I know... it's mid-January and yet I am still plugging away with my journal!
But last night I managed to get my retrospective page for 2010 made...
Better late than never though, eh? And a chance to use up loads of those KI Festive party/boozy embellishments!
Oh and Stickles galore of course - hence the reason this was still drying last night!
Right, I am off to plonk myself in front of the telly and catch up with some of my recorded shows.
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Here I am back with some more pages I made yesterday. So sad the Christmas break is almost over... and it's back to work tomorrow - the time has certainly flown by!
Anyway, the other day I got up to Christmas Eve, and here's my entry for that date with a photo of the dining table before our Wigilia dinner - thankfully it's more small-scale than the ultra-traditional array of dishes served in Poland. We've narrowed it down to just 4 or 5 family favourites and that is more than enough! LOL
I had some people photos I wanted to use but in each shot one person's face was either blurred, surly looking, or looking the wrong way. {sigh}
And here's the glittery Christmas dinner table (you'd think it was all about food in our house! lol)
A happy coincidence that the little plate in the photo matched the background I'd already made for this page - phew!
I just had to wheel out the glittery MM letters for this page!
Boxing day was fun - we went over to family friends for lunch (or should that say a feast) followed by some action on the Wii, followed by a buffet, followed by some lounging in front of the TV trying to recover. LOL
I managed to quickly snap a photo between one meal and time on the Wii!
The 27th was all about lounging about and having a "nothing" day. Which meant that the Monopoly sets got dusted off and we started with the Washington version:
My dad joined in and the "rules" got rewritten and more complicated, however it was most entertaining and I think 2011 will see some more Monopoly matches, we certainly have enough sets to play with - next up the Polish version!
On the 28th it was time for some indulgence, I think I may have had a PJ day...
But I could have done with a nice festive Starbucks!
On the 29th I was back at home and played catch-up with my journal, plus I did some investigating in my lovely new books to see what I had in my kitchen cupboards that would work nicely for a certain birthday...
They are truly yummy books and far too tempting!
And lastly, the end result I made on the 30th using my new Bosch mixer... I had a bit of an overdose with the gel food colouring, but I was just using up the bit on the lid, future cupcakes will be less lurid! LOL
They were regular Vanilla cupcakes in the end and went down very well.
Right, I'd best go get my 30 mins of this in before I have my tea:
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Well, I've had a nice rest over the Christmas break and haven't done much else other than enjoy some family time, catch up on my reading, eat, drink and be merry, suffer the return of the Monopoly wars chez the homestead, have a lovely Boxing day spent with family friends (followed by an acute need to purchase Samba de Amigo for the Wii asap), get to grips with my lovely new food processor/mixer, leaf through a stack of new baking books I received for Christmas, dash out to buy Just Dance 2 for the Wii (excellent purchase - much better than the first one!) and... catch up with my Christmas journal a bit.
So on that note, here are the entries I've caught up on.
The new addition to my festive playlist this year was Pink Martini's new album - Joy to the World. Excellent tracks for all sorts of moods.
Lots of KI Good Tidings on this page.
This page is all about gifts... I at least managed to wrap up the items that had arrived...
I made the gift bow from scraps of Jolly by Golly.
This entry regarding visitors is an homage to the "annual" tradition of driving up to Zoe's to build the gingerbread house with the girls. Well, this tradition has only taken place once so far, the last two years snow has hampered the event... Maybe we'll have more luck next year!
October Afternoon had some perfect Gingerbread themed items for this entry... and looking at that photo I now feel a bit peckish - think I'll have to go unearth my stash of Lebküchen!
The entry for the 16th was all about being thankful... well I was just happy to have a few evenings where I could relax in front of the telly with just the fairy lights on and a peppermint candy cane to munch on.
Jolly by Golly strikes again for this entry.
So onto the 17th, and the theme for this prompt was the perfect gift. On my wishlist this year as a compact yet versatile food processor that could be mainly used as a food mixer but also had a blender. Well lo and behold one was found - a nice Bosch model that even had a stainless steel bowl and wasn't overly expensive. It went straight to the top of my letter to Santa!
Crate Snow Days on this page in abundance.
The prompt for the 18th was supposed to be about Christmas dinner... well, before you get to Christmas dinner in our house, you first have a lovely Polish Christmas breakfast... and become very mellow soon after! ;o)
Basic Grey on this page, went great with that little plate from John Lewis - shame they don't still sell them as I'd love a set.
The 19th was all about letters to Santa, well.... technically I don't write letters to him any more as I think he generally knows what I'd like what with the hints I drop.... but that doesn't mean Santa doesn't deserve his Mince pie... or cupcake for that matter!
Lots of Jolly by Golly on this page plus some KI stickers.
The 20th was about unexpected surprises... and yes, the unexpected surprise was that due to the snow some gifts had not yet materialised. In fact one gift still has not turned up and I've had no response from the seller... but that meant I had to write a few IOU notes to make up for the lack of present!
Yep, a bit garish as I just wanted to use up as much of my KI Festive stash as I could. LOL
On the 21st I went with the to-do list prompt as the colours of my photo were a better fit for the background... so here was my list!
American Crafts with a hint of Basic Grey for good measure.
On the 22nd I used a photo of "right now" - another relaxing evening with the fire on, my festive candles lit, and the tree and lights providing the only illumination. Quite lovely.
Echo Park and glittery KI alpha stickers, plus some Crate chipboard.
The 23rd was all about Stockings. Well, I don't actually have a stocking, but I do purchase the odd stocking filler, and the obvious choice is the good old chocolate orange.
Plenty of Crate here!
So that's it so far, I have photos printed through to New Year's Eve so will work on those entries tomorrow - off to the homestead this afternoon for dinner, and no doubt more Monopoly - probably the Polish set this time!
