Christmas Wishes

 

Hello everyone.  Just popping in to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!  I hope you all have a lovely time and that you keep safe and well.  Thank you for visiting me this year and for all your kind comments, I appreciate them so much.

 

As usual, things have been very hectic here.  Emily and I are finally over our illnesses.  School has been manic, with pantos, parties, church services etc.  We finally finished work on Friday, and I went straight off to Sainsburys to start my Christmas food shopping.  We have had a very busy but not-so-stressful weekend getting ready for Christmas.  The house is looking very tidy and festive, the trifle is made, as is the gingerbread house and the yule log, and the Christmas cake is decorated.  The Indian take-away is about to be ordered and then we are ready.

 

I have realised that I have omitted to send out all my Christmas cards - apologies if that is you.  I can only put it down to illness and my work situation - I'm really sorry.

 

Before I sign off for the Christmas period, here are the last few cards that I made for the charity event that I participated in.  The irony is, that for the first time ever, I didn't make any cards of my own to send out this year (apart from the ones I made for the Scrapbaggers!).  Oh well, there's always next year!

 

 

Thanks for dropping my, and again, Happy Christmas!

 

Michelle x

Candlelight Christmas

 

Hello.  Hope everyone is managing to keep well as we approach Christmas.  Unfortunately our house has managed to succumb to the fluey type virus that is going around.  Poor Emily has been ill for over a week and even managed to lose her voice for a couple of days.  She is on the mend now but has been unable to go to college and work placement which isn't good.  Edward and I both have had nasty colds and have been home for a couple of days.  Mark so far remains clear (hope I haven't just tempted fate!).

 

I'm feeling a little bit anxious and under-prepared for Christmas, still got lots to do and not enough time to do it all.  This year I was supposed to not let the stress get to me but it has. I'm still in the process of writing Christmas cards with more still to make, as well as presents to wrap.  I like to be really organised and "last minute" doesn't sit well with me.

 

Anyway, the card I am sharing with you today uses the Candlelight Christmas Speciality DSP, along with the Ornament Keepsakes stamp set and Holiday Ornaments Framelits (all from SU).

 

I think these papers look great on the kraft card and I just added a touch of matching ribbon to the bauble (which is mounted on dimensional foam).

 

 

I'm going to a 12 hour scrapbook crop on Saturday (!!), I've never done this before.  At the moment I'm thinking it's not such a wise idea with so much to do, but I am planning to get some Christmas cards made there.  I just hope I'm not feeling too hungover as we have our staff party the night before.  Will have to rein in the G&Ts I guess to keep a clear head.  Which leaves Sunday to put up the decorations. 

 

Hope you are not buckling under the pressure!

 

Take care

 

Michelle x

 

 

Four Seasons

Hi All.  Feeling festive yet?  It's a bit of a shocker that it's suddenly December isn't it?  I know it's a bit of a cliche, but where has the year gone?

 

It's been a pretty manic week at work and it's only going to get worse.  This week I have been working on a Victorian shop window for the backdrop of our Christmas play.  Lots of brown paint and fake snow.  We have also had a Christmas Fair on Friday, which was very different this year - it was outside!  It was based on a German Christmas Market, and the atmosphere was fab, the only problem was that it was VERY cold!  I had a stall selling my bits and pieces and was outside from 5pm to 7.30pm.  By the end I couldn't feel my toes despite my thermal socks.  Having said that, it was a great evening and I applaud the hard work of all the volunteers.

 

Today's card is made using the Four Seasons stamp set which is a current Hostess gift.  I chose to stamp the image in red Brilliance ink and added some red sparkle embossing powder and heat embossed it.  I stamped some of the image again, I just wanted the robin in the middle, and heat embossed that too.  I cut the two circles out and mounted the main one on a circle of red mirror card.  The smaller circle was attached to the middle with 3D foam pads.  I used a piece of red satin polka dot ribbon around the middle and stuck the circle element over it using more foam pads.  The sentiment is from Craftwork Cards.

 

I'm very pleased with how the card turned out, I really like the simplicity of the red and white.  Hope you like it too.

