A day of mixed emotions

I thought as I am regularly asked about the different ink pads I would teach a class on this. On glossy card we started with Versamark and stamped and heat embossed and then blended the Distress inks and then stamped over with Brilliance and Stazon. As we moved from one ink to another I explained the differences.



the results don't show up as well as I would have liked but in real they are lovely.

Christine took to this like a duck to water and raced away...



..and Lynda was very adventurous and the bolder colours really show the effects well...(but why the photo has flipped on its side I know not)



...and Norah stepped well out of her usual comfort zone of green, green or green!!!



Today was Norah's really, really last day living in Spain and she came to class as usual. She collects boxes and so I made her a personalised one - green of course!



It is painted with Dabber (lettuce), stamped with her favourite Tim's "cow parsley" flowers, copper, silver and gold leafed, with a grungeboard name and flowers and leaves, a picture out of Suze's book and a couple of jewels. A little bit "ott" but she loved it.

On the inside is a lovely verse and all the things relevant to the verse...you should be able to read it if you click on the picture of the inside of the box



Thanks Christine for taking a photo of the two of us - a lovely reminder - not that I shall ever need one. Norah is a lovely lady with a heart of gold, who makes a fabulous lemon curd, has a wicked sense of humour with her Yorkshire common sense and we have shared laughs, pain, and mad days out!!! and I shall miss her loads and loads...and when you are reading this when you get back to the UK Norah I hope it makes you sad that you have deserted me - do I care!!! flicks hair!! Lol!



We went to a restaurant on the beach for lunch after which Lorraine joined us and we moved to another watering hole on the Arenal for more and then more drinks. We sat overlooking the sandy beach and watching the boys jumping into the sea from the steps in front of us and just people watching and chatting until we suddenly realised a quick lunch had taken us to 6.30pm!!! Whoops - better get on - Lorraine back to her family, me to see if Colin was OK (course he was - take him a cake and he won't know he missed me!!) and Norah for last minute bits and bobs still to do. I had to be firm with her when I dropped her home to stop the tears which were threatening to flow.

And I now have to face the fact that there will be no more cheery face popping her head in saying "shall I get you a paper". It will be very lonely from tomorrow,
but you know I wish you every good thing possible. Love and huge hugs xxx

so Bye for now Sue

the girls say goodbye to Norah

I made these atc's today (but they are not finished) to show the younger girls the blending technique with Ranger's Distress ink pads - they are based on some that Dyan Reaveley's made. I thought they were a nice introduction to both atc's and Distress ink blending plus a touch of masking. Very sinmple but very effective.

Tonight at the kidz club Norah popped in to say goodbye to the girls. One by one they went up to her and gave her an atc they had made. As everything is packed for her departure early Wednesday she promised to make and send swaps when she gets back to the UK.

First up was Lauren who is counting down the days till her 'pot' comes off - just 2 more sleeps!


Next was Alice



Last but not least was Emily



I showed them how to blend the Distress inks and reminded them of the rules for atc's. They had a restricted set of stamps but unlimited colours from the Distress range. Two hours went by in a flash - quick stop for drinks and Pringles - no choccy biccies when it's 31 degrees even with air con. Oh no! far too melty!!

Grabbed Alice for a photo as she was headed out of the door - Deena her Mum had a new baby five or six weeks ago so don't keep her waiting.



Emily only started today - her Mum came in this morning to ask about classes for her older sister and was persuaded to let her come too.



and Lauren - our little Miss Cheeky Monkey but so lovable





They made a grand job so well done girls - I'm very proud of you all.

Right I'm now off to have some dinner, put my feet up and slump in front of the TV with the fan going and very few clothes on - not a pretty sight!!! reminds me I have the ironing still to do from yesterday!!!!!

so Bye for now
Sue

Two in one

My sincerest apologies for moaning on Wednesday - I am usually a very happy and smily person and over the past week or so I have been such a moaning minnie with the pain in my back - I know, a true pain in the ....!! The tablets have kicked in and the edge has been taken off the pain and the smily me is back.

Well, today we had a lovely class with Margaret once again bringing her Norwegian granddaughters - pity they go home next week as they seem to have had an enjoyable time here.

This is Heidi...



and this is Charlotte...



and as I was unable to sit long enough to blog last week here they are last Friday...




...and as you can see Charlotte has changed her hair totally.

