Summer is here

It's only 10am but it is already hot and sticky outside and will stay that way all of next week. I'm so grateful we have a Swimming Pool, the kids will probably spend most of their time in there.
You know it's only 7 weeks till Christmas, just saying:)

I have some projects to share that were created for Fancy Pants.
Go and check out the FP Gallery for lots of inspiration!































The 'Summer Day' Layout was created using a mix of FP's Halloween Line 'Oct.31' and 'Summer's End'. It just shows that Halloween products can also be used for other projects.










I also have a LO to share from the Lily Bee 'Head over Heels' collection (my favorite so far!). You can see what some of the other DT girls did with this collection on their blog.



Have a great week!

Fancy Pants Chipboard Elements

Are you in the mood for Halloween? It's only a few days away. Here's some inspiration using the Fancy Pants Oct. 31 Chipboard Elements and Chipboard Banners, to get you ready to create during this spooky season.



I've decided to make a Door Hanger for my daughter's room. I've used both, the Chipboard elements and Chipboard banners. The Banners were layered on top of each other, I love the dimension that can be achieved by layering chipboard. Don't forget to use the little embellishments that come in the banner package. Here I've used the little hearts. I also love the Chipboard elements, the hat is just too cute!

To see what the other talented Pocket Chicks did with the Oct.31 Chipboard go to the Fancy Pants Blog!

Happy Halloween!

Lily Bee and Elle's Studio Blog Hop

This week Lily Bee is hanging out with Elle's Studio! Lily Bee's products mix perfectly with Elle's Studio's. The colors, the designs, everything goes together so well!

Each day this week, Lily Bee will post layouts/cards/projects using Elle's Studio and Lily Bee goodies. Lily Bee will also be giving away Elle's Studio's products worth $25 to a randomly picked lucky winner. So remember to go to the Lily Bee Blog and post a comment each day. The Design Team have posted some awesome work already! Here is a little sneak peek from a project by Lisa Dickinson...




Elle's Studio will also be posting projects and giving away Lily Bee products every day this week. So don't forget to drop by their blog and post a comment each day also.

Lily Bee Sketch Challenge #1!!!

Kids are back to school since Monday and life is returning to normal. I soooo enjoy school holidays with the sleep ins and just hanging out, sad to see the holidays go. Romy has gone of today to a class camp for one night at Taronga Zoo. She was really excited to be sleeping at the zoo for the night.

Now on to our first Sketch challenge on the Lily Bee Blog!
Sketches are great as a starting point for a project and I have been a fan of them for a long time. You can choose to take one aspect of the sketch and develop it into something different, you can turn the sketch side ways or up side down. There are so many possibilities! Let's see what you come up with.




So, here are the specific details for this challenge:

1) Use the Sketch as a guideline but feel free to turn it around or just adopt some elements of the sketch.
2) Use at least two Lily Bee product (any kind)

To be entered into the contest please post your layout on the Lily Bee Facebook page (please include the title Lily Bee Sketch Challenge #1) -OR- include a link to your project in the comments of this post.

We will announce one winner on the Lily Bee Blog on Wednesday October 19th to receive some Lily Bee products.

Happy Crafting!!

September update

I have done a fair bit of crafting in September but with school holidays I haven't had the time to update my blog!
Fancy Pants new products are a dream to work with...
'Summer's End' collection...


















'Saint Nick' collection...


Check out the Fancy Pants Blog for a World Card Making Day challenge! Join us in our challenge to create a greeting card. Here is what you need to do to enter. Check out the Fancy Pants Blog for the "Fancy Friday Challenge: Cards"!!

Simply create a greeting card with any theme that you'd like, make sure to use at least some Fancy Pants products and post it to our Facebook Wall between now and Oct. 8, 2011.

FP will judge the cards and select three winners to each receive a prize package. The winners will also have their card featured on the blog.

*We will accept only one entry per person. Challenge is open to US and International residents. Entries are due by midnight MST, Saturday, October 8th, 2011. Cards posted to our wall prior to Sept. 30, 2011 do not qualify. We will post the three winners here on the blog on Tuesday, October 11, 2011, so be sure to check back then to see if you've won.

I also had some Layouts featured on the Lily Bee Design blog...




The new collections from the CHA Summer release are just beautiful!! For supplies used on these Layouts go to the Lily Bee blog!

