Happy birthday Hayley!

Today is my good friend Hayley's birthday and in the spirit of crafting and needlework here is the card I made for her.



Paper patchwork is just as much fun as fabric pathcwork, but much quicker! I still go a bit wonky though!



So simple to do - squares fo different DSP (retired Springtime Vintage and Newsprint in this case), stuck on to a plain piece of card then cut out in the Big Shot with the Top Note Die.

Then finished off with a couple of buttons and a ribbon made from the Victoria Crochet Ribbon.

We're celebrating Hayley's ageing this evening with food and booze.

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Where has my craft time gone?

I seem to have lost a lot of my crafting time recently. Well, I've had some but I don't get round to doing big projects - just bits and pieces for my embroidery certificate or helping other people!

So that's my reason for still not having many photos to share, but once again I'm going to take the opportunity to clear out a few that have been lingering in my "to share" folder for a while. They're not particularly exciting, but I made them, and that's what this blog is all about!



Remember the gift bags Chris showed us at our Julie's Jems training a while back? Here's one in pink.





And here's another mander book. I made this one for Tessa just after I moved in to her lovely house. I used the music pattern from the Newsprint DSP as she's a jazz singer.





Finally, an album I picked up from TK Maxx, with frames in the front for adding some pics to the cover. I just used the Springtime Vintage DSP and some lacey bits and ribbon and Pearls to decorate them.

Actually, I did make some new cards last night, but my BlackBerry broke so I can't take any pics!

My new one should be on its way so hopefully I will be back to instant email and Twitter/Facebook access soon and be able to feel like I'm still in the 21st century!

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Owls and booze

Another card commissioned by my friend Fay for you today!

She needed a good luck card for someone who has just got a new job. "She is going to be a feature writer and likes booze" was the brief!

Here's what I came up with ...



I teamed the Newsprint DSP (embossed using the Vintage Wallpaper folder on my Big Shot) with some patterns from the colour family DSP stacks.

It's fun to make owls using the Two-Step Owl Punch - I used DSP for his waistcoat too.

The banner at the top is a die I got from a blog candy win and the sentiment is from the hostess set Something To Celebrate.



Here's owl enjoying a cocktail from the Cheers To You set!

I like this one as it reminds me of a bar I visited in Minneapolis many years back. It had a newspaper theme with pages all over the walls. And it did great cocktails!

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Getting back on board with blogging

I've been a bit of a naughty blogger reently and not managed to update as often as I would like. In a way it's a good thing as it means I'm so busy, but it also means that my busy-ness hasn't been through cardmaking, which I am sad about. I hope to have a good session this weekend though and build up my cards for upcoming craft fairs, so I should be able to build up a stock of photos to share in future!

It's my dad's birthday today. I sent his pressie and card in the post so I hope they arrived safely and on time! I got him a Lewis Hamilton McLaren baseball cap, which I know he will appreciate and use. He likes to wear a cap when he flies his model airplanes. I bought him one from the MotoGP at Donington Park many years ago, but it is a bit knackered now, to say the least! So the new Hamilton one should keep him the sun out of his eyes this summer.

I also sent him a card using the Motorcycle stamp from Stampin' Up!, but I have already shared that with you (it was the swap I made for the Jems when the Mini Catalogue came out).

So instead, here is a card I made for Helen's dad, who had his birthday a few weeks ago.



This is the Sail Away stamp, another of the single ones in the new Mini Catalogue. I knew the page from the Newsprint DSP with the maps on would be perfect, but unfortunately I only had two tiny scraps of that one left, so I just scrumpled and inked them up and had them poking out from behind the image.



I used the Top Note Die and Square Lattice Embossing Folder in my Big Shot to make a nice background. Then I used the Jewellery Tag punch to make the label and attached it to a button with Linen Thread.

Daddy Helen was pleased with it, I am told!

