A scorcher

What amazing weather we have enjoyed in the South of England for the last few days. It hit the 30s at the weekend just in time for the Wimbledon finals. How exciting was that! For the first time in 77 years we have a British men's singles champion, well done Andy. It was a wonderful match.

The weather continues with very high temperatures and my card today is very appropriate, a real summer scorcher. It is my second Guest Designer card for the Loves Rubberstamps Challenge.

 We are showcasing digi stamps by C C Designs. My cute stamp is called Watermelon Abigail. Mmm her watermelon looks so inviting. This week the theme for the challenge is to used a hoarded item. I know many of us crafters do this. I do this big time with some of my artisan lampwork beads, I just love to look at them ;0) Now amongst my hoarded card making things are these pretty little heart buttons. I have them in several colours and they have sat in my button tin for ages as I love to just look at them. Today 2 of the green ones have finally seen the light of day in the corners of my card.

Here is a close up to show one of my hoarded buttons.
My backing papers are a download from Cardmaking and Papercraft. I coloured Abigail with my Promarkers and highlight with my Prismacolor pencils.
I used Kraft paper for my matting. The central die is I think an old sizzix.
The fun scrabble pieces are a download from Fuzzimo.
The shell dies cuts are Marianne and the birthday sentiment  tag is one of my old Lili of the Valley tags. The ribbon is one of my many, (yes I am a lucky girl) wins this year.

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges;

Ladybug Crafts Ink Birthdays
Heck of a Challenge at the sea
Country View Crafts summer sizzler
A little Bit Crafty dying for it..use dies
Emerald Faeries Birthday
Rhedd and Rosie Here comes summer
Jelly Park Summer
A Creative Romance Use ribbon or twine
Ribbon Girls add a bow
Stamping Sensations summer colours
Allsorts favourite things my favourite things are of course the buttons and also Kraft paper which I love to use with all sorts of colourways. It works so well for any card occasions.
Clearly I stamp summertime


I have put her into my Etsy shop here for sale

This recent heat wave also made me thing that it was also a good time to share some more of my recent holiday snaps from Kephalonia.
One of our drives took us to  Assos, an incredibly picturesque spot. The drive down to the town is around hairpin bends but the views at the bottom are so worth it.

This is where we sat to have our picnic, in the cool shade of the pine trees. The smell was just delicious and it made me think of Christmas ;0)...just a bit warmer.
Behind us, up a steep 1.8 km walk was  the ruins of a Venetian Castle. Before we had our lunch we had walked to the summit. It was hot but the views on the way up and at the castle were stunning.

The pathway was very well made so there was no danger of falling over the side. Believe me I have no head for heights at the best of times.We were alone, not many people seem to attempt the walk.

We climbed up and up until the town looked smaller and smaller in the distance.

Eventually we reached the castle at the top.

It was so cool at the entrance, the stone walls were incredibly thick. We found it impossible to imagine how it was built in the 15th Century. Sadly it was probably slaves who did the donkey work.

Inside the castle were just ruins and it was completely deserted. It was fun just wandering around. The only sound was the crickets chirping in the intense heat.

After our wander and a sit in the shade to drink our water, it was time to return to  Assos to collect our car. On the drive back to Skala we stopped at a viewing point on the coastal road to admire the amazing beach of Myrtos. This is one of the beaches on Kephalonia where the sea turtles often come to nest.

It was late in the afternoon and it felt as though we were above the clouds in heaven. It really was the most gorgeous sight. I shall leave you with a few photos of this breathtaking view.

Thanks so much for visiting and the kind comments you leave me. I will be back soon.

I hope the sun is shining for your all too, if not, there is more than enough for me to share with you...enjoy ;0)

I am getting really excited for the end of the week as we are off to the gardens of Buckingham Palace, no less, to enjoy the Coronation Festival. I shall of course be taking my trusty camera.

Back soon,

Bye for now,

Jane x

Turtle Treasures

I am finally back with the first of my holiday photos. I have been so busy that I have not had time to sort them out until today. We had such a wonderful holiday on Kephalonia, it is the most beautiful Greek island and the weather, as always, was just perfect. We stay in Skala, at the south of the island which has gorgeous sandy beaches and is also a good spot to explore from.

