LO: A Map Collage - An idea for those extra photos

I just finished working on a gift album for my daughter (Post 1, Post 2 & Post 3). She went to Kenya on a school trip and this included a safari. As you may well imagine, the photos were numerous. Once I had finished the album I found that I had leftover a lot of photos of animals. Rather than throw them away I decided to make the last page of the album using them. You can follow the easy instructions to make a similar collage. It does not have to be a map – just look at all the extra photos you have and you will know the shape you want to make!

From the internet find a map outline of Africa in a GIF format. Print this out on a piece of paper the same size as your page - maintain aspect ratio while resizing.

Cut out the map.

Crop the photographs of the animals into small squares, cutting out the parts that I call the ‘dead’ zone – however do not discard these – they will make the perfect filler for your collage. Glue these, again cut into small squares, around the edge of the map.


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Then flip the map and carefully cut the photos, following the edge as precisely as you can.


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This is how the front of your map should look like:


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Now carefully glue down all your photographs, making sure that all areas are covered. It is okay if the photos overlap, or even go over the edges of the map.


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Again, flip the map and trim and photo edges sticking out.




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If your collage has more than one piece, use the negative of the printed paper as a template to stick down the pieces.


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Finish your page as takes your fancy!

Prague Architecture

First layout done with Club Scrap Architecture kit, other layouts also done on Club Scrap paper but I have no idea which kits they belong to! Can't see much of them anyway.

Prague

All layouts done with Club Scrap kits. First one is Beautiful Botanicals, second one is Old South and third layout is done using the Travel kit.

On the bus ride from Cesky Krumlov to Prague we watched 'The Chronicles of Narnia' which was filmed in the Czech Republic. It was a long bus ride and my legs & back were sore. I do not why I could not sleep. I watched Mini take a nap and I was excessively jealous! :-)

Our hotel was near the heart of the city so we could walk to almost all the main attractions. We went to the main city square and took a 40 minute car ride to see all the main sights and get a feel of the place. The car was an old communist era car, a Skoda I believe, and it was fun. Dinner was at an authentic Tuscan restaurant that even had salt-less bread, something unique to Tuscany.

The next morning we drove up to Prague castle and started a 3 hour walk. We saw the St. Vitius's Cathedral, the main church in Prague, strolled down the Golden Lane and slowly made our way down to the city. We crossed the beautiful Charles Bridge (which was so crowded - I must return in winter when there are less tourists), rubbed the statue of St. John Nepomuk (to bring us back to Prague someday) and finished our walk in front of the amazing Town Hall Clock. This clock was built 500 years ago and is completely mechanical. The little figures come out every hour, on the hour, but everything is so quick, you miss it if you blink!

We went into the Jewish Quarter and had lunch in a really nice Jewish restaurant. Then we went to see the Pinkas Synagogue and the Jewish Cemetery. I love visiting cemeteries, looking at all those old graves, wondering who these people were, searching for the graves of famous people I know are buried there. We then walked towards the Old-New Synagogue which is the oldest synagogue in Europe. It is extremely beautiful on the inside.

Finally we walked to Wenceslas Square - named after St. Wenceslas, a pious and good prince who was murdered by his brother in 935. St. Wenceslas is also the patron saint of Bohemia. The road leading up to Wenceslas Square is lined with beautiful buildings with Art Nouveau paintings. The Hotel Europa is a fine example of Art Nouveau architecture.

Vienna third day (2)

On our third day in Vienna we had the afternoon to ourselves. So we walked to St. Stephanplatz to see the church. Known as Stephansdom, it is the soul of the city itself. The giant doorway and the twin towers at the entrance are apparently from a 13th century heathen Romanesque shrine. The tiled roof of the church is very eye catching as is the steffl or spire, which is an important landmark in Vienna, towering over all nearby buildings. Once inside, I made it a point to search out the self portrait of Anton Pilgram, the master craftsman of the present church. Pilgrams pulpit, with its intricate gothic design and beautiful carved stairway is another stellar work not to be missed inside the church. The high altar, of course, is most impressive as is the Wiener Neustader altar, commissioned by Friedrich III in 1447.

