Happy birthday Margaret

Last weekend my lovely friend Margaret celebrated her birthday

Here is the card I made her

Broke out some old Marianne dies for the tags

The sentiment is a new die from China

Flowers are Prima and Wild Orchid Crafts

Fancy chipboard oval was from The Works

Hope you had a wonderful weekend Margaret

Love and birthday hugs

xxx

Ann number 2

Good evening, as promised I am here to share the second Ann's birthday card

I used the same instructions as yesterdays card for the base, but instead of keeping the three layers in stepped increments, I cut diagonally all across the top

Papers are from the Poundshop of all places, dies are from China and flowers are Prima and Wild Orchid crafts

Sentiment and punch used to make the sentiment plate are both Stampin' Up

The butterflies were fussy cut from the patterned paper

I really like this variation of fold and can see me using it time and time again, I might have a go at making it in a larger size

Love and butterflies

Tracey

xxx

Magical creatures

There has been much happen since my last blog post

I have not quite got the hang of blogging everyday occurrences and tend to only think to blog if I have crafting to share. I must rid myself of this habit as my crafting is much less prolific now

We have been to a couple more gigs, we saw The Cadillac Three in Cardiff and then more recently The Temperance Movement in Plymouth

We have enjoyed lots of beach days with the dogs

And we made a much needed flying visit back up country to visit family and friends before christmas

This last few weeks have seen copious amounts of crafting as I needed forty christmas cards, six birthday cards, an anniversary card and a commissioned card had been ordered 

Going back to November, this is the card I made for Amy for her birthday. She is currently enjoying all things unicorn so I set to work trying to find a way to make one from my trusty punches

It was a case of trial and error. My first couple of attempts looked farcical rather than magical, but, I persevered and I think the final version turned out rather cute. Amy loved it

The next couple of cards were for my lovely neighbours Mary and Colin who both celebrated birthdays at the beginning of December

I must apologise for the poor photos, the pictures were taken in bad light and don't show the true colours as they should

They are a very special couple and have taken me and the family under their wings since we moved here

So, the lights, tree and trimmings are all up, the gift shopping is finished, the cards have been made and mostly delivered, the house has been spring cleaned and we have almost completed the wrapping, I don't think I have ever been so organised and I must admit to feeling rather relaxed and ready for the festivities to begin

All the girls from work got together for the christmas meal last week, we met at The Britannia for a delicious and very festive 3 course meal, a little tipple and many laughs, so the christmassy feelings are in full flow

I will love you and leave you as Neil and I have one more small pile of presents to wrap and I will be back tomorrow with some more craftiness to share

Love and unicorn sparkles

Tracey

xxx

Crafting Update

I have not been quite so prolific with my crafting as I used to be, but the upside is now I craft when I want to and not when I have to

I have quite a mixed bag of cards here, dating back to Easter, so please excuse the random selection

A bi-fold, envelope style birthday card

The Easter cards I made, to send to family and friends

All the same but different, same design, different colours

Amy's Easter card was totally different as I wanted to put a bunny on hers

Another birthday card

My lovely dad's fathers day card

And my mum's birthday card, another bi-fold design with fancy edges

Lots of space inside this design for a verse

There have been a couple more too but I did not remember to photograph those ( naughty blogger )

Until next time

xxx

Still here

Hellooooooooo

We are still here, although you would be forgiven for thinking we had fallen off the planet

FIVE months on from my last post, much has happened and not much has happened if you know what I mean

In a nutshell

*      We have been up country to visit family

*       Friends and family have been here to visit us (Mum and Dad, Tony and Carol, Kev and Jackie)

*      We celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary

*      Amy and Robbie finished uni

*      All three 'children' are now working

*      Amy has had a tonsillectomy

*      Robbie is learning to drive and has his first car

Some of these events will be blogged in more detail later. I have just finished editing all the photos from the last five months, 700 photos, two hours and three coffees later I have decided there is far too much to wade through in one blog post

And in other news

We had an unexpected little windfall, so bought ourselves this fab little campervan, we have been away in it a couple of times already and are planning our first trip away with the dogs soon

The dogs have had a wonderful time in the woods, on walks and especially on the beach

We have had some gorgeous days out, exploring our stunning county, sometimes just the two of us, sometimes with friends or family and often with the dogs

I gave up trying to cover the grey and have been gradually adding more and more highlights, I am really happy with the results and my hairdresser is fantastic, Paige has the patience of a saint with my stubborn hair

We have also had some amazing days/nights out, we have enjoyed some fantastic gigs this year, local and further afield, found a couple of new festivals, added a few new bands to our playlists and generally broadened our horizons musically ( much more to come on that in future posts )

And yes, I have still been doing a little crafting, much much less than I used to. I toyed with the idea of giving it up and freeing some space by getting rid of all my craft clutter  stuff, but the feeling didn't last long. 

It may take me a little longer to actually get started, but once I have all my pretties out on the table, I remember just how therapeutic it is to have a craft and play session

This is my most recent creation, a card for my lovely friend Sue

I know this is a bit of a 'mixed bag', but you know what it is like to have so much to catch up on that it is difficult to know where to start

A very sensible person once said "just start", once you get going, the fear of the blank page disappears and the rest is much easier, how true this is. Now I have a million ideas running through my head and rather a lot of photos on my hard drive, no excuses then !

Back soon

I promise

xxx

Anniversary wishes

And this card brings me bang up to date with all my crafty endeavours so far this year. Yes they have been a little thin on the ground but I do have some cards to make in February and I am eager to get back to my first love of Scrapbooking. I have lots of photos to work with  and my craft room is all organised now, so, no more excuses !

This card was for my mum and dad on their wedding anniversary

I used my favourite papers which were a gift from Neil just before christmas and some lush ribbon which I have been hoarding for a special card

I feel so lucky and incredibly grateful that my mum and dad have built such a wonderful family, as each anniversary passes I am reminded of how hard they have worked to keep us all happy, safe and loved

It seems not many marriages stand the test of time nowadays, I am so glad that mum's and dad's have, it has taught us so much over the years

Love you both more than words could ever say

Your ever grateful daughter

xxx