I have been noticable in my absence the last couple of months....firstly I was admitted to hospital with palpitations and had a little stay but its all been stabilised now and Im back to my normal level of fitness. I have also in the last couple of weeks been given the diagnosis of psoratic arthritis which has explained some  unknown pains Ive been getting for the last year or 2. Now I know what it is Im up against  I can deal with it....

The biggest stress on me has been released as our house has been saved and is no longer up for demolition....the council could not get all the people to sell that they wanted and so their plan for redevelopment is now no viable so I get to stay in my beloved home yay party on!

All the stress that was holding me back is gone  now and Im hoping that my craft inspirations return with a vengeance! Im having yet a new craft room, Im going back to myold one as I preferred that room to the one Im in now and Hubby is hammering and constructing as we speak ...I cant wait.

Im off to make some storage for my new room see ya soon

thank you for reading this
love debby xx

A Wreath

So Dad is well enough to go back to his day centre 2 days a week, and he loves going and having the company to talk to. He rarely asks anyone to do anything for him so I was more than happy to make this wreath for him to take to his day centre to be sold to help raise funds.

I started cutting out flowers from the silhouette store and some that I made the files for and have used time and again on various wreaths especially the roses made from scalloped circles! they always go down well. I joined a flower making group on facebook  and some of the ladies flowers there are superb and I  just wish I was as good at making flowers like them, but one thing I have learnt is that they use their spectrum noirs an awful lot! I just had to make this one very quickly though I only had 3 days to make it and by doing a 2am night I managed!!

I tried to choose bright and colourful flowers because most of the people at the day centre are partially blind so I hope that a bright one would help them see it a little better. I decided not to do a christmas one or even a summer one just a bright one!

It took about a 6 hours to cut all the pieces for the flowers and I had intended to make 2 or 3 but after cutting so many and it only doing one...well...one had to do...then I realised I had used a much larger ring than I usually do so no wonder it took so many flowers.

I particularly liked the blue cornflowers from the silhouette store they were so easy to put together and look fab in real terms. I cut some of the leaves on my cameo and hubby cut some from a die he had.

Some one asked me what tools I use to make my flowers...well I havent bought anything special, I use a 6mm ball tool and a wooden kebab stick (which I find invaluable for shaping) and a foam stamping mat I got years ago and never used, and of course my trusty glue gun....

Having made this wreath I came to the conclusion that me and a glue gun are a dangerous combination, as I managed to burn one finger 3 times and 2 other fingers and my leg (dont ask!!) but Im hoping the end result was worth it...

Thank you for looking, if you want more info on how to put a wreath together then I have several older posts explaining how to...

Love debby xx

Heat transfer vinyl

This week for my design team work I was sent heat transfer vinyl (htv) to play with. It was something I had never plaayed with before and I was interested in giving it a go as I have seen many a project around the web that people have done and it always looks fun.

I was sent a sheet of pink, blue green purple and light blue. I was also sent some heat transfer flock but I havent played with that yet.mmmhhhaaawwww....

I wanted to do something that would really stand out and be noticed because it was for the television show so ordinary really wouldnt do. I found a lovely free file on a group on facebook of a lovely hummingbird and made a cushion that was very very easy to make and did the hummingbird. I loved it and was very pleased, but alas I was too trusting and took the lady who gave the file away free well i took her word that it was a henna tattoo file that she had traced.... it turns out on further instruction to be a stamp by a well known company so I wont be showing that any more, and it will be my own personal cushion because I still love it!
I just wish I had been a little bit more on the ball and I would have probably recognised it sooner before I had spent my time weeding all the little bits...thats what you get for trying to take the easy way! I had had a terrrible week and was not consentrating as I should due to a close family member leaving this earth....

So I then had to rethink.... and I decided to do a few babygrows (onesies) and I bought these files from the silhouette store...I figured at least you know where these come from and they were quick and very easy ones to weed (yea I know I took the easy option!!!)

 This 1st one was an easy boys one a simple car from the store and it changed the onesie instantly!

 This 2nd one could be for either sex depending on what colour vinyl you used. I chose the pink just because.. I added the bow not just for effect but because I had a slight accident and had a spot of vinyl where it shouldnt have been instant bow instant fix, si guess what happened with the next???

I thought the bows added to this last one. The words file came from the silhouette store and cut beautifully.

Thank you for looking
love debby x

Playing with alcohol inks

I have been very busy with family matters the last week or so and today I really needed to relax and forget all my troubles and woes. I couldnt concentrate on making a card or even the boxes I wanted to make for my glitters to go into. I needed something tranquil to do... so I got out the alcohol Inks and did a little 'painting with them.

