Thursday, September 29, 2011

Six Inch Crochet Blanket Sampler - Dahlia

Dahlia


Technique: Crochet

Materials:
8 ply yarn in 3 colours

Tools:
4mm crochet hook

Finished Size:
6 inches

This is another of the blocks from Jan Eaton's book, I quite like this one, was quick and easy to put together.  

It's funny when I started the year blogging I did so with a new years resolution to daily creativity and I used the blog simply as a record of that.  I had no followers, I just used the blog as a daily journal.  Now that I have followers I feel a little embarrased some days, most of you probably don't care in the least that I made a crochet block for a blankie!  

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Santa's Matchbox Suit

Santa's Suit Matchbox


Technique:  Papercrafting

Papers:
Crimson Weave by American Crafts
black card

Other:
scrap of black ribbon
silver buckle
rhinestone brads
double sided adhesive
matchbox or matchbox die

A cute little treat box that can be whipped up in no time at all.  I recently purchased the Quickutz Matchbox Die because I was using so many matchboxes that I felt it was actually more environmentally friendly to cut my own out of card scraps and recycled boxes, than the buy the matchboxes when I don't really need the matches just the boxes.

So my box above was cut from red and black card using the die, but you could just as easily cover a matchbox with coloured card.  The buckle is the type used on wedding favours threaded through a little scrap of ribbon, and a few rhinestone brads popped in for buttons.  You could whip up a dozen or more in an hour I reckon.

Do you ever have too many ideas going around in your head?  So much so that you actually end up spending all your time thinking and none of your time creating?  I am hoping that this clean, quick little project is like a mini detox for my brain LOL

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Teddy Boo! Halloween Card

Teddy Boo


Technique:  Papercraft

Stamps:
Teddy Boo stamp from Teddy Bo

Papers:
Spook kit by Karla Dudley (available at Design House Digital)
black card
kraft card

Pens, Pencils, Inks etc:
Prismacolour pencils
Black Soot Distress Ink

Other:
corner scroll punch by Fiskars
Halloween die by Sizzix
adhesives
Odorless Mineral Spirits

This is my second attempt at colouring with Primsacolor pencils, I wanted to play with colouring on Kraft card.  A lot of the tutorials I read said that you didn't need to use OMS when working on Kraft, but I chose too use it on my base layer, and then bring in a layer over the top.  I was pretty happy with the way the white looked, and happy enough overall with the Prismacolors to get some more tomorrow :o)

Teddy Boo


One of the issues that had been frustrating me was smearing.  My digis are printed on a laser printer, and the OMS was causing the black print to smear when you rubbed the paper stump over the black lines.  I bought a spray fixative, which worked perfectly on the kraft card so here's hoping it works on plain white card!


Teddy Boo
I'm not scared, I'm not scared, I'm not scared
ok... maybe just a little...

The sketch is from Willow Sketchie Challenge, who are offering a fabulous prize for entering!



Entering this card into the following challenges:

Willow Sketchie Challenge Blog:  Sketch
Teddy Bo:  Things with Wings (bats)
Creative Card Crew:  Easel Card 
Cupcake Craft Challenge: Main image to be a teddy bear 
The Kraft Journal:  Ghosts, Goblins or Witches 
Mygrafico Challenge Blog:  Halloween

Monday, September 26, 2011

Vintage St Nick Ornament

Vintage St Nick


Technique:  Stamping

Stamps:
Bo Bunny St Nick Santa Dear

Pens, Inks etc
Vintage Photo Distress Ink
Versacolor Black Ink
Versacolor Metallic Gold Ink

Papers:
Kaisercraft Timeless Sheet Music paper
sheet music from a hymn book
corrugated card

Other stuff:
Scor-pal
adhesives
glitter
Spellbinders Circle Nestabilities

I adore this Bo Bunny stamp, it's an old release (2009) and I found it by rummaging through a neglected box of stamps at a local scrap book store.  I've stamped St Nick using black ink directly onto a hymn sheet and used black embossing ink to bring him to life.  I finally managed to find someone in Australia who had the circle nestabilities dies (yay!) and have used these to create the the circles for both Santa, the corrugated card and the backing circle.

