Diversions Mark II

So. 

How is the dissertation proposal going I hear you ask. 

I'm actually going to pretend I didn't hear that because as you should be able to tell from the title of this post, it might not be completely finished. I could have got on with it last night, but instead I half watched Freaky Friday (terrible film) in the kitchen and scrapped some pictures from last weekend using Go Go's February Kit:

I could have got on with it today, but instead I slept for ages went to Killerton House (to make up for yesterday's National Trust failure) and had a cream tea.  Lush day.

So in summary, excellent weekend for relaxing, scrapping and taking pictures.  So much better to dwell on one's sucesses than failures don't you think?

Weekend Diversions

I've been very busy crafting away this week, but it's all secret squirrel stuff for Lizzie's wedding invitations and so in an uncharacteristically reticent manner, I'll keep them to myself (for now) . I think we're both really pleased with how the prototypes have turned out though so it's just a case of starting to gather the stuff we need to make the really thing. It's all very exciting.

I am actually pushing bits of patterned paper around of a piece of cardstock as I type (multi-tasking rocks) and although I've completed one layout tonight, I'm not currently feeling it for the 2nd so maybe I'll come back to it in the morning. Today we've been out photographing Dartmoor in the spring-y sunshine. The original idea was to explore Castle Drogo courtesy of our new National Trust membership (how old are we?) but in the end the allure of the open moor was too tempting and so we 'accidently' went the wrong way. Here are a few of my favourites:

I hope you're having a great weekend.

Tonight's Top Stories

Firstly, thank you very much for all your sweet weekend-y wishes.  We had a lovely, if frantically busy and exhausting time and while I'm sworn to secrecy on the dress front, if I nod and wink in an indiscreet manner you can draw your own conclusions as to the success of our mission.  Here we all are outside the Bridal Room in the House of Frazer on Oxford Street:

Secondly, if you're so inclined check out TWAGO's Blog where I have guest post up at the moment.  It's a work thing rather than a crafty thing and is part of a project to encourage people from Brighton to tweet about their travel habits as part of a social experiment.  It's worth a look if you enjoy hearing me ramble on about nothing in particular (Anyone? No? I suspected as much).

Thirdly, I'm very VERY relieved to reveal that I passed the exam I took back in January with 80%.  I have no idea how that happened considering I understood almost none of the module's content, but I'm very pleased with myself nonetheless.  I also did well on both my essays which means that's two more down and  I'm inching ever closer to that light at the end of the tunnel.

Finally and perhaps, most excitingly I had an email from Shimelle on Saturday afternoon to let me know that a couple of the layouts I'd submitted have been accepted for the Scrapbook Inspirations Ideas Book due out in May.  Luckily when I found out I was already halfway though a glass of champagne so I was able to celebrate in style and beg the people in the pictures to let them be published in person!

That's pretty much all for now, as I can hear my pyjamas calling my name.  My (optimistic) goal for tomorrow is to start writing dissertation proposal.

Water World

Well if everything has gone to plan I'm in London now, probably at the Wedding Show.  Don't you think scheduled posts are weird?  It's kind of like I'm speaking from the beyond the grave but if I am, things have definitely NOT gone to plan.

As a small aside, am I wrong in thinking that the Pet Shop Boys were like, the best band ever?  Perhaps, by the time you're reading this they will have made a hastily arranged but nonetheless triumphant comeback and I'll be lauded for my perspicacity, or (more likely) perhaps not.

Aaaaaaaaaanyway, back to the topic in hand. Hopefully (again, if things are going to plan) I will have been able to give Anna her house warming present which means that it is no longer massively pre-emptive (and only a tiny bit rude) of me to post a picture of it on my blog.  To clarify, preceding last week's scrapping frenzy, I went through a small (but perfectly formed) watercolour frenzy and while I only managed to produce two pictures (impressive frenzy), I thought you might like to see them so here goes.

This is a picture of a globe artichoke:

This is a picture of a spring onion, an asparagus spear, a pair of French beans and a pea (and also Anna's present):

That's all I have to say right now, so I shall return to Christmas past from whence I came.

SBK - Snowdrop Kit

Following last week's sneaky peaks, I'm finally allowed to reveal the complete layouts made with  SBK's Snowdrop Kit.  The colours in this kit are so right for this time of year and the ribbons and frames were particularly fab to work with - I think this has been my favourite kit so far.

