Big Kids!

Ok, lets face it, we're all just big kids at heart!

*skip* and I took the boys to the movies after dinner this evening. A bit of a late session, but we had a free ticket to use, and it was the only session after he got home. We went to see Wallace & Gromit. I wouldn't say that I laughed myself silly, but I did thoroughly enjoy it. I like the creators sense of humour, and it's definitely crafted to appeal to a very wide audience - adult jokes as well as kids ones. Sam was too tired afterward (and too full of lollies if truth be told) and got very cranky, but Tyson had a great time.

And thus, the school holidays begin. 2 weeks of lazy sleep ins, and fights over the tv/computer/bike/pencils. Aaaah the serenity. Sorry, that's a "The Castle" joke. Very funny movie. If you've seen it, you get the joke, if you haven't SHAME SHAME SHAME. Go and rent it right away!!

We love our movies actually. We have so many favourites, and we love to watch the kids ones with them too. *skip* and I can quote quite a lot of most movies actually, although he's quicker at recognising people from other movies/shows than I am. I however, usually know their NAME, which is a skill in it's own right. Well, come on. I've got to win occasionally, don't I?

I was in a photo swap with a very talented designer (and co-owner I might add) at ScrapArtist this week. Michelle did a MARVELLOUS job with the photos I sent her of Tyson and Sam, and I had to share them with you.


She's one heck of a talented designer and scrapper. Blew me away! She used her own Grungy Boy kit for most of the papers, and the tag runner and tied ribbons are from an upcoming kit, a sneak preview so to speak.

Thanks Michelle, we love it! Think I'll have to frame this one!

Well, my cold's GETTING better (hooray) but I have a sore throat still and it's late. Night night!

Wednesday update...

Well, you guessed it. I'm still sick. No better, despite the rest and vitamins. Although a bit more rest might be in order. I had a ghastly night last night, just terrible. Coughing and couldn't breathe properly all night, and then at 5 am we had a thunderstorm..... I was up out of bed before the echo had gone, had to get the dog inside... as a matter of fact, 6pm and she still refuses to leave the house, poor darling. So I got nice and awake and cold, started sneezing again, went back to bed. One hour later, rolled over in bed and started to scream - had completely cramped up my left calf - it looked like a golfball inside my calf it was SOOO misshapen. Poor *skip* didn't know what had hit him - it must be a bit of a shock having someone in bed beside you leap 3 feet in the air and scream like that. And I was in too much pain to even tell him what was wrong, he started rubbing the wrong leg!! Still sore all day. So I've spent the whole day in bed, but couldn't sleep. Will be getting an early night tonight though....

Ok, so meet my "fur-baby"...... Jester. She's so cute. She's a 5year old Keeshond, who really needs a bath, but not at the moment, ok? A brush even, hint hint *skip*.....



At the moment she seems to have taken up permanent residence under the kitchen table!!

Still Sick!!!

I have had this stupid head cold thing for nearly a week now, and I still don't even feel human. Hence the blogging hiatus. But I will return! I haven't even been scrapping much, my head is too rotten. I've been mainly ebaying - chasing up buyers and making up parcels. Trying to stay on top of the house and the washing, what a joke! Although *skip* did help me to fold the mountain of washing that I've been hoarding for weeks. Almost up to date!

Had some good emails today - 2 more layouts have been accepted for publication. Both of Sammy, well, can I help it if he's totally photogenic? It's not like I didn't submit any of Tyson, it's just that everyone loves Sammy (including sammy)! Due out in January.

Ok, I can't get away without giving you a picture of some description.



I took this photo of Sammy a year ago, October last year. Garage home photo shoots are the BEST! And i have a good garage for them.

Papers and elements again from one of Daniela Peuss's free kits, aptly named, Simplicity. Thanks Dani!

Ok, time to crawl into the kitchen and start dinner. See you later all!

Play FAIR!!

"I LIKE YOUR LATEST EFFORT VERY MUCH
BUT WHY DO YOU MAKE YOUR SOURCES AND
TECHNIQUES AVAILABLE TO PEOPLE?"

*waving* Hi dad!!

Yes, my dad dropped in to say hello....

