On the Bottle!!!

Hi Everyone I hope you are still dropping by just in case!!! I am working away at things, but most of what I am doing is prep work for classes and you have already seen the finished project. I think you have seen a version of this post too but I like this one better than the previous version. This is going to be a class in April. I only used a bottle of juice here to keep the cost of the class down but if an individual bottle of wine was used or a small bottle of Bailey's it would make a really nice gift (I think so anyway). This Saturday I am teaching all day. In the morning it's Distress Ink painting technique and in the afternoon we put the technique to good on a Tilda with Tealights card. Looking forward to it. They are always such lovely ladies and we have a few laughs along the way. It's been an absolutely GLORIOUS week of weather here in Upper Hutt. The mornings are definitely showing signs of Autumn but the sunshine later in the day is SOOOOOO hot. Long may it last. We change the clocks back this weekend which I personally hate - yuk to dark nights and mornings!!! Still we have had a very good summer and the longer the sunny days go on the shorter the winter will be. I watched the two netball games tonight and the team I wanted to win both games did!!! That doesn't happen very often. I'm going to a live game in Aussie in a couple of weeks - in fact it's the return match of one of tonight's games - Firebirds vs Vixens. I can't wait. Just let me at those thunder sticks!!! Right off to bed after I've brushed my teeth. 'Night 'night and thanks for looking. [Image]

And Baby Makes Three

Hello Everyone. Another week sped by and no posts!! I am sorry but things are a little bit crazy here at our place just now. We had a new lounge suite, which was ordered way back in January, delivered a few days ago and so we had to rearrange things to accommodate it. That has led to somewhat of an Autumn (as oppose to a Spring) clean. I have been taking bags of things to the Op Shop as well of bags of things to the rubbish skip. Spiders have fled in terror of my feather duster and wet cloth reaching into every nook and cranny. Hence not much time for crafting - only emergency(i.e needed in the IMMEDIATE future) cards being constructed at the moment. This one is for some young friends of ours who have just had their first baby AND moved into their own flat after living with parents. So this is a 'be happy in your new home' card for them. A very exciting, but a bit of a scary time for them as they are very young. Still they are VERY much in love and their wee baby boy is VERY cute and we wish them lots of sunshine and rainbows in the years ahead. In the meantime our hallway is like a commando course as the old lounge suite is parked in there. Our young friends are coming to see it on Friday to see if it will be suitable for them in their flat. Until then I will keep putting on my camoflage face paint and combat pants in order to get down to the bathroom!! Thanks for looking in today.

Tilda . . . . . again!!!!

Sorry about that but I am a bit addicted at the moment. Another week flown by and no post. Sorry about that too. I have made a couple of cards in the last week but I was so late with them, and needed to get them in the mail quickly, that I forgot to photograph them!!! How dumb is that? Nearly happened with this one too but as I hand delivered it I as able to snap it after Susan had opened it. I have to warn you that MORE Tilda (and her friend Edwin) are in the offing as I am awaiting an overseas delivery of about 6 more!!! I am teaching the Distress Ink painting technique in April and will use Tilda for that class, so classes after that will be using her too to reinforce the technique learned in April. Right I'm off to tidy up my craft desk and unpack my crate from last weekend!! Thanks for looking today.

Where have I been?

