Aunty Vera Scrap and Craft

Funny Foto Friday - Bill Visits the Staples Centre

2012-03-01T16:56:00.000-08:00

Well, wrapping up this series of Bill's LA holiday, here are a couple of pics from Bill's absolute favourite day. You see, Bill is a Melbourne Storm bear, so he's really into sports. Can you imagine his 'barely' concealed excitement (haha) when he visited the Staples Centre?!

I did get a few funny looks when taking this photo but hey - Bill wanted to have his picture taken with the giant Magic Johnson statue....no matter who laughed at him!!

Then lunch....

....at ESPN Zone of course! Where else is a sporty bear to eat. He was BINGing all over the place.

Happy Friday Scrappy Bloggers.
Hope you all have a lovely weekend ahead

Aunty Vera :)

Words on Wednesday - All About the Journey

2012-02-28T22:48:00.000-08:00

Hi Scrappy Bloggers!
Welcome to Words on Wednesday..... having some fun with quotes, titles and journaling.

My son is currently working on a school assessment about the concept of journey in various texts and this has involved the two of us sitting at the computer researching quotes about journeys that he could use in the opening of his speech. Which led me to think...wow, these would make really good scrap layout quotes and titles. So today I'm going to share a few with you. These are great for travel layouts as well as documenting our journeys through life...

"To get through the hardest journey we need take only one step at a time, but we must keep on stepping"
Ancient Chinese Proverb

"Not all those who wander are lost"
J.R.R.Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

"Memory is the basis of every journey"
Stephen King, Dreamcatcher

"The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page"
St Augustine

"There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign"
Robert Louis Stevenson

"A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step"
Lao Tzu

"The journey not the arrival matters"
T.S.Eliot

"When you have completed 95 percent of your journey, you are only halfway there"
Japanese Proverb

I could keep going - there are so many great quotes out there on journeys and travel.
We'll have words again next Wednesday!

Happy Scrapping
Aunty Vera :)

Sneak Peek Sunday - Easter Baking!

2012-02-25T16:55:00.000-08:00

Hi Scrappy Bloggers!

I've just unpacked some really fun Easter themed baking supplies. Are you ready for a sneak peek..???....

Cupcake cases, stencils, even party bags! I had to have some fun with them and try some out. And why do the cupcake cases look a bit floppy on those cupcakes? Hmmm...word of warning - don't use pretty cupcake cases when making mini carrot cakes. The denseness of that type of cake darkens the cases too much. I then had to sit the cooked cupcakes in a second case. Live and learn...lol.

You can find these gorgeous new kitchen 'toys' right HERE in Aunty Vera's Kitchen.

I've got the baking bug now. Off to bake some brownies.....

Have a great Sunday!
Aunty Vera :)

Funny Foto Friday - Beverley Hills High Tea - Bill Style!

2012-02-23T19:17:00.000-08:00

Hi Scrappy Bloggers!
Running a bit late with the Funny Foto this Friday. We're actually enjoying a hot summer day in Sydney so I've been getting some 'outside time'!

Well, here's Bill again. Remeber him!? On our recent holiday to LA, Bill joined us for afternoon tea at Simon LA. It was a trip planned many months in advance as we "oohed" over the menu online here in Sydney. Not quite sure what the waiters thought of Bill as he checked out the menu....

And can you believe what he ordered..??!!!!!!!!....

He was going "BING!!" all afternoon after that sugar feast!
But on a serious note - we shared this "Afternoon Tea Platter" between 4 of us and still had leftovers. It was just AMAZING!

Now, that's a good start to the weekend isn't it!

Have a good one!
Aunty Vera :)

Sneak Peek Sunday - Ruby Rock It

2012-02-18T15:09:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Sneak peek Sunday - where I give you a bit of a peek at what's coming soon.
In this case...VERY soon as this collection will be ready to ship by mid week.
I'm so excited! It's the Vintedge Collection from Ruby Rock It!!

Seven double-sided papers (200 gsm - you could actually call them cardstocks)....

{Check out my pre orders aisle to see them all}

An extremely gorgeous die cut......

Border stickers...

Imprint stickers...I just love love LOVE these embossed and foiled stickers!! ...

And co-ordinating paper twine....

Got the creative bug going yet?
These can all be pre-ordered now and will be ready to ship by Wednesday 22nd Feb.

Happy Sunday!
Aunty Vera :)

Funny Foto Friday - Meet Bill

2012-02-16T17:40:00.000-08:00

Hi Scrappy Bloggers!
Well, it's been a while since we had a Funny Foto Friday so....meet Bill.
He lives on Bill Hill.

Bill is one of those bears who has a voice and a personality. Though he DOES keep reminding us (whenever he is thrown across the room) "no nerve endings - no pain".
Bill recently went on a trip to Los Angeles. Well, he stowed away in our luggage and then decided to hide in the hotel room through most of the holiday ("I am SHY" he says). But he did enjoy one day out and about in the city. Here he is again waiting for the Tourist Bus to get going...

I have a few pics of Bill on his "Big Day Out"...enough to make him a little holiday album of his own!
And I reckon he'll keep us entertained over a few more Funny Foto Fridays!

Have a great Friday - and a wonderful weekend

Aunty Vera :)

Valentine's Day Scrappy Style

2012-02-13T22:56:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I did have bigger plans for some lovely Valetine's scrapping, but then somebody stole my calendar AND my clock and ...well....where DOES the time go?? lol

So with literally 2 minutes up my sleeve and a Valentine's Day Dinner Table looking a little bit glum - or, truth be told, a heap of Lindt choccies with nowhere to go - I grabbed a champagne glass and scrapped it up a bit.

