Moxie Fab Thanks Blog Hop

Welcome to a really special post! This is probably one of the biggest blog hops EVER! Hopefully you’ve joined me from Moxie Fab World

We are honouring Cath Edvalson. I know I’ve already posted about her- but this is the better post! We decided to create a blog hop to say THANKS! She coined the phrase ‘Moxie Fab’ to describe anything truly amazing, splendid or gorgeous- & I guess she never knew how big it would come or how much we all think of her. I went all the way back to look at the first post.. Cath described what it was to be all about..

“But more than that, Moxie Fab World is a place where we can all get to know one another a little better. It’s a place where we can enjoy a stout cup of coffee, a warm spot of tea, or a sweet sip of cocoa and gather around our computers on our own time and on our own terms. It’s a place where we will share ideas, explore the trendy possibilities, and uncover the magical opportunities we have to connect with one another in this most heartfelt of hobbies, paper crafting.” (Nov 11 2008)

It has remained true to her wish for it. She has little idea about the place she holds in our hearts- without ever meeting her you just know that she is sincere and real. I don’t know her amazingly well, but whenever I’ve corresponded with her, you get a lovely impression of her. She’ll always leave a lovely comment when visiting your blog, and some of her comments on my cards have made me sigh with happiness. This card that I’ve created says ‘Cath’ to me. She loves colour & is a real wordsmith (note the letter type paper in the background).

She will get to read some amazing tributes along the way. What she doesn’t know is that in the space of less than a week, a secret Facebook group was set up just to organise this. We thought we’d get a few.. but there are 756 members! Not all of them were able to join in- but we have retailers & individuals. At the moment there are about 276 people signed up to hop. Having that many people wanting to honour her makes her special indeed. There were many who wanted to be part of this hop-

There are some people that we have to thank in all of this. A lot of the administrative work & problem shooting was done by the amazing, lovely and funny Virginia Lu & Taheerah Atchia. Chatting with them through the week has totally made my week. They have been utter stars. Thanks go to Kryssi Ng who put together the fantastic graphics for the blog headers & button. Michelle Liimatainen did some sterling checking of the spreadsheets & we must particularly say a big Thankyou to Aris from Inlinkz who has been so helpful in trying to organise the link system. Before it sounds like an Oscar’s speech- big thanks to Stacy Croninger for letting us begin at Moxie Fab World & Susan Opel who is cheerleader extraordinaire! Thank you to all of the girls (& gent) who have posted or been part of the group. With such a large group, you’d think there’d be difficulties- but they’ve all been a super supportive bunch; the epitomy of what Cath envisaged for Moxie Fab World all that way back in 2008.
 So, here’s to you Cath! Inspiration supremo, Trendsetter and trendwatcher, Champion of the beginners (and the rest!) and Confidence cheerleader. If it wasn’t for you & gaining confidence through joining the Moxie Fab challenges, I’d never have plucked up the courage to submit to Paper Crafts (as it was then). We all think you’re wonderful- we can’t wait to see where you take your sunshine next!

Grab a few coffees (in fact, better go get a flask)- some of the brightest & loveliest people have all joined to say THANKS to Cath. Next up is Jennifer Ingle. I just know you’re about to see something amazing!

For a list of all of the links of those taking part (in case you get lost or a link doesn’t quite work), check the Inlinkz symbol just below or pop back to Moxie Fab World who has the list there too.

You’re a Joy! & Broken Boots!

Hello everyone! Thanks so much for all of your comments recently- they are all really lovely to get.

This is a super simple card- using a set from a new company that you’ll be hearing a lot about in the near future. It’s one of those cards that remind me of lots of people. Some people are just complete ‘joys’ aren’t they! One of those is Cath Edvalson. This card is for her. She’s one of those lovely person that sprinkles sunshine wherever she goes. I know that tons of people hold her in really high regard & she is stepping down from being the mastermind & contributor at Moxie Fab World . We know she’ll be planning a new and exciting future & so I simply had to post and say THANKS! One day, if I ever get to visit the US, and had a wish list of places to go and people to see- she’d be on that list somewhere right at the top!

