at odds

DSS Fall Daze & Blog Hop

2009-09-28T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe that this is the first time I've blogged since June - but life has been pretty...erm...tumultuous might be the best word for it and everything online and digital has had to take a back seat to practicalities like paying the mortgage...sigh!

Still struggling with that particular issue - and looking for yet another job in the struggle to keep the wolves at bay...but here I am finally with just a little time to post an update.

Digiscrap Station is hosting a month-long event ... Fall Daze... just click the picture below to go to the calendar of festivities for all the great things that Nancy has planned...

And it's kicking off with blog train! The DSS designers have created a variety of wallpapers (some with October calendars and some without) which you can collect from their blogs - and here's a sneak preview:

Click on the preview to go to Nancy's blog for a full list of participating sites - and before you go hopping - don't forget to grab mine! I used my Slick City Chick kit, and there are three options, one complete and ready to use, and two with spaces for photos, both with and without the calendar - click the preview below to grab all three.

Well that's all for now - don't know whether I'll get time to blog again any time soon - but until then, slainte!!!

Fab Freebies & $2 Friday Express Deals

2009-06-12T12:17:00.000-07:00

First of all, I'm really excited because I have a freebie featured in this week's DSS newsletter!!! It's a little mini called Tarantella Dusk which matches my Tarantella kit (scroll down to see the full kit available for a song!)

Just click on the picture below to take you to the newsletter where you can snag the freebie - and don't forget to sign up to the newsletter for lots more freebies in the future!

And next up is this month's stunning SDK Mega - the theme is June Bride and includes lots of fabulous minis - all of them free!

My contribution is a cute shaped quickpage collection that matches the Basic Grey Keyplate chipboard album - but the individual pages can also be used as clusters on standard layouts, or add a ribbon or tassel to create a pretty bookmark - or if you're planning a wedding you could also use them on invitations or place-cards for a truly custom look!

Four of the minis are already available - and more will be released through the month - including the album! Just click on the preview to take you to the SDK On the House category - and then be sure to sign up for the SDK newsletter to find out when the rest of the mega is released!

And if you liked my Tarantella Dusk freebie, you'll love the full Tarantella kit which is available for today only at just $2 in the DSS Friday Express - just click on the preview to go to the site:

Also in the Friday Express for just $2 are my new Desktop and Mobile Wallpaper Services - so now's the time to try them out!!! You'll also find my Florient brushes & custom shapes for Photoshop and my Timesaver Toolkit for PSP. But remember they're only on special today so grab em quick!

Well that's all from me - have a great weekend!!!

$2 Friday Express & May Madness Sale

2009-05-22T22:07:00.000-07:00

There's a lot going on at the moment!!

Firstly, don't forget that tomorrow is the $2 Friday Express at Digiscrap Station, and I've got some goodies lined up for you:

Let's start with a couple of new products - my new Timesavers Toolkit is available in either Photoshop or Paintshop Pro formats and includes no less than 17 actions/scripts - and yep they're both on special tomorrow for just $2! Good for personal, commercial and scrap for hire!

Next I've got a set of six classic Celtic Crafts Quickpages for just $2 also:

And a taster of my commercial use PSP brush & tube sets (also available for Photoshop) - each pack contains 10 images in PSP brush, tube and PNG formats for maximum versatility - and Photoshop packs contain brush, custom shape and PNG formats. This Victorian Floral set is just $2 tomorrow only:

And finally a set of CU fondant icing frames all ready to frame your birthday pages or create your own cake tops - includes a set of randomly piped florets and borders as a bonus - and all for just $2 tomorrow only:

And finally, if you miss out on the Friday Express - you can catch these and many more great bargains in the Scrappin Digi Kreations May Madness sale - starting tomorrow!

Hugz!!!

I luv playing with pearls...

2009-05-16T23:03:00.000-07:00

Yep, besides lace, I must confess to yet another vice, namely...pearls. Sigh! I've always loved them, hankered for them, yearned for them...and now I finally found a way to put my vice to good use lol!

I stumbled on the most incredible stash of pearls for beading and needless to say they found their way into my heart, into my hands and now into my etsy shop (and in the process some of them found their way under my desk...I'll have to go find them later lol!)

And I am loving etsy so much...I actually went and reactivated a shop I had at CafePress way back in 2005 and never used. It's in a fledgling state, there's only one design there so far...but if you want a quick preview, go here: http://www.cafepress.com/Belanna

Aaargh...I have lots more I wanted to catch up on, but I'm being summoned for dinner (isn't he a darling? I can't believe he puts up with me!) - so I must run...but I'll be back later!!!

Sales, Prizes, Coupons, Freebies....I'm worn out already!

2009-05-02T19:48:00.000-07:00

Yep, NSD isn't even over yet and I'm already officially worn out lol!

So let's start with what's going on in my little patch....there are massive storewide sales (of course!) in all three of my stores - at Digiscrap Station, Woolsweater Street and Scrappin Digi Kreations - and you wouldn't believe the bargains - I've already snapped up a few myself lol! So if you're ready to go bargain hunting, come visit us at:

But that's just for starters - the main event is a huge crop extravaganza at Digiscrap Station...and I mean huge! Starting from noon on Sunday there are no less than 17 separate activities - including all sorts of layout challenges, games, treasure hunts and chats! Bring along all the freebies you've scored elsewhere and put them to good use in some fun and fabulous crop challengs.

There are oodles of goodies just for participating - and in addition to that - every thing you do earns you points - and what do points make? Prizes!!!! And oh boy, what great prizes! There's a 2gb flashdrive, Amazon gift certificates and much, much more...even a little something from my new etsy store lol!

So don't hang about, go get signed up now so that you're ready when the whistle blows 'All Aboard!' for the DSS NSD mega crop event! Just click on the graphic to go to the forum to sign up and get all the info you need to play:

Time for an early night I think, to get ready for tomorrow lol! Night night all!!!

Baubles, Bits & Bobs by Belanna

2009-04-30T22:17:00.000-07:00

First things first...I'm on a bit of a high today because I passed my medical terminology exam - what a relief! Especially since I couldn't get hold of the recommended text, and only discovered as I began the test that half the questions weren't covered by the alternative text that the library gave me - horrors!

I nearly walked away but then thought, what the heck, it couldn't hurt to try. So whether it was fluke or skill, I really wouldn't care to say, but I'm just thrilled I don't have to do it again!

So because I'm on a bit of a high, I finally got my rear in gear and launched my Etsy shop - Belanna's Baubles, Bits & Bobs. I've only got one item in it so far, but I was really pleased that it was so easy to set up. Now I just have to take loads of photos of all the other bits and bobs I've been tinkering with lol!

In other news, fab things are afoot this weekend at Digiscrap Station - starting with the every popular Friday Express - whoo whoo! Then tons of sales - followed by a mega marathon crop - where you get to show off all the goodies you gathered, bought and won during NSD - no matter where in scrap land it came from. How cool is that??? And not to mention prizes...oops did I mention prizes? No, I'm sure I wasn't meant to mention that....and not just digi prizes but some real world goodies too....but you didn't hear it from me!

But don't let me Twitter on (coz I do that now too lol!)...there's so much to do, so little time, and I can't be late again....help, I've got White Rabbit syndrome!

Friday $2 Express, First ever sale & Freebie!!!

2009-04-10T11:42:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe, but I now have enough items in my store to actually participate in the Friday Express at Digiscrap Station - everything in the Friday Express is reduced to $2 and since there are loads of designers, you'll find some real bargains - including some fabulous commercial use items!!! Click the picture to hop on board the Express:

And even harder to believe, I'm in my first ever sale! The Easter & Passover Sale at Woolsweater Street has just started and runs until Sunday. All of Karen's incredible actions are includes and some simply stunning alphas from Flitterfidget - and all at 25% off! Click on the pic to go shop the sale:

And if you're wondering what I've been up to lately, well I've been hard at work creating commercial use brushes, and a new kit called Tarantella - inspired by that sensational Hilaire Belloc poem about the gypsy dance of Southern Italy. And I've got a little freebie in both stores that matches it - a pair of CD-shaped quick pages that can be used as is, or added to a larger layout as frame clusters. Hope you like them!

So if you're shopping in the Woolsweater Street Sale or the Friday Express, don't forget to add this little sweetie to your basket:

Have a great weekend everyone!
Hugz
Belanna

At your service...

2009-03-23T00:05:00.000-07:00

After much dithering and pondering, I am pleased to announce that I've finally summoned up the nerve to go commercial - with a new service for designers:

So, if you're a designer and you're finding that too much of your precious design time is taken up with other tasks and you feel you're missing out on the opportunity to make more from your designs - because you simply don't have time to create add-ons such as quick pages, albums, printables and hybrid items - then I'll do it for you!

The end result is then yours to sell as add-ons or standalone products, or to use as promotional tools such as bundle incentives, challenge prizes or chat participation gifts.

There are three 'flavours' of this service available:

Standard Quick Pages - any of the usual 12 x 12, 8 x 8, 6 x 4 etc - or any size you want as long as it's essentially square or rectangular.

Shaped Quick Pages - your choice of any of the Basic Grey, Maya Road or Cosmo Cricket ranges.

Custom Hybrid Printables - you name it, I'll make it - gift boxes, treat bags, book marks, money holders, gift card holders, door hangers - whatever you fancy really! If you can describe it, I can make it!

I'm offering singles and six-packs in each category, and also a Pick & Mix six-pack that includes your choice from each category.

For more details on any of the options - you'll find the full range of services available at either:

And many thanks to Nancy at DSS and Sammy at SDK for the opportunity to be a part of their fabulous teams - and for their endless patience and understanding!!!

And if you go and browse, you'll find a little free taster in each shop - a pair of 8x8 Quick Pages made with my first ever commercial kit - Belanna's Celtic Crafts.

As time goes on I'm planning to add more freebie tasters of each service category - but until then I'd like to say a huge thank you to the wonderful designers who very kindly allowed me to use previews of items I've made for them to illustrate my services: Ali Folendore, Gail Cook, Karen Stimson, Krista Ringham and Liz Dau - colossal hugz to you all!

So that's it from me for now - still tons to do! But if you have any queries regarding the services or the options - or any suggestions for other items you'd like to see included - let me know!

Slainte!

Bad news, good news, late news...

2009-03-20T12:29:00.000-07:00

We interrupt your scheduled programming to bring you .... me! Back again after a rather turbulent few weeks. First the bad news - along with millions of others I am now officially without work...so if you happen to know of anyone who needs a freelancing instructional content designer...let me know!

Now the late news...I'm always late to the party, but at least this time I'm only a week behind lol! My good friend and inspiration, Karen Stimson, introduced me to DigiscrapStation a while ago, and a jolly good store it is too! And as of last week they're hosting the Friday Express - fabulous $2 specials on all kinds of things including a whole host of personal, S4H and CU goodies.

Click on the ad to go directly to the Friday Express...but don't forget to have a browse through the store - there's lots of sales on!

And the good news? Well, erm... hopefully there's some of that on the way for all of us...but in the meantime, here's a little freebie to brighten your day...

Click on the preview to find out where to download this pair of 8x8 quickpages - you might just be surprised!

Candy Coated - Tweet Hearts

2009-02-06T11:48:00.001-08:00

Well, it's been a while, but here I am finally designing again - this time thanks to Amanda's Candy Coated Challenges at the Bud Club. Each challenge begins with a video tutorial on a specific technique, and then we're awarded points based on how well we master/adapt the technique to make it our own.

