Olive Grove

This card is for the Creative Belli challenge (92) this week.

Lots of Presents!

This card is for the Taylored Expressions sketch challenge this week.

Super Fruity Sangria

This card is for the Stamping 411 challenge, but I found another challenge site last night - Peachy Keen Stamps challenge. The current challenge (29) is to use a summer recipe. Well, here we are deep into winter... which is actually a great time to be thinking of summer recipes. Winter can be especially long and hard when there is no Christmas to look forward to and be preparing for, and I have a very wonderful friend who finds wet cold days kinda depressing. So, after a week of being rained on fairly constantly, I thought of her for this wonderful "Super Fruity Sangria" recipe and very funky summery card.

And, finally, I am using my very cool boobie girls!

Ingredients: various cardstock scraps, chocolate chip DSP, Tangerine Tango cardstock and inks. The main ingredient here were tools: my very versatile CM punches. Large and mini circles, hearts, sweetheart maker, galaxy maker, friendship punch, bubble maker, and tag maker. I'm finding I can make just about anything, if I just think about it long enough!

Here is the Fruity Sangria recipe... I can't wait to use it myself...

Super Fruity Sangria

1 Bottle of your favourite white wine
1 Lemon cut into wedges
1 Orange cut into wedges
1 Lime cut into wedges
1 Peach cut into wedges
1 Cup sliced strawberries
1/2 Cup lemonade or limeade
1/2 Cup Sugar
2 shots of apricot, peach or "berry" flavored brandy
2 Cups ginger ale
Optional: one can of diced pineapple pieces with juice

This Sangria recipe maximizes the fruit content and adds a new twist, using a white wine, instead of the traditional reds. Buckle-up for a fruit-punch like flavour that is perfect for a BBQ this summer.

Preparation:
Pour wine in the pitcher and squeeze the juice wedges from the lemon, orange and lime into the wine. Toss in the fruit wedges (leaving out seeds if possible) and add sliced peaches, strawberries limeade/lemonade, sugar and brandy. Chill overnight. Add ginger ale and ice just before serving. If you'd like to serve right away, use chilled white wine and serve over lots of ice.

Welcome Home

This is my card for the Mojo Monday sketch challenge, plus also the Stampin Sisters in Christ challenge (distressing) and SCRAP the Art's challenge this week, which is Home sweet home.

Ingedients: Chocolate chip cardstock, ink and DSP. Pink Pirouette cardstock. Delight Paper flowers and Delight Paper ribbons from Creative Memories' range.

Enjoy!

Winter Warmer

I have my freebie organised for next month's workshops... a Winter Warmer I learned at the Crop for a Cause scrapathon on Saturday - thank you for sharing, Becky! For how to make this (and what's inside!) you will have to come along to my June workshops - trust me, this is just what you need! Especially if the rain keeps up, or we get that snow as predicted...

Workshop Dates: Christchurch June 12, Timaru June 17.

Crop for a Cause

Last Saturday's Crop for a Cause was a fantastic day... 12 hours of wonderful food, company, scrapping time, craft browsing, freebies, sharing of ideas... it was just fabulous! I simply loved having all that time put aside for my passion. The Make n Takes were so much fun and so creative... I have come away with lovely ideas. And speaking if ideas, what WONDERFUL things I saw being created! I am truly such a newbie to this stuff... and loving every minute. If you were at the Crop for a Cause and have a blog, please leave me a comment so that I can come and see your work online.
If you didn't get along to the Crop this year, keep it in mind for next. We are all hoping that Becky will organise something for 2011, but you will have to be in quick! Only 70 tickets, and all 70 who were there this year will want to attend again!
I'm hoping to post some pictures soon, but will have to beg these off others... I forgot my camera!!
Go to the Crop for a Cause blog for the latest on how much was raised for Breast Cancer research - but I know it was over $1600. Woo!

Summer Breeze

Here is my entry for the challenges at Our Creative Corner and One Stop Craft Challenge this week. Our Creative Corner provided the sketch, and One Stop Craft Challenge the theme, which was "Summer Breeze".

The ingredients for my card are Stampin Up's cardstocks Not Quite Navy, Basic Grey and Whisper White. Inks are Basic Grey, Not Quite Navy and Baja Breeze.

The stamp is a trusty old Montarga favourite.

