Gas Street, Birmingham

There has been a lot of fuss around here recently, a Bollywood film is being filmed down by the Mailbox and the NIA. The towpath has been closed and people are jumping off the bridge into the canal and jumping over garden walls. What the ski jets are used for I dread to think. They didn't like any photographs being taken, but David managed to sneak this one.

I made this card for Baldish who is the Office Manager at our Doctor's surgery. The last time we visited she was looking very harassed so I thought a worry doll might help her.

I bought the doll when I was in Melbourne, Australia, though she comes from South America. She is supposed to take away all your worries.

To make the card I took a white, square card. I Cuttlebugged some white card and stuck it to the centre of the card. Then I put two strips of double sided tape along the vertical edges and sprinkled over glitter to make the strip.

I used my oval Nestabilities to make a white oval, which I embossed), a pink oval and a green scalloped oval which I matted up. I used the string which was attached to the doll to stick on the back of the ovals and stuck it down onto the card. The doll can then be removed and hung up.

Hope it helps.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

Anyone know who lives here?










Here is a clue.

Yes, it is BW Headquarters. They are going to have to move now though, we have found out where they live.

We went to London for the day and stopped off in Watford as David wanted to visit the BW offices for an article he is going to write.

It must be the only place with a Customer Relations Department where the customers cannot access it without much difficulty. Almost as good as our Customer Relations office in Birmingham which is only open between 1200 - 1400 hours during the week!

Sorry about the awful photographs of this card. I finished it very late at night as we were catching an early train the following morning and had to photograph it without a flash (the flash just bounced the light back).

David's younger sister Lil, and Joe her husband were renewing their wedding vows on their 40th wedding anniversary.

The colour of the card was actually a rich ruby red (matching the rose). I cut a diagonal piece of the top of the front of the card and then emphasised the diagonal by adding a strip of silver peel-off, then some black ribbon with black ribbon flowers and black beads in the centres. Finally and strip of white organdie ribbon with little hearts embroidered on it. I tied a heart pendant onto a bow made with the white organdie ribbon and stuck it down with a glue dot.

The bottom decoration was cut out with a Martha Stewart punch using the black music paper and to finish it off a "40" topper.

I covered most of the back of the inside of the card with black and silver music paper. A rich ruby red rose, covered in glitter is stuck down on the top right hand corner with another glue dot and the sentiment is a peel-off stuck onto more ruby card and matted onto silver mirror card with 4 ruby gems in each corner..

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

There was ice on the moorings this morning!!!!! Even in the bright sunshine it was cold today. Must get the winter coats from under the bed.

David took this photo of boats at Sherborne Wharf this morning.






Had some sad news a few days ago. My eldest cousin died at the very young age of 66. Blimey, that's my generation dropping off already.

This card was for his mother, my auntie and I made it using a couple of rub-on seedheads on a white, square card. I coloured the sentiment (which was silver) with a black Sharpie and added it to the card.

Nice and simple.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

Another picture detail of Swallow. Almost beautiful in its shabbiness.

We have been missing something at the moorings and it has taken a while to realise what it is. Woody our North American Wood Duck has disappeared.

He used to molt in the summer and looked just like a normal duck before growing his colourful feathers for the winter, so we didn't really notice that he wasn't around. But he hasn't been seen for a couple of months now.

And, something else we've not seen for days and days now. A policeman!

These are some of the Christmas cards I made for Michael of his boat St Christopher. They began with a white card blank. I cut out the large aperture using a Nestability and the Cuttlebug and then embossed it with snowflakes using the Cuttlebug again. I cut a smaller aperture in coloured paper and stuck it behind the white one leaving a small edge all around it. I then fixed the photograph behind this using sticky fixers so that the frame stood out. To finish off I stamped out three silver snowflakes, tow. in the top left hand corner and one in the bottom right. The centres of the snowflakes are made with clear glass gems.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

We have had a lovely sunny day today and David was out taking photographs. This is the chimney of Swallow. The rest of the boat is in the same condition. The owner died earlier on this year and no one seems to know what is going to happen to it.









Yet another commission and yet another challenge. The customer wanted to use the photograph of his boat but with the colour scheme of the recipients school.

I made another easel card. They can be so versatile and look really impressive. I wrapped some lavender ribbon around the front of the card and tied it in a bow.

David changed the colour of the boat in the photograph using Photoshop and I matted it onto white, lavender and black (the school colours) and finally silver card and fixed it over the ribbon with sticky fixers.

I finished off the card with a row of 6 lilac gems (they were straight when it was eventually finished!) and three lavender roses in the opposite corner.

I made a plain lavender and silver panel to go on the inside of the base for a personal message and another one for the front with a black sentiment peel-off and three more lavender roses.

The box I made with lavender pearlescent card and added some silver peel-offs for decoration.

Now I have to use the same photograph to make some Christmas Cards.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

An early morning start for Jan and Bowman - a 9 o'clock start! We helped them down the Farmers Locks, this time without any rain and a bit of sunshine towards the end.

By the time we got back all the policemen had disappeared and it was as if no conference had ever taken place.



