Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Brrrrr

Is it me or is it really cold? I haven't been able to get warm all night, I can cope with cold and snow cos I get to use winter papers then but just cold? Don't like that!!

Had a day full of scanning in new stuff on Sunday and days full of packing ever since. I received my new dies today, all I can say is YUM! I have a little accordian folder and inserts, a heart with wings and a fabby big alphabet very much like the undressed monograms! More scanning!

Layla's room is just about finished now,I'll have to take a photo, it's really groovy and she spends most of her time in there,should have done it years ago! We went to Ikea yesterday to look for finishing touches for her room and found some nice bits. It was actually nice to go to Ikea with out the kids, it must have been the only time we have been to Ikea and are still speaking afterwards!!

Saturday, February 25, 2006

I've been RAK'd

Got a lovely surprise in the post today, a Hero Arts stamp set I have had my eye on, it contains sweet little buttons, eyelet and photo corner stamps. I am pretty sure that Ginge sent me it as it was hers that set me on the path to needing this little beauty!! So loadsa THANK YOUS and HUGS babe.

The boxes of new stuff are starting to arrive,got 2 yesterday but there are still MANY more to come!! I need to start scanning!!

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Still got aching feet!!

Well I slept well last night, must be because I was in my own bed.My feet are still achey though!! Have lots of emails and orders to catch up with today.
Some sad news though,Lemon's husband passed away suddenly yesterday, I think she must be shocked,bless her. I spent the day with her on Saturday and she was so happy. Hugs and prayers being sent your way Lemon,xxx

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Empty pockets and aching feet

Phew, back home from a manic 3 days at Stitches! Where do I start?! I had a ball and can't wait for the next one, enjoyed the socialising far better than all the stash buying, but you'll be pleased to know I managed to do both!!
Mum drove me up on the Sunday and it took an hour to move the last 3 miles!! There were so many cars entering the nec, there were so many shows on all at once. Mum came in for about an hour then braved the drive back home. First we met Lily the Lovely one and Lyn and Mandy and Kirsty, who are all lovely and mad!! Lots of catching up and gossiping then we actually got to look at the stands!
Placed a few orders and collected some catalogues, kept worrying about getting to my hotel as I had to get a train but it turned out to be dead easy, just a 10min train to New St then the hotel was round the corner. But,bloody hell it was a bit mingin!!!! There wasn't even a duvet on the bed it was a sheet and a hairy blanket then a throw type thing! The TV remote didn't work, and I couldn't get a signal on my mobile the first night but did the second, don't know why!! Couldn't even charge my phone because they were so tight as all the sockets were not normal ones but round pins.I've never come across that in a hotel before!! But after all those gripes it didn't cost the earth, it was somewhere to sleep and the fun days with fabby friends more than made up for it!! I've already told Lily and Lyn that we're booking REALLY early next year!!
The second day I met MGC and Lemon,placed a few more orders :) and collected a few more catalogues, the last day (today I think, it's all a blur!!) was spent with Lily and Lyn again. Did some fabby makes and takes with Stacey from Junkitz and Tim, all of them are really lovely and it was so good to talk to them again.
Boy am I glad that I was there till the end, me and Lily and Lyn were at the Provo Craft stand just at the right time as we got to buy LOADS of goodies at HALF the dollar wholesale price!!! Carrying all that stuff home was worth the extra 6 inches to each arm now!!
To sum up I spent, spent, spent and chatted, chatted, chatted and it was brilliant to meet old friends and new.
Now I need to sleep!!!!

Friday, February 17, 2006

Yum Yum Basic Grey!

The new BG papers arrived yesterday and what can I say? YUM!! I even treated myself to a collection pack of all 5 new ranges!! Although mum liked the Urban Couture and I don't really,so she can have that pack. Not that keen on Hang10 either, I absolutely love ColorMe Silly and Oh, Baby Girl! The colours in those 2 ranges are just yummy, I want to eat them :)

For the shop,I made the new papers into Paperbag Book Kits like I always have done with BG and they have nearly all gone already, as have the AMM totes,thought I might be stuck with those for a while but it doesn't look like it.

Have so much to do again, I did want to nip to town today and get my hair cut but don't think I'll manage it now,have about 20 orders to pack and a class to teach this afternoon. I'll have to go tomorrow,and I need to get uniforms washed and ironed ready forMonday cos I won't be here. Ooh so much to do and so little time to do it in.

Have 3 orders on the way from the states now, all confirmed this morning! Some yummy stuff from Maya Road, bits and bobs from another place and some new dies including a whole alphabet which I'm hoping is very similiar to the BG monogram ones - have lots of plans for this one!!

Thursday, February 16, 2006

Happy Birthday Grandma

My dear Grandma would have been 96 today, Happy Birthday Grandma!!
She passed away 4 years ago andI swear I miss her more now than when it happenned.

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

Visitors from the Isle of Wight

The kids are on half term this week, and their cousins from the Isle of Wight are visiting for a few days, so Ali and Layla played with them all day yesterday.

Our Thai meal was delicious, it was buffet night but because we were vegetarians they brought us 2 dishes cooked just for us,which I thought was a lovely touch.

So much to do again today,I think my AMM pink totes are arriving today, I already have a waiting list of customers to ring when they arrrive!! It was Claire who sold them at the show,when they all saw her tote filled up they wanted one!

I had a nightmare last night!! Dreamt that I went to Stitches and spent 3 days looking round this small room with not a lot of stands there only to find when I got home I had missed the larger room full of scrummy stands!!! Not sure where that dream came from!! It sure did frighten me though!!

