Owls & Birds

This weekend was spent at Newark Air Museum for the event called Cockpitfest (a gathering of aircraft cockpits and other displays).

As usual it was a great weekend, and the weather improved for Sunday :) which was a very big bonus.

I had very quickly been working on creating a number of pads and post-it-note pads featuring the Stampin' Up punches 'Build a Bird' & 'Build a Owl'. The good news is that due to the size of the pads I was able to use a lot of scraps to create both the owls & birds, many of the pad covers were also created using part sheets of card from my bits box.

From Monday through to Thursday last week I was working like a mad thing.  However in the end it was worth it.

This is what they looked like sat on the table Saturday morning...

I just love all of the bright colours.  The Post-it-note pads sold better than the pads, but I was still pleased.  I now need to make some more before our next event :)

Happy Crafting.

US... The early years

This is the title of a double layout created for my "Book of Me" scrapbook.  I wanted to record our journey together, what happened and when, this was going to be a mainly text based page, with just a couple of small photos.

It took me a long while to get the dates together, at the time (back in 1997 & 1998) DH was using Lotus 123 and not Microsoft Office, so all of the calendar info I knew we kept was in a format we could no long read.  However we found a way to view the Text version of the calendar entries... I then had to look at each text entry, I then decided to transfer them all to our Google Calendar.

This done I could then start to decide which dates/events I wanted to use.  My last job was to find a few photos of us taken in 1997/8.

Here are the finished pages...

A few of my highlights include:

• Our first kiss
• Our first official date
• Meeting DH's Mum
• When DH asked me to marry him
• Our first Christmas together
• Getting Married

In total this page includes 22 dates & events between March 1997 & July 1998.

Happy Scrapping :)

Michael McIntyre - Showtime

Back in January this year I brought tickets to see Michael McIntyre at the NIA, Birmingham... finally after waiting 9 months we went to see him on Saturday evening :)

He was AMAZING!!!  There were two 50 minute sessions with totally new material, during which we hardly stopped laughing.  To be honest I was glad for the 30 minute break as after the first set my face hurt from laughing so much, it was nice just to relax.

Looking back over the evening DH & I tried to list all of the topics he covered but we could not remember all, however here is a few topics he covered (but don't worry I won't be spoiling it for anyone else yet to see him):

• Olympics (inc Beach Vollyball)
• The Royal Family (inc Jubilee celebrations)
• Tennis
• Red Carpet Event
• Playing games with his sons
• Tights & high heels
• Dentist & hospital
• Hotels

The list goes on... but I can't remember any more at the moment. 

We arrived early and were seated in Block 4.  We did not think we had a bad vew of the stage.

This picture was taken just before Michael came on stage (there were many anouncements to say recording or photos were not allowed)

When Michael came on the for encour many people started taking pictures... so I did too.

The only slight problem we had was leaving the NIA, we had parked in the South Car Park on level 13 (Ok maybe we should have expected problems!)  after getting to the car it took a further hour before the traffic started moving.  When it finally did it took only 8 minutes to get out of the car park.

After a stop on the way home for coffee (just to make sure DH kept awake) we arrived back home at 2.30am!!!  However it did give us a great excuse for a layin Sunday morning :)

During Sunday I visited the Amazon online shop and placed my pre-order for the Michael McIntyre 'Showtime' DVD (due out in November).  Although they did have cameras at the NIA we don't know if the DVD will feature just one venue or bits from a selection of them.

The end of an era...

While at our local Scrapbook Crop (held at The Craft Room in Lincoln) we were told that the shop would be closing in the next 2 weeks.

Last night was the last crop to be held before the close :( 

After much discussion last night we all decided that we needed to continue meeting up as the Scrapbooking was only one reason, the second (and main reason) is the social element of the craft. 

I have been scrapping since 2005 and for the last 3-4 years have been attending once or twice a month for the crop. Over this time I have made many friends, and at times the support network of friends is more important that meeting to scrap.

The good news is that between the 7 of us we hope to be able to meet at someones house.  The big difference will be not having a 'shop' full of stock to chose from...  I guess this means I will have to be mega organised!!!

They do say that as one door closes another opens, I am now looking forward to stepping through the door when the 7 of us meet up in 3 weeks time :)

A bit of an update & a card...