I just thought I'd dedicate a post to this, as it's part of my new life as a digital scrapper. I go to a lot of trouble wandering about the internet finding new and wonderful papers, elements, fonts etc.

Someone had to make them. Someone, somewhere had an Idea, some Colours, and probably spend a lot of their TIME making that paper for me to use. Well, not just me, but anyone. Sometimes, they have a shop and I buy the kit, but more often than not, most of what I use are freebies. These people, wonderful women (mainly, but some blokes!), go to so much effort, just for the joy of seeing it used by someone else, the joy that they get in simply knowing that their work is valued. Kinda like blog commenting. It makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, to know that someone noticed and someone cared.

Ok, off topic, I know.

The point is this. I am using their blood sweat and tears. It's not a secret, I've actually had some hits from searches for different designers *waving hi Dani!* and their work that I've used. Why should I hide it? Scrapbooking, paper and digital, is all about sharing. I get so much inspiration from so many on-line galleries, eg ScrapArtist, and Scrapboxx that I probably never need to buy a scrapbooking magazine again. (shhh don't tell DH!) We provide each other with feedback, support, encouragement, praise, and inspiration. That's just what scrappers DO. It's not a competition, except maybe against yourself. Just because I'm getting published in a couple of months, doesn't suddenly make me BETTER than anyone else. There's always someone else out there with ideas I can learn from.

The digi-scrapping creed is simple. Give credit. Say thanks. You never know, you might get a reward for doing so. At least you will be able to sleep at night, knowing that you've done the right thing and said "thank-you" in even the simplest possible way.

Now I'm off to do some more scrapping..... hopefully I'll have something to post for your eyes instead of your ears soon.

XOXO dad..... Cassie

Sick

Sorry for the long gap between posts, I got home on Wednesday night not feeling very well, woke up early Thursday Am with an earache and a sore throat.... will NOT bore you with gory details, but I feel TERRIBLE.

I stocked up yesterday when I crawled around the supermarket with a couple of new magazines that have been released in Australia, The Notebook, and Real Living. Both of them are VERY thick, and very beautiful. Lots of inspiration there. Problem is that I read them both cover to cover YESTERDAY, so now I have nothing to read now. Will have to browse them again.

I did manage to get some scrapping inspiration yesterday, don't know if it was the visual magazine feast or just that I haven't done any scrapping for 3 days, but I got this layout 90% finished last night, just had to have a final play this morning. I'm over the moon about how it turned out.



Lots of credits here: Papers, overlay, flowers, "2" all from Snapshots Mega Kit from SBB. Also used the Sanding tutorial from ScrapArtist. Brads are by Gina Cabrera DDE Spring fling kit, Staples from Kim Hill CGE June Mini Kit.

Lots of fonts used. Hootie!, Foxjump, Top Secret, Scriptina, Kelly, KayZ Handwriting, Kartika.

So I'm off back to my nest on the lounge, with my tea, my tissues and some Dvd's. Hope I'm feeling better soon.

Rhododendron

I just finished this layout for an Art Challenge over at Scrapbook-bytes.com. I had to share it with you, a bit outside my norm, but I love the result.



Papers are "Aubrey Kit" by Laura Bratcher available at ScrapArtist.com. Font used is Scriptina. Created in PhotoShop 7.

Have a great day!

Problem with blogging....

The problem with blogging is that you feel obliged to blog, even when you have nothing to say worth listening to.

I'm sitting here biding my time and waiting for some auctions that I am running on ebay to end. I'm hoping to get some last minute bids as there are a lot of people watching some things, and I can't believe that NONE of them are snipers.... I'm a sniper, so I assume everyone else is too!

Sniping an auction, (bidding high and hard and in the last 10 seconds!) is a seriously addictive hobby. And a huge adrenalin rush. The thrill of the chase, the joy of the win. The fear that your connection will fail at that crucial moment and you'll be left sitting there reloading an empty page. Not a good thing for auction prices, but a good thing for buyers. So as a seller, I'm against sniping, but I love doing it as a buyer!

So here I am, reading through forums, other blogs, Digital and Paper scrapbooking galleries, tidying up my downloads - something that every digital scrapper has to do regularly. And obsessively hitting refresh on my eBay Selling screen....