Where has August gone?

August has suddenly gone, it's September already and before we know it Christmas will be here :))
I do like the lead up to Christmas though, the weather is getting warmer, we are starting to have friends over for BBQ's again and the pool is warming up.
Not to forget less washing as we don't need to wear so many layers! Tennis is more fun too in the sunshine!
A little update on the crafty side...my daughter wants to be a smurf, what can I say?


















And a layout from The Color Room Palette (172)..loved the sketch and the colors!


















It;s my mum's birthday today...Happy Birthday mum!!!

TCR

I've had some extra time to play this week and liked the color combo #70 from The Color Room. I thought the pink, orange and green looked great together! Here is my take...


I hope you all have a great weekend! I'm going to tend to my sore body now...3 hours of tennis will do that to you!

Sad news...

Anyone that knows me knows I love animals, particularly my pets. Until yesterday we had 3 dogs and 2 cats. On Sunday morning we had to say goodbye to one of our cats, Josephine. She was only six years old, not a time to expect her to leave us just yet. She had been lethargic for a few days and didn't eat her food for 2 days. On Sunday morning I woke up and knew there was something wrong. She wouldn't walk properly and started to have no control over her bodily functions. I phoned the the vet, suspecting a tick. When I walked out of the vet clinic I was numb...no tick he told me...she was anemic and had pretty much no red blood cells left. Leukemia was the diagnosis, apparently not uncommon in cats. I gave permission to put her to sleep. She would have not survived another night I was told. Josephine was always a shy cat, didn't like strangers. She was very attached to me and would sleep next to me every night. I miss her dearly. My son, in an effort to cheer me up, told me he thinks she is jumping on clouds right now. I like that thought.

Transparencies

This week's Product Spotlight on the Fancy Pants blog focuses on the Baby Mine Flocked Transparency. It's a pretty floral pattern, the mellow yellow and velvety finish make it a perfect addition to any project that needs a little soft touch.

For this Layout I wanted to show that the Baby Mine flocked transparency can have many looks depending on the paper used underneath or used by itself. There are three different examples on this layout ... the flocked transparency has been used by itself (with no paper under it), it has also been used with a dark paper and a light paper under it. Every time the transparency has a completely different effect and look. I have also used some Maya Road products on this layout that were generously sent to us previously. I received a 'Play Word Chipboard Album' and some 'Gingham Fabric Blossoms'. I took the Album apart, used 3 of the inside pages on the left side of my layout to create lots of dimension and placed the front page of the album (play) on top for my title. The Maya Road chipboard was great to work with as it can be altered any way and matched to the colors used on the project.

To see what the other Pocket Chicks did with the Transparency go to the Fancy Pants blog.


I hope the sun is shining for you this week...we have the best weather here in Sydney at the moment!

Project overload...

I have a couple of projects to share today that were created with the new 'Baby Mine' collection from Fancy Pants.
First up is a Layout that has absolutely nothing to do with Babies which just shows that this range can be used for generic projects as well! I have mixed in a few elements from other collections as well.











Next are two cards also created with the 'Baby Mine' collection...one for a boy and one for a girl. They came together very easily...



































As I have 'threatened' this post is filled with projects, so here are a couple of things created with American Crafts products...

I've really enjoyed making this little canvas...I love the colors, the papers and the sentiment. It's just me (yes yellow :))












This Layout is another favorite, really love the pics of my sons!

Some more Lily Bee...

Continuing the Focus On Colors Month on the Lily Bee blog, some designers were asked to use the color yellow. Lily Bee features yellow prominently, it's just such a nice infusion of happiness!
For my Layout I have used the Silhouette to cut out the Artisan shapes and popped some of them up to create dimension. The pics are of our very cute little new kitten:)
For all the other 'happy' projects go to the Lily Bee blog!


Lily Bee supplies:
Stationery: 'Butter' Cardstock
This &That: 'Teacup' paper
This & That: 'Brooch' paper
This & That: ABC Stickers
Happily Lost: 'Amazing Views' paper
Happily Lost: 'Sun Soaked' paper
Picket Fence: Acrylic Stamps

Lily Bee Shadow Box

Hello from a very rainy and cold Sydney...
Today I'm showing you a project I had lots of fun doing. I've decorated a Tim Holtz Shadow Box for my daughters room with her favorite colors blue, yellow and pink.

