Even more Ireland fun - Day 4

Hey all - It's Day 4 (July 22nd) of my trip across the pond. On this lovely sunny day, Heather and I traveled from County Kildare to County Meath to visit Trim Castle and the Hill of Tara.  First - a view of Trim Castle from outside its bordering walls:

The Castle is a massive 12th century Anglo-Norman edifice with guided tours available much of the year. The entire wall didn't survive as you'll see in other photos. You can see the scale of it from the bit of a parked car (not Heather's) I caught in the photo. Had to laugh - you pay to get in and I got a senior rate (age 60 - which I've achieved) but Sir at the desk was incredulous. He gave it to me but was convinced I was 50 - LOL. Must've been my youthful companion who, again, didn't want to be photographed.... Next, the castle with a view of the visitor entrance - obviously built in modern times.

Inside the entrance there was a lobby area where the Castle guests would leave their armor and weapons. Our young guide dramatically locked the huge wooden door (presumably so those who didn't pay didn't slip in!). We went into a large center area with three models of the castle with different enhancements various owners had made. I got most of this on my camcorder. We traveled to the top via a narrow circular stairway with 85 steps - luckily there was a rope along one wall to hang on!! The stairs are the size of 12th century feet; needless to say I was extra careful given my BIG feet!!

Next a couple views from the top - the first is a view of the grounds and surrounds. We parked in the you can see just outside the walls. The tan floor you see within the wall was once a banquet hall that past owners built when they needed something more grand. There's some kind of cellar at the bottom right corner; we didn't go in there!! Off in the distance you can see part of a tower known as the Yellow Tower. It was damaged back in the day by a cannon fired by Cromwell and they just left it that way!

Next, a view from atop the castle looking the opposite direction of St Patrick's Cathedral built in 1803, a new building compared to many I visited!!

Coming down the 85 steps, I was being cautious as were others. Kid about age 8 behind us with his parents really wanted to race down. "Mom, can't we go faster?" was the frequent plea. Mom nicely explained that we had to go slow so we didn't slip and fall. This same kid went to stand in the enormous fireplace in the old banquet hall. Tour guide told him he would've been roasting in a fire back in the day & he jumped right out - so cute. One last photo - a view of the back of the castle:

Wish I would've asked what those stone forms are at the base - might have been one of the defense walls to prevent intruders from putting ladders up against the side. And I believe the trench you see was called the ditch. The moat was outside the wall if I remember right. Behind me and to the right of the castle there's a small river where supplies could be delivered by boat.

Guess I'll share the Hill of Tara in another post since this one's getting full..... Thanks for stopping!

More Ireland including Best Latte!!

Back with more on my July trip to Ireland and England. I'm still on Day 3 (July 21st) and am sharing some photos my friend Heather took as well as my own. In this post I talked about St Canice's Cathedral and showed my photo of a set of its doors. Here's Heather's photo of the building, including the doors, with grounds - she had walked up a hill behind the cemetery to get this shot. She calls it one of her "where's Linda?" series (and no, I'm not sitting to the right of the cathedral - I think that's the priest!).

From the Cathedral we headed off to find the "best coffee in Ireland" about which the craft shop clerk had told us. He didn't know the name of the place but said it was a grey building just down the way. Several blocks later we finally spotted it and learned its name - Cakeface Paisserie. It was a small but charming place that included a back patio (a place for the smokers to hang out so we avoided it). Here I am eyeing the goodies like a kid in a candy store:

Oh my, what to choose?? Finally settled on a red velvet and a pistachio cake, plus a latte for me; Heather prefers tea. That latte tasted amazing and the cakes were divine too. I told the staff that it was a good thing I didn't live in Kilkenny because I'd be there every day.

I took what I thought was a darling photo of Heather at Cakeface but she didn't like it - so I'm not sharing. You'll have to settle for these photos of me... No, I didn't eat both cakes - Heather and I shared! And it was the best latte, EVER, and I've had many.

Here's another view (see mine here) of Kilkenny Castle - another one in Heather's "where's Linda?" series.

Yes, I'm the poor idiot in the foreground wearing capri pants; there weren't many dressed that way, although there were some. It was cold and rainy but I only had one pair of long jeans and they were dirty from a doggy jumping on me at Blessington on Day 2. As usual, Heather was willing to walk far enough away to get a good shot. We walked all around the building and saw a couple of rowing teams practicing on the river to the right of the castle. All that footage is on my camcorder.

