BOXES AND BUGS...

I haven't used my Cuttlebug for a while so today I'd thought I'd run up a card with it. The greeting is stamped with a Inkadinkadoo Personal Impressions stamp using an Encore metallic ink pad in Honeydew and then clear embossed. Fiskars border punches were responsible for the edging. The card is actually very smooth, but the scan seems to have picked up the paper weave.


Some time ago, I was into making cards with matching boxes and this is two of my particular favourites. The 'cherish friends' was for my best friend and I also made the pearl bracelet for her. It was one of the rare occasions that I used a kit, but I just loved the papers and the colours.


For the wedding card, my customer wanted something a little different so I came up with this idea. I was very pleased with this. It was made with pearlescent burgundy and cream cards and all the elements were cut on my CraftRobo.

HINGES, STAMPING & STUFF

Oooooeerrrr!!! I've been a bit slack again, haven't I? Still, I have been busy doing lots of crafting.

I finally got my stamped images put onto cards and they've already gone to a new home. I've also been playing with all the yummy Inkadinkadoo stamps that I got from the US. There are so many combinations, no two cards need ever look the same. I've always been a bit dubious about clear/polymer stamps but these really do perform well. They stamp a lovely detailed image. I've done some scrapbooking too, but as I'm not overly pleased with the way the LO's turned out, I'll not show you those.

I won another ebay auction too. This time for 10 sets of MSE alphabet stamps, also from the US, so I'm waiting for those to arrive. Unfortunately, I didn't look at the picture properly and most are of the same set. Doh!!! Still, I'm sure I'll find homes for them.

I started a tag swap on my craft forum, so have made a start on those and I've also completed another month's CJ pages. This month's theme was 'Around the World in 80 Days' and as my passion is India...well, lots of lovely pics of there.

My fave bit of work though, was a Piano Hinge Book. As I made it I took photo's and wrote a tutorial, so if you like it and would like to make one for yourself, you can find the instructions on The Canny Crafters HERE. I did say that I wanted to use my layered stamped image from my gorgeous Graphicus stamps on a book, and so I did.

I've also been playing with my Prisma pencils. I found with these that most cards worked well for the blending with the Sansodor and surprisingly, one of the best was a pearlescent card from Craft Creations. Unfortunately, I found that the card from Graphicus didn't work well and that was surprising too, as it's such a smooth card. It's a little too porous for the Sansodor. Mind you, for stamping, it's superb. It takes an image as sharp as a tack and it's also brilliant for making the cards themselves as it's such good quality. It's also excellent for blending distress inks, as I did with my layered book image. The ink saturates the card without seeping right through and blends really smoothly.

Finally, I have a bit of a penchant for monograms developing, so I've treated myself to a monogram stamper from Justrite Stampers. I'm really looking forward to that arriving. I think monograms look lovely with a scalloped circle behind them, so I looked at the Nestabilities and then I thought that rather than spend more money, I could (and should) use my Craft Robo to cut them, so I will. In between all this, I managed to cook the odd meal too, lol.

HAPPY BUNNY

I did a bit of stamping and inking again the other day with my stamps that arrived from Graphicus. I haven't actually done anything with the pieces yet, but I'm sure I'll get round to it. The coloured one was distress inked and layered and I'm thinking of using this on a cover of a book. Last time I used grungeboard, but this time I used the Ultra Smooth white card from Graphicus. Oh, boy. It's fabulous card and I think it would be perfect for use with Prisma pencils and sansodor. I'm waiting for some pencils, so I'll let you know when I know. The one with the green centre, I dropped a bit of Diamond Glaze on and then those tiny Art Accentz beads.
Now, the 'Friends are a Gift' one is one of the new Inkadinkadoo Personal Impressions stamps. The centre words and the frame are separate so you can mix and match them and cut and layer them too. They appear to be like gold dust in the UK, everybody is out of stock of them and I've only been able to get this one, hence my disappointment of last week.



But, today, I'm a happy bunny. I won an auction on ebay last night. Well, this morning technically as I sat up until it finished at 2.14a.m. The auction was for 15 sets of these stamps. That's a UK retail price of about £75 and I got them for £25. I'm well chuffed. Just wondering how long they'll take to get here from the US now.

