Handmade Christmas Gifts

Hello Everyone

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.  We did - a very quiet Christmas with just the four of us this year, but that's what we like now and again!  I was spoiled with lots of lovely presents.  We had an amazing present delivered to us on Christmas Eve from one of Richard's workmates - it was a 18lb 5oz turkey - huge!!!!!  Richard managed to chop some bits off it to put in the freezer, and half of the cooked turkey was also put in the freezer on Christmas Day - lots more turkey meals for us over the next few weeks :)

All over Christmas I have been thinking of all the people who may not have had a good Christmas - there just seems to have been so much awful news over the last couple of weeks - the shootings in America, fatal car accident on the M6 (I think!) when two little boys died on Christmas morning, the dreadful floods in various parts of the UK.  My heart goes out to everyone who is suffering in any kind of way.

My poor husband is not very well at the moment - he has a nasty cold, which I think I am developing.  I had to go to pick him up from work just before lunch time today - he shouldn't have been working really but he stayed at work until they could get someone to cover for him!  I hope I don't develop any more of a cold - I won't be able to visit my Mum and Dad tomorrow as I don't want to pass any nasty bugs on to them - my Mum is recovering from a big operation at the moment, but she is doing well.

Enough of that - my real reason for coming on here is to show some of the gifts I made this year - I didn't manage to photograph everything I made.

I knitted some scarves for my niece, goddaughters and some friends:

I made some shortbread cookies for Richard's brother and his family:

And, finally, I would like to show you what my Dad made for Eleri for Christmas- she loves it!

Sorry for the photo heavy post.

Well, sending you all the very best wishes for a happy and healthy 2013.

Love, Andrea xx

Oh Dear ...

Well hello peoples!  It has been so long since I posted anything.

I really don't know where my mojo has disappeared to - been missing for weeks, and not come home yet!

I did manage to make my goddaughter a card and present eventually - though they were a late arrival a few days after her birthday.  I struggled with the card and I had to remake the present; I wasn't keen on the one I made first.  I loved the final creation though.

The bracelet is made with labradorite - one of my favourite gemstones.  These stones had so much labradorescence (don't know if that is spelled correctly!), with blues, yellows and purples flashing through when moved; so gorgeous.  The photo has not picked it up; you can just about pick it up in the small bead to the right of the large oval in the centre, and the bead on the far right of the bracelet.

Eleri is off to a birthday party tomorrow, for two of her friends from school.  I have been doing some knitting lately, and so I made the two girls a scarf each.  They are circular scarves and each one took me an evening to make; I'm not sure that they are the perfect length, but I hope the girls like them.  They are being modelled by none other than my beautiful little girl :)

And there you have it!  I am also in the process of knitting some Christmas gifts at the moment, and hope to show those when I can.

Love Andrea xx

My First Attempt at Wirework Roses

Hello Everyone

It was my sister's birthday this last week, and I wanted to make a ring for her.

I found a tutorial for lovely wirework roses and decided to have a go at those (I will add a link when I can find the tutorial again - it was on this blog - updated - I found the link to the tutorial here.)  I made my first one into a stretchy bracelet with Black Tourmaline (October's birthstone - well I think it's supposed to be pink tourmaline really but I didn't have any of that).  And then I made a ring - but I'm not showing you the ring shank as it's not very tidy LOL!  I think I might just put a ring mandrel on my Christmas list.

And this is the card I made, using a Saturated Canary image, called Belle.  I've coloured her with Promarkers.  I loved the paper so I didn't want to cover it up with too many layers or embellishments, so just added a punched flower, a pearly stem which is barely visible in this slightly blurred photo, and a Lakeland sentiment.

I would like to enter this card in this week's Crafts and Me Challenge which is Anything Goes.

I think that's enough from me.  It's very doubtful that I'll have chance to create anything this week as I have three nights out at meetings for work and will then have three sets of minutes to get typed up quickly - I already have two sets outstanding!

I would love to have another attempt at wirework roses - and I might even make some small ones to add to a card sometime.

So I'll love you and leave you :)  Have an enjoyable week.

Love, Andrea xx

New Baby Girl Card

Hello Fellow Crafters

I have made a card for one of Richard's workmates and his partner who had a beautiful baby girl last week, and here it is:

The image is Sleeping Infant from Digi Doodle Shop, and it's been coloured with promarkers.  The card is just plain pearlescent pink card - I embossed a strip to add as a layer.  The sentiment was from Dee's Designs, and I added punched baby feet to it.  The flowers, pearly stalk, adhesive shimmer dots and angel charm were all from my stash.  And that's all there is to it.