A strip cut from My Mind's Eye Love Me - Numbers Grid, a heart shape cut from some red cardstock and a bit of kitchen twine. Pretty!

Now I wonder how long those chocolates will last?

Have a LOVEly day!
Aunty Vera :)

Valentine's Day Lolly Jar

2012-02-07T21:27:00.000-08:00

Hi Scrappy Bloggers!

I've been searching everywhere for pink and white lollies and finally found some...at the movie theatre of all places.....when I went to see The Muppets on the weekend (yeah, yeah, go on and laugh).

Pink and white M&M's! Just what I needed for this little Valentine's lolly jar...

I found this cute little glass jar at my local discount store. I've jazzed it up with some paper from the Echo Park Yours Truly 6x6" paper pad, a 90mm doilie (which I actually cut to pieces and re-made a smaller doilie with!) and some pink and white ribbon.

I just had to use the little 'home made candy" advert from the same 6x6 paper pad. It's also featured on the larger 12x12" Newsprint page.Vintage ads on scrapbooking paper......I love it!

Aunty Vera :)

Australia Day

2012-01-25T19:08:00.000-08:00

Happy Australia Day Scrappy Bloggers!

Where are YOU spending the day?

Been There Done That papers are perfect for your Aussie themed pages.

Where ever you may be today - have a wonderful day.
Enjoy the company of your family and friends. And take lots of piccies!

Happy Australia Day
Aunty Vera :)

New Owls Glittered Paper

2012-01-23T02:45:00.000-08:00

How gorgeous are these?

Our new Owls Glitter Paper has just arrived instore and they are just oh-so-cute.
With three different designs in the collection, there's a page for every hooty occasion...

Adorable!

Happy Scrapping
Aunty Vera :)

Echo Park Yours Truly - Valentine Cupcakes

2012-01-20T22:41:00.000-08:00

A rainy Saturday afternoon.......it's CUPCAKE making time!!

And keeping with this week's ongoing Valentine theme - I prettied them up with little Hearts on Sticks.
Which brings me to my favourite item in the Echo Park Yours Truly Collection - the 6x6" paper pad:

These pads are just perfect for paper hoarders (like ME!). They have 24 pages of 6x6" papers - that's 2 pages from each of the designs in the collection. So handy for card making and for other little paper projects like these hearts. I simply cut the shapes out using a heart shape stencil and threaded them onto bamboo skewers.

Oh, and I had to 'bling up' at least one of them, didn't I??!!
Red Spotted Heart features 2mm Ruby Red Sticky Bling

Have a great weekend!
Aunty Vera :)

Echo Park - Yours Truly

2012-01-19T21:47:00.000-08:00

Some more love love love as Valentine's Day approaches.
Echo Park Yours Truly is now in store.

Craft Fairy's definitely going to have a play with this one!!

Happy Creating!
Aunty Vera :)

My Mind's Eye Love Me - Valentine's Card

2012-01-18T01:16:00.000-08:00

Hi Scrappy Bloggers!
Well, I was 'subtly' reminded the other day (thanks Mel!) that Valentine's Day is fast approaching. So today I sat at my very crowded work table, moved aside a couple of Jurassic Piles of off-cuts, paperwork, stickers, postcards (you name it, it's all on my table today!!) and made a little Valentine's card.

I used paper from the My Mind's Eye Love Me collection - the 'Numbers Grid' design. These double-sided papers are so gorgeous....both sides are just love love love! The little heart is actually cut from the reverse side of that same Numbers Grid sheet.

I added a Tim Holtz Game Spinner to the heart because......well, just because I love them! And that's reason enough isn't it!

Here's a look at more papers from the Love Me collection -

Banners:

Doily Banners:

Love:

Numbers Grid:

Pink Hex:

And Stamped:

Love them? I sure do!! They just says Valentine's all over. And they're all available in store now.

Happy Scrapping!
Aunty Vera :)

Bo Bunny Zoology

2012-01-16T20:23:00.000-08:00

Ok, so unpacking that Big Box of goodies...and I couldn't help myself.....I had to start with the Bo Bunny Zoology collection.

We all have too many zoo photos put aside to be "scrapped one day" don't we? Well, I know I do. And on my recent holiday I visited San Diego Zoo so that's about another....mmmmm....dozen.....2 dozen....lol....photos. Now this collection is just perfect! Check out the paper:

That's the 'Zebra' page. The collection features 10 double-sided prints as well as cut-outs, stickers, chipboard - even a mini album:

How cute is that!? Then to embellish your creations, there are clear stamps for the stampers...

...die-cut designs for the Paper Junkies (that's me..lol)...

Brads for the Dimension Lovers...

...and my personal favourites - TRINKETS!

Aren't they just gorgeous? These cameo-style embellishments are a great way to add a touch of distinction to your projects.

Inspired yet? You can find the Zoology collection HERE.

Happy Scrapping!
Aunty Vera :)

Back to Work...and the Arrival of the BIG BOX!

2012-01-15T20:14:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's been aweful quiet on the Aunty Vera front hasn't it!?
I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and a great start to 2012.

I spent most of December away on holidays with my family. We went to Disneyland, San Diego and Los Angeles (with a little side trip to Vegas). Very exciting! But also very difficult getting back into work mode after that. So here is a good way to kick start the year...

It's the arrival of the BIG BOX! Filled with amazing new goodies!!
Sneak peek for you...

Think Bo Bunny 'Zoology':

Echo Park 'Yours Truly':

My Mind's Eye 'Love Me':

Excited? I am!
These collections will be uploaded to the website over the next couple of days.