You may have noticed that I have not been blogging very much recently, in fact it has been a struggle to even complete the "Whats On Your Workdesk Wednesday" let a lone anything else.

Over the last month DH has been having problems with those pesky Kidney Stones & has had several hospital appointments. We though they had gone, then they came back. They did not respond to the lythotripsy as we hoped and we though that we would have to cancel a BIG holiday that is coming up soon to Africa.  However the Consultant has now said that it is safe for DH to travel and we will be going. I can't wait :)

Added to all this stress I have been really busy at work, and we have a new member to our team who I am also having to train - not that I am complaining, I like being busy.  However sometimes I just wish for a bit of breathing space. 

I have been continuing to make cards, but I don't seem to have the energy to think about working on any challenges at the moment.  I just sit at the desk and see what happens.

I have had just enough time to read the various blogs that I follow on my phone, but don't always get the time needed to add any comments - even if I wanted to my phone will only let me read posts and won't let me comment :( so I then have to remember to use the computer if I want to add any comments.

Ok, that is enough of me moaning... now for a card which features a different type embellishment (if you can call it that) :)

I'm not referring to the 2 owls, but the feather LOL.  

During the Spring & Summer our 2 owls molt so many feathers you would think that they would have any left.  Jumanji (the African Spotted Eagle Owl) has lovely grey feathers - the only problem is that as soon as they touch the floor she picks them up and shreds them into pieces!! However Delta (the European Eagle Owl) has the best feathers ever!! 

I brought this feather of Delta's into the house and it found it's way onto my Craft Desk, & I just had to use it on a card.

Once I had completed the card, I went out to Delta's aviary to look for more and here are another 8 feathers now sat on the desk waiting to see what inspiration hits.

Delta's feathers are fab, there are so many colours & textures each from different parts of his body.  Nature is truly amazing!

I'm now off to visit my Chiropractor to get by back straightened again.  I hope that I won't have to wait too long before I get the time to post again :)

Happy Crafting.

An enjoyable lunch out

We have just got back home after a very enjoyable lunch out at Bardney Heritage Centre.  It is somewhere we have driven past numerous times & I had noticed the Tea Shop sign but we never visited.

Now we have I can safely say we will be back!

They do a lovely selection of basic meals, all at very good prices.  This lunchtime I had a Panini & DH had a Jacket Potato.

Ham & Cheese Panini with side salad

Me Using a Mac!!

I have had my first lesson in using a Mac & Final Cut Pro to create 'Off Line Edits' - it sounds posher than is really is!

All I do is import the clips and then add them to Final Cut Pro ready for our Producer to do the creative bit. 

Our training was done at Lincoln Uni & 2 of the group used laptops & I got to use the desktop Mac - the bonus of this was the keyboard...

Mac keyboard for Final Cut Pro

Don't you just love the colours!! Each key has it's own shortcut in Final Cut Pro and these are shown on the keyboard, the colours are to group sets of keys together.

WOYWW 11 July 2012

Ok this is a slightly back-dated post, I was not able to get it published yesterday as I just ran out of time. 

Yesterday afternoon I had a Card Candi workshop booked at LLinda's Card & Craft in Laneham, Notts.  It was a busy session with 6 ladies all concentrating hard in periods of silence :)

We created 3 lovely cards & I would never have been able to create the flowers that I did without Linda's great instructions!!

So here are the pictures of the finished cards:

Created using White Card Candi, beads & Stickles Glitter Glue

A close up of the flowers - they were fiddly to create but the finished flower was worth it

This card was created using a Woodware Stamp and more Stickles Glitter Glue (this was the only card where the Card Candi was used flat)

I think that the flowers on this card are AMAZING - even if I do say so myself!!!  Each flower was created using a different technique but all were based on a Flower Punch base (from Woodware).  The flowers for this card needed the greatest amount of concentration and you could have heard a pin drop in the room!!!

This is a close up of the 2nd flower.  I have decided to keep this card for me to use as inspiration in the future - that & I liked it soooo much I don't want to give it away

I just HAD to have all of this stash... including more Card Candi (you can never have enough); The Woodware stamp we used on the 2nd card; more Woodware stamps of butterflies designed to be used with Card Candi & the Woodware flower punch used as a base for the flowers on the 3rd card.