I'll share an ATC I made at home for Heather and brought in my suitcase, along with a card I'd been saving in my stash for years for the right occasion. I also brought a few crafty items and Heather was sweet enough to gift me some fun stuff to add to my stash (will share cards with her gifts in future).

Supplies: Paper - DCWV shimmer paper; Michael's green; Neenah white

Dies - Tim Holtz ATC; Lawn Fawn grassy border; Momenta words

Stamps - Hero Arts From the Vault Flowers (with matching die)

Other - Copic markers

That's it for Day 3. Thanks for stopping by and I'll try to share more photos from my trip!

More Ireland and a masculine bday card

LOL - I said yesterday I was taking a break from blogging. My schedule changed a bit so I found time to make a card today and to upload some more Ireland photos. Thought I'd pop in and do a quick post. I'm waiting for Heather to share some of her photos of our snack stop during Ireland Day 3 (July 21) but I'll go ahead and post some of my Kilkenny Castle photos. First a view of the Castle:

We were standing in the field in front of the area you'll see in the next photo. I mentioned in an early post that the traffic in Kilkenny was horrendous due to a bike race. Well, we found out at the Castle that it was actually a Triathlon!! Awards were being given on the Castle grounds and many entrants were walking their bikes away with medals around their necks. Very fun. There were uniformed concert bands playing in three different locations that day and we enjoyed the music of each. Here's a view of the grounds & town from a window in the Castle.

The Irish OPW (Office of Public Works) has done extensive work on this building. On our tour we spotted photos of the renovation and Heather recognized a neighbor who, I believe, was an engineer on the project. I took a bunch of photos of the amazing interior but I'll share only two - the Moroccan Staircase and the Painted Roof. The latter enthralled me - could've stared at it for hours. The portraits around the room included many of the owners and family members.

 

Finally, I'll share a card. The August My Monthly Hero Kit came out on Monday and I hadn't done a thing with the July kit! I'll blame it on my trip - LOL. Anyway, I need a masculine bday card for later this month so I got busy with this fun kit.

Supplies: Paper - DCWV sparkle green A2 card; Momenta watercolor; 

Neenah Classic Crest Solar White

Stamps - July 2019 My Monthly Hero Kit (including dies) - sold out
Hero Arts Many Everyday Messages (sentiment)

Die - My Favorite Things stitched rectangle (retired Blueprints)

Inks - Distress Oxides: Tumbled Glass, Pine Needles, Cracked Pistachio, Tea Dye; 

HA kit inks; Memento Tuxedo Black

Other - ultra thin foam; Distress Markers - Vintage Photo, Tumbled Glass, Twisted Citron

I started playing with the dock - stamped two different ones and decided to use both, offsetting them. Cut a rectangle out of Momenta printed watercolor paper (LOVE it!!) and stamped the tree border with Pine Needles overlaid with Cracked Pistachio and embellished with Twisted Citron marker. I hand drew the shoreline with more markers and stamped the wavelets. Added the stamped/die cut boat and fish, hand drawing the fishing line. Stamped the sentiment - done!

Thanks for stopping by and now I really will be off from blogging for a bit. Hope to see you soon!!

Ireland Day 3 and a sympathy card

Back with more Ireland photos and stories, plus a sympathy card using roses I made at my friend Heather's house. It's Day 3 (Sunday July 21st) and Heather skipped church to take me to Kilkenny. We parked in a public parking lot next to an outdoor mall, having encountered traffic issues due to a bike race going through town. Can you believe it - Heather knew of a crafty shop in the mall?! Of course we stopped in and I purchased a few cute dies. Down from the craft shop was a long corridor with umbrellas hanging across, creating colorful ceiling - so fitting for the rainy day. Couldn't resist a photo:

Next, we meandered through town and spotted the old distillery location for Smithwick's, now a museum (the ale production moved to Dublin). We didn't stop for the tour since we were planning to visit other sites but here's a shot of it down the street. Look at all the traffic going the wrong way!!

