Christmas Makes

There was just enough daylight to take photos of the things I finished on Christmas day today.

I made a baby blanket from some of the crochet squares I've been saving, and a hot water bottle cosy.

Baby Blanket

Hot Water Bottle Cover

Next Project

I've come to the end of a project. I know logically I ought to finish another project but starting one is always fun.

Shall I make:-

Pooling Summer Mesh Stole

Scallop Choker Necklace

Dummy Clap Shawl

 

Goals for the week

Goals for the week

1. Ebay!
2. Swapbot
3. Interview
4. Christmas presents
5. Tidy the living room
6. Eat better
7. Car insurance 

Not too bad this week eh?

I only managed to get one item on ebay this week but that's better than nothing. And I emptied theb hanging space in my wardrobe of all the clothes that I wasn't sure I wanted to keep. I have a pile for getting rid of and a pile for trying to to double check.

Also I have a tentative lift to a plus size clothes swap in Leeds in January. Anyone else fancy going?

My swapbot swaps are all done and I haven't signed up for any more. If anyoen wants to do any trades just shout as I love them, but having to go to check on the website to see what dates were up and coming was starting to stress me out.

I still haven't managed to do the interview yet but I have got the questions and am part way though writing my answers.

The Christmas presents are wrapped apart from 3 of them so I'm classing that as a win :)

The living room is suitable for guests but just needs a bit more a clean to get it spick and span. We don't mention the spare room upstairs. We can just close the door on that room!

I got my 1 stone certificate at Slimming World on Tuesday! I have weigh in in an hour so we'll see what happens this week I am now officially under 20 stone in weight and am very pleased about it.

My car insurance is a bit of a mess, but never mind I'm insured. We'll sort out the mess after Christmas.

Goals for the Week

1. Be calm
2. Keep tidying and cleaning
3. Don't mess up the living room
4. Drink a bottle of wine on NYE :)
5. Read a book
6. Finish a blanket
7. List a blanket

Goals for the Week

1. Survive the day job
2. List something on ebay
3. Swapbot swaps
4. Bookcrossing secret santa
5. Use up some of the veg (I misjudged the size of the organic veg box and we are overwhelmed!)
6. Tidy the living room
7. Deal with the washing mountain

Not too bad. Only just survived the day job this week.

Didn't get anything listed on ebay but did get a few more bangles listed on Etsy. Is is wrong for someone who has always hoarder thing to use to want to just list a shed load of stuff on ebay to get rid of it all? The only stuff I want to keep is useful stuff I can use. Books I haven't read yet, craft supplies I want to use and the clothes I actually wear? I'm worried by the amount of stuff I want to get rid of. I'm worried I'll regret it when it's all gone.

Only 1 swap-bot swap left to send. I haven't signed up for any more swaps.

The living room is getting there but not quite there yet but there is improvement.

The washing mountain is getting there too which is good but not quite there yet.

Goals for the week

1. Ebay!
2. Swapbot
3. Interview
4. Christmas presents
5. Tidy the living room
6. Eat better
7. Car insurance

Goals for the Week

1. Post bookmooch books
2. Post swapbot swaps
3. Make more bangles
4. List bangles on Ebay (I'm going to start using my business ebay account again and see how things go)
5. Survive the day job
6. Keep going with the secret masterplan
7. Christmas presents

Not bad this week. I'm up to date on all my bookmooch swaps whcih is a relief. I Still have more books to list but it's nice to be on top of my posting schedule.

I made a few more bangles which was quite handy as I was featured in a Christmas present gift guide this week! Check it out here!

This week was pretty manic but I'm doing a good job of surviving it despite the compulsory over time. I have some crystals to count at home this weekend too as we have lots of work on at the moment.

As for the secret masterplan? I lost 3.5lbs this week taking me up to 12lbs.

Christmas presents are getting there. I've already gifted 2 of them. 5 to go.

This weeks list

1. Survive the day job
2. List something on ebay
3. Swapbot swaps
4. Bookcrossing secret santa
5. Use up some of the veg (I misjudged the size of the organic veg box and we are overwhelmed!)
6. Tidy the living room
7. Deal with the washing mountain

We're getting ready for Christmas, or more accurately, New Year as I really don't like Christmas. We've invited people around for New year whcih has enforced a deadline on us to get our house ship shape by then. It's going really well but the deadline has started looming.

The Living Room

Thought I'd take photos of the living room. It got very messy at one point so these aren't actually the starting pictures but I'm less ashamed of these photos than the actual starting point.

This is where we were in October.

