Sparkle and spiders!

Howdy there Bloggettes, gosh its cold! I think that winter is most definitely well on its way! I've got my fingers crossed that none of that horrid white stuff is coming though. Roll on summer I say. Mind you I'm still waiting for this years summer! Somehow I don't rate the chance of that happening too high..... well a girl can dream can't see?

Well I thought I'd wet your whistles with a couple of cakey pictures this week. As you know (if you don't where have you been?) that its Halloween next week so I made a few Halloween cupcakes. Now check out the spiders! ;)) Don't worry they're chocolate so nice spiders with rather big eyes! the OM thought they were crabs! As I pointed out crabs have 6 legs and these clearly have 8.... men huh?

Now these ones have the most fantastic sprinkles! They're bones! Aren't they super? These came back with me from my recent holiday to America. Why can't we get them easily over here? If anyone sees any fun sprinkles please let me know!

Now while I was blog hopping I came across the Sweet Stampin Challenge. This week it was 'anything but a card'..... now these definitely aren't a card!

Now onto non edible treats!

A new challenge has just launched over at Totally Gorjuss This week we want to see some sparkle on your card. And its sponsored by Crafters Companion too, the winner gets a £10 spend in their on-line store.

So this little chap is a Magnolia snowman from last year. I think he's one of my favourites and super easy to colour, oh and super quick too.

Now he's had some Stickles on his snowflake which strangely enough doesn't show too well even with my class act photography..... You can see the Stickles round the edge though! And more surprisingly it was dry! Yes I think that's a first for me photographing a dry card.

This little guy with his die cut borders also fits in a new (to me) challenge blog I came across called Mark's Finest Papers, so I entered him in that too.

Oh and for a treat an arty shot!

Now I decided to take these in the conservatory..... I still had to contort myself into some bizarre stances. Trouble is this time the neighbours could see me! They probably thought I was doing some bizarre exercises or that I was waiting for the men in white coats to call....

Happy birthday Totally Gorjuss!

Yay!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TOTALLY GORJUSS!!!

Yes peeps believe it or not Totally Gorjuss is one year old! We've had a whole entire year of challenges! Wow! How on earth did that happen? I mean where has that last year gone to? Surely its only a few months since it began?.... Well seeing as its challenge 52 and there's been one a week.... well that's a year then. Flippin' heck! They do say time flies when you're having fun, and its certainly fun.

Now the first ever challenge we had was pink, so it seems right and proper that pink be revisited in honour of our birthday. So we wanna see tons of pink!

So in honour of this I made a birthday card, with one of my favouritest Magnolias - isn't she cute?
Naturally she has been coloured with Copics, E0000, E000, E00, E01, E53, E47, E59, RV000, RV00, RV02, RV10, BG11, BG13, Woo, W1 and W3 (no faint I remembered) papers from GCD, flowers from Wild Orchid and punching a la Martha, oh and a few swipes of Stickles.

Oh my arty shot ;)) You can just about make out the Stickles..... and yes they were wet when I took the photo. No change there then ;))

Oh to celebrate TG's birthday this week we're sponsored by Lili of the Valley and for every 50 entrants I'm going to add a prize to the winners pot. So the more the merrier.

Oh and there's more! There's a DT call out for a Guest Gorjussette - wanna come and play with the Gorjussettes? email me at totallygorjuss@gmail.com

Hey its Wednesday!

Er now the ones of you who saw my previous post of my holiday stash haul might have noticed where I called it 'some of'.... well I just popped these little babies on my desk!

In my defence Jo-Ann's had 40% off.... like it would have made a difference if they hadn't ;)) I only wish I'd had more room in the cases. The OM said if I hadn't bought so much other stuff it would have been OK I could have got more hardware. Personally though I'm sure if hadn't bought that half a dozen shirts in Izod I could have got way more stuff in.....

~waves~

Howdy Bloggettes!

Here I am back from me 'olidays. Lucky ol me has been to the beautiful sunny climes of Flo-Rida! Oh my it was F A B U L O U S!!! We had a week at the superb Clearwater Beach (we stay right on the beach!), then we go off to Kissimmee for a week. We rent a villa on a lake up there. This year we had a resident alligator! We called him Gary ;)) What with him and the turtles, ducks, ibises, egrets, herons, grackles etc we had a resident menagerie going.

Well anyway..... seeing as we were in America which is after all the craft shopping capital of the world it would have been rude not to indulge a teeny tiny bit of stash acquisition.... Wouldn't it?

Anyway I'd tried showing these somewhere else but that didn't work so I decided to blog them ;))

So in its entirety (almost). May I introduce The Stash! Da daaaahhhhhh!


See I said it was hardly anything didn't I? I mean you should have seen the stuff I could have had!

Now in one shop I went in called Posh Scraps in Palm Harbor, run by a lovely English lady, she had a new range of stamps. These are some of them - now I have no idea what to do with these at the moment! But they appealed.....

Oh and these ones had the same effect! So they leapt into my basket too, you know how it is don't you?

Oh and then I saw these babies in another shop! They're by the T!mster himself. I just think they're totally lush.

Oh and then.... while I was still swooning I spotted these little babies! As well as a couple of new Glimmer Mist colours for Christmas I spotted the new ones they do. They're chalky with a slight shimmer to them. Trust me they're fantastic and you DO need them.

So like I said hardly anything.....

Tinny tin tin!

Howdy Bloggettes!

Me again ;)) I know in pretty quick succession to my last post - how did that happen?

I mean have I got organised all of a sudden or something? Nah like that is so NOT going to happen.

