Stitch it .... at TioT's

Stitch it

Real or Imitation

at Try it on Tuesdays

Well my hybrid  page  doesn't have real stitching, but if you pop over to TioT's there are some fantastic inspirational pieces to see there.

This is the stencilled background and the stamped [Tim Holtz] images I  wanted to use as a starting place.
I used oxide inks for the background.
The other layers and stitching were added in my digital program [notes in my side bar].

Do any of you remember a 'Shift Dress',
the kind that looked like two pieces of material, sewn at the shoulders and seams.
I don't think I ever saw any that looked like the dresses  on this pair of Diva's, nor do I imagine they would ever be seen out wearing something home made.

In case you wonder the original starting layer was made into a Birthday card for a friend, who I know will have a smile when she saw  these two walking a dog.   Like I used to,  she wears boots and  comfortable clothes to walk her dog.

Thank you for calling in today, your visit is always appreciated.

A walk in the countryside

Hello everyone, 

Today I am sharing some photos from a recent walk we  had at Beamish

A destination that never fails to show us something new.

Isn't this just a perfect spot to build  a home.

Pockerley Old Hall at Beamish

This was the newer part of the Hall, the old house dates back to the 1440's

Well maybe a bit behind the times inside, with no electricity or modern sanitation.

As it was such a lovely day we went just to have a walk in the countryside and gardens.

A proper look inside will have to wait for another visit.

Walking down a leafy lane you come across this old  Medieval church.... St Helen's

St  Helens was  due to be demolished in its original  situation, due to vandalism. 

It  was carefully moved and rebuilt at Beamish.

In the above photo you can still see the numbers chalked on the stones, so that they would be assembled  with love and care.

As its Tuesday I will join the folk at

Bleubeard and Elizabeths

 where we are always made welcome with a drinks related post

We ended our walk with a cuppa, even though it was a hot day, I always find a warm drink refreshing.

I am saying hello to friends calling in for a cuppa today. I have scheduled this post, My apologies if I am late calling to see you.

Happy T day wishes everyone.

Reading Books

Back to School is the theme over at

  Tag Tuesday

I did begin this tag with a couple of my own base layers

before  adding more details in my digital program.

A watercolour base and a piece with some raised stencils.

I also added these  two,  found relatives children.

 Who were standing so still for their photo, that they forgot to smile.

I have also used this tag with more digital altering for a journal page

I have  always read and enjoyed a good book,

hence it is books that have given me the inspiration for this page for Jo's theme

 Poetry in Motion  over at 

Art Journal Journey.

If you get so engrossed in the story you are reading,

 you just have to read ''just one page '' more.

Books have momentum all of their own.

My current reading group book is by Alan Furst   ''Spies of the Balkans''

and one that  I cannot put down, it has its own motion as the story unfolds.

Thank you for calling in today to see me, you are always very welcome here.

Please see sidebar for

digital information.

Creativity

A hybrid page to share today for

 Art Journal Journey

and Jo's super challenge of

Poetry in Motion ... where we can use a poem , quote, saying etc for our inspiration.

The quote I used  really makes me smile.

I think many of us often feel our efforts are not for sharing,

but  hang on to them long enough and we may give them a second chance.

This happened with my basic journal page.

Mop up and mess. 

So  after a trip to my digital program, it started looking reasonable acceptable and before I could change my mind, I decided to share it with you.

Thank you for calling in to see me today,  you are always welcome here.

For digital information

please see my side bar.

Think Positive

A hybrid page today that  has taken me days to create.

I found this colouring in book in an outlet shop at a bargain  price I couldn't walk past,

 when I read the title.

 I couldn't wait to try a page. That was two weeks ago,   but life sort of overtook me and other things have had to take priority.

Crafting went to the bottom of my to do list. 

But I do hope Picasso won't be to offended  with 

my alterations to his work.

Fast forward  to this past weekend  and I have made some progress.

