Saturday 27 February 2010

GPP Street Team - creative challenge - Love Letters


Another challenge to get the creative juices flowing! I had real fun and 'flow' doing this two page spread in my journal.



First of all I tore a couple of pages from an old book and pasted them on (top right and bottom left), then I stuck some of my very favourite printed masking tape down the long edges.  Then I used some sticky X's and O'x on both pages and painted over them firstly in red, then white and then some burnt umber (acrylic paints).  I stamped some hearts in back ink and some flourishes too and then stuck some of my other favourite script tape to the top and bottom of the right hand page.  I also stamped some script in black over the pages and finally added a little tag to the page (painted and stamped) with a heart shaped brad. Then I used some gold Glimmer Mist over the whole two pages.   I think I rather like the finished result!  Thanks again Michelle for organising this.  Here is a closer look at the pages:














Friday 26 February 2010

Thoughtful Friday No. 82


"What makes the desert beautiful is that
somewhere it hides a well"

Antoine de Saint Exupery

Thursday 25 February 2010

Postcard Joy!

As part of Hanna's postcard swap, I have been receiving such beautiful cards over the last week.  I now have five and there are five more to come!  Just take a look at all this wonderful creativity:


Can you believe that Carlin made 10 of these to giveaway?  Isn't it just gorgeous?



These colours are just so delightful and on the back is a 'Howdy from Texas' but I don't know any other details or have a link, but thank you so much Ann if you pop in to see this.



Another beautiful colourway here and a background (which you cannot see in this small photo) which has been layered and painted .  Again I don't have a link to share with you but if you are the very kind and creative person who sent this to me - thank you so much!



How fab is this?  And how unusual?  I love it! Thank you so much Charlotta.

And finally for now the postcard I used for my thoughtful Monday (instead of the usual Friday as I was away):


And again I don't have any link to share with you as the wonderfully creative person who made this didn't leave their details.  Thank you so much if you happen to pop in here.  
I'll be sure to let you see the rest when they arrive.

Wednesday 24 February 2010

Creative Every Day - a birthday special

You will remember me telling you about my lovely friend who lost her mother just before Christmas and for whom I made my very first prayer shawl sending it off to her with a little prayer card.


Well, she has a very special birthday coming up with a 0 in it so I did some thinking  and came up with an idea based on one that my very talented and inspiring daughter no.4  came up with for one for her design projects at uni - sewing brown paper bags!  My take on the idea was to use a zigzag stitch and to use red thread with the brown paper.  I wanted to make 6 in all for I had 6 little gifts to go inside.  I thought about decorating the bags with stamped images etc but in the end decided to go with (my favourite!) tags and I am very pleased with the result.


Each tag has a word stamped on it which comes from the list of the fruit of the spirit in the Bible as my friend shares my Christian faith.  In fact we were prayer partners for years when she lived here in the UK and we would get up early to meet at her house for 7am to pray for 30 - 45 mins or so.  It was a special time as things were very difficult for both of us just then (a previous recession!) and supporting one another in this way was such an encouragement.  She now lives back in the US.








It is such a joy to put this all together for her just now.  I've put them all in a shoe box together with this card which I made




and wrapped it in beautiful paper (sorry no photo - got carried away with wrapping!).  So I am off to the post office this morning to send it on its way to the US with lots and lots of love.

Monday 22 February 2010

Thoughtful Monday No. 81


"A bird does not sing
because it has an answer.
It sings because
it has a song."
-Chinese Proverb
(card from a new friend in the Postcard Swap)

Thursday 18 February 2010

A little walk in the sunshine


Yesterday I had the opportunity to spend time with a good friend so we took ourselves off to somewhere only 30minutes away or so.  It was such a lovely day with bright sunshine and blue, blue skies - signs of Spring not so far away.



We encountered these on our short walk together



And this, and then we finally ended up having a cup of tea and this (to share, of course!)



It was a lovely interlude.  Now it is off to pack as I am heading out to Wales for a two day Board meeting! 

Gift of Jewels arrival!


This was the beautiful card which came in the post a day or so ago from my new 'penpal' Susanna from the 'Gift of Jewels' swap.  She not only took this gorgeous photo (which is of one of the windows at Bergdorf Goodman in New York) but who also wrote me a lovely letter telling me about where she lives and what she likes to do, adding some very kind words about having visited this blog too.  It was such a bright spark in what was otherwise a very grey and wet day here in the UK.  Thank you so much Susanna.  It reminded me of how much I love to receive letters in the mail and although I love emails too, there is just something about the feel of something handwritten and handcrafted.  
Do take a look at a Susanna's blog and see her other lovely photos and creations in encaustic painting - just beautiful.

