Scrapbooking Retreat At Cape Cornwall

I had the most fantastic time last weekend! I was working with Linda Knight of Just Scrapbooking at her first retreat, which was held at Cape Cornwall. The views from the terrace outside the crop room were breathtaking and that was before setting eyes on all the goodies for sale in the shop!

The first evening local photographer, Adam Gibbard, hosted a workshop on taking better photos and making the most of your camera.

We started indoors with some flower shots.

Then we went down the hill to Priest's Cove, which I recognised from an episode of Wycliffe!

We took photos of the cove with little rowing boats pulled up onto the slipway and Sea Pinks on the banks. On the horizon, you could just about make out the Scilly Isles, some 28 miles off the Cornish Coast.

We travelled up and over a hill and saw the ruins of the tiniest little Chapel imaginable and in the distance a cottage clinging to the steep hillside.

We set up our tripods and waited as the sun slowly sank behind the clouds. Sadly it was not a dramatic sunset, but a pretty one nontheless!

There were a series of workshops and demonstrations to help inspire the croppers. Artist, Kathy Wray, came and showed everyone how to paint and decorate their own backing papers. These were used to make a layout featuring photos taken in Adam's workshop.

I worked with deep embossing and made some tags suitable for a beach layout, along with some alcohol ink decorated pieces.
I also made a Meander Book and other tags and pockets suitable for hidden journalling.

The food was excellent and was on a Greek theme for the weekend. I am a vegetarian and was very pleased with the alternative options to the meat dishes.

One of the delegates has posted photos of her layouts, which you can see on her blog here.

All too soon, it was Sunday morning and time to finish the retreat and pack up.
Still, there's always the next one to look forward to in September!
Perhaps you'll join us next time.
Please e-mail me at Heartfelt.Stamping@hotmail.com if you'd like to know more.

Thank you for stopping by!

~Debbie~

Spring

Spring has sprung! Well, it has for me anyway!
I checked the birds in the aviary this morning and was delighted to discover that our two baby Zebra finches had flown the nest.
One is grey and the other is fawn and they're miniature versions of their parents. At this stage they have black beaks which will gradually turn orange and almost red, in the case of a male bird.
Later, I was driving home from work through what we call the 'Long Cut', when I saw my first Sycamore leaves with the sun shining through them.
They were a brilliant green and looked good enough to eat!

Oh, how I love Spring!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Debbie~

Birthday Blessings

I have had some lovely cards for my birthday and my favourites have to be the handmade ones.
I have also had some e-messages which have been a real blessing to me.
Thank you to all those who have made me feel so special today!

~Debbie~

Nature's Jewels

When I'm out and about I like to take a close look at nature and recently I had a real treat - I saw a Kingfisher!
Now you may think I was deep in the countryside, but on this occasion I was walking from the city centre to my car. My heart stopped for a moment as I took in the jewel-like colours.
I took a quick photo with my phone, but you can't see it very clearly. I'll just have to take my camera next time!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Debbie~

Max

Well, it’s three weeks into the New Year and it’s time I started posting!

I heard this morning that today is supposed to be the one day of the year when you're most likely to be depressed. I think for me though, that has to be last Monday.
It was the day that Max, our dear Rough Collie, died.

We got him from a rescue kennel and as he was picked up as a stray, we have no idea what caused the ‘M’ shaped scar on his muzzle. We didn’t notice it after a while, but the cause of it was usually the first thing that strangers asked. Jack, our youngest son, suggested Max as his new name, as having an ‘M’ shaped scar would help Max to remember it!

He was an absolute delight and fitted into the family straight away.
He had some funny habits though, such as pouncing at your feet if you were busy in a conversation and he obviously thought you were ignoring him.
He also wouldn’t go in the back garden unless the kitchen door was left open - fine in the summer, not so good in the winter!
Another strange habit was licking his collar when it was taken off after a walk. Just one lick and then it could be hung up.

He was thought to be about five when we had him and six years later that would make him about eleven.
He was generally fit and well, but sadly his last few months found him struggling to move around due to joint and nerve problems.

He is buried in the garden, near to the aviary and the place where he would wait while I attended to the birds. He once pushed the aviary door open with his nose, but thankfully the inner door was shut, so none of the birds escaped!

These photos show him as I like to remember him.

Patiently waiting next to the Christmas tree - after sniffing out his own presents that is!

Trying to get someone’s attention so that they can help him unwrap his present!

Thanks for stopping by and …Happy Monday!

~Debbie~

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, to one and all!

~Debbie~