Dolly's Dreamings

Sunny Sunday

It is glorious here again today after two days of a bit of rain - sadly I think we need more rain but heck - I don't complain.

 

It's been an odd two days as no exercise which is unusual. I have no idea why but my ankle just gave up. It is my very damaged ankle - I smashed it quite literally to bits when I was 12 and it's been an ongoing issue. I have also fractured it again since then three years ago. However, it holds up pretty well all things considered except yesterday I couldn't move it, couldn't stand on it, couldn't do anything. I hadn't fallen, twisted, slipped etc it just 'went' It wasn't swollen but hurt as bad as when I last fractured it. It is a little easier today but very odd.

 

Still sitting down and scrapping was OK!

Before I get to scrapping someone asked how long we quarantine stuff for. We have a standard three day rule and it is very exciting when things we had forgotten come out of quarantine. Food that isn't perishable goes into quarantine, anything else from the supermarket plus post and anything anyone leaves for us.

 

It has been the A Trip Down Memory Lane cybercrop this weekend and I can finally share some of the pages. This was my class for them and the three pages I made as a design team member for the class using gorgeous Bo Bunny Papers. Do go over the blog HERE where you can find full instructions for my class, a further 6 classes and loads of challenges. It is free and fun and you ought not to miss it really.

 

 

 

This was meeting a friend Kay who is also ont he design team for Pickleberrypop and we met up with her in Albuquerque

 

and my wonderful godson and his beautiful wife, currently enjoying life in Japan.

 

I have also made the first of the birthday pages for the CFH

 

Pink for a girl

 

 

 

Blue for a boy

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• another lovely day - Nigel is treating it like a holiday and whilst it does get to me at times, most of the time I can pretend too. He makes me laugh as he says they keep spoiling his holiday talking about the virus. We are happy in our little bubble as long as we don't overthink the world.
• my ankle being easier
• lots of scrapping time

 

 

These things always make me laugh

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and finally - cats and jigsaws. I feel the pain of these people - we experience similar when we do jigsaws

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The second class catch up

I was aware this week that I have not been very diligent in sharing the classes I have done for ATDML and I shared one class the other day. Today I am sharing the second class I made for the Toy Story Cyber Crop which was called Andy. Andy, int he films, was noted for writing his name on his toys so they knew who they belonged to and so my class focussed on journalling.

Those of you who follow my work will know that journalling is a big part of most of my paper pages. I like to tell a story because for me that is what scrapping is all about. It is recording the memories and some stories are longer than others.

You can find the instructions for this class here  and buy the class kit from ATDML too. 

I absolutely loved the papers in this Pen and Ink Collection from Kaiserkraft

 

This first page tells a story of our trip to Paris - a very special trip for us as it was a chance to renew our vows for our 25th wedding anniversary.

It also shows that not everything we scrap has to be momentous. Scrapping is also about recording the little everyday things in life. Because it is those tiny moments that make life so precious.

 

 

 

 

 

This second page tells a slightly more bizarre tale. We had never been in the US for Thanksgiving before and 2017 was THE YEAR. We had spent the day before Thanksgiving with our family in Nashville but the day itself was spent on our own in St Louis in the most beautiful place I highly recommend - Union Station - now a Curio Hotel. It is gorgeous. The Thanksgiving meal was not - but it was funny. I love the vegetarian soup - with meat!

 

 

 

 

The bonus page was also another of Paris - this time Versailles.

 

 

 

 

I hope if you check out the class you enjoy it. I have several more classes to share over the coming days too so watch out for those. 

 

Today I am thankful for

• having a life filled with those little things that matter so much and cherishing them

 

 

And just sharing these because I loved them

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Class catch up

I have been busy scrapping but it is new stuff not for release yet that I cann0t quite share and so I have delved and found things I haven't shared but are now legitimately 'out there'.

 

Way back we had an awesome cyber crop at A Trip Down Memory Lane. It coincided with the release of Toy Story 4 (I am still in two minds about that one, to be honest ... I didn't like Bo Peep and didn't like that Woody left the gang)  but it was so much fun to have classes and challenges Toy Story Themed so I will share a few of my things over the next couple of days.

