Wednesday 22 August 2012

Cyber Crop Quiz - part 3 & 4



Here is part 3 and 4 of our Cyber Crop Quiz ...


A reminder of how it works -
  • There are 40 quiz questions, yep, 40!!! But to make things easier, I will give you 10 questions each Wednesday during August (1st, 8th, 16th, 22nd).
  • You need to e-mail your answers to each section directly to me helen @ redearthscrapping.com.au
  • ALL answers must reach me by the 31st August
  • Each question is worth 1 point - the person with the highest score overall is the winner of this challenge
  • Google and the like is NOT allowed and I ask for your honesty in this regard. It's ok if you have no clue about the answers, just give it your best guess, and if you're really, really stuck, I might provide some clues ...
  • HAVE FUN!!! and hopefully learn a little bit about Australian agriculture along the way
I will post the questions each week over in the original forum post and here on the blog. If you have any comments/questions please use the forum comments as per usual, or you can e-mail me.
 
 
21. What are the offspring (babies) of these animals called?
(a)    Goat
(b)   Horse
(c)    Cow
(d)   Sheep

22. How many million head of beef cattle are run in Australia?
(a)    5m
(b)   12m
(c)    26m
(d)   32m

23. Which beef cattle breed usually has a red/brown and white hide?
(a)    Angus
(b)   Hereford
(c)    Brahman
(d)   Murray Grey

24. What animal are these breeds?
Australorp           Isa Brown            Leghorn

25. The longhorn symbol is the instantly recognisable branding logo of which Australian company? (hint – 3 letters)

26. Which meat is the most consumed in the world?
(a)    Goat
(b)   Beef
(c)    Lamb
(d)   Chicken

27. What is viticulture?

28. Australian farmers manage and care for what percentage of the country’s land mass?
(a)    40%
(b)   50%
(c)    60%
(d)   70%

29. Name 2 iconic Australian breeds of working dog.

30. What does a rouseabout do?

31. What is a “B&S”?

32. The Royal Agricultural Society (most Australian states have one) measures and celebrates excellence in agriculture. What annual event, in many towns and cities across the country, is run by this organisation?

33. What does a combine harvester do?

34. Massey Fergusson, John Deere, Case and New Holland are all well known manufacturers of what?

35. What is significant about Anna Creek Station in SA?

36. What is “the long paddock” referring to?

37.What is a rib eye?
(a)    Cut of meat
(b)   Part of an animal’s skeleton
(c)    A type of fish
(d)   A tool

38. Name 3 tropical fruits grown in Australia, apart from the banana.

39. Royal Gala, Jazz and Braeburn are all what?

40Australia is one of the world’s top 10 wheat producing countries. Approximately how many tonnes is produced each year?
(a)    9m
(b)   16m
(c)    22m
(d)   40m

Monday 20 August 2012

Escape Page Kit

I created this layout on the weekend using one of the latest kits - ESCAPE from little Yellow Bicycle.
http://redearthscrapping.com.au/node/4911

I added the paper roses (plenty in store now) http://redearthscrapping.com.au/node/4427
I also needed an extra red paper for the background.


Then I used some of the scraps and leftovers to put this one together.....

Get your kit today - stocks are limited...

Amanda

Friday 17 August 2012

Blind Scrap Challenge - part 2

Here's the first lot of instructions for our blind scrap if you missed it ...


And now we're up to the final part, so here goes:


3. To grow a great crop, we need to do a bit more than pop a few seeds in the ground. The crop needs caring for right through the growing process - fertiliser applications at the right time (and the right amounts), not to mention spraying for weeds and pests who will compete with the crop for the moisture and nutrients it needs. So here goes with the next phase ...