So when I was in Vegas ;)) I happened to find a little cigar tin, it was clean! So for some reason I picked it up with a little seed of an idea in my mind.... like they do you know?

So I decided to titivate or as the term is these days 'alter' it. Heck its still titivating in my book lol

So I decided to do it as a kiss in a tin for my OM - aren't I getting soppy! In my defence I have just had a new set of golf clubs....

So here's the lid.

Magnolia heart stamp which has been Copic'd and Glamour dusted, a little strip of lace and a few pearls.

The inside.... ~blushes~

The sentiment on the inner lid with just a touch of lace.

The 'bottom' of the lid with a Tilda and a few roses.

So there you have 'the' tin. The OM really liked it though ;)) I hope you do too.

I suppose you could adapt it for all sorts of soppy/sentimental things.

Oh no they're back!

Howdy Bloggettes!

Well you'll never believe this! Its only happened again those wretched aliens have struck again! I mean three times now who'd believe it....

OK so really I've been away for a few days, yup I've been to Vegas with the girls! Erm that's Skeg-Vegas actually ;)) To the uninitiated among you its other name is Skegness. We had a few days golfing. It was fab! We didn't get too wet either which is always a bonus.

Now while I was there I decided to visit the National Parrot Zoo cum sanctuary. Now I've read lots of things about this place. Not all of them good I have to say. However on the other hand where and what would have happened to all these birds if they hadn't took them? There is much controversy that they charge people to go in and see them, yes I agree they should charge something. I know from first hand experience parrots are not a cheap pet! I just found it quite sad that at one time these birds had spent time in peoples homes and now here they were in aviaries full of other birds. Plus the part of the country they're in gets mighty cold in winter.... some of them aren't fully clothed with feathers either :(( Then they said they don't take all of those ones in in the winter either. They do sell peanuts in shells for visitors to feed them. Now I don't give these to my girls because of the risk of fungal spores. Instead I took a couple of kilos of grapes!

So a few photos

This is one of the aviaries containing African Greys. Lots of these were coming and saying things like 'hello baby', it was actaully quite upsetting, but they all loved a grape. I wish I'd taken more.

Now look at this little guy without his feathers on! He should really be inside. The staff tell people that if your parrot plucks it will stop when it moves into a flock situation. Well sorry but I don't believe it as there's lots there which are plucked.

There was a couple of aviaries full of cockatoos. Now this little darling really really wanted a grape. He couldn't eat one though as he has a metal ring stuck on his beak! A rusty old thing it looks too, the staff had no idea until I told them. I also told the owner Steve Nichols - I intend to phone and see if its been removed. Poor chickie



So if you're passing and you call please don't buy the peanuts, take grapes instead! As many as you can the birds love them and they're much better for them. If you see something not right - tell the staff!

Phew!

Now a new challenge has just launched over at Totally Gorjuss This week we want to see something wild! And what's wilder than a bear? OK so this specimen is a particularly cute teddy bear but hey its a bear! And bears are wild.... Oh this week its sponsored by Crafters Companion.


So this little beastie has been Copic'd and the lush Wild Orchid Crafts gardenias have been given the sparkle treatment.

A little close up to show the hint of a sparkle on the flowers. I'm pretty pleased with my bow too! I'm getting pretty good at them now..... I only had to tie it about 20 times.....

Oh my its like buses!

Howdy there bloggettes!

You know how we, well in the UK at any rate, say that things are like buses? You know you wait ages and then three come along at once? Well that's like this blog post! It seems to have been ages (again) since I posted and here I am with three, yes three cards all at once!

I thought I'd treat you.... but is treat the right word though?

So I'll dive right in, on second thoughts no! I can remember a very painful belly flop...

Over at Totally Gorjuss a new challenge has just been launched, I make it sound like a rocket! Anyways the theme this week is a sketch, super easy peasy as its one of mine. I only do easy You all know I take being technically challenged to whole new levels. As usual lately I've used a Lili of the Valley stamp. I just love them! They're so cute and super easy to colour.

This little sweetie is getting her Christmas ready! Papers are some of last years MME ones. Talking of tree trimming I noticed a house near me still has all its Christmas lights on it. Pretty bizarre huh?

Right the next er... treat is this funky Momma! She is one of the fabulous Rock Squad available from Kenny K.

Now lastly a little Tilda! I dug her out the other day and applied Copics (natch), a few holly leaves and I repeat stamped a Magnolia greeting. The pink frame is from Which Crafts and is called a 'frame it'. I think Tilda looks sweet sat in the corner. I think the frame needs a little 'something'.... just not sure what exactly. I did think of a snowflake stamp.... but I couldn't find it! Those of you who saw my desk on WOYWDW will understand what I mean ;))

I rather like the layered effect though. This is one of my fave Tildas too. I think the later ones are much nicer than the earlier ones. I always thought they looked a bit like hippos!

Now I've entered this in the challenge over at Just Magnolia where the theme is 'Anything goes'

The DT have done cards with a 'cracked glass' technique. Now there's a few funny stories on there about what they've been up to. I'll add mine! Many years ago I was trying this out and had just done my last layer of embossing. I picked the image up without thinking that it might be hot! I dropped it, very quickly. I then learnt a few things;

1. Like toast it will land sticky side down

2. It stays very hot for a good while

3. Don't do this while you're wearing shorts

4. It will take your skin off!

Yes the hot thing landed on my bare thigh! Burnt a big square on it and nicely removed the top layer of skin.... it was stuck to! But on a good point further embossing removes skin debris! Thinking about it I've not tried it since then. I can't think why.... Oh it was a week before we went on holiday too.

Have a fabby weekend - I hope I've not bored you to bits!