Well patience really is a virtue! I can't tell you how busy I've been throughout December; gnome-ing, present-ing, generally tearing my hair out and driving the little one away from things she shouldn't touch/eat/look at. It's been absolutely lovely but, as I'm sure everyone else has felt, December has run away with me and I'm now sat here, 3 days before Christmas, slightly disappointed at the lack of Christmas baking I've managed to do this year - but thankful for everything I HAVE managed to do!
I ran #CraftBlogClub pretty much every week throughout December - though everyone seemed to be rushed off their feet with work and projects (us crafty types like to put a lot on ourselves this time of year, don't we)?! We talked a little about moving #CraftBlogClub forward and I'm so excited to start putting things in place - we have such a lovely community and I can't wait to see what 2014 brings for us all!
In the meantime, I just HAD to share with you, the lovely gift I received from my Secret Santa! The absolutely gorgeous Tamsyn from The Villa On Mount Pleasant was my Crafty Secret Buddy and I was OVER THE MOON to receive this absolutely gorgeous bag, complete with personalised tag!
If you're not familiar with Tamsyn's blog, I strongly suggest you take a look at her innately gorgeous style, her taste for vintage and her eye for upcycling. My lovely bag has all the stampings of Tamsyn's gorgeous work; I love the pastel colours she uses and I can't wait to traipse off for a cheeky coffee and a book-read with my lovely new bag! Thank you so much - I hope my Secret Santa gift is as much loved as mine is!
Have you received your #CraftBlogClub Secret Santa gift yet? Why not link up your post below - I have really enjoyed hearing about some of the lovely crafty gifts that people have received and would love to share them with my readers!
Here's hoping everyone has a wonderful Christmas!
Stay Crafty!
E x
Come Join Us
Well this is incredibly late going out...but here, I have a valid reason! I've been juggling some of my gnome orders with a bit of a poorly babes this week - winter truly is hitting us hard, it seems! It really is incredible what you can do with limited sleep and a lot of determination isn't it!
So Tuesday night, we had a rather relaxed #CraftBlogClub chat, where I decided it was high time that we talked about THE BIG C! What with the names and addresses now officially out for our Secret Santa challenge, it's been at the forefront of our minds!
It was so lovely to see some new people joining in the tweets and we mostly chatted about our plans for homemade Christmas gifts and our 'staple' products! I'm quite accustomed to making shortbread for family and friends and I'm clearly not the only one who enjoys making yummy treats to give as gifts. We shared some amazing ideas for delicious fudge and treat hampers. It seems us crafty lot are, as ever, in a quandry with what to make, how to make and just how much we can fit in between now and the big day!
So how do we manage our time??
Well, if you're like me, then pretty badly, it seems at times! There were some great ideas flying around - calendars and lists are always favourite, but t'is the season to be busy and at this time of the year, particularly for those crafters who run a business too, there simply are not enough hours in the week!
I think we left the conversation (which now officially runs from 7-8.30pm), feeling a little festive and excited for the upcoming season! I hope you're all excited about our Secret Santa challenge and I am sorry to those who missed out - if enough people decide they want to be involved, I'm happy to pair more people up!
Right...just a quick one this week, I'm off to catch up with everything else and start planning my Secret Santa surprise!
Stay Crafty!
E x
Well, the big day is here - the next reveal of our challenge projects and, my God, what a tough month it's been over at Life is Peachy towers!
I hope you have all enjoyed this month's challenge - which was to create a Halloween decoration, using a craft method you have not used before (or, in some cases, haven't used for a very long time)! I've seen a few of the results already and they are looking FAB! Please please link up your post below - I will RT these all this time, I WILL!
Soo....what did I do?? Well, originally I wanted to learn crochet, I absolutely love the little amigurumi crochet toys that you see about, so I wanted to make a little bat. I started to learn...on Saturday! I found a perfectly clear, concise YouTube video and learnt how to make a Chain and a Single Crochet. I had been warned that it can take knitters longer to learn crochet and, I must admit, it felt so strange just using one hook; but I felt I was slowly getting the hang of it!
Sadly, though, my getting the hang of it, in amongst everything else I have to start/finish/do at the moment, was not going to create a beautiful bat in time so...after much deliberation and with the #CraftBlogClub clock ticking....I decided to sew a felt bat for Tuesday's challenge, aided by my ever helpful Mr Peachy. And whilst we may be chalk and cheese in many departments, it seems we mould well like Crafty Power Rangers, when it comes to sewing projects. Introducing...Lestat The Bat!
Made from two pieces of light and dark brown felt, Lestat is handstitched with a vibrant orange thread and lightly filled with toy stuffing. His eyes are two buttons from a very old mac I used to own and his wings are attached with simple threading at the back. The only disclaimer is that he is most definitely NOT a flanimal, though were watching the Ricky Gervais film Ghost Town, when he was conceived!
I hope you like him - I've not given up on the crochet and I'm a little sad I didn't manage to get it together in time; but when I'm feeling more confident with crochet, I'm planning to pop out a little animal friend, which might just be when you least expect it!
Have fun this Halloween, whatever you're doing - I shall be curling up with some freshly baked Pumpkin Bread and Butter Pudding and getting my teeth stuck into the new programme, Dracula, starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, who looks rather delicious in the ad!
Don't forget to link up your Halloween craft posts below - the link is open for one week and I cannot WAIT to see what everyone has come up with!
The Next #CraftBlogClub Challenge
Well, without further ado, let's unveil the next challenge! I would like to introduce The #CraftBlogClub Secret Santa Challenge!
Now I have mentioned some Christmas ideas before and lovely Laura from Made Peachy suggested a Secret Santa for us lot. So I thought; Hey, why not turn Christmas into a challenge!
The rules are, you make a Christmas gift for someone and send it to them - you have free reign to do what you like, it can be something you know you excel at, one of your familiar products, the only thing is - it has to be in some way personalised! And, as I know us crafty lot are going to be ridiculously busy in the lead up to Christmas - I have decided to run this challenge from now up until Christmas Eve, giving everyone plenty of time to get involved and get making.
I will be in charge of pairing up and emailing so IF you want to take part in this challenge, PLEASE email me your name, email address and postal address (missemmaberry@gmail.com) and I will start listing and pairing. I will keep the listing open until next week and will email your Secret Santa recipient by the end of next week. As ever, I will open up a linky in the lead up to Christmas and it would be great if you could write a post about the gift you made AND the gift you received!
I hope everyone wants to take part, I think it will be a lovely way to end the year with the #CraftBlogClub community and I'm hopeful that next year will bring some even more exciting things for us! Now get emailing and get thinking!
Stay Crafty!
E x
Come Join In
