With Love....

Welcome to another blog entry - I am enjoying this =]  I hope you are to?

My entry for the secret crafter saturday challenge .

This is their 100th challenge.  The challenge is a sketch layout

 and this is my entry.

I used alot of pieces from the kit I shared with you on my last blog.

I took a white square card blank and attached a 12cm square of patterned floral paper for the background ,then layered a torn piece of pink floral paper to the left hand side.  I used mini dots to attach this gorgeous lace then layered on top the topper and sentiment (which I stamped with love...).  I used a glue gun to fix the flowers to the lace.

The toppers and sentiment were stuck on using foam pads to add dimension to the card along with the flowers.

The colours of the finished card are beautiful and soft they work well for any age female and occasion.

I would like to say congratulations to Michelle Watson for winning my first giveaway on my facebook page.  I am having another giveaway when I reach 300 likers on my page, so if you would like to join in just click here

It is great fun getting back into my crafting and the ideas are flooding in! =]  I am having to write them down so I don't forget!!  Which is great there is always the worry that the inspiration will run dry - so I'm saving the ideas.  The only problem I have is there are definately not enough hours in the day. 

Hope you are all having great crafty moments like I am xx

See you all soon.

Love Em x

p.s I hope you enjoy this entry Lyndsey =] xx

What a lucky lady I am!

I must say I have had a very good day today - spoilt rotten! =D

After a busy morning getting all the post and orders made up for work, my hubby treated me to a lovely meal at our local pub - yum yum. 

Then further crafty treats - which is very rare.  After owning my own shop there was quite alot of surplus stock that kind of hung around lol! So I don't get treated to any new crafty stash, but because he is very proud of me starting my blog (aw bless him - love him loads) and getting back into my hobby which lets agree girls is hard when we lead such busy lives.  I got treated to the below kit! It's amazing the amount of stuff that is in it!

My mind is buzzing with excitement every time I open the box and look in it.

I could have taken individual photos of everything to show you but I thought that could possibly not be a good idea.

To top it all off was some lovely stamps (inc. acrylic block)and I'm a sucker for ribbons/lace, etc

 

The kit is by Carol wilson Fine Arts Inc and it was all for an amazing £18.99 (ribbon bundles were 75p each) a total of over 300 individual items .... so now you understand why I was so excited!

Also ...more I hear you say!  There is only 1 thing that I treat myself to on a regular basis every month is a few crafty mags and seeing as I have been feeling under the weather it was the cherry on the cake today - so here is my bedtime read for tonight!

This has to be my favourite out of the kit and you never know there may be a few cards made up when you next return. The detail in the Pansy's is beautiful.

Thank you for sticking it out to the end of this blog I feel I may have waffled on a bit tonight (sorry) just a very excited little girl typing away.

Hope you all have a great weekend - see you all soon

Love Em x

My 1st Craft Blog Challenge Entry!

Well I have started to get to grips with blogging! (I think). 

I am starting to get organised and get into regular blogging, I have entered some craft candy's and now the next thing I was desperate to try was a blog challenge.  It's a bit nerve racking though! You find yourself looking at the finished card thinking it's not quite right and is it good enough?!?

The challenge that I chose to take on today was from Penny Black Saturday Challenge and the challenge this week is a colour combo - PURPLE ...CREAM.....BROWN

This is my entry

I have used a square cream blank card. Lilac floral backing paper.  Brown ribbon.  I added the purple paper roses and purple gems to add a little sparkle.

Part of the challenge is that you have to use a Penny Black product.  I have had these cute stamps for months now and have been bursting to use them. 

I coloured in the cute image with watercolours - I can't remember how long it is since I have held a paint brush, unless it was for decorating the house.

I thoroughly enjoyed making this card and truely believe that I will be joining in many more challenges like this - great fun and gets the old grey matter working again.

Fingers crossed I have covered everything to enter.

Thank you for visiting and see you soon.

Love Em x

Cards for men!

There is less than a handful of men in my life that I make cards for well 2 infact - Dad and Hubby, and it's Dad's birthday soon.  So I thought I would give myself plenty of time to create a card. 

Unless it flutters or blooms I really struggle for inspiration.  Also suffering from a terrible cold at the moment it was a card that I was not looking forward to make. 

But I had to challenge myself and not give up! 

So here it is!

