Midnight Ramblings

Excuse my late night rambles, but I am not sleepy and I decided to take it out on my blog!  I'm not sure if the photo above is one I have put up before; it is an old edit (which in turn has made me realise that I need some more up to date photos of myself for these purposes) 
But anyway, my life is a little topsy turvy right now, what with everything I have going on, looking for a new job so I have school visits and interviews here there and everywhere, I am working at the Co-op in the evenings and weekends and I am trying to keep track of mates that are slowly spreading out across the world... Who knew life was going to be such hard work!?  I think I want my crayons back - Note to self, build a fort at the weekend and do some colouring!

On a more serious note though, with all that I have going on right now, I am keeping a smile on my face and a spring in my step.  The world will not change me - no matter now much it feels like it is dragging me down, I can still accomplish everything I want to with my life, I could be in a much worse situation really.  So, I need to get my head back in the game, hit the dirt again and get running and keep my mind focused on the end game, and ultimately my books; which I will get published one day!  Everything happens for a reason, and I say 'Try me' - bring it on - I always wanted to be a werewolf anyway!  Haha!

I'll shut up now... I should probably try and get some sleep - busy day tomorrow! 

Night all,
Louby xx

A Grey Thought...

Well, where to start?!  

Whilst heading into the shops with Momma Kate at the weekend, our aim chocolate and alcohol, I came across a shelf full of E L James' new book; Grey.

Now I am not going to lie, I struggled to contain my excitement, and got 'that look' off Kate when it went straight into the trolley!  I had vowed to myself that I was going to show some restraint, and purposefully hadn't bought it straight away on the eighteenth - I made it to the nineteenth obviously!  Anyway, back to the point, once snuggled up in bed later that evening, I opened the book to the first page to start reading.  James' dedication for the book reads; This book is dedicated to those readers who asked... and asked... and asked... and asked for this... It made me chuckle.  

I can't say that I was personally one of the readers who asked for this book, but I am most definitely one of her devoted readers who, as any reader would be, is interested in the other side of the story.  How many times when reading Fifty Shades of Grey had I wondered what he was thinking, wondered how he felt about her, wondered what mental struggles he was battling?  I don't think there is any reader who can say that they didn't like Shades of Christian; the extras that James included at the end of Fifty Shades Freed, especially Meet Fifty Shades, where we got to relive Christian and Ana's first meeting through his eyes. When I heard about her plans to release Grey; knowing that it would fill in all the gaps and answer all those unanswered questions that I had been left with, I couldn't even begin to put into words my excitement.  And before anyone says it - yes I know that I probably need a life!  But there are worse addictions than books!!

In the past, I got just as excited about the prospect of Midnight Sun, Stephanie Meyer's rewrite of her first book Twilight, but from Edward's perspective.  I was such a good girl, and refrained from reading the leaked material on the internet because I wanted to be able to read her intended copy, not the original drafts.  As a wannabe writer I know how many changes go into a story before it is ready for people to read.  It took me forever to get mine to a stage where I was comfortable for my Mom to read it as another person's opinion, never mind the changes that I made after that, some with her input, others because I still wasn't happy with it, before I was finally able to say that it was ready to start sending to prospect-able Agents.  When Meyer announced that she wasn't going to write the rest of Midnight Sun because of the leak, I was absolutely guttered, and when she posted a link to the manuscript on her own website, I did read it.  The way she recaptured the story from Edward's point of view, and the insight you got into his thoughts and emotions only proved to deepen my love for the story, and I still hope that one day, she decides to finish writing it.  