 

I hosted a class called Mr and Mrs Potato Head and they insist it was nothing to do with the way Nigel and I looked in photos - honestly. It was based around the gorgeous Kissing Booth Collection from Simple Stories that I love so much so I was thrilled to use it for a class. 

You can find the class instructions HERE if you want to have a go yourself. It doesn't need to be with the same papers.

 

This was my first page. I loved the idea of using a jigsaw piece and so that was what I set out to do - there are templates in the instructions too.

See we don't look too like the potato heads!

 

 

It was a bit fiddly to cut but great fun to play with. You need to select your photo carefully though as it probably wouldn't look good across someone's face.

 

 

This was the second page

The colours worked so well for our niece's wedding in June. And of course, it was love-themed. And no - they don't look like Mr and Mrs Potato head either!

 

 

 

 

 

And this was the third which also included a small mini-book for extra photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do go and check out the class and, if you do make one of the pages, I would love you to share what you make both with me and with A Trip Down Memory Lane.

 

Today I am thankful for

• being on a design team I love so much with gorgeous things to play with
• a busy - but very enjoyable day

 

And just some cool stuff I spotted ... I thinkt hey are very clever

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

UK Scrappers Autumn download

This is the autumn clip art that you might want to use for the challenge

 

You can either copy and paste or download the file by clicking the link that says view this photo

 

 

View this photo

 

 

It's that BUSY time of year and a freebie

Still heavily into exam season here and so that sees me back ins choolsas an invigilator. It is easier work really - just deadly boring int he actual exams. 

I like the before when we are setting up. I appear to have become to go to guy for all IT related elements which is fine. I am happy with IT. There is no preparation, no marking and the students are very nice. It's five minutes from home and just about the right amount of work for a retiree who had NO INTENTION os working at all. I do like the being back in a school environemnt.

Today was extra tough though as I was with a single A level student for a German listeninge xam which was 2.5 hours. One student, smnall room and I felt I couldn't keep staring at the poor lad as I didn't want it to be any more intimidating than it already was. I felt I couldn't walk around like we would usually do, or fidget so it was 2.5 hours of looking discreetly at him and doing absolutely nothing else. I thought I would go insane! Ah well. I said I could do it and I did.

We also had a sad day yesterday as it was the funeral of the daughter of a very dear friend of mine. They captured her essence so perfectly in the service and it was a beautiful occasion but it is so wrong that parents should ever have to say faewell to their child. It is simple not right. Our thoughts and prayers are witht he whole family but especially her parents and her brother.

 

I managed to scrap the weeklyc hallenge on UKS last night as I needed some good scrap therapy to take my mind off the events.

 

 

I promised free sketches and templates too and so I have a very simple template /sketch for you to play with

 

 

if you would like the template it is HERE

 

Download 7 photo template

 

Today I am thankful for

• my wonderful husband working so hard to make the garden look fabulous.
• work done for today
• scrapping to relieve the saddness a little - it means I lose myself
• my glaucoma drops not making my vision so blurred - I think I am more used to them now

 

and just for fun some cat humour

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take your wife to work days and a freebie

We have had a couple of 'Take your wife to work' days, which has been nice.

Yesterday we had three short jobs to do in Swanage and so Polly went to the seaside.

Proof that I let him drive!!!

 

 

 

Today it was raining and Polly doesn't like to get wet so she didn't come but we headed off for work in Southamptin and Winchester which also meant a nice detour through the forest which was lovely.

 

Beats sitting at a desk I can tell you

 

 

 

 

I have new scrapping to share ... this was made using a mess of different kits and frames and elements from all sorts of designer, though the book is from Dawn Inskip. The page was made for a challenge on UKS which I found quite hard as it had to include a massive title.

 

 

 

 

and this one was just a bit of fun - part of Shimelle's random elements challenge - int his case things in glasses.

We love Toy Story Mania and were lucky to ride it 7 times last trip (long story but partly ride breakdown, partly VIP fast passes)  We were neck and neck as we went into the last rund and ... totally unfairly ... Nigel won.

I will get him next time!

 

and finally - a freebie for you. It is a template for this sketch which was a template I made for the sketch challenge that Sue ran last year on UKS

 

 

This is the PSD file - fully layered - that you can download

 

Download UKS Sketch 2

 

Today I am thankful for

• our work involving being together
• new car mats
• new phone case (yes of course you have to have a phone case to match the new car!!!)