I did have a base layer in a journal waiting to be used.

It was a colour mop base, random stamping and embossing.

I had always  intended to cut out the Harlequin figure and have a play in the digital program I use.

I am calling in to see friends at

  Bleubeard and Elizabeths

where we are always made welcome with a tea related post.

Folk I can assure you I have had many more cups of my favourite brew these past  days.

I'm nearly floating in the stuff.

Our eldest son was an emergency admission to  hospital,
 we have   had a number of  worrying days  recently.

This is my cuppa of the week, the photo  taken when I was into making background pages I could use for mixed media/hybrid pages.

I will also pop over and join the folk at

  Art Journal Journey

and Jo's super theme for the month

Poetry in Motion, where it can be a poem, quote or  saying  that gives us inspiration.
Sorry Jo I haven't been able to make as many pages for your great theme as I would have liked to, 

I have made this quote a mantra  recently. I am thinking positive thoughts.

I 

Happy T day wishes to you all.

In my garden..... at TioT's

'In my garden'............ is the new challenge theme at

 Try it on Tuesdays.

We have lots of ideas on the TioT's blog to share with you

 and I hope you will  pop over to see what we made and get all the details of the challenge..

The first layer on the journal page was a piece of a floral napkin.

Some raised stencils using  modelling paste.

Next came some extra shading using water colour paints and Oxides.

The figures were from the  Found Relatives[TH] pack.

I also added some wild flower die cuts and a piece of ribbon.

The words, butterflies and a few more flowers were added in my digital  program.
 [notes in my sidebar]

For fun I also used part of my original journal page to made  this digital card.

Thank you for calling in to see me today.

 You are most welcome.

I may be late in calling in to see you all this  week, I will catch up soon.

Become You

Over at Tag Tuesday

the new theme is   'Use your Scraps'

I think Valerie knows us crafters very well when she chose this theme.

I am so guilty of hoarding even the smallest of scraps.

Take the wooden heart on this tag, it had snapped at the top and side rim, so got placed in the bits box. Today I have stuck it back together to use on my tag.

I also used a piece of printed material, fancy wool. which I have no idea how long that has been lurking, fibers and papers. The base of the tag is a remnant of stenciled paper,  at the moment it is quite bendy, I will have to look out a piece of stiffer card to back it with.

 The picture I think may be from Crafty Individuals.

Thank you for calling in to see me today. you are very welcome here.

Tea pots, crafting and many photos...its just got to be Tuesday.

Before I get into a photo overload for you all today,
I want to share a few digital pieces that I sat at the computer doing this weekend,
 when other things should have taken priority.

It started with a few simple postcard designs for the current
 Try it on Tuesdays challenge of Postcards {Mail Art }

I was creating a digital page for another challenge,
if you are interested its on my all digital blog here.
This led to another postcard

To complete the digital crafting fest I came up with this page
for Jo's theme  Poetry in motion
 where we can use poetry , quotes or sayings  for our inspiration this month.
at Art Journal Journey

I really like this quote, home should be the place where we can feel safe , loved and cared for.
.........................

It's T stands for Tuesdays

over at Bleubeard and Elizabeths
 where we are always made very welcome with a drinks related post

Tea pots and More Tea pots

Well I said I would show you more photos from the Tea Pottery I visited in Leyburn, Yorkshire 

 a short while ago.

I hope you are sitting comfortably, there is rather a lot of them.

First of all inside the factory to see where the pots were made

Now into the shop to see the finished pots

I think they had pots for everything covered, but maybe not so practical to use every day.

I know my shaped pots never get used.

These weren't all of my photos,  as many had a glare caused by the flash on the camera.

I found a Pinrest link that shows many of this potteries products, better photos and no price tags.

So after looking at so many pots  it was time to have another cuppa ourselves

Back to the lovely cafe where we had had our lunch.
 We even managed to get the same table by the window.

Tea again for me and coffee for my OH.