Reading Grey has done exactly that for me.  I have read some of the reviews that James has received for her newest addition to the Fifty Shades Saga and if I'm honest, I think some of them are grounded in ridiculous expectations.  They have criticised her for retelling 'exactly the same story' and that it is 'virtually identical' to the original book.  I had to laugh; what exactly were they expecting?  Of course it is the same story, I think I would have been upset if she had changed it to make for better reading or whatever reason she might have come up with.  We fell in love with the story the way she wrote it from Ana's perspective, by rewriting it from Christian's point of view, she wasn't trying to rewrite the story, she wanted us to see his version, to see Ana the way he saw her.  Of course the events happened in the same order, and of course the spoken dialogue was the same.  Those are the facts of the story.  What we wanted from Grey was to see Christian's thought and emotions behind everything that we already knew had happened, and personally, I wasn't disappointed.  I loved the internal monologue that he ran with himself, and the way he answered his own thoughts.  For me, this only added to how far I had already fallen for Mr Grey.  Critics have complained because the way she has written the book has 'made it impossible for a film adaptation' - were they really serious in thinking that they could make the same film twice?  I worry about some of these people; I really do.

Anyway, as a happy reader, I have to say that I admire E L James for this.  It must have been hard to rewrite something that has been such a massive success, and try to keep a reader's attention.  I have to admit, before starting it, I did wonder how easy it would be to read, when you already knew the story - I worried it would be boring and predictable.  In all honesty, it was completely the opposite, and I found myself trying to remember how Ana had described the same experiences; which was harder than I thought it would be to say I only re-read the series just before the film release back in February.  But all in all, I loved being able to experience the same story, one which I love so much, from another perspective, and all the while, slowly getting to know more about Christian along the way.  I do hope that she intends on writing the other two books in the same way, and that the bad reviews have not put her off.  There are still many loyal fans out there that have loved this opportunity, and really hope that they get a chance to follow Christian through the rest of the well loved journey. (Along with the other two films of course - but there lies a whole other story.)

If I had to criticise in any way, I would have to say that there was one place I felt let down, and that was the flogging in the playroom at the end.  Honestly, I did want to know more of what he was thinking and feeling as he hit her.  I have always wondered that, right from reading the book, but for me, was emphasised when I saw the film.  Jamie Dornan's representation of Christian was amazing, and the emotion that he portrayed with his facial expressions and body language in that scene were truly moving.  Personally, I felt that there was more to know in that scene in the new book, but I was still happy with the insight I did receive.  

I think I have rambled for long enough now, there must be something productive I should be doing, though writing seems more alluring :)  As always!!

Till next time,
Louby x

P.S. All opinions and quotes taken from the review were found on the Mail Online Website - no copyright intended - though I am not going to include the link as I am not aiding their reading figures for such a ridiculous review of an amazing book!

Curve Ball...

Well we all know what they say about life giving you lemons... Prepare for the best lemonade I can manage!  Or alternatively, I found this, which just about sums up my thoughts on the matter! (Image found on Google, no copyright intended)

Anyway, just when I thought I was getting my life back on track, life decided that I needed a little more to deal with!  But, as my Whatsapp status already quotes - 'When life puts you in a tough situation, don't ask 'Why me?' say 'Try me!''  And I will be damned if anything will put me off course.

So, I've had my night of feeling crappy, I spent some time in bed, even managed to squeeze Sammy in with me for a cuddle!  We had take out for tea for Sammy's birthday, I have munched my way through a bag of chocolate and enjoyed a bottle of chocolate milk and spent the entire evening in my Soldier's hoodie - if only I could have finished it off with a cuddle!  But as of tomorrow I will pick myself up and keep going...  I am going to concentrate on my book for a little while and see if I can get the second one well under way, there are plenty of chapters done, I just need to get some fluency in there and start tying it all together.  The other day I totally put pen to paper and wrote the prologue for the third one - I believe that there is some creative spark arrived with the sunshine!  

And on a final note, I also squeezed in some crafting this afternoon and managed to finish off my latest make :)  I bought a wooden book/storage box from the craft fair at the weekend, and I have decorated it to keep the e-reader in that Sammy is letting me have now that she has her new Galaxy Tab!  Anyone that know me knows that I am not a fan of e-readers, but unfortunately it is becoming a necessity as a lot of authors whose books I read are publishing a lot of material as e-books - and I miss out on them.  So, where as I need the e-reader to catch up on that material, I still love my books - so how to solve this problem... Disguise the e-reader as a book of course.

My Masterpiece!

I hope you like it :)  It now has pride of place on my bookshelf, though it doesn't have the e-reader inside it yet! 

