Here comes Trouble

Too late for Xmas wishes...

2010-12-27T04:28:00.001+01:00

But I do want to wish you all the best, a happy, healthy, and creative 2011!

Enjoy your holidays, see you soon!

Nat's Secret Ornament Swap

2010-12-14T19:40:00.004+01:00

This year I played along with Nathalie Kalbach's Secret Ornament Swap. Last week I received this gorgeous ornament made by the queen of techniques herself!

After being in the mail for fourteen days my ornament today arrived safelly in Austria!! Now I finally can get some sleep ;-))

This week is the last week of school here...! Looking forward to some nice lazy (scrapping ;-)) days.
Wishing you a wonderful week! Will be back soon...

Dutch Dares

2010-12-01T11:27:00.003+01:00

Boy am I a good blogger these days ;-))

It has been a while, but finally made a layout for the Dutch Dares again! I loved the sketch that was on the DD blog for this months challenge! Thanks Marsha!

Mei-Li Sat down with me and made a shadowbox, which is so appropriate for the weather conditions we have now.

Feeling so creative these last few weeks, more will folow soon. Thanks for your visit!

Winter Wonderland!

2010-11-29T20:09:00.001+01:00

Snow already!! This is just a thin layer, but more fell after I took this picture. Behind Mei-Li you can see the pond on which our garden ends... it almost completely frozen, if it stays this cold we can iceskate by the end of the week.

I cleaned up my scrapspace the other day, and remembered I also have stamps LOL. A quick little project with lots of glimmermist.

Just a few more days and Sinterklaas will visit our house, I think this is the last magical year...

Thanks for visiting!

Tomatosoup

2010-11-27T23:18:00.004+01:00

I really need to make some pictures of my scrapped items that I made over the last few weeks tomorrow when light is good...

For now I leave you with a soup that is a big hit in our house... Mei-Li is not a vegetable lover, but this soup she loves.

P.S. did you see the recipe links I created in the left sidebar? If you have anymore good links, cooking or scrapbooking related, then please let me know.

Ok, Tomatosoup

Ingredients:

- dash of good olive oil

- 1 kg of ripe tomatoes

- 2 large unions

- 4 medium size cloves of garlic

- two table spoons of dried Italian herbs ( or fresh basil, rosemary, thiman etc.)

- two table spoons of sugar

- ground peper to taste

- two and a half cubes of broth ( if you are a vegetarian use vegetable broth) I use chickenstock

- teaspoon of sambal (pepersaus) or more if you like hot

- two table spoons of balsamico vinegar

- 1 liter of tomatojuice

- 1 dc liter of cream

Cut up the unions and garlicgloves.

Heat up the oil and add spices, peper, broth cubes and hot sauce (sambal).

Add unions, garlic, when this colors add sugar.
Add diced tomatoes.

Leave to cook until thickens, this takes about half an hour.

Add two table spoons of balsamico.

Blend.

Add tomatojuice and heat up.

Add cream, you can also add this on your bowl/plate.

We sometimes add some ground cheese (in the bowl).

Voila! Lots of vitamines in one bowl sshhh, don't tell Mei-Li!

Eet smakelijk, Enjoy!

And an other one...

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Made for a scraplift challenge at Two Peas.

More in the making... Will be back soon.

It's been such a long time...

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since I last blogged that I forgot how to post my pictures :-(( Anyhow, I am still alive and scrappin' LOL. Be back soon with some layouts. Daylight has been so bad these past few days that I've not been able to take some decent pictures. Prepare for a photo overload! Thanks for visiting and hope to see you back soon.
P.S. there are a few more layouts below this post.

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2010-11-08T19:33:00.001+01:00

2010-11-08T19:32:00.000+01:00

I know, I know, I know,

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I try... but somehow eventhough I do not even have a job anymore something always gets in the way of blogging, or being creative for that matter... and other then photo's I just don't have a lot to share at this moment.

Things are still the same out here, we both still are out of work, and for as far as I can see right now it will take some time to change that. I had some wild plans of starting a home business, but don't think it is the right time now. Husband worked in the building industrie, the prognoses for that business are not good for this year yet. And as we both are not twenty anymore finding a good job is tough. Maybe, just maybe I missed my goal in life, I love to cook these last months are filled with diners for good friends. Perhaps I should open up a luchroom?? Or do I prefer a scrapbookstore...

My best friend gave birth to a gorgeous little baby girl at the end of Januari and I got to be there right in the deliveryroom.. one of the most special occasions in my life.

Last week my baby turned 8, can you believe that 8!!! I can still remember me changing her daipers, now she is a little independent lady that loves anything hairy ( with four legs :-)) rides on the back of a big horse, and hardly is home after school anymore (always outside or playing with friends). Well that is it for now, leave you with some layouts I made these past few weeks.

Looking soooooooooo forward to spring....

Thanks for you visit, hope too see you soon!

Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2010...

2010-01-11T02:14:00.002+01:00

I know I am a bad, bad, bad, blogger, love that some of you still take the effort of taking a look at my blog every now and then... I have been busy these past few months, husband is out of work now too, as am I. We have some great sparkling ideas of how we want to spend the rest of our working lives, but that does need some time to investigate...

Eventhough we had this bad news just before the holidays we had a great time spending them, and still have due to the wintery weather we have here right now ( almost a full month of snow and ice ;)) I am a coward if it comes to driving in this kind of weather, so I have not been far from home these days, but home is what we made it and I have been enjoying it to the max, here some pictures to show you how our last month has been...

My word for 2010 just has to be ENJOY!!

Thanks for visiting!

Don't Look at me...

2009-11-11T14:04:00.010+01:00

like that... Layout made about my daughter giving me the look when she needs something from me ( mostly works ;-))

Usually my layouts are kinda flat, I have seen so many layouts online lately that have that nice 3d look that I had to give it a try. Here's a close up.

An other one made about Mei-Li's swim certificat it took her one and a half year to finally get her A certificat, but within six weeks she had B too! Last summer she has got to practice her swimming a lot and really enjoys it now. BTW this sketch comes from a blog that closed now, I thought I had put it in my favorites but cannot find it anymore, if you know where it comes from please let me know so I can give proper credit. **edited, I found the blog, such a shame they stopped, it's Mix it Up**

I am so much in love with these little AC owls, love to cut them out to use on cards and tags...

