Project in Progress

Hello everyone, hope you are having a great start to the long Easter weekend.

Central panel pieces laid out

With the temperature remaining stubbornly low and the ground still frozen, it's still impossible to get going with the allotment so I've still been crafting. I have a couple of projects on the go at the moment both of which I will be reviewing. Lots of companies are putting together kits to make an item these days, but how good are they? What do you learn, do they have enough materials, do they have good instructions, are they value for money, what skill level are they aimed at?
The two I am doing at the moment could both be completed by beginners at each craft but need a little general craft know how. The pictures are of a wall hanging bought from Perfect Patchwork. I'm hoping to finish it over the weekend, but this is just a taster for now.

Adding the Stained glass Leading.

Basting layers together

Adding embellishments.

It's a project that probably could be completed in a weekend, so far it has taken a day.

Have you got any projects under way at the moment? Is the cold weather a good excuse to stay home and craft?

Have a great weekend, and Happy Crafting as always


Janice x

Book Cover Inspiration

Hello all, This is my card make for today. It was inspired by a book cover in one of the challenges I spotted. The cover was so simple and grabbed attention.
It is made very simply using flowers made from double sided sticky sheet.
I peeled the protective layer off the top and added fine glitter to the exposed sticky surface. I then peeled off each flower and added it to a 5" x 5" square black pearlised card. In between I used pearlescent paint to doodle leaves and trailing vines. I was going to add the word Believe to the centre but bottled out and added a butterfly topper.




I would like to enter this in the following challenges

Make My Monday  Book Cover

Sprinkle n Sparkle snssc17  Anything with glitter

The Pink Elephant TPE192 CAS

Avenue 613 Create  Anything goes

CAS on Sunday  Flutterby ( CAS with Butterfly)

Happy Crafting, Janice x

Show it Sunday

Hi Everyone, I hope the week has started off well for you, unlike the British weather.

This is the third time I am writing this post. Hopefully this time it won't disappear into the ether. I have no idea why the last one isn't on here as I even got as far as sharing!

Anyway, I have been busy over the last couple of weeks, pinning and tweeting my shop and my stall at craftfest.  It was a much more comfortable experience to shout out someone else's work than it was my own.  I often wonder how much I can promote myself  without annoying someone or just losing any impact. I think I was brought up in an age where you were told to keep quiet and not attract attention!
I'm sure there are plenty of people like me though, who would like a bigger voice.
This is the idea I've come up with.
Every Sunday I will post a Link tool. If you have something you want promoted, just link it up and I will tweet and pin it for you.
The only rules will be
Maximum 2 items per week.
Must be suitable for family viewing
Must be hand made.
That's it.
Over the weeks the Pinterest board should become quite noticable, especially if everyone follows it and leaves the odd comment. With all the links, we should make an impact and spread the following.

What do you think? Are you a crafter looking for a bigger audience?

Happy Crafting


Janice x

   

Illusion Necklace Tutorial

Illusion necklaces are so called because the gems or beads you use are suspended on an almost invisible thread and appear to float around the neck without support. They make beautiful pieces for brides complimenting lace and veils. Using pearls gives that tradition look without feeling heavy.

This was a commissioned piece using pearls from a broken vintage necklace. The stringing had decayed and a number of pearls were missing. With this redesign the bride was able to wear the pearls worn by 3 previous generations. Pictured here against black, the illusion cord shows up, but against the skin it is all but invisible.

The demonstration uses tigertail so that it shows up better in the pictures. Illusion cord is clear and looks like fishing line but is softer and more flexible. Don't however mistake it for the elastic thread which looks the same. The basic instructions are for a single strand which is easily adaptable for more.

You will need :-

Illusion cord
Beads for your design
Crimp beads 2x Crimp covers.
Clasp of your choice

1. Lay out your design on a bead board or felt mat. Layout your complete design and make sure you are happy with spacing as changes are difficult to make later.

2. Start with the central bead cluster, thread these onto a 24 inch piece of cord. Add a crimp bead each end. Close the crimps with flat nose pliers or Crimp pliers.

