49 & Market Card

 

🥳🎂 Happy Birthday Lynda 🎂 🥳 

Good Morning my lovely friends,  

Firstly I'd like to wish our lovely Lynda a very Happy 79th  Birthday,   I hope that you have the best day with Terry and your family ❤️

This one feels very 'apt' today,  on Lynda's birthday,  you are all so incredibly important ❤️ 

We had a day by the pool yesterday as we had gale force winds, which caused some havoc, luckily it didn't impact our peaceful day by the pool. 

Karen your cruise sounds incredible,   I hope that you enjoyed visiting Etna yesterday 😘

Today's card is similar to the one I shared last week, using 49 & Market papers, which are beautiful,   to this one I added rub-ons,  tickets and heart shaped button ephemera cluster to add my sentiment to....

I then added a butterfly in similar colours to finish the card. 

These papers have so much detail that they don't really need much adding to them. 

I hope that you all have a lovely day, 

Love & hugs to all, 

Sandra xxx

A ink smooshed card in pretty pinks

 

Good Wednesday Morning Ladies,  

Welcome July,  it hardly seems possible that we are over half way through the year!  

We had another lovely beach day ⛱️ yesterday,  we came back got showered and went out for a lovely meal.  Such a treat not having to cook, although we are having fairly simple dinners.  Lot's of salads etc.  It's too warm to eat even in the evenings,  I am sat here at almost eleven pm and its so warm with not a breath of wind.  

I feel like I have spent the last ten plus years healing, so I'm in no hurry 🤣😍

Today's card is ink smooshed, using Oxides,  Kitch Flamingo,  Picked Raspberry and Festive Berries (I think) I smooshed them individually onto my craft mat, spritzed with water then dipped my card in and heat set between layers so that I kept all of those littke dots of colour.  After smoothing the last time I added a spritz of Pearl Spray,   I used it to spray on my die cut flower too.  

I love those colours together.  I zoomed in so you could see the sparkle. 

I hope that you all have a lovely Wednesday,  

Love and hugs,  

Sandra xxx

49 & Market Faded Memory Lane Journal page

Good Morning Ladies,  

Another hot day here,  we were on the beach by 10am,  at about 3pm the darkest cloud appeared behind us accompanied by very loud thunder,  so we did the sensible thing and packed up and came back to mobile home,   we just relaxed and read our books, did puzzle books and played games,  the thunder continued for most of the afternoon, it said we were due 3.6 mm of rain, in reality it wasn't even enough to cover my wheelchair cushion 🤣

I did dinner a bit earlier and we decided to take a walk to the beach further down the promenade,  it has proper pathway made out of what looks like old tires, although it isn't black its a similar colour to sand, it's a perfect solution for wheelchairs and pushchairs,  we had a paddle in the sea, well the girls and I did,  it was so calm,  Paul believes that after the sun has set you become food for sharks in the sea!!! 😂🤣  We collected some shells and sea glass, which is the girls 'treasured find' this year,  we have found quite a bit.  

This reminder is for anyone that is struggling with health or other stress,  it often feels like you are under a constant cloud of pain and unhappiness,   it will pass my lovelies, I promise 😘

I created this 49 & Market 'Faded Memory Lane ' journal page a fews before our holiday....

I used a page from the Faded Memory Lane paper pad,  i added some background stamping in brown ink,  I inked around the edges and added rub ons.

I used Versamark ink through Tim Holtz dotty stencil and added gold embossing powder for texture and sparkle. 

Then I started to build my 'cluster' of die cut ephemera to lay the flower focal point on.

Here you can see where I added the flower,  i can't tell you how incredible their die cut pieces are, that cone flower looks 3D ! I tore up a little piece of hessian to create a background for the sentiment.  A few white splatters finish the page. 

I hope that you all have a good day, 

Love and hugs to all

Sandra xxx

Clean and Simple Bit box card

Good Monday Morning Ladies,  

Welcome to the start of a new week, crazy to think that tomorrow is the last day of June! 

We had a really lovely day on the beach yesterday,  we stayed until around 8pm,  we thought it was going to be windy but it wasn't at all,  I had a good hour or more in the sea which was heavenly, Paul and I were in for a while then all of us went in together,  the sand got so hot though, I thought I had given myself  actual burns on my feet,   it hurt so much,  luckily an hour in the med was the cure! 

This is so true,  there are days that I definitely don't have my life together!  On such days you just have to cross your fingers and hope you make it to bed time unscathed! 🤣😂

Today I am sharing a clean and simple card that I made using bits of Alcohol lift ink that I did weeks ago. 

For this I used the second from the right!

I cut the hexagons 'tuck in' die into the left corner of my card top layer,  I then added a piece of that inky background behind the die cut area.  I raised the top layer off of the background using foam tape for a bit of dimension.  

