It came and it went... and it was oh so brilliant in between!!!

Hi there!!!

How are you today????

I am still recovering from the most fabulous weekend with Leandra French of Paperartsy and Linda of LB Crafts. I had been waiting for six months for this weekend to arrive and it was so very much worth the wait! I spent time playing with luscious goodies like glimmer mist, alcohol inks, distress inks, new stamps, metal work, beeswax, perfect pearls and oh too many things to remember.... the only bad thing about it was that it went far too quickly and now I am back to normal life!!! But I learnt so much that I hope I can bring to my projects and design work in the future. If you got the chance to go on one of these weekends take it - I promise that you will not be disappointed!!! I also spent far too much aswell but you know I just had to have all that yumminess in my own craft room... I'm sure you know what I mean :o)

I can't show you any pictures just yet because I do have to complete my projects - the bits need putting together and I do also have to tinker and add the Becky touch to a couple of things. as I have a friend over from Germany next week it will probably be the week after when I can get some photos together but I do promise to share with you the fruits of my labour!!

However today I am sharing with you my Project of the Week card on the docrafts website. The main piccie is the one from the website because they have photographed it far better than I ever could but the others are some close ups I took before I passed it to Louise at Docrafts to work her magic on!!!! I hope that you like todays offering and if you want to create your own click here for the instructions!

I am in ameeting most of tomorrow but I do hope to get on here - I have somewhere super dooper I want to send you too.

With lots of love and hugs until next time

Becky

xxx

My wrist is well and truly slapped....

I have well and truly told myself off and am now posting asking for your forgiveness and also to ask you to bear with me until Monday.

I promised myself I would attempt to post every weekday but this week has just been so mad - work, meeting friends, my anniversary and now this tiny little post to tell you I can't post again until Monday. It has been a somewhat "headless chicken" time this week and everytime I have sat down to pop a post on here no matter how small something has happened - phone rung, hubby needed me to help him put furniture together, work plopped into my email box that I needed to sort yesterday.... But I promise hand on heart I will be back on here on Monday to show you what I have been up to. I've got loads of piccies to post and I am hoping that I will be able to tell you about the Paperarsty crafting weekend me and my friend Becky are leaving for in no time at all... which reminds me I must go and get my directions!!! I'll take loads of piccies and plop them on here for you to see the fruits of my labours and I am hoping to learn lots and lots of new techniques and tips to use in my future projects and also to pass on to you too!!!

So HUGE HUGE apologies but I promise I will be back in full flow again next week!
Love and hugs until Monday
Becky
xxx

There's a splodge on my camera....

... dear Liza, dear Liza..... ok ok I'm having a bit of a mad day today...

Anyway, I love my little DSLR - a bargain secondhand Nikon D70 - but I'm not the best photographer in the world as you can tell. Still I am learning and I do love having more versatility in the pictures I can take. I especially love my Macro lens. However I'm a little worried though that a splodge seems to have developed in my pictures. This has been see before and last time the whole camera had to be taken apart and cleaned. It cost a hefty packet and my hubby was not overly impressed - though some of it we think was as a result of the previous owner some was also glitter.... hmmmmm I wonder where that could possibly have come from...

Anyway, I'm going to give the lens's a good clean, see if I can find anything and hope beyond hope it doesn't have to go back to Nikon again....

Now today's card is one I made using a co-ordinated kit but I never ever use them as they are meant to be - I do my own thing with them. As you can see this is another mother's day card - this one was for my mother in law who is now in a home. Its not a good situation but as she was an avid card maker I always make an interesting card for her and it is one thing she does seem to have recollection of.

Well I do have a crafty afternoon ahead planned. I have to complete a CJ page for a lovely friend of mine I haven't seen for ages but will be seeing tomorrow and also a birthday card for my fabulous friend Sue who is one of the ladies I craft with every month!!!

I won't be around tomorrow as I have a busy day out so I will be in touch again on Wednesday.

I will probably be getting very excited by then as I am off on a Paperartsy weekend away and can't wait as I am sure it will be a fabulous weekend full of lots of new skills and playing with luscious products!!! :o)

See you again on Wednesday!

Becky

xxx

A Purrfect Day!

Hello Hello Hello!!!

Mother's Day happiness to you all - hope you've had a lovely day with lots of super pressies and some real pampering treats!!! :o)

Firstly thank you to everyone who came along and said hello at The Range in Swindon yesterday, especially given the fact it was a beautiful sunny day outside - i appreciate you taking some time out given the opportunity to enjoy the weather. I had a lovely day with you all and really enjoyed sharing favourite designs, tips and techniques with you!!! Didn't we love Daisy and Dandelion - those cutsie little dogs really are superstars!!! I loved spending some time with you and hope you can make it along in May (see the list of demo's a bit further down for the exact date!)

Now today's post is a little late and sadly I couldn't get on here on Friday as the day was a little manic. I want to share with you my mom's mother's day card which I really enjoyed making.