As a little aside and changing the subject, I took my granddaughter to Horncastle yesterday to see the ducks. I'm not really an outing kinda person but I so enjoyed myself with her. Mia absolutley loved them and kept shouting quack quack at them. Nothing different from other kiddies, I know, but it was my first visit to the ducks with her and it was lovely.

I also made another necklace yesterday. This time using Black Banded Agate. I had a bit of trouble with this one as for some reason I just couldn't get my wire loops right, but still, it came together in the end. It's a lovely stone and has some really beautiful markings on it.

A BIT MIFFED...

I've been waiting a week for some new rubber stamps and my parcel arrived today. I was all excited about having something new to play with but when I opened my parcel, they were out of stock of some of them. It was more disappointing because they were out of stock of the ones I particularly wanted and this is after having been told on the phone last Monday, after I placed my order, that they were in stock.

I sometimes think that us 'grown ups' have a serious problem. Fancy getting so disappointed over something like not getting a rubber stamp, lol.

Anyway, I made a necklace instead. The stone is fluorite, it's a very pretty stone but sometimes it's difficult to know what to put with it. So...I decided not to put anything with it and just use purely fluorite in 4 different shapes.

MORE PLAYTIME!

It's been a few days since I blogged again, but I've been busy, busy. I decided some time ago that I didn't like my jewellery website so I've spent most of the week updating it. I've changed the design and layout slightly and am much happier with it now. A nice fresh face. I've also got a few more bits of jewellery made and have some more in progress.

I took my granddaughter shopping the other day, as I thought I'd buy her a new pair of shoes. OMG!!!!! her little feet are only about 3 inches long and what a price those shoes are. £26 'eek!', but, they are soooooooo cute. I couldn't resist buying her one of the all singing all dancing Baby Annabell dolls too, so a fairly expensive afternoon, but hey ho! I loved it.

So, not a lot of money left for stash, but I am waiting for some new stamps from Graphicus. One set so I'm better able to do the technique I showed you last week and another set of gorgeous greeting stamps with interchangeable outer frames. I'm still playing with the glimmer inks, but not getting on very well. I really don't think they're my cup of tea at all, and I should have known this, 'cause I'm not into sparkly at all really. The colours look so vibrant in the bottles but are actually very pale (insipid some of them) so I doubt I'll get much use from them.

Right now, I have some jigsaw pieces to scan in for a jiggy topper swap done over at Canny Crafters and as swap host, I've to get them all in the post tomorrow so I better go and get cracking.

INKY FINGERS

I saw this wonderful project by Lynn Robinson-Hunter using Tim Holtz grungeboard and distress inks. I thought it was so bright and yet 'earthy' so I had a go. I was a little impatient and didn't wait for my card to dry (all spritzed with water) so my stamping is a little off, but never mind, you get the idea. I got (and so did my table) very messy and had very inky fingers, but it's a great technique.



I have also got some of the new Glimmer Mists. Mica particles in coloured liquid that you spray over your card/paper. Now, I really don't know why I wasted my money on them. They're £30 for a set of 6 bottles and you can get just the same effect using your Twinkling H2O's. Still, they're pretty colours, easy to use and they blend well. I made this very simple card with them, just to test out the blending.



I popped to the park for a little while this morning with my DD and GD. GD loved the slide and also fell in love with a lunch box belonging to a little boy. When he left to go back to school, she followed them all the way to the gate crying for the lunch box, lol. Hissy fit or what!!!!! Spoiled madam, no doubt she'll have her own lunch box before very long.

NEAT FREAK

I've done a LO of my granddaughter and this one is a bit different for me. It's ALL paper. No ribbons, brads, eyelets or anything. I even used letter stickers for the title, which I NEVER do. The papers are Basic Grey 'Blush' and I cut the embellies from 'Infuse'.

Mia is 13 months old now, and just loves cleaning. She has her own dishcloth (well washed) and cleans everything in sight, including the dog sometimes, lol.

WRIST SLAPPING..

Ooooeerrrr!!!! I've had my wrist slapped for not updating my blog, so I thought I'd just write a little bit. I've been so busy I haven't had time for this. I've not got to visit my fave jewellery forum, UK Beaders properly either, and I'm sure there's loads of lovely creations on there I've missed.

