Stash Bash and a very long weekend

I have been trying a few different ways to get on top of my stash lately. Project Life has been a great way to use patterned papers that have not made it to a layout but which I would still like to use. Challenging myself to use up my SC kits within three months using a drawer system has greatly reduced the amount of unused product that was building up. I am always open to new ideas though.

Simple Scrapper is currently running a Stash Bash challenge. It is a combination of scrapbooking projects and organisational prompts to help get rid of the stash that you are never going to use and focus on the items that you really love. The first days prompt was a five minute challenge to use up your older supplies. I had Miss Three as my willing assistant. We hit up my stash cabinet. I asked her to choose a paper she liked from the drawer. We then found a handful of other papers that worked with it and some embellishments. Once the five minutes was up we had the making of a layout.

I must apologise for the photo. I completed the challenge with ten minutes to spare to enter the daily prize draw, so the picture was taken at 8.50 pm with a lot of unnatural light. I had intended to reshoot it this morning but we have had a massive thunderstorm and the light is no better now. 

Miss Three originally chose the Poppy patterned paper and then she added the Crate Paper orangey red pattern too. The reverse of that is the green paper. I added in the script paper as I liked it but had never managed to make it work. The circle paper elements are from a Cosmo Cricket paper and I have added in some older OA flair and some Sassafrass lettering. I am so pleased to have used some papers I loved and to have scrapped a new photo. Miss Three was really happy to see herself and the papers she chose all made magically into a page while she slept. She is very keen to do a five minute challenge again today!

Miss Three has a very long weekend. School finishes for the week today! The staff are having some training for the next two days and Mummy gets extra time with her darling daughter. At this stage the plan is to take her to Zumba tomorrow (at the teacher's suggestion) and to then have a family fun day on Friday. If the weather is nice we hope to spend the day at the new water park on Sentosa. If the weather is bad we will spend the day at the Oceanarium instead. Hubby is taking some time off on Friday to make it all happen. I have my fingers crossed that her Lollibox (the Singapore equivalent to a Kiwi Crate) arrives today or tomorrow so we can do some fun crafting on Thursday afternoon. 

In other news, my Grandad is seriously ill in hospital back in New Zealand and we are trying to decide when or if to go back. My Nana has dementia and is very confused without her primary caregiver on board. My Dad and his brother are looking after Nana between the two of their families but they are finding it pretty tough going. They did look at respite care for Nana but it was so depressing they could not bring themselves to put Nana there. Nana and Grandad still live in their own home but it seems likely that this will have to end as it appears Grandad will require oxygen at all times which will make him unable to maintain the house. It is a pretty tough time for the family and one of the reasons I don't like living overseas.

On a more trivial note, I have found a fantastic new coffee joint. There is a new Farmer's Market called Pasar Bella opening at Turf City and there is a boutique coffee roaster open there called the Dutch Colony Coffee Company. Their flat white is amazing and I made a coffee using beans from there this morning and it was excellent too. I am thinking about taking a barista course and learning to make great coffee. I think it would be a useful skill to have.

I am off to enjoy a morning of crafting while listening to the Paperclipping Roundtable. I am also excited about trying the first recipe from my Jamie Oliver 15 Minute Meals book. I'll let you know if it is a success. Happy Hump Day!