Crafty Daze

Silver holly leaf earrings and a pretty pendant.

2011-11-21T16:42:00.004Z

Sterling silver holly leaf earrings, 'berrys' are made from sterling balls.

A beautiful handmade lampwork bead made into a stunning pendant.

Ruffle cuff with crunchy clasp.

2011-11-21T16:39:00.003Z

My photography doesn't show off the gorgeous bright violet colour of these beads or their full sparkle, it's more dazzling in real life!

Bling!!!!

2011-11-13T16:28:00.003Z

A bit of bling!! Swarovski crystal and hematite beads with silver clasps. Love that sparkle, the camera can't quite capture the shimmer, they are MUCH brighter in real life.

Earring Extravaganza!

2011-11-13T16:14:00.004Z

I have made these earrings using pretty, sterling silver beads and findings, vibrant purple beads and glorious venetian glass beads.

Beaded Cuff

2011-11-13T16:09:00.003Z

I have loomed this beautiful cuff using seed beads, a sterling silver slide clasp, my own pattern and Erin Simonetti's warp management system. The beads are black, rainbow iris and galvanised silver colours.

Bead Loomed Purse.

2011-11-02T19:58:00.005Z

This purse was made by first weaving fabric using size 11 seed beads, then I stitched the purse together and embellished it using miyuki drop beads.

Beautiful Beads!

2011-11-02T19:49:00.004Z

I have made several bracelets from these gorgeous beads. The beads are frosted hematite and pink pearls, I love them together and on their own.

Cool Clothkits and a cosy cushion!!!

2011-11-02T19:38:00.003Z

A cushion that I have quilted and made from some lovely Laurel Burch fabric.

A couple of skirts I have made from Clothkits skirt kits.

Recycle it!

2011-05-25T09:44:00.005+01:00

I have been asked for some recycled crafty ideas, this is what I came up with so far.

A bean tin vase and a tin pen pot. The inspiration for these came from Linda E who can create almost anything from a bean can!

Some paper bead earrings and bracelets that are to be presented in an origami box. The beads have a thin layer of glitter glue over them creating a delicate shine, of course it doesn't show up in it's true glory in my photos.

A corrugated card that has been inked, ripped and punched to within an inch of it's life. The foil accent in the middle was given to me in a swap. I can't remember who it came from (sorry!) but do know that it was perfect for this project.

Beady bits......

2011-05-25T08:42:00.003+01:00

My first spiral chains, made into dainty bracelets. Very basic but I enjoyed creating them.

Some beaded multi strand necklaces, these have been made using pretty shell beads and seed beads.

Some bits and pieces....

2011-04-11T15:44:00.012+01:00

There hasn't been enough time to craft and blog recently so I have been neglecting my blog.... Here are a few of the things I have created, they will make a change from the tumbleweed!

A round weaving kit that I was given as a present, I thoroughly enjoyed making this.

A silk mobius scarf, beautifully soft and squishy.

Necklaces, lots of colours and gorgeous beads.

An Easter hat and egg.

Halloween ATC's

Twilight ATC's with little envelopes.

Beautiful Bracelets.

2010-07-04T11:43:00.003+01:00

Some pretty bracelets I have enjoyed making.

Mermaid Cushion.

2010-07-04T11:24:00.004+01:00

I have quilted a gorgeous Laurel Burch Mermaid printed panel with gold metallic thread and have made it into an enormous soft cushion. I used fossil fern fabric for the back of the cushion and a concealed zip.

Easel Cards

2010-07-04T10:58:00.014+01:00

I love the easel cards that have been popping up all over the place recently. Here are some I made earlier :o)

I love Tim Holtz new dies and here are some beautiful butterflies I have made with them. Some of the cards have embossed card or metal on them and some layered flowers, they are not all showing in the pictures though.

The copper metal was embossed using my cuttlebug and coloured with paint. I found a nautical pebble hat went perfectly with it too.