Some of my most exciting challenges (wins or not) have been over at Moxie Fab World. Cath would post unique challenges that made you think & get really creative. Some of my fave cards have come as a result of entering her challenges. I loved being part of last years ‘Trendy Card’ list & I can tell you, if Cath visits your blog & leaves you a comment..well, your day is totally made! She posted daily a inspiring picture which often left you thinking about colour or design or just how beautiful nature is. She will be so missed – she’s irreplaceable!

If any of you have missed this link up- there’s one over at MFW- you could join in too and leave her your best wishes and thanks.

This week has seen me prepping for an all day workshop. I do love teaching- I could do it happily all day. Prepping is less fun- but I’m nearly sorted! We have had a few hiccups this week- let me tell you about one!

I play taxi a considerable amount of the time. I’d picked up 2 kids, went elsewhere to pick up 2 more & was waiting half an hour before picking up the last one. We popped to Tesco to pick up some bits ready for Bonfire night. As we’d loaded the shopping, one of the kids was messing around. They couldn’t close the boot on account of being too diddy, so I asked an older child. This child didn’t take too well to being asked.

They went to back of the car & instead of pulling the door down (it’s a hatchback type), they grabbed the rods that allow the door to open and close. They obviously did this with some force & then whacked the boot down.

There was a crunch noise.

Not a good sort of ‘crunch’. It was in fact the sound of metal bending. Not realising what they’d done, they decided to give it a second go, further damaging the car. I was out of the front seat in a hurry but the second bending had already occurred. Granted, I didn’t know this is what had happened until I looked into the boot.

The boot was not going to shut. Nor could I  drive home with an unstable boot in the wind. I knew that if I let it drop down any further, it would bend the metal further & possibly break it. So I had good (?) idea no.1…I balanced the boot on my head & phoned my hubby.

‘Hi Steve, I have a slight problem”

“go on” he said, sounding unphased

“One of the kids has broken the boot & I’m balancing it on my head’

“Pardon? You’re balancing the boot on your head?”

“Yes, I thought it the best thing to do”.

I could hear him explaining the ridiculous situation to his colleagues. “Hang on, can’t you manage?”

Well I couldn’t, I don’t have any tools in the car. I will be getting some shortly. He arranged to come & I waited, in the cold & now with the light fading, watching the shoppers in Tesco come in and out.

After 5 minutes the boot was hurting my head. Daughter no.1 came to my rescue- fortunately we’re about the same height. Two of us stood, like complete numpties balancing a boot on our heads.

Did anyone stop? Did anyone check we were ok?

No. Not a sausage!

Our friends who visited that evening for Bonfire Night, remarked it was little wonder that no-one stopped- we must have looked a little odd.

After a while, it hurt too much. I took the rash decision to rest it on one shoulder. When the cold & weight got too much, I simply shifted it onto the other shoulder. There I stood, for at least 15 minutes. The other daughter (who I was supposed to have picked up by now) wasn’t responding to my phonecalls. Then my phone died. The end of the story was seeing a very bedraggled daughter make her way crossly up the hill joined also by my husband who removed the strut (after trying to return it to the original shape) & closed the boot.

The offending child became public enemy No.1 to the other siblings who were freezing and less than patient at that point.

Needless to say, my shoulders are a little stiff. If you ever see someone in that predicament- do say hello, or help them; they’ll be very thankful! All ended well, we enjoyed some fantastic fireworks, bacon butties & gingerbread cake washed down with some hot chocolate. The perfect end to an otherwise imperfect day!

See you on Saturday for a very exciting post- you won’t want to miss this one!

xx

More Neon and Blowing Noses!

