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

Apparently I have at least two half-term rituals. Going to ArtBase for a major shop and building furniture.

I had not one but two loyalty cards to redeem at Artbase, so I snuck in quietly and filled a basket. Shockingly, I rarely buy cardstock, but I have been on such a green-pink-purple kick that I had to break down and replenish my paper rack. Plus lots of other things. (No, I don’t know why I needed a giant ampersand, but I just do. Actually, that is entirely how I shop for supplies and it works for me.) Emma (on the right in the photo) said she had been missing blog updates (I really need to put up an ‘I’ve moved’ sign over at the old blog!) so I promised her I would blog her! Maybe, just maybe, she’ll come out of her hiding place and say hello in the comments.

So now my shopping is waiting patiently to be unpacked while I finish building and painting my new studio furniture.

There will be pictures, oh yes. It might finally look like I’ve always wanted it to look. Which would be a fabulous, fabulous thing.

{And before you say anything about that awful carpet, please remember that this place is rented! Actually, I’m hoping not much of the carpet will be visible by the time I finish. The carpet is the same throughout the entire place and it really drags the life out of me.}

xlovesx

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Little known fact: just before I met the boy, I had been talking to a publisher about the market viability for a series of travel guides aimed at people with spare income but no long-term life plan. travel guides for loners, perhaps.

Now I travel more but not on my own and we have the 2 camera rule. We both carry cameras, because we have different perspectives, see different angles and are drawn to different things. Okay, we also take a lot of duplicate photos. We giggle and get over it. Inevitably, we also take pictures of each other taking pictures.

I don’t often scrapbook these shots, but they seemed perfect for Ali’s Life Art Challenge this week…photo gathering. Although I use iPhoto and PhotoShop for my photos, I don’t normally get quite this digital…not because I don’t like it but because I just enjoy paper more. But this is a good mix for me…some things you can’t do with just paper, like that frame and the one photo bright while the others are faded, but some things that are real too, like the dimension of chipboard and some frayed inked edges (need to change the blade in my trimmer).

Supplies…papers by Bazzill, KI Memories, Basic Grey and Urban Lily. Border sticker by Making Memories. Rub-on letters by Imagination Project. Letter stickers by KI Memories. Chipboard letters by Heidi Swapp.

So happy for half-term. Feeling alive again.

xlovesx

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Trying to get back on track now. Work will still be crazy this week but now that the unexpected is expected it’s a little easier to deal with. Hmm. I’ll quit while I’m ahead with the cryptic discussion, I think. Just gotta get to Friday.

Even while I was in panic mode last week I was blogging in my head and just not getting a chance to get it written. True, right now there are two big things that I have been working on since I got home from work – the comments are broken on written down and i managed to get the audio message for You Think You Know Me recorded (without neighbour noise) but can’t get it to post so everybody in the class can listen – but I think I have looked at those two problems so long now that I can’t see straight, so I am going to blog this and get off the computer for a bit and see if that helps.

Funny that actually…go away from whatever it is you do and you come back better, so often. Hmmm indeed.

Anyway, I wanted to tell you about these two things all of last week. Firstly, that Jen is the coolest new girl to hire because for your birthday she gives you scrummy Colinette yarn and your first Addi needles as well as cupcake and coffee cup stickers in a butterfly bag. Just cuz she is that cool. Tomorrow I need to ask her if she is up for celebrating half-term with a bit of Friday afternoon knitting. Occasionally we go all anti-teachery and scare little old ladies at Starbucks who don’t understand that we can knit when we ‘don’t look like nice girls’. Classic.

Secondly, I got my copy of Portals which made me all giddy because Joleen and Heather did a little Q&A with me and a few other artists about our organisational methods and it was just cool to see it in print. Love self-publishing and the guts and commitment it takes to make it real. I’m over the page from Lisa which is pretty groovy in itself. She always makes me feel a little more okay about wanting to work in like a gazillion forms, where I can be happy but sometimes lose focus. She makes it seem like that’s just how life is. Thanks Joleen and Heather…such an honour.