This one shows our newest cat Morrissey at the top of a very tall tree at the bottom of our garden. In the end we had to go out and leave him there but luckily he was able to find his own way down so no need to call the fire brigade on this occasion.

These pictures were taken at Antony Gormley's Another Place on Crosby Beach - what it doesn't record is that very soon after we got stuck in the mud up to our knees. I think I'd rather forget that.

'Death Comes to us All...

...but great achievements build a monument which shall endure until the sun grows cold.'  - Ralph Waldo Emerson (who totally rocked but that's a whole other post).

With this is mind (or possibly not, actually), the lovely spring like sunshine on Sunday promted us to make our first ever visit to the Wellington Monument, despite it being about 20 minutes drive away and us having lived here for over 5 years.  We had a lovely walk through the woods, felt the warmth of the sun for the first time this year and then returned home for tea and cakes.  All in all, the perfect Sunday activity.

'Woah There Pickle'

Blogging 4 days in a row? Surely that level of commitment is just not in my nature.  Anyone would think it was some sort of hysterical displacement activity to avoid focusing on the rather pressing matter of researching and writing my dissertation proposal (ahem).  Aaaaaaaaaaaaanyway, how is everyone?  Good? Good.

{awkward silence}

Oooh, I know.  Rather excitingly, I'm off to London this Friday for a non-stop tour of wedding dress shops, the National Wedding Show and more wedding dress shops, ideally interspersed with as much sparkling wine as possible.  The bride, the mother of the bride and a brace bridesmaids will all be in attendance and so this is THE dress weekend when hopefully we can secure the ultimate in beautiful and elegant wedding dresses for our favourite Lizbag. 

I'll let you know how it goes, in the meantime here are a couple more layouts from last week's flurry of scrapping activity.

In many ways, this layout annoys because it's all smug and summery where as I am stuck in the middle of a miserable February.  That may be slightly unfair, but it's my layout and I can be mean about it if I want to.  LOVE the hot pink butterflies though, they're not at all smug.  In fact they're quite polite and self-effacing, you know, in so much as paper butterflies can be.

I quite the four little pictures arrangement here, but it was more by accident that design since I only had 2 sheets of photo paper left (note to self - buy more photo paper) but I think it has all the razzle and dazzle a seaside fun fair needs.

Dotted Swiss Revival

I (like most other crafty people I know) have always been a be fan of dotted swiss cardstock just because it is so lovely to look at, work with and even say (dotted swiss, dotted swiss, dotted swiss), but over the last few months I just haven't been feeling it so much and I thought my love affair might have reached its logical conclusion.  However, I'm happy to say that that all changed this week and my passion for all things dotty is back with avengence.

This uses up a few bits and bobs from the last few month's GoGo kits which I've been very keen to rip into for a while and I particularly love these letter stamps which are really sweet and under-stated.  I've been trying to stave off the winter gloom with the carnival colours and it was working for a while, but the effects seems to be wearing off a little.  More Mini Eggs are in order I think.

I wasn't so sure what to do with these pictures because they were taken in the basement of a restaurant and so are a little bit dark.  Strangely though, they seemed to fit quite nicely with the gorgeous Cosmo Cricket Eath Love papers which wouldn't have been my natural association.  I'm pleased with how it turned out though so all's well that end's well and I will try not be so closed minded in the future.

I love Cosmo Cricket SO much, maybe even more than dotted swiss (dotted swiss, dotted swiss, dotted swiss) and so I'm keen to get my hands on the new Joy Ride, Material Girl and Garden Variety ranges but am desparately trying to resist untill pay day in the manner of a sensible person.  Being sensible is hard.

Red Roses...

...are massively overated.  Luckily I have a husband who knows that.

I hope you have a Happy Valentine's Day, whoever you're spending it with.

Winter Irritations

No doubt winter does have its good points, photo opportunties like this for one thing and snuggly duvets, Christmas, open fires and warming soups to name four more.  I'm all about the progression of autumn into winter and the associated build up to Christmas and I can even get on board with a couple of weeks of icy weather in January and maybe a couple of snow days to make the post Christmas going back to work transition a little easier.  But now, the novelty has defintely worn off and I'm ready for sunshine, daffodils, easter eggs and bouncy little lambs swiftly followed by Pimm's, sunbathing and ice lollies.

