Dinner for Two

THANK YOU all so much for the lovely comments on the front cover. I can now show you the inside of this mini album too. You all know that you should never judge a book by its cover, but hopefully you like the inside as much as you liked the cover. [wink] As suggested by Zab I have added some pink and turquoise ribbons, and I like it much better now. Thanks, girl!

This is my first project after my HUGE scrappers' block, and I can tell you it feels so good to be creative again.












Materials used: Bazzill Cardstock Kraft and White, Rhonna Farrer French Twist papers, rub-ons and buttons, Prima Flowers, American Craft Thickers, Autumn Leaves Clear Stamps Swirls, Hambly Screen Prints rub-ons Vintage Motifs black, Basic Grey rub-ons Paisley White, ribbons, Posca pen Black, Making Memories Boho Chic Tiny Alphabet Stickers and Tag Rim, Close to my Heart Alphabet Clear Stamps, QuicKutz Cookie Cutter Dies Nested Flower, Catslife Press 'Handmade Book' stamp, Dolls Original Rubber Stamps (bird), Hampton Art Memories Interactive Circles Clear Stamps, 7Gypsies Gaffer Tape, sewing machine, fabric, stapler, binding rings. Size: 5.5x5.5"

Front cover

I just finished a mini book with pictures of Eric and me having dinner at our local marina. Unfortunately it is too dark now to make some pictures. I can show you the front cover though. I took this one earlier this week. I am not too sure about all the ribbons. I am a ribbon addict, but I am not really happy with the way it looks. I don't have the French Twist ribbons that match with these papers, so I used green and orange ribbons from my own stash. Maybe I need some more time to get used to it. I'll show you the rest of the album on Wednesday. I have to work tomorrow and on Tuesday and since we changed the clocks by one hour it will be dark by the time I get home.



I got tagged several times again this week. My friend Zab and Nicky tagged me to mention 7 random facts about me. I already did this tag in April this year, so if you want to know a few facts about me click here. I got tagged for another tag game by Tammie and Marije. Thanks for thinking about me, girls. However, I won't be doing any more tags. I mentioned it before, but these tags games are not really my cup of tea. Besides, it is getting more difficult each time to find fellow bloggers who haven't been tagged before. So Tammie and Marije, please don't take this personal. ;-)

Witches of IJsselstein

Don't you just love these two little witches? I must admit I was a little scared this morning when I had to dress them.....hehehe. Today they went to the after school care center (BSO) in this outfit. We are not familiar with Halloween here in Holland. Of course we do know Halloween, but we don't celebrate it. However, the BSO organized a Halloween theme day, and the kids could come in a spooky outfit. Halloween costumes are hard to find over here, and this was the best (and cheapest) I could find. They had a fun day today. They did crafts (Fleur made her own bat) and had a Halloween ball. Booohooo! When we got home at 5.30pm I had to take a picture, because it doesn't happen too often I can take some Halloween pictures. I don't know what it is, but my photography skills are pretty poor at the moment. The first set of pictures with my own tiny camera didn't turn out well. These ones with Eric's Canon EOS350D aren't too good either. Hmmmm...perhaps I should also take a photography course just like Eric.

Fairytales

The girls have herfstvakantie and are off from school this week. They stayed over with my parents since Sunday. On Monday they went to the zoo in Amersfoort, and today a visit to Sprookjeswonderland (fairytales wonderland) in Enkhuizen was scheduled. Since I have my part-time day on Wednesday I decided to join them. We arrived in Enkhuizen at 10.45am and spent 5 hours in the park. It was chilly (9ºC), but it was so nice to be outside and stroll around. It is a great park for kids until the age of 8. Fleur and Sanne enjoyed every minute. They loved all the tiny houses and puppets, and had fun playing in the playground. It was a great day and we all had a wonderful time.

It's Back

My mojo is back!! FINALLY! Yesterday I started on a mini album with the yummy French Twist papers, and it feels good to be scrapping again. I missed it. This album will only be a few pages, so hopefully I will be able to show it soon. Here is a little sneak peek. O, and I have a new addiction......kraft cardstock. I ordered tons of sheets and I like it a LOT!



Enjoy your Sunday!

Nancy's little card workshop

Nancy posted a little workshop on her blog and challenged us to make a card. I am a fan of her work, and love her card designs. I was away for the weekend and hardly had time at the beginning of this week, but fortunately I was still in time to join the challenge. The girls were in school this morning, so I had a little ME-time. It was raining outside, so the perfect conditions to do some crafts. Here is my take on her card. I really enjoyed working on it, and am glad that I now know the 'recipe'. LOL! Thanks for the challenge, girl.





Materials used: My Mind's Eye Magnolia paper, Bazzill cardstock, Heidi Swapp Chipboard Alphabet, EK Success flower punch, Prima flower, Rusty Pickle button, thread, Hotfix crystal rhinestones, QuicKutz Cookie Cutter Dies Nesting Flowers, transparency, staples, computer font Arial and sewing machine.