It will be so quiet without you next week girls!!!

Bye for now
Sue x

sorry it's been so long...

...but I had a fall a week last Thursday and have been hurting like HELL!!! Finally went to the Dr's on Monday after being in agony all weekend and she sent me for X-rays yesterday. Can't see her again until tomorrow as it's fiesta here today so everywhere is closed - my shop included so day off. I'm stiff from holding myself in a position where the pain is least. Just wish this bl..dy pain would go away. Can't stand, sit, lie - don't know what to do with myself - my ladies have been lovely as I carried on with the classes only cancelling Monday kidz club as the show must go on, etc...but you just can't think straight when you are like this. Thank goodness I learned to yoga breathe years ago. That helps with my fibromyalgia which I live with on a daily basis but this is just something else.

'Norah's leaving do' Some students old and new went for a Chinese yesterday lunchtime.



from front clockwise - Christine, Q, Norah,Lynda, Janet, (Norah's niece Katie taking photo),Muriel, me ,Erica - Lorraine joined us later

My lovely friend, Norah leaves Spain on the 1st July as she has sold her apartment - it is right above my shop so she calls in daily to see if I want a newspaper or bananas or a duvet cover taking to the laundry. I shall miss her so much, she was my first ever student and still comes to classes and dispenses her Yorkshire humour with a helping hand when it's needed.

I must get down to doing some more work but when the brain is frazzled it is very hard to concentrate on anything. Hopefully the tablets will kick in soon! very soon, VERY VERY SOON!!!!!

Anyway, off to try to relax

Bye for now
Sue x

Bocairent - where is that???

Colin said did I fancy a day out as he'd been told that Bocairent was a nice place to visit. It's a small medieval town in the mountains around 100 Km away.

On the way there we stopped at Gandia as I had been told I might be able to buy a Mother of the Bride outfit there so after driving fruitlessly around and around the town we just headed for the playa where we had a walk along the seafront and a lovely lunch.

Some time later,we were driving up a mountain side road when we spotted all these cars parked at the side of the road on quite a bend so of course we had to stop and have a look!!!



They were swimming and sunbathing in this little hidden oasis. If you click on the photo you'll see the road!



Then we drove inland up into the mountains. As we approched Bocairent it seemed to be hung from a hill.



We drove into the town and parked in a small square where we had ice creams...



...and then walked up the hill to the front of the church....



...then Colin took Bailey to look at the map to see which way was out....



...and then we drove home. A day out like this is so good because I am not constantly thinking Oh I could do this with the ladies on Tuesday or that with the girls tomorrow, etc. Its a real switch off which I don't often have. It has been 31-33 degrees all day so I am now going to round off my lovely day with a quick dip in the pool, put my pj's on and flop in front of the cricket on the TV. Sadly England are looking likely to be going home.

Bye for now
Sue


Stop press - England cricketers have just beaten World Champions India who are going home instead and they live on to play another day!!!

a little more of the same

The lovely Margaret who comes to Friday class had a new hip in March and was doing so well with her recovery but she phoned today to say she has an infection in it so
Get Well Soon Margaret we miss you.

On Tuesday the ladies enjoyed the challenge that I set for them and so I repeated it today. Same sketch, same basic ingredients and off they go...



This is mine from today


I had stuck it all down before I realised that I had forgotten to stamp the flourishes - oh well never mind!!

and Muriel's



and Fizz's



and Linda's



Janet took her card home to finish so I will post it when I have the photo.

.....and all very different from each other and from those made on Tuesday. It is such a pity that the sparkle of the glitter card on a couple of these doesn't show up.

-amile please-



More happy ladies = happy me!

Bye for now
Sue

PS Janet's card is here...

What a way to spend a day!!!

Yesterday for the class I set them a challenge - they could only use what I had put out for them and they had to make a card based on the sketch I had drawn. It was interesting to see what different ideas and slants they put on them.
I gave them loads of different colour pieces of card and paper, both patterned and plain, every Distress ink pad, a pot of clear embossing powder and a selection of Paper Artsy and Blonde Moments stamps and that was it.

The sketch was fairly simple - they could use reels of tape or ribbon or pots to draw the circles out with and then just add their own imagination.

This was the sketch and my card





and Christine's


So there I am with my new Cannon IXUS801S (which is fantastic after my old cheapo camera expired) taking photos of the cards when up popped a message - Charge battery - and it promptly switched off!!! so no way of taking photos of the other cards.