 I have decided that rather than just write up 2 or 3 posts in a row about my adventures, that I would come back to my holiday snaps from time to time with different posts over the coming weeks. They provided me with so much inspiration and there are some wonderful visits which I would like to share with you. The coastline of this island is just jaw dropping and we managed to tour the whole island by car.

On our second day we drove to Argostoli, where the huge natural harbour is a known spot to see the rare sea turtles. The fishermen bring their catch in from sea in the mornings and they gut the fish from their boats which attracts the sea turtles as this is easy delicious food for them.

Argostoli Harbour 

Locals arrive to see what the catch of the day is

I'm not sure you could buy anything fresher than this...air miles....zero.
Sure enough we soon spotted signs that the turtles had arrived to look for their rich pickings.

a head popped up to take a breath and then the majestic turtle swam into full view

They really seem to fly through the water. There were 4 turtles and we managed to see 3 of them clearly. One came so close to the harbour wall that you could have stroked his gorgeous head.

We stood and watched these majestic beasts for about an hour. Once the fishermen had sold their catches the sea turtles returned back to the open sea and we watched them go. It really was an eye pricking experience and I am so honoured that we were able to witness it again.

After this amazing spectacle we took our packed lunch and caught the ferry over to the peninsula of Lixouri, just a 20 minute ride away.

Not a bad view eh from our picnic bench ;0)

 My card today is most definitely sea inspired. It is actually a card I made a little while ago for a commission from my Etsy shop and is based on a design I made last year. The lady wanted it to be personalised for her little daughter, which I was delighted to do.

I used the super sweet Sylvia Zet mermaid stamp called Goldie. She is one of my favorite mermaid stamps and I use her lots.

I coloured Goldie with my Promarkers and highlighted her with Prismacolor pencils.
I made her bubble more 3D by adding some Dimensional magic.
The backing papers are Nitwits and the tag sentiments are Lili
of the Valley.
I used my Marianne shells to add some more sea embellies and a little seahorse charm.




I would like to enter my card into the following challenges;

Jelly Park Summer
Simon Says Stamp anything goes
Crafting for all seasons Girlie #55
Card Crafter's Circle Birthdays
Creative Inspirations anything goes
Passion for Promarkers name that tune my tune is Under the Sea from the Little Mermaid


I will be back on Tuesday with my first guest designer card for the Loves Rubberstamping Challenge. The weather this weekend has been glorious and I have been gardening with Billy. We even had lunch and dinner outside which has been long overdue this year. My Hb and I have got Monday off work and I will give you a teeny sneaky clue as to where we are going....The title of my post is going to be , "Pimms and strawberries"......;0)

See you then,

Bye for now,

Jane x

Fiskardo, my colour inspiration

Thanks for coming back to read the 3rd and final installment of my holiday posts. Whilst on holiday we also made the 2 hour drive up to Fiskardo which is at the most northern tip of Kephalonia. The scenery en route was pretty jaw dropping and again the different shades blue of the sea were stunning. We arrived at the harbour about 10.30am just in time for a cappuccino... with a view.

Now that is not the average view one gets in Cafe Nero, is it? Fiskardo has a large natural harbour where all the yachts come in. There were some pretty rich people there and the prices in Fiskardo matched! We managed to get a seat outside a bar in the shade and sat for a while to watch the world go by. Fiskardo is the only part of the island which survived intact after the 1953 earthquake which destroyed all the villages on the rest of the island. It is lovely to see some of the old Greek buildings there.

Lots of the buildings are brightly painted and shine out in the sunshine.

We enjoyed watching this catamaran come in to land. There is a mixture in the harbour of the jet set and also the very basic fishing boats. All looked beautiful with the harbour as a back drop.

All these wonderful shades of blue have inspired me to make some beach themed jewellery. I have had some beautiful Artisan lampwork beads sitting in my stash for some time and decided to get them out.

At my last silversmithing class on Tuesday I made some silver findings...ready for making pendants and some earrings. On the left here is my work yesterday in my studio when it was so gloriously sunny. I had a WHOLE day in my studio and Billy and I were in beady and card making heaven. I always use Swarovski crystals as they are so sparkly.

Out came my round nosed pliers to form the loop......and....

......here is my new pendant, ready to slip on a chain. I also made up some earrings for myself and some other sea themed pieces.

Here they all are! I really like my hand made earring findings I made for the top pair of earrings (the purple pair are obviously shop bought).