Right, I am feeling the need for bed and a movie... 
Till next time,
Louby x

Settled and comfy...

Well guys and girls, I hope you are comfy, as this one is set up for the long haul;if you make it all the way to the end in one go, I think you deserve a reward (and I may even make one for you haha!)  I hope that May has been good to you, I know it has been good for me - there is so much to talk about that I don't even know where to start!

I think I might be all topsy turvey and start at then end!  So here goes; I totally redecorated my bedroom over the last couple of days!  Yep you heard me - completely revamped, and I did it all by myself (with a little help from Daddy with the heavy lifting) but I did all the actual painting etc all on my own :)  I am so proud of myself.  All in less that forty-eight hours, my room was emptied, stripped bare, the bright walls that my sister had decorated in blue and lime green were painted over in white, and then I put cream and purple on the walls.  It was left to dry over night while I commandeered Mommy's bed (and by all accounts - totally star-fished haha) and then I spent Friday morning putting everything back and putting things away in their new homes.  There was hours of fun to be had revamping my bookshelves and moving all the books around haha! 
Unfortunately I forgot to take any before pictures - but most of you have seen the colours in some way shape or form from the photos on here - so you have a rough idea where I started - here is the finished room:
The bedding is an old set and I think is too dark, so I am going to buy new bedding, and hopefully curtains to match - watch this space. But other than that, I am well pleased with my efforts, and fell asleep all smiley last night surrounded by everything purple again :)

What else have I been up to over Half Term?!  Well, I think the better question would be, what have I not got up to over Half Term...  I haven't stopped lol.  I could do with another week off to recover from this week, never mind go back to work on Monday - But, there is no rest for the wicked!  Throughout the week, as we as working four out of the five weekdays at the Co-op, I have power washed the patio and cleaned up the back garden to go with Daddy's efforts with the decking - the gazebo is up - so the garden is now ready and waiting to be used; all we need now is some decent weather to get out there and sit in the sunshine!  I have helped decorate the dining room - it is now a lovely warm creamy colour to match the neutral colour scheme that is running through the downstairs.  I have been shopping with Sammy and accomplished one of my 'firsts' for this month - I totally bought skinny jeans!  She has been trying for years to get me into them, and I have been stubborn, but now, I am the owner of two pairs, and I have to admit, they are extremely comfy!  I have been to the cinema with Sammy too, we went to see Tomorrowland - not a bad film - would definitely recommend.  And lastly, to add another 'first' to the month - I have had my nails done yesterday :)  It is only gel nail polish, but they look awesome, and it is all shiny and black!  So yeah, I even fit having my hair and nails done into the week - a very busy week... from start to finish.  
Before the week officially started, I had also had an exciting weekend.  I had Friday off work as a day in lieu and Mommy and I went out for lunch and to the cinema :)  I totally took her to see Pitch Perfect 2 - Aca-amazing!!!  Epic film - we laughed the whole way through - will definitely be a DVD purchase for me, to add to my collection!
On Saturday, I had my first 'first' of the month when I went on the extremely long journey to Leicester to see Stacey :)  Now, you must be laughing, when I say long - 'it's only an hour away' I hear you say... Ha!  An hour - Four hours it took me to get there - four hours!  She should think herself lucky that she is important to me lol - An hour after leaving my house, I could still see the slip road at Junction 31 where I had gotten on the M1 - no joke!  An hour after that I had only rolled less that five miles!  There is only so much sitting still one person can do - I had listened to so much Halestorm that I had learnt the words to five new songs just from listening to the album on repeat!  Eventually, after several phonecalls and a lot of map reading skills on my sister's part - she found me an escape route using Woodhall services - the only problem there - everyone had gone in the services to have a stretch - the traffic in there was horrendous!  
Three hours after leaving the house, I sneaked down the service road at the back of the service station and made the hour journey to Leicester from there - By the time I got there my bum was so numb it was unreal! 