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For the past week my back and hip have been giving me real gip again and by the middle of the week it got to the stage where after a day's work sitting translating at a computer, the last thing I was able to do was sit at my desk for any length of time and get all creative. :o(
So I've had to miss a few design team projects which I feel very guilty about - but the trade off was pain and discomfort...
Anyway, I am officially behind on my Christmas journal but will try and at least get my photos sorted so that when sitting at a desk isn't so bad I can quickly catch up again.
Oh and the snow is back with a vengeance, so makes for interesting attempts at walking! The ice was bad enough. LOL
But at least this weekend hasn't been all bad - Kara and Artem won Strictly so I couldn't have been happier about that result! Oh and all my Christmas cards got posted OK, just one package I sent was incorrectly delivered to the "from" address and not the "to" address {sigh} so will have to resend that and hope it arrives in time.
Christmas presents ordered online are yet to materialize. I have not reached panic status yet, but think there will be some IOU notes being handed out!
Other than that I have managed to get some reading done, as lying stretched out on my bed or the sofa reading is the most comfortable spot!
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And not in a creative way!
Well, aside from this batch of lemon cupcakes I made Monday evening as soon as I got in from work:
I tried another Magnolia recipe - and of course had to try one Monday night before boxing them up to take to work and hand over some after dinner out with a friend.
The one cupcake I had was rather delicious.... ;)
So tonight has been the first evening where I've had a little time to spare, so I have finally written all my cards to post tomorrow, and I'm just having a browse through some photos I took at the weekend of my mum and dad's tree.
Here's my mum's crystal scene bauble with an angel inside - very difficult to photograph but it looks just lovely on the tree.
The holly bauble - I love how the needles on the tree have come out on this photo too - you forget how nice a real tree is when you're used to having a silver sparkly one!
One of the leafy baubles we got in the set from Poland this summer.
And I love the viney pattern on this bauble...
Hopefully will get some better shots over Christmas, impossible to get a full length shot of the tree as I would need to be through the wall into next door's to get it all in even on wide angle!
Hopefully to get some more photos sorted for my Christmas journal before the weekend and play catch up a bit...
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It's been a funny old day. I woke up very early so started reading a new book, then didn't get up until I'd finished it.
After that I went out to try and clear more ice off the street. We currently have excellent conditions for speed skating down the street - 3 to 4 solid inches of ice. And I mean solid! I managed to clear a bit more from the pavement and area around my car but heaven knows how it will be in the morning and if I will get out OK for work. Fingers crossed as I really need to get into the office this week.
And when it started raining I came in to get on with my Christmas journal. Progress would have been much better had I not been watching Glorious 39 at the same time, I ended up abandoning my stash pile and just watching the film. Despite my reservations about whether it would be for me or not, it was actually really good (a bit gruesome at times) but much better than I'd imagined.
However, I need some light relief now! LOL
So back to the festive spirit and some journal entries to bring me up-to-date.
The entry for the 10th is all about this year's gift wrapping plans. Well, I have the paper (kraft and a nice white pattern from Ikea) at the ready, just need the gifts to wrap!
Also have some of my most prized American Crafts gift wrap that I clandestinely brought over from Florida a few years back. Oh and the American Crafts gift bows... Too nice to give away! LOL
A mix of Crate and Echo Park on this page.
Next up for the 11th, all about the Christmas tree...
I can never get a full length shot of my tree that doesn't make it look ugly. It's silver, very shiny, and fibre optic - it sounds dreadful when you try to describe it, but it's very pretty in real life, and looks lovely lit up.
However I had the joy of decorating a real tree at my mum and dad's last night - and it is very gorgeous - just needs more lights!
For the 12th, it's all about Christmas Past...
And for this page, I took a photo of my oldest ornament on my tree. It's a little knitted angel I remember my mum buying us (I got the angel and my brother got a felt panda - go figure!) at a Christmas fayre at one of the local primary schools when I was little. She's been on the tree ever since and now has since moved to my own tree. She's looking pretty good for a twenty-something.
So that's it until another Christmas Journal update...
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Last night I set about de-stressing after a tidy-up by trying a new baking recipe.
Namely the Magnolia Bakery Marshmallow cupcakes...
The whole melting marshmallows bit was a bit hit and miss with these snowman marshmallows:
But the end result was rather tasty - and extravagant!
Think these will make a good addition to the building Christmas party at work. :o)
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Not outside, thankfully! As the snow is thawing, and after a rude awakening this morning at 5 when there was an almighty whoosh sound as next door's roof snow/ice fell to the ground I have been wondering when the same fate would arrive for my roof snow/ice!
Have tried to stay clear of the front of my house that's for sure...
But the blizzard for today is in card form - namely this week's snowy dare for the DCM blog:
Papers: Cosmo Cricket
Lace cardstock: KI Memories
Stamps: Papertrey Ink, Waltzing Mouse
Dies: Papertrey Ink, Nestabilities
Ribbon and twine: The Ribbon Girl
Other: 3D glitter paint, button, Stickles
All festive red and creamy-ness...
Right, I am off to do something creative of another kind - hopefully before Strictly starts!
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Evening all!
Well, here I am with today's prompt - and it has been one of the pages in this album I've been most looking forward to finishing...
I opened up my pack of Basic Grey journaling overlay sheets and it covered almost the whole page, so thankfully the photo for today has fit in it quite nicely...
A bit difficult to photograph without glarey reflections of me trying to snap the photo... but I think it has turned out quite nice considering.
So on the topic of traditions, it has become a serious tradition for me to add to my bauble collection each year. At least one bauble needs to be purchased... however, this was not a problem this year as about a dozen plus baubles were acquired (and have since found a festive new home) when I was out shopping with my partner in bauble acquisition crime, my mother. It was just too difficult to leave these beautiful new additions sitting there on the shelves waiting for a new owner... much better that they end up on my tree and mantelpiece...