We've had a lovely day today having friends over for a pre-Christmas get together.  It was really chilled and they were good company.  It did mean a massive tidy up beforehand though.  Had to actually put all my cardmaking and scrapbooking stuff out of sight (on our bed!).  Heaven knows where it's going to go over Christmas (Mum and Dad's maybe?).  I really  must have a big sort out after Christmas, I'm starting to feel overwhelmed by it all.

Thanks for dropping by.  Until next time.

Michelle x

Something a bit different

 

 

Good morning all.  Hope you are all well.

 

Today's card is a bit of a departure for me, but I was inspired by a card from the current Craft Stamper magazine.

 

I used the Serene Snowflakes stamps from SU (I'm so glad I bought these), with pink and bronze Brilliance ink.  I added a piece of pink satin ribbon and mounted the panel on to some brown glitter paper, which I then mounted on to the base card.  I stamped the sentiment (Paula Pascual) in the pink ink and then punched it out with the Word Window punch from SU.  I also punched the Modern Label from brown glitter paper and mounted the sentiment on to that.  I then die cut the two flourishes from the glitter paper using Die-Namics Fancy Flourish, and added this to the card before finally 3D-ing the sentiment on top.

 

 

What do you think?  I'm really pleased with it, the colour scheme in particular.

 

How's you week been?  Mine has been long and busy as usual, although yesterday our school was shut for an occasional day.  I went Christmas shopping with Mark to Milton Keynes.  We had a really productive and successful day, and apart from a couple of bits and bobs, I'm done!  We had time to meet my best friend for lunch and then to call in at my sister's for a cup of tea before heading home.  We really spoilled ourselves by stopping for a meal at Pizza Express before getting home at 10pm.  We were out of the house for 13 hours!  The kids and dog were well looked after as my parent were at my house.  It was lovely to have a day with Mark, we don't get a lot of "us" time.

 

Well today is a day of Christmas card making (I hope), as well as an overdue appointment at the opticians.

 

Have a great day, thanks for dropping by.

 

Michelle x

Candi Tree

Apologies in advance for the wonky photograph, not sure what happened there. Might have to take Mark to task over this!

 

Today's cards have been made with Craftwork Card's Candi Happy Christmas, stamped in black ink.  I coloured both trees with Promarkers, then added some dimension with extra buttons, a star, some glitter glue and some Glossy Accents. I've listed the Promarker colours at the bottom.  I chose some corresponding card stock to mount them on.

 

 

(Promarker colours - Mulberry, Cyan, Turquoise, Plum,Pine, Lush Green, Poppy, Gold, Burnt Sienna, Cool Grey 5)

 

Today I've had a great time scrap booking with the Scrapbags.  I've managed to complete two layouts for Emily's book, which is miraculous.  After Christmas I must take stock and see how much more needs doing as I will only have 6 months to finish it (eek!).

 

Tomorrow the four of us are going to see Breaking Dawn Part 2, getting slightly excited now!

 

Hope you are all having a fab weekend.  Thanks for visiting.

 

Michelle x

Happy Birthday Mum

Hi everybody, hope you are all well and have had a good week.  Mine has been pretty good for no specific reasons.  I have a lovely weekend ahead of me with a day of scrapbooking tomorrow, and a trip to the cinema on Sunday morning to see the final instalment of the Twilight Saga.

 

Today, however, is my lovely Mum's birthday and here is the card that I made for her.  I have to say that I am particularly pleased with this effort - one of my favourite cards for ages.

 

My new favourite Stampin' Up set is called Betsy's Blossoms and I love, love, love the big flower head in the set.  I think I will be using it a lot.  The colours I have chosen are Rich Razzleberry, Pear Pizzazz and Tempting Turquoise.

 

The flower was stamped twice in the Razzleberry and Turquoise then I stamped the leaves in the gaps with Pear Pizzazz.  I mounted a piece of seam binding (Pear Pizzazz) onto a strip of white card and added that to the bottom third of the panel.  I then mounted the whole lot on to Pear Pizzazz card stock, which in turn was stuck to the white base card.

 

I stamped the sentiment from the hostess set of Wacky Wishes in Rich Razzleberry and then mounted it onto Tempting Turquoise.  I used foam pads to give it a little bit of dimension.

