E2C retreat LO by Tiff ...

Tiff has sent through this layout that she created at the retreat ...

Love the colours against the white Tiff :-)

Retreat class layouts by Karen D

Hi Everyone,

Here are my layouts from the wonderful Mardi Winens class which I thoroughly enjoyed (so much I lifted one of the layouts straight away)  Love the glue dots with glitter and using the negative of the punch, I will be doing those again!  Thank you so much Meredith, Sue, and Amanda for an amazing weekend :)

Karen xoxo

Love them both Karen - great photos!! 

Gotta laugh at the Thrifty layout ... they have quite a cult following thanks to those ads hey!!

Retreat layouts by Mel

"I had an absolute blast last weekend! Thank you so very much for putting on such a great show :)

I have learnt a lot from the classes and the girls that I was sitting with at table 10 - I cannot wait to put it all into practice.

Thanks Again

From Mel Crosby"

Mel's layout from Nat's class ...

Mel's layouts from Mardi's class ...

Your photos are beautiful ... so much character in those gorgeous little faces :-) The trampoline hair makes me laugh too!!

Wow Mel you had a productive weekend!! Great that you enjoyed it so much. Really good to see Mardi's class layouts as 12 x 12 too.

The embellishments I really love are the Easter Eggs made from foil wrappers - looks amazing :-)

Thank you for joining us ... hope we see you here more often now :-)

Send us your layouts please :-)

Hey now the retreat is over :-( we would love to have some blog action!

Send us your photos of the retreat class layouts your did or your class canvas so we can share them here ... email me please :-)

If you didn't do a class send in your favourite layout or off the page item that you created over the weekend :-)

Meredith x

e2c recipe : Bircher Muesli

Now this isn't rocket science but i have had a few people ask me how it is made.

It's a mix of what i found on the www. and also adapted to how i like to eat it. Some places have bircher muesli on the menu and it is one big mooshed up mess… red, flabby berries and some places even put full fat cream in (YUCK)

So this is my own adaptation.

I normally make up 1/2 a packet of natural rolled oats at a time, which saves the hassle of mixing up a new batch every night. It keeps in the fridge for a long time in a sealed container.

Ok when i say 'hassle of mixing up a batch' i mean this : splash enough natural apple juice into your rolled oats until they are just covered. Pop the lid on your container and refrigerate overnight. That's it… so it really takes 1 minute the night before. No biggie!!

If you have forgotten to mix up a batch the night before, you can do it the morning of… and just give them a 2 minute zap in the microwave….

Once they have sat in the juice overnight (or zapped) they turn all mooshy, fluffy, melt in the mouth with a delicious zingy fresh flavour, but not at all gluggy or milky (which is what i don't like about normal breakfast cereals)

In the morning spoon out enough of the apple juice / muesli mix for your serving, add a few spoons of natural fat free yoghurt, a generous handful of mixed frozen berries, a dab of honey and a sprinkling of slivered almonds.

And that's it. A delicious, healthy and very filling breakfast. It's my favourite and i would love to hear if you enjoy it too.

E2C retreat recipes No 1 ... cranberry broccoli salad

After a number of requests here is the recipe ... more to come as we get them :-)

Cranberry Broccoli Salad

4 cups fresh broccoli florets

½ to ¾ cup cubed red onion

1 cup dried cranberries (craisins)

1/3 cup crumbled well cooked bacon

½ cup Roasted slivered almonds

½ cup Shaved Parmesan cheese

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup thin cream

3T sugar

In a large salad bowl, combine the broccoli, onion, cranberries and bacon. In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, cream and sugar until smooth. Pour over the broccoli mixture with parmesan cheese and almonds, toss to combine.

Refrigerate until serving.

Serves 6

Recipe from www.tasteofhome.com and modified by Amanda Hall

a little something to get us in the mood...

remembering good e2c times in the past:

all the info you need ...

Hello hello to you!

Time is ticking away very quickly and it is less than two weeks until we all meet again! We hope you are SUPER excited and prepared for a fun filled, relaxing weekend.

