Saturday 28 May 2011

I Love ..... Cath Kidston Bags

Like most people I know, I am a big fan of Cath Kidston prints, especially on bags.  Last year for my birthday and then for Christmas I received a bag for my knitting and one to keep my felt projects in.


So how happy was I to discover that this month's Easy Living magazine also included a free CK print tote? 


So now imagine how over the moon I was this morning when upon opening my birthday pressies I  discovered that my wonderful husband Mr A had given a copy of Sew! which includes everything you need to make CK Shoulder Bag?






In case you hadn't worked it out, I am a very, very happy. xx

Birthday Presents

Just between you and me - it's my birthday today!

I have been super lucky and received some lovely presents. 

Here's a couple to take a peek at:

A cute, cute bag from my beautiful children ....



 .... and you know how much I love Owls, well my lovely friend Karen gave me this fab notecard set.



What a lucky girl I am.

Chelsea Flowers

I've enjoyed watching coverage of the Chelsea Flower Show this year.  The colour and form of the exotic plants coupled with the themes and structure of the garden designs - it's all really inspirational. 

I'm not very good at gardening truth be told, pansies are about as much as I can cope with (and they pretty much look after themselves!).  I do think they are really pretty though, so thought I would have a go at making a felt pansy brooch for my mum for her birthday. 

I choose a purple and lilac version (although it looks slightly blue in the photo) with a yellow centre and used a rich green colour for the background.  I'm really pleased with the shape of the petals, and although it turned out a little larger than I had intended, I think it will look really lovely on a jacket or bag.




Can't wait to give it to her.  Hope she likes it.  xx

A little treat

Wow, where has this week gone?  The last 7 days seem to have passed in the blink of an eye.  It hasn't been a terribly productive week for me in terms of making, but I have had fun (hope you have too?). 

Last Saturday I popped by the Warketon Village Craft Market, organised by Deanne over at Quirky Boots.  If you have not been yet, it's really worth a visit as you'll find lots of lovely local crafters selling their handmade products, plus there is an opportunity for a cream tea too - perfect! 

My friend Lorna from Dab and a Dash was there selling her handmade journals and notebooks along side other stall holders selling vintage sweets, jewellery, home accessories, vintage cake stands and driftwood art.

I treated myself to this beautiful rose scented candle.  I just love the green glass of the deco dressing table box - isn't it gorgeous?

 

Sunday 22 May 2011

I Love ..... Agatha Christie

On a Sunday, somewhere between swimming lessons (which start at 8:15am - yes, really, on a Sunday!!) dog walking, tennis lessons, bike riding, Sunday lunch (cooking and eating), homework, gardening and baking, we all go for a walk into town and have a coffee together.  And as long as I've remembered to pack the colouring books and pens for the children, I get to read for half an hour or so which is the the only time it happens in the week!.  

My favourite author of all time has to be Agatha Christie.  I know that some might find this a bit of an old fashioned choice but I prefer to think of it as vintage literature. 

I love anything to do with the 30s (art deco jewellery is another fav of mine) so I especially love the Poirot stories.  Apart from the fact that they are brilliant who done it's, the imagery is so romantic - ladies with matching hats and gloves, scarlet red lips and black patent bags, chaps with their sleek sports cars and gentleman's club both sipping cocktails on a steam train headed for the south of France.  Even the rotters are cool with their smoking, drinking and card playing. 

Yes a Sunday morning cup of coffee (a piece of chocolate cake) and an Agatha Christie and I'm a happy woman.



Tuesday 17 May 2011

Decopatch addict

On Saturday I had a lovely few hours at our monthly crop.  As well as being able to finish off a couple of (very) outstanding projects, we also got to try our hand at decopatch. 

Have you tried it yet?  It's fab, but be warned it is totally addictive. 



Since the crop I have been wandering around the house looking for things to decorate and, well the long and the short of it is, anything that isn't moving will basically get covered in pretty paper and glue! 

So on my workdesk this morning I have the first of my many decopatch projects and have a couple of lovely little papier-mache boxes which I intend to decorate - too cute!



What's on your workdesk this Wednesday morning?

Wishing you a productive day x.

Oh by the way, a big thank you to everyone that has left me lovely comments on my previous WOYWW posts - although I have visited everyone's blog in return, for some reason not all my comments are published.  I am sure this is due to my limited technical capability, so will endeavor to get it sorted today. xx

It's all me, me, me!

Both Deanne at Quirky Boots, and Julia at Stamping Ground have posted this fun list today, so we can all get to know them just a little bit better, take a look.