It's a bit difficult to see in the pic that the background under the overlay for the houses is frosty glittery cardstock - I also used some co-ordinating Eskimo Kisses dimensional stickers and a KI glittery snowflake.
All in all, I'm rather happy with how this one turned out. :o) But my little Paperchase binder is getting rather full - and it's only the 9th!
Something tells me that by the end of this album there will be some giant book rings making an appearance to hold it all together.
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Here's my entry for today's prompt - all about the sights of the season.
When I was in town on Saturday I took a few snaps of the shop displays, including this one at the florist's - complete with baskets of decorations, lovely looking wreaths and bulbs planted ready to give away as gifts... very rustic and charming - and out of my price range! But pretty to look at nonetheless.
Some vintage KI Festive on this page with a dash of Cosmo Cricket.
Not bad for an evening's work. :o)
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Thought I'd share a few pics I took the other day - ok so I clicked away and took 179 (many of those didn't turn out so well as I'd not realised I'd left my SLR in manual mode after a play!)...
This one was inspired by a photo shared on the JYC forum, I had candy canes so leapt out with my camera into the snow-ice to try and take a shot... with, er, manual on by accident.
Pioneer Woman's Lovely and Ethereal action is very good for getting some nice effects on photos that were originally dark and very red (due to fairy lights).
I had the fire on last night for full effect plus countless candles...
Here's a shot of some of this year's new baubles... I love that red and white one - and it really works so nicely on the mantelpiece.
Thew mantelpiece looks quite nice and dreamy in this pic - the joy of actions!
I tried some Bokeh as per one of Shimelle's prompts - the original photo was pretty dark, but it lightened up nicely. Difficult to make out but this is another new bauble - the nativity scene in cut crystal inside the bauble...
I also tried it on my little mug of candy canes.
Here's the new nativity bauble on the tree - nestled in those silver branches.
A shot of the tree - can't get a decent full length photo - so this will have to do. ;o)
Here's another new bauble - the snowy house...
And a snowy scene on a flat bauble - it's very unusual.
And lastly - my giant Polish bauble (bought in a heat wave in August in Poland!).
I'll be using a few of these pics in my journal - speaking of, have some catching up to do tonight!
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So today's prompt was all about a tale of two Christmases.
And for me, every Christmas is a tale of two Christmases as we celebrate both Polish and British traditions. And boy do we celebrate Christmas morning over breakfast... anyway... on with the pics!
This photo of my wintry Matryoshka collection sums it up best - East meets West in Matryoshka form!
This page was brought to you in close association with my BG Jovial stash pile! Oh and there is some KI and Crate mixed in there too. ;o)
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What are the odds? I'm up-to-date with my Christmas Journal - here's the entry for the 5th - the countdown to Christmas!
A photo of my lovely new M&S advent calendar chalk board.... Shame about the glare from the window onto the page but I couldn't get a better pic.
Lots of Basic Grey Jovial in this one, plus some machine stitching on the photo mat. And I love that robin brad!
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December 4th's entry, and it's all about Christmas dreams.
And I know the weather we've had has caused havoc and mayhem and basically ground the country to a halt...
BUT I would be very happy indeed if the snow melted for a bit, and we then had a white Christmas!
Very magical to have a blanket of snow on Christmas Eve...
I used Echo Park papers for this, some snowflake lace paper from KI, a Basic Grey tab and chipboard, and finally a velvet Thicker. :o)
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As many visitors to this blog will know, cards are what I do. And the prompt for the 3rd was right up my street.
I took a pic of where my handmade Christmas cards have been living these past few months while I've continued to add to the stockpile. Let's just hope I've made enough to go round, as the next task will be writing them and sending them!
And it is always fun trying to match a card to the recipient (and in some cases their stash tastes!).
Decisions, decisions... Anyway, time for some vintage stash on this page. My most favourite ever glazed snowflake paper from American Crafts and lots of Love Elsie accents. Plus a couple of dew drops from The Ribbon Girl.
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December 2nd, and the prompt was all about the weather... well, there has been little else in the news of late as the entire country has now had a brush with snow.
We've had heavy snow since around the 25th and it's still here. So I had plenty of snaps to choose from!
There's something very seasonal about a post box covered in snow... And I just had to add in some snowmen, as I've not had chance to make any myself!
The stash is all Echo Park plus a couple of Crate stickers, and of course a Thickers number.
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So here I am playing catch-up with my journal...
I've foregone the Manifesto entry for this year's journal as I've not got much journaling space with the album format I've chosen and my 6x4 snaps... just enough for the odd journaling strip.
So my page is a pic of my love desktop calendar and it has reminded me that I seriously need to sort out a desktop calendar for 2011! Etsy here I come!
I'm rather in love with the Crate chipboard for this line too - it's the perfect finishing touch...
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This week's DCM dare is another Birthstone dare, and the birthstone for December is Turquoise.
My favourite colour... well, especially when mixed in with a hint of red. I just couldn't resist it.
Papers: Crate Paper
Chipboard: Crate Paper
Stamp: Papertrey Ink
Ribbon: The Ribbon Girl
Glitter: Ice Stickles
I will be amazed if there is much left in that little bottle of Ice Stickles!
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It was that kind of day yesterday where I needed to clear head space between various tasks... so of course, what better reason than to get the stepladder out the shed and get stringing lights up and pulling baubles from boxes...
The fireplace is a red/white affair... and looks much better now that I added those gorgeous pine cone baubles. You can't go over the top with this sort of thing at least.
I found a new home for my wintry Matryoshkas, the one above was from Accessorize a few years ago - I didn't like the one they were selling this year for the price they wanted.
And this one has been appropriated from my mum... I just love the winter scene....
In other news I have finally got this on iTunes:
Oh and tonight, I shall definitely be trying my new fuzzy PJs - minus 6 it was last night!
