Tick tock, tick tock... I'm sure the clock is ticking faster than it should be!!!

I can't believe it is the end of the summer holidays, can you?  One week today, and the children will be back at school and everyone will be settling back into their daily routines... well, not quite for us as we are going to have a sneaky trip to Cornwall at the end of next week for a few days!!!

I feel so out of touch with my blog at the moment, which is a real shame as I do like revisiting my posts as time goes on... it's like a record of what I have been up to... my diary :-).  I post more frequently on my facebook page, so if you would like more frequent updates on what I am up to, please do feel free to pop over and like my page so that you are included in the news feeds.

Soooo, what have I been doing all summer?  Let's have a brief look back.

We started the summer holidays with a trip to stay with my brother and his family.  The weather was glorious while we were there, and most of the pictures are similar to this one.  It was fabulous being able to sit in the garden and watch the children play whilst relaxing and experiencing various 'o'clocks' ('Pimms o'clock', G&T o'clock and 'Wine o'clock'!!!)

We also had a few family days out.  This was Skipton castle, which was okay, but a few too many signs saying we weren't allowed to do things (e.g. stand on the grass which was mown so that it had perfect stripes across it... aghhhh!)

I've also done a bit of paper cutting (more than I thought actually!!)...

 ... a Family Tree Commission (which you can find more details about here)...

... a Baby Name Memory Tree (click here for more details)...

... and a few of my new Wedding Day Memory Trees (these have been really popular and there will be more to share with you once they have been given... click here for more details!)

I also did a little bit of doodling... 

... and shared my 5th wedding anniversary with my hubby.

And then we (me and the children) visited my sister in her New Castle (as the Tinker says), where we had a lovely time with her and the children...

... eating ice-cream...

...having a trip to Whitley Bay to eat fish and chips, before climbing a multitude of steps (with an 8 year old and 3 children under 4!?!?) to the top of St. Mary's lighthouse. 

We also had a trip to a farm to pick some strawberries (they turned out to be the most expensive strawberries we had ever eaten!).

In the evenings when the little monkeys were in bed, we had a good natter whilst drinking wine and doing a spot of sewing (my sisters first sewing project!).

 Fabulous times and ones to be treasured.

Hope you had a good summer too :-).

Giveaway winner - Part 2!!!

As some of you may well know, the person picked from the dusty jar last week didn't claim their prize.  Sooo, I thought I would pick another.  Luckily I still had the names in the jar... and there they will stay until the prize is claimed!!!

The winner is...

... Carol Forbes, please do contact me and claim your prize at loulabelleathome@gmail.com If you would like a reminder of the prizes available click on this link.

I am thinking another giveaway at 650 likes on my facebook page.  The more you lovely people share my page and my work, the quicker I'll get there.  Please help share the love :-)

Giveaway winner

Let me thank you all once again, my lovely facebook 'likers' for your support, your comments spur me on when I'm sat in the clouds (in my workspace in the attic... although I do find my head there quite frequently too!!)

Okay, so here we have it.  The name that was pulled out of this dusty jar was....

Well done Helen :-)  If you would like to message me and let me know what prize you would like I'll get it sorted for you.  You can message me at loulabelleathome@gmail.com.

Everyone else can enjoy 15% off the products in my shop until the end of August using discount code GIVEAWAY0812.  Simply add the code at checkout :-)

I've messed up... again! Grrrrr!!!

Once again I am having to move a giveaway from facebook over here.  I am really annoyed at myself (and have given myself a bit of a headache because of it) for not remembering last time I had a giveaway (I moved it over here!).  All I wanted to do was thank people for their support, but I am not allowed to have a giveaway on FB... they could shut my page down. :-/

I'll have to write 'NO GIVEAWAYS ON FACEBOOK' on post-it notes and stick them around the house until it sinks in!!!

All those who entered, I would like to thank you, your names are written down and will go into the hat in a little while.  I'll announce it on here later.

In future all giveaways will be done here.  

The Owl and The Pussy Cat Commission

This is a recent paper cut commission that I have been working on this summer, finally framed. 

I love the Owl and The Pussy Cat by Edward Lear and find myself singing it quite frequently!  

It was a pleasure working on it and I am really pleased with the outcome. 

If you are interested in having one of these created for you, or you would like something else done as a paper cut, please do not hesitate to contact me.  You can find more of my work in my shop and can follow my progress more frequently on Facebook.

p.s don't forget my giveaway on Facebook!  It finishes this Sunday evening (GMT).  Pop over and tell us what your favourite pudding is!!!  If you like what you see, hit the like button for my page, and please help spread the Loula Belle love by sharing it with your friends and family by hitting the share button (this is really important as FB has changed and less people are seeing posts... they want us to pay for advertising... small business need all the help they can get so please share things you like.  Thanks x).