Frosty days - and home visits

Evening all. Well, what a marvellous morning we were treated to today, it was nice and crispy - with the leaves looking like they have been outlined with a quickie glue pen and dusted with iridescent glitter. Love it. The dogs were pretty happy with it as well.

Managed to get lots done today, visited gran, met up with one of my buddies for a natter, dress fitting for the bridesmaid dresses, and now it's finish the bags for maz, and get her tags designed. Serif, thank god for serif!! Last minute panics just don't need to happen if you have this little beauty on your computer!! 

The little town I was born and bred in seems to be getting worse. The shops are pretty pathetic, and so many look so mucky and run down. It's such a shame. There are a few really trying though, so tomoz I recon I should help support them and buy some new clothes!! Damn fine excuse to shop.

Right, tag and bag time. I'll share a photo of our lovely walk :)

Cheeky dog!!!

Christmas here we come!!

I can always tell Christmas is really on it's way when everyone slaps on a nightie, rollers and lippy...I say everyone, I just mean Dave! Haha. I'm not letting to much away as yet, all I'll say is wait for the new Christmas video, it should be a bit of a giggle.

I'm gonna pop on my hours for next week, hope you can tune in:

Wednesday: 8am needlecraft

10am tonic

1pm tonic

3pm surprise :)

Thursday

8am surprise

10am needlecraft

11am tonic

Friday

8am papercraft

10am Papercraft

12pm POW

Saturday 1pm POW

4pm surprise

6pm Papercrsft

7pm surprise

Sunday

2pm Papercrsft

4pm pow

6pm POW

7pm papercraft

 

Favour bags and crimbo films

It's Christmas!! I've got Scrooge on the telly, and I'm crafting the favour bags for my sisters wedding, with lovely sticks of cinnamon, so the smell and the films are completely Christmassy. My step dad is even going to get us mince pies and cream!! Whoop whoop. Love it.

I have concluded I should have come up with a quicker design for the bags, they're taking ages. Tell you what, if anyone leaves them at the end of the meal I'll be collecting them back - no way any of these are going to waste.

I've been mat and layering, then tying ribbon, balls and cinnamon onto them. Marianne choose the photos, so they'll act as favour bags as well as place settings.

Love the set up for the dogs as well, looks like Dylan's harem!

Oekaki sewing

Eventually, the machine has been plugged in!! Myself and my lovely friend Dee, had a crafty play day. It was so good to chill out and just play. And gossip, of course!! 

It felt a mission to learn how to get the machine up and going - this is not because the machine is in any way confusing, just simply down to me and my extreme impatience. I'm rubbish at just reading instructions - however when we had got it up and running - what a sense of achievement. 

We had a play, and got used to the feel of the machine with normal stitches, but then got onto the free motion stitching -

which is what I'm really interested in.

It feels really weird at first, and you don't trust yourself. After a while, and just "scribbling" with the machine, your confidence does grow. Need more goes to really master it, but love it!!

Happy workshop days

I'd just like to say thank you to Helen and the lovely ladies who joined me on my workshop at Craftstation. We had a lovely day, and I only over ran by a couple of hours!! Oops. I'm so sad Im not able to do anymore workshops for you ladies, I've loved every single one, and it's really upsets me that I'm no longer able to share my craftyness with you. However, I'm definitely going to come up and visit and attend one of Helen's wonderful workshops...it'll be nice coming along to learn and play for a change :)

For those of you who didn't join us at the weekend - this is the project we got stuck into:

It's a lovely frame from twiddleybitz, which we decorated with Eco paints and then stamped. We stamped in black first, painted the ivy very roughly, and then over stamped using gold glitter embossing powder, this gives a lovely shadow effect, and allowed us to paint the leaves without being to precise or finicky! 

I printed the sentiment from the computer, which we mat and layered up, then used some creative expressions stamps to start to layer up or decoration within the frame. I cut some leaves using a sizzix die, and used beautiful satin ribbon from May Arts. I love the burlap/jute cord, it gives it a real homely touch.

We added gold flakes around the frame.

If, like me, you think this looks a little to much, add more paint which will knock the bling back! 

Finally we added some clear wax from the Annie Sloan paint range, this really gives it a professional finished look.

I hope you like it. 

Okay, off to peruse eBay for some bargains, teelamai needs a new winter coat (bet I just end up with a pair of shoes...for me not the dog :)).