I know, I know...

I am a bad, bad blogger. Just can't get myself to be organised enough to do everything I need AND blog. Sorry!!

I have been one busy bee all of december! And I did sooo much I want to show and half of it I didn't even have a chance to take a picture of! Am I b**ed or what? *lol*

But firstly I want to show you what I did before when I was missing in action.

Well, the result of it anyway, the stall I had on the christmas fair. Tell me what you think...

Now, without any info at all, because it is late, I am tired and just can't face typing all the supplies etc. But if you see something you like and want to know more, please just ask and I'll happily help.

This birthday card is for a dear friend whose birthday is tomorrow but as she has no internet at the moment I think it's safe to show it :-)

Sorry about the quality of most of the pictures, I took them in a hurry as they were for a special "occasion" that I don't dare talk about yet :-) Hopefully I can talk/write about it soon...

Right, I am off now, watch a little telly (Overboard is on, with Goldie Hawn, love that movie!) and then bed. Night night bloggers!

Two cards...

Hello again,

it didn't quite happen to post again the next day but here are a couple of cards I did recently...

I had a christmas fair and it took a bit of my time. Maybe I can share a few pics of the fair with you soon.

This first card is made with a lovely Hanglar stamp coloured with Copic markers. The background was stamped with SU frost white fluid ink onto white card and coloured with Distress inks afterwards. Unfortunately I can't remember where I got the stamp from, it's an unmounted red rubber I bought from the US but can't remember the name, sorry!

The scalloped border is cut from Core'dinations with a PTI die. The mat is also Core'dinations and the ribbon is adhesive backed ribbon from Martha Stewart Crafts. Sentiment is from the PTI set "Signature Greetings" from Dawn McVey.

This next card is rather simple and I took inspiration from a card I saw on a blog a little while ago. Unfortunately I can't remember which one it was, if you know, please let me know so I can give credit! I cut the nativity scene on my cricut and I stamped a greeting on white card and stuck it to the front. The stamp is from the PTI set "A wreath for all seasons" and I drew lines to anchor it on the card.

I hope you like my offerings today and come back soon for more!

New wintery look...

Hello bloggers, yes, I know I hardly ever show my face here anymore.. *hangsheadinshame*

It's sooo busy in my house you wouldn't believe! But I like it that way if I am honest. Keeps me on my toes and I get more done... but I have neglected my blog as I figured it was less important than my "real life", hope that doesn't offend anyone *lol*

Anyway, I hope to be back more now and to start off right I changed the look of my blog to something a bit seasonal. Quite like it but can't figure out how to fit the header exactly... It'll have to do like that for now.

Hope to be back tomorrow with a card or two, for now I am off to bed to nurse my cold!

Want to win Promarkers? How about all of them?

Going buggy is giving away these beauties:

For a chance to win the entire range of Promarkers enter here before the 14th Nov.

An update on my laptop or why I love Apple!

Hello bloggers,

just a quick update on my computer probs. There is a light at the end of the tunnel!

I have been to my local Apple store today to go to my Genius Bar appointment. A nice chap looked at my laptop and confirmed that the HD was dead. I was really crestfallen as I haven't got the money for a new one, but guess what, Apple are being nice to me! I was told that my model had had a few issues with HDs and therefore they'd replace the Hd for free. And even better, they don't do the 80GB ones anymore so I get a 160GB HD for free. And because the cover around the keyboard was a little broken (apparently a design fault) they'll replace that as well! Wahey!! That's what I call customer service! (Just so you know, my laptop is a few years old by now and lasted very well until now, I wouldn't have even considered that I get anything for free apart from the consultation at the Genius Bar!)

Now the only slight sour taste about the whole thing is that I might be computerless for up to two weeks. I already feel like I lost a limb and it's only been a couple of days! Miss not being able to cut on my Cricut the most...

Hope to be able to post normally from my own comp soon!

Out of action... of sorts

Hello bloggers,

I can't share any pictures at the moment because my dear laptop died on me! I am currently using my hubby's computer as often as I can, but he has to work on it, so I only get limited use. Emails are fine, as I can get and send (text) emails with my iPhone.
How come we get so dependent on those silly computers? I feel like I've lost an arm or something like that!

One side effect of being without a computer is that I actually get a bit of crafting done because I am not that distracted, but unfortunately it also means I cannot print or use my Cricut/SCAL which is very frustrating. Back to basics I guess...