We had asked the craft shop clerk where to go for coffee and on the way there (that's another story), we stopped to visit St Canice's Cathedral, a beautiful church built in the 13th century. Don't know why we didn't go inside but we toured around the grounds. I took this photo of a set of doors that I absolutely love - so gorgeous!!

I'll share more about Day 3 later but, before I go, I made a sympathy card yesterday with a few more of the roses I stamped while at Heather's house. A friend's mom passed away this week in Iowa so I wanted to mail this off quickly.

Supplies: Paper - Recollections (Michael's brand) A7green card; Momenta Watercolor;

 Neenah Classic Crest Solar White; Lawn Fawn Spring Fling

Stamps - Sunny Studios Everything's Rosy (with matching dies); 

sentiment from Hero Arts Color Layering Fuchsia (retired)

Dies - Spellbinders Renaissance Jubilee and Labels 36 (both retired)

Inks - Distress Inks - Mustard Seed, Worn Lipstick, Spiced Marmalade, Pine Needles; 

Hero Arts Red Tomato, a minty green from Heather's stash and a green Pro-marker

Thanks for stopping to enjoy my memories of Ireland and my card!!

More Ireland and a birthday card

Back with more Ireland and a card. On my second day there (7/20/19), Heather and I worked on crafts in the morning. Heather had ordered a color layering stamp set from Sunny Studios so we played around with that for a bit. There are actually five steps to the rose but I only did four as I ran out of colors I wanted to combine. Still liked how they came out. I brought my stamped flowers and leaves home where I made the card recently. I got the idea to use the black/white patterned paper from a card Heather made me with some of the roses she stamped. I'm hoping she'll blog that one in future.

Supplies: Paper - DCWV A2 green card; Momenta Watercolor;

 Neenah Classic Crest Solar White; Basic Grey Kneehighs

Stamps - Sunny Studios Everything's Rosy (with matching dies); 

Our Daily Bread Mini Tag Sentiments

Dies - label and banner from My Favorite Things retired Blueprints

Inks - Distress Inks - Mustard Seed, Worn Lipstick, Spiced Marmalade, Pine Needles; 

Hero Arts Red Tomato, a minty green from Heather's stash and a green Pro-marker

In the afternoon we visited the lovely Johnstowne Garden Centre with a fabulous cafe attached (I had a yummy latte). We posed by our favorite flowers - mine were the purple hydrangeas.

 

Then we took the Blessington Lakes Drive and walked on the shore of different parts of the lake. Most of my photos were taken on the camcorder but I did have this one of Heather walking by the lake. It was a cloudy day but you can see some sunnier photos on their website here. There were two young men fishing from the shore and a mother & daughter with their dog playing a bit further down.  On the other side of the lake we spotted some men pulling a boat ashore; no motorized boats allowed so it was very quiet and peaceful.

We did a bit of grocery shopping on the way back, ate a late dinner, then it was another early night for me as I continued acclimating to the time zone difference. That's it for day two in Ireland - I'm not one to blog in real time so I'm enjoying refreshing my memories!

Thanks for stopping and I'll try to blog more of my trip later....

Ireland/England trip & a wedding card

Hey all - thought I'd share a few photos of the trip I took to Ireland and England in July. I spent 10 days there and returned home late on the 29th.

Sweet Adelines International held its International Education Seminar in Manchester UK from July 25-28th. I decided to attend and thought, since it's so close, I'd combine the seminar with a trip to visit my friend Heather and her family. Heather and I have been friends for 10 years and served together as Hero Arts Hostesses back in 2011. I met Heather in person in 2014 on my first trip to Ireland, then she and her family came to Orlando and I met them for a fun weekend at Disney World in 2016. For this visit we stuck close to Heather's home and made day trips to Irish Heritage sites nearby.

I arrived Friday 7/19 around 9 am. Heather and her hubby picked me up at the airport after my long flight across the pond. I don't like to sleep on the plane and with a 6 hr time change, I didn't last much past 8 pm!! But we managed to go crafty shopping and visit a castle that day. We chose Maynooth Castle which was near the shop selling crafty items. Here I am, looking a bit travel worn but ready to discover the Castle and grounds.

Off to your right you can see the arch we entered. Here's a closer look at the size of it - immense!

The inside of the castle has been turned into a museum with display boards telling the chronology of ownership of the castle and history of those owners and their allies. Very interesting! Heather couldn't resist taking a quick pic of a list of medieval cures. I certainly wouldn't want to try them!