Just before cooking Dinner I got chance to quickly create one flower - The woodware punch was out of the packet before you could say Woodware & and decided to use the 'Newsprint' Candi and a plain white one for the centre.

Is it a coincidence?

I recently viewed a video posted by Peggy on the Create with Bubbe blog for using the Sizzix Diffusers with embossing folders to give either the effect of a embossed image with a frame missing or just the shape of the frame which has been embossed.

I think this is the best description for how the Diffusers work, however if in doubt have a look at Peggy's video - all will be explained.  My immediate thought was "I've got to have them!!!"

A few days after viewing this video I found another blog post, this time by Andy at Pinnacle Crafts.  This post shows you how to create your own Diffusers (Andy calls them 'Templates')!! 

That sounds better than buying them!  So this weekend in a few spare minutes I decided to give it a go and create my own 'Template' using the instructions from Pinnacle Crafts. 

Here are my results:

1st Blogaversary

This is a sticky Post... Please scroll down to find recent posts.

Well I can't believe that 1 year ago today I dipped my toes (or should that be fingers) into the world of Bloging.

Since then I have created 327 Posts and Helen's World has been visited 11,587 times!  As a thank you to all those who have followed by Blog over the last year I have put together a little package of thanks...

Promarker Summer Set; Forever Friends card pack & toppers; Cuttlebug 'Bubble' embossing folder; Papermania Toppers; Rhiannon Rubber Stamp; Woodland Folk Clear Stamps; Colour Connection 3D Flowers.

To be included in my Thank You draw you will need to be a follower of my blog and to have left a comment on this post.  The draw will close at 3pm on Saturday 7th July, the winner will be picked at random.

Good Luck.

Wedding Anniversary

Yesterday was our 14th Wedding Anniversary and I promised yesterday to show you the card I made for DH.

I decided to use a Die Cut image from Little Clarie Designs and use Red, White & Blue Card Candi.  The word "Together" was stamped using the Card Candi letter stamps (this was the first time I had used them and was pleased with the result).

I finished the card of with a scrap of blue patterned paper and a length of bakers twine.

It was a very simple card to make (after all I don't do complicated) and I am pleased with the result.

On 23 June I celebrated my 1st Blogaversary, if you would like chance to win some Candy please go to my Blogaversary post HERE.

Me Silly...... Never!!!

Yesterday at the RAF Waddington Air Show I found on the RAF Association stand a trio of Plastic Ducks.  Now I know that after being busy working/watching the air show since Friday morning we were both going to need a bath to soak our sore muscles - so I bought a set (but DH did not know!).

In the evening after we had got home I went up to run the bath & managed to sneak up the bag containing the ducks (again without DH knowing!).  As I ran the bath I added the 3 new additions to our bath room, when DH arrived to jump in he laughed and call me Silly... ok maybe I am... just a bit.

When I told DH their names he laughed so hard & called me silly again.  So may I introduce you to Romeo, Alpha & Foxtrot...

It took a bit of persuasion but I was final able to get them to line up like good little ducks for a photo opportunity...

There are times you just have to be silly - we had a fantastic weekend & I surprised myself with some of the photos I took on Saturday.

Time for a quick break...

At lunch today I decided that I would go and take a quick walk, normally this would be around the housing estate behind where I work.  However today with the amazing weather I decided to walk the opposite direction and go onto Lincoln Common.

The Common is a large area of land between the A57 & Long Leys Road in Lincoln and after talking a shortcut I was on the common, just taking a couple of minutes to walk a short section and watch the wildlife as I walked (and keeping an eye out for the piles of horse poo!!). 

I took a couple of photos as I walked along, the only problem was that if I had my way I would not have gone back to the office.

Reminder to self: I really must remember to visit the common more often.  I should also keep a pair of flat shoes under my desk - heals do not work well on grass :)

Cockpitfest Day 2

Well yesterday happened and most of the day was wet and the rain came down!

Overnight we have dried out and the day is looking good so far - I can even see a bit of blue sky!!!

I have taken a couple more photos this morning so have attached them to this post - 2 are of a couple of cockpits and one is of Jimmy with Delta :)

Cockpitfest Day 1

The Cockpitfest weekend has arrived!

