Hello - DT layout for Stuck?! Sketches

Welcome back today, it's lovely to have you come and visit.

Today I have a project for Stuck?! Sketches.

As a young girl I was not a big fan of pink in any hue, but I find myself using it a lot 

with a Granddaughter to scrap about.  Her favourite colours are pink, purple, gold and silver.

The pink spotty background paper is from Upikit.

The floral paper is a newer one from Cocoa Vanilla, Make a wish collection, "Fresh Cut."

I used a Scrapmatts stencil to create the daisies in the background.

ST5030 stencil flowers

The chipboard flowers and leaves are also from Scrapmatts.

CB1022 Flowers 02
CB1153 Leaf Spray 08
The little heart brad is an oldie from Prima.

The title, the banner and the butterfly are all from WeR memory keepers.

The journalling is on the back of the page and it reads:-

We were almost at the end of a photo session when this one was snapped and you were getting bored with it all.  No wonder really; you'd brought three dresses and wanted to be photographed in each of them.   We had all your usual repertoire; funny faces, cheeky grins, head on the side, eyes a'poppin, duck lips and the whole catastrophe, but then, when I was about to call it a day, we got this; completely natural and completely you.    Photo 28th September 2016.  Love Granny.

We have two generous sponsors for this sketch, why not enter and be eligible to win a great prize.

Scrapmatts are offering two large pieces of chipboard.

and The Scraproom are offering a $20.00 Gift Certificate for their on line store.

Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment; I do enjoy reading them.

Wish and a Christmas Gift Box - Scrapmatts DT December

Welcome back today, it's lovely to have you come and visit.

Both items are showcasing Scrapmatts products;

they are very versatile and add wonderful texture and embellishment for any project.

A bit about the papers I've used.

The denim border is an oldie from Simple Stories.

The turquoise background is from Crate Paper.

The triangles paper is a new release from Cocoa Vanilla, "Endless Summer"

I like the way they all played nicely together!

The layout was inspired by a sketch from mascarinashirley.blogspot.ca

I chose the chipboard  Triangles to complement the triangle paper.

I coloured them with Heidi Swapp Color Shine, "Coral" and some Ranger UTEE, "Gold"

I scattered some other words around - CB 1189 Scrap Words 01

In keeping with the triangle theme I used Alphabet flags as the title.

I have some journalling on the back of the page.  It reads:-

You two little scamps came with your big brother for a sleep over in the school holidays.

It's about the only time I can nab you together and get a couple of photos.

Out of the dozens I took there was not one with both of you looking good.

You love to joke around, flick your hands in the air, wrestle each other to the ground, 
poke your tongues out, close your eyes, screw your noses up
 and make and all sorts of crazy faces.

  So this photo is a composite of two images - the best of a terribly bad lot!
Love Granny 

Because we are in the count down to Christmas I created a gift box 

with a mixture of papers and of course lots of Scrapmatts yummies.

Why I chose December to experiment with making a video is beyond my comprehension, 
but I wanted to show you the mechanism of the box.   Bad idea!   It's taken me days and I'm not sure it's something I would care to do again, but here it is, 
with my long suffering husband's help. Ta Dah!!!

Christmas Gift Box from Helen Wallace on Vimeo.

It has lots of flaws, but in the spirit of Christmas, 
I know you will be tolerant of my first effort.

Thanks for calling in and for any comments you care to leave,  I love reading them.
Do you use Scrapmatts products?
Why not upload your projects on to the Gallery so we can leave you some love.

Remember - Kraft+ December challenge

Hello again Scrappy friends, a quick post today for the Kraft+ December challenge.

I was intrigued by the mood board which brought back memories of a home 

that kept me safe when I left my family home to begin a career.

The simple graphic lines of the house inspired me to create one too. 

The corrugated iron roof is made with paper by Kaisercraft, "Base coat collection".

The split timber walls are from Jen Hadfield, Warm and cosy collection, "Log cabin”.

These three friends were BFF's when I was doing my Nursing Training 

and remain so to this day. The photo is not great quality, but it's all I have.

I wet embossed the chimney with a brick stamp and used distress inks to colour it.

The border was hand drawn and based on a memory I have of an

 old print blocks paper.

The journalling reads:-

When I transferred from a little country hospital to the big smoke, I felt scared and lonely.  I knew no one; the hubbub and odours of the city were foreign,  and the hospital rules were beyond my comprehension. I felt like abandoning my course and running home; defeated and demoralised.  After my second shift, I trudged to the Nurse’s Home, to find these three country girls smiling under a huge welcome banner with a scrumptious afternoon tea.  I’d never met them before, but they took me under their collective wings, and provided a circle of comfort in an alien landscape. We formed our own tribe; studied together, critiqued boyfriends, laughed and cried together and believed in each other. The Nurse’s home became our home away from home, where we grew from girls into women and bonded together like Sisters.  Decades later, we still meet, and take up where we left off, cemented together with our lived experiences. Home is wherever I am with these special friends.