The rosette is made from two 1.5" strips cut from the Kaisercraft Timeless Sheet Music paper, scored at half inch increments and then joined together.  The edges of just about everything have been inked with Vintage Photo distress ink.  The corrugated card is inked with just a smidge of gold ink and then has a rim of gold glitter applied.  Finally a small piece of gold cord is adhered to the back so it can be hung on the tree.

Linkies:
Make it Monday:  Always Anything Goes

Sunday, September 25, 2011

September Angels

September Angel


Technique: Crochet

Hi and welcome, I am so glad you found me!

Every week I crochet an angel and send it off to someone who is need of hope through an organization called Angels for Hope. This is fantastic way to let people know that no matter what they are dealing with, that they are not alone. Each week I blog about it in the hopes that someone who wanders this way will read it and spread the word.

To celebrate the start of Spring all of my September angels are made with  a soft baby weight yarn with beautiful pastel colours. I can't believe this is the last one for the month already!

If you like to crochet and would like to register for Angels for Hope you can do so here. Also, if you know someone who is need of an Angel, you can put in your request there.

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Christmas Across The Miles

Teddy Bo Postcard


Technique:  Papercrafting

Stamps:
Teddy Bo 128
Postcards from the Mini Holidays set by Tim Holtz

Pens, Inks & Colours:
Prismacolor pencils
Aged Mahogany Distress Ink
Vintage Photo Distress Ink

Papers:
Kaisercraft Dec 25th Collection (Wish)
Graphic 45 Christmas Emporium Collection (Believe)

Other:
adhesive
odorless solvent
paper blending stubs

The challenge at Winter Wonderland this week is to create a card to send to loved ones who live abroad, and further....  "Please be sure to show on your card with your sentiment that this card is going across the miles."

I chose an image from Teddy Bo that features little Bo holding a letter, and I added the sentiment in Gimp (the font is called A Little Pot).

Teddy Bo is coloured with Prismacolor pencils, and this is my very first attempt at trying to colour with these pencils and odorless solvent.  The Teddy Bo blog has a tutorial each week, and if you follow the tutorial and enter using a Teddy Bo image they send you another one free, so he's being popped over there, and a thankyou to Nicole Tietje for writing the tutorial on using Prismacolors.  I need a *lot* more practise but the variation and tone in colour I could get even with no skill was fantastic.


Teddy Bo Postcard


The card is made from a sheet called Wish from the Kaisercraft Dec 25th Collection.  This is the first time I have made a card without using a co-ordinating plain card to make mats, I have just used the front and back as the exterior and interior, this was partially as experimentation and partially to keep the weight of the card down for postage.  The postcard on the front is from Graphic 45, and the postcard inside was made from plain white card, stamped with a Tim Holtz postcard stamp and aged with Vintage Photo distress ink.


Teddy Bo Postcard


A simple card, no bling or frou frou, I have several cards that need to go overseas and I wasn't sure whether this was going to be sent to a male or female so I wanted something with generic appeal, and I wanted something that would post well and not get damaged in transit with little fragile bits.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Six Inch Crochet Blanket Sampler - Daisy Chain

Daisy Chain


Technique: Crochet

Materials:
8 ply yarn in 3 colours

Tools:
4mm crochet hook

Finished Size:
6 inches

This is another of the blocks from Jan Eaton's book, and this one was perfect, no adjustment necessary, the right size and right number of stitches first time!  I have over 20 squares now and have started blocking them, I'd like to get the blanket completed before the end of the year.

Chester's Music Box

Chester's Music Box


Technique:  Papercraft

Stamps:
Retro Chester by Pollycraft

Pens & Inks:
Copic Pens
Earth Tone: E31, E33, E35
Flesh: E000, E02
Orange: YR02, YR04
Grey: C0, C3, C5, C7, C9
Mustard: Y23, Y26, Y28
Sakura Gelly Roll pen in silver
Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink

Papers:
Xtron by Kaisercraft

The second challenge at LESS-ology is to make a trinket box, and of course you must upcycle at least one item.  So many choices! I chose a box of tea.