I'll see that I get pics done of everything I do while offline so I can share when I am back again.

Hope to be back soon!

Bit of old stuff...

Hello bloggers,

here's me trtying to be a better blogger and post something more often!

Today I thought I'd share my Copic storage caddy that I made myself from foam board. It's not superneat but it works very well for me.

Here is a side view, where you can see that I angled the whole thing a bit so all the colours are easily visible.

I am quite proud of this solution as I really wanted one of those cute cubicle things that you sometimes see in american crafters homes. But they were too expensive when you count in p&p and this cost me about £4 and took about an hour to do.

On to something I did in August for my new niece Helena. She is such a sweet baby and I wanted to make her something special, so I tried my hands at sewing a quilt... a small one as my sewing isn't that great.

As you can see, it's not perfect, but it's cute enough and I was happy with the outcome! The back is in the same stripy material as the surround btw.

Awards galore!

Hello again from me today...

I know, I don't blog for ages and then I have so much I can't fit it in one post *lol*

While I was a bad blogger, some lovely friends of mine gave me these awards... 3 lovely awards from 4 even lovelier ladies!

Sarpreet from World of Sarpreet and Kathleen from Ko

okaburra Crafts have both given me this one - Thank you so much, both of you:

The rules of accepting this award are:
1.Thank the person who gave it to you - check
2. Put the award on your blog - check (albeit late...)
3. List three things about yourself - see below - check
4. Post a picture you love - see below - check
5. Tag 5 other people for the award - see below - check

Well, here we go, three things about me:

- I love to cook and bake and am not too bad at doing it either!

- I loathe to diet, so to loose a bit of weight I started running. Am not great at it, nowhere near the marathon running my hubby does, but I am keeping it up at least once a week. Not lost much weight so far though *lol*

- I am a bit of a hoarder, I buy loads of stash and can't use it, because I am "saving" it, no idea what for but that's it. But I have learned to organize myself a bit better and do use my stuff a bit more now.

On to a fav picture:

It's a shot of my sweet boys from last summer. I just think they look so lovely in this shot and the friendship they share comes across.

The award has to be passed on to 5 people, I did not check if they got it before (probably) but I hope they still like it, check out their blogs, they are all fantastic!

1. Julie - one of my bestest crafty mates

2. Lesley - a very talented and generous lady who I have had the pleasure of meeting a few times, feels like a friend to me but not sure if I rank as one to her yet ;-)

3. another Julie - extremely talented and a source of inspiration

4. Gina - another talented lady that I like to visit...

5. Eileen - a never ending well of information and inspiration

On to the next award (oh, I'm feeling all awarded out already - note to self: if you ever get another award, post about it right away!!*gg*)

The sweet Jules from xX Jules Craft Blog Xx has given me this award

I have to pass this on to seven people, so I make this quick, they are all wonderful blogs, so go check them out! Again, no idea if you got the award, forgive me if you do!

1. Sharon

2. Kathleen

3. Tara

4. Laura

5. Tab

6. Nicola

7. Marlene

Last but not least, award number three which I got from the wonderful Sharon:

Ok, I need to post seven things (oh no, I am not that interesting... you'll be bored) about myself :

1. I like a slice of fresh german bread with butter and ham more than any chocolate

2. One of my pet hates is people who park inconsiderately, I know it's silly but it drives me up the wall

3. I have a secret stash of gummi bears and other sweets (mainly chewy/jelly stuff) hidden in my craft room

4. I've never watched a single show on craft telly, I watched a few minutes at a friends once and think it's horrid

5. I love trying out new thing and can't stick to one style either

6. My favourite thing to listen to when I craft is Harry Potter books read by Stephen Fry... love his voice!

7. I'd love to live off my crafting hobby but my inability to sell myself/my makes probably means I won't ever be able to

No on to more fabulous bloggers that deserve this award. I should pass it on to seven peope but think all those fabulous crafters out there deserve it! And as I can't think of a way to go round and give it to everyone, I am chickening out and give it to all my followers! If you want it, grab it!

Thanks and I hope you stop by again!

Forgot to post...

about the mini blog candy I was giving away earlier! As there was only really one entrant that was a no-brainer, but I still wanted to announce that Kathleen has won it and already got the prize and spent it as far as I know *lol* Congrats, belated Kathleen, glad you took part (would have felt totally unloved otherwise...)!

