Gothic Arches Diptych.

Hi Everyone,

I hope today finds you all well and maybe feeling a little more cheerful now we have slightly more daylight each day.  I must say it does me a power of good not having to switch lights on before 5 pm because I hate the short days.  I'd certainly be no good for anything if I lived where they have 24 hour darkness in winter and the reverse in summer, Lol!

Anyway, today I want to share a piece I made last year using at least four sets of lovely Crafty Individuals stamps.  One set in particular struck a chord with me because they are of a place called Fountains Abbey which is just about my favourite place to spend the day.  If you go here and here you will find a couple of posts I did after visits there and lots of lovely photos of the place.  It's a good job I didn't blog all the ones I took because I have at least 200, Ha! Ha!  For my diptych I thought the Gothic Arch shape was very apt and I used lots of Distress Inks with masks, punches and dies and mixed some of my photographs with the stamped images.

This is the front cover.
                                                

and the inside pages

and finally the back cover

For the front and back covers I also used some background papers from an Artylicious pack with lots of overstamping.  These will probably be available in a different format from Glenda's new company, Chocolate Baroque, which will be opening it's virtual doors very soon (watch this space or the Chocolate Baroque blog).

In case you hadn't already noticed Crafty Individuals have just started a new blog and it's already full of fabulous inspiration for using their products.  I think nobody does 'small but beautiful' like the lovely Jean Hardy and have you seen April's issue of the Craft Stamper mag?  Mine dropped through the letterbox this morning and Jean has the most adorable little birdhouse on the front cover.  There are also lots of projects throughout the mag using CI products and (close to my own crafty heart) the free stamp is a beautiful butterfly design by Chocolate Baroque and there is a lovely two page spread showing projects using this stamp and others which I and my fellow DT teamies are working with at the moment.

Well, that's it from me tonight.  As always I love to read any comments you have time to leave and really appreciate them all.  Have a warm and cosy evening.

Love and hugs
Lesley  Xx

Two Lovely Awards and a lot of blurb.

Good Morning Everyone,

I managed to get an extra hour in bed this morning now I don't have a little nose pressed to mine, little arms round my neck and a plaintive voice saying "I'm hungry Mamma.  You need to get my breakfast." only for it to go untouched while Izzy gets Mamma to play with the jigsaw puzzles, lol!  I just read through my last post and from the number of uncorrected typos I can tell just how tired I was.  I wouldn't have missed the weekend for anything though, the cuddles alone were worth it but there was other lovely stuff happening as well.

On Saturday I went up to Harrogate to spend the afternoon having a tasting session with my daughter and Kelly (the Wedding Planner who's worth her weight in gold) with the chosen caterers.  My lovely SIL to be very kindly gave up his place so I could go and we were treated to the Wedding Breakfast more or less as it will be served on the day.  What a fab idea this is because although in the main everything was fine and the food was lovely, there were just a couple of points that we decided needed 'tweaking' a bit, like having extra gravy available and either cream or creme fraiche available with the deserts.  It also gave Jenna and Kelly the chance to double check with the caterers what they would be providing in the way of table linen, glassware, etc., etc.  The lady we discussed everything with was very professional, helpful and obliging and at a later date (probably after the wedding) I will do a post which folk can read if they are interested (or avoid if weddings bore them silly, lol) and list all the various providers with links and whether I am impressed or otherwise.  So far it's looking like they will all get gold stars!  One link you already have is to the Wedding Stationery Designer extraordinaire, lol, 'cos that's me, together with table decorations, bunting and other bits and bobs.

When I returned home Saturday evening, Jenna and her little family followed me down the A1 and as it's half term (Jenna works as a teaching assistant) they stayed until last night.  One important errand they had to do while they were here was visit a local jewellery designer (another link I will provide later) and they came back totally impressed and very excited about the designs they had seen but what is very special is that Jenna has her late paternal grandmother's very worn and fragile wedding ring and this is going to be melted down and used to make Jenna's wedding ring.  I think this is such a special idea and she could go and watch the process if she wanted but as it's not going to be possible the jeweller is going to take photos of the process for her, although I might go and watch myself.  Well, I think that's enough wedding blurb for now so I'll get onto the crafty stuff which I have sorely neglected of late.  Either I am getting old and very slow (Hmmmm!!!) or my days are going twice as fast as they used to because I am definitely not cramming as much into a 24 hour period as I used to.

Over the past few weeks I have very kindly been given two awards from two very talented blog buddies which I am only just managing to blog about.  I am really chuffed to receive awards like these from people I admire and whose blogs I love to visit.  The first award is from Suzi B whose blog I discovered a while ago through our mutual membership of the Graphicus Guild (soon to be given a new name).  Thank you very much Sue,  I'm really honoured that you thought of me.  This award is to bring attention to worthy blogs with smaller numbers of followers i.e. less than 3,000.  Well, most if not all the blogs I follow have less than that and they are all extremely worthy so as usual I find it impossible to pick the necessary five.