3. Measure and mark on the cord the distance to the next bead cluster. Copy this exactly on the other side.

4. Thread on a crimp bead and use your thumb nail to hold it in position over the mark while you close it in place.



5. Thread on your next bead cluster, followed by a crimp bead. Close the crimp.

6. Repeat 4 and 5 on the other side of your central cluster.

7. Measure and mark for your next cluster, continuing as above until you have completed your design.


8. To finish, thread on a crimp bead, followed by one side of your clasp. Thread the end of the cord back through the crimp bead. Adjust the position of the crimp bead to create the length of necklace you want, pulling the excess cord through. Close the crimp and trim the excess cord. Cover the crimp with a crimp cover bead, squeezing gently closed.

To make a multi strand necklace repeat the procedure with cords reducing in size by 2 inches each time eg 22" then 20" then 18".


Did you know that the tradition of a white wedding was started by Queen Victoria? Prior to her wedding to Prince Albert, wedding dresses were traditionally colourful.

I hope this is a useful tutorial,

Happy Crafting

Janice x

You Can't Have too many Bags.

Today is the last day of the Spring Craftfest.
Spring. And here we are with a blanket of snow and more falling.
I was hoping to have made it to the NEC for the Craft show there, but it was not to be. My daughter has made it from Stoke however and she has promised to bring me something to make. She is under instructions to get something from a small British business. I like to show my support for real craft businesses when I can.

I've made lots of new friends at this Craftfest, and lots of new connections. It was my first attempt and I probably wasn't as prepared as I could have been. A lot more variety on my website is needed I think, and much better photography. It wasn't until I saw all the products side by side that I realised the variability. I knew some of them weren't great due to a lack of natural light, most of them being taken in mid winter!

It has been a great experience though, and one I can recommend. Now I need to concentrate on shows and fairs. If anyone knows any good ones in Staffordshire or neighbouring counties please let me know :)

Here's a last few pics to whet your appetite, you just can't have enough bags:)






The first one is from Kwur-kee, a lovely little clutch bag using a textured black silk fabric with handmade flowers in bright colours - lovely spring like design.





Bring the sunshine in with this hot bright patchwork number from Gert Lush
















And finally a cute little clutch in Poppy red leather with a fab matching ruffle flower. This one is from
caramel designs.







I hope you've all enjoyed my little expose of some of the fantastic crafts around the show. I've certainly enjoyed looking through everything and grabbing a couple of things myself.

Whatever you are doing have a great weekend






Janice x

Message in a Bubble

What a Week!

Today is the penultimate day at Craftfest. It has been amazing.

I would firstly like to say a huge thank you to the organisers at Creative Connections for hosting such a fab event. A second massive thank you goes to those who have tirelessly tweeted, pinned, shared and blogged the event quite selflessly. Crafters are such giving people, both of their time, skills and energy. So if you haven't yet, please share the love with all the fab stallholders.

Creative Connections does more than host Craftfest of course, come and have a look at their free online magazine, join in the Monthly Challenge and if you have a spare five minutes why not pop in the chatroom.
My advice though, is to join in the very next craftfest and see what it does for you. Even if you don't have much to sell, you will make hundreds of new connections and learn so much about social marketing alone that you will wonder, as I do, if it wasn't the best £5 ever spent :) Just one statistic, the number of visitors to my blog each day is 5 times the average before Craftfest!

Here are a few more items from this Craftfest, things to make you go awww.

This first one is from Silent Companions who make all sorts of gorgeous teddies. Isn't that a great name for a teddy stall?



The next one, from Pepperpots, reminds me of the little toys my girls Grandma made for them, so it brings back fond memories of when my now twentysomethings were just coming up to school age :)



This tiny needle felted bunny from Blue Shed Crafts has caught my eye right from day one. I could just see this sitting in my craft room, watching the world go by outside my window.



So why not pop along and peruse the shops. If your weather is anything like ours, it certainly isn't a day for venturing outside!
Do any of the items evoke special memories for you? I'd love to hear about it if they do.

I love reading all your comments, so thank you very much for taking the time to leave them,
Happy Crafting,





Janice x