The first challenge focused on using doodles to create three dimensional, layered elements - which I'd never even considered lol! But since the challenge required that we create our own original doodles to begin with, and I'm a bit 'challenged' in the doodle department...this is what I came up with:

Additional criteria for the kit was as follows:

6 papers - 4 patterned, 2 solids
A full alphas
9 elements including 2 doodle-based, and one piece of wordart

Apart from my rather woeful birdie, heart and 'Love' doodles, I really love how some of the other elements turned out. Of course the lace-edged heart, frayed heart and eyelet lace ribbon are all thanks to Karen Stimson at Wool Sweater Street, she has some fabulous new actions!

If you'd like to snag my little Tweet Hearts kit (and lots more attractive ones besides lol!), click on the picture to go to the contest gallery, and please leave some love!

Sigh....

2009-01-14T00:32:00.000-08:00

Regrettably I am another year older and have so very little to show for it... no cake, no presents, and very soon I fear, no job. And what am I planning to do about it? Bury my head, drown my sorrows, and hope that tomorrow is not the day I'm dreading it will be...

Ignore me, I'm wallowing in a forty year pool of misery and fear that's coagulating in my veins as I speak...but I just wanted to say this....

Birthdays really suck!!!

ADSR 4 - And we're off....

2009-01-05T22:13:00.000-08:00

And we're off on another crazy helter skelter ADSR 4...and I have a new partner all the way from New Zealand - big hugz and hellos to Mag!!! And we have a new blog to track our progress...so please come visit us! Our team name is CaNZ Creatives and all you have to do is click the pic to find yourself transported to our ADSR blog:

This was my fairly hurried layout for the first challenge...and many thanks to Hummie for the inspiration! Hurried because I've been without power or internet most of the weekend and wanted to get it finished quickly before the lights went out again lol! The journalling is a little verse about siblings...of which I have many!

I kinda like mine, but by comparison, Mag's is a complete work of art...you really have to go see it!!!

On other news, I didn't get a chance to post the last couple of days of Ali's 12 Days of Christmas Freebies before they were gone...New Year just got hectic! So I hope you managed to scoot over to SBB to snag them, but just in case you didn't, I can at least show you what you missed!

That's all for now, can't wait for Challenge 2!!!!

12 Days of Christmas Freebies - Days 8 & 9

2008-12-28T19:06:00.000-08:00

Yay!!! It's time for some more freebies from Ali! The first is a set of photo gift tags I made from Ali's gorgeous and muted All that Glitters kit:

And next is another alpha, this time an elegant emerald button alpha, perfect for all kinds of scrapping!

Don't forget they'll be gone tomorrow, so click either preview to go snag them now, and don't forget to leave Ali lots of love!!!

And I finally found a partner willing to put up with me for ADSR 4 which is starting on January 4th, I can't wait!!!

And last but certainly not least, birthday hugz and kisses to my beloved and long-suffering other half! I don't know how you put up with me, but I'm ever so glad that you do. xxx

12 Days of Christmas Freebies - Day 6 & 7

2008-12-25T19:30:00.001-08:00

Firstly, wherever you are and whatever you're doing, I hope you've had or are having a really special day today!!!

And now, on to a special double treat from Ali - Days 6 and 7 together! And I'm doubly thrilled because the goodie for Day 6 is one of my little projects, some mini trinket boxes using Ali's fun and funky Sugar & Spice kit from the Shabby Holiday Collection:

And for an even bigger treat, Day 7 is a multi-coloured set of ten bulb lights to match Ali's Home Grown Christmas kit...which is still available for the jaw-dropping price of just $1.99 and includes no less than 4 full bulb alphas...

Don't forget that they're only available for a day, so run and grab them quick before they disappear! Just click either image to go snag them!

Wishing you lots of love and fun and joy for the remainder of the holidays!

12 Days of Christmas Freebies - Day Five

2008-12-24T10:43:00.000-08:00

Ooops! I overslept lol! And woke to discover this yummy new treat...a set of notecards made with Ali's tasty Gingerbread Dreams kit:

These are so festive and so versatile, use them as gift tags, recipe cards or thank yous! And a little bird tells me that Ali's extended Day 4 for today because there was a glitch, so run quick and grab em both and don't forget to leave some love!

12 Days of Christmas Freebies - Day 4

2008-12-22T21:20:00.001-08:00

Yay!!!! Day 4 is up and it's another of my little projects...I do so love those shaped albums don't you? And Ali's very elegant Shabby St Nicholas kit was just perfect for a keyplate album!

And here's a little tip, if you don't want to make a keyplate album, you can also use these curvy pages to make the most adorable bookmarks...just add your photos, print, cut and add a little ribbon or tassle and your're done...lots of pretty little stocking fillers for next to nothing lol!

Click the image to snage the freebie...but be quick, it's only available for 24 hours until the next one is uploaded...and don't forget to leave Ali some love for her wonderful 12 day giveaway!

12 Days of Christmas Freebies - Day 3

2008-12-21T19:32:00.000-08:00

I have to say this is like unwrapping a new present every day lol! Today is a gorgeous little mini kit featuring lots of cute Christmas trees:

Click on the image to go grab it, but be quick, it's only available for 24 hours!!!! This cute mini is actually an add-on to Ali's new Home Grown Christmas kit which includes a full Christmas Lights alpha in Red, and as a bonus you get another three full Christmas Light alphas in Green, White & Yellow....all for just $1.99!!! You just can't beat that for value!

Would you believe it - I made these!

2008-12-20T22:14:00.001-08:00

Yep, Ali actually let me play with some of her kits to create a little something for her 12 Days of Christmas Freebies, and here it is:

I so love brackets! And this was such a fun kit to play with! Click on the image to go grab it - but be quick, it's only available for 24 hours!!! If you like the pages, you'll love the kit: Gingerbread Dreams and it's on special for an incredible $1.99!

12 Days of Christmas Freebies!!!

2008-12-20T12:39:00.000-08:00

As anyone who saw my layouts in ADSR3 will know, I am a big fan of Ali Folendore, so I was really excited to discover this and had to share it with you...

Click on the image to be taken to the first day...and don't forget to leave some love! Plus she has just released some yummy festive kits at bargain prices at the moment...and many include full bragbooks as bonuses...perfect for making those last minute gifties...how cool is that?

And one final thing, I have a little surprise for some special chums out there ... it won't be in time for Christmas, but I'm hoping you'll like it!!!!

Christmas Around the World

2008-12-11T00:25:00.000-08:00

We interrupt this leave of absence to bring you a little festive moment...also known as the Christmas Around the World collab.

Credit for my little contribution to this collab is due in large part to Karen Stimson of Wool Sweater Street who has been phenomenally prolific of late with new actions and styles and presets and all manner of irresistably good things!!! Many thanks Karen!!!

And also huge thanks to Kimberly aka Fishinmom for the huge amount of time she has devoted to organising this collossal collaborative effort...yay Kimberly!!!!

I didn't bother trying to squeeze everything into the preview, so here's a quick list of what you'll find in Christmas Tidings:

2 embroidered lace Nativity scenes
2 lace Nativity frames
3 embroidered Bethlehem stars
3 lace & holly bows
2 lace bow & papier mache bell clusters
2 embroidered holly sprigs
2 lace Christmas trees
6 lace Christmas baubles
6 patterned papers
6 embossed solid papers

Links will be available below from December 12th to 31st:

Belanna's Christmas Tidings - Elements
Belanna's Christmas Tidings - Papers

If you've stumbled across this post and want to know more about the collab, you'll find everything you need at the official blog:
Christmas Around the World

And finally, a big hug to everyone who's stopped by recently, it's much appreciated!

An indefinite leave of absence....

2008-10-22T23:35:00.000-07:00

Just popping in to say take care all...

Not sure when I'll be back, but until then...

Hugz!

Like a breeze on a hot summer's day...

2008-06-30T21:06:00.000-07:00

...I'm just breezing through. So here we are at the end of the month and thanks to an exceptional workload I haven't managed to complete any of the colour challenges - ho hum, at least there'll be some new ones to look forward too tomorrow.

But I did manage to get out briefly last week and take some photos, and here's one I scrapped...well I layered and filtered it with my own combination paint-style effects and added a a little verse concocted especially for it....so you may or may not consider it to be scrapping, but I like it!

NB: If you'd like to see the background in greater detail or read the verse, just click on it for a larger version.

Anyway, the forecast here is for hot, hot and more hot this week, so I'll be doing my best to get out of the office every chance I can because this is the hottest corner of our little house and a girl's gotta breathe occasionally. So not sure I'll managed to do anything of substance any time soon! I do have some bits in process, but I just can't cope with the heat long enough to finish anything lol! So I hope you all enjoy the weather more than me, and I'll be back when it's cooled down a little.

Slainte!

Hear that roar? It's a Connemara Tiger!

2008-06-14T12:58:00.000-07:00

This started out as a mini add-on to the 40s Femme Glam kit - and somehow blossomed into a full kit itself. I usually struggle with naming things, but this just declared itself to me - so let me explain because it's a little odd.

Way back when I originally showed the Fun Furs (which eventually became the 40s kit) a pinkie chum asked for them in green (ours is not to reason why) and so I created some. Then when I was creating the marcasite jewellery for the 40s kit, I remembered my mum's brooch - the marcasite and Connemara marble one I mentioned - and made several inspired by that - so it seemed only natural to pair them with the green furs as an add-on.

But as I started to package them together yesterday, there were great celebrations in Ireland (and in many European cities I understand) as they announced the result of the Irish national referendum on the Lisbon Treaty was a resounding NO WAY! Makes a girl proud so it does.

And there was fond talk of all things Irish including the Celtic Tiger (as the 90s resurgence of the Irish economy is affectionately known). And I pondered, not for the first time, what a Celtic Tiger would actually look like if such a thing really existed - which of course it doesn't - when I realised I'd already answered my own question - with these green furs! And since it's natural hunting ground would probably be in the wilds of Connemara (a little like the Beast of Bodmin roams the Bodmin moors) - hence the name.

Yes, I know, this means nothing to anyone but me, but it was such a weird and wonderful moment, I wanted to share it with you! So in honour of the voice of the Irish people having rung out loud and clear across Europe for the first time ever....I give you....

Connemara Tiger

Then having gone so far as to give it a glorious name, I decided that it deserved its own alpha - which then resulted in four - and an accidental set of framestrips to boot! So the full kit now consists of:

8 assorted Connemara Tiger fur backgrounds
2 Connemara marble frames
2 Glassed fur frames
8 assorted frame strips
1 Connemara marble bead frame
10 Connemara marble & marcasite trinkets - flowers, hearts, ovals, shamrocks
2 x furry alphas (lowercase only)
2 x Connemara marble alphas (upper and lowercase, numbers & punctuation)

Since Connemara Marble is a natural stone, it comes in a range of shades of green from deepest forest to mossy - and I've used a couple of my favourites to create the alphas - one of which is framed in chalk, and the other in limestone - both abundant in the locality. Equally I think the Connemara Tiger might be part chameleon - with fur that subtly changes colour to enable it to blend with beautiful Connemara countryside (which is probably why it's never been caught or seen before!) so I've used a couple of the darker ones to create some 'furry' alphas which I think are rather cute.

I'm currently waiting (impatiently!) for the files to upload - so in the mean time, let me ask you a question. Are you ever puzzled by the things that you love that your other half hates - and vice versa? I'm lucky that when it comes to likes and dislikes we are predominantly in agreement - but there's a odd few things where we differ with a passion - and it seems to be mostly about food:

I love fresh tomatoes - he can't abide the sight, smell or taste of them
He loves tomato soup - I despise it
I love Branston pickle - especially on cheese sarnies - it makes him shudder
He loves Bovril - on pretty much anything - just the mention of it makes me feel ill

These aversions are so strong that we've laid down some ground rules for when either of us fancies a food that offends the other...