I have put this little fellow into my Etsy shop for sale here  if anyone is interested. It comes on a sterling silver snake chain. *****EDIT 4.7.12 this is now sold
I have listed a new Beach bead pendant here
I also had a chance to make the 3rd in my mermaid series of handmade cards using my Goldie digital stamp by Sylvia Zet.

 The first two I showed you in my other holiday post already have homes. This one will be going up for sale in my Etsy shop here. I do so love this stamp. None other than Sylvia Zet, the designer of this stamp, stopped by my last blog post and admired my last mermaid card! I had written on her blog how much I love this image and was thrilled when came here to have a look and she left me a sweet comment too.

I have coloured her with my Promarkers and highlighted with my Prismacolor pencils. Again I have used Dimensional Magic to make the bubbles "Pop". You will also see that I have used the last pieces of the Nitwits papers I printed out for the other 2 cards. Us card makers never waste a scrap of paper. I have used one of my new Lili of the Valley birthday sentiments and also 2 of their fun new tag stamps. Have you also spotted the sweet little sea horse charm? I love these little creatures and for years I thought they were mythical creatures like mermaids. Even more recently I found out through my dear friend Michele (One of my great American Artists friends - or should I call them the AA??) that Sea "Dragons" are real...my picture hangs in my Studio and smiles down on me as I work. I really thought that they were down there with the mermaids ;0)


I would like to enter my card into the following challenges;

Totally Papercraft Use a digi image
Joanna Sheen Summer Daze
Emerald Faeries challenge  Birthdays #25
Divas by Design Tag you're in it #41
My Mum's Craft shop Favourite stamp #63 Goldie is my favourite ever stamp!
Scrapbook Sisters Anything Goes #90
I love Promarkers Anything Goes #123
Creative Inspirations Anything Goes #169
Party Time Tuesdays Anything Goes #74
Charisma Cardz Anything Goes #25


Yesterday was the most glorious day here and if I dare say it, rather too hot. I had one of those glorious all day at home days. They are a  rarity and I savour them. It reached 29c in my garden by late afternoon. I  quickly mowed my lawn and tidied my front and back garden before it got too hot in the morning . I then sat and created my jewellery and cards in my studio (bliss) and all the time someone watched me out of the corner of their eye......

Yes, my darling Billy. He loves the veranda of my studio where he can keep an eye on me inside and on his sunny garden. It is a cool spot for a hot cat with lots of fur.  He prefers this mat to his little bed I bought him. That is so typical of a cat, buy them a new bed and they will use mat instead ;0)

Another week has nearly flown by and it is now only 4 weeks on Saturday until Milly and Tom's wedding. It is the Hen  Night soon and the final dress fitting. Everything is coming together really well. Yesterday  I started wearing my wedding shoes around the house so that they are more comfy for The Day.....I am sure I must have looked very odd walking up and down to my studio in my heels, my neighbours must think I am potty. I can't really wear them to work today...what on earth would my patients think?

Have a great weekend everyone, it looks as though it will be cooler here. I do hope that all my blogging buddies in the North of England and in Northern Ireland have not been affected by the dreadful storms which hit  yesterday. The images on the news were devastating. Flash flooding, hail stones the size of 50p pieces and lightening strikes.  It's incredible that whilst all that was going on in the north of the UK I was overheating in the south. It's not as though the UK is that large. What strange weather we are having this year. Take care.

 Thanks for visiting and leaving your sweet comments, I really love reading them.

Back soon,

Bye for now,

Jane x

Turtle Watching in Argostoli Harbour

I am back with my 2nd holiday post from our recent trip to Kephalonia. Thanks for all your lovely comments from my first post and yes it really was Paradise out there.
We hired a car after a couple of days to visit some other parts of this beautiful island. These photos are from our trip to the capital of the island, Argostoli. It was a really steaming day and temperature in the shade nudged up to 39c so we had to duck in and out of the sun and hats were obligatory. We knew that the Loggerhead Turtles live in the waters around  Kephonia and that there is also a family of 8 turtles who live in and around the harbour at Argostoli. Unless you want to stay up all night you would not catch a glimpse of these creatures on the beach as they only come onto the beaches in the middle of the night to lay their eggs during the nesting season. The group that live around the harbour though are often sighted and we kept our fingers crossed that we might see them on the day of our visit.

This is the harbour wall and further round we found the fishermen selling their mornings catches.

