Sassafrass lass, and a sneek peak :)

Goodmorning my friends,

Happy 'Autumn' everyone :( Im sad because it doesnt even feel like we got a summer this year in 'umm, sunny Victoria'. We have only had one or 2 days that could be called hot, and it seems like the rest of the summer has been wet, and raining....

The end of the month marks the release of the BOXX NEWSLETTER, and its chock full of amazing layouts, and projects from the design team girls. If you dont already receive the newsletter, do yourself a favour and sign up for it, its free, and is full of scrapping inspiration. Heres what I did with this months 'Boxx of scraps' kit. Using the gorgeous Sassafrass lass 'Mix and mend' papers, and lots of other goodies.





Kaisercraft have released 2 fabulous new collections today also , Nan's favorites, and Bubblegum hills. You MUST call in to their blog to check them out, and have a look at what the fabulous design team have created for you this week. I am busily working on some projects using these ranges, but they will have to wait till next week, when Im blogging.

All I can show you today are a few little 'sneek peeks of what Ive been working on. Im excited about a 'flower tutorial' I have done for Australian scrapbook ideas magazine, which will be out in April, so if you are interested in learning how to make your own, handmade flowers, all the instructions will be in there :) ....



And a little sneek of the new Kaisercraft collections Im working on

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A little edit to my post to add my 'weight loss challenge' weight for this week. TA DA !!! I have lost almost 1 kg this week (900 g to be exact) I am happy with that, considering Ive lost 50 kg to date, I think any loss at all is a good thing.



I am at my goal weight now, according to all the weight loss gurus, so Im wrapped !!! I never in a million years thought I could lose 20kg, let alone 50 !! I have been overweight my entire adult life, I gained weight with all of my 5 kids, and finally got to a point where i was 50 kg overweight, and the thought of losing that amount of weight was just too overwhelming, so I didnt even try. I stopped weighing myself, and just resigned myself to the fact that I was always going to be overweight, and got more and more depressed about it, which caused me to gain more.

I remember the day that I finally decided enough was enough, My son was 4 and a half, and was terrified of the water, lots of his little friends were swimming around, and here he was clinging to the side of the pool... That was MY FAULT, because I was so embarassed about my weight, I hardly ever took them to the pool, and would NEVER dream of actually getting in the pool and swimming with them. For me that was so overwhelming. I still get teary about it now... My poor kids had missed out on so much, because I was overweight, and had issues about it.... Thats the day I decided I was going to change my life, not for me, but for my kids.

Ok, if you are still reading this mammoth post, thankyou :) and have a wonderful week....

snakes, weight loss, and a vintage layout

Hi there,

This post is a day late for the weight loss challenge, but we had a big drama at our house yeaturday, and I completely forgot about the weight loss challenge. I am not going to bother posting a photo of my scales this week, as I didnt lose any weight :( Im not too upset though, cos I lost over 2 kg's last week, and wasnt really expecting to lose anything this week. Im only a couple of kilos from my goal, and have lost 50 kg's, so I cant expect this far down the road, that Im going to lose every week can I !!!

OK, now for my BIG DRAMA news !!!!!! We were out all day yesturday, and when we got home, our little dog, Molly ( a cavalier) was barking her little head off at something, my son, Sam 17 went to see what it was. Well, it was a HUGE black tiger snake !!! and Molly was only like 10 cm's from it. It was striking at her, and she was trying to bite it !!!! Sam, the hero, threw a rock at the snake, and while its attention was off Molly, grabbed her away from the snake !!! He ran over to me, saying he thought she had been bitten .... OMG, I panicked, called the vet, and was told to just watch for any signs of her being bitten...and bring her in immediately if she showed anything......We watched her like a hawk, and after a few hours, I started to relax a little, she showed no signs at all of being bitten... She is fine thismorning, obviously, she is one very lucky little dog... I think cos it has been quite cold here the last week, the snakes responses were a little slow, and she was able to dodge the strikes !!! Thank goodness Sam was there, he definately saved her life !!!

Today, I want to share a layout I got to do using my favorite techniques, distresssing, inking, and making things all old and vintagy ( dont think thats a word) I love this photo of my son, taken at his Debutante ball in August last year. I cant believe how grown up he looks. The journalling says 'this photo forces me to face the fact that you are no longer a boy'. And its so true. He is a young man now, and a very handsome one at that. Well I think he is, but I spose, Im his Mum and thats my job :)
The papers are Kaisercrafts brand new 'Timeless collection' which I adore, and will definately be using again. I have also used their new range of paper blooms, which come in a huge range of colours, and are a really great price. The chipboard is also a newbie from kaisercraft, I have given them a bit of a rusty look by simply spraying them with glimmermist... sooo easy....

Weigh in and a new layout....

