7th December {#reverb10: Community}

Prompt: Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011?

This year, I had a birthday. I try to have one every year, bank holidays permitting. This year, I had a party. It was splendid fun. And at that party, I realised that I'm a part of a really lovely community. Which is nice.

Here's a photo vaguely related to the prompt.

It'll need some explanation first.

I've just started turning our visitor book into a 'house scrapbook/journal' where we stick tickets and photos and bits and bobs from things we've done and places we've been. It's also a place for friends to write us silly messages. Anyway, I am trying not to get too caught up in the scrapbook side of things because it won't ever get done. So, I'm accepting imperfection and, because of that, it's coming together quite nicely. The above photo is of the page I did pertaining to my birthday party. It's not spectacularly beautiful, but it captures a happy time. So I'm fine with that. So, next time I show you a page or two from the house scrapbook, you'll know not to expect perfection, OK?


[P.S. I do realise it's not the 7th December today - it's the date of the #reverb10 prompt. But you probably knew that.]

that's all, folks!

And that was the seaside mini album, brought to you by Pippa's Long Stockings.

I'd been thinking for a while that I'd like to make a holiday album for myself, but I'd need to actually have a holiday for that (!). But then this custom-made album has inspired me to make one using my old family photos. I may just do that very thing. However, I will also dash outside and take photos whenever the sun comes out this summer, just to prove that it has actually happened.

sunny beaches

We're almost there. The last too pages are on their way.

Looking through this album is making me want to be on a sunny beach. I can dream...

a few more

The next few weeks are going to be very busy indeed, so posts may end up being just pictures. But that's how we roll here anyway...

are we nearly there yet?

Almost. I've nearly finished showing you the seaside album and THE WEDDING IS ALMOST HERE.

For those of you who don't know what I'm on about, some friends of ours are getting married this Saturday. I did their wedding invitations. And their Orders of Service. And their table setting cards. And their Table Plan (which, by the way, looks amazing). I could go on. So this is why I've been so busy lately. I realised on Sunday that I had finished making everything (I was honestly thinking that I would still be making things the night before the wedding). COMPLETELY FINISHED! I'm still in shock. So now I can practice doing my hair and paint my nails and enjoy the run-up to the big day. Oh, and learn how to take stunning wedding photographs by Saturday. I'll let you know how that goes.

I almost swallowed my own tongue when I saw this picture. "Is that a cigarette in her hand?!" No. It's her watch.

there's a hole in my bucket

11 days to go until the wedding, after which I will be a better blogger.

For now, here are a couple more pages from the seaside album. We'll get to the end eventually...

In other news, I had my final BSL exam yesterday. Bring on level 2!

Now, back to wedding things!

oh I do like to be beside the seaside

I haven't been this busy since preparing for my own wedding, so blogging will be sparse over the next couple of weeks.

Here are the next two pages of the mini album...

No time for chit-chat. Although, you see those corners on the photos? They are made from the Cath Kidston stickers, adhered onto card. Definitely using this on future pages.

Right, back to the wedding things!

we'll meet beyond the shore

Hello! I've been in the garden today - hooray! It is a rule here in Britain that as soon as the sun comes out, you must go outside and make the most of it. Tomorrow, I plan on staying out in the garden for as long as possible.

So, back to that scrapbook I was showing you...

I wanted to have a more romantic page spread for these two photos, whilst still keeping the seaside theme. Did I manage it?

I love this photo. The look he is giving her is so mischievous. And that hem looks as though it's filled with lead!

I certainly put my Cath Kidston sticker book to good use when making this album. Did I tell you about that? It was a birthday present and it is very lovely indeed. I'll show you tomorrow.

The more I look at this book, the more I fancy making one for myself. There are more pictures on Flickr.

It's a late one tonight! Well, I can spend all day dozing in the sun tomorrow :o)

(don't worry, mum - I'll wear a sun hat and plenty of sun screen)

somewhere beyond the sea

So, I was asked to make a scrapbook/mini album for someone for their 80th birthday. Any colour scheme in mind? I was thinking they might say blue and brown or pink and green, but they said they'd like a seaside/beach holiday theme. Right. GREAT. Never actually done that before but I'll have a go.

Before having received the photographs, I searched for inspiration. I hadn't seen a seaside themed scrapbook before - plenty of Hawaii layouts and tropical beach themes, but this is Britain. So, I was starting from scratch. Where did my inspiration come from? An old clothing catalogue, actually! Here are the pages which started the ball rolling:

So, I was going for bright red, blues, sunny yellows, bold stripes, deck chairs, beach huts - the stuff British beach holiday memories are made of.

Then I was given this fabric and asked to use it in the scrapbook...

...perfect!

So, here's where I went with it:

Just the first couple of pages for now. More tomorrow. Who'd have thought uploading photos could be tiring?!

Ps. I've uploaded more pictures to my Flickr, along with some added thoughts of mine :o)

brown paper packages tied up with string

...are nice, but fabric packages tied up with ribbon are far more impressive.

She was so pleased.

That's all you're getting today. I'll show you some of the actual pages tomorrow. Today, I am BUSY BUSY BUSY with the Orders of Service. Well, my hands are busy with the Orders of Service but my head is busy designing the Table Plan...

seaside stripes

So, I had made the scrapbook, ready to present it, but I hadn't found a suitable box to put it in. I'm not sure what I would have done if I hadn't have found myself in the most gorgeous fabric shop in the world (I'll tell you about that another day - that needs a blog post all to itself!). I stumbled across a ready-cut fat quarter of THIS...

It went so perfectly with the colour scheme of the album. I was going to chop off the bottom bit but I like it. I like that it says Timeless Treasures.

And I loved the numbers at the bottom.

You fabric connoisseurs are probably laughing at me for basically thinking that the barcode is pretty, but I do.

Hope you had a lovely Bank Holiday Monday. I ate cake (Mr Pippa baked a lemon drizzle!), dozed, and didn't utter a word. I have tonsillitis again (I've stopped counting how many times that is now - the game is just getting boring) and my throat hurts far too much to speak, so Mr Pippa and I have been able to get in some more BSL practice. We've almost finished Level 1, don't you know! I'm going to eat a spoonful of honey. Nighty night.