Poor in pocket...

but rich in friends..... had just the best weekend with Mr and Mrs Bessie, some of you may have read about the Bessie's but don't know who they are... well I just had to share this lovely picture of them

that's them, bless their old hearts!

Ally Pally was as good as usual, met up with some friends and spent far too much, esp at LBcrafts and The Artistic Stamper.... yummy paints and yummy stamps and yummy goodies that one just had to have! Can't wait to have a play with them............ and my friend Debs gave me the most awesome thing to alter that she picked up from a car boot sale for me, so I have no excuse to get out my new paints!

Now AP is over, I can post a few things that I made and gave to some special people at AP... two very late birthday presents!

A pressie for Dee62 who had a 'significant' birthday last month

An altered Tuna Tin... grungeboard. For a smaller friend who we tease that she must live under a toadstool, who's birthday was in July!

No prizes for guessing who this is for, not a Birthday pressie, just a pressie for her new purple bedroom!

I was very chuffed with the 'Best Mate' bit, do you recognise it? I managed to take a mould of a 'Love Heart' sweet (which I have to admit I loved as a child and still love them, they are my guilty pleasure!) - anyway I took a mould and then made a polymer clay embellishment from it. Obviously you can't make and sell them, but great fun for personal projects.

Oh well back to real life again now... off to pack tomorrows lunches, check school uniforms, polish shoes etc etc

Four Flat Feet

I may have just mentioned that I am staying at Mrs Bessie's ready to go to Ally Pally tomorrow, well we spent a lovely morning shopping in Canterbury and she happened to spy some boring white plimsolls.. much the same as my boring white plimsolls - as were. Hers aren't boring anymore because we have been playing together this afternoon with glimmer mists (now all down my green tee shirt) and fabric paints (the gold of which is now down my navy tee shirt) copper tape and grungeboard... cool aren't they! I like hers better but she won't let me wear them! Just as well really cos my name isn't Sparkles and they are two sizes too big for my delicate little pinkies!

Still trying to get out a Creative Rut

And having a play with different colours. I have been caught up using mainly autumnal colours, so I am trying to get out of my comfort zone and have a little experiment with some colours.

 I saw an article in the most recent Somerset Studio, where the artist loved pink and green. It looked nice, I thought I would have a play. Mmmmmmmm....... been messing about with this for a few days now, experimenting with different shades of both the pink and the green. The Artist (I'll get up out of my comfy armchair in a mo and go and get the mag and tell you who she is..) did say it is very dependant on particular shades of both the pink and green, and I have to agree. I don't think this is quite what I was after, sometimes I like the whole thing, other times I don't... just not sure. Is it the colour? Is it the whole thing? I suspect it may grow on me, but then again maybe it won't.

 Can you tell I am rather undecided??

Still I have had fun doing it.

 Still rather Kelly Rae Roberts influenced but I hope I have put my own slant on it. The face is on a mini canvas so stands out from the rest and the little girl stamp is on Stampboard.

The whole thing is supposed to tell a story, and it does to me, so I guess I have got quite alot out of making it

Found her - Lisa Kaus - wow check her blog!!

Update from when I wrote this last night! -

 Looking back at the mag i have totally overdone the pink and green, but having said that, looking at this in the daylight I am getting rather attached to it. It's interesting having a play with colours you don't usually use or don't think you like, give it a go!

Had the best weekend...

Nowt better for the soul than spending a few days with treasured friends.

Just back from our yearly camping trip with 'The Friday Friends' Five families who all met after the birth of our first babies and four of us had our second babies within 9 weeks of each other.

It is lovely to see all the kids together - 11 of them now, they only meet up in school holidays but when they do it's like they have never been apart, it's lovely to see. As for us adults.. we just drink and eat and laugh, it's a tonic being with these guys!!




Been having a little play in the last couple of days altering a notebook... I haved loved this colour combination of Red/yellow/orange, ever since Sian made me a BRAK using these colours a few years ago. I've had these face stamps for a while now but because they are square I've never been quite sure how to use them, so I had a play with them altogether on here. Quite pleased with the result, not sure the photo does it justice though... I should be more patient and wait until I have daylight to photograph my stuff!!

The seven weeks of school holidays have gone so very quickly and my little buddies will be back at school next week... I'm very sad, but then again I am quite excited about having a bit more craft time to myself!

But before then I have a school bag to alter for number one daughter who is off to high school, so I better get on.... the order of the day is Skeletons, but that may well change!!

