Seasons Greetings

Sissix Snow embossing folder, Cheery Lynn Merry Christmas, Memory Box Star of Wonder and Marianne Village die.

Merry Christmas xx

15th Birthday Card using Tagxedo Word Cloud

15th Birthday Card using Tagxedo Word Cloud inspired by the one on here and using instructions similar to those provided by Just Jimjams here
http://just-jimjams.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/tagxedo-theme-tones.html.

Now for some reason these didn't exactly work for me so I had to tweak them and after hours and hours, well days actually lol, I finally worked out a way to do it. I also used a different font for this card.

Thank You Using Tagul

Great friend and neighbour gave his time and hard effort free of charge to help put on a new garage roof which saved us an awful lot of money. In exchange all he got was a bacon butty every morning, some lunch and as many brews as he wanted. The job turned out to be so much bigger than anticipated (don't they always?) and took so much longer. So I had a word on the QT with his wife and insisted that he must have something in return so at her suggestion we bought him a beautiful acer and I made this card.

Just goes to show there really are some really special people out there. xx

Tim Holtz/Sizzix Bird Cage Die & Embossing Folder

Birthday card for my closest friend.





Now I know I'm way behind with this die and it was out yonks ago but it came up second hand on Ebay (don't you just love Ebay?!) for a bargain price with free postage! Well it would have been rude not to buy it there and then. Lol. And the little bird cage charms are just sooooo cute! The bird is actually carrying the charm but you can't see the gold thread in the picture.

Paper Embroidery

Have a friends birthday coming up so needed to create a card. Wanted to keep it simple as my migraines and vertigo have been playing up lately.

For future reference, I would recommend just buying one! Especially when you have a furry friend that keeps having a swipe at the thread! Lol. xx

Breast Cancer Campaign Card

To give to a friend and neighbour who has recently been diagnosed. The card has a receipt inside for a donation to the cause instead of taking a bunch of flowers.

Simply made with an embossing folder and die cuts.

Fathers Day Card

Not exactly inspiring but my migraines are in residence with a vengence and a bout of vertigo!

Also this is not the card I'd planned but when it came to printing text on card on the super duper new all in one wireless printer/scanner/photocopier/teamaker it wouldn't do it! Tried thinner card. Still wouldn't take it.

Is it unreasonable to expect an all new singing/dancing printer that's at least 8 years newer than the last model to do all the stuff the old model did and more? Well, it would seem it is. Apparently the new all in one printers don't like card!!!

And breathe..................

A Few Days Away and a Fridge Magnet

Had a few days away in gorgeous Yorkshire and I saw a photo of me and thought there's only one place for it. On the fridge!!


I personally blame the change in medication although I don't think these have been helping. Lol.

Silk Fabric Offcuts

Found these two pieces at a little curtain makers. They are folded into quarters and are large enough to make 4/6 cushions. The embroidered one is Osborne & Little Lorca Passiflora Vine silk fabric.

Now that didn't mean anything to me either until I looked it up, lol.

Anyway, bearing in mind what I know now and that I paid the same price for the embroidered fabric as I did for the chippy lunch at Southwold last week, I'm well chuffed. xx

The (Rude) Dude

Couldn't resist taking a piccy. xx

A Day At The Seaside

Have been meaning to go to Southwold for ages so yesterday we decided to take the opportunity and pretend we were on holiday before the tourist season really gets under way. Though I do have a proper holiday due and hopefully it will be better than the last time I was away from home on a surprise four night, all inclusive break. Turned out I was in the Norfolk & Norwich hospital having my appendix out. Lol.

Anyway, had a lovely sausage and chips on the front. But I think it's the most expensive I've ever come across. I won't say how much it was as I'm still too embarrassed to admit how much I handed over. Wish there were emoticons on here but there aren't. (There aren't are there?) (Insert blushing emoticon)


Oh, and if you're interested, one of the beach huts is for sale. They are looking for offers in excess of £100,000.00.

Gulp!

A Week On.............

The lovely clear space didn't last long did it?

But in my favour, the ironing board has been in use. To press the seams on the piecing that you can see draped over the little table. The ironing basket is still there and although the contents have changed, the level has not. Lol.

My Craft Room. A Before and After.

Mmmmmmmmmm, it had rather got out of hand and seeing as though there are visitors staying overnight on Monday I decided I'd best try and have a tidy up to gain access to the bed settee else I would have had to sleep on the floor Monday night.

And considering I'm pretty certain there is a mouse in the house at anyone time (thanks to the cat!), I decided I'd rather the bed settee.

