Wednesday, 18 June 2025

Hello, I'm back ....... you need to grab a cuppa for this one!

 Hi Everyone!  Yes its me! I'm so sorry I have been such a bad blogger but I have been on a trip.....

to.................................


Brisbane - Australia.!..( this is the bridge in Brisbane)...............................and........


Sydney!

Yes I eventually made it to see the family in Brisbane and spent three weeks with them and then a few days in Sydney before flying home. 

I never would have made it without the company of a crafty friend of mine (she knows who she is if she reads this) who was going out to visit her brother, so I bit the bullet and she flew with me to Brisbane and then she flew on to Melbourne. We then met up in Sydney after the three weeks, had a bit of girl time shopping and viewing the Opera house and the bridge in Sydney and then the long flight back home!

I have made some wonderful memories and the month went so quickly, too quickly from my point of view. It was so lovely to get to know my Grandchildren a bit and see where the family live, and of course to spend precious time with them all.

The weather was a bit mixed and in Sydney it was grey and rained at some point each day, but we tried not to let it spoil things...they are heading for winter after all. It was still about 28 degrees and quite humid.

Yes I went all that way and in the UK they had a heat wave!!!

I managed to spend a bit of time crafting with the children, as long as their attention span let me and I took them some mini dies and a Crafters Companion mini die cutting machine.

It was Grandad's birthday (Nicole's dad) while I was there so I set Thomas and Chloe to making cards for him......here are the results.....

Chloe ( Just 7yrs) made this one and drew the koala and trees herself



and here is Thomas's (9yrs) his is all done with die cuts and some fiddly paper piecing. 




The card bases are Craftwork cards that I took with me, amongst other things for them. They wrote lovely messages inside and did something on the back too, but I forgot to take a picture of that.

So as the proud grandma I think they did extremely well. 

That is why I have been absent so long, with the addition of life in general, medical appointments and trying to catch up with things since I came home.

Moving forward I shall still be blogging sporadically as I try desperately to find my mojo and fight my way through  too much stuff in the craft room. Time to say goodbye to Sugarcraft and other bits so if anyone decorates cakes and is interested in cutters etc let me know via email . I have quite a lot of Patchwork Cutters.

Right folks, have you finished that cuppa? I've' finished mine so time to crack on.

I hope to peep at your blogs as time permits and to see you again soon.

Thank you for sticking with me if you have read this and please leave a comment so I know you have been. 

Crafty hugs till next time.

Carole x

Monday, 3 February 2025

'For all the sad hearts'

 Hi Everyone! 

How are you doing?

I haven't had much chance to craft as the Ballroom Craft room Blitz has started and it's going to be a looooong slow process! (some of you may remember that song)

So here are two cards I made last year that never got posted and as Valentines day is looming they are for all the sad hearts out there....remembering those we love but have lost. 


If I remember rightly the above one is a Memory Box folder coloured with inks and a finger dauber...very gently.



This one is a Stamps by me folder..the lily that is, and the background is that age old swiss dots embossing folder...remember that one? I bet you all have that one in your stash. It was one of the first embossing folders I bought!

Coloured as the above one but no sentiment added till needed. (which I hope will not be for a long time)

I hope you are all safe and well..and warm..wherever you may be. The weather seems to be all to pot all over the world and my heart goes out to people who are losing everything in storms,floods etc. 

Thank you for stopping by and leaving me a comment as I know I am a sporadic blogger....but better than not at all..... and your love and support is what keeps me going, and is so much appreciated.

Till next time

Take care..keep safe and be kind to one another.

Love Carole xx


Thursday, 16 January 2025

Birthday Boy ..9 !!

 

Hi Friends!

Back with Thomas's birthday card that is hopefully winging its way to the other side of the world in time for his birthday next month.

He has a current interest in dragons, so with a recently acquired stamp set I set to work. Sad to think it will probably end up in the bin as apparently the kids of today are not sentimental about these things like their grandparents!!


I hope he likes it anyway!

9 where do the years go?...they emigrated just before he was one...8 years ago at the end of this month!

I have to say that children's cards come a very close 2nd to male cards in my list of worst cards to make..lol!

Apologies for the mess on my desk in the background...I had to clear a small space to make this card...and now I have to go an dtidy...no blitz...the craft room.

Time to part with stuff that may come in ! I seem to get less and less cards to make these days and I am never sure if they are appreciated or whether people would prefer a bought one.

Maybe people think making one is a cheap option...but we know differently don't we.

Right thats me for today...must dash and blitz!...well maybe tidy the desk a bit..lol!

Till next time stay safe wherever you are and keep warm and well.

Many thanks for your visits and any comments you leave me...they really do keep me going and are so very much appreciated. 

Hugs Carole x


Thursday, 2 January 2025

Another fresh start!

 Hi Friends...wishing you all a very happy 2025 and a healthy one.

I hope you have all recovered from Christmas and are all well ready to face 'another fresh start'. I have to say that I am!

First off I must apologise for being awol. I didn't seem to be at all organised for Christmas this last time, so I am determined to be different this year..but its not a resolution..just a feeling of determination to get a grip on life.

A couple of cards to show you cased from Jo from lavinia stamps..thank you Jo! so not my designs but I enjoyed making them. The fist one is all inked and the second one is one of lavinia's new backgrounds recently released.

The first one was for my son and DIL here in the UK ....love that tree


...and this one was for a crafty friend of mine.




Well here in the UK there is the promise of snow this weekend. the temperatures have plummeted, but on the brighter side, the days are slowly getting longer as we are past the shortest day. It always seems to take longer for the days to become longer though, than it does when the days get shorter!

Thank you for stopping by and sticking with me despite my absence. I hope to see you all again soon spurred on with my new determination!

Take care, keep warm and stay well
Crafty hugs
Carole x