In our email letter last year i said that we had planned THE BEST RETREAT EVER in 2011... well i'm sorry to say that i lied :(

2012 IS GOING TO BE THE BEST-EST, MOST AMAZING RETREAT EVER!

Lucky you attending!!! There are so many exciting, behind the scenes details coming together to bring you the best scrapping experience of your life!

As you are no doubt aware - we have 3 incredible South Australian teachers primed to inspire us! Please ensure you are ready for the classes that you are booked into. 

You will need to start thinking and preparing your class photos and requirements very soon.  Find all the details you need = photo sizes, colours and themes below. Please pay particular attention to the 'students need to bring own' sections.

second canvas size 20x25cm purchased from Cheap as Chips if you would like to create two in this class. (one canvas supplied in kit)

The classes and workshops are scheduled as following (at this stage)

Friday evening - Kate's Canvas Workshop
Saturday morning - Mardi's two layouts class
Saturday afternoon - Nat's layout class

Apologies that we say the same thing each year but again we will re- enforce some points :

1.  There will be 4 retailers attending our retreat and they will be 'onsite' for the entire weekend.  DON'T FORGET YOUR MONEY / PURSE / CARD / CHEQUE BOOK!

2. If you would like an iron on transfer for your t-shirt please remember to bring a black t-shirt. Transfers will be given to all in 2012.

3. The group photo last year looked fantastic with everyone in their black t-shirts. We are hoping most people will join in and bring a black shirt so we can have a similar 'group' appearance this year -  even if you don't want a transfer. This group photo has been planned for 10.30 am on Sunday.

4. Our e2c Masseuse Mandy will be available Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Yes 3 days!! In more good news - she has brought along a friend Lynlee who will also offer massages. This year the girls will also have express mani, express pedi and a deep cleanse facial on the menu! Booking sheets will be circulating on Friday.

5. You will need to BYO esky and ice for your own BYO drinks (alcoholic or non) for the entire weekend. Ice will be available at the Nt Shields service station across the road to top up eskies as needed. Please note that there is no spare fridge space so personal drinks will be your own responsibility.  You will also need to bring your own wine glass / cocktail glass / cocktail ingredients. Blenders will be supplied. There will be a special 'eskie cubby' for all eskies which is near to your scrap area.

6. Make sure you have plenty of photos and projects to keep you busy for 2.5 entire days. Take much more than you think you could ever scrap and hopefully your creative mojo will floweth over!

7. Tea and coffee facilities will be available all day, evening and until the wee hours. Afternoon tea will also be supplied on Friday afternoon at 2.30pm.

8. A small selection of nibbles will also be available. If you have particular eating desires - bring them along for yourself to nibble on over the weekend.

9. Don't forget to pack bath towel, bedding and toiletries!!

10. There are 6 beds per room - 3 bunks. These have been allocated in 2012 - and we have tried very hard to accommodate everyone as they requested.

11. Arrival time is from midday on Friday the 27th.  No early callers please. Lunch is not provided on Friday but facilities are available to heat your lunch if needed.

12. The retreat will wrap up around 4pm on Sunday :( This is to ensure we have enough time to finalize retailer accounts, give us time to clean rooms and remove ourselves!

13. There will be a cuttlebug, sissix and some folders plus plenty of sewing machines set up at the retreat to borrow. If you would like to print journalling there will also be a printer / laptop. Please supply own paper/cardstock.

14. Please do not bring individual blow heaters. We do not think our power will cope. We are hoping to solve the dim lighting issue from last year and have a few ideas in place to make things brighter.

15. Those with sensitive backs/ bums you may want to bring along a pillow or cushion as the chairs can become a bit hard after a few hours and we would hate that          to interfere with your creative energy!

  16. The ladies travelling via planes please note that the airport is VERY close to the retreat location. (North Shields Lion's Park).

Please don't hesitate to contact us if there is any questions or concerns. We would be pleased to help in any way possible and strive to make this a great, fun time for everyone.

 Meredith, Val, Sue and Amanda,

first project for the retreat ... ???

So what is your plan for the retreat ...

are you working on a few layouts ?

are you doing a mini album?

are you concentrating on the classes?

or are you doing all of the above????

Let us know your plans!!

Getting excited ... ???