So what have I been up to? Well, I've done some scrapbooking, done some photography and I've even made a couple of cards. I have got some jewellery made for commissions too. I'm in the process of writing an article for the Polymer Cafe magazine on making a Mica Shift pendant and as it's going into print, I have to get it right, so that's taking a little time.

I've also set up a brand new craft forum. Our old one had so much down time, we were all thoroughly peed off with it, so I thought we could do with something better and that's taken quite a chunk of time too recently.

In between my crafting stuff, I've also done the normal boring everyday stuff that none of us want to do, but have no choice.

Anyway, I'll show you a couple of my pics. Nothing exciting as I think this time of year any of us with a camera shoot butterflies on buddleia bushes, but hey ho! they're pretty enough aren't they?

BAPTISM BOX

Well, I've finally finished my box. If it's suitable, it will hold a handmade silver rattle for a special little boy's christening.

GETTING MORE DONE...

I've got quite a bit of crafting done over the last few days. I've made some more polymer clay necklaces, none of which have reached my website before being sold. *grin* As I've not photographed them yet, here's one I made earlier. This one never reached the website either. I managed to get some beaded ones done too, one of which will actually get on to L.R. Designs.



I've made some cards too and played around with a Versamark resist technique for some backgrounds.





I was also asked by a fellow beader if I would make a box for a handmade silver rattle she's made for a christening. After a few false starts and some problems with my Krylon Silver Leafing pen, I finally made good progress today. It's all covered and just waiting to have the embellishments put on it. I'm hoping to get that finished tomorrow.

DONE AND DUSTED....

Well, here they are. Into a third day in the making and I definitely need more practice, but for a first attempt, I'm quite chuffed. However, Jeffrey if you read this, don't panic, lol. You're under NO threat from me. Ha, ha, ha.


Now, I have to go and finish a commission I have for a polymer pendant. Much easier to do though, thank goodness.

I went for lunch at my friends today. I go every Wednesday and thoroughly enjoy myself. I always have a couple of glasses of wine too (or port) and as I'm not a big drinker, especially at lunch times, I'm always a bit wobbley on a Wednesday afternoon, so I better be careful with my craft knife, lol.

STILL AT IT....

Whew!!!! another full day working on these pod bead things. I never realised when I started just how long they would take to make. I've only made 3 too....but one is rubbish so I'll only be using 2 in a piece of jewellery. They need multiple bakings, each of 30 mins, plus all the work in between. A couple of times I've had to bake them just for a teeny weeny bit of clay in a hole.

I thought I'd finished all the baking last night, but no...wrong!!!! Loads more had to be done today when I started putting the holes in. Jeez, they're difficult. I will finish them tomorrow, I swear I will. At the moment though, enough is enough, I need my bed.

A CLAY DAY.

As usual, I did have all my running around to do today, but got it all done quite quickly and managed to spend the rest of the day in my craft room. Yesterday was beading day but today....it was clay day. I absolutely love working with Polymer Clay. I've been using it for a couple of years now and sometimes I think I'm still not very good but other times, I'm really chuffed with what I turn out. It's a fantastic medium to work with and so versatile.
My oven has just beeped at me and I've taken some beads out. My electric bill has probably shot up today as the oven has been on for most of it, lol.
I am trying a technique for the first time pioneered by the fabulous clay artist Jeffrey Lloyd Dever. I've been doing his pod beads for hours and hours and they are... well, to say they're looking far removed from his is an understatement, lol. Still, practice makes perfect as they say. The final baking has just come out of the oven but they'll have to wait until tomorrow (well, today now) to be finished off. You never know my luck, they may just be OK.

BUSY BEADING....

Apart from a quick visit to the village, I've been beading most of the day. I made 4 necklaces including one using the fabulous lampworked bead made by Claire Doherty that I mentioned yesterday.

All I have to do now, is get round to putting them up on my website.

Well, it's Monday now. NOT my fave day of the week as I always seem to do loads of running around on a Monday, but hopefully I'll find some time to do some more crafting.

GOT IT DONE...

Well, I got my CJ pages finished, so that's another job done. Can't post piccies though 'cause it will spoil it for Bobs if she visits me here, as it's her journal.

I told you yesterday that I've been looking at snail shells the last few days and decided they're actually quite nice, so here's a couple of the pics I took.



