The countdown is on...

Yep, less than a week to go for my class at Miss Art's ... and I can't wait!

Very nervously/excitedly awaiting  the start of 'Layered Layouts'.

I'm really blown away by the talented line-up of teachers Alyssa has on board over there and am really thrilled to be part of that line-up.  Pop over and have a little look at what's happening this month!

Thanks for stopping by...

hugs
jules
x

Time Flies!

OMGawwwd!  I can't believe this darling little 6 week premmie bubba turns 15 today....

Happy Birthday babe!

Luv
Mum
x

Girly Grunge...

The new palette is up over at The Colour Room and I have to admit to feeling a little intimidated by it at first.  I'm not a massive fan of pink, despite having two girls, so always feel like I'm going to botch a layout when I use pink.  It's big saving grace for me however was the neutrals that accompanied it.  Pink and neutral I can handle... it allows me to 'grunge' things up a little.  So grunge I did!  :)  The other DT pages are AMAZING!!  It's such a talent pool over there... go on over and have a little peak.

{beautifully complicated}

Just to add to my discomfort was the fact that I also opted to go the very florally route.  I love flowers, however generally use them sparingly for a touch of prettiness, rather than make them a major design feature.  I discovered this new 'Authentic' range of pp at my LSS (loosely referred to as 'local' in this context.. it's a 450km round trip!!) ... and saw it's 'fussy cutting' potential immediately.  Okay, maybe it's not new, but I haven't seen it before.... :)

I also scraplifted myself!  Can you guess which one?  :))  If you are a little strapped for time, lift yourself I say! lol.  If you liked one of your own designs, or for some reason it just worked, why not recycle it huh?

This is an old photo of Claire playing dress up's in readiness for her 'cupid' character at one of my work parties years ago.  She clearly did not want to pose for photos in the beginning and had the 'sook face' firmly in place... then right at the end I managed to captured a rather 'fallen angel face' instead!!

SSSooooo... onto the closies:

... and the palette:

Oh, and also.... TCR has been adding to it's unbelieveable DT talent pool.  Head on over and have a little lookie at the new lovelies!!


And finally, just because I've been enjoying my weekly 'things that make me smile' segments of my random everydayness ....  and because I know, in years to come, I'll re-read these little treasures and get a real lift.

Whilst shaking excess crumbs out of the toaster the other day, I thought something in there sounded a little bit too solid to be the last vestiges of the good old seeded wholemeal.  Look what I dug out....

 

 



Poor Coop's favourite scuba diving lego man, replete with oxygen tank and diving belt, looking something like Two Face from 'Batman: The Dark Night'.  Poor, scorched little critter, a mere shell of it's former action man glory.  Oh, little brothers can be soooo painful at times!! :)  Despite the potential danger to house and home, I still couldn't help but smile.

Hope you all find little reasons to smile this weekend....

Thanks for popping in,

jules

x

ps.... thought I was going without a sneak didn't you?   :)

:))

Here's to us...

Happy Anniversary hon...

jules
x

Looking for a Sketch?...

Try Stuck?! for a wee bit of inspiration.....

I did this:

{paradise}

with this:

I flipped it and sorta pushed it together.... again  :))    I really enjoyed getting messy with paint and contrast with this one.  Head over and have a look at what the rest of the CT did with this... they are soooo clever!

Taking the kids to the big smoke to see Harry Potter tomorrow and I'm not telling them until they get up in the morning... one very excited household here at 7am I'm guessing!

Thanks so much for popping in and I hope you all have a fantastic weekend ..... :)

jules
x

My Big Project..... !!

Hello lovely ladies....

Finally I can share what I've been working so feverishly on these past couple of months!

I know I've mentioned it before, but now I can finally reveal that I'm teaching a class over at Miss Art's Papercrafting School for the month of August!!  eek!

I would love for you all to join me for my advanced 201 Class on....

'Layered Layouts'.

It would be great to see some familiar faces  :)  Here's what it's all about....

This class is delivered in the form of 12 step-by-step videos.  Yep, that's right.... 12!  What a learning experience this has been.  I'm so excited, because I enjoyed the video making and editing process SOOO much that I think I've discovered a new hobby.  Poor dh just groans and shakes his head... like I need another hobby!  lol

Another really great aspect too is that I will be available to contact all month with regard to class material (and whatever else you want to chat about ..lol),  in addition to hosting an online chat during the month also.  More details and confirmation on that later.  I'm so EXCITED!!

Anyway, back to school today.... woohoo!  :)   nah, I've actually enjoyed having the kids home, but I still welcome the return to structure and routine too..... not to mention my long lost friend, exercise!!

Thanks so much for stopping by lovely ladies and I hope 'today' finds you enjoying the little things that make you smile... a bit like this really:

I just LOVE this.  That oh-so-cute little bottom on that oh-so-big kitchen stool, sitting up to the kitchen bench and scoffing away like a big kid.  He just looks so precious and vulnerable.  I LOVE that he has taken a liking to my 'Just Right' cereal and asks for a bowl any time of the day or night.... and gets it!  Just little things... :)

Cheers for now..

jules
x

Feel like a Colour Challenge?

... then pop over to the Colour Room today!  :)

Just a quick post today and one lonesome little layout to share.  The new palette this week at TCR is out and it included two of my favourite colours in the one palette.  I was so pleased to see orange and blue together, but wasn't so sure about the green.  I was therefore pretty bemused to see that the finished product made a major feature of the green!!  What the?.... not at all sure how that happened, but I'm pretty happy with the result:

{a beautiful friendship}

A real mish mash of product lines in there, but i tend to cross brand boundaries all the time when scrapping, rather than use a product kit.  How about you?  There is a Crafter's Workshop template (naturally...:)), a Dusty Attic chippy frame, Kaiser and Prima flowers, Hambly overlay, old TCP Studios pp, Glitz and Pink Paislee too, 7Gypsies tape... oh, and i fussy cut those vines from a really really really old piece of Urban Lilly pp.  I also popped on some of Miss Wally's bakers twine and Chantelle's Creative Bits little bird button that i've been holding onto for some time now.  Geez, did i forget anyone!! lol. 