Some floral cards for different occasions. I stuck card to metal and used cuttlebug dies to create the shapes and cuttle bug folders to do some lazy embossing. I layered the flower shapes and then stuck them together with glossy accents, then used some card candy for the centres and as a prop to ensure the cards stand up properly. I have left a space on some of them to add the right sentiment when the card is needed.

The new home card has layered houses and words, the butterflies have 'stickled' wings in an attempt to create some irridesence and the round card is waiting for a name or sentiment to sit in its centre.

All the card shapes were made using spellbinder nestabilities, card and pretty paper, some of which I decorated myself.

Not Cute Birds......Lovely birds instead!

2010-06-02T11:57:00.004+01:00

ATC's made using metal foil that has been stamped upon using various Staz-on inks. I have doodled on the metal to make patterns.

Viva La Diva!

2010-06-02T11:47:00.004+01:00

Some ATC's made using my cuttlebug embossing envelopes and lots of ink.

ATC's made with a new stamp.

2010-04-20T16:31:00.003+01:00

Here are the ATC's that I have made for the April UK Stampers swap. The theme was to use a new stamp and enclose a house. The flower and writing are new stamps by Wendy Vecchi, the house is an old favourite by Paper Artsy. I love yarn so the sheep snuck in to the house!

Song ATC's

2010-04-15T20:55:00.003+01:00

Here are some ATC's I have made for a song themed swap. The song that I choose was 'I am sailing'. I have used ink to create a sky and sea background. Little boats were stamped, coloured, cut and stuck in place with sticky pads. Though hard to see there are some wispy clouds and steam. I have finished each picture with a layered frame.

Little Archway

2010-04-15T20:34:00.002+01:00

I made a little arch and decorated it with peg stamps, a different colour scheme on each side and a doorway through to the other side.

Easter Eggs and Easter Hats.

2010-04-05T12:47:00.008+01:00

Two hats made from lots of card, die cuts and a bit of glitter. Wish the sky and my garden looked this colourful, 'tis still a bit glum and chilly round here.

Little egg creatures that I made using lots of glue, fluff and pipe cleaners.

Distressed ATC'S, missing in action!

2010-04-05T12:43:00.011+01:00

Some torn ATC's which have gone missing in action (or are stuck somewhere in a post box!).
I have used torn paper, mucha images, mini beads and crackle accents to make these ATC's.

Cosy hat and scarf

2010-03-02T20:27:00.003Z

I have enjoyed making a cosy hat and mobius scarf to keep me snug and warm. I used Colinette Shimmer 5 to make them both.

ATC's, Tags and a Twinchie.

2010-03-02T19:28:00.009Z

The blog I fully intended to keep up to date and interesting has stagnated! Amongst the madness of moving home and the crazyness of big crafting (decorating the new house) I have let it lie neglected and unloved! While the decorating contiues (and probably will for the eon I am slowly getting a little time for crafting back. Here are the ATC's that I have made recently.

Some ATC's with a black and white theme and cloth tags for the UK Stampers January swap.

I stamped some flowers onto black and white card, cut it and wove it. The corners were cut with a corner chomper and the flowers were decorated with stickles as were the edges of the ATC's.

We were asked to include a tag with January's swap. I made some cloth tags with buttons sewed onto them and lots of yarn bows.

UK Stampers February swap was for ATC's with a 'Moody Blues' theme. I have created four different cards. Two with fairies, one with ballet dancers and one with a Paper Artsy message upon it. The backgrounds were made using an airgun with my copic ciao pens. I have used distress rock candy crackle paint over the front of three of them and some also some stickles for the flowers and wings. A twinchie is to be sent with the cards and I have made mine using airbrushed copic ciao pens, glittered flock and a vellum butterfly and dragonfly.

Some distressed ATC's.

2009-11-22T16:45:00.003Z

Here is my attempt at distressed for the UK Stampers ATC swap. I have used grunge paper for the ATC colour the pieces with lots of different inks including metallic ones, is that ok for the distressed look? I used my big bite to make holes and attach grommets and eyelets. Some corners were clipped and rock candy crackle paint was splodged around, not dry when I took the photos but hopefully it will crack well. The stamps I used were mainly Tim Holtz ones.

