Show time!

This could be quite a long post......it's been a week since the first day of the show at the NEC already - ridiculous! I've been up to my elbows in inks, papers, dies, glitter, stamps and glue.....nothing new there then! I'm quite looking forward to being able to take a couple of days off next week - hopefully - but, till then, it's as hectic as ever.

Working at the show over the four days was really good fun, hard work but fun. Each show day began at 9am and finished at 5.30pm so, with little time to take breaks, it was full on. I was on the Card-io stand and, while Wendy was demonstrating her own beautiful Majestix stamps, I was working with Sizzix dies. This was quite a change for me and it took me a while to adjust to not being covered in purple and blue ink! I really enjoyed showing how to construct the dimensional creations such as the Luminary and Birdhouse. These Treat Poppers (crackers to you and I!) were a big hit too....

....I made lots of them at the show. The great thing is that the crackers themselves are quite quick to make so you can afford to spend lots of time decorating them.

Here's a table decoration made from two Sizzix dies - the Reindeer and the Sleigh. The sleigh is very cleverly thought out and fits together beautifully. It's ideal for holding little sweet treats!

I hope everyone who bought the dies is having great fun using them....I know I did!

I had forgotten how drying the air in the NEC can be and so had omitted to take any lip balm with me. By day two I felt as if I'd been traipsing through a desert! Diane (Thomas and Tara's unofficial auntie!) paid a visit and took this photo of me trying to do a running repair with my lipstick...nowhere near as effective as lip balm I have to say!

Diane also brought pressies for T & T.....beautifully stamped and decorated.....

.....their names were even stamped on the reverse of the labels! Thank you Diane, they loved them! If you click on Diane's name (above) you can see some more piccies of the show.

On day four I was back to stamping and getting covered in inks. My Doo Lally Pip stamps raised a few smiles which is just what I intend! It was a day of contrasts with everyone having great fun and then the two minutes silence which is always marked at 11am on the Sunday of the show at the NEC and I found it especially moving this year.

Then, before I knew it,  the show was over - unbelievably quickly it seemed. It was quite a trek back home and, thankfully, my neighbour had put the heat on for me so I could have a hot shower before an early night. I was pooped!

I mentioned last week that I was a bit worried about the weight of my case and how I'd get on carting everything down to Birmingham. My poor case was just not up to it, so I have had to have a complete change and am now getting used to a new one. Of course, this hasn't gone unnoticed and a certain someone decided to check whether it was suitable.......

.....by the way, that's not a real mouse on the carpet - just a toy that has been mostly ignored by both Tara and Thomas!

There wasn't really much time for a rest as I was up in Durham yesterday, so I had to prep more samples for my demo there in Crafty Nook. On Monday though, I spent some time with Heather - I've passed on all the good wishes that were sent her way last week...thank you from both of us. We called into St Chads to lay a rose on the memorial book of remembrance as it was two years since our dad passed away and his name was on the page for that day.

I had a lovely time at Crafty Nook, once again working with Sizzix dies and also decorating some candles too....

...this one was made by cutting a Sizzlits die (Woodland Deer) from Graphic 45 paper which I edged with Gathered Twigs Distress ink before warpping it round the candle base. I wrapped greaseproof paper around the candle and heated it gently to melt the paper into the wax. I used the same technique to add the Martha Stewart punched fern around the top. You can't really see it here, but I also added some Rock Candy Distress dry glitter over the surface for a little bit of twinkle. 

Today I've been getting more things made for my demonstration this coming Saturday in Chesterfield at Crazy About Cake Craft who have now expanded into papercrafts as well as their established baking supplies. 

A certain someone always worries when he sees me getting my case out as he knows it usually means that I'll be trolling off again. 

I think he figured that if I was going away then he was coming too! As you can see though, he's a big boy and there wouldn't have been much room left for anything else! Bless him!

Here's a non Christmassy wreath that I made this afternoon using the Sizzix Prima Gulien die....

...the flowers are quite large so I didn't need too many to cover the card circle beneath. I used quite muted paper and edged them with various ink colours. If you look closely you might be able to see the Glossy Accent dew drops here and there.

Well, time to put my dinner in the oven and then a shower while it's cooking. Lots of ink and glue on my hands, so washing my hair should get rid of that lot! I'm a bit sore and stiff too, and it's really cold here, so some hot water and spicy shower creme is just what the doctor ordered!

PS It's amazing what they sell in supermarkets these days. We have a Booths store here and look what's in one of their carrier bags.....

This picture is specially for my friend Paul, who has a soft spot for Tara!

PPS before anyone reports me to the RSPCA I didn't ram Tara into a carrier bag for the sake of a cute photo! She is obsessed with climbing into things and has taken to running into this bag and skidding across the carpet as if she's on a snow slide!

Northern Papercrafting

Hello my blogging friends, and, once again, apologies for being awol for a week or more. It's been an especially busy time with shows and demonstrations on the work front and other activities also taking up my time.

As promised, here is a photo of the cute tags that Diane added to the two bags of cat treats that she gave me for T&T when I was down at A Maze of Memories a week or so back.....

 .....each tag has a little cat image and a different poem inside. As you can see, Tara wanted to get in on the act.......

.....thanks again Diane - once they've finished all the treats I will be carefully removing the tags and adding them to my Doo Lally display area.

