Holiday Day One - Oslo

Hi Everybody,

So here we are back at home and trying hard to catch up with everything that has piled up while I have been away.

We have had the most wonderful holiday and now it's time to get back to work.

But first I would like to share with you some of the photos that we took as we visited eight different countries.

We sailed from Southampton on the 29th July aboard Arcadia bound for the Baltics and although it was cloudy it was relatively calm.

We had a good look around the ship before it got too busy and altogether there were about 2900 passengers and 660 crew.

The next day it was fine all morning but in the afternoon it became windy and rougher and I spent about 18 hours in my cabin ... horizontal and so seasick.  I didn't have the inclination to go the formal evening and I certainly couldn't face eating and the travel sickness pills didn't work either.

But the next morning I was fine and ready for breakfast.  Please don't let that put you off cruising ... just buy stronger travel sick pills! Griff was fine and no sickness at all it's just me ... I am a wimp !!

The first stop was in Norway and we went on a trip to Oslo.  This is the huge Ski Jump at a place called Holmenkollen and obviously in the winter it is covered in snow.

But the day we visited people where coming down from the top on zip wires and it looked really scary

This is the top most section of the jump that you can see sticking up on the top photo and it was along way down.

The view from the top of the mountain was lovely though and worth the journey up and our guide told us that the price of the houses up there is astronomical.

Winter for them is from about the end of September until the following May so a long time to be cold.

Luckily for us the day was fine, warm and sunny and Oslo is quite a pretty, bustling place to visit

Would you want to launch yourself off the top of that and then literally fly through the air on skis ?? No .. me neither!!

This is a statue of Gustav Vigeland who created the most beautiful Sculpture park for you to wander through.

There are flowers everywhere and the smell of roses filled the air. It was a very warm and of course that accentuated the aroma even more

In the centre of the park there is a tall statue that represents the stages of life from birth to death.

The figures on the column are all intertwined and it is really very moving to see.

The central column is surrounded by more figures, kneeling, lying, standing and they are huge and carved from stone.

They show babies, children, parenthood, some are sorrowful,
one shows old people in various stages of their lives

As you walk down this wide stone stairway it leads you to a large fountain that is again surround by carved figures.

Our guide told us that each of the figures tells the story of of the sculptures life and the stages he went through as he grew old.

Altogether a very pleasant day in a lovely city and then it was back on board for the sail away and headed for Denmark and the second city on our cruise.

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Tuesday Tutorial - Mystical Embrace

Hi Everybody,

This pretty card is a 5x7 size and there are lots of layers to it.

It has been created with the several dies from Spellbinders and they will be listed below.

I have used a vibrant shade of blue and dotted it with sequins

You could miss off the frilly bits and have a lovely male card to send out for any occasion.

Spellbinders Supplies:

• S6-012 5x7 Mystical Embrace
• S6-001 5x7 Matting Basics A
• S6-002 5x7 Matting Basics B
• S4-541 Majestic Oval
• Garden Lattice A4 embossing folder (Retired)
• Labels Twenty Three (Retired)

Other Supplies:

• Ribbon from Mei Flower
• Pearl flower from Wild Orchid Crafts

Instructions:

With  die #7 from Matting Basics A cut two pieces in white and hinge together to form the base card and leave to one side for the moment.  (Please remember that #1 is always the smallest die)

With #7 from Matting Basics B cut a colored layer. With #6 from Matting Basics A cut another white layer and emboss with any folder that you have.  Glue these two pieces together

From Mystical Embrace #3 cut one panel and ink  lightly through the die before removing the card

Add foam tape to the back so that it doesn't show through from the front and layer it onto the embossed panel from the previous step. Wrap some ribbon around these layers and add them to the base card

With dies #2 cut one panel in white and with #3 cut another in blue. Stamp and emboss a sentiment and then cut with Labels Twenty Three to fit the words you have used.

