Final Scavenger Shots

I was a bit disappointed with myself as Rinda's Scavenger Hunt drew to a close ... too many last-minute photos and too little time :-(

Here are the final two shots that I managed; neither are particularly remarkable; both were taken in my local town: the pedestrian precinct in the town centre:

#6 An Urban Street Scene

and the landscaped gardens around the war memorial on my way to work:

#19 A Public Garden

Despite a large Polish population in the town and several shops catering for them, I somehow didn't manage to get a photo of a sign in a foreign language (#16) and there were certainly no jugglers (#15) spotted.  A mascot (#12) seemed impossible and I never had a camera in my hand near a horn (#11). I didn't even manage to snap the substitute bird house (in my Mum's garden) all summer!

Still that's not a bad haul out of 21 objects, and I have had immense fun interpreting the prompts on my trips to Scotland and Derbyshire - plus I loved seeing all the fellow scavengers photos around the world.

If I include this attempt at a sort of sunrise one sleepless July night ...

#13 Sunrise

... and combine my holiday hunt with my everyday hunt, I did, in fact, manage the lot which isn't so disappointing after all! :-)

Spot The Horse

A few weeks ago saw the third Bloggers' Weekend, when I met up with some lovely fellow scrappers for a few days of cutting and sticking.  Our first get-together was back in November 2011 and I told the story of meeting up near Ironbridge here.  Our reunion (with a couple of new faces to make up for missing some of the original Telford Ten) happened in March 2013, and this year it fell to me to organise the third get-together.

Each time we've met, Ruth has challenged us to bring a set of "items" for  everyone else to include in a project ... so this year there were 12 random objects to be added to a page ... can you spot a flair badge, some scraps of silk and cotton fabric, a plastic key-ring, a heart-shaped button and bead, a brad, a paper tag, some baker's twine, a wood veneer cat, heart and horse?

The page is based on the September 1st sketch from Stuck! Sketches which was perfect for including so many elements (though I moved the journalling and split my title) and ties in with the autumnal September House Challenge over on UKSCrappers.  My bag of red paper scraps is a lot emptier now!

Not all of my objects matched my colour scheme, so I got inky and messy with the tag, the wooden heart and the cat.  I chopped the heart-shaped bead in two and coloured it and the button with a black Sharpie.  Meanwhile the orange cotton found its way inside the keyring fob and some silk helped cover up the brad. 

Are you still looking for the horse?  A careful decapitation and quadruple leg amputation transformed it into to a (blood-stained) arrow!!!

Three @ Seven

Welcome to the final post of the September CKCB Members' Blog Hop; if you didn't reach me from  Margie then you might want to start at the beginning with Lisa (the full hop list is here)

This month we had a choice of three challenges to use for the hop (#1 Make Your OWN Challenge , #2 Selfie Challenge, #3 Mixed Media Embellies).

I'm not great at taking selfies ... but it just so happened that I had a recent one to hand and some scrapping time at a recent scrappy retreat with my bloggy friends.  Perfect!

We three had just had a lovely meal at a restaurant called Seven!  My page is based on the sketch for the UKS Summer Scrapping Challenge #5 and uses my September Counterfeit Kit plus a few scraps of cardstock, Ruth's washi, Julie's ink and Fay's punches - the joys of scrapping with other people('s tools and supplies) nearby!

It was another short CKCB Members' Hop this month - why not join in yourself in October - EVERYone is welcome!

Short On Supplies

Sarah at S J Crafts asked us to do a page for her September Challenge: choose either black OR white, either doodling OR stamping and either washi OR ribbon/twine ...

... and that's almost all I did pick, because having doodled all over my white cardstock I didn't want to cover it up more than I had already!

I covered some scraps of white card in washi tape and punched various sized stars out of them to mount over and under the photos of No.2 Son struggling to cope in the sting ray pool at Discovery Cove in 2004.  For some reason the fabric of his swim shorts floated and billowed up like a skirt, which was rather distracting when he was trying to keep an eye on exactly where the sting rays had got to and not step on them!  I couldn't get a single relaxed, happy, facing-the-camera photo of him ... but the story still needed to be scrapped!

So that's white, doodling and washi (with some added embroidery thread, Round-a-bout dies and foam pads) from me for the S J Crafts challenge for September. 

ETA: Unfortunately, Sarah has decided not to continue with the challenges, but that doesn't need to stop you from having a go ... What would YOU choose? 