Monday 15 February 2010

A little love...


A little decopatch canvas painted and then layered with card, stamped voile fabric (script print), a punched red paper heart and then a red foil covered chocolate heart for the one I love with the words of "How do I love thee" by Elizabeth Barratt Browning all round it!


And because I thought that might just be a bit too flowery I made a much smaller one completely dedicated to the ardent chess champion that he is!


Meanwhile others got one of these with little chocolate hearts and for everyone there was a big heart chocolate cake with little choc heart cakes all round it which went so rapidly I don't have a photo of it!!

Friday 12 February 2010

Thoughtful Friday No. 80


"It is only when we silent the blaring sounds of our daily existence that we can finally hear the whispers of truth that life reveals to us, as it stands knocking on the doorsteps of our hearts"
K.T. Jong
(Photo courtesy of google images)

Wednesday 10 February 2010

It's not all about paper.....

No, as much as I am loving paper, paint, stamps and all things mixed media right now, I am keeping up the fibre arts just as well.  In fact I have discovered a new love!  Prayer shawls!  I discovered this over the Christmas holiday when a new friend mentioned she had been to a prayer shawl workshop. I was immediately attracted to the idea as she told me more.  A simple idea really, and another way to show love and care to those who need it.  You just need to think of someone who would really benefit from knowing that they are supported and cared for just now - maybe someone who has suffered a bereavement, the news of a delibitating illness, is struggling with depression and sadness, or a host of other things that life thows at us and which can make life messy and difficult.  The idea then is to pick some yarn you think that person would like and to knit them a shawl (there are a number of lovely patterns about and see the link below for the book on the subject).  While you are knitting that shawl take the time to pray (or think good thoughts) for that person. Then when you have finished present the shawl with a gift card which expresses your love and care.  The fact that it comes saturated with the prayers, thoughts and blessings somehow woven into the fibre means so much to the recipient and is a constant source of encouragement through their difficult days.
More info from this book: Prayer Shawl Companion.  So I have made two already and sent one out to a good friend in the US who lost her mother just before Christmas.  Here are a couple of pictures:

I made this up in yarn I already had - a James Brett acrylic and made up the crochet edging


this one was made up again with yarn from my stash and there's a boy who seems to approve of it.
I'm on to shawl number 3 now which I am making for my mother in law as she struggles with her health and ever decreasing mobility. And one day I would love to start a prayer shawl group.... who knows....

Monday 8 February 2010

Swapsies



I've joined a couple of swaps this month.  I used to love swaps at school as a girl and remember vividly the days I would take my 'treasures' (usually marbles, gemstones and other tiny trinkets) in and with a few friends together we would swap from our collections.  Well, these swaps are slightly different but with a general theme of sharing love and creativity - both dear to my heart.   The first is called 'Gift of Jewels' which is an idea to spread love around the world one card at a time.  I first saw this on Tracy's blog and liked the look of it so decided to join in.  Above you will see the card I am sending to someone who doesn't know me, or know it will be coming from me.  There were no rules, except to feel free to make a card as creatively as you might wish.
The second is a postcard swap from Create and Live Happy which has required making 10 postcards which will be sent all over the world.  I've had a lot of fun with this and below you can see some of my creations - all different in some way or other and today or tomorrow will be off in the post.






and for some there are little pockets of inspiration on the back...



and of course this does mean that I shall be receiving 10 creative postcards too!!  Thank you Selah and Hanna for organising these fun swaps.

Friday 5 February 2010

Wednesday 3 February 2010

Visiting

I'm off today to visit a lovely friend who I haven't seen in ages.  She now has three lovely little girls with another baby on the way so life is busy.  We used to work together and have kept in touch since.  So mummy's who have lots of little people need some spoiling.  First of all some flowers

then a special bag with some homemade jam




and some freshly made banana oatmeal muffins in heart shapes


using my new heart shaped silicone cases from lakeland


little bags with a homemade heart pin - pattern found here plus fun stickers and some sticky alphabet shapes


and some colouring books for those who can use them and a story book for the youngest plus 

some white chocolate chip cookies - maybe to go in the freezer?
I'm so looking forward to catching up with all her news.


Thoughtful Wednesday

"Our goal should be to live life in radical amazement – to get up in the morning and look at the world in a way that takes noth...