowers. Thank you for looking,

I was inspired by a card I found on Instagram by Kleinewolke_2.  I am not a big fan of rainbows in traditional colours, however, I found that the colours that Janet (and I am hoping she does not mind me calling her by her name) inspiring so decided to have a go, as we say here in Australia! I have used a variety of products on this card - die cuts, chevron stamp on top rainbow and greeting are from Kaszazz, dots on background Stampin' Up! and the papers and wooden stars are from my stash. Thank you looking, I have left a thank you for Janet on her Instagram. I am off to have my flu needle this week.  Flu needle done - all up-to-date with required injections.  Margaret

 Week 2 of the Retro TV Shows over at Mystical Scrapbooks  and here is my layout  and, here is the challenge criteria (The Brady Bunch 26th Sept, 1969 to Mar 8, 1974): My photo is of my sister and I enjoying morning tea at Yandina Heritage Cottage, Queensland.  We had scones - pumpkin scones for me and ginger scones for my sister.  If you are ever in this area why not pay them a visit. For my layout, when I read it I immediately thought I would use my myriad Project Life cards to make a grid background - however, I could not find cards that had the blue I was after.  I made my own cards and fussy cut papers using AB studio "The Other Side".   The title, was Kaisercraft, from my stash.  The white square will be for my journaling.  Thank you for looking, Margaret

 Here is a layout I have completed for ARTastic May challenge.   Here is the inspiration image which we could interpret anyway we liked  I was drawn to the top on the display model, the background of hanging pots and the house reel. The photo of me was taken this year against a hanging basket I have on a tree. I knew I had a set of Kaszazz stamps of hanging baskets and I have used those (as well as a pot plant) and coloured with my alcohol ink markers.  I went with orange strips to match my top.  I hope I have met the brief this month.  Whilst ARTastic Challenges are not holding any specific International Scrapbooking Day (ISD) challenges they are encouring all to enter their May challenge.   Thank you for looking and by-the-way we are expecting rain, once again, this weekend so we should see our flowers growing even more in the days ahead.   Margaret

Today is International Scrapbooking Day (ISD) and I am participating in several challenges over the web.  Here is a layout I have created for White with 1 challenges .  Whilst, it is not technically a challenge for ISD they have combined with their sister site ARTastic challenges to incorporate their monthly challenges, for this month, for ISD. Here is the White with 1 challenge Mood Board for this month - we were to be inspired by the board and to incorporate items seen and inspire you - perhaps a grid pattern, see circles or rectangles or  watercolours or inky backgrounds, inspired by threads or leaves or glass beads?   Use any colour blue with white. My photos of a recent beach walk, whilst on holidays, on Coolum Beach in Queensland.  I was, of course, inspired by the grid pattern.  I was inspired by the grid pattern. I have used many bits and pieces from my stash - Unmistakeable Creations Cruise Collection for papers and die cuts, Mintay Papers Seaside Escape Cardboard Stickers, Wh

 Here is a layout I have created for Retro TV Shows Competition at Mystical Scrapbooks The challenge was to be inspired by the TV show "Bewitched" - twitch or wiggle your nose now! This is an 8 week competition that is points based with 1 challenge per week.  Bonus points if you use items from a embellishment pack that needed to be purchased, and I did - the stars.  Now I had a very big challenge - I do not do Halloween nor do I do witches/witchcraft, fantasy etc, therefore no papers on those themes, so I found an old piece of Stampin' Up! paper in my stash.  A little bit of research assured me that "teal" was appropriate Halloween colour.   The witch and broom was a free clip file that I printed out - okay it suited the title of my layout.  The black cat and the small quote were from a Close to my Heart stamp set You're the GOAT (Greatest of All Time).  My journaling is on the tag behind top left photo. On 19th April, I flew to Sunshine Coast in Queensland