I am happy with this card and I would like to enter it in the following challenges:

Fab n Funky Challenge - No Patterned Paper
Simon Says Stamps Challenge - Glimmer and Sparkle
Crafts and Me Challenge - My Sentiments Exactly

I was supposed to be going to a meeting in Machynlleth this evening, but we have cancelled it in view of the terrible news from there over the last week (April Jones' abduction).  I'm quite glad I haven't got to go there to be honest.  And it means I may just manage to make my sister a card in time for her birthday.

So, hopefully, I'll be back soon.

Love, Andrea xx

At Long Last ... Some Creations!

Hello Strangers

I haven't created anything for ages - it has been soooo busy at work since I had a week's annual leave - I don't think I've caught up yet, and don't see much light at the end of the tunnel at the moment either.  But never mind, just keep plodding along doing the best I can.

Over the last week, I made myself take some time out and create some birthday gifts and a card.  And here they are:

First of all, my niece's birthday gift:

My niece loves owls at the moment so I made her a bag charm, and two macrame bracelets - the one braceket has amethyst and clear quartz, and the gems on the bag charm also include some amethysts and quartz gemstones.

Below is a close-up of the bracelets on my wrist.

I really struggle if I make a gift - I can never put a value to it and always worry that it is not enough of a present, so I add some money too!

And this is a card I made for Eleri's friend:

The image is a Sassy Cheryl's digi called Serving Up Birthday Cake.  The papers were from a book of papers I had free with a magazine aaaages ago.  I love the purple glitter card I matted the layers onto.  I can't remember where the sentiment is from - it was already printed out so I made use of it as it was perfect LOL!

I would like to enter this card in Natalie and Amy's Challenge - Birthday bling.

And here are the gifts I made for Eleri's friend - another owl bag charm, this time made with macrame and fluorite gemstones:

And I also covered a notebook.  The front, using another Sassy Cheryl's digi, That's One Big Flower, and papers from the same book as earlier.  The flowers and pearly brad were from my stash, and some more glitter card, this time a gorgeous pink.

And here's the back - personalised - not sure what's happened to the colour on this photo though.

I would like to enter this notebook in the following challenges:

Digital Tuesday - Say it with flowers - the image and flowers on the front of the notebook.
Cute Card Thursday - Letters and Numbers - I used peel offs to make the word notes on the front and also the name on the back.
Creatalicious Challenges - Colour pallette

Well, I think that's it from me for tonight - I hope it's not so long before I'm back again.

Love, Andrea xx

We've Been to the Paralympics

That was our exciting event last week - we went to London to the Paralympics on Thursday.  I was so nervous as it was our first trip to London as a family - I had only been to London on a school trip or a bus tour and one overnight trip with work, Andrew went with school last year, I'm not sure when Richard had been, and Eleri had never been before.

Here are a few photos:

We only had tickets to the Olympic Park but at least we were able to soak up some of the atmosphere there.  We are very disappointed that we didn't manage to get tickets in to a venue to watch a live event, but we were able to watch some events on the Live screen in the park.  On the day we tried a couple of times to get tickets in to an event, but there weren't any available :(

I was so nervous about travelling - my palms started sweating when I went to book the rail tickets a couple of days before we left LOL!  I was worried about how we were going to get from Euston over to the park but, actually, it was very simple.  We just got off our train and followed the pink signs for the Olympic Park.  Although, when we arrived at Stratford International Station, we were told that the travel tickets we had weren't actually valid for the train we had travelled on - apparently, we weren't the only people who made that mistake, lots of people had, and the staff decided to let us all through but advised us that we would need to purchase new tickets if we wanted to travel back from that station.  Then I had my suncream confiscated as we were passing through security at the entrance gate - I had taken a bottle that was too large!  As it happens, the weather wasn't brilliant, so I didn't need it anyway LOL!

We'd settled down in the afternoon to watch some events on the big screen and then it started pelting down with rain :( - we got saturated, and then decided to make our way to our hotel.  On the way back, we followed the advice to walk to West Ham station instead of using the Stratford stations which were really busy - we were told it was only about a 20 minute walk - all I can say is whoever said that must speed walk LOL! - we'd been walking about 20 minutes and then one of the volunteers who was waving us goodbye and wishing us a safe journey home said "You're half way now!!!"  The moral of this story is, if you manage to get to the Olympic Park and someone advises you to travel back in to London via West Ham station, don't believe them when they say its only a 20 minute walk!  It was a straightforward journey on the underground though.