Last Saturday I was back at Coleman's Craft Warehouse in Rushden, Northamptonshire, which is a huuuge store, crammed full of goodies. I didn't take my camera as I was already loaded up and, going off last time I was there, I knew I'd probably not have time to take any pictures anyway! Thank you to all the staff for, once again, looking after all the demonstrators so well (teas and coffees on tap and sandwiches in the fridge!) and to everyone who came along to watch....and spend! It was another really fun day and, hopefully, I'll be back in the Spring.

This Wednesday I was at Inspirations in Preston, so hello to everyone who I met there. Once again, myself and the other demonstrators were really well looked after (it does make a difference!) and I had plenty of space to work which is always a bonus....

Here are some of the things I got up to on the day.....

.....as ever, when I take photos at a demonstration, the background is usually my grubby craft sheet, so not the most beautifully presented image! Anyway, I used one of the Steampunk snowmen from my Nicicles as Icicles stamp set to make a Christmas tag with a slightly Halloween feel....dangly spiders anyone?! 

I made the tag background by dabbing Liquid Pearls onto the card using some scrunched up plastic bag (I usually just snip a bit off a carrier bag, but you can use cling film) and then drying the tag before blending Distress inks over the surface. This gives a shimmery effect and it's nice to use the Liquid Pearls in a different way.

I stamped the snowman onto the tag and separately onto white card....I'm not cutting round those fiddly arms for anyone, so I was able to cut them off the second image! I used a metallic gold pen to colour the arms on the tag, then coloured and cut out the second snowman before sticking him down. Some black gem spiders with webs and legs drawn with a fine black pen always add a nice touch! The snowy area is just scrunched tissue glued to the base with a wet glue and more glue squelched over the top to strenghen it - and to adhere some Rock Candy glitter to of course!

Here are two quite different effects using my Winter Silhouettes and Winter Critters stamp sets.....

.....The one on the left has a background made with my trademark faux bleaching technique using Distress inks and a water brush. I think I must have demonstrated this over a thousand times now, but I always get asked to do it again! The stag was inked up with a little Dusty Concord followed by a touch of Frayed Burlap Distress inks - just use one colour if you are a bit precious about keeping your ink pads absolutely pristine! I stamped him directly onto the card, resulting in a slightly two tone image...sometimes a silhoette image will come out slightly patchy, so just tickling it with the water brush will even everything out.

I stamped the sentiment in black and then overstamped it in Dusty Concord but ever so slightly to the above left to give a shadow effect - not too much or it will make your eyes go squiffy!

The card on the right has a much bolder look, created by the wonderful Goosebumps sprays. I used the clear (gloss) one on this one. I simply sprayed it over 300gsm white card and allowed it to dry for about ten minutes. It dries to a textural finish but is also a brilliant resist medium. Some Mustard Seed and Spiced Marmalade inks were blended just below centre and I then worked various blue and purple Distress inks in from the edges to create the snow filled sky. I used the old torn white card trick to create the snow drifts and then turned to heat resistant acetate to stamp the stag and also the trees from the Winter Critters set.

I stamped them with Archival black which won't dry on acetate unless given a quick blast of heat. I cut around the trees and added a couple of bits of black 3D foam behind the trunks before popping them in behind the "snow". The stag was trimmed out and then coated with glue (not the antlers) before adding Black Soot Distress Glitter. He was stuck to the foreground and I used a little Gesso to anchor his feet.

On the non-work front, I've been rehearsing my role as Camille the Camel again - this time for the Harvest service on Sunday, so it's a little sketch with two lugubrious camels discussing where their food comes from. The children at church love the puppets, but the adults also usually find something to smile about as well.

Last night was one of the rehearsals and, of course, the rain, which had held off all day whilst I was at home, decided to come down with a vengeance as soon as I set off to church! After the rehearsal I was then going to a WI meeting but had twenty minutes to spare, so I "treated" myself to a bag of chips for my very unhealthy but nice, dinner! The WI meeting was a visit from a local bee keeper so very interesting and, even though I thought I knew a lot about bees, I learned lots of new things about these fascinating creatures.

Everyone has a single raffle ticket on the night and mine was 999! I never win these things, but I did last night - it was either a box of chocs or the wine. I don't eat chocolate anymore, so it had to be the wine....I don't really drink either, but I'll force myself!

I'm all set now for my day at the Northern papercraft show where I'll be on the Ali Craft stand tomorrow. Hope to see lots of you there, so do say hello. It's going to be a busy day!

I'm really looking forward to next Thursday as I am going on a coach trip to York with others from church. We come under the Diocese of Blackburn and a new Bishop, Julian, has been elected and is being ordained on Thursday at York Minster. It's a wonderful opportunity to experience the full splendour of this magnificent building and will be a spine tingling ceremony I'm sure with the full choir and the service taken by the very charismatic Archbishop John Sentamu. Not sure if we're allowed to take any photos, but I'll take my camera just in case!

Well, I'd better get a shift on now, or there will be an empty space where I'm supposed to be tomorrow! Have a great weekend everyone.

What a lovely weekend

My trip down to Colemans Craft Warehouse in Rushden on Saturday was really enjoyable and was among several things this weekend that gave me a much needed boost. There were several demonstrations besides mine, including beading, Fimo sculpture and needle felting, though I really didn't get a chance to have a proper look as I was kept busy all day - just how I like it!

Thank you to everyone that spent time at my table and for all your lovely comments. Most artists and designers have moments of self doubt, the negative thoughts that creep up unawares from time to time, so a day spent with people who give such positive and appreciative feedback is just the right tonic.

For some silly reason I forgot to pack my camera, so I don't have any photos from the day, but I doubt I'd have had time to take any really so not to worry! I hope that we will be able to arrange another date for me to return to Colemans, so I will keep you posted.

