Happy New Year

Well, midnight has come and gone and now we are beginning a new year - 2010.  My greatest wish is for peace and harmony and I will leave you with some words that my friend Sue sent me:

We will open the book.  

Its pages are blank.  

We are going to put words on them ourselves.  

The book is called Opportunity and its first 

chapter is New Year's Day.  

~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

Happy Crafting - stay creative in 2010

Thank you all so much for making blogging such a pleasure, your comments and the fact that so many of you have become followers of my blog has meant more than you will ever know.

Grunge Bracelet

Yesterday my friend, Jo, and her lovely husband, Dave, came over for the day.  We were originally going to visit the famous Bury Market but it was a shocking day so Jo brought some of her crafting projects to do and we disappeared into my craft room.

Jo had made some Grungeboard bracelets way back and I had never done one so I set to and with her guidance produced this

Now all I need is some new Grungeboard and I can make lots of them for my friends.

Variation

Made a birthday card for a friend the other day and used the techniques Tim Holtz had used on one of his Christmas Tags (number 5 I think).  This was one of my favourite tags so I just had to try it out again but in a non-Christmas way.

I used plain circle Fragments over clock images.  First of all I coloured my tag with Broken China, Faded
Jeans and Weathered Wood Distress Inks.  Then I stamped the flourish with a Gold Dabber and swiped Black Archival Ink over a script stamp.  (I echoed the flourish on the actual card, again just swiping rather than tapping ink on the stamp).

Next I inked some cream cardstock with Walnut Stain, Brushed Corduroy and Aged Mahogany Distress Ink and stamped three clock faces with Archival Black.  The clock faces were then put behind Fragments with Glossy Accents and stuck on the tag.  The words were produced with my Dymo and I stuck some Gold German Scrap on the top and bottom.  A piece of black ribbon was attached to the tag and the card was assembled.

Hope she likes it.

The Stampman Awards Event

Having taken part in the Blog Candy Hop with The Stampman I then decided to look at my favourite project of the year.  Not easy!

I think I have enjoyed my Journalling most of all even though I have not done any of late (but then my trip to America, flu and Christmas took care of that) but on looking back at what I have done I found it difficult to choose which page was my favourite.

I love the San Francisco one on the 25th August and the one with the opening door the day before.  Then there was the Paris one on the 22nd July and the first one I did with Sarah on the 19th.  Each one brought different feelings but I decided to re-post my Alice one.  This was an entry for a Blade Rubber competition.  A last minute thing because Susie mentioned at the time that she only had two entries.  The theme was "Where I spent my Summer Holidays" so Llandudno sprang to mind with Happy Valley and all the Alice carvings.  I did a page of "Alice" images - I so love Alice in Wonderland images - finding the writing in a circular motion took ages - probably several attempts if I remember rightly.

Anyway, it came in second place, beaten by one vote at the end.  Sadly I could not contact my friends to drum up support as I was away in America at the time but then that would have been cheating afterall.

Here it is:

A lot of work but a favourite page of mine.  Haven't got a clue how to add the award to my sidebar so here it is

Banner Uploaded

Forgot to upload my Banner which I made over the past few weeks on the RSS Challenge.  Made another pennant to make it five in total.  I was a bit stuck as to what to put on it without the guidance of Isa for a list of ingredients and then decided I would use this "Peace" image as that would be my most wished for thing of all.

It looked a bit bland so I searched through my stamps for something to give it more colour and found the dove - perfect - the bird used to symbolise Peace.

Circle and Scallop Circle cut out with my Nestabilities, both images embossed in gold, tiny stars on the bottom and it was ready.  I had managed to get some cord in the Ginger colour so that was just right for my banner and I began attaching them to it.  Then I made some gold bows to go between (think it took me as long to make those fiddly little bows as it did to do the last pennant).

Anyway, here it is, over one of the doorways.

Not perfect spacing between each but I did not have time to try to get it just right - next year it will be - and who knows - maybe more pennants.

Happy Christmas Everyone

It is Christmas morning and I have been up four hours - I can't believe this - I have not opened a single present yet.

Been outside sorting food out for the birds and then decided to begin the mammoth task of clearing the drive in front of our house so that the people in the bungalow next to ours have some access for their family who are coming to visit them today.  I think Paul (neighbour) was quite touched and so he got a spade and started helping - I've now left the men to it.

Anyway, thank you to all who take the time to read my blog, special thanks to those who leave a comment - it is very much appreciated.  May I take this opportunity to wish you all a Very Happy Christmas and I hope you are all surrounded by family or friends.

Here is our snowman - note there is another large snowball beside him (and there is one behind) so I am hoping to build another one (or two) before the snow melts.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Displayed my Tags

This is what I have done with my tags.

I put them on a long piece of gold ribbon and have now got them as door hangers on my craft room.  Seems the most appropriate place to have them.  As we have a bungalow they are quite easily seen when you walk from the dining room to the hallway.  Perhaps I should find last year's tags and put them on the bedroom door which is next to this one.

Still had more snow overnight, looks like a good inch has fallen.  Yesterday morning I took this photograph from the door, it is the same scene as before but just look at that sun.  Sorry about the red dot - I don't know how to use Photoshop to get rid of it.  Got an idea of how to but no time for it as I must build a snowman today.