2 Features this week! Inspire Me & Imaginarium Designs!!

Just a quick woot! 

 I like to record it all here in one place on my blog!!

I had this layout featured at Inspire Me this week 

{Webster's Pages Ning Community}.

If you like Webster's Pages then it's a must that you join

 INSPIRE ME and upload any work you do that incorporates

 their products.  It's FUN!

 Then today I received notification of ANOTHER FEATURE!  

This time at Imaginarium Designs, who have recently started 

a Ning Community HERE too.  

If you love their products they are so easy to buy online , 

through Seriously Scrapbooking, and chipboard is so flat

& light postage will cost you next to nothing!

So that's my news for today. 

 I have lots to show you soon!

So to all my American friends - HAPPY HUMP DAY!!

{And to all my other friends who have no idea what that

means - don't worry, neither did I!} 

  But I asked and found out that it means you are over

 the middle of the week  (Wednesday typically being 

"hump day" so it's downhill from here 

'til the weekend LOL...)

Who Won my January RAK? And where to go for BARGAINS!

Blossom Inch is the winner!  Yuzz, please supply me with

your mailing details as soon as you see this so that I can 

get your little parcel of printed tape & flowers out to you

ASAP - it may take a few weeks to get to you in the East!

I will be having another international giveaway {RAK} 

coming up sometime in February so keep your eyes open :)

For now why not hop on over from here to 3 Scrappy Boys

Blog where the Design Team, me included, share daily

inspiration of some sort or other with you.  Right now

there are Valentine's ideas, CHA sneaks, etc...

You can also browse the gallery & share & upload

your projects too, as soon as you've registered

here in the forum where there is daily chit-chat

going on - about all things scrappy & not so scrappy!

Lastly there is a MASSIVE PRE- CHA SALE going on

here - where EVERYTHING is at least 25% off but

up to 70% off!  So now is the time to stock-up on 

anything you missed out on last season, before the

new CHA stuff starts rolling into the stores over the

next few months...

Journey into Love Layout {Bird is the Word JOURNEY} Webster's Pages "ALL About Me"

There's a new word up at Bird is the Word since Sunday!  

The word is JOURNEY & you have a whole month to play

along & also have a chance to win a RAK aswell as a 

possible Guest Designer position for TWO MERIT

based winners AND a random winner too!  

I made use of some photos I took over December,

of my daughter & her boyfriend, so nice that I kept

it simple so they could shine :)  I placed them directly

onto some Webster's Pages "All About Me" paper, 

which I inked with lime around the edges for a bit of zing...

For all the embellishments I used a sticker sheet from 

Webster's Pages that is a few years old now {sticker images 

& journaling spots on a 12" sheet} I don't think they make 

anything similar anymore.

I used Webster's Pages "Storytellers" alphas 

{Seaside & Lullaby"} for my titling and that was that!

For those of you needing sketch inspiration there is an

OPTIONAL SKETCH that you can use IF YOU LIKE

but it is NOT NECESSARY IN ORDER TO PLAY!

There is still 11 DAYS LEFT to play along with the

REMEMBER challenge so please come over and 

join in, using either the word JOURNEY or the word

REMEMBER.  

All you need to do is use either word

ANYWHERE on  your layout!

Supplies List for "Journey into Love" Layout

Base Paper - Webster's Pages "All About Me" - 'You're Timeless'

Lime Ink - Colorbox

Stickers from 12inch sticker sheet - Webster's Pages

Alphas - Storytellers - Seaside & Lullaby

Precision Pen - American Crafts - Brown 03

This is Your Time Layout - Sketchabilities {Crate Paper} & a Feature!!

***edited to add***  Please scroll down a few posts for my

 JANUARY GIVEAWAY (or click here LOL)  as end of tomorrow

 (Central African Time) it closes {6 hours AFTER U.S EST).***

I was featured at Webster's Pages (Inspire Me) today with

 this layout here below!  So happy about that!!

Yesterday a new and lovely sketch went live at Sketchabilities 

again! Go on over & take a look at the stunning reveal & play 

along then link up!

I decided to use both portrait photos and to leave out the

 banners across the top - dare I say I'm a little tired of them 

right now?!  I hope I grow to love them again though as

 they are really cute!

