New Home Card

Here is a New Home card I made this week for Rohan's cousin and his girlfriend.  This has now been given to them, so I can reveal it here... ('reveal it' - that makes it sound a lot more exciting than it is!)

The letters on the bunting spell 'THE COTTAGE' - the name of their new home.

The verse inside:

And a little something to go with it, before we get them a proper house-warming present...

What more does any house need - than love, friends and laughter?  Perfect!

Wrapped in tissue paper, with a bow...

Is it just me, or does anyone else get addicted to taking photos for their blog?!  I can't seem to stop...!

Shrek the Musical!

We had a family trip to London to see 'Shrek the Musical' last night!  My Mum loves Shrek, so my brother and sister-in-law got her tickets to the opening night of the musical for her birthday, back in September - it's been a bit of a wait!  We all bought tickets too, and made a nice evening of it, with dinner, a couple of cocktails and the show - great fun!  We really enjoyed it!

Lord Farquaad was VERY funny!


I made my first item for the button swap today - and I'm pleased with it!  Fingers crossed Kandi will be too!  Obviously I can't show you until after the swap...


Lately I've been working on the border for my crocheted stripy mini-blanket:

I'm doing a border of single crochet, also in stripes... it's taking a long time!  I love those colours...

Grrrrr!!!

What a way to start the day - I dropped my bottle of foundation on my creamy/beigey bedroom carpet this morning, making a right mess!  I had to leave for work, so only had time for a rushed cleaning attempt, which didn't help much.  :o(

So tonight's project is going to be a desperate attempt to get my carpet clean!!!  (That does NOT sound like a fun way to spend an evening!)  I've sprayed stain remover on it, and am waiting for it to 'break down the stain' before I start scrubbing again.

In other annoying news... I ordered the Cath Kidston book 'Sew!', from Play, nearly two weeks ago and I still haven't got it...

It includes everything you need to make the bag on the front, as well as instructions for other projects.  I can't wait to get my hands on it!

I thought it would go through the letterbox so had it sent to my home address, but I guess it didn't fit through, as they tried to deliver and left me a card.  Therefore I needed to get the delivery address changed to my work address - which was quite a palaver!  To cut a long story short I've had to order it again to be sent to my work address, and they will refund me for the original book once the courier company returns it to them as undelivered.  Madness!

So, I'm STILL waiting!  I just want to get started on that bag!

Well - sorry for the moaning!  Let's brighten things up a bit... here is a nice cheery picture of a Cath Kidston cherry mug that I just found in the online shop:

Don't you just love that pattern?!  Some Cath Kidston patterns are a bit old fashioned for me, but some I love!  I don't actually have any of her stuff - but I will have once I get my book and make that bag!

My lucky sister-in-law managed to get a gorgeous oilcloth carry-all in this pattern, but with a light blue background.  It was from the new Cath Kidston factory shop just opened in Portsmouth.  She got it for £12.50 instead of £25!  Bargain!  They don't seem to make the carry-all bags in that pattern anymore, so I can't find a picture to show you.  It is lovely, though!

Well, I guess I'd better get back to that carpet...  :o(  (Sorry for the moaning!)

I've signed up...

... for a swap!  I mentioned before that Lemonade Kitty is running a button swap.  I ummed and ahhed (for some reason I was nervous!) but in the end I went for it!  You've got to try these things!

Now I'm really glad I did, as the pairs have been announced, and I'm feeling excited about getting to know Kandipandi (my swap partner) and trying to get together some things that she will like!

I will, of course, share pictures with you all once the swap has happened!

I've made a couple of cards lately, and I plan to make another one tonight, but I will have to wait until they've been received before I show you pictures here.  (Annoying!  I want to show you now!)

So... in the meantime, I thought I would share with you pictures of a New Home card I made for my brother and sister-in-law when they moved into a new house last year.  My lovely Swedish friend (hi again!) came up with the great idea of making an exploding box card, shaped like a house.  A great idea, but quite troublesome to make!  I cursed the whole idea a number of times during production!

Here is side 1 of the house, including a front door.

Side 2, complete with their two cats!

Side 3, including a back door.

Side 4, complete with their rabbit (no longer with us, sadly) - and a giant flower box and butterflies!  I decided against sticking with the correct proportions!

Different angles:

Then... pull off the roof, and this is what you see!

When you looked inside the roof there was a little message for them too.

It took forever to make (maybe I'm just a slow crafter) but I think it was worth it in the end!

Fabric Notice-board

Well, it was the first day back at work today, after my lovely 11 day break.  Hearing that alarm clock this morning was no fun!  The day wasn't too bad, though, and at least it's only a four day week this week!

Back in March I showed you a glimpse of the notice-board I had made and said I would one day show you the full thing.  Well, the time has come!

Unfortunately I don't have elegant fancy things pinned/pegged to it - I'm just not that classy!