Airbrushed Copic Cards

2009-11-22T16:27:00.006Z

Here are a couple of cards I made using my Copic Ciao pens and an airgrip. I am really pleased with the backgrounds which I created using the airbrush system. I was especially chuffed because I didn't think the air grip worked with the Ciao pens but it does! All that was needed was a bit of funky foam under the pen and air brushing is possible. The images are stamped and embossed before I coloured them using my Copic pens. Then I cut them out and mounted them on the background using sticky pads. The airbrushing is great fun and more backgrounds will be on their way!!!

Mobius scarf

2009-11-22T16:17:00.007Z

I have used some gorgeous Hand Maiden Lady Godiva yarn for this delicious scarf. I have used Cat Bhordi's magic cast on so the scarf is a true mobius with no grafting or joins. I love the way the mobius knits from the middle out and am planning another one already. I would like to create the next one with a lacy sticth pattern and knit stitches showing on one side, purl on the other. I love the way this scarf works and the yarn is so snuggly and soft.......I must find more of it!!!

October ATC's

2009-10-31T18:09:00.001Z

Some swirls and flourishes to make a natural hedgerow with Stonehenge in the distance. I have coloured an ATC and have then stuck another ATC onto the front to give an added dimension.

Delightful Dishcloths

2009-10-31T18:04:00.002Z

Some bright knitted dishcloths for my kitchen. Why knit dishcloths? Well I've been able to use up lots of cotton that has been around for a while and I like them!

Cards, cards cards......

2009-09-20T20:27:00.007+01:00

More cards!
I've used a gorgeous Rodin stamp to stamp Stazon onto metal foil which I have then embossed and back filled with texture paste. On the gold card I have smudged blackberry Viva ferro paint around, it matches the Iris Stayzon ink well.

For this card I have used baby blue ink and perfect pearls for the background. I have cut around two stamped images which I have coloured with ink and have layered them onto the card using those little stickly pads. When I started the card I imagined the airplane would look as though it was flying into a sunset, instead it looks like its flying past a huge bomb explosion! So I'm not quite sure when this card will be used, it looks a bit to 'war'ish for all the occasions I can think of!

A little magic..........

2009-09-20T19:33:00.010+01:00

Here are a couple of magic wallets that I have made. My dear friend's son is sixteen and is leaving home to join the army next Sunday at noon. I hope he will find the wallet useful to keep a few photos safe.

I embossed grunge paper using my cuttlebug and painted it with Viva precious metal paints. The inside is stamped with his initials and is painted red and orange with the same paints. I have used some Stampers Anonymous stamps and Viva decor paint to decorate the covers. I have used black velvet ribbon to link the pages together.

This magic wallet has been made using pretty ribbon and embossed metal which I have coloured using Stazon inks.

Foliage...

2009-09-10T21:02:00.004+01:00

The theme for the inchies swap on UK Stampers this month is foliage. I have taken the opportunity to use one of my favourite little stamps to decorate the inchies. I coloured the card with versa colour ink cubes and have stamped the image with stazon. I used a glitter pen to decorate the stamped images (but of course it doesn't show up well in the photo!) and another pen to add some silver lines.

Swirly whirls!

2009-09-10T20:10:00.004+01:00

Some twinchies with swirly backgrounds for the swap on UK Stampers. I have coloured the card with Versacolour ink padsusing several colours on each twinchie. Then I have used an Inkadinkadoo stamp to make a swirled background. Finally I have used some lovely leaf stamps to stamp images using my black archival ink pad.

Birthday Card.

2009-09-05T16:40:00.004+01:00

A Birthday Card for a wonderful someone. Made with torn paper, perfect pearls, a few stickers and lots of glue!

Chocolate Birthday Cake!!

2009-09-05T16:27:00.008+01:00

Another Birthday cake?!? Yes, another one. I asked what was desired and the request was for a chocolate cake. Well if you ask for chocolate then you get chocolate...and lots of it. I also made some vanilla butterfly cakes for those that don't like chocolate cake much. A very thoughtful little person suggested that idea, the thought of people not liking chocolate cake always surprises me! However if there was ever a cake that was too chocolaty then this might be it, that's a whole box of Thorntons on the top!!!!