 

 

 

So that's me done for tonight.  There will be no Christmas cards made this weekend, but I've still got a few more things to share with you over the coming days.

Thank you for dropping by and as always, I appreciate your comments.

Have a good one.

Michelle x

Candi Christmas Wreath

 

Good evening.  I trust you have all had a pleasant weekend.

 

The card I want to share with you today is stamped with the Candi Christmas Wreath stamp from Craftwork Cards.  I stamped it in a black Versafine ink and coloured it in using Promarkers (Mulberry, Turquoise, Cyan and Plum).  I have to say that it took ages!

 

I cut it out (also took ages) and mounted it on some white card, which I backed with SU's Tempting Turquoise - a perfect match, then adhered it to the main card.  I added a Christmas sentiment (Craftwork Cards) and made a purple bow at the top.

 

 

Again, I have used non-traditional colours which I definitely prefer, but I do think this would look great in red, green and gold - I'm just not sure I can face all that colouring in again!

 

Well, I've finally started a little bit of Christmas shopping, from the safety of my sofa!  Must start writing some lists now and getting organised - I can deny it no longer.

 

Have a good week and wrap up warm.  Thanks for dropping by.

 

Michelle x

Sparkling Ornament

Good morning all.  It's a thoroughly miserable one here in Hertfordshire, it has rained non-stop since I woke up.  Poor Edward is playing football in it, and poor Mark, because he is watching him!  Emily and I are curled up in the warmth, watching last night's Strictly Come Dancing - it's a hard life!

 

Today's card features the Ornament Keepsakes stamp set again.  I stamped the bauble three times using Garden Green and cut it out using the corresponding Holiday Ornaments Framelits (fab!).  I scored them down the middle and glued them together to make a 3D bauble (you can't see it from the photo - sorry!).  I added some glitter on the middle bauble. 

 

Whilst that was drying, I embossed a panel of white card with a Merry Christmas embossing folder from Sizzix, which I then mounted on to Garden Green card stock.  This in turn was mounted on to the white base card.  I stamped the sentiment (from Marion Emberson's Sparkling Christmas set) in Red Riding Hood on a strip of white card, which I then mounted on matching red card stock.

 

The sentiment strip just overlaps the edge of the card and is tucked behind the ornament.

 

Hope you like it.

 

 

 

Well I must go and put the finishing touches to the Toffee Apple Flapjack I have  made for a bonfire party tonight - just hope the rain stops,

 

Tomorrow I am back at work, but on a brighter note, UPS will be delivering my latest Stampin' Up order - happy days :)

 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and take care.

 

Michelle x x

Happy Anniversary

Yesterday was my parents' wedding anniversary and they celebrated 48 years of marriage.  Here is the card that I made for them.  The paper and the die cuts that make up the flower are from the Vintage Flowers and Papers Pad from Craftwork Cards.  I love making these flowers, they are quite addictive.  I did make three different flowers to go on this card but it was too much so I settled for just the one.  The ribbon I already had in my stash.  The sentiment is from a Paula Pascual set which I cut out using the Bitty Banners Framelits from SU.  I love these Framelits and they go through my Cuttlebug beautifully.  I'm getting quite a collection.

 

 

Today I have been making some more Christmas cards.  I've not made as many as I had hoped.  The design I have used is quite time consuming, both in colouring and in cutting out.  Hopefully they will be ready to scan soon (they're drying) and I may be able to post them tomorrow.  I'm still in shock that I have posted something everyday for the past four days!  Obviously this is not me turning over a new leaf, as soon as half term is over, I will be back to my old intermittent ways!

 

I found it quite tricky working today as the light has been awful.  I'm also struggling a bit with my eyesight - I think I need to wear varifocals but have not yet plucked up the the courage to take this step.  Consequently, my glasses are on and off depending on what I am doing - it's quite frustrating.  Getting older is such fun!

 

Hope you are all having a good day.  I'm out tonight with some friends - apparently we are going to be drinking cocktails, so maybe tomorrow won't be very productive!

 

Have fun

 

Michelle x

More Snowflakes

 

 

Another day, another Christmas card! 