And here we are now

 

 A little bit different but not much really. Although it got worse in between photos!

The spare sofa has improved loads! You can even see what colour it is now!

However the UFO (Unfinished Object) pile isn't looking promising.

And that's just the unfinished items that have made their way into the box. The spare room must have loads more of them in their under the unsorted stuff.

I'm hoping to get everything done in the UFO box over Christmas. It's unlikely but a worthy aim.

Do you have a UFO box?

Goals for the week

1. Survive the day job. It's going to be so busy!
2. Book at least one stall for next year
3. Carry on the secret masterplan
4. Send more bracelets to Life's Big Canvas
5. Christmas presents!
6. Post bookmooch books
7. Make Amethyst necklace

Not too bad at all considering compulsory overtime at work, very busy days and 2 nights out this week so far.

I've booked two stalls for next year. The biggie is a stall booking for a music festival. I'm so excited and a little out of my depth but I think that's a good thing. I have no idea how much stuff to make to keep things going. Any ideas?

The secret masterplan is going well. Got my half stone off certificate this week which was a nice mile stone.

The bracelets I sent to Life's Big Canvas arrived safe and sound which is good. You never know what Royal mail is going to get up to at this time of the year.

And I've bought and wrapped the majority of the Christmas presents And we've bought a teeny tiny tree and a poinsettia!

Still a few more bookmooch books to send out but hal a dozen gone this week which is great!

So here's the list for next week.

1. Post bookmooch books
2. Post swapbot swaps
3. Make more bangles
4. List bangles on Ebay (I'm going tos tart using my business ebay account again and see how things go)
5. Survive the day job
6. Keep going with the secret masterplan
7. Christmas presents

And there we are.

 How are your weekly lists going?

Birds Yard and Life's Big Canvas

 
Birds Yard is a lovely building in the centre of Leeds which is worth a visit if you are passing by. Inside there are lots of different smaller independent shops run by different people. Chloe is one of these people.
 
I "met" Chloe a good few years ago when I use to blog elsewhere. However only met her in "real life" this year when she was looking for new craftspeople for her shop, Life's Big Canvas, which is located in Birds Yard.

It was quite surreal really. I got a text from Chloe when I was on holiday in Dover saying that she was in the shop that weekend so we decided to potter by home through the week and make our way to Leeds on the Saturday to say hello with a few pieces of my work to see if they were suitable. I only came home with a few of them. The rest stayed in the shop!

I was greeted with a huge hug and the atmosphere in the shop was so friendly. And not just to me. Everyone who popped in whilst I was there was greeted with a friendly smile and a hello.

This week I sold my first two items there which made me beam! I've just finished parcelling up replacements to send to the shop which I finished off today.

Apologies for the Crummy photo!

So if you are passing through Leeds, do pop in. As well as Chloe's independent jewellery shop, there is a cute retro tea room, screen printed t-shirts, a hairdressers, vintage clothes and loads more. And all under one roof too. Perfect for this grim weather we are having at the moment. You don't even have to leave the building to visit the next shop.

Goals for the week

1. More £4 bracelets
2. Chill out! (I have a week off work)
3. Visit the shop
4. Finish reading a book
5. Sort the living room out
6. Make progress on the secret masterplan
7. List at least one item on ebay

Hmm... Not exactly what I had planned for my week off but not too bad. I didn't get any reading done at all really apart from a couple of pages of the Big Issue that I bought on Thursday.

However, I did get a bit of the living room done, bought a new mattress and got it delivered, went to the opticians for an eye test, did the shopping and finished a commission piece.

Commission Piece

And G took the old mattress to the dump today which is great.

Craft fair this afternoon. *fingers crossed*

Goals for next week

1. Survive the day job. It's going to be so busy!
2. Book at least one stall for next year
3. Carry on the secret masterplan
4. Send more bracelets to Life's Big Canvas
5. Christmas presents!
6. Post bookmooch books
7. Make Amethyst necklace

Pretty Thread and Sparkly Nails

I played with pretty hand dyed thread today and it made me very happy after a trip to the opticians went wrong. I accidentally told them their selection of glasses was poop. I didn't mean to but it slipped out. I just wanted to check that they had written my prescription down right but it all went wrong. I hope I didn't upset them too much. I feel so guilty.

So pretty hand dyed thread made me very happy.

And I also decided painting my nails sparkly would be fun too!

Craft fair tomorrow at Sherwood United Reform Church. I hope they appreciate the sparkly nail varnish :)

Commission Progress

I received a commission at the weekend to make a necklace without a clasp.