I took my Gummiapan Dragonfly die and wanted to get a bit of that darker colour at the top, I managed to get it on one wing, as you can see in the close up!  

I stamped my sentiment and embossed in Silver to match the body of the dragonfly. 

I hope that you have the best start to your week, 

Love & hugs to all of you, 

Sandra xxx 

Happy Sunny Sunday

 

Good Sunday Morning Ladies, 

Phew!!! Yesterday was almost unbearably hot,  not sure if was because humidity was higher but I really struggled,  we had been to a local market and were back and down on the beach by ten am,  we had to use our beach tent as it was really windy,  the umbrella wouldn't have lasted 5 minutes,  people running after their errant umbrellas is actually like a local sport,  quite fun to watch! 

This our beach tent, the windows are mesh with can be zipped closed to eliminate all wind,  its a great wind breakand gives good shade too.  Paul and I fit in quite nicely,  even with my new chair!   After being at beach for about 40 minutes it was so hot that we just needed to cool off in the sea, my goodness was it cold,  the coldest its been in the years we've been coming,  although that could be because it's so much hotter on the land,  we cooled ofc for a good 45 minutes before returning to the heat.  I am taking my time to get in the sea though as I am trying to protect my heart from going off in  crazy rhythm!  

Let's look at what Lilian and Sonia made this week...

Lilian 

Lilian's Description:

Good morning, a bit cooler today.

Here is my version of Snail Mail.

It’s very simple but took ages trying to decide what to do.

All from chat GPT , took ages cutting all the bits out as usual, stamp is one of Stamperia’s older one.

Enjoy your hols.

Lilian your page could not be more perfect for the 'Snail Mail' category!   It's so brilliant 👏!!  

I cannot tell you how proud of you i am my lovely,  you have grasped this ChatGPT process like an absolute pro!!  It's so lovely to see you using a tool that was totally alien to you a few months ago and you are creating some amazing projects with it. 

Thank you so much for a truly inspirational piece XX 

Sonia 

Sonia's Description:

Hi lovely, here’s a double spread Journal page for Sunday.

Vintage.

I’ve used papers and empheria from Stamperia Quiet Days junk journal and 8x8 pads. I inked all edges with Gathered Twigs distress inks 😊

Absolutely gorgeous double page spread my lovely 😍,   I do love the quiet days collection,  you have created two lovely pages that would be great individually but balance each other perfectly too.  With the right side having a bit more detail,   your 'clusters ' are so perfectly balanced and draw your eye up the page.  

Thank you so much for a gorgeous,  inspirational double page spread,   the fact that you made it despite feeling so poorly makes me appreciate it even more 😊  I hope that you are feeling better today my lovely XXX 

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I hope that you all have a lovely Sunday, 

Love and hugs to all,

Sandra xxx 

Its Saturday!

 

Good Saturday Morning Ladies, 

I hope that you are all having a more comfortable time now that it's a bit cooler!   We had a very humid day yesterday which makes it seem even hotter,  it was quite windy too, so we didn't bother with the beach, which is always my first choice to sit.  The pool gets very busy when its windy on the beach,  although it seemed a bit quieter yesterday,  the calm before the storm I think,  I imagine that there will be a lot of new arrivals today,  I think the camp 'animation ' (entertainment) team start this weekend so that will give us some entertainment at the pool,  we love watching the water aerobics classes etc!  

Maria I very much agree with you regarding the Air Conditioning,   it always gives me congestion and a sore throat,   particularly in the car,  its odd because it feels like it totally dries you out but gives you cold like symptoms as well,  I must say that we have it on pretty much constantly at the mobile home,  this new one has a 'quiet mode' for over night,   we used to have to turn it off as it made us have such dry mouth/throat at night, but this one seems ok.  

This is a great reminder for all of you,  especially our Sonia who is feeling really poorly 🥰

I hope that you all have a lovely Saturday,  

My love & Hugs to all of you,

Sandra xxx 

Throwback Friday card

 

Good Friday Morning Ladies,  

Can you believe that a week of our holiday has gone already???  When Paul said that yesterday I was shocked. 

Today's reminder,  sometimes a tricky one to get to grips with xxx

We had a bit of a cloudy start to the day, the sea was calm as a mill pond,  we spent about three hours on the beach and as the wind picked up we relocated to the pool, which is really sheltered.  We were all sat reading and didn't realise it was gone 7pm.  Not that it matters,  no watches on holiday!  

I have read a couple of books,  one of which was 'The Twins of Auswich', it was very well written, highlighting the unbreakable bond that identical twins have, obviously it goes into to the evil that they endured at the hands of Mengele, although she does explain that being twins is what kept them alive.  

Todays card is a throwback to June 2022,   this is the card I made for Becca's Birthday!  I used Anna Marie Designs dies for this card and some flowers and lace from my stash.  I had actually forgotten about both the papers and those dies,   so I might search them out when I get home.   