So over on Facebook the excitement is building but if you aren't a Facebooker then we don't want you to miss out on posting your excitement 

So leave us a message on how you are getting ready for the retreat!!

Even if you are on Facebook ... leave us a message :-)

a class question...

today i received an email asking about Kate Masons class and the size of the canvas.

In our promo ad you might have read that there were enough materials in the kit to make two canvases but only one was supplied.

If you would like to make full use of Kate and get a second canvas - the size is 20x25cm.

We have sourced ours from cheap as chips in Port Lincoln as Kate said that the cheaper canvases are as good as the pricey ones for this class.

Hope this helps.

Is anyone else getting excited? Not long to go now!

colour challenge - Marika

Hi Amanda,

 

A belated very basic page for last months colour challenge the colour is grey behind the title but looks black on photograph. Thanks for the inspiration it has been so long since i have been able to get near my scrap desk.

 

Marika

Oh that yellow paper is delicious Marika - love your matting of the word 'carefree' and a fantastic photo in which you really do look carefree!

The silvery grey accents are perfect. The heart is stunning.

Your xmas sounds like it was a fabulous relaxing day. Thanks for joining in the challenge!

Random challenge - triptych

I have noticed a few layouts around with this sort of design happening:


TRIPTYCH.

definition here


and some examples of art:

it can be one photo divided into thirds

OR

three photos with similar theme

OR

completely unrelated.

one way i have seen this become popular is with instagram/ hipstamatic type of photos:

or of course the photo booth type of shots:

you could even extend this theme to your page design with 3 patterned papers instead of using photos...

i wonder what you can come up with?

Mixing scrapping and reading ...

 

Wendy Sue's blog

Colour challenge - Zanny

Zanny said ...

"I sat up last night determined to finish this one, as it has been sitting on my scrap-desk for about six weeks!

Several hours later it was complete. It's fairly bland, but it still hurt my head. Thanks for the little message on the blog, it was just the push I needed.

 

Being a very long winded girl of many words, I journalled the full story and stuck it to the reverse of the layout, as I couldn't for the life of me work out how it was going to fit on the front.

The condensed version on the actual layout reads:

 

1. Confess everything to Mum.
2. Assess damage.
3. Ring Mr McKenzie and explain.
4. Relinquish pocket money.
5. Take photos for historical purposes.
6. Maintain brake fluid level!!

Captions under the photos read:

 

{ute photo}    -    'the weapon'

{close-up}    -    'x marks the spot'

{shed shot}    -    'oops'

 

Happy scrappin'.

Zan"

WOW Zanny!! 

Love the skid marks!! Very clever! 

Great record with photos and journalling too - and the yellow ute even to go with the challenge!!

Thank you for joining in ... it's never too late!!

Colour challenge - Lou

I know I know its been like forever!!! I am sorry but I have been a little committed and haven't had a lot of time for my own creative fun :)

Please find attached my layout for the fab colour challenge grey and yellow!

Sooooo can't wait to see you all at the retreat!!!

Cheers Louise  :) xox

Wow Lou! Love all that misting and woo hoo at the vellum ;-)

The yellow is really striking and the flowers are so groovy!

Thank you for sending your LO in!

If any one else has one still coming don't hold back ... hey Z!!

colour challenge - Trish

Hi Amanda, Heres my take on the colour challenge, not much grey or yellow
but its there. Its so great to be able to take part in these challenges.
Cheers Trish

lots of lovely texture here Trish - great series of photos and bits and bobs embellishments. Very brave scrunching too!! Looks fabbo. Thanks for joining in the challenge!

colour challenge - Karen

Hi again!

I am loving this colour challenge so much I have done another page.  Once again I thought it was perfect for the photo AND it is so wonderful seeing so many fantastic layouts on the blog :)

Cheers Karen

oh my favourite yellow paper here Karen! This is just delicious! That grey gingham - fantastic and also loving your big photo. As always, your ability to 'leave' space and make simple look sensational is very clever.

colour challenge - Ali

Hi Amanda, Here is my version of the colour challenge, which I found challenging to say the least... It was fun though and I was glad to use this photo of Mia at the beach in Jan, I love this one!

Thanks and good to see lots of LO's on the blog!!