I have a problem with obsessions. Hobbies that take over my life. just a little........

So here's a couple of photos for you viewing pleasure. Oldies, but goodies. I took these with my first digital camera, a Canon Ixus 400. Cute, does the job. Wouldn't trade it.
Pre-sunset sky. Love this pattern.



The sunset itself. Awesome. I got 20 or more photos like this. The golds and the pinks just had to be seen to be believed. It was a very special day.


Have a good one folks, see you tomorrow!

Lazy post today....

Man, I am still tired after yesterday. I stayed up too late reading "The Scarlet Pimpernel" given to me by dear *K* who is a huge fan of the series. I can't believe that I've never read it before, I read Jane Eyre in Primary School, so how this one slipped through the cracks I'll never know. I am a huge Georgette Heyer fan (Historical Romances with well drawn characters) I also love Agatha Christie, Jane Austen, Elizabeth Gaskell, and for a bit of variety, John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Dick Francis and Alistair MacLean! Nothing like a change of reading scenery.

I think I'm computer burnt out at the moment. I spent ages this morning listing more stuff on eBay, and now have caught up on my blogs and *shock* am not in the mood for any scrapping. I am knitting myself a poncho instead!! It might not be ready until next winter, but it's a project! I bought some really cheap funky wool today and yesterday, and some new CHUNKY needles. All I have to do now is make 2 e-nor-mous rectangles and stitch them together.... yeah, sure!

So here's an oldy but a goody photo wise.... When I'm not in love with irises, I'm in love with Arums. Pity they are white and the camera HATES focussing on them. My arum's flower for a good part of the year, outside my kitchen window where I can see them as I am making sandwiches or peeling potatoes. They make me SMILE! and that's the most important bit! Hope they make you smile today too.

Busy busy busy!!

Hello everyone,

No time for a proper post today, Thursday's is always my BIG day - I've still got all the floors and the bathroom to do.

Here's a recent Digital Scrapbooking layout for your amusement!


The day I got my 28-105mm lens I went to Stirling in the Adelaide Hills for some Autum colour, and these 2 are our favourite pictures from that excursion! Layout created with papers and wordart by the ever-so talented Daniela Peuss called "Jump into Fall" - her blog here! Also downloadable from ScrapArtist.com.

Have a great day and see you tomorrow!

Irises are my weakness....

So this morning it has FINALLY opened!! These yellow flowers are huge, almost twice as big as the purple ones, so I am getting a lot less per stem. A lovely pale lemon colour, with cinnamon type markings. Gorgeous. Although this one is a bit battered, it's not a very nice day today. It was actually trying to rain while I was out there shooting. But here it is!!


Another oddity in my garden is this flower. It's called an Evansia Iris, and is shaped sort of like a traditional iris, in the three separate sections, but it's quite small and dainty. Each flower is about 1 to 1 1/2 inches across, and this lovely pale bluey purple colour with startling yellow highlights. The plant itself is quite aggressive, it's sent out tuberous runners very quickly, but it seems to take a while for them to flower as there are no stems coming off them yet, it is still just the parent plant.


Spring is wonderful, isn't it! And here's a random Digital Scrapbooking layout, just to entertain you. The picture is of my eldest son, Tyson, taken at the local wetlands last school holidays. I did this as part of an ad challenge this week at ScrapArtist, previously mentioned. Well worth a visit.

Ribbons and flower element from Turtlemama's That 60's Kit - very funky, yeah baby! Fonts used are Texas Hero, CBX Watson and AL Postmaster.

Have a great day everyone! - and don't forget to say Hi so I know you dropped in!

Crab-apple flowers!

I am so excited... nearly 2 years ago we planted a flowering crab-apple in the backyard, and last spring it grew and got leaves and stuff, but never flowered. We decided to just wait it out and it was worth it. Today was a lovely sunny day, and while doing some work outside, I discovered that patience, especially with plants, does get rewarded! It's got a few flowers and is smothered with buds, so there will be plenty more!


The buds are all the deep rose pink that you can see here, followed with pale pink flowers. Just gorgeous, although the buds do tend to get lost in the reddish leaves which is why I missed them before.