Hi Everyone what a beautiful morning to make a comeback (lol). Where have I been? Well . . . . I've spent a lot of time looking fo my missing MOJO. Still haven't found all of it - just some small parts of it. I guess it happens to all of us but mine was aided and abetted in it's dissappearance by a few other factors. The Christchurch earthquake made me VERY sad. Those poor people, to have gone through the September quake and the ensuing months of tremors and clean up, all the time thinking that they were lucky not to have suffered any loss of life. Then WHAMMY hit again. Who says lightening doesn't strike twice? Every day and night since I have thanked my lucky stars for being able to shower, brush my teeth, jump into a warm, dry bed etc. Do we take things for granted or what??? This morning is a beautiful one but definitely a hint of autumn in the air so again my thoughts are with the Christshurch people as I wonder just how they'll cope with the oncoming winter? So that was one factor. The other has been resolved I'm very happy to say. I had placed 2 orders for stamps - 1 in the US and 1 in the UK and was looking forward to the Postie bringing my goodies. About a week later the package arrived from the US and inside was the Tilda image on today's card. I was needing the UK parcel so that I could complete today's card for a shop sample. I waited and waited but nothing. I think the Postie was getting a bit worried by me being at the mail box EVERY day. I was in danger of being reported as a stalker(lol). Several e-mails were exchanged and the supplier (who I have used before) wasn't concerned in the least. Mail always takes ages to NZ they said. Contact us again if it hasn't turned up after 4 weeks. 4 Weeks!!!!! I have NEVER had UK mail take that long. EVER!!! As each day went by I was more depressed and I was convinced that it was lost for all time. Then yesterday, 4 weeks to the day after I ordered my package, there it was in the mail box!!! (I had long since given up stalking the Postie). Oh joy!!! I did a little dance right there on the spot when I saw it. (It's OK the neighbours already know I'm a bit crazy!!) So needless to say my MOJO was given a huge boost and I finished my card. Mind you, on Sunday I decided that I couldn't wait any longer for my goodies - one of which was a cutting die for lace edging - so I borrowed the eyelet border punch you see in the picture and used that. Typical - I guess that is what made the package turn up. Anyway I am VERY happy to have ALL my goodies at last. The card is inspired by Debbie Dolphin who does THE most amazing things with the Tilda and Edwin stamps, so a big thank-you to Debbie who inspires me in many ways. The large rose is handmade but the other flowers are all from Wild Orchid Crafts in the UK. who have THE best selection of flowers and pretty cheap too. The sentiments are computer generated. The Nesties is Labels 10 (love it) and Tilda is painted with Distress Inks. This technique is VERY addictive but oh so relaxing to do. Well I have to go to the shops for a few bits so I'd better get moving. Thanks for looking and I hope it was a nice surprise to see me back in business.
PS Don't ya just love it that Tilda has her shoes on the wrong feet?  SOooooo cute!!!

Rock a Bye Baby

This is another project you've seen before but I think it's so cute that you need to see it again!! Another of my scrummy papers which is just perfect for the cradle as it's double sided so the inside of the cradle looks as nice as the outside. I found this dear wee bunny to sleep tight in the bed. This one is for a young friend's baby who is due any day (she already knows it's a boy) but I have another sheet of blue and a sheet of pink in the same design to make up for samples. Well that's my lot for today. It's VERY hot and humid here today so I think it will be salad for tea. I have a very late night tonight as I will watch a UK craft program on my laptop from 11pm until 1am and then again from 4am until 5am. I may be a bit grumpy tomorrow!!! but I have to watch as it's one of my favourite crafting ladies, Barbara Gray of Clarity Stamps. It seems to have taken forever to come around this month!! Maybe I should take a Nana Nap after tea do you think? Have a good week.

Tilda and Tea Lights

Hello Everyone and I hope you have had a good weekend. Where did the last week go to??? I was shocked to see it is a week since I last posted something. I have had a great week working on class samples. I bought LOTS of scrummy papers on Tuesday to make my samples with so you will be seeing them all in due course. The first one is here on this Tilda Tea Light card. I know you have seen one before but they look so different done in different colours. The candles are vanilla flavour!! I used Distress Inks to paint Tilda and I am starting to like my results now. Practise makes perfect as my Mum used to tell me. This class is going to be an option to make in time for Mother's Day but with the red heart cookies it could be for Valentine's Day tomorrow too. I hope your Valentine is nice to you. Mine is nice to me every day!! See you soon with another post. Thanks for looking.

Christmas Ornament in a Box

Hello Everyone and I hope you have all enjoyed your weekend. When I was still a-working I always hated Sunday evening. Another weekend whizzed by and I hadn't gotten as much done as I would have liked and another long week stretching ahead. I usually did the ironing on a Sunday evening so everyone was stocked up with freshly washed and ironed clothes for the week. Now I don't have to worry but I do still have a basket of ironing to do but it has been far too hot and muggy to tackle it these last few days. That's my excuse anyway!!! LOL Well it's never too early to start on Christmas projects you know. I told you the other day that I had my classes planned for the year - well this is one of them. I think I have it down for September but one of my NY resolutions was to be more organised hence I have this done now and I am halfway through the instructions too!! It iwas in a list of ideas I got with my Scor Pal board which Santa brought for me. It quite took my fancy. A nice gift to give and the ornament slides out of it's slot to be hung on the Christmas Tree. Right I'm off to have my evening drink of hot chocolate with a dash of Baileys in it. My daily treat made for me every evening my my DH. Have a good week and thanks for looking. PS Hope you like the new look Blog. It took me ALL day to do and at one point I thought I had lost it all!!! Scary!