And been thinking for a while about starting an art journal, the cover is finished now, I have put it on my desk and will give it a start this weekend.

Our week has not been so good, a lot of sneezing and coughing going on... had some news to worry about too, hope next week will be better.

Thanks for visiting and hope to see you soon!

Had a creative, busy weekend.

2009-11-03T11:32:00.009+01:00

This weekend we decided to move my crafting supplies including desk back to the living room. Since we've been living in this house I had my craft space in the attic it seemed to have a lot of advantages first, like leaving your mess on the desk LOL, but after a while I noticed I didn't really like to go upstairs while the rest of the family was sitting in the living room in front of the TV.

So these last few evenings I have sitting behind my desk following some TV and creating these:

Somehow blogger wont allow me at this moment to place my pictures between the text so I'll do it like this...

A layout with some cute Sassafras papers about Mei-Li losing her first tooth back in 2007.

The cover of a mini album made with Hambly, a lovely pearl Prima swirl and glitter thickers from AC. The inside is not finished yet, show you as soon as it is.

Some felties I made using different chipboard shapes and a hambly rub-on as templates. Does anyone know if I am allowed to sell these? I know as far as copyright on these items is concerned that I can use them on my own projects, but would love to know if I can also sell them.

That's it for now, have a good week!

Almost forgot to post this lo...

2009-10-28T13:57:00.003+01:00

Everytime I upload photo's from my camera to the computer I find one of these :-))

Thanks for visiting!

And one more...

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I love, love, love these carousel horses, love, love, love, love... You know, I just, ok, quess you got me LOL.

All pictures can be clicked for a bigger image would love to know what you think... so please leave a comment, thank you in advance.

Thanks for visiting, please see the other related two posts below could not upload the photo"s at once...

Been playing around part 2

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Couldn't upload the photo's in one batch..

Been playing around...

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With this site... let me know what you think...

Think I will turn the b&w picture of Mei-Li into a canvas.

Have a good weekend!

Don't

2009-10-20T12:18:00.003+02:00

look at the birdy. Finally managed to make some pictures of Mei-Li without her posing for me, quess she thinks she is a model, giving me that fake smile when she sees me coming with the camera. Got the inspiration for this layout on the memorylane blog, challenge was to make an autumny layout, didn't make any "falling leaves" pictures yet so using this colorsheme was the best I could do. These papers have been in my stash forever, they are not the colors I reach for first, but I am quit happy with the result. An other little project I had fun creating, the deer is from one of those cheap silver sticker sheets I bought at Kruidvat, I put it on craftcardstock, and cut it out.

Feeling creative these days, there is more to come soon.

Thanks for visiting!

A few cards to share

2009-10-14T10:14:00.005+02:00

Just a few cards that I enjoyed making last week. Started a few other little projects but have not finished them yet. Show you as soon as they are ready.

Thanks again for visiting!

Little to late for the fist lo :-0

2009-10-07T15:49:00.005+02:00

Layout about one of our pets Flappie, this one is made according to the sketch on the MemoryLane Blog.
No, this was not a challenge on How much is too much, but hey, you've got to use some stash to buy some right?

This lo was made with some great sassafras papers from my first ever bought kit!
Thanks for visiting, see you soon!

Blood Sweet and (almost) Tears...

2009-09-30T13:36:00.006+02:00

This layout cost me... usually it takes me two to three hours to make a layout, but this one took me days. Everything I wanted to make did not seem to work, I wanted to make this on a sheet of craftcardstock only, and put some cute hambly white mod flower rubons between the picture and the overlays... but the rubons didn't stick, that is, some parts did, some did not, so I traced over the remains on felt and cut them out, the stemps of the flowers are sewed on. Then when finished layering on different cardstock I did not like the layout anymore, so I cut it out again. After hours of work this is the result... I kinda like it, only whish it didn't take me so much time.

I took today of (will only cook :-)) to scrap, so see ya soon!

OLW

2009-09-15T13:50:00.003+02:00

Like I said in my previous post, I have some trouble scrapping at this moment, sketches do get me going . Saw the challenge on the OLW blog and loved the sketch and thought of this picture of dh and dd on our vacation in Spain right away. Sorry for the bright colors of the picture, I could not get it any better.

Thanks for stopping by, hope to see you soon!

Girls wanna have fun...

2009-09-10T13:30:00.007+02:00

When everything else fails scrapping relaxes me. After a long periode of non scrapping, and finally having the time to clean up my scrapspace (show you some pictures soon) I found the peace to create again. Getting used to all this paper and glue I used this sketch from BG.

Thanks for visiting, hope to see you back soon!

Here comes trouble

2009-09-03T22:27:00.005+02:00

Please tell me that this attitude is just a phase... please... If you are still there that is. TFL. Sketch comes from Got Sketch

See you soon!

Yes, I am still here...

2009-08-26T15:48:00.005+02:00

And eventhough it has been a longtime since I last touched my scrapsupplies... I do feel an itch...

Thanks for visiting.

and one more

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and one from my little helper...

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she loves a comment...

The magic of christmas

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finally back!

Tastes like more...

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after more then four months this felt really good... of to get my supplies into place (and that is about time ;-)) Thanks for visiting see you soon!

My wish for you...

2007-12-22T23:34:00.000+01:00

Here's wishing you all the joys of the season.

Wish you and your family a Merry Christmas!

My special wish for all of you can be seen in my last post.

Dutch Dares and More...

2007-12-19T22:11:00.001+01:00

I don't know about you, but I always get a little bit sentimental at the end of a year, It gives me the feeling time goes by too fast... I think a lot of the dear ones I've lost, the memories I've created, and the older I get the more I wish I could stop time...

This Dutch Dare is all about feelings... what do you feel at this time of year, do you have any "special' thoughts, what are your believes?? Are you like us, getting a bit sentimental of all the sweetness you hear and see? Or does (holiday) stress take over?? We would love to know, and see your thoughts. If you'd like to share please visit this link for more information and inspiration.

I was totally inspired by Moniqui while I made this little box. All my wishes for the new year for everybody in this world are on it. Thanks Monique for the inspiration!