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And I'm still stuck at home... more snow over night (no news there then!).
But I have taken a few pics including my new advent calendar put to use:
It's the one I bought in M&S a week ago, and has a very cool message to Santa bit on the back:
Although I don't think Santa can help me with that request!
Also it was below minus 2 this morning, so the perfect excuse for porridge with a twist!
Am debating whether today is the day I put my tree and decorations up or not... hm...
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Welcome to those who've joined me from Sharmaine's fabulous blog!
I'm your next stop on this month's Banana Frog blog hop. :o)
And here's my little festive project using my most favourite ever Banana Frog font! Oh yes, it's that DeLouisville Tadpole set, and it's also twinned with my favourite colour combo - turquoise and red! Yum.
Stamps: Banana Frog - DeLouisville Tadpole set
Card blank: DCWV
Papers: Echo Park
Sticker: Echo Park
Dies: Nestabilities, Papertrey Ink
Twine: The Ribbon Girl
Bling: Prima
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Button: Papertrey Ink
I couldn't resist making a little rosette with a vintage button and some of that fabulous baker's twine.
And rather than just use black ink or one colour, I carried the turquoise/red theme into the greeting. I just *heart* the simplicity and clean look of this font... :sigh:
Anyway, you'd best scoot on over to Debbie's blog for some more inspiring eye candy, but before you go - don't forget to leave a comment here for your chance to win a set of Banana Frog stamps. :o)
And who can believe that tomorrow's the first of December!? Get those advent calendars at the ready!
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And working from home - but at least there was some sunshine today so I went off for a little wander to stave off the cabin fever!
A good few inches of snow fell over night...
But walking with some blue sky made it all the nicer!
Especially when the sun came out between the trees.
It was quite magical.
And quite nice to have the park almost to myself!
Save the odd group of sledgers!
But it was very nice to come back home into the warmth... even if I had work to do! :o)
And continuing with the snowy theme... Here's the other card I made for the Ribbon Girl colour challenge:
Papers: KI Memories
Tag: KI Memories
Twill: The Ribbon Girl
Stamps: Papertrey Ink
Die: Papertrey Ink
Pearls: Prima
Other: Stickles, Distress Stickles, 3D glitter paint, 3D foam, Copics
Right, I'd best go get my tea into the oven.
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Since the weather was less than lovely today and more snow fell, and it's still bitterly cold, I've been holed up in the house doing various little chores and catching up on TV online since my craft room is one of the warmest rooms at the moment. :o)
So whilst fiddling with a few things I decided to give the blog a new festive make-over for this year. The gingerbread family banner is on vacation, and a new Christmas banner is up for the duration. I'm very fond of that snowman in the snowglobe from one of Nacy Kubo's kits - I would love to see her bring out a new festive collection this year, but don't think it's going to happen...
After that I got updated on google reader, and saw that there was an excuse to dig out some vintage KI papers to give the current Ribbon Girl challenge a go. Not sure what is going on with my cardmaking at the moment but nothing is turning out quite like I'd like it to. :o\
Anyway, the current colour challenge is to use white, pink and lilac as your main colours:
Papers: KI Memories
Stamps: Papertrey Ink
Dies: Papertrey Ink
Embossing folder: Cuttlebug
Baker's twine: The Ribbon Girl
Ribbon: May Arts
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Other: 3D foam, Versamark ink pad, white ink pad, 3D glitter paint
It's difficult to see in the photo, but I Versamarked the pink tag with little snowflakes, and the lilac circle was first stamped in white with a large snowflake before I embossed and sanded it.
I did make another card for this challenge, but the Distress Stickles are STILL drying - some 6 hours later. But will see if I'm happy with the end result before positing it.
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And this year I am determined to finish it in album form!
With that in mind I've made my album in advance just ready to add photos and tart up with some embellishments.
The last thing I needed to do in preparation was decorate the cover page:
Who knew this would turn into a search for the perfect sized "Christmas" word in my stash... I always get stuck with left-over words on sticker sheets that I hadn't realised I had at the time I NEEDED them so they never get used up.
This time I am determined to use up as many of those random word stickers as I can! OK, so Christmas isn't all that random a word for this project, but there are some interesting ones that will need to be incorporated some how.
Anyway, bring on December 1st - I won't be sharing entries every day unless I am able to get my photos printed so I can finish the page off, but hope to play catch-up on the weekend. :)
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But at least my boiler isn't leaking any more!
However the snow seems to be a permanent feature for the next few days at least.
While it kept coming down I did a few things round the house and tried to catch up on my DVD rental list!
I finally got out my Winterland candle (fave ever Yankee Candle Christmas fragrance) - it seemed very apt!
Before it got dark, I went out with the camera for a walk in the park.
It turned out to be a bit of a short walk as the snow started coming down again.
Who wouldn't want to live in a Park Lodge like this?
The bandstand at the top of the hill looked especially nice, beyond it there were loads of kids flying down on sledges!
If it's going to be like this again tomorrow, I may stay under the duvet to finish my book!
Also today was my day for the Project of the Day on the Banana Frog blog:
Stamps: Banana Frog - Christmas Elegance
Dies: Nestabilities
Other: Stickles
It's all about masking magic for this one. :o)
Another Christmas card I've not posted yet is this one:
Papers: My Mind's Eye
Dies: Papertrey Ink
Stamps: Papertrey Ink
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Bling: Doodlebug
Other: Distress Stickles
Right, off to have my tea and see what's on telly tonight. :o)
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Yesterday morning... the first bit of whiteness of the cold season.
Not fun!
After getting home from work discovered my boiler had leaked water at some point during the day. Thankfully an engineer is coming round tomorrow to see what's what.
The snow is still here, and will be for the next day at least. I love snow if I have no where I need to be or need to use my car!
And when snow melts it generally turns to ice which I hate even more.