I have to say that all the volunteers who were around the park were soooo pleasant and helpful, and they were all really cheerful.  On the way out of the park, one of the volunteers offered Eleri her pointing hand so that we could take a photo.  And there were also lots of people around the train stations giving advice about which trains to catch/how to get to places - I don't know if they are normally there or if its just throughout the time of the Olympics and Paralympics.

On Friday, we visited the Natural History Museum - I don't think we saw even half of it, and didn't manage to get in to the dinosaurs section because of the queue.  We'll have to do that again sometime.

We had a lovely time, and we really want to go to London again!  Have to save our pennies!

Anyway, enough from me - thanks for taking the time to visit.  I hope to be back soon.

Love, Andrea xx

My First Attempt at a Wire Work Ring

Hello Everyone

Happy Bank Holiday to those of you in the UK who've had the day off today - and hasn't it been typical bank holiday weather today - it really feels as though autumn is coming, cool in the evenings (and we haven't had many summer days this year), and the days are drawing in so quickly :(

Back to school next week - Andrew is starting secondary school (I think I'm much more nervous than he is LOL!) - where on earth does time go, and he'll soon be as tall as me, his feet are already larger than mine (that was a shock for me to cope with!).  The summer holidays are absolutely flying by.  Good grief aren't things for school expensive - I've spent £170 on shoes and trainers for my two in the last week, and we've still got to buy Andrew some football boots yet.  I'm going to have to think of a way to earn a few extra pennies me thinks - have to do a boot sale to get rid of some of the toys and clothes the children have grown out of!

Sorry I haven't been around much lately - Mr Mojo has been missing.  I've bought birthday cards and presents again this month.

Anyway, enough waffle.  I've made an attempt at wirework jewellery making today, and made my first ring.  I haven't got a proper ring mandrel so used a thick glue pen; the ring is a bit big but I don't like anything too tight!  The ring matches the jewellery set I made in June, shown here.

Ooh, if only my skin didn't look so old and wrinkled, I could apply to be a hand model LOL!

Back to the ring, I've used 0.6mm wire to make the flower, which is made with black shell and a rose quartz - the shank of the ring is 1mm wire.  This is OK for a first attempt - I need a lot of practice before I can make one for someone else though I think.

We have something exciting happening this week, and I'm very nervous about it - I'll tell you about it when it's over though, so keep an eye out in the next few days ;)

Thank you for looking, and I'll see you soon.  Have a fabulous week.

Love, Andrea xx

Another Monster!

Hello Everyone - and a Happy Saturday to you all.

Oh my goodness, is anyone else getting v-e-r-y emotional over the Olympics? - the sobs are catching in my throat every time someone wins, or doesn't win - tears are welling and I get a lump in my throat.  I'm a complete wreck LOL!  And don't the medals look so awesome!

Despite being hooked to the TV, I have managed to make a card for another nephew whose birthday is today - using a monster image from Digistamp Boutique.  I've coloured him with Promarkers, and decoupaged the cake up again.  A simple but fabulous sketch from Sunday Sketch and Stamp.

I would also like to enter this card in the Digistamp Boutique Monthly Challenge and Crafts and Me Challenge which is green with envy.

And here's the card:

I've got a nasty headache today, so I think I need to get to bed now.  I hope to see you soon.

Love, Andrea xx

Boy's Birthday Card

Hello everyone - just a quickie to show the card I made for my nephew who recently turned 5.

This is another Digistamp Boutique image - I coloured the image with promarkers, and decoupaged the cake up.  The sentiment was from the digi set too.

I'm not entirely happy with this card - I think the sentiment is too big, and the papers make it look too busy.  But a 5 year old boy wouldn't think about things like that would he???

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Delightful Sketches - Birthdays
Kaboodle Doodles - Birthday or any Special Day

I hope people are enjoying the Olympics - it's fantastic to see GB winning medals now.  I'm not really a sports fan, but I am getting hooked on some of the Olympics, especially the swimming, rowing and canoeing, and I was watching the archery last weekend - it is amazing how the archers manage to hit the centre from sooo far away!

