Oh dear

This blogging lark hasn't been as easy to keep up with as I thought it was going to be......

I am busy creating though, I've got some beads to show and my new project. I will take some pics tomorrow and all will be revealed.

Had a lovely day today at Towcester Racecourse at the Flame Off 2009. It was a very relaxed day spent watching the pros make glassy creations, a meander around some bead stalls and a stop at Tuffnell Glass to add bump up the glass stocks. Now all I need to do is get in the studio and get melting.

Daisy Pendant Prototype

Just a quick one this evening to share this pendant. The large daisy at the top is from Julie. The idea is that the daisies hang one at the top, one on the bottom with the other two suspended in between. I am not sure if I like it though, I think perhaps it looks a bit over done. Hhhmmmmm, it definitely needs a thicker thong in a dark blue.......

More Daisy Progress

I thought I would post these daisy beads, I am so proud of them. Again, you will have to excuse the 'bead poo' I wasn't sure if they would survive the kiln and as it happens the little blue dots have fallen off.....(note to self, melt dots in a bit more)

This photo was also an experiment with lighting, camera and also a way to prop up the beads. I won't be using Blu-tack again. However, I do like the background so that might stay.

Its interesting to me how my opinion of my beads, and mum's beads changes. I thought the daisy beads in my previous post were quite good when I made them but now they have been superseded by these beads. When mum made the focal beads in the next photos neither of us was 'sure' about them. They were left in my bead box for quite a while, when I took them out having forgotten they were there they suddenly started to speak to me and this is what they became:

I am still playing around with backgrounds and photo editing but I am pleased with these shots. The colours are 'true' well, on my screen they are.

The daisy beads have now become a pendant, a prototype of one, all will be revealed in the next post.....

Practice, Practice, Practice

Ah yes, the three P's. I have been practising daisy beads. I love the flower beads made by Cassie Donlen and Julie so here is my first attempt. You will have to excuse the bead poop (technical term for the bead release you can see in the hole of the beads), I don't think these will make it as far as the kiln.

My time at the torch is even more limited at the moment depending on how I feel day to day. however, this is the result of the next session:

I think my best effort so far is the large green flower (top right).

Mum and I had a lovely day together last weekend felting. One of my Christmas presents was a workshop in the lovely Shaftesbury shop StitchnCraft. I really enjoy trying my hand at different crafts and although it was a very enjoyable day I don't think felting is my thing. Here is a shot of the first peice I made:

We had to layer up little bits of Merino wool tops then added some strands of textured wool. This is done on a piece of sushi mat (in our case) some bubble wrap and net curtain. Add plenty of soapy water and roll and rub. That's a very condensed and simplified version of what we did anyway. The second piece I made was incorporated into my third piece:


My second piece was pinks and purples. The third piece was plain brown. The second piece was cut into squares then laid onto the brown piece and then felted in. I had thought it might become a cusion cover but in reality it will probably just find its way to the back of the cupboard...

Happy creating.

He won't thank me when he's older

I couldn't resist. Reuben was chasing his sister around in her fairy wings so I thought 'why not?' and popped a pair on him.............. Don't think he will thank me when he's older.

I have been busy on the creative front. I have knitted but not quite finished a scarflette. And I have spent a couple of hours in the workshop experimenting with some glass. No pics yet but fret not I will get some done.

Hope you had a good weekend too.

Fresh Start

I am not going to lament about how long it has been since I was blogging. I am going to draw a line and start afresh.

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So, the focus is going to be selling my creations, designing new workshops, getting stuck into my lampwork bead making and generally pulling my socks up. There will also be my attempts at other crafting thrown in.