I also found this bug that I thought was dead so took a pic and then his leg moved, lol.I popped him on a leaf and he legged it.



I got plenty of other pictures too, including one I called Suicide Pact, as it was a whole bunch of snails dead in a bucket of water. What possesses them, eh? Beer I can understand, but water!!!!!

I'm in the mood to do some jewellery now. I got a fabulous new lampworked bead today made by Claire Doherty of clasibeads, with real silver drizzles on it and it's just gorgeous so I may do that tomorrow. Or, I may get my polymer clay out and play with that instead.

OUCH!

Well, I finally got my layout finished. My grandaughter has her first 'poorly', bless her. Kids always manage to find the bit of broken glass you've missed, don't they?

I've been out taking photographs today too. I'm in a Circle Journal and the book I'm doing at the mo is about where people live, so I had to go and get some pics of my village for it. I have to say, I quite enjoyed myself.
Snails grabbed my attention today too. Dead ones, lol. So, pics of those too and I used my macro lens for some close-ups of the shells. Have you ever studied a snail shell? They're quite beautiful, you know.

GETTING NOTHING DONE....

I've been trying to do a scrapbook layout this evening and I'm getting nowhere fast with it. I have my pics and I have my design but just can't choose the papers. Grrrrrrrr!!!! It's so annoying.

I've also paid a visit to my photography site. Sometimes I like to look at my own photos and it's ages since I've put any new ones up. Something else I need to do.

My jewellery site is sadly lacking in new pieces too, lol.

It's not as if I'm short of time. Not really. Certainly not compared to many other people I know, and yet, I still get nothing done.

Mind you, one thing I DID get done was to go away last weekend. I met up with all my lovely friends from The Canny Crafters (or Lou's Loonies as we're also called) and we had a great time. We chatted, laughed, drank, ate and...oh, yeah - got a bit of crafting done too.

A VERY GOOD CAUSE

This post is for my friend Kerrie Slade who on August 11th has an Awareness Pins project available on Beading Daily and as you can see from the picture they are fantastic, there's 2 sides to this project- a charity fundraiser and a contest.
Please check out her blog for further details as she's put a lot of time and effort into this and is a lovely and very special person who deserves everyone's support in this. Please click on Kerrie's name and help if you can.

BUSY, BUSY....

Had a very busy week this week. Mind you, it's not over yet. I've done shed loads of housework and still more to do. I've let it get into a dreadful mess. Too busy crafting, see. I've neglected everything else.

I'm going on a craftweekend this weekend and I'm teaching 3 classes so there's quite a bit of prep for that. Most of it is finished but still a bit more to do.

I've not been feeling too well lately either, but I'll not bore you with all that. It doesn't help when you've loads to do though. Anyway, still no piccies to show you. I could put the weekend projects up, but don't want to spoil it for anybody coming to the weekend if they happen to pop over here.

IT'S BEEN A WHILE....

Well, I figured it was time I updated my blog. I've changed to this new easy edit template finally, so I'm now playing around and seeing what's what.

I'm a lousy blogger, lol, but I will make an effort to update more regularly. I may even put some piccies up of some of my crafting as well as my photography and photoshop stuff.

WE'RE HONOURED...

I feel very honoured today. Photoshop guru, David Rowley (davrodigital) asked me if he could use my pic of Mia (the one below) for a video tutorial on doing High Key in Photoshop. It's on his web site and this months Digital Photography magazine (issue 67) have picked it up and it's on the disc that comes with the mag.

How cool is that???

To make things better, my son is coming home tomorrow. I've not seen him for ages as he works in Dubai now and doesn't get back very often.

I'm going to have lunch with my friends tomorrow, which is brill, as I don't have to cook, lol.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all you mums out there (well, any of you that read this, that is).

STAINED GLASS MASKS.

I was a little bored tonight so started playing around in CS3. First proper bit of digital work I've done for ages.

MIA

My granddaughter is 7 months old tomorrow. Honestly, where does time go, eh? There are other things going on in my life, but I'm not sure they're worth writing about. Anyway, here's another pic of Mia. I will get round to scrapping it sometime, I'm sure.

A COUPLE MORE....