 

Again I have used the Serene Snowflakes stamps and the same combination of colours from one of the previous cards (Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze and Crumb Cake).  I really likes these colours together, and they may very well feature again!

 

I can't believe it's going to be 1st November tomorrow. I really must get my skates on with my Christmas cards.  This week hasn't been as productive as I would have hoped, but there is still plenty of time (isn't there??!!). 

Thanks for dropping by.  Take care

Michelle x

Ornament Keepsakes

 

Hi again.  Here is another Christmas card that I would like to share with you.  It's made with the Ornament Keepsakes stamp set that is featured in the  SU Autumn/Winter seasonal catalogue.

 

I stamped the images using Brilliance ink pads to get a pearlised look.  The ribbons were hand drawn using a silver metallic Promarker and I added a little bit of diamante bling at the top of each bauble.  I used blue pearlised paper for the mounting.  The sentiment is from a new set by Marion Emberson called Sparkling Christmas.

 

As you have probably noticed I'm not particularly fond of traditional colours or images.  Most of my Christmas cards use blue, purple, pink and silver.  I also like lots of white.  However, as I am making cards to sell, I am going to have to bite the bullet and dig out those reds, greens and golds - watch this space!

Take care and I hope you have had a good day.

Michelle x

Serene Snowflakes

Hi everyone.  Hope you all enjoyed the extra hour in bed this morning, I know I did.  I was very warm and snuggly.  I have to say that I am not enjoying this sudden drop in temperature, and have had to crank the heating right up.

 

I am, however, enjoying the fact that I don't have to go to work tomorrow!  Half term has been a long time coming, the last eight weeks have seemed never ending.  Although when we go back we will be gearing up for the madness of Christmas. 

 

With that in mind, I have made a start on some Christmas cards.  I have lots to make, both for my personal use and for a charity event I am supporting, so I need to get busy!

 

My first batch were made with the sadly discontinued Serene Snowflakes stamps from Stampin' Up.  I have coveted this set for quite some time and am enjoying using them so much.

 

The two cards I am sharing are the same design but with different colours.  The first set of colours are Cherry Cobbler, Sahara Sand and Pink Pirouette, and for the second I used Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze and Crumb Cake.  I added a few crystals to give them a bit of subtle bling!

 

The sentment is one I've had for years from Denami.

 

 

 

Thanks for dropping by and I appreciate the comments you leave.  Come back tomorrow and I will share another Christmas card with you.

Take care and wrap up warm.

Michelle x x

Christmas Wreath

 

Now I don't really like talking about Christmas in October, but I have started to make some Christmas Cards for a charity event I am supporting.  I've also been playing around with a wreath kit (from Craftwork Cards) that I bought at Ally Pally a couple of weeks ago.

 

I was full of trepidation when I started getting the bits and pieces out of the packet because I have never done anything like this before, but I quickly got into it.

 

I sprayed the back of all the flowers with some Dylusions ink and Glimmer Mists so that the backs were not glaringly white.  After leaving them to dry, I shaped them all with a pokey tool to add dimension.  Then I layered them together to make seven flowers in total.

 

Prior to this, I stained the chipboard wreath with red ink and attached the ribbon.  Finally I added the flowers.

 

The wreath itself is quite small, about 8 inches in diameter, but so sweet.  I can't wait to make some more, I really have the bug now!  Have a look at the photos and see what you think.

 

The cards I have been making do use Stampin' Up products, particularly the discontinued Serene Snowflakes, which I hope to share with you soon.

Thanks for dropping by, and I appreciate your continuing interest.

Have a good week

Michelle x

PGL

 

Got back home on Friday night from a fabulous week in Wales at PGL.  The children had a brilliant time, and so did I.  Apart from dealing with homesickness, sickness and sleepwalking, it was great.  Although I have to say, I have never been so tired.  We were pretty much on duty 24 hours a day.  The first night, after going to bed at midnight, we were woken 6 times by various children, and finally got to sleep around 4am!  It did improve after that.

 

I didn't take part in all the activities, but I did have a go at Jacob's Ladder (so hard), rifle shooting and abseiling, which I absolutely loved.  Please excuse the less than flattering harness in the photo below - it wasn't very comfortable either.