You must inform the other party before consuming the offensive food
You must not consume it in an enclosed space (like in a car or indoors when the weather is too foul to open the windows)
You must not leave behind any traces - cutlery and plates must be cleaned immediately rather than left in the dishwasher to fester
Finally, and this is the most important rule of all - you must allow time for a decent snog before consuming the food - since you will not be allowed within kissing distance for some considerable time afterwards...

Mind you, sometimes it's worth it just for the excuse to snog lol! But I wonder if there are other couples out there who have such intensely opposite passions for odd foods? So consider yourself tagged if you've read this to tell me if you do or don't, and if you do, what foods are involved and have you got any special rules about them?

And now for one final item (the upload is about 95% so I'll just have time) - I wonder if you've noticed that there are two new links under the Must Haves section on the left? These are two places I've discovered recently that I really recommend you visit.

Treasured Finds is a wonderful store where you'll find jewellery, frames and much, more (including some fab Celtic pieces) all in sterling silver. I've just bought my mom a lovely set of silver sewing items all intricately decorated. Their prices are very reasonable, and I'd certainly be spoiling myself rotten if I wasn't stoney broke lol! The store is owned and run by a charmingly nutty husband, wife and cat team - read their FAQs - it's so funny!

Aon Celtic is the home of a superb Celtic artist - Cari Buziak - and her work is simply stunning - and you can own it on prints, clothes, jewellery and so much more. At the moment, just looking at it will have to be enough for me - but then it's so inspiring, so I'm not complaining.

And before you ask, no I'm not on commission, not related or affiliated - I just really love the work on both sites and think you will too.

And finally, the upload is finished, so here are the links:

Belanna's Connemara Tiger - Papers
Belanna's Connemara Tiger - Elements
Belanna's Connemara Tiger - Alphas 1 & 2
Belanna's Connemara Tiger - Alpha 3
Belanna's Connemara Tiger - Alpha 4

Now I realise this may have limited appeal, being green, but I hope someone out there will enjoy it - and let me know if you do.

Slainte & have a great weekend!

At long last, a little glamour...

2008-06-10T10:02:00.000-07:00

Gosh, I can't believe how long it's taken me to get this finished - though technically it's been finished for over two weeks now lol! But finding the time to create the previews, zip and upload everything and finally post it here seems to have taken forever. In the end, I had to get it done, otherwise I wouldn't be able to start on this month's colour challenges. Anyway, I'm very pleased to finally present for your delight and delectation -

40s Femme Glam

It was nearly going to be 40s Femme Fatale - but I don't think it's quite that dark! Anyway I hope you like it and for reference it contains:

8 funky furs in a range of natural colours...guess the animal!
5 individual 40s femmes stickers clad in the aforementioned furs
2 group 40s femmes stickers
8 accessories stickers - shoes, bags and gloves
3 marcasite & opal necklace frames
4 marcasite & opal brooches
2 marcasite earrings
4 - count em - 4 alphas! 3 in fur and 1 marcasite

Two of the fur alphas are complete upper and lower case, the third is upper case only, the marcasite is lower case only. Due to lack of time, I've had to leave them as sheets, but I'm on the lookout for an action that will automate the process of separating the letters to save me some time. Amanda pointed me to one, but it was PSP. I found a PS version by Monica Larsen, but don't know if it will work in CS3 - has anyone tried it???? If I can get one that works, I'll separate the alphas and re-upload.

I had so much fun playing with these that I created a whole range in semi-precious stones such as amber and lapis lazuli. Plus I have quite a collection of these fur papers in a range of more vibrant 'synthetic' colours.....so let me know if you'd like them.

Oh, and would you like the links????

Belanna's 40s Femme Glam - Papers
Belanna's 40s Femme Glam - Elements
Belanna's 40s Femme Glam - Alphas

Re-living 40s glamour...

2008-05-30T23:49:00.000-07:00

Thought you might like a little preview of what I'm working on - since Betty asked about the furs, I've been playing with some ideas for elements to go with them and I've come up with a sort of 40s glamour theme (I just love 40s movies, particularly noir).

I love my faux fur background combined with this coat from Dover, so there'll be a few of these. And so far I've got some opal and marcasite brads, flowers, hearts and frames. Then since I was working in marcasite, I remembered one of my mom's favourite items is a Tara brooch in marcasite and Connemara marble - so I tried to create something that resembled the marble, and I'm pretty pleased with the result. Which means in addition to the 40s Fur kit, I'm also working on another Celtic kit, but this time with Connemara marble, and possibly a little bit of Blarney.

I'll try to get the 40s kit uploaded Saturday or Sunday. In the meantime, have a great weekend!

Just a few trinkets...

2008-05-26T17:05:00.000-07:00

The last colour challenge for the month is at RAKScraps hosted by Connie, where the theme is mums and family. Now those of you who've been with me for a while may remember the cards I made for Mother's Day...sigh!

Anyway, I really liked the papers because the stone represents my mum's strength and the damask is because she was a damask weaver before she got married - so I've recreated them in this month's colour palette (along with some matching beads and baubles) and hence we have:

Trinkets for Mum

which contains:

3 stone textured papers
3 crumpled damask papers
3 crumpled textured solids
2 small bead necklaces (frames)
2 dragonfly brooches
3 coloured pearl bracelets (frames)
3 coloured pearl earrings (brads)

I was working on the dragonfly brooches for another section of the Grow kit - but I couldn't figure out how to get the Grow theme to work for a Mum-related kit lol! Nevertheless, I think they go just as well with this, and I really like how the coloured pearls turned out - hope you like them too.

Belanna's Trinkets for Mum - Papers
Belanna's Trinkets for Mum - Elements

Ooops - and something that really tickled me today was a sign we passed on the way back from running various errands which said:

Save the earth - it's the only planet with chocolate!

What more motivation do we need????

Step we gaily, on we go...

2008-05-25T22:09:00.000-07:00

The song that's been going round inside my head these last few days, is Marie's Wedding, a traditional Scottish folk song that I fondly remember being performed by the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem. The rather jaunty chorus goes...

Step we gaily on we go, heel for heel and toe for toe,
Arm in arm and on we go, all for Marie's wedding
Over hillways up and down, myrtle green and bracken brown,
Pass the sheeling through the town, all for Marie's wedding...etc etc

It's a lovely little ditty and probably on my mind because I've been seeing a lot of bumph about weddings lately... we are coming up to wedding season I suppose, so that makes sense. Which put me in mind to do something wedding-ish, and I remembered that a couple of people had mentioned having a Claddagh theme for their weddings, so I put two and two together and came up with this:

Claddagh Wedding consists of:

5 patterned papers
3 textured papers
2 decorated frames
2 wedding cake stickers
2 wedding cake chipboard pieces
1 Celtic rose & knot doily
1 Celtic rose & knot sticker
2 intertwined Celtic symbols
2 decorative horse shoes
2 iced wedding favour cookies
3 wedding invitation seals
1 Celtic heart cake topper
A collection of Wedding words
1 complete alpha - upper case, lower case and numbers
9 framed Celtic symbols and one blank

I started with some papers that didn't make it into the original Claddagh Love kits because I was working to set colour palettes. I'm really pleased with the alpha, and hope you'll like it because it turned out better than I could have hoped. I also really love the two Celtic symbols (see the top right corner of the preview). Intertwined animals are often used a wedding or marriage and I thought these two (sea horses and birds) were perfect, and thanks to a combination of styles, the end result is simply gorgeous - a little like a soft gold enamel with a stone edge. If I was getting married (which I'm not and not likely to be lol!) this would be my wedding stationery, no doubt about it.

Some of the other pieces I'm not so sure about, so if you download it, I'd really love to know what you like or don't like from it - also whether the element and alpha sizes are too big, too small or about right? All feedback is welcome, and if you take the time to help me improve, it means I can offer you better stuff in future eh?

Belanna's Claddagh Wedding - Elements

Belanna's Claddagh Wedding - Papers

Belanna's Claddagh Wedding - Alpha

Ooops! Just realised I forgot to mention the fonts used in the TOU - for info they are Irish Blessings and Cry Uncial.

On a wing and a font...

2008-05-22T21:07:00.000-07:00

While I love fonts, I'm not normally a font challenge kinda girl, but even I couldn't resist the rather gorgeous one chosen for this month's font challenge at SAS - it's called Adine Kirnberg. And after oodles of fun playing with different effects, I finally settled on a nice cracked stone finish - and it's so nice I'd be seriously tempted to make an alpha with it. (Click on the picture for a closer look at the stone, it's really lovely.)

So for the first time in an awfully long while, I had an incentive to scrap, and for the first time I scrapped with something I created. Well, no that's not technically correct, because I've created papers etc to make cards before...but this is the first time I've scrapped with something I've released as a freebie...which seemed weird.

So, while I'm here I'd best take a moment to answer some questions etc...

Firstly a word of thanks for all the supportive comments - they're very much appreciated - and I'm so pleased that you're enjoying Grow & Grow Too, they were fun to make and helped cheer me up a little, and your comments have multiplied that effect - many thanks!!! I'm especially pleased that the little grasshoppers and flower pots have received such a warm response - I kinda liked them, but I just never know if others will feel the same!

Betty asked about my Funky Furs ... to be honest, that was so long ago I'd all but forgotten them! But yes, I'm probably going to release them, but I want to see if I can create some elements to go with them first...maybe some art deco jewellery might be nice...if you have any suggestions, let me know.

Chris Allport asked about Celtic Mysts ... and the truth is I feel both guilty and resentful about all things Celtic at the moment. Guilty because I said I'd release more, I created loads and all it really needs is a bit of finessing, packaging and uploading - which wouldn't really take much time at all. But I feel resentful because I was on such a high when I released the first part and while creating the rest...but then things in real life took a downward plunge and everything I was working on got tainted by the events and feelings which left me with a very irrational aversion to finishing it. So every time I think I must get it sorted, I find more pressing things to do (like surf the net, make tea, buy bread, call my mom, do a crossword...you get the idea).

It's a bit like getting run over while eating your favourite sandwich, and now you'll starve yourself rather than face cheese and pickle ever again (or whatever your favourite happens to be) because it triggers unpleasant memories. I know it's daft, and as a fairly logical person I find it particularly frustrating, but I will overcome it eventually, it just might take a couple of months. So for those I've disappointed, I can only say, I'm human and I'm sorry!!

I'd also like to say a great big thank you to the Pinkies for all their support recently, just so that you know it hasn't gone unnoticed or unappreciated, and I am actually trying to drag myself back to a reasonable stable frame of mind, and when I do, I'll be back. The good news is that I started taking a variety of herbal supplements recently, one of which is St Johns Wort, which I think is actually beginning to make a difference - I am feeling much more positive (as evidenced by Grow lol!) and while the circumstances haven't changed, I just feel a bit more able to cope than before, if you know what I mean. So I'm feeling a bit hopeful that while I haven't turned the corner as yet, it is at least in sight.

Hugz to all!

Still Growing...

2008-05-16T21:04:00.000-07:00

This weekend is certainly not going as originally planned - but at least the last minute change of plans has given me the chance to finish my kit for KimB's colour challenge at DSO. The palette was kinda similar to SAS, so I figured I'd simply continue the Grow theme - hence this one's called

Belanna's Grow Too

Again I've been concentrating on the elements to see what I can create with the tools I have, and while some items are similar to those in Grow, none are actually the same. So contents are:

2 stone textured papers
6 patterned fabric papers
2 deco edged mats
2 curvy embroidered felt frames
2 textured flowers
2 little buttons
2 star diamond brads
2 embroidered fabric tags
2 curvy lace ribbons
2 embroidered felt vine panels
2 fabric plant pot borders
2 chipboard flower pots
3 plant marker strips
1 flower pot sticker

Links are here:

Belanna's Grow Too - Papers

Belanna's Grow Too - Elements

I like the flower pot borders, the vine panels and the flowers - but I'd love to know what y'all think.