A necklace like this one, but using turquoise colour scheme.

New beads for my latest commission piece arrived! Perfect colour matches to fit in with the recycled beads I am using too. Woohoo!

Goals for the Week

1. Make some brooches (3rd week on list)
2. Make new bracelet display board
3. Make new brooch display board
4. Make £4 bracelets
5. Tidy Kitchen
6. Cook!
7. List amethyst Necklace on Etsy

Ooh!  Not bad. And to be honest the kitchen has been worse.

I wasn't able to list the amethyst necklace on Etsy as I sold it last week so need to make another amethyst necklace before I can list it *laughs*

As you can probably tell from the list I have another craft fair this weekend. Tomorrow in Aslockton, Nottingham. I've never been to the venue before and my sense of direction is diabolical. Thankfully G is coming with me again.

We manage to get the new display stands made this evening whilst being zombies from work. Lets hope they work out well tomorrow.

And speaking of Zombies. We're off to look a plot of land on Sunday if all goes well.It's just a whim but I noticed it was up for auction and within commuting distance. No derelict house on the plot, but it looks really good for defending our house when the zombie apocalypse comes. I can't be alone thinking that planning for zombies is a good thing. Anyone else been watching Doomsday Preppers. I love it!

And for next week

1. More £4 bracelets
2. Chill out! (I have a week off work)
3. Visit the shop
4. Finish reading a book
5. Sort the living room out
6. Make progress on the secret masterplan
7. List at least one item on ebay

Running Late

I'm not blogging as much as I have been as it's a bit busy around here, and I'm not sleeping well either.

Craft fair season is upon us with Christmas just around the corner so I'm busy most weekend and holding down the full time job too. And we're going all out for making the house visitor friendly for new years too. We needed a deadline to get it done and it seems to be working.

I also need to apologise for being behind on reading all of your blogs too. There are still there in my google reader around 400 posts to go but I'm on holiday from work next week so I'll have lots of lovely reading to do whilst I'm off work :)

Anyway!

I noticed a lovely blog hop and signed up for it.

Memories and Thanks blog hop is taking place over at Lori Anderson's blog. Go check it out :)

Goals for the week

1. Find a geocache (2nd week on list)
2. Make Amethyst bracelet and necklace (2nd week on list)
3. Get up to date with swapbot swaps (2nd week on list)
4. Make some brooches (2nd week on list)
5. Make the alien bracelet
6. Tidy Bedroom
7. Put tax disc in car

Well that all went tits up didn't it?

This week went totally to pot! I spent a lot of time dealing with swapbot swaps, posting out sales, and posting out bookmooch books. I hardly got any of my list done at all! Plus work had been manically busy and I went out 2 evenings this week and have a craft fair today!

(Lowdham Community Centre, Nottingham, England, 10 til 3 for anyone local. if you see me, please say hello :) )

Lets try again with a new list.

1. Make some brooches (3rd week on list)
2. Make new bracelet display board
3. Make new brooch display board
4. Make £4 bracelets
5. Tidy Kitchen
6. Cook!
7. List amethyst Necklace on Etsy

How did your week go?

Customer Service Tips

Something very interesting happened at Whitby. I got both ends of the customer service spectrum.

One lady was lovely. She said hello and smiled when we approached her stall. Not pushy but friendly. There were too many people around for me to feel comfortable to have a  proper browse of her stall so I took a card so I could have a look at her items online when I hadn't got to worry about people pushing into us.

Then we went into a different room where I was looking at some really nice bracelets. They had the most gorgeous gemstones with silver and a bit of crystal. Quite pricey, but the gems were the greatest quality and one of the bracelet was purple. Bonus!

And then the stall holder spoke to me.

"They are all silver and gemstones. The crystal is Swarovski. No plastic crap."

'Scuse me?

I felt my blood start to boil and answered, "I think you ought to check what jewellery the person you are taking to is wearing before you say that." and gestured to my gorgeous bag charm which I take everywhere with me.

No way I was going to buy off such a  rude lady. She lost herself a sale.

And I went back to the friendly lady and bought a necklace even though I don't really need a necklace because  I wanted her to know that she was great. And the necklace I have is lovely and it turns out we have a friend in common and sell our jewellery in the same shop in Leeds! Life's Big Canvas in Birds Yard

Seaching for a Property

I think I've moved past being addicted to looking for our ideal property to buy and into a different realm altogether.

We've been looking on an off for a while now. We're been to two auctions. The first one we were outbid by miles. The second not as much but it would have been a lot of work to get the house suitable for lving in. It had a tree growing through the roof and one growing through the window. And I don't just mean the gap where the glass should have been!