Morning :))))

Well, just want to say , I am blown away this morning.... I did my weekly weigh in for our ' 5 kilo scrappers challenge' and Ive lost over 2 kg's !!! I nearly fell off the scales. LOL... Althought I have found the weight loss has been a bit like that all the way through. I will loose big time one week, then nothing for 2 or 3 weeks after that. But either way, Im really happy with that, and cant wait to see how the other girls have gone :) Oh, and you probably think its a bit weird that in my photo Im not standing on the scales, well, thats because I have a BIG SLR camera, that weighs 1.7 kg's !! And Im certainly NOT going to add the camera weight to my weight.LOL... So I jump on the scales, then before the # dissapear, jump off, grab my camera, and take the pic....

Now a little share. This is another 'Class of '87' layout I did last week for Kaisercraft. I really enjoyed working with this range, the bright, bold colours are just perfect for school photo. This layout tells the story of how excited my little boy is about starting school, and how he gave all his school stuff a test run in the week before school started. LOL. Too cute :)


Thanks for calling in, and please leave a message, so I know you have been. Have a wonderful week.

GRRR Computers

hello my friends,

Firstly I want to apologise for my lack of blogging lately, and for not visiting your blogs in the last week or so. I am having major computer problems, and have had for over a week now grrr !!! I felt like my arm had been cut off without my 'puter', it is the 'bane' of my life, but I realised how much I need it, when I didn't have it. Its sort of back, for now, so I thought Id do a quick blog post of my latest Kaisercraft projects, and let you all know that I will be back soon :)

My second youngest son started prep last week :( So it was the perfect time for me to use the gorgeous new school range from Kaisercraft called 'Class of '87' I wanted to remember his excitement at starting school. This layout is about how ready he is to go, but how much his Mummy isn't ready to let him go just yet :( ... Then I used my new best friend, my Cricut, to make a cute little apple shaped card, using the new 'Nates ABC' cartridge. I so love that cartridge, full of all things boy, and oh so cute !!! .... This is a little thank you card I made for my sons teacher at the end of the year.







OK, better run now, while this computer is still playing nice. I will try to get round and visit everyone who left me such lovely comments, but if I dont, please understand, and I will get there as soon as I can :)

OK its time :)

Hi there,
I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend. You are not going to believe this, our little town is on flood alert again today, we are expected to flood for the 3rd time in 5 months. Its just too much. None of the shops or homes have had a chance to get anywhere near fixed up after the really bad flood a few weeks ago, and here we are facing it all over again. Enough is enough !!!

On a lighter note though, our '5 kilo scrappers challenge' starts tomorrow. Its very exciting, and we have quite a few people who are joining in. Theres some great prizes to be won, so if you think you might benefit from losing 5 kg, then its not too late to join in, just follow the link to the blog, and we explain what you need to do :). Just a little edit to this post as I forgot to post my photo of the scales for the '5 kilos scrappers challenge' I took the photo the morning of the 7th, then forgot about it... duhhhh !!!! OK, so here it is folks, complet with 'ratty' looking nail posish LOL !!!! heres my updated post for the first week :) I mucked up Mr Linky. duhh week 1 weight loss

The latest issue of 'australian scrapbook ideas' is on sale now. My very first design team feature is in there. Its all very exciting. I would show you the layouts I did, accept, in my haste to get the work sent off a few months ago, I forgot to take any photo's of it.. Duhhh !!!

OK, now for a little share. It was my week for blogging at Kaisercraft this week. We showcased the 2 latest collections for February. Call in to the BLOG to see the full ranges, and to see what the amazingly talented Nerrida and Trudi ( oh and ME) have done with these collections. Today I want to show you a layout and a card I did using the 'Magic happens' range.


And a card

Thankyou so much for calling in, and for all the wonderful comments you leave. I love to read them, have a wonderful week,

A little Vintage.....

Hi....

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend. A wet one here again for us in Victoria.

Today, I have a layout to share with you of my 16 yo, on his deb night. He is such a handsome boy ( well I think he is) and he looked fabulousm and so grown up in his suit. This was a DT layout for the Boxx newsletter. 'A vintage layout'. Im not sure if Ive got the vintage thing right, its sort of got a bit of a 'shabby' look to it? Ah well, Im happy with how it turned out anyway :)


OK. gotta run, I will be back to share a little of the new Kaisercraft collections tomorrow. A gorgeous 'school range', and a really pretty fairy collection called 'magic happens'

I am so excited !!!!

I am over the moon at the moment. I received an email today asking me to officially join the Design Team for the new AUSTRALIAN SCRAPBOOKING IDEAS magazine.

This is such a fantastic opportunity, and I couldnt be happier.

This is a fabulous magazine, with some equally fabulous design team members ( one of them is my buddy Nerrida Mitchell) The magazine is different to SM and SC in that it has step by step instructions for all the layouts you see, plus tonnes of fabulous tips and ideas all with instructions. I thoroughly reccomend the magazine to newbies and seasoned scrappers alike.

YAY, its a good day :)))