Background paper - paper cellar 6x6 - Mens

Ribbon - celebrate ribbon by the spool

Chain, ribbon, stickers, rub ons and buttons from my craft stash!  I stamped the chipboard letter with a small D stamp so the white doesn't seem so harsh. 

 The denim D was from the label of my hubby's jeans I decided to keep in my stash and hey I was right it came in handy! Crafters never throw anything out =D

Overall I am really happy with how it turned out. 

Hubby's birthday isn't until December - so reminder to self - get more male embellishments for crafty stash!

I am having a little giveaway on my facebook page to celebrate reaching over 100 likers if you wish to join in come along and take a look. Click here and join in.  Closing date is Saturday 11th September.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog

Love Em x

Finally!!!

Well the postie brought me some lovely parcels today.  I wasn't expecting them yet which made them extra lovely!  I had ordered some bits and pieces to be able to make an idea that has been buzzing around my head for a long time, and they have arrived.  So I had a lovely afternoon FINALLY making my idea into a final product =]

He also delivered a lovely custom stamp that I had ordered a couple of days ago to help label my creations.

So here was the idea.  I have a love for brooches and have a small but growing collection and since starting cross stitch I thought how lovely it would be to make some brooches of my own.  So with all the bits and pieces on my desk I started.

I stitched this gorgeous little blue bird.

Then I covered a metal button with the aida.  I removed the button back so I could glue on a brooch back.

The full button brooch measure 29mm. Sweet and perfect - you could always have room to wear more than 1!

I then took my new stamp and played around until I found the perfect way to package it.

On the reverse I added all the details to contact me and follow my crafting journey.

I am over the moon with how this has turned out, and there will be many more designs to follow.  I have opened my e-bay store and these will be listed very soon here. They will be £3.75 each.  A perfect completely handmade gift from start to finish.

I hope you like my brooch as much as I do.

Hope you all have a good bank holiday weekend.

Love Em x

Cute Little Bird Houses

I thought I would share with you my latest creation.

I have had this sheet of gorgeous bird nest toppers in my stash for ages and they are so cute I just didn't know what to use them for, but there is a birthday in the family and I had a burst of inspiration.

The paper layered underneath is from paper cellar 6x6 patterned papers - wedding. A gorgeous distressed green floral.  The self adhesive ribbon is from the Laura Ashley range.  Embellishments include 3D red textured roses, Happy Birthday bubble sticker, rub ons, and 2 little wooden buttons that were rolling around in the bottom of the jar. 

The gorgeous toppers are from redhotbed and come in a sheet of 9 - so I still have plenty left!! Beautiful detail with the little birds they are so cute and highlighted with touches of glitter.

The fabric roses give a wonderful 3 dimensional feel to the card and add great texture, they were attached by a glue gun - over the years I have found this the best way to keep them attached.  Also if the back of the flowers are quite large you can trim the back and the glue keeps them in shape lovely.

Thank you for taking time to look at my latest card I hope you like it.

Love Em x

Welcome

Hi and  welcome to my very first blog post!

I thought for my first post I would give a little background of myself.

I have been a creative person all my life, I think I was about 10 when I decided the dream job for me was a Botanical Illustrator at Kew gardens (after seeing it on tv).  I went to Art college and went down the channels of following this dream to realise I could not specialise in Illustration until my 3rd and final year! So instead of spending 2 years doing what I didn't want to, I chose the path of Fashion and textiles and later Interior Design.  After giving up a career in Interior design I opened a craft and dollshouse retail shop in Devon ( from 2003-2005).  I sold alot of my own handmade cards and gifts as well as arts and crafts materials.

In 2005 I gave birth to my beautiful daughter and the crafting life was put on hold.  For the last 5 years I have been busy like all of us being a Mummy, wife, house keeper, business woman (my husband and I run our own business from home) and yet being busy with all of that, there was still something missing - I had to start being creative again.  With much encouragement from my husband I have started to take my crafting serious again and I wish and welcome you to follow me on my creative journey.  I am selling my handmade cards, gift and all other creative items on e-bay (under elfcrafts1) and you are more than welcome to join my facebook page (link on the right).

I have made many cards for family over the years but unfortunately can only find 1 photographed!

My latest love is cross stitch and here are my first 2 completed profjects

I would like to thank you for looking at my blog and taking the time to find out about me!  If you like what you see then please call back again as I will be making regular posts about what is happening in my new crafting life.......

Love Em x