Blog every day in June event

So Karen at www.karoove.co.uk is kindly hosting another blog every day in June event. I loved taking part last year and will try again this year. I didn't manage to start on day one, so will have a bit of catching up to do....

Life is hectic...

Have worked in Cental London for the past few months, so haven't had much time to craft and blog! Hope to make amends for that in 2014. Here are some Christmas cards I did manage to make this year...

A mixed bag of a bit of everything.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!

Apologies

If there are anyone out there reading this blog - my apologies for not being a good blogger after taking part in the 30 day challenge blogging in June.

Got many excuses but none of them probably reasonable enough to excuse me for not being able to spend 5-10 minutes a day or a few times a week to blog. 

Well, this is about to change (she says full of self-confidence. I am going to start blogging some of my Christmas cards. Yeah - I am late with them again this year and have only just started to make them!!!

Blogging Every Day in June - Day 30

                                         

Today is a special day - it is the last day of the "Blogging every day in June" challenge. Now I am very proud to have managed to stick at it every day, but it has been a lot of fun, and having a challenge every day has certainly helped to keep the blog flowing. So it is with mixed emotions I am now at the end of the challenge. I would like to say a huge THANK YOU to Kairen from www.Karoove.co.uk for taking the initiative and organising the challenge.

Day 30: What does crafting mean to you OR Craft something that has an age theme

Well without being too overdramatic and sentimental here, crafting is almost what I live for and it is when I craft I am having some of the happiest times in my life. Crafting is my relief when the world is cruel, tough or boring. It is my relaxation when I need to switch off or forget about the stresses of work or life. Crafting is my retreat. When I craft I go into my own little bobble where nothing else exist, I forget about everyone and everything around me and it is indeed a very happy universe for me. Wow, that almost made crafting sound like a drug - and I guess for me it is like a drug and it gives me a high. Yet it is so much more healthy - even if not on the bank balance! 

The age theme is going to be on a card as very conveniently my mum asked me to make a card fir a friends 90th birthday:

Thank you all for your lovely cooments on my blog along the way. I hope all your dreams and wishes come true!

Blogging Every Day in June - Day 29

                                             

Day 29: If you could start your crafting life all over again what would you differently OR Craft something that has a beach theme

This is a really good and interesting question. Hindsight is such a good - but very annoying thing! I would definitely decide not to buy some of the items I have bought in the past - such as Fiskars Shapeboss (it was so cool at the time.....honestly - it was!), lots of papers and probably lots and lots of other gimmicky items I have blissbully forgotten about right now.

I would teach myself digital design early on and save a lot of money buying stuff from other people. I would learn to colour in really with with alcohol pens. I would attend more classes, workshops and retreats (if I could afford them) as they are great fun and you meet so many nice people. Just a shame many of them are very expensive so it is difficult to justify the cost when often you go on your own without a partner.

Now a card with a beach theme. The image is fom Sassy Cheryl:

Hope you are enjoying your evening?

Blogging Every Day in June - Day 28

                                           

Hey everyone! Only 3 days to go on the challenge and we are still going strong!

Day 28: If you had 3 wishes what would they be OR Craft something Craft something to celebrate a new home

Well, those 3 wishes below may not necessarily be my all-time, or too much thought through wishes, so with the risk of being a bit frivilous with them here goes:

1. I started my blog just round about the time of the start of this challenge - and it was the challenge which really got me started - and have kept me on my toes. So my first wish would be that I can keep up the blogging and not stop just because the challenge stops. I may not keep up the every day blogging, but at least a few times a week. I would also like to start participating in card challenges out there in cyber-land in order to push myself creatively - and that would be something for me to blog with.

2. The second wish would be for my mum to be able to sell her house. My father died 5 years ago and my mum decided last year to try and sell our family home. It has been on the market for over a year now - as the market has just been completely dead. Unfortunately her house is just one of many houses on the market with nothing shifting. So perhaps my wish should be for the whole housing market to improve - but that is such a huge ask - so just let my mum be able to move on with the next chapter in her life.

3. The third wish would be to open my own business with something crafty. Not yet sure what it would be - but watch this space - it may happen one day. My only fear is that something I hold so dear as a hobby, and which provides me with a huge relief and relaxation from the everyday stresses, would not be so dear to me if it was my full-time procession. Would I enjoy it just as much if I suddenly had to work to deadlines and profit margins. Would I even have time to craft just for the enjoyment, or would it all suddenly just become work? Well, I guess there is only one way to find out!

So that is me for today. I will craft a card with a New Home theme over the weekend (or at least have the best intention to do so) but not today as I am off out with some girlfriends tonight whom I haven't seen for a long time.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Blogging Every Day in June - Day 27

                                           

Reading all the blogs yesterday and our comments, I agree that we are all probably ok-ish at colouring in and evem though we can strive for perfection, we should be happy with our work during that road to perfection. I will definitely try my best and take on that advise. Maybe that means I will colour more often, and in that process I will become better!

Day 27: 3 of your best ever projects OR Craft something that’s all white

3 of my best craft projects? Well, I won a Joanna Sheen competition once with a card similar to the one I posted the other day with the chocolates in it - so I guess that goes on the list. To be honest though I liked my Christmas cards with the same design but different motifs much better. My number two might be a card I made with a 3D champagne bottle for a golden wedding anniversary. It was beautifully decorated with flowers and personalised. I alsp made a matching box for it also decorated with flowers. I was pleased with how it turned out. My third could be a number of things, it could be cards, boxes, books, candles. Well, lets go with the candle I made for my nephew's girlfriend last Christmas. I got a photo of both of them and put it on a white candle, then decoated the bottom of the candle. She was really pleased with it. So thats it, folks!

Now onto todays white card. It's the first time I have made an all-white card (well except for the greeting as otherwise you wouldn't be able to read it!) but it is not the last time. It was fun to make an all-white card and challenging as I had to make texture instead of colour do the talking.

I embossed a sheet of white card with a Crafters Companion 8" embossing folder. I cut a little ribbon decoration - Memory die - and wrapped around a white ribbon before adding the embossed card to my card blank. I then die cut the birdcage and bird - both Marianne dies - and added them to the card.  I finished with the branch - also Memory die - where I added some punched flowers decorated with white flatbacked pearls. I finished with the greeting, the scallopped oval is a Spellbinder die and the round on top is a punch.

Think I will play with more white cards this weekend.....