Aix en Provence, France

Here's a first! Posting from the iTouch in a hotel after a great meal in town. Can't upload pictures yet though.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

More Canals than Venice, More rubbish than Naples and now, more oil than Arabia.

A couple of weeks ago David applied to join the flotilla travelling down the Thames, through London, on the Queen's Jubilee next year.

Yesterday we got an email to say that we need to attend a rehearsal at the beginning of September.

The PLAN had been to travel down the Nene, Great Ouse and Cam this summer, but now we will have to cut it short and just do the Nene before travelling down to London.  Still it should be fun.

Great discussions.  We have a new moorer and they are discussing where she should moor her boat!  It was suggested that maybe she should put the boat in the gap between the boats!!!

Lilac card blank.  Green scalloped mat using Nestabilities.  Yellow circle embossed with Cuttlebug.  Decopaged pansies and a fluttery butterfly.

To finish, a large green gem.

Gas Street Basin, Birmingham

  Lots of fun on the moorings yesterday.  Another "marital" - although none of the parties is actually married!

An awful of shouting, screaming, crying, death threats and hiding in boats.  Never a dull moment in Gas Street Basin.
 
 One little niggle when we were "doing" the Droitwich Canals the other week. 

If I can see the next lock I usually walk to it.  In this case, I came to this wooden fence with a door.








This is the sign, which is quite acceptable.  The only trouble was



















The padlock was on the INSIDE and the padlock used a different key.  NOT the BW Watermate key.

The lock cottage was totally encased with a wooden fence (those boaters might want to walk around the lock) and I had to walk down the lane past the cottage, over the canal bridge and down the other side to get to the lock.

BW don't give a s*** about boaters yet again.









The only access to the lock is on the left hand side from the bridge, through another gate (thankfully this one wasn't locked).













I made this card the other day for a lady who has just graduated.  The original card was by Carole'Anne Sluchinski and you can find her tutorials here and here.  I changed the shirt into a blouse and added some black buttons and a pearl necklace and the scarlet and silver were her university gown colours. 













On the sentiment I was asked to add two storks carrying babies and two wedding rings as Francis, the recipient, had got married and had both her sons while doing her Masters Degree.

I made another panel for the back (not shown) for the personal sentiments. 

On the whole, I was pretty impressed with what I had done and (mainly thanks to Carole'Anne for her great tutorials) so did the recipients.

Gas Street Moorings, Birmingham

Went to Stratford on Avon yesterday for a mooch and noticed this sign in the basin.  Only 185 locks to London?  Must count them some time.

We celebrated 12 years on the boat on the 13th.  How the time flies.  And how much we have learnt in that time.  We were waterways virgins when we set off, with just the 2 days of the Helmsman's Course under our belts. I would certainly recommend the course for newcommers (and some oldies!).

Here's to the next 12 years.

Also noticed the sign above this shop.  Looks like a sentiment for a card to me.

Had to make a card for a lady who loved shoes.  David found a reason (not that he usually needs one) to chat up a shop assistant in Selfridges and he managed to get a Jimmy Choo card which they put in the boxes with the shoes.  I matted it onto some silver card and stuck it to the front of a deep lilac card blank.

On the inside of the "topper" I added the words which I printed onto some light lilac card, added lots of glitter and stuck it down on the inside.

Gas Street Basin, Birmingham

 Didn't take any photos today, so here is one from the Droitwich gathering.

David was up at 0530 and we set off (well, David set off, I was still in bed).  Just after he started the heavens opened and it rained all the way back until we got out of the last (very wet inside) tunnel.

We were back on our moorings at 0915.  Don't let me do 42 locks in one day EVER AGAIN!

Another early card.  I stamped the card and coloured it in then matted it onto silver and black card.

I cut some blue paper with wavy scissors and stuck the panel onto the bottom half of a light blue card.  The topper was then fixed over the join.

The sentiment says "A little bird told me!" and I used it for a congratulations card for an expectant couple.

