Winner of Blog Candy is....

HI there,

Well, I'm absolutely shattered after the battering I've taken over the past few weeks! But enough moaning from me, who's won the blog candy I hear you shout!

Well its....

The Flying Fresian!

Congratulations! I look forward to sending you your prize!

Time for a little candy!

HI there,

WoW! What a week last week was! We had SUCH a scream in Olympia - I can't tell you what hard work - but screaming great fun it was. I will fill you in on our frivolities at a later date, because I want to get onto the real reason I'm posting just now.

I have been sorting my craft room, and found a few bits that I've decided to give away as BLOG CANDY. I know there's not much but every little helps, so they say. Up for grabs there is:

• Papermania A5 Boysenberry Capsule Collection papers
• Stick it! Wide and narrow foam tape
• Xcut No 1. Craft knife
• Pampered Pets sitting pretty stamp
• Secret Woodland Stamps sets (Pickles and Bubbles)
• Papermania Little Cake Shoppe Ribbon
• Papermania ribbon Burgundy Floral
• Papermania Adhesive Pearls in Lilac and White

If you would like to enter this blog candy, all you need to do is leave a comment. That's all. However, due to costs I will only post to the UK and Ireland. I'm sure you understand.

Entires close on Tuesday 29th March, so what are you waiting for?!

Testing testing

Just checking that the email posting is all set up on for blogging at the show and on the go! How cool!

Love, Clare x

London Tarn...Hold on to your hats!

Good Evening!

Well, I'm all prepped, packed and pooped! I never thought I would get it all done, but now it's all organised and neatly packed away warm and cosy in my humongous suitcase, everything is calm! I've even got all my write ups for both my magazines done, whoo hoo  - go me!

So, off we go to Olympia tomorrow for the Stitch and Craft Show - when I say we, I'm talking about me {of course}, my Bezzie Sheila Halliwell, the gorgeously lovely Phill Martin who will share a demo stage with me for four days {I'm sure we'll be laughing till our sides split} the uber talented Beckie Dreyer, and the fantasmagorical Becky James, doin' her thing with jewellery {what she can't do with a bead is no one's business!}. We are joined also by Becky Rattue and Nicci Pointer, who work at head office and make marketing and events like these work like a well oiled machine. Now have you noticed something - you don't have to be called Becky {or Beckie for that matter}to work at docrafts - but it helps :)

So if you are coming along to Olympia, PLEASE do come and say hello, we don't bite {however it does depend if we've been fed}.

I'll try and post whilst we're away but you know how times flies when you're working hard but having fun! xx

Best Wishes Birdie!

Hi there!

Here I am again! I couldn't wait to get back on here blogging.

With me being away with work, I haven't had a chance to craft anything new for you - so I hope you don't mind me sharing a card I made for Project of the Week on docrafts.com a good few month's ago. It's made using the patterned papers from the Born to Shop Nostalgia Collection {which I love}, and one of the Anita's wood mounted stamps, coloured with Kurecolor alcohol based markers. I embossed the pink patterened paper with a polka dot embossing folder before sanding to bring forward the white core of the paper. The scalloped edge is made using 2 inch circles fixed to the back of the pink filigree paper. I really like the contrast between the black circles and the colours on the card.

Well, we have one day of filming Creativity TV left, and I don't know why but I'm so tired - I think I might be coming down with something. Yesterday I finished filming with Phill Martin, and Sheila arrived ready for our filming today. Phill and I had such a hoot, and the same can be said for Sheila and I today too! Maybe that's why I'm so tired - too much laughing!

Last night sheila and I had a lovely meal at the Hop Pole, a 16th Century pub just at the bottom of the drive of the hotel - I had steak pie and I have never seen a pie so big! We were both shattered and dropping off to sleep,  I couldn't resist any longer and I turned out the light at 9.30pm, almost unheard of for me!I slept soundly until 7.30am, a veritable lie in! I'm still shattered tonight though - hope I feel better in the morning! I still have things to do to get ready for the Stitch and Craft Show at Olympia.

