85th birthday

 Hi Everyone, February and March is a busy month for birthdays in our family, so be prepared for lots of cards hahaha. Anyhow todays card is for my eldest #1 brother (I have/had 4) and a card with a story. 

He started his working life as a Fireman on Steam Engines in 1952. At Old Oak Common in Swindon. Put the clock forward nearly 70 years and he and my SiL went somewhere, it could have been Bridgnorth. They, or at least he, likes to visit places where he can see working Steam Engines. On one of their visits he came across this engine and realised, by it's number, it was the first engine he worked on, can you believe that? He was so thrilled, he told the Driver of the engine the story and he asked if my brother would like to go onto the footplate (where the driver and fireman worked.) He jumped at the chance and the driver even gave him his hat to wear for the photo. My brother still has his Fireman hat he had worn on the railway.

He had sent me the photo and I thought, as it meant so much to him, to use it for his birthday card. In Photoshop, I added a mask to make the photo a little more interesting, then printed the papers I had chosen and layered them onto black card then to the base card. I also generated the greeting in Photoshop. I don't know if you can make it out, but the layer the photo lays on, is a picture of coal, well! he did handle a lot over the few years he was on the Great Western Railway, known as GWR or Gods Wonderful Railway to enthusiasts.

My #2 and #3 brothers were also Firemen on the GWR, and I remember them sitting together on a visit home once, listening to a vinyl record of a train going through The Severn Tunnel, yep! they love the Steam Engines hahaha and relating what the fireman and driver would be doing, step by step, going through this long tunnel and being enveloped in smoke. Ah! wonderful times even for me, listening to my brothers reminisce and enthuse about the sounds and memories.

If you are an enthusiastic, ahem! you can find everything about this engine HERE

back papers - Summer Driggs, Vintage Oreos (2015)

coal paper - Photoshop Creative Magazine freebie (2009)

Photoshop CS2020

This is the insert with the larger photo, which

 I also masked to make it more of the engine and my big brother.

Just a little something, I have "prove you are not a robot," coming up when I make comments, has anyone else got this problem or is it just me, if it's just me, how do I stop it - please?