I have lots of exciting WI news to share with you, but I think I will leave that until tomorrow as we have our Buns & Roses meeting tonight and there'll be more gossip from that too!

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Another wedding card and the WI

The fun never stops around here at the moment! I am still mega busy with all sorts of things going on in the next few weeks. Can I go back to Denman College for a break please?!

Today's card is another that went to my friend Georgie on her wedding day. I made it on behalf of my friend Sam with one of the new Stampin' Up! sets Clearly For You.

I went for a vintage look (surprisingly!) and used lots of my favourite things.



The background is a piece of the Newsprint DSP, which I scrunched up and inked a bit using the Distressing Essentials kit. I then stamped randomly with some of the smaller images from Clearly For You - a crown, butterfly, cherub and ladybug.



The focal piece uses the rectangle background stamp and the birds on a branch. Again, I just coloured in two of them using a Stampin' Write marker pen. I wrapped some Linen Thread around and included a tag made using the Jewellery Tag Punch and phrase from the Tiny Tags stamp set. The ribbon is the amazing Crumb Cake Seam Binding.

I hope George and Brendan liked it!

Today I am out at the West Yorkshire Federation of Women's Institutes AGM. As well as running a craft stall, singing Jerusalem and eating cake with the ladies, I am giving a presentation on my visit to Denman College! I have made a slideshow of some of my pics and will have my embroidery on display.

And the rest of this week is just as crazy - lots of work to do, my Stampin' Up! Mini Launch Workshop on Thursday evening, a craft fair on Saturday! I really need more hours in the day!

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A quickie!

I have rather messed up my body clock with some mega naps this weekend, so it's gone 2am and here I am! Just a quickie though as I do need to get some proper sleep and be up at a reasonable hour as I have lots of work on.

Anyway, this is a cute little notebook thing from Muji that I have covered to become a "Word Diary". I often try to write a diary but find it quite difficult, so I am starting small!

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Scrapbook page: My trip to America

Yesterday I went round to mummy Julie's to help her out with some crafty things. We had a good natter and got loads done. While I was there she made a scrapbook page and with that and her class this afternoon, at which I will be scrapping some pics of my niece and nephew, I got home and was in the mood for getting stuck in!

So, I dug out a picture of me I have been meaning to do something with for ages. It was taken in May 2007 in a bar in Minneapolis. I had been sent to the USA on a press trip and on arrival handed the keys to a brand new Chrysler Sebring and told to drive 400 miles around Minnesota and Wisconsin! Bear in mind I had passed my test just a few months earlier and had only ever driven a Vauxhall Corsa!

Anyway, it was so much fun and I survived going the wrong way down a one-way street, the lack of roundabouts and being shouted at for doing U-turns and "parking improperly".

For this page I focused on the awesome Newsprint DSP. This is totally me and I use it as much as possible. This background sheet is just perfect for scrapbooking.



I matted the image on to Pacific Point card, which is pretty close to the colour of my top, and used the Spiral Border Punch to make it look like a notebook page. I added a paperclip from the Clips Assortment. The typewriter is from an American SU set called Puns From The Past. The ribbon is Basic Black Striped Grosgrain and Twill Tape, stamped onto randomly with the Just Perfect Alphabet.



The map is actually another design in the Newsprint DSP stack. I went to town with the Distressing Essentials kit, using the sanding block to roughen the edges and the Tea Stain Ink Spot to age it.I stamped USA with the Broadsheet Alphabet. I used brads and some Linen Thread and 3mm Taffeta Ribbon to decorate and marked the places I stayed with Xs. The arrow is a piece of chipboard from the On-Board pack, covered in Blueberry Crisp DSP.



The journalling is done on the oval stamp from the Notably Ornate set, framed with more chipboard pieces, this time covered in another pattern from the Newsprint DSP.



Finally, I decided to highlight some of the super adverts on the Newsprint DSP. Again, I used the Distressing Essentials to rough them up.



This one is my favourite!