I’m gonna try to keep the blogging going this week and not let the day job get me down. Kisses to all.

xlovesx

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just a quick one…

this week at work has been…one of those things that life throws at us to make us think about the bigger picture.

the boy is whisking me away for a night in the city in an attempt to make me snap out of it.

so if you have just signed up for the class and are waiting for your workbook, you will get it saturday afternoon when i am back to my computer.

so, so excited for you to start making stuff with this class. some creative fun is definitely needed after this week. ‘nuff said.

xlovesx

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First of all, congratulations to Hilary and Angie, who won a free place for themselves and a friend from yesterday’s comments! I’ve sent you both an email—please let me know the email address of your friend! (And if you know either of these ladies, now’s a good time to go tell them how fabulous they’ve been looking!)

Thank you all so much for sharing your birthday present stories. I didn’t realise I was asking such a deep question!! Your stories were so amazing, you had me smiling at one story and crying at the next. Thank you…I really loved reading each and every one. I keep coming back to them and I think I will for quite some time!

I had a lovely day and received some lovely, lovely presents (including my new love of a camera). It was a very cupcake themed day, although we actually had a chocolate cake – or two – rather than cupcakes. But I have new cupcake cookbooks, cupcake stickers, cupcake cards, cupcake wrapping paper…all sorts of scrummy.

looking forward to scrapping my new camera for this week’s lifeart prompt.

Off to put the finishing touches on the workbook and get it emailed out!

xlovesx

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My birthday still makes me feel like a giddy little kid. I love presents…getting them, giving them, making them. Presents are just happy all round.

Since today is my birthday, I’ve got some giving to do.

I haven’t opened my prezzies yet, but this one came in the box unwrapped. It’s from my grandma…and if you remember my thinking behind the custard cupcake recipe, look closely. It’s yellow with pudding in the mix. My grandma has a wicked sense of humour.

Here’s what I want to know: what was your best birthday present ever?
Comment here with your present and you have a chance of winning a free place on You Think You Know Me for yourself and one to give to a friend of your choice. Two of the comments will win. You can only enter once, please.

You’ve got until midnight GMT today—the end of my birthday!

It’s good to spread the word on this one—your friend might pick you, ya know!

ALSO: it’s the last day to enter Angie’s contest too. Just show her a layout about you and you can win. :)

We’re all about the giving today!

xlovesx

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Another teaser to get you thinking…who could this be from?

And a bit of gossip for those who read the fine print: tomorrow I will give away four places on the class: two lucky girlies will win a place for themselves AND a friend. But you have to check back here tomorrow – Sunday the 8th – to find out the details.

Spread the word!

xlovesx

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i think the ali push for a life-art-a-week may be a very good thing indeed. i just did some calendar layouts for an upcoming project…but this week’s push was to make something reviewing last month…using internal voice…yummy stuff like that.

september was all about creating which is my happiest place. teaching a daily course gets you making something every day so you can work along with your students. the getting messy approach is always the best. never trust an english teacher who doesn’t secretly want to be a full time writer and never trust an art teacher who doesn’t make stuff whenever she gets the chance.

supplies: bazzill cardstock (loving the mismatched background treatment right now. so much.), paper and epoxy bits from mod by autumn leaves (also some paper by all my memories), chipboard letters from heidi swapp and making memories, brads, flowers and the brain stamp i borrowed from cheryl. totally need to give that back!!

despite it being the month that school starts, the biggest thrills were times spent making stuff. cropping with janice and the girls in the woods, learning something new every day, scrap camp in bristol. so good to start and end the month on a creative high. so good to make something every single day.

and something else i love: symbolic stamping. i have had that brain stamp from cheryl for so long. but i love the symbolism of brain = learning every day. for every stamp in the stamp shop where you wonder who would buy that? i am thinking what can that mean? they are my absolute favourites every time.

See more life artists at work here.

xlovesx

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