This has been a lovely part of my otherwise busy day. This morning was spent helping the friends with new baby twins, 2 weeks old today! Doing a couple of loads of washing, some ironing, nappy changes and feeds. Meanwhile *skip* was at home with a nasty headache, and Sam was at home with a hacking cough - I think he had too much night air last night before dinner. But he's a lot better now, so hopefully he'll be at school tomorrow.

The yellow Iris that I wrote about yesterday is still tantalisingly shut, I'm tempted to go out and check it every hour or so, I'm so excited to see it open. When I was pulling out of the driveway yesterday I counted a good 10 or so flower stems on the six yellow Irises, so I think I will have my fill of the flowers soon!

Nothing much else to report. I have a cut on my finger that is driving me insane - it's very deep and in nearly a week it still tends to bleed if knocked. I've gone through nearly a dozen bandaids, every time I wash my hands or do any cleaning, the old one soaks off and I need to put a fresh one on... grr. What an exciting life I lead!

I'll try to find something more interesting tomorrow, meanwhile, here's a digital scrapbooking site that I love - some of my visitors have been coming from there, and I just wanted to let them all know how much I appreciate their time, and their inspiration!

ScrapArtist

They have an awesome shop, great friendly forum and a gallery overflowing with ideas. Check out my gallery if you get time, HillsCass there are plenty of layouts there for your enjoyment!

Until tomorrow folks!!

Irises

So my photo shoot with the irises wasn't a raging success, but I did get a couple of good ones. I tried three different backdrops, Black, Calico and a really soft sage green fabric - some benefits to having more fabric laying around than you can poke the proverbial stick at.... anyone want a nice orange backdrop? eeek!!!




My front garden has a huge strip of Irises all the same as these and flowering madly at the moment. There are also some yellow ones that I planted sight unseen which are just opening today - so watch out for photos of them too, as well as a beautiful Sapphire blue one.

I got all of my irises at the local community thrift shop - ppl would dig over their beds and separate the big clumps and donate their spares - I got 15 for 10c each, another 10 for 20c each, and then 10 more for 15c from memory - I love cheap gardening!! and they are SOOO cheerful and happy, they make me smile everytime I have to go out (which is often!). Isn't that what it's all about?

I'm still struggling to come to grips with Depth of Field/aperture.... Because I took these with my 50mm lens, which I do love, don't get me wrong, some of them were shot at such a huge aperture it feels like the depth of field was approximately the thickness of a piece of paper.

Both of these pictures have had moderate USM applied, and a little bit of levels tweaking.

Thanks for stopping by, don't forget to let me know you were here!! ;)

Saturday Photo fun

Yesterday we had a busy day rearranging the furniture (again!). Then in the afternoon we went for a walk to a local wetland area with our friends *K* and _M_. *K* and I went for a long walk and left the two boys with the kids, and I also let _M_ borrow my 350D for a test run as he hasn't had much of a chance to play with digital, but he's a great photographer... I'm trying to convert him, I hope it's working. The late afternoon sunlight was gorgeous, and he got some GREAT photos.


After the walk, we went back to their place for dinner, which was AWESOME! Tandoori chicken kebabs, and gourmet pizzas. Followed by Tira Mi Su for dessert, while the boys had special jelly. And of course, we were still in photo mode, so I got some interesting photos of the food. *K* had made up a lovely fresh berry mix to eat with our dessert, but I wouldn't let her dish it up until after I'd taken a few shots. She'd gone all out with preparations, there were lovely candles all around, so I made the most of it and put on my baby 50mm f1.8 lens. I hadn't used it for a couple of months, and man I had forgotten how awesome it is. FAST - super FAST really, and the colours as a result are just so amazing. But you can judge for yourself!


Our beatiful berry dessert!
*K*'s gorgeous lillies, bought for her as a surprise from _M_ for a fantastic mark on an essay last week!

Gotta love my little 50mm - it's so tiny compared to my other lenses, but so yummy to use. Off to take some more photos now - my Irises are in full flower!

Digital Scrapbooking

So now I suppose it's time to introduce you to my other passion - one which ties in quite nicely to digital photography! I started off as a paper scrapper July 2004, but in July 2005 made a somewhat relieved transition to digital scrapping. Now my only regret is the mountain of paper supplies that I managed to amass in 12 months, and what to do with them now!