Materials used: a little giftbox for jewelery, altered with metalic alcohol ink, some BG Blush paper (as good as any christmas paper), some stuff bought at the christmasmarket, and Heidi Swapp chipboard letters altered with Brilliance ink.

Thanks for visiting, will be back soon!

November MLS kit

2007-12-15T20:34:00.000+01:00

It's about time I post again!! Had a rough week, my little car died on Thursday :-( hopefully it can be fixed. Hoped I had some money left over this month to put with my savings for a SLR camera, but am afraid it now has to go somewhere else.

Had some good times too, playing with the November kit from Memory Lane. Loved the combinations of these papers with some Hambly. The other girls made amazing things too, you can have a look at their creations here.

Layout was made according to the sketch Nicole made for last months Memory Lane NewsLetter.

Thanks for visiting!

Getting in the mood for Christmas...

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and I bet you will too after visiting this link.

See you back soon!

Het Heerlijk Avondje...

2007-12-05T09:25:00.000+01:00

is gekomen!!! This evening we will be celebrating Sinterklaas (dutch tradition, Sinterklaas is a saint that brings children presents on his birthday), with lots of presents for Mei-Li. Hopefully she will enjoy it more then the movie she was watching on the picture this layout is about.
This layout was made for this weeks Dutch Dare, the other awesome creations you can find here.
Unfortunately Sinterklaas doesn't bring me anything, therefor I spoiled my self with some nice goodies from the MLS shop, make sure you check out the mega super sale section!
Thanks for visiting see you soon!

Being Sneaky...

2007-12-04T14:03:00.000+01:00

Just a little peek of what you tomorrow can see at this blog.

New blog

2007-11-22T10:50:00.000+01:00

Have you checked our new site yet??

Time flies...

2007-11-15T21:24:00.000+01:00

when you are having fun... cannot believe the holidays are almost here...

Did quite a lot of scrapping these past few days mostly Christmas related stuff I'll show you later on this month.

This layout was made for last months MLS DT challenge. DD with one of her friends on one of the few summer days we had this year. The "dirty" in the tittle is because that is what they were (you can't tell from this photo) but they rubbed themselves with dirt ;-))

In my enthusiasm I forgot to write down what papers were in the kit, as soon as I remember I'll let you know ;-)) Other supplies used: American Craft thickers eggnog, a bingo card, clear buttons, some ribbon, a 7 gypsie stamp, paper from an old children's book, a flower, doodlebug letter stickers and posca pens for outlining.

This card was made with some scraps, same paper as layout above ;-)) prima flowers, a button and an autumn leaves stamp on craft paper.

Thanks for visiting, see you soon!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US!!

2007-11-07T20:03:00.000+01:00

Today is the first anniversary of the Dutch Dare Blog! I would like to thank all the DD girls for the great inspiration this blog gave me last year. With all the new plans we have I am sure many more of these moments will come!

For this special occasion I made this layout.

It felt a bit awkward making a card for a blog, and I didn't have any anniversary pictures left, so just used "one " in the tittle.

Curious what the other girls made??? Click here.

Thanks for visiting will be back soon with a new post.

Work, work, work...

2007-10-16T09:45:00.000+02:00

That is what I have been doing lately, even last weeks Dutch Dare was about work. Pictures on this lo were taken a LONG time ago at my old job, my guess is that they are from the end of 2000. I've been working for this employer for almost eight years, most of them happy ones... the ending however was not so good. To make a long story short... Remember good times, I had a lot of those with my sweet colleagues from over the world there, decided that I wanted to remember them with pleasure, and more or less forget the bad ending.

Used some Japanese handmade paper on the background, some velvet letters from a Dutch store, some brads, a Mayaroad swirl and the cutest owl stamp from Sassafrasslass.

I guess I have a new addiction, canvas ;-))

Used a lot of acrylic paint, paintdabbers, poscapens, gaffertape by 7 gypsies, AC thickers foam and chipboard, some looovely Hambly, doodlebug paperfrills, and my good ol' dymo labelmaker.

Thanks for visiting hope to see you soon, and oh, if you do visit ((I can see by the counter that you do ;-)), please leave me a comment, I'd love to know who visits, and would love to check your blogs in return!

October already...

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that means our September DT assignments for Memory Lane have been posted. We received some stunning papers this time with a theme that was really challenging... Wonder Woman

Wonder woman Comic papers, AC craft thickers, Heidi Swap gost letter, clear buttons, red rick rack ribbon, posca pens, paintdabbers and some dymotape.

Next project of this month was made on a little 20 x 20 cm canvas papers are by Scenic Route, AC thickers, paintdabbers, poscapens, dymotape and paperglaze.

Last week we welcomed a new DT member at MLS, Natasja, this lady makes beautiful creations, you can see them at her blog.

We will have some more news for you soon... in the mean time check out the Dutch Dare blog, for a new challenge.... and some more inspiration!!

Thanks for visiting!

Sorry for being such a bad blogger.. but I will make it up to you!

2007-09-21T21:21:00.000+02:00

Dutch Dare #22 came easy to me... totally my style... Love this bag Mandy bought, love the colors, the flourishes, the dots and the shine!!

So here is my take at the dare:

Sorry for the bad picture... couldn't get it any better. Here is what I used:background bazzill, patterned paper Tinkering Ink, Swirls and dots Fancy Pants, tittle lettering Basic Grey, and some paperglaze.

Husband and DD have been ill this past week, did not have a lot of creative time but managed to squeeze out this project:

This is what I used: Bazzill card stock, Patterned papers by Junkitz, Hamby overlays and rubons, a lot of Paint dabbers... American craft thickers, and some Heidi Swap bling.

Thank you for you visit... see you soon!

Happy Birthday!!

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Hope you have a great day!

Dares and layouts...

2007-09-02T16:01:00.001+02:00

Last week Wednesday was time again for the dutch dares... a true dare for me this time brought to us by the talented Jo-Anne. Use more than 50% fabric on your lo... well, I have been saving all sorts of fabrics for ages now but never really did anything with them. Inspired by the workshop by Dawn and by all the colorful rags I collected I made this:

Are you one of those people who collects about anything that can possibly be used for scrapbooking, than common and play along! The challenge and the stunning projects made by the Dutch Dare girls can be found here.