Anyway, on the creative front, here's my card for this week's DCM "Spotty Stripy Christmas" dare:
Papers: Echo Park
Stamps: Papertrey Ink
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Dies: Papertrey Ink
Bling: Prima
Other: Stickles, 3D glitter paint
Those Papertrey greetings work really nicely on these little journaling cards from the Echo Park line.
Well, I'm off to get the fire on, and catch up with some of my V+ recordings! Last night's Nikita for one. :oD
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On the ATC front. :o) Yesterday at Zoe's I managed to finish all my ATC filler cards, just have the tab cards left to decorate but here they all are:
Phew! It'll be nice to start this year's JYC album - just need to remember to get my camera charged and ready. :o)
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Just popping through with a couple of cards I made inspired by the current Waltzing Mouse sketch challenge and an excuse to get using some Jolly By Golly papers! ;o)
Papers: Cosmo Cricket
Dies: Papertrey Ink
Other: Felt
And here's one using yummy Waltzing Mouse stamps.
Papers: Cosmo Cricket
Stamps: Waltzing Mouse
Dies: Nestabilities, Papertrey Ink
Buttons: Nikki Sivils
Pearls: Prima
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Other: Satin ribbon
Hopefully will get some more stuff made today after Strictly - but time for tea first! :o)
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That's the theme of this week's DCM dare - things that come in threes!
For my card I used 3 little accent squares in my design:
Paper: My Mind's Eye
Stamps: Papertrey Ink
Dies: Papertrey Ink, Cuttlebug
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Button: Basic Grey
Pearls: Kaisercraft
Other: 3D foam, button twine
I used two tones of pink ink on the pink cardstock and then used some white ink around the edges, plus some
Made a nice change to make a non-Christmas card but think I'll need to get back to Christmas cardmaking soon! ;o)
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Here are some more little fillers for my ATC spinner... I dug into the Basic Grey Christmas stash... ;o)
Just another 35 to go!
But at least my Pink Martini Christmas CD is on the way to me - hopefully it'll provide some inspiration. :oD
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Alas, my weekend shopping trip with Ma to Newcastle didn't yield too much in the way of must-have items - in fact it was rather disappointing to previous years.
Especially John Lewis!
I can't believe it myself, but so disappointing was it that I took zero photos in the Christmas decorations department. And the Christmas tableware seemed to be missing the one item I wanted to purchase that they'd had on their website previously. A red plate with a white heart stencilled on that went with this range:
Most frustrating.
The only think I purchased in John Lewis this time round was a set of bobbins for my mini sewing machine. But I really wish they'd sold these red ones back when I bought mine - I just looooove it!
But back to festive purchases, Ma made good in Fenwicks where the choice of baubles was particularly fantastic this year! In fact we rather went to town and I looooove the baubles that she bought for me. I also now have a gorgeous little basket that got left at John Lewis restaurant and required me to dash back up two escalators to retrieve it!
We made a bee line for Paperchase but nothing really took my fancy. I thought I'd really like the stencilled tree range I'd seen online, but wasn't that taken in person.
In Debenhams Ma bought some coasters and a serving platter by Lisa Stickley - seriously lovely, but I am still looking for just the right nice round Christmas plate/dish.
That was about it really... Oh I did spot that the latest issue of Craft Stamper was on the stands and features two little projects I made for the Stamping Contrasts article using Banana Frog Christmas Elegance stamps:
I used Prima stick-on pearls as baubles on the tree, and added Stickles to the leaves for extra sparkle.
I also made a gift tag that could be used as a tree decoration...
I used the To and From stamps on the back and rather like how it turned out. :o)
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This afternoon I've been making a few new filler ATCs to add to my Journal Your Christmas spinner...
Some Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses....
SEI Wintersong sparkly bits...
A touch of vintage KI....
Some new Echo Park mixed in with Crate Paper Snow Days.
More Crate...
And more Crate...
Oh and er... more Crate...
No creating tomorrow as I'm off shopping with Ma and hoping to hit John Lewis for some some new Christmas additions, plus could do with visiting Lakeland.
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I managed to meet up with a very special friend today for a catch-up, ruminations on life, a few giggles, and of course my first seasonal Starbucks from the Christmas menu. I went for a Peppermint Mocha (the most coffee I will ever manage in one cup) even a latte is too strong for me but this certainly hit the spot - and of course it was accompanied by some fruit toast....
I also spotted this year's Starbucks Christmas CD, but will have to look at it more closely another time to determine whether it's one for the list or not.
We had a good flick through my new addition to the cook book library:
I may just try one of these recipes for the next crop... who knows, but it won't be one that calls for 8 egg yolks! LOL
We also ventured into TK Maxx - it would have been rude not to, and given the sheer amount of AC 12x12 album kits including a lovely Dear Lizzy one... I am amazed we walked out minus a kit... Will have to see if they get any other Dear Lizzy ones in in the range I really liked.
On the scrapping front... something has come out of its box ready to be added to...
And speaking of Christmas... take a look at the Christmas cactus I am currently plant-sitting...
Right, I suppose I'd best see about ordering Pink Martini's Christmas album... wonder if it's up for download on iTunes yet? I noticed there was a new Pink Martini track on the Starbucks album so... am rather hoping it will be on their new Joy to the World album.
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I don't know what it was about this weekend, but both yesterday and today I was wide awake before 6 a.m. {sigh}
So yet again today I started my day by filling the dark hours with a new book.
And well, the book I ready today (Mystique by Amanda Quick) was such an enjoyable read I had to read it cover to cover.
This meant I didn't really get out of the house until 1 p.m. to get in the ingredients for this evening's dessert at my mum and dad's.
I need to pick my brother up (typically I am the designated driver) in 15 mins or so, so better make this quick...
Anyway, I made Black Forest cupcakes from "Baking Magic"... behold the wonder of the chocolate cupcakes:
I used those cute little cupcake cases from IKEA. They are truly fantastic and aren't all greasy after baking like the Dr Oetker ones I bought are.