Thanks for calling in and for leaving some love.  I appreciate you taking the time to do so.

Hello Star - DT layout for Stuck?! Sketches

Welcome back scrappy friends, it's lovely to have you come and visit.

Today I have a project for Stuck?! Sketches.

Don't you love it when a page comes together easily and looks just as you imagined it would?

No papering over any mistakes needed this time!

This sketch was just a joy to to work with; I found the papers quickly in my messy scrap room and I had the perfect photos of a little girl whose name means Star - serendipity!

The hot pink paper is from Simple Stories, Boutique, "Dusty Pink"

and the star paper is also from Simple Stories, Boutique "Lovely"

Love the new script words from Scrapmatts, CB6115 Assorted words 28

The journalling is on the back of the page and it reads:-

When you saw this layout on the display stand during the week, your eyes lit up and you rushed over, hands outstretched ready to touch and admire.   "Oh Granny, this is just gorgeous, thank you for putting lots of bling on it and the colours look lovely with my dress!"  "I'm glad you like it Esther." "I'm too big for that dress now you know, 'cos I'm five."  "You've grown a lot this year."  "Yes and I've learnt a lot too.   I can spell cat and mat and dog and my name and lots of other words."   "Well done, what do you like most about school?"   "Playing with my cousin Leilani and having lunch!"

Photo taken 23 November 2015

Journalling 12 November 2016

We have two generous sponsors for this sketch, why not enter and be eligible to win a great prize.

Cut Mania are providing a $10.00 gift certificate for their online store.

Heather, from Cut Mania is also graciously offering our participants 20% off any purchases made during the month of December with the code 20STUCK - thanks Heather, that is amazing! 

and Crafty Ribbons are providing a generous prize too.

I know it's a busy time of the year, but it would be wonderful 

if you could find a while to play along with this gorgeous sketch.

Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment; I do enjoy reading them.

Timeless - Kraft+ November challenge

Hello again scrappy friends, welcome back to my blog.

Today I'm sharing a layout for a fantastic challenge over at

Kraft +

I could not resist making a page about my all time favourite dress.

This still hangs in my wardrobe as a salute to the young and carefree days of my youth.

It's very fine crinkle swiss cotton trimmed with guipure lace flowers.  Very Mary Quant!

To emulate the crisp, clean style of the dress, the layout is clean and simple.

I made the flowers with a Stamping up stamp and gilding.

Thank you to Louise Nelson for teaching me how to use Flitter Glu in her class.

The centres are from my Mum's stash of lace.

The journalling reads:-

This little black dress trimmed with white daisies, was my favourite “after five” dress when I first met my husband.  It still hangs in my wardrobe and reminds me of the giddy times when we fell in love and decided to build a life together. Back then, we thought we knew how the world worked and we didn’t worry about what tomorrow might bring. We were egocentric and naive in many ways, yet we have managed to stick together through good times and bad.  I’ve lent the dress to a few people for retro nights and I kid myself that it still looks just fabulous. I wish I could still squeeze into it!    Journalling 16 Nov 2016   

Thanks for any comments you may care to leave, I appreciate each and every one of them.

Love that - DT post for Stuck?! Sketches

Welcome back Scrappy friends, thanks for visiting at the busy end of the year.

Today I'm sharing a layout for Stuck?! Sketches

The photos of our oldest Grandson are recent and I feel lucky to have them.

At almost 9, he's not too keen on the paparazzi and I can't say I blame him!

Still in stash busting mode here, so I've used an ancient paper for the background.

It's from Fancy Pants, Rough and tough, Boy's story collection.

It just seemed to be a good fit for this sketch.

The arrow title is from Scrapmatts.   I coated it with Glimmer Glaze.

The scraps of paper are mostly Simple Stories.

The flair is from Fancy Pants.

This flair is from Studio Fourteen 40.

The wooden Star, heart and arrow are from Lawn Fawn.

The journalling reads:-

At almost nine, you still love reading, are passionate about improving your cricket skills and are fascinated by a children’s show on televison called “Beyblade”.   The merchandise is only available on eBay and in the week leading up to your Birthday, you waited patiently each day for the postie to arrive with your Birthday gift. You  allow your little brothers to play with your new toys; something I admire greatly. I think the gift of sharing is a wonderful one to have.   Love Granny, 4th October 2016.

Our generous sponsors for this sketch are:-

Creative Embellishments, who are providing a $25.00 Gift certificate.

 and D-lish Scraps, who are providing a Kit of the Month.

Thanks for any comments you care to leave, they make my day.

Scrapmatts DT post - November

Hello again Scrappy friends, thanks for visiting today.

I have some projects to share using Scrapmatts wonderful products.

First up is a page about our darling GD.  

The photos were taken recently and show how much she's grown in the past few months.
Because the Maja papers are a bit busy, I kept the page clean and simple.

The circle chipboard was lightly sponged with distress ink. I used it as a frame.

The flowers responded well to inking and the addition of tiny beads.

The bow to gathered them all together.