And I'll be back tomorrow with some more Scrappy News.
Aunty Vera :)

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T21:18:00.000-08:00

25 Days of Christmas - December 23rd

2011-12-23T17:11:00.000-08:00

Have you checked out the gorgeous downloadable project instructions on the Echo Park Paper blog page?
I especially love these Holiday Trees:

Download instructions for this, as well as other super cool projects, RIGHT HERE.

Happy Last Minute Christmas Crafting!
Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 22nd

2011-12-22T07:53:00.000-08:00

Hello Scrappy Bloggers
On today's 25 Days of Christmas post, I thought I'd share this great project idea I found on the We R Memory Keepers website:

A great idea for last-minute holiday decorating craft!
More downloadable project ideas can be found on the We R Memory Keepers downloads page.

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 21st

2011-12-21T07:34:00.000-08:00

Time for a Christmas recipe Scrappy Bloggers!

Gingerbread Men:

You will need:-

125g of softened (unsalted) butter
2/3 cup of brown sugar
1/4 cup of golden syrup
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup white chocolate melts
Silver cachous, to decorate

Easy to make:-

Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add golden syrup and egg. Beat to combine.
Sift flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon over butter mixture. Using a wooden spoon, stir until just combined and a soft dough forms. Place dough on a lightly floured surface. Knead gently until smooth. Shape into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.
Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Line 3 baking trays with baking paper. Roll dough between 2 sheets of baking paper until 5mm thick. Using a 6.5cm-long, 7cm-wide gingerbread man cutter, cut shapes from dough. Re-roll dough scraps and cut to make a total 30 gingerbread men. Place, 2cm apart, on prepared trays.
Bake 1 tray at a time for 20 to 25 minutes, or until just firm to touch. Stand on trays for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Place melts in a heatproof, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on medium-high (75%) for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds or until smooth. Spoon into a small snap-lock bag. Snip off 1 corner. Pipe faces and buttons onto gingerbread men. Decorate with cachous. Set aside to set.

More wonderful Christmas recipes can be found on the TASTE website.

Happy baking!
Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 20th

2011-12-20T20:08:00.000-08:00

Only five more sleeps till Christmas, Scrappy Bloggers!
Have you finished your Christmas shopping...wrapping...card and tag making...??
I seriously need to get some tags together for my 'Christmas in a Hotel Room'. So what are my chances of taking a leaf out of Tim Holtz's book and getting some amazing tags like this happening..?..

Haha - not likely from ME this year. But I love love love looking at these. Check out more of Tim Holtz's 12 Tags of Christmas on Tim's blog: http://timholtz.typepad.com/my_weblog/2011/12/12-tags-of-christmas2011.html#more

Happy card and tag making!
Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 19th

2011-12-20T08:58:00.000-08:00

Isn't it funny being on holidays? You forget all about your calendar!!!

So, with apologies - hello Scrappy Bloggers, from YESTERDAY! (lol)

Every year - when I'm at home - I like to make one gingerbread house. I only ever make one because making them is such an event in itself, so every year one special person in my life gets a home-made gingerbread house for Christmas. well, not this year....it's a bit difficult making gingerbread houses in a hotel room. So this is the best I could do......

I found this gorgeous house (or should I be calling it a village!!??) outside one of the beautiful stores in Old Town, San Diego (the 'birthplace' of California). How gorgeous! Hmmm...imagining the suitcase surprise at the other end if I try to bring it home!!

Happy Holiday Baking!
Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 18th

2011-12-18T22:10:00.000-08:00

I just love these gorgeous little tags with storage box from Stephanie Dagan at Crate Paper...

For full tutorial instructions check out the Crate Paper blog RIGHT HERE

Happy Christmas Crafting!
Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 17th

2011-12-17T20:42:00.000-08:00

Aunty Vera has just spent a couple of days in Las Vegas. Funnily enough, no scrapbooking stores or anything papercrafty to be found!! I DID however come across some very pretty Christmas decorations in one of the hotel gift stores. So in the spirit of the 25 Days of Christmas.....

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 16th

2011-12-16T08:41:00.000-08:00

From Aunty Vera's last day at Disneyland - here are some magical Christmas pictures...

Am I going to have fun scrapping my many, many, MANY photos of the Disney Castle and fireworks? You bet! I may be needing some of these....

MiJeMoo Design's Fireworks paper. Perfect!

Happy Holidays Scrappy Bloggers!
Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 15th

2011-12-15T08:29:00.000-08:00

Dreaming of a White Christmas.......

25 Days of Christmas - December 14th

2011-12-14T07:51:00.000-08:00

So who was missing from my Disneyland Christmas Parade pictures?

Oh, of course!! It's not a Christmas Parade without SANTA!!!!!!

Happy Holidays Scrappy Bloggers!

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 13th

2011-12-13T06:50:00.000-08:00

Hello again Scrappy Bloggers.
Today I thought I'd share some moments from the Disneyland Christmas Parade.
There are giant Characters galore....

...classic Christmas Icons...

....some Christmas baking...

But someone's missing here....hmmm, who could it be??
I'll tell you tomorrow (lol)

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 12th

2011-12-12T20:26:00.000-08:00

Christmas Decorations at Disneyland...

Mickey Baubles are everywhere...

...in all sorts of colours and designs ....

I love the red and whites.....

Wondering if these will survive the suitcase...??...

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 11th

2011-12-11T16:55:00.000-08:00

Hi again Scrappy Bloggers! I am currently on vacation....at Disneyland, California!!
So I thought I would continue my 25 Days of Christmas by showing you a few fun Christmas-ey things that I've come across over here. Like....

...Santa's Reindeer...

... and all their treats...

... for reindeer AND kids! ...

I'll show you more tomorrow ;)

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 10th

2011-12-10T17:02:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.......when you see THESE guys hanging around...