A little TOOT

Not sure if you can call it a toot, but at least it is nice enough to mention. :-) A month and a half ago I was contacted by Caz McLachlan. She came across my work on 2Peas and was drawn to me by my gorgeous layout Smile (her words not mine....LOL!) using the SEI products. Caz is from Aussie Scrap Source and they are distributor for SEI, amongst other things, and they wanted to know if they could show some of my work on their blog. I never had such a request before, and didn't have to think about it too long. Of course I said YES. Two of my layouts as well as my Mother's Day mini album (inspired by my SIL Lisette - thanks!) made with SEI products were published on Aussie Scrap Source's blog this weekend. You can find it here. Their blog is a great site for inspiration.

Perfect

We had a great time in Maastricht. The weather was beautiful, we walked and shopped for hours, we both bought lots of clothes, the food and drinks were delicious, the hotel was good, we enjoyed spending quality time together and we relaxed. We LOVE Maastricht. It was PERFECT!!

Maastricht.....here we come!

Eric and I go to Maastricht for 3 days. Maastricht is our favorite city in the south of Holland. A city with great shops, nice restaurants and beautiful squares. We always try to go there together once a year, but I think it has already been a year and a half ago since we went to Maastricht for the last time. Way tooooo long ago, so Eric booked us a hotel about 3 weeks ago. The weather forecast looks great for the weekend, so I am sure we will spend lots of time outside in the sun. It will be nice to spend some time together. The girls will spend the weekend with my mom and dad and I am sure they will have a wonderful time without mommy and daddy. LOL!

Enjoy your weekend!! Talk to you soon. :-))

Hello

I made this card for the World Card Making Day swap that I hosted. I sooooo love to use the Scenic Route Laurel papers. Can't get enough of that line. Ingen was the lucky one, and fortunately she liked my creation.



Materials used: Scenic Route 'Laurel' papers, Bazzill cardstock, Doodlebug paper frills, Maya Road chipboard scrolls, Hotfix crystal rhinestones, Ranger paint dabber, Making Memories Alphabet Rub-ons 'Heidi Black', ribbon, Versacolor ink 'Pinecone' and sewing machine.

Just because

I made this card for someone, just because.... Hope that person likes the card.



Materials used: Fancy Pants 'Botanical' papers, Bazzill cardstock, Maya Road Paisley Chipboard, Prima Flowers, Making Memories Alphabet Rub-ons 'Heidi Black', Blonde Moments Embossing Powder Ultra Thick 'Sugar Pink', Hotfix crystal rhinestones, Versacolor Pinecone ink and staples.

I bought the Maya Road chipboard paisleys a year and a half ago, but so far never used them. *blush* Back then I wanted the paisleys so badly, but when I got them I didn't know how to use them. Well, of course I did know how to use them, but honestly I didn't really like them anymore. Too bad, heh?

Again I got tagged. My sweet scrapfriend Nancy nominated me for the Best Blog Friend Award. Thanks so much, sweetie. I really appreciate this.

I also got tagged by Leontine. She has tagged me for the Thankful meme. I am supposed to list 6-8 things I am thankful for. I am thankful for many things in my life and I can mention even more than 6-8 things. However, I won't mention them here on my blog. I don't want to spoil the fun and really appreciate that blog friends think about me and tag me, but these tag games are not really my cup of tea. Sorry, girls!! Don't take this personal. ;-)

Altered tea box

I altered this tea box with goodies from the latest Dolls Good Newz Box. I usually make layouts or mini books as example for the kit, but this time I wanted to do something else. I bought a little wooden tea box and decorated it with the Sweetwater papers.



Materials used: Sweetwater Cotton Candy (#BJ1, #BJ4 & #BJ6), cardstock, O’Scrap! Brads, O’Scrap! Buttons, O’Scrap! Chipboard Serif Alphabet, 7Gypsies Rubbings Journal Scroll, Sweetwater Doodle Disks, Autumn Leaves Clear Stamps Flourishes V:2, Doodlebug Paper Frills, Prima Sprites, Rusty Pickles Buttons Lime, American Crafts ribbon, Gesso, Versacolor Pinecone ink, white/lime fabric, wooden tea box.

Mail from the USA

Today I received this gorgeous Polka Dot Whimsy kit from Michelle Hill in the mail. The first kit I ordered from abroad. It wasn't a smooth transaction, but fortunately it all turned out well in the end. It was absolutely worth waiting for this kit. So many yummy goodies in the kit. Usually I am not a big fan of yellow, but I love the combination with pink and brown. The instructions include a mini album, but I am sure there will be lots of material left to create some other things. What is your favorite (international) kit?



O, and today I had visitor #20,000 on my blog. Wooohooo! Thank you all so much for stopping by my blog. I appreciate you visiting my blog, and love all your comments.

Still no layouts

...but I did make another card this evening. It is World Card Making Day on Saturday October 6th. A great occasion to make a card for someone else, because who doesn't like to receive a handmade card in the mail? So......I organized a card swap on the Dolls & Decorations message board. The girls who join will make a card for their swap partner, and send it out this weekend. Mine is already finished. I guess I have to put extra postage on the envelope, because I used lots of bling bling. LOL! I will only show a sneak peek, because it could very well be that my swap partner visits my blog. Sorry!