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All the photographs have been taken by myself including those of holiday.

Wednesday 30 June 2010

Selection of birthday cards



Hi,


Another fine day and now the sun is out its getting warm again, although we have had a very small amount of rain my garden is still dry but I am not complaining we brought the weather back with us from Tenerife and I hope the rest of the summer will be as nice as is has been over the last week,

This first card is stitched on a peel off and beads added and then placed on a cream card with peel offs to finish


This card is a little different with a rub on design of deer which I have made for a male. These rub offs have a shiny design and are lovely but hard to add as I am finding them difficult to rub off I do feel like complaining to QVC which is were I brought them from.





This flower shape card is different from the usual designs, I used some paper that was free with a magazine and then a peel off flower base and then put a smaller one on acetate and placed on top with a bow of ribbon, finished off with peel offs.





This gold card although the picture does not look like a gold card but it was. I have used a peel off flower placed on parchment and then embossed and attached with a brad, the ribbon and brad match and again finished off with gold peel offs




This card again was a gold card and again it does not show up I don't know why, they were photoed in good light. Anyway the fan is the middle of the fan card made from the Glitter Girls boards, Which I cut out the sections and used them on this card, nothing is wasted. Each section was then punched out with a punch and used a brad to fasten them onto the card with red flower gems. The Chinese symbols are love and happiness and peel offs to finish off



This design I saw in a magazine but as usual I got the idea from them but have done my own thing with it, the vase in silver paper has green ribbon tried around it with the butterflies some flat and some on acetate with wings flying. As usual peel offs to finish off
the card.



This again is a gold card with the bodice of gold stitching on a stitching peel off and red and gold ribbon, a feather for the skirt and red flower paper back ground and again peel offs to finish off.





I hope you like my new selection of birthday cards, I try to make something different and unusual and I hope they are.


Before I finish I will add this little story from my holiday, I brought some post cards in a shop this youngest man asked if there was anything in my locket, my husband gave me the locket before we were married and we have never got around to adding a picture, I said no, so automatically I never thought any more of it, he said if I took it off he would put his picture in it, Yuck, I politely said no and left the shop I could not believe that anyone would even think of wanting to put their picture in someones locket that they did not know. I don't know how he could ask seeing my husband was only a few feet away. Remember my piece when I had lunch with Angie in Castle Cary recently.


I have not forgot my promise to write some more about Tenerife and hopefully it will be added soon. In the meantime I hope you are all well and enjoying the lovely weather.


Until the next time you visit my blog, take care

Hugs Margaret

Thursday 24 June 2010

Tenerife - Hotel Guayarmina Princess


Hi,

As promised I said I would put a piece about my holiday to Tenerife. All the pictures of the hotel were taken at night this is when it looked the most impressive.
This is not my first visit to this lovely island but my6th, my first visit was back in 1978 and over the years the island has changed - well nothing stays the same.



To be honest this hotel must be one of the best on the island. The impressive entrance is just like a cathedral and has the same sounds as a cathedral. When we sat in the piano bar, it was as if we were in a cathedral and any noise from the rest of the hotel was just muffled.

This picture is the reception and the one below is the piano bar opposite the reception, the one above is the main entrance as you go in.

The piano bar as pictured on your left, happy hour was from 4pm to 5pm a bit early, but even so very welcome on a hot day.


The hotel employees around 200 staff all the rest are what we would called agency, They are so proud of the hotel that they do a tour of the hotel every Thursday for guest who want to see behind the scenes.


The hotel has 850 rooms, and only 28 cleaners, they are only full at Christmas, Easter and summer with around 1,200 guests plus. There are marble floors everywhere and the place is spotless, they also have one carpenter and one painter who repair anything that needs repairing in house and paint any room needing doing. They have store rooms of everything they might need from the smallest screw to spare whatever, they don't just buy one item but a complete box full.

This is the lifts, well two of them we counted about six lifts in all these are in the centre of the main entrance and the photo below is taken from the archway between the lifts going down a wide marble staircase to the next level.
All the food is fresh everyday and their is a wide variety of food on the buffet table, breakfast was to us the best meal with everything you could think of. Any waste food is collected at midnight and disposed of, under Spanish law they cant give the food to the homeless or to any animal centres.



This show the staircase going up to the front of the hotel.




I don't know if you can see but my husband Vernon is standing below at the bottom of the stairs.
The entertainment was brilliant with two acts per night, and a disco for the young children, Their was also many things happening during the day. Their entertainment staff were good and working all day and live in the hotel. They also do the tours of the hotel on a Thursday.
This shows you the pool and looking into the hotel from the back.

This night picture does not show how lovely the pool with palms and banana plants around the sides, with walkways and bridges over parts of the pool. There is a slope one end so you can just walk into the pool. but it was cold and was like stepping into an ice bucket even through the temperature was 25c with the sun shinning. The pool is on the roof with four floors below, and all those rooms face the sea with wide sea views. I might add the pool is cleaned everyday but to our amazement they had a man in the pool with a skoal on under the water cleaning around the rocks and edges.

This was a holiday that was wonderful, the weather was hot and the hotel made it, I would recommend this hotel to anyone and we are looking forward to going back again in the future.

Our room was huge, we had a Junior suite, the bathroom was twice the size plus of our small bedroom all marble, we had two king size beds, a large TV, fridge, soft leather sofa coffee table and dressing table, and a very large wardrobe, plus a balcony, looking out over the sea, what more could anyone want. The picture shows how on one of the beds these was towels left for use by the pool. I just had to take a picture of how they arranged them.



And a free bottle of wine when we arrived. What more could we want.