Santa's Reindeer. Starting to look a bit busy!

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 9th

2011-12-09T17:15:00.000-08:00

FREE! It's a beautiful word. Who doesn't love something free? Especially when it comes to scrapbooking and Christmas. Our friends at Echo Park Paper Co. have some gorgeous Holiday downloads available on their website. Like these adorable little gift bags:

Project Downloads for these as well as heaps of other great projects available here:
http://echopark.mybigcommerce.com/projects/

25 Days of Christmas - December 8th

2011-12-08T18:19:00.000-08:00

Remember when those old classic Christmas cartoons were on TV every Christmas?
Here's my favourite....

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 7th

2011-12-06T12:35:00.000-08:00

Today I'm going on a little trip. Well, a big trip. I'll be hopping onto a plane here in Sydney this afternoon - the 7th of December. And I'll arrive about 13 hours later in Los Angeles at about 10 am - on the 7th of December. It's almost like time travel!

And in keeping with our 25 Days of Christmas theme....... look like someone else's form of transport??

(thanks to dragonart.com for the piccie!)

So I'm off, Scrapbooking Friends! I was thinking of keeping on Sydney time, but that's going to get way too hard. So look out later today...yesterday...right now...(oh I'm just confusing myself now!!!)....as I repeat today and continue the 25 Days of Christmas on LA time.

See you on the other side!

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 6th

2011-12-05T13:56:00.000-08:00

A card for St Nicholas' Day:

I love the St Nick page from Crate Paper's 'Peppermint' collection! Here I've cut a piece of it and used foam dots to sit it on one of the accents from the same collection's Accent Cuts. Doilies and Pearl Sticky Bling Runners give it an old world charm.

Happy Scrapping.
And for those parts of the world that celebrate it - a Very Happy St Nicholas Day!

Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 5th

2011-12-04T16:23:00.000-08:00

Thought I'd share a little something yummy today :) We make these every year at Christmas time - they're so easy to make and everybody loves them.

Mini Chocolate Puddings:

In a large bowl, crumble up 200g of fruit cake. (That's about 1/2 of a store-bought fruit cake)
Melt together 125g dark chocolate and 60g butter (unsalted of course)
Mix melted choc and butter through the crumbled fruit cake. If you want to make an adults only version, also mix in some brandy or rum.
Roll tablespoons of mixture into balls and refrigerate.
When set and nice & cold, make up some white icing to drizzle over the top and decorate with sparkly sugar balls or chopped red & green glace cherries.
Pretty!

Happy Baking!
Aunty Vera :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 4th

2011-12-03T13:17:00.000-08:00

Have I mentioned how much I love love LOVE the Simple Stories '25 Days of Christmas' collection? These vintage Christmas inspired designs are just so gorgeous. And the paper is so thick and strong that it's also perfect for off the page projects. So I thought I'd make a little Christmas gift using a sheet of 'Peace Love Joy' and a pretty paper doilie.

It's a Christmas Treat cone.....

...filled with yummy Chrsitmas choccies!

I love this chipboard snowflake from the 2Crafty 'Christmas Assortment 1' pack. I painted it a lovely sage green and then sprayed it with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist to add a bit of sparkle.

My Uncle-in-Law is going to love this!

(: Happy Scrapping :)

Aunty Vera

25 Days of Christmas - December 3rd

2011-12-02T13:26:00.000-08:00

Gift wrapping......are you the Mad Night Before Christmas type of wrapper who is up till the wee hours wrapping all the gifts you had hidden in the back of the wardrobe and forgotten about? Or are you the Organised Wrap Them As You Go wrapper who kicks back and enjoys Christmas Eve knowing they are oh-so organised?

Me? I'm definitely the President of the Mad Night Before Society!! But this year we're holidaying over Christmas so I'm having to do everything a little differently. And that includes gift wrapping nice and early for our pre-trip Family Christmas Get Together. So I'm finding myself wrapping Christmas gifts during the first week of December. Unheard of!!!!

There IS quite an advantage to being this organised. You can actually take your time and add extra touches and little bits of sparkle to make your gifts look extra pretty. And who says Sticky Bling is only for scrapbooking?

I know - it doesn't show up very well in the photo (Bling is VERY camera shy) but I have scattered 3mm Diamond Sticky Bling all over the cellophane of this pretty parcel to give it some sparkle. Looks really special.

(: Happy Scrapping :)
and Happy Wrapping!

25 Days of Christmas - December 2nd

2011-12-01T12:56:00.000-08:00

December 2nd - let's make Christmas cards!

I've had SO many conversations this last week standing in the Post Office queue - all about Christmas cards! My local post office is a great place to queue up - as you make your way down the queue, you walk along a wide aisle with baskets and stands on both sides featuring the latest items for sale. And of course at this time of your, it's Christmas cards and diaries. So looking at the packs of (rather expensive) pre-made Christmas cards, some of which ARE quite gorgeous but most of which are really not so special, I've been chatting with my fellow customers about how easy it is to make your own. So I thought it was time I get my act together and practiced what I preached!! lol

And really, they are quite easy to make, especially if you set yourself out Production Line style and have the same basic template for all your cards. This year I'm using a sheet of A5 red cardstock as my card and a sheet of Peppermint Accent Cuts from Crate Paper as my feature picture. One sheet will get you 12 cards if you use all the accents. Where a base design is needed, those papers are also from Crate Paper (that's the 'St Nick' paper with the Night Before Christmas quotes in the top picture) and this Stocking Card above features Stockings are Hung from the Echo Park Holly Jolly Collection.

I'm also using a lot of doilies and buttons and foam squares this year. Once I'm on a roll.....lol

How is YOUR Christmas card making going??

