300 POSTS, a Give Away and The Birdcage List

Hi Everybody... this is my 300th post!!! Quite a milestone, and how far I have come since the first one... It was in January 2009, and that's a long time ago and far away...

To celebrate, I am organising a TH bircage swap and the details can be found at the very top of my blog, or here... I now have a list of more than 20 people, and the list follows below... I do hope no-one pulls out, but please only enter if you intend to make and send your birdcage... you STILL have nearly two weeks to get inky!!! The closing date will be 7th September, and we will all send out asap after that date.

On Tuesday 30th August, I will be drawing names for partners and letting you know who yours is...So it's now or never, leave your name on the list and join the mighty birdcage swap, you KNOW you want to!!!

Now for the give away - If you want to have an opportunity to own the tagbook which I made to go with the suitcase "Travel" challenge, then leave a comment here and I will make a random draw for that next week.

I am NOT giving away the suitcase, however, it's way too cute!!! The tags are stamped both sides, so you will get a double whammy, and I might add one or two more, as this is such a big milestone... Woo, I have never done this before, so not sure if any of you loyal followers actually WANTS to own any of my tags!!! Perhaps I should not presume... tee hee - but the offer is there anyway... phew!!

And now, that list in no particular order

1Vickie -okienurse                                                   
2 Elizabeth - silverscrapper
3Sarah - sasa                                                                 
4Julia - stamping ground
5Sherry - sherrysimplelog                                         
6 JenW - alteredspirts
7Kezzy - kezzycraft                                                  
8Neil - neelzexpressionsz
9Lyn - blackdragon                                                  
10Jona - artworks
11Sam - hettiecraft                                                      
12Nicola? - sunshinegirl
13Helen - stampingbyH                                              
14 Tertia - tertiacraftingran
15Cynthia - rainbow lady                                            
16DeeDee - deedee430
17Aj - fistfulpfglitter                                                    
18 Jude - craftsinternational
19Janet - dashpaw                                                    
20Jen - timeoutcrafting
21ElizabethR - craftyrobin                                          
22Alison - alison horne
23She - craftyshe                                                        
24 Mrs A - itsanalienlife
25Frankie - Dragon
26Anneliese - l'atelier
27 Jane
28 Hels

Sorry this has got so long, but that's the only way it would all fit in... If anyone wants to add themselves to the list, or I have missed you off, let me know before the end of Tuesday 30th August... likewise if you are pulling out - but PLEASE don't, because it's going to be awesome - and I don't use that word often!!!

So make your birdcage, leave a comment and most of all ENJOY!! I will be in touch with you all very soon...
Love and light
Frankie
xx

WOYWW - Travelling On... Simon Says!!!

Another day another dollar... oops wrong intro!!! But it IS yet another Wednesday in this fast retreating year!!! Soon be my birthday (the equinox, for goodness sake!!!) and sailing down the Nile!!!... but I digress - yes, it's that day when we all do lots of bunny hops to others' blogs, in order to snoop admire their tidy and creative desks, courtesy of the wonderful desk-headmistress, Julia...

So sit back and take a ride with me... bring a cuppa, cos I have gone to town this week!!!

 Desk with beginnings of the project on Sunday... beautiful sunshine ready for streaming through my window... we were at a jumping show, later, with the horse and she and Freddie did very well, whilst the rest of the family, and me, did really good at the picnic!!! tee hee...

 So, the larger of the pair of suitcases then, and generally inspired by my heroine, Laura Denison at Following the Paper Trail - actually, she designed a suitcase herself, and I have bought the pattern to make one ... it is bigger than this one, but the ideas are based on her's... I gessoed it inside and out, and gave it some texture... gosh did I get in a mess with the gesso AND paint!! Thank goodness for scrubbie!!!

 The texture shows up well on the lid...

 Next I painted it -yup!! you guessed, brown, cos all the old suitcases we ever owned at home were simply, always brown... now it's all that black fabric stuff and you can NEVER recognise your own case on that dratted carousel!!!

 Back to the plot... inspired by Laura again, I decided to make a mini album for the inside, from the TH Adage tickets leftover packaging!! Here is her You Tube link... great little video!!! the booklet uses envelopes, and mine are much smaller than hers...

So here is the inside of that ickle suitcase /valise... in the lid are pen bibs, tickets, a watch, a camera, a tag, a compass, a key and some scissors...

In the bottom is the mini book, all decorated up, with TH letters, coloured with distress inks...

Above are the two "pages" I have made so far... plenty of room for pictures and some journalling,with a pocket inside the envelope... great little project this one...

Here is a peek at the whole project... the suitcase with it's sewn leather taglet - not sure that's actually a word!!! with a TH ticket in there and a wanderer disc... actually it's grunge paper, but it does look real eh??!! The tag booklet is also backed with a leather-looking tag... below are all the other tags in the booklet/travel document...

So that's it for another week... I didn't win through at SSSS again, last week with my blingyfied piece, so let's hope I fare better this time, tee hee... At the end of the week, Travel will be the theme I have chosen at the Stampman, so this is a sneaky pre-view of my DT piece, and DragonsDream TIO's challenge is also Travel, cos I chose this week there too... I thought it was spooky that Linda and I had had the same thought...  well I MUSt go to bed now, cos I am getting less and less sleep!!!

Thanks SO much for coming, commenting, and looking and lasting this long, quite frankly!!! My tea has gone cold writing so I hope you kept sipping yours!!! tee hee

Love and light

Frankie

xx

I shall also enter this project into

Take a Word - old-fashioned

Incy Wincy Designs - anything but a card

Art Journey DT - anything but a card