Time to Grow?

2008-05-14T20:16:00.000-07:00

So I swung by Boo's colour challenge this week at SAS and thought the colours would be challenging, so I found some time to play and this is the result...simply called Grow...

I concentrated more on the elements, so you might find the papers a little....er, boring, but such is life eh? And I must admit, I kinda like how the elements turned out, especially the grasshoppers (which is saying something since I have a morbid fear of bugs!). Plus I it gave me a chance to play with a few of Atomic Cupcake's actions that I hadn't tried previously - so lots of credit due to AC!

Anyhow, the set includes:

4 patterned and 4 textured solid papers
4 little bows in two styles (thanks to Royanna Fritschmann)
3 flowers with gem centres (from a potpourri mix, thought it was cute)
3 curvy enamelled frames
2 matching ornamental panels in silver & coloured glass (not previewed)
2 silver & gemstone grasshoppers
3 aged and stained stickers
3 tooled leather tags
1 quirky caterpillar on cardboard

Which makes this probably the most varied set I've come up with - so hopefully you'll find something in it that appeals. If you've got any constructive criticism of Grow, I'd be happy to hear it, and of course I'd love to know if you actually use it.

Belanna's Grow - Papers

Belanna's Grow - Elements

ETA: Thanks to Connie for pointing out my ooops with the links - think they're both correct now - fingers crossed.

To eat or not to eat...

2008-05-06T21:06:00.000-07:00

I made the mistake of telling my other half that Vix had tagged me with this food meme, and he nagged me to do it - so I tagged him to do it too....both sets of answers follow:

What food do you consider the best "date" food? In other words what meal or food item do you think is sexiest to eat in the company of someone you would like to look sexy around?

Me: Fajitas - sexy food has to be tactile, a little messy and a little hot
Him: Champagne, strawberries and cream...sexy has to include bubbles!!!

What well-known person would you like to share a meal with—with or without clothing. (saying whether or not clothes are involved is optional).

Me: Apart from Him? Hmm, Connor Trinneer aka Trip from Enterprise...or Alan Tudyk aka Wash from Firefly/Serenity - with clothes...in fact, in uniform if possible...
Him: Lisa Edelstein aka Cuddy from House, or Jewel Staite aka Kaylee from Firefly...and whatever they want to wear (or not) is fine by me...
Me: Didn't you mean to say, 'Apart from Belanna?', dear?
Him: Erm, I thought that went without saying...

Left to right: Connor Trinneer, Alan Tudyk, Lisa Edelstein, Jewel Staite (Frame Strip by Misty Cato)

What does your perfect breakfast-in-bed look like? (Food AND the details, please. Candles? Music? Flowers? Hot tub? Dancing girls?

Me & Him in perfect agreement on this one: Breakfast in bed on our anniversary a few years back at Longueville Manor in Jersey - with bubbles, nibbles and naughtiness....

What do you consider the best application of whipped cream to be?

Me: Intravenously...no kidding, I adore whipped cream on anything, with anything, anytime, any place, any where...
Him: As an environmentally-friendly bikini

Oh-God-No, Biff, the yacht is sinking! You are sent to the galley to retrieve the food. What luxury food items do you snatch first? The champagne? The caviar? Smoked Salmon? Truffles? Chocolate? Or something else?

Me: Hmm, has to be the champagne...and if there's time, chocolate macaroon bars!
Him: Ditto, champagne is a basic necessity, together with some Cheese & Onion crisps!

Me: So that about wraps up our first joint posting, so it's goodnight from him
Him: And it's goodnight from her.

(Forgive the feeble Two Ronnies joke!)

Sundance made my heart dance...

2008-04-17T19:57:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you don't need me to tell you about Designs by Krista ... a woman with a rare talent for both design and generosity ... and the other day she released a magnificent free kit called Sundance from her blog.

Well, I recently bought one of those lovely little chipboard bracket albums at Michaels craft store and I'd been dithering about what to do with it, particularly as I'm sans mojo at the moment. But when I saw this kit I just knew it was perfect for it. So I started by tracing the outline of the album on paper and then scanning it in (cause I had no idea how to make that shape otherwise lol!) and it was all plain sailing from there. I was so pleased with the results that I sent Krista the preview and she's very kindly posted them on her blog.

So if you fancy making your own bracket album (or dropping them onto larger layouts) you'll find the complete set of 8 here: Designs by Krista ...and if you scroll back a couple of days you might still be lucky enough to snag the kit itself. Don't forget to leave her some love!

If the links for the kit have expired by the time you read this, don't panic, Krista usually posts her freebies in her store within a week or so for about $1.50 - which is the next best thing to free in my opinion. You'll find the link to her store on the main blog page.

Out of the Mysts...

2008-03-06T20:38:00.000-08:00

Here's a kit I've been longing to release for ages...I created it last month but decided to enter it for the Little Dreamer Designs' Apprentice contest. Sadly my little effort didn't even make it through the qualifying stage, but I really like it and wanted to share it with you anyway. I think it will be perfect for St Patrick's Day, but also pretty useful for Easter or heritage stuff.

The original entry was limited to just three papers and three elements, but in order to actually decide on three papers, I made quite a few more...and I'm working on lots more elements to go with it, hoping to get some of them finished and uploaded over the weekend, or early next week. (Curious what I'm working on? Well there's a mixture of celtic knotwork, mythical beasts, lace, precious metals, sheer fabric and stonework...and that's just for starters lol! There might even be a shamrock or two, but I'm afraid if you're hoping for leprechauns and rainbows, you'll be out of luck lol!)

But for now it consists of 9 papers, four elements and my first ever alpha...it's a very simple uncial alpha but I rather like it and hope you will too.

And I have a question for you! I seem to recall seeing an action somewhere that automatically separates letters and saves them individually...but can't remember where! If anyone has any ideas or can point me in the right direction, it'd be much appreciated, cause it's a boring task to do manually lol!!! I've managed to create one myself that tackles half the job which saved me some time, but I'd love one that does the whole thing (and maybe makes some tea while I'm waiting, good idea eh?)

But without any further ado, here are the links, and I'd love to know what you think of it, or if you use it, so please let me know!

Belanna's Celtic Mysts - Alpha
Belanna's Celtic Mysts - Elements
Belanna's Celtic Mysts - Papers 1
Belanna's Celtic Mysts - Papers 2

Slainte!

2008-03-04T19:30:00.000-08:00

Carol recently tagged me to divulge 7 random facts about myself....

THE RULES:
1. Once you are tagged, link back to the person who tagged you.
2. Post THE RULES on your blog.
3. Post 7 weird or random facts about yourself on your blog.
4. Tag 7 people and link to them.
5. Comment on their blog to let them know they have been tagged.

I've pondered this and can really only half-comply...since I don't know seven other people with blogs, and even the handful I know have probably already been tagged, so let's just say if you wanna be tagged by me, leave a link in a comment and consider yourself tagged lol!

So here are my seven facts, and some are a little weird so don't say you weren't warned...

My first computer was a Commodore 64, which I programmed to play tic-tac-toe and respond with dialogue akin to WOPR in the movie War Games....it seemed really neat at the time.

My first kiss was with a boy I met in a psychiatric ward....I was 17 and he was 19. He was admitted after he put his fists through a window in an attempt to slit his wrists after being told that his ex-girlfriend had been pregnant with his child but had an abortion...all of which later turned out to be untrue. I was there because I had (and still have) a dog phobia which nearly caused a complete breakdown. We spent most nights sneaking into the kitchen of the ward late at night to make coffee and exchange tales of woe. We only met once briefly after we were discharged (since he didn't live in Dublin), and before he left, he kissed me and told me I was beautiful...which I think was kind of a turning point for me.

I spent two years in drama-school on a part-time basis and one day, following a series of videoed screen-test exercises, was told by my drama-teacher in a very grudging fashion that the camera loved me...think the rest of the class hated me after that lol!

At around that time, I applied to work as an assistant dogsbody for a touring company called Renaissance Shakespeare, started and run by no other than Kenneth Brannagh, and was utterly shocked and thrilled when I had a handwritten reply from him urging me to keep up my studies and reapply to the company as a jobbing actor when I'd finished. Sometimes wish I had!

I worked in retail for nearly ten years and for a short spell had the pleasure of counting Brian Dennehy amongst my regular customers, while he was appearing in the Iceman Cometh in Dublin. The first time I saw him, he allowed himself to be elbowed out of his place in a queue by an aggressive little grannie and smiled at me over her head in amusement, and I was always impressed by how genuinely pleasant, gentle, soft-spoken, good-humoured and polite he was, a real gent (such a rarity in Dublin even in those days!).

I type in my sleep...no kidding! When I quit retail, I retrained to acquire some office skills including typing. Due to the intensive nature of the course we were encouraged to 'type' as often as we could i.e. to move your fingers as if typing while doing other things....so I would 'type' shop names and billboard ads while on the bus for example...this habit became so ingrained that I still do it...apparently even in my sleep...I just wish I could find out what it is I'm typing when I'm asleep lol!

My earliest childhood memory is of a particularly vivid recurring dream in which I was weeping against a man's shoulder, and while I could not see his face, I could feel the texture of his jacket and smell his aftershave, and I knew he loved me and would keep me safe. The dream continued with decreasing frequency into my twenties. But the experience in the dream actually happened some months after I met my other half, and that was the moment I knew we were meant to be together...and I've never told him.

Well that's probably more info than you ever expected or wanted! I'm working on a freebie that I hope to get posted tomorrow...so I'd best get back to it....cheery all!

Back at last!

2008-02-28T22:27:00.000-08:00

Isn't it strange how you get so used to being 'connected' that when you lose your connection for any reason you feel at a loss? I've only been without internet for a couple of days but it's been weird...and once back online my priority was to catch up on work, but now finally I'm back. Nothing for you today (for all the obvious reasons lol!) but I've been furiously trying to get some Mother's Day cards finished (it's on March 2nd) and thought I'd share them with you:

Credits: Flowers by Anna Benjamin of Paper Moons, Lace Action by Karen Stimson of WoolSweater Street, Pearls from Jenn Trippetti's Rosy Outlook, Actions by Atomic Cupcake, the rest by me.

Of course, this size and resolution doesn't really do them justice, but I kinda like them. I was working a bit outside my comfort zone because the palette came from this month's colour challenge at Deco Pages. I think they only want layouts rather than kits submitted, but since I did create papers for these, let me know if you'd like them. There's a stone texture (for my mom's strength) and a damask print (because she was a weaver before she married and made damask).

Really glad that so many of you are finding the Asphalt Farewell kit useful, I was disappointed at not being able to submit it, but I feel heaps better about it now.

Just a slight detour...

2008-02-22T22:52:00.000-08:00

Now this little kit may seem kinda odd, but there's a story behind it. I've been keeping an eye out for colour challenges, because a) I enjoy them, b) they stretch me and c) it's always eye-opening how people can create such diversity from a handful of colours.

Anyhow I came across another today and it had a theme as well as a palette...it was in response to a kit request from someone who's hubby was retiring from working in road construction...so a combined theme of 'retirement' and 'road works'. Sounded like fun so I gave it a shot.

But when I'd finished and went back to look at the submission guidelines, I realised that the site was planning to sell the submissions, so I didn't send it in. Don't get me wrong ... I'm not criticising them, they were stating it clearly and it was my fault that I hadn't read it properly first time around...it's just that I didn't feel comfortable submitting on that basis. So I decided to release it here as normal...though because it's a fairly specific theme, I'm not sure how much use it will be to anyone else lol!

There are four plain papers with an asphalt texture (which the preview really doesn't do justice), and four patterns on an asphalt background, and a total of twelve stickers...hopefully you'll find some that you can use...if so I'd love to know what lol!!!!