Thought it would be fun to have a go too:

A. Age: 37 (but next birthday at the end of the month).  I had planned to be a millionaire by the time I turned 40, better get my finger out I suppose

B. Bed size: double
C. Chore that you hate: ironing and I never do it coz let's face it, life is just too short.
D. Dogs: A very handsome Beagle named Frank (Mr A's choice of name).
E. Essential start to your day: a hot, strong cup of tea - I can't even speak until I've had at least 3 cups
F. Favorite color: purple (lilac, mauve, lavender, violet - I love them all)
G. Gold or Silver: platinum (ideally from Tiffany's darling)
H. Height: 5'10"
I. Instruments you play: None, but learning to play the piano is on my things to do before list
J. Job title: Crafty-mama
K. Kids: two - 6 year old Superhero and 4 year old Princess
L. Live: Market Haborough, UK
M. Mother's name: Sue
N. Nicknames: Dancing Queen
O. Overnight hospital stays: thankfully only when my babies were born
P. Pet peeve: being spoken over
Q. Quote from a movie: You're terrible Muriel
R. Right or left handed: Right
S. Siblings: one cool brother and one beautiful sister
T. Time you wake up: on a school day, around 5:30am - I like the calm before the storm
U. Underwear: these days more Bridget Jones giant pants
V. Vegetable you hate: haven't found one I dislike yet
W. What makes you run late: I'm always late for everything, there always seems to be just one more thing to do before I can leave the house
X. X-Rays you've had: only at the Dentist (eek!)
Y. Yummy food that you make: I make a mean Keema Lamb
Z. Zoo animal: technically not a zoo animal, but I think the Octopus is awesome - beautifully balletic and weirdly alien-like all at the same time.  

What's on your list?

Mollie Makes

I bought issue 1 of Mollie Makes yesterday, the new magazine for people who love the crafty life.



Have you had a chance to take a look yet? 

I really like it and spent a happy evening reading it from cover to cover.  For someone who is relatively new to crafting, I really like the mix of articles about established makers and designers, examples of cute handcrafted products and where to find them and inspirational projects.  I particularly like the Peter Pan Collars project, which will defo be added to my to do list.

Looking forward to issue 2.  

I Love..... notebooks

I love, love, love notebooks. I have hundreds of them.  Pretty little pads of paper perfect for slipping into my handbag or pocket ready for jotting down the next brilliant idea (lol), making a new list, or using as a mini scrapbook for stuff I like torn from this months magazine.  These are three of my current stash - aren't they cute?

Got there in the end

Those of you that are taking part in the Monthly Make Challenge over at the Felt Fairy will already know that the lovely Annie suggested making a Stanley the Dog as everyone's make for March.  Well being the type off chick that likes to dance to the rhythm of her own beat (or should that read; terrible scatterbrain that is always months behind everyone else?) my March make has turned into my May make, but hey ho, got there in the end.  I'm rather proud of the end result actually and am really loving the colour-combo - what do you think?

Sunday 8 May 2011

Sunday Baking - Country Loaf

 
This is a recipe that I have been making for years and it is absolutely delicious.  My mum used to make it for me and my brother and sister for tea on a Sunday and now I make it for my family.  I'm not sure where the original recipe came from (so don't know who to credit) and I guess it has changed a bit over the years, but this is how I make it today:

8oz self raising flour
2oz butter
1 egg
1 grated carrot
1 small onion
4oz cheese
1 teaspoon of mustard
a splash of milk

Mix all the ingredients together and pop in a greased loaf tin.  Cook at 180oC  for around 35 mins.

Serve warm with a generous spread of butter.  Totally yummy.

Enjoy x

Friday 6 May 2011

I Love .... a gin & tonic

I love a Friday night G & T.  For me it is the best way to start the weekend.

Ice and a slice anyone?



Have a fab weekend x

Wednesday 4 May 2011

Better late than never!

Whenever I leave the house it seems to me that I return with yet another square of felt for my ever expanding collection.  I think I must a have a piece of felt for every colour in the rainbow and then some.  So why is it that most of my projects end up either purple or pink (I guess I'm just too much of a girlie girl at heart - I can't help it!).  Well I have a couple of projects to work on this evening and am determined to use some different colours.  This is what I have on my workdesk today:



Doesn't it look lovely?

Both of these projects are well out of date, but hey, better late than never, right?

My first project is an Easter Chick.  I know, Easter was well over a week ago, but I only came across the pattern over at Myrtle & Eunice at the weekend and it's sooo cute that I just have to give it a go.

And my second project is Stanley the Dog for the Felt Fairy's Monthly Make Challenge for March! And yes I do realise that it is May already (and May the 4th be with you, by the way), but things have been a bit hectic and, well, I just never got round to it .... but tonight is the night.  I'll let you know how I get on!

Happy WOYWW x.

Monday 2 May 2011

May Day Flowers

I wanted to make something May Day related for my May entry for the Monthly Make Challenge.  Two reasons really - firstly, I thought if I linked it to May Day (ie, the beginning of the month) I might stand a chance of actually finishing the project this time round!  Secondly, I have been practicing making structured felt flowers, (as opposed to flat, five petal daisy shapes which I have used on other projects) and thought where better to use flowers than on a May Day project. 

My initial idea was to make a May Queen Crown, but then realised that my new flowers might actually be slightly too heavy.  So I opted for a flower basket instead.  I've used pinks and purples (as they remind me of cherry blossom and violets) which I think gives it a spring feel.  Some ribbon, a couple of structured flowers and some little button detailing finishes the look.  It's not too big and as I've not designed or even made a a little bag from felt before I am really happy with how it's turned out. 




With all the thoughts of Weddings this weekend I even wondered whether it would work as a Flower Girl basket?  
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