Once I actually made it to Leicester we had a great day - I met this little guy - Stacey's brother - who is awesome.  He has such a little character and we had a great day out at Bradgate Park where we had a picnic on the hill, went for a walk (while Hayden was on his bike) and then played hide and seek whilst exploring the ruins... The sun stayed out, there were plenty of laughs to be had, and gummy bears at the end of it all :)  
After dropping Hayden back home, we headed for a drink at the pub before watching Britain's Got Talent at her Dad's... and I have never watched a tv program in so many different positions - after the drive there and being active all day, I couldn't sit still - I think I watched half of it laid upside down on the floor!

Long story short, I can honestly say that it was worth the long drive there.

In other news - since my original attempt at jogging, where I managed to half jog/fast walk the 1.84 miles around Treeton Dyke in just under 24 minutes... I can now jog around pretty much the entire lake in 20 minutes!  I think losing four minutes in four weeks is pretty good going!  The next goal is to actually jog the whole thing and to continue to bring the time down :)  Slowly start to up the pace a bit, as at the minute, I swear my jog is slower than my walk!

I have rescued a cute little dog teddy from the charity shop the last time I was there, who is now sat in my car looking cute on the dashboard.  Everyone who has seen him thinks he is cute, and he has lovely blue eyes :)  Check out my Instagram for pictures (link is in the write up on the right hand side) - Oo, oo, and Sammy bought me a new pillow to match the definition of hug one that she bought me ages ago!  I now have a definition of love too :) both of which have pride of place on my bed with my little lion!  Speaking of my little lion - he has had some serious face time on Instagram lately - he's my little cuddle buddy at night - and I don't care how sad that sounds!  

By gum, I think that's everything - though I know that the minute I click Publish I will remember something else - but hey ho - I'm sure I will be updating again soon - I haven't forgotten that I need to get some of my new fiction scribbles up!  So, if you're still with me - congrats on making it to the end - I am now off for some Chinese food :)  Another first in a long time!  

Remember to check out my Instagram - and now my Facebook Page too Fantasy Craft Corner to see my latest makes and to get yours ordered - I love making these and can't wait to hear from anyone that wants one doing :)

Till next time,

Louby xx

Newest Makes :)

This is only a quick one - I am intending on doing a big look back over the month at then end of the week, and I have some new scribbles that I need to sort out typing up and getting onto here... Busy life these days and all that... But I will get around to it over the holidays.

Anyway, my main purpose for today is to show off my new make for my room...  I have been having lots of fun with my new bits and pieces that I got off a lady on Facebook, and bought some little box frames when I went to Ikea with Mom and Dad earlier this month.  Hehe, to practice and get some ideas going, I made a few for me...

I had three different coloured frames to play with, the black one, the white one and a wooden one.  The wooden one leant itself well to the little teddy and the whole cutsie love scene.  The white one was done as a base idea to reach out to the 'new baby' craft world - the idea being that it can be recreated in different colours, with new baby names and bunting and other toys and bits and bobs in the frame.  
The black one however, was perfect for my bedroom, and of course now fits beautifully with its Gorjuss Girl theme and its little pile of books... I loved making these and hope that they take off on my new Facebook page, which I will list at the bottom of here for you all to go and take a look at... These have definitely taken the top spot for my favourite things to create, but I am still loving my inked name frames, and today created one of them for me too :)  Sleeping Beauty themed of course!!

Fantasy Craft Corner

Till next time,

Louby xx

Time Lapse!

So I have turned a few heads this weekend and caused a few second glances!  Yes, you have seen right - the old uniform is back on... I have taken on some hours at the Co-op on top of my school hours to pay for some new clothes ad some Summer fun!  It is time to put in some extra hours so that I can afford to go out and play when the sun finally comes out to stay!  

