Author: Nic Howard

Quiet time here in Cape Town.  I have 5 minutes to update my blog.  Something I wanted to do more often but due to my uncanny ability to break everything I come into contact to, I had no internet for the first 5 days.  I also had AV in classes that did crazy things, batteries that ran out at crazy times and a LOT of stuff that could only happen if one was starting to suspect some sort of African bad luck had been wished upon me.  Lucky for me, things are working again!

So – here is the team as we arrived at JHB airport.  I look great (note sarcasm) for being up for 24 hours with only about an hours sleep!

 
David, Mel from  Kaiser, Ginger from Glitz, Glenda, Debby from Pink Paislee, Dave, Paula from 7Gypsies, Jay, me and Paul! Missing is the most vibrant and fun Laura from Glitz.  All very cool people.

Event time and Johannesburg was awesome!  It was my second year teaching and once again I was astounded by the amount of preaparation, cute little trinkets, time, effort and amazing teamwork that went into the event. 

I taught 4 times in the 2 days we were there.  Once again I was received fabulously by the ladies in Sth Africa and the complements about my class were enough to keep me smiling for days.  All four classes were successful in regards to the amount of amazing layouts (mostly finished, yesssss!) that walked out of that room, but the amount of friends I made too.  New Zealand and Sth Africa peoples are so similar in culture, teaching in Sth Africa is just like teaching to old friends.  Loved it last time, loved it again this time.

Here are some of the layouts as they were part-way finished – they looked 50 kabillion times better in real life, the yellow convention lighting didn't help photos! (Note to JHB delegates – remember to send your thanks through to BasciGrey!!)

Another thing I was absolutely amazed by in South Africa was the amount of passion and outward pride these people have for the Rugby World cup.  I saw Springbok jerseys on everyone from 6 week old babies to grandmas to even a lady with a full Muslim clothing including full face coverings, and a Springbok jersey over the top.  It was incredible.  To be in Sth Africa for the first week of the World Cup has been a real treat and I can even say that I cheered loudly for the Springboks during their first game, which was during my last class in JHB, we had score updates right the way through – party atmosphere class, it was grreeeeat!

A little taste of just how passionate these people are – this is a statue that stands about 6 metres high (total guess there…) inside Emporer's Palace.  It is, of course, a copy of the statue 'David' in Italy… I'm sure the real one doesn't currently look like this though! (Again, excuse bad photography, this one is off my phone!)

Alrighty, that's it for now.  I'm currently hanging out in my room in Cape Town, trying to wish myself well.  I came down with a bad flu on Tuesday, complete with body aches, fevers and a chest cough so bad it cracks right through to my back.  I tried drowning it in Amarula but it didn't work.  Trying rest and catching up on sleep.  i'm determined to be better by the morning.  (wishful thinking, no?  )

laters!

I have to be up at 2.45am to make a start on the big trek to Johannesburg, I'm running late on a few things so this is going to be quick bullet point post – I'm hoping to update lots during the two weeks I'm away, so check back often – I'll have pics, I hope!

I'm seeing – a suitcase about half the size of the stuff that is to go in it.  How does this happen, no matter how big the suitcase is?

I'm feeling – a little sad.  I just dropped the kids off at their grandaprents.  Braden was being so brave until I opened the car door as he walked past and gave him a decent eye injury.  Ugh.  I win the good Mummy award.

I'm hearing – silence. Clocks ticking.  2.45am rushing rapidly closer. Did you know there are two 2.45 o'clocks in a day?

I'm hoping to catch up with Louise Williams in the morning as she heads off on a 7am Brisbane flight, and I head off on a 7am Sydney flight.  Perhaps tomorow is weird coincidence day.

I'm drinking Jarrah Frothy Classic and packing more in my suitcase.

I'm looking forward to catching up with over 600 students in one of the most beautiful countries in the world.

I'm wishing I had written a more complex list for the housesitters.  They know they need to fill the baking tins before I return, right?

I'm smiling as I remember the 'egg' thing I did when I went to Melbourne.  Yes, they loved it.  Yes I'd totally recommend spending time drawing on raw eggs if you are travelling.  Please tell me if you try the idea.  It still brings smiles to the kids faces! 

I'm leaving you with a video of what happened the last time I left the country.  Fortunately no wing mirrors were smashed off parked cars in the making of this video.  The last video though? *Ahem* THAT is a different story (thank you Uncle Vaughan!)
Laters.

There has been occasion over the past few weeks when the bananas in the fruit bowl have gone a bit past putting in the lunchboxes.  They seem to sit, gathering spots and bruises as the other fruit get happily chosen to take to school.  It's not something that used to happen a lot, but lately it seems to be happening all the time.

Until I discovered the banana cake conspiracy.