I just adore this photo of dd#2 and ds#2 together at a sports carnival.  The relationship between both girls and their not-so-baby brother has always been one that i enjoy to watch.  Probably because the age gap between them is larger, they are both really protective and mothering towards him, even when he breaks stuff and paints their doona covers with nail polish and lip gloss!!

.. and check out the amazing inspo pick and palette:

Still school hols in these parts, so the house is a bit chaotic at best!!  The kids are enjoying just spending time at home and decompressing from what has been a really busy school year so far.  It's nice to see them finding ways of enjoying each other's company and inventing games and activities... most of them amicable!  :)  Today's scented balls and chocolate mud cake making were a major succes!!  And i managed a sleep in.  Woohooo!! 

I hope you are all well.  I'll be back with some more shares and 'random everydayness' as soon as we are back into our normal routine... whatever that is!?    :))

Thanks so much for stopping by.

jules
x

A Bit of a Lift!!

Over at the Boxx this month, it was my turn to pick out a member's layout.... and willfully lift it!!  hehe

I picked out this layout by the lovely Kim Ewins:

I turned it on its side and used the gorgeous TCP Studios 'soul food collection' paper by Melody Ross again... only for a change, I actually used the 'a' side.  :))   Absolutely LOVE it!  The flocked pattern replicated Kim's circle misting really nicely.  I'm a bit fond of those Prima birds at the moment too!

I've scrapped this pic of Maddi and her friends at a swimming carnival before, but i just love it.  They all LOVE their sports and they LOVE to compete.  They really are cut from the same cloth.  :)

{birds of a feather}

NB:  ever since dh noted that the white paint splats looked like bird poo, all i see when i look at this lo now is bird poo!!  thanks hon... lol



Now onto the July 1st sketch over at Stuck?!

The lovely Cystal Goulding provided the sketch for this month and i really enjoyed interpreting this one.  First of all, I flipped it once anticlockwise.  I also couldn't wait to play with these new Prima iron ons.  I ironed them on to calico so that i could fiddle around with placement and layering.  The frayed calico also gives them a bit of textural interest and definition too.  So easy to use and i just love 'em .. :)

{i believe you can}

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope this week is treating you well.  For fellow Queenslanders, this is our last week of holidays and I have to say that I haven't seen too much sleeping in happening in this neck of the woods... :)   Maybe tomorrow...

Cheers for now.

jules

x

Going Circle Mad!!

Yep... circles are the flavour of the month... and it's going to get worse!! lol

Complete co-incidence really.  I didn't even realise I was doing it.  I looked at my layouts to share for this post and realised there is definitely a theme happening here  lol ... and my next share is all about circles too!!  oh well, when you're on to a good thing... hehe

First up is KIU.  We have an inspo pic for you this month, and it is just gorgeous.  Not quite sure how this:

{nothing but footprints}

came from this:

... but I was purely inspired by the colours, and, due to the fact that we now live over 2 hours inland, every time i see blue i think of the much loved and missed beach and coastline...  :(   I just loved doing this layout...  :)  Never able to leave a blank background alone, I used a big old coarse sea sponge to apply some gesso and cream paint, then sprayed various gimmermist colours in 'pools' on the page to create a bit of a water damaged effect, then inked up my Kaiser script stamp and went mad!  The Scrapfx chippy circle cluster worked really well with the hambly circle overlays to accentuate the whole circles theme.  Oh, and that beautiful Prima mistable canvas that i completely botched during another layout ended up making a great backing feature and petals! :)

Then there is the new palette over at TCR:

... which prompted this:

{forever}

I know i said i was done with wedding photos, but i couldn't help it!  :)   I really enjoyed this one too... circles must make me happy  :)  First I laid down a mat of muslin on some scrapes of gesso, then stitched through the muslin and positioned the 7Gypsies Gears and painted them with gesso and glimmermist for a bit of rustic appeal.  Oh, and if you haven't seen the GCD Studios 'soul food collection' paper by Melody Ross, you really should get yourself some.  It is stunning!  Amazing texture, depth and natural colours.  I am in love!

Oh, and just in case you hadn't heard yet, there is a CT Call happening over at Stuck?! Sketches, so if you have been thinking of getting on board with a fantastic challenge site and would like to be a part of a fantastic team, then consider giving this a go.  Head on over here for a look at the requirements.

And finally, just thought i'd finish off with some random 'everydayness' from around my place right now.  Stuff that makes me smile in spite of myself....

.... the king and queen of DS, playing separate games, but still fnd it necessary to almost sit on each other's lap while playing. love it.

.... a Wii remote on the stovetop as I'm starting to prepare dinner. where else would it be?

.... the coffee table, where anything other than a coffee cup takes up residence.

.... lego on every flat surface of the house. seriously. every flat surface. 

.... the top of the coffee machine, where you will find my favourite cup and Troy's favourite mug. an enamel camping mug. seriously. he won't drink out of anything else!

.... said coffee machine. my absolute favourite kitchen appliance, bar none! 

yep... reason to smile!

Thanks for stopping by lovely ladies.... sorry it was a bit long winded  :))

I've scheduled this post and am in the 'big smoke' right now with the kids.  It's the obligatory School Holidays Movie Trip, but we are overnighting so yours truely can fit in some shopping too!  lol 

Have a fabulous weekend.

jules

x