Dolly's Dreamings

Birthday update

I have been busy celebrating my birthday - the older you get the more you are grateful for another year. I may be older, have a knee that doesn't work well and general aches and pains, but boy it is good to be alive.

A simple life, but a good one. That is all I want.

We went to Chichester for my birthday intending to follow the Hoot trail - decorated owls. The owls simple didn't do it for us, but it got us to Chichester where we visited the cathedral which we found absolutely fascinating and well worth the trip

Three of the owls we found - just not inspired by them

 

 

 

The stunning Arundel screen

 

 

The oldest part of the cathedral - dates back to 1108

and the roman flooring underneath

A 'modern' addittion painted in 30 and the first known full length portrait of Henry V!!!

 

 

 

A very modern Victorian Window that was huge and stunning

 

 

 

and the latest  addition - a Marc Chagall window

 

 

An the grounds were beautiful

 

 

 

 

 

Some new scrapping

Credits

Vitamin Sea collection by Palvinka Designs

And this one using a July premium sketch from Scrap a Sketch and a scrap a sketch stencil

 

 

 

 

and thank you for the support of my blog ...it will carry on, just probably only a couple of times a week.

 But I love that you still visit and read.

And finally, I wanted to share this

 

I LOVE THIS ANALOGY:

You are holding a cup of coffee when someone comes along and bumps into you or shakes your arm, making you spill your coffee everywhere.

Why did you spill the coffee?

"Because someone bumped into me!!!"

Wrong answer.

You spilled the coffee because there was coffee in your cup.

Had there been tea in the cup, you would have spilled tea.

Whatever is inside the cup is what will spill out.

Therefore, when life comes along and shakes you (which WILL happen), whatever is inside you will come out. It's easy to fake it, until you get rattled.

So we have to ask ourselves... “what's in my cup?"

When life gets tough, what spills over?

Joy, gratitude, peace and humility?

Anger, bitterness, victim mentality and quitting tendencies?

Life provides the cup, YOU choose how to fill it.

Today let's work towards filling our cups with gratitude, forgiveness, joy, words of affirmation, resilience, positivity; and kindness, gentleness and love for others.

 

Blogging grinding to a halt

I am aware tat these days I don't blog much - but that's OK as I think few people read anymore anyway  I think it's because my days sort of blur into one - they follow similar patterns and I enjoy what I do immensely but I am aware probably others don't get much joy from the boring. So I am tthinking it is likely to be a once or possibly twice a week deal from now on and I won't feel the guilt.

 

Anyway - a catch up post here. I taught my second ever water colour class to stranger yesterday which went well and I have five more slots booked in.  We went to the beach, I painted, I am sorting out pictures for my next exhibition and life has been quiet fun.

Some scrapping I haven't shared from recent days (largely still challenges from the 12 days of summer and scrap a sketch work)

 

 

This is from one of the July Premium sketches and uses gorgeous printables from the Scrap a Sketch store

 

 

 

 

 

And a few recent paintings I haven't shared

 

 

 

and finally some more recent pages of my coast to cast sketch book

 

 

 

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• the years of joy this blog has brought me - throwing down my random thoughts
• loyal readers
• gentle days doing simple things

 

 

Exhibition is done - so am I!!!

The exhibition is down, the paintings are all put away, well the ones that are not about to go up in the local cafe - and I am shattered.

But it was one of the best exhibitions I have seen and was such a success. We had 26 artists exhibiting and sold 16 paintings which is remarkable and many more than usual. I was so proud to have been co-organiser.

I haven't been able to scrap for a while so I am playing scrapping catch up now.

This was a new release yesterday by Tiramisu Designs at Pickleberry pop

 

and these are three pages for the first three days of Scrap Squad's 12 days of summer

 

 

 

And finally - what a bumper scvrappy day it is today  - this is my page for today at Scrap a Sketch using their fabulous new July 4th Printables

 

 

 

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• a successful exhibition
• scrappy time
• my favourite shoes reduced in town today

Scrap a Sketch Premium

I'm not sure if you are all aware of Scrap a Sketch and Scrap a Sketch Premium.

A lovely, generous and awesome lady who I am proud to call a friend - Lisa Sikorski - started Scrap a Sketch almost 3 years ago. She designs - and gives away totally and utterly FOR FREE -  a brand new scrapbook scrap every single Friday. No matter what has happened - and we have life get in the way - she has never missed a week and the albums are full of inspiration. It is a facebook group called Scrap a Sketch and, if you are one of my scrapping friends and not a member ... well come on. A brand new sketch FOR FREE each and every week and almost 3 years of back sketches to fire up that creativity.

She also now has Scrap a Sketch Premium which is a website. You can be a premium member and for £1.95 get access to additional sketches with creative team inspiration and she also sells amazing stencils and stunning printables. The printables - and I think I have almost every set - are wonderful. They are so cheap and so versatile and once you have them you can print them as many times as you like, play with size and colour and they are fab. Almost every single layout I make used printables somewhere.

I am dead proud to be a member of her creative team and - just for you - I can reward you with 10% off any printables by using my code SCRAPDOLLY10 when you place an order. But the facebook sketches don't need a discount because they are FREE

And look out for a brand new special event coming on May 3rd .... it is going to be AWESOME.

I have two design team pages for Scrap a Sketch to share today

This was an April Premium sketch and yes there are printables on there. It features cheetahs from a  longleat trip

 

 

 

 

 

 

and this page - with lots of printables - features one of the many many thatches cottages in Dorset. Apparently we have 10% of all of the thatched cottages in the UK - not bad for a small county

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In other news my knee is recovering. It's not right but it is better than it was.

We have had a quiet few days because of it - but that has been nice. Today we did venture out on foot (the other days have been car only) and went to see the glass fritillary display in aid of Forest Holme hospice.

 

Today I am thankful for

• recovery
• Scrap a Sketch
• People like Lisa who give so much to our scrapping community
• my little boys - each and every day

 

A bit of creativity and the ocean

February seems to have begun well. I have been in full creative flow and have made 5 DT pages in the past two days - none of which I can share of course.

I can share this though.

I painted this little guy this week and rather liked him.

 

So I used the brand new Under the Sea Printables from Scrap a Sketch here (my goodness they are good value ) and a scrap squad challenge and came up with this which I really like 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I can also share this page made for Pickleberrypop. It was made using the new Berry Blends kit which is free with purchases over $12 from now until 12th February and it is gorgeous

 

 

In other news February has seen the sea already - twice.

Hamworthy Park yesterday

 

 

 

and Branksome Beach today

 

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• living by the sea - I cannot imagine not living close
• creative bursts