I'm sick of gloves, scarves, chapped fingers and lips, wearing layers to bed, getting up in the dark, coming home in the dark, not being able to wear flip flops, having to draw the curtains, tasteless strawberries and tomatoes, the countryside in shades of grey and brown, not being on holiday, pale skin, frozen hair and muddy boots, but most of all I'm currently annoyed by the fact that it's so hard to find natural light to take pictures of all the layouts I've been working on this week when I really want to share them. Essentially, its rubbish.

Remember when it was summer?  Lush.

Roll on tomorrow morning I suppose - photographs, followed by an Egg McMuffin, followed by a trip to Barnstaple to Crafty Devils and maybe even getting the car tyres tracked and balanced (whatever that may turn out to be).  Hope you all have a lovely weekend.

SBK Sneak Peaks - Snowdrop Kit

I just wanted to share a couple of sneaky peaks of my layouts made with SBK's February kit. I'll publish the full layouts in a week or so but I couldn't contain myself anymore because this kit was so great to work with - perfect wintery colours.

That 70s Show

I absolutely love this picture.  I know that it can't really be the 70s because I'm at least 3 here but everything from my Mum's hair and the chunky pottery on the cabinets to my Dad's pint mug and massive watch is so deliciously retro in black and white, I feel like  English Heritage should just be able step in and list this moment in time.

My Dad used to lecture at an agricultural college and around Christmas each year, he invited his students to come to the house for festive celebrations.  I remember being hurried to bed that evening so my parents could get everything ready and lying awake hearing the knocks on the door as people started to arrive.  Never one to sleep through a good party, I think I must have been woken later on by the general sounds of merriment and I remember insisting that both Green Geoffrey and I be allowed out to say hello to everyone and join in the fun  One of the students must have taken this picture and given it to my Dad which is how it found its way into the family annals until it was liberated in honour of my 30th birthday. 

It's capturing and recording everyday moments like this which is the reason I photograph and scrapbook.  If this picture hadn't been taken, then the memory of that night might never have resurfaced and that's why I think it's so important to capture life's ordinary and extraordinary moments before they slip away for good.  In the end, what else do we have to show for our lives except a collection of memories to relive from our arm chairs in the old folks home and I want to make sure I have more than enough to keep me going well into my twilight years.

This picture and so many like it, deserve layouts all of their own.

Filling in the Blanks

So what's been going on?  Christmas was merry, gorgeous, relaxing and involved all the sleeping, chocolate and amaretto one could want.  We spent Christmas day at home (breaking with the tradition of a full day of pyjama wearing by getting dressed before we even opened our presents) and then went up to Wiltshire on Boxing Day to catch up with family and friends.  The big news of the festive season was my homegirl Anna turning up to our festive catch up with a diamond on her finger, courtesy of the lovely Thomas which obviously caused much excitement in the ranks and provided yet another reason to hit the sparkling stuff.  It also means that I get to be a bridesmaid not just once but twice over the next 18 months, weddings are clearly like buses so I can't wait to find out who's going to be on the next one.

As you'll clearly already know due to my self pity, whining, whinging, moaning and complaing, a lot of the Christmas break was taken up with lots of essays and revision.  While it was basically awful,  it's over for this round and with just one more set of modules to go, it'll be all over soon and perhaps one day my rose tinted glasses will fall into place and I'll look back on this fondly.  Or maybe not.

2010 got off to pretty much the worst start possible when we had to make a very difficult decision about my soul mate in cat form, Sophie.  She'd been poorly and not eating properly all the way through Christmas and despite our best efforts to get her teeth opperated on (in case that was the problem) and feeding her with a syringe for the best part of a month, in the end we had to let her go.  I still don't really believe that the cleverest and most beautiful cat in the world is no longer with us.  I wake up most days expecting to be greeted by her angry (she was always grumpy in the mornings) miaow and as soon as I get in from work, I automatically look at her old spot on the sofa.  There'll never be another cat like Sophie and while I feel to privileged to have known her, it doesn't make it any easier to live without her.

I am clearly the queen of bringdowns so sorry about that.  I'd better finish with my first couple of layouts of 2010 made using the weight of Go Go kits which I'd not had time to use which threatened to crush me during the massive tidy up of the scrapbooking stuff (among other things) cupboard  over the festive period.