Watercolour ATC's

2009-09-05T16:18:00.006+01:00

I enjoyed making the ATC's for last month's UK Stamper's swap that here I am again! This month the theme is watercolour, to be interpreted in any way we like. I have painted two peices of ATC sized card with my Twinkling H20's. Then I have stamped some images onto them, a pretty girl onto the blue card and some Technique Tuesday flowers on the purple coloured card. I punched a hole in the purple card so my pretty girl can peek through it before sticking the two pieces together. I have decorated the flowers with some stickles and have used a shiny new ATC stamp on the back. I loved the ATC's I received from last month's swap, they were absolutely gorgeous. If these are enjoyed half as much I will be very pleased.

Inchie display

2009-08-28T16:37:00.002+01:00

I have taken an old photograph display things and have coloured it pinky, purple and silver using alcohol inks. I have cut and punched lovely handmade paper and then I have stuck the inchies from the swaps onto the paper.

Lots of ATC's

2009-08-28T14:46:00.009+01:00

I have made my first ATC! The theme which tempted me was in a swap on UK Stampers and required three ATC's each with an orange and yellow moo on the front. Here is what I made using Paper Artsy Stamps, ink and perfect pearls.

My children also had a go and made their first ATC's. I love their efforts, what do you think?

Bling!!

2009-08-27T12:33:00.001+01:00

Upcycled packaging!?! An ingenious idea for a swap on UK Stampers. Take a piece of packaging and change it into something else.
I have cut a slice froma ginger beer can and after folding over the edges have embossed it using my cuttlebug. I have painted it using alcohol inks and have then decorated it with rhinestones. It is very light, dainty and rather pretty.

Grungepaper Flowers...

2009-08-24T13:43:00.004+01:00

I have caught the grungepaper flower bug! I cut out loads of petal shapes and coloured them using a whole variety of coloured inks, some metallic some not. Then stamped flourishes onto them to decorate them. Some have some stickles dotted around to add a little sparkle. I used some fabulous, very pretty fabric brads for the flower centres and have curled some of the petals using my heat gun. I am sending one off for a UK Stampers swap, I hope the recipient likes it.

Flowers in a pot

2009-08-24T13:28:00.006+01:00

I have been making lots of paper flowers. I have made them into cards using pipe cleaners for stems, brads for the flower centres and card for the pots. Lots of little butterflies, wriggly worms and squiggles adorn the pots.

Gorgeous, Pretty Ribbon Boxes!!

2009-08-19T20:06:00.012+01:00

I fell in love with a ribbon box that I saw at the Craft Barn, so credit for my inspiration goes to the clever cookie who made it and left it there to tempt me. The box base is made by Kaisercraft. I prepared the pieces be painting them with a couple of coats of white emulsion and then sanding them to ensure they were as smooth as possible. Then I used adirondack acrylic dabbers in Wild Plum and Purple Twilight to paint lovely strong colours onto all of the sides. The plain acrylic colours didn't look quite right so I have used Alchemy paint all over both boxes; the colour was whirlwind which is an interference colour that reminds me of dragonfly wings. I have used Iris Stazon ink to stamp some flourishes on one and floral flourishes and swirls on the other. The stamps are made by Technique Tuesday. The boxes are decorated inside and out. A butterfly and dragonfly stamp have also been used over each box. The flowers on the floral box now have stickled centres in a variety of colours. I have varnished the boxes with a spray on varnish. I am pleased with the finished boxes but not so with the photos. I need to be able to capture the iridescent finish properly, preferably with a letterbox lens....then I might get a photo I like.

Wonderful PMC...

