Shabby Architectural Challenge no 19

This months challenge at Lets Get Shabby is to use the provided picture for inspiration and to be inspired by Arches, scallops and architecture.

I used these pictures that were taken in York last summer. We had been to the National Railway Museum and Ben was playing in the Castle grounds with a new train......it always amazes me that boys will play in any piece of dirt they can find!!

I used Pink Paislee House of Three Parisian Anthology papers from Happy Daze.

The main page is called Architectural arch and comes with a raised embossed background that you can alter to create any colour or texture that you want. I altered them with brown and blue Ranger distress inks to create the moody background.

The rambling flower is hand coloured and cut from Primas paintables.

As always the sponsors are super generous with their prizes and the entries are wide and varied, so get your thinking caps on and join in the fun!! After all what else are you going to do stuck indoors for the next few freeszing cold snow filled weeks!

Love and dirt

Ruth xxx

I said LOOK don't TOUCH!!

I am going to take your photo......

...so this is what he did!!

My DDA is sooooo far behind now I just don't know if I'll ever catch up.

I have still been taking photos like you do, at this time of the year, so if I don't get my DDA finished I am posting these for posterity!

Love Ruth xxx

Tis the Sweet Season for Birthday Wishes

I made Georgia a Giant Cupcake for her birthday and would you believe it, it's a perfect match for the Websters Pages Holiday Wishes papers!!!

Shock horror I have no idea how that happened. (It's a good job she can't read her mothers conniving mind!)

The dimensional cupcake is made from cardboard, felt padding, glitter glue and the Websters Pages ribbon.

The paper case effect is made by folding the ribbon, which is printed on a dense canvas type of material and can take quite a hammering. I reckon you could cut petals out of it on a die cutting machine (if you have one).

In the top left hand corner I used a small pom-pom to cover the letters that are on top of the cupcakes, as mine was something random like an "F"!!

I bought the whole set of 12x12's from Happy Daze.....next on the list a Gingerbread house..yup you guessed it..the kids have made one....I have no idea where they got that random idea from but I just happen to have the paper to match!!

Love and birthday wishes

Ruth xxx

The guessing is over!

I don't know whether I ought to dare bore you again with my "fear" of card making...think Gillian Mckeith in the jungle and you are getting close!!

This year I bit the bullet and made 2 for the Lets get Shabby Christmas giveaway.

The Shabby followers had such fun trying to guess who made which card.

Thanks to all who played along and hunted for the clues.

Love and letters to santa

Ruth xxx

Shabby Xmas Giveaway

It's back and biger than ever before.......yup...it's the "Lets get Shabby" Christmas giveaway!!

For your chance to win some handmade Christmas cards by some of the biggest names in scrapping simply take a peek at these 2 pictures and try to guess who made which ones!!

note: there is a mix of designers in each picture:

Unfortunately my cards are still winging their way to Australia...(they probably stopped off at Surfers Paradise on the way). I'll give you a clue if they do appear..mine are red and green..lol!

You can still play along by following the rules at

Lets get Shabby.

1) become a follower

2) find the clues on my Dt buddies blogs (see sidebar)

3) leave a comment on LGS

Good luck xxx

A Shabby Christmas Song: Challenge 18

This months challenge at Lets get Shabby is to create a Project using your favourite Christmas song/carol/hymn as inspiration and to include part of the words on your page, either as the titile or as journalling. It must be noticeable.

I found it really difficult to choose a favourite song as I think I just love them all.....I'm not really fussy and could happily hum along to anything from christmas carols to The Pogues.

Eventually I settled on one that focused on Father Christmas to evoke the spirit of the photo of Ben.

For a week my layout sat unfinished whilst I sorted out Georgias birthday party and cake.

Then finally I had a light bulb moment...my layout needed a Vintage tag to fill the empty space.

I used a brown tag and vintage victorian images from the dotcom gift shop, the enamelled bells are from Hobby House and the stamp is made by Papermania who once again have surprised me with their occassional touches of vintage brilliance.

I am loving their Silent Night range!

May I recommend this stamp package to all crafters. It is beautifully detailed, ideal for all cards and retails at £5.99...if it hasn't sold out that is. (I got mine from Pennells garden centre).

Anyway...back to business....click here to enter Challenge number 18, which has the most geneous prizes for all this month and above all keep on humming those tunes!