I definitely have the scrapbooking bug now so expect more layouts soon!

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A Newsprint meander book

Yesterday before my SAB workshop I sat down for an awesome craft session and decided to make a meander book. I saw the idea at the blog of a fellow SU demo Peg Coombes. She made this and it was so lovely I had to give it a go.
Luckily the actual pocket pages are really easy to do with a piece of DSP, then it was the decorating and filling that took the most time!
Here is my effort, using my favourite Newsprint DSP and my newest stamp set Notably Ornate.

This is the front, and no surprise I have also used the Twill Tape stamped with the Music Notes Wheel and the beautiful Striped Grosgrain Ribbon.
Controversially, the back is decorated in portrait orientation.

I have used the pearls all over as they are just too damn pretty.

This is how it looks inside. The DSP is folded to create five little pockets.

And these are the tags. I have done it as a kind of life book for 2011, with words to inspire and motivate me. I have space for one more though so suggestions on a postcard please!
If you would like to have a go at making one go here and ask Peg nicely! Thanks again to her for making the tutorial!

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Three-day craftathon

I have been busy the past few days avoiding packing and instead creating lots of lovely things and making the most of all my Stampin' Up! products before I have to put them away and get them all over to my new place!
I have done another four of the decorated tins with a calendar journal and cards inside.
This is the one I am keeping for myself and I absolutely adore it. I have filled it full of yummy cards so I have no excuse for not having one to hand!
Tomorrow I really must start to pack as I have a lot going on in the next few months aside from moving house. There are tons of SU and WI events to look forward to, details of my card events are over there >>>
Well, now to bed and tomorrow to start organising all my posessions! Anyone want to come and help?!

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Special birthday card

I made this card for my friend Hayley, who is 31 today. I know she loves the Newsprint DSP almost as much as me and is also a fan of little bits of ribbon, so I made sure to use both on her card, along with my fave Broadsheet Alphabet.
She's having a party at her house this afternoon so I will be off there shortly armed with some wine and nibbles!

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Hello!

I love this really simple card. Just the Music Notes Wheel, Just Perfect Alphabet and a bit of Newsprint DSP. Et voila! Quick and effective, just the way I need things to be at the moment!

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Remember the date sets

Well this evening I have been very busy and made some bits that I am incredibly pleased with. And I'm still in bed before 10pm! Win!


I bought these tins from Wilkinsons. Inside were 15 little cards and envelopes (which are now heading for the recyling bin, of course!).
Instead, I made my own selection of cards as well as a calendar mini-journal for making note of important dates and anniversaries. So there's no excuse to forget or fail to send a card - it's all written down and the cards are ready and waiting!
I will post pics of the innards over the next few days.
The top tin I am keeping and the second one is one of my items for the Craft Swaparama in Leeds this Sunday. I hope the recipient likes it!
They're my new favourite thing and I'm going back to Wilko's tomorrow to buy as many as I can so everyone will be getting them as presents!

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Feel like a yo-yo!

Life is still bringing me many ups and downs and taking great pleasure in making everything crash down around me again just when I think things are looking up.
Long story short, am being kicked out of my house, so need to find quite a few quid and a new one where I can take Bodd. Not to mention figure out how the hell to move all my stuff! Needless to say I'm not feeling in the greatest of moods, but I have several card comissions to sort this afternoon, so will have to rustle up some creativity!
In the meantime, here is a cute little black and white card. Of course, it features my fave SU products at the mo - the Music Notes Wheel, Broadsheet Alphaet and Newsprint DSP.

I punched the flower with the Five-Petal Flower Punch and dampened the cardstock/DSP then scrunched it all up to give a nice worn effect.
And so, on to battle through another day! I had wine with Tessa and her kitten last night and tonight am singing with the WI then off to see Hayley, so at least I know I have great people around me.