2009-08-17T20:20:00.008+01:00

Polymer clay has been discussed on the UK Stampers forum since Sid showed off his wonderful, inspiring mosaic, this has led to a mention of precious metal clay. I love the stuff, just wish I could afford more to play with, a little more often. Here are two necklaces that I made and the set of earrings I made to wear with them.
As you can see one of the pendants and the earrings have a disc made from rolled pmc onto which liquid clay has been applied using a syringe. A hole for the findings was made in each disc before firing. The other pendant was made by making a cork clay shape which I then covered in liquid clay that squeezed from a syringe. After firing all of them have been brushed and polished to give a bright but soft silver finish.

Birthday cards and Birthday Cakes.

2009-08-14T16:06:00.010+01:00

This month is full of birthdays for people who are truly special to me. Here are the cards I have made for two of those people. A little Edwin playing the guitar and the laughing lady have been stamped onto shrink plastic before being coloured and heated. I have used glimmer mists and cosmic shimmer sprays to decorate the embossed card. I embossed the cards using my cuttle bug and cut out apertures to hang the dangly bits. There are little shrinky plastic butterflies all around the feminine card. Both cards have been edged using stickles.

The laughing lady is a stamp called Laugh made by Paperbag studios and Edwin is a magnolia rubber stamp.

Lovely birthday cakes! mmmm! I think these will go down well with everyone. A vanilla sponge covered and filled with buttercream icing. I have used sugar ladybirds, leaves and flowers to decorate it. The fruit cake is huge, delicious and should have enough fruit and brandy to ward off any evilness for the next year or so!!

Ophelia

2009-08-14T16:00:00.006+01:00

I have finished a knitted waist coat / sleeveless jacket, it is made from lovely soft Malabrigo yarn. I made my Mum an Emerald Ophelia for Christmas which she seems very pleased with (and it fits!). I'm really pleased with the way they both turned out, I love mine and am looking forward to wearing it.

August Inchies!

2009-08-13T20:50:00.005+01:00

The inchie theme this month on UK Stampers is Ladies. I have stamped my Gibson lady onto some multicoloured vellum before attaching it to a peice of embossed blue metal foil with an eyelet. The metal was embossed using my cuttlebug. To complete the tiny squares I added some blackberry ferro paint around the edges, partly to add a different texture but also to see what it is like as I have not used it before.

Twinchies, pets

2009-08-13T20:42:00.008+01:00

I have completed my twinchies for the August swap on UK Stampers, this months theme is pets. I have used some batting and have sprayed it with glimmer mists and cosmic shimmer sprays before sprinkling on different coloured mica powders. Some of the powders were perfect pearls which I found sprinkled better than the cosmic shimmer powders, they didn't clump together so much.

I placed a little cat on the top. The cat image was stamped onto black shrink plastic and then heated and coloured to add a little gloss. I glued the cat on with glossy accents.

UK Stampers Altered Jigsaw pieces swap.

2009-07-20T10:47:00.000+01:00

Sid from UK Stampers has generously provided some jigsaw pieces for an altered art jigsaw swap. I had lots of ideas of things I could do to them and with them but couldn't settle on one. In the end it was while I was playing with my melt pot that I had my eureka moment. I have placed a mirror on to the top of the two joined jigsaw pieces. Then I poured gold UTEE around the mirror making sure all of the edges were covered. Once the UTEE had cooled and dried I added some silver crystals, coloured crystals and shaped nail heads using my Kandi Kane. Then I used some gold stickles here and there for a tad more glitter. I wanted to have some stamping in this project so stamped directly onto the mirror and the back of the jigsaw bits using purple Stazon. I have added some magnetic strips to the back as I think it would add a little glamour to a kitchen! I do hope that who ever ends up with it likes gold and glitz!

UTEE Crazy!

2009-07-20T10:44:00.000+01:00

I have been enjoying playing and experimenting with my melt pot recently.
I have made lots of different moulds and you can see a few of the gold UTEE shells that I made. There is a tiny Eiffel tower as well.

Presents for Teachers.

2009-07-16T22:36:00.005+01:00

The end of the school year is nearly upon us so I have been preparing presents for the extremely hard working teachers that I know. I enjoyed making stampbord brooches a couple of months ago and was really pleased with the results so decided to make some more of them to use for these presents.

