Your Chance to win

Have your brought you copy of "The Craft Stamper", if not get to the shops pretty quick or get to a online supplier and order your copy. This is for a chance to win a place at one of our Craft ReTreats. If you've not checked out our website yet, go have a look as our special offer prices run out soon, so secure your place by placing an order or chance it with a competition....good luck, and we hope to see you there

Just to show the last of..................

....the bits and bobs that I have been making while i have been off work. I now need to go out more often to wear all of the pieces that I have made, mind you saying that I have made a lot for presents and so I don't feel quite so guilty!!!!.

OK so I have been playing with the "paper" version of the ArClay, with some good and some really not so good, and some totally pants results. I have 1 1/2 sheets left and they really are not cheap, and also very small. They are only 7.5cm by 7.5cm so not a lot to play with, and not a lot before you make a mess of it!!!. I have just found a great way to roll the clay even thinner. I've never come across this idea in any of the books i have read or things i have read on the tinternet, it was from a happy accident, as most great eureka moments are, so I am pleased about that.

So this batch of jewellery has been created with lots of stamps, one mould slightly adapted, lots of badger balm and of course my new kiln. Which was great - and now I understand how to do a basic "fire" I'm away, and no stopping me.

The patchwork one to the left - I am really pleased with as I covered a twig with silver paste and then dried it, then built the hanging around it, so when I fired the piece the twig burnt away leaving a hollow twig/tube to thread the necklace through. Also the paper clay hanging with the tree, it looks really nice on, i need to work on this idea more as i want to take it in a different direction, and I have lots of ideas.

Well sadly I am having to go back to work on Monday that two week break seemed to go ohhh to quickly, maybe if I had managed to get out of bed earlier in the morning I may have had more time.

Well here's to a great new year and new idea's and new projects and a new diet boo!!!

,

I love time off work.....

I can actually get some of my projects finished when I take time of work, the rest of the time I seem to be either working or chasing myself to get "Jane" jobs done, or doing other stuff other than things that I adore doing ie creating Tat!!!!. So I am really pleased with the finished front of my wall hanging box.

I brought this box from the wonderful peeps at Capture The Magic store, and i thought it was a real find and great price, i only went in for some lovely paper. If your out this way you have just got to go visit their store, i know they are as good with on line supplies, but its so much nicer to go touch and see things before you buy them, but be warned each visits cost's a fortune as you come out with more than you had gone in for haha but well worth the effort and money spent.

Anyways here's a wee look using video and a photo, the video shows it slightly better than photos. Hope you like it I know I do, not sure if anyone else in the house does!!!! but its on the wall in the dinning room so you can't miss it oooppss!!. I do like the idea of getting other people to make the bits that go inside each box in exchange for a bit of my tat.....just need to find some friends to swap with!!!!!!.
Ok i must now get back to playing with my new kiln and sorting some photo's out to show you what I have managed to do, And before I play any more I just off for a trip down to the gym for a new year swim and run to try and burn off just some of this birthday cake, Christmas cake, mince pies, sweets.......need i say more!!!! Happy New Year hxxxxxxxxx

Now finished

so i have had a rethink about the middle of this wall hanging - I have finally finished this plaque and very pleased I am too.

Maybe after all the stress i will have to sell it!!!! who knows whats going to happen to this........

ok so starting bid......................... I pay you £3.20 to take it away

I think it's finished

Ok so i started this a couple of weeks ago, and christmas present making and other bits and piece's got in the way, but i finally managed to spend the day finishing it - or is it??????, the trouble is i think the middle is lacking something. I have taken it to bits about ten times, i have also used some material that i had this idea of drapping it around the head and crown, but it just was not working. The fairy at the botton looks pants but looks much better in real life - my photography is really pants, also what doesnt really show up is the paper/image in the middle behind the metal mesh.... oh well will think on, may add to it may not i'll see what happens... anyways lots of stamped images into premo clay and lots of tat added, used my fabby zetti stamps

Now i am moving onto my next wee little project for my Tat wall gallery!!! - its a wooden box quite large its 16"by16", and boy am i going to have fun doing this and filling it with tat. I have made a start on the doors already the other week, and so have only about half to finish which I hope to do in the next coule of days. I think this will be an ongoing WIP to fill each section inside - maybe i could get peeps to do a swap with me and I will put there tat in each section!!!!!!!!mmm need a plan

Some gifts that i have made

So can you tell what it is LOL - its a clock - shock i know i bet you would never have guessed - anyways it is. I have used the great arch from LBcrafts that Lin and Leandra use in their workshop - well I gave it a bit of my own slant

Then theres some silver cuff links i have made, also a necklace and wine box that i managed to cover in metal . Now i wonder what else i could cover in metal................. christmas pud ooohh. Right i best go play some more.... with my new kiln and lets see what i can come up with while i'm off work

So who brought christmas forward.............