An other layout I made last week following one of the sketches on the Pencillines blog:

And one more to show, yes, have been a busy bee (in scrapbooking that is LOL). Was made with some papers that have been sitting in my stash for ages now..

Nothing else to share... wishing you a colorful week!

Let's Celebrate...

2007-08-26T21:36:00.000+02:00

A little bit early, but since tomorrow is a working day for me...

Happy birthday sweet Mandy, have a great day tomorrow!

A funfilled Sunday, and some creativeness ;-))

2007-08-22T19:18:00.000+02:00

Last Sunday was a GREAT day, went with my mil two of her friends and some of the Memory Lane DT girls to a workshop of one of my favorite scrappers; Dawn Inskip.

It was great finally meeting her and her daughter Carly, after reading her blog for such a long time.

Isn't scrapbooking the greatest hobby? So nice to meet people who share the same hobby from anywhere, even from abroad!

This is the lo I created at the workshop, finished it at home and added some more embellishments Dawn made and which can be found here.

Also finished a lay out that I started some weeks ago for the challenge at Birgits blog. I am not much of a sketch person, but think I will give it a try more often as it does get me started soooo much quicker LOL.

Sorry for the bad pictures, daylight was very bad here again today, rain, rain, rain :-(((

Thanks for visiting and see you soon!

Dare time again...

2007-08-16T18:41:00.001+02:00

Dutch Dare # 20 is online! We had a very talented guest designer this time.

The challenge was to use the lyrics (in anyway you wanted to) of one of her favorite songs by Elton John; Don't let the sun go down on me.

Had to think hard, but finally came op with this, also inspired by 7-7-7 pointed out to me on Angelique's blog (I know I am late ;-)), but in this case you can never be too late. So here is my take at the dare. The other girls have been very creative too, and made some stunning layouts, you can see them here.

Last months Memory Lane challenges was FUN! I loved making these cards, and to judge by the amount of cards on the MLS site so did the other girls. Want to see their beautiful creations, click here.

We got to use some of the gorgeous colorful Tinkering Ink papers and (one of my current favorites :-) Autumn Leaves stamps.

Thanks for visiting, see you soon!

Sneakpeeks...

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Of last months Memory Lane's challenge

Need a good laugh?

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...then go check out this weeks Dutch Dare. I am sure you all have a picture of yourself with a fabulous hairdo, so come on and play along!!

Will be back sometime early next week with some more creations. For now I wish you all a good (finally sunny in Holland) weekend!

Long time no blogging...

2007-07-05T20:17:00.000+02:00

I know, no excuse... but I have been sooo busy ;-) My new job is going well, I now feel I have some time left to do other things again. School holiday has started in this part of the country, unfortunately the weather has been really bad. Not much playing outside for Mei-Li, but we have found an other way to keep her occupied. She loves creating things and as you can see from the picture she is very proud of her creations :-)

I am proud of her too! Good thing is that it also gives me some extra time to scrap.

This lay out was made with the Memory Lane kit of June, challenge was to make a 6"by 12" lo. The lo was originally created on this size, I decided afterwards to turn it into a 12" by 12" lo since I do not have an album yet for half lay outs.

Papers used are Daisy D's, rubon is Basic Grey, letters are HS, stamp is Autumn Leaves, chipboard flower, buttons, ribbon, and cool die cut edge.

My creation for the Dutch Dares, number 17 already.This challenge was to make a round lo about your favorite place in or around you house and to use your own creative lettering. I made two... while making the first layout I forgot the creative lettering part and used letter stickers instead :-0 Good thing I just started and album about our house as it is now since we are moving next year to an other house. So here the both are.

I made a spread... yes a spread, boy that was a long time ago! Pictures are made last year summer when the weather was great, sure hope we'll see some sun soon!

Some good news to share, Basic Grey's Infuse collection and Autumn Leaves the french twist die cuts arrived at Memory Lane!

Thanks for visiting!

So Happy...

2007-06-14T23:37:00.001+02:00

for you...is all I can think of to say to the person who is going to receive this card. I know you have been waiting for a long time!

This is my entry for the Dutch Dare of this week, brought to us by Céline Navarro.

Check out the Dutch Dare site and play along, it is SO much fun!

Thanks for visiting.

Have a good weekend!

In the summertime...

2007-06-06T08:50:00.000+02:00

couldn't find a more original tittle for this lo ;-) which was made for the Dutch Dares. Loved last challenge brought to us by Monique. Always love her work especially her "bird" creations.

Had a busy week with not much scrapping time, so for now I will leave you with this lay out.

**Edited**

I have been tagged again by Danielle. Usually I am not that fond of tags, but this one I liked. I have to name five of my favorite girls and boys names... so here we go...

Girls

Mei-Li
Ming
Maya
Jade
Ruby

Boys

Sean
Liam
Kai
Joshua
Samual

Ok, now I have to tag five other people... lets see...

Monique, Emine, Anniek, Charlotte, and Jeanet

Have a good weekend!

Memory Lane Projects May

2007-05-29T20:07:00.000+02:00

Yep, I am still here ;-)

Have been a busy bee lately. Our house is for sale since last week and I have been cleaning most of my spare time (tips on how to keep your house clean with a five year old are more then welcome ;-))

In between work, cleaning and social occupations I did manage to squeeze out a few projects. I will show you two projects today which I made for the Memory Lane DT challenge of may.

We received some great items again last month, a huge MDF letter made by Make Me, some romantic Daisy D papers and sweet ribbons. The wallhanger is made after an idea of Corinne Delis as seen in a Dutch scrapmagazine.

It took me quit some time to figure out what to do with this big letter, but now I think I need more LOL.

I have some great ideas in my head with these letters for my new scraproom.

I could not help myself from using some gorgeous Hambly, foam Thickers and happy bloomers on the projects too. All these products are available here.

The DT girls made some amazing projects, if you'd like to see you can have a look here.

The next Dutch Dare will be online tomorrow, we have a very talented guestdesigner again ... she loves anything with wings, curious? Check the Dutch Dare blog tomorrow!