Two challenge card

Hello bloggers, long time no see... sorry about my continued absences, I just have a lot going on in my day to day life and didn't get around to blogging. I missed it thou!

I have received a couple of awards - thanks ladies, it's so nice of you to think of little old me! I'll post proper when I have a little more time, hopefully not too long from now.

I only want to share a card quickly that I made last week but haven't posted.

I am using not one but two of Ruth's new images, I think they go so well together! I coloured with Copics and the background is made with Impressabilities and ink sponged over the raised parts. The sentiment is computer generated and matted onto punched circles and a cricut-cut double-ended tag. The charm and ribbon are from my stash.

I want to enter it to these challenges:

Totally Paper Crafts challenge 32: charming - use of a charm

Allsorts Challenge Week 68: New Beginnings - as I have the theme of a new day tht starts with coffee and chocs I hope it counts!

That's it from me for today, hope to see you again, soon!

N.B. Oops, just realised I waited too long to post this and the charm challenge is closed already - doh!

Fab Penny Black Blog-Candy

Kathy from The Daily Marker is giving away a gorgeous Penny Black Blog Candy and I so want to win them! They are the cutest little Halloween stamps and I especially love that Frankenstein monster!

Head over there now to have a little peep at it and to enter for your own chance to win. It's worthwhile subscribing to her blog as well, I have been a follower for a while and her blog is just gorgeous!

Hunt for the perfect bits and pieces...

This past year me and my hubby had a lot of work done to our home to upgrade the living standard and make the whole house a bit more "ours". One area that we are really pleased with is our living room. We had our carpet ripped out and replaced with this lovely wooden flooring:

It makes the whole room look so much lighter and elegant! Well, one little problem remained, our living room is an open plan one that incorporates the dining room at the other end and we are still looking for the perfect dining room furniture to bring it up to the rest of the room. What we have at the moment is mainly ikea and it's ok, but we are still looking around for the perfect ones! So if you see anything really cool, that works with this lovely stripy floor (it's a mix of different wood types by the way!) please let me know!

Now to something really cool:

I was approached by a lovely lady from CSN stores and given the opportunity to give away a $40 gift certificate for their online stores. This is mainly for my blog visitors based in the US and Canada (sorry to the others!) and if you want a chance to get your hands on them, please post about this giveway on your blog and direct your readers here and leave a comment! I will announce the winner on the 6th September (my oldest sons 6th birthday!) and will pass your details on to Jess from CSN who'll sort your certificate for you! Good luck everyone!

A quick birthday card

Hello, me again,

I forgot a birthday card I did for a friend of my hubby from work. She seems to really like my cards I make for her and I hope this one was to her liking as well.

It came together rather quickly with almost all stash from SU. Only the ribbon is East of India Company and the border punch is by Fiskars. I used Lovely Lilac and Soft Suede as well as Naturals Ivory for the base and image panel.

A crafty day out...

Hello bloggers,

sorry, I didn't post as promised last night, but here are some more projects that I did on a crafty day out last month. I went to see my (very) crafty friends Lesley and Julie and we spent the day together chatting, stamping, colouring, cutting and enjoying ourselves. Thanks to both of you, you are the best!!

I was quite productive on the day and managed to make 5 cards! I swear it's my friends mojo that rubs off! Have you checked out their blogs? Fabulous stuff!

Anyway, without much further ado, here are my cards, hope you like them!

Image and sentiment by PTI, punches by SU, Ribbon from haberdashery shop, Brilliance Ink white and Versafine black.

Image by Sarah Kay - coloured with Distress inks, sentiment PTI, background stamp from Impression Obsession (borrowed from Lesley), brad by Papermania, flower handmade from punched flowers and a silk flower (from Lesley - thanks!), border punch by SU.

Image and sentiment by PTI, papers by Basic Grey and Papermania, stamped on with Fiskars stamp, label by Spellbinders with Word window punch from SU and Papermania stick-on gems, Ink by SU (stamped off Rose Red).

Image is a stamp from Lesley that I don't know the make of, sorry, sentiment by PTI, background stamped with PTI stamps, ribbon from stash, MS border punch, Versafine and SU inks as well as white marker pen for lines.

Hero Arts stamp set and ribbon from Lesley, Versafine black ink, sentiment still to be added...

Thanks for stopping by!

Multi challenge card

Hello, me again,

I said, I was going to post several things tonight, didn't I? Well, I have another card with one of Ruth's images, honeysuckle this time.