Belanna's Asphalt Farewell - Papers
Belanna's Asphalt Farewell - Elements

Making a name for myself....

2008-02-22T00:23:00.000-08:00

Okay it's a weak pun, but I couldn't think of a title! Never mind, the thing is that in the midst of my playing I've been trying out some freeware actions and came across a really cool one that essentially creates a word of your choice in glass witha photo of your choice behind it...so courtesy of clickBoom's action, may I introduce...

(Click on it to see it enlarged in all its glory!!!)

Yeah, I know, it's kinda sad using multiple pictures of my avatar but it seemed like a good idea at the time! In the process of playing today I learned tons of stuff and I have ideas just brimming at the moment. I'm working with some really great images of Celtic mythic beasts, the kind you see in the Book of Kells and I can't wait to show them to you...but I'm having too much fun at the moment to package anything and upload it. And besides, just when I think something is finished, I discover half a dozen other cool things to do with it...lol!

On another topic, I'd really like to mention Bookcrossing. I discovered the site a couple of years ago and love it. If you read any kind of books at all, you just have to go and have a look. The concept is that once you've read your books you 'free' them...by registering them on the site and then either release them into the wild or pass them on to friends or other Bookcrossers. Hopefully whoever finds or receives the book will visit the site and add a journal note telling you what they thought of the book and how they intend to pass it on. I used it to 'free' my entire library before we emigrated and it was a very liberating experience. But wait...that's just one side...the other side is that it's a huge and growing community of people from all over the world who share a love of books and chatting. I've met some wonderful people there, and had some wonderful books sent to me by many of them once we were settled again.

Anyway, I just wanted to mention it because you may not have heard of it, and if not, you'll thank me for it!

Challenging colours...

2008-02-20T21:53:00.000-08:00

I came across another colour challenge at Stone Accents run by Boo (of Booland Designs) and the palette looked lovely so I thought I'd have a play. And this is the result:

I find the challenges are a real incentive to get me to try different things. I struggled with the colours initially because although they looked lovely, they're really not 'me' if ya know what I mean, but I was pretty pleased with the final results for the papers.

Still not overly happy with the elements, but I used Atomic Cupcake's cutout action which worked like a dream for the stickers. After months subscribing to Atomic Cupcake I'm so pleased that I can finally use the actions now that I've got CS3 (couldn't used them before coz my version of PSE was so old it was made out of chipboard and wood glue lol!) ...so that's a whole other list of things I have to play with in addition to all the presets in the program itself!

Anywho, here are the links, and be sure to let me know what y'all think...
Belanna's Classical Reverie - Papers
Belanna's Classical Reverie - Elements

Fancy three dozen eggs?

2008-02-19T18:42:00.000-08:00

Or even three dozen fancy eggs? I've been playing with CS3 and trying to get the hang of shapes and depth and this is what I came up with...

When I tried to do the preview, I started with a little basket, realised they weren't going to fit and ended up with a wicker trunk lol! The egg shape isn't perfect because it's extracted from a photo of an egg that wasn't perfect either, so I thought it might be better to leave as is (i.e. I got lazy!). Anyway, I used some of the liquid metal papers to decorate them, and I kinda like how they turned out so I thought I'd share them with you. There's three dozen so far...well, eggs normally come by the dozen don't they? Actually I've always wanted to handpaint eggs and never had the chance, so this is my 'virtual' equivalent...less messy too lol!

Thanks for missing me Carol! And I haven't forgotten that you tagged me, but I'm not sure that I even know seven other people with blogs that I could tag, so I'm racking my brain trying to think of any!

I'm still working on some more Celtic stuff and I came up with a lovely alpha yesterday (at least I think it's lovely!), but I want to play with some different elements before I release the next kit...so it might be next weekend, still in plenty of time before St Patrick's Day though.

Ooops! Nearly forgot the links for the eggs...
Belanna's Basket of Eggs - First Dozen
Belanna's Basket of Eggs - Second Dozen
Belanna's Basket of Eggs - Third Dozen Plus Eggstras

Hope they come in useful!

Miss me?

2008-02-18T19:29:00.000-08:00

Probably never even noticed I was gone lol! Never mind, just popping in to add a new blinkie and say that I'm working on some new stuff, but it's slow going coz I've got a steep learning curve to get to grips with CS3.

Valentine's Day was lovely, and it took us two days to find all the cards hidden around the house lol! My other half (who does most of the cooking anyway) cooked me a lovely dinner and we consumed a lot of bubbly to wash it down and had a warm cosy evening watching silly movies and scoffing chocs. So no complaints from me on that score!

So enjoy the music while I get back to the grindstone...and once again thanks for all the lovely comments on 4shared, they're really appreciated!!!!

A little lace for Valentines...

2008-02-12T22:10:00.000-08:00

I have long had a penchant for lace...and recently discovered somewhere to feed my addiction, so I wanted to share it with you all...

So let me start by saying a big old 'Hi! to Karen at Wood Sweater Street who designs (amongst other things!) the most intricate digital lace I've ever seen. And she very kindly allowed me to use some of her fabulous lace and embroidered goodies to create these quick pages for Valentine's Day.

Click on the preview or the link above to go to Karen's site to download them, and take some time to browse through Karen's fabulous designs (including lots of freebies lol!). Hope you like them...and don't forget to leave a little love for Karen on her blog.

An early bit o' green...

2008-02-10T00:46:00.000-08:00

Firstly, a wave to Catriona MacGregor of the Digital Celt...many thanks for stopping by, you really made my day!

Next, as promised, I've made another version of Claddagh Love, this time in greens and golds, and with a little bit of shamrock added for good luck. It also contains, as promised, some Claddagh frames...I hope these are what you had in mind...but let me know if not. Still have to do some to match the earlier Claddagh Love kits, so let me know if you're looking for something different.

Actually, I remember seeing some St Patrick's Day kits last year and cringing, neon greens and plastic shamrocks are just too over-the-top for me lol! I like my greens muted, dark, rich reflecting the greens in nature, which is after all what Ireland's famous for...with just a touch of gold or silver for contrast...so I hope you like this...

The frames have made the kit size somewhat larger, so I've had to zip it in two files, so here they are:
Belanna's Claddagh Love (Green Elements)
Belanna's Claddagh Love (Green Papers)

If you've got your speakers on, you may have noticed by now that I've been playing with the blog a little! If you scroll right to the end of the page you'll find the music playlist, together with a couple of slideshows...one of freebies and one of layouts. I've also added some blinkies to the side-bar, and some links to places I can't do without...more of those as I get time....and of course my avatar...so it's finally beginning to feel a bit more lived in around here lol! Hope you like the music, it's a pretty eclectic mix, but that's me all over.

Slainte!

A word of thanks!

2008-02-07T23:48:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post to say thanks to all of you leaving comments both at 4shared and here, it's really very much appreciated! I was absolutely delighted that I even recognised some owners of blogs I've haunted for the last few months...thanks for dropping in!!!

Now, in response to a couple of questions...

For Cheri and others...well, I'm surprised you had to ask lol! Of course there'll be a green-hued version of Claddagh Love before St Patrick's Day...and hopefully more besides...I'm currently looking at some great celtic patterns to work with and for greens I'm thinking soft and mossy, and rich & dark. Keeping my fingers-crossed that you'll like the results!

For Blueberry Kitty...there will definitely be some Claddagh frames! (Actually if I have time over the weekend, I'll try to get some done to match the two existing Claddagh Love kits before I start working in green.) And if anyone wants to suggest anything else for me to try to include...especially for the St Patrick's Day version...feel free! I say 'try to include' because I don't know how successful I'll be, but I'll give it a go!

For Ephemere... can't wait to see your page...don't forget to send me a link! And the sames goes for anyone who uses anything I've created (it doesn't have to be all mine lol!) I would really love to see it!

I think that's about it for now...I just got eliminated from the Last Scrapper Standing competition at Divine Digital so I'm off to drown my sorrows...

Paddington Bear is 50!

2008-02-06T21:49:00.000-08:00

And that's a very great age for a little bear, even one who's travelled all the way from Peru. Don't believe me? See for yourself...Paddington Bear's 50th Anniversary

I grew up with Paddington, so this makes me feel rather old to say the least! Anyway, to commemorate his big five-oh, they've released some special edition Paddington Bears, one of which comes inside his very own suitcase, you know, the one he used to carry his marmalade sandwiches in (when they wouldn't fit under his hat!) - though obviously they've made it a little bigger so he can fit inside lol!

So in honour of the 'year of the bear', I came up with my very own little 'Bag of Bears' or to be more precise...two! One full of adorable little pink bears to match Cutie Pie, and one full of equally adorable little blue bears to match Lil Boy Blue. Of course they're not Paddington, and they haven't travelled from deepest darkest Peru, but I hope you'll find it in your hearts to give them good homes just the same.

Belanna's Bag of Bears (Cutie Pie)
Belanna's Bag of Bears (Lil Boy Blue)

Some are bears and some are bear stickers ...both of which are a first for me, so I hope the quality is okay, but you'll have to be the judge of that! And here's another first for me...just recently I learned how to add a blinkie to my signature in forums, and then today I learned how to create my own! I still have to learn how to put it in the sidebar of my blog...but for now I'm gonna post it here just to show the world I did it!!! (Yes, I know that's sad, but humour me lol!)

More Claddagh Love....

2008-02-05T19:53:00.000-08:00

I was so happy with the little kit I posted for the DSO challenge, that when I saw the colours for the RAKScaps members kit this month, I couldn't resist doing another version in that palette.

Obviously it's very similar (though not identical) but I think the two palettes are similar enough that both kits should work well together. If you like it, grab it here...Claddagh Love 2

And finally.... Lil Boy Blue

2008-02-05T16:47:00.000-08:00

Here's the boy's version of Cutie Pie as promised...

I should have managed to get it posted earlier, but everytime I tried to upload the power went lol!!! Anyway there are five separate downloads - the first three being the papers and the last two being the elements - so here are the links...

Belanna's Lil Boy Blue (1)
Belanna's Lil Boy Blue (2)
Belanna's Lil Boy Blue (3)
Belanna's Lil Boy Blue (Elements 1)
Belanna's Lil Boy Blue (Elements 2)

Hope you like it and as always, if you do use it, I'd love to see your pages, so send me a link!

Watch this space...

2008-02-04T11:37:00.000-08:00

A few people asked for the Cutie Pie baby kit in blue, and since I've been up all night (don't ask!) and therefore had time to kill, I've been working my way through it re-creating it in a soft blue and turquoise. I'm finished all the papers, still have to do the elements and then zip and upload, but I'm hoping to have them available for you later today.

At the same time, I've released so much recently that my 4Shared folder is getting a bit tricky to navigate, so it needs some organising...and I'm not sure if that will mess with the links. So if you're downloading today or tomorrow and you get a link that doesn't work, come back later, because once I'm finished tidying I'll re-check and correct any links that have been affected.

For the love of Claddagh...

2008-02-04T07:35:00.000-08:00

For quite a while I've been wanting to do something Celtic, maybe for St Patrick's Day...but then I thought, why not do something for Valentines? Y'see the Claddagh Ring is a Celtic symbol of eternal love (and I should know being Irish eh?). And I was so bowled over by Kim's colour palette for this month's challenge at DSO (check it out here) that I really wanted to do some more with it...et voila - Claddagh Love was born...whadya think?

It's got another 8 papers, 4 brads, 4 stamps and 4 ribbons all in the same yummy colour scheme as Muted Love...so they should work together nicely which is a bonus lol! You can grab it here...Claddagh Love

If you use it, please, please let me know, I'd love to see what you scrap with it! Personally, I'm thinking of making some QPs with it, or maybe some Valentine cards...or maybe even an alpha lol!!!