If I make these again I need to use a less sweet Black Cherry jam/filling. This was the only option in Tesco's (I usually love Bonne Maman but need a more tart jam for these cupcakes).
I filled the insides with a Bismarck nozzle and spread a little jam on top - the full cherries played havoc with the Bismarck filling and I had a few explosions, but nothing major! LOL
Then I whipped up some cream, piped it on (I still totally struggle with consistent estimates of how much is needed so all 12 cupcakes are sufficiently covered), grated some dark chocolate on (the recipe called for 60 g of dark chocolate, I just grated as I saw fit), and a nice uncoloured glacé cherry to finish - I had hoped for some Kirsch-soaked cherries to be available, but no...
And here they all are ready to go pre-transportation... I am going to need to go a route that doesn't involve any level crossings or many roundabouts... which will be a struggle as there are at least 3 on my brother's estate that I'll have to negotiate!
Well, we'll just have to see what state they arrive in at my mum and dad's. Looking forward to a nice lamb roast, but after making these I am not feeling all that peckish for cake. I think baking could be a sure fire way to going off cake once you've made it! LOL
Hm, I hope this could prove true! hehe
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Thought I would just post some recent makes - for the UKS monthly card challenge, which this month is focusing on label love! :o)
First up a nice festive number (trying to get some of that Jovial stash used!).
Papers: Basic Grey
Label and border sticker: Basic Grey
Stamp: Waltzing Mouse
Other: Twine, Stickles, 3D foam, Distress Ink
Then I needed a break from Christmas stuff (oddly was not in the mood today... shock horror!)
Papers: Cosmo Cricket
Chipboard: Cosmo Cricket
Die: Nestabilities
Stamps: Papertrey Ink, Waltzing Mouse
Other: 3D foam, Stickles
And finally, a little boy birthday card as I never really make any of these!
Paper: MME
Stamps: My Cute Stamps, Papertrey Ink
Dies: Nestabilities, Papertrey Ink
Brads: Basic Grey
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Other: 3D foam, Distress ink, Copics
There we have it...
I also started and finished this today:
Not bad, definitely better than the more recent Black Cobra series - ugh... those I find rather annoying, as you really have to suspend belief more than any other fictional tale of this period. Plus the baddies are true caricatures... {sigh}
Anyway, I'd best go get my tea in the oven!
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Because it's time for another dare on the DCM blog! And as it's the first Friday of the month, this week's dare is all about November's birthstone. The Topaz.
Now, I thought that Topaz stones primarily came in blue - not so!
So I set out to try and use some of the more yellow/red/orange shades in my card.
Papers: Crate Paper
Chipboard: Crate Paper
Die: Papertrey Ink
Stamp: Papertrey Ink
Roll on the weekend!
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And it wasn't that bad after all, in fact I had to stay up late to finish it. Phew!
Not sure what's next on the list of things to read. It has been a very busy week at work and I've mostly been unwinding on an evening. So busy in fact that I nodded off under the slanket at some ridiculously early hour.... {blush}
Anyway, I'm hoping the weekend will be a good time to restore the batteries!
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...that I finished my Christmas Journal foundations on Saturday eh?
Because Shimelle's post today reminded me that in one month's time we'll be getting our first entries made!
Yes, I even allocated the dates with post-it notes as it was getting too confusing trying to work out what was what!
Now I'll just need to take a camera everywhere I go come December/beginning of January and will have to get my photos printed at Boots or it's possible the shop at the end of my street does instant photo processing... v. cool if that's the case!
But with the journal ready to fill and decorate the hard work should be done, right? ;o)
Ok, I am definitely off to sort that card box now....
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The box I use to "temporarily" store the cards I've made overfloweth... This is where my cards are supposed to go before they get allocated a lovely little envelop and popped into a bag...
Hm, there is obviously some problem with this system - in that it is totally not working.
But tonight, I have nothing else pressing to do, so will put the telly on and get this little pile sorted and get a basket ready to try and sell some of these for Children in Need at the reception desk at work.
Fingers crossed!
Also I have finally properly fall in love with Laws of Illusion.
Initially I wasn't all that taken, but now Lissie is going to be swapped out from my CD player in the car and replaced with Sarah. No doubt the Pink Martini Christmas album will be my December looped CD of choice... :o)
Mind you, I cannot stop playing this at the moment either! Talk about contrasts...
And on that note, I am off to start sorting... well, maybe in a bit... It'll give me something to do while Spooks is on (blimey looks like it might be gripping tonight eh?)
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But I was most definitely in a Christmas card making mood today.
Or really, Christmas cards were the perfect excuse for trying out some of my Waltzing Mouse stamps!
Paper: SEI Winterland
Stamps: Waltzing Mouse
Die: Nestabilities
Pearls: Prima
Other: Satin ribbon, Stickles and Distress Stickles
While making this card I was rooting about in my ink drawer and ink cube box looking for the perfect inks... well I made a rather serendipitous discovery. A Versa Color ink cube I have had for 7+ years and never used provided the perfect ageing to the white label. It's 181 Vanilla - although a pigment ink (which doesn't dry straight away) it does add that nice slightly distressed look and is quite similar to those Papertrey Ink Chai tea ageing pads.
Anyway, I rather love that SEI paper, the snowy ground is all glitter and it just looks very lush in person.
Papers: Basic Grey
Stamp: Waltzing Mouse
Rub-ons: Basic Grey
Die: Stampin' Up
Other: Satin ribbon, Stickles
This card looks much better in real life than it photographs, especially that burgundy/maroon ribbon. Nevertheless, the perfect way to use up a sheet of those BG Eskimo Kisses rub-ons. I swear I spent the best part of an hour trying to get the blessed things to actually rub onto the die cut. Grrrrr....