Chester's Music Box


The first thing I did was to re-inforce all the edges with tape, the type that picture framers use.  This also hides all the multi-coloured corners.


Chester's Music Box


Then each panel of the box was covered with paper, the edges inked with a little Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink.


Chester's Music Box


Chester has been coloured with Copic pens. I had a little mishap that turned out quite fortuitously.  When I uncapped one of my markers three blobs of ink flew onto the paper, so I had to cut away the background.  This turned out quite well though I thought.


Chester's Music Box

This box is now proudly being displayed in my son's room who is using it to store his Nintendo DS games.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Paperclay Gingerbread Ornament

Gingerbread Heart Ornament


Technique:  Stamping

Materials:
air drying paperclay
Gingerbread House Heart by High Hopes rubber stamp
acrylic paints
drying retarder (or stain of your choice)
ribbon, felt & adhesive

This was a very simple ornament to make.  I often prefer working with paperclay because you can use it instantly, it doesn't require conditioning like polymer clay, and there's no baking, no need for separate equipment, no toxicity etc.

Tthought I should add a little more info on the paperclay as a few have never worked with it before.  I use a brand called Darwi, mostly because that is what is available here, but there is also Creative Paperclay and I think even companies like Crayola make a version branded for children.

Paperclay doesn't require any firing, depending on the thickness it will air dry in around 24 hours.  As soon as you open the packet put it in a zip loc bag and only take out as much as you will need.  I find it easier to work with if I wet my hands first, and you will notice that you get a fine, silky "slip" on your hands the same way as you would with real clay.  It needs minimal kneading to get it to soften, and any tears or splits while you are working with it can be quickly and easily repaired with a damp brush.

To make this ornament, roll out a piece of paperclay on a baking sheet or non stick craft mat  with a rolling pin.  Use a firm pressure to stamp your image directly onto the clay.  I used a mounted red rubber stamp  from High Hopes and got a nice, deep, clean impression.  I haven't tried acrylic stamps, so I can't vouch for the success of those, they don't tend to be as deep so it may now give as good as an impression.

With a sharp knife or scalpel cut around the outside of the stamped image, depending on the stamp you used you could use a cookie cutter for this step.  Set aside to dry over night.

Once thoroughly dry the paperclay can be painted.  I gave mine a base coat of a brown biscuit colour and then when that was dry, I mixed a little burnt umber paint with some drying retarder so that I could use it as a stain (which is primarily what ready bought stains are, a colour medium with a drying retarder so you have time to work with it).  Using a soft cloth I rubbed it over the entire 'cookie' making sure it sat heavily in the stamped image to create a contrast.

Once dry I finished with a few coats of spray varnish, adding a ribbon at the back to hang it on the tree and covering the back with brown felt for neatness.

Challenges:

Make It Monday #55:  Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp:  Sing It (I'll Be Home for Christmas)
High Hopes Stamps:  Home For The Holidays

For more information on paperclay and other air drying clay, The New Clay News is an excellent place to start.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Wassail Package

Wassail Package


Technique:  Papercraft

Stamps:
Chef Tilda
snowflake stamp

Pens & Inks:
Copic Markers
Dusty Pink: R81, R83, R85
Earth Tones: E11, E13, E15, E17, E19, E21, E23, E25, E29
Flesh: E0000, E000, E02
Sakura Gellyroll Pen in white
Versacolor in white

Papers:
brown craft paper
spotty patterned paper is a free download from here

Other:
Threading Water punch by Fiskars
string

Wassailing is the pre-cursor to the Christmas tradition of caroling, wassailing refers to a traditional ceremony that involves singing and drinking the health of trees in the hopes that they might better thrive.

Wassail the beverage is a hot, mulled punch often associated with Yuletide. Historically, the drink was a mulled cider made with sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg and topped with slices of toast. Modern recipes begin with a base of wine, fruit juice, or mulled ale, sometimes with brandy or sherry added. Apples or oranges are often added to the mix. 