I feel that it would be a good idea to totally rotate our craft stash from time to time,  it would feel like we have new stash to play with. 

I hope that you ladies are all managing ok in the heat. 

Karen I hope your cabin is amazing and that you have an amazing cruise xxx

Have a lovely day my lovelies,  

Love and hugs to all of you,

Sandra xxx 

A mixed media tag

 

Good Thursday Morning Ladies, 

Another very hot day for us yesterday,   we decided to spend the day in the shade by the pool,  the beach was a real mess as there were many parties going on with lots of bonfires and fireworks, which were spectacular!   The downside was the group of young men and Ladies the rented the mobiles either side of us decided to party very loudly until 5am !   I could understand until maybe 1 or 2am,  but 5 was a bit too much.  I felt sorry for the other families that had young children.  Anyway we had a lovely relaxing day to recover, the pool was very refreshing too. 

Today I am sharing a tag that I made using a couple of different techniques.  I used vaseline through a stencil in a couple of areas on the tag and then sprinkled some Lindys Gang Magical Shakers over the tag and spritzed with water.

 I loved the pink so decided to pick that out as the accent colour,  I used a die cut flower from 49 & Market collection,  then added some stamps from Arden Creative ephemera,  the flowers on the stamps worked so well with the colours in the background.   

To finish I added a small sentiment and some pink seam binding ribbon that I have had from Sue Wilson days!   It's a fun little tag that makes me smile when I look at it. 

I hope that you all have a lovely day and stay cool in the extreme heat.  

Love and hugs to all, 

Sandra xxx 

 

Pretty 49 & Market card

 

      

Good Wednesday Morning Ladies, 

Today I am sharing a card I made last week using  49 & Market.  Bis song

Tuesday was another very hot day,  We went to the beach and stayed all day.

This is a super simple card as apart from ribbon was most made from 1 piece of Patterned paper, cut down to fit my card base.  Then came the fun..part all of the ephemera,  tickets,  postage stamps etc

I hope that you all gave a great week

Love  and hugs.

Sandra   

Trivia Tuesday

 

Good Tuesday Morning Ladies,  

I have always been curious about the Churches and crosses that we see on the highest mountain peaks as we are driving through the Pyrenees and other mountains through France.  So I thought I would look it up and share the reason with you.

Crosses on mountain peaks—often called summit crosses—are primarily expressions of Christian faith, especially in regions like the European Alps. They mark the highest point of elevation and also serve as borders, memorials and historical symbols of gratitude for safe return from dangerous climbs. 

The reasons for placing Crosses on top of mountains spans centuries....

Religious Significance: They act as declarations of Christian faith. Because mountains are high up, people historically felt they were physically closer to heaven.

Safe Returns & Thanksgiving: After major conflicts like the World Wars, or following daring mountaineering expeditions, many communities erected crosses as symbols of gratitude for surviving the mountains and making it home safely. 

Boundary & Property Markers: By the 16th century, simple crosses were erected to mark the borders of mountain pastures or local municipalities.

"Weather Crosses": Dating back to the Middle Ages, people placed "weather crosses" on peaks to ward off violent thunderstorms, hail, and storms that threatened alpine farming.

Scientific Utility: In the late 18th and 19th centuries, early explorers and scientists erected crosses that doubled as lightning conductors and anchor points for meteorological instruments like barometers.

Today, while the meaning varies from a deeply spiritual emblem to a simple marker signaling that a hiker has conquered the summit, they remain a prominent part of alpine culture. You will also often find logbooks locked in small metal boxes near these crosses, allowing climbers to record their achievement. 

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Quite interesting answers,  I pretty much guessed correctly when Paul and I were discussing it in the car.  

I hope you found it interesting 😊 

Very, very important reminder my lovely friends ❤️

Now I got the date of the 'St Joan' Festival wrong (or I was wrongly informed by our reps)!  It is today,  so the big fireworks party on the beach is tonight,  we have heard a few going off this past couple of nights as people have their own celebrations.  We are pretty sure that Wednesday will be a Spanish holiday as the celebrations go on into the wee small hours, the DJ doesn't start until 1.30am!!!   I think we will go and have a look at the fireworks on the beach.   

Have a lovely Tuesday,  

Love and hugs to all, 

Sandra xxx

Another reverse eclipse card

Good Monday Morning Ladies,  

Welcome to the start of a new week my lovelies,  I hope that you all had a lovely,  relaxing weekend. 

We had a lovely morning/early afternoon on the beach, we then went back to the pool as the wind picked up, finished the day there and went for dinner at our favourite restaurant for Paul's father's day treat x 

I absolutely love the artwork to this reminder, such a beautifully coloured flower.  The sentiment is spot on too.

I am sharing another 'reverse eclipse' card with you today.  

