Stampamemory Challenge - January 2011

Happy New Year to everyone, I love New Year ... a time for reflection, new beginnings and dare I say it resolutions - certainly a great time for some reflective scrapbooking, but you will have to wait for another day to see what I have been up to.

Stampamemory's challenge for January 2011 is to produce a page using this sketch. I love using sketches because no matter how you interpret it - it always works.

I really struggled with the title of this layout - I wanted to write Veggie Patch but it wouldn't fit ... so Veg it is!  I chose photos that would remind us just how fast things can grow in your garden and the end result - our veggie patch is providing us with endless hours of entertainment (well Paul and I, the kids don't quite get their mother when she runs around pointing out baby cucumbers or spends hours on the net researching solutions for whitefly LOL).

This little embellishment was made using the Every Moment set, watercolour paper and a blender pen - regular viewers of my blog will remember this technique for a birthday card - very easy to do - the hardest part is the cutting out!

The colours are Wild Wasabi, So Saffron, Very Vanilla, Early Espresso and Poppy Parade.  The little strawberry is from the Tart and Tangy set - I've used Crystal Effects to give it a glossy finish.  I've also edged the designer series papers from the Subtles pack using some Linen Thread - which I simply stapled into place.

The Poppy Parade patterned paper is from the paper stack that is available as a Hostess Level One benefit when you hold a workshop - it matched perfectly with the first tomatoes of the season.  I also used the Spritzer and and Early Espresso pen to speckle the paper - I was thinking it should be a bit grubby as I always end up covered in soil when I am gardening LOL

So now its your turn to have a go - you can enter your pages at Stampamemory - the challege is open for three weeks and we would love to see your creations.

Nikki

x

NOTE:  Two posts in one day from me today ... two birthday cards coming later today :)

Happy Birthday to my Mum-in-Law

Another November birthday ... my lovely mum-in-law at home ... if you read my blog you'll know that I made some cards for Pauline (you can check them out here if you missed them) .... and hopefully she has received them along with her birthday card.

Stampin' Up! offer a Regional day each year for all demonstrators and guests - lots of useful hints and tips, a new stamp set and some make and takes.  I have to confess, when I looked at the stamp set I wasn't overly excited ... but as always, once I started to see all the lovely ideas for how to use it I am very pleased that I now have it in my collection.

Every Moment is a great set to showcase watercolouring with ... and this card also uses the masking technique too, and the Spritzer - something I didn't own but I came home and placed an 'urgent' order for one :)

The sentiment is beautiful .... 'when we see with our hearts, every moment is the most wonderful gift in the world' ... how very true.

Hope my Mother-in-Law loves her card .... and has a very happy birthday.

Now some backyard news ... remember our little blackbirds who built the most beautiful nest and decided to start all over again building another outside our laundry door - well we have babies ....

Two little gaping mouths poke out the top of the nest - the parents are searching every waking minute to find food for them - don't you wish you could leave them a plateful of food out on the lawn - it would make their job so much easier!  They hatched on Friday and already three days later they are big enough to see over the top of the nest.

And here's our veggie garden ... Paul has taken charge of it - doesn't it look great! We now have tomatoes, capsicum, beans, cucumber, strawberries, garlic, lettuce and some pumpkins from my friend Kay's garden too.

Well I hope you have a lovely day - lots of lovely warm weather for the Melbourne-ites this week - at last.

Back with more cards and even a scrapbooking page very soon.