Anyhoo, that's all for moi tonight - have a great night whatever you're up to - and thanks for coming to visit!

A Big {Thanks!}

Good Afternoon,

I've just stopped at Tamworth Services on my way down to Bath, where from tomorrow we'll be filming Creativity TV, and what did I want to do? Have a tinkle, coffee, or post on my blog? Well, actually all three, but it seems I must have got the Blogging Bug again! Now, I must type quickly, as I only have 25 mins battery power on my laptop, and there are no plug sockets to be seen!

Today's card isn't a Letterpress card, although I do have more of those to share with you, I thought you would like to see something a little different. I made this card back at the end of the summer last year I think, to thank one of the Mum's from school for taking Joesph to school {probably when I was on one of my jaunts around the country with work!}. I made it in about 10 minutes and if I recall correctly it was one of my first outings with both the stamp and my new set of Copics. I'm ashamed to say I think that was the last time I used them too {so far}. The stamp is from Penny Black and I love it - it so fits the CAS style of card. The greeting stamp was bought for my by Sheila when she was in Australia - there were four in the set and they all carry these fonts - surprisingly the fonts I use on my blog - by complete co-incidence. No wonder I love the stamps so much.

Last nights Drama Group meeting went well, we are rehearsing for the All England Festivals, and our one act play is called 'Last Tango in Little Grimley'. it's very funny, and if we keep practicing we'll be very good - who knows, we may even win our round!

Anyhoo, with an Americano {with milk} in my hand, and my battery about to run out, I must set off on the dusty road known as the M42 to the beautiful city of Bath. Promise I will try and be back before the end of the week - maybe blogging will encourage me to take some photos of my visit too!

Even More Letterpress Love!

Well, I think it's obvious that I ♥ the letterpress!

I'm going to share two cards with you tonight, or I'm going to showing you Letterpress cards all month at this rate!

This card was really simple to make. I used the Everyday Printing Plate Set 2 with Pink Letterpress Ink, and I placed a piece of copy paper approximately 4cm in width over the Printing plate where I wanted the uncoloured section to be. Then I passed the Letterpress through the Epic 6. Then I took the border plate and inked with black ink and placed carefully just on the edges of the white panel. Finally I used the letters from the Everyday Printing Plates Set 4 to spell Hi. Then it was simply a case of adding flowers to the left.

I demonstrated this card on Create and Craft and I think it shows the versitility and practicality of the Letterpress. This was a plate from the Wedding Plate - Twigs and Sprigs inked with navy ink, and the thank you sentiment also from the same set inked with gold ink. I used the sponge spacers to make sure I replaced the card in exactly the same place each time, allowing me to make the same design over and over again. Don't forget to re-ink each time though, to make sure the image is as clear as the first. I than added some ribbon from the Persimmon collection to finish the card. How quick would these be for Wedding or Christmas Thanks you's?!

Even though Sundays are normally a day of rest, not for me today as I've been busy finishing the last three projects for May's Creativity Magazine, and writing the 8 scripts {well I say scripts, more of a guide really} for Creativity TV which we are filming next week. The sketch for Challenge of the Week is also ready to post on Tuesday, but I've still to pack my clothes and check {and double check } I have everything for each of the demos! Sheila has kept me sane and on the straight and narrow though, chatting on Skype as we do.

Anyhoo, must be toddling off - Drama Group calls Darling! x

More Letterpress Love!

Hi there!

Did I mention I ♥ the Letterpress?!

Here's another project I put together for the letterpress hour I did on Create and Craft many moons ago. To make this card I used Everyday Printing Plates Set 4 (for the numbers) and the plates from the Letterpress Starter Kit. I stamped the 'on your Special Day' greeting also using the printing ink to make sure the card fully co-ordinated {watch out if you do this though, the stamp is a little more slippery than usual!}.

The background gold flourish is also from the starter kit, and was created by simply moving the cardstock around and passing through the machine a few times. I then cut the heart using dies, and finished the card with burgundy organza ribbon and gems. I also used a little punched heart to cover up a little smudge too!