  • * embellishments ... you need to arrange these vertically on the LH side of your photo, making your clusters, or a long single embellishment/piece run from near the top of your pp base piece, past the bottom edge of your photo
  • * the next lot of embellishments can be added around the bottom LH corner of your photo, depending though on what you've used down the LH side of your photo as per the above instructions
  • * journalling ... yes we need journalling on your page and this needs to be positioned around the bottom RH corner of your photo - you may journal any way you chose but there must be a few sentences, or a few lines/lists/points - think about what is going on in the photo, or your thoughts or something that is not shown in the picture that is relevant
  • * another lot of embellishments may be added around your journalling area if necessary - I have created a "visual triangle" on my page with the long side of the triangle running vertically on the LH side, the base running horizonally across the bottom of the photo and then joining these 2 points with the third side of the triangle - picture the triangle in your minds eye then arrange and balance your embellishments so the eye is drawn naturally to the focus of your page which will be within that triangle (your photo)
  • * title - yup, time for that one word title which will go across the top of your photo
  • * well, that will do us for now I think ... I'll be back later with the last of the instructions.

4. Well we're almost done, there's just one final step ...

  • * Put your own personal spin, your signature style, your own extra elements to this page. Yes, that's right, my instructions are only a base for what I would now love to see taken to a whole new, unique level. The only thing I ask is that the basic design remains the same but as for what you add, go nuts, embellish to your heart's content, whatever blows your hair back ... 
  • HAVE FUN CREATING your masterpiece

Upload your entries to the gallery by midnight (AEST) 31st August 2012.

Thursday 16 August 2012

Introducing ... PENNY HACKNEY!

A warm RES welcome to a special guest for our second birthday, Year of the Farmer Cyber Crop ... Penny Hackney!

There is nothing better than country life - and being able to record it through scrapbooking.
I've lived on small hobby farms since the age of 8 and was able to realise every girl's dream of having a pony. Pony Club, gymkhanas and horse shows ruled my childhood right up until I went away for uni. When I look back on those times the one word that comes to mind is FREEDOM. I loved nothing better than to come home from school, pull on my jodhpurs and canter into the wild blue yonder on one of my horses! On a farm, life revolves around the outdoors and the animals. I clearly remember the day Mum arrived at our small primary school to pull my brother and I out early - our Jersey house cow was in labour and about to deliver our first calf! Exciting stuff!
It was not until adulthood, 10 years ago in fact, that I moved to a "proper" farm. We have 650 beautiful acres of rolling hills, paddocks, dams and trees on the Northern Tablelands of NSW. Our property is still considered quite small to most, and both hubby and I must work off the farm to earn a living. We have around 120 Angus and Murray Grey cattle, a big fat cranky Angus bull, a handful of cross-bred sheep, 3 working Kelpies, 7 chooks and one fairly useless but lovable Jack Russell-cross RSPCA rescue dog.
What I love about being here: looking out onto open space with not a neighbour's roof in sight, the lack of other people's noise - just birds and cows, always having something to do outdoors, growing and eating our own beef and lamb (happy meat is the best kind!), the magnificent sunsets, the friendliness and generosity of country-folk, the small village school my girls attend, being able to walk for hours and not come across a soul, and being able to turn up my music as loud as I want!
It can be tough too: we rely on the rain for our water supply, ducking out to the shops because you've run out of something is not an option, flooding and drought is not much fun, no ASDL internet - and we can forget about NBN for years yet!, money tends to be spent on farm needs before house repairs and renos, there is always so much work to do - and it must be done before and after work or on the weekends, a blackout means no water as well as no power (and they tend to happen quite frequently), .....honestly, I can't think of much else to add to this list!
I am so happy to be a country girl, and to be sharing our little slice of country with you!
 

 


 

Tuesday 14 August 2012

Introducing ... SANDRA WALLACE!

A warm RES welcome to a special guest for our second birthday, Year of the Farmer Cyber Crop ... Sandra Wallace


Hi there!

My name is Sandra Wallace and I( I am proud to say) am a country girl. 
 
I live in the small rural town of  Cummins, on the Lower Eyre Peninsula, South Australia.