The next morning we played with crafty items I brought from the US and stuff Heather had in her stash. I mainly used a bunch of her dies, especially a fun arch I thought would be cute for a wedding card. Here's what I came up with:

Supplies: Paper - DCWV Ms Sparkle A2 card; Neenah Classic Crest Solar White; 

Authentique and BoBunny 6x6 patterned

Dies - Arch by unk; Couple by Tattered Lace; Flourish Vine by Cottage Cutz

Other - ultra thin foam; Icy Stickles; Spun Sugar Distress Marker

A friend asked me to make her a couple wedding cards for this fall so this was my start. Thanks to Heather for letting me use the arch die (sorry, not sure of the manufacturer)!! I doubled it up for thickness and popped it with some ultra thin foam tape. Really like how this turned out.

I'll blog more of my trip when I get a chance. Can't thank Heather and her family enough for sharing their home with me!! And thanks to you for stopping by!

Some birthday cards and a bit of Adare, Co Limerick, Ireland

Well, I'm back again after some busy weeks, including one without my Internet service.  Can you believe I fixed it myself by switching out a bad cord?!  I cheered and did a little happy dance in my family room!

Anyway - once back online, I headed off to the Silhouette online store to search for fish images.  Yes, fish - my uncle likes to fish so I wanted one for his birthday card.  A real fish, not a cutesy fish, and I found one in the Hero Arts portfolio.  Here's my card:

I cut the fish (Design ID 17454) on Hero Arts Grass Layering paper, then cut an offset of the image on Pine Layering paper, then flipped the offset and cut it for the back. The back piece is scored by the tail.  I stamped the happy birthday using Versamark and white embossing powder, then overstamped the Envelope Liner Background (a Hero Arts cling stamp) to simulate the scaly texture.  Then I inked the edges and some of the cuts with distress markers for a bit more definition.  Popped it with foam dots onto the card base - done!  Since it was for a guy, I resisted adding pearls, sequins or stickles - it was hard not to do it!!

Here's another birthday card using a Lori Whitlock Silhouette file (Design ID #60412).    Made it for my sweet 16 niece, Abby:

Just loved mixing all the fun Hero Arts flowers and gems!  Sentiment is from Hero Arts too - a clear set called Circles (CL674).

And now for the next installment of my trip to Ireland back in May.  Heather & I headed from Killarney to Adare County Limerick on Day 3 of our junket into the countryside.  What a sweet little town featuring some quaint thatched roofs (fire hazard, anyone?).  Here's a photo I took in the evening after our long day of travels:

We walked into town after checking in at the Coatesland House B&B, where Mr. & Mrs. Hogan made us comfortable.  Here's my room:

Heather had a similar one in different colors on the other side of the staircase.  Heather's tea pot didn't work so I fired up mine and popped down the hall with it; we had tea and biscuits before calling it a day.  Here we are eating breakfast the next morning:

Mrs. Hogan was disappointed that her garden wasn't nice yet - they'd had a hard winter.  But the food was divine and so elegant!  Well, there was a lot more of Adare but I'll save that for a later post!

Thanks for stopping!

More fun on the Emerald Isle!

Fáilte - welcome!  Back again for pt 3 of my trip to Ireland....

I'm picking up with the "into the countryside" trip Heather and I began Monday 5/19.  We stayed at a B&B in Cork that night, had a wonderful breakfast on Tuesday and headed off for Killarney.  What a gorgeous morning - sunny with blue sky!!  Our first stop, just northwest of Cork - Blarney Castle (no, we didn't kiss the Blarney Stone) built in 1446.  What impressed me about this attraction (their word) were the grounds - so green, lush with flowers, and well-kept.  Here's a favorite photo taken as we approached the castle:

Besides the Castle, there are extensive walking paths, gardens, and a manor house.  Here are some favorite foliage shots:



After leaving Blarney Castle, we continued northwest to Killarney. Our beautiful sunny day left us for heavy rain showers as we visited part of Killarney National Park, one of the most beautiful parks in the world, not that I could tell through a thunder storm!!  We took refuge from the storm on a tour of the Muckross House, a 19th century manor where Queen Victoria spent a couple nights (after weeks of preparation) back in 1861.  You can't take photos of the interior so visit the website to see some of the grand rooms.  Here's a shot of the exterior:

We stayed at the lovely The Harp B&B in Killarney.  After settling in, we headed back out in the rain to have dinner at the Sika Restaurant, fine dining adjacent to the Victoria House Hotel in Killarney.   They also served the typical stuffed ham/chicken dish Heather had the previous night so I tried it - delicious!!  It came with a side dish containing mashed carrots, potatoes and peas. 