Heart to Heart card

This card is for the Clean and Simple Sketch challenge this week. I love C&S cards and the sketches at this challenge site really help me get thinking. I have used the Cottage Wall papers and my CM mini heart punch.

First Cornet Lesson

I love these photos of Grandad and Matthew. Matthew adores listening to Grandad play any of his instruments (although his favourite is definitely the ukulele), and a few weeks back he even got a chance to blow Grandad's cornet. He got a great sound from it!

I am entering my page in two challenges this week - Hand Full of Stamps (does the cornet count as "shiny"?!) and also the Stampin Sisters in Christ one. Their challenge was to feature music or joyful praise.

These papers are from CM's Seasons Paper pack, which are soon to be unobtanium. I have grabbed a couple of packs because they are so versatile.

More CM Girlfriends

I have been getting so carried away with creating my Girlfriends! Here are my newest ones Betsy, Oprah, Natalya and Chloe.

I have done so many of them now that I feel confident to make up my own. So I have also invented Alice and Vicki - Alice inspired by the Twilight Alice, and Vicki inspired by my very own sister Victoria!

I have finally decided what I'm going to do with them. I'll make cards with the ladies on the front and quirky messages, use them as border buddies (especially appropriate for beachy pages) and give them as bookmarks! It's easy to make the tags longer too.

I have noooo idea why the photo has come in sideways. Grump.

Chocolate Birthday Cake

I have used the Taylored Expressions sketch this week to help me put together this card. It's also for the Creative Belli challenge htis week, which is BIRTHDAY, and for the Hand Full of Stamps challenge which is to go DOTTY.

I love the chocolate chip papers, and although the cake isn't coloured, it definitely makes me think of chocolate. Yum!

Matthew and Midnight

The Mojo Monday sketch this week looks perfect for a scrapbook layout. I tweaked at a little, but I knew that with this series of photos I wanted to have a large one as the main feature, but to also have smaller versions of some of the others too.

Matthew had such a lovely time meeting Auntie Maureen's cat Midnight at Christmas. He and Midnight sat together all afternoon, playing in various ways. Midnight seemed to enjoy the interaction as much as Matthew did!

Sunshine Award

I'm so lucky! Thank you so much Helen, for the Sunshine Award that you sent me. With so many inspirational blogs out there, I am very honoured that you nominated me!

I am nominating Randi Barrett first of all. Her creations are so inspiring and she always leaves such nice comments on my blog! Plus her outlook on life is so positive.
I am also nominating Chrissie, for basically the same reasons. She is so positive and makes such beautiful creations.
I have met so many lovely crafty people since starting a blog in January - and from such far flung places! I would love to visit you all one day. I feel very blessed.

Here are the ‘rules’ for the award.
1. Put the Sunshine Award on your blog and/or within your post.
2. Pass the award to other bloggers.
3. Link the nominees within your post.
4. Let them know they received this award by leaving a comment on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to the person from whom you received the award.

Creative Memories Girlfriends

Aren't these gals just gorgeous?! I love them! I've spent a bit of time today working out how to make these, and once I've done a few I will hopefully be able to come up with my own lovely ladies. I would love to say these are my own invention, but sadly no! View these and other Girlfriends at the CM project center.

I have been working on them for the Crop for a Cause coming up in Timaru on 22nd May.

Now I have to decide what to use them for! Fun birthday cards come to mind, and border buddies for my pages.

Exploding Box Mother's Day Album

Thank you thank you thank you, Helen! I needed something to help me finish off my Exploding Box album for mum for Mother's Day, and your flowers were "it"! The box has been sitting on my shelf nearly finished for a week, just missing that certain something and the title - and tonight it all came together with a little inspiration from your blog.

The words in the centre (around the flower) say "Nana's Treasures". I love the soft colours here. I have used Honeydew, cloud and butter cardstock, with papers from the Creative Memories Baby Boy Soft pack, long deleted unfortunately.

I featured only Nana's grandsons in the box, because I have made a little cascading album that shows off Emma all to herself. Soft pinks and lovely girly baby colours of course! More on that when it has been finished off too.

I am entering the box in the challenge at One Stop Craft Challenge this week - anything but a card - and also the Stampin Sisters in Christ challenge, which is Mother's Day.

Twelve Months of Matthew

This is my entry for SCRAP the Art's challenge based on Escher's sphere. I love these circular pages - I have done another for Matthew's second year too, and am working towards one for Emma also.