Thank you all for calling in to see me today.
Hope your T.  day is a Happy one.

Just Breathe

Do you ever get times  when you wonder where the day has gone,

 well I have  many weeks like that , never mind days.

 So, to have some me time in the craft room,  while I am waiting for paint to dry on another project. I thought I would begin a  digital page  for Jo's theme  of  Poetry in Motion, where we can add a quote, poem saying, that may have inspired our work.

Art Journal Journey

Big mistake for me, as more than   two hours  later and I am still playing in my digital program,

the paint is dry and it will have to wait for another day.

I rather like this quote,  it seems quite relevant to the way we tend to speed through the day

and never stop to take a little time for ourselves.

A little reminder today as well for the current Try it on Tuesdays theme which is 

Post Cards,

  all the information is here

Thank you for calling in and I hope you all have a good weekend.

Digital information can

 be found in my sidebar.

Poetry in Motion for AJJ

There is a super new theme for August over at

Art Journal Journey

Jo from Lets Art Journal 

is the host for this month and has chosen the theme of

Poetry in Motion

Jo would like us to use quotes, poems, saying s to inspire us this time.

My page began with a  speckled Brusho background and a paper napkin with this lovely dog on it.

Dogs have always been part of our family and now we have  many  fond memories of the years we shared with them..

I really love this quote they do  change how we feel and give us unconditional love.

Anyway back to the page. When I saw what had happened to the edges of the napkin as it dried out, I  thought of how our dogs would shake themselves after they had been in the water.......poetry in motion...... 

Splashing everything that was near them including the family. Then trot off  and explore the surroundings all innocent.with an expression on their face to say.... it wasn't me.

I added some digital additions after taking the initial photo. [Notes in my sidebar]

Thank you for calling in to see me today, you are all always very welcome here

Post cards,,, at TioT's

Postcards

is the new theme  at Try it on Tuesdays.

The prompts are to make/design a postcard or.....

include one in your project.

Again the DT have shared some fantastic examples, so please pop over to take a look 

and we hope you will join us.

Its the 1st of August today and many folk will be on holiday right now,

possibly somewhere hot and sunny if you live in the Northern Hemisphere

I added this quote to my postcard....

Once a year go someplace

you have never been before.

Maybe this is something you like to do when you go on holiday

 then  searching  out a postcard to send back home to family and friends.

Showing the area where you are staying

I made a digital card, showing in the background my love of visiting old houses.

Also an beautiful  plumed bird , something I would have liked to see in its native habitat.

But I think it would be hard to take the caravan to this exotic places,

 I will stick to the UK where there are so many places still on my future destinations list.

Thank you for calling in to see me today,

your visit is always appreciated.

Digital information can be

found in my sidebar.

History and Tea.

Hello friends calling in to see me today.

 It's Tuesday, so it must be T day over at

 Bleubeard and Elizabeths

where we are always made very welcome to share a drinks related post.

I am sharing more photos from our recent visit to Yorkshire

One of our favourite places to visit is old ruined castles

This one is Middleham.

If you did want to read a little of its history, I have added a link.

There is something about these old castles, the history and things they must have seen over the years.

My husband was keen to see  one of the upper floors that were still accessible via the wooded stairs.

I opted out of this as I am no good with heights.

I explored  the vast grounds and let my imagination wander to the Lords, Ladies and Knights that

may have walked through the rooms.

Leyburn is close by and is a lovely old small market town,

lots of folk about so not many photos were taken.

Needless to say we were looking for a cafe to have a snack and a cuppa.

We found this lovely  eatery at the bottom of the market square.

My choice was a Toasted Cheese and pickle sandwich

and a very welcome pot of tea after our mornings  visit to Middleham.

Our day out exploring didn't end here,

we went to  Teapot  Pottery.

The photos are still to be sorted out , but here is a photo that I think you would like to see today.


Thank you for calling in here  to see me,
Happy T day everyone.