Another Theme

I can't do any crafting this weekend as Karen is here, back from Uni for the weekend, and Jenni is coming over tomorrow to see her. I have been having fun though, because Karen is going to a fancy dress birthday party tonight (the real reason she came home this weekend maybe?) and the theme is 'A Film Character'.

She brought a red skirt with her and we've stuck white circles on it. She's made round black ears from my crafting stash and attached them to her hairband. We've fashioned a yellow bow out of ribbon and pinned it to her black T-shirt. She's also wearing black tights, white shoes and gloves, and a fluffy black tail!!
Voila! Mickey Mouse.
She wouldn't do a Mickey Mouse pose for the photo but I'll let you judge whether she looks anything like him! She says she feels like she's going to work at an American Diner!

I always, always get red eye problems with Karen on photos and never remember to use a double-flash when taking a shot. Today was no different. No-one else in the family gives me the same trouble which is strange. Anyway, I had to resort to the photo-editing red eye tool which I never find accurate enough, or maybe I'm just hopeless at using it! Today's excuse is that her false-eyelashes got in the way! Surely Mickey Mouse doesn't wear falsies?!

Themes

Like Ann on Pretty I enjoy finding new blogs on the web and she has a link on hers to Meet Me at Mike's, http://meetmeatmikes.blogspot.com/   so being my usual nosy self, I went over there to take a look. They have a different photo theme every week called 'My Place And Yours'. This week everyone is revealing the secrets of what's on their bedside tables. So I have joined in with this snapshot of how mine looks on this rainy October afternoon.

I have a small collection of jewellery boxes on my table at the moment, but these things change with my mood, I do like to alter things around. The fullest and heaviest box is the cream one, handmade from glass by my father. He made the bedside lamp too. The lampstand is brass although she needs a good clean-up to reveal her shiny side. (If any one has tips on how to keep brass looking like brass please let me know!) The wooden jewellery box is one I brought back from Salerno in Italy many years ago, and the other two are clear glass and engraved mirror-glass. Finally, the book is one from the Library which I've just started reading.

I've had fun blog-hopping to look at everyone's bedside tables today. Perhaps you'd like to visit the website and while away some time too.

WOYWW

Another week gone already and another 'cheat' photo for WOYWW!

It was actually taken on Sunday when I was making some cards. I had been playing around with an ink pad and brayer, a leaf stamp and embossing powder. The leafy background in the foreground (if that makes sense) was fine until I decided to put black Versafine ink on top - which didn't set on glossy paper. I should have known that! So I had to start again. Hence the leaf background further away from the camera.

You can see my storage tub of ribbons. All muddled up and mixed together. But I love them that way. I love delving in when I'm looking for a specific colour and seeing what else I find! There's also one of the magazine holders I use to store my unmounted stamps vertically so they don't get damaged. Being a crafter for x number of years, I obviously have more than one of these!  Make what you will of the quotation on the side of it!

Despite the false start, I managed to make two birthday cards for male members of the family. Also this card for our Wedding Anniversary this weekend - only don't let on to Him Indoors I'd forgotten all about it until the reminder I set on the computer popped up! See, I knew I'd forget and had to set the reminder last year!

I know we crafters don't waste anything and like to be frugal, but I do feel a little bit guilty about how I made this card for Hubby. I used the front of a card I was sent and cut it down to form a frame which I then laid over red mirror card. But I'm sure he'll never realise it's a recycled card and I'm sure he'll like it. He's one of the very few men I've come across who like flowery cards!

Everything has been put back into the cupboards now though until I can play again.

As I find it very interesting to see people's craft spaces, I'll be nosy when I get home from work and check out all the WOYWW posts then.

Show And Tell

Here's one of the first scrapbook pages I ever made. Jenni and Karen on Brighton Pier...like it says... and no dates as I didn't do that at first, nor any meaningful journaling either. I did try to be witty with the hat question though. Both photos were taken on Brighton Pier but a couple of years apart I would guess. I don't know because, sadly,  I didn't record those facts. Even then, Karen had her own sense of style i.e. the sunglasses!!

Being nosy, I was wondering if you would 'Show And Tell' one of your first layouts for others to see. It does make you realise how far you have come with the hobby. Perhaps from drab, uninspired LO's like mine here, to hopefully, something more interesting and engaging for others to see. Maybe you've always been a Scrapbook Star and even early layouts were prize-winners?

It helped me to assess my layouts then and now and recognise what elements have changed over time to give me my personal style.

Starting out I found 12x12 a frighteningly large space to fill, but now I tend to use up all of the page and rarely leave 'white space'.

Starting out I didn't tell the stories or add dates often enough, now I consider that the whole point of scrapbooking!

Starting out I used every colour cardstock possible on LO's, but now I have a preference for blue.

Starting out, if I did any journalling it was usually hidden somewhere on the page, now I am happy for people to see my comments (though I am not always happy with my handwriting efforts!)

Go on, let's see one of your original scrapbook pages. After all, you've seen mine!