I am sure i have missed a couple of months this year, or someone has taken them away or someone has deffo moved Christmas forward at least two months, as it really can't be Dec again!!!!!!!!!!!!. I have been really busy with work. We do have some really exciting news for YCJ but shhhhh for now - well I could be bribed with a huge bit of chocolate cake ;0). I have also been busy making the Christmas cards which drive me nuts each year - sent the ones overseas in time to catch the last posting, but am now £20 lighter, but don't ask how much it cost for posting the parcels - i keep looking at the receipt and feeling faint!!!

OK so what have I been up to - I made a retirement card, i thought i would play around with some metal and clay - used the cuttlebug folder onto the metal then added the clay birds attached to my fav background of all time - acrylic paint burnt to an inch of its life and then rubbed with metallic rub on's and jobs done



For a friends birthday - well shes not into arty farty tat at all so she is quite difficult to make stuff for as she is quite a fluffy person as well, also she has no end of bits of jewellery so thought i had better do something different. So in the end i went with this diary. It was a a plan brown hard back book diary that was inked to death and a few stamps, then windows cut out and ladies stamped inside for a bit of a girlie thing going on, then used diamond glaze to seal them. Then got my new fav item out premo clay and made a couple of "things" to attach and the bottom one with a written quote which was very appt. Well i took my friend out to dinner and she insisted on taking it with her to open at the restaurant - well she was chuffed to bits with it - but I was even more so when the waitress made the comment that she loved it and wanted to know where she could buy one from i rather blushed lol

Well the last thing I will blog for the mo is a wee clock that I have just hacked together - Its for a male friend to hang in his "man shed" where he mends anything that he has taken to bits. He had admired all my metal bits and bobs and showed an interest (or pretended too) - so i thought as he is quite difficult to buy something for I thought he may like something in metal

Well I had planned in just having a stand alone metal clock - but decided that even with the idea i had of building up layers that it would not be heavy enough, so in the end I decided to cover a piece of hardboard about A4 and a half in metal completely. Of course i used every ten second studio item that i had and then some more stuff, basically went to town on it. I then used the timmie inks and some paints using the peasant paint from lins shop which really makes a difference to the paint sticking. Then heated it, added some utee and also diamond glaze and finally some crackle glaze. Well if he doesn't like it I'll take some beer as back up lol

P.S I haven't forgotton about "can you guess what it is yet" project, well its just that it has taken a wee back seat for the mo - should be finished in the next two weeks ;0) but it is looking pretty good at the moment

Can you tell what it is yet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

................................hopefully all will be revealed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

so what have i been up to

Ok so what have i been up to - well a zillion grand Ideas and i have been playing around with some shells and silver wire and pearls - this little bit of tat is of to live with someone else!!!!.

But I also found myself on a 3day spending spree ;0) - I went to Lins shop on my way up to the NEC and was forced against my will!!!!!!!!!! to buy some of the lush new metals, and some paperartsy christmas stamps that i really really needed!!! Well then had a spend out at the NEC at the Cake show and the art and paper craft show - yep i said the cake show - and i have not a sponge in sight to show for it - I will reveal later what i got from that show.

Well to finish off the weekend I found myself at yet another "show" and it was the Bead Fair at Newmarket Race Course and Lin kindly mmmm!!! introduced me to a great find some fabby paints for jewellery so a few days and rather a few pounds lighter i have been a busy bee so i will share later what i have started to play around with and I am pretty impressed with items that i brought

New Brooch

Well i brought myself a beautiful long black woollen winter coat at the weekend, which of course i really really needed, as my dark navy blue one and grey one clashed with some of my suits ;0), and anyways of course it was crying out for something to be added. So out came my silver clay and I made a brooch.