Thanks for stopping by to read more about my wonderful trip to Ireland!  More to come....

More Ireland adventures

So, I've been recounting my trip last week to Ireland.  In my previous post I told about arriving and Scrambling with Heather on my first day there, then going to Wicklow National Park the next day.  I know I surprised Heather with how quickly I adapted to the 6 hr time difference - I think the trick was sleeping very little on the planes over.

A bit on that - I flew from Minneapolis to Amsterdam, leaving at 7:22 pm on Friday the 16th.  I spent most of that 8 hr trip watching movies on my little viewer.  My layover in Amsterdam was nearly three hrs; I basically sat like a zombie and tried to read a book!  Then I hopped an Aer Lingus flight to Dublin - by this time I was quite tired and slept away most of the 70 minute flight!!  Arrived in Dublin airport at 1:40 pm and zipped right through customs.  Heather and her hubby were waiting for me in the "Arrivals" area - I knew ahead of time from Heather that it was by a little shop named Spar.  I recognized Heather right away and was delighted to meet her and Philip.  Then we traveled down the "motorway" to Heather's house in a town southwest of Dublin.  I met Heather's two boys, Mark and Adam, and the dog Toby - my new buddy.  After stashing my suitcases, we sat and visited, then had dinner - dinner at the Doran home is a family affair.  Everyone gathers around the table and actually dines - I typically don't do that so it was refreshing.  We did a quick clean up and got ready to Scramble.  After the Scramble Heather prompted me to email my family back in the US to say I arrived safely - I was totally not thinking by this point and had forgotten them.  Oh well....  I slept pretty well and got up bright and early for our trip to Wicklow on Sunday (see previous post).

Picking up with Monday the 19th, Heather and I began our travels out into the country.  I teased Adam, asking him if he was going to make dinner while we were gone.  He was quick to say, "no, that would be Mark" - LOL.  Heather drove her car - with me calling it driving on the "wrong" side of the road; I'm so politically incorrect - it should be the "left hand side" of the road.  They have a lot of roundabouts in Ireland - you really have to pay attention to the signs posted everywhere.  A side note on that - everything is listed in English and in Irish.  My knowledge of Irish is zero, and my accent is terrible (but not as bad as others, I'm told).  Anyway, as navigator I was supposed to keep us on the right road; Heather always had her little crib notes though, just in case I screwed up.  Heather's car has a stick shift so that guaranteed I wouldn't be driving (I was a stick shift drop out in driving class).  Probably a good thing not to have me forgetting and going onto the right hand side!!

Our first stop - Waterford, Ireland's oldest city and home of Waterford crystal.  The city was established by the Vikings, possibly some of my ancestors - LOL.  We visited the House of Waterford Crystal Visitors' Center and got a demo of how the pieces are made.  The guide explained that 95% of the cut work is done by hand we got to see an artisan at work - amazing!!  We also saw some machines doing bits of the more intricate work on heavy pieces.  I took this photo for Philip who loves American football (I brought him a Green Bay Packer t-shirt; sorry Vikings - I'm from Wisconsin originally):

Just look at all those intricate cuts - so gorgeous!!  Well, I didn't buy anything since even a paper weight was a bit "dear" as they say over there - I'd say pricey.  Really wanted that purple vase though - maybe, next time! 