Any takers for the ironing? No? Thought not. Lol.

Home is where your heart is.....

I bought a metal punch set last year for a project that I had been given the idea of on TV and just remembered that I had it today so decided to have a go on copper.

As usual with me, it's a bit wonky but ho hey!

Thinking of You

Circles cut and stamped with Stampin Up Hopeful Thoughts stem stamp. Sentiment is from a different set but can't remember what it's called or the company that made it. I've racked my one brain cell but it won't come to me. Lol.

Stamped Blue Tit image on linen and embossed squares

Think the title says it all really.

It's for a birthday and I thought the image was apt for this time of year as there are lots flitting about busy with nesting.

I coloured the blue tit's head a little and then put wadding behind the image and then hand stitched it to the blue card. I'm really not fond of hand stitching and unfortunately, it shows. I justify it as looking folksy artsy craftsy. Lol.

Mothers Day Card Elegant Bouquet Embossing Folder Inked With Vellum Overlay

I wanted to have a bash at inking an embossing folder. Mmmmmmm, not sure whether it's because I bought a cheap brayer but mine skidded rather than rolled the ink!

After embossing it was very patchy so had to fill it in with a paintbrush. This looked very harsh so I ran a piece of vellum through the clean embossing folder and overlaid it.

Looks much better!

Quilted Birthday Card

I'd made up some quilted pieces to use as test pieces when I was looking for a new sewing machine.

I decided I rather liked this pinks one so I cut it down to a central piece to use for a card. Unfortunately, I had to cut it down so much that I lost most of the side panels. Oh well......................................

I used said new sewing machine to create the sentiment. Now I have to say that it pains me to look at it as it's not properly centred or symmetrical as you have to sew each word separately. If anyone has any tips on how to achieve this, I would be most obliged if you'd let me in on the secret.

It's now winging it's way to the recipient and I just hope she doesn't look too closely. Or have a rule to hand. Lol.

Paper Hearts Flower

Wanted to use up the rest of the paper hearts and wondered whether I could create a different sort of flower.

Now I'm not sure what sort of flower it is exactly but when the card was upside down I thought it looked more like a bunch of grapes. Lol.

All White Birthday Card

I saw this idea on the Love Nerds blog (http://blog.thelovenerds.com/2013/04/3d-flower-art-using-paper-hearts.html) who had seen it on Mondo Cherry (http://mondocherry.blogspot.co.uk/2010/04/new-blossom-colours.html). Errrrrrrm, for some reason, my link button isn't working?

This is an A5 card. The flowers are made by using various sizes of heart cut outs. The hearts are then folded in half and glued down.

I do love the look of the card (though I do wish I could not be quite so fixated with the symmetrical thing) but the folding and gluing of the really small hearts was way beyond tedious and next time it will be an A6 card! Lol.

Bright Hopes Quilt Block Woolies Flannel Quilt

This block pattern is called Bright Hopes. The blocks are made up of 4" x 2" (finished) rectangles and 2" x 2" (finished) squares. The fabric is called woolies flannel and is lovely and soft. And seeing as though this was for my OH he chose the colours from what were available in the shop at the time (though would you believe there were nicer ones on our second visit to choose the backing) and the block pattern he found on the internet.

This has taken an absolute age to finish. I sewed the blocks up lovely. However, when it came to the actual quilting bit my little Brother sewing machine just couldn't cope with it. There were several mammoth sessions of us both unpicking and between this and the sewing machine dragging (even with a branded Brother walking foot), the squares unfortunately became rather distorted. It also came to light that the grey tartan was printed on the slant but I have to hold my hand up and confess that I did cut some of the others a bit on the huh. Lol!

It was eventually finished on a very old (1971) borrowed Bernina with a borrowed walking foot. It still wasn't overly happy though and became a two person job to ease it through.

So, I have now definitely learnt my lesson not to use fabrics with a line pattern in them. And the other thing to come out of this is that I am now looking into a new sewing machine. The one I'm interested in is the Pfaff Ambition 1.0 and am going to give it a try in a local shop later in the week. Yipee!

New Home & Happy Birthday for Today

for a friend who moved from Scotland back to Yorkshire last Friday. It is also her birthday today so I cheated and wished her happy birthday on one half of the insert and happiness in her new home on the other. Cheapskate or just super efficient? Lol.

Thank You

for the loan of a Bernina walking foot of all things!

A birthday outing

to Cromer for a stroll and a bag of chips. Just making sure those blasted gulls didn't get me!

Happy New Year to All!