I have some more to write about our holiday but for now this is the first part, I hope you have enjoyed reading about this hotel as we did staying in it.

take care
Hugs Margaret

Saturday 19 June 2010

An Award

Hi Everyone,

This is my first award, and I want to say thank you as this has come from two bloggers, Mad moose of The Little land of me and Man alone, for both thinking of me and giving me the award.

So I understand I have to tell 6 lies and 1 truth and leave it to you to work it out, well here goes

So which is true out of these:-

1. I am colour blind

2. I am tall, thin and look like a beanpole.

3. I love hot spicy foods

4. I eat a big breakfast

5. I love my husband and I am very happy that I found love

6. I have a very small garden which is neat and has no weeds

7. I hate holidays

Now I have to pass this on to 6 people, which I am finding difficult as many of you already have this so here goes.

Suzanne

Snowflake

Cupcake Fairy

Coops

Jelly Jane

Betty Boops

and if there is any one that would love to have an award please feel free to have it too.

Thanks Mad Moose and Man alone (Peter) you have made my day

Hugs Margaret

Wednesday 9 June 2010

Craft lunch with a twist

Hi,

Yesterday was going to be my last blog before I go on holiday, but after today I thought I would tell you about our lunch.

Angiebabe and me have lunch about every six weeks, I used to live in Castle Cary before I got married. To cut a very long story short, I had the cut hair cut from Hell, even today its still the talking point in the hairdressers. This was in the November and I went to Pauline hoping she could sort the mess out, which she did and on my wedding day in following August no one would have known about the problems, she got my hair looking wonderful. Since then I still go back because I just can't even try and go to another hairdresser.

Angiebabe and I went to a pub for lunch today, we have been in there before, but here we are she is a grandmother to three grandchildren and I am a grandmother to five grandchildren and a great grandmother, and here we are being chatted up by a man.

He wanted or thought he was going to have some of our lunch well he was unlucky, but he still kept on chatting away, he said he was a healer and did we believe, Angie said she did and he came and sat down and had her hand and then mine asking if we felt something. We both did, he said that he does not charge for healing and if we knew anyone in pain who wanted healing he would do it for free........... I never told him I was in pain as we were not sure what he might do next. anyway he finally left, we think he had one too many to drink, just thinking we could start our conversation again............

Another man younger this time in his forties came over and sat at the bar near our table and started chatting us up............ What ever is in the water in Castle Cary today is sending the men in a spin, because I never thought we would be ever chatted up by strange men.

When is was time for us to leave we paid the bill and left wondering if we had something written on our foreheads, we are both happily married, and we both told them we were married, nice to know we still have it, what ever that is. and can still get chatted up occasionally.

I think when we meet up again we might try another pub.

Hope you enjoyed our story, and you enjoyed visiting my blog today.
See you when I get back from Teneriffe.

Take care my friends
Hugs Margaret




Tuesday 8 June 2010

Selection of Special Occasion cards

Hi,

From a rather wet and chilly Somerset today, I am adding today some of the recent cards I have made.

I went to the doctors yesterday, firstly she is referring me to a surgeon for an op, well I expect I will have to wait months. While I was there my doctor looked at a mole and said she would refer me, I had a phone today at 3.30 from the Royal United Bath within 24 hours of seeing her, to say that I had have an appointment with two weeks and would I like to to be seen at Frome Hosp, of course its easier for me to get to so when I get back from holiday I have an appointment on the 22nd to see someone about this mole. That's going to a lovely thought to keep it out of the sun and if uncovered to ensure to it has sun cream on holiday.

My first card is a 21st birthday card for Becky our niece who is 21 next week. She is just finishing her 3rd year at Lincoln Uni and doing her final exams, which will be finished by her 21st. So she can relax and enjoy her party.



My second card is a wedding anniversary for our Friends who is on the same day as Becky's 21st, I used a Dawn Bibby image that was recently on QVC, I don't buy a lot of things from the TV but these images are cute and I fell in love with them. I think they made some interesting and different cards






My third card is for my friends daughter who was our bridesmaid when we got married. Stella got engaged to Alex, not meet him yet but I felt I had to make a card for them, and again I used a Dawn Bibby image. I was running out of time so I had to make a quick card. I Hope they like their card.






My forth card is my June friendship card for cakelady do crafts member, I have made this card with some black peel offs which I found in the garden centre at Abingdon when we went up over the bank holiday, I used a gold card and peach parchment and finished it off with ribbon and gold peel offs. It was a simple card but I think it looks very different, they say less is more and I think this card is one of them.



This will be my last posting for a week as we fly to Teneriffe on Friday, this will be my 6th visit to this lovely island. I will be thinking of new ideas while I am sitting my the pool and hopefully having a try at swimming. I have been going to swimming lessons over the last year and although I can swim on my back, swimming on my front has been a lot harder.

I hope you have enjoyed reading my blog today and thank you for visiting, I look forward to reading any comments you leave and seeing you again when you are hopping around blog land.

take care
Happy crafting
Hugs Margaret

Thursday 3 June 2010

Space age Fairy Images



Hi,


Its the most lovely day here in Somerset, and unfortunately I have not been able to make any cards, but I have these two images which were drawn for me by Melissa our daughter in law.

I call them Space Age Fairy on a toadstool and Space Age Fairy with her space age flowers. You are most welcome to use the images and as I letting you use them free.

I have been trying to encourage her to draw more as she is really good and I think she would make a great designer, perhaps by seeing her work on here she might do some more. She needs something to make her relax as her hands are full with Gary who is going blind and she is his carer, and with our grand daughter who is at school.



They look a bit small so I hope you can enlarge them for your own use.

At the moment I have a cold so I am feeling under power, I have several cards to make before we go on holiday next week, and I hope to add them before we go.

Hope you are enjoying this lovely weather, take care and until the next time you are hoping by in blog land.

Have a nice day.


Hugs Margaret