Some people ask for their fish to be gutted and the men oblige and then throw the remains into the harbour. The turtles love to come and eat this and we waited for about 10 minutes with no sighting. Then, just as we were about to leave we saw this wonderful sight.

Around the boat came this graceful beauty. She made us gasp as they seem to "fly" in the water.

Then a second smaller turtle appeared, we think they were mother and baby. The Mum was enormous, at least 3 feet across and the baby was about half of her size.

Soon after this off they "flew" again, it was a wonderful sight to see these creatures completely free in the wild. We had a lovely afternoon in Argostoli and had a relaxing drink over looking the harbour before we headed back to our hotel. We got back in time to have a swim in our pool in the late afternoon when no one else was around...perfect.

and after showering and changing we headed out for a wonderful meal up on the beach road towards Poros.

Mousakka , fish pie and of course a glass or two of ice cold Mythos...sheer bliss.
The restaurant  (Called Old Times) had a wonderful poem printed onto the table clothes which read

Welcome to our Place.
You are the source of our strength and inspiration of our new tasty creations.
You can enjoy the spectacular view of the moon and of the Ionian Sea from our balcony
And have the opportunity to relax and travel back to "Old Times".
We hope that it will not be just a typical meal but a memorable experience for you 
To take back Home.


How good is that and yes the view was spectacular and the food memorable!

From our table we were able to gaze out across the idyllic Ionian sea as the sun set.

To remember our fantastic day seeing the turtles I manged to find the perfect new charm for my holiday charm bracelet.

Isn't he cute and he will be added to all my other holiday memory charms that are on my bracelet.

Today's challenge card is another mermaid related card as I just love my new Sylvia Zet digital stamp. Here she is

This time I have coloured her hair blonde using my Promarker pens. Do you prefer the dark mermaid in my last post or this one? As always I have used my Prismacolor pencils to highlight my image. I have also made the bubble more realistic using Dimensional Magic again

I also added some more of my sweet shells I collected from the beach at Kaminia. I have also added some sea related card charms as well as some hand cut bunting, finished off with Baker's Twine.

I would like to enter my card into the following challenges;
Cupcake Inspirations Beach scene cupcake photo inspiration #166
Joanna Sheen Summer Daze
2 sisters Anything goes #97
Make it Monday Linky Party #95
Creative Mondays  fairies and mermaids #10
Bearly-Mine #41 anything goes
Party Time Tuesdays anything goes #74
Sassy Cheryl's Challenge blog Summer #121








There is one last bit of sunshine I would like share in my post and that is the very kind award that my dear friend Mia has awarded me. Thank you my dear, you always bring me some sunshine.

                                                 
I am supposed to pass this onto 10 other blogs but would struggle to choose as I think everyone deserves it -so please take it if your would like to. I also think that lots of people have this one and some people really don't have the time to participate. One person though I KNOW absolutely loves to receive awards is my artist blogging friend Linda out in the USA. So I will nomimate her by name...here's to you Linda! There are 10  questions I have to answer so here goes.
1.Favourite animal. I am sure everyone knows that...cat and my Billy features on here lots. My other favourites though are pigs...I love those critters.
2. Favourite number. Hmm that's a funny question as I really don't have one at all but I like the shape of a number 8 if that helps!
3. Favourite non alcoholic drink; Tea, I drink far too much.
4. Facebook or Twitter; Facebook as I really cannot get my head around why anyone needs to Tweet!
5.My passion; My family......I would never be who I am without them.
6. Getting or giving; easy..giving... as everyone knows how much I adore Christmas and my biggest pleasure is chosing and wrapping gifts. Sheer magic.
7. Favourite pattern; Anything really but I do like florals and anything inspired by the 1920s.
8. Favourite day of the week; Friday....once I have finished work I have the weekend to look forward to.
9.Favourite flower; daffodil. I love the colour, shape and the promise of spring they hold.
10. Favourite country; England.....I never get bored of living here and being so near to London is really special

The sunshine has decided to start making an appearance this week and we are promised 24c by Thursday so I am looking forward to that too. This morning is my last silversmithing class for the year...how quickly that has gone? Summer will certainly be in full swing then! Have a great week everyone and I hope there is a little sunshine for you too in your little spot of Blogland. And for those of you who are counting down with me.....32 days to go....;0)

Back soon,

Bye for now,

Jane x