2002

This another 8x8 of my baby and obviously he's a lot younger in this one! I have kept this page very plain as I feel it suits this photo.

I really like this picture. I wish I could turn back time sometimes. There are a few photos of Ryan when he is younger, but I dont have many. So these I treasure. Long story and not for here.

Oh dear, it's bringing tears to my eyes. Time to go.

Ally

xx

In the Garden

This week I have entered the Passion for Promarkers challenge where the theme was @In the Garden.' I just love this Penny Black stamp. It's so versatile and can be used for so many different occassions.

Hope you like it

Ally

xx

On my travels again

Yet another holiday photo - ho hum!
Watchet is a little harbour village in Somerset and Simon and I really like it there. We'vre wandered around the quay many times, watched the steam train come in and once visited a little craft fair. In there was a lady demonstrating parchment craft. I was totally transfixed watching her and that led me on to me buying my first ever crafting magazing along with making my first ever card. I used a huge chipboard flower in the corner. It's a basic grey one I think and then added a button in the middle. (Ihave a thing about buttons at the mo!)

I still can't yet manage to delve that little bit deeper with my jouranlling. Hopefully as time goes on, I'll get better at it.

These are just little prima flowers with buttons in the middle.

Quite a busy page this one, but I like it. I hope you do too.

Ally

xx

Tag swap

Over on UKs we had a tag swap within our team. We all made a tag, sent it off to our 'team captain' who then shared them out and sent them back so we had one each from evryone who took part.

As you can see, I now have a lovely variety of tags showing each members individual talent and style.

You can tell I'm back at school as the blog posts become more sporadic. I've only been back 3 days and I feel like I need a holiday!!
Ally
xx

More ATCs

So I've made a couple more ATCs. I'm really enjoying coming back to this small size. The hope tag is one of Sir Tims adage tickets whuch I've just edged with distress ink.

The face stamp was free on Craft Stamper magazine.

These have reached their new owners now so I hope they like them as much as I enjoyed making them.

Ally

xx

Another 8x8 of Ryan

So I promised another LO of my beautiful son (you can tell I'm his mum can't you!). This one was taken in 2006 when Ryan was playing for Trimley Red Devils. Ryan eat, drank, lived and breathed for his football. I said that I was going to keep these 8x8 LOs really simple because I want the photo to be the main element.

These little gems are each slightly smaller than the one to the left and the third was put on a little wonky. Hmph!

This is a chipboard embellishment that came with the kit.

Some of you may be thinking that the backgrounds and embellies are a bit too flowery for pages all about a boy, but these pages are for me, just so that I can pick them up and flick through whenever I want to.

Hope you like it.

Ally

xx

Blog award!

Yippee! This is my first ever blog award and I'm supposed to now tell you 7 crafty facts about me. 1. I don't have a desk or a craft room. I have a cupboard and boxes in the corner of my living room and I work on my coffee table (when my back allows) or on a lap table.
2. I've made cards for a few years now and that's where my crafting obssession started.
3. Years ago I made and swapped ATC's. I found the appeal of them again lately and have got back into this and started swapping again.
4. I find it really diificult to transfer my craft skills and knowledge into my teaching. I'm just find it really hard to be creative at school and this is something that really gets on my nerves!
5. My uncle and my cousin are both artists.
6. My mum used to make all of me and my sisters clothes. We were always dressed identically!
7. I also dabble in cross stitch and currently have a latch hook rug on the go.

I now have to pass this award on to 3 people. Hmmm... who to choose?
These are the people I'm going to pass the award on to:
1. Debra at http://debscards.blogspot.com/
2. Sandra at http://allthingspretty-sandra.blogspot.com/
3. Cath at http://2010-theyearforchange.blogspot.com/

Thank you Alana for the award.
Ally
xx

Scrapping my son

As many of you know, I'm new to the worl of scrapbooking, coming from a card making background, and I am totally hooked! Lots of you out there who have been doing this for years will have already scrapped your children, but obviously I haven't but now I've made a start!
I'm going to call it 'The many faces of Ryan' and I have 2 8x8 cosmo cricket albums that I'm going to use. It is going to be slightly different to regular pages though in that I'm not giving each one a title and journalling, I'm just adding the year (and month if I have it).
So this is my first page.The page is a lot browner in real life than the photo shows.
Now I think I had an absolute bargain from QVC. I don't tend to buy that much from them as they can be quite expensive but every now and then something comes along that you think 'I must have that!' and this was one of those things. It's a 9000 piece Cosmo Cricket set for £35. There's so much in there, including 2 boxed 8x8 albums, a cube to make, brag books, magnetic frames, alphas, double sided papers, adhesive ribbons, ordinary ribbons, embellies etc etc This flower I had from my own stash.