Love Ruth xxx

Ultimate glue Giveaway

Happy Daze are giving away a pot of "The Ultimate" glue to one lucky winner.

All you have to do is leave a comment on the Happy Daze Blog HERE

Entries are picked at random and close on Friday 27th.

Pretty papers capturing the end of summer....

Alas winter has fallen from the sky with a thud.....Autumn passes us by in a week.

Is it because we aren't American that we don't get the pleasure of a lingering season, and we are punished with the cold winds from the North Pole the minute summer has finished?

And so it was with great joy that I scrapped with these "sweetness" papers by Pink Paislee from Happy Daze..

Who needs cold dull Autumn when you can remember what the English call "the back end of summer" (not the most polite way to put it!!)

I simply used a marker to pen to write on the photo the place and date. (for my local friends it is the supersized deck-chair at Butlins holiday camp!).

Love and sunshine

Ruth xxx

psst.....20% off Websters Pages at Happy Daze

It's getting a bit like Hot Deals and Money Saver Supermarket.com around here..lol....

But heres a heads up for all my crafty followers.

Happy Daze are having a 20% off Websters Weekend and may I tell you that they also have the large 12x12 Christmas pads in stock..yum yum yum.

Personally I have gone for the Sweet Season paper kit but I also adore the traditional Waiting for Santa too.

Have you seen the ruffle trim and vintage buttons?

Click on embellishments to find them..sigh....

I for one am grateful that we are getting the opportunity to work with this seasons products rather than waiting forever for these beautiful papers to come into the country.

Planning a Christmas 2010 mini book?

It's all in one shop..I'm thinking mini pack of papers, stickers, alphabets..cardstock...sorted!!

Go one treat yourself you know you want to!!

Love Ruth xxx

dotcom gift shop.

It's that time of the year when I start to alter lots of Christmas boxes, except this year I have found a company that take the hard work out of altering.

dotcom gift shop is a lovely on line retailer that sells anything vintage/retro/shabby...you know the kind of things you would put on your santa list if only "he" was listening!!

I found the naked boxes to be really sturdy and covered in a slightly glossy brown wrapping paper...similar to Post Office brown parcel paper.

Once covered with patterned papers I lightly inked the edges and decorated the tags to go on top.

I made 5 in one day so they must have been simple.....(it would have been 6 if life hadn't stepped in with halloween parties!!)

The Vintage Ribbon is a printed off white twill with beautiful vintage images and a stunning use of duck egg blue and traditional reds and greens.

The Postage Stamp stickers/toppers are easy to peel off and are printed on good quality card with a mix of vintage and modern patterns.

The 50 Victorian images (which come free with the 6 boxes)are tradition re-prints of Victorian scraps and are perfect for altering all sorts of things from tags to baubles.

I almost just wanted to glue them into a scrap book and make my own Victorian scrap album!!

The six boxes vary in size and are as deep as each is wide, making it easy to measure them for covering!!

These boxes are on offer at half price for only £2.95...at that price I'd go for the ribbon and the tags as well!

......ps: whilst you're at the site can you tell Santa I'd like the White Shabby curio cupboard for altering!Love and vintage ribbons

Ruth xxx

Be-witched

To be-witched or not to be-witched that is the question?

It's that silly time of the year when the adults wonder whether they should dress up and join in the fun with the children...fortunately Granny B has a costume and joined in last years Fright Night at Hagg Lane.

The photo was taken by some professionals at a charity event organised by my friends sister and held in the local woods near York.

The fabulous papers are from Happy Daze and are from the Hocus Pocus range by Pink Paislee these papers are called Skeleton Soiree'...cool huh?

I ordered 2 sheets of the same so that I could make the circle design, I wanted to soften the skeleton but also keep it as part of the focal point of the design.

The silver blingy letters are from Papermania and the flowers are from Prima.

Happy Halloween

Love Ruth xxx

Shabby challenge number 17 "Raid your sewing box"

I raided my sewing box with pleasure for this Lets get Shabby challenge and used a zipper,a hat pin and a pearl pin to make my own hat pin.

I was Rak'd this green pin...I suspect it is Maya Road, but I really love making my own just like our gorgeous sponsor, Tattered Inspirations, who incidently sells gorgeous vintage inspired kits!!

The zip was fun and I would definitely use this technique again!!

Want to join in?