 

And as if I wasn't tired enough, I went to Ally Pally on Saturday for the day with my mum.  We didn't stay until the end because I was exhausted, but I'm glad we went.  I managed to get some Harry Potter themed paper for a scrapbook layout for Emily's album.  I also picked up one or two other bits and pieces, but I found it all a bit samey.  Lots of decoupage papers, not my thing at all.

Today has been the usual - homework, ironing etc.  Nothing too thrilling.  Back to work tomorrow.  I'm really hoping that next weekend I can get on with some card making.  I have so many new Stampin' Up goodies to play with and no time at all.  C'est la vie!

Hope you have all had a good week.  Sorry I've not been commenting on your blogs for a while.  Hope to get back on track soon.  Thanks for visiting.

Take care

Michelle x

Perfectly Preserved

Today I want to share with you two cards I made over the weekend with the fabulous Perfectly Preserved stamp set from Stampin' Up.  This stamp set, along with the co-ordinating paper and Framelits dies are from the Autumn/Winter catalogue, which is jam-packed full of goodies.

 

This stamp set is absolutely gorgeous and I think it will get a lot of use.  I particularly love the jam jar stamp which I think is so versatile.

 

I stamped the jam jar in Pacific Point and then stamped three stems in Garden Green.  The flowers were stamped in Pumpkin Pie, Real Red and Pacific Point.  I die cut the flowers with the Cannery Framelits and adhered them to the card with 3D foam.  I rounded the corners of the card and backed it with Pumpkin Pie card stock, rounding the corners of that too.  I cut a strip of the Orchard Harvest DSP and added that to the base card.  Before sticking the decorated panel down, I made two holes in the neck of the jam jar with a piercing tool and threaded through some orange baker's twine.  Then I stuck the panel in place.

 

The sentiments were also stamped in Pacific Point and mounted onto Pumpkin Pie, then stuck to the card, again with 3D foam.

 

Items used : Perfectly Preserved stamp set, Cannery Framelits dies, Orchard Road DSP, Pumpkin Pie smooth card stock,baker's twine.
Inks : Garden Green, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Pacific Point.

I'm finally getting into the swing of being back at work.  It's taken a while after six weeks off.  I'm going away next week on a school residential trip to PGL in the Brecon Beacons.  I have mixed emotions at going; leaving Mark, the children and Chloe for a week, being responsible for a young girl with diabetes (the reason I'm going), and maybe making a fool of myself if I try any of the activities!  I'll keep you posted - there may be photos!

I'm scrapbooking again on Saturday and packing for my trip on Sunday.  Then when I come back, it's the show at Ally Pally.  I'm not sure I'm going to feel up to it, but I've ordered the tickets now!

Thanks for dropping by, and your comments are always appreciated.

Take care

Michelle x

Summer Holidays

Yes, it's me, yes I'm back!  Sorry for the prolonged absence.  I thought I would blog more often being on holiday but it just hasn't worked out that way.  I am back to work tomorrow (shock to the system!), so I thought I would do a round up of the summer holidays.

 

This has probably been the best summer holiday for a few years. I have spent time with my family, I have had time to relax and recharge, time to be creative and time to complete jobs.  Here's what I've been up to:

 

Despite initially not being bothered, I was completely caught up in the Olympics.  I felt very proud to be British and very proud of how we came across to the rest of the world.  It was just amazing.

 

We have decorated Edward's bedroom.  It started off with just tidying and throwing things away, and escalated into full on stripping!  New colour on the walls, new flooring, new bedding etc.

 

We had a lovely holiday in Kent with my parents.  We stayed in a great house in Westgate-on-Sea and spent lots of time on the beach, walking the dog and just relaxing.  There were trips to Whitstable and Broadstairs, and a great little shell grotto in Margate.

 

Edward had a week away in Centre Parcs with a friend, so Emily and I had a week together catching up on films (mainly Harry Potter!).

 

I have been to a couple of Scrapbook crops.

 

I have just returned from a Scrapbook Retreat - 3 days and 2 nights in a lovely hotel.  Super meals and great company.  I have never spent so long crafting (it was very tiring!).  The photos below show some views of the hotel, as well as the layouts I completed.

