Creating Cards

Ok, so this is a seriously neglected blog!!

I have recently bought myself a couple of Copic Ciao pens and have been trying my hand at colouring in some images.

This is the card I made for my mom for mother's day tomorrow, using one of the images I got from Digi Stamps 4 Joy and have entered it into their latest challenge - Women are Special:

off to go and make a few more cards for upcoming birthdays.

Card maker signing off ...

A bit of an update

Well it has certainly been a while since I did an update here, but with FaceBook, it is easier to update there on a regular basis.

Last year I made some notice boards for the ladies at work - this is how they turned out:

I have also done quite a bit of scrapping (kits available from Doing Life) and these are the layouts I have completed over the last couple of months:

This was from about 2007 when Dereck and I went to Mpumalanga and visited the Kruger National Park ...

This was the lodge we stayed at in Mpumulanga ...

I won a week-end away at Ubizane Tree Lodge in Zululand in 2008 (I think) and this is of the animals we spotted whilst there ...

 Leanne came out to visit at the end of 2009 and we hired a cottage - Kamdun Lodge where all the family spent the week- end.  It has a river on the property that we could swim in (although rather cold) but we all had a lot of fun ...

This was taken of Bryce (Grant's fiance, Cassandra's little boy) at my mom and dad's 50 wedding anniversary in July 2011 at Howick ...

While Leanne and Bart were out to celebrate my mom and dad's 50th wedding anniversary in July 2011, we spent a few days in the berg and took a trip up the Sani Pass.  It was freezing cold and there was still a lot of ice around and at one point the 4 x 4 that we were in could not get up the road, so we had to walk for about 2km to the top.  It was quite an experience, but lots of fun...

 This is from the 2007 KZN 30 km racewalk championships which took place along NMR avenue near the athletic stadium and the archery club...

Don't know why this one turns around, but it was when Dereck and I drove up to Johannesburg in 2009 and spent the week-end with his sister Joanne, Brendon, Kerin and Ryan...

I have a couple of other layouts that I am in the process of finishing off, so will post once they are done.

Other than that all is well from my side.  Dereck and I are off to Bangkok and Phuket on the 25 APril until 5 May, so am really looking forward to that holiday.  Then it is preparing for my 50th birthday in June, which I am also looking forward to.

Updated signing off ....

USA holiday 2011

Am currently on holiday in the USA if you would like to follow me, here is the blog:

ramsayusa2011.blogspot.com

Home Improvements

Ok, so this blog has been seriously neglected.  Apologies.  After our wonderful USA holiday, there have been a few things happening in my life.  We did some building and landscaping to our front garden.  Before we went overseas I had spoken to our landscaper and he sent us through his plans and ideas whilst we were in the USA.  Once we got back he got started.  Here are some before pictures:

Some "during" pictures:

And the end result:

And the view looking from under the Gazebo:

It really has made such a difference to the front garden and we have had a couple of get togethers under the gazebo (even in the rain).

To lie on the seating under the gazebo on a hot day and read a book is very pleasant and both Dereck and I have done it - he he.

We went today and bought an outside light which will go at the end of the paving after the pool to light up the stepping stones and we got a flourescent light to under the awning to the right of the pool.

I will do another blog post and let you know about our week-end away at Shelley Beach.

Home improver signing off ....

USA Holiday 2010

Dereck and I are finally packed and ready to leave shortly for a holiday in the USA.  We have set up a holiday blog, so while we are away, this blog won't be updated but our holiday one will.

Please pop over to:

http://www.ramsayusa2010.blogspot.com/

and see what we have been up to and leave us some love.

Jetsetter signing off .........

Some cards I made

After attending a recent card class with Bee, I decided to make these two cards - the first one ia a shirt card, which has a lot of folding and I quite enjoyed the challenge...

The next one is just a tri-fold, but I used my EKSucess edge punch on the outside and the inside and I must say I quite like the effect ....

Off to carry on with a scrapping layout I started this afternoon.

Thanks for looking.

Crafter signing off ....

A very formal dinner

It was the annual Commodore's Dinner at the Point Yacht Club last night and Dereck and I were invited as my boss is the current Commodore.  I was also asked to please make the menu cards to put on the tables, which I must say, I had a lot of fun making.  The theme was "twilight sailing" with the colours being black and orange.  Dereck hired a tux and I had a black outfit which I wore.  Sorry no pictures of us, but here is a picture of the menu cards which I made ... the front ...

and the inside .... 

 My friend Wayne has a laser cutting machine and he made the cut outs of the yacht and palm tree and then I stuck them all down.  I had to make 30 of these cards, so had a bit of a production line going on in my craft room.

It was a great evening and we only left there at midnight.

Midnight dinner guest signing off ....

Card Crafting

Last Saturday I went to the Hobby Hut in Queensburgh for a card crafting lesson with Bee.  Always a lot of fun and very inspirational.  These are the cards we made:

This was the shirt card.  To open , you pull from under the collar.

You would put your sentiment on the white card on the inside ....  To get the sleeves, took a bit of origami type folding - bit tricky but what an effect ....

This was just a simple card, where you double folded the sides inwards ...

This was a pull out card, you pull one side and pullouts come from both sides - a bit of a technique to get this one, but what a lovely effective card ....

Then yesterday, I went to a card class with Bee but at a friend's house.  Loads of fun and again very inspirational and this was the first, simple tri-fold card.  Also nice to use as an envelope or made into a little handbag ...

Another simple card, but with a lovely corner decoration.  We didn't use double sided paper, but merely attached a square of different paper on to the right hand corner which folded over to give the effect.....

An easle card which has its own section holding it up and then balancing against the brown bit in the front - another nice and easy but very effective card.

I have another class with Bee on 26 August in Durban North which makes it 3 this month.  Someone at one of the classes called me a "card stalker" - ha ha ha.

So I suppose ... card stalker signing off .....