The children then wanted ice cream. So we stopped at an ice cream store and paid outrageous prices for gelato. I managed to get pick pocketed ~ fortunately I lost only my mobile phone.

We decided to take a buggy ride around the town of Vienna. This is becoming quite a tradition for us! It cost us 65 Euro for a 40 minute ride. Getting off the buggy in front of the Hofburg palace we walked towards a multi ethnic food festival we had seen on our ride. This took us through some beautiful rose gardens which have hundreds of varieties of roses. The food festival was not bad at all with rows upon rows of stalls. Everything from Indian to Thai to Mexican was available. The only problem was the table we found – it was so close to a fountain that we shivered all through dinner! A brisk walk back to the hotel soon set us right and ready to pack to leave Vienna the next day.

2 Birthdays

First layout uses Club Scrap Fruit & Vine kit, rub ons, swirly stamps & some doodling. The big red oval was supposed to be a balloon but it now looks like an egg ... LOL! Layout design inspired by one in the current CK.

Second layout uses mostly card stock because of the large number of photographs. Alpha stamps by Art Warehouse and the numbers are those foam letters that look great but smell funny. I managed to fit in 14 photographs! And a pretty crazy party that was too!!

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The Tonight Show by Jay Leno is something perhaps most of you watch. But there are some segments that are just worth watching again and again ... especially if they have such eye candy!! That's Josh Duhamel, BTW.

Skater Girl

First layout done with Club Scrap Heritage II kit from June 2000. 7 Gypsies quote panel, a rub on, chipboard swirl, Rhonna Farrer swirl stamps, Gelatin alpha stamps & Penny Black alpha stamps.

Second layout uses paper by Heidi Grace, Heidi Swapp chipboard alphas, MSE alpha stamps and 7 Gypsies stickers.

Is it not strange how, if you wait for a while before scrapping some photographs, circumstances change completely? I'll admit that I waited more than a 'while'. These photographs are from a Christmas dinner in 2000 in Italy. This is a work related gathering and so I guess I was not too excited to scrap the event. Another boring dinner. And the photos did not really turn out that nice. All very blah and so the photos got pushed to the back of the box.
Now when I look at these photos I am amazed at how things turned sour. Everything just disintegrated (work related, nothing personal). And so I had to finally scrap these photos because I had a story to tell. Not such a nice tale either therefore the red 'Void' as an indication of negativity.

Lily learning how to roller blade.

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Luc's first lemon

And the Fruitcake lady - she has me in splits!! What a pity I never saw her shows and so Viva You Tube!

Phuket

First layout uses Club Scrap 'Oriental' kit. Making Memories foam alpha stamps, ribbon, chipboard flourish and hand painted swirls done with the French curves set.

Second layout uses paper from Basic Grey & Carolees Creation (the punched rounds). Buttons are from sei and again Making Memories foam alpha stamps, Heidi Swapp silhouettes, and ribbon. Used the French curves again to make the lines for journalling. Design from a layout in a CK magazine.

Lily's first ever trip to the beautiful island of Phuket in Thailand. This was also her first holiday with her cousins. Love the last 3 photos of them sharing a Sprite! Anyway, both Lily & I fell sick the day we arrived in Phuket. So we spent six days in our room. On the seventh day we were well enough to step out. We had to leave the next day ... LOL! Anyway, we had good fun just that last day.

Another layout about Ricky's problem. Eye contact - or rather the lack of it. He did not like looking at anyone. So we learnt to speak in short sentences, easy things and started every sentence with 'Look at me' or 'Can you look me in the eye?' It took years of patience and love and understanding but now this problem is almost imperceptible.

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This guy draws monsters daily. This is number 19. Check out the others too. Very creative!

Hit the Road

First layout done with Crate Papers Seaweed Collection and an Art Warehouse sticker.

Second layout done with Club Scrap Fruit & Vine kit from September 2001.

Summer 1992: My in-laws are usually not very adventurous folks and do not like to move out of the house too much. But this time my father in law decided he wanted to take me to a beautiful town called Santo Stefano d'Aveto near Genoa.