Joe and I had a lovely day today. We went to the cinema to see 'Gomeo and Juliet' and we treated ourselves to pop corn! Then we went into the amusements on the seafront, and I let Joe loose {or lose, which wever way you want to look at it!}with 50 pence worth of 2 p's.

Afterwards, Joe had his first doughnut! I told him of when I was a little girl and we used to visit Bridlington, I used to have doughnuts made freshly, and I used to love {and still do} watching the machine plop out the doughnut into the hot oil,  turned over, then move along the chain until they emerged all golden and lovely! It was then I realised he had never had one - and as you can see he thought they were 'yummy!'

 Well, that's it from me for now - off to fold more flower petals! Thanks for coming to visit! x

Letterpress Love!

Hi there again!

Ooo I must have come over all funny - two posts in as many days!

Today I've been busy working on projects using beatufiul origami flowers for the May issue of docrafts Creativity Magazine, and gorgeous though they are, the numerous folds, petals and flowers needed have made my fingers sore!

Also the products I need to get ready for the demonstrations at the Stitch and Craft show at Olympia have arrived, so in the evenings next week I shall be cutting and prepping to make sure I'm ready. Can you tell I was a girl guide?! My best friend Sheila Halliwell will be there running card making workshops, with Beckie Dreyer, and Becky James holding Scrapbooking and Jewellery sessions. Phill Martin will also be joining me this year, so there's bound to be laughs galore!

As everything I'm doing at the moment is for something or another, I thought I would show you a card I did probably this time last year for the Letterpress show on Create and Craft. I LOVED prepping for this show, as I LOVE the Letterpress!

Usually with the Letterpress you would use Letterpress paper (which is actually like watercolour paper, thick and almost cushioned) but here I used the letterpress plate onto core'dinations cardstock in a similar colour to the printing ink. I also used a different letterpress plate with no ink applied onto white letterpress paper to give a naked embossed effect, before matting onto turquoise and silver cardstock. The forever friends die cut embellishment finishes the card.

Anyhoo, will I be here tomorrow? Your guess is as good as mine! I'm taking Joe to the cinema tomorrow to see 'Gnome and Juliet', then on to the seaside for a real freshly cooked doughnut. Yum!

Thanks for stopping by - have a great evening!

Fairy Godmother Spell Book Tutorial

Good Evening,

Let's not talk about the length of time I've been AWOL shall we? I suppose I have to just face it, life gets in the way every now and again (well, most of the time actually). I've said it before and I'll say it again - I don't know how people keep up with it. I'm going to try though (and I've said that before, haven't I?).

Tonight I thought I would show you how I made the Fairy Godmother Spell Book for the Panto that we (The South Bank PLayers) put on in January. I LOVED making it, and I thought it would make a great addition to a children's themed party. It was so easy to make. I don't think I'll ever get rid of it!Here's Sue (the Evil Queen) and Me (Fairy Liquid!) just before the last performance!

This is photo heavy but pictures say a thousand words!

Firstly, I chose a book - I wanted a reasonably big one, but one that wasn't too heavy as we had to hold and act at the same time - talk about multi tasking! My book about Titanic was perfect.

 So I removed the dust cover, and replaced with an A3 size of Green paper - which JUST fit!

I then applied distress inks in Walnut Stain and Pine Needles with a dry baby wipe around the edges to give an old, well used look.

After this I applied Precious Metals (docrafts) and gold pigment ink with a new but still dry baby wipe to the edges of the book, don't forget the spine!

This is just before I embellished the book with the letters...

And this is after! The corner embellishments are Papermania Bare Basic Chipboard shapes which I have painted with Precious Metals in Gold, and the the letters are Papermania Gold glitter chipboard letters. The white lettering is BasicGrey, and I also added a Papermania Gemstone Stickers Crown, and Mosaic Gems.

Hope you like it - I don't know what I'm going to do with it now, but I know it will grow old with me! That's all for tonight!

Thanks for stopping by!