I just love my zetti house stamps so thought i wanted to use on. so i stamped into the clay, using 21g of clay, made two rolled beads and the "leaf" shape with the leftovers, used my Liver of sulphur to age it, attached the beads and then soldered on a brooch pin. So now i have a rather unique silver brooch to show of now on my lapel.

well thinking about it now i''m just going to have to make two more to go on my other coats!!!!!!!!!!!

A couple of ReTreat demo items

Well now the craft retreat is over phhheeewwwwwww

I have been soooo busy up dating the website, sorting other bits out that need doing, making a list of certain items that a certain crafter took without permission which seems to happen a lott!!! and oh yeah still working and getting on with other stuff that needs doing that just doesn't get done!!!. Well finally late i know i thought that i would post a couple of images of some of the silver pendants that i made as demo items.


All of the pendants that people made were totally different, out of both groups no one made the same thing which was great, everyone said they thoroughly enjoyed the workshop.


The biggest surprize for all of the people attending was when after we had all made our items and they were dried and then i got to play with "fire" and I fired all the pieces, but still they just looked like bits of clay - but in lovely shapes - well to finally take the wire brush to the items and then give them a good scrub and finally see that in fact they were totally solid silver - we had ooohhhhsss and arrrrggghhhhs in unison which did sounds very funny.

It does still amaze me every time i do it, it is just darn clever. Well here is a small collection of the items that i made. The long oval pendant in fact i put into the draw as we held a raffle to help raise much needed funds for The Animal Health Trust where our retreat was held, we are very grateful to people to buy the tickets, i put in the pendant, Debbie put in a silk paints picture, and we have two wax pictures, two books of poems and of course the bottle of wine that is compulsory.

The piece that i like the most is the round inards of a watch - i made the mould myself and it really does look so effective in the flesh - in fact i liked it soooo much i just by chance had to make two - one for me and one for someone else!!!! it really doesnt photograph well as its silver - and of course nothing to do with me being pants at photography

necklace

So what have I been up to.....

Well i have been playing with my beads again. We were given a fab pattern at my bead group, and could i get my head around making it..................................... nope. Its done as two parts really - the centre column which is herringbone stitch which is easy peeesey and i managed to whizz two off quiet quickly in differnt colours - silver and black, well then second part you stitch the fringe at the bottom and then the middle, well the blow's the mind bit was having to stitch around the centre column with the same beads you have used to make the fringe. Well i seriously got annoyed with it as i just couldnt get my head around what i needed to do. i had a sneak look at my friend Debbies over the weekend and my brain got what to do DOH!!. The top image is my black one and in fact i have photographed it with only the one side complete just so you can see how i did it, as the photo's really do not do it justice, they look better for real HONEST!!!. Bottom image is the complete necklace - which i dont think i will keep mmmm now who to dump it on LOL, anyways it does look better in the flesh. Right onto the next project.....

Just Love Dem Bones and Day of The Dead Stuff!!!!

OK so I won't admit to which shop I somehow seemed to find myself in, but basically its not one that I would admit to shopping in... and nope its not poundland.

Anyways I seemed to have purchased some great wooden boxes that I want to alter. Well today is the first chance I have had to play around. So box no.1 is with a box that I would only describe as a collectors box - its got a tray inside with lost of compartments for bits and bobs. So I have decorated the top - I have a thing with dark and dead!!!! it may be my job but who knows.

I have used premo clays, moulds and stamps, some diamond glaze and glass beads, also i found myself buying about 30 oh yes 30 skeletons which are totally awesome, going to make some moulds with one of them, and well a thousand other projects with them. This time i seemed to find myself cutting up sid the skeleton to fit into this project, as I wanted body parts here and there!!! I have also recently brought a Day of The Dead chocolate mould, and found myself having to share these great moulds with a certain norfolk crafter!!!!!!!!!! the skeleton on the right is one of the moulds made with makins clay. I have just started to use Premo clay and I have not yet made my mind up as to if I like it, takes some work to condition but it does hold a stamped image well.

Next I plan on filling the inside with all sorts of awesome finds and makes so will have to update once i have done this. I think this will be an ongoing project as there are sooo many compartments, and I really don't have much time at the moment. maybe after the 26th, but then again i must start to make the Chr...... cards!!!