We were all well looked after on Saturday too, with a constant supply of hot drinks and lunch laid on upstairs - just as well too, as my long journey home didn't contain any opportunities to buy anything to eat on the train. I had a few grapes with me so I made do with those and getting back at well past 10pm was far too late to be thinking about a meal! 

Sunday morning saw me on Sidesperson duties at church...welcoming people at the door with service leaflets, taking the collection and helping people up and down the steps during Communion...not just by myself, there are four people on duty at the Sunday service. I was trying to stop my tummy from rumbling, though it seemed to be timing itself to the quietest parts of the service!

After church I met up with Heather in Blackpool as there was a vintage and craft fair on at the historic Winter Gardens that we wanted to go to. We didn't buy anything, but we enjoyed having a wander and browsing through all the bric a brac, various crafts and collectables. We both found the vintage dolls exceedingly creepy! 

I was, by this time, feeling quite faint, having eaten nothing except grapes and a tiny breakfast cereal bar since midday on Saturday, so we made our way to a noodle bar and had a rather late lunch there. It's almost worth going without food for so long just to relish the feeling when you actually get to eat something again!

My treat last night was to watch Michael Bublé whose voice makes me turn to jelly inside! He can be a very naughty boy, with a really mischievous glint in his eyes but he somehow gets away with his sauciness. He sang "Sway"  - Dean Martin's song of course...a man with an equally sexy voice! I enjoyed the whole programme, though when he sang "Home" at the end I admit that it was back to the tears again as it's all about being away from the one you love and I used to sing it to myself when I was missing David while away on my trips. 

All in all I had a happy weekend though and today has been thoroughly wasted on doing just about nothing! I was so busy last week that I just wanted one day where I didn't feel guilty if I slouched about. So, apart from dead heading some pansies, Violas and Nasturtiums I've really done very little. I was able to watch the tennis at last - hooray! And Thomas and Tara have loved having their mum around all day.

The sunshine has been beaming here, and still is as I type, so I took a few pictures of the garden this morning. David's rose is blooming again now which really gave me cause to smile and I know that he'd have loved seeing all the vibrant colours that are really coming into their own now. The garden is somewhat haphazard, scruffy in places and the lawn certainly needs mowing (or scything!) but it is colourful.

 To think these were all tiny seeds a few months ago.......

 ....and Princess Tippy Toes checking out the pots.Unfortunately my Nasturtiums are being chomped by caterpillars but I haven't got the heart to "deal" with them and I reckon that even the Large White butterflies need a hand these days!

Love these Anemones. I've also had plenty more fresh veg, with more courgettes plumping up nicely and, so far, fingers crossed, very little sign of the nasty, slimy slugs that plagued the garden last Summer!

I've added some more items to my Etsy shop today too, including the little shadow box that I posted pictures of last week. You can see thumbnail pictures of the new items in my left sidebar, or click on them for a closer look. Here's a peek of the gold fish semi abstract painting though....

....this has gold highlights and I wanted to create a stained glass sort of effect.

Well, I've just got time to prepare something simple for dinner before one of my favourite programmes strats - Only Connect on BBC 4....it's a very tough quiz based on connections between things. A real brain trainer!

So, I'll say cheerio for now and head for the kitchen.

That was the week that was....

......a very busy one! In fact, I was joking today that demonstrating on Saturday will feel like a day off! It's been a juggling act to bring all the different strands together on time if that's not too much of a mixed metaphor! I haven't even seen a tennis match yet, just an odd five minutes here and there, although the match featuring Sharapova yesterday got switched off anyway when I could stand the outrageous shrieking from both ends of the court no longer! Time to get tough on the ladies who spoil the game with the ear splitting screaming in my opinion.

I had two days that were more or less set aside for making samples for my demo at the Coleman's Craft Warehouse event on Saturday. As well as my Doo Lally Pip range they have a good stock of lots of my other stamps, so it was fun to work with them for a change. This is one of the cards that I made using one of my wooden rubber stamps called "Fluffy Owl".......

 .....I used a DCWV paper to fold into the "frame", secured with brads and threaded with sheer ribbon that I coloured with Dylusions inks. I've used a few images of the owl, cut and layered to give him some dimension. I cut out a separate pair of his feet so that I could glue the branch across his body and then the feet on top of that so he looks as if he's gripping it.

Here's the card taken out of the paper frame - it's not as finished as it would be if I were making it to send to someone. And, yes, I know it's either a Bonsai tree or a bloomin' big owl....artistic license! 

I cut the tree freehand from really dark brown textured card stock and glued it down over the card and the owl panel. A little white card moon and some white gel pen stars just add a touch of brightness and I wrote a simple message with a fine pen...not very straight! Oh yes, I did put Glossy Accents on his eyes.

Back to Doo Lally Pip for this tag now, quite a bright tag at that! The birdcage is cut from Tim's Kraft Core card using one of his Sizzix dies and I then sanded it back a bit. 

The background of the tag is Tim's tissue wrap (Symphony) that I sprayed with inks and then dabbed with paper towel to blend them onto the slightly resistant surface. I added gold embossing powder over glue stick around the edges. The bird and word are from my "Squawk" set. Some TH pearls along the bottom of the cage, some inky ribbon and an inked Kraft Resist flower complete this quirky quacker!

I've been too busy to get into the garden at all this week, except for watering things in the evenings of the very hot days we had on and off. I got home this evening in the middle of a downpour and decided to take a few snaps whilst the rain was giving the colours an extra vibrancy. I can hardly believe how much everything's grown in the last few days.