I walk up behind the kids as they are filling their lunchboxes.  They know they have to include fruit.  I overhear the conversation at the fruit bowl… "Don't take the bananas.  If they stay there, they go black and Mum will make a banana cake!"

AHA! BUSTED!  Zero points for keeping the plan less than stealthy.  10 points for smart thinking though.  They take after their mama.  And I don't blame them, I love banana cake too.

What else is up?  I'm home from teaching 6 successful classes in Melbourne.  I don't think I've ever taught classes where we all relaxed so much.  Some of the ladies did all 3 classes in one day and by the end we all knew each other so well, it was truly awesome.  I learnt a lot from the trip, and felt like I shared a lot as well.  Favourite parts from the weekend:
* Advice from Melbournites…. "Don't swim in the Yarra… wait…don't even look in the Yarra"
* Food in Melbourne.
* Food in Melbourne
* Food in Melbourne.
* Sitting in Lygon St, eating home made Pasta with a couple of Italian guys doing some sort of deal right outside the window and realising I was probably in Underbelly territory.  (cue Skye whispering in my ear chik, chik BOOM) – On looking closer (without looking like I was looking closer!) I realised that one guy was asking the other to cook him something that he was handing over in a package.  Not so dodgey.
* Someone (un-named *ahemAngeahem*) accidently driving down the tramtracks on a road that was closed for roadworks.
* A parma and a pot (thought of you Suz Doyle!)
* Meeting so many students from Big Picture Classes
* Lucy and I sharing the classroom together with so many ladies that didn't seem to mind our sense of humour!
* Poor Peg being offended when I introduced her as Peg (say that with an Aussie accent).
*Meeting the amazing Ebony van der Starre and realising we are twins seperated at birth.
*Shopping in Melbourne
*Awesome times with my bestie in one of the coolest places in Aussie.
Loved it – thanks Melbourne (and yes we tried the chocolate!), I hope you'll haev me back one day.

Alrighty, lastly from me – True Scrap.  You are going to hear a lot about this one from me.  This is because I got so much wonderful feedback from the last one, I'm thrilled to be part of it again and I don't know if many people really know what it's all about or appreciate what it means.  Did you know it's online and that you can attend this weekend long event from home, for example?

For now, I'd highly encourage you to go here and read all about it.  See the 17 teachers.  Check out the classes.  Ranger have sent me a box of products and I've got a class sample half made.  I'll keep you up to date with progress in future blog posts as I work towards finished projects for this huge event.  Registration is open… (looking at my watch and waiting for 1st Sept to click over in the USA….NOW!)

Back to crackle paint and distress stains… laters…

Why is it when I'm having one of those "I have a lot going on" days, and I rush into the supermarket to buy what seems like 3 months worth of groceries, including eggs, but let me show you those later, that I get stuck walking behind a wander-across-the-aisles-can't-get-past-no-matter-how-hard-I try lady slowly browsing 15 types of everything because she has time?
And when I turn around and rush back down the aisle in the hopes of getting to the end and up the other side before she decides which laundry powder to purchase, she somehow beats me to the end?

Anyway.  Enough complaining.  It could be worse.  I could be an egg.  Like these ones I bought today and put in my fridge ready for the kids to find on Sunday (pancake day) when I am away teaching in Melbourne…

So.  Tomorrow I'm off to Melbourne, Paul is home with the kids.  And the eggs.  Shhh don't tell them about the eggs.

When I get back it'll be time for this event to open for registration (we're baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!) The SPAWN of True Scrap.  The event that has all the fun of a super-monsterous-amazing convention or retreat, but you can do it all from home with everything you need, including the jammies which you can stay in all day.  15 top teachers (I'm included in the line-up again, happy about THAT!) presenting classes and the event includes make n takes and other cool stuff as well.  CLick here for info.  And the video which tells you a whole lot more than I can tell you on this lil' blog.

(BTW if you purchased True Scrap last time you should have recieved an email from Lain with a super cheapo offer for the Spawn of True Scrap – email her if you didn't get that offer!)

My class is something I love – here is the sneak, full details up soon!
 

And WELCOME welcome to those of you that have come here from the Big Picture Classes Big Festival!  It's my day today!  And I leave the country.  Don't take it personally, I love that you checked in, leave me a comment and say hi and I'll say hi back at'cha when I get home! 

Alrighty.  Bags to pack.  I'll let you know how the egg thing went next  week.  In the meanwhile, check out the True Scrap video and I'll leave you with a layout created for the Aussie Scrap Source blog.  I tried my very best to have a go at the fabulous amazing style that Finnibair is so well known for.  I enjoyed the proccess, but don't know if I'll go there again.  It's not quite me,. (journaling is on the tag).  It included everything weird and wonderful I could lay my hands on, including the tab from the can of diet coke I was drinking at the time.

Laters!

Summary on Sunday – well it's Monday but functioning was an issue yesterday (thank you Lynda) so Monday it is.