Use foam pads to stack these on top of each other and then add them to the base card

Glue in your tied bow and dot with sequins for a glittery effect and add the pearl flower to the bow to cover the knot.

Lining the inside of the card to compliment the front will give it a really neat professional finish

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

The Journey so Far ...

Hi Everybody,

I have managed to find another of those WiFi hotspots and so I am letting you know where we are in the world today.

I have so many lovely photos to show you once I get home again.  Early yesterday morning we sailed into Warnemunde in Germany and the view from our balcony was beautiful. I am not able to add the photos to a blog post from my iPad but they are collecting so that I can show you later.

This has been a lovely holiday and we have seen some wonderful scenery. We chose to dine on a table for six and so we have also met some very pleasant people.

If you have been a reader for sometime you may remember that we cruised a couple of years ago on a really enormous ship. This one is about half the size of that one .... but still quite big at about 87,000 tons.

I will give you all the details once I can add the photos so until then I hope you will stay with me and enjoy the Tuesday Tutorial I have scheduled for you for tomorrow.

Hugs xx

We Are Special ...

Hi Everybody,

This is another scheduled post for you to see and it is one I colored with Spectrum Noir pens

The image is one I have had for sometime and it is off the CD "The Next Big Thing"  ... which sadly is no longer available

For this I have the simply folded A4 card in half with the card fold at the top

I have matted and layered it with a pale blue stripe card from AnnaMarie Designs  This card comes in lots of other lovely colors and there is a Spotty variety too  

The satin ribbon is from Mei Flower  and it ties into a beautiful bow.  The sentiment is from Lili of the Valley and is one of several on the sheet. The flowers are sparkled with glitter from Glitter Magic

If you visit regularly you will know that my flowers and the bow centre are always from Wild Orchid Crafts and I know that many of you have become WOC converts. I choose these because I love the variety and quality of the blooms.

These are quality UK companies that I use on a regular basis.  I like their goods and I like to tell you about their services. Click their links to view the products for yourself.

Hugs xx

Tuesday Tutorial - Victorian Fan

Hi Everybody,

Todays Tutorial uses the Victorian Fan from Spellbinders and is part of their Victorian 2.0 Collection.

It is a free cutting die that removes the shape from your card and of course there is nothing to stop you cutting it to add more to the fan size.

I have used lots of foam tape to add dimension and that allows you to see through the fan and gives shadows to the card itself


Spellbinders Supplies:

• S3-218 Victorian Fan
• S6-001 5x7 Matting Basics A
• S6-002 5x7 Matting Basics B
• S2-139 Sentiments Three
• GC-200 Grand Calibur

Other Supplies:

• Organza Ribbon from Mei Flower
• Lace from Wild Orchid Crafts
• Self adhesive Pearls from Want2Scrap

Instructions:

Please remember that die #1 (Number One) is always the smallest

With die #7 from 5x7 Matting Basics A cut two in white and hinge together to create your base card
With die #7 from 5x7 Matting Basics B cut one in blue
With die #6 from 5x7 Matting Basics A cut another panel in white and this is the layer we are going to emboss

Using the embossing sandwich for the Grand Calibur carefully emboss the card twice with the Victorian Fan die.  This will leave a matching pattern in your card and add interest to the background

Cut the fan shape out twice in blue and ink the card through the die to accentuate the pattern.
Add foam pads to the back of the solid areas so that they cannot be seen from the front

 Add both shapes to the embossed panel so that they just touch in the centre. Then add this to the blue layer we cut earlier.

Wrap ribbon and lace around these layers to hide the join and then add this to the base card

 Cut your sentiment in blue and add it to the card.  Adhere the bow onto the lace and ribbon and add in a lovely sparkly centre to hide the knot.

Designers Tip:

Vary the color for a lighter look and add pearls to the fan for extra effect.

Use some flowers to dress it up more or leave off the ribbon and lace for a more masculine fell to the card.

The choices are all yours to create this really pretty card

 More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx