Yay, got my mojo back

I'm so glad I've got my new laptop, I was worried for a while that I'd lost my mojo for digi-scrapping, but now that I've reloaded everything I'm back. It helped that Designer Digitals had their quarterly sale last weekend, with lots of chats and freebies. 

Here's a few LOs I've done since then, using freebies from the chat day as well as other goodies from DD.

Also, I actually managed to do a paper LO last month too! I chat on a social group on UKS called animal, vegetable and mineral for those of like who sometimes like to do LOs without people. Last month the challenge was to use our favourite stamp, and I love this set by Rhonna Farrer for Autumn Leaves. Also decided to use up some of my hoarded stash, so I included the lace cardstock and layered several chipboard flowers. I really enjoyed paper scrapping, though it was a bit annoying that stamps can't be flipped, now I'm used to Photoshop brushes lol.

Arty Farty Jigsaw Swap

Here's the first piece I've finished for this swap on UKScrappers. The theme's music, and we were to include the purple ribbon. It was great fun to do, I did a digi background, added some inchies, and the note is chipboard with a Basic Grey rub-on on top.

Eggs!

For Easter we decorated some eggs, using templates downloaded from the Playhouse Disney website. In case you can't recognise them, from left to right are Handy Manny, Tigger and Mickey Mouse. Amy had great fun with them, but I was stunned when I read the 'artwork release form' we'd have had to fill in if we wanted to send in the photos to enter the competition.

Choice phrase: ' throughout the universe in perpetuity'. I also liked the fact that they could use the entry in 'any and all media now known or hereafter developed'!

All in all, we had a fun Easter, though there's still too much chocolate in the house. 

I also had fun this evening when I went to do my tutoring, as well as my pay I was given a dozen hen eggs as well as a goose egg! One of the perks of living in the countryside:).

Inspiration from everywhere

I've been visiting a lot of blogs lately, and feel I want to pretty mine up a bit. I'm just not sure whether to use one of the sites that provides backgrounds, or whether to have a go at making my own. Any suggestions?

As for inspiration, I've realised it's everywhere - in adverts, on the web, magazines, and of course on the forums when I click through all the fabby LOs everyone else does. This week there was a web inspiration challenge on Designer Digitals. I chose to take inspiration from the IKEA website, and created this page.

Not many supplies to list, papers by Mindy Terasawa.

Apart from that, I've been trying to get up to date with my 365 LOs. It speeds things up so much to use a template. Here's the pages I've completed for March so far.

Our team on UKScrappers, Charli's Angels, set the weekly challenge this week. We decided to use the initials of 'angels' as the challenge. For 5 points each the LO was to contain Any new stash, Notes or journalling, Glitter/Glitz, Embellishments, Lace and Sewing/Stitching. Here's my LO. 

Finally I got a new printer, yay! Now I might actually do some more paper scrapping again. I've just joined a new eco-themed cj, so will start planning that, along with working on the arty farty jigsaw swap, it's always good to be busy!

Sorry, been busy

'Ello, realised it had been a while since I last blogged. Nothing sinister, I've just been having so much fun playing with photoshop that I kept forgetting to upload anything here:D.

Anyway, it's now the last week of the Digi: In Deep course, we've learnt so much. We learned how to make a template last week, which is the digi equivalent of the sketch, and we shared our creations among the class. Also learned how to recolour elements which is fantastic, though I'm still practising it.

I've been doing some of the challenges on Designer Digitals, as well as joining Oscraps. I'm not sure of the etiquette of chatting on more than one digi forum, but hey ho. It was the birthday week on Oscraps.com this week so there was a ton of freebies and fun. 

Here's a few of my recent LOs.

This LO shows my DD and her friend playing in the garden of our local coffee shop. I did this for a brush challenge on Designer Digitals. All supplies from there.

This LO was done for a birthday challenge on Oscraps. We were given a mini kit, which included the wordart and the yellow paper. All supplies from Oscraps.com.

This LO was for the 3kits3ways challenge on Designer Digitals. Each week three products are chosen, and we are set the challenge of using them on a LO. This week one of the products was already in my shopping basket (the Katie Pertiet fabric swatches brushes), and the other 2 lookde so good too that I thought I'd have a go. Especially as another (Anna Victoria Wish Flower kit) was on special offer. The 3rd product was Dots and Flowers brushes by Mary Ann Wise. The background paper is one of the K Pertiet Naturally Krafty papers with one of the Wish Flowers papers blended over the top.

Lastly is a fun LO. I fancied doing a LO with lots of green for St Patricks Day, and remembered this photo from my 365.

All supplies are from Designer Digitals again. Guess where I spend most of my time lol.

Our week 2 LO on the Digi: In Deep course taught us how to blend two photos, such a cool effect!

Now, my paper-scrapping friends, I was hoping to do some IRL scrapping, our team is setting the weekly challenge next week and I was all set on Friday night to sit down with all my ribbons and papers around me. BUT my poor printer is giving up the ghost, even with a new ink cartridge in it's been leaving huge stripes on the photos. I've tried looking for a new one, but all the ones in the shops just now are ugly lol. I'll keep looking!

Whoa

Digi: In Deep is intense!! I know it's the advanced course, but I'm impressed at how much we're learning with every task. The LO is much more complicated this time, and I've learnt a few more new tricks. I've not quite finished the lesson LO, just got the journalling to do, but I have used the techniques in a couple more LOs.

This LO was done for a challenge on Designer Digitals, the crochet flowers are by Pattie Knox for this week's Everyday Inspiration challenge. Most of the materials used in the LO are from DD.

Yesterday the lesson in Digi: In Deep was to practise taking photos. We were told to choose something that means a lot to us and take a good still life shot, thinking about the light and putting a white sheet down for the background. I chose this sheep as an ornament I'm very attached to, I got it nearly 25 years ago at a jumble sale, and I just like it.

Matchboxes and optimism

Having a great time at the moment, there's so much fun stuff to play with and I seem to be enjoying it all.

Firstly, here's my decorated matchbox for the swap on UKS. I've filled it with brads, chipboard, bits and bobs, and will be posting it tomorrow. Can't wait to receive one too.

Next, I've been playing around with Arnold the garden gnome for the Arnold ATC swap. We're to put him beside a local landmark, then print the photo out as an ATC. I first of all put him on a carousel at the Edinburgh Xmas festival. 

The one I'll be sending for the swap is him in front of Paisley Abbey. Unfortunately my printer is playing up just now, hope it sorts itself out soon.

I did a digi LO the other day, after playing around with making my own digi epoxy stickers. They're not perfect, but it was fun. 

Last but not least, this week's challenge on JessicaSprague.com was a typography challenge. We could choose from 4 images to be inspired by.

 I took this photo a few days ago as my photo-of-the-day, and love it. The butterflies were a challenge freebie by Andrea Victoria on Designer Digitals, which I recoloured. It's totally different to what I usually do, but it was fun for exploring a bit of the graphic side of digi.