Ally Pally, Packing and More.....

After last weekends little getaway and the long drive home from Scotland this week was a relatively quiet one for me. The cough I was carrying a few weeks back made a re-appearance so as soon as I was home from work each day I would do no more than have a bath and then head to the sofa to crash out and watch tv whilst working on my current crochet project. Sometimes you just have to take the easy option and let your body recover at its own pace.

I popped back to WW this week for the first time in about a month. Luckily I hadn't gained any weight which I was quite pleased with considering I haven't actually been on track at all. Once we have had our holiday I plan to get totally back on plan and do my best to lose some pounds in the run up to Christmas. I need to get out more at the weekend too and start walking again - going to try and drag Tom along with me too!

About a week or so ago I entered a draw on the Craft Obsessions Facebook page to win a ticket to the Big Stamp and Scrapbooking show at Ally Pally. I never in a million years thought my name would be picked but it was - yay!! I have been going to AP on and off for about 10 years now and I can still remember the very first time I went. The place was heaving and packed to the rafters with enough scrapbooking supplies to keep me going until the end of time. I have no idea how much I spent that first year but I do know that I had to stop shopping as I literally was weighted down by all my purchases and I couldn't carry one more thing. Unfortunately over the years the show has declined and the last time I went (in Spring 2016 I think) there was very little in the way of scrapping supplies. However for someone like me who loves all things creative its still a pleasant way of passing a couple of hours.

The show was ok but there was absolutely no scrapping stuff which was a little disappointing. I did manage to get a few bits and pieces though, a couple of stamps to make Christmas cards, some card blanks and some MDF shapes from Anna Marie Designs to make some pretty festive decorations. I also picked up a handy little stamping tool that will hopefully enable me to stamp perfectly straight images. Watch this space and I will share with you what I create with my new goodies.

I planned to begin my holiday packing when I got home but I felt a bit grotty so we just nipped to Tesco for some snacks and then ended up spending the evening watching Disney You Tube vlogs.

Anyway after a good nights sleep I began to sort through my holiday stuff, its so sad to think that this will be the last time this year I get to wear pretty Summer clothes - boo to it being cold again. Once again I used my packing cubes - they are so handy and make packing & unpacking an absolute breeze. Just two and a half working days for me and then its off we go - I can already feel the sun on my skin and taste the sangria!

Hope that you are all well and that you have had a good week and weekend. There wont be any blog posts until after our holiday now, I plan to share lots of sunny pics with you as soon as I am back. If you cant wait that long please you can pop over to Instgram and follow me there, I plan to post some pics on there whenever and wherever we can get wifi.

Love and hugs - Jane xx

Time to Catch Up

Good morning/afternoon/evening.... Apologies for a lack of posts over the last couple of weeks, its been a pretty busy time with us since Easter.

We had a lovely long weekend away in the New Forest the weekend before last. It was such a wonderful and relaxing few days, neither of us wanted to come home. The break was for Toms birthday, I booked it for him as a treat via Air B&B and I have to say the place I picked was fabulous....you can see it here if you want to have a look. The little barn was situated right in the heart of the forest and there were ponies and deer aplenty every-time we stepped outside. We had some lovely long walks through the forest along with drinks and a meal in the local pub. We also paid a visit to Gun Wharf Quay, Lymington and Lyndhurst. It was just what we needed, a quiet few days relaxing and chilling out in the most picturesque and peaceful surroundings. Below are a few pictures I thought I would share with you.

The last couple of weeks at Weight Watchers haven't been so great as I put on a couple of pounds but I am not overly worried as I know that is due to me not pointing and picking at just about everything over Easter as well as our weekend break. I have been back on track for a week and a half now so am hoping that this weeks weigh in sees a better result for me. I will keep you posted.

This weekend just gone was a lovely one. On Saturday I met up with a very old friend for a brunch/lunch at Le Meridian in Piccadilly. It was a long overdue meet up and the venue was just perfect for sitting and catching up, especially as we had unlimited cocktails!!