 

 

I made a card - well it was our 18th wedding anniversary, so it had to be done!  The design is a complete copy from one that Vicky Hayes made (see it here ) which I loved so much.  Vicky has such inspiring ideas, do check out her blog, it's incredible.

 

The card is made from white card stock.  The hearts are cut from Nestabilities.  I glued three red hearts together, scored down the middle, to make it look 3D.  I used a Swiss Dots embossing folder on the left hand panel.  This design is so versatile and I know I will be making many more cards in this style (in fact I am planning my Christmas cards around this look).

 

 

And after months of worrying myself silly, Emily started college yesterday and seems to love it.  She has had a tough couple of years and I let out a big sigh of relief when things went well yesterday.  A new chapter has started for her, and she is on the way to achieving her dreams of becoming a teacher.

 

So now, after all that, I can go back to work feeling refreshed and hopefully stress free.  With any luck I will be back soon with another card to show you.

 

Thanks for dropping by and sticking with me.  I really appreciate your comments.

 

Take care.

 

Michelle x

Cottage Garden

Hello everyone.  Yet again it's been an age since I last posted.  So much for my theory that the summer holidays would bring more crafting time - I wish!

So time has been spent reading, running Edward around, trying to blitz his room, have a Harry Potterthon with Emily (one more film to go), watching the Olympics, etc etc.

This week Mark is on holiday and we are living in a state of chaos as we are decorating Edward's room.  Honestly, I think the room has elastic wall for all the stuff that has come out!  We are trying to give his room a more grown up look as he is now a teenager, and Mark is laying a laminate floor as I type.  I'm not sure how the stuff is going to go back in but that's a bridge we will have to cross in the next few days. 

Amidst all of this, I did find a small window of crafting opportunity at the end of last week and made this card.

I used the Cottage Garden stamp set and randomly stamped the solid flower in Regal Rose.  I then stamped the outline flower stamp in Elegant Eggplant over the top.  Using the cluster of small flowers I sprinkled those around using Perfect Plum and Bashful Blue.  I mounted the stamped piece using coordinating cardstock (I used the scalloped ribbon punch to cut the pretty edge).  The sentiment is from Happiest Birthday Wishes.

I'm really pleased with this card - it's the most stamping I've done for years!  Even though there is a lot of stamping, it still has the clean and simple look to it.  Hope you like it.

OK, time to make a cup of tea for the worker.  Have a great day and hope to be back soon.  Thanks for dropping by.

Michelle x

At last!

At long last I've finally got some cards to share.  Yesterday I spent the day at my scrapbooking crop but not making any progress on Emily's book.  Unfortunately my photographs did not arrive in time so I decided to use the time there and make some cards for the charity event that I am attending on Thursday.  It was quite a productive day in the end as I made 15 cards.

The four I am sharing today are all a variation on a theme. I have used mainly Stampin' Up products.  I used a 12cm square card in white as a base.  On a separate piece of white card I scored two lines near the bottom using my fantastic Simply Scored.  Then, using Pedal Presents (Hostess gift from the summer mini), I stamped the bicycle using black ink, and also the flowers on two of the cards and the presents on the other two.  I used my Stampin' Write markers to colour in the images.  I wrapped some Baker's Twine round the bottom under the scored lines, and adhered a stamped sentiment on top using dimensional foam.  The whole panel was then mounted on Real Red and Pacific Point card stock and then stuck to the white base card.

I'm really pleased with the finished effect, and I particularly like the added dimension of the scored lines and the twine. I think there will be a lot of scoring on future cards!

I hope you like them too.

I hope you are having a lovely weekend.  Today the sun is shining and it is actually not raining for a change!

I have a busy week ahead of me as we wind down to the end of term.  I'm really looking forward to the summer holidays - a time to craft I hope!

Take care and come back soon :)

Michelle

Olympic Excitement

Well, still nothing to share on the crafting front.  I'm struggling to fit everything in at the moment.  The big news is that I have joined Stampin' Up as a Demonstrator  (purely to fund my own hobby), which is hugely exciting.  I am just awaiting my starting up kit (Tuesday according to the UPS tracking system - can't wait!!).

I had a great birthday last week and was thrilled to receive so many beautiful cards, particularly two very splendid Stampin' Up ones!

