Saturday, December 14, 2013

Fill Your Own Christmas Crackers

This Christmas I decided to fill my own crackers again.  See my previous attempt here.

I found some nice, part assembled fill your own crackers at John Lewis


But when they arrived I felt they were a little too plain




So while filling them with some carefully selected chocolates,  I decided to add a little sparkle with glittery snowflakes, shiny ribbon and some glitter glue


The result





Lots of sparkle in colours matching the decorations on our Christmas tree


What do you think? An improvement?


Next year I fancy something like this



I'd better get started soon on those gingerbread men!!

~A


Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Challenge 27 - Black & white with a splash of colour





Unfortunately my splash of colour wasn't much of a splash!  I put Glossy Accents over the butterfly and that seemed to fade the colour even more.






~A

Friday, July 26, 2013

Challenge 26 - Sport

Anyone for some beach volleyball?!




The stamp is Volleyball Tilda.  I've used Flowersoft for the sand and added punched butterflies.

~A







Saturday, July 20, 2013

Challenge 25 - Crochet

I got to use three of my own hand crocheted flowers on this card - the yellow, lighter blue and purple one. The dark blue one was die cut.



~A

Friday, July 12, 2013

Challenge 24 - Two or More Stamps





I actually used 3 stamps on my card.  The border stamp around the Happy Birthday is Magnolia Autumn Frame and the other stamp is Tilda Sending Love Letter.
Happy Birthday stamp is by Crafty Impressions.

~A

Friday, July 5, 2013

Challenge 23 - Balloons

I really have been a terrible blogger lately!!  I shall try to update my blog on a weekly basis from now on.

The challenge this week was Balloons and here's my card:






Made for my niece who turned 8. I used an Elzybells stamp and some punched balloons which I tried to make more 3D by folding in half and then sticking them together.

~A

Friday, June 28, 2013

Challenge 22 - Sewing



I just love the little stamped tape measure which was part of a free stamp set that came with Issue 31 of Simply Homemade. Yes, you need it!!


~A

Friday, June 21, 2013

Friday, June 14, 2013

Challenge 20 - Nightlife

Or should I say Knightlife??!!


I used an Elzybells stamp and made my own fireworks using an embossing pen and various embossing powders.  I also used Stickles.

I hope they had a night to remember!


~A


Thursday, June 6, 2013

Challenge 19 - Bon Voyage

This weeks theme was Bon Voyage to a destination beginning with any letter in your name.  I chose America!  On my Bon Voyage card I've used an Elzybells stamp and I've plotted and marked her planned route with black pearls.



I've attached the car to the Bon Voyage heading with ribbon so that it swings backwards and forwards:



That girl is going places! lol

~A



Friday, May 31, 2013

Challenge 18 - Monochrome

This challenge was almost a disaster!  My office is rather dark and when I made my card it looked like it was all shades of brown but when I took it outside to photograph, to my horror it was brown AND green!




So I made a few changes and this is what I ended up with


A bit of an improvement?

~A

Friday, May 24, 2013

Challenge 17 - Pale Pink & Black

This one I found rather difficult.  I used a new stamp set and added a few hand made cherry blossoms made from tissue paper.


~A

Friday, May 17, 2013

Challenge 16 - Birdcage

I have always had a weakness for birdcages so I really enjoyed this one.






~A

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Alice the Acorn

I'm so excited to share with you that my daughter has just published her first e-book:  Alice the Acorn





It's a very sweet story with the cutest characters and beautiful pictures.  It's available for free download for 5 days from today (May 15) from Amazon.co.uk or .com.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alice-the-Acorn-ebook/dp/B00CR3PIQE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368611458&sr=8-1&keywords=alice+the+acorn


So hurry, please spread the word, download a copy and leave a review!

Thanks!
~A




Friday, May 10, 2013

Challenge 15 - Shabby Chic

This challenge was chosen by our new member - and boy did I find it challenging!!






I seem to have a mixture of Shabby Chic and French Chic going on.

~A

Friday, May 3, 2013

Challenge 14 - Ladybird

I had great fun with my Dymo machine on this one!