Hopwood, Worcester & Birmingham Canal

 Left at 0445 and began the 42 locks we did today.  Another lovely day for locking and most of the locks were for us.  Lots of boats coming down the locks, which was good for us.

The ants had been busy at this lock, lots of tiny little anthills.

We met one boat coming down and the bloke told David to pass his boat in the pound!  Not take it up onto the towpath then.

We managed the Tardebigge flight in 4 hours again it began to rain as we got to the penultimate lock.

But it was on, on!  We finally got here at 1345 and went straight to bed.  At 6 we tried to get a meal in The Crown but they don't do food Monday and Tuesday nights, so it was back to the boat and scallops and bead and butter.

While I was still working for Birmingham City Council I made a card for the guy who does the Christmas Lights.  I found some pictures of  street decorations, a Christmas tree and some lights and made a collage on a white card blank.  Then I printed out the electrician onto card and cut him out, adding him to the card with sticky fixers.

Oddingley, Worcester & Birmingham Canal

 Because of the electricity we decided to stay for another day, so I went off shopping, of course.

I got back to find David on the waterpoint chatting up these girls.

Suddenly we need to be in Birmingham for Thursday morning so we set off at 1145 and did the first 14 locks.  The weather has been hot and sunny.  Lovely.

As you go up the 3rd lock by the Comanderie these soldiers are peeping over the bridge.
















A quick, easy and simple card.  I used a postcard, matted it onto silver card and then stuck it onto a 5x7" white card blank.


This card is for sale £2.00

Worcester, Worcester & Birmingham Canal

 I managed to keep David in Droitwich until this morning and we slipped out at 0615.  Even so one boat had already passed us before then.

We set off down the Barge Canal - a bit boring and very like a river.  Most of the time we were in a channel with reeds on both sides blocking out any views.

About 4 locks from the end the canal became covered in duck weed and the smell!!

We passed this lovely lock weir on the way.

The River Severn was reached by 1000 and we set off downstream to Worcester, mooring up on the river.  But there was a ledge and the gunnels were just underneath it, then a speedboat went past and we started bobbing up and down so we left after 15 minutes and moved into Diglis Basin.

We managed to sneak into the disabled spot and got some electricity so I did three loads of washing and we got the ironing done too.

Another Forever Friends card.  I used a white card blank with the fold at the top.  I used some brown and pink card which came from a cake box!  I cut some pink card using a border punch and stuck it along the bottom of the card and stuck it all down onto the card.  Then I cut two scalloped ovals in white and pink and added that to the card with the decopaged bear on top.  Three glass jewels were then fixed to the top right hand corner.

Droitwich, Droitwich Barge Canal

I am still getting over all those locks, it was early to bed last night (7pm!).

The weather has been really lovely again.  Hot and sunny.  One of the churches rang the bells in the morning and there were lots of stalls and stuff to see and do.  The town is also holding a music festival and there was a farmers' market today.

We were even visited by Caroline and Curtis (a very rare occurrance - only the 2nd time this yeyar).  It was a lovely surprise and they stayed for most of the afternoon.

There have been people walking the towpath all day - hundreds of them.  The whole of Droitwich must have gone past in the last two day.

We got hit really badly by the trip boat this afternoon - scraped all down the side of the bottom of the boat.  We are leaving tomorrow to give it more room.

Some decopaged pansies.  I Cuttlebugged a yellow circle and diecut a green scalloped backing and stuck them all together and then onto a lilac card blank.

A green "gem" was stuck in the bottom right hand corner, and the butterfly in the top right hand corner.  The butterfly has wings which flutter.

Droitwich, Droitwich Barge Canal

 Yet another lovely day.  There have been masses of boats, canoes and this car going past all day.  We got bumped a few times.

The official opening was at about 2pm - lots of bigwigs and speeches.

Now it is all old news.  And the queue in the beer tent was horrendous.

For this card I sued a peel-off which I stuck onto some white card and then cut out.  Then I coloured it with water colours before sticking it onto some yellow and then white handmade paper with the edges frayed.

I wrapped some yellow ribbon around the bottom and tied it in a knot and added the bird panel to a yellow card blank.