 
Sue's lovely blog is called The Making Room, please give her a visit and see the wonderful things she has been making recently.

My second award comes from another blogger who is a member of the Graphicus Guild but I think I found Lynne's gorgeous blog (Creative Lynks) whilst blog hopping before I realised we were fellow GG'ers.  I have a beautiful card which Lynne sent to me quite a while ago now which is carefully looked after in my box of treasured creations from other crafters.  Isn't this gorgeous!  This card was responsible for me buying the Cuttlebug folder and die set for the lovely embossed butterfly.
                     
                                             

This is the award from Lynne.

Thank you very much Lynne I am really thrilled you included me on your list.  As always I cannot comply with the rules properly because I see so many fabulous blogs and so much talent out there in blogland I find it impossible to choose and always feel bad about any I leave out. However, this award originated from the Digi's with Attitude Challenge Blog so do give them a visit.

I don't know about everyone else but I get so much pleasure and inspiration from visiting other blogs.  Every page seems to contain something that makes me go 'Ooooh, that's lovely!' or 'How did they do that?', 'I must have a go at that',  so thank you again Lynne and Sue for including me in your award lists.  Love to you both.

And now,  I must get back to the wonderful world of housework (sorry for the bad language, lol).  After 3+ days of a houseful and not even a hoovering the place is disgusting!  I'm almost glad it's a miserable day 'cos I'm sure it would look a lot worse in the sunshine, Ha! Ha!

Have a lovely day and I'll catch you again soon.

Lots of love and hugs
Lesley  Xx

Much Awaited News!

Good Morning All, (it's just past midnight, lol!)

I'm sorry I've not been around much recently.  Many reasons for this but I won't bore you with the details but suffice to say at the moment I have one of those 'stop the world I want to get off for a rest' feelings, lol!  Helping our daughter plan her wedding and making the invites and table decorations, etc., is taking up a lot of my time but I wouldn't miss it for anything really.

Anyway,  the main reason for this particular post of to announce Glenda Waterworth's new company name.  It is ............... tada da da dada ........................... CHOCOLATE BAROQUE!!!!!  There is a little while to go before the website is up and running  (mainly due to technical delays) but it is only a matter of days now.  However,  if you click on the name or click on the gorgeous new button in my sidebar you will be gently transported to the new Design Team blog when I and my teamies have been posting examples of our work for this month.  They feature the first sets of stamps which will be released under the CHOCOLATE BAROQUE banner and they are really lovely not to mention very useful.  They are four set of mini stamps, some of which are completely new but others are miniatures of previously issued stamps and they work perfectly to create backgrounds for the main size images.  If you visit the new DT blog (that's if you haven't already) and scroll down through the new artwork until you get to Glenda's post, you will find out how you may be able to win a set of these lovely stamps.  Glenda has also very kindly added a freebie download to the blog and if we reach 200 followers she will add another one, so hop over and see what we have been up to.  There's also a tiny peek at a few more new sets that will be issued over the coming weeks.

Here's a little sneak peek of the card I posted on the DT blog last Friday when the new name was officially launched.

                                      

I hope to be back tomorrow with a couple of awards that I have been thrilled to receive over the past couple of weeks.  Till then ...........................................

Night, night and love to all.
Lesley  Xx

Portrait of a Lady

Well, I hope you are all keeping warm just now.  I've been perished nearly all day and taking the dog for a walk was not pleasant.  There wasn't much of a wind but the windchill was awful.  I really could have done with a ski mask, Lol!  I can't imagine how daft I would have looked though.

Anyway, as I've not been making anything I can show you this past week or so I thought I'd share a card I made for the Elusive Images DT last year.  I used stamps from an A5 set called Portrait of a Lady together with a bird and branch and the Let Your Heart Sing set and the words from Sing Your Song set.

I also used some Artylicious papers for the punched border, flower and the lady's dress which I stamped, embossed and cut out.  For the bird and branch and words I inked up the stamps with Cats Eye chalk inks choosing specific colours for specific parts of the images.

I'll probably share a few more of last year's DT makes till I can  get Jenna's wedding stuff done but I'm having fun with it all now.  I'm also working on new DT designs so I'm pretty busy in the wings at the moment.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that tomorrow is a tad warmer although my OH said that wet, windy but milder weather is on the way.  I can do without the wet and windy bit, Lol!  Stay warm and well everyone and thanks for visiting.

Warm hugs
Lesley  Xx

WOW, WOW, and thrice WOW!!!!