Have you booked

Have you booked your place

26th October 2008 - a date not to be missed

We are looking forward to sharing the day crafting with you, sharing ideas, meeting new friends, have a great lunch and not to forget a goodie bag - what more could you want for a sunday

playing with silver

OK so I thought I needed to play with some more silver clay, and in any case silverclay is such a great medium to play with, and I never seem to have enough time to do much of anything at the moment. I made two hearts and two 'bits' and then used some silver wire and some small fresh water pearls and hey presto this is what I came up with. I am sure i really really need to get a kiln so i can play with the paper silver clay which i have huge ideas to do with it.......................is it christmas yet santa!!!!!!!!!!!!!

one last thing......

just a quickie that I made - ........ I won't go into those cheap shops so she does for me and managed to get me some wonderful wooden box's that I have started to play with, and also she kindly shared a bamboo mat, and this is what I managed to come up with with one of the tiles, I inked and then sealed the image, put some cooper around the edge, and then made the chain using some rose copper beads using a "right angle weave" stitch, and then changed the stitch just below the tile to tie it all in, I think it looks quite good!!! funny how her acid skin has turned the cooper beads a different colour since wearing it!!! anyways I have a few more to play with and hopefully get better!!!!! maybe make some to do some swaps with who knows!!!!!!

so another clay................

Ok so I admit I got so into playing with my clay and I ended up starting another part of a project that I needed to complete. I have painted 3 long canvase's to hang on the wall side by side, and I have hung them waiting to decide if in fact I liked them.
I have now decided that I sort of do like them, but they do look incomplete which I knew they would, and I knew I wanted to add some "junk" and "tat" to them.

Well I have now sort of completed a "face" that i want to add to it. It still needs to be coloured and painted and inked and tinkered with - once it has dried first.
- I also managed to make some moulds for myself of a watch and some keys and a "green man" and boy am I pleased with how they have turned out!!!!!!!!!!!!

So this is what it looks like to start with, it took me a couple of hours to get this stage. I just need to find some more time to complete and also decide what other "tat" I need for the other two canvases.

Also if someone knows where I can get black hearty clay PLEASE tell me as I have run out and just love using black the best, I have tried colouring the clay before I mould it, but it really is not the same and the clay just does not behave in the same way, I NEED TO BUY SOME BLACK HEART CLAY HELP>>>>>>>>>>>>>

what have I been up to....................

I have been told off yet again for not boring you all with what I have been up to on my blog...... So what have I been up to - well lots - working mainly, also having a few probs crafting but hey we battle on.
I have been doing lots of different things, and I managed to finish 4 of the round robin pages which seemed to take forever to do, and repeated and remade sooooo many times as i wastn't happy with what I had made, but in the end I got there....... I hope.


Well for the I dare you swap i have been playing with some clay, metal, and the soldering iron. The clay plaque to the left is not yet finished, i need to colour and ink it, I have run out of the black clay that I normally use, so have had to use flesh colour, so will take three times as long to do as i need to colour it and then dry it and then finish it - but thought it may be worth showing the picture of the half finishe item. I have made a mould of a watch which is totally amazing, well I think it is




ok so another I dare swap item was to make a brooch from an altered item- well this again is not quite finished but getting there, should be able to post out by the end of the week. I started with a small glass vial thats normally used for samples or vaccines and have put a zettie leg in it, have made a copper background, embossed and soldered to the bottle - and of course took proper precautions with a soldering iron and a glass jar as glass seems to explode when heated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Second Metal Project

Well we all got so engrossed in making the first project below that we didnt get time to move to the second, so Linda - LBcrafts - showed us the second project and we were packed off home with the items to make it.

And so this is my attempt. It really is very theraputic working with metal and also i find it very satisfying. Here are the before and after piccys - I am told these wooden frames were from Ikea, now there from "Heidi's stash"

Metal Work

I have just had the most fabby weekend playing with metal with the wonderful Linda from LB crafts - great workshop, i learnt soooo much, and managed to spend soooo much money as well oooppps not sure how that happened, but worth every penny. We made a wall hanging, with 9 sqaures covered in various metals using various techniques and all very different.

I have now mounted it on a wood sheet that I have distressed to death and will hang it somewhere. In fact we did so much that we didnt get time to start the second project, so I will upload that once I have finished this also.

Thanks Linda your a real inspiration, and I met a great group of ladies, and I promise Linda not too darken you door again toooo soon ;0)

Right I'm off now to do the other project