Oh and have I mentioned it's only 25 sleeps till Ally Pally and 24 sleeps till I make my way to Kent to see my Number One bessie???

Brilliant Fund Raising Idea!!

Can you tell what it is yet???

My Sister in Law works for the Norfolk Deaf Association, as a charity they rely on getting funding and fundraising, think this is one of their more brilliant ideas....

"P in a Pot"

So it starts as a disposable urine bottle, people take one, decorate it and then fill it with their 'P's'...... what a fab idea! Then they are handed back in October and judged... well the judging is just a bit of fun, but hopefully they will earn a load of cash. so far they have heard of helicopters and reclining pandas!

Here's my effort,

Now for the easy part, filling it with our loose change!

Bottle tops and more on my book! Oh and a question....

Well the British Summer has been and gone, back to socks and woollies and my snug craftroom, the nice thing about the British weather is that when it isn't good you have no guilty feelings about creating, so I have done a couple of things this week (well 2 and a half, but more about the half later!)

The very talented Tish challenged us on the DC forum to alter a bottle top... the beer kind! Mmmmm they were supposed to be charms, but since when have I done exactly as I was told and mine have turned into magnets! The nice thing about magnets on BT's is though that you don't have to glue them on as the magnet sticks to them as well, so it the recipient wants a charm they can remove the magnet and use that on something else. Having said this these magnets are so strong you have to prise them off !!

Oh look........... yet more clay! And a bit of grunge paper!

This week has been a free week on the Altered Book course I am doing, to allow people to catch up although you could do a spread if you wished to. I have done a two page spread using the clay leaves that I put through the pasta machine (post below) and inspired by Ingrid's button edges I have edged the pages as well with some grunge paper which extends further than the rest of the pages (as do the buttons) I really like this look, although it would counteract the effect if you did it on two many pages. A simple idea to edge you pages, but I wouldn't have thought of it so thanks Ingrid for your inspiration!

Not sure if you can see from the picture but I have found a few words on the pages and painted around them, making up my own 'quote' but this involved reading the book... mmmmm it's actually quite interesting, maybe I shouldn't have started altering it !!!

Now... My S.I.L. has come up with a brilliant fundraising idea for the Norfolk Deaf Association for whom she works, but it involves altering something................ can anyone can guess what it is?, I bet noone will ever ever guess.... Will post a piccy when it's complete , probably early next week!

Yummy Grungepaper

Well I've had my first play with this lovely stuff, which is just like Grungeboard, but alot thinner, more the stiffness of thin card rather than paper but has loads of possibilities. It can be treated just the same as GB but can also be folded. punched and stitched (wondering at this point whether it can be printed on.. mmm must give that a try!) ... by punched I mean you can punch shapes out of it with your paper punches, not physically punched, though if you have had a bad day I'm it wouldn't mind a bit of battering!!

Anyway here is my first quick project, an Ipod case. It will be interesting to see how it stands up to rolling around in my handbag and alot of handling!

It has been painted, glimmermisted, stamped, put through my wizard with a cuttlebug embossing folder, and I have glued and added eyelets to the 'seam'. I did intend on sewing along the edges and tried to use a sewing machine that I borrowed from a friend, but found the bit for winding the cotton onto the bobbin was broken. she has informed me this morning that you need to use a toothpick and bit of blutack...... anyway I couldn't wait for her expert technical knowledge so used eyelets instead!

It's not a great finished project but at least I have had a play and got something to protect the new Ipod that is causing me more headaches that any crafty project.. Any Ipod experts out there??

I will have to experiment a bit more with the GP, but on first impressions it's alot of fun and has endless possibilities!

Took delivery yesterday of some love alterable stuff that we will using at Your Creative Journey later this month and will also later be selling on our website, so bookmark the site and keep popping back! There are still a few places available at our workshops if you are quick!

Thank heaven for Garages...

those without cars in of course.. who has room for a car in their garage?? and for OH's that hoard bits and pieces.... been rummaging in the garage for bits for the ABSA swap. Came up with a piece of Perspex that has holes in it (Matt has no idea where it came from or what it's for!) and a clip for a conservatory blind, redundant now as he no longer fits blinds!

So here is my other offering for the swap, as I have been strict over this swap it's called 'Does this measure up?' The Tag is made from the wonderful Grunge board I bought at Ally pally, lovely bendy durable paintable /inkable/embossable/everythingable stuff I love it. Just in case you were wondering, Yes you do need some!!

Better go and tidy up again as without a word of a lie I made this in a space 6"x6" on my workbench! I would take a photo but I'm too embarrassed!