A few post ago I mentioned that one of my aims this year was to look at old stash and get it out and use it. Well this card really is a case in point!!! And also shows how you can have something floating around for ages (in this case it must be about four years!!!) before the perfect opportunity to use it arises. My mom is a huge cat lover and I was sorting out some old embellishments when I found this little Express Yourself "pusscat fairy" floating around. I knew I had to use this for my mom's card and not wanting to detract from the little munchkin I have added it simply to a background made from Clare Curd's Signature Range Papers with a sentiment from scrap cardstock and Doodlebug All Mixed Up Lily White rub ons.

I'm delighted that after a rendition of "Happy Mothers Day to you" down the phone (this is an experience that really does require ear plugs!!) mom told me she loved it which I am delighted about. She seems so far away and our little calls seem to help bridge the "distance" between where I live and my ma and pa are.

Anyway I hope you like my little creation for today - I know its a bit late for you to use it to inspire your mother's day cards but maybe you could use it for a base of a card for special friend and also it will encourage you to look through your old embellishments - you never know that perfect little addition to your design maybe waiting there for you to pick it out from its hidey-hole and give it life!!!

With lots of love and hugs until next time!

Becky

xxx

This little piggy!!!

Hello everyone!!!

This little piggy is based on my svelter proportions :o) and has been a firm favourite at recent demo's so if you can't remember how she was made then her she is for you to follow!!!

This is such a quicky post as I am about to be picked up to go out... but really all she is is circles cut with the brilliant brilliant Xcut shape cutter and a circular punch. All the rest is just inks and gorgeous embellishments. She really is so easy to make so I hope you enjoy making her yourself!!!

Tatty bye for now! My ride is just about to arrive

Lots of love and see you soon!

Becky

xxx

Two special bears from two special people!!!!

Hello there!!! Hope you are well today!!!

(A little message before I start - when writing this post it has all the paragraphs in the right place but for some reason when it publishes it does so without them - so sorry if it looks like a bit of a badly written post but from the posting side it looks perfect.)

I'm kind of continuing the animal theme which has been running through the posts on here recently!!!

But today its a little different as I am not featuring anything I have made but two bears that are a little bit extra special to me!!!

At Docrafts we have some smashing designers - really friendly and supportive and talented to boot - what a potent mix!!!. As I have said a few times on here last year was particularly difficult for my family.... I don't go into details on here because its not the right place for it but I have received so much support from so many of them and I am eternally grateful for their patience, kind thoughts, kind wishes and for allowing me to rant and rave whenever I need to. Friends are a truly amazing thing... and I hope over coming weeks to introduce you to them all - i want to give each one their own little bit of the spotlight on my blog and I hope you will take the opportunity to visit their blogs and grab lots of ideas from them.

Well, today I'm featuring another of my Docrafts colleagues with the card that photographed below. I hope Nikki that you don't mind that your gorgeous little bear shares today's spotlight with another little bear that is very dear to me.

Before I turn to Nikki let me tell you a bit about "Linny" bear (the one not on the card!) He was my present from my dear hubby last year for our wedding anniversary. He is a bear all the way from Ireland's Linen Hall Library. You may wonder why!!! (and I don't blame you :o) )

On a previous post I mentioned that for our anniversaries we give each other gifts that relate to the traditional theme of the anniversary. It was our fourth anniversary last year - which is Linen. Often we try to find something obscure and this can be very good fun. This was hubby's offering and he now has pride of place in my craft room. He is very special because my bestest boy had wanted to surprise me with a trip there but circumstances have not allowed and he was so upset because he wished he could have taken me there... so this little bear is a promise that one day when things get better we will go there on a holiday.....

So before I get all tear-y myself at memories lets move on to the cute fellow on the card. Nikki is a lovely lady - often she has given me kind words of support over the past year and was very understanding when Christmas passed me by without our intended card swap being possible she agreed to do a New Year card swap with me as I thought it would be a lovely way to bring in the New Year. Sadly mine never reached its destination ( Royal Mail aaaaagggghhhh!) - and I will rectify that situation soon - but this beautiful card popped through my letterbox and really made me smile.

I love the embossed card stock background and the sparkly bottle (you can never have too much bling I say!) and the doodled year. Its a card I will treasure and now has pride of place in my craft studio!

So before I go let me tell you where to go and find out more about Nikki and also see more of her designs - I particularly like the St Patrick's Day card she created for the Forever Friends Challenge Design Team of which she is a member. So let me encourage you to click here and go and take a peak at her lovely blog. You may notice she has something of a "passion for purple"!!!

With love until next time - do come back soon!

Love

Becky xxx

Another New Look!!!! (And this one I LUUURRRVVVEEE!!!)

Helloooooooooooooooooo!!!!

I have just spent another hour looking at my blog background. I spotted this design which was luuurrrrvvvveeelllyyyy with the matching banner.... it so springy (not just in a seasonal way but in a bouncy way too!!! - Love bright bouncy colours!!!! :o) )

So I have to potter off back to my little life and actually do some of the boring book keeping work. But tomorrow I'm going to post a new card - it isn't one by me but from a lovely fellow designer Nikki from all the way up north of the border - we did a card swap for a happy new year and she sent me a gorgeous little Forever Friends card. I've been wanting to show it off for ages so I'm hoping to do that tomorrow!

Anyway until then take care
Lots and lots of love
Becky
xxx