I started back last night, and it was just like riding a bike - I had got back into the swing of things in no time, only being thrown by the odd thing that is out of the ordinary, or new!  As seen as it has been three and a half years since I left.  Yep, time flies, it was December 2011 that I left to pursue my career in the Education system, and I have loved every minute of that and have worked in some fantastic schools and had some amazing experiences that have allowed me to grow and gain the knowledge that has gotten me to where I am now.  Now, it is time that I actually got out into the world a little more as I have bubbled recently.  Don't get me wrong; I love being at home - apples and trees and all that eh Mummy?  I am happy at home, and I never stray very far, but recently I have been spending too much time indoors and not enough time out having adventures... The main reason for that?  A lack of pennies to get me very far.  Hence the Co-op!  A couple of evenings a week you will find me behind the tills at the Petrol station while I keep busy earning pennies to go spend.  
I already have planned what I'm going to spend the first paycheck on!  And I have made a decision that all the money I earn gets spent on me - fun times an spoiling myself (Let's face it, someone has to spoil me!)  So I am planning on getting my nails done with the money on the first payday :)  I will of course put photos on when I do!

Anywhoo - bed time me thinks, though just before I go, I have to show you my latest make!  This was for my baby sis - and there was nothing else that it could be of course - 

I am slowly broadening my horizons - check out my page on Facebook - FantasyCraftCorner for my other designs.  All frames are £5 if you would like one doing for a friend, child or even for yourself and I can do any name, and will put my hand to attempting any theme/background!  Bring on the next challenge I say!

Night all,
Louby xx

Distressed!!

Urgh!!  What i with all this rain?!  It's supposed to be Spring... We're in May now, time to ditch the rain and move forward towards the Summer weather - I guess someone forget to send that Memo to Mother Nature eh?  We got a good day for Mayday Bank Holiday Monday I guess - we should be thankful for small I suppose!  I got loads done too; a wander around Ikea with Mum and Dad (With Dad keep giving me static shocks off the trolley!) and we totally finished off the morning with Subways for lunch!  Naughty I know - but I made up for it when I got home - a six mile bike ride to Ulley Reservoir and back up Guilthwaite Hill on my lonesome 'cos Jayne totally bailed on me!  

Ulley wasn't as good as I'd hoped - it's not as far as the Rother Valley trip we do, and technically we shouldn't have the bike round the water areas as the paths are too narrow for passing safely.  So for now I'll stick to Rother Valley until I find another plan to try!  Might actually have to start loading it up and get some places new - maybe Clumber park :)

Anyway, after the bike ride I washed, dried, hoovered and cleaned both my car and Mum's!  By the time I was through with all that I was shattered!  After a lie on the bed I got changed into my onesie and planned to do nothing for the rest of the night apart from relax and watch Game of Thrones with Mum; I think I had earned it!  That plan soon changed too though when Sammy asked me to take her over the pub to see Fiona!  Instead of all the running back and forth, I totally stayed to watch Game of Thrones with Rach - she even supplied the chocolate!  And yes - I totally did all of that in my onesie!!

And to the point now - over at Fantasy Stampers this week it is the Distress It challenge.  This was another one that I didn't really know what to do as the art journaling doesn't really hold much scope for that kid of technique.  However, when have I ever let something like that stop me?!  I raided Mum's stash of Distress Inks and got started.  I am quite proud of my final piece!  It is something a little bit different; which I am always open to!   

I played with pink Distress Inks and several stamps from the Stamping Up - Gorgeous Grunge kit to create my background and then used Stamendous' Cling Rocking Horse as my main feature.  Again, I attempted something a little bit different and used the Distress Inks to colour in the stamp!  This is a technique that I have now quickly grown to love and have used in absolutely all sorts since!!
To finish off I used a sentiment from Mum's stash 'We do not remember days... We remember moments' and then got creative with the beading to decorate the background!  

Overall I love this one, and may have to do something similar to frame for my bedroom wall!  If I do I'll be sure to post it for you to look at.

So there it is - my entry for Challenge # 35 - Distress It over on the Fantasy Stampers Blog Challenge.  Head over there to check it out and have a go for yourself - I love seeing how many different ways one phrase can be interpreted!  

And on a final note - head over to FantasyCraftCorner on Facebook to take a quick look at my new crafty page.  I felt it was time to let the world see my makes - I am loving creating the Name Frame backgrounds at the minute - so check them out and give me a shout if you fancy purchasing one for yourself or a family member or friend!  All makes are one of a kind and are made to customer specification!  So let me know what you have in mind, and I'll have a go at creating it!  

Hope to see some of you there,
Louby xx