This is the area at the back of the house that the side door of the conservatory opens onto. It's where I hang my washing, but it's much nicer to look at when there are no towels and sheets in the way....

  ....to think all this came from some tiny seeds that I planted a few months ago! Don't even ask about the tray and the plastic bowl part filled with soil...at least the bowl matches the Nasturtiums! There are Sweet Peas and Sunflowers against the fence and the troughs at the side have Sunflowers, courgettes and tomatoes in them.

More edible goodies are maturing now....

 ....though I'll be lucky to get any of these cherries if the birds have anything to do with it. Last year I put netting over the tree which did deter the birds but did nothing to protect the fruit from the aphids and ants which appeared like magic as soon as the cherries began to ripen. I might get the odd one anyway!

I'm chuffed to see the Clematis at the side of my bench is flowering now. It's a beautiful blue lilac colour and has plenty of buds, so I should be enjoying the blooms for quite a while I hope.

 

Well, that's tonight's garden tour over with!

The other big commitment this week has been in my new role as deputy Verger of course, and I set up two Communion services and helped with two funerals. Everything went okay and thankfully, I remembered all the various things that I had to do. Not the best picture, as I was standing in the subdued light at the back of the church, but this is me wearing the Verger's robe.....

 .....I did feel a bit of a fraud as it's emblazoned with the Guild of Verger's badge, which I'm not a member of, but I'm allowed to wear it when I'm on duty. You can see from the panelling behind me that St Chads is a very old, traditional church, a Grade II listed building with some parts dating back to the 11th century.

This evening I was in almost the exact same spot where this picture was taken, but in a very different role as a puppeteer! We were having our first rehearsal for an event in a few weeks time - I'll post some pictures after the show, but we had a lot of fun tonight!

My bags are packed for my trip tomorrow....Thomas doesn't like the way I have kept paying so much attention to my case - think he suspects! He won't be best pleased when he has to sleep on his own tomorrow night...he's a big bruiser but a real "mummy's boy" at heart!

So, hope to see some of you on Saturday and, though I'm a day early - have a great weekend everyone!

Where's the time going to?

I've no idea where the days are going to recently. It only seems a couple of days since I was at Dainty Supplies and yet, tomorrow, I'm off to Leeds, to Samuel Taylor's for another Saturday of teaching and demonstrating. I'm sure some sort of time warp is going on, it's the only explanation! Mind you, being busy does make the time go by more quickly of course, and I have been up to my eyes with one thing and another all week. I haven't had a lot of time to make the best of the sunshine in the garden, but I have managed to do a bit of tying Sweet Peas to netting, some of the dreaded weeding and making up a few extra pots with the very last of the plants that I grew from seed.

I've just added another painting, a little scarecrow, to my Etsy shop after putting the finishing touches to it this evening. I'm very partial to scarecrows, ever since primary school when our teacher used to read the Worzel Gummidge stories to us, although I never watched the TV series....it didn't fit the pictures that were in my head! Here's a little peek of the painting anyway....

.....it's done with watercolours and fine pens for the extra details.

I spent this morning with Heather and Graham and one of the tasks was to help Heather to get past her mental block about using her sewing machine....she's had it for aaages and not even threaded it yet! Anyway, it was all very simple so she's all set now to start adding stitching to journal pages etc now. We had a good look through some old photos that has us laughing one moment and then cringing with embarrassment the next. We also wondered why we spent so much time when we were teenagers worrying about our weight and our looks - we both looked very slim and rather gorgeous! Lol! 

While we were rifling through bits of fabric for Heather to practice on we found some little pieces of Aida fabric and I said that I sometimes get the urge to do some cross stitching or tapestry. No sooner said than done and Heather nipped upstairs and came down with this tapestry kit that she'd had for years and never done. 

Not sure when I'll get chance to work on it, but I'm looking forward to getting started and it will be something different to do. Thanks Heather!

When Heather dropped me back here the sun had begun blazing down and Thomas and Tara both came out to enjoy the warmth. Here's Thomas on one of the gate posts, purring away as usual and thinking how lucky he is to be here and not back on the city streets as he was when he adopted us....

 Or maybe he's just admiring the flowers! Oh, don't look too closely at my lawn which is really overgrown again until I get a lawnmower sorted! Tara was, as ever, thinking about her tummy and chomping on grass.....

 Talking of chomping, I had some more of my home grown produce tonight. I made a version of Singapore Vermicelli......I do mean a version! Here's my "recipe"....I fried some chopped onion in a pan and added a few teaspoons of Madras paste and a bit of crumbled vegetable stock cube. Next I added some leftover chopped up chicken and a little bit of chopped Spam....yes, I know, it sounds awful, but I only use a bit and it adds an extra flavour that just works. I poured in a whisked up egg and broke it up in the pan as it set. Next came my freshly picked vegetables which I chopped and added - they need hardly any cooking. Finally, a bag of "ready to wok" fine, vermicelli rice noodles added to the mix and tossed through with some Soy sauce to taste. Eh voila....oh, that's French, not Singalese!

Here are the veg immediately after I picked them......

 .....my first courgette, some more French beans and, at the top, leaves picked from my three Rainbow Chard plants. They were absolutely delicious!

That's a bit of a round up of some of what I've been up to. Next week is going to be madly busy getting ready for my day at Colemans Craft warehouse on the 29th June, as well as several duties at St Chads that I'm taking on for the first time whilst the Verger is on holiday. 

