Callaloo Soup

Some quick cards

These three cards were made from one sheet of 12x12 cardstock, some patterned paper scraps and miscellaneous embellishments.

I used patterned papers from Scenic Route and Pink Paislee, stamps from Autumn Leaves, and Thickers letters and felt flower from American Crafts. If you'd like the instructions to make the cards you can sign up for the newsletter at A Walk Down Memory Lane, which should be sent out soon. The newlstter archive will also be posted online eventually.

A quick hello

I wanted to point you in the direction of a new project that I am pretty excited about. It Takes All Kinds - an inspirational blog for every scrapper. It's been a while in the making and I am happy to see it come to fruition.

My husband's family is going through a difficult time right now, and I need to be there for him, hence my recent absence online. Please send us your positive thoughts.

Chez Wam

Last week Lucas and I discovered a new lunch place that is perfect for a quick but relatively healthy meal.

The idea is a cool one: fast food, but home cooked fast food. Everything is made right there from fresh ingredients. The owners, two young guys, try to use only seasonal products, and organic if possible. You have a choice of various salads or hot dishes.

We went with salads and resisted the temptation of the homemade desserts

The best part is that the prices are reasonable, I'd even say cheap. We had a nice chat with the owners and they were telling us that a lot of their customers are students who are tired of eating traditional fast food and were happy to find food just like at home that was reasonably priced. Here are the owners in question

We were talking so much I forgot to ask their names! They are closed for the next ten days or so for vacation, but we will definitely be going back once they re-open.

August at Work in Progress

I've been having a wonderful time working with the August Work in Progress kit! So far I have made five layouts and one card, and I've barely made a dent in the kit! I love that I can get so my different looks from the kit. My pages range from very feminine, to masculine and grungy!

The last one was made for my post on the WIP blog today. I definitely recommend adding the blog to your favourites! It's updated almost daily and is bursting with inspiration!

So that's my Monday eye candy. I also need to thank Elizabeth and Lynne for both awarding me the Brilliante Blog Award! I'm extremely flattered!

Postcard

Embellished Idol Round 4

Just over a month ago I wrote about how my amazing husband took up sewing. I decided it would be the perfect topic to scrap for this week's Embellished Idol Contest. The challenge was to adhere all elements to the page with sewing, and I had an "aha!" moment when I remembered the photos I took of him using the sewing machine. Here is the page I made

I used some of the same fabric he used as my background and accents. It was interesting to think of ways of putting a layout together without glue, and I had fun coming up with the page, although at some points I really wanted it to be done! I might not touch the machine again for a while!

You may visit the contest blog to see all the entries and then vote for your favourite three projects here. Thanks to everyone who has voted for me so far!

August will be different

When I realised that July was coming to an end and that I spent most of it cooped up inside I panicked a little. If you know anything about me, you know that I abhor the winter months and spend most of them longing for Spring and Summer. So how is it that I have been inside for most of the last month? I have thus decided that August will be different.

I will go outside more. I will make the most of the warmth. I will wear all my cute skirts and shoes. I'll give myself a pedicure. I will open up the windows (and maybe clean them too!). I will spend more time in the city walking, taking photos and discovering stuff. When I am working I will work outside if possible. I will take a book and sit on the bench in the square across the street. I'll play in the garden with Mozaique and Naala. Maybe I'll go to the city pool (being an island girl the jury is still out on that one!). Lucy and I will have that picnic! Lucas and I will grill more and eat dinner outside. And why not lunch too?

Of course today Mother Nature is laughing at me and my intentions with rain and thunderstorms. But I don't care. August will be different. This is my promise to myself.