Skywatch Friday

An old photo from me today prompted by meeting the lovely Monty Halls (see previous post) this week and hearing him talk about his 6 month stay in a bothy out in the Western Isles.

We spent a few days on the Isles of Lewis and Harris back in 2010 - and Monty is right when he says the islands are the UKs version of New Zealand - they are stunning.

Pop over to the Skywatch blog to see more skies from around the world.

Simple Scrapbooking

I have finally finished the page that has been sitting on my desk as I had a quiet afternoon to myself today.

As I have mentioned before I am trying to thin down my magazine collection - but not before I have looked through each and every copy - yes it is going to take a while.

This page by Jen Dubbs in an old copy of Simple Scrapbooks from March 2009. I'm liking the clean and simple look - I do like lots of empty space on my pages.

It is an old photo too from our trip to the Isle of Lewis in the Summer of 2010 - father and son enjoying a quiet moment together.

I am still using the same old Scrapagogo kit (very sad to here this week that these kits are to be no more. I have subbed on and off for quite a few years and enjoyed 2 of their retreats)

284/365+1 : Barren

A typical scene on the Isle of Lewis in the Western Isles. A stunningly beautiful place but very remote in places.

Mojo - where art thou?

I haven't done any scrapbooking in ages (although I do think if I sorted my room out a bit then I might feel slightly more inspired. I have done lots of pages for last years holiday to the US but still seem to have tons of photos left over - not sure what to do with them. And haven't even made a start on the photos from this summers 2 trips away.

The only time I seem to scrap is at my local crop which is just one Sunday a month - although this months was an extra long one - but I am yet to actually finish any of the pages I started.

Here is one from July's crop which I have just finished. For the life of me I cannot remember what the papers are without pulling them out of my crop bag - but I do know they were from the last kit I ever bought from Gottacraft before Sandra closed the doors for good. Her kits were great value for money with plenty of inspiration on the blog.

Here is Callum from our camping trip to the Isle of Lewis in July 2010.

So now the kids have gone back to school it is my mission to clean up my craft room and finish off the pile of half finished pages that are starting to pile up.

Cover to Cover # 4

In this prompt Shimelles asked us to identify gaps in our albums and then find ways to to add to those pages - it might mean adding more pages, maybe adding a divided page protector with some of the additional photos you have from a particular event or simply adding more journalling to a page.

I finally got round to sending off my Photobox order late on Thursday and received an email to say they had been dispatched on Friday and I should expect them by Tuesday . So it was a surprise this morning when the popped through the letterbox - fab service.

I took the easy way out and completed 2 more pages - one to go in my America album with another beach photo from Florida. I have so many photos that we took of the kids on the beach one evening that I am thinking of adding a divided 12x12 page protector between the pages to add some more of the photos - as many of the photos aren't different enough to warrant pages of their own.

Here are some rare photos of Sam:

In 2010 we visited the Western Isles and looking through my albums I realised I hadn't actually scrapped many of the photos. Eventually I think I will make up an album of their own - one which will include just pages from our camping trips.

One of a cheeky looking Callum on one of the stunning beaches on Lewis.

For both the pages I used the March Scrapagogo kit which included papers from the My Minds Eye Be Amazing range. I wasn't sure about the papers when I first saw them but I now have a small pile of photos which match them perfectly. I am in love with my new Jenni Bowlin bird punch - can see me using that one a lot.

Weekly Challenge

I took part in this weeks challenge over on UKS as it was a nice and simple one.

First was to use this sketch:

And then it was to have a holiday theme to the page and to use either butterflies or blossoms (or both.)

I am still using up those Amy Butler papers (3 scrapbook pages and a card so far) The photos were taken on one of the gorgeous beaches we visited on the Isle of Lewis last summer.

Seem to have rediscovered my scrapping mojo - long may it continue.

Skywatch Friday

Season 4 , Episode 12

Traigh ne Beirigh beach on the Isle of Lewis - a perfect place to sit and enjoy the view.

Skywatch Friday

Season 4, Episode 10.






My favourite shot from our stay in the Western Isles. This is Ullapool harbour first thing in the morning while we were waiting for the ferry to take us to the Isle of Lewis. I love the reflections of the clouds in the still water.

Isle of Lewis

A few more photos from our camping trip to the Isle of Lewis last month.

The Whalebone Arch at Bragar was erected by the former village postmaster Murdo Morrison and was formed from the jaw bones of a giant whale which beached itself and died in Bragar Bay after being harpooned by hunters. Read the story of the whalebone arch by Mary Macaulay, eldest daughter of Murdo Morrison here.
























Callum at Eoropie beach - a huge expanse of golden sand.


























Not sure who she is supposed to be - or why she is there at the side of the single track road to our campsite - but the boys had to have their photo taken with this young lady!!!!























Valtos Post Office!!
























This is the village next to our campsite. I am afraid we had a case of the Monty Pythons everytime we drove through - reciting lines from The Holy Grail and the Knights who say Ni!!!!













A view from the coastal path by our campsite.