Ali xx

Oh Ali - The yellow is just WOW. And it's a stunning photo. I let out a little squeal when i saw what you have done to the chip banner too - looks amazing!!!

You are one of my paint idols so I am green with envy every time i see it look so fab and effortless on your layouts! Clever chook!

Thanks for joining in!

colour challenge - Sandra

Hi Amanda. 
You sure are on a winner with this colour combination!

I really enjoyed playing with this combo.
 With the 'planking' craze seen everywhere at CHA and on a certain challenge blog, which seems to be always  one step ahead of the trends ;-) (how DO you manage that by the way??) I remembered  that I have a heap of wood panelling in my  wallpaper samples. With your colour scheme in mind I dragged them all out again.
Thanks for a great challenge, I had so much fun playing with this one.
Cheers

Sandra

Can i swear?

BLOODY BRILLIANCE Sandra!

Gosh i love that background (yes very appropriate for the new 'trend') and your touches of yellow really are beautiful. The chip tree and frame elements = YUM.

Thanks for joining in Sandra. We have missed seeing your wonderful creations at e2c.

colour challenge - Janet

Hi Amanda

LOVED the colours of this and it all just fell together in record time.

there might be more than just a little splash of yellow .. I couldnt help myself.

Cheers

Janet 

oh this is great Janet - gosh that little yellow monkey is sensational!! Love the sprinkling of yellow and the delicious starburst. Great chicken wire misting/masking behind too.

Thanks so much for joining in - wonderful inspiration to us!

class requirements

Just an extra reminder regarding what to bring to your classes.

I have had a few questions regarding photos, sizes and orientation so read on for details :) Please take particular note if landscape or portrait is required for your class. The wrong orientation will effect your ability to complete your class.

Mardi's Class:

This is a class in which you will create 2 pages.

You will need to bring -  Stapler, glue dots, tweezers.

photo requirements -  page 1 : one 4x6 portrait photo in colour.

page 2 : one 4x6 portrait photo in colour.

layout theme -  fun, vibrant, childhood, summery.

Natalie's Class:

This is a single page class.

You will need to bring -  vintage photo distress ink (Tim Holtz), baby wipes, sponge block     applicator or sponge for inking,  strong, clear, quick drying glue, black ink pad.

photo requirements -  one 4x6 inch landscape photo in sepia or black and white. Chipboard title LOVE YOU to be used.

Extra - please print out prior to coming a one sentence journalling strip to compliment your photo and the LOVE YOU title. Nat has used a typewriter font (size 12 or 14) printed in black on cream card stock.

layout theme -  romance, girly, vintage, masculine + small flowers.

Kate's Workshop

This is a single canvas workshop using napkin art. There will be enough product to create a second canvas but only one canvas supplied in kit.

You will need to bring - flat, smooth, 2cm synthetic bristled paint brush, apron or art smock, old towel or rag for cleanup, pointy tipped scissors, permanent, waterproof black pen (micron or pitt the best).

photo requirements -  no photo on this project.

Colour challenge - Meredith

colour challenge - Tracey

Hi Amanda, just a couple of cards that I made to suit the challenge of grey, white and a hint of yellow. Although I have a lot more than a hint of yellow going on!!

Have a great week.

Tracey xx

Beautiful cards Trace - what lucky recipients! Love the splashes of yellow - and how cute is the tape measure along the bottom?!!! Lovely little yellow tickets - so cute!

Inspring stuff Trace - thanks for sharing.

colour challenge - Nat

Hi Amanda
I loved this color challenge!
Was kinda nice to step out of my comfort zone and get super creative!
I created this page for the Once Upon A Sketch challenge for this month using your awesome color palette!
Thanks chickie
Natalie May

oh Nat - the textures here are fabulous - just makes me want to touch it all!! Those round disks, the sectioning off of title, accents and photos is great. Love the feathers and the journalling on the tag! 