Work is manic, gearing up to Open Evening on Tuesday and various other events as we count down until the end of term.  I work in Year 6, so there is a lot going on, plays, leaving picnics etc. 

We had the excitement of the Olympic Torch Relay going through Hertford this morning.  The rain held off thank goodness, although it arrived with gusto the moment we got home!

Edward managed to stand next to one of the runners as she was interviewed for Chinese TV.

And to add further to the Olympic excitement, we had an actual torch in school on Wednesday (apparently this one carried the flame from Greece) and all the staff and children had the opportunity of having their photograph taken holding it.  I felt quite proud actually.

So that's all my news at the moment.  I hope everyone is keeping safe with the torrential rain we are having.  Surely it can't go on for too much longer?!

Take care

Michelle x

I can't believe it's been nearly a month since I last posted.  Life is still pretty manic, particularly as we approach the end of the school year.  I have had no time over the last month to do anything creative, so unfortunately I have nothing to share with you. I am definitely getting withdrawal symptoms, especially as I have a rather large parcel of Stampin' Up goodies that I am desperate to play with!

So, since Edward's birthday weekend, Emily and I had a fab time at the Coldplay concert at the Emirates Stadium - it was one of the best concerts that I have ever been to. Emily was in seventh heaven!

We have also celebrated the Jubilee with a street party which was fun, if somewhat wet!

Half term was very quiet.  My crafting mojo disappeared and I spent most of the time reading and recharging.  I haven't even picked up my crochet for months.

We had a family outing to the Harry Potter tour at Leavesden Studios near Watford.  We are all huge HP fans and had the best time. 

Last weekend was Emily's 17th birthday.  We had a lovely day and a meal out at Pizza Express, Emily's favourite restaurant, and a family party the next day.

And now here we are and it is nearly the end of June.

I've been baking like a mad thing tonight.  It's my birthday on Thursday and I have made 3 dozen cupcakes to take into work - just got to ice and decorate them tomorrow night.

Hopefully this weekend coming will be a crafty one.  I have been invited to have a stall at a charity event in a few weeks, so I have got to get busy.  Perfect opportunity to try out all my new goodies.  Wish me luck!

Take care

Michelle x

Hi All.  Wow, it's been a busy old time recently.  Work's been mad, and it's been pretty busy at home.  I did find time to make a couple of anniversary cards using the fab Mixed Bunch stamp set and matching punch from Stampin' Up.  I love these so much and will be using them lots (as soon as I get a bit more free time).  I stamped one of the images in Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine Tango and Real Red, then punched them out.  I then punched them in matching card stock.  I gave the stamped flowers a little but of a curl before I stuck them to the matching punched flowers.  I stuck a thin piece of ribbon around the middle of the card before I attached the flowers.  I couldn't decide which order to have the flowers, so I did one of each.  The centres of the flowers are Candi coloured with matching markers.  The sentiment is from a set by Paula Pascual.

One of these cards is for an old college friend who has been married 20 years.  I was a bridesmaid at her wedding and I had only just started going out with Mark.  It doesn't seem possible that so much time has gone by.

Talking of time passing quickly, my little boy was 13 on Thursday.  It doesn't seem 5 minutes ago that he looked like this.

And now he looks like this (complete with a bruised nose, from being bashed in the face by a tennis racquet!).  He had a lovely birthday, and was very happy with his Nintendo 3DS and a huge pile of books.  We went out for a lovely meal, and then had a big family party yesterday.

I made him a mini album instead of a card, which I will share with you soon, just haven't got round to photographing it yet.

We've also had to help him choose his options in readiness for Year 9 in September.  His school start their options courses a year earlier than most schools.  That was also hard to believe, he seems too young to be making these choices, although I am impressed by his mature approach to choosing his subjects.

We were blessed yesterday, for Edward's party, with the weather.  I know we shouldn't complain, but does it have to be this hot?!  My poor little Chloe, she doesn't know what to do with herself in the heat.  She has even gone off her food, which is virtually unheard of!!

Well, that's me for tonight.  Thanks for dropping by and I really do appreciate your kind comments.  Look after yourselves in this heat, and take care.

Michelle x