I spend too much time surfing the internet lusting after items other people have made. However, there are times when such surfing pays off. It was my Grandad's 87th birthday recently, and I was faced with the oh so familiar problem of what do you buy for someone who has got everything? Just to complicate things further he lives in Canada so there is also the postage costs to consider. I was looking at Etsy when I came across Dana's shop http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5435702. Dlkdesigns offer some original jewellery and in particular cufflinks. Yes, my Grandad has got several pairs of cufflinks but I figured that if a girl can't have too much jewellery then surely the same applies to the men. I know there are lots of sellers of cufflinks but these are different because they are made using map. The bonus is you can choose your own map so I had one with Wiltshire on (where I live) and one with Ottawa on (where he lives), Dana also enclosed a handwritten tag to add the finishing touch. I was able to get a present that was very personalised, didn't cost the earth and I received an excellent service. A very happy shopper!

I had a session in the workshop today, the first time in ages. I am trying to make daisies..... Alas no photos yet, but when I get myself organised I will show some first and last examples.

That's my boy!

The little chap is nearly 9 weeks old already. Where does the time go? I am sure it didn't fly quite so fast when the girls were babies.

Got a workshop to teach on Thursday night at www.potatopatchcrafts.co.uk better go and do some more prep.

Yikes!!!

Time is really flying and my little dot Reuben is now six and a half weeks old!! Sorry about the lack of photos I promise to get snapping more.

We have had a wedding this month. My cousin Lucy and Ed got married. It was a great day. I love being together will all my family. Even my beloved grandad made it over from Canada with his wife Marie! Again apologies for the lack of pics I will try and get my hands on some. I have got a photo of my little monkies though all ready to boogie on down with the Barn Dance:


I have tried to spend as much time as poss with my Pop and Marie, the girls love Marie and were really having fun crafting with her at mum and dad's


Unfortunately the little diary I was scrapping for September has fallen along the wayside at the moment. I really wanted to try to get it done but the energy levels took more of a nose-dive than I had anticipated. I guess I can pick it up again at a later date.

Exciting news is that work has started on the garage!! I think I may have mentioned before that I went on a fantastic bead making course and got totally addicited? Anyway I did a course about a year ago. The problem is that we need a dedicated space for it away from the little people. What with one thing and another our focus was diverted. However, things are now back on track and we have got some brilliant friends of Graham and Yvonne's to help us out. The batons are up and the electrician should be here in the next fortnight to start phase one of the electrics!!! Watch this space.......

Off now to get lunch then wander into town while the sun is shining.

Its a boy!!!

Reuben Graham Goodridge was born on 12th Sept and weighed in at 8lb2oz. He took his time in deciding to make his entrance keeping us hanging on for 3 days with cheeky little contractions here and there. Needless to say his two big sisters are very proud of their baby brother and take any opportunity there is to have a cuddle.




In continuing the Learn Something New Every Day class I can say that today (or this past week) I have remembered how blessed I am with a great husband and three beautiful children. Incidentally I have been creating a few pages here and there but I am playing catch up at the moment. There will be some updates posted soon.

Off for a walk now while the sun is still shining, might have to dig out the fleeces though.

A Couple of Pages

I haven't updated here for a couple of days becuase I have been somewhat distracted by my waters breaking. Alas there hasn't been much action for over 24 hours so I thought I would try to take my mind off things and get as up to date as possible for when my little bundle does decide to make its arrival!

The entry for 6th Sept is a result of yet another trip into town where I thought I should get 2 hours of parking but actually I only used half an hour. A number of people in the town have benefitted from my mistakes here as I tend to give the unused time on my ticket to someone else....


My page for 7th Sept is based on imagination. I have been watching the girls alot over the summer and seeing some of the games they play reminded me that imagination is so vital and alive when we are young but often we lose some of the ability to imagine things as we get older. This page is missing a photo at the moment...


The prompt from Shimelle was to try a mosaic technique which I really like and I think this page will look great when it is finished. It has occured to me that I sould be keeping a journal of all the techniques that I have learnt through this course. Being so new to scrapping means that I have learnt several new things with each day.

The page for 8th Sept is about spending quality time with girlfriends. The girls had a friend over for lunch and when I looked at this photo I was reminded that it is ages since I shared good food and giggles with my girlfriends.


Shimelle's prompt for today suggested using the photo as the full width of the page and I really like the results with this.

