More cards....

Over on Aunty's Forum we have a team challenge. This month it's Mono + One & No Squares. In other words, entries must be black & white, NOT a square, and there must be an embellishment in a winter colour. Here's my first entry for it....



I've used a Mattie Stencil to do the white cutwork, which was mounted onto a black square card which I cut the corners off to make it Octagonal. There's some black & white background paper I downloaded from somewhere (though can't remember where now!) and then there's a silhouette lady head (check out ebay!) to which I've added an flower embellishment in a wintry blue.

I'll be doing a few more as the month progresses (hopefully).

However - while I was in a black & white mood (and while the square vs. rectangle debate was unanswered on the forum, I made another card, VERY quickly, but didn't add an embellishment so I haven't entered it for the comp....




I'm off now to do some more crafting while my Mojo is fully operational!

Oops!

I was a bit late getting this in - but on Donna's blog (Crafty Crafts, then go to Tilda & Co) she had a challenge to use a Tilda stamp with flowers. Being new to Tilda, and only just getting my stamp - here is my entry!





I really like these sweet stamps, so methinks I'm going to have to get some more!

Welcome, Inchy!

Or Jo.

Or whatever you prefer to be called!

Why am I welcoming her? WELL, for starters - Inchy made my header (which if it's not there, it soon will be, has done some Siggi's for me and.... tada!.... has just joined the Blogging Revolution. So welcome to Blogland, Inchy! We hope you will be happy here!

I'll add a proper link here as soon as I can snag her logo - but for now you will find her under "Siggi Shop Blog Spot" in the "blogs I browse" section!

TGIF

Ok - from what I can gather, TGIF is also a challenge blog. Maybe I should have a look at it sometime soon!

Anyway, as promised I need to start updating you guys on what I've been up to.

Before Christmas, on Aunty's Forum, we were set two challenges. One was a stitching challenge, where we had to come up with something "Stocking" related. My effort was this....



It's a kit manufactured by Mill Hill, and is one of the series of "Charmed Stockings". I absolutely adore them, and have made a couple of others previously to this one. I'm currently working on a charmed mitten (oops, spoiled it for the guys on the forum. Oh well!) for this months stitching challenge, which must involve beads!

The other challenge I took part in was to create a Christmas Decoration and photograph it hanging on the tree. My effort....



It looks more pink in the photo - in real life it is Christmas reds and golds, and is gorgeous. I can't lay full claim to it - it's a pattern by The Spellbound Bead Co - but I did pick my colours and provide my own beads and bauble!

More to come, so watch this space!

Happy New Year!

Well, so it's getting a little late in the year for this greeting, but not too late as today is 12th Night. My apologies once again for not blogging over the last 5 weeks or so, but I've been kinda busy, you know?

Christmas was a little strange without Dad, but we had a good time anyway. Mum came to stay with us, and we had my brother and sister-in-law over for Christmas Day. We then went to my brother's for Boxing Day, and my sister and her partner came down from Essex for the day as well. We had the usual fun and games, and then everyone came to us for the 27th for a light lunch.

I had LOADS of cards for Christmas, and thanks go to the girls from Aunty's forum for their gorgeous display of handmade (and some not!) cards. So, thank you....

Inchy!
Donna
Jan
Crissi
Rainbow
Onestopscrapper
Jainethepain
Craftali
Carolann
Cat
CraftyRockChick
Annfromconsett
Julie
Cheryl
Scrappyqueen
Sandiee
Auntysally
dianic
Susan
Feebee

You are all stars (and I hope you liked the cards I sent you. If you didn't get one this year - please can I have your address????)

I also had a fab present from my Secret Santa on Aunty's - whom I've just discovered was Laureen. Thank you so much for my present, Laureen! I loved it. For those who don't know already what I got (I listed it on Aunty's Forum!), Laureen sent two bars of Galaxy chocolate (my absolute fave), some peeloffs and some DS foam tape. Always useful, and being the Peeloff Queen, I was more than content!

Well, time to be off. I have more to add, just not today. Today's post was all about saying thanks to the people who need it. I'll let you all know what I've been up to craftwise very soon...

TTFN

Elements ATCs

Now that my good friend Debs has received my ATCs safely, so she can organise them and send the swap back out, I can blog them and not spoil the surprise!

The swap was on Willow Crafts forum, and the theme was the Four Elements. Here is what I came up with...



All the ATCs are basically the same - I covered one side of them with Xyron permanent adhesive, and then stuck on strips of paper/card that I felt represented the element.



I then stamped a representative image onto shrink plastic, and once shrunk, glued it on.



I stamped on each one the word, and clear embossed over the top.



Finally I added matching ribbon and either buttons or jewels.

I like 'em, even if no-one else does! Now I just have to wait for the rest of the swap to come back, and I'll blog them when they do....

Some craft at last!

On Aunty's Forum I've been involved in a Christmas Topper swap. Now that the recipient has received it, I can finally blog it.... Woohoo!!!

It's made from an ATC which I covered with a christmassy paper, topped with a Christmas Tree die cut to which I added some bling. I inked the edges of the atc with some silver ink and then matted and layered it first to brushed silver cardstock, then metallic blue cardstock - et voila! Here it is.....



(Sorry about the flash glare - a hazard with metallic card!)

Well I actually managed to get something crafty done last night, in a roundabout fashion.

I've started - again - on tidying up my craft room. It doesn't look like I did much (to quote DH) but at least all my Craft Stamper magazines are neatly ordered in magazine files and on a shelf. As opposed to being stacked up on the floor in a corner. A few other things have found permanent homes, and as a result I actually have a square foot of space on my desk, and the rest of it is only piled 4 inches high as opposed to 8... Little by little, I will get the room tidy and clear for the weekend so I can sit down and do some PROPER crafting! :lol:

Tonight I'm helping out at this fireworks do in aid of Trade Aid - at least the weather looks like being ok and I'm not going to freeze my thru'pennies off! DH has been instructed to do pizza and chips for tea, and I'll nuke mine when I get in.

I'd love to toddle over to the Daring CardMakers and Wednesday Stampers websites today, but as I'm not going to be able to make anything till the weekend, why should I torment myself? Ho hum, shouldn't be much longer...

Keep checking back folks - I'm sure I'll squeeze something in soonish!

Fireworks and other stuff

I'm bad, aren't I?

Here's me, promising to blog more often, yet when I look at my blog it's been a whole month since I last blogged. Shame on me!

So what have we been up to?

Mostly unpacking boxes, putting up pictures, boarded out the loft, rewired the lighting in the loft. Oh, cut a new loft hatch that was twice the size of the old one.

Now we've dug up the front garden, moved some flower beds, widened the gateway, moved a fence and stuck in a load of new plants and bulbs. And I'm shattered.

Craftwise I have done nothing. I'd like to. But I still can't quite get into my craftroom to sit and do some work.

Mind you - I was a REALLY good girl on Monday of this week - I finally took my Mythical Dragon cross-stitch in to be framed. I get it back in about 8 days time, so I'll have to blog that moment!

Does that count as craftwork????

We've moved!

Well, it was actually a fortnight ago, but we're in our new house and suffocating under a pile of boxes!