Monday, February 13, 2006

Lushy

Feeling a bit brighter today,could have something to do with the Lush massage bar we road tested today!! :)
We are about to go out for aThai meal tonight, just me and Nas, the kiddies are out, yummy I can't wait!
Got a little bit straighter in the back room today,it will soon be my "shop",yeah, no more overheads!
Looking forward to my weekend away,but if Nas is reading it won't be fun AT ALL,just lots and lots of work finding new goodies!!

Friday, February 10, 2006

Feeling a bit low

It must be the weather!!
I'm just feeling ever so low lately, hopefully I'll feel better soon,hate feeling like this.Just want to hide away from the world!

I'm going to start moving things soon,have decided to move the shop into the dining room until the loft has ben converted,that way I won't have all the overheads of the shop and will be able to(hopefully) afford for the conversion.

What a HUGE job that is going to be!! Watch out for some bargains in the shop!!

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

I've been tagged ....

Five snacks I enjoy

1. Pumpkin seeds
2. Pickled onions
3. Gherkins
4. Olives
5. Houmous

Five songs to which you KNOW all the lyrics

1. Come Away With Me-Nora Jones
2. Adore - Prince
3. Rent- Dido
4. High -James Blunt
5. anything by Princereally!

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire

1. Go with family to Mecca to do the Hajj
2. Build a villa in Lebanon and buy the family there a new house and a house forMum and Dad
3. Stock a scrapbook shop with every product imaginable, have a massive cropping space,a creche and a coffee shop in it and not have to worry about if it is making money it could be my "play thing"!!!
4. Help as many charities as I could
5. Have more babies

Five Bad habits!

1. Not keeping on top of housework
2. Not keeping on top of my business accounts.
3. Not eating breakfast
4. Spending FAR too much time on my laptop
5. Picking my feet!!!!

Five things you like doing

1. Spending time with good friends
2. Cyber shopping and real shopping!
3. Watching a DVD with the family
4. Sitting in the sun with a good book
5. Watching the snow fall outside when I'm snug and warm inside

Five Favourite toys!

1. My laptop
2. My ipod
3. My mobile
4. My Craft Robo
5. My Fuji s55001.

Things would never wear, buy or get again

1. Leggings!!!
2. Blue mascara
3. A bikini!
4. Decorative edged scissors
5. A "record" by Black Lace :)

Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Birmingham- here I come

Yey, finally got round to booking my hotel room tonight, 2 nights away, bliss!
Breakfast with the girls at ScrapbookWorld,then 2 days of looking out loverly new stash!!

Rang Scrapbook Magic today to tell them how stupid I think they are for closing the mag, don't think it will make much difference but it made me feel better!

I have had some strange requests from "customers" in the shop, but the one I got today must be the strangest of them all. A young man came in and asked if I could help, to which he replied "I hope so, I am wondering if you have a spare Bible"!!! It feaked me out a bit actually as he had starry eyes and it's not a normal question for a craft shop,is it?

Things people have asked me for over the years are:

"hats for chickens" = those paper frills you put on a rack of lamb!!

boot polish

caps for dyeing hair

rice cooker

top up cards for mobiles

piano wire

and now a Bible,whatever next???

Madness

Not had much time to update this blog lately,I have been drowning in a sea of parcels again! Have loads to pack today, still, I'm not complaining -I would rather be busy packing than not.

Found out the awful news that Scrapbook Magic magazine has folded, the March issue is the last one.That totally sucks, it's such a great mag with fabulous designers in there. I really hope they manage to find work elsewhere but on a purely selfish note it stinks cosI loved that mag. The decision was no doubt made by some stupid man who only thinks about money and hasn't got the brain to give it a bit longer and GET IT IN MORE SHOPS!

Well, I got my entries in forBOB, don't think I stand a chance in this one though,I know of some brilliant scrappers who have entered.I was pleased with my layouts but not pleased with how they looked scanned in and stitched together, think my next purchase will be an A3 scanner.

Has a lovely time on Saturday, a friend came to scrap and we had a good laugh and gossip. Ali you had better have entered the new scrappers category, that's all I can say!!

Anyway, back to work.....

Thursday, February 02, 2006

Sour Grapes anyone?

Another busy day ahead for me.Yippee!!!
I did it again with the hotel for Stitches, said I wouldn't leave it until last minute like last year, what have I done? Yup, left it till last minute again!! Goingto stay for 2 nights all being well instead of just one,I need the break this year!

Did a layout last night and I love it, I think it's one of my best and I did it balancing on my knee in the front room while everyone was watching telly. I didn't have all my supplies around me just some I thought I would use, and it came together really well. Now,if I manage to get another 2 done today I may enter the BOB, we will see! I really love the UK competitions, so nice to see people we know winning them-well done to everyone who enters.

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

busy busy busy

Have been so busy this week,I had so many orders yesterday but I couldn't manage to pack them all up with 2 helpers! I don't like leaving them till the next day but I just ran out of time. So,I've got all that to finish today, then I need to get all the monthly kits finished and out, then I need to make up a Love Lines Junkitz kit too. I had to order more copies of TSBM yesterday!!! Must be some great layouts in this edition:)

I went a bit mad late last night ordering some CHA releases!! Oh well,it's all luberly stuff!

Just adding some CD's to my ipod as we speak, I'm adding Shakira - this CD reminds me of when me and the kids spent some time with my sister in Spain one summer, we sang along to Shakira in the car every time we went anywhere!! It became known as the "Karaoke Car"!! That was a gorgeous holiday, there was a heatwave in Spain-imagine the heat!! We used to go out at night until the early hours of the morning and it still hadn't cooled down any- just my kind of weather! We drove to Benidorm for a day,to go to Aqualandia-a water park,one day in Benidorm was enough for me, it was full of English people!!!! I like to go on holiday and live like a local, my best friend once went on holiday with some family and they took a bottle of salad cream with them when they went to a restaurant!!

Anyway, back to the grind stone!