Finally, here's the card I made for the current Ribbon Girl red and green colour challenge... nothing like leaving it to the last minute! LOL
Papers: Echo Park
Ribbons: The Ribbon Girl
Die: Nestabilities
Stamps: Papertrey Ink, Waltzing Mouse
The wide pencil stripe ribbon is actually sewn on to the card so the edge can flap about a bit. Also another ink drawer find, my rediscovery of my KI ink pads (they were one of my most disappointing KI purchases ever). I have found they stamp beautifully on this SU white cardstock. And again the Vanilla Versa Color ink pad came in to just tone the WHITE white down.
Right, I think after all that festive creativity, I shall be delving into my little Philosophy Bake shop for some bath time treats tonight...
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Hi and welcome to the next stop on this month's Banana Frog blog hop!
If you've not joined me via the hop, then welcome along - the theme this month is all things Autumn.
And I could not resist teaming up my favourite autumnal paper collection with some of my favourite Banana Frog stamps!
Stamps: Banana Frog - Sentimental Style and Hiya Chick; Waltzing Mouse (die border stamp)
Papers: Cosmo Cricket (Nutmeg collection)
Dies: Nestabilities, Papertrey Ink
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Twine: The Ribbon Girl
Brad: Lasting Impressions
Other: Copics, Distressed Stickles, Distress ink, 3D foam
Although this card is quite small and makes a nice little notelet, it packs in quite a lot of texture with the crumpled edges, twine and felt embellishments.
I just love the little bird houses - they're perfect for any season!
Now, remember to check out the Frog Blog for the full list of blog hoppers and make your way to Audrey's blog to see what project she's sharing. :o)
Happy Hopping!
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So, instead of making stuff this week... and when not reading, I did manage to pick up a few things of a retail therapy nature.
My yummy new Winter fragrances arrived. Of the three North Pole is my favourite - it's vanilla frosting mixed in with a spearminty smell. Like Jack Frost meets Christmas Cookie. Most tempting and one I am probably going to be using a lot.
Winter Wonderland is quite similar to my all time favourite Christmas Yankee Candle fragrance. Winterland. A combination of icy mint and pine trees - Not as lovely as Winterland but a decent substitute since they discontinued it.
Mistletoe and Fig - also nice, a bit of spicy fruit and fresh evergreen. Will be interesting to see how this smells when burning.... Once we're into November I think I can start burning these, especially since it will be Christmas card production time and I can stick my festive tunes and festive fragrances on to get me in the mood. :o)
Speaking of Festive, I went into that dangerous shop again. TK-ooops-I've-spent-another-ten-quid-Maxx. Yes, it pays to check out that store regularly, I managed to get some of that sticky stuff remover (gunked up hole punches and pricking tools - not good) and checked out the Christmas section to see if any more Polish or German glass baubles had appeared. Well these were the nicest of the bunch and definitely fit my colour scheme. Will give a few to my mum and then I can swap in some nice unique ones from this year's John Lewis Christmas decoration trip!
Next up, this came in at the library for me. Now, I loved the first three shopaholic books, and have liked the ones that followed... but this one has had pretty meh reviews from even die-hard fans of the series. I know it will be a quick read, but not sure I want to spend weekend time reading it.... hm... we shall see!
Today went into Debenhams with my mum as she was after some more Bad Gal Lash Plum mascara (our favourite Benefit Mascara) and I was after some non-Black Mascara so went for the brown one for a change.
Anyway, that meant that the Christmas catalogue was neatly dropped into my bag and well... the temptation for yet more Benefit could be too much.
I mean, does it look like I need any more Benefit stuff to add to my little tower?
No, I think the answer is a definite "NO".
So that catalogue will have to disappear very soon.
I did at least get a nice top from Mantaray (it's the fabric behind the Benefit catalogue).
Oh and the other retail therapy is also creative therapy...
All Glittery Andrea's fault really... but I am looking forward to using these on some new cards. :o)
And that's it, from tomorrow no more spending!
For a little while.
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Well, it has been one of those week's where not much has been happening on the creative front.
Where has the time been going?
However, I have finished a book (phew the TBR pile is coming down a bit) and did share some card projects.
This week's DCM dare is my own - Trick or Treat - where you can create a Halloween card or use Halloween colours for a different theme.
I went with the Halloween theme as I only really get to send one Halloween card to a family that I know certainly celebrates the day!
Paper: KI Memories
Embellishment: Making Memories
Ribbon and twine: The Ribbon Girl
Glitter letter stickers: KI Memories
Dies: Nestabilities, Papertrey Ink
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Buttons: Basic Grey
Other: 3D foam, Distress ink, Goggly eyes
Must say I am pleasantly surprised with how it came out and I hope the recipients have experience some ghoulish glee opening the envelope!
Also this week, it was my turn to share a project of the day on the Frog blog.
Here's the rustic Christmas card I made:
Paper: KI Memories, Making Memories
Stamps: Banana Frog (Christmas Elegance, It's Christmas Deer)
Inks: Versafine
Dies: Nestabilities
Other: Twine, button, 3D foam, black pen
I've now just got one more non-Christmas-related card to make and then it will be Christmas crafting all the way for a bit... I have no idea how many Christmas cards I have to hand so far, but I suspect NOT ENOUGH will be the answer...
I have a couple of yummy new things on the way to help me out though. ;o)
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I've spent some of today and this evening trying to make progress on getting my Christmas journal ready.
Well... I may have to rethink the whole Paperchase binder idea:
I was originally going to have one entry per side, but it was looking quite cramped to then fit a photo, date, and journal strip in, so decided since I had cut enough pages I could make it a double page entry for each day instead.
Well, that was fine in theory, even if the pages would be random in style within each double-page bit...
However, I've got as far as day 15 and the ring binder bit is getting too tight for the pages.
