HELLO FRIDAY – GLAD YOU ARE HERE…..

2014, August 2014, family, friday finds, heartwork, journal, kim klassen, link ups, out and about, random 5, still life, texture

A selection of my photographs this week. I’m continuing with my ‘heartwork’ and these five photographs really spoke to me..

One of my favourite places to visit Bristol Harbour

FF_bristolIMG_5860

A Sidmouth shot, the wonderful Airstream coffee spot.

IMG_4336airstream

On my daily walk .

P1050860vintage

This week I met my dear friend Cathy who is visiting from Spain…

IMG_5864cathyviv

A simple shot. I was prompted to post this by my blogging friend Cheryl who wrote a meaningful post this week that really spoke to me. You can find her post HERE.

“Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is the only moment.”

― Thích Nhất Hạnh, Being Peace

P1050871leaf

Have a wonderful weekend…..

FRIDAY – ‘TWAS ON ONE APRIL MORNING AND A BIT OF LINEN LOVE

digital scrapping, flowers, Friday, friday finds, kim klassen, music, random 5

‘Twas on one April morning, just as the sun was rising

‘Twas on one April morning, I heard the small birds sing

They were singing Lovely Nancy, for love it is a fancy,

And how sweet were the notes that I heard the small birds sing.”

( Traditional collected by Priscilla Wyatt-Edgel from Mr R Bryant, Cowley, Exeter, Devon)

I have saturated myself this week in still life and spring flowers.

My Friday find is some lovely linen cloths. It is sold as ‘scrim’ ( a strong, coarse fabric, chiefly used for heavy-duty lining or upholstery) it is supposed to be used for window cleaning but not by me ! I do blame Kim for this so many lovely things to look at on her Pinterest boards ! Linen being a natural fabric adds a lovely colour and texture to my still life photography.

Some beautiful Spring flowers appearing in the garden now, whites, yellows and blues so subtle and simple.

Digital supplies by Rosie Posey @ Scrapbook Graphics

Some random facts

A certain person has started practising packing for New Zealand, how do you get so much in a rucksack !
So far I have resisted Easter eggs .
I get so much joy from simple Spring flowers.
The periwinkle in the garden needs a machete to keep it under control !
Particularly loving this from Jim Moray

Have a lovely holiday weekend hope you get some Easter eggs …..

HELLO – THE FRIDAY EDITION – FINDS AND A THOUGHT

2014, April 2014, digital scrapping, family, Friday, friday finds, journal, kim klassen, random 5

Where has the week gone ? I feel as if time is racing, the clocks have changed, the days are longer and I feel as if I have actually done less ! On the 2sF connect this week we talked about props and oh how we all love props. Part of the fun is the hunt for that special something , sometimes a treasure is found in the most unexpected places. So, I decided to take some images with my iPhone of some of my treasures. Memories of wonderful holidays, little pieces of paper, tissue, tape it is all pinned on my boards. The 2 signs are my daughters ( she has her Mothers’ taste !) I am ~~keeping~~ looking after them until she returns from her big adventure. So I don’t have one find this week I have lots of finds ! Oh by the way I discovered that Lightroom has a camera calibration for Apple iPhones how cool is that ! But why oh why isn’t there a setting for Panasonic cameras !!!!

The weather is set fair in my part of the world this week do you have plans ? We have to clear out the garage ( no mean feat) to squeeze in more of Jo’s furniture from her flat.

Here she is on moving day with her brother Tom and best friends Tobie and Geha.

Whatever you are doing have fun ……

My Random 5 for this week hmmmm…

I have made some of my own workflow presets in Lightroom I love them.

Nothing better than a clear blue sky with pink blossom

Yellow Tulips are really hard to photograph .

I love using fabric in my photographs (see above)

I have just received my latest Blurb book, and I’m delighted

A Book of Memories | Make Your Own Book

FRIDAY THE ROUNDUP EDITION.

deconstruct, digital scrapping, friday finds, random 5

This week I have collated my classes and my Friday Find into this layout. I created my own workflow presets in Lightroom following Kim’s tips in Beyond Beyond I love that I can do this ! In fact I’m going to create more depending on my image so I will have a soft vintage set and also a grungy high clarity set and so on.

I looked for the light in my house and found some in the downstairs bedroom, I played with different angles and moved my beloved Manfrotto around as the light was low, we have so many grey days. Supplies by Anna Aspnes, Dawn Inkskip, Agnes Biro and Gina Cabrera.