I was pregnant with Lily and in my first trimester. I did not have morning sickness but I could not handle the twisting and turning on the mountainous roads. So we stopped often, especially when we came across 'fontanas' or water springs. These are very common all over Italy and France (Evian and San Pellegrino come to mind). The water is sparkling clean and ice cold. the frequent stops helped me not get too sick during the drive.

Zio (uncle in Italian) Renato was so funny! He has a very dry humor and all through the trip he kept us in splits. Trust him to spot this tree and request us very seriously to take a photograph of him with the strange tree tumors!

Moto GP Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. Photos with Chris Vermeullen, Marco Melandri, Lucio C. Eliza P & a very interesting photo of Sete Gibernau. I have one of him without a shirt but I will not be sharing that one with you ladies ;-)

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I have to admit this bit of 'Mathematics' had my jaw dropping! A lot of thought must have gone into it! It is called 'Hillbilly Math'

And a really cool video about Stencil Graffiti Art:

Remembering Lodovico

First layout done with Club Scrap To you with love kit from Feb 2004. MM ribbon, a Basic Grey rub-on, Ma Vinci's alpha stamps and a transparency with journaling completes this layout. ETA: Thought I should mention that the red quotes are actually a small chili punch.

Second layout uses Basic Grey Romani paper, Queen & Co adhesive ribbon, MM foam swirls stamps with orange pearlescent ink, Hero alpha stamps (for the date) & Ma Vinci's alpha stamps. 'Family' is coloured in with water colour pencils & a water brush.

Both designs inspired by layouts in the current Creating Keepsakes magazine.

For Father's day ~ remembering my FIL, a simply wonderful man, a loving husband, caring father and doting grandparent.

Photographs taken on a visit back to Kolkata India in 1992. Our house was but half built. We were all very cramped but what wonderful memories I have of this trip. The garden was blooming under the constant care of my father. My mother cooked all my favorite dishes. I visited with all my cousins and uncles & aunts. I shopped like crazy! Fab holiday and I am pleased as punch I managed to get all these photos onto a single layout!

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Today's video are both culinary tips from chef Jean Pierre. More specifically, tips on using a knife and cutting better. Some time back I took a class on how to better use the knife in the kitchen and I recommend anyone who likes to putter around in the kitchen to at least take a look at these videos.

I just noticed ~ You Tube has gotten all funky and cool!

Friends at Play

First layout done with Club Scrap Friendship kit from April 2004. Gin-X alpha rub ons and an alphabet template from the early days of scrapbooking for the title.

Second layout is all Chatterbox stuff that I am desperately trying to finish off. Why oh why do I buy so much!!?! The title I finished digitally because I could not find the right colour chipboard. I have some raw ones which I shall colour some other time. This layout inspired by one in CK of last month, I think.

It is not easy for Ricky to find playmates, especially outside the school environment. Which is why he has a fantastic time when he gets together with William & Matthew. They are just as boisterous as Ricky and they have a great time together!

Lily's seventh birthday. We had a 'Dress Up' tea party. Everyone wore their prettiest outfits, ribbons in their hair and even some jewellery! These little girls usually live in tees and shorts. It was so nice to see them all dolled up. Of course, some refused, even for the party .. LOL! See if you can spot the one very angry face!

Since there is not much journalling involved in these layouts I will leave you with the following to read. Do take the trouble of clicking on each image and squinting through the print and also the handwritten comments. It is well worth the effort .... Peter at least had a very active imagination.

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This following video does not really have much to watch - rather more to listen. Some jokes by Demetri Martin.

The Scissor layout

Layout done with the DIY Croppin' kit from September 2003. Also used some alpha rub ons and QK letters.

As part of his occupational therapy Ricky had to learn how to use scissors and to cut correctly. First he learned how to cut along straight lines. The he spent hours practicing cutting along curves. Because Ricky really enjoyed this activity, we took it a step further and I gave him my decorative edged scissors. He had a blast with them!

While Ricky was doing his cutting during one therapy session, I showed up with my camera. I took a lot of photos. And I love his expression in every single one of them. I simply could not choose or discard. So I decided to make a layout with all the photographs. He looks so adorable in all of them!