Is there a ‘neon disease’- can you catch it? Maybe I have it! I’m loving these colours. Thought I’d accentuate them by contrasting with black. The snowflakes are a die from Die-Namics and there are 3 different sizes. It would be pretty cool if snowflakes were these colours but actually I prefer them pure and white. I’ve added little dots of Jelly Roll glaze to add to the ‘movement’ in the card plus a couple of gems for sparkle. The ‘Noel’ is nearly an anagram of neon and I’ve stamped it and used green embossing powder.

I’ve another project along these lines-

I think I like the pop against the black better? This is a subtler take on the neon. They’re both for the Keen on Neon Challenge at Moxie Fab World. Love those challenges.

I’m spoilt for choice as to what to chat with you about in the personal part. Could it be the cute and funny Nativity Play my littliest was in, or the battle with Yodel and Amazon? Maybe it should be the beyond heinously disgustingly habited man on my road today or even the mysterious case of who wrecked my Lipliner.
Possibly I should talk about William’s definition of poor people or when I became outspoken at a parents information/self help group.
Oh- so much to choose from. Well -the highlights had to be the 4 and 5 year olds doing a nativity play. The clodhopping angels who nearly tripped up onto the stage, the little guy who couldn’t stop waving to his mum. Not to mention the trigger happy camcorder wielding mums who thought nothing of coming down the aisle and completely blocking your view so they can get a perfect shot of their littlie. William got a bit embarrassed at me watching him sing so I had to look away whilst aiming my phone towards him ( sneaky, huh!). I’ve a few parents to email my footage to who missed the play for one reason or another.
The low-light of the week was watching a man walk down the street and evacuate the contents of his nose several times. He put one finger sealing one of his nostrils shut and blew enthusiastically out of the other nostril. I was so shocked and equally appalled that I couldn’t take my eyes off him. He continued this most of the way down the street. I wouldn’t like to have been walking behind him unawares. I was sorely tempted to wind my window down and offer him a tissue.
Brings a whole new meaning to blowing your nose.
Eugghhh!

Nudging into Neon & Overhearing!

There are some trends that you ‘fall’ into. Neon is one of those. As an 80’s girl, I thought I’d left neon well behind. There are some outfits better left abandoned. When I think back to electric blue batwing tops and bright pink shirts, not to mention the neon socks, I shudder a little.
This crafting trend is a little easier. There are brights and there are their cooler cousins. I think neon slips into that category. If you don’t go mad with it, then the recipient won’t have sunblindness.
I’m entering this into Moxie Fab World’s Keen on Neon challenge sadly you can’t see the real ‘neon-ness’ but trust me, it’s bright!
I’ve another one in the pipe line so I’ll post that once it’s finished.

Interestingly enough I’ve been listening in- overhearing in fact.
But not intentionally.
Unintentionally.
Well, they were pretty loud and standing right next to me in the queue.
I’d already nearly bumped into one of the ladies in the car park.
I’d gone in to park ( obviously ) and there were no spaces. Actually, people were parking in front of other cars and completely blocking them in. I really dislike that- so I wouldn’t do that myself.
I did a 34 point turn ( well, it was pretty tight I can tell you) and as I tried to exit the lady concerned was just sat in her car not moving- we looked at each other. It was pretty obvious that unless she moved along no-one was going anywhere. Eventually she took the hint and let me out.
I knew exactly what her plans were- she was heading for the line of ‘blockingeveryoneelsein’ drivers.
I found a space elsewhere and headed into the collection point. There was Mrs naughty parker standing right next to me.
They were having a conversation..
“I thought this wouldn’t take long”
“Me too, I’ve kind of blocked someone in”.
Giggles.
“Me too- ah well, they’ll just have to wait” ( hmm… not the best attitude!)
“Well there was nowhere else to park” ( yep, not if you refused to walk more than 20 paces).
“Oh dear- and I don’t know quite how I’m going to get out”
“Yes, I’m going to have to reverse- I haven’t done that for ages”.
( sorry- what was that? How can you not have reversed recently if you drive a car)
“Oh, I know- last time I did that, I was on my driving test. What was all that reversing around a corner about- I mean, when are you ever going to use that?”
( I was really intrigued now)
” yeah, when I go to park in the supermarket car park, I drive around until I find a space I can go forward into and then straight through so I can exit forwards too”.
( Oh dear- this was getting worse)
“I know, that driving test- I remember having to learn the parallel parking thing- I mean, who ever does that?”
( ermm me- when you need to park- ermm probably most of the driving population!)
“It’s stupid, I only really ever go forwards”.
At this point it was all I could do not to laugh out loud.
I would have loved to see her not reverse out of the car park. Please don’t get me wrong, I’m no Sterling Moss, but girls- you’re letting the side down.
Hoping they never get stuck anywhere. I imagine they both drive around supermarket car parks for a very long time. So if you ever see a female driver dithering around parking bays, chances are it may be one of these directionally challenged duo!