Thanks for visiting!

This weeks Dutch Dare...

2007-05-18T19:49:00.000+02:00

was so much fun to create... We had a very talented guest designer this time Vivian Bonder. The assignment she gave us was to create a lo about something you would miss should you ever leave your home country a little extra was to use paint. Of course I would miss my friends and family most, but trust them to come and visit us often LOL, therefor I choose some food (where did I get that idea LOL) that I would really miss... I love cheese, but now a days you can get that in most countries, I even ate Gouda cheese in Nanjing... one thing I have never ever seen anywhere else though is "boerenkool" (farmer cabbage??) and that is one of my most favorite winter dishes... along with some "rookworst" van de Hema (a Dutch shop which I would miss too).

I started some projects last week but didn't get the change to finish anything, I started a new job two weeks ago and it is absorbing all of my energy at this moment... will make it up in a few weeks I am sure...

Wishing you all a great and sunny weekend!

You Made Me Complete

2007-05-07T13:37:00.000+02:00

Feels like I haven't been very creative lately :-( Had some busy weeks and some more to come...

I did create this layout a few weeks ago for the DT challenge of April for Memory Lane. It was made with a kit of beautiful Autumn Leaves papers theme for the month was "Mother". All materials used you can find here. Curious what the other girls made with it? Take a look here.

Hope to be back soon with some more creativity to share, wishing you all a good week!

Today could not have been any better.

2007-05-03T20:12:00.000+02:00

I finally had some time to do some ironing while Mei-Li was playing with her friends next door and also had lunch there. It feels good to have some clean clothes in the closet, but no, that is not what made my day...

It started with the mailman, he delivered some envelopes not with bills, but with some beautiful cards for my birthday, made by the girls of the Memory Lane Design Team.

Then while I was having lunch the doorbell rang,

through the window I saw the orange silhouette of the mail delivery van... my long expected order for the clip it up arrived!!!

But that was not yet it... also an order from Memory Lane with some gorgeous foam and felt thickers from American Crafts , some stunning bloomers and chipboard flower, great felt beads (and some more ;-))))) arrived!!

Late in the afternoon I had a job interview with a company I'd already been to last week... guess what... I HAVE A JOB!!! And not just a job, a job I really wanted!

I had a GREAT day, of now to clean my scrap area and to hang my stuff on the clip it up LOL!

Better late...

2007-05-02T22:26:00.000+02:00

then never...

I was late with this weeks Dutch Dare.

Had a busy week having job interviews. My husbands and my birthday and in between Queens day.

As usual early this morning I checked the Dutch Dare blog and was again surprised by all the creativity I saw there!

Curious? Check out the blog and join us!

Also received an other tag from Tanja so here it comes;

Two Names You Go by

Mir
Jammie

Two Things You Are Wearing Right now

flip flops
jeans

Two Things You Have in a Relationship

love
trust

Two of Your Favourite Things to do

scrap
shop

Two Things You Want Very Badly At The Moment

time
holiday

Two Pets You Had

dog
cat and many more...

Two Things You Did Last Night

answer birthday phone calls
sleep

Two Things You Ate Today

bread
cheese

Two People You Last Talked To

Marcel
Mei-Li

Two Favorite Places

desk
bed

Two Things You're Doing Tomorrow

ironing :-(
job interview (keep your fingers crossed for me)

Two Longest Car Rides

Tuscany
south of France

Two Guilty Pleasures

French Cheese
liquorish

Two Things that Make Me Laugh

Mei-Li
a funny movie

Two Things I Last Got in the Mail

bills :-(((
newspaper

I am not gonna tag anybody, If you like to fill in this tag please go ahead, leave me a comment and I'd love to read it!

That's it for now, have a great day!

Weird facts about me...

2007-04-26T09:01:00.000+02:00

Last week I was tagged by Danielle, she seems to think I have some weird characteristics to share ;-) Ok, lets see how far I get LOL

I share her fear for toenails, they look too naked without polish. Actually I don't like them with polish either, not my own, and not my loved ones, let alone strangers toes. Strange thing is though I always have to look at them.
In bed I completely cover myself with blankets, only my nose sticks out, when it gets too warm I put one leg on the blankets.
When I get nervous I pull hair out of my eyebrows.
I am addicted to spicy food. I can last a few days without, but then put chillipaste on my sandwich.
I do not like to watch tv unless there is a good movie on.
I have a phobia for noises, too much noise makes me nervous.(leaving me without eyebrows LOL).
I do have a drivers licence, but am afraid to drive the car on the highway (waving at Mandy ;-)
I talk to myself too, not only when scrapping... but now I wonder if that is weird as most scrappers who got this tag gave this answer ;-)
I hardly ever use my newest papers for a layout, somehow I like them way too much to cut them up, I love to look at them for a while, usually after a month or two I can part with them (meaning some new stash came in ;-))
I have this urge to touch/feel any artwork with structure. I once touched a piece of art in museum that had such a nice dark fluffy black look, it turned out to be charcoal spray painted in some way. They were not happy with me.

Ha, that was easy! When I try a little harder I am sure I can come up with more LOL! Now am I weird?

I have to tag ten more people, but everyone I know has already been tagged, so if you visit this blog, and like to share your weirdness then please let me know in the comments, I'd love to hear from you!

Have a nice day!

Daring Wednesday...

2007-04-18T08:35:00.000+02:00

again... this time the assignment was NOT to use any prefab papers or embellishments. I made this lo about Mei-Li's passion for collecting uhh... well anything basically. I bought her this little pink basket so she could keep her "treasures" in there. Of course it had to be filled right away, and look what she found, guess I had to explain the word "treasure"first LOL.

We would love to see your layouts, come and play the Dutch Dares with us! And who knows you might win a RAK sponsored by Memory Lane Scrapbooking.

Thanks for visiting, have a great week!

Today four years ago...

2007-04-12T16:11:00.000+02:00

in a room on the 38th floor of a hotel in Nanjing China, there were two nervous women waiting for a precious gift. One hour earlier then expected the phone rang, a lady on the other side said they arrived... In to the hallway we went MIL with video camera all set... then we heard the elevator opening just around the corner, one of the women started to cry, the other couldn't stop trembling... some cute sounds came our way...