Time for a little Muted Love...

2008-02-03T17:46:00.000-08:00

Kim's February colour challenge is up at DSO (check it out here), and I absolutely love the colour palette this month - great colours for Valentines without being 'over-the-top-shout-out-loud-reds', if y'know what I mean. Which means I finally had the kick I needed to do something for Valentines, so here's my little effort:

It has 8 papers, 8 frames, 8 little heart brads and a couple of heart borders...so you could say it's my first proper all-in-one mini kit...if you fancy it, you'll find it here: Belanna's Muted Love

Hope you like it, if you do please let me know! I must admit I'm kinda pleased with it, I may even use it to make some actual Valentine cards for my long-suffering better half!

Cutie Pie Elements...

2008-02-03T01:27:00.000-08:00

Well, I think I've finally managed to put together some half-decent elements, so I hope y'all like them too. Now as this is my first serious attempt at an element pack, I really have no idea if the sizes of individula elements are too large or too small...so feel free to let me know if I'm on the right track please!

The element pack includes heart frames, postage stamps, stickers, speech bubble frames, sheer ribbons, bows, cloth teddy bears, and some journals (with and without birth details)...and many thanks to Royanna Fritschmann of Studio RA Designs for the use of her Bow Beauties which are simply divine!

If you like the look of it, here are the links...there are two parts to download - it was just too big to squeeze into one file lol!

Belanna's Cutie Pie Elements 1
Belanna's Cutie Pie Elements 2

I'm working on one more set of papers and an alpha...but then again I might detour back to the Valentine stuff before I finish them lol! Oh, and if anyone really wants a baby boy version, let me know...

Everybody loves a cutie pie....

2008-02-02T17:02:00.000-08:00

I find that whenever I plan to do something...especially once I've actually said it to someone else...I'm invariably distracted by something else and the original something rarely happens lol! Which is a rather long-winded way of saying, I said I was going to work on some Valentine goodies, and ended up making baby things instead...there really is no hope for me, sigh...

Anyway, as anyone who's read my holiday entries will know, we travelled all the way back to Guernsey in November to meet our new grandchild, Amy (a real cutie pie!). Then my friend Nicole recently had a little girl, Maddy ...and she's a real cutie pie too! Anyway, Nicole mentioned that she was looking for some 'baby girl' themed stuff to scrap baby invitations with, and I was struck with guilt because I haven't yet scrapped any of Amy's photos ... and I went looking for something appropriate and couldn't find anything I really liked. So then I thought what the heck, I'll have a go at making some. And hence 'Cutie Pie'....

The first three packs have two patterns each in four finishes, so eight papers in all. Then I thought, someone's bound to want some 'baby boy' versions, so rather than make you wait while I find the time and inclination to do the 'blues', I created a fourth pack that contains overlays of the six patterns, plus a couple of plain papers. So now you can use them on whatever colour backgrounds you prefer...though bear in mind that a couple of the patterns clearly say 'It's a girl' lol!

So if you'd like them for your own 'cutie pie' (or one on the way!) here they are:

Belanna's Cutie Pie (Part 1)
Belanna's Cutie Pie (Part 2)
Belanna's Cutie Pie (Part 3)
Belanna's Cutie Pie (Part 4 - Overlays)

Anyway, I hope you like them, cos I've already got some ideas for elements to go with them...and if you use do use them, let me know, cos I'd love to see!

Liquid Metals in moody reds...

2008-01-31T23:40:00.000-08:00

Well since we've now got just two weeks until Valentine's day, I've been wondering if I could do something around that theme...so I thought why not start by adding some moody reds to the liquid metals series...whadya think?

If you like them, you can get them here:

Belanna's Liquid Metals (Red)

Geekie gadgets for scrappers....

2008-01-31T13:08:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I'm a bit of a gadget girl at heart (I get that from my Dad!), so I saw this and thought 'Coooool' and had to share it with you.

I have to laugh that it's described as a 'Men's digital photo wallet'!! Really??? I'ved used a wallet in preference for a purse since I first started work (i.e. since I first had real paper money of my own lol!). But if you really prefer it they do a 'purse' version as well lol! Anyhow, my only complaint is that the screen could have been an incy bit bigger (but I reckon you could still get a layout on it!), and I love the fact that photo section is removable, so you can carry it separately if you like.

Anyway, if you fancy a peek, you'll find it here: Digital Photo Wallet, along with some other cool gadgets that you can display your digital photos on ... like a Christmas bauble and a little clear frame you can pop your memory card straight into...cor, I love gadgets me la! (That's a Guernsey expression lol!)

Anyway I'm working on some new papers, but I'll try to get the furs online later. And I'm really trying very hard to come up with ideas for elements, so hopefully I'll have more to show you soon!

We interrupt our scheduled programming....

2008-01-27T13:07:00.000-08:00

Not so much interrupt as a change of plan. I was gonna release the funky furs, but Deedee has asked for the Pattern Peeks I showed earlier this month, so why not? Here's a reminder of the preview, with a close-up of one page in each pack...you can tell I'm loving these little animated previews eh?

And here are the links:
Belanna's Pattern Peeks (Earth)
Belanna's Pattern Peeks (Rich)
Belanna's Peek-a-Boos (DSO Colour Challenge)

The last was posted already, but thought I'd add it in just in case y'all missed it!

Many thanks & more liquid metals...

2008-01-26T20:39:00.000-08:00

So, firstly a word of thanks. I've just taken some time to peek at the comments on 4shared and here and just wanted to say a big thank-you for letting me know that you like my experiments so far! I know a lot of people get very disheartened about the tiny percentage of people who comment compared to the number of downloads, but I promised myself I wouldn't. In actual fact I'm rather pleased and surprised that so many people have taken the time to download and say they like my first little offerings when there are so many talented people out there designing, that we're really all spoiled for choice!

So moving on, here are the final three packs of Liquid Metals, and in many ways my favourites - Bronze, Copper & Red Gold. Here's a little reminder of what they look like, and you can also scroll down to see the preview of all nine packs I posted previously.

And here are the links:
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Bronze)
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Rose Gold)
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Copper)

Again, if you use any of these in your scrapping, please send me a link because I'd love to see what you create!

So what now? I may do some more frames, since the first two sets were better received than I thought they'd be (lol!) but I think I might also release the second set of papers I played with, the Fun Furs, which I rather liked, so here's a peek:

So apart from figuring out more about how my software works, which is great, what have I learned so far? Well, I've learned that I really do prefer the earthy colour spectrum...chocolate, copper, bronze, gold, rust etc ... and that I like rich, vibrant finishes ... and that I love playing with papers lol!!!

But I'm really struggling with elements, because I actually don't use very many when I'm scrapping. Even when I see something I love, it's difficult to bring myself to put it on a page unless it's justified somehow by the content...frames being the most obvious example. So I guess I'm struggling with what to try next in terms of 'playing' with elements, so if anyone has any suggestions, I'm all ears....

Fancy some Liquid Metal Hearts???

2008-01-25T22:32:00.000-08:00

I'm not normally a 'hearts and frills' sort, but I started playing with this shape and liked it, so here goes:

They're based on the liquid metals papers (but with a red tint) and most of them are simply bevelled, but there are three glass-styles as well which I kinda like. Might come in handy next month eh? If you like em, here's the link:
Belanna's Liquid Frames (Hearts)

I'll get the rest of the papers uploaded soon.

Experimenting with Liquid Metal Frames

2008-01-25T21:07:00.000-08:00

Ho hum, I've had a play and I'm not sure what I think of these really, click the picture for a bigger view...

I was deliberately going for simple but maybe they're just too boring? Oh well, back to the drawing board!

ETA: Just in case you like them here's the link:
Belanna's Liquid Frames (Purple)

More Liquid Metals...

2008-01-25T14:38:00.000-08:00

Ready for the next lot of Liquid Metals? Well here they are, hope you like them....

Belanna's Liquid Metals (Purple)
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Peach)
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Gold)

(Scroll down for the first three links and the preview of all nine packs. And don't forget, if you use them, I'd love to see the results!)

Hmm, I've started playing with making some frames from these, which will be my first attempt at making elements, hoping to have a preview up later...

Liquid Metals Freebie (or three...)

2008-01-24T22:43:00.000-08:00

When I started playing with papers a little while ago, this was the first set I actually created...I shared them in a couple of forums but never thought to put them on here duh! Anyway, tidying up my files today and I saw them and thought, why not? You'll either like 'em or you won't.

Anyway, there are nine colour sets so that makes 72 papers in total (I think lol!). The preview is at a lower resolution, but you'll get the idea:

Links to the first three packs:
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Green)
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Blue)
Belanna's Liquid Metals (Pink)

I've yet to zip and upload the rest, but I'll try to get them up in the next day or so. Hope you like them, if so let me know...and if you use any I'd love to see!

Express yourself...with a kleenex?

2008-01-17T21:55:00.000-08:00

This is just too cool not to mention...but be warned, it may cost you!

I always have a box of tissues on my desk (currently it's a chess-themed cube) and while I know that what a box of tissues looks like should be bottom of my list of priorities, I've lately noticed that I'm spending time choosing box patterns when I'm shopping....not that it has to be a work of art (like that's gonna happen lol!) but just so that it doesn't distract and generally annoy me (like some of the retro-sixties patterns really boggle the eye, kwim???)

Anyhow, I've just chanced across this site which allows you to design your own oval shaped box of kleenex...how cool is that? There's a little design tool to use, that has some backgrounds and clip art, but the really great part is you can upload photos...which means you can import your own backgrounds, layouts, whatever you fancy basically. You can even just use a single panoramic photo as wraparound. What a boon for scrappers...and what a neat little gift when someone you know is under the weather.

It gives you the chance to preview your finished design before you order it, which is great...I tried it with some of my sphere papers and it looked fab (or at least I thought so!).

I know what you're thinking, what has life come to if I can get this psyched about something so silly...sniff...pass the tissues lol!

I am very rarely speechless...

2008-01-16T20:18:00.000-08:00

... but just minutes ago I was struck dumb (but you can tell it didn't last for long lol!). I posted my Floating Spheres papers as a members freebie at GDS a few days ago and just got a pm from harley3 to say she'd used a couple in a layout.

Wanna see? Then go here to see it in the GDS gallery or here to visit her blog and leave some love!!!!!!!!

Thank you thank you thank you harley3! I love your page and how you've created the frames, you've really made my day

Injecting some colour with a bit of a challenge...

2008-01-15T17:11:00.000-08:00

So I thought it was time I challenged myself to do something new, thought I'm not sure how successful I've been.

I've been watching KimB's Color Challenge at DSO for the last month or two and wondering if I could get up the nerve to submit something. The thing is I can colour things, but I'm not sure how to get the colours to match a specific palette, but I thought I'd give it a go...and I'm still not sure if I've got it right, but this is the result:

Counting left to right, the first five papers are the actual colours (or as close as I can get) and the last three are variations (for no reason other than I've decided the ideal pack size is 8, so it needed three more lol!)

If you like it, you can get it here

Didn't do much for my birthday yesterday...I had decided to buy a cake (which I rarely do) but then didn't get the chance. My better half wanted to take me out for dinner, which I tried really hard to be in the mood for, but then ruined anyway. I don't know why he puts up with me!!! We then proceeded into a really lousy, depressing evening, pretty much all of which was my fault...ho-hum. Better luck next year...

Sorry...but I couldn't resist...

2008-01-13T22:14:00.000-08:00

Having figured out how to create animated previews, I suddenly thought why don't I just do the same with the photos so I can show you more of them...yes, I hear you groaning, but it won't take long...lol!