I did this one a bit different I cut my SU scenery dsp down to 4 x 5 1/4 inch,  I then cut the dsp into 1/4 inch strips and added foam tape to the back of every other strip, so one adhered straight to card then next had foam tape etc all the way across. 

This method saved paper too as I didn't start with a piece adhered to the card base and attempted to match the raised pieces up. 

I hope that you all have a great start to the week,  

Love and hugs to all,

Sandra xxx

Our Crafts from this week

 

Good Sunday Morning Ladies, 

I hope that you are all enjoying the warmer weather,  we had a busy day yesterday, after collecting girls and doing the shopping we had some lunch and the relaxed by the pool for the afternoon,  the girls were wiped out and so was Paul,  it's so good seeing him relax.  

As I am writing this preparations are under way for a huge Spanish festival of St John throughout Spain but here in Catalonia it's St Joan,  they are having a huge party on the beach with fireworks and a DJ that starts at 01.30am,  so it could be a long night !

This is a great reminder, something we all definitely deserve ❤️ 

Let's look at what you have made this week....

Karen 

Karen's Description:

Number 25 in the A&C challenge- Countries Looking at FB people were concentrating on one country So I created this on  ChatGPT and was so pleased with the results I kept it quite simple BUT I moved top sentiment so the Che’evete wasn’t covered.

 on the FB page they seem to have focused on one country So I chose Cuba Same as above on ChatGPT but moved sentiment across so as to not obliterate Che’ face 🤣.

I wanted the page to take centre stage So no stamping, texture paste etc

Wow Karen that's absolutely incredible,  you have included everything that Cuba is known for from the Cigars to the incredible dancing!  There is so much to look at and something new catches your eye each time you look at it. 

This ChatGPT thing has given you all a real creativity boost.  I really want to join in, I can have a play out here and create some bits to use when I get home. 

Thanks my lovely for a truly inspirational piece XXX 

Lilian 

Lilian's Description :  

Hello here is my challenge piece for this week.the theme is camping. All papers made on the iPad using chatGP.

Took ages to get the images the correct size.

Longest bit was cutting all the ephemera out.

Lilian I absolutely love your Camping Challenge piece,  the scene you created is lovely, I love all the little camping itinerary items at the top too, what a brilliant idea 💡 I also love a of the little details like the sign, the camp fire etc. 

Thank you so much for an amazing challenge piece my lovely XXX 

Sonia 

Sonia's Description:

Here’s my journal page for tomorrow my lovely ☺️ 

Birds/Butterflies.

I’ve used Stamperia Dew Drops collection. The large tag is from the 12x12 collection and the rest from 8x8 and elements from the press out die cuts. 

Inked edges with Gathered Twigs and Stormy Sky distress inks.

Absolutely stunning page my lovely,  All of the little elements you have used work together to create a gorgeous journal page.  Those Dewdrops papers have some beautiful details.  All of your little clusters work so perfectly, they help the sentiment to stand out. 

Thank you so much for another amazing journal page my lovely XXX 

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I hope that you all have a lovely Sunday, 

Love and hugs to all, 

Sandra xxx

Mixed Up Saturday

 

Good Saturday Morning Ladies,  

A super early start for us as we are driving to Girona to collect Lucy and Soph,  their flight lands around 8am,  they have to do the new passport thing, uploading their finger prints and retina scan,  poor Lucy is stressing about it already,  her anxiety can really hold her back sometimes which makes me sad,  I've struggled with anxiety for years and it isn't fun, luckily Soph is with her and she has soph, who can turn any situation into a joke,  so she's in safe hands!

Great reminder,  we all grow in different ways at different times, nobody has a set schedule,   you stay relaxed and go at your own pace 😘

A Quick look at our home for next 18 days....

This is as you walk in the door, kitchen area to the right, dining area straight ahead,  although that is full of stuff still to be unpacked  

To the left as you walk in is our bedroom, there are wardrobes at the bottom of the bed. 

A compact and Bijou bathroom,  shower is great though,  very powerful!  

Closer look at kitchen area

The smallest room ! 🤣

These two are the girls rooms, we just put their stuff in  their rooms, they unpack themselves,  as I would have no idea which bed they want, or where the want their bits and bibs, I will give them their bedding tomorrow when they arrive. 

Our dining area outside,  which we use all the time!

I love that they built the decking around the tree, a lot of other places would have cut it down   2

This end has an outfside sofa area, which is really comfortable! 

Then I filmed our walk to the beach for you....

These two videos show walking onto the beach,   I did film getting to beach from our Home but it was too long so I need to cut it down a bit. 

Just look at these beautiful Bougainvillia bushes, growing in a Service station off of the motorway in France,  it is so beautiful and has a lovely scent. 

I hope that you all have a lovely Saturday,  

Love and hugs 

Sandra xxx