In case you are wondering DH could not come, he had a collapsed long and in the midst of the SARS period the hospital didn't think it was a good idea for him to travel :-( And yes, we have a great video of the ceiling and walls of the hotel ;-)

Today it is four years ago I became a mummy in a far away country. Mei-Li was not exactly happy with us, she cried for hours and did not wanted to look at these big eyed white women. Luckily that all changed :0)

This lo is made on a bathroom tile, I used loads of alcohol ink, pearlex and embossing powders. I also used a red thread, this is a Chinese proverb often used by families adopting from China.

An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstance.The thread may stretch or tangle, but will never break.

The little baby in the picture needed some time to get used to us, her new home and all the attention she got. She grew to be a happy five year old, who sometimes drives me nuts :0)) (see trashcan) And I love it!

Have a beautiful day!

6 years...

2007-04-06T14:45:00.000+02:00

ago, we said yes. Yes to a life together as husband and wife. Six years already, six years with down, but mainly up times... Here is what I just got... Ain't he sweet?

Things have been a bit hectic here lately. We are selling our house and I've been busy cleaning this week, who knows me knows that I am not very good at that and I am not so fast either LOL.

Now that it is all done I thought I deserved some scrapping time, so here is what I made. Papers are Cosmo Cricket Dutch Girl letters are American Craft Thickers which I outlined with black marker.

Wish you all a happy Easter! Thanks for visiting.

Almost time again...

2007-04-02T09:02:00.000+02:00

For the Dutch Dares here is my sneakpeek for DD # 11. Make sure you check the Dutch Dare blog Wednesday morning for a great challenge by one of Hollands most talented scrappers! Now if that didn't make you curious...

I'm back ;-))

2007-03-23T11:10:00.000+01:00

Ok, I might still sound like a seal, but feel much better since yesterday. Finally got some scrapping done too, boy did I miss that (talking about addictions LOL) Lo made with my all time favorite papers BG, letter lol where traced over from HS letters and cut out of felt, flowers are matted on felt too. I LOVE that stuff, it is so versatile, colorful and last but least not very expensive, so what is there not to like :-)) I bought it from the MLS shop, it comes in all kinds of nice and bright colors, saw there are some great felt beads in the shop now too, fun to use on a mini album! Be back soon with more creations. Thanks for visiting!

Birthday and flu...

2007-03-21T14:53:00.000+01:00

We had it all these last two weeks. Mei-Li celebrated her birthday Friday in school Saturday at home with good friends and lots of presents :-)) So far, so good, the day after the party she got the flu, the next day it hit me, and by Tuesday there were three of us on the couch and in bed :-(( It's been years since I last had flu and almost forgot how bad it is... Luckily things start to get better now and all we are left with is a bad cold now. Hopefully that will disappear soon too!

Because of the flu I was not able to finish this weeks Dutch Dare in time, I did check the site this morning and did see some stunning work there so, if you have the time check out the site and join us!

Hope to be back soon WITH some new creations, thanks for visiting!

The Whole thing...

2007-03-08T09:04:00.000+01:00

Wont be teasing you any longer LOL. This is the lay out I made for Dutch Dare # 9. I only used Bazzil a stamp, a Hambly rubon (hardly to find anymore) and a LOT of soufle pen. The other girls made great projects , want to see or play along? Check this link.

Ok, no scrapping for me the next few days, Mei-Li is having her 5th birthday tomorrow and Saturday we will have a house full of friends. So of to do the cleaning and shopping now...

Have a great weekend!

Been creative...

2007-03-05T10:17:00.000+01:00

Ok, Marcel left for Germany again yesterday afternoon, Mei-Li was playing outside and went to bed early which gave me some creative time LOL. The purple one is made with some lovely Hambly I bought here.

Thanks for visiting and eh, do not forgot to check the DD wednesday!

Sneakpeek...

2007-03-04T14:23:00.000+01:00

A few more days till Dutch Dare #9! Make sure to check the Dutch Dare blog for great creations on wednesday!

Something old, something new...

2007-02-25T11:45:00.000+01:00

Always check the sale section of your scrapbook store... I do... Whenever placing an order for some new goodies I always check the sales section too. Very often you can buy some papers or embellishments for almost half the price... , they might not be new, but can for sure be used for a fun project! This little hart shaped (and more shapes) booklet is from Memory Lane, I used some old BG papers from their sales section to "dress" it and finally used up some of my own old stash too LOL (which was about time). It was fun using something old and something new.

Thanks for visiting!

DD # 8 is online!!!

2007-02-21T11:36:00.000+01:00

Check out these awesome mini projects!

MLS Desingteam assignment Februari...

2007-02-20T09:48:00.000+01:00

This is the lo I made for the assignment of the Memory Lane desingteam for February. The assignment was to scrap a secret love, to use felt, buttons and Autumn Leaves paper. I misunderstood the secret love part and scrapped a picture of an old love instead ;-)) I found this picture in the attic and needed to do something with it, as you might understand from the song lyrics Vincent is no longer among us. The picture was taken by Vincents father who is a professional photographer. Don't worry, it wasn't painful scrapping this photo, I am just glad I did.

The other girls made great lo's for this challenge... want to see them?? They'll be here soon!

OK, a lighter subject... last Sunday I went to the desingteam lunch... had a great, little bit chaotic, day and finally got to meet Danielle, Daphne, Monique, Angelique, Mandy, Martine and Nicole. Nice to meet you girls!! Hope to meet Charlotte and Francine next time. Yes, NEXT time, Danielle just asked me to stay, thanks girl!!!

Thank you for visiting!

Which witch stole my sandwich...

2007-02-16T11:01:00.000+01:00

while taking these pictures of dd this morning I remembered this little sentence from English class...

Today Mei-Li and her classmates will celebrate carnival at school. Our little princess decided she wanted to be a witch this year ;-)) Have a nice day!

about snow and style ;-))

2007-02-10T15:13:00.000+01:00

Not much happened these last few day, Mei-Li is feeling a bit better although she still has a nasty cough especially at night :-(( Last Thursday we had snow for the first time this year, I am not much of a fan (do like to see it, but its way too cold and wet for me) but enjoy my daughters enthusiasm when she sees this white stuff falling from the sky. Despite the bad cold we put some warm clothes on and went outside to have some fun. Now ain't this the prettiest snowman you've ever seen???