Any time we go anywhere now, if we see a for sale sign on somewhere that looks like it might be suitable, then I'm on the computer as soon as I get in to see if it's within our price range. This happenend again last night.

We went to Whitby for the day to the Goth weekend. I bought some great shoes.

I already have a pair of these in a size 5 but I'm really a size 6 but I didn't want to get rid of them until I had found some in my real size. And now I have. Woohoo! I'll be putting my size 5s on ebay asap to free up some more room.

Anyway... There was a lovely derelict pub in what G likes to call "the arse end of nowhere". That's my favourite location for properties. If you can see another house in the estate agents photo then it's automatically crossed off the list. If it has grass down the centre of the road it gets bous points. One of the houses we went to auction to bid on didn't even have a road. it was just 1km of field.

(I may be lying when I say "we went to auction to bid". I went to the first auction but I don't do adrenalin. I hate it. So now G goes on his own and I hit zombies on facebook and wait for a text to let me know the news)

So where was I? Ah.yes. The derelict pub was lovely. No windows but it did have a roof. "arse end of nowhere". In the middle of the moors to be honest. And also had a little cottage attached to it.

Then when we get home, it turns out it's "POA" Price on Application.

And as my usual saying goes, if it has no price on it, then I can't afford it :(

Swap Shop Blog Hop - Reveal Day!

Not many people took me up on the blog hop so we are a small but perfectly formed group this time.

People hopping are:-

Luan http://twinstarsuk.blogspot.co.uk/
Toltec Jewels http://www.jewelschoolfriends.com/
Jo's Bunkem http://jobunkum.blogspot.co.uk/
Mischelle Fanucchi http://micheladasmusings.blogspot.co.uk/
and me! (You are here!)

Basically the rules were:-

"Write a blog entry with 5 items you would like to swap. This is a specific handmade swap shop blog hop. You can include things you have made that you would like to swap, or supplies to make handmade items"

And here's goes my items that are available to swap!

Heavy clay beads. About 1" across. Think they were Lura Ashley but can't be sure.

Swarovski flat back crystals. 24 in a pack.
1 pack 1.8mm.
1 pack 4mm.

Mini Handknitted stockings for the Christmas tree

Handknitted and Felted Angora pouch 15cm x 12cms

A bangle custom made for you. Your choice of colour and silver charm

Sorry it's not a huge hop but hope you find something you fancy. If so, jsut leave me a message in the comments.

I'm happy to ship worldwide, and am willing to trade for most things to be honest.  Handmade items, craft supplies, beads, broken jewellery, old buttons,yarn, the list goes on...

Goals for the Week

1. List a new item on Etsy
2. Find a geocache
3. Dye my roots (Third time on the list!)
4. Put new clasp on Fluorite bracelet (Third time on list!)
5. Make Amethyst bracelet and necklace
6. Get up to date with swapbot swaps
7. Make some brooches

First item done on list was listing a new item on etsy. I managed to list  a few and get up to 81 items in stock!

Skull Mobile Phone Charm

Recycled Button Necklace and Bracelet Set

4 parcels sent to swapbot members.
1 parcel sent to an ebay buyer

A couple of long term items completed from the list which is nice.

Next week!

1. Find a geocache (2nd week on list)
2. Make Amethyst bracelet and necklace (2nd week on list)
3. Get up to date with swapbot swaps (2nd week on list)
4. Make some brooches (2nd week on list)
5. Make the alien bracelet
6. Tidy Bedroom
7. Put tax disc in car

Goals for the Week

A Button Bracelet I Made

1. Put a new clasp on the fluorite bracelet
2. Dye my roots!
3. Bake oatmeal
4. Finish an item from the UFO box
5. Declutter an item a day
6. List a new item on etsy
7. Get up to date with swapbot swaps

Over half finished this week.

I've also posted out quite a few books via bookmooch which is good, been on a day trip to Oxford, and G had fixed my computer so I can browse so much quicker.

Goals for next week

1. List a new item on Etsy
2. Find a geocache
3. Dye mt roots (Third time on the list!)
4. Put new clasp on Fluorite bracelet (Third time on list!)
5. Make Amethyst bracelet and necklace
6. Get up to date with swapbot swaps
7. Make some brooches

Goals for the Week

Wall art by jnjmetalworks

Lasts weeks goals were:

1.  Photo finished gloves
2. Add something to my new etsy shop
3. Make the baked oatmeal!
4. Finish an item from the UFO box.
5. Put a new clasp on the fluorite bracelet
6. Dye my roots.
7. Finish and photo 3 of my new brooches or necklaces. 

