Caernarfon Castle ...

Hi Everybody,

Caernarfon Castle is another ancient one that was built by the English King Edward as part of the defenses along the coast of Wales.

It is quite a big castle and one of the things it is famous for is as the backdrop to the Investiture of Prince Charles as the Prince of Wales.

This is a title that is given to the eldest son of the reigning heir and the last one before Charles was his Uncle David.

He became King Edward  and of course he abdicated for Wallis Simpson ... and so we had King George instead.


The platform in the centre of the photo is Welsh Slate and is bigger than it looks and this is where the very grand ceremony was held by the Queen.

You can walk around the battlements and visit some of the museums that are inside the castle ... but I tell you those stone spiral staircases are so steep and narrow they play havoc with your knees.

We looked around the town and had some lunch in a quaint little Bistro ... but couldn't find a craft shop !

Then after an interesting day, that we crammed as full as we could,  we headed back to the cottage and prepared for another day.

As our holiday is now coming to an end I am adding in an extra post of the last few trips we have made ... and hopefully not bore you too much

Portmeirion ....

Hi Everybody,

Today for this trip we got up early and drove to visit Portmeirion.

This beautiful village  clings to the hillside and was the vision of one man in the 1920's.

Clough William-Ellis  wanted to bring some Italian architecture to the Welsh countryside and this was his dream.

It cascades down the hill side and has many parts to it with different themes ... each as beautiful as the other.

The village itself became very famous in the 1960's as it was used as the setting for the  fictional adventure series  "The Prisoner"  ... starring  Patrick McGoohan

It was a mysterious series and one that could never be worked out ... but it became one of those cult programmes  that attracts followers for many many years.

Clough William-Ellis  was the master of recycling long before  it ever became popular.

He  had bricks  and buildings ...  from other dis-used places ... that he bid for and then had brought to Portmeirion to be be re assembled.

Many of the houses are just facades with nothing behind ... just like film sets.

But there are apartments and a hotel   if you wanted to holiday there.

It was a wonderful day and if you ever get the chance to visit I promise you it is well worth it.

You may never get to find out what The Prisoner was about ... but the village is something not to miss.

On the way back we stopped off at several other places including a Black Rock where we drove the car directly onto the beach.

We had a lovely meal before returning to the cottage to watch yet another beautiful sunset over the Menai Straits

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

Beaumaris Castle and ??? ...

Hi Everybody,

To continue our adventure around Wales I  have some more photos to share with you of some of the places that we have visited.

On our second day we  spent most of it on the pretty Island of Anglesey and one of the places we visited was Beaumaris Castle.

This castle is protected now but for many years it was allowed to simply stand.

 It is one of the many Castles built along the Welsh coastline by the English King Edward and is steeped in history.

I  like to take my time and read as I go along .... in fact I am like a talking brochure to Griff  as he films and I witter on about the places we are in.

We passed through a town that I dare you to try and pronounce ....

The local people call it LlanfairPG and that will do me as I can't get my tongue around it at all.

But here is the phonetic pronunciation of the long name .....

 .... and here is what it translates to.

Try it and see if you can say it .... Griff can,  but then he is Welsh through and through like a stick of rock.

Another fascinating place to visit was at the far end of Anglesey called South Stack.

There are thousands of breeding birds and the noise is so loud.

It was very busy and we walked down to the observatory where you can view the cliffs through telescopes.

They give you  a close up look of the different types of birds.

So after a busy day we head back to our cottage,  to sit on the patio  and sip a drink or two overlooking the Menai Straits and watch the sun go down.

More tomorrow ....

Hugs xx

Wonderful News ... Wonderful Wales...

Hi Everybody,

I am having a wonderful holiday in Wales and the weather has been so kind.

The sun has shone endlessly for us and we have taken advantage to the full.

The first thing I want to share with you is the fact that I have been accepted onto the  Spectrum Noir  Design Team and I am so excited about this.

The honor and the opportunities that have opened up are amazing ... and I cannot tell you how happy I am.

I have so many ideas that I would like to share with you and I hope you will join me on  yet another wonderful journey.

 In Wales we have been to visit some wonderful places and everyday we have visited somewhere different.

The first day we went to the Slate Museum and watched a slate cutting demonstration.

 The man was so quick and the end result was a neat little heart shape.

The quarry was in Llanberis and this beautiful lake is what remains of the old quarry.

It is very deep but there is now a Diving School that teaches this skill  in the depths of the cold clear waters.

It was so still and  peaceful and a very hot day.

We walked up the hill. towards the Quarry Hospital that was built to treat the injured workers.

This photo is of  one of the Operating Theaters and it looks so basic.

And yet the work and the dedication of the surgeons that saved the  hurt and injured men was to be commended.

Altogether a fascinating place and steeped in history.