 

 

It's in the bag - free instructions to download

There is a most definite feeling of Christmas int he air and I love it. Sitting scrapping to my Christmas playlist, all warm and toastie - what could be better.

Actually my Christmas playlist os on no matter where I am ... and if I am not at home I can guarantee the shops will fit the bill too.

 

I have another project to share that was already on UKS for their Christmas countdown.

 

It's a very simple gift bag to make for some little last minute gifts.

 

I made these one year for all of the gift cards we gave. I just stuffed it with tissue paper and popped the card in amongst the scrunched paper. It made a cute way of giving them. But they are also ideal for things like jewellery.

 

 

This is the download for the PDF instructions (much easier to just give you the PDF as all the pictures and step by step are right there.

 

Download Christmas bag box

 

and this is the PDF for the template

 

Download Bag box template

 

I hope you have fun if you make one - or several - and please do share them.

 

Now I am returning to my humming and my scrapping and my being all Christmassy

 

Today I am thankful for

• warm cosiness
• Christmas songs - old and new I love them all
• My iPhone which makes playlists so easy to create and use and I can play it in the study, the car, through the stereo in the lounge. Just perfect

 

 

 

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UK Scrappers sketch 8

There is a whole new challenge on UK Scrappers this year appearing on the first and third Monday each month.

Follow this link to find out what it is all about. 

There will be two sketches per month that you can play with, released on the first and third Monday of every month. Hosted by Mini Owner, your pages need to be uploaded to the UKS Gallery.

Here is the link to the gallery

Sue will give you a  new sketch and I will aim to provide a very simple digital template for digi scrappers to play with. These will be PSD format and kept basic so you can embellish your heart out.

This is the information for Sketch 8

 

You can download the digital template HERE

 

Download UKS Sketch 8

 

Have fun playing

Truly properly retired!!!

I was told today - by a very good friend who knows stuff - that I am truly properly retired.

 

The reason?

 

I was due to meet her this morning and an hour after I was due to be there I realised I wasn't there. I didn't even really know what day of the week it was! Having laughed at Nigel for months about how he looks at his on line calendar so much I have now vowed to look at mine regularly - probably several times a day! And yes - the meetingw ith my friend was on there and no, I hadn't looked at it.

 

Thankfully she is a very good friend and realised that the very efficient head teacher who ran a flourishing school, was on creative design teams and fitted in crafting as well no longer exists. Now there is just me and I float along in a haze of retired bliss. I will do better!

 

Dot you asked if the writing ont he page was mine or a font - I am afraid it is my handwriting - something else that has slipped a little.  I will do better

 

Today was art and we started watercolour work. NOT my finest hour. I have decided that despite the very expensive set of watercolour paint I bought last week, I don't like water colour. It's hard! And I don't like not having white. I did tell my art teacher I was going to sneak in some white acryllic! However, I will not be beaten - I will persevere and I will do better.

Seems like there is to be a lot of doing better in my future!

 

I have new scrapping to share today which I made for one of my classes for the recent cyber crop.

As it is mine I feel fine to share it so this is the class HERE Download Just your type class by Scrapdolly

Please feel free to download but if you do - please leave a comment.

 

and this is my page 

 

You can interpret the title however you choose ... I know what I meant!

 

 

 

 

It was a play on the Now That's What I call ... music CDs we love to buy. If you download I hope you have fun with the class.

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• a very understanding friend
• learning new techniques
• not being too put off by failure
• on line daily calendars - well I will be if I remember to look at them

 

 

UK Scrappers sketch 3

There is a whole new challenge on UK Scrappers this year appearing on the first and third Monday each month.

Follow this link to find out what it is all about. 

There will be two sketches per month that you can play with, released on the first and third Monday of every month. Hosted by Mini Owner, your pages need to be uploaded to the UKS Gallery.

Here is the link to the gallery

Sue will give you a  new sketch and I will aim to provide a very simple digital template for digi scrappers to play with. These will be PSD format and kept basic so you can embellish your heart out.

This is the information for Sketch 3

 

You can download the digital template HERE

 

Download UKS Sketch 3

 

Have fun playing

Save