Welcome to ZIZO #37

As Rinda's Scavenger Hunt nears its close I thought I'd better get moving on the final few.  I have driven past a sign like this at least half a dozen times a week all summer, but it's never quite been convenient to stop safely and walk back to take a photo.  However on Friday, I was driving out the other side of the town on my way to a scrappy retreat with my blogging friends when I spotted the sign in my rear-view mirror.  There were no cars behind me and parking on the roadside was allowed so I guessed it was now or never for:

#1 A Sign Welcoming People To A Town Near Me

As I got closer for the photo I was intrigued to realise that the coat of arms thingy, wasn't!  My Zoom In reveals that it is a representation of the town hall!  The town council used to be for Crewe AND its neighbouring town Nantwich which explains the recent date of establishment when they became separate entities!  I'm linking up with Helena's 37th week and am off to look for the final few Scavenger Hunt items before Tuesday 23rd!

Zoom In Zoom Out #36

Another last minute ZIZO from me - just in time to join in with Helena's 36th week.  Hubby and I generally go for a walk around the village on a Sunday - it's a chance to chat quietly, get some fresh air, admire nature and get some exercise. 

Part of our route takes us through a very large field which this year is planted with corn ... of the maize variety!  It's prettier than we see in the greengrocers, with purple outer leaves and yellow tufts.  I think it's for cattle fodder rather than human consumption.

It's interesting to watch the crops grow week by week and always a shock to find that they've been harvested all of a sudden.  This week we picked blackberries from the hedgerows along the way.  I should have taken photos of my stained fingers - maybe next week's ZIZO?

Corking Chipboard Embellishments

Scrapbook Circle have exclusive cork chipboard die cuts in their August kit, being counterfeited by the CKCB this month.

I had just ONE cork embellishment - a plain pinked cork circle.
But I did have some chipboard frames, some cork patterned paper (from the Simple Stories 24/Seven 6x6 pad), some stamps and a few rub-ons ...

AND

... now I have my own set of exclusive "cork" embellishments!

Some are simply designs (stamps or rub-ons) added onto the cork paper and carefully cut out.  However to give them some depth I decide to cover some chipboard with the cork patterned paper.  It's really easy to do, especially if you have some precision files (mine are Basic Grey, but they are also sold very cheaply in DIY shops too) but sandpaper or an emery board will work for simple shapes:

Stick the chipboard face down onto the back of your cork patterned paper, making sure that the glue goes right to the edge of the chipboard.

Roughly cut away excess paper, leaving a little overhanging the edge of the chipboard.  Using fine sandpaper or a file/emery board, use downward strokes from the patterned side at an oblique angle along the edge of the chipboard (see photo). This will push the edge of the paper onto to the edge of the chipboard making a good seal and reveal the core of the patterned paper, softening the edge of the chipboard shape.

Use a precision file or folded-in-half-sandpaper to work on tight spaces where an emery board will not fit, remembering to keep filing down against the edge of the chipboard.  My precision file set has a round file which is perfect for the inside of curved edges and the inside of holes! Unfortunately, you  make an incredible dusty mess of paper filings but the results are worth it:

Back in 2010, I did a charity retreat class on several ways to decorate chipboard - the handout for which can be downloaded via a link at the bottom of this post.  Have fun!

There are more tutorials to help you counterfeit this month's kit over at the CKCB today.

Back To Scrapping With The CKCB

It's that time of the month again ... kit reveal ... with the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Blog. Which of course means a hop around the Master Forgers.  Did you start with our Guest Designer Tina and reach me from Stephanie?  Yes?!  Then you'll already have seen the kit-to-copy from Scrapbook Circle'e Island Paradise Kit for August, full of geometric patterns, filled with colour, a sprinkle of cork and loads of foxes ...

Well, I'm fresh out of foxes, but I did find something approaching the feel of the rest and put together my kit:

Supplies:
Simple Stories DIY Boutique Lovely (sequins)
and Outside The Box (ampersand cards)
Echo Park All About A Boy Games (spinners)
6x6 SS 24/Seven Snapshots (red/white dots) 
EP AAAB Journalling Card (blue pattern)
WRMK Teen Angst Punk (blue pattern)
Fancy Pants Childish Things Toy Box (green stripes)
6x6 SS Urban Traveller Grey Grid (brown grid)
and Bingo Card (striped reverse)
plus
Scenic Route Small Random Kraft alpha stickers
Yellow fibres

Counterfeited cork embellishments - tutorial coming on September 8th

Various 3x4 cards from Lesley's prize
Provo Craft Alphabetterz chipboard alphas

Hmmm!  Not exactly a faithful counterfeit, but you get the idea!

Next on the hop is our "newest" Master Forger Sherri who made a welcome return to our team last month as Guest Designer and has agreed to rejoin the Master Forgers.
If you get lost along the hop - the full list is on the CKCB here.  Have fun!