(: Happy Scrapping :)

25 Days of Christmas - December 1st

2011-11-30T12:59:00.000-08:00

For those still in disbelief that today is already the 1st of December...... slowly walk away from the computer...lol. Ok, so the time has just flown and we've been really busy here in Aunty Vera Land, and as the end of the year comes screaming towards us like Santa's Sleigh with brake failure, let's start counting UP to Christmas with our 25 Days of Christmas...

December 1st. In my home it's the day the Christmas tree goes up. This year is a bit different though - as we are taking an extended holiday and won't be home for Christmas we've decided to not put up our tree this year. So I'll be bringing you some other trees very soon. I've got a pretty special one in mind but it will have to wait till next week.

December 1st is also the day for putting up the Advent or Christmas Countdown Calender. I've made this really cute Christmas Countdown Clipboard using papers and stickers from the Simple Stories 25 Days of Christmas range.

Every day I'll remove one of the numbered cards as we count up through the days till Christmas....

Enjoy your day. We look forwards to seeing you again tomorrow.

(: Happy Scrapping :)

Last Day of Spring

2011-11-29T12:40:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone - today is the last day of Spring and here in Sydney, Australia it's going to be hot, hot, hot with showers and thunderstorms. That's Springtime going out with a big BANG!! And more of the same on the way through Summer I dare say.

Don't you just love the Farmer's Market range from Crate paper? I especially love this 'Produce' design. Says spring and summer all over doesn't it?

Have a great day - stay cool, stay dry and don't forget to join us tomorrow for the start of our count down to Christmas!

(: Happy Scrapping :)
Aunty Vera

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas....

2011-11-26T22:45:00.000-08:00

Join us from Thursday.... December the 1st (YES, December 1st - and where did NOVEMBER go??) as we count through the 25 Days of Christmas.

There'll be Scrappy Stuff to inspire you as well as some off-the-scrappy-track Christmas goodies. Christmas decorating ideas, Christmas food, and hey - we might even bring you a little bit of Christmas from a fun part of the world.

I can't wait!

Simple Stories Generations - Birthday Card

2011-11-21T01:54:00.000-08:00

How's this for quick and easy....

Simple Stories Generations Journaling Elements #1
Maroon Linen Cardstock
Photo Corner Brads
And for a bit of bling..... 2mm Rainbow Sticky Bling

And you're done! Now where's the cake...?? :)

His Birthday

2011-11-20T01:17:00.000-08:00

Alison Ellis "What Birthday' has just been reduced to clear at Aunty Vera's. This gorgeous range is just perfect for your birthday pages....

The 'What Birthday' range includes designs embossed with silver metallic foil or overprinted with glitter. I love the glittery cupcakes!

I've cut out cupcakes from the 'Party Border' page and adhered them with foam dots for a 3D effect.

And don't forget to add some journaling, or a date or number, to remember 'Which Birthday' in years to come :)

Christmas Chipboard Wreath

2011-11-13T03:04:00.000-08:00

I had a bit of fun this week working on this 'off the page' project...

I love the Christmas Wreath Kit from 2Crafty - it has so many possibilities.

I started by covering the 'baubles' with some pretty Christmas paper and using a good old-fashioned emery board to file the edges clean. I then painted the rims with gold paint.

I then worked out positioning and glued the baubles onto the wreath base.

I like to use Tombow glue for projects like this as it has a super strong bond.

I found a gorgeous feather garland at my local Bed Bath and Table and carefully glued it around the back of the wreath.

Looks lovely from the front now!

Now all that was left to do was to add a few decorations for that bit of bling-ness....

The Santa and Sleigh is from the 2Crafty Mini Santa Sleighs cardpack (coated in gold glitter) and the Merry from the 2Crafty Merry Christmas card pack (painted red and the Dimensional Magicked).

Halloween Treat Bags

2011-10-29T22:27:00.000-07:00

SSHHH!! Don't tell my kids! Look at these cute Treat Bags I just made for them...

I've used paper and embellishments from the Authentique Glowing Collection. Just love love love those papers! And the die-cut quotes from Glowing Icons and Glowing Noteables are such fun to play with!

And I've used those spider brads again - just 'cause they're so cute :)

As well as the obligatory treats, each Treat Bag also includes one of the Clear Cards from the Pink Paislee Hocus Pocus Clear Card pack. These are gorgeous printed cards that can be used as overlay embellishments in your scrapping. But you know what? I reckon my kids will just love them as bookmarks!

Halloween Lanterns

2011-10-25T04:02:00.000-07:00

I took some time today to have a little play.....

Halloween Lanterns! They were such fun to make using Pink Paislee's Skeleton Soiree paper. It's double-sided so I got two different looks from the one sheet.

I used this cute 2011 tag from Authentique's Glowing Noteable and stuck it onto an orange blossom.

Don't be scared when you look inside this lantern....

....it's the skeleton from the same Skeleton Soiree paper sheet!

Oh look! It's a Creepy Crawly Spider Brad!

I cut these little tags from Authentique's Glowing - Lustrous paper.

Such gorgeous papers - they're too pretty to be scarey, aren't they!!

Sultan - and how Authentique's Glowing Collection is not just for Halloween

2011-10-21T01:46:00.000-07:00

A big thank you today to Michelle Phillips of NSW for sharing her absolutely beautiful layout - 'Sultan'

Michelle used Luminous and Enchanted from the Authentique 'Glowing' Collection for this gorgeously textured page. Stunning!

Doggie Treat Jar from We R Memory Keepers

2011-10-19T02:34:00.000-07:00

How cool is this oh-so-easy to make treat jar? Thank you to the clever team at We R Memory Keepers for the Project Instructions.