We stopped at this charming little cottage called "The Ugly House"  

Nobody knows how long ago it was built or even who built it... but it is far from ugly ... and is in fact a delightful tea room. 

 The story is that it was erected at a time when all someone had to do was to have smoke coming from a self built chimney stack in a 24 hour period .

And then they could throw an axe in each of four direction and the area that it covered could then be claimed as their land.

Quaint story eh ??

More tomorrow ...

Hugs xx

White with a Red Splash ...

Hi Everybody,

This is another of my favorite dies from Spellbinders and this is the 5 x 7  Elegant Labels 4

It matches in very well with the smaller plain  Labels four and that is what the sentiment is stamped onto.

I have used a JustRite Stamp and you can mix and match the words to create your own sentiment with other stamps in the same script.

I have embossed one of the panels and the card is created as a Filigree Hinged Card   for a lovely lacy effect.

The ribbon has been wrapped around the top layers and it has a lovely metallic thread running through it.

 It is from  Reasonable Ribbons   and is  part of  the June selection  of their monthly ribbon club.

Very simple and yet very pretty lace card for any occasion.

More tomorrow...

Hugs xx

Tone on Tone

Hi Everybody,

The beautiful Quatrefoil Pattern die is featured on this card ... have you got yours yet    ?? Click the link to buy it from Sunrise Crafts.

There are many many Spellbinders that I really love and this has to rank amongst my favorites and one I can use time and time again.

The card itself is nothing more than the A2 matting basics made into a Hinged Card

I have just  layered this with the  Quatrefoil Pattern in the same cream card.

A little tag has been added to the top with gold embossed sentiment and you won't get a much more simple card than  that for a card in a hurry.

The stain edged Organza bow  with the pearl centre is the finishing touch  ....

More tomorrow 

Hugs xx

Grand Labels ...

Hi Everybody,

Another pretty card featuring the Grand Labels.

I love the basic shape as it makes  the card  just a little different from the plain square.

I have hand cut the green layer and then another of the Labels to add a small border around the edge.

The beautiful Ornate Gate has been cut twice and used together as the lacy background for the centre panel.

The smaller of the Labels has been used again to layer up the centre piece of the card and all the layers are added with foam tape.

A beautiful mixture of flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts  are along the side and they have been sparkled with Glamour Dust.

The silk edged Organza Ribbon is from my "Stash"

More tomorrow...

Hugs xx

Pink and Cream ...

Hi Everybody,

This pretty card is in Pink and cream and the two colours work so well together.

The big satin bow is created from Ribbon in my "Stash" and made using the Bow Maker   that is available in My Shop

The small cream pearls used to adorn the edge of the card are from Want2crap

The base is created from the Grand Squares and the centre piece is Adorning Squares.

Just a very plain and simple card but so effective.  The sentiment has been heat embossed in silver and the tag added to the centre of the bow with the pearls to hold it in place.

More tomorrow...

Hugs xx

Tomorrow holds ....

Hi Everybody,

As you are reading this I will be getting ready to go to Wales on my holiday.

We are staying for a few days in a  cottage and just taking things at a slower pace than normal.

 I am hoping the  sun is going to shine for us but we will enjoy the break whatever it does.

So for the next few days my Blog posts are all scheduled and I am hoping that every thing goes as planned with them all.

This card is created once again from the Hinged Card style using the Matting basics A and B sets.

I have embossed the next layer with the Argyle A4 folder from Crafters Companion

The flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts  and are a mixture of Chrysanthemums, Lilies, Cherry Blossoms and Daisies.

I will add some of my sight seeing trips over the week and so there will be more tomorrow ....

Hugs xx

Background Pattern Dies ...

Hi Everybody,

These lovely cards are created using more of the background dies that are my recent purchases.

This first one is called the Hexagon Pattern and it makes a beautiful effect for your cards.

I bought both of these  dies  from  PapertreyInk  in the  USA

It has taken a few weeks  for them to get here but they are well worth waiting for ...  and no customs charge this time either.

The base is cut from Grand Labels and the sentiment from   JustRite Stampers   has been heat embossed in silver.

The flowers are a mixture from  Wild Orchid Crafts  and the petals have been sparkled with Glamour Dust.

This one is a Harlequin Pattern and it has a matching stamp that you can buy.

I have cut the die and stamped the images and then married the two together

I think they are lovely cards and these are dies I will be using time and time again.

I also have one more patterned background to show you will but that will have to wait.....

I am going away for a short break this weekend and all my Blog posts for next week are scheduled to go out each morning.  So fingers crossed that nothing goes wrong.

Once I come back I will have another "Give Away" for you and some exciting news that I can hardly wait to share with you.

More tomorrow from a scheduled post ....

Hugs xx