I may have to get some book rings and purchase some chipboard or sturdy plastic to create new covers, either way it is going to be a standing album!
Hopefully it will all turn out OK in the end, just the album pages start off really random and then become less random as we go on. Oops!
I am sure a mix and match of the final touches will sort that out and bring it all together though.
Fingers crossed!
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This is the theme of this week's dare over on the DCM blog and when it came to making my card, I discovered a bit of a lack of foliage in my stamp collection. Or let me rephrase that. I just couldn't find the right leaf stamp to suit my purpose.
But then, it came to me when I glanced over at my desk calendar:
I could use my classic Out on a Limb stamp set from Papertrey and try and try out the new Toffee Versafine ink pad I bought (I had thought it was a light brown but it is much more of an ochre) that would finally have a seasonal purpose.
And here we have it, leaves falling from an autumnal branch twinned of course with that very autumnal Nutmeg paper line from Cosmo Cricket!
Paper: Cosmo Cricket
Stamps: Papertrey Ink
Inks: Versafine, Colorbox, Ranger Distress ink pads
Other: Satin ribbon, 3D foam
I rather like how it turned out against that background paper. :o)
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That's what I'm planning on doing tonight once I've had my tea, and stuck the fire on...
But I am feeling inspired and in a bit of a creative mood to just get on and make stuff this weekend....
One item has already been made... and it was inspired in part by this:
And the other stuff I am itching to get on with is building the basis of my Christmas journal ready for photos and further embellishment. Because I'm combining the old:
(including finally cutting into that gorgeous AC glaze-embossed snowflake paper)
With the new:
So much yummy Christmas stash to choose from, there might not be enough days in December to do it justice. But then, I do still need to finish off my ATC spinner as there are some blank spacer cards still to fill up. :o)
And don't you go thinking I've forgotten that it's October - and not yet Christmas, I haven't! I've actually got a Halloween card to make this weekend so that'll make a change from the festive fayre.
Right, off to see how my jacket potato is doing and get the fire going.
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I just got an e-mail through letting me know that Pink Martini are releasing their first Holiday album! Yaaaaay! I have been dying for them to do a festive collection since before their wonderful version of "Do you hear what I hear?" appeared on this Starbuck's CD:
It will fit perfectly in my yuletide playlist alongside favourite CDs:
And...
I wonder what other new Christmas offerings will be available on iTunes this year?
Any recommendations?
Roll on November 12th is all I can say!
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So today I've been at IKEA and the Metro Centre all day with my mum - we left IKEA with the usual restocks: new serviettes, new tea lights, new candle holders, and a lovely white basket for my mulberry roses (yes they needed their own basket!), but none of the other vital items on our lists. Wasn't that rocked by this year's Christmas stuff, much of it seemed to be last year's rolls now sold as separate ones and there wasn't that much of the kraft wrapping left this year.
But I do love my new tea light holders for my mantelpiece:
Red, purple and pink - perfect for my front room.
I also have a new long winter cardi from M&S, a dress from Mantaray that I think will work OK as a tunic top and another nice top to wear under my long cardi.
But no Christmas stuff purchased apart from the nice little Yankee Candle classic Christmas fragrances set my mum bought... and the gingerbread tea lights in Ikea.
So, here's the Christmas fix from the cards I made yesterday:
Papers: Basic Grey
Chipboard and stickers: Basic Grey
Stamp: Papertrey Ink
Buttons: Making Memories
Twine: Papertrey Ink
Felt: Papertrey Ink
Die: Papertrey Ink
I just love this new line from Basic Grey - the snowmen completely crack me up.
And for something completely different:
Papers: Echo Park
Stickers: Echo Park
Ribbon: The Ribbon Girl
Die: Papertrey Ink
Stamp: Papertrey Ink
I used some of that lovely wide pencil stripe ribbon from The Ribbon Girl for this one, definitely time to be decadent and have a huuuuge bow!
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Life was a bit hectic towards the end of this week, so I was late making my card for this week's DCM dare, which has a bit of a dance theme...
But here's the card I made today using some yummy "new" stash:
Paper: Cosmo Cricket Togetherness, Bo Bunny
Stamps: My Cute Stamps, Papertrey Ink
Dies: Nestabilities
Twill: The Ribbon Girl
Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Punch: Martha Stewart
Pearls: Kaisercraft
Other: Copic pens, Stickles, 3D foam
I just love my new Butterfly punch (a fab birthday present from Angela) and those mulberry flowers have finally been put to some use. :o) I'll need to get some handy plastic containers in Ikea to store them all by colour I think.
I'm not usually one for yellow, but I rather like it in this combo. :o)
Right, I think I'm off for a little sort out.
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This week's baking project came a little early... It wasn't all that long since my batch of Anzac biscuits and serious mocha cupcakes...
But since it was our monthly crop last night, I thought it only right to come armed with some sweet stuff!
So I made butterscotch and chocolate chunk cookies that looked nothing like the picture but tasted yummy - like diam bars in biscuit form:
I know where I went wrong in failing to achieve the look from the book - will let the butterscotch cool down more next time.
And I also tried the ever so easy lemon cupcake recipe and I must say... they tasted rather wonderful and very lemony which I like!
The piping skills still leave a lot to be desired - I think my astigmatism is to cupcake icing as it is to clagging paper down straight on cards and layouts. Not perfect!
But behold the buttercream mountain:
You can only just make out the ivory tint to the icing and the bubblegum rainbow sparkle dust (which would make for a very nice shade of embossing powder!).
And thankfully all cookies and cupcakes have now been eaten and I no longer have anything in the house to tempt me. Hurrah! :D
Well, that is until the next crop. :o)
Oh and as for actual scrapping, I managed to get a few more pages prepped for my December/Christmas journal so am in a bit of a festive stash mood again... I wonder if it's time for some new Christmas cards. <g>
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