Apart from covering myself with delightful colours this is the painting I ended up with...

 For some reason I dropped the brush and it landed in the middle and gave the dotty-splash of colour and I then chose to do some more dots for interest....

 After it dried I thought it rather looked like a sunflower and I suppose I should have done the flower in browns and oranges, but hey...Im using artistic license here and have a red and purple one instead...I may also add that when I started the flower I had no idea what it would turn out like and was very plleased with it!

 After finishing painting, I did a little more organising of the craft room, and heres a small corner all labelled and sorted. I have found this to be so much help when Im crafting because now I look on the drawer fronts and boxes and know exactly where everything is....I didnt realise just how much crafting time I wasted before looking for things....

If you havent tried alcohol ink painting there are videos on youtube why not have a look and give it a try when you next need to calm...

Thank you for looking
love debby

Teddy Love

I had a nice present of several cds from my husband and amongst them was a teddy bear one. The bear was so cute that I just had to make a card straight away with it. So I did a print and cut using my beloved cameo and looked at the end results for inspiration. I decided it would make a good double twisted easel card.

When I looked amongst my cameo files I realised I didnt have a double twisted easel, I had several twisted easels and one triple twisted easel but no double., so I made my own which I will post a link to at the end of the post should you want it.

I had a lovely embossing file A4 size that I just havent used yet and was looking for a project to use it in so today I decided it would make an interesting background for teddy. The embossing foldercame from a set I bought off create and craft last week and it was a set of 9 different folders. This particular one is script that is quite unreadable and meaningless yet fun.

I embossed onto some pearlised card and then layered the teddies on to it. I had some chipboard sentiments found during the big clean up of the craft room and added some liquid pearls

Here is a link to the file for the double easel card incase you would like it, if you do take it please send me some love. Please do not repost it but send people here to collect it themselves and leave me some love.



Thank you for looking

Debby xhttps://www.dropbox.com/s/zvxhx2pd37yald5/double%20twisted%20easel%20card.studio3

Silhouette software version 3

I waited once the update was announced because like so many had upgraded immediately when they had the bad glitch a few updates ago, and felt I wanted to sit on the side lines and see what everyone was saying about the new version. This week I finally felt it was time to upgrade and so far I am so happy...

I have the designer edition software and wouldnt be without it now, even though I dont really do much designing from scratch, I do alter files alot to suit me and my use., so for me the de is like gold....

Now there has been much shouting about this new version, and of course I wanted to try for myself and so far, I seem to find it so much better than the last version. I did panic at first when I couldnt find the offset button, but once I found that I stopped panicing hehe. I havent really played with the layering yet, I didnt want to get to far infront of myself, as regular readers of my blog know I dont always retain information first or second time or even third, I have to wait for it to just 'click' before I get something... we all learn differently! and of course with my medication I then forget sometimes I feel lllike I could forget my own mname ! hehe

But today I did something that feels like it blew my mind, I was so happy to discover I could import pdfs into the software. Oh how Ive wished for this over the years! I have always worked around it but that can be  time consumming but now oh Im in love with my cammie all over again. Then I discovered that I could now scan straight into the software too... all I can say is  Silhouette America I Love You xx it feels like I have a brand new machine and not just software... the possibilities of what I can now do is really blowing my mind. Now where are all my cds you know the ones full of pdfs......if you dont hear from me for a while youll know what Im doing...

All I can say is that I love this new software

thank you for visiting me

love debby x

Ive been absent for a while again...

Yes I know ivee been nawty and been absent for a little while again., but between illness and the total reorganisation of my craft room Ive not had a chance to write on my blog, and also I forgot my password and tried so many different variations that at one stage got myself locked out of my blog for a week! I have now linked it to my google account so that I have several ways to get into my blog! Thats a lesson learnt...

I found so many items I didnt even know that I had bought all hiding in drawers, and faithful old tools I forgot about that it has made me stop and think about what Im doing.. yes I have the crafters illness of hoarding my stash, and so to that means I gave my mum my cuttlebug and my niece my bigshot, as I really dont use them now I have my cameo and ebosser. but who knew I had so many dies and embossing folders I didnt thats for sure.... so I have all the dies in one drawer and all my embossing foldeers in another for now but Im going to make open boxes for them to stand on the top of the drawers so that they are in sight and never forgotten again.

I think from now on I will have to use at least either a die, embossing folder or stamp with every card I make as ive neglected them for so long and have focussed only on using my beloved cammie that things are being wasted....  I know the card group Im organising will be in a hall where i wont be taking cammie so i will have to go back to basics then but im sure it will be a good creative exercise for me.

I think Im going to have so much fun in the next few weeks!

Have fun too

thank you for reading this

love debby