LO's of my granddaughter. I'm trying to catch up to date with her album. I've just got all my papers to do her Christening pages, so hopefully will get cracking on them soon. I've got a CJ to do this week ready for posting on Thursday too. I can't believe she's 3 months old already. She smiles all the time and has started laughing now too. Sooooooooooo cute.

My leg is still sore and I've had to put a plaster over my knee this morning. As I wear trousers all the time, they're rubbing it and it's not helping it to heal. Oh well, should have done that days ago.

BLUE EYES!

Well, after the horrendous day I had yesterday and with some very painful legs today, I thought I'd disappear into my craft room where I could be left alone. I decided to scrap one of the photo's I took the other day. I used Crate Baby Bee papers and BG rubons. The title was cut with my Craft Robo.

WHAT A DAY!!!!!!!

What a blurdy day - and it's not even over yet.

I was up all night again, just can't shut my brain down, so I'm mega tired. Had visitors this morning, then had to take Mum for her Monday cuppa with a friend, then take her to docs for blood tests, rush home, get her lunch and pick DD up to take her to Boston. OK, that doesn't sound so bad, I hear you say, except for the fact that, that is a lot for me to do in my less than busy life.

So, we get to Boston and it's peeing it down. The Citizens Advice Bureau is closed, so we had to walk to the other end of town in the rain to the Estate Agents. Apparently DD had promised them some money today, which I hadn't realised, so I sent her to empty my bank account.

Still peeing it down, my hair is sticking to the back of my neck, my glasses are falling off my head, my shoes are killing me and my very long leather coat was flapping round my legs upsetting me.

Off we pop to the supermarket, where being a beginner with a pushchair, I promptly get the wheels caught up in a display cage and drag it down the isle with me. Of course, I was getting admiring glances from all around, NOT....gets to the till and muggins here forgets the pin number for the credit card. Not having enough cash with me, and Nic already emptying my paltry current account - stands back, takes 50 deep breaths, remembers number and pays for shopping. Whew!!!!!

Mia, by this time is hungry and tired and screaming. Deep joy.

Crosses car park, and some pillock decides to reverse his car without looking. Screams and frantic gesticulations get him to hit his brakes before he sent us all flying.

OK...nearly done. We get home, thankfully in one piece and then my piece de resistance....I fall over just outside Nic's house. My ankle just turned. The worst of this is I had Mia in her car seat in my arms. I had no way of stopping my fall, and my priority was getting Mia to the deck in one piece, which I did, but with quite a jolt. She's OK though. As for me, I have a very painful ankle and 2 very sore knees one of them very, very sore. It's grazed and swollen too.

So, I'm thinking nothing else could happen...WRONG....I burnt the bloody toad in the hole for tea.

I always wonder how you can scrape and bloody your knees without getting a mark on your jeans too. That's always puzzled me.

LOOK AT THOSE EYES!!!!!

This is our Mia. 12 weeks old and gorgeous. Well, I would say that, wouldn't I?..but she is, isn't she? lol.

Somehow, I've got to force myself not to take quite so many photo's of her. No way will I use them all. I did think about doing just a couple a month now, at least for her scrapbook, but I've got loads to catch up on. I want to do more than one LO of her Christening, 'cause she looked so lovely and there was lots of people there. Still, plenty of time I suppose, eh?

The weather is turning very cold here now, same as the rest of the country I suppose, but my old car really struggles in the winter. I'm not even sure if it'll get through another MOT next month, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Anyways, that'll do for now, I'm off up for a shower.

HAS IT REALLY BEEN...

over two months since I wrote anything?

Hmmm, I always thought I was quite chatty but apparently not, eh? I've been busy staring at my grandchild and taking hundreds of photo's, making my jewellery and paper crafting.

I also think that what I'd have to say isn't really that interesting and I'd hate to bore you all.

Still, you don't have to read it, do you - so maybe I'll come on and witter a bit more often. Maybe I need to join one of those prompt things somewhere.

MIA ELIZABETH

Yipppeeeeeee!!!! I have finally got my long awaited grandchild. My daughter gave birth to our beautiful Mia last Friday afternoon. She is just sooooooooo precious.

I haven't actually got much else to say - well, there isn't anything is there?

BLUE A****

Ever wondered where the expression "running around like a blue arsed fly" came from? Now you know.