If all goes well we'll be moving somewhere at the end of 2008 to a new house (yeh, I know that is far far away). I look forward decorating this new place (I'll be having my own scrappingroom :-)), I have learned a lot from the house we have now, and think I know better what I want and absolutely would never do again. For all the ''great'' ideas that come up from time to time I created this little book. Plan is to make a kind of style plan in this little album. Had fun creating it. The cover is made from a place mat bought at the Xenos, saw this great idea on Mandy's log a little while ago. The little white glittery letters are my new favorite product I guess, I have been using them on the last four projects I've made. I forgot whom they are from (always cut the top of the bag off) but they can be bought here. That is it for now, have a great weekend!

Flu, Coffee and Dutch Dares...

2007-02-07T09:22:00.000+01:00

Not in a hurry to bring Mei-Li to school this morning... she has not been feeling well since a couple of days and now I know what was wrong... think she has a flu or at least a huge cold :-(( Marcel went to Berlin again for work and will be back tomorrow... I've put the heating up high made myself a nice cup of coffee and checked the Dutch Dares Blog .

Girls you made some awesome layouts again!! I am sure this dare will be a big success; who doesn't want to scrap a good looking guy! Well got to go, I'll leave you with a layout of my own hunk.

Thanks for visiting!

An other two weeks went by...

2007-02-06T19:46:00.000+01:00

Every two weeks on a Wednesday, I am in a hurry to get Mei-Li to school, get back home as quick as I can... make myself a nice cup of coffee and turn on my pc to check the DUTCH DARES!!!

A good day after all...

2007-02-02T13:52:00.000+01:00

I am not much of a winner, but never say never...curious... check Monique's blog. Thank you Monique!

Hiep Hiep Hoera...

2007-02-02T12:56:00.000+01:00

this does not describe how I've been feeling these last few days ;-)) still have some trouble not smoking, it is not really the smoking I miss, but somehow I stay restless, on the other hand I am as lazy as can be, so have this sort of conflict with myself, are you still with me LOL?

Husband was out yesterday evening, Mei-Li was in bed early so time for me to scrap... after thinking for almost an hour I found this very original and striking title for my lo... needless to say inspiration was hard to find. Then I remembered seeing a sketch on Birgit's blog and thought I'd give it a try, not disappointed with the result at all. Perhaps I should use a sketch more often. Thanks for visiting and have a great weekend!

OK, OK...

2007-01-31T16:23:00.000+01:00

I could no longer resist!!! Been seeing these cute artsy cards on many blogs for weeks now... was having doubts whether to participate or not. But what the heck!! How long does it take to create a little card like this. Plus it will be a good way to use up all this stuff I have been saving for... well, what ever LOL! Had some catching up to do, but here are my cards for this month. Would like to know more about them??? Please visit the blog of Emily Falconbridge! Thanks for visiting

Happy Birthday Nicole!

2007-01-31T12:21:00.000+01:00

Have a great day! Send me your addy and I will send you the card. Sorry for the bad scan, my scanner doesn't like buttons.

Dutch Dare # 6

2007-01-25T19:22:00.000+01:00

Yes... it's already been two weeks since the last dare!!! Dutch Dare number 6 is online now!!! Please participate and take a look at all these great dares at the Dutch Dares blog! This one was a real challenge to me as I already made a lo for the DD about cheese with the tittle "say Cheese".

I would like to thank you for supporting me in not smoking, thank you for the nice comments on my blog and in my e-mail, it really helps me to stay strong, and it is nice to read I am not the only one who ever tried this ;-))It has been two and a half week now since I stopped smoking, therefor I bought myself a nice present at Memory Lane Scrapbooking since I am a guestdesigner for this online shop for the months januari and februari I made a layout with some nice goodies, I give you a sneakpeek now, as soon as it is posted on the MLS site I will show you the lo.

Last but not least... the contest at Scrappies ended and I finished third... not bad considering my competition. This is the lo I made for the final round.

Got to go now, should not even be here... have an infection in my shoulder since yesterday, did not ask the docter but somehow have the feeling I should not be sitting behind my pc (bad bad girl ;-)) Thanks for visiting!

Time...

2007-01-20T20:50:00.000+01:00

Guess that is my word for 2007. Not only the lack of to do all the things I would like to do, but also the management of time, the things I needed or wanted to do long ago... and the time to stop (smoking) bad habits...
This is what I found in one of my drawers waiting to be altered for a long long time... The papers where in my tray a long time too (yes D think I have an addiction for these BG papers ;-)) I loved them so much I just did not want to cut them up or put something over them, so this is what I did with them. Kept it clean and simple, and am quit happy with it ;-)) Thanks for visiting.

What is it...

2007-01-16T23:20:00.000+01:00

with children and MC Donalds??? It must be the presents in the happy meal right??? Last week when DH was out of the country for work DD asked me if we could go out for dinner, of course I said yes, little did I know where she wanted to go ;-)) Ah well had a great strawberry milkshake! Thanks for visiting!

Happy Birthday... dear Daphne!

2007-01-14T17:32:00.000+01:00

To you... I do not know you in person, in fact I do not even know you as an online person for more then two months... still you do have my interest... sometimes it is your "honest" journaling, and sometimes it is your artwork (think your art goes beyond scrapbooking) What I love in your work is your "artsy" way of looking at life... and your honesty.

This is what I made for you, I know you are a reader and a lover of art, hope you like it!

Regards,

Mirjam

Dutch Dare # 5

2007-01-10T10:39:00.000+01:00

Dutch Dare number 5 already, above my entry. Make sure to check out the Dutch Dare Blog , all number 5 entries are STUNNING! Thank you for visiting.

Angel Or Not?

2007-01-09T13:51:00.000+01:00

One more to share... Lo about DD who most of the time is a little angel, but sometimes all of a sudden turns into a little devil. Ah well that 'll change over the years... I hope ;-)) Thanks for visiting!

Your Sweet Smile

2007-01-08T19:29:00.000+01:00

My Creative Year has made a very good start, check this out

Memory Lane Scrapbooking

Thank you Danielle!!

