Have you been trying something new while we have been isolated?  I have had a huge change in my creativity.  Teaching art and Powertex workshops is just not happening at the moment, due to all the restrictions and I needed something else to get my creative juices flowing.   I also had a major overhaul of websites, realising I was just keeping them on 'because', and they were serving no purpose at all.  I had to revamp the www.docreative.co.uk website as  this remains our primary source of training bookings and shop sales.  But my Scrapdragon website has now been discontinued as I realised I still had this free blog  with all the history attached.  This will now do for my ramblings and any freebies I want to share with people. So finally to the purpose of this first post in a long time.  While I was updating the websites, I rediscovered digital art and digital scrapbooking. Anyone who has ever read any of my diatribe and ramblings will know I was an avid scrapbooker previously

They say all things happen for a reason. However, we dont think of that when someting goes wrong, we only look on the downside. Two weeks ago I couldn't upload my new kit to my online digital scrapbooking store. I tried several FTP packages but gave up. Then It wouldn't let me log in to adminster the store. " The computer said no !" I left for a few days until I received and email from a customer ( I dont get many, customers that is not emails) who stated hat she had ordered items but did not receive the download link. Oh dear, there really was somethng wrong with the site and I didn't know how to fix it. What I did know was how to create a new site, the previous one was three years old and I must admit it had lots of unnecessary files in the back that I was unsure whether I could delete or remove. I also wanted to update the design but was unwilling to mess up a live working site. You know the old saying, "if it's not broke dont fix it", well not i

I have just got this lovely kit from Silly Beans Scraps ( www.getdigiwithit.com ) and just how versatile is this little kit! I loved the retro feel which was suitable for the old photo of my two nieces, Julie and Donna when they were children in the 70's and still look good for a modern photo of my tow cats cuddling up. I just adore the glitter papers in here!

Designs by Angel has launched a new kit today to celebrate Autism Awareness month. As I am on the design team I got a sneak preview and the opportunity to play. The riot of bright colours and diverse elements make this kit highly useable. Two full aphas make titles easy. The first layout is of my eldest granddaughter Amyleigh who now wants to be know as just Amy. The second brag book page is of a friend Nic on our night out to a casino. Two very different looks from one kit. You can get the kit on special HERE at www.Prettyscrappy.com

There has been a lot going on this week since we got back from wedding dress shopping in Burton. Friends and family have all been buying little gifts for our granddaughter Daisy. We have a load to take down to Lyndsdey and Gary when we visit Manchester on Saturday. I made some little Thank You cards with Daisy's photo on as a digital page using the NewLife Dreams Oh Baby kit (its georgeous; I love the little feathers and sparkles! ) After printing the layout, I have made lots of hybrid cards with paper and ribbons so that Lyndsey and Gary can write out the cards and post them out to all who have bought for Daisy. I also decided to sign up for the Race for Life. There are a few people at work doing it and I have never attempted it before. But as my mum is currently undergoing treatment for Breast cancer, the least I can do is try and run a bit and raise some money to support the Cancer Research. I am overjoyed at the reponse to sponsor me so far as I only set it up on 9th M

Well all I have to report today is that there is still no sign of our grandchild emerging. My daughter is now 10 days over her due dates and the newest edition to the family is still warm and cosy inside. It shows no sign of wanting to emerge and meet the family! Ah well. I have freebie quickpage based on my new Warm Olives kit available here if anyone would like it. The photo is of my eldest daughter and soon to be mother of our new grandchild. (when the monkey takes the cork out!) Enjoy, I would love to see what ypu do with this quickpage.

After a weekend of waiting near the telephone for our grandchild to appear I spent most of the time loading up clothes on to ebay. These are not mine but my mothers and mother in laws who need a bit of spending money. I was sick of ebay (and waiting!) when I saw the challenge on UK scrappers to scrap in red and black to celebrate the Chinese new year and to scrap an animal. What a perfect colour scheme to scrap this photo of Akira, one of my daughters kittens. The journalling says: Akira was abandoned in a box a few days old. he was named Akira after a Japanese Manga warrior. With such a name, it is sweet he stil sucks his paw when he goes to sleep. I used my favorite Crimson Gypsy kit again.

While I have been sitting waiting for new of the impending birth of our new grandchild, I have been playing with photoshop . This is another one of the quick page designs created with the lovely Crimson gypsy kit from mglscraps. I added the photo later. Well I will create some more while I wait for news. Although we are hoping it may be a planned delivery on Friday 23rd January! fingers crossed all goes well.

You get those times when everything seems to go wrong, the cat is sick and it is looking serious and expensive. Mother in law is very time demanding as she recovers froma long illness. My mum has to go for further test and is worried sick. My dad is upset as his pet guinea pig died at the weekend. We seem just to be lurching from one crisis to another. I am not sure who our new year 'first foot' was but they are definately sacked for next year. As a form of stress relief I have been scrapping when I have spare time. I have enjoyed creating quickpages and have loaded some freebies on the website HERE I have realised that the photos screw up my design processes. so I have designed the page first with just a place for the photos and then find a photo to fit in the design. I know it seems like I am scrapping backwards but it works for me, This one was based on a free template available from digi shop talk forum and using the wonderland kit from createwings.