The tradition, as it was taught to me, included villagers going around from house to house with a wassail bowl (a toasting mug).  At each house their bowl would be filled with a warm alcoholic cider and they would give a loud WASSAIL! (the toast).  There are several versions of wassailing songs that were sung as the wassailers went from door to door, I imagine the more often their wassail bowl was emptied the rowdier they became!

Wassail (mulled wine) is something I make when we celebrate "Christmas in July" or the mid-winter solstice.  One of my friends has often asked me for the recipe, but I have always told it to her verbally, you know how it is "oh its just a bit of this and a bit of that", so this is my gift to her.  Cooking is one of her passions, and she spent a great deal of her childhood in Holland, so little Chef Tilda felt perfect for her.

Wassail Package


I am entering this into the Winter Wonderland challenge this week, which is Girly Christmas (must have an image of a girl).  I doubt it's fancy enough to win anything other than a big smile at Christmas, but that's worth more than anything :o)

Wassail Package



Morgan's Mulled Wine
10 cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 roughly grated nutmeg
1 orange, skin intact, sliced
1 bottle of Merlot
Place all the ingredients in a 
crockpot on low for an hour.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

September Angels

September Angel


Technique: Crochet

Every week I crochet an angel and send it off to someone who is need of hope through an organization called Angels for Hope. This is fantastic way to let people know that no matter what they are dealing with, that they are not alone. Each week I blog about it in the hopes that someone who wanders this way will read it and spread the word.

To celebrate the start of Spring all of my September angels are made with  a soft baby weight yarn with beautiful pastel colours.

If you like to crochet and would like to register for Angels for Hope you can do so here. Also, if you know someone who is need of an Angel, you can put in your request there.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Christmas Tree Altered Book

Altered Book


Technique:  Papercraft

Pens & Inks:
Versacolor metallic gold ink

Papers:
Bo Bunny "Father Christmas Holly"
Paisley Park "Father Christmas Around The World"

Dies:
Tiny Tabs & Tags by Tim Holtz

Other:
hard cover book to be altered
gold mica spray (ie Glimmermist)
gold glitter
gold cord
gold brads
red and gold ribbon
hot glue gun

This is my first altered book, and whilst I don't consider it to be "arty" I was pleased with the result, and it suit's me as it's function is a practical one.  The tree in the centre is not just decorative, it's a Christmas card holder.

I started with a book called Quartets for Men, which is a book of gospel hymns.  I picked this up at the Salvation Army thrift shop for a song (I made a punny!).  I removed the first and last page because this was a thicker sheet and would have created issues when folded. 


treebook1


This left a small gap in some places between the meat of the book and the covers, which I sealed up with tissue tape.


Altered Book


Then the hours of folding started, well not really but it did take longer than I expected! 

To create the fold for the tree take the top right hand corner and fold it down to the spine.


Altered Book


Take that folded edge and carry it in toward the spine once more.


Altered Book


Tuck up the bottom flap.


Altered Book


Repeat that for all the pages.  My book was some 200 pages or thereabouts, and I removed around 20 sheets to ease out some bulk.  This was necessary otherwise the bulk of the folded pages would force the covers to extend beyond the flat 180 degrees that I wanted. 


Altered Book


Once all the pages were folded I lined the inside of both covers with the Bo Bunny patterened papper and then misted the entire surface with a gold mica spray, if you do this less is more, you don't want the pages to wrinkle.

When dry I squeezed the pages of the book together and ran a glue stick along the folded edges, not too hard though, you don't want to force glue between the folds so that the pages stick together, and gave a dusting of gold glitter.

The four little ornaments are made using the Tiny Tags die, which just happens to be the same size as the circles on the Paisley Park paper.  Cut out four tags, and four images of Santa.  Glue the images to the tags and trim any overhang.  Ink around the tag using the Versa metallic gold ink.


Altered Book


The tags are "attached" with a gold brad - what I did there was remove the prongs from the brad and hot glued it into position, that way nothing was sticking through the other side.  The final touch was a red bow atop the tree.

The cover of the book is a faux green leather, and the title of the book is imprinted with gold ink.  I decided not to cover it with paper and just give it a spritz of gold mica.

