Embellish your World

Shameless plea for sponsorship

I am running/jogging/walking 5k next month for Cancer Research UK.

Most of you know I lost my Nan to cancer March this year, sadly not the first person I know to leave this world at the hand of this cruel illness.

Events like Race for Life are vital in funding Cancer Research UK’s life-saving work into preventing, diagnosing and treating cancer. By sponsoring me now you can help more people survive cancer.

I would like to say a huge thanks to those who have already sponsored me, either on-line or in person and make a shameless plea to ask anyone else who can to help me raise funds and support this worth while cause.  Thanks so much x

 

Ever so slightly fragile

Friday morning - Fragile, felt sick to my very core as hubby and I faced the LEA panel to appeal against the decision to offer our 4 year old son a primary school place within reasonable distance from our home.  We applied for all 3 schools within a mile of our home, with a preference as you would expect for our local school.  Sadly we were not allocated a place at any and the closest school with places is just over 2 miles away, with a not-so-great Ofsted rating, an impossible journey in town centre rush hour traffic, no friends/family able to assist with school run in emergency and not therefore a feasible option.  And so we attended the appeal, did our best and somewhere in the Borough people know the outcome, but sadly us mere parents with a tiny vested interest won't find out for 10 days!!

Luckily I had the afternoon off work to attend Hard Rock Calling in Hyde Park where Passion Pitt, The Kooks and The Killers were playing in the glorious sunshine! Several beers later, the company of good friends and lots of laughs the Killers came on - just about in time for the sound system to go defective and we could just about here them! So disappointing having seen them earlier this year and absolutely loved every minute live, but seriously - you could only hear the conversations of those around you and not the band, this when the support acts were loud as can be! Still, as I said, great company, sunshine and beer so overall a great evening, with a fab sunset too!  But I have complained about the sound - or lack of it.  Hubby fortunately did not suffer the same as he enjoyed ACDC at Wembley!

 

 

And so I have felt slightly fragile today, not having consumed so much alcohol for a long time, and rather abusing the reserve calories for my diet!!  Still managed to get a food shop in, guinea-pigs cleaned out and some houeswork done too.  Tomorrow, me thinks I may rest a little!!

We like free things!

I've signed up as I am sure there is a whole tonne of stuff I could learn to save me throwing expletive remarks at my laptop when I am trying to self navigate Photoshop!

I have started my alphabet Stampbord 2x2 squares with much arty playing occuring (I have stained fingertips to prove it!) and here is a quick look at what I have done so far.  There is a great example of using these pieces of clay-coated board on the Stampbord website - I may just have to try that too (once I have completed my alphabet that is.  Techniques used so far include papier mache, painting, stamping, inking, etching, crackle paint/glaze and masks.  This evening I am thinking glimmermist and paper-piecing with maybe a little fabric too!

So another weigh in this evening and I lost the 2.5lb I put on last week, and have signed up for another 6 weeks during which time I shall be going hell for leather to loose another stone - wish me luck!  I have my Race for Life in 4 weeks time which I was hoping to run but it may well be part run/jog/walk/drag at this rate!!  I definately need to up my exercise I think, to boost my weight loss and help with fitness too, but why doesn't typing burn calories?

Poppies, Pals & Productivity

Bit of a catch up blog this evening as I have been busy, busy, busy!

 

Friday Jude and I took a trip down to Faversham & Whitstable to see Jane and Pickleberry Papercrafts.  After much coveting of the studio, Jane’s dedicated craft space and the goodies in the shop, we had a mini photo session in the poppy field a short walk away.  Joined by Jane’s friend Helen we then set off to Whitstable where we ate fish and chips on the seafront & took some more photos before having a mooch around the knick-knack shops and a very tasty coconut ice-cream.  Jane had Jude and I skipping down a grass bank to take some fun shots

they are hilarious and which surely always bring back fond memories of a day full of laughter!  I can’t wait for the next visit!  Nor can I wait to start playing with the pack of 2x2 stampboard sqaures I purchased which I intend to alter into an ABC set to mount in a canvas or picture frame.

 

Saturday hubby and I celebrated our 6^th wedding anniversary with an exchange of cards and tea & toast in bed then a 4 year old birthday party for Robert’s best pal Reuben.  Mat then played cricket in the afternoon (sustaining yet another head injury!!), Eloise spent the day celebrating her friend’s birthday and the boys and I snoozed most of the afternoon away.

And so to today - a most productive day (even if I started off a tad lethargic!) Both boys bedrooms were cleaned and tidied to within an inch of their lives, bathrooms all done, new Ikea cupboards up in my craft room, a shelf up in Mat’s den, the door stop fixed in the loft bathroom, and I almost completed the painting in our bedroom.  As I don’t have work tomorrow and neither does Mat we should be able to finish the bedroom and get downstairs straight too (and then we can sit back and watch the kids undo all our hard work!!)

Who's that girl?

It can't be can it?

 

CJ (Feel Good Photos) took this and others at the ScrapAGoGo retreat earlier this month - I am loving this shot!