Well, have a great weekend everyone and enjoy the official start of Summer!

A bit of all sorts

Hope everyone had a good weekend, whatever you were up to. It's been a mixture of warm, sunny days here and some showers but, thank goodness, those roaring winds have abated. It's been the same with work too, with a rush to meet deadlines and then a rare Saturday off....having Saturday off still gives me that familiar childhood feeling of being let out of school!

Here's what I've been working on.....

.....what a cheat that is! Well, the brown package does contain what I've been working on, all secured and posted off this morning. Whew....always a good feeling.

So, Saturday was a beautifully sunny day and really warm - anyone would think it was Spring! And, speaking of which, on Saturday morning I heard a cuckoo calling across the field, a real herald of the season so it must be here at last if a little late. I also managed to take another video of the Barn Owl which I'll upload after I write this post.

I've  managed to get some time in the garden over the last few days - sometimes getting jobs done and I also enjoyed sitting on the bench with a cup of fruit tea, reading the Radio Times with Thomas soaking up the sun beside me. He and Tara both love it when I go outside and they always follow me round to see what I'm up to. Here's my big boy asking me to go for a walk with him.......

 I've been busy transplanting seedlings into their outdoor positions but I still have quite a lot left to do as you can see....

.....there's not much room for sitting in the conservatory at the moment! There are sunflowers, sweet peas, nasturtiums, pansies, green beans and tomatoes in various stages of growth....I'm trying to make sure I have things blooming right through the summer. I've still got courgettes and asters to sow but that will be it as far as seeds I think. The veg and tomatoes are staying in the conservatory this time seeing that the slugs got almost everything last year! I've grown around two hundred sweet peas and have been planting them anywhere that they'll be able to scramble up walls, twiggy canes, trees or whatever. The seeds have cost next to nothing and it's been really satisfying to watch them sprouting up.

On Saturday evening Heather and I went up to the church hall for the "curry and quiz night". Last time that we made a team of two we called ourselves "Chalk and Cheese" (well, we are very different!) but we were joined by two other ladies needing a team, so we dubbed ourselves "Cheese & Whine" instead....not sure who was the whine part! It was a very good night with lots of general knowledge questions as well as two sets of cryptic ones which were just up my street. We came joint fourth out of around twenty teams so not too bad. 

Unfortunately the rain came down yesterday so I got pretty soaked walking home from church but soon dried out and got my work finished and parcelled up. I spotted this little cutey warming up in one of her favourite spots too....

Tonight, the highlight of the evening was the last episode of Broadchurch which left me feeling wrung out like a wet dishcloth! No wonder it's had such massive viewing figures, the acting was superb through the whole series and it was refreshing to see a drama series take it's time to tell a full story for once. I'm saying nothing about the storyline....I hate spoilers and I know lots of people watch things on catch up! Brilliant though and I feel like I've been through a wringer.

I've uploaded the owl video, so that should be up and viewable now. If I spot the cuckoo I'll try and snap that too!

I'll be getting on with some projects that I'll be able to share over the next few days and I'll be at Card-Io in Pemberton, Wigan on Saturday. I'll also be demonstrating at the Happy Stampers show again, which is on the 11th May, so hope to see lots of you there.

Okay, better sign off and get to bed now. Sorry this was such a  rambly post!

And the winner is......

......drum rolls please, then eyes down to the little video clip below.....

 .......or not! For some reason, the clip won't work here, so I've frozen a frame and added it as a picture......and the winner is...Chell. If you'd like to see the whole video clip, just check out my You Tube channel - the link is on the left.

Chell - well done and please email me your details so that I can post your prize out to you. Hope you enjoy using the stamps and I'd love to see anything that you make with them.

I'll catch up with everyone...emails, calls etc very soon but I had a total time out yesterday and met my sister in town then had a sleepover, before coming back here today, visiting our mum and then doing a few errands in the village. It's nice to have a complete switch off occasionally.

Both Heather and I needed new phones (landlines) - ours had both packed up and I've been trying to pursuade Heather that she needed a cordless one for years now so I helped her choose one...no curly telephone cords in sight! I've been struggling with the old "emergency" corded phone for a few weeks now, but have got so sick of hardly being able to hear anyone and pulling the cradle onto the floor when I picked it up (forgetting the cord) and no answer machine that I thought I'd get one at the same time. So, my new one is on its first charge and I'll be good to go when I get back home tomorrow - hoorah! I'm not really a technophile, but I do hate being rooted to the spot when I'm on the phone!

We called in at The Works bookshop and I picked up a very inexpensive copy of a lovely book called "Pretty Little Felts" which has all sorts of mixed media ideas in it. As we were looking down at the craft section we spotted some familiar covers...yes, it was Stamping by Lindsay Mason and Beading by Heather Fenn-Edwards.....our books! There were two guys smiling at our reaction so I had to explain that we'd written them. They were smiling even more when I then said, with great indignation, "99p - what a cheek!". Still, I guess you haven't really experienced having written a book until you find yourself on the shelves of The Works for less than a pound! It gave us a real giggle - though I was tempted to buy the copies myself! Heather was keen to point out that there was only one copy of her book mind you!

Anyway, I hope I'll see some familiar (and new) faces tomorrow when I'm at High Legh garden centre. I have an early start as the dreaded bus replacement service is in place which adds a great deal of time to the journey. If you are coming along, please ignore the state of my hands as I've not only got the usual scratch marks from some rough and tumble playing with Thomas, but I managed to burn myself getting something out of the oven a couple of days ago, so I look as if I've been dragged through a thorn bush. I've got lots of great techniques to distract your eyes from my raggedy hands though!