To make it... I bought a normal cork notice-board, and (with Rohan's help!) removed the top of the frame to remove the cork part.  I covered that with the pink spotty fabric, and the two strips of green ribbon, and we put the frame back together around it.  I used a hot glue gun to attach the little silver pegs to the ribbon.  This way things can be pegged to the board in the top section, or pinned on the bottom section with my home-made fabric covered drawing pins!

I love my pins!  There are a few more there than I showed you last time.  A bit more of a multi-coloured bunch!  (I also make bigger fabric-covered magnets for fridges or magnetic notice-boards, which you can see/buy here.  There are some pretty colour combinations available).


I wasn't sure whether to paint the frame.  I haven't done, but it might be something I do at some point!

Coffee

I'm feeling a little tender today, after going to a friend's birthday party yesterday!  It was a nice way to end my break from work, and I've got today to recover before going back tomorrow.  After 11 lovely days off, it's not going to be fun being back in the office!


Yesterday morning we started the day with an espresso coffee in my lovely little espresso cups!  I bought these before we even started drinking espresso - I just needed them in my life!  The stove top espresso maker came later, to give the cups a purpose!  (Although, bringing me joy is surely purpose enough!)

I'm currently working on the border of my mini crocheted blanket (as mentioned in this post) - so I'm getting near the end finally!

Knitting Needles and Cake!

I've been busy the last couple of days with a party, pub lunch with friends etc.  It's been lovely!


I haven't had much chance to do any crafting, although yesterday morning I did some more work on the present for my friend who had a baby this week.  Nearly done!


As it is still a secret, I will just show you the picture of what I have been using to make the present...

Funky wooden knitting needles!  These were actually a present from the friend in question, so very fitting that they would be used!  (It was a bit dark when I* took this photo, but you get the idea.  The darker spotty balls are actually purple, but they look a bit black in the photo)


*When I say 'I' took the photo, Rohan actually took it, because I was failing to get a decent shot, and was ready to give up!


Last night we were at the wedding party of... (not Will and Kate!) but friends who recently got married in Bali.  They had a party to celebrate last night, and one of their cousins made a lovely cake for them:

I thought it was very impressive!

Random Things

No craft pictures today, as I've been working on something for my lovely friend who had a baby yesterday!  (Congratulations!)  She reads my blog, so I don't want her to see what it is!  (Of course something tells me that reading my blog might not be the first thing on her mind at the moment - but just in case!!)  Also, I'm not sure if it's going to work out... but we'll see!

All will be revealed in time!

For now, here is a picture of the packaging and thank you card for a Dinki Dots order for my sister-in-law.  (My orders are still just from friends/family!  Oh well, I'm having fun!)  It was one of my little crochet ball characters - like the penguin I made previously.  I gave it to her over the Easter weekend, with the other Easter treats!

And here is a picture of a pretty flower, from the garden of Rohan's parents' place.  I couldn't tell you what it is (I'm not very good with plants etc) but I just love the colour!!

Gorgeous!!

I've seen a button swap, at Lemonade Kitty that I'm thinking of doing!  Just trying to pluck up the courage to sign up... not sure why I'm so nervous!!!  I've never done one, and it's a bit scary!  We'll see...

Funky Cafetiere Cosy

Another lovely day today.  I spent the morning working on the project I mentioned yesterday, and finished it.  I didn't end up having a shower and getting dressed until 1pm!  I kept thinking I'd just finish this little bit first, then I'd start on another bit, and ended up just carrying on until it was done!


This is what I started with:

Bits of cut-out fabric (on my spotty ironing board)

 I added some wadding and put it all together to make this:

Funky Cafetiere Cosy!

Button fastening

Funky flowers!

A cafetiere cosy has been on my Craft To Do list since last year.  I first planned to crochet one, then I thought I'd make one out of felt, then I decided to use fabric.  (So fickle!)  Well, after thinking about it for months, I have finally made it!


I sewed the spotty fabric to the top and bottom of the flowery fabric to make the front of the cosy - I love the two fabrics together.  There is wadding in the middle, and the back of the cosy is made from the spotty fabric.  I also used that to make the two button fasteners, and I covered two self-cover buttons with it to make some matching buttons!  I'm very pleased with the end result!


Although, heaven forbid a drop of coffee gets on it, after my hard work!!!


Once I finished the cosy, I got showered and dressed, and went out for a delicious afternoon tea with some friends (thanks to some discount vouchers!)  Now that is the life! Tea and cake in a luxurious setting!  That's the kind of life I should be living every day!!  ;o)

Lovely Day

Poor Rohan was back at work today, but I'm off until next week.  Lucky me!  I met up with my sister-in-law (who is also off work) for lunch and shopping, so I had a lovely day!  I bought various bits and bobs, including the below from Tiger:

Different coloured tissue paper and some beads.  Not sure what I need any of it for, but I'm sure I will find uses for it all at some point!  I couldn't resist!

I also made a very small start on a new project involving the below two fabrics:

This is as far as I got, before going out lunching and shopping - I cut out the below:

That really doesn't give any clues, does it!  Hopefully I will make more progress tomorrow!