~A

Friday, April 26, 2013

Challenge 13 - Clock

This was a very exciting challenge as another sister in law has joined the Family Card Challenge!!  Now we are 4!  Welcome M, it's great to have you join us.

Here's my card

~A

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Bright Crochet Bag

My elderly neighbour/friend walks with a walking frame.  She likes to carry her cordless phone around the house with her and she needed a little bag that she could hook over the handle of her walker to hold the phone so I decided to crochet her one.







Her eyesight is not that good so I made it really bright so that she would be able to see it!

 







Crochet flower pattern from here and leaf pattern from here.




~A



Week 12 - Lilli of the Valley Stamp

This week's challenge was to use a Lilli of the Valley Stamp that we hadn't used before.  Well, I only own one of their stamps and I had used it before but not on the family challenge. So I decided to use it anyway! 



I went back through my old photos and found this card made with the same stamp





~A

Week 11 - Medical/Get Well






I chose to make a very simple get well card using an Elzybells stamp.  Doesn't she look comfortable tucked up in bed?!

~A


Week 10 - Recycle

This week in the Family Card challenge it was my choice and I chose Recycle as I'm a keen recycler!!  Or perhaps I am just a bit of a hoarder?!  I keep all sorts of things thinking that they will come in handy one day.


On my card I recycled:
1) A wallpaper advertisement from a magazine (top part of my card)
2) String saved from a gift a while back
3) Roses are cut from the same wallpaper advert and have a pearl in the centre.  The pearl was from wedding favour boxes from the wedding we attended recently.
4) The cream rose pics are from the place cards from the same wedding.

Have you recycled anything lately?

~A


Monday, April 1, 2013

Week 9 - Easter

My Easter card made with Elzybells stamps. 






Happy Easter All!

-A

Week 8 - Graduation


My girly graduation card!  I made the little scroll and grad cap.

~A


Week 7 - Wedding

I made this card for friends who got married this weekend.






I hand embossed the 'on your wedding day' with a brass stencil I found at the bottom of one of my craft boxes, it was so easy to do and I really liked the effect. What do you think?

~A

Week 6 - Bunting






My sweet and simple bunting card.  I hand cut the bunting triangles and machine stitched them into place.

~A

Week 5 - Black, White & Grey


I thoroughly enjoyed making this card probably because it 'just happened', don't you love it when everything just falls into place?!!  Sometimes you can struggle and struggle and nothing seems to match or go the way you want it to. 
I used my new Marion Emberson Designs stamps (aren't they great?!), lots of washi tape, Martha Stewart punch and lots of machine stitching.

Thanks for coming to visit!
~A

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Week 4 - Frame

I chose the theme this week and I gave the girls the option of using any type of frame...photo frame, window frame, door frame etc. on their card.


I've used the 'door frame' of the guard house.

-A

Family Card Challenge - Week 3

The theme chosen by my sister in law this week was: choose the colour scheme in your lounge and make an appreciation card for someone who’s done something nice for you.





Guess what colour my lounge is?!!  I was really stuck with finding the right words to use on this card and in the end went with a simple 'with love'. 

-A


Saturday, February 23, 2013

Family Card Challenge 2013 - Week 2 - Three Times a Lady

The theme for this week was the Lionel Richie song, Three Times a Lady.




I recently did some family tree research and while doing so I came across an article on stitched postcards which inspired me to try something different with this card.    The skirt is made from lace and puffed up with net underneath, so it stands out from the card.


Free digital stamp from here.

-A

Family Card Challenge 2013 - Week 1 - Love

Well, the Family card challenge for 2013 has begun again and here's my first card of the year.  The theme - Love.






It's a very different card from my usual style but one filled with lots of meaning...the red berries remind me of my daughter because they are made with her red nail varnish, lol!  The bird reminds me of my son because he loves nature.  The brick wall of my husband, strong and sturdy, the stability in my life.  Three kisses, one for each of them and 1 red heart - mine, in which they all have a place.