Even though I do not live on a farm, or am a farmer, our lives are inter-twined with those who work the land.  From large agricultural businesses to small businesses, from those who work in the silos to those who drive the trucks, we are all reliant on the farmers having a good year.

So the town people, along with the farmers take a great interest around April, waiting to see if the break of season rain arrives in time for seeding, standing alongside the farmer outside the local newsagent looking up at the heavens, hoping and praying for rain.
We feel the promise of what will hopefully be a wonderful season as those seeds begin to shoot and the country becomes a rich green. 
We worry about those tender shoots, as the weather man predicts hail or frost.
And we worry about what those frosts will do to their new born lambs.
And then, when spring arrives we feel the joy as the countryside becomes a patchwork of colour as the canola and wattle come into bloom and young lambs frolic in the pastures.
The air becomes warmer, thick with the smell of flowers and with it the promise of harvest and then the excitement of the “silly season” begins.
Trucks zooming through the town, as harvest reaches full swing and the truckies are in a hurry to get their grain to the silos while the prices and harvest conditions are right. Farmers working through the night as they drive their headers, hurrying to get the grain in, before it rains, or before the strong winds hit, or extreme hot weather conditions mean a harvest ban is called, stopping all harvest.
and We fight, side by side, as bushfires threaten not only the farmers livelihood, but their homes, their stock , their lives. And we are there as a community to help pick up the pieces afterwards.

I LOVE living in a country town.
It truly is a wonderful place to raise children. 



Everyone knows you, and if they don’t they probably soon will. ;-)
You walk down the street, and nearly everyone says hello or gives you a wave.  Something you don’t really appreciate until you have spent a bit of time away. J

And for me personally, nothing brings things back into perspective than a drive in the countryside on a spring day.
I hit the dirt road, find a scenic spot, turn off the engine wind the windows down and just sit, look and listen.
Which inspired me to create this layout.



and an otp I created earlier. ;-)




We truly are blessed to live in the lucky country.
A country that has been built on the hard work of farmers, which continues today.

Thank you Helen, for a wonderful concept and for inviting me to take part.
It has truly been a lot of fun, and I can’t wait to see what the other girls have created and to also read about their experiences about life on the land.
Take care everyone.
Sandra
xx

Monday 13 August 2012

Cyber Crop Quiz - Part 2

Here is part 2 of our Cyber Crop Quiz ...
A reminder of how it works -
  • There are 40 quiz questions, yep, 40!!! But to make things easier, I will give you 10 questions each Wednesday during August (1st, 8th, 16th, 22nd).
  • You need to e-mail your answers to each section directly to me helen @ redearthscrapping.com.au
  • ALL answers must reach me by the 31st August
  • Each question is worth 1 point - the person with the highest score overall is the winner of this challenge
  • Google and the like is NOT allowed and I ask for your honesty in this regard. It's ok if you have no clue about the answers, just give it your best guess, and if you're really, really stuck, I might provide some clues ...
  • HAVE FUN!!! and hopefully learn a little bit about Australian agriculture along the way
I will post the questions each week over in the original forum post and here on the blog. If you have any comments/questions please use the forum comments as per usual, or you can e-mail me.
 
 

11.       Rapeseed is commonly called what? (hint – oil)

12.       Name at least 3 dairy products, aside from milk and cream.

13.       Which is the odd one out here?

(a)    Pistachios

(b)   Mushrooms

(c)    Lamb

(d)   Oranges

14.       What’s the difference between a pesticide and a herbicide?

15.       Which grain is processed and then used to make porridge?

16.       How much of Australia’s sugar is exported?

(a)    50%

(b)   80%

(c)    30%

(d)   95%

17.       What piece of large farming equipment/machinery would a comb be found on?

18.       What is the NFF?

(a)    National Food Farmers

(b)   National Farmers Federation

(c)    National Federation of Farming

(d)   National Farming Folk

19.   “Riding on the sheep’s back” was a common expression many years ago. What do you think it refers to?