We R Memory Keepers 'Friends Forever' collection available at Aunty Vera's

Enjoy Every Day!

2011-10-13T22:51:00.000-07:00

Well, I reckon you know by now that I'm a Scrapper of the 'Quick and Simple' variety. And just to prove it..

I just love this photo of my Kiddo in the back yard. It's just a quick snapshot taken spur-of-the-moment, but it's such a happy picture. So after it had it's time in a frame, I wanted to keep the page about the photo, not about what pretty things I have in my Scrap Stash.

I've used Been There Done That paper. The background sheet is actually the reverse of South Australia Titles and the flowers and stripes from Tasmania Blue Gum and Tasmania Stripes. And I've never even been to Tassie!! lol

Foam Dots under the top flower give a bit of dimension.

Oh yeah - and that stitching is fake :)

Scrapbook Tragic Part 2

2011-09-26T02:12:00.000-07:00

I've just finished telling Hubbie that a TRUE Scrap Tragic plans her photos around the gorgeous new paper/embellishments/{insert your tragic scrap weakness here} that she just saw and HAD to have.

Well, I'm not normally one to do the Halloween thing. But after unpacking the latest 'Glowing' range from Authentique Paper...well, let's just say I'm planning a bit of spookiness cause I just gotta...wanna...have-it!!

Here's a bit of a sneak peek...(don't be scared now)..

'Enchanted' - my absolute favourite paper from the Glowing range....

'Headlines 2' - and titles are done and dusted! ....

'Excerpts' for some clever quotes....

'Notables' for that extra added Boo-ness.

Aren't they just gorgeous? And they're all double-sided so just that much more fun to play with.

You can find the complete collection here

Father's Day Cake

2011-09-04T03:31:00.000-07:00

Hope all the Dads out there had a great day! It was a perfect Spring day here in Sydney and I'm sure we weren't the only ones who took advantage of the wonderful weather and sat outside enjoying a barbeque lunch.

Now MY hubbie has run off to the watch the Storm vs the Roosters so the question is......

Do we eat the Father's Day cake in his absence??....

You bet we do!!

And he took his Samsung Tablet to the footie so reckon we might just send out a tweet to let him know how YUM it was....lol

Funny Foto Friday - Aunty Vera gets ripped off by the Daffodil Day People!!

2011-09-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

....or "the longest blog title I could think of"

As many of you know, last Friday was Daffodil Day. The day where stalls pop up all over Australia selling bunches of daffodils and other daffodil merchandise with funds going towards cancer research and support services.

Well, like I do every Daffodil day, I bought two bunches of daffodil (one for me and one for my lovely neighbour). They looked just lovely on Friday morning, sitting in their Daffodil Day Stall buckets.

Here they are on Saturday morning....

YIKES!!!! The amazing 24 hour daffodils. Totally worthy of the FFF Award!!

Welcome Spring!

2011-08-31T21:03:00.000-07:00

Springtime is here at last with promises of sunshine and warmer weather.
And great outdoor photo opportunities!

Who Let the Bunny Out?
In memory of Hungry Bunny: 2005 - 2011

Funny Foto Friday - Of Chocolate Chip Cookies and the Melbourne Storm

2011-08-26T02:57:00.000-07:00

Funny things are always happening at my house. Especially at night.
Boy did I get a fright this morning when I walked into the kitchen, still half asleep, and for just a moment thought that was a huge RAT on my kitchem bench!!
But no - it was only Storm Bear. Trying to open a packet of chocolate chip cookies.

Why the knife you ask?

I asked him the same thing.....

...his answer..??......

...."no opposable thumbs!!"

Bling for a King

2011-08-25T02:55:00.000-07:00

This one's a bit overdue, but I had to share...

When I unwrapped my stash of TPC Studio's Grandma's Attic collection...especially when I saw the gorgeous chipboard mirror stickers...I just thought, "ooh yeah - Hall of Mirrors, Palace of Versailles". Good thing I'd been there in my past, huh!?

Well, those pics were just calling out for all the bling, weren't they. That's a bit of Rainbow Sticky Bling at the top left hand corner.

Now the Tattered Angels say that "anything is mistable" and I have to agree!
Here I have misted some white paper daisies using Glacier Glimmer Mist.
Pinned them to the page with my awesome NEW (! yay!) Flower Pearl Brads (and a cute little rhinestone brad from my personal stash). How pretty is that!?

I let loose with the flash on this shot to get the full effect of the mirror...

LOVE the Grandma's Attic collection. This page background is the reverse side of "Collectibles".

And the mirror is from the Grandma's Attic Chipboard Sticker Pack

Royalty on a page!

Are YOU a Scrapbook Tragic?

2011-08-24T00:33:00.000-07:00

I'm still laughing....Got an email yesterday from a man who had just discovered my website and was about to show it to his wife. He described her as a 'Scrapbook Tragic'. Well, there's a bit of the tragic in all of us isn't there? What's YOUR scrapbooking addiction? Me..? PATTERNED PAPER!

Simple Stories - Elementary. Gotta...Wanna...Have it!

Yep, I LOOOOVE patterened papers. I see a new collection, go all "ooh, pretty" and I've gotta have some. I have way too many sheets of paper than I'll ever know what to do with but I can't help it. Hey, one day I WILL have just the right photos that need to be scrapped on that really obscure sheet that luckily I put away before the whole collection went out of print and now I have the only one left in the whole wide world!! lol

Until then, can I paraphrase and bastardise something I once read in one of those 'quote a day' calendars:- You know you're getting old when you realise you're going to die before you get a chance to use up all that paper you've been collecting!!!!

So - What's YOUR Scrap Vice?