Ok, first of all I can here you all asking what is Cockpitfest? It is a celebration of aviation history, as it is not always practicable to preserve the whole aircraft many people preserve just the Cockpit.

This weekend sees over 30 cockpits gathering at Newark Air Museum, Notts.

We attend with the owls as part of the 'family' attractions.

The weather for this weekend is forecast to be 'Unsettled' - so far this morning we have had rain & wind!!

I have attached a couple of photos of the kids (the feathered kind) & our stock table (with all the items I made this week).

Some Good News At Last

Yesterday saw DH back at Louth Hospital for another attempt at shattering his Kidney stone using lithotripsy.

This has been going on a long, long time and there did not seem to be an end in site, however yesterday the news was better :)

What we thought was 1 big stone, is now lots of little ones (the largest is 7mm!!) and the lithotripsy was to shatter the largest stone.  DH is now waiting for a CT appointment (as his stones don't show on x-ray) to show the result of the latest lithotripsy.

Provided the consultant is happy that the stones are small enough the stent can come out and life can get back to normal (big cheer!!!). 

Please keep your fingers crossed that the stone has been shattered & the stent is removed sorted sooner rather than later. 

However, while I was waiting for DH to be zapped (our name for the lithotripsy), I went and sat in the car and settled down with my trusty ProMarkers to colour away the time...

The centre console was just the right size to place by box of ProMarkers :)

Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition is current on tour and in Lincoln.  We found out about it a couple of weeks ago and yesterday we visited the Usher Gallery in Lincoln.  The photos taken were amazing!!!!!!  As this exhibition was the only one in which you could use cameras, I took a number of photos of my favourites, however there were too many to add here - so here are a few of them:

Spirit of the Badlands - Joe Sulik (USA)
Specially Commended - 11-14 Years

Family Tree - Paul Goldstein
Highly Commended - Behaviour Mammals

Fading Beauty - David Maitland
Specially Commended - In Praise of Plants  Fungi

Trust - Klaus Echie
Runner Up - Animal Portraits

Territorial Strut - Ross Hoddinott
Highly Commended - Animal Portraits

Details of the photos & the locations where the tour is due to visit can be found on the Natural History Museum Web site.

Amazing Tutorial by Dawn Griffith

One of the blogs that I follow is Dawn Griffith (Dawns Stamping Thoughts), Dawn is a Stampin' Up demonstrator & uses their products (but you don't have to).

I think that she creates great Tutorial Videos, all of which are available on YouTube & the latest one she has posted is a 'Double Peek a Boo Card'.  After watching the tutorial I feel that I too could create a card like this - but I would take longer than it took Dawn!! LOL

This picture is taken from the YouTube video & shows the finished card.  The 'Peek a Boo' part of the card is great & not something that I would have ever thought of. 

I really don't understand how people are able to think of an idea and then work out how to fold/glue the card stock to create an amazing card - however I am really glad that people like Dawn are willing (and able) to share these creations with us without that ability.

I won't spoil the surprise, but if you want to view Dawn's tutorial you can just click HERE.

Meanwhile this weekend I need to create 3 card (Birthday, Retirement & Get Well Soon) before Monday... I need to get my thinking hat on & fast!

I Finally Did It...

On the 1 September I achieved my 2 stone of weight loss (4th Silver Seven).
Between then and today I have been loosing a bit, then putting it back on.

Today sees me finally achieve my 5th Silver Seven, with a total weight loss of 35.5lbs!!!!!

I am so pleased, this week has been a nightmare and to achieve this tonight was a surprise.

To celebrate tomorrow night DH & I will be going out for a meal :)

Waiting.....

I am sat at work, but my mind is not really here...

I dropped DH off at the hospital on my way to work as he is due to have his kidney stone blasted today :)  Which is very good news.  However I am now at work waiting, and waiting - time is just crawling by sooooo slowly. 

I did not want to sit at home on my own today as I new that I would just spend the whole day worrying, so I decided to come to work and try and keep busy. I am trying to stay busy but my brain just keeps wandering off on its own :( 

Even now I just find myself sitting staring at the screen, not really thinking of anything, but not doing anything either... does that make sense????

Well I had better try and pull myself together, maybe another cup of tea will help!