Yesterday I had a dinner party at home. Cooked Thai food and I was pretty liberal with the hot green chillies! LOL! Love the really spicy food. And for the first time I made Sangria at home. And it was the perfect accompaniment to the hot Thai dishes. Try making a pitcherful yourselves and then tell me if it is not the yummiest thing to drink on a hot summer evening!

Sangria: Half fill a large pitcher with ice cubes. Add 1 bottle of red table wine (I used a Merlot), 150 ml (5 fl.oz) freshly squeezed orange juice, 50 ml (1.7 fl.oz) freshly squeezed lime juice, 115 gm (4 oz) caster sugar and an apple and a pear, diced into small pieces. Stir till the sugar dissolves. Enjoy!
ETA: Here is a link to a website that will help you do conversions very easily. WWW Unit Converter. Or another website specifically for food conversions.

I am not sure if this video is the real thing or from some TV show. There comes a point in the proceedings when I cannot help but get skeptical, especially at the behavior of the policewoman. But it is fun to watch anyway:

The guy in the video below is really good at what he is doing. Worth a look-see :-)

All about Water

Both layouts done with ki memories products. Art Warehouse stickers. In the first layout, I had not yet done the journaling so I just did in digitally before posting - will do the real handwriting later. The design of the second layout is copied from the current CK magazine. You cannot miss the teardrop layout - it is stunning!

Summer 2000: One very hot afternoon the girls decided to strip down to their swim wear, laze around in the sun for a while and then cool off in the little plastic pool they had painstakingly filled out with water. Who should come along as they were peacefully lolling on the grass but Ricky. And as only little boys can, he instantly destroyed the peace! Gone was the serene afternoon. Instead a water fight erupted - girls against solitary boy. And it is amazing how Ricky managed to single handedly harass the girls for over half an hour!

It is a lucky coincidence that my camera had the zoom lens attached. I was able to get some photographs while keeping a safe distance from the fracas. It is amazing what mayhem one little boy can create!!

Ricky is amazing in water. He has been able to swim, albeit without any finesse, since he was a baby. He can go under and hold his breathe for extended periods of time. He is related, after all, to Umberto Pelizzari! He is always doing those strange headstands in water that he seems to love but sometime worry me. Now he is a strong swimmer and is fantastic with freestyle. His other strokes are getting better too.

Here I had just bought myself one of those underwater cameras everyone takes on holiday at least once and then never uses. Good thing I got some photos before chucking the camera to the back of my desk.

Have you heard of Dyscalculia? Take look here. The video is a couple of minutes long but most illuminating.

Dance like ...

Layout uses Club Scrap Steppin' Out kit from November 2004. I also used the printed numbers paper but am not sure who makes it. I did some stippling with blue and plum dye inks to help the printed paper blend with the rest of the layout. The words 'Dance', "Music' etc. have been printed and layered but then I digitally enhanced them so that they look 3D.

The photographs in this layout date from the Summer of 2000. We are in a very small and quaint little village in the Apennines in Italy. Every year in August this small village has a 'Festa del Paese' or a town festival, organised by the local church. For four evenings there is food, music, games and dancing. People from the town and neighboring places come to eat, drink and be merry.

And every evening there is a band that plays and a great little dance floor in the open air. Before all the serious dancers get down to the business of the Cha-Cha or the Rumba, children have the whole floor to themselves. And with the band playing really fun music, there is no stopping them!

Ricky loved it! There was so much space and no one to tell him to stop, or be careful. He really loves music and dancing ~ which actually is more like jumping and twirling but always to the beat. He has an amazing sense of rhythm. And here he totally let himself go! It was exhilarating watching him. And lovely little Lily would not miss the chance to dance with her brother. Even Mum got on the floor and gave him a twirl!

Motorcycle Racing!

Joe really enjoys Formula One and the Motorcycle races. And whenever he gets a chance, he is at the circuit. Here he is in Kuala Lumpur, on two different occasions. And unless you are interested in motorcycle racing, you would not know who all these cute young men are. Anyway, they make a lot of money putting there lives on the line in a testosterone charged sport. Stoner, Rossi, Melandri, Capirossi ... all stars!

Papers are all from Club Scrap 'Varsity' kit. As are the ribbons. The titles are all made with alpha foam stamps. And I simply love those nailhead brads.