Onto Random 5,

Just finished “Shadow of Night” by Deborah Harkness part 2 in the trilogy of All Souls series. I love the Tudor period I studied it at college and it continues to fascinate.
I loathe ironing enough said.
We have decided to go to the Shrewsbury Folk Festival this year staying in the wonderful historic town for 3 nights I’m looking forward to lots of photography oh and Bellowhead are playing !!!
I am addicted to Shetland the detective series currently being shown on BBC 1 not only are the stories good but the scenery
Wherever I am now I am constantly looking for photo opportunities !

Have a sunny weekend …..

FRIDAY ` FINDS AND RANDOM THOUGHTS.

2014, Friday, friday finds, journal, link ups, random 5

Ok lots of photography this week with s2f and 2B I’m really spoilt. But that is another blog post….

My find this week, my lovely new mug (groaning from Mark off camera, ‘not another mug’) and a sweet little mouse pin cushion I bought in Bath, from The Makery, check them out HERE. It is full of gorgeous bits n pieces. Whenever I go to Bath this is the first shop I head to. Also I’ve started Tiffany Tillman’s class Title Express and I’m learning so much I highly recommend it.

So cute.

Ok onto Random 5

Loving True Detective and the music. Thank you Mr T Bone Burnett and The Handsome Family…

The best opening credits I have seen for a long time.

Sometimes I find myself not blinking when I am on the computer and working in Photoshop!

I am reading An Anatomy of Murder by Imogen Robertson a great series set in the 1780’s

The garden is coming to life, everyday more things are shooting, unfurling and sprouting.

I’ve moved my computer downstairs onto the dining table it means I can look out of the window at the garden ( I have a very patient and forgiving husband).

Have a sunny and happy weekend…..

THOUGHTS ON FRIDAY

digital, digital scrapping, friday finds, heartwork, kim klassen, random 5

This week the news in the UK has been full of stories about the record breaking rain we have had.

Some communities have now been underwater since Christmas and as rain falls on sodden ground more and more properties and communities are being flooded, homes and livelihoods have been lost.

I am not surprised that people are volunteering help and sending aid. Farmers from all over the country are bringing straw for cattle, supermarkets are donating water as the risk of contamination is high in this farming community.

Before

After

I know that over the other side of the Atlantic my U.S. friends are experiencing some horrendous weather themselves, and I known those communities too there many Good Samaritans helping out.

So my Friday Find today is knowing that all over the world there are people who with no expectation of reward are helping others…..

Random Five

I wish Starbucks would change their playlist

I’m not enjoying Game of Thrones as much as Name of the Wind, maybe it will grow on me…

Quote of the week ‘ Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle” Plato

Roxi at Coppercurls Designs asked if I would be willing to do some demo layouts for her wonderful new kit called Organic Red. I jumped at the chance, it was much harder than I thought it would be because I don’t normally stick to just one kit when I am creating, she also gave me a great video on drop shadows , she is a great teacher check out her new kit HERE

I never ever want to have a phone locked to one provider, the trouble it causes if you want to change.

Happy Valentines to Mark 33 years married this April

Have a safe and happy weekend .

FRIDAY ~

digital, digital scrapping, friday finds, journal, kim klassen, random 5

It’s been a week of rain, rain and then gale force winds. The West Country has been lashed with storms. So I’m pleased that the weekend is almost here but, more rain to come. Creativity has been a little low, light has been non existent.

So I have been researching some new books to read. I used a website called Lovereading it’s bit like Goodreads. I used to work in a bookshop it was my dream job, we used to meet book reviewers and representatives from the publishing houses, sigh… it was wonderful. One of those book reviewers now helps to run Lovereading.

So here are my Friday Finds. A list of books that are waiting to be devoured.

Wake by Anna Hope :
A story set after the Great War as The Unknown Soldier is carried back to be buried in Westminster Abbey we are told the story of three different women and how their lives will interconnect.

Secrets of Life and Death :
An urban fantasy that moves back and forwards between 1585 and the present day.

Finally

The Name of the Wind : Patrick Rothfuss: A wonderful start to a trilogy , probably the best fantasy book I have ever read, and believe me I am fussy ! I’m reading it on my iPad as it’s huge.

Some random thoughts:

Why do people snowboard ? I caught a bit on TV from Sochi it’s scary I pity their parents.

Audio books are wonderful they keep me company I’m listening to Entry Island by Peter May fabulous.

I have a mug obsession ….

Digital scrapbookers and designers are so generous.

I am continuing to love Art Journaling digitally….

Digital supplies by Tangie Baxter, Nancie Rowe Janitz and Captivated Visions.

Linking with Friday Finds and Random Five

What are you reading ?