So I'm off now for a hot curry, pineapple, run around the garden and anything else I can think of to get this baby moving with as little medical intervention as possible!

Sometimes I Take You for Granted

Today I realised that sometimes I take my wonderful husband for granted. He has done so much for me and the girls recently. As I have got further into pregnancy I have been becoming more exhausted with running around after two girls during the holidays. Hubs has cooked meals for the next day, cleaned, ironed and fetched and carried for me. There are many other reasons why he is brilliant which I have journalled behind the pink circle.

Beacuse I'm Worth It!

This page is all about learning that it is ok to treat yourself every now and again. I got a cute Cath Kidston make up bag that fits nicely inside my handbag, some eyeshadow, a lip gloss and a mascara. I was inspired by Shimelle's prompt to include some of the packaging from my purchases. I guess something else I learnt with making this LO is that printing a photo on plain old paper is perfectly acceptable, I really like how this LO came out.

I've been to see the midwife this morning. Baby is in a good position and is on track to arrive any day!!!!! Yikes, excited and apprehensive at the same time.

You Are Great Company

Yesterday was the last day of the summer holidays for the girls. I can't believe that 6 weeks has flown by so quickly! I realised that actually I had a really great time with them and today I am missing them. The pink card at the top of the Layout has got some journalling in to expand on the day's 'lesson'.



I thought the photo was fitting because I have really noticed each of them developing a great sense of humour and this photo really captures that.

Some Jewellery and the next page...

I have finally managed to take some very quick photos of the recent creations from Y-Beads. Both hubs and I have come to the conclusion that a new camera is needed, the one we have got is fine for snapping with but when it comes to trying to capture the finer details of jewellery it just isn't up to it. Any suggestions/recommendations would be gratefully received. So anyway here is the jewellery:





My return to school with the class with www.shimelle.com is going well - although we are only on day 3 at the moment. I have taken another picture of my title page as the other one wasn't very good. But I have decided already that actually 'I for Inspiration' may not be the key word I am looking for. I think I might change the title page at the end of the course. I don't know if this is cheating but I made the title page 'blind' as it were and I couldn't see how the workshop would take shape.



I completed page two last night. The lesson learned yesterday is that sometimes it would pay to shop around for household items rather than just go ahead and buy online. This applies specifically to the fridge freezer we bought recently. We did some research on Which? but rather than trawl the shops we decided we would go ahead and buy online.... We have decided that really the layout of the fridge isn't as user friendly as we would like it to be. We have also discovered that when you open the freezer door it leaks onto the floor!!! I'm not saying that we would have known this had we seen a model in the shop but I do think that had we seen the fridge/freezer in the 'flesh' we wouldn't have bought it. Ho hum, lesson learnt, build a bridge get over it. Just need to ring someone to get a new one. So, if you are still reading this you deserve a medal and here is a picture of page 2 although minus a photo at the moment.



So now I am off to create page 3. Its great, I have got lots of ideas floating around in my head and love to be switched on creatively.

No baby news yet, just lots of movement and feeling very heavy......

Learn Something New Every Day

Ok so I have enrolled myself onto an online course with www.shimelle.com ! I must be mad because my baby is due 10th Sept and the idea is that we make a page every day. However, it should be fun and I am really looking forward to it. I have bought some georgeous stash from my local paper-craft shop it is called 'Phoebe'. Already I have strated with Flickr too which I haven't done before so I am looking forward to discovering my 'scrapping style' and learning some new IT tricks too. We will also be taking lots of photos so I am hoping that my photography will improve. So here are some pictures of my stash and my title page:

I have also been busy making some jewellery but the battery on my camera needs re-charging so I will put some pictures up with my next post.

Our Un-birthday

The girls were born not long after Christmas so we decided that we would have a birthday celebration in the summer. We have held it in June around father's day in the past but due to recent events we moved the date to last weekend..... We have enjoyed good weather in the past too however, this weekend was a different story, at risk of stating the obvious it is Wimbledon week so it is foolish to expect anything other than rain!!! We still had a good time though at mum and dad's place. I decided that this year I would make cupcakes rather than a birthday cake:


The girls got loads of presents amongst which were some Spanish outfits:



We truly are blessed with georgeous girls. Only another 10 weeks to go until we find out if they are going to have a brother or a sister....!