The Lewis Chessmen (or Uig Chessmen) are a group of 78 chess pieces dating from the 12th century which were found in Uig bay in 1831. They are currently owned by the British Museum in London which has 67 of the pices with the remainder in the Royal Museum in Edingburgh. There is some controversy about where is the most appropriate place to display these pieces. Personally I believe they should be returned to the island as that is where they belong although they are coming home next year but just for a temporary exhibition. All that remain are these wooden sculptures which are dotted around the area. You can read more about them here and more about the campaign to to get the pieces returned to their rightful home here.























Mobile driving hazards we encountered on the island - slightky worryingly the sheep have a knack of lying down in the middle of the single track roads - usually on a blind bend!!
























A typical view of the island - much of it is quite bleak like this away from the coast.

On Line Crop

Shimelle has been hosting her 2nd on line crop but nce again I had other stuff on so wasn't able to play along. But when I saw the challenge about scrapbooking using stamps I knew it was right up my street as I think I stamp on almost every LO I do.

This as the second LO I managed to complete at yesterdays crop at Hopeman.

The papers are Lentil Soup by Jillibean Soup which I love as green and browns are one of my favourite colour combos. I used kraft cardstock for the scalloped edging (using the Threading Water punch) and for the title. I stamps I used were by Autumn Leaves designed by Katie Pertiet.

The photo is of a tired Callum - we had walked down to Bosta beach on the Isle of Lewis and he was complaining that he was tired - and this rock provided a perfect resting place!!!

Hopeman Crop

This afternoon was the Hopeman crop which as always was a good laugh - nice to meet some new crafty folk too.

Due to being late as there we too many things going on today I only managed 2 LOs but I am pleased with them both.

I had some new photos and some new stash to play with.

This is my first LO from this months absolutely delicious Gottacraft kit which this month was the new Indie Girl collection from Sassafras Lass. At first glance they seem quite feminine but they work perfectly with some of our photos from the Western Isles last month with gorgeous blues and greens.

And it just so happens that it fits in with this weeks page challenge by the Blue Brads over on UKS. Anything goes, you can scrap any style, theme, colour etc.
The only thing your page must have is BLUE BRADS!!
I only used 2 blue brads but it still counts.

The stamps used are Scrapagogo and Autumn Leaves and the title is Go Go Boots by Sissix.

Calanais

Top of my list of places to visit in the Western Isles were The Calanais Stones on Lewis.

It was a grey day so my photos aren't great - a bright blue sky would have made the stones stand out better.




The stones at Calanais are even older than those at Stonehenge.

The area around Calanais is home to over 20 monuments erected between 3000 and 4000 years ago. Most famous by far is Calanais I, a complex arrangement of some 50 stones. At their heart is a circle of 13 stones between 8 and 13 feet tall, surrounding the tallest stone on the site, 16 feet high and weighing in at about 5.5 tonnes. Some time later a stone tomb was added to the centre of the circle.

Extending north from the main circle is an avenue formed by a double row of stones, while single rows of stones extend roughly east, west and south from the main circle.

It is thought that the alignments of the various stones were used to mark significant points in the lunar cycle. The stone circle and the north avenue were probably built before 2000BC, while the three single lines and the tomb added around 1500BC.






















Tradition says that giants who lived on the island refused to be converted to Christianity by Saint Kieran and were turned into stone as a punishment. Another local belief says that at sunrise on midsummer morning, the "shining one" walked along the stone avenue, "his arrival heralded by the cuckoo's call." This legend could be a folk memory recalling the astronomical significance of the stones.

In 1984, the new romantic band Ultravox used an image of the stones on the cover of their album Lament. They also used the scenery to record the video of One Small Day, first single taken from that album.

A local inhabitant!



You can find out more about Calanais here.

Bosta Iron Age House

We went to visit Bosta Iron Age House which is on the Isle of Great Bernera on Lewis - we did wonder where the tiny single track road was leading us as it seemed to twist and turn for miles.

A storm in 1992 uncovered the remains of these stone structures on the beach which are believed to be from either the 7th or 8th century. After excavation there was found to be 9 buildings all connected by tunnels. One of the houses has been reconstructed further up the beach - I love the way the thatch is weighted down by the rope and stone.

You can find out more about the site here.



























As we travelled round the islands we found plenty of commemorative plaques showing that the Royal family have visited the islands many times over the years. In fact while we were there the Queen was cruising around the Western Isles on her converted car ferry!!! Probably slightly more luxurious than the one we travelled in!

























From there we walked down the white sands of Bosta beach.

























Cal felt the need for a quick lie down!!














I'm not sure what that odd structure is just offshore - I am hoping someone will be able to tell me.

We are sailing..............

Last Friday we drove up to Ullapool to catch the CalMac ferry to Stornaway.

It was a gorgeous morning as we waited for the ferry to arrive and the boys amused themselves by skimming stones.
























Poor Callum wasn't looking forward to the crossing - and he did ask once how the Titanic sank!!! His mind wasn't exactly put at rest when we drove on board and our car was to go on the upper deck. This meant driving up a fairly steep ramp which was then lifted up into a horizontal position.




















He did eventually find his sea legs and enjoyed going out on deck.
























We were even lucky enough to spot a pod of dolphins swimming towards the boat.