Thursday, July 26, 2012

Cards and Photos

I managed to survive my 5 nights last week. Well, only just....it's taken me till now to fully get over them.  I think they are getting harder as I get older. 

Anyway, determined to whittle down my scraps, I made a few cards...
It's been a while since I actually sat to make cards other than for an upcoming birthday and for a while I was thinking too hard. But, once I remembered it is just a mini LO, it became easier. Who would have thought I made cards before I did scrapbooking?!!!!!

Talking of LOs, here is the one I did for the Two Peas CHA 'use a sketch' challenge.


                                 

I used the June Studio Calico kit and used a colour palette I wouldn't normally use.  I like how the photos stand out on it though. Imagine those concerts were nearly 20 years apart. The Cambridge one only feels like yesterday :(
                                 

Before I go, I wanted to share a picture taken with my DSLR.  I am staying on the Auto setting for the moment while I get to grips with it and making notes of the settings each photo, to help me learn the differences. This one is of Lister and was taken randomly...as in not looking through the viewfinder (I am holding off using the screen at the moment as I like using it in the old fashioned proper way). I had the camera underneath him, tilting up slightly and I love how it turned out.  No filters either....that's another thing I have to learn. Well, one step at a time! lol

                                  


Oh, Holly is feeling a bit left out so here is my favourite one of her so far....








Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Starting points



I have been scrapping up a pile of paper scraps the last few days.  I thought I had better break into Studio Calicos May and June kits rather than just stroking them every so often.
Above is my version of Shimelles Starting Point this week, which turned into this.....


I have a fair few old photos scanned from family and I got some printed through Photobox. I think I will have to run them through a photo editing programme because while they printed out ok, I am sure I can spruce them up a bit better. In the meantime, I like that they still keep the charm although I think they would be better printed on matt paper. Anyway, I am rambling....

I put the journalling on a tag and tucked it in behind the photo. Not for want of any privacy, more because I have been wanting to give it a try :)

Below is another photo, found among a pile of photos borrowed from Grandad S.  There are a few in this style of me and my sister and I think that they were taken by my Uncle.  I love it and it also makes me smile that I am sitting on the potty with a book/comic in my hand.  There are a few of these type of pictures floating around!



These are not all the LOs I have done but I have to go and get my bits together for work now. I think I will be re reading my Blogging for Scrapbookers notes over the next few nights, as my goal to blog a bit more frequently and confidently is going a bit slow.  But, at least it is happening so I am happy with that at least.


Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Happy Mail and Pink Paislee


Look what arrived at my door on Monday...



That definately cheered up a day which was filled with the hoover, bleach and hard labour, both at work and home.

Thanks Susanne for making my day.

Here is my LO for this months In Good Company.
SUPPLIES: Pink Paislee 'Butterfly Garden'
Pink Paislee Wood Veneers
Pink Paislee (Mist).a.bles
Studio Calico Mists - Pony, Green Gable
Papermania Capsule Collection Flowers



Yep, it's Pink Paislee this time and meant I had to use the paper which I had been
scared of saving for ages.  I adored the paper but as soon as I got it home, it was just too pretty to use.  I hate that half of my paper collection is like that! The good thing is that using the paper as the background requires little other embellishment so just a few flowers and butterflies and a bit of mist on the letters and we are done :)

The picture is from my graduation 13 years ago!!! imagine :s. It is the official picture and while I am not overly fond of it, the frame was decomposing a bit so I wanted to get it on a page.  I cut up the frame using the oval aperture and university emblem on the LO.  There isn't much journalling, just the date, place and degree as while I have plenty of stories to tell of the day, they didn't seem to fit the picture..although I may do a 6x12 page on the side for the journalling now I am talking about it....

Come and join in if you have any Pink Paislee papers you want to use up.  It's a great way to really use your stash.:)

And while I am here, I am going to join in with Jennifers Scrapbooking Soiree.  It's like a virtual party where everyone shares what they are up to with their scrapping and you have till the 7th August to join in. See you there?

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Euro 2012...MIN June


A bit late again. And the worst part is I have had my notes sitting on the table all week :s. Still, I am in front of the computer for the first time in 4 days so here goes...

You can probably tell that the month, for me, was all about the football.  4 weeks of 22 men playing with a ball. And, for the first week, 2 games a day, every day, which coincided perfectly with my break between nights. Needless to say, all other activities were suspended for me from 5pm onwards unless they involved a pub with the football on the telly....which a few times, it did the disadvantage of living opposite the local :p
The decorations in the pub 
I watched the matches on 3 channels...RTE 2, ITV and BBC, the latter being my preferred channel and the only one I forgot to photograph incidentally.  

Being a Brit living in Ireland, I couldn't hang my flag out the window, so I made one out of  felt that I had inherited from the bosses late Gran.

I made an Irish flag out of cardstock, then with the newly embellished Radio Times wallchart attached, I sewed the 2 together.  I am thinking of using it as a cover for a minibook for the tournament as I am loath to throw it out.





It had pride of place on the wall by my chair for the month....the boss, while he enjoys football, doesn't have the same obsession dedication that I have for the game.

Now, before I chuck some numbers at you, I better tell you that I am including the final, even though it was played on the 1st July.  It might be cheating a little but since I wanted to get the whole tournament stats in, then I guess, today, I am a cheat!

Ok, 25 games were played overall with 18 of them in the group stages. There were 16 countries involved overall.


Spain scored the most goals....12 in total, with a third of them being in the final against Italy.  Incidentally, that was the 2nd time in the tournament that those 2 countries met, the first being in the group stages where they drew 1-1.


Italy and Spain both had to go through penalty shootouts to get to the final, Spain winning 4-2 against Portugal in the semis and Italy beating England of course, like we could ever get through a tournament of any kind without having to play at penalties :( 4-2.


There were 3 red cards shown and 119 yellow cards.


6 players scored 3 goals each to get the Golden Boot...Torres, Gomez, Dzagolev, Mandazukic, Balotelli and Ronaldo.


France v England had the ball most in play during any one game -76%


England stats were: 4 games, 2 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss, 1 penalty shootout, 5 goals scored.

Spain have won 3 major tournaments in a row: Euro 2008, World Cup 2010, and this one.  They are the first country ever to do this. Iker Casillas, who plays for Spain, is also the only player ever to have played in 100 winning international games.

I guess that will do you, before I seriously bore all you non football people. I will now send you on your merry way to Julie who will tell you more about Month in Numbers for those of you who are new to this and want to join in.

And, I will leave you with my feet...well, my very patriotic Docs to be exact. yes, I wore them to the pub for the France v England game and it was very tempting to wave them in the air when we scored but I didn't, much to the relief of the boss lol







All stats taken from The Irish Sun.