20.   Name 2 products commonly formed, or stored, in bales.

Friday 10 August 2012

Introducing ... LAUREN BELL!

A warm RES welcome to a special guest for our second birthday, Year of the Farmer Cyber Crop ... Lauren Bell!

‘Hi there! My name is Lauren Bell and I am married to a 3rd generation beef cattle farmer. We currently live on one of our four properties in the North Burnett region of Queensland, with our 3 kids, Lachlan (7), Michala (5) and Darcie (3). The business is run by my husband, Luke, and his 3 brothers but we are the only family who live and work on the farm. I am originally a city girl, spending the first 24 years of my life living in Brisbane. Luke and I married in December 2002 and I moved out to the farm. It was a bit of a culture shock at first, but I grew to love the lifestyle and now I wouldn’t live and bring up my children anywhere else.
The year we were married was right in the middle of one of the worst droughts in history. My early memories of farm living were of Luke pulling hungry, thirsty cattle out of boggy dams with the tractor. Many of them didn’t survive. This was a real eye opener for me on the harsh reality of life on the farm. We spent many long days putting in new pipelines to get water to thirsty cows and putting out dry lick to try and keep them alive. It wasn’t exactly the introduction to rural life that I was expecting! Lucky for us though, the last few years have been kind to us weatherwise. We have had some of the best calving seasons we’ve ever had. Our stock number are at the highest they have been for a long time.
I am really excited to be a part of the ‘Year Of The Farmer’ Cybercrop at Red Earth Scrapping. It’s great to be able to share with you a little about what we do and how we live. Thanks Helen for having me!’








Wednesday 8 August 2012

Introducing ... Donna White!

A warm RES welcome to a special guest for our second birthday, Year of the Farmer Cyber Crop ... Donna White Laughing

Hi! My name is Donna White and I live on the outskirts of a small country town in the Darling Downs, Queensland. Some of you may know me from various forums as Dondon.

I was born in Wollongong, NSW. My family moved to St George Queensland when I was nine years old. My father managed a cotton property there until I was 14. We then moved to Dalby and onto another cotton property. After I left school I moved to town but was not really settled there. I missed the open spaces and the peace of not having close neighbours. About 8 years ago my husband and I bought 22 acres on the outskirts of town where we built our dream home. We grew cattle until the drought hit and we ran out of feed. I miss looking out of my window and seeing the steers in the paddock, maybe one day.

I am a mother to two amazing teenage girls, Kirsten, 15 and Amanda 13, who have been my scrapping subjects for the last 9 years. I also enjoy scrapping about my life, my friends (and their children) Oh, and my husband LOL
I have recently discovered art journaling as well, so it is quite common to see my hands covered in ink and paint.

You can find my blog at http://donna-white.blogspot.com.au (Pop in and say Hi!)

I am currently serving my second term on the Scrap the Girls DT and feel honoured to be asked to be a guest designer for Red Earth Scrapping.
Thanks girls.

D xx


Tuesday 7 August 2012

Blind Scrap Challenge

For my CC challenge I'm going to be leading you through a blind scrap challenge.

What's a "blind scrap"? It is simply where I give you the details and instructions of creating a page and at the end of the CC we'll see how close to the original it is.

We'll be going through it step by step and you've got the whole month to complete it. 
Good luck and have fun!!!