~A

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Crochet Update

You may remember my post from a year ago about learning to crochet.  Well, I thought you may want to see what I have been up to...


I've been covering coat hangers!


The rose and leaf pattern is from the Attic 24 blog.   I'm still perfecting them, they are great fun to make.


Another work in progress!


Thanks for coming to visit!

~A


Sunday, January 27, 2013

Sun Glasses Holder

With my thoughts turning towards the summer ahead and the problem of all the sun glasses that get put down on every available surface in our house,  I got out my sewing machine and worked on a solution to this problem - a behind the door sun glasses holder!


I had been given the fabric, ric-rac and buttons a few years ago as a birthday present and finally found the perfect use for them.




With generous sized pockets even the biggest glasses can fit!


~A

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Visiting Madeira

We spent a wonderful week in Madeira over Christmas.  It was great to leave behind a very wet Britain and spend a week in warm sunshine.  It very much reminded me of the Christmas holidays I had as a child.  Would you like to join me on a tour of Madeira?

This was the view from our hotel room


The pool area was located on the opposite side of the road but was easy to access via the hotel's own walkway/bridge over the road and elevator (in this white 'tower').

 
The pool area


Beautiful sunset at the pool


The hotel was within walking distance of Funchal town centre


Streets of Funchal by day

 

By night






We had a fantastic time on the jeep safari - here we are looking out of the top of the jeep, cameras at the ready!




We went on some extremely  narrow, steep and positively dangerous roads - often at high speed - definitely not for the faint hearted!  But views and scenery were spectacular.

Steep roads...




Dirt roads...




Spectacular views... this is looking down on Porto Moniz


Look at the colour of that water!






There were nativity scenes everywhere in Madeira, a beautiful and constant reminder of the reason for season.  This one on the beachfront at Porto Moniz.



Next stop was Cabo Girao where the viewing platform



has a glass bottom!  That's my son's shoes!




Looking down on the clouds...







Next stop Camara de Lobos




The next day we headed for Pico do Arieiro stopping briefly to take pics of Funchal.  Overnight a cruise ship had arrived in the harbour.




Through the forest...





Heading towards that white dome on the hill which is Pico do Arieiro, the third highest peak in Madeira.



That dome actually looks like this!


Stunning views







Then onto Ribeiro Frio





Where we sampled Madeira's signature alcoholic drink - poncha - at Mr John, who apparently makes the best poncha in Madeira, well according to the sign on the wall!
Way too strong for me. Note our jeep parked right outside Mr John!



For those not into poncha there is a trout farm there too

 





I hope our guide didn't have too many ponchas, look at the road ahead!!



Just imagine living in that house!






The road into Santana


Traditional houses at Santana


Some in better condition than others



So cute!


A beautiful garden


Nativity scene in Santana



Next stop Faial


where we had lunch at the restaurant below.   The inside of the building is part cave...look closely at the rock on the left side of the building and behind it!


Along the way we passed this - I love this driveway!


When we got back to Funchal we noticed another cruise ship in the harbour


A very large one!

The night of the 23rd December was the 'all night street party', I'm not sure what the traditions are behind this event but our guide (and a few other locals) said that we had to go.  If any Madeirans stumble upon my blog perhaps you could shed some light on it for me?  Young and old turned out and the atmosphere was lovely.







Food and drink stalls were everywhere. 


Wearing of a Christmas hat is encouraged!


Part of the traditions are the fruit sellers


I believe the reason behind this was because years ago the shops would close over the festive period and this would be the last opportunity to stock up on fresh produce.  But as our jeep guide told us, not many are interested in buying fruit on a night like this!


Plenty of entertainment


whatever your music tastes!


Tired and weary we headed back to our hotel - we never managed to stay up all night!


A new day and a new adventure - the cable car to Monte










Would you like to live in this house so close to the edge?!!















Almost at the top


As this is a rather l-o-n-g post I think I had better end it here and continue in another post.  Thank you for joining me thus far, I've loved re-living it whilst preparing this post,  I hope you have enjoyed your trip so far!

~A