Love the new chipboard words which I inked randomly 

with different greens and topped with Glossy Accents.

The gold spots were added through a stencil with Silks acrylic glaze.

Products used:-

CB6116 Assorted Words 29

CB1234 Flowers 12
      CB5129 Circle Mesh 02     
      CB6083 Bows 01    
      ST1004 Stencil Bubbles     

In case the journalling is too small to reads it says:-

With Christmas in the air, I also made a two festive projects.
The first is a fun Bon-Bon card inspired by Collette Mitrega.

When it's closed it measures about 4" x 4"
and when pulled completely open it's 12" x 4"

The folds look a bit complicated, but it was quick and easy to do.
Great for using up all those little scraps and giving them a new life with some gorgeous chippies.
Scrapmatts chipboard used:-
CB6111 Assorted Words 27,  (the little tree comes with these words)
CB1228 Christmas Ornaments 14
CB1229 Chains 02

Finally, I made a shaker Christmas tree ornament.
CB6089 Christmas Tree 05

This comes in two sections.  I painted the chipboard at the back,
then the raised tree outline with a slightly darker green, with gold for the star and the base.
When all was thoroughly dry, I hand cut a piece of acetate to fit.
Popped in some sparkly bits, added the acetate on top and voila!

Thanks for calling in and for any comments you care to leave,  I love reading them.
Do you use Scrapmatts products?
Why not upload your projects on to the Gallery so we can leave you some love.

Stuck!? Design Team post - Hey Buddy

Welcome back to my blog, where today I'm sharing a layout for
Stuck!? Sketches! 

I like the large amount of white space and the hint of mixed media for this challenge.

I splurged on some new paper for this layout, as I've been good for way too long!

Crate Paper is the brand and it's the "Cool Kid" range.

The little robot is from Crate Paper too - "Rubber accents"

The flairs are from Studio Fourteen40

Love the animal paper from the same range - "Buddy", 

and the enamel arrow from the matching thickers.

In case you can't decipher my writing the journalling reads:-

What a couple of little Scallywags you two are!  

You love life, playing with your twin and getting into mischief if the opportunity arises.  

Love Granny 8th April 2014.

Our generous sponsors this time are:-

 They are offering a $25.00 gift voucher.

Who are offering a $20.00 voucher.

Why not enter the sketch challenge and be in the running to win one of these great prizes?

Thanks for your visit and for any comments you care to leave.  

I appreciate each and every one of them.

Hop to Stop - cards for Domestic Violence Month

Today I'm sharing a few cards I made in response to a blog post by Becca Cruger

at Hop to Stop about Domestic Violence.

I was alerted to this very worthy cause by Lizzy Hill and also Margaret Mifsud, 

both of whom have made cards.  

I started off with some water colour paper and just played
with stencils, paint, inks without being too invested in the outcome.

Great to use some older stash and some pretty ribbon from my friend Chris.

Purple, is the colour of Domestic Violence Awareness month.
There is a blog hop and a chance to make cards to donate to Becca's local shelter.
They can use thank you, birthday, encouragement and all occasion cards,
with the centres left blank to make them more versatile.

Thanks for calling in to say hello; I love it when you leave a comment 

and appreciate you taking the time to do that.

Kraft + Retro Challenge - Dream

Thanks for visiting my blog today, on this wet and wild "Spr-i-nter" day,

Spring is missing in action, Winter reigns and I hope we don't leap straight into Summer.

The up side however, is it's perfect for crafting.

Here is the Kraft+ challenge for October.

The challenge is to use any one or more of the retro things listed, 

things we may have abandoned in search of new papers and techniques.

My starting point was the hair style on the woman and I went in search of this photo of my Aunt.

It's a different era of retro, but when one is older, retro is a bit further back in history!

The Prima paper is about six years old - it's from the Madeleine collection, "Ste. Marie"

The tatted doily was made by my Mother, as was Aunty Rita's gown.

I tried to glam it up with some Liquitex Glass Beads through a Prima stencil,

then added Walnut Gold Glimmer mist, when the texture paste was dry.

Can you see the tiny gold ribbon bow?   Another item from the retro list.

It was fun using the flower and border punches and not so fun trying to find my eyelet setter.

It's still missing in action, so they got bashed in with a meat tenderiser.

I did locate my vellum and using an idea from Lizzy Hill, 

I stamped and embossed it before cutting it out with flower and leaf dies.

Love how that turned out.  Thanks Lizzy.

The journalling is on the back of the page and it reads:-

Auntie Rita, was my Mother's youngest Sister; the Baby in a family of nine.

She, along with three of her Sisters, studied Nursing and worked at the Royal Adelaide Hospital when she completed her training.  Sadly, she suffered from mental health issues in later life and was unable to work, as a result of the medication she was on.  As she never married, nor had children, my Mother and another Sister, became her carers. When I see this beautiful young woman making her debut, with her whole life ahead of her, no one could have predicted 

her sad, sick and lonely life as an older woman.  

Thanks for calling in today and for any comments you may care to leave.

They are so much appreciated.