1. Like a farmer prepares his paddock before sowing a crop, we're going to prepare our products before we start creating. You will need to gather these supplies:

  • * a 6x4 or 5x7 landscape orientation photo - any photo you like - the theme and colours of the photo will determine the rest of the products you chose - just like the variety of crop being sown determines the type of paddock preparation the farmer does
  • * a 12x12 sheet of cardstock, plus extra (same or co-ordinating colours, smaller pieces ok)
  • * a 12x12 sheet of patterned paper plus extra co-ordinating pieces
  • * mist or paint - the paddocks need to be weed free so those precious little seeds aren't competing for moisture and nutrients, hence the pre-sowing, and pre-emergent weed spraying operations
  • * edger punch OR a die cut edge on a length of paper OR scissors to hand cut same OR lace/ribbon - after all, the crops are sown in rows
  • * alphas for a ONE WORD title
  • * embelllishments to suit - we're going to grow the best look, and highest yielding crops in the district
2. Now we're going to get that crop in the ground. Yes, we're putting the layout together, so here goes ... (feel free to ink or distress the edges of your papers as we go along if you wish)
  • * the 12x12 c/s is your base
  • * cut the 12x12 sheet of pp to approximately 10x10
  • * before getting friendly with your tape or glue, you may like to save the centre of your c/s base by cutting it out as it will not be seen when the pp goes on top
  • * adhere the pp to your c/s base, smack bang in the centre
  • * go nuts with your mist and/or paint now - as little or as much as you like (personally, I went for the subtle approach), anywhere on your base *** hint - your photo will be on the right side ***
  • * using pieces of co-ordinating c/s and pp of approximately 10x2, punch along one long edge (OR cut a shaped edge by hand OR use your lace/trim along one long edge) - I have punched the long edge of a strip of co-ordinating pp and mounted it on c/s, thereby creating the "break" between the large piece of pp on the base and the strip
  • * adhere this 10x2 strip across your page, approximately two thirds - three quarters of the way DOWN the page
  • * if desired, mount your photo
  • * adhere your photo towards the RIGHT side of the page, slightly overlapping the pp strip you just stuck on 
  • * okies, I reckon it's time to fuel up the tractor now - grab yourself a cuppa and we'll be back soon!

Monday 6 August 2012

Another Birthday Challenge

Hi ladies (Susanne here), hope you're all enjoying the challenges & RES birthday celebrations so far!

When I think of farms I think of cute little baby animals (sorry, terribly city slicker-ish of me I know Helen) so in keeping with the farm theme, my challenge is to scrap a photo/s of an animal (not necessarily a farm animal & it can be with or without people)..........but the real challenge is to make the L/O minimalist & include no more than 12 elements in total on the page, including the base & photo/s.

Here's my sample L/O....



Hope you have fun creating & don't forget to load your page into the gallery by the end of August

Friday 3 August 2012

Birthday Challenge

Amanda here!

Happy birthday to Red Earth! 2 years! A big congratulations to Helen for her wonderful business... I'm so proud to be a part of Red Earth with her!

So we are celebrating this month! Lots of prizes and challenges! All in our theme of "Year of the Farmer"....

So I started thinking about the Farmers in our country and I realised they are great providers for us all. Between them, they can supply us with almost EVERYTHING we need to survive! So with that in my mind, I came up with this....

The Complete Farming Package Challenge
An inspiration board with EVERYTHING you need to be inspired and create a wonderful project to share with us at Red Earth.

So you have colours, materials, even a sketch, as well as some photos to get the creative juices flowing.



And here is the layout I was inspired to create...


I have chipboard, a recycled clothing tag and old book pages, metal charms (from HANDMADE HALO of course!), buttons, fabric (tulle), fibre twine.
Used more of this - indie chic kit on this page too!

Please help us to celebrate this month - we would love to see what you create! Have your entry loaded into our gallery by the end of August.

Amanda

Thursday 2 August 2012

Introducing ... Tiff Firth!


During our Cyber Crop I will be introducing you to some very special guests who are sharing with us during the month. These talented ladies all have an affiliation in some way with the land and will be inspiring us, scrapping-wise, to celebrate the Year Of The Farmer.
 

HI There.

I’m Tiff Firth, country girl born and bred.