Love is...

receiving a beautiful bouquet of flowers just because he loves me. On Wednesday evening my lovely husband arrived home with this georgeous bunch of flowers:

What makes them more special is the thought that has gone into choosing them. I had red and purple as my wedding bouquet and it included gerbora, roses and statis all of which are in this bunch. I love him so much and I can't imagine life without him.

The sun is shining here at last but only briefly I fear. We have planned a picnic for the girls' un-birthday. They were born on 5th Jan which is quite close to Christmas so we decided we would have a party celebration each June/July. We have got a plan B which is to de-camp at my mum's but the idea was to be in a lovely park with a picnic so the children can run wild and the grown-ups can play frisbee...... We'll see how it goes.

Have a good weekend - I hope it doesn't rain too much where you are.

A Difficult Time

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  Well, we have been having a bit of a time it of late. My father-in-law has been seriously ill and on the evening of the 8th June he lost his battle with brain cancer. Words cannot really express the loss that we all feel. He was a wonderful father-in-law to me and brilliant grandad to our girls. My husband has very fond childhood memories and as we look around the house we are reminded of all the help he willingly gave us in completing various DIY projects. Indeed life will not be the same without him.
  
  
  
  Despite the unfolding of events we were encouraged to carry on with our holiday plans so the next day we headed to Devon. We had a lovely break, all things considered, and Ian came up trumps with the accomodation which was a well equipped and very comfortable barn conversion. We had a relaxing time on the beach and sampled many cream teas, clotted cream ice-creams etc..etc...
  
  
  Here is a picture of the man I call my husband, brace yourselves for the hunk about to appear before your eyes......

This was taken in a museum in Exeter where we had a great time trying on wigs. This is one of the things I love about my husband, he has a great sense of humor and sense of fun, something that he inherited from his dad. I wish I had a better way with words so that I could capture the raft of emotions that we are going through at the moment. Perhaps I will be able to be more concise in a creative way when things are in better perspective.

Progress

Ok its slow but sure. My brother and I have been trying to build my website for as long as I can remember. There are several reasons why progress is slow, not least the fact that he has recently had a promotion at work making him busier than ever, and I am pregnant, so evenings are hit and miss as to whether I feel like I can get work done, added to other family difficulties that are too lengthy and distressing to detail here. However, I have made some progress today and I have finished taking some more images of the products that will be for sale!!! When I tried to update the site though there was some kind of technical hitch.... I am determined to give it another go tonight though.

I hope you are enjoying your bank holiday. The best day for us here in Wiltshire was Saturday, it wasn't particularly sunny but it was dry and little bit warmer than it is today. We all met my mum, dad, brother and sister in-law at Bowood for a picnic.

These are a few action shots of the football match. Not sure about the rules in 'twin football' but you very definitely have to have a ball on each team.........

Anyway, enjoy what remains of the bank holiday.

What a lovely day

Mum and I had a fab day together yesterday being crafty. I booked us both on a 'Scrap a Day' session as a mother's day gift. We had a great time at www.potatopatchcrafts.co.uk. I managed to finish two LO's:

Flower Fairy Daddy's Wellies

I did have the journalling done on the label for Daddy's Wellies but I had written 'Daddies Wellies Spring 07' so I whipped it off in disgust with myself, mind you it had been a long day. Note to self: don't forget to replace journalling.

I have also been doing some beading this week. Here is a piccie of one of the pieces:

It's a bracelet with a beaded clasp, I promise I will work on my photography skills, I tried to take a picture of the clasp too but it didn't come out very well.

Anyway, off to the kitchen to check on the scrummy marshmallows I have made. It is a recipe from the Sweet Baby James episode that was on last week, appeals to my sweet-tooth..... oh, and it does contain strawberries so it is partly healthy.....

Hope the weather is good where you are, enjoy the rest of your Sunday.