Saturday, August 31, 2013

Wow...wow...wow

Hi folks...I'm still on Cloud 9...running on a great big Tim Holtz adrenalin high...would have no idea of what day it is if it wasn't for the calendar on the wall...suffering a little bit from that after the event deflated feeling...you know the one when you look forward to something for so long and it passes in a whizz but the memories will stay with me forever of a fabulous fun day meeting up with old friends and making lots of new. And it's another thricely word excited post today...I'm in "wow wow wow" mode at the very very generous goodie bag from Ranger and Tim and amazed that I managed to squeeze all this stuff into my teeny weeny hand luggage bag for the journey home but excellent packing skills or lots of where's there's a will there's a way crafty determination won the day...
I'll treasure this gorgeous Idea-ology bag forever...personalised by Tim with a very special "just for you Kath...it's our little secret" extra addition...he's so sweet.
Personalised Compendium of Curiosities II and Idea-ology Class apron
 and lots and lots of other goodies...far too many to mention individually...
and here's what we made...a "love it...love it...love it" Journeys Of The Past" Tag book

the reason for me ending up with the muckiest fingers ever on my Tim Holtz journey but nothing that the all important removal tool...the fabulous scrubbie kindly provided in the goodie bag couldn't handle...thank goodness for that...no way could I have appeared for dinner with my mega mucky paws...although after said cleaning operation the sink in the hotel room didn't look quite so pristine...think hippo wallowing in a soapy muddy hollow...one toilet roll later...a bit of elbow grease scrubbing and voila the housekeeping staff will never know one mucky crafter had been in residence.
it's still a work in progress...

 loving Tim's new stencils...another addition to the ever growing must-have list...
I need to look out some personal photos and stuff to put my own spin on it and it's going to take every inch of willpower to clear the decks today...set aside all the lovely new goodies and get back to the work stuff....goodness knows what the cubbyhole crew were up to in my absence...not tackling the crafty list...that's for sure.
See you all tomorrow
Hugs Kath xxx

Friday, August 30, 2013

In A Word...FABULOUS...

Hi folks...there is only one word to describe my trip to Coventry to attend the Tim Holtz UK event....
FABULOUS...FABULOUS...FABULOUS
I know that's 3 words but hey you could use every descriptive adjective in the dictionary and you wouldn't come close to describing how fabulous it was. I've got zillions of photos but I won't bore you with them all...time to grab a cuppa and a comfy sofa for what can best be described as a great big Tim Holtz love fest. And what a great start to the day when I met my lovely buddy Olive and her hubby George on the flight from Aberdeen....Olive has a craft store in Spain...has been back in Aberdeen over the summer and has attended some of my workshops at The Papeterie...what a hoop-de-doo surprise when we realised we were both heading for a fun day with Tim at the Windmill Village Hotel...
 a beautiful venue with great views...
 and little did I know when I took this shot....my bedroom was the one far left...
and super luxurious it was too...crikey I felt a little bit lost in the huge ever so comfy bed...
we had a yummy lunch with lots of eager beaver crafty folks all whipped up into a Tim Holtz frenzy of "could hardly contain our excitement" and it was so special to finally meet up with my fellow Scots and lovely bloggy buddies/Tim Holtz groupies...Rita and her daughter Annie...
before we all headed off for a fun afternoon of playtime Tim Holtz style...
and a "can't wait to delve in" class kit...
 with oodles of gorgeous bits and pieces to whet our crafty appetites...

 and don't you just love the look of concentration on these gorgeous faces...
Tim's workshops are fast paced...he's so passionate about sharing as much inspiration as he can in the time allowed but you're guaranteed when he's in the room...there's also going to be lots of fooling around...practising his hokey cokey moves perhaps...
and look away now if you're of a nervous disposition...a chance for this wrinkly old crafter to have a snuggle with the sweetest guy on the planet...my favourite BTS Man and Kitter Extraordinaire...the gorgeous Mario...check out the mega inky hands and guess who forgot her scrubbie...
 love this photo of Mario & Rita...
Rita and Annie with the fabulous Jane from Personal Impressions and woohoo...I think Annie is rather happy with what she's made so far...
And an extra special treat for me...finally I got to meet up with my Craftwork Cards teamie...the lovely and mega talented...Emma...