I had a glimmer mist disaster of epic proportions on this 

one LOL and ended up remaking the entire layout with a 

different backing paper altogether (the first one was pink 

but I didn't have another pink sheet from Crate Paper)  

I managed to prize off the entire bottom embellishment 

section in one piece though, which I thought was pretty

 skilled until I tore the photos - aaack!!  Anyway, it still 

only took me 3 hours from start to finish so I have 

definitely learnt to speed scrap 

(by my standards anyway...)

Took this photo with my new Nikon f1.4 50mm lens - amazing lens ♥

Mixed in some felt Etsy flowers & doilies with various 

Crate Paper lines & a lovely concertina flower my 

American friend Mitra sent me.  That fussy-cut scroll

is from an older Crate collection...

Supplies List for "Your Time" Layout

Base Paper - Crate Paper "Static" Collection - Road Trip

Mask - doily

White mist - Studio Calico Mister Huey - Calico White

Diecuts,Stickers  & Journaling cards - 

Crate Paper "Emma's Shoppe"

Border Sticker - Crate Paper "Toy Shoppe"

Yellow scallop paper - Crate Paper "Restoration"

Alphas - Thickers {American Crafts} {Marquise - Pearl)

 and October Afternoon (Mini-Market)

Doilies & felt flowers & leaves - Etsy

Stick Pins - Maya Road & Jenni Bowlin 

Brad - Crate Paper "Neighbourhood" 

Fussy-cut Swirl - Crate Paper "Prudence"

Yup - SIX Crate Paper lines there rolled into one...

I have a seriously long-lasting and enduring love affair

with that brand...sigh...

Health & Fitness/Weight Loss Update {Zumba Zumba!!}

Hi girls!  Just a quick update for January!!  

So far I have lost a total of 2.2kgs - which is almost 5lbs! 

 I had set a goal of one pound a week (4 a month) so I am

 ahead of schedule - woohoo!!  

As I'm an exercise phobe I decided to aim low to avoid 

disappointment - so glad 'cos now I am delighted!!

I only started exercising 3 weeks ago and I am AMAZED

at how much better I feel - AMAZED...The first 2 weeks 

were a struggle and I wanted to give up...but I knew I had

 to continue (for health reasons) as I really need to get into

 shape.  

In such a short space of time I am feeling stronger!

I haven't been following a specific diet plan as yet 

(I have a book I am reading about it)

 but recorded what I actually ate for a week & 

realised there was too much snacking going on! 

Now that I am so much more aware of what is 

actually going into my body I have cut down a lot.  

I am going to an exercise class 3 times a week & have

 my daughter's dance teacher swinging by my place on

 her way to work the other 2 days, so all in all I am 

working up a sweat 5 days a week!  

{for the record - I look NOTHING like any of 

the ladies in this photo - sob sob...}

Today I tried Zumba for the first time after hearing 

so much about it from my friend Mitra, 

who is a Zumba fanatic!!  

It was THE FUNNEST THING EVER and the fastest

 30 minutes of my life.  I could have done another class 

straight afterwards & I must be one of the least fit people

 on the planet!!

I am sure I looked ridiculous/hilarious but there were

 some ladies there at least 20 years older than me so

 it just goes to show that Zumba appeals to all ages - 

I can't wait to go to another class!! 

For any of you wanting to get fit/lose weight

 I highly recommend it!  I was really regretting 

signing up for it this morning and wanting to cop out 

for fear of me making a fool of myself (!!!) but I am 

so glad I forced myself to go.  

I haven't been this excited about something new

 since I discovered blogging 3 years ago!!

What's your keep-fit regime?  I would love to hear about it!!

Studio Sorting & Storage {Time to purge & tidy!}

I'm sure that most of you are like me & think 

more about the state of your studio/scrap room/scrap 

space more now than at any other time of year. 

I have been following Julie Fei-Fan's blog series

with great interest & enthusiasm & suggest you do

the same if you want a push in the right direction!

You can find Lesson One here, Lesson Two here, and

Lesson Three,  then follow on from there.
I subscribe via e mail as I find this the easiest

way to ensure that I don't miss any posts (I'm in my

e mail at least 5 days a week for at least an hour -

it's a chore but I do it...). 