Oh yes, in answer to some more queries, I will be at the Port Sunlight show in May (the 11th) so I know I'll be seeing lots of you there.

Right, time to finish sorting my things out for tomorrow now. Chell, don't forget to email me your details and your goodies will be winging their way to you very soon.

Grubby fingers!

This is just a quick post after a long day of a real mixture of tasks. I've been making some last minute samples, doing some drawings and then, late this afternoon, getting grubby in the garden! So, if you do happen to be coming to either of my demos this weekend, don't look too closely at my fingers and please excuse all the scratches which, for once, were not caused by Thomas or Tara but by the twigs and thorny stems that I was pulling out today!
The weather's been so gorgeous that it was perfect for making a start on outdoor things. David's done some chopping back of weeds along the wall edges, made a first assault on the ants that have put in an appearance and I don't know what else! I've planted up some tubs which look pathetic at the moment but will hopefully start to fill out in the next couple of weeks, potted up some seeds and given the shrubs at the side of one wall a good cutting back.
Anyway, I'll be at Burnside Garden centre in Thornton tomorrow and Houghton Hall garden centre in Carlisle on Sunday. Mmmmm...two garden centres in one weekend.....will I be able to resist buying some more seeds? Probably not!
Have a great weekend whatever you're doing and make the most of the sunshine while it lasts. I'm off to bed now - it's 11.04pm, but I guess this post will show as being made at 2.34 am or some other ridiculous time!

New stamps on the way

Sorry it's been so long since my last post but almost everything that I've been working on I'm not able to share just yet. Frustrating! However, I now have the date for when some of my new stamp designs will be making their debut on QVC. So, if you'd like to check them out, tune in on Tuesday 7th February at 5pm - the show is Cards for Men, although my stamps are pretty unisex really! I've been busy making samples with the stamps, so will share photos of them once they've been on. Let me know what you think!

On Thursday I was at Crafty Company in Fleetwood where I had a lovely busy day. Of course, I forgot my camera so have no photos of the day to share. Typical! I was using Tim Holtz and Darkroom Door stamps as well as my fairies and combining them with Perfect Pearl Mists and lots of Ranger inks.
Everyone liked this card that I made on the day (don't always finish any cards during demonstrations as it's all about techniques really) using an image from Art de Fleur vol 2 from Darkroom Door - stamped onto gloss card and coloured with water based pens. I rolled in the edges and used a glue stick to secure some Pewter Shimmer embossing powder. I like the way you get stray bits of powder on the image with this technique.
I used some TH Tissue paper to cover a piece of card and coloured it with some Distress ink (Walnut Stain) buffing off the excess. The card it is matted onto is one of the Best Creations glitter range which I coloured using alcohol inks smoothed over the surface. This card has a polished surface so the inks work very well and, once rubbed over with tissue, the glittered pattern still shows through.
I coloured some Seam Binding ribbon using Perfect Pearl Mists, wetting the ribbon and spritzing with the Mists then heating to set and repeating until the colours were how I wanted them. Once I'd tied that around I simply cut a 6"x6" card blank from Tim's Christmas Kraft Resist stash (I used the Postcard sheet). A little Distress ink smudged around the edges completed the look. Thanks to everyone who came along on Thursday, and to Sandra and Keiron for looking after me and all the customers with hot drinks and sandwiches. We needed them too - it was a nippy day in Fleetwood!
My diary is now filling up with dates throughout the year so I will start adding them to my list on the left. I'll fill in the blanks as and when they get booked, so do check back to see if I'll be anywhere in your area.
Right now I'm working on more drawings and getting things organised for Stitches (the trade show) in a few weeks. It's always tremendously manic and very hard work but also a lot of fun and something that I really look forward to. I do always doubt that everything will be done in time, but, somehow, it always is!
This next card is not a new one but I wanted to add more than one photo! I've used alcohol inks on Best Creations glitter card again - this time with a butterfly theme. The little cutie is called Bluebirds Proposal (GJK012) and it's a rubber cling stamp from Gorjuss (through Personal Impressions). I coloured her with Promarkers and used an EK Success Butterfly Layering punch (EK54-90006) with simple pink card to create the accents. Wonder what she's thinking? Well, just a quick post this evening to show I'm still here! Don't forget to tune in to see the new stamps but I'll post details of them as soon as I'm allowed. Keep warm everyone.

October is here!