I'm feeling calm.  My to-do list is being ticked off slowly.  I am under control.  I don't usually feel calm, but less procrastination and better use of time has been my focus lately.  It seems to be paying off.

I'm seeing a sign above my desk that says "Let's get drunk and eat donuts", placed there by my hubby in an attempt at sarcasm.  My appreciation for the sign goes about as far as the appreciation for the offer of raw eggs and a fish milkshake yesterday morning. My husband is so thoughtful.

I'm thinking about Christchurch.  Six months on. This time last year I was close to leaving for Sth Africa and the first of the September earthquakes hit 3 days before I left.  I remember speaking to my classes in Sth Africa about how sad I was to leave my broken little country.  Little did we know what was to come.

I'm wondering how long before I start to see signs of hayfever in my home.  My windows are covered in pollen and my hubby wrote "spring is here" in the pollen dust on my mailbox.  I love you, pollen, you tell me summer is coming.  I hate you pollen, you get up my nose.

I'm hearing Adele.  Again.  Enough of Adele. E.nough.

I'm considering writing a letter to the Handi towel company.  They never completely rip off the roll properly, unless you use two hands.  And who has two hands when ripping a handi towel off?  There is usually mess involved, who has two hands spare?  That's not handy. 

I'm creating samples for South Africa.  I'll be away for 5 days in Melbourne, I'm home for 6 days, then away to Sth Africa for 12 days.  Organisation is a priority. 

I'm worrying about my camera.  Undecided on what to do.  I have a 400D.  I'm not a photographer.  I use auto and only ever have a 18-55mm lens on my camera.  But I'm going to Sth Africa.  I remember last year feeling  a little inadequate with my little lens and camera with everyone around me using these big amazing lenses and knowing what they are doing and I didn't really take pics.  Those in the know - should I be investing in a better lens? If you could only buy one – what would it be? Recommendations?

I'm also thinking forward to the end of this week to my Melbourne classes.  I'm still getting bookings coming in.  If you know anyone else that wants to book in, I stop checking my emails on early Thursday morning.  I won't have email access in Aussie.  How I will cope remains to be seen. 

And lastly, I'm inspired by Stacey Young.  I found myself lost in her blog on Saturday while finishing off some pages for a Big Picture workshop – Double Take.  What a gorgeous little Aussie treasure she is.  You can see her inspiration in the twine circles in these sneaks from a page I created for the workshop.

Enjoy your Monday.  Laters.

The hunter has returned.  Paul has just walked in the door after 4 days away.  Poor man only made it 2 steps in the door before I started telling him everything that has gone on for the last four days in his absence, I've had no adult company, what do you expect – the impatient look on his face tells me he is not concerned with the fact I could tell Braden hadn't brushed his teeth because it was a new tube of toothpaste and it hadn't been used.  Maybe later he will want to hear?

So the house is back to status quo.  We are all home and enjoying the last minute sunshine before "the once in a lifetime weather event' that is predicted.  Time for a quick summary on Sunday before settling in to a beanbag in the sunshine to finish that important toothpaste story.

I'm seeing a tidy office.  Tidy is unusual.  The calm before the storm that is the week's work ahead.  Is this the once in a lifetime weather event they are predicting?

I'm hearing the wind outside.  Windier than windy thing that is really really windy.

I'm wondering why Farmbake cookies are so small these days.  They aren't even cookies anymore.  They are bite sized bits of cookie. 

I'm reading , well actually I'm not reading.  I finished a book last night – not a very good one.  Paul is trying to get me to read 'The Confession' by John Grisham.  I don't traditionally find myself drawn to male authors.  Jury is out on whether to start this one.

I'm creating dinner in the crockpot.  Corned beef.  Perfect for a blustery winter's day.

I'm enjoying the feeling of being on track with my work.  I have a lot to do but I am on schedule.  It's eerie.

I'm linking you up with True Scrap II – The Spawn of True Scrap.  I'll be teaching at this event – teachers are being announced over the next few days.  

I'm also linking you with Super-Secret Guide to Fast Scrapbooking.  And wondering if it is something I'd benefit from myself.  Because in the 12 years that I have been scrapbooking, the words 'fast' and 'scrapbooking' have never gone together.  Oh super secret guide to fast scrapbooking, what super secrets do you have?

And lastly I'm linking you to Twist the Creme Egg in a Bar.  Is it just me or does an Easter Egg lose it's magic when it is available all year around?  And in a bar?  It's just not right, surely?

I'm leaving you with some pics I took while I was in Wairakei lately.  Abby has just seen them and asked me "Why do I look so angry at you?"  I don't know Abby.  Perhaps because you are seven and you are a girl. 
Laters.

I've been creating on this cold foggy Auckland day.  I've been mixing and matching papers.  Curling and crafting.  Cutting and arranging.   Singing to Dido while watching the kids play outside until it got too cold.   Prima-licious – the sequel – my most popular class, is now redesigned with new papers, is ready to ship to Australia for the girls at Paperific in Melbourne. 