I grew up with my family on our cereal and sheep farm on beautiful Lower Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. I schooled at a Rural School and from year 8-12 at the local Area School. I spent a year in Adelaide training for Beauty Therapy, worked in Port Lincoln for a year before spending the most amazing 5 years in Darwin. That is the best place to live for a young adult.

But you can take the girl out of the country, but not the country out of the girl.

I came back to the Eyre Peninsula in the early 90’s and married a farmer in 2001. We married under a tree and I rode my horse up the ‘aisle’. No dress for this chick. Moleskins and Rossi Boots for me.

We have 2 kids who light up my life every day. They have immeasurable patience with me and the camera.

I’ve studied my Diploma of Photography and I’m in great demand during the spring months for Family Portraiture sessions on the family farms.

Landscape Photography is my other passion besides scrapbooking. Its allowed me to travel earlier this year to the Grand Canyon to shoot it in Winter (-2.2 Celsius) as well as Kangaroo Island, Great Ocean Road, Broken Hill, Menindee Lakes and all over the Eyre Peninsula in the last couple years. Looking ahead I have a photographic trip planned to the South West of America in 2013, and Tasmania in 2014.

I’ve many albums on my Photography Page on Facebook

Scrapbooking led me to pick up the camera in the first place. And the coming of the digital camera in the early days made me want to get better photos so I could scrap better pages.

Scrapbooking also gave the chance to go to CHA Winter 2012 in Anaheim. That was such an amazing experience with the opportunity to visit Disney Land, California Dreaming, Santa Monica Beach, Hollywood, Newport Beach.

All my Photography and Scrapbooking has been possible with the grace and blessing of my DH.  I scrap pages and photograph him to keep him sweet and ‘on side’. It pays dividends.

We love our farm, our lifestyle and are so very grateful that we can offer our kids the opportunities to grow up in regional Australia, not in the rat race of city life.

I keep a blog that I update very regularly.

and I keep up with things on Facebook.

Many thanks to Helen and the team at Red Earth Scrapping for inviting me for the month of August to celebrate The Year of the Farmer.

Tiff Firth


  





 

Wednesday 1 August 2012

Cyber Crop - Quiz Round 1

Welcome to our "Year Of The Farmer" Cyber Crop ... and ... second birthday celebrations for Red Earth Scrapping.
To kick off the CC I have a quiz challenge for you. It has 4 parts and you MUST complete all parts to be in the running for the CC Queen prize at the end of the month.



Here's how it works -
  • There are 40 quiz questions, yep, 40!!! But to make things easier, I will give you 10 questions each Wednesday during August (1st, 8th, 16th, 22nd).
  • You need to e-mail your answers to each section directly to me helen @ redearthscrapping.com.au
  • ALL answers must reach me by the 31st August
  • Each question is worth 1 point - the person with the highest score overall is the winner of this challenge
  • Google and the like is NOT allowed and I ask for your honesty in this regard. It's ok if you have no clue about the answers, just give it your best guess, and if you're really, really stuck, I might provide some clues ...
  • HAVE FUN!!! and hopefully learn a little bit about Australian agriculture along the way
I will post the questions each week over in the original forum post and here on the blog. If you have any comments/questions please use the forum comments as per usual, or you can e-mail me.

 
1. Cotton is grown:
(a)    On an animal
(b)   On a plant


2. What’s the difference between a cow and a heifer?


3. Dorset, Merino and Suffolk are all breeds of what animal?


4. Which is the odd one out here?
(a)    Wheat
(b)   Sorghum
(c)    Canola
(d)   Oats


5. Which beef cattle breeds are crossed to produce Brangus cattle?


6. How many stomachs does a cow have?
(a)    1
(b)   2
(c)    3
(d)   4


7. Aquaculture is what type of farming?


8. What is maize also known as?


9. Approximately how many litres of milk per day, on average, does the modern dairy cow produce?
(a)    15L
(b)   30L
(c)    45L
(d)   60L


10. What is special about Wagyu steak?