See you soon.

Love, Andrea xx

For Another Teacher Leaving

Hello again - the card below was for another teacher who has just left our school - she would have been Eleri's teacher in September so we were sad to see her leave.

I've used a Rosie image from Digistamp Boutique again, coloured with promarkers.  The papers are My Minds Eye A Happy Heart - the first time I've used them - they are gorgeous, such rich colours.  And the flowers are from my stash (I've had them for ages), and they matched perfectly.  I've also had the Lakeland sentiments for ages - I did decide to trim the sentiment down before giving it.  I've also used the Macarena Corner die.  The dark red paper was actually an envelope from a card I received - I can even re-use and recycle on my cards sometimes LOL!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Kaboodle Doodles - Whats In - I think the corner dies are 'in' at the moment
Crafts and Me  - Anything Goes
Waste Not Wednesday - Use neglected stash
Simon Says - Anything Goes

I haven't shown the presents I made for teachers yet - so here they are - I made jewellery of course!

I made little gift boxes, using Crafters Companion CDs (I typed onto the boxes "Diolch yn Fawr Iawn" - which is Welsh for Thank You Very Much, because my children attend the local Welsh language school):

I thought I should show how a bracelet looks when it's on!

That's it from me for now.  I hope to see you again soon.

Love, Andrea xx

Sparkle for a Very Special Teacher

Hello

I wanted to pop on quickly just to show you the card I made for the Deputy Head of my children's school, who retired last week.  She will be missed soooo much - probably the favourite teacher in school!  Apparently there were many tears during her leaving service in the afternoon - unfortunately, the room was not big enough to allow all parents to attend, it was just open to the parents of her current nursery class.

The image is a Wee Stamps digi, coloured with promarkers.  The backing paper and shimmer dots are Papermania, the glitter card is Dovecraft, the flowers were all from my stash, the sentiment was from a pack from Lakeland ages ago, and the sparkly beads on the wire were from my local craft shop - I twirled the bottom part around a pokey tool just because I didn't want to cut it off, and it's poking out from under the flowers just under the sentiment!  I added some stickles around the image circle.  I don't think the photo does it justice really - it certainly doesn't show all the sparkle!

I would like to enter this in the I Love Promarkers Challenge - Sparkle 

That's it for now.  I still have the teacher gifts and another birthday card to show you soon.

Love, Andrea xx

Girlie

Hello Everyone

Well, the weekend is over and we've actually had some summer weather - today has been gorgeous, sunny and warm with a lovely breeze.

Today I'm showing a girlie card I made for my niece:

I seem to have a thing for Digistamp images at the moment LOL! - This is Rosie and Flower from Rosie Collection 1 - isn't she a little sweetie?  And a very simple card, using some glitter card, one sheet of patterned paper Fancy Pants Beach Babe, one swirl from a Stampin Up die, and one die-cut flower, plus a gorgeous wide organza ribbon which I picked up in a local supermarket.  And that's it!

I'm entering this in the following challenges:

Papertake Weekly - All Things Girlie
Cardcrafters Circle - For Children - this was for my niece who has just turned 7
Digistamp Boutique - July challenge

I did promise myself an early night - haven't made it :) but I'd better get to bed now!

I'm not working tomorrow - yay! - I might not be cheering by the end of the day though - the girls in the neighbourhood are not getting on very well - problems started on the first day of the school holidays.  Eleri wasn't involved during the day as our school was in for an extra day, but she got caught up in it in the evening, and she is completely stuck in the middle.  There are two girls who do not get along a lot of the time - but Eleri likes to play with each of them - if she is playing with one of them, she has started to say that the other can't play because she doesn't like it when they fall out or one storms off.  I am saying to Eleri that I want them all to play nicely together and that she mustn't say that someone can't play - but I think this is a very difficult situation, and I don't really know what to do - stay away from home as much as possible might be the best solution LOL!

See you soon.

Love, Andrea xx

A Leaving Gift

Hello folks - I've managed to pop back again this evening.

Eleri's Brownies leader is moving away so it was her last session this week.  I made her a card and a gift.

This image is from Digistamp Boutique - called Daisy and Flower, coloured with promarkers.  The flowers were from my stash.  The little butterflies are from a border die - do you like the way I added one little butterfly onto one of the roses?  The papers are Fancy Pants Beach Babe.