As Norah lives in an apartment above the shop ahe popped in with her card today and I was able to photograph it with my now recharged camera but as Erica lives miles away unless I can get her to email it to me you will have to make do with seeing her discuss with the others how/where to embellish her card.





After class I planned to drive to Ikea which happens to be almost 2 hours drive away to buy some new chairs for the shop and a couple of other bits for myself and Norah had offered to accompany me so off we go. Two hours later after an uneventful journey down the motorway we pull into the Ikea car park to realise it was very quiet, eerily quiet in fact!!! so we park up and get out, walk to the front doors and lo and behold there is a large notice proclaiming they were closed for Murcia Regional Day - how much of a b....r is that!!!

Not only were Ikea closed but so were all the other shops so no visit to Primark or anywhere else. We decided we needed to eat so dropped into Pizza Hut and had a really lovely meal of spinach and three cheese tortellini - the service was diabolical and the music worth listening to but SO LOUD!!! it made your ears hurt!!! and then another two hour journey home. What a way to spend a day - a very HOT day at that so thank goodness for air con in the car.

Bye for now
Sue x

PS Erica has now emailed me a copy of her card so here it is

Whew it's a hot one today!!!

It is really HOT today but thanks to the air con the shop is cool so the heat tools didn't cause too much stress.


I repeated the class from Tuesday and the ladies enjoyed using the mica powders as much as those on Tuesday did. They are using tags to build up a recipe book of products and the techniques using them.

Here are today's ladies...





...and here is some of their work (I don't know why some of the photos have rotated when they uploaded??? as they are straight on my photo site.)

Margaret's



Muriel's



Fizz's



and last but certainly not least my good friend Norah who has sold her apartment and is deserting - going back to the UK boo!hoo! I fully understand her reasons but it doesn't mean I won't miss her loads.



Now off to do some office work - deciding what needs to be reordered,etc,etc its a hard life!!!lol!

so Bye for now
Sue x

We need a new name

These are some of the lovely girls that come to my kidz classes. They are young ladies really so perhaps I should rename it. Think I'll have to ask them to come up with a new name - The Wednesday club or The young ladies group, etc...

For the past few weeks we have been learning about journalling and here are some more of their pages from their "My Life from a to z" journals....




"BIG"?? This is ironic as Molly (centre) is so dinky - but she hasn't yet written the word personality on there!! She is also very bright and bubbly, goes to ballet classes...but where the bricks fit into her life I am not too sure???






Mar (left) is letting her imagination run wild Spanish style with Grungeboard letters, Distress Inks and a stippling brush...and discovering Wet Look Markers and heat embossing changed her life - she is 9 and "in love"!!





Looking at the cool, calm Yaa'a pages doesn't seem to describe her at all. Live, love laugh and lucky - yes - but dark dreams?? Must ask her next week?

She is the darling that helps me out when my bad Spanish fails me and hand signals mean nothing to Mar. Well actually all the girls come to my rescue at times so thanks girls - your help really means a lot.






Here's my J page and my y and z pages( maybe unfinished,not sure yet). I did the easier ones first and now I am left with the u, v and g - surprisingly enough this is proving difficult.



I absolutely adore the smell of Grungeboard - open a pack and out floats a mmmm! moment for me - new handbags and shoes mmmmm!! can't beat the smell of leather!!! but none of the girls like the smell. I tried to get a photo of Yaa grimacing at it but when I picked up the camera she dissolved into a fit of the giggles.



Then home, feed the dog, cat, myself, bring in and fold the washing, water the plants in pots and collapse in front of the TV without caring what's on!! Barely sat down, then lock up, go to bed and who should guard me in Colin's absence but....yes the dog and the cat!!!



Mind you Tia didn't like it when I put the bedroom light on!


I had a quiet morning in the shop and tonight with my good friend Norah am off to watch a festival at Mar's school (she is contamination!! no idea why - too complicated to ask) with lots of singing and dancing and all ages there - a really family friendly occasion.

I will go and feed Bailey and Tia, myself - I am on a fruit day today as I felt bloated yesterday - must give up the bread again - fruit is so tasty here as there is no regulation shapes or sizes as in the UK and it's more natural.

so Bye for now
Sue x