paper: pretty paper. true stories. {and scrapbooking classes with cupcakes.}

Something new for 2008. A few things. Like the giant red blossoms on this plant that we have kept alive for exactly one year today. {Seriously, this is no small accomplishment as far as I am concerned. Acrylic paint does not make me a green thumb.} And some pretty branches instead of polka dots. But never fear: there is still pink.

There’s a funny little addition over at the side…one a few little projects I am hoping to work on throughout 2008…Kitchen Diaries. It’s separated off from the main page because the diary will be its own little story, and I want it just so, all in one place. I won’t explain too much here, since there is a lengthy explanation to start the diary anyway, but just know the main page won’t turn into a food blog. If you like the idea of following along, then lovely. If not, you can ignore it and we will all be blissfully happy about the situation.

There are a few other little projects that will grow day by day. One involves the Autumn Leaves calendar and a great deal of aging scrapbook supplies. I think I’ll tell you a little more about that one tomorrow.

The last one starts with the photo above. I’ve always tried to take a picture every day but I’ve never actually put a label to the activity, so I’m not sure how many days I have missed…and I am not going to trawl through my hard drive to find out. I’m just going to start for 2008 and see how long I go until I mess up and miss a day. So far, 1 for 1 is just fine.

2007 was definitely unlike any other year for me. May 2008 be kind, generous and peaceful to us all.

xlovesx

PS: Yes, there are few little creases to iron out on the site in the next day or so. If you run into something that doesn’t look quite right, just consider it a non-millennium bug or a special feature of sorts. It’ll get fixed.

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Hoping you have had a very lovely Christmas week. Ours has been low-key, handmade and indeed very lovely. {For family and friends back home who are curious, we have started to put some pictures together for you. We will add a few more…it has taken us long enough, I know!}

This last week the internet has been all sorts of slow while people are out there having lives instead of blogging, you know. We are all clicking and seeing nothing new, and then we wonder what exciting things that person must be doing that they haven’t updated in so many days! Or at least I like to think it’s not just me with that mindset.

I do, however, promise there will be definite changes around here as of sometime tomorrow. First of the year being a good time for changes, you know. In fact, the first few months of the year are going to hold some very big {and very happy} changes around here. May January be lovely to us all!

xlovesx

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I declare
my intention to Journal my Christmas. Writing something down every day. Creating a little bit whenever possible. Getting my stories documented for myself and maybe for others to read too.

I hope
by taking a little time each day to reflect, to write, to create, I will keep my Christmas alive and well, despite the commercial pressure that exists outside my door. Family, friends and hot beverages will help.

I may
meet others taking this same journey. I may share my work from time to time. I may remember just why I loved Christmas in the first place, and that may be a very magical moment indeed.

xlovesx

PS: You are welcome to join in today or throughout December, in fact. Just please know that registering you takes a real person, and I will not be at my computer during the day, as I’ll be helping the Enfield ScrapMates do something crafty. As soon as I am home, I will get you all set up and you’ll be good to go before the day is out.

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One of the things that I find makes it possible to create an album or a journal with daily entries is limiting. Gathering one set of supplies plus basic tools and not worrying about the rest of your stash once you’re started. Or at least not too much. And you may very well have enough Christmas stash to keep you making Christmas journals for the next three decades. If you do, by all means pull it out and put it to work. But if you don’t, this might be just the thing for you this Christmas. It’s Christmas in a pizza box.

The Snowfall kit has lots of blue tones with an emphasis on ice and snow and frosty winter. Like scrapping outside. In Lapland. I think you’d need gloves for that.

The Father Christmas kit has lots of rich reds and browns with a vintage feel. Like spoiling your dinner by eating Christmas chocolates by the fire. And probably getting chocolate on your new clothes.

The Snowfall kit includes:
8 sheets of 12×12 cardstock – including tan, green, white, red and blue
1 sheet of 8.5×11 bling cardstock (red, green or dark pink)
1 sheet of 6×12 die cut cardstock in green scallop

23 sheets of patterned paper, including:
10 12×12 sheets from My Mind’s Eye (the Frost collection)
4 12×12 sheets from Sassafrass Lass
7 12×12 sheets from American Crafts
2 12×12 sheets from Hambly Screen Prints

as well as:
1 12×12 sheet of printed accents from My Mind’s Eye
2 12×12 sheets of printed gift boxes from My Mind’s Eye (use as an actual box or like patterned paper)
4 12×12 transparent overlays from Hambly Screen Prints (On Edge in silver, Woodgrain in gold, Urban Chic Frames in green, Vintage Circle Wallpaper in green)
4 journaling cards from My Mind’s Eye (Daily Dose collection)
1 sheet of 7 stickers from My Mind’s Eye
1 mini file booklet set from Creek Bank Creations
1 set of Daiquiri Thickers letter stickers in green from American Crafts
4 unfolded Christmas cards
2 plain envelopes
A selection of ribbons, trims and notions, including:
red velvet ribbon, red rick-rack, pink & red dot ribbon, green & blue dot ribbon, snowflake ribbon, frost blue velvet rick-rack and frost blue buttons

The Father Christmas kit includes:
8 sheets of 12×12 cardstock – including tan, green, white, red and blue
1 sheet of 8.5×11 bling cardstock (red, green or dark pink)
1 sheet of 6×12 die cut cardstock in green scallop