You just have to take a look at this fantastic prize on offer over at Lovin' Ink of which the very talented Michelle is one half.  I love Michelle's blog and have been a follower of hers for quite a while and since the webshop opened I have become a follower there too.  As well as some lovely bits and pieces of rather interesting stash there's also fab inspiration too.

as well as this lovely candy there is also this fabulous prize on offer.

a Brilliant Super Spectacular

Giveaway Prize

2 Free places on the

Lovin' Ink Craft Retreat on the 26th - 28th March 2011

at Bolton Abbey, North Yorks

Hop on over to either Lovin' Ink or Michelle's blog to find out what you have to do to be in with a chance of winning.  I sure have my fingers and toes crossed .............. for myself that is, Lol!

Hugs

Lesley  Xx

Want a little bit of fun? Then PAY IT FORWARD!

WOW! Nothing for nearly a month and then 2 posts in 1 day!  No makes in this one though.  However .............. I've picked up this cute image from my lovely friend and CSQ buddy Judith.  I've signed up for her 'Pay it Forward' so now it's my turn to do just that.


I promise I will send something handmade (no idea what yet but I hope someone will want them, lol) to the first five people to comment on this post.  If you decide to enter you have to 'Pay it Forward' and post this offer of something handmade to the first five people to comment on your own blog post.

The rules are to send something handmade by you to five people before the end of 2011.  That should be enough time even for me, lol, as I don't think I'll have a lot of time until after Jenna's wedding.

Eeek!  I shall feel a right wally if nobody wants my stuff,  Ha! Ha!

Love and Hugs
Lesley  Xx

BACK TO .................................

......................... Christmas!!!!  and the blooming temperature thinks it still is 'cos it's perishing cold, lol.  On my last post (ages ago I know) I mentioned that I was still waiting for one of my buddies to receive the Christmas card I had sent to her and which I had also sent to my 3 lovely CSQ friends.  Well, unfortunately it looks like it has been swallowed by our Royal Mail's big black hole so I'm going to post the picture now albeit really belatedly.  At least Sue will be able to see what she should have received.  You never know it could turn up in years to come as these things have occasionally been known to do, Lol!

All the stamps I used on the above card, except for the greeting, are Elusive Images, some from this year and the snowy cottage scene in the background from a previous year.  The greeting is a Clarity Stamp.

I am sorry I've been awol again but  I have been quite busy on the crafting front just not with things I can show yet.  Some has been DT stuff but a lot has been Wedding things for our daughter, Jenna, which I can't show yet either, mainly because everything is still in bits, lol!

Jenna and Tony have decided on an informal theme for the wedding of an English Summer Garden Party so there are to be no formal flower arrangements on the tables.  Instead we have collected some really pretty jugs, vases and even teapots to hold cottage garden type bunches of flowers.  We've also been collecting different sized jars which I'm going to decorate with ribbons and paper lace borders and these will have tealights in and the place name cards won't be cards at all but I'll show you all the different things nearer the wedding which is towards the end of May.  Coming up with designs that Jenna liked proved to be a bit stressful because she changed her mind a few times (easy to do when it's your Mum you're getting to do the making), lol, but to be fair I also found it a bit difficult to get my head around what she wanted.  Everything she tried to describe sounded such a mish mash to me I thought it was going to look totally unco-ordinated.  The lightbulb lit up when we went to a Vintage Wedding Fayre at a hotel in Harrogate and she started pointing things out to me ..........  then I finally GOT IT!!!!! ..... and I think it's going to look lovely .......... if I can do her ideas justice, ahem!  I'm now knee deep in pretty little rosettes (thank goodness for Mr Holtz and his rosette die) and before too long bunting will be on the agenda too.  We are hiring quite a few metres of bunting but the wedding venue is quite a large room and has a very high ceiling so we are going to supplement the bunting with some of our own.  I'll let you know how I'm getting on with things as I progress but this is a pic of some of the things I'm using.

Finally, for this post, something not so happy.  Immediately after the New Year, my Hubby and I had to attend a funeral so I had to make a sympathy card.  I fell back on my favourite technique of last year which I had used for my quick Christmas cards.  I said it was a useful technique you could use for absolutely any occasion by changing the colours and the stamps used and it is.

The stamp I used is a Lavinia one and the Distress Inks were Milled Lavendar, Dusty Concord and I think Stormy Sky.

Well, that's it for me today.  Hope you like my makes and I'll do my best not to take so long to my next post.
I really appreciate your visits and especially if you have time to leave a comment.  Stay well everyone.

Love and hugs
Lesley  Xx

PS   Don't forget you can click the pictures for a larger image and then you can see the subtle sparkle on the Christmas card.