Secret Pockets and Other Fun Things

2011-08-15T02:56:00.000-07:00

I love to have little secret messages, pockets and fun bits on my pages.
Here I used the MiJeMoo Personalised School paper from Winston Heights Primary School to make a half page pocket (simply use Xpress It tape (or your favourite adhesive) to stick down the bottom and side edges and voila!

Embellish the pocket - or keep it simple with just a matted photo - and you have a perfect space to store those bits of memorabilia that you don't want to be gluing down in your scrapbook.

Winston Heights paper available on my website: http://www.auntyverascrapandcraft.com.au/p/273/School-Dayz---Winston-Heights-Public-School-Blue.html

Or use year and colour specific MiJeMoo School Days paper - heaps of these pages are now in the Clearance Aisle of my website for only $0.60 a sheet! Here's the Year 5 in Darks Green....

Rainy Days

2011-08-10T21:22:00.000-07:00

I don't know what it is about my family, but all we need to do is say the work 'barbeque' and it starts to rain!
I have a great collection of indoor rainy photos that were supposed to be outside days.
Here's one - Fathers Day 2005. We planned a 'b'-word so of course it rained cats and dogs...and water too! What can you do?!

At least it presented a great opportunity to try out my new silver raindrop brads.

Also in that pic is a blue umbrella brad. Aren't they just so cute?

The 'Fathers Day' I wrote using My Little Shoebox Sprinkle Glaze Stickers. They are so great when you want all of the glitter with none of the mess!

Also in that layout - Little Yellow Bicycle (Generation Z) paper, and other bits from my personal stash :)

Funny Foto Friday.

2011-08-04T20:25:00.000-07:00

Afternoon tea on the back deck.

I don't know if I should pull out the 'Friends Furever' paper...or the HOSE!!!!!!

Woof

2011-08-01T23:57:00.000-07:00

No products from my store to showcase here....just a doggie layout I thought I'd share :)

Funny Foto Friday.

2011-07-29T00:19:00.000-07:00

The Chicken of Doom!

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-07-28T03:31:00.000-07:00

Here's a little Easter page I FINALLY got round to scrapping...(lol)....

I love the movement of Little One in the photo on the right. Thought he needed a bit of whimsy and dimension, so I added a fluttering butterfly...

I'm into paint at the moment...painting everything!
Paint and chipboard and Dimensional Magic - yay, love it!

This page uses:
* Ocean Blue Colour-cord cardstock
* MiJeMoo Designs Easter Little Eggs paper
* MiJeMoo Designs Easter Skinny Words Green paper
* Ocean Blue Blossoms and brads
* 2Crafty Swirly Corner

Wednesday.....What Would I Do Without.....

2011-07-27T00:19:00.000-07:00

It's Wednesday...

...and what would I do without my Messy Mat??!

Somehow I STILL managed to get paint on myself and on the wall!

Tim Holtz!!!

2011-07-17T18:08:00.000-07:00

Tim Holtz is coming! Tim Holtz is coming!!!

Well, not in person (wouldn't THAT be exciting) but a big box of gorgeous new Tim Holtz products is on it's way to Aunty Vera's. Definitely a case of one for me...one or the shop...one for me....lol.

Here's a sneak peek at what's coming...

TICKETS:

STICKERS:

TISSUE TAPES and RIBBONS:

And HEAPS more! I feel like Dorothy......lions and tigers and bears...OH MY!!!!!

I'm not a card maker, but....

2011-07-13T23:47:00.000-07:00

I'm not usually much of a card-maker but give me deep purple and shiny silver and I'm going to give it a good try. Helped along by the fact that nearly everybody I know seems to have their birthday in July!

Here's one of a whole heap of birthday cards I just made. All sort of the same but all a little bit different. This is the Aunty Vera Lazy Version - the little birdie didn't quite fit in the silver frame but hey - who's going to notice. I won't tell anyone if you don't (lol).
I used gorgeous Alison Ellis Design 'a Formal Affair' papers for the background - Black Tie Hearts and Lounge Suit Script.
The silver frame is a Delish frame from my own private stash and inside it is a little birdie card topper from Hunkydory (Birdsong).

The butterfly is also from Hunkydory - Springtime Elegance: Flights of Fancy. These are just so much fun to use. Pop out the pre-cut silver foiled butterfly and stick it down with your favourite adhesive. Then pop out the matching acetate butterfly shape and adhere that over the top for a winged effect. I folded the wings up just outside of the central 'body' part of the butterfly shape so even after going through the post this butterfly will still have it's pretty wings a-flight.

Quick Footy Page using 2Crafty Chipboard Word

2011-06-03T21:26:00.000-07:00

I'm a terrible Craft Procrastinator. I constantly have at least half a dozen projects in progress scattered about. So every now and then I pick up a photo and say to myself "ok, quick, simple page with this one" if for no other reason than to experience the joy of completing a page in one sitting....and clearing a piece of my craft table! And sometimes simplicity is all you need.

A sheet of grungy boy-look paper, a 2Crafty chipboard word (in this case 'FOOTY'), some red and yellow paint, an off-cut of ochre cardstock, co-ordinating ribbon and simply black alpha stickers.

Voila! Boy footy page all done.

I always have heaps of fun with chipboard - I think it's the Finger Painting Monster in me!!

I also added a layer of Dimensional Magic to the Footy word - just to give it a bit of gloss and that nice 3D-ness (now there's a new word!)

A beautiful card surprise!