Inchies

2009-07-07T14:09:00.000+01:00

The UK Stampers inchies theme this month is.....well there is no theme.We were able to do whatever popped into our heads. Quite a lot of ideas popped into mine but in the end I went with a little inchie book. First I cut the paper and folded it in half. I cut the front edge with wavy or zig zag scissors. I added some pages to the centre of the book and stapled them together using fascinator staples. I stuck my name and the inchie details onto the back and to finish off the small books I stamped silver stars onto the front and wrote some words inside....

New Neighbours and Baby Names!

2009-07-07T13:40:00.006+01:00

We have new neighbours. They seem friendly but not excessively so. Since meeting them and enjoying a chat we haven't seen them much but from the little we have seen so far they appear to be the perfect people to have as neighbours, hopefully we do too. I made a 'New Home' card for them, one for the old neighbours who have moved to the other side of our village and a couple of spares in case I am surprised by anyone else moving anywhere else :) .

We have been invited to the naming ceremony for a gorgeous little girl we know. Another card for the special occasion, plus a few extras for who knows when.

I have used K & Company card and papers, some some shapes I have cut and some I have punched out. I made the little tags on the new home cards and wrote the message with a glittery pen and added stickles and perfect pearls to add a shimmer. I printed my message out on heavy card stock and die cut the shapes.
Inspiration? Well I took that as well as the sentiment on the baby cards from the new Cards magazine.

Monochrome Twinchies

2009-07-02T10:48:00.002+01:00

The theme for the UK Stampers twinchies swap this month is monochrome. I have painted my blank twinchies with creamy white paint, leaving some bumps and lumps to add texture. I then stamped my image using a Technique Tuesday clear stamp and archival black ink. I added some white and transparent dots using white pearl stickles and Anita's glossy clear finish. I don't normally work in just black and white, but quite like the effect.

UK Stampers Stampbord Fridge Magnet Swap.

2009-07-02T10:45:00.007+01:00

I have just hosted my first swap on the UK Stampers forum. The swap was for a stampbord fridge magnet swap and was as straightforward as it sounds. I drew names out of a box to designate the magnets to the crafters and have just posted all of them. The quality of the work was really high. Everyone had taken the time to work with such care and the results were gorgeous, pretty and imaginative. I received gifts from lots of people as a thank you for hosting the swap. This was totally unexpected and very kind. Thank you all for making my first swap so enjoyable.

Hot Summer Strawberries..

2009-06-29T17:33:00.004+01:00

The weather is being so kind to us, it's been blazing here today and should last all week. Wonderful!! You can't beat some lushious strawberries in the summer, unless it's a bowl of strawberries with meringues and cream as well............mmmmmmmmmm I can't wait for supper!

Pretty Little Tags.

2009-06-29T15:55:00.011+01:00

I have made some pretty little tags using a template cut with a Sizzix die (the pocket scallop die). I used H2O's to paint the tags. Some were (technical term!) splodged, and some were painted in stripes. I used my gold krylon pen to colour parts of some of the tags. I made other tags using some pretty paper that I have.I am going to put little metal die cut pieces in side them to make little pressies for some lovely people I know. The die I used to cut out the metal decorative pieces is made by Spellbinders and is called Timeless Heritage. It is full of buttons as well as a key, clock and lock, it is one of my favourites.
I have been making some larger tags to go with presents. I used Tim Holtz distress inks and techniques, H2O's and I edged them with gold and silver krylon pens.

Stampbord Fridge Magnet

2009-06-15T14:14:00.004+01:00

I am hosting a Stampbord Fridge Magnet swap on the UK Stampers forum. The swap is just as it sounds, make a fridge magnet from stampbord and decorate it however you wish.

I have used a piece of round stampbord that I have painted with Tim Holtz distress bronze crackle paint. The stamp that I have used is one made by Stampers Anonymous. I have edged with foil tape and have decorated the front edge of the magnet with two colours of stickles glitter glue. In real life the stamp look much more shiny and the metallic paint really glows.
I hope whoever ends up with my magnet likes it enough to stick it on their fridge and enjoy it.

