just because........

....... we had fun!

Spring Clean starts here!

a sweet little boy banner

a colleague left the shop this week to start her maternity leave finally ......... she is due to give birth in 3 weeks!!! I made her this little banner for her baby boy Ollie - she better not change her mind about the name now :)
Its nothing fancy or clever. Just lots of embellishments like stickers & gems & bows & butterflies & tiny buttons. I think I may have gone OTT slightly but she was absolutely chuffed to bits when she opened the package. So I'm chuffed too :)

I really enjoy making banners for all sorts of people even though it does reduce my stack of embellishments too quickly :-(

Thanks for looking xx

photos from today

Hello :)
I had some free time this morning as I drew the short straw on the rota at work - 3pm til 8pm shift ....ugh!! So having walked my son to school & then spent a couple of hours at the computer I decided as it was such a gorgeous day to walk down to the pools & see if I could get some springtime pics. I love going to these pools & just standing there looking at the reflections. Sometimes the laughing ducks & honking geese come along to see if you have any bread but usually its calm enough for the fish to jump out of the water after a fly or two!




When I returned home my two black cats were sunning themselves on the decking. I tried to get a few shots of them but cats can be so unco-operative but I'm pleased with the ones below. I have edited all these photos on my favourite free photo-editing site picnik.
I have used this site for a coulpe of years now & enjoy the effects available from simply clicking the mouse! :))





Flo & Sable belonged to my stepdaughter & when she decided to go abroad & work as rep we became the interim carers of said cats.
That was 4 years ago! She had a wonderful time, met her future husband there & then moved to Wales with him when they returned to the UK. Now she says she doesn't think its fair to uproot them after all this time!! C'est la vie.

TTFN xx

Blogging For Scrapbookers is back

Today sees the return of Shimelles Blogging for Scrapbookers class which she ran very successfully back in 2009. I learned an awful lot last time & have continued using many of the tricks I picked up then .....if only I could be more consistant!
I am looking forward to reminding myself how to be a better blogger :) and I'm keen to make new friends & add some more blogs to my Reader!! I made so many friends from last time this class ran & I love to hear how their lives are going or admire their latest project.

TTFN xx

blog candy

Hi!
I've just left a comment on Tracies blog for a chance to win her give-away. Have a go yourself :) Theres some lovely Sassafrass goodies as well as a little Prima 'build-a-book'.
You've gotta be in it to win it!!

Hxx

my latest layouts

Here I am again .......... I seem to be a bit of an erratic little blogger!! Two or three consecutive blogs then I dont bother for a week or two lol.
Same with scrapping too! hahahah :)

The first layout I want to show you is one thats taken a few months for me to find the right kind of embellishments & when I saw this free printable banner on Jenny B Harris' website Allsorts I knew I was ready! Jenny has an amazing blog & she designs some awesome things

Have you been following Shimelles latest free class 4x6 photo love? Ive just realised I havent done month 1 yet (use 1 4x6 photo) but the LO below is the month 2 (use 2 4x6 photos) & Im looking forward to the next 10 months when by December we actually have to use 12 photos! This LO was easy to do. I think my Mum was behind the lens & judging by the look on our faces we had just had a lecture from her about the poor elephants having to live in captivity & wouldn't it be better if they were back in the wild? (Thanks for the guilt trip Mum lol)

And finally my baby boy aaahhh! I cant believe he will be 8 next month!!

I followed the same sketch as the one above but using only one photo this time. The butterfly & dragonfly are the last off a sticker sheet & they are almost transparent. I will have to find some more somehow as they are great embellishments.

And thats it for now :) See you soon xox

a bit happier today!

......ok so I was down in the dumps yesterday. Maybe it was working Fri/Sat/Sun together ....... maybe I was menopausal ...... or just plain fedup!! lol

Today sees an improvement & I have found some reasons to be cheerful

no 1 = SUNSHINE!
no 2 = my little bookworm

no 3 = scrapping this & ...... a few others :)

no 4 = MY NEW CAMERA!!
(see my 1930's bevelled edge mirror - I loves it)
no 5 = my little ray of sunshine :))

This was my world today & it suits me fine.

Thanks for reading my blog & please take time to comment - I really appreciate it :))

Heather xx

ETA yes I know my son appears twice on the list lol but that also makes me very happy xx

update

hello dear reader



A few things have happened recently - nothing as bad as losing your family & home like those poor people in Japan are suffering. No.



But I did lose my Aunty Pat. She was my Mums sister & she suddenly passed away in her sleep last week. We weren't that close because we had 70 miles between us & the extended family had spread far & wide, only meeting at weddings & funerals. You know how it goes! So on Thursday I will be travelling those 70 miles to Leicester to say goodbye to my lovely Aunty Pat. Its St Patricks Day & also her wedding anniversary. Im dreading it.
But I still have my home......



My camera broke last week. I know.

However we managed to stretch the finances & replaced it yesterday :) Its only a point & shoot so not worth the hassle or expense of repairing it.
But I still have my little family......



And finally I have a scraproom all of my own!!! I will take some pics soon. I made some hearts for a swap that Kirsty Wiseman set up recently here. I took ages to decide what size/materials to use but finally got my act together & finished them. Unfortunately I had no camera to take pics of them :(
But I still have my health.....

I have worked all weekend so I have a day off tomorrow to spend some time getting used to a new camera! Hope you all had a good weekend - I believe there was sunshine in the Midlands today & more snow in Scotland. What did you get up to? I'd love to hear about it :)