Here's the tree holding a few Christmas cards.  If you prefer it could be purely decorative and then you could adorn the tree with all manner of bling.


Altered Book


This is being entered into (and was inspired by) the first LESS-ology challenge which is to alter a book.  I am so excited about this challenge, as I love altering and upcycling and that is more within my comfort zone than card making.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Six Inch Crochet Blanket Sampler - Diamond In A Square

Diamond In A Square


Technique: Crochet

Materials:
8 ply yarn in 3 colours

Tools:
4mm crochet hook

Finished Size:
6 inches

This is another of the blocks from Jan Eaton's book, and this one only took a minor adjustment to get it to a uniform 6" in size. In the original pattern the 6th row is single crochet, to get the block to the correct size I had to do mine as a row of double crochet.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Coffin Treat Box

Coffin Treat Box


Technique:  Papercraft

Materials:
card stock
adhesive
white pastel chalk

Tools:
scissors
scoring tool
halloween embossing folder
Sizzix Big Shot

This project comes from Martha Stewart, the links to download the templates and the tutorial video are below:

Coffin lid template
Coffin base template
Coffin treat box tutorial video

For my personal touch, once I had the coffin constructed I embossed a piece of black card using a Halloween Texture Fade, which I sanded lightly and then brushed over with a white pastel chalk.  I also sanded all of the edges of the box to distress and ran the chalk over them as well, I really like the old, dusty look this gives the black card.


Coffin Treat Box

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Steampunk Debutante Bag

Steampunk Bag


Technique:  Papercrafting

Pens & Inks:
Vintage Photo Distress Ink
bronze and copper inks or paints

Papers:
Steampunk Debutante by Graphic 45
grunge paper

Dies:
Spritely Sprockets by Spellbinders
Tattered Floral by Tim Holtz

Other:
double sided adhesive tape
emery board
paper mache shopping bag
buttons
Vintage Photo stickles
jewellery chain for handle

The bag is made from sturdy paper mache and is approx 6" square by 2" deep.  I left the paper mache raw, choosing only to sand it a little to give it some tooth, and then adhered the graphic 45 paper to all sides, including the bottom, with double sided tape.  

I went around all of the edges with an emery board to distress them (an emery board is an economical little disposable sander), and then liberally applied Vintage Photo distress ink.

The gears are cut from the reverse side of the paper.  I applied double sided tape to the side I didn't want to be showing and then ran it through the Big Shot.  Voila!  I now had gear stickers.  I was so pleased with myself for thinking of this, it saves fiddling with glue which I can never seem to get neat.

The flowers are cut from grungepaper using the Tattered Floral die, and sponged with copper and bronze acrylic paints, flowers and buttons are all glued into place with hot glue and the flowers are given a liberal dusting of Stickles.  A 50cm length of chain is used for each handle, secured inside with a split ring.


Steampunk Bag


Challenges:
Simon Says Stamp and Show:  Steampunk

Monday, September 12, 2011

Chocolate Belly Band for Blokes

Blokes Choc


Technique:  Papercraft

Stamps & Images:
Sitting Santa Flippin Decoupage

Pens and Inks:
Peeled Paint Distress Ink

Papers:
American Crafts Crimson Weave
We R Memory Keepers White Christmas
sports pages from the newspaper

For the longest time I was a Christmas Grinch.  I hated Christmas, I felt the yearly ritual of buying socks, jocks and chocolate was a farce.  Office parties, end of school get togethers, Secret Santa, I hated it all.

That has all changed now, and I realized that for me, if I gave a meaningless gift (generic junk or gift cards) then the gesture was meaningless because I wasn't giving of myself, I was only giving of my wallet, and I begrudged the financial obligation.

So now, I love gifts that I can make quickly and easily, that don't break the budget, but have meaning for both myself and the recipient.  It's doubly good if I can give something that makes the recipient laugh or smile, because that's the best gift of all :o)

I am going to make a stash of these chocolate belly bands for last minute gifts, stocking stuffers and basket fillers, door and raffle prize donations and secret santa swaps.  The construction itself is very simple, intentionally so, I wanted these to be quick to make, easy to give and fun to receive. 