23 sheets of patterned paper, including:
10 12×12 sheets from My Mind’s Eye (the Festive collection)
4 12×12 sheets from Sassafrass Lass
7 12×12 sheets from American Crafts
2 12×12 sheets from Hambly Screen Prints

as well as:
1 12×12 sheet of printed accents from My Mind’s Eye
2 12×12 sheets of printed gift boxes from My Mind’s Eye (use as an actual box or like patterned paper)
4 12×12 transparent overlays from Hambly Screen Prints (On Edge in silver, Woodgrain in gold, Urban Chic Frames in green, Vintage Circle Wallpaper in green)
4 journaling cards from My Mind’s Eye (Daily Dose collection)
1 sheet of 7 stickers from My Mind’s Eye
3 index pockets from Creek Bank Creations
1 set of Daiquiri Thickers letter stickers in green from American Crafts
4 unfolded Christmas cards
2 plain envelopes
A selection of ribbons, trims and notions, including:
red velvet ribbon, red rick-rack, pink & red dot ribbon, green & blue dot ribbon, snowflake ribbon, green velvet rick-rack and red buttons

These kits are designed to make a full album, up to 12×12 in size, throughout the Christmas season. You may want to add some additional cardstock in colours that match your Christmas. From there, you’ll just need your scissors, trimmer, adhesive and black pen and you’ll be set!

If you purchased the items in the kit individually, they would come to at least £42.65 before postage and packing.

Both kits are available in limited numbers for £36.50 + £3.50 postage and packing.

The Snowfall Kit
A kit of frosty blues
(Now sold out.)

The Father Christmas Kit
A kit of traditional reds
(Now sold out.)

Kits are ready to ship and will be sent within 24 hours of payment by Royal Mail first class to UK addresses. European orders welcome—an invoice for additional postage will be sent via paypal. The additional postage will be charged at actual cost. Your box will be shipped upon receipt of the additional postage costs. Orders from the rest of the world welcomed, but it’s probably not economical outside of Europe! Check Royal Mail for the price of posting a 1kg parcel to your address.

Any questions, just let me know! Many thanks.

xlovesx

ETA: Father Christmas kits are all spoken for now! There are still a handful of Snowfall kits available.

To everyone who has been by to shop today, thank you very much! I’ve just got to get your address on the box, and it will be with Royal Mail and on its way! Hurrah.

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A little sneak peek of what will be on sale at noon today.

xlovesx

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894.

In all seriousness, I am not about the page counts. I have no idea how many layouts I have done this year, last year, ever. I tried counting when I started. I think I was confused by about 7. So…counting, not really for me.

But you gotta admit that 46 girls making 894 pages is pretty darn cool. It was actually pretty darn electric.

Thank you to all who crammed into the shop and the school this weekend. Thank you to Fiona at PaperArts for asking me. Thank you to Christine, Jane, Helen and everyone they coerced into helping pick and pack the most beautiful kits I’ve ever had for this workshop. Thank you to Kate {who makes fabulous fried egg on toast!}, to Laura {who will make sure you are a-okay at all times!} and to Sally {who let me stay in her room!} for all your marvellous help. And thank you to everybody who just gave it a go—I hope your mojo is alive and well and you are itching to get things written down and pieced together. And maybe even use that stash!

xlovesx

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I knew autumn was going to be the craziest time of my recent memory. (Jen knows well that 2007 is our joint Year of the Surreal, and that is ongoing.) So with changing leaves and space needles, I am definitely sticking with both of those labels.

As of last night, we are now in Seattle. (_We_ meaning The Boy and I rather than Jen and I. I realise vague pronoun references are almost as annoying as knowing that I am yet again in the same country as Jen and yet no.where.near.) A few days of touristy goodness. Then a few days of work for me. Then a good week of a proper holiday for both of us, in which he navigates while I drive us to Vancouver and we take the ferry to Victoria and assorted other things that are lovely in this part of the world.

It’s not the time of year that one would normally book a holiday to the pacific northwest, and we are enjoying that very much. Of all the times I have been to this city, today is the first time I have been up the Space Needle, and there were approximately six other people up there. Including a British couple, of course. It is chilly but not freezing. Clear and crisp. Nothing a lot of coffee won’t solve. The Boy is not tiring of his highly original game of saying ‘Oh! There’s a Starbucks!’ in a way that reminds me a bit of ‘Look kids—Big Ben and Houses of Parliament!’ In general, it’s just not as busy right now as in the summer. Which is fine, because if you haven’t heard, we queue enough in England already. To put certain minds at ease, I am still on the decaf though I am jealous that someone else has had like three double tall lattes today and isn’t wired in the slightest. I’ll get over it.

And the obligatory twee-but-true observation: long-haul travel is far more fun when someone else comes along. Though it’s a tough choice when only one of you gets offered a free upgrade to first class.

xlovesx

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And just in case visiting one’s home town wasn’t weird enough: there’s teaching one’s home crowd.

Thank you to everybody who joined in my classes at the CK Scrapbook Convention in Kansas City. Extra thanks to my fabulous assistants who helped me keep an eye on everyone, and to Tami who came along to take pictures. So if you came to class and always wanted photos of you scrapping, you might just find one here. (The photos are from the Thursday night classes + birthday party.)

I’m so glad we could bond over our love of pretty paper. And some other stuff too.

xlovesx

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