First up I've painted all the compartments and outside of the box with crackle paint and after letting it dry (this can take a few hours) put some darker ink over it which will settle in the cracks and give it a bit of a rustic look. I've also painted the front frame with a coat of Glimmer Glaze (you can see bits peeking out from behind the ribbon).
Next all the sides of the compartments were covered with Lily Bee This & That 'Milk Bottle' paper.
The flower in the lower right corner was created by using a 12in strip of paper, cutting all along the strip in small intervals (make sure not to cut all the way through) and then rolling the strip around the end of a thin object (I used a brush but a quilling tool would be even better). Glue the ends together and start bending the little strips over to create your flower.
Here are some close ups of the project. I hope you enjoyed this!



Lily Bee Supplies:

This & That: 'Milk Bottle' paper
Happily Lost: 'Hammock' paper
Happily Lost: 'Sun Soaked' paper
Happily Lost: 'Good Book' paper
Happily Lost: Mixed Cardstock Stickers
Stationery: 'Oatmeal'cardstock

More Sneaks...

This would have to be one of my favorite papers released...to see the entire collection (available in October) go to the Lily Bee blog! I also LOVE the stamps and index cards that come with this range 'Head over Heels'!





Fancy Pants is also releasing some great new collections...here are my two favorites, 'Summer's End' and 'Saint Nick'! For the other two collections to be released go to the Fancy Pants Blog!

Sneak Peeks...

Well it's this time of year when Christmas comes early for every paper crafter as we get to see all the new releases from our favorite manufacturers.
Let's get started with this first collection: Memorandum! from Lily Bee! This is a collection with super fun vintage patterns on the front and awesome "Office Papers" on the back. Three more Stationery colors have been added to match the new lines - Grapefruit, Lemon, and Office Blue. You can never have too many basic papers to coordinate with the patterns!




To see the entire collection and have a chance of winning it go here and just leave a comment!

Pocket Chick Pick

Today it was my turn to pick a Layout from the Fancy Pants Facebook page and use it as inspiration for my own project. It is not easy picking one when there are so many wonderful designs posted all the time!

Check out the Layout that inspired me (by Sandie Vincent) on the Fancy Pants blog.
Here is my take on it...
I hope you all have a great weekend!

Dogs and Boys

When I got home today after work I found my son sitting in the kitchen with my husband, my son getting pain medicine administered and nursing a wound on his hand from a dog bite. Two of our dogs had gotten into a fight and he tried to separate them. Off I went with Max to our local GP to get the bite looked at. The doctor cleaned the wound, taped it together (with some kind of sticky tape...I wonder if my good old double sided tape would have done the job?) and prescribed antibiotics against an infection. I'm just glad it wasn't his face.

Last weekend I had some time to play and made two Layouts...

MME has a Sketch Challenge on their blog and I've decided to play along...the challenge was to use a song lyric for inspiration. I've used "Just the Way you are' by Bruno Mars.



































Jillibean Soup also has a Sketch challenge up on their blog...can you see a pattern here? I love Sketches!

Lily Bee project

Some of the Lily Bee DT were asked to come up with projects that look back on the school year. I decided to use my daughters end of year report as journaling in this layout, transferring some of the actual report onto the Layout. I've highlighted some of the words by using ABC Stickers in various colors. (The balloons in the top right corner are dies and stamps from PapertreyInk.) To see what the other designers came up with head over to the Lily Bee blog!

Baby Mine

Fancy Pants has released a new collection called 'Baby Mine'...beautiful soft colors and gorgeous embellishments like chipboard monkeys and die cut giraffes! You can find lots of inspiration on the Fancy Pants Blog where you can also see that this collection is not just for Baby's! Here is a little sneak peek from one of my Layouts:)




I hope you all enjoy your long weekend...I'm intending on doing some crafting!

Lily Bee Tiny Tablets

'Tiny Tablets are 6"x6" Paper Pads that have three sheets of each pattern (scaled down), for a total of 36 sheets.
They are perfect for cards but also great for layouts and other projects. In this blog post you can see some wonderful samples on how to use these Tablet to create Layouts...go have a look:) Here is a little sneak...




The rain has finally stopped here after almost three days of torrential downpour! And just in time my dryer decided to stop working yesterday! It always happens when you least need it right? Better call Mr Miele!

Loving Friday's...