Last day at work today before a nice long weekend off - and boy do I need it after this week! stressy!!! I think my lack sleep (Jamie -2 no longer believes in sleep - for any of us) coupled with alot of work at the moment and very little scrapping time is making me quite short tempered (which means I annoy myself).  Indeed the only page I have managed to complete since I came back from GoGo is the class for ATDML - Playtime which was launched on their site this week.  Step by step instructions are available along with links to all the products making this an inexpensive and easy to pull together page - go check it out, let me know what you think!

A lovely weekend

We had a great weekend visiting Northampton and my boys have not stopped talking about it ever since! We need our own swimming pool now it would seem, though the bath was a close substitute!

A tree top walk in Salcey forest, plenty of fresh air and outdoor fun, pooh sticks over the brook, an ice lolly, swimming, a BBQ, a drum kit & keyboard and the undivided attention of a 10 and 12 year old and my boys were in heaven!

Me? I was just happy to hang out with my buddy Mags, catch up and enjoy her beautiful new home.  We stayed over Saturday evening returning in time to watch hubby play cricket in the glorious Sunday sunshine.  It was a shame they lost, but more so because hubs managed to get a cricket ball in his face off a spin bowler and has the seem of the ball indented on his chin - OUCH!! The inside of his mouth is not pretty, but he seems to just have bruising which I am sure will worsen as the week progresses.  He should be some very pretty colours come our 6th wedding anniversary this weekend!!

Other scrappy news, I have a tonne of photographs from recent days out to scrap and several more places on the agenda so I could really use some dedicated scrapbooking time.  Am wondering if I can lock myself away for a day or six to play with paper?? Maybe not!  I am pleased to share this little project though - a road trip tunes minibook I made recently using Rusty Pickle Brass Knuckles and Pop Star papers - guitar plectrums under £3 from e-bay, hubby's idea to add them - that man rocks my world!!

 

OMG! OMG! What a night!

I don't think I have ever been to a gig (ok maybe Robbie @ Knebworth in 2003) where the crowd showed such utter appreciation for the band.  The Script absolutely rocked Shepherd's Bush Empire last night  with a great performance, obviously in awe of their fans and the support they were receiving and they spent some time at the backstage doors signing autographs, having photos with and generally chatting with their fans.  And I may well have been among these group of adoring peeps, well it can't be that often you can get that close to a band, talk to them and get your photo with them, oh and I did I mention all 3 autographs on our tickets, photos with each band member and the lead singer/keyboard player Danny signing my shirt?!!! OMG!!! 

One happy happy bunny I can tell you, albeit slightly deaf this morning as we stood right next to the speakers!!

Ally, Clare and Rob were all great company as is to be expected of such lovely people, and spirits we only slightly dampened by the horrendous journey home (thanks London transport workers strike action!) - I never want to have to get on a night bus again!

 Two weeks to go then we venture out again to Hyde Park Calling!!

Rock and roll baby!

The Script are a three-piece Irish pop rock band from Dublin, Ireland who happen to be doing a gig at Shepherds Bush Empire, London this evening - which I may just happen to be going to with colleagues from work and my buddy Ally. 

So what do we think the chances are of purchasing t-shirts that fit ladies over a size 8?? I mean come on, I hit my first stone weight-loss target this week, but even that won't get me in a skinny-t!!!

Other than the concert this evening I am very much looking forward to travelling back up to Northampton this weekend to spend some quality time with my very good friend Maggie, who for one reason or another, but mainly my pnd I have barely seen since my Jamie was born in 2007.    I just know after a massive hug we will be back to chatting and catching up as if such a length of time has not passed since we saw each other.  Of course I will have my camera in tow - and my children too and am looking forward to taking even more photographs to scrap and spending time with Mags x Who knows, the sun may even put in an appearance!!

And finally before I away, here is a snippet of my green photos as part of "A month of Colour" over on Shimelle, I have more and will share soon!

More photos from the weekend!

 

 

 

Such a great weekend, more photos to follow, to hopefully include the completed GoGo Appletini book and Shimelle's minibook class too!

:( GoGo Getaway has been and GoGo Gone

What an exhausting weekend (self inflicted late nights) but I don't think I have laughed so much in a long time.  Thank you so much to everyone involved, and everyone I met.  Some very special friendships have been built since the first ScrapAGoGo event last June, and I think this was so evident this weekend, a credit to Lorraine and Janice for sure.  I managed to get the opportunity to talk to so many more people this time and make some new friends long the way - and as for the photographs?? Well need I say more there are some absolute crackers!!  A few are on facebook, but I will share here in coming days too!

The classes and teachers were brill, MaryAnne's workshop had to be my fave though, I love, love, love it! A hanging shadow box frame made from foam core chipboard, so effective and I took it to work today and it received many oooohs and ahhhhs.

Other projects from the weekend included my apple(tini) minibook which lead to the shop selling out of green chipboard & green felt and the bar having fewer apple cider promotion boards!, my badge which won the Appletini badge challenge (and a rather yummy prize), several layouts - including a couple based on the sketch challenges, and of course the class projects (I need to complete my Shimelle minibook and Jane's interactive house layout)