Hello everyone...suddenly it feels like October usually feels! It's gloomy and been pouring with rain solidly here for the last two days and Thomas has hardly even ventured outside at all. He has a bladder made of iron!
Welcome to all the new readers and followers from down Essex way - and elsewhere. I had a really good weekend in Wickford and Billericay and met up with both familiar and new faces, and there was a lot of fun along the way. Not that you can see much sign of it here, as everyone, including me, was concentrating hard! This was on Saturday at In 2 Crafting in Wickford, where John was taking photos throughout the day for their blog at in2crafting.blogspot.com if you'd like to see more of the piccies (and spot if you're on any of them!). On Sunday I was at Pinnacle Crafts in Billericay - no photos of the day I'm afraid as I was loaded up and didn't take my camera away with me. Here are some of the things that I made over the weekend though....a couple of simple tags using alcohol inks over PI coated gloss card to create the tartan effects and using Gorjuss toppers for simple main images. I used letters from the Donna Salazar Spellbinders alphabet dies for the JOY message, whereas the SNOW uses Grungeboard letters, inked and then topped with Liquid Pearls. I do enjoy making tags at this time of year as they can be quick and simple, or more ornate and it's also a great way of using little offcuts of papers, ribbon etc. I'll have more tags to show you next week as I'm planning to make quite a few on this coming weekend's demonstrations. This card is another one featuring Gorjuss images - these are from the clear set "Snowman" GJCSA6008 - and I couldn't resist popping the extra Robin onto the snowman's carrot nose! The words are from my Silent Night clear stamp set, which has a selection of Christmas greetings to suit most card styles. I used Ranger Core-dinations cardstock for the background...love that colour! This little card was just to show the Palm trees from my Nativity stamp set being used for a non Christmas theme. I used my Stazon spray cleaner technique over an alcohol ink monoprint to create the background (I used Pool and Clover ink colours) and then stamped the trees before colouring the bottom of the panel with black ink and adding some upward black strokes for the grassy effects. I put a few drops of Sailboat Blue alcohol ink onto my craft sheet, and used a paintbrush to sweep the blue across the panel to represent the ocean. I drew the boat with a black pen - if you have a stamps of a boat, or other suitable silhouette, you could use that of course. I then used a white pen to add a few highlights and a fine black pen to draw some simple birds. My final card to share today is made using my Build a Snowy Scene and Christmas Post stamp sets. Some masking and Distress inks were all it took to create a traditional Christmassy scene...the foreground trees are a little small for accurate perspective to be honest, but....I don't mind...I just like the overall appearance! So, I had a really good weekend and no travel problems either, although my train to London was about ten minutes late due to....idiots stealing cables again. This has been happening more often as people are after the copper apparently, and it is creating havoc for the railways....and passengers of course.
I shall be on my travels again this coming weekend, with demos at Dainty Supplies in Washington, Tyne and Wear on Saturday, and at Stephen H Smith's garden centre in Scunthorpe on Sunday. Hope to see some of you there, but I'll be posting again before the weekend. Meanwhile, keep warm and dry everyone!

Quiz winner!

Hello all, and firstly, many thanks for your get well wishes - much appreciated. I think I caught a bug from one of my many brushes with "Joe public" on the trains! David said I was more susceptible as I was tired and it was my body saying "you need a rest!". Many apologies to the ladies who were booked onto my workshop on Wednesday...I can't remember when I last had to cancel something! Hopefully, you will all be able to come to one of the future classes.
I feel tons better now and am going to have a day of colouring some stamped images to use on my demonstration days this weekend in Essex. I'll be at In 2 Crafting in Wickford on Saturday, and I'll be using Distress inks, stamps, punches etc. On Sunday I'll be at Pinnacle Crafts in Billericay, where I'll be focussing on Alcohol inks, Adiroindack inks and stamping ideas. Hope to see some of you on one or other of the days.
Now to the quiz....well, what a tricky one this proved to be!!! The main bug bear has been questions 1, as people have interpreted the definitions of what is edible in very different ways! Question 19 also threw up an alternative answer that I hadn't foreseen! So...I have been a bit flexible about those. Taking this into account, the two top quizzers were Carole and Joanne W, so we had to draw a winner. I thought it would be fun to get Thomas to pick the winning name, and, as you can see, he closed his eyes to be completely fair! But then, being an awkward pusscat, he decided to jump down onto the floor so I had to place the mat with the papers down there. He was very decisive though, and he was certain he wanted the one on his right! And, as you can see, he was keen to see who he had picked! So....well done Joanne, please email me your address so that I can get your prize out to you. Well done to Carole too, who was the quickest off the mark with her answers - Thomas says "mmmrr, mmmeowww, mmmrrow"....I think that means, "sorry"! Thank you to all of you who entered, and hope you enjoyed the brain excercise. I'll get working on another quiz soon, so watch this space.
Okay, I'll pop the answers on the original quiz post further down.....no groaning at the answers now!

Brainboxes!

Hello folks, and what brainboxes some of you are! yes, the quiz answers are flooding in...I've even had an entry from as far afield as New Zealand, but, if you haven't had a go yet, there's still time to enter. Just email me with your answers by early next week...you have to be in it to win it as they say!
I'm sorry that I've been somewhat absent for the last week, but it was a mixture of no photos to share and being quietly busying myself with an assortment of things. Last Thursday I was teaching at Crafts 4 U 2 Do and in the morning the ladies made an array of tags. Here is one that we ran out of time to make! This one features Darkroom Door stamps, Graphic 45 Christmas Emporium papers (which Personal Impressions are now stocking - yippee!) Tissue Tape and a Christmas Muse token by TH. I do like the tissue tape as ribbon effect. In the afternoon we used Darkroom Door stamps to make cards and this one was David's favourite of the samples I made. The lovely paper is Christmas Emporium "Believe!" which has postcard sized retro images on the front and this beautiful blue paper on the reverse. I used Faded Jeans to ink the postage stamp and then, once I'd applied it to the paper, lightly misted it with water for that slightly blurred effect. On Saturday I was at Crabapple Crafts who were celebrating their twelfth birthday. Rosemary and Debbie were also demonstrating as well as Woodware and even Nigel got in on the act. Hello to everyone who came along and glad you enjoyed the day.
Sunday was also a busy day as I was at the Craft Shop in Congleton where a group of very keen ladies spent most of the day with me as I got very messy indeed with various inks and stamps. There were lots of homemade cakes and the kettle seemed to be on all day...I did indulge in one piece of delicious lemon cake which was my lunch as the ladies chained me to the table all day! (not really of course!)
I have added an email subscription to the sidebar near the top - if you'd like to get my posts sent to you via email (!) just add your email details and follow the simple instructions. Hopefully it will work...I'm never too sure if I have done things correctly or not!
Crafts Beautiful's current issue features a set of cards and decoration that I made using Nitwit papers and toppers - along with some inks of course! Here are a couple of pictures featuring the stocking.... ....and one of the cards - though you can see the second card in the background. The magazine includes the template for the stocking and full instructions of course. So, not a very long post tonight really! I am just about to go and call Thomas for his dinner as he has been out enjoying the weather all day. It's been incredibly warm here and, at 7.15pm in late September, we have the windows open and the fan on - and it still feels hot! Bonkers! david cooked a really delicious chicken, stuffing and baked potatoes last night, so we are going to have the same again now...he hasn't cooked a roast for a while but it was worth waiting for!
I am off up to Lancaster on Saturday for my demonstration at Card Craft and from there I travel over to Hull for Sunday's demo at crafty Creations in Cottingham. Hope to see some friendly and familar faces at Lancaster and some new ones on Sunday! Finally, a warm welcome to new followers of my blog.