I can't stop everything right now & turn my studio

upside down (you know how it always has to look 

worse before it can look better) but I am doing some

little things every day to improve & refine my space.

I was interested to see that Julie's studio looks quite

similar to mine in the way that it is laid out
(only hers is bigger). 

I felt so much better reading the words "working studio" 

as that is what I have, despite my desire for it to be cute

& pretty. I've tried including all sorts of sweet containers,

etc, but it just doesn't work UNLESS you have excess

space or only a few supplies.  If you have a lot like me,

you need to make THE BEST POSSIBLE USE OF 

SPACE & that can't be done using cutesy stuff.  

I realised that about a year ago so now my studio

is very functional but I am not happy with the lack

of cute factor - so I am working on that this year.
I am going to give it a lick of paint soon (apple green!)
and order some uniform (as in all the same) pull-out
chipboard baskets that I am getting custom-made as
at the moment there is a mish-mash of containers/
baskets in there based on whatever fits...

***TIP - If you ever decide to get some "pigeon-hole"
shelves made (as I did) {no IKEA here sadly...) do
NOT make the same mistake I did - make the shelves to
fit the baskets rather than trying to find the baskets to fit
the shelves - 18 months later I've given up and am biting
the bullet and getting them made to measure...***

I'm sure I could find the right size online but I need 24
and the shipping on those babies would be horrendous...

They are going to take forever to make but I'll definitely
show you the before and after of my scrappy shelf makeover.


***DON'T FORGET TO SCROLL BACK A FEW POSTS
FOR MY JANUARY GIVEAWAY ENDING NEXT WEEK!***

Forthcoming Attractions...{aswell as an article on using Pinterest to drive traffic to your blog}

I have a new layout to share...but not yet!  

Sorry!!  For now here is a little sneak peek!

Lots of last season's Crate goodies in there...trying 

to finish it all off before the new releases reach me.

--------------------------------------------------

While I'm snowed under creating for both my

kit club DTs until the end of the month I thought

I'd share a recent blogpost I did yesterday

(every Wednesday is my blog day) over @

3 Scrappy Boys about How to Drive

Traffic to you Blog using PINTEREST.

I have copied and pasted it here for you too!

---------------------------------------------------

Hi there!  Helen here!!  I've been absent from the boards for a

few days because we took a roadtrip to another State to celebrate

my uncle's 60th birthday with him, and take lots of photos at the HIPPY party!!

I haven't been 100% well lately so the other day I was browsing PINTEREST

on my laptop from my bed.  As I was re-arranging my boards I had a

light-bulb moment!!

Before I continue let me explain what PINTEREST is...

It's a site where you register (by invitation only so if anyone

would like an invitation please leave a comment here with your e mail

address and I will invite you).  Once registered you create virtual

pin-boards which you use to keep track of images AND the short-cut

to them - for example if you look here you will see all the different

categories I have to keep track of all the things that interest me...

Altogether I have 37 boards and I am NOT an avid Pinterest user.

It's basically it's own little social network as you can follow other

people, they can follow you, and you can "repin" from each other 

aswell as "like" their pins.  The most vital part of the process is

that you drag the PIN IT button to your bookmarks bar so that 

you are able to pin ANYTHING from ANYWHERE just by clicking

that, selecting the image, then selecting the board you want it on.

So simple!!  Now back to my brainwave!  I realised that I might 

find myself a few new blog followers by starting up a new board

entitled "2012 PAGES Helen Tilbury"  and adding all my scrapbooking

pages as and when I do them, directly off my blog once they are

posted, so that when people click on the images they will be

taken straight back to my blog!  I don't know why I didn't

think of this before but I got TEN REPINS IN MINUTES!!

It's also great as a yearly gallery - where to find all your work

IN ONE PLACE and where you can link to from your blog sidebar,

etc, so that other's can see an overview of your work all in

one place - where storage is free!!  I hope you try it out!!

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Do you use Pinterest?  Have you ever thought of using it this way??


Nearly Friday!!  Hope you get to do what you LOVE ♥♥♥ this weekend!!