Click here and see the stunning samples from the hugely talented team and then play along..it's as easy as 123.

Love and dolls

Ruth xxx

B.E.W.A.R.E......

Halloween is around the corner and that means hiding in your house and turning all the lights off!!

Do you think my banner will frighten away any undesirables?

With it's mean looking Pumpkins...lol

...and scary skeletons



Creepy spiders....





........and flying bats!!

I did have fun making it though...or should I say "we" because Ben thinks it's his as he chose the Pumpkin stickers.

The mini papers by Pink Paislee are called Hocus Pocus and you get 30 in a pad for less than a fiver from Happy Daze.

Love and peel-off bats

Ruth xxx

Charming and sweet...

You should know that you are Charming, Adorable and ever so sweet....from the top of your head to the toes on your feet.

I love how the words are printed onto this paper in such a beautiful arrangement and I felt the need to rhyme with them.

These photos (from last christmas) with Ben and the glittery wreath, are just right for the red glittered My Minds Eye papers.

I was attempting to get him to look angelic with it on his head but he wasn't very co-operative and giggled when he stuck it on his feet...grrr...!!

These papers can be found here at Happy Daze

Love and feet

Ruth xxx

Keep out or the witch will get you!!

I covered this cupboard with the Graphic45 Halloween in Wonderland papers as a present for my nieces birthday.

I'm not sure if she "gets" it, but inside is Alice looking into a mirror on a dressing table and the Queen is pointing at her in the reflection.

I thought Aimee could hide her jewellery in the drawer. We also gave her a sweet Disney Couture Tinkerbell necklace that she chose. Me personally I'd have gone for the Alice in Wonderland tea cups but then I do like to go over the top when it comes to themeing things!!

Love and white rabbits

Ruth xxx

I am only showing this because....

I want the chance to win 72 Copics and the rules say you have to link to a card with a stamped image......as this is the 2nd card I have made this year...lol (as it's October!!)

I thought I'd better play by the rules.

The pretty papers are Prima Annalee from Happy Daze and the stamp is one of those girly ones by someone who makes pretty stamps(can't you tell I am a card virgin still-no name dropping from me!!) Oh yeah thats it I have remembered it's "Whiff of Joy"

To enter this massive giveaway click HERE

Love and luck

Ruth xxx

I love my Camera

Ok: I like my Cannon Rebel but I'd really LOVE a 550d.....one can but dream!!

What I do really like are these Lost and Found papers from Happy Daze. (I keep on using the little lost and found tag at the bottom of them and popping it into the layouts somewhere)....photography was always a hobby of mine at school thanks to my Dad, and now I have found my love for it again.

The edges of the paper are glittered in a deeply rich and luxurious bronze and the word Love was cut from some of the other papers in the range...yet again it's lathered in glitter!!

I love the French words and the birdcage design..they'd go with anything.

Love and lenses

Ruth xxx

Lost and Found

Georgia broke her arm and found out that she was really brave..

The name for these My Minds Eye papers is Lost and Found and they are perfect for grungy style layouts and pretty shabby chic ones too.

They can be found here at Happy Daze along with a whole load of beautiful papers from the same collection...just check out the details in the corner of each paper.......serious style and stamping effects!!

Love and stars

Ruth xxx

Has anyone seen my missing layout?

Sometime back in January /February 2010 I was asked to make a layout for the "new" Scrapbook Trends UK magazine.

I dutifully met the deadline and e-mailed a copy of it to the editor. The next day I posted the hardcopy and that was the last I saw of it.

I recieved an e-mail praising the layout and saying how lovely it was..etc..etc. Stupidly in my excitment I didn't write down the publishers address or keep the editors e-mail so someone somewhere has my layout!!I have e-mailed the publishers twice but no one has replied.

The magazine was obviously never commissioned in these hard economic times..goodness knows why because the US publication is a top quality one and is nothing like the watered down English scrapbooking mags...anyway there is not alot I can do about that (damn and there was me hoping for a cover page..lol!!)

So if you read my blog and happen to be that editor or work in a warehouse that is full of strange looking Pizza boxes...please please send me home!!

Anyway...having finally tracked down my one and only pictures of the layout taken early in the morning before I posted it...I have decided I shall appeal to all and sundry for my granny back!!

OK Georgias Granny but we would both like to have her home again!!

Love and hope

RUTH XXX