Waterford has its round tower, Reginald's Tower.  Ugh - the photo of Heather impersonating a Viking didn't turn out so great so I won't share it; she has a similar one of me - maybe she'll share... An aside - Heather doesn't like her photo taken.  My nickname for her is going to be Aunt Marie because my aunt is the same way!  Anyway, by the end of my week Heather was getting used to my camera in her face!!  So here's a photo of the Reginald's tower that I took from across the street along the waterfront:

There is so much history in Ireland - I'm glad I have little brochures from the places we visited as I'll never remember it all!  Our destination for the day was Cork where Heather had arranged spots in Decie's B&B but I saw that the town of Ardmore wasn't too far off the route.  Anyone who knows me well knows I love anything written by Nora Roberts.  She has set many novels in Ireland and one series, Gallaghers of Ardmore Trilogy, is set in Ardmore.  Off we went to see the town!  Oh my, how lovely - we walked all around and saw yet another round tower and the ruins of the Ardmore Cathedral with its serene cemetery.  Here's my favorite view from the corner of the cemetery looking towards the sea:

We also had a lovely lunch of the best pureed vegetable soup with brown bread in a sweet little cafe with art gallery.  The server made a delicious latte too!  Then we headed on down the road to Cork to our little B&B.  After dumping our luggage we went off to find dinner in a pub - yummy food!  Heather had a traditional meal of a piece of ham with stuffing on top, topped with a slice of chicken and gravy.  I had a burger and some chips (fries).  Another great day in Ireland and I'll share more of our adventures later.  Thanks for stopping by!!

Two sistas meet - in IRELAND!

Just arrived home last night from Ireland so I'm bursting to share all about it!!  First and foremost I was able to meet dear friend Heather and her family.  Then I was introduced to an amazingly beautiful country to which I can't wait to return!

Where to begin?  I guess I'll start in 2009 when I was new to the Hero Arts Flickr group.  Many people were so welcoming but I became good friends with Heather Maria.  We bonded over cardmaking and baking; I think it was a recipe exchange on the group that started us Flickr mailing back and forth.  Then in 2011 we became Hero Hostesses together (along with Sally, Anita and Sharon) and began hoping we'd meet someday. 

Knowing me, that "someday" would've stayed just that, a future non-plan.  But with Heather's help, the "someday" became "2014" and we had a firm plan with both Heather and I taking off a week of work.  My idea was for me to stay at a little B&B near her town so we could run around together but Heather wouldn't hear of it.  She invited me to stay with her and her family!  We had never met in person until I arrived at Dublin airport on May 17th but immediately I felt so comfortable with the entire family, including sweet Toby the dog.  The Irish are known for their hospitality (fáilteachais in Irish) and I got plenty of it at the Doran's home.  Here are the two of us - I'll let Heather share the family photo if she wants.

After settling in - sorry, the crafty space had to make way for my suitcases - we Scrambled on the Hero Arts Flickr group with Barb G. as the hostess.  Here's the card I made after traveling over 12 hrs:

Barb's theme was a one-layer with no embellies which was difficult!  All the materials were from Heather's stash - I used a new Hero Arts clear set CL756 OWH Missing You and a branch from a woodblock set LP140 Just a Note Bird.  I must've been tired as, even with a clear stamp, I managed to stamp my owl a bit above the branch.  Oh well, I just filled the space in with a bit of green marker.  It was fun to Scramble with Heather in the same room - I felt bad though because she had to find things for me instead of working on her own card.  But we both managed to get done and have fun doing it!!

Next day, it was off to one of Heather's favorite places - Wicklow Mountains National Park with Glendalough, the gorgeous valley of two lakes.  I didn't realize how rainy the weather in Ireland is.  Well, it rained plenty on us at the park but we managed to walk all around the easy trails.  There are many other more strenuous hikes in the park - Heather has been on many of them but I'm not much of an outdoor gal.  I thought I was doing pretty well keeping up with Heather who's 10 years younger than I am! 

Here's one of my favorite photos of this area, taken from a scenic overlook above:

Notice the yellow flowers which are Gorse - the bushes are very thorny and you see them all over, sometimes in long hedges bordering farm fields.  We won't tell how I ended up being punctured by barbed wire - luckily it was pretty new wire and not too deep a cut on my finger.  I had plenty of first aid stuff in my purse (must be the old Girl Scout training) so I cleaned it up right away.

Besides the beautiful scenery, there is a monastic city from the 6th century with a round tower, ruins of a church and abbey.  Here's a photo taken as we walked toward the round tower; it blends in a bit with the trees behind it but hopefully you can spot it:

I will share more of my amazing week later.  Right now, my body thinks it's 6 hrs later than MN time and I still have things to do to get ready for the week ahead.  Thanks for stopping by!