Thank you Libby!!

This woman is amazing! I am in awe of her continuous stream of creations and the way she blogs faithfully - even with a full time job and a family and other craft business creating! Thank you Libby, I feel humbled by the Marie Antoinette Award you have bestowed on me when your blog, Libby's Crafty Scraps, is always a hive of activity and sharing and her cuttlebug creations are out of this world!!

The rules are as follows:

1. Put the picture of Marie Antoinette on your blog
2. Link to the person who you received the award from
3. Nominate at least 4 or more blogs
4. Link to those blogs from yours
5. Leave a comment on their blogs to let them know you've shared the award with them
   

So, I nominate these creative ladies (blogs) ...

1. They Call Me the Scrapnut
2. Stamp A Latte
3. Sandie's Place
4. Addicted to Digiscrapping
   

It feels like an eternity since I have done anything creative with my hands, I am in withdrawal mode!!! But, I am looking forward to spending Saturday with some wonderful friends in Mornington, at the Paper Squared Demo Day, getting my teeth into some layouts, doing some make and takes and browsing the shelves for some new products. Aaaah, my mouth is drooling just thinking about it! So hopefully, I will have some shares next week!

I have been committed to Project 365 and have a whole month of phots - very unusual for me. It is a challenge but I am enjoying it and it's certainly making me think about my photos. It's also making me think about the benefits of an SLR Digital camera ... but I need to get really good before I get a 'big girls' camera!

So, till next time ...

Scrappy Weekend Wonders

It's been a busy weekend and I've managed to complete two more challenges. I am finding it good to have some 'organised' scrapping to do. It makes it easier to do the layout when there is a goal. Yesterday I spent the day at Paper Heaven and apart from having a good chuckle and gossip with my scrapping friends Dorothy, Alex and Lyn, I felt quite productive. Just goes to show what a bit of pre-planning does!!

Here are the challenge layouts I have completed:




One of the biggest problems with uploading layouts is the actual scanning. I find that getting the depth and detail is not always easy get accurately. I have found that my HP Officejet gives quite a good scan and then I use the ArcSoft Panorama Maker program to stitch the images. This is a really easy to use program, available for Windows and Mac, and it is not expensive.

Photoshop Elements 6 also has a Panorama Merge. This is also fairly easy to use if you have this program. This is the one I use with my Mac, but I'm not happy with the quality of my Lexmark scanner. It leaves a shadow and blur in the middle of the scan.

Here are some links to help with scanning and stitching layouts for you to upload:

HP Website and also Two Peas. But if you would prefer to photograph your layouts, check out this article from ScrapJazz - 'Skip the Scanner'.

This week, my goal is to get 10 Christmas Cards done - I was supposed to do 5 last week but time escaped me. I am also eagerly awaiting my new Cuttlebug embossing and cutting folders to use with my 2008 Christmas cards. The newly released range is absolutely fantastic! Check these out - Lace Tree, Christmas Ornaments, Embossing Borders - With Love and Frills and also Embossed Treetops. Hopefully, next Sunday I will be reporting my card completion goal as being achieved!

I used Sizzix Alpha Dies with the Cuttle bug on the weekend and was absolutely delighted with the ease they cut. Think I will check out some of these sets in future - the Cuttlebug Alphas are very limited. Here is a PDF file that explains how to use the other dies in the Cuttlebug machine.

Until next time ...