The image I chose features Santa having "a break" while reading the paper, so I picked up on the paper theme and carried that throughout the project.  Santa is placed on a "naughty or nice" list taken from a We R Memory Keepers paper called White Christmas. The edges have been inked with Peeled Paint distress ink before being placed on a red belly band which is slipped over a block of chocolate that has been wrapped in the sports pages from the weekend paper, giving this a distinctly masculine feel.

On the back is the sentiment which reads:


Blokes Choc


Thanks for looking and I hope your sense of humour is as warped as mine and you got a good giggle out of this :o)

Challenges:
Winter Wonderland:  Santa Clause is Coming to Town
Totally Gorjuss:  It's a Man Thing 
Cards for Men:  Anything but a square 
The Corrosive Challenge Blog:  Funny or Punny

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Steptember Angels

September Angel


Technique: Crochet

I can't believe a week has gone by already, I don't feel like I got anything done!

Every week I crochet an angel and send it off to someone who is need of hope through an organization called Angels for Hope. This is fantastic way to let people know that no matter what they are dealing with, that they are not alone. Each week I blog about it in the hopes that someone who wanders this way will read it and spread the word.

To celebrate the start of Spring all of my September angels are made with  a soft baby weight yarn with beautiful pastel colours.

If you like to crochet and would like to register for Angels for Hope you can do so here. Also, if you know someone who is need of an Angel, you can put in your request there.

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Recycled CD Ornament

Recycled CD Ornament


Technique:  Papercraft

Stamps:
Drew's Cupcake digi by Designed to Delight
Two Apples digi by Designed to Delight

Pens & Inks:
Reds:
Greens:
Denim Blue: B91, B93, B95
Sky Blue: B24, B26, B28
Flesh: E0000, E000, E02
Red: R22, R24, R27
Green: G03, G05, G07
Grey: C0, C3, C5, C7, C9
Bundled Sage Distress Ink
clear Spica Pen
glitter gel pens

Papers:
Waiting for Santa Collection by Webster's Pages

Other:
old CD
wide double sided tape
double sided foam adhesive
ribbon
Sparkly Fluff
Rock Candy Stickles

We have stacks and stacks of old compact discs lying about the place, quite literally in the hundreds I would guess, which predate the portable hard drives that now store all our data.  I have been itching to find a way to use one, this challenge was perfect :o)

Using the CD as a template, cut two circles from your designer paper.  I used the Waiting for Santa collection by Webster's Pages, the paper has ornaments with the alphabet and drawn lines giving a very school book type feel, and this is going to be an ornament for my son's teacher.

I used strip of double sided tape on each side of the CD to secure the ribbon into place, sorry for the terrible photo, I should have done the non reflective side first, but I wanted to show you how I secured the ribbon.

Recycled CD Ornament


Once the ribbon was secure I covered one side with double sided tape and stuck the first circle of paper into position. 


Recycled CD Ornament


The edges were trimmed with scissors, and then I took an emery board to the edges and lightly sanded to remove any overhang still remaining and smooth the edges.

Recycled CD Ornament


Both sides of the CD are covered in the same way, then the edges inked with Bundled Sage distress ink.

One side of the ornament has the Drew with Cupcake digi sitting to one side, I've used sparkly fluff and glitter glue to make it look less like a birthday cupcake and a little more Christmas-y.  I haven't put on much in the way of embellishments, because the blank space you see there next to Drew, will be where my son writes a personal message to his teacher.

The other side of the ornament has a Christmas wreath made from apples (apple for the teacher).  I used Gimp to make the background on the apples digi transparent, and then used Word to fiddle about until I had a wreath shape I was happy with and then after printing and colouring, fussy cut it to make a photo frame.

Recycled CD Ornament


The finishing touch is a double bow on each side, made from the same ribbon as was used to create the hanger, but a thinner version. 