Well that was a bit of fail wasn't it *laughs*

Life took me in a different direction this week.

I did manage to "Photo the finished gloves". It all started so well! but then I got distracted at number 2 and did a listing in my "normal" shop instead of my new shop.

I managed to make the oatmeal and very nommy it was too. I should really make some more this week as it's a great portable breakfast. (Recipe here)

And I finished an item out of my UFO box. Woohoo! I had to buy supplies to finish it off, but it's done. Woohoo! (Picture coming upa t a later date. I only finished it yesterday. A button bracelet.

My roots didn't get dyed, but I did get a hair cut so i do look a load better. However the hairdresser straighetened my hair when she cut it and I didn't want to ruin the straightness by immediately dyeing it when I got home.

And the photos didn't really happen too. Where has all the light gone? I guess autumn is here once again.

But it's been interesting to see how last week went. So I'm going to see how it goes again this week.

1. Put a new clasp on the fluorite bracelet
2. Dye my roots!
3. Bake oatmeal
4. Finish an item from the UFO box
5. Declutter an item a day
6. List a new item on etsy
7. Get up to date with swap-bot swaps.

So lets see how that works out :)

Needle Felting Fun

So I decided to go to a needle felting course. It started with just me going but there was no-one else inspired enough to sign up so I asked my Mum if she wanted to come with me. And she did (Despite not really knowing what she was signing up for) Since my Dad was giving my Mum a lift there and back, it meant he would be hanging around for 2 hours whist we were there. So he came along too! Louise was lovely. It was her first time running the evening session but you couldn't tell. She showed us how to needle felt with a cookie cutter as a stencil, then how to work freeform needle felting, and then showed us a few different pieces that she had made herself. Totally inspired, I've been playing with the medium ever since and making it work for me in the way I wanted it to.

Hand dyed Rylands fleece

Needle felting supplies. (And empty wine glass. Hic!)

Circles felted using a cookie cutter as a pattern

Brooch

Headband

Knitted Mittens

I bought some lovely hand dyed yarn from Forest Crafters which I just couldn't resist.but to encourage me not to just buy pretty things I decided that I couldn't let myself buy it unless I already had a project for it.

So I decided some lovely fingerless mitts would be the way to go!

Mitts before sewing

Basically I knit a rectangle of the right size and then sew up the seam leaving a gap for my thumb to pop though.

This is nice chunky wool so I decided to go with a K1P1 rib throughout.

Finished!

Work Desk

Does anyone else have a workdesk like this?

Although to be honest, my work desk hardly ever gets used. It's upstairs in the spare room but it's too lonely up there. I prefer to make stuff sitting next to G in the living room and this is actually the coffee table!

Goals for the Week

Do you always set unreasonable goals for yourself? I know I do. And when I fail, I don't set any goals and toddle along and don't really achieve much.

So here are my goals for his week. (Bearing in mind I have a full time job too)

1. Photo finished gloves
2. Add something to my new etsy shop
3. Make the baked oatmeal!
4. Finish an item from the UFO box.
5. Put a new clasp on the fluorite bracelet
6. Dye my roots.
7. Finish and photo 3 of my new brooches or necklaces.

What do you think? Too much? Not enough?

Crochet skull

Despite really not liking using patterns, I decided to have a go at making an amiguri skull for the Day of the Dead swap on Swapbot.

Print the pattern and choose some yarn

Follow the pattern

Done!

Sunday Swap - Shared Journal Experiment

I've been taking part in the UK Shared Journal Experiment on Swapbot.

Basically there are a series of journals going around the UK and every month you get a journal to fill in and then psot it to the next person.

This month I received an Art Journal.

The journal when it arrived with me

Another page from the Journal

And My Page

I hope I did it justice!Have you taken part in one of these?

The Book Boy by Joanna Trollope

The Book Boy by Joanna Trollope
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thought it was a great read. Nice and short but interesting.

I've never read any Joanna Trollope before so wonder if this is a good representation of her books.

View all my reviews

Saturday Sales - Wholesale Bangles

I've been pushing to make more bangles recently. I love making them and think they are a great personalised gift.

 They are also on trend with the stackable bracelet fashion at the moment.

I've got  wholesale listing up on Etsy, and Folksy  but am trying to figure out how to push them more. How do you increase your wholesale sales?

More Beach Photos

For fun I like wandering round beaches to see what I can find.

Footprints

Seagulls

Pebbly beach

More Pebbles