Friday is my favorite day of the week...the whole weekend is ahead of us! Sleep ins for the next two days, coffee in bed, no school lunches to pack, catching up with friends and lots of time for my favorite craft!

Some enabling...

Fancy Pants posted a Product Spotlight on transparencies on their blog yesterday. It is really worth checking out as it has some great ideas on what you can do and how to use them! Here is my sample...make sure you check out what the other Pocket Chicks did!








I have also posted some cards yesterday on the Lily Bee Blog.
Here is one for a little sneak...you will need to go to the Lily Bee Blog to check out the others :) Have a Happy Weekend!

Fancy Pants

Just a quick Layout done with the Fancy Pants 'Beach Babe' Collection which is quickly becoming a favorite of mine:)
Off to watch my girl running at the Zone Cross Country race.

Lily Bee goodness!

I am slowly returning to the land of the living. After getting back from Germany last week I came down with the flu which I probably caught on the airplane. So I'm a little behind with my projects and my blog.
On top of that I had to catch up on a little housework as you can imagine. My husband is pretty good when it comes to looking after the kids while I go away but the house does suffer:) He did all the washing and filled two baskets with clean washing...but instead of putting the washing away he started filling boxes with the clean clothes because he ran out of washing baskets:)

Lily Bee had a combined blog hop with Petaloo last week and you can see all the gorgeous creations on the Lily Bee blog and the Petaloo blog. I think the two are made for each other:) Here is mine...

Arrived in Germany

I have arrived a couple of days ago in Germany after a long flight and my body clock is slowly adjusting. It is great to see my parents and spend some time together. We don't see each other as often as I would like and sometimes I miss having them nearby. I would like to just pop over for a cup of coffee and say hello but that is not possible. So the time spent together is extra precious. It is difficult for the kids to not have me around for two weeks but they are getting older and handling it better every time, they have grown up with me leaving once or twice a year.
A tip for people traveling through Singapore Airport with a couple of hours to spare between flights...Massage parlors with Foot and Neck massages on offer are a great way to kill time and to relax between flights to get those tired bodies rejuvenated!

I will leave with a Layout that was done for a Feature on Filter Flowers for the Fancy Blog...check out what all the other girls have done with the versatile Filters!

Rainy Day

I hope you are all enjoying your Easter Break. It is rainy here today but that is a great excuse to get holed up in my craft room:) I'm getting ready to leave for Germany on Wednesday to visit my parents. It has only been 6 months since I went last but I look forward to spending some time with mum and dad. I usually only go once a year but mum hasn't been able to travel for a couple of years due to a bicycle accident so they weren't able to visit Australia as they usually do. She is getting better though and I'm hoping they can come to Australia early in 2012. Fingers crossed!
I have a million things to do before I leave so I have to run.
Here is a Layout done for Prima BAP April...enjoy the rest of Easter!

Lily Bee

Hi again...two days in a row...this is becoming a habit:) Check out the Lily Bee blog today, my first post went up featuring one of the Layouts I've submitted for the DT call!
Here is a sneak peek!

Happy Easter!

The long weekend has started for us and to celebrate I've had a two hour nap this afternoon! Steve and Max took off early this morning on a boys adventure to Cameron's Corner in the Simpson Desert (intersection of the New South Wales-Queensland border and New South Wales-South Australia border. This is an iconic location and the most remote location in outback New South Wales....just a little Geography lesson for my non-Australian blog readers:) They are driving a support vehicle for a motorbike rally. Max is only 8 and I think he will have the time of his life! That leaves me and Romy to have a quiet and girly Easter weekend which we very much look forward to! I'm intending to use this time for some crafting.
Talking about crafting I have another Fancy Pants Layout to show you, done with the 'It's the Little Things' collection...


















I have also created a page for the Crate Paper April Sketch Challenge using their new 'Toy Box' and 'Neighborhood' collections, great for boy pages.

Happy Easter!

Quick update...

If you haven't checked out the new Fancy Pants releases yet now is the time! I have finished another Layout with the "To the Moon" collection and I can't believe how quickly my pages come together! I'm usually a rather slow scrapper and will procrastinate over every little detail but all the different embellishments in the new collections make it super easy to create. And in case you haven't got a little boy at home and have no idea what Beyblades are, they are a glorified spinning top!
Have a great weekend and Happy scrapping :)