Oh, this seems ages ago! While cleaning up my workspace I found this picture of DD... this is one of her first 'new' smiles after the surgery to repair her cleft lip... Aint she adorable??? Wish I could say the same of her today, first schoolday must have worn her out ;-)) DH left for Germany this morning (work) and will be back wednesday or thursday, Mei-Li to school, time for me to create HA! So check back in SOON!

Thanks for visiting!

Tagged, edited version...

2007-01-07T21:27:00.000+01:00

The results of my real first "being Tagged" by Danielle. Will make a lo with the answers SOON! Hope this helps you to get to know me a little bit better, any questions do not hesitate to ask!

A - Available or single: Neither, happily married
B - Best Friend: I know it sounds cheesy, but my hubby
C - Cake or Pie: cake, unless homemade applepie
D - Drink of choice: coca -cola light
E - Essential Item you use everyday: mascara, won’t leave home without it
F - Favorite color: Uhhh, clothing black, home black, off white and wood, scrapping anything bright !
G - Gummy Bears or worms: neither, don’t like sweets… the bears do look cute!
H - Hometown: Nijmegen
I - Indulgence: cheese and anything spicy
J - January or February: difficult, don’t like winter, but ok, february because of carnaval.
K - Kids & Names: one daughter Mei-Li
L - Life is Incomplete Without: my family
M - Marriage Date: 6th of april 2001
N - Number of Siblings: one brother, died 8 years ago, Ronald
O - Oranges or Apples: taste of oranges, but hate to peel them, so apples it is
P - Phobias or Fears: heights… and I am afraid of driving a car outside of the city, and last but not least things without legs brrrrr!
Q - Fav Quote: Dear Lord, please help me to keep my big mouth shut until I know what I am talking about.
R - Reason to Smile: Little things in life
S - Season: Spring
T - Tag 3 or 4 people: Give me a few days to think about this one...
U – Unknown Fact about Me: I love the 50's and 60's
V- Vegetable You Don't Like: cooked (do like it raw) endive
W - Worst Habit: smoking… but not much longer
X - Xrays: Too many!
Y - Your Fave Food: Chinese, Indonesian, Thai, anything spicy!
Z - Zodiac Sign: Taurus

One more to share...

2007-01-06T19:50:00.000+01:00

Otherwise my blog will look so empty ;-) Thank for visiting!

Tagged before but did not see it :-((

2007-01-06T19:46:00.000+01:00

In my last post I mentioned I had been tagged for the first time, but that's not true! While reading Danielle's blog today I all of a suden noticed I have been taged before! Sorry Danielle, I will make it up to you!

I've been Tagged!

2007-01-05T14:28:00.000+01:00

For the first time by Daphne. Now I am not such a reader (anymore) but did start a book a little while ago. I love the books of this writer since they tell a lot of chinese history in good stories.
1. Grab the book closest to you.
2. Open to page 123, go down to the fourth sentence.
3. Post the text of the following 3 sentences on your blog.
4. Name of the author and book.
5. Tag three people of your own.
So here it goes, sorry in Dutch only;
Lian rende de groene zee in en liet zich in haar armen wegzinken...Haar angsten, twijfels en zorgen verdampten. De grens tussen Lian en haar omgeving vervaagde.
Author of this book is Lulu Wang name of the book is Het Lelietheater, a short description of the book you can find here sorry, it is in Dutch only.
Three other people I tag mmm, let see... Mandy, Dawn, and Tanja Have fun girls!

DH in the picture ;-))

2007-01-03T22:17:00.000+01:00

this is a lo I entered for a contest on Scrappies a yahoogroup for scrappers I am a member of. It is the first time I made a lo about DH, and it didn't do bad, according to DH it's because of his pretty face ;-)) What ever it is, I had fun creating it, the assignment was to use paint, stamps and buttons.
TFL!

Happy New Year!

2007-01-03T11:26:00.000+01:00

Wishing you and your families a healty, happy and creative 2007!!!

Last creation of this year???

2006-12-29T19:30:00.000+01:00

Along with the stamps for the christmas cards I got an very handy, but ugly agenda from TNT Post. It has been sitting on my desk for a few days now, along with some old BG papers (bought way too many of these) I could not part with, but no longer wanted to use for my lo's. Here is what I came up with... You can click on the picture for a detailed look.
Papers BG, Ribon Hema, flower Xenos, big Brad queen & Co, gostframe Heidi Swapp, miscl. rubons, chipboard numbers Heidi Swapp (stamped on).
Thanks for visiting!

An other year went by...and a new Dutch Dare

2006-12-28T01:21:00.000+01:00

I am a christmas lover, always have been, think I count my years in Christmases not years LOL... We have had a great time with family, friends and with just the three of us. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas too! Christmas for me is a time of thinking, of bringing back long lost memories, and of creating new memories and traditions for our daughter who had the best time ever these last few days...
An other year over, and a new one (soon) just begon...
I did turn my pc of for the holidays but could not help taking a peek at some of my favorite sites, to my surprice there was a lot of posting and mailing going on... not me, I have been good, only entered the web once for no longer then twenty minutes!!!
Anyways... I did not finish the lo I mentioned in my earlier post, it is looking at me from my workspace and I am not sure anymore what it needs, so I will leave it for a while. What I did finish this evening is my take at the 4th Dutch Dare http://www.dutchdares.blogspot.com/
When I found this picture at the web I could not help myself from using it, I love old adds!
Thanks for visiting!
Have a great day,

Been busy

2006-12-21T21:23:00.000+01:00

Had a few busy days and a few more to come ;-)) Yesterday I made Christmas flower arrangements with some friends, quit happy with how they turned out. Did a little scrapping in the evening will show the result soon.
TFL!

First Lo posted!

2006-12-17T23:23:00.000+01:00

My last lo, made as an ode to Mei-Li's grandfather who always is there for her to play.

I did it, yes, I did it!

2006-12-17T21:36:00.000+01:00

Finally did it, I started my own blog, been thinking about this for a long, long time, finally had the time to play a little, don't completely agree with the tittle but it is the best I could come up with ;-)) Start posting soon...