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Convention gift swaps

Here are the items I made for a gift swap at Convention earlier this month.
I used some Twill Tape to make little brooches. I stamped the cotton tape with the So Swirly Jumbo Wheel and folded it over at the ends. I then added a folded piece of 3mm Taffeta Ribbon and fastened on a couple of Neutrals Buttons with Linen Thread.
The backing cards they were presented on used the beautiful Newsprint DSP and Broadsheet Alphabet.
I kept one for myself, which I wear all the time, and gave one to Shelli Gardner, the co-founder of Stampin' Up!
I love being able to use the SU products for things other than cards - it is all so versatile and you just need a bit of imagination!

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A Newsprint notebook

Here is one of my creations from yesterday - a covered SU art journal.
I have used my favourite Stampin' Up! goodies - Newsprint DSP, the Broadsheet Alphabet stamps and Striped Grosgrain and Taffeta Ribbon.
The colours are Very Vanilla and Basic Black. I added on some flowers made using the Boho blossoms Punch, some Neutrals Brads, a couple of Neutrals Buttons and one of the beautiful Pearls.
I'm so pleased with this, but I have no idea what to use it for!

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Newsprint bookmarks

Now Convention is over I can show you some of the swaps and gifts I made for people. Well, I have actually posted a couple already without saying cos I loved them too much!
I made these bookmarks for an organised 3D swap, and also did one for mummy Julie, my roomie Joy and the lovely Vicky Hayes, whose blog never fails to inspire me. And I sent one to my mum as well!
They were really easy but fun to make as there are several elements but nothing too complicated. The base is a piece of textured River Rock card and Newsprint DSP on a mat of Basic Black Card. The bottom was shaped with the Eyelet Border Punch. At the top, I had wheeled the Music Notes on to a piece of Twill Tape and threaded it through a punched hole several times. Then, stamped the recipient's initial using Broadsheet Alphabet, cut out and layered on. I added a bit of 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon and a Neutrals Button with Linen Thread.
I kept one for myself so now I just have to find time to read!

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Tales of interest

I had some good crafty time yesterday and decided to make some little sample pages. I had started out with the intention of doing a bit of scrapbooking, but as I have no photos it was a bit tricky. So instead I am creating a notebook of ideas and samples and bits and bobs.
This is the first piece for it, using the beautiful Newsprint DSP and Broadsheet Alphabet. The butterfly is All A Flutter, which comes on its own so is great if you're just starting out. I'm really pleased with how it turned out.

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B is for ...

BUSY! Will it ever end?! Not that I'm complaining! Today I headed up to the West Yorkshire WI Federation Office for a dat of crafting and nattering. It was really lovely and I made good progress on a Christmas biscornu I'm stitching for a swap over at www.crossstitchforum.com. I arrived home to lots of work emails, leading to a mad hour of quick-catch up and meaning I have muchos to do over the weekend and early next week before I head down to Croydon for the SU Convention!
And with that thought, I'm off to get started!
*EDIT* D'oh! I forgot to tell you about the card! I am still in love with the Newsprint DSP, Broadsheet Alphabet and Music Notes Wheel so made this to combine them. I have also used these for some of my convention swaps, but you can't see those until next week!

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Mad busy

The fun never stops round here!
Today I have had lots of work on, and not the bits I had planned to do, so still loads more to plough through! Luckily I managed to fit in a bit of crafting as well as Hayley, who is the Buns & Roses WI treasurer, came round to play.
She made some gift tags and I did my bag tags for Convention.


I used some little wooden tags and stuck on my name using the Broadsheet Alphabet stamped on to Very Vanilla card and layered on Basic Black, both torn to give a vintage effect. The background paper is Newsprint DSP. I totally adore these new Stampin' Up! products, they're right up my street. I added a bit of 3mm Taffeta Ribbon and attached on a button with Linen Thread.
I'm now going to tidy up the living room as it is a complete mess! Have bought a Welsh dresser off eBay to help organise my stuff better - can't wait to have a proper place for everything!

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