Quick post before my travels

Just a quickie post tonight - bags are all packed, full and heavy (no change there then!) ready for my trip to Norwich. Fortunately I'll be able to drop my case off at Jarrolds en route to my hotel, so not too far to lug it around. I always enjoy going to Norwich with it's eclectic mix of new and old, lovely atmosphere and interesting little shops. I always stay at the same little hotel, where possible, which is only a few minutes from the centre of the city whilst being really tranquil and quiet. It's straight through on the train as well...great as there are no changes to worry about, but it does make for a looong (four and a half hours) trip.
Anyway, I just wanted to answer the ladies who have been asking if I'll be going back to Weavervale Garden Centre, in Northwich, before Christmas....yes! The date will be Saturday 3rd December, so keep that day in your diaries - it's going to be fun! More details nearer the time.
Also, for those of you north of the border who have been asking when I'm coming back to Scotland (not been up there for over a year) I can now confirm that myself and Andy Skinner willbe going to The Papeterie in Aberdeen for the weekend of November 26th and 27th where we'll be demonstrating and also hosting a day of workshops. So, hope to see some of my Scottish friends there and really looking forward to it.
We still have a place left on Sunday's workshop, so let David (via my email) or Craft 4 U 2 Do, if you'd like to come along.
Right, that's me done now, and I'm off to relax for the evening, so will wish everyone a great weekend.

The five Counties

Last weekend involved quite a bit of travelling, hence today's post title. On Saturday I was at Weavervale Garden Centre in Northwich which was a very busy day as you can see from this photo that David took. Kate was rushing around finding stamps, card etc for customers and it was a very jolly day with a lot of fun amidst the creativity! I hope to back there before Christmas, so will keep you posted.
From there, David ran me to the train station in Manchester where I boarded the train for the two and a half hour trip across the country to Grimsby. It was a beautiful journey that went through the lush green hills of Derbyshire and Yorkshire...in my opinion some of the most beautiful scenery in Britain. Along the way the clouds kept changing quite dramatically from fluffy white, through mottled Mackerel skies to heavy, rain filled moodiness. As the train slowed at one point I saw three Roe deer calmly watching us pass them by...a big tick in my imaginary spotter's book!
By the time I reached Grimsby Town it was dark and I was glad that the hotel was literally round the corner from the station. I realised that I had gone, in one day, through Cheshire, Lancashire, Derbyshire, Yorkshire and, finally, Lincolnshire! Whew....no wonder I felt tired!
Next day I was at Grimsby Crafts for another very busy day. Lynn had set up three big tables for me so I was able to spread everything out - not sure how I still managed to make an untidy mess! Unfortunately I didn't take my camera, so no pics to share of the day. Thank you for all the lovely feedback ladies, I really enjoyed meeting you all. Again, I'll hopefully be back there before too long.
My journey home was fine except for the two families who seemed to think that the train was a private one just for them! They were not travelling together, but both had very unruly offspring who spent the entire time running up and down the aisles, throwing things around and shouting at the top of their, very loud, voices. Despite all the black looks from everyone else, one set of parents completely ignored the hullabaloo whilst the others spent their time shouting and swearing (very strongly) at their young children...who totally ignored them. Modern parenting eh?! Needless to say, it felt like quite a long journey home!
So, this week has been spent working on some designs as well as prepping all the kits for the workshops this coming Sunday. I have just found out this afternoon that there is now a place available on the class due to a cancellation through illness. So, if you'd like to join us on a Christmassy crafting day, just drop me an email and I'll send you the details. We'll be making snowmen themed cards in the morning and a Triptych piece in the afternoon. Poor David drew the short straw (well he offered actually!) and spent today cutting up the pieces of mountboard for the afternoon session...I could almost see the Tom & Jerry type throbbing hand by the time he'd finished!
Well, before the workshops I have a trip down to Norwich to demonstrate at Jarrolds department store. I'll be on the third floor in the art & craft department - I'm usually opposite the lifts, so you can't miss me! Hope to see some of you there.
I'll be back after the weekend with some new photos to share and a few more tales from my travels no doubt. Welcome to new followers and readers and I hope you'll enjoy popping by here rom time to time. Lastly, do check out Personal Impressions website where Richard has added some more of my projects (with instructions) and samples.