Better go, have some decorations to put up. See you when I’ve doubled my electricity bill with all the extra lights! …

Canvas Card & Challenges!

Here’s the brief second post. This one is for the Canvas, Cork & Burlap Challenge at Moxie Fab World. I stamped and heat embossed onto a piece of canvas. I frayed the edges and trimmed around the pattern. Added a few details and it makes a contemporary Christmas card.

Now I’m off to finish a few challenges of my own- it’s Will’s 5th Birthday today and I’ve a cake to make, some fun to organise and a few cards to create for a Christmas party at the craft club this evening. Better dash- Will is so excited and I daren’t not have his Bogtrotter cake ready!!
xx

Chat Card & Stress!

Good morning! I’ve been enjoying lots of inspiration recently- especially the new Paper Crafts event which is to launch their latest book- the Card Design Handbook. Have a look here .I was messing around with some Jillibean Soup leftovers and came up with the card. I’m posting it over at Moxie Fab world for their Focal Point Challenge It doesn’t take an Einstein to see where my focal point on this card is! I did consult one of my kids as to what she thought the random words were about and they correctly guessed they were about someone’s conversation. Hope you get that too. It all helps draw the eye down to the phone. The 2 directional chevron pieces help your eye downwards and across too. Strictly speaking, the focal spot isn’t quite in the ‘sweet spot‘( a spot where if you drew 6 equidistant grid lines on the project, the sweet spot would be where two of them intersect). You following? Nah? Well maybe you need to get the handbook!!
Anyhow- that’s the card- quite simple and didn’t take long to construct either.

It has been a little stressful in our house – having another attempted break-in didn’t really help. Rather glad they didn’t get in, but it upsets everyone. Thankfully the kids took it pretty well. As we got together and prayed as a family after we noticed the back door open ( it’s jammed shut with things stacked against it normally ) and a piece of the window sill chipped off, we reminded ourselves of many families all over the world who live in fear of their lives. Thinking about families in Syria amidst the fighting, shooting and bombing made our situation seem laughable really. I’m so grateful that were designed with an ability for perspective ( although I need some help with that often).

Am off today to go to a friends’ allotment to help her harvest her goodies. Hmm. I feel a harvest card coming on!
See you after I’ve cleaned soil out of my nails!! xx

Minty Fresh Challenge & Crowds!