Obviously I've had to reduce the quality of these to create the gif, but you'll get the idea. So here we are ascending above Gatwick to infinity and beyond...or at least into the clouds...

These are some of the fabulous sunrise (not sunset lol!) shots I mentioned....

And a whole host of mountain views...

Couldn't believe what a great job our little camera did...like I said it kept me sane by giving me something to focus on...if you'll pardon the pun!!!!

Into the final stretch...

2008-01-13T17:49:00.000-08:00

Yep, for those of you who've slogged through the epic saga of our trip, fear not, the end is nigh. Go into the light children...

Where was I? Oh yeah, so don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I'm a bit of a flaky flier. Put me in a twin-engine or a crop-duster with a gung ho pilot and I'm ecstatic, but big long-haul scheduled passenger flights give me the heeby-jeebies. My doc recommended valium washed down with liberal doses of gin (I really like her!) but then asked me not to tell anyone she said that, ooops! I substituted JD and champers for the gin (separately silly!) but even that didn't help me sleep, so the only thing that kept me sane this trip was taking pictures. I didn't really expect them to come out particularly well, but I was actually quite pleased with the results. This was shortly after take-off from Gatwick...

As you can see, I was keeping a beady eye on the monitor...

Then we got above the cloud so there wasn't much to see until the sun started to set...I got some really spectacular sunset shots, but I'm saving them to scrap with, so I'll just tease you with this fairly crummy one lol!

I really was keeping a close eye on the monitor, literally ticking off the miles as we travelled, couldn't wait to be back on the ground...

So you can imagine how thrilled I was thrilled when we finally caught sight of the Cascades...I was puzzled at first by the patterns until I realised I was looking at the results of the logging...

When we finally touched down at YVR I was cranky, hyper and not at all pleasant to be with, which just proves what a gentleman my better half is that he kindly overlooked it. We overnighted in Vancouver (and added a second night) before catching the ferry home...and it was so good to be home!!!!

Now what have I got for you after your mega holiday snaps ordeal? Well, firstly, a long awaited coffee for Amanda, hope you like it frothy!

Seems a bit mean, just coffee, eh? So I whipped up a bumper afternoon tea with finger sarnies and yummie pastries....

And at Kristi's suggestion, and because no get-together is complete without a bit of naughtiness, help yourself to a cocktail too....

Thanks for stopping by, see y'all soon!!!

Homeward bound...and yet more photos....

2008-01-11T22:48:00.000-08:00

Can you believe there are yet more photos of our trip that I haven't shared yet??? Well, you're in luck (lol!) coz there are!!!!

We drove back from Dublin (actually there was a ferry involved too!) to our favourite chill-out spot for a couple of nights to erm...chill-out before the long haul flight home. We stayed at the Hotel Seattle in Brighton, where we've spent many a happy weekend (mostly in the bar hic!) since we discovered it a few years ago. This is one seriously hip and trendy hotel in what has become a seriously hip and trendy town, and we (as you may have guessed) are sadly lacking in the hipness and trendiness departments - and yet we love it and recommend it highly.

It's located on the Boardwalk (actually it pretty much IS the Boardwalk) and so has some great views. Like this, from our balcony...

And I just love watching boats bob in the marina...also from the balcony...

And even when the sky turns dour, it's lovely to watch....

And the sea has such an unreal quality there...

(You can click any of these photos for a better view, but I really recommend that you click the last one, you can almost feel the tide swell when you look out at the ocean, one of my better shots!)

Now, if you ever find yourself in the general vicinity of Brighton, you just have to stay there. And once you're checked in, ask for directions to the 'secret' Black & White bar (it's really well hidden amongst the guest rooms) and once you get there ask for an English Orchard cocktail, sip, sigh and chill.....it's bliss!

Speechless....

2008-01-11T19:25:00.000-08:00

Well...almost! I'm so chuffed I've just figured out how to make an animated preview in PSE...cool or what? Yes I have been playing when I shouldn't have been... the upshot of which is some seven packs of papers (yes, that's right, SEVEN!) and I was trying to figure out the easiest way to show them to you. And suddenly it just clicked... y'know a real 'Aha!' moment.

Anyway, enough yammering, here it is....(cue the applause)

Erm, yes...they are all based on the same pattern...but it's such a cute pattern, someone's bound to want 56 variations of it, aren't they? Well, let me know if you do!

And there's still three days to go....

(Edited so that now it shows a full paper from each pack...it's addictive!)

No! Really? Another post already?????

2008-01-11T14:47:00.000-08:00

Yep, I must be on a roll or something, cause here I am back again, with a little more evidence that I've been playing instead of doing the million and one other things I should be doing, ho hum, never mind.

So whadya think?

Are these cute or just plain weird? I can't tell you what they remind me of, cause that would make it seem even weirder, but I do love this peek-a-boo pattern. Let me know what you think and if you'd like them.

Only three days left til my birthday...doodly do!

A Room with a View, an Alien, self-propelled bath fittings and lousy service

2008-01-11T13:33:00.000-08:00

So, here are some photos my Dad took while we were in Dublin. This first one is a view from the balcony of the hotel where we stayed at in Portmarnock...and the best thing about that hotel was definitely the view!

And here it is at night....

And the rather questionable art above the bed in each room, which reminded me of something from Alien...

And a view of Malahide across the bay from Oscars pub and restaurant, where we stopped for lunch with my sister and her family...

We searched long and hard for the right hotel in Dublin. We wanted somewhere that was both comfortable and a bit special, somewhere that would be a treat for my Mom & Dad since we wanted them to have a bit of a break while we were visiting. We actually chose a brand new hotel, the Ritz Carlton at Powerscourt, and then discovered they were full for one night in the middle of our short stay because of some celebrity wedding. Harumph!

So we found the Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Links, which was supposedly 4 star and looked pretty darn good. But pretty much from the moment we arrived, things went badly. And when my parents checked in the next day, it went downhill rapidly thanks to bathroom fixtures that weren't 'fixed' (taps and handles kept falling off the wall!) and a restaurant manager with an attitude the Nazis would have been proud of...

Thankfully my parents had checked out before the final night....when the fire alarm went off and we were left in the pouring freezing rain for over 30 minutes only to discover that the alarm had malfunctioned and the rest of the hotel weren't even aware of it, and...after another half hour searching for anyone who cared we were told to go back to our room and the alarm would be switched off until someone came to fix it. Very reassuring....and what if there happens to be a fire? Oh, that almost never happens, they said unconvincingly.

We met with the customer relations manager the following morning before we checked out who promised a letter of apology to my parents for how appallingingly they'd been treated, and an email to us after they'd investigated the rest of the shambles...neither of which ever arrived. All I can say is, if you ever find yourself looking for accommodation in Ireland...don't ever go here.

Remember these???

2008-01-10T22:58:00.000-08:00

Well, because I'm feeling a bit down, I thought I'd share them with you. There are two packs of eight papers, and this is the first, so if you'd like the other pack, just say so. And if you actually use any, send me a link cause I'd love to see it.

You can get them here

Did I mention it's my birthday in like, 4 days? So consider this an early birthday pressie from me to you, and don't say I never give you anything!

Back from the pit...and more photos

2008-01-10T22:33:00.000-08:00

I feel like I dropped of the edge of the planet (well it is flat, y'know!) and it's taken me an age to climb back on...but finally here I am. We (that is me and my very much better half) have been ill over Christmas...or more accurately, since we came back from holiday in November, so it's been a pretty miserable festive season...and New Year went off with a rather damp squib. But ho hum, we soldier on.

Thought it was about time I posted some more pics of our trip, so finally here they are. My gran passed away shortly before we travelled, and despite having missed the funeral, I wanted to visit the cemetary while we were in Dublin...but it was a little surreal. It's not a cemetary I ever remember having visited before, but my parents assure me it's changed a lot. It used to be surrounded by fields and roads, now (land being so scarce for development), it's actually inside a housing development. So you drive in through the gates of the development before you get to the gates of the cemetary, and once you're there you're surrounded by apartments overlooking the walls. All I can say, is it's a really weird view to have from your balcony. Anyway, the grave was still piled high with flowers from the funeral, as you can see...

We were only in Dublin for a very short time, but while there my dad took us to the Phoenix Park (where we used to picnic when I was a kid) and we saw a very pretty restored tower...I would have read the details on the placque but they were in Irish, and I've never been that fluent lol!

Right next to it there's a well-manicured hedge maze, which my better half threatened to lose me in ... so I pointed out it was only about two feet high, and he said, 'Yeah, that's about right' and was swiftly kicked...I know I'm short but really!

Next time I'll post some pics my Dad took from the hotel...which if you ever find yourself travelling to Ireland, I can strongly recommend...that you avoid it like the plague!!!!

Holiday Snaps...part deux!!!

2007-12-10T18:21:00.000-08:00

Okay, here's the next gripping installment. Needless to say Gatwick is far less photogenic than Vancouver, so we didn't bother taking photos there, though I was tempted at the Yotel, which was fab. Compact, bijoux, yes, but a little gem nonetheless, and if you find yourself in desperate need of a nap between flights at Gatwick, we can highly recommend both the beds and the food (bacon rolls to die for!). Actually the food is worth mentioning, because you order it through the tv, they promise to deliver in less than 15 minutes or it's free (ours came in just under 10), it's quite a bit cheaper than we expected (certainly cheaper than food in the terminal cafes) and it arrives packaged in attractive boxes (like designer flower deliveries) in a boutique style shopping bag...way cool! Actually, that should be .... way hot! because it was in fact piping and stayed that way to the last crumb.

Anyway, on with the show...here's the new arrival we travelled all the way around the world to see, snapped in a rare moment of wakefulness perched on her momma's shoulder...altogether now, awwwwwwwwwwww.....

And within seconds of being plonked on her jet-lagged step-gran (moi!) she was out cold and snoring a little purr-like snore like a contented putty tat...

This is mom & auntie skulking in the kitchen to avoid the papa-razzi (i.e. their dad with a camera...they absolutely detest being snapped!)

And here's the proud grandad, aka Mr Christeph, posing with his new little darling at the airport before we headed off to Ireland...

Okay, that's enough for now, we're out to dinner tomorrow to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of arriving in Canada, so I reckon it'll be a couple of days before I get around to posting some more.

But before I forget, Carol asked what did I miss most while we were travelling. Well, without hesitation, I can honestly say, my bed! I don't think I had a decent night's sleep the whole trip, everywhere we went the beds were just so uncomfortable!! In fact the only place with a bed even close to comfy as ours is the hotel at Vancouver airport where we overnighted on the way back. When we finally got back I think we must have spent 24 hours straight snuggled up in bed, that's the life eh?

Truth is Amanda, they're revamping the airport for the 2010 Winter Olympics, but I must admit I really love what they've done so far. And hidden along the river bank is a series of tiny ear-phone sized speakers constantly playing restful river sounds eg birds, insects, water, wind....it's really lovely. It really was the most relaxing start to a journey ever, and I wish all airports would follow suit.

Holiday Snaps ... Part One?

2007-12-09T21:50:00.000-08:00

Okay, so according to Amanda it's time I did an update. What can I say? We've been half way round the world and back, and it's so good to be home! So here are the first of the (many!) holiday snaps. Get yourself a glass of wine and try not to yawn...

First up is the departures area at Vancouver Airport, exciting eh? Well, actually for us it was! It has been completely revamped since we were last there (circa 2004) and I have to applaud them. It's certainly the most comfortable, relaxing and de-stressing departures area I've had the pleasure to be in.

Here's the new and rather fascinating aquarium, seen from downriver...yes, there's now a river running through departures!

And a close-up of some of the occupants....

Here's a view of the river itself...

And a close-up of one of the more docile inhabitants, Salmonus Glassicus, I believe.