Pennie Pocket

We've had a fabulous relaxing bank holiday weekend!  We went to visit Rohan's parents on Saturday, who live in a pretty little village near Oxford.  Lots of relaxation in the sun, and eating delicious food!  Then straight from there to my parents' house today for an Easter lunch with my family.  Lots more eating of course!  It's all been very lovely, and I still have another week off work - yay!


Here is a picture of a little extra Easter gift I gave to my lovely sister-in-law.  Some mini eggs in an organza bag inside a Pennie Pocket:

I made this back in February after stumbling across this tutorial.  I made this one, then decided to get some pretty spring fabrics to use to make a whole bunch of them, to put Easter treats in for the women in the family.  Well, I kind of lots interest, but my sister-in-law loved this one, so I thought I would give it to her as a surprise!

I hope you all had as lovely an Easter as I did!  If you are anything like me, your belly will now be twice the size it was before the weekend!  I've still got a mountain of chocolate eggs to get through too - oh, what a hardship!!!

Easter Tree and Excitement!

Well, yesterday was a WONDERFUL day (some crafty excitement happened!).  Of course the weather was amazing - we pottered about a bit getting some things sorted at home, popped into town for some bits and bobs, and then spent the afternoon in the park in the sunshine.  I cannot get over how hot it is for April - it felt like we were in Spain or something!

I also spent time admiring my Easter tree whenever I was in the flat!  It is a happy little tree!

I just love that pink polka dot jug vase too - I managed to get the last one in Sainsburys on Thursday evening.  I had to have it - it's so pretty!

I seemed to be rather useless at arranging the branches, and after trying various options I bought some artificial blossom sprays from Wilkinsons, after seeing cupcakejojo's Easter Tree using them.  I think they work really well!

My tree is decorated with eight handmade felt eggs, which I have been making over the last month or two.  I also added pretty bright feathers to it.  These feathers were given to me by my lovely Swedish friend (hi!) as it is a Swedish tradition to have Easter trees with feathers on - I think it's a great tradition!  I love the bright colours!

Well... now on to the 'Excitement' part of my post title... I have won a giveaway!!!!!  I entered a giveaway at Sew Special Bears and I have won the 'crafty stuff' prize!!!  I should receive a selection of crafty bits and pieces!  This is the first giveaway I have won, and I am so excited!!  When I read her post showing 'Dinki Dots' as a winner I couldn't believe my eyes!  I started leaping and dancing around the living room like a demented baboon, making crazy happy noises!!  My boyfriend watched with great amusement!

I will be sure to show you what I get when I receive it!  Aaaahhh, I'm so excited!!

Flower Ta-Da!

Finally!  The flower project is finished, after my distractions!  Thanks for the guesses - it was my little mum who was right (well done Mum!)... it's a needle case:

I had different packets of needles that I have acquired over the years, and I needed one place to put them all.  Now I have it!  There are six squares of felt in the case - 4 blue and 2 lilac (the front and back cover).  Because they are sewn together in sets of 2 it means there are 4 sides that needles can go, without having needles on the front and back.  (If that makes sense!)


It's a practical item, but also pretty!  Maybe not as exciting as some of the ideas - I especially like the flower bunting idea from Becky - how pretty would that be!  That might be something to add to my ever-growing 'Craft To Do' list!  I don't know about anyone else, but I have more ideas than I can ever keep up with!!  Having to sit at a desk all day, when I could be getting on with craft doesn't help either!  (Not that I want to lose my job - then I wouldn't have any money for craft supplies!!)


In other Easter-related news, my Easter tree is done and I'm very pleased with it!  I will try to get some good photos for tomorrow's post - before we toddle off on our way to visit family for Easter (and eat lots - yay!)

Cute!

I turned the crocheted ball from yesterday into...

...a very cute little penguin!

You've just gotta love him!  (Well, I do!)

I attempted to make my Easter tree last night, and failed miserably!  I just cannot get branches that look right.  It is probably my poor ability with anything plant/flower like - even putting some branches in a vase is too much for me!  I MUST get it sorted tonight, ready for the Easter bank holiday weekend - I need my felt eggs displayed!

Dragging the Flower Thing Out...

I was just about to leave for work this morning, when I glanced in the mirror and realised I still had my hair in a towel on my head!!  That would have been an interesting look for the day...! 

Back to craft news... I am still working on the project with the flower.  I got a bit distracted, so it isn't finished, but here is another clue:

I'm really dragging out this flower thing, aren't I?!  I'll finish it tonight and will show you the finished item tomorrow, then I'll stop - honest!!  (It's not even that exciting - not really worth all this suspense!)


Now this is what I got distracted with - I was making this instead:

'What is it?!' I hear you cry... it is a random little crocheted ball in lilac cotton!  My crochet skills are very basic, so I'm really pleased that I managed to make it.  It may not look like much, but to me it is a great achievement!  (It's the little things!)  I am going to add some bits to it and attempt to turn it into something cute... I've got an idea, although I'm not quite sure if it will work yet!  Watch this space!