DYL Week 2 Sketch 1

I started working on this layout yesterday. It began as a white background with black behind the photos and the patterned paper the reverse of the one shown here (ie. black flowers with white background) but it didn't stand out. So, I swopped it around and ended up with this layout and I like it!!

A little detail shot.

xx

Baking and Scrapbooking

This morning I decided to do some baking. We had some bananas which were too ripe for any of us to eat and I either had to use them or put them in the compost bin. Having thought about it, I realised I had the bananas, carrots and walnuts so I could make a carrot cake. I remembered the cute halloween cupcake cases I'd bought this week and decided to try something different and make carrot cake cupcakes instead. They turned out really well! Once they'd cooled I just needed to ice them. Instead of doing my usual spreading it over the top, I thought I'd try out the piping bag and nozzles that I bought years ago (literally) and haven't used. The icing was probably a little bit softer than I would have liked but here's what they turned out like. Cute, don't you think! Alan and Zaira, our neighbours who have moved to Cambridge, had come down to cut the grass next door and popped in for a coffee and got a cupcake too. Alan's decided this is how he should eat carrots in future ;o). Also popped a couple round to Mum and Dad so they could have them with their afternoon tea/coffee (hope you liked them). Later this afternoon I started on some scrapbooking. I had been going to do the first sketch from week 2 but then the Real World Colour sketch for this week came through and I ended up doing it instead. This week we had to use the colours brown, pink and orange. Here's my take on it. I'm really enjoying Cathy's class and look forward to each weeks downloads.

Right hand page

Left hand page

Looking forward to seeing what everyone else has done with this sketch. Perhaps I'll get the sketch I'd intended to do today done tomorrow!

xx

Checking in

It's been a day of catching up around the house today. Emily was feeling well enough to go to school this morning and is coping with just the Neurofen. She had a good day (apart from all the stairs she has to climb) and brought home the stir fry she had made in Food Tech.

I started my morning making Tomato Soup to try and use up some of the home grown tomatoes we have. Dad gave us two plants in about May and we have had bowls full of tomatoes from them. We've used some and given some away. There is still another bowl to use and a smaller bowl still ripening. I made Jon a curry for tonight - and put more tomatoes in that too! ;o)

After lunch I got stuck into the pile of washing I had waiting to be ironed. I find if I can do the ironing 2 or 3 times a week I can keep on top of it. The baskets are empty at the moment but I know I'll have at least a couple of loads of washing to do again tomorrow. It never ends!!

The rest of the day has been quiet and I'm looking forward to getting started on my next layout tomorrow. I couldn't decide who I was going to do it about or what photos to use but I think I've finally got it sorted. I may end up having to make a couple more of this type of layout once I've finished the one for class.

And, because a post doesn't feel complete without a photo, here's one of my cat Charlie. He sits on the wall at the back gate watching the world go by and I love the way his tail hangs down behind him :o)

xx

DYL Week 2 Sketch 2

I'd been looking forward to getting the Week 2 handout for Cathy's Design Your Life class but knew I had a few errands to run in town before I could even sit down to read it. Funny how things can change! Emily came down this morning complaining that her back was sore and she was getting shooting pains in it. She was absolutely fine when she went to bed last night and didn't know of anything that might have caused this to happen. I gave her some Calpol and we waited to see how she felt but by the time she was due to go to school she was still in pain and a bit weepy. I kept her off and phoned the Doctors to get an appointment. It seems the muscles in her back were going into spasm but it's not localised pain and the Doctor has recommended giving her Neurofen to keep the discomfort down. She's been told she's not allowed to do dance next week and not allowed to play netball for the next two weeks. I don't know that she's too upset at being told that ;o). This means that I've been home most of the day and I've managed to get my first layout for this week finished. I knew straight away that I wanted to use the photos from my Dad's 79th birthday for the second sketch so that's the one I've done first. For those doing this class that read this blog; I swopped the layout around because of the direction people were facing in the photos. I didn't have the yellow I wanted for this layout so I used a text box with the yellow as the fill colour. I then just added Heidi Swapp chipboard alphabet letters for the title. In the text box for the journaling I just typed as normal with the yellow as the fill colour again. Journaling reads: We invited the local family members round to our house for afternoon tea on Dad/Grandpa's 79th birthday. It was a beautiful sunny day so we sat outside and Mum/Grandma and Claire had fun blowing the bubbles that Debbie had put in Dad's birthday package. Tyler had great fun trying to catch them. It was a relaxing and very enjoyable afternoon. The little circle on the right hand page has the date in it. Hope you like it Dad! Love you lots. xx