Nice weather for the ducks

Hi everybody!

Hope you are enjoying your weekend. It poured here today, so it was a wet walk and puddle-jumping day - not that I minded. We have to take the weather as it comes. I had a long walk this morning and a shorter one in the afternoon, and managed just under 16000 steps, so I was happy. There are less people around in 'bad' weather, so it's like having the world to myself. I only saw a few other all-weather crazy walkers and runners, and a couple of dogs tugging their glum looking 2 legged tin-openers along behind them.

The ducks, gulls and geese were happy.

 

 

At Gecko Galz there are lots of new papers, collage sheets and digi stamps for February, including images and papers suitable for spring and St Patrick's Day, so it's well worth taking a look. This card has been made with an image from the 'Artsy Jewels' sheet. the images can be enlarged and printed in the size you need. I matted it with a piece of blue coredinations paper, and some hand-painted paper in blue, green and gold. I chose a metallic card blank 7"x4". I added a blue bow and threaded some of my home made paper beads and a couple of glass beads onto the ribbon.

Material List: Image from Artsy Jewels, card and background paper for matting, card blank, ribbon and beads.

Here's wishing you all a great day. Take care, have fun and thanks a lot for coming by!

Saturday this and that

Hi everybody!

This week has flown by again, I don't know where the time goes. This afternoon I sat down and put my feet up for 10 minutes, and woke up, frozen stiff, 3 hours later! Luckily I already did my big walk this morning, so my 15.900 steps were already in the bag. The weather has been frosty but sunny for several days, but tomorrow we have been promised rain.

The collage here has been made over the last 2 weeks. The background is a brush wipe page, which I then stamped and white embossed to give some texture. The lovely peacock stamp was a gift from Yvonne.   I used lots of UFOs (untidy flying-around objects) from my work table and glued them on till I was satisfied with the result. The picture on the right is my sister Cynthia with her son when he was a few days old. Her son is now 50 and my sister died in 1999 after a stroke, time flies, therefore the clocks. But why the giraffe is wearing a red butterfly as a bow tie, I don't know....

Yesterday I baked some English Flapjacks. I only made them because Sandy keeps asking me to show some food again, so I am sacrificing myself eating them for her. They are made with dark syrup, butter, brown sugar and oats, so they are very healthy, and taste like toffee - yummy!

I discovered this puddle on my way through the fields today, I love the patterns in the ice.

And of course, I visited my feathered friends again and tooke them some bread, so they were happy.

I am linking to Paper Saturdays  and PPF and to MooMania, embossing.

Have a great day, take care, and thanks a lot for coming by!

A Collage and a Journal Page

Hi everybody!

Yesterday was another wonderful, sunny day, although it stayed frosty. It started off with frost on the fields, -4° and a beautiful sunrise, and I was able to enjoy 2 good walks along the Rhine, making a total of nearly 18000 steps, over 8 1/2 miles, so I was proud of myself for that.

The collage I am showing today, which I have called 'Life on various levels', is one I started 2 years back, and which I have worked on here and there, and finished at last. It's still not quite as I wanted, but I think that's something we have to reckon with. I used acrylic paints, stencils, some scraps of gold leafing, lots of bits and bobs from my table, lace, buttons, die-cuts, cut out images, a serviette and some of the transfer images that Jeanette sent me this week. I found some scraps on which I had used candle wax and stamped into it, and included them, too.

 

The journal page has also been made with other flying bits and bobs on a painted, stenciled and stamped background. The robin red-breasts were from a Christmas serviette. I have created a little world where sky and sea mix and meet in silence - even the birds are blowing bubbles instead of chirping.

The last photo was taken just before sunset at the Rhine:

I am linking to PPF, hosted by the lovely Eva and Kristin, and AJJ, silence, hosted by our gorgeous Susi.

Have a great day you all, take care, and thanks a lot for coming by.

Tag Tuesday and More

Hi everybody!

Tuesday means that it's time for Tag Tuesday, and our theme this week is decay.

For my tag I used a photo taken at an old Jewish graveyard in Brandenburg during a field trip there some years back. I cut a tag from recycled black card from an old calendar, and gave it the form of a cabinet card, as this reminds me of the form of a gravestone. I cut the photo to the same shape. The text is from the well-known hymn, 'Abide with me', which we used to sing at school in London, and although I am not a religious person, I always liked this hymn. I added a spot of colour with the flowers and left everything else in black and white. I love the way the stone is leaning against the tree, and how new shoots are springing up - the eternal cycle of life, death, decay and new life.

Today was rather wet, with lots of showers, so I didn't wander too far from home, and did three short walks, with  total of just over 14000 steps (7 1/2 miles).  In the afternoon the sun tried to come out, and the sky was really impressive.

 

At the Rhine there were dozens of wild geese, bobbing about in the water where a stream flows into the river, then taking off and flying away in groups. I stood there for so long that I got wet feet, but I loved watching them.

 

Have a great day you all, take care, and thanks a lot for coming by!

Lions, ducks and horses

Hi everybody!

We had a lot of wind and rain here all night, which meant lots of puddles on my walk today. But it stayed dry all the time I was out, which was good, although their was a biting wind along the Rhine which seemed to be nibbling at my ears! Puddle jumping is a sport which I have practised since I was a toddler, and which stood me in good stead today.

I love these mossy and rather dilapidated lions on the bridge over the moat.

And the ducks were busy as usual, they don't mind it being wet.

  

Between my morning walk and the afternoon one nearly 18.000 steps!)  I did some crafting, got some of my DT cards for Gecko Galz done, which I can't show yet, and made this one for Artful Times, where the theme is 'Year of the Horse', for the Chinese New Year.  I don't have any Chinese stamps, but remembered this drawing which I made back in the 1980s, using soft, blacklead pencils. I had the idea from the son of a friend, who always drew horses. I took a photo of it and printed it out as my focal motive, matting it with dark grey mirri-board, and red and black cardstock. As an embellishment I added the little sticker with the rose and some Chinese/Japanese? writing.

Have a good day, take care, and thanks a lot for coming by!

Happy Post, lots of steps and a card

Hi everybody!

Hope you have enjoyed your Saturday.

Here it stayed dry most of the day, although it was cold and cloudy, and I was able to get a loooong walk this morning, and a shorter one this afternoon, making a personal best record of 20659 steps, which makes just under 10 miles. In between my walks I did three machines of laundry, which also entails lots of running down and up 54 stairs each time, and did some H*******K, so I was proud of myself for that!

This card is one I made last week using some of the elements out of the set my neighbour gave me, and think it has turned out quite well. The text means *Give yourself time*. The white floral frame is a foil overlay, which has been glittered on the reverse.

These 2 big, fat geese waddled from the stream to the moat today - wonder why one lot of water was better than the other? Or did they just fancy a change?

I always think that this tree is watching me, it seems to have a face. Perhaps some poor wood sprite has been imprisoned there?

 

The  evening sky over the Rhine was beautiful:

 

I got another surprise package this week, from dear Jeanette in Hamburg, who always makes wonderful journal pages and paintings.  Thanks a lot, I am looking forward to playing with everything - stickers, owl serviettes, LaBlanche transfers, a wonderful Fairy Stamp, and last but not least, the lovely card that Jeanette made for me. Thanks again! Sorry about the reflections on the photos!

 

I have been very lucky lately, and am thankful to have so many kind, generous and loving friends in Blogger Land.

Have a great day you all, take care, and thanks a lot for coming by!