It’s Saturday at last. Thought it was never coming. Saturday means the cavalry is here. I speak about Steve in the plural because he’s good like that- probably worth two of me. He’s unjaded as far as the kids are concerned which is always a good thing.
Anyhow- the card.
Well Moxie Fab’s challenge is here and it’s called ‘Minty Fresh’. Cath has compiled a smorgasbord of lovely inspiration that I was truly inspired by but I was a little short on anything minty in my craft cupboard. I have to interject here with an explanation of what I’ve done. Firstly if I hear the word minty fresh- my brain goes in two directions. Firstly it’s ‘toothpaste‘. Minty fresh was a strap line for some companies tooth cleaning mixture a while back and it makes me think of stripes because of the toothpaste pattern. I found a piece of ribbon with a mint stripe in it and so I decided to add rows/stripes of hearts. ( the heart bit isn’t linked – unless you start quoting how good dental hygiene can reduce heart disease- anyhow, I digress).
The other direction I wander off to ( cerebrally speaking) is ‘gross‘. The word ‘minty’ used to be said if something was less than pleasant. I think it was a teenage phrase of mine. Less said about that strain of minty, the better.
My minty hearts are some Black Magic Core’dinations cardstock I had. It was the only mint green stuff I own. Ah well. The card is a little convoluted but it is what it is.

It has to be said we are good at padding out the numbers. I go anywhere with another friend and their kids and we immediately are a ‘party’. I take great solace when I go out with someone else as because my kids don’t all look particularly like me, noone can tell whose kids belong to which Mum. Handy that. It’s quite useful for avoiding the stares. I often imagine people are totting up how many kids each person has- although I doubt they’re actually thinking about us at all. I really love going out with my friends who have 4 kids themselves. 9 kids. 2 adults. It’s a big crowd!
I had to laugh recently when we were chatting with some friends and the husband looked with surprise at my first son. ‘is he yours’ he said. ‘it’s just I knew you had 5 but have never seen him before!’. I forget that 5 is a big number, it seems so normal to us.
I think that when we go places,like for example hospital appointments, they’re not really set up for grande familles-they all troop in behind me and half of us have to sit on the floor because there are only 2 seats. People keep looking and register surprise that I’ve brought so many. Well I could hardly leave them at home now could I? And yes, they are all mine, and yes, they all have the same father ( it has been asked, trust me), and yes, I wanted them all and yes, I intend on keeping them all. There, now you know.

See you soon, when I’ve counted all my children! xx

Birthday Chandelier & Noisy Kids!

Hi there! This a card of two halves! Both main elements have ended up on the same base but I think they’d be better separate. Not dissimilar to two of my kids who share a room and would get on much better if they didn’t!
Anyhow- the chandelier is stamped on acetate using Flitter-glu and then I’ve used gold flakes to give the effect.

It doesn’t really look very stamped but it’s another great technique to use with your stamps. I’m also linking this to the Moxie Fab World Birthday card challenge where stamping has to be the main focus. Please don’t peer too rudely at my seriously dodgy watermark stamping. It was one of those occasions where I couldn’t be bothered to start again. Bad- I know! By watermark, I mean using the Versamark pad directly on the car which gives a slightly darker colour than the card and is a great way to get tone on tone style but without having every single colour ink to match your cardstock colour. The chandelier is from a gorgeous die and stamp set from Hero Arts. I tried the die on acetate and it struggled a little but I just the remaining bits with scissors. It’s perfect with and paper- and acetate can be a little awkward with dies sometimes.

Well, I’ve been getting told off- again. And the place of reprimand was Aldi! Why oh why?!! Do you know, I can be doing absolutely nothing and still get into trouble! Yesterday I took Will to get the weekly shop. To be fair, he wasn’t being particularly rambunctious ( love that word!) – just happy and making a few pleasant noises. He’s 4- they don’t do silence too well- and please, it’s not like we were in a library.
An older man looked at Will and said to me ‘did you teach him to make noises like that?’. I smiled, although was unsure whether he was being friendly. Hindsight would’ve enabled me to respond ‘oh yes, we do 15 minutes practice every morning and afternoon with a half and hour session at the weekend!’.
He then muttered very loudly ‘there’s enough noise in this world without screaming kids’.
Really? I was too flabbergasted to reply. Goodness me, I really hope I never get to be quite that frustrated by little people’s happiness.
I bumped into a friend just as he was muttering at me and I told her I’d just been moaned at- she replied rather exaggeratedly ‘William, I love all those noises you’re making’!
I’m thankful for friends who restore the balance! Thanks Leisa!!
Maybe I should go around armed with ear plugs for all the passerby’s? Perhaps he needs an volume dimmer switch. He’ll be at school at the end of September and then I’ll miss every noise ( quiet or otherwise) he makes! Maybe at least then I’ll stop getting into trouble !