Yesterday I went to Ally Pally for the craft show. It was a bit of a last minute decision to go, I usually go with my friend Sarah but she wasn't able to come this time. Anyway I got up and though s*d it, I am going and quickly got myself ready and made my way across London. The show was ok but I have to say I found it a bit flat and  it was most certainly lacking in scrap-booking supplies. I managed to get a few new dies, some MDF items to alter, a stamp and a few odd bits of embellishments. My main purchase though was a set of Chameleon pens, something I have had my eye on for ages. I had a quick play with them last night and I have to say that so far I am very impressed. Pictures below are of my purchases....minus the pens which were in the other room when I took these pics!!

Cant wait for this weekend now as we have nothing on so I am planning to get in my room to play with my new stash!!

Thanks for stopping by, love and hugs.

Jane

Happy Easter

Afternoon blogland people...hope you are all well and that you are enjoying this lovely long weekend. I certainly am, its been a total joy to have the extra couple of days off. Could quite get used to this 4 day weekend....and of course the obligitory chocolate that goes with Easter (and yes I do know that Easter isnt just about that!).

Not much has been happening here lately and I certainly havent done too much in the way of crafting, however that is something that has been rectified over the last few days.....thanks to a trip to Ally Pally last weekend for the Big Stamp and Scrapbooking show I am now feeling all inspired to be creative. There wasnt a lot of scrapping stuff on offer at Ally Pally, it was mostly dies, masks and stamps but I still managed to get a nice little haul of stash. Of course I had to add to my ever growing stock of Project Life stuff, so much so that I probably have enough stash to PL this life and the next!! I will try and share some pictures of my recent creations in the coming days.

Last weekend was also the London Maraton, the route of which just happens to pass the end of our road. Its a bit of a tradition with us now to watch the start on tv and then stroll along to watch the runners go past. This year the crowds were out in force, I dont think I have seen so many people turn out to marathon watch for a long time, I guess that the nice weather along with Olympic champion Mo Farrah taking part was a big draw for many people. We were in place nice and early to watch the lead men come though and I was really pleased with the pics I got especially as I got a few good ones of Mo..think that I might even scrap some of the pictures this year. I am full of admiration and respect for anyone that takes part in the marathon, its something I know I couldnt do - I just dont have the motivation or stamia. I am sharing with you some of my pics...its amazing that people can run 26 miles dressed as a furry animal, building etc! We even saw someone running with a fridge on his back!!



Right I am off to start munching on my Easter egg, I only got the one this year and its a lovely white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake one from Thorntons....mmmmm chocolate!!

Love and hugs...Jane xx

Ally Pally

Evening all, hope you have all had a good weekend.

Today I have been to the Big Stamp and Scrapbooking Show at London's Alexandra Palace. I had a little list of things I wanted to get and I am happy to report that I got most of them, along with one or two other bits and pieces!! Shame I have to go to work tomorrow, I would really much rather stay home and play with my new stash!!

Rather than list everything I will just post some pics of what I bought.



Thanks for looking, Jane x

Scrapping, Shopping and Stash

Evening all, here we are Sunday evening again!! Been a good weekend here, haircuts for me and Daisy, a fab Las Vegas themed wedding reception and a trip to Ally Pally for me!! Firstly I will share a layout I did during the week, the pictures are not brilliant as they were taken on a mobile phone, but they had to be scrapped - they are of DH and some of the Chelsea players who he met on a weekend away with the boys last year. He was in Liverpool for one of his friends 40th birthday and they were staying at the Malmaison hotel which is where the Chelsea first team were staying for a match against Everton the next day. Anyway some of the team, namely John Terry, Frank Lampard and Fernando Torres were happy to pose for pics (boo-hiss to Ashley Cole who refused t talk to anyone!!). The papers I used were from a GottaCraft kit, the letters are American Crafts Thickers except for the 's' at the end of boys which was from the kit.

The next couple of pictures are of the stash I bought at Ally Pally today, a lovely purple Smash book and some Smash accessories to go with it. I also got some 12x12 papers, some bling, some card making bits, a set of alpha stickers and some chipboard to alter.

Finally I have a picture of me and my woolie friend Sarah who I spent a couple of hours with at Ally Pally this morning, it was fab to see her and share our passion for stash - hope its not too long before I see this lovely lady again!!

Hope everyone has had a good weekend, as usual thanks for stopping by and looking.... Love and hugs, Jane x x