The use of yellow here really makes your page POP. Fantastic!!

colour challenge - Amanda

colour challenge - Karen

Hi Amanda, 

Here is a layout for the February colour challenge.  I have had this photo sitting on my desk for ages and when the colour challenge popped up I thought it was the perfect combo for it.  Its great to see so many layouts on the blog :)

Cheers Karen

WOWOWOWOW Karen! Gosh i love that yellow doily stamp? rub on? It's just delicious there as the only splash of yellow apart from the glow of the lights in the photo. So beautiful! As always i love your minimal style - it's perfection!!

I too am loving seeing all the different variations of this colour challenge - so wonderful to see so much inspiration here.

colour challenge - Maryanne

Maryanne this is SUPER CUTE!!! love how sophisticated and classy the colour combination is here - and that chipboard tree is absolute perfection. Gosh i love how your little details come together into a bloody awesome creation.

Very cute couple too (i was secretly having a look at one of your sons the other day and felt quite old and pervy LOL)

colour challenge - Brigette

oooh Brigette! ohmygosh look at that paint and texture!

This is so delicious - love the detail, check out that timber planking and geezus wow at the paint (again)

Yellow, grey and white suits you my dear!! So glad it's enthused you to scrap.

colour challenge - Amanda

Colour Challenge - Brigette

Oooooh Brigette!

How delicious is the yellow and grey here!?? And how clever to incorporate that honeycomb type of effect - apparently all the rage at CHA! Is that on the paper or is it a stamp? Whatever it is really fabulous. The flowers, the chip, the butterfly - and the subtitle - brilliance.

February Colour Challenge

Thank you Kathryn.

As our ticker seems to be on fast forward counting down the days until April 27th and our next retreat I would like to mention, and thank someone who has been a MASSIVE help and inspiration over the past two years.

Kathryn came to us after the second retreat, with a proposal (yes all written and very formal!)  that she would like to take over the main meal catering. Up until that point we had always walked to a nearby hotel for a meal and both years had been disappointed. We felt that we were trying to run the best retreat ever (dare i say IN THE WORLD?!!) and those meals at the pub were letting us down.

Val was already well in charge of her scrummy lunches and general purchasing of kitchen goodies and so we thought Kathryn would be an awesome addition to our team.

Kathryn had everything sorted right from the get go and convinced us to give her a go as caterer of main meals and supporting Val during lunches.

.

Val, Andrew and Kathryn 2011
(Andrew will curse me putting this photo on here with the pink aprons on!)

Far out was she good?!!! Not only did she blow our socks off at the main retreat, she then agreed to help us with the Scrapathons as well!!

Her menus were to die for and omg i am still having random mouth watering issues over that deluxe chicken, cous-cous and baby spinach salad concoction at the last scrapathon… hmmmmmm.

We can quite safely say that we never ever could have taken e2c to that next level of fab without her input and hard slog.

 I cannot stress enough how good it is to know that all our meals and food business is taken care of. Meredith, Sue and myself did not have to worry one little bit about anything - Val and Kathryn had it all sorted like clockwork. To be free to concentrate on all the other aspects of retreat organisation with that one huge and vital area of catering totally taken care of was a gigantic worry and load off our minds

Sadly (but understandably) Kathryn has decided to step away from the kitchen side of things this year - yep she is still coming but in a scrapbook capacity only!

So i would like to take this opportunity to say a huge THANKS to Kathryn. You have always been a positive, quiet achiever who was as passionate about the retreat as we are. We have loved having you involved and hope that you enjoyed being a part of the e2c team.

Thank you really doesn't seem enough for what you have done for us!! We really hope you enjoy the e2c experience from another angle this year.


When Kathryn told us this news, we had a bit of a panic and thought 'who the HELL will fill her massive shoes?!' (figuratively not literally as i think she might be a quite normal size 7)

Luckily we have secured not one person, not two but THREE ladies who have stepped up to do the job.

These girls are not scrapbookers but by hell they know how to have a good time. They are also super organised and have menus and shopping lists all ready to go!

We know you are going to love having Mel, Kim and Leanne in the kitchen this year. They really are a bunch of wags!

Along with our 'Super Man Andrew' who is the most amazing help in every area of set up, general running of things and pack up of the retreat, i think we have a fantastic team behind us for April.



So thank you  to Kathryn.

Welcome Mel, Kim and Leanne.

and thank goodness for Andrew and Val!