I'm entering this card in the Love to Create Challenge which is to use Three of Something - so I've used three little flower buttons and added three little pearls.  I will also enter it into the monthly Digistamp Boutique challenge.

And this is the gift I made:

I just love the way these white quartz gems are faceted and the way they catch the light.  This bracelet took me ages to make as I wanted to use rose quartz, but I couldn't get the blinking thread to go through the gems even after using a bead reamer to try to make the holes larger - I think I managed to get three on the thread and then couldn't find any others that would fit, so had to start again.  Lesson learned - make sure all your beads will fit on the thread before you start :)

So hopefully I'll be back again over the weekend with another creation.  See you then.

Love, Andrea xx

A Flower Bracelet

Well hello peoples - sorry I haven't been around for a while - I've been busy making end of term cards and gifts, and a birthday card.  I'll be showing them over the next few days I hope.

But first, I've just spotted that the challenge this week over at Fab n Funky Challenges is to make your own flowers.  I thought I would show the bracelet I have recently made for myself (I hope it counts for the challenge but don't hesitate to discount my entry if it doesn't meet the rules because it is not a card).

These are made with black shell, dark grey shell pearls, and rose quartz.  This is my first attempt at making a flower like this with gemstones and I'm very happy with it.  I especially like the charm which I added to the clasp of the bracelet.  And then I just adore these long dangly earrings which have real movement in them - it's just a shame I don't go out very often to be able to wear glam dangly earrings like this LOL!

That's all for this post - but you will see more from me over the next few days.  Its been 2am on me going to bed for the past few nights so I really must have an early night tonight.

'Night 'night!

Love, Andrea xx

Birthday Card For a Friend

Hello All

The weather in the UK has been dreadful and I truly feel for all the people who have been affected by the heavy rain and the floods - I hope things settle very soon.

It is the birthday of a friend from work today - she's off work at the moment, and we miss her very much - but we all wanted to send her a lovely card and bouquet of flowers - she has received them safe and sound today.  This is the card I made for her:

This is Daisy again from Digistamp Boutique.  I paperpieced her dress and the little heart she is carrying.  The papers are Do Crafts Hanoverian, the embossing folder is Cuttlebug Flower Fantasy, I think I won the roses in some candy a long time ago, and the sentiment is from a pack from Lakeland ages ago.  I used two Memory Box dies for the swirls under the flowers and the sentiment - one is the Macarena Corner and the other is Ivy Tendrils  (first time I've used that one and I cut it in half).

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Passion for Promarkers - sketch
Digistamp Boutique - July competition
Waste Not Wednesdays
Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes

That's all for today.  We're hoping to take Andrew to the cinema tomorrow to watch Spiderman - depends on whether Richard is playing cricket, and whether the roads are flooded.  I do believe it has stopped raining now though, so fingers crossed the roads are not flooded but the cricket pitch is too wet to play LOL!

Love, Andrea xx

For a Special Someone

Hello Fellow Bloggers

It is my sister-in-law's 50th birthday today, so I'll show you the card I made for her.

The image is a Mo Manning digi called Whats Cooking - isn't she a little sweetie?  She's coloured with promarkers.  The backing paper is from Do Crafts Hanoverian pad, and I bought the glitter card yesterday in town.  The lacy flowers were purchased from my local craft shop, as were the pearls.  I used an Anita's alphabet die to make the word Fifty.  On studying this card after I'd finished I felt as though there was something missing - maybe I should have added leaves or a swirl under/around the flowers, but it was just too late by then (LOL!)

I'm entering this in the following challenges:

One Stitch at a Time - Use a digi
All Sorts Challenge - In Bloom
I Love Promarkers - Anything Goes
Delightful Challenges - Celebration - 50th birthday
Stampin for the Weekend - Show us your style - I like to make the cards individual and personal by using an image which somehow reminds me of the recipient or depicts something that they do (eg my sister-in-law is a school cook so I wanted to use a cooking image of some kind for her card this year), and I try to colour the hair in a similar way to the recipient's hair (not sure I manage that every time, but I give it a go LOL)
Fab n Funky Challenges - Cute and Girly

It is supposed to be Sports Day at school tomorrow but the forecast is not too good (again!) - I have the day off but I've had to bring work home so, if sports day is off, I expect I'll be working at home!  Richard is off tomorrow too - he's got to have a steroid injection in his elbow - I hope it does the trick and eases his pain!

Better go - I should be ironing!

See you soon.

Love, Andrea xx