Better Late Than Never!

Finally getting around to posting pics of (some of) my Christmas 2010 makes.  Believe it or not, I still have one waiting to be given to my sister (I forgot to take it down to her house at Christmas)  So I'll post that after the weekend (don't hold your breath)

I made covered notebooks for my sister, my friend and her husband.  My sister and friend are both teachers so they got class record books,  My friend's hsband got an ideas book.

All papers by Cosmo Cricket
Ideas book - Cogsmo
Miss Brocklebank's Book - The Boyfriend
Mrs MArgett's book - Jack's World.

They're all covered in sticky back plastic to help them last a bit longer.  Remind me never to do that again - the air was blue!

Let it Shine

So, my plan for this years Christmas card was that I would come up with a design and do them all the same.  Brilliant idea!
I went to a papercraft show at the Doncaster Domw and saw this amazing glitter and thought I'd make a simple black card with a glittery white snowflake on.  Another good idea.
And then it all went wrong, I ran out of time,  I couldn;t get the glitter to work properly, the black and white paper I'd bought to use on the cards wasn't the same white as the snowflakes. 
So
I only made 2 of this type but have carried on the snowflake theme.
I'd like to enter this collecion for the OAP1945's MSE Challenge - Let it shine - as they're all sparkly.

Sorry these last 2 are sideways - I tried to rotate them but blogger was having none of it and am just too tired to argue tonight!

The Prodigal Daughter

I have been a very bad blogger - months since my last post but I hope you'll accept me back.  I can't promise I'll be any better but I'll have a go.
I made myself a coaster advent calendar but then lost the camera and hung around for days hoping to blog it but finally gave up this morning and took it into work.  Guess what I found this evening!

So here is an amended version that I've made as a gift for a colleague who lurves her holidays.  She keeps a little slip of paper on her desk to countdown the days until her next one.  This is to countdown the last 4 working weeks before her hols.  We count "get-ups".

My little baby is 10

This was a bit of a last-minute card as we were away just before Tom's birthday but I think it's come out quite well - it's loosely based on the brilliant Helen's 9 squarre cards.  Everything football related is strictly 'blue&white' in my son;s eyes so I cut 1 inch scallopped squares in white and 1.25" in blue on my cricut (storybook cartridge).  The puffy stickers were from accessorize.  Ribbon from stash.  Sentiment hand-written.

Yum yum yum  and yes, it did taste as good as it looks!

More bunting

I'm persevering with my attempt to give a homemade gift for everyones birthday this year and have only slipped once so far (but I haven't forgotten that project - they will get it eventually!)

My latest effort was for darling Kitty who is now 2.

The colours hopefully match her bedroom - altho that is based from memory - fingers crossed everyone!

The lettering and animals are cut on my cricut using the zooballoo cartridge.  I couldn't quite decide what to do to the background of the paper but plumped for stamping in the end - mainly because I wasn't convinced that anyone would recognise the 'Y' as a 'Yak'. ;-)

The stars in each corner were a compromise solution as my stoopid crop-a-dile refuses to set eyelets.  I figured they would be less likely to tear over the holes if the sticker was there as a reinforcer and stars were all I had in (very) roughly the right colour.

Kitty's Mum has texted today to say it will go beautifully and she is planning to laminate each pennant so it lasts "forever".

Not quite a wedding towel cake.

I'm going to a wedding on Saturday and didn't really fancy anything on the wedding list so with my normal disregard for whether I actually have time to do it or not, I decided I would make my own gift.  This started off as a very vague idea - it was going to be a towel cake but then I spotted these bargain scrapbooks in Home Bargains (where else) for £3.99 I think but they might have even been £2.99 and I just couldn't resist.

So I decided to make a scrapbook for the couple to use to put their informal photos, etc in.  Again, this remained a vague thought until I had a panic last week and realised I had less than 2 weeks to go.  YIKES!!!! I arranged to go to my friends house for a crafty morning on Sunday and didn't actully do any making but this is the result of some serious planning - helped along by the fact that she has oodles and oodles of beautiful stash to inspire me.  So a big thanks upfront to Emma G for the teeny tiny buttons and the flower punches used on this project.  I'm going to give it with a pack of photo corners and sticky squares to help them along.

The front is coverd with Basic Grey - Blush :Cherish

Pastel pearls to give a bit of a lift

Glossy accents on all the hearts - well it is for a wedding

The button heart is in an aperture - more accurate rendering of the colours here

Inside page showing through the aperture is here....

The wording is cut from the Storybook cartridge on my cricut as is the fram which is cut from a sheet of coredinations jewel.  The backing paper is bazzill dotted swia.  Letter shadowns cut from KI Memories 1821 - Posh Word Play and the letters themselves from some paper from my stash pile.

I made the little flowers from all the offcuts with the middle from a viva pearl pen bought from the craft den.

And finally a few close-ups for those not already asleep ;-)

I'd like to enter this in the Creative Craft World Challenge - Weddings

May is Perry Birthday month

So my brother-in-law's gift is out of the way and ready to be given on Saturday when we meet up for "CampBrocklebank IV" our annual family camping trip.  My Mum takes her motorhome, my sister's family her caravan and I usually take my tent but the site we have chosen this year doesn't accept them so I'm slumming it in the motorhome.  Then we have a week of horrendous weather and come home.  We've had snow, high-winds, torrential rain, the lot!  But the kids love it and its nice to get everyone together for a week.  My other Sis is popping over from Germany for a little while too and we'll be nearer my Gran (who is still in hospital after her stroke - but definitely on the mend) so I should be able to get over and visit her.

So May is Perry Birthday month because my b-i-l, sister and nepher (all Perrys) have their birthdays within 3 weks of each other.  I'd hoped to make them all a little something but have had to admit defeat with my nephew - he's just gonna have to mae do with a "Woody" dressing up costume.  Let's be honest, he's 5 - he really won;t care what he gets.

Which leaves my sis.  I swore I would not make any more button necklaces after my first attempts - they're just too darn fiddly but both my sisters have been nagging me so I'll probably have to make anothe one before I can unstick my fingers from the superglue and hang up the blunt edge pliers for good.

It's quite hard to tell from the pic but the buttons are muted blues and a silvery grey.  The box is made from a sheet from LLB Venaissance.

and wrapped up

My sisters have also both asked for a ribbon brooch.  I'm still trying to perfect the flowers on these but I think they're getting a bit better.

and here is her card

A beautiful gorjuss girl - my sister is so special I even used a sheet of my Cosmo Cricket "Earth love" for this one.  Rub-ons are by American craft.   Sentiment from Craftword Cards.  The little flowers are off cut's from a corner punch - I must have had them in a little pot on my desk for at least a year - I knew they'd come in handy eventually

Better crack on with the housework now - 11.12pm - is probably not a good time to start tho