Okay, so I see some of you are already nodding, so we'll stop there for now, more to follow sometime soon!

What I've been playing with....

2007-11-02T02:00:00.000-07:00

When I shouldn't have really been playing at all! So much to do, so little time, and instead I find myself making papers. Kinda pleased with them though, certainly not your run of the mill kinda papers...whadya think?

Don't think anyone would actually use these for scrapping...but let me know if you'd like them, I'd love to be proved wrong!

Thanks M!

2007-09-09T12:38:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to send a very special note of thanks to my pinkie chum M, who sent me the most wonderful gift for our Christmas in August exchange!!!!

Click to play | Make your own Smilebox

Lotza hugz coming your way M!!!

Sunrise....

2007-09-02T19:53:00.000-07:00

My sweetie took some fabulous shots of the sunrise the other morning from our bedroom window...(I'd like to say we were up that early, but the truth is we never got to bed!) Anyhow we were both really pleased with how they turned out at the time, but looking at them now, I can't really believe how lucky I am to get to share this kind of breathtaking event with my sweetie without ever leaving home... we are really blessed!

And thanks to ON Designs Grand Opening Template Contest I got to use a really cool template to scrap it with... (click on the picture for a larger view)

Credits: Template by ON Designs, Papers & Red Ribbon from Black White & Read Kit by Anna Benjamin aka Paper Moons

Did I create a freebie?

2007-08-27T11:26:00.000-07:00

Lol! Well I've been playing around and finally came up with my first papers! Not that I'm particularly interested in getting into the whole freebie game, but I was so chuffed with myself, that I just had to share them...with anyone who actually happens to come across my little blog lol!

So whadya think? Would they be worth downloading as a freebie or not? Answers on a postcard please...lol!

Feeling inspired (finally!)

2007-08-20T22:44:00.000-07:00

A couple of things conspired together to get me scrapping this week - fabulous new bookbinder papers from Anna Benjamin at Paper Moons (only $1!!!), a cute torn frame template from Princess Pamela and an unusual sketch from Chris Greiser... and of course my ever-loving sweetie for whom this layout was assembled.

Click the image for a larger view to see the detail in these fab papers:

Credits: Bookbinder papers from Anna Benjamin at Paper Moons (only $1!!!), Torn Square Frame template from Princess Pamela, inspired by a sketch by Chris Greiser.

Cake anyone??

2007-08-20T22:36:00.001-07:00

As a confirmed 'can't cook, won't cook' I was stumped when challenged to scrap a recipe card recently. And then I remembered one of the very few recipes I've ever actually baked rather than just drooled over. The Daily Mail did a promotional article for Nigella Lawson's Feast cookbook a few years ago and this was one of the recipes they featured. After weeks of pondering, I finally got up the nerve to try it and it was delish! It's heavy and moist, with a far more complex flavour than your average chocolate cake.

If anyone tries it, let me know! (Click the image for a larger view)

Credits: Bookbinder papers and manilla envelope by Anna Benjamin aka Paper Moons (only $1!!!), Torn Square Template by Princess Pamela, Shapes & Page Borders by Pillowgirl

Ugly duckling girls like me....

2007-08-13T23:50:00.000-07:00

So there was obviously a conjunction in the heavens today...

I heard Janis Ian's At Seventeen earlier on the radio and thought I'd love to use those lyrics in a page...
I came across a picture of myself on holiday in Greece dancing with my big brother (& hero) when I was seventeen (i.e. many, many, moons ago lol!) and again thought, I'd love to use that in a page...
Julie announced the design team at Stone Accents Studio today and and as part of the launch Candee started a challenge to do a 'hello' layout about yourself (or rather myself!)

Well ya can't ignore those kind coincidences... so here it is... the ugly duckling at seventeen...

Of course the lyrics mean a lot more to me now than they did then...sigh!

Credits:
Papers and flowers from Harriet's Parlor, Rose and bead from Sugar Sugar...both kitz by the inimitable... can ya guess???? Anna Benjamin aka Paper Moons

Raising a parting glass to Tommy Makem

2007-08-06T21:58:00.000-07:00

One of my early heroes died the other day, you may or may not have heard of him. His name was Tommy Makem, formerly half of an Irish folk singing duo, Makem & Clancy. Growing up I learned more about my heritage and history through their songs and stories than I ever learned at school. To me they were the heart and soul and essence of what it meant to be Irish, and to them I owe my first sense of pride in being Irish.

I met them briefly, saw them perform live several times, both together and in later years individually, after they split to pursue solo careers. Each came from large musical families - and now their sons and daughters are carrying on the tradition.

Although diagnosed with advanced lung cancer last year, Tommy decided to carry on with his tour as planned rather than disappoint people - and I think in doing so he gave himself and his fans an opportunity to say goodbye in a real sense. Unfortunately I didn't get to any of the final dates, by the time news had reached me, most had already taken place.

And while the news of his passing didn't come as a shock, it brought with it a greater sense of loss than I had expected. As if I'd lost a favourite uncle, my childhood and my country in the same moment. While he has passed on his talent and passion for music to his children and they continue to perform, it's different. As if an era has ended and the future is uncertain. Normally I'd call that sentimental tosh, but that's how it feels just now.

In tribute I'd like to share one of his songs, a haunting piece with a superb melody that seems oddly appropriate and somehow comforting at the moment. To listen, click play on the Smilebox below.

Click to play | Make your own Smilebox

Slan abhaile, Tommy.

Nicknames, nonsense and 'nother template!

2007-05-27T10:08:00.000-07:00

So isn't this weird - I start using templates for the first time and Chris Greiser starts making them! So I had to give the first one a try and see what I could do with it - and here it is ...ta dah!

The 'Petal' in question was a much younger version of me, it was one of my dad's nicknames for me, along with 'Half-pint' and his favourite (which was a collective nickname for me and my sisters lol!!!), 'Helpless, Hopeless & Useless'. Hmmm, that might just make a good page to scrap methinks!

{Credits: The Princess & the Pea kit and Silk Flowerz by Anna Benjamin (aka Paper Moons) and template by Chris Greiser}

Don't forget to scroll down to see Anna's fourth QOTC entry - and go vote!!!!

Is Hunter not the most adorable little boy?

2007-05-26T21:27:00.000-07:00

Don't ya just want to hug him all up for saying such sweet things about his mommy?

This layout just makes you wanna smile and go Awwwwww.... and then run right over to Scrapbookgraphics and vote of course!!! (You'll see the credits there too!) Another great bag of goodies there as a bonus once you vote - and if you need any more incentive - just go check on Anna's blog and see what she's got waiting for you!!!

Well what are you hanging around here for? Go! Scoot! Vote!

Thoughts on templates!

2007-05-24T21:29:00.000-07:00

Now as a real scrapping newbie, you'd think I'd be pretty keen on using templates eh? Wrong! Why? Well let's just say the ones I've seen so far have left me pretty cold, and I always end up thinking, I can do better than that!

But then a couple of days ago I discovered....Renae Nicholson! Renae brings real creativity and inspiration to template design and frankly, one look at her templates and I realised there was no way I could do better!

So since this was my first attempt to use a template, I played it safe and chose a simple one. I had a play and came up with this as an early anniversary card for my Mom & Dad that I'm really kinda pleased with. Though really with a combination of Renae's template and Anna's designs, how could I not be pleased?

[Credits: Chocolate Treatz, Foundation Paperz and Mini Bowz all by Anna Benjamin (aka Paper Moons), Template #42 by Renae Nicholson]

Anna for Queen Campaign - Week 3!!!!

2007-05-19T13:25:00.000-07:00

Isn't this gorgeous???? This is Anna's page for week 3 of the QOTC - and you can vote for it and see the credits here.

And this week's goodie bag for voting is a phenomenally HUGE 2.2gb!!!!!! Mine is downloading now - can't wait to see what's in it!

Anna for Queen Campaign!!!

2007-05-17T23:53:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm a little late cause it's week 2 already, but sheesh, give a girl a break!

Anyhoooo, here's the deal. Anna Benjamin (aka Paper Moons) is without doubt the most talented, gifted, versatile and downright creative designer it has been my privilege to discover - she's also a generous, funny and all round wonderful human being and she writes an addictive blog to boot - far more addictive than reality tv and vastly more involving. What more could anyone want in a future sovereign I ask?

As a challenger for the crown at Scrapbookgraphics QOTC, she simply has no competition!! But there's no shame in that for the other entrants, trust me even Princess Di would have conceded defeat to this Queen-to-be (she might even have asked her to design her wedding dress!!!)

Wanna see the proof? Well here's just a little sample of what this woman is capable of, it's her entry for week two:

See what I mean? She's unbeatable. So here's your chance to get in her good graces, and you just never know she might confer you with a title once she's crowned. Go here to see the credits and cast your vote and collect a wicked bag of goodies to boot.

And then go here to catch up with her blog and she might even treat you to some of her world-reknowned sugar cookiez for visiting!

Mmmmmmm, scrummy!

All about me!

2007-04-15T19:54:00.000-07:00

This is a challenge I did for godigitalscrapbooking.com last month - technically the challenge was over ages ago, but I liked the idea of it and thought I'd have a go for practice! Since it's along similar lines to Anna's first challenge for QOTC, I thought I'd share it with you, and see what you think?

Credits: Created in Powerpoint using Yin Designs Brown Paper Packages Kit

First comment, third challenge!!!

2007-04-04T23:21:00.000-07:00

Yay!!! My little baby blog got it's first comment today from Misty Cato, designer extraordinaire!! And such a lovely comment too, thank you so much Misty!! I'm almost speechless with delight!!

Onwards and upwards, been following Anna's blog at Paper Moons for the last few weeks, (well worth a visit and a read) and much impressed by her fabulously scrapped to-do lists. So when she issued a challenge for readers to create one of their own, couldn't very well resist could I? Even though this is the busiest of weeks for me and I hadn't got a clue where to start! Anyhow, here is my little effort - hope you like it Anna!

Credits:
Bow & flower from Anna's March Madness collection
News Clipping Generator at fodey.com
Dummiez Book Cover Maker 2007 from signgenerator.org
Catalog Card Generator at blyberg.net
Photo of my beloved - you can tell I like this one too, it crops up a lot!
Geisha Brooch - one of my collection of brooches!

Most treasured and most thankful...

2007-04-03T23:46:00.000-07:00

Okay, so this is my second challenge ever and my second scrapbook page ever. Why is it so special? Well one, it's about the person that matters most to me, who changed my life in ways he doesn't even understand. And also, it refers to two monumental trips - one in 2004 to visit Canada to plan our emigration, and one in 2005 which was a pitstop at our favourite hotel in Brighton on our way to Canada to live - really lifechanging moments. And finally because the top photo is his favourite photo of himself ever, and I took it! The bottom one is a little blurry, but that was mostly due to the champagne, so even the blur is special!

It was created for Andrea Gold's 'What are you most thankful for' challenge at GoDigitalScrapbooking. I didn't manage to get the hang of the template provided in PSE (I've only just started using that too), so I worked in Powerpoint instead and recreated it as closely as possible.

And I'm entering it for Misty Cato's competition more because I'd love to get my first comment on my baby blog than because I have any hope of winning, which I doubt!

Credits: Key, Tag and Alpha from Debra Anderson's For All Time kit; everything else created in Powerpoint.

My first ever challenge

2007-03-24T20:17:00.000-07:00

This is my entry for Bren's colour challenge at TDS, I haven't been able to log into TDS because of a server error, so I'm hoping this works instead:

Visit Bren's blog here

2007-02-24T14:06:00.000-08:00

| Click to Play Now

Odds are this could take a while...

2006-11-21T23:10:00.000-08:00

Not sure exactly what I want to do with this ... so could be a while before I do much of anything! Until then, enjoy the view.