I received an email a few days ago for a card for a 50 year old. I was shown a sample card, but I had to go one better!

This is what I came up with.

I made an large, blue easel card and added a patterned silver card with a scalloped edge onto some silver card. Then I added the black dress, fixing it with glue dots at the back. The dress was originally a Christmas tree decoration.

I made some slippers with blue, and silver card and topped them with black and silver handmade paper, finishing off with a blue rose. These were stuck under the dress.

Finally in the top right hand corner I die-cut a silver circle and a blue scalloped matt and stuck a silver 50 in the centre and added a blue rose to the top.



For the inside of the card, on the top of the base I layered up silver and blue card with scallops and decorated with silver peel-off strips. The sentiment was a silver rub-on.

Then on the bottom of the card that shows when the card is standing I matted some blue card onto silver card. The handbag was another Christmas tree decoration which was stuck down with glue dots and on the right hand side I die-cut a square in silver and two scalloped mats. The lady's name I added with silver peel-offs and added a pink rose to the bottom right hand corner (I had just run out of blue flowers).









Then I had to make a box to fit the card into!!! I made a blue box and matted a blue panel onto silver card and stuck it on the top of the box. A border of silver peel-offs was added and then I matted a small piece of blue card onto silver card and added the name with silver peel-offs.














Here is another view of the card. But I'm just showing off now.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

Bowman arranged for the Waterways Minister, Richard Benyon MP to come down to the moorings for an hour this morning. We arranged for a few moorers to meet him. He was blown away by the location, said he had no idea such a place existed. He was very interesting and listened to our suggestions and it may go some way to help him understand our plight.











Before he left, I handed him one of my cards which we had all signed. This is him looking at the card.










And this is the card. I matted the first photograph onto gold card and then made a pyramidge with more photographs sticking them down with sticky fixers.

I thought there was enough detail to just leave the rest of the card blank. Think it works.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

The Dorset Police checking for mines - or submarines - or on holiday for a few days.

The conference continues, there are smartly dressed gentlemen and ladies all over the place.








So a doggie card to get away from it all. An orange card blank with a pink panel which I Cuttlebugged. The photograph of the dog on a boat room was matted onto silver card and then onto orange card which has been scalloped before fixing to the centre of the pink panel.

And to finish off, three pink flowers in the bottom right hand corner.

Gas Street, Birmingham

I said there were a lot of Police about. Poor sods! It has rained almost all day.









This is the card I made for our son-in-law. He and Caroline had been to the Nurnburgring in Germany on their holiday this year so I found a picture of a BMW (their car) and decoupaged it a couple of times after matting the base onto silver, green and red patterned paper. I found the finish line and flags as a clip somewhere and printed and cut that out and stuck it on with sticky fixers.

The white base card was 3/4 covered with green patterned paper before adding the picture. The final touch were the three black dots. Why do they always look wonky in the photo, but not on the actual card?

For the inside I printed out a map of the racetrack and a happy birthday

Gas Street, Birmingham

Signs everywhere. The boats keep stopping, but the police officer hasn't turned up yet!

There are policemen and women everywhere, the roads are being blocked off and the police helicopter is roaring overhead. So it's nice and quiet here. We can't even park our cars in the pub car park until the conference is all over.






Sorry about the picture, I tried cropping it not realising it was still in the camera memory card so when I cancelled, it cropped off the bottom of the card. But I am rather pleased with it so I am showing it anyway.

I used photographs that David took at a Stourbridge Gathering a couple of years ago. I used pictures showing a car, a door handle, the "Austin" badge and a wheel (not shown). I matted them all onto silver mirror card and then onto green card. I also printed out the guy's name, age and a "happy birthday" and matted them in the same way before adding them to a blank white card.

Gas Street, Birmingham

Awaiting nb Rivendell in the Land of Mawdor.

A couple of months ago we had an email from friends who said they a were hoping to come to the Conservative Conference and if they brought their boat could we find room for it?

Of course, we said yes. There were a couple of spare places on the moorings, but being sod's law they had been taken up by the end of September. So we asked if BW could reserve the spot outside the James Brindley pub, which is not technically a mooring. We got the OK from BW and let Bowman and Jan know that there would be room for them. Sod's Law again - someone else was on the mooring on Friday when they were due!

Anyway we suggested we meet the boat at the bottom of Farmers' Locks to help lock them up. It was pouring with rain and we were a bit early, but we found a warm, dry cafe which perched over the canal and had a coffee while we waited.

We got them up the locks and found the mooring empty so they were all set up just as the rain stopped.

I have had several commissions lately - this one for a saxophone playing lady. The card began with a white card blank which I used landscape (with the fold at the top). I printed out some music paper and matted it onto yellow and black card and wrapped a yellow gross grain ribbon around it, tying it in a bow. This panel was stuck across the middle of the card. Then I printed out the picture twice and cut out the sax and the flames from one and stuck it onto the base with sticky fixers. This was then matted onto yellow and black card and I stuck than down with more sticky fixers. Finally I used some black peel-offs for the sentiment. I really should start stamping the sentiments, but I always manage to make a mess off it and ruin the finished card!