For those NOT in the know, Scrapbooking is a phenomenon that has overwhelmed the crafting industry in the USA and now in Australia. Just have a look under scrapbooking in eBay and you'll see what I mean - it has more items listed that almost all other crafts combined! I was introduced to scrappin' byt *K* who had discovered it in Sydney before she moved over here. It's a great way of expressing yourself creatively and making memories that your family will treasure yadda yadda.... Ok, it's all about the cool paper, the fun toys and the SHOPPING! Scrapping is the only way I get to play with fingerpaint etc and still be 'cool'!

Digital scrapping is doing all this, but in a computer program. My weapon of choice is Photoshop 7 as *skip* has it for work and it's got all the fun stuff. It was a shaky start, learning how to use brushes, layers etc, and I'm still coming to terms with masks, but it's lots of fun learning!

The other advantage is how FAST I am at digital scrapbooking! I can create 2 or 3 layouts in an evening when I'm on a roll.... even a good paper layout used to take me a week of sweat to make. When I think of how I used to HANDCUT individual letters for my titles..... eeek!

So, here's a layout for you to enjoy - also with a good photo on it too!


This little fellow was visiting my garden when I went out to take photos of flowers... I got more than I bargained for ! :) In digital scrapping it is only courtesy to credit the people who help you do what you do, so here's my credit list! Papers from Jen Wilson "Layers Collection" (absolutely AWESOME love them!) digital stamp/brush from Ps7, fonts used are SF Scribbled Sans and Acoustic Light.

Thanks for stopping by today!

tired...

Oh, I am so tired... I had to go to the city twice yesterday (70km+ round trip), I had a class from 6 until 9, so I didn't get dinner until 10. Today has been WALK day with my dear friend *K*, visit day with the new twins, whose parents, not suprisingly are more tired than me, shopping and cleaning. Just blogging away while I wait for the floor to dry.

I had a big clean out of my bathroom cupboards today, I can highly recommend it as a quiet sit on the floor kind of job that can be hugely satisfying - I threw SOOO much away, which is a huge thing for me.... So everyone, go into your bathroom and find at least 2 or 3 things that are old, empty or you haven't used for x years and chuck them OUT. You will feel SO much better.

Here's a picture to brighten up your day, and then I must dash and start cleaning the toilet. What fun!


This little honeyeater was bobbing about in a bush at the Mt Lofty botanic gardens right by the path - we almost walked straight past him. Anyone know what variety he is, or where I should look to find him let me know! He was only about the size of a sparrow, so I'm pretty happy with this photo considering that my zoom is only up to 105mm.

Have a great day!! :)

Photography

So, today I thought I'd blab a bit about photos.... I have a beautiful Canon 350D (Rebel XT to all those across the pacific!) with a couple of lenses and an external flash. It's my first slr, but not my first digital, so I'm loving the response time of it, the quiet operation etc. It does have some annoying bits, but you forgive it the first time you get one of 'those' prints. You know the ones I mean. The ones that make the hour kneeling in the mud waiting for that particular combination of sun and cloud or for the wind to drop or whatever WORTH it.

This is NOT one of those photos, in that I didn't kneel in mud for an hour to get it. But I still like it anyway. Ok, actually I did kneel in the mud for a few minutes, does that count? Now, time for some fun. Anyone know what it is?Hope you enjoy it!

First Post!

Well, I've finally succumbed to the blogging phenomenon, after having been an avid reader of several for a few weeks, I couldn't resist any longer. You see, I like to talk, a lot in fact.... just ask my family. But I suppose the final push came from a photo...

I love taking photos. It's a passion you could say. So here I am sitting at my computer, reading emails, downloading stuff (more on that later!) listening to the radio, and master Sam who has been ill all weekend, comes in and starts dancing. Uninhibited, shake your groove thing, dancing. So I grab up my Canon, always handy (more on this later too!) and stick it into burst mode. This precious image was my reward. I just had to share it. He's better, the sun is shining and life goes on.

Whatever doesn't kill me, will only make me stronger. I should be able to leap tall buildings one day.

Thanks for reading.