I have loads more pictures of bloggy buddies on my tablet but this technology challenged crafter has no idea how to transfer them on here and I'm not sure if this will work either...but click on the link for the whoopy-de-doo mad video I took of the woohoo muchly excited happy and very noisy crafty folks when the goodie bags were handed out...no one does GOODIE BAGS like Tim and Ranger...mega mega hugely generous...class fee back over and over again generous.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10200531274870505&set=vb.1417183948&type=2&theater
I know I'm teasing you but Mr Blogger is having a "how many photos are you intending to upload" little tantrum so you'll have to come back tomorrow to see what we made and the reason for all that muchly excited wild whooping...
Hugs Kath xxx

Thursday, August 29, 2013

"12 Tags of 2013"

Hi folks...by the time you are reading this I will have been...done it and got the T shirt or should I say apron and if you don't have a clue what I'm on about it...I was lucky enough to attend the Tim Holtz Craft Event yesterday in Coventry...goes without saying it was going to be fabulous...nothing can quite compare with time spent in the company of good friends and the creative genius that is Tim Holtz...he is just the sweetest...funniest and most humble guy...3.1/2" hours of wonderful fun but I'll be sharing what we made...telling you all about the day and sharing some fun pics once I arrive home...unpack and come back down from Cloud 9...
And crikey here I am again...running at the last minute with this month's tag for...
and you've probably guessed that this was yet another skidding in by the seat of my pants effort...not without...what is becoming the norm...a bit of a palaver.  I could have sworn I had the stamps with the car...ship and plane but I'm darned if I know where they're hiding...searched high and low and no sign...that's what happens when you attempt to be a super organised smart ass...so working with a limited amount of stamps suitable for masking and time ticking away...here is this month's effort...


See you all tomorrow
Hugs Kath xxx

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Woo-hooo...Coventry Here I Come...

Hi folks...I'm burning the midnight oil tonight finishing off a last minute Fiskars magazine project...it's way past my usual bedtime but before I head upstairs...I'd better tidy up the crafting debris...it's going to have to be a "down on my hands and knees" job...Mr Dyson sure is quicker but he's a tad noisy and that won't go down well with the other residents who are tucked up snoring their heads off...
and they probably won't be too happy either with the early morning wake up call for my silly o'clock trip to the airport but will I be able to get to sleep...I'm wide awake and muchly excited about today's little jaunt...the treat to beat all treats...I'm heading for Coventry...
to spend the afternoon with the King of Distress...The Prince of All Things Holtziness...the one and only adorable TIM and his ever so sweet BTS Man and Kitter Extraordinaire...MARIO and how lucky was I to get one of the gold dust "spent all day on the phone" limited places...
I'll be hot footing it from the airport in a "don't spare the horses" dash to the hotel so that I can catch the Create and Craft TV debut of my lovely matey...my crafty soul sister...the gorgeous Dawny P who's strutting her stuff with LOTV at 12pm...no doubt I'll be waving at the screen like a demented loon...go sister...you will be absolutely fabulous. Dawny is on again at 4pm if you miss the 12pm show but I'll be otherwise engaged...meeting up with some very special bloggy buddies for the first time...playing with lots of gorgeous new products and getting all grungy with the Master...better remember to pack the old scrubbie.

and then chilling out with friends over dinner and a glass of wine or two in the evening before flying back to reality tomorrow and I couldn't possibly attend without having done this month's tag for "12 Tags of 2013"...none of the cubbyhole crew were willing to write me the "excuse me" note for the teacher so it was a bit of a last minute skidding in by the seat of the old pants affair again but it's in the bag and I'll be sharing tomorrow.
Hugs Kath xxx

It's Simon Says...

Hi folks...well I made a decision...first come...first served so I'm sharing some cute clean and simple easy to whip up cards with the August Card Kit from Simon Says Stamp...

the cute dinky 119cm x 119cm scalloped edged cards are from Craftwork Cards



 and the inside
I've got lots of gorgeous papers left to play with not to mention the fabulous Stamp Set and Moroccan Stencil but today is definitely not going to be a crafty day...I'll be packing up the suitcase and getting myself ready for my early morning trip to the airport tomorrow...off on a "treat to beat all treats" little jaunt and I'm so excited...please please don't let it be cancelled...surely lightning doesn't strike twice in the same place.
See you all tomorrow
Hugs Kath xxx

Monday, August 26, 2013

Fiskars Fuse Gift Ideas...

Hi folks...I'm back to share the gift idea projects I made for the Fiskars Fuse feature in Creative Cardmaking...another cute Button Box...can you tell that I love this Curvy Square die and my favourite letterpress plate from it's matching Expansion pack...


 Wall Hanger Calendar with spaces for those all important "don't forget" notes

I finally came to a decision about which bundle of craft goodies were going to kick start this week's playtime...well if truth be told...I headed to the cubbyhole...took the bull by the horns and picked up the first thing that came to hand so pop back tomorrow to see what I made.
Hugs Kath xxx