I saw an image of honeysuckle where the flowers were actually hot pink and yellow and I loved it, so that's why I coloured them like this with my copics. I followed a sketch again, this time from ICSketches and used stitching, faux on the panel and real on the ribbon. The white background is embossed with a CB folder.

I am entering this in these challenges:

A Passion for Papertrey - Forever friends (sorry, only used sentiment and PTI cardstock)

ICSketches - sketch

Papertake weekly - bright and white

Basic Grey - Stitching

Papersundaes - Stitching

the craftypad - ribbons and flowers (I hope the flower image counts!)

Hope you like it!

I have some more cards to share, but will do that tomorrow I think, need some sleepy time now! Bye bye bloggers!

Basic Grey

Purple Iris!

Hi, it's me again,

Ruth has designed some lovely new flowers for A Passion for stamps again this month and this iris is my favourite. I used the sketch on Truly S

crumptious challenge blog to make this card, the image is coloured with Copics and the background is airbrushed. Sentiment is PTI again, papers are Papermania Capsule Collection.

I enter this card into the following challenges:

truly scrumptious - sketch (optional oldie stamp, obviously didn't do that...)

creative inspirations - anything goes

Cute card thursday - whateva

Hope you like this card, I think I am in love with that iris... so gorgeous! Thanks for looking and any comments you want to leave!

A Man's card!

Hello bloggers,

yes, I know, I have been missing again... sorry! But my household is just beyond busy! Two little monsters, ehm, boys, I mean, and it's school holidays! Anyway, I have been busy in my craft room as well and have some cards to show you. Will keep my drivel short as I have several posts going up tonight and need to catch up on that beauty s

leep *lol*

Well, here is a male card I did with one of the new images by Ruth from A Passion for Stamps, a little sailboat, great for those tricky male cards!

I used the sketch from friday sketchers, coloured with Prisma pencils and distressed with some Wild Honey TH ink, the design on the corners is stamped with that ink as well. Sentiment is PTI, charm from stash.

I enter this card into these challenges:

card for men challenge _ off on an adventure

totally papercrafts challenge - by the sea

friday sketchers challenge - sketch

Hope you like my card, and thanks if you decide to leave a comment!

Dutch Dare and Stamp with fun challenge card

Hello Bloggers,

yes, I am still alive, just not blogging much as life is pretty hectic at the minute (Seems to be a recurring theme in my life...).

Anyhow, I am here now and want to show you my latest card which showcases one of the new designs that Ruth from APassionForStamps has created. I simply love her flower images and this Fuchsia one is no exception.

I am entering it into the Dutch Dare challenge which has a flowery inspiration picture with lots of pinks in and the Stamp with fun challenge which simply asks for a birthday card.

As for the card, there isn't much to say as I kept it very simple to show off the beautiful picture fully and I just love clean and simple. The image is coloured with Prisma pencils and mounted onto Papermill cardstock that I treated to a bit of Martha Stewart edge punching (Layered Arches) and mounted with foam pads. The tentfold makes it a bit different and I added a beautiful satin ribbon in pink I got in my local haberdashery shop.

Hope you like it, please stop by soon again! If you are one of my american blogger friends, there will be a little give-away very soon, so keep a watch out for that!

Craft evening samples

Hello bloggers!

Yesterday I had my open craft evening at my house and I am pleased to report that I will start a craft evening class once a month in a couple of weeks time as the people who came were all very much up for it. Great result I think.

Anyway, the reason there hasn't been any posting until today was because I was busy preparing things and now it's all done I can show you my projects. I wanted to illustrate all the different things you can make from paper and card and therefor it's nearly no new cards as I had enough to show and wanted to do other stuff as well.

Without much further ado, here are my projects:

First a wordbook for a little boy ( brother to little Eva-Rose!) all in blue and kept simple.

Next a box of mini note cards (6 cards)

Lunch box treat holder

Mini sweet treat holder

A scrunched flower and felt leave brooch

A mini pizza box ( holds two packets of poppets perfectly!)

A wine bottle gift tote

Little take away box

Easy gift bag

Some decorated candles

Last but not least a little brag-book for my mums birthday (just hope she doesn't look on my blog...) with pics of my little boys. It's a maze book (?) made out of one sheet of 12x12 paper.

I love how this turned out!

The heart over this picture is actually mounted onto acetate and glued in as an overlay.

That's it for today, hope you like my samples!