Gas Street Basin, BCN

Artists have been about in Gas Street Basin again.  I don't think these are official CRT ones though.

Not sure how long I can keep up blogging about being on our moorings without it getting booring, so I'll just post if I have something moderately interesting (I hope).

Please be patient.

For this retirement card I covered the right hand side of a light green card with daisy paper.  The lady was decoupaged and added over the join with a compass in the top left hand corner and the sentiment (done on the computer) in the bottom right hand corner.

Gas Street Moorings, BCN

It is surprising what you can see from the canal!

Last time to be up at 5am!!!!!  All the 23 locks were against us.  When we got to Farmers Locks the wind was really gusting through the tall buildings.  David normally stops the boat and closes the top gate before driving into the next lock, but the gusting meant he couldn't leave the boat between locks.  At the lock just before the BT tower he couldn't even get the boat into the next lock in a straight line.  There was a tsunami of water over the towpath from the propeller and I just managed to jump out of the way in time while he bumped his way into the open lock.

We opened the top gate of the top lock just as the chimes from the Brindleyplace clock chimed 0900 - 3 1/2 hrs from the bottom of the Aston locks.  Right at Old Turn for a pumpout and diesel and then back to the moorings for a rest, a swim in the Hyatt and then a nap.  Bliss.





I am proud of this card, I did it all on the computer (apart from the sequins).

Cuckoo Wharf, Birmingham and Fazeley Canal

A long day today, 11 miles and 14 locks.

It started with a beautiful sunrise, and then the weather steadily went downhill.

The locks were all for us (except one) and we never saw another boat on the move all morning.







This lock had a row of little yellow flags stuck across it.

  
And this is what they said.  So, was the gas pipe line dug under the lock before it was built?  Or did they dig under the lock?  And, who is going to dig there anyway?

When we got to Cuckoo Wharf there was room for a boat, though the sign did say "Permit Holders Only" we ignored it and moored up.


Only 2 boats passed us in the afternoon, quite a difference from the last two weeks.

This is a Thank You card.  Firstly I cut a piece of patterned paper and then embossed it to give it texture.  A piece of ribbon and a decorated edge was wrapped around it just over 2/3rds down and the matted onto white card.

This panel was then fixed onto a white card blank. 

The sentiment was made on the computer and added with sticky fixers and two gems were added.

This card could have almost any sentiment added though.

Fazeley Junction, Coventry Canal

Now that's what I call a planter!

Yet another early start.  I do appreciate it - eventually - but I do find it hard getting up in the mornings. We got through the locks quite smoothly and then went on the the two at Glascote.  Here we managed to meet a boat coming up on both locks. 

The man who lives in the cottage at the bottom lock came out and helped with the locks.  Quite a rare occasion.  Most lock keeper cottage owners turn their backs on the canal and resent boats using the locks (the one at the top of the Lapworth flight for a start).

By the time we were coming out of the bottom lock there were 3 boats in the queue to go up, and more kept coming as we sailed down to the junction, mooring up just short of the junction itself.

I caught a bus into Tamworth for a look see and picked our first blackberries on the way back to have with our melon.  Lovely.




The digi stamp is called Mikey, I have one of him playing the guitar and another with his girlfriend, but I like this one of him standing proudly by his VW.  I have used this one as a congratulations card, congratulations on passing the test, or just getting the car.

The stamp was already coloured so I die-cut it and matted it with a red label, adding the sentiment with sticky fixers.

Atherstone, Coventry Canal

Charity Dock - the place where boats come to die.

I got another lie in today.  Woo hoo!  I even missed that annoying swing bridge at Rose Narrowboats.

We arrive at the moorings above Atherstone locks and moored in front of "Granny Buttons".  A boat we seem to see quite often.  The first time we met her was in 1999 when we were still wet behind the ears and were moored in Millwall Dock, Canary Wharf for the Millennium.

I walked into Atherstone town which was quite pleasant and had a fried breakfast in a 1940s themed cafe.

I love making these kilt cards.  This one has some tartan paper fixed onto a white card blank.  The topper was made from white card matted onto black card.  The kilt is made by folding a enth of slightly curved tartan paper, the belt is black card and a silver square and a photocopy of a sporran.

The sentiment is printed on the computer and matted onto black card also.

This is another card that could be used for several occasions, a birthday, wedding (groom, best man) perhaps.

Hawkesbury Junction, Coventry Canal

The Greyhound, Hawkesbury Junction or Sutton Stop as it is also known.

Another early start (for some).  I had a lie in.  And we were at the junction by 0915.  A small queue to get through the stop lock and lots of fun with a 70' hire boat coming around the corner and a posh woman in a shiny boat who complained that their bow-thruster had broken.

We were moored up just past the water point by 0930 and await the arrival of the family.  The pub was busy and were given a private room upstairs overlooking the junction.  It was ideal, we could watch the boats manoeuvring the turn and the kids were not in anybody's way.  It was a lovely lunch.  I can understand why everyone has been raving over the food there.

The kids left a three o'clock and we walked back to the boat for an afternoon nap.

This is not a very good photograph of the card, it does not bulge where the string is wrapped around it.  Trust me.

I used a white card blank and cut a piece of duck egg blue, textured card.  I diecut the two feathers from light and darker duck egg blue card and added speckles with inks.  These were stuck to the card with a button and some blue and white bakers twine was wrapped around the topper and tied in a bow through the button. 

The sentiment was made on the computer and says "Happy Mother's Day", but it could say almost anything as this is such a useful type of construction.

Eastonhall Lane Bridge 34 - North Oxford Canal

A beautiful sunrise.

There were so many boats moored on the GU/Oxford bit of the that we seemed to be on tickover all the way.

A left turn at Braunston took us onto the North Oxford canal, which was slightly quieter.  The plan was to stop at Hilmorton.  I told David I wanted to have lunch at the Greyhound at Hawkesbury Junction and he suggested we asked the kids and grandkids to lunch too.  "When will we be there?"  "Day after tomorrow".  "OK!"  So he phoned them up and asked them to come tomorrow! 

So off we went to get within cruising distance tomorrow......

One of my Waterways cards.  The photograph is matted onto silver, yellow and red card.

Three banners were cut from silver, green and poppy  flowered card and stuck onto a white card blank.  The photograph was then stuck over that and a butterfly  added to the bottom left hand corner.

Lower Shuckburgh, Grand Union/Oxford Canals

The boat that has everything!

A quarter to six start and just as we were approaching the locks a hire boater asked to join us.  They were brilliant, Dad, Mum and 2 daughters plus Granny.  All helped with the locks and we were at the top of the Stockton locks well before their 9am deadline for the return of the hire boat.



We went on and did the Calcutt locks.  This is what the middle lock was like.

Fortunately there were boats coming down and there was enough water for us to come up.

Then it was on the Napton junction, a left turn and stop at one of our favourite spots, by Bridge 103, and it was only 10am. 

Boy, is this stretch busy.  There were boats going past all day long.  By 4pm there were boats moored all along the Armco piling.

I loved making this "tent" card for a wedding of a Polish couple.

I covered the front and inside of the card with lovely floral paper.  A large round aperture was cut into the front of the card and a frilly edged frame was stuck over the top.  Then I added lots of leaves and flowers and large pearl on top.

Inside I die-cut the frilly circle after printing out the names and date and stuck it to the back of the card.







The box was covered in more of the floral paper, matted onto silver card and another frilly circle with the names and dates printed on it was stuck onto the top of the box.

The couple buying the card loved it, took it away and someone told them that they had got the date wrong!!!!!!

I printed of 2 new sets of dates and stuck them over the wrong date with sticky fixers.  Think we got away with it.