It's been a successful day.  Class complete.  Kids happy.  Warriors won.  Leaving you with some sneak peeks and settling in with a book.  Laters.

It's been one of those sit-down Sundays.  Actually it's even been one of those drag-the-bean-bag-in-front-of-the-fire-and-have-a-little-sleep Sundays.  I've started at least 1800 little jobs and finished none of them.  I'm currently living in half-done-job-land.  I may have to call on some kids to help.

Despite my best intentions, I haven't blogged for a while, so I thought I'd do a Sunday summary.

I'm feeling: Content with my stay-at-home-Sunday

I'm seeing: Many half done jobs around me.

I'm hearing: Two children playing down the hallway.  Spare mattress jammed inbetween two walls to create a hut.  Giggling and laughter has been filtering down this way for an hour now.  Cheap entertainment.

I'm wondering: How many episodes of Bear Grylls Man vs Wild' that one 12 year old can watch before he grabs a backpack, runs outside and heads for the wilderness to live on bugs and sleep in trees.

I'm reading: A note above my desk that says "Hi Mum I lv u!" with a smiley face.

I'm creating: Tupperware Custard Squares.

And I'm cringing everytime I hear the Rugby World Cup countdown.  We leave New Zealand the day the World cup starts.  It'll be interesting to be on tour around Sth Africa with an Aussie and many South Africans during the Rugby World Cup.  My poor hubby.

I get many emails asking where I'm teaching and when.  Since it's a Sunday summary, I thought I'd list them all here. 

25 August - Big Picture Classes, Big Idea Festival (free!), blog post here.

26-27 August     Melbourne Paperific.  Blog Post here.

8-19 September, South Africa, website here.

22 Sept – 19 Oct "Double Take!" New workshop with May Flaum at Big Picture Classes.  Blog post here.

AND for those of you waiting on Autumn Escape details, we are very close to announcing the headline teacher for next year.  Hold tight!

Leaving you with some layouts created for BasicGrey.  These are simple layouts compared to my usual creations, I had a tonne of fun with the new lines to create these though. 
Laters
 
 

My new Big Picture Workshop DOUBLE TAKE with the amazing May Flaum is open for registration from today!  Double the teachers, double the fun, double page layouts, double page sketches, this is going to be HUGE!!

And even if you aren't interested in attending a workshop, the clowning around that May and I do while creating the promo video is worth a laugh, right?  Visit the workshop page here for more details (and to view that video – seriously, what were we thinking?) …

School holidays are pretty cool.  I get up a little later to go to the gym, there is no pressure to get 3 kids off to school.  They look after their own breakfast.  They empty the dishwasher and get the firewood in for me.  Life is good.

I'm still fairly busy organising my classes for Paperific in Melbourne and other scrappy projects, but school holidays mean stopping every now and again to play, well , kid stuff. 

Kid stuff on Tuesday comprised of Baker's Twine (I know you will ask, I get mine from the Twinery), PVA glue and a heart cookie cutter shape.  And I have to add that this wasn't my idea.  I saw it whilst browsing the web *somewhere* during the week.  I can't credit where because it was during the middle of one of those I-should-be-working-but-I'll-procrastinate-by-blog-hopping-for-hours-on-end type times. 

This project involved baker's twine, a whole heap (I was always so scientifically accurate at school too – perhaps why my hokey pokey in science class didn't work out…), anyway, a whole heap of 5-10cm lengths of string.  A heart cookie cutter, some PVA clue that I'm sure Paul won't miss from his work shelf, and a kebab stick.  Abby and I cut a whole lot of twine.  We placed the heart shape on an old plastic lid.  A small amount of PVA in the bottom and started pushing the string in.  We added a little PVA glue as we went.  We filled the cookie cutter shape up with a gluey, stringy mess.
(note that we put the kebab stick on the bottom, but actually, it's best doing this without the kebab stick and adding it later).

Abby decided at this stage that really it needed glitter.  Because every girlie project needs glitter.  She also decided it would work better if we had glitter on our faces too.  Apologies for not having photos of how gorgeous we looked. 

Cue sunshine.  And since we had sunshine on Tuesday, this dried surprisingly quickly.  Once it's dry, push it out and you have the cutest little string-glitter heart ever!  Push a kebab stick in the bottom and it becomes a wand, even.  This is the best little 15 minute project for the school holidays. 

You may not be able to see how cute that glitter-string heart is, as you may be blinded by the total overwhelming cute-ness of that girl holding it (no biase here!), but really, it was such a success and made one 7 year old very happy.  So happy, infact, that I see this morning there is a roll of baker's twine and a star shape cookie cutter beside my computer.  I think she is trying to tell me something?

laters