Challenges:
Christmas Stamping All Year Long:  Teacher's Pet
ABC Christmas Challenge: R is for Recycled plus Ribbon or Rhinestone
Crafty Ribbons Challenge:  Christmas Cheer in September 
Papertake Weekly:  Anything Goes

Friday, September 9, 2011

Catching up with Stamping Mathilda

Once a week I spend the day playing catch up, adding the finishing touches to any projects not quite yet done, taking photos and browsing the net for inspiration, and as always, looking for free patterns and interesting tutorials, and this week with my craft room in a total shambles I felt like I have needed more than one catch up day!

I don't remember when I first stumbled across Stamping Mathilda's site, but I am so glad that I did.  The artist, Godelieve Tijskens is wonderfully inspiring.  She has designed for Darkroom Door and Art Journey, and her site contains a beautiful array of projects that include both classic rubber stamping and card making to art journalling.  Whenever I am feeling low on inspiration a cup of tea and an hour at Godelieve's site and I am fully recharged.

She posts frequently, every other day or so, making her website rich with content.  There are plenty of tutorials and as she is also a photographer the blog itself is eye candy.  Do go visit her site, you won't be disappointed!

Here are just two of my favorites out of hundreds of projects and tutorials:

Votive holder made from vellum.

An ongoing project she has to illustrate a dictionary.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Six Inch Crochet Blanket Sampler - Catherine Wheel

Catherine Wheel


Technique: Crochet

Materials:
8 ply yarn in 3 colours

Tools:
4mm crochet hook

Finished Size:
6 inches

This is another of the blocks from Jan Eaton's book, and yet another pattern that took quite a bit of fiddling and fussing to get a uniform 6" in size.  Next time I am picking one block and making an entire blanket with the one design, that way I know without any fuss that all the blocks will be the same size!

Time to start blocking these, after which I will take more photo's, they will look so much prettier when they are actually square :o)

This week I discovered puppies like to play with wool every bit as much as kittens do!

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Angel "Pin Up" Doll

Angel "Pin Up" doll


Materials:
wooden clothes pin
large wooden bead for the head
acrylic paints for the skin and face
no. 10 crochet thread
steel size 7 crochet hook
flesh coloured embroidery floss
gold chenille stick
curly blonde dolls hair

The craft room is still in various stages of upheaval but I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel!

To make this cute little angel, follow the basic instructions in my tutorial on how to make a clothes pin doll to make the body, using the gold chenille stick for her sleeves.

The dress is a free pattern for a halloween angel, but instead of making it in black and orange I did it in white for a traditional angel.

For her hair I have glued a few curls of  dolls hair to the top of the bead, and her shoes are based in gold paint with a dusting of gold glitter over the top.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Hooray for Birthdays

Birthday Gus


Technique:  Papercraft

Images:
Gus Birthday digi from Bugaboo Stamps

Markers, Inks & Pens:
Flesh: E0000, E000, E02
Denim Blue: B91, B93, B95
Moss Green: YG61, YG62, YG67
Orange: YR02, YR04
Redwood: E15, E17, E19
Faded Denim distress ink

Designer papers:
Little Toot Collection - Cruise by Kaisercraft
Seaside Collection - Coast Line by Kaisercraft

Embellishments:
Glossy Accents on glasses
yellow glitter glue on headlights
metallic silver pen on handle bars


Another birthday in the house this week, this time for a 29 year old male.  He's a funny guy, a little cantankerous at times, we often joke that he is an old man trapped in a young man's body, so dear Gus seemed the perfect choice!

The sentiment on the front comes with the digi, and inside it reads "Hooray for Birthdays".

I think the only birthday card left to make is for my Mother at the end of this month, then nothing until January, which gives me a good long stretch to work on Christmas cards and gifts.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

September Angels

September Angel


Technique: Crochet

Every week I crochet an angel and send it off to someone who is need of hope through an organization called Angels for Hope. This is fantastic way to let people know that no matter what they are dealing with, that they are not alone. Each week I blog about it in the hopes that someone who wanders this way will read it and spread the word.

A new month and a new colour, to celebrate the start of Spring I chose a soft baby weight yarn with beautiful pastel colours.

If you like to crochet and would like to register for Angels for Hope you can do so here. Also, if you know someone who is need of an Angel, you can put in your request there.