2011-05-26T00:20:00.000-07:00

I got the most lovely surprise in the mail yesterday.....a beautiful card from Yvette at Ellie's Unique Invitations. Yvette specialises in baby showers - matching hand-made cards, gift tags, stationery and even bonbonnieres. But other themed specialty cards are also catered for and Yvette will happily work with her clients to achieve their special unique dream-cards.
Have a look at the gorgeousness:

I love the recurring butterfly theme and that glittered chipboard butterfly is so sweet...

Layering and overlapping of flowers, plus glitter and bling give the card texture and dimension....

Ellie's Unique Invitations is located in Cranbourne, VIC.

http://www.elliesuniqueinvitations.com/

email: yvette.groen@bigpond.com

Something Old, Something New - Scrapping a Vintage Wedding Photo

2011-05-15T19:52:00.000-07:00

When I found an old b&w photo of my Uncle and Aunt's 1965 wedding day, I just had to give it a page of it's own! I wanted to keep the page fairly simple as this page is totally about the photo - not about how many pretty goodies I have in my Scrap Stash!

The page uses something 'old' - Alison Ellis Design 'Precious Moments - Forever Silver' and 'Precious Moments - Special Day'. This range is an oldie but a goodie and can be found in the clearance aisle of my website. And something new - bright and shiny and brand new in fact....PEARL Sticky Bling Runners.

I love the bling runners - they're so easy to use. They have a self adhesive backing and can be cut to size so placement of strips of bling is just so simple. Each pack has 2 runners in it, and the runners are about 30.5cm long. I've used only one runner on this page.

Coloured Pearl Brads are here!

2011-04-27T19:44:00.000-07:00

8mm coloured pearl brads have just arrived at Aunty Vera Scrap and Craft.
Some really great colours to suit heaps of different themed layouts and cards. They all feature round coloured pearls in a silver brad. I'd tell you my fave but I love them all!

Try teaming them up with paper flowers to add a bit of bling to your layouts.
This is a part of a wedding page I'm working on...

Quick and Easy Easter Card

2011-04-08T03:44:00.000-07:00

Here's a cute Easter card using the Jack & Jill Easter paper.
And it's super quick and easy to make :)

Card uses:
* happy Easter Jill paper
* cream colour-cord cardstock
* Brights grosgrain ribbon
* 32mm sage daisies
* 4mm diamond Sticky Bling
* 6mm Xpress it double-sided adhesive tape

Celebrate! with Jack & Jill

2011-04-02T20:22:00.000-07:00

Prima 'Celebrate! with Jack & Jill' papers have just arrived at Aunty Vera's. These double sided papers are just perfect for Easter layouts and cards.

A Formal Affair

2011-03-25T20:08:00.000-07:00

Alison Ellis Design has just released a new range of papers!
A Formal Affair features rich and elegant colours and designs embossed with gold and silver foil.
Here is a sneak peek at some of the papers in the 'Cocktail Dress' colour scheme. Just gorgeous. Unfortunately because of the foil they do not photograph well. Add to that being squished into your computer monitor....well, picture on the screen just does not do them justice!

doilies, doilies, doilies...

2011-03-15T03:48:00.000-07:00

Doilies are back at Aunty Vera's.

In packs of 25 and available in 6 different sizes you'll be wanting a pack for the craft room, a pack for the kitchen and a pack just because they're so gorgeous!

Pre-order them here: Aunty Vera's Doilies

Aunty Vera goes BRAD MAD!!

2011-03-08T17:09:00.000-08:00

Heaps of great new brads have arrived and I've been having lots of fun unpacking, photographing, uploading into the shop....and of course planning MY brad projects :)

Some great themes are now in store - pencils, crayons and paint splashes for your pre-school and first day of school layouts; heart and wedding brads for LOVEly cards and layouts; and of course a great range of Easter brads because time, it does fly, and that bunny will be hopping through here before we know it.

Time DOES fly!!!

2011-03-07T22:29:00.000-08:00

OOPS - Is it March already?

Ok, ok, I have no excuse. But really, how did it get to be March when only yesterday I was unpacking Christmas chipboard? Very bad Aunty Vera!! Well, let's try again then.

Not an excuse I know, but things have been really busy in Aunty Vera Land with the e-rennovation of our new-look website. A work in progress - but life always is. Amazing how long it actually takes to move products from one e-shelf onto another. But the main work is almost done and looking very pink :)

We'll be adding great new goodies every day. And keeping you updated through our blog (yeah, yeah, let's not go there!)

Rudolph card packs just arrived

2010-11-22T19:25:00.000-08:00

Reindeers are pretty big at my place. With all the fun of the Silly Season, it's always the reindeer who are well and truly the silliest. Last year they got into our freezer on Christmas Eve when all the family were asleep. They ate some of the ice-cream cake, left a terrible chocolate ice-cream mess on the kitchen counters, and wrote crazy (and mis-spelt) messages on the kids' notes to Santa. Nothing sillier than a reindeer on a chocolate high!!

So I was pretty excited when I saw these great card packs from 2Crafty. Each pack has four 'Rudolphs' that can be used on your Christmas cards or layouts. With a bit of imagination you can really have some fun with these. I'm thinking napkin rings, place-cards....the whole Christmas table gone mad and silly with reindeers!

They are available now in my Christmas aisle.

:) Aunty Vera

Welcome to Aunty Vera's Blog!!

2010-11-21T01:46:00.000-08:00

Ok, it's big. It's scarey. But Aunty Vera has finally done it.
Welcome to my blog!!

Here you will find the latest and greatest as it hits the e-shelves. All my latest scrap and craft goodies as they arrive. Well, that's the plan anyway.
Also ideas and how to's - what to do with those scrapbooking goodies once you've bought them and added them to your stash.

And heaps of other fun stuff! Exclusive specials, competitions and give-aways. So keep checking back and tell your friends. It's going to be loads of fun :)