WHAT’S YOUR PLAN ?

digital, digital scrapping, friday finds, kim klassen, random 5, weekend walk

Notes from the Desktop

Friday, the end of the week for many, are you planning something special or, digging in due to extreme weather ?

We are all different we come from different cultures, different customs and all have different views on how to spend our leisure time.

So here are my random five on favourite ways to spend a weekend.

Breakfast at Bill’s in Exeter mmm french toast with berries and maple syrup.

Family tea on a Sunday with Mark Jo and Tom they lead busy lives and to see them together is a treat.

Hiring a DVD and watching with friends. Our local library has a good selection and many an ~~argument~~ discussion has taken place there on the best film to get.

A good walk at Hestercombe stopping on the way to take photos of anything that catches the eye, followed by a cup of tea and a browse in the garden shop.

Playing on the laptop whilst Mark is on the family MAC reading out snippets from the web, it can be music or film reviews sometimes a piece of news.

So let me know, what is your favourite way to spend a weekend or a day off I would love to hear ?

My Friday Find

This week is finding that I love abstracts. This week on a trip to the seaside resort of Weston-Super-Mare I found inspiration on the pier (more to follow on Sunday with the Weekend Walk). I had plenty of time to compose and play with focus and aperture. I created a layout processing in Lightroom and then Photoshop.

Supplies by Anna Aspnes, Cottage Arts and Kitty Designs.

Have a great weekend…..

Linking with Nancy and Kim .

FRIDAY FINDS AND RANDOM QUOTES

friday finds, journal, kim klassen, random 5

“November, December, January. From Moon Cottage we looked down on those flat, water-filled fields, water that gleams the colour of gunmetal, with a grey sky above.”

My Friday Find this week is another rediscovery. ‘The Magic Apple Tree’ by Susan Hill.

I first discovered this book when I was pregnant with my daughter, it was being read on the BBC’s Woman’s Hour radio programme. I loved it so much that Mark bought it me for Christmas. It tells the story of a year in Moon Cottage in Oxfordshire. It’s a beautiful book, one you can sink into; she writes about the sights and sounds of life in a small village community through the four seasons and her experiments with gardening and cooking. This is a different book to ‘The Woman in Black’ and shows what a wonderfully versatile and talented writer she is.

Sadly no longer in print it can be bought secondhand from Abe Books. If you want to read about the British countryside in all it’s quirks this is the book for you.

And here are my five quotes of the week.

‘Life is a shipwreck but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats’ ~ Voltaire
Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air ~ Emerson
Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass any way ~ Karl Nightingale.
Don’t let the behaviour of others destroy your inner peace ~ Dalai Lama
People have to forgive. We don’t have to like them, we don’t have to be friends with them, we don’t have to send them hearts in text messages, but we have to forgive them, to overlook, to forget. Because if we don’t we are tying rocks to our feet, too much for our wings to carry!” ~ C Joy Bell

A FRIDAY FIND ` CHRISTMAS LOVE….

Friday, friday finds, journal, kim klassen, music, random 5

‘Lord Bateman was a noble lord.

A noble lord of high degree

He shipped himself aboard a vessel

And said some countries he would see’.

The weeks seem to be zooming by. As this isn’t my favourite time of the year short grey days interspersed with the occasional blue, sunny day I often find myself wishing for warmer days. But as my 59th birthday is hovering in the background I really shouldn’t be wishing my time away.
My main Christmas present this year from Mark was something I had chosen for myself, The New Penguin Book of English Folk Songs.

I love History ( I trained as a History teacher) and I love words and music, so this present was a treasure. Some of my favourite musicians have used these words sometimes with different arrangements but it’s the words that resonate. Here is a link to an arrangement of Lord Bateman by Jim Moray one of my favourite musicians.

Great illustrations and really cheerful chapters ! So many songs were about death, lost love and infidelity

I can remember Simon and Garfunkel singing ‘Barbara Allan’

Expect to see some art journal pages inspired by some of these songs.

So glad Nancy is back with her Random Five I love reading everyone’s posts.

Random five.

I am enjoying writing ‘small stones‘ this month
Not only do I love watching ‘Sherlock’ on TV but I am loving listening to the audio books of Laurie R King about Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell.
Music I am listening to is Anais Micthell and Jefferson Hamer ‘ The Child Ballards’
I am still searching for the perfect muffin recipe not too sweet and not too calorie laden.
I am sadly really looking forward to NCIS starting in the UK on Friday.

So have you got a good recipe for muffins ? I would love to see it.

Have a great weekend…..

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Notes from the Desktop

My Friday Find

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