See you when I’ve finished hiding from the public! xx

PS-Thanks to Amy’s fab tip off,I’m also linking this to Paper Issues there’s an awesome give-away and all you have to do is link a card/project with some sort of transparency ! Go and link too!!

Man-Tastic & Crowded Brain!

Don’t keel over with shock at 2 posts in two days. Just had to sneak this in for the Trigger Target. Want to see the inspiration photo?

Such a great pic. I did a very quick CAS version which will come in handy for Fathers Day. It wasn’t until I had finished that I realised it was supposed to be a man-card. Duh.. Double Duh!
In my defence, I have a very crowded brain right now. Have nearly finished prepping for this workshop on Saturday. 40 women. All day crafting. I’m responsible ( quake!!).

You can see the diddly holes better in this pic.
I’m hoping for a return to semi- normal brain activity come Sunday. I’m not holding my breath. I fear my brain is just gradually slowing and I’m not getting the hint. Maybe I need to do some brain training– any ideas? Although I do spend a fair bit of time on my phone- Steve may utterly despair if I end up doing more phone-time on account of improving my crowded brain. Someone needs to do some research pronto on the added benefits of being creative- there have to be some great positives.. Just need it in black and white!!!

Will dash now. The boys are at a SuperHeroes Holiday club at a church in town. See you when I’ve collected my caped crusaders !! xx

Love @ 1st Sight Card & Feeling Different!

Back again!! This is my take on the Spectacular Spectacles Challenge from Moxie Fab World. I didn’t have a stamp or spectacle styled paper. So, I had to get creative. I searched through the internet  and found this lovely image. I just resized it a couple of times, printed it out, and for the larger specs, I added an acetate layer behind with some gems to try and give the card a bit more depth. It’s hard to see in the photo.

I am being drawn back to a more simple style recently. Ironically it seems harder to do these cards- as you tend to deliberate more through having less elements. The card is a nod to the design of  the opticians eye test charts- I wanted your eye to follow downwards.

By sticking only the centre of the @ down, it creates a slightly spiral effect too.

I felt inspired to create this card after coming back from the Aintree Craft Show today. I went with two of my girls and it made a lovely change to attend a workshop rather than run one! I was really struck today by the current trends of the show. I walked around feeling ever so slightly different. There was so little there that really appealed to me although everyone else seemed really delighted with what they were buying. I guess I know what I like! Plonk me in the centre of a CHA event and I’d not know where to look first. Ah well, another case of being in the wrong hemisphere!!

There was inspiration from a more unusual direction; a collection of costumes from the recent series of Downton Abbey. These were exquisite, beautifully made and Icould have stared at them forever.

Dunno about you- but wouldn’t you have liked to wander around in these outfits? I do love a pair of jeans when I need to do the school run- buuuuut, wearing these had to make you feel a little special!! They fitted well, were really flattering and not a T-shirt in sight!

Realising that had I actually been born at that time, invariably I’d have been in a tied cottage with oodles of kids; oh wait, I’ve got those at the moment too! Anyhow, the glamour of pre-war Britain was only real for the moneyed and then still full of the same problems we all face. So I am glad to be me.. although a little more ‘Downton Glamour’ wouldn’t be entirely unwelcome!

See you soon.. you wouldn’t believe just how washing is still backed up from being in hospital. When will they create a device that retrieves, sorts, loads, empties, dries, irons/folds and puts away all the clothes. Oh ,yes, that’s us momma’s again!  xx