Birthday card!

2009-06-15T13:38:00.004+01:00

Here is a birthday card that I made for a very special little boy.
I stamped some dogs onto shrink plastic, coloured them and cut them out before shrinking them. I glued two dogs back to back so that which ever way the card faces you can always see a little dogs face. I edged theses two dogs with stickles so the join was hidden.

I cut four pieces of card and cut round apertures out of them. I coloured them with some glimmer mists and cosmic shimmer sprays, then I embossed them using my cuttlebug.

I added a dangling dog to the middle of the card and stuck the cards together.Then I used stickles to edge all of the pieces of card and the apertures. Finally I glued some of the other shrink plastic dogs to the card. The stamps that I used were from a clear set called Mans Best Friend, they are made by Woodware.

Summer Inchies and Twinchies!

2009-06-13T10:54:00.003+01:00

The inchie and twinchie swap this month on UK Stampers both have summer for their theme.I have used the same stamp for both swaps. It is from a rubber stamp sheet called Clarice Cliff set 1 made by Tanda Stamps.

Once I had stamped the image I coloured the picture using Derwent Coloursoft pencils and Sansodor. The twinchies had some tiny beads glued to them and the water on the inchies was highlighted with glossy accents.

Here's something I made earlier......

2009-06-12T22:21:00.006+01:00

I have been thinking about writing a crafty blog for a while and have finally got round to starting one. I don't know why today was the day, perhaps because I've had lots of encouragement and advice from the lovely members of the UK Stampers forum. I'm glad I have taken the plunge!!
To introduce myself to the world (should anyone other than me ever read this!) I thought I would start my blog by showing off a few of the things I have made recently.

Metal Embossing
Following a metal embossing class at The Craft Barn that was arranged by Pinky from UK Stampers I have been inspired to carry on and decorate several things with embossed metal.
Here is the box I made at the workshop (Dreams) as well as one I made afterwards (Fire!).

Wonderful Stampbord!
I have fallen in love with Stampbord. It gives a versatile smooth surface to work on and can be used in lots of ways. I have made some stampbord brooches and keyrings. The backgrounds have all been coloured by me using versa colour ink cubes. I have used metal tape to edge them.

The tree stamp is from Lavina Stamps and the text stamp is from a Gibson Girls sheet (I think!).

The lovely lady is from a sheet of Gibson girl stamps. I have named the stamp Verity! Am I the only one who names their stamps? I wrapped silver seed beads threaded on beadalon around it through holes I had made using a Big Bite. The flower stamp is made by Hero Arts (I think!).

Both of the stamps used on the above brooches were made by Inkadinkadoo, they are from the Trees and Leaves inchie clear set.

Cards, cards and then a few more cards!
I have been enjoying myself by making cards recently.

These are made using stamps by Lavinia Stamps.

These cards have been inspired by the inchies and twinchies that I have been making for monthly swaps on the UK Stampers forum. I have used lots of Inkadinkadoo stamps, from the clear inchie sets as well as a dragonfly stamp.

I have made loads of little note cards. I coloured card and paper using Glimmer Mists and Cosmic Shimmers and then embossed them using my Cuttlebug. I have also used metallic Encore Ink pads to colour glossy paper which I then stamped with thistles from Lavinia Stamps. The metallic ink didn't all dry properly so I wiped and smudged it around, then the remainder was dry and beautifully shimmery.

Lovely Lace
I knitted this shawl using Malabrigo yarn, the name of the colour is Little Lovely. This shawl is lovely and soft, wonderful to snuggle up in. Because the yarn is worsted weight (nice and thick) I don't worry about it being too fragile and use it a lot.
The gorgeous pattern is Birch by Sharon Miller.

Bags!Noni Elephant bag with unfurling roses, patterns are by Nora J Bellows. I used Cascade 220 yarn for the bag and roses. It was knit in the round and then felted using my washing machine.

This is my own pattern, made from 100% Angora from Silkwood yarns.
Knitted in the round and then felted using my washing machine.