As are these little gem flowers. I used my MArtha Stewart punch for the border.

So watch out for more pages and you'll see how he's changed over the years.

Hope you like it.

Ally

xx

Stash box

Ok..so this is a secret between you and me and I'll only tell you if you promise not to tell Simon.
I succombed and bought a stash box from Sarah's cards. The offer is you get a minimum of £75 worth of stash for £25 - such a bargain that I just couldn't resist! And just look at what I got. What you can't see underneath were about 16 sheets of12 x 12 bazzil card stock and 16 pieces of 12 x 12 patterned paper.
Anyway ... remember the deal .... sssshhhhhhhhhh.... it's a secret!
Ally
xx

ATCs

Many moons ago, I used to make and swap ATCs and have a HUGE folder of those that I've received. I think I tend to go through phases, as I then went into the cardmaking phase, now followed by the scrapbooking phase.
What I'd really like to do is mix the three phases up so I do a bit of each all the time. So to get me going back on the ATC swaps, I joined the trail over on UKS. You only have to make 2 (1 for the person above you and one for the person below you) and they can be of any theme at all.
Now that I know my recipients have received theirs, I can post them on here. I had a play with my distress inks and stamping. I also used grungeboard precut shapes, which I then inked and sprayed with gold glimmer mists.

I enjoyed making them again and want to build this back up again. It's quite lovely to not only make something but to then receive a little something back as well.

If you haven't tried it, have a go!

Ally

xx

Another holiday page

Yes I know it's yet another holiday LO but I have lots of photos to scrap and catch up on!

Some of you may recognise the photo of me in this LO as this is my profile pic. Simon and I were just sitting outside one afternoon, having a drink, chatting and people watching (oh we're EXPERTS at that!).

The journalling part was cut using a die on my bigshot using two papers so that I could use all parts. Having said that, I actually don't like it now. It was fine when I placed it, then afting glueing and coming back, it just didn't look right - hmph

The papers are from my Cleo crafts kit and are American Crafts collection called Letterbox.

I really value all your comments and take on board what you say, so come on ... be honest ... what do you think?

Ally

xx

Thinking of you card

I've had this kit for a while a bring it out every now and again.

As the title says, this is a thinking of you card. It's for a friend who has been diagnosed with breast cancer and is facing a major operation on wednesday. She loves elephants so I thought these little ones from the dandelion and pickles range were cute.

passion for promarkers

As you know, I like my promarkers and I will sometimes enter the passion for promarkers challenge, depending on the theme or colour challenges and what I have at home.
The theme this week is 'The Young Ones' and I thought that this stamp called Sweet Kiki La Rue by C C Designs fitted the bill. I've used little mulberry flowers from my stash which I've attached using silicone glue.

And here is a close up of the coloured image,

I think it's a sweet card and I hope you like it too!

Ally

xx

Living in Braintree

So, I've lived in Braintree for 18 months. Don't get me wrong, it's quite a nice little town, but there's not an awful lot going on!

As I was waslking down one of the side streets off town the other day, I cam across this sign, on a shop wall. Well obviously I just HAD to take a photo and scrap it!

Here is a close up of the (minimal) journalling on this page.

And the buttons.

Perhaps I need to go out and about a bit more and see if I can find something better in Braintree to scrap!

Ally

xx

Bookmark swap

I entered my first swap over on UKS. A group of us bookworms get together to make a bookmark for each other. Unfortunately I don't have a final photo of the bookmark that I made fpr everyone else (doh!) but these little beauties arrived in the post this morning. Aren't they lovely? Thank you to all the lovely ladies that were in my group. They are all just super pieces of art. I hope mine was ok!!

Ally

xx