Blast From The Past - Valentine Hug In A Mug

The original idea for Hug In The Mug came from my friend Lisa wondering wondering what to do with her left over hot chocolate sachets etc. from making Snow Man Soup packets.

This could be a simple little something children could make/give to someone special, Gran, Grandad, Aunties etc.on Valentines Day.  Contains sachet of hot chocolate drink, mini marshmallows, a chocolate heart lolly for stirring and a few Valentine chocolate coins. 

Random Letter Birthday Card

This is the card I made for Marc’s partner Iain’s birthday, a design I have used several times now.

The card blank, which measures  6ins x 6ins was from a pack ready made Kraft cards and envelopes that I have had for ages

The alphabet letters are either from sticker or craft packs or from word games that I have found in charity shops that I have bought solely for the letters. A mix of different sizes of gold and silver stars add extra sparkle and dimension.

I always struggled with men’s cards as not every man is into football, fishing, boats or cars, so this type of is a perfect solution to the problem.

Save The Date Wedding Cards

These are the Save The Date Cards that my nephew and his girlfriend Amanda finally chose from the eight or so I sent them, however since the photos were taken  and after final approval, we changed the wording to “Save The Date” and got rid of the exclamation mark after it, as it wasn’t really necessary.

As I said before the design isn’t mine, Amanda sent me a link to an idea she liked and I worked on it from there, making my own template in Publisher so that I could make any alterations that might be needed after finding a free font that was as near to the one used on the original as I could.

http://somethingturquoise.com/2015/01/16/diy-instagram-save-the-dates-3/

The main card body was printed on ivory linen effect card and then mat and layered on slate grey.

The text was also printed in a dark grey, which after a bit of experimenting looked much more subtle than black.

The Clipiola spiral paperclips were expensive, but were just so much more stylish than the usual trombone shaped clips. 

All that is left to do is for Joe and Amanda to add their own sticker photo under the paperclip and then we should be good to go!

Fiddle Fart’s First Guest Crafter Of 2018 - Marc

This has to be the cutest, cutest, cutest thing ever and just goes to show, pardon my English was an incredibly clever b****r Marc is!

All I can tell you is that this beautiful Basset Hound (Marc and Iain now have four, see below) has been felted ……..

…….. required an awful lot of patience ……

……. and is totally stunning!

Marc and Iain’s babies.

Its New Years Day 2018!

First of all Fiddle Fart …….  as I said before, I haven’t really crafted properly since September due to my spending weekends away or people coming over etc. and as a result I think my mojo has suffered over that time, so I am going to continue for the next little while at least posting on a Monday, and then perhaps look in the Fiddle Fart archives and re-post  ideas for Valentines Day and Easter, as I did in the lead up to Christmas, just to keep things going and then re-evaluate again in a month or twos time.

My only resolution is a consequence of the above ……. not to buy anymore crafting stuff, no matter how much of a bargain or tempting, I bought too much before Christmas, mainly from The Works and none of it actually got used!  Marc and I had a bit of a discussion when I saw him last as to our buying habits, do we buy to craft or do we buy to collect (and stroke)? I need to learn to craft using what I already have and believe me I could craft for the next 20 years and not need to buy anything.  This I hasten to add will be an extremely hard resolution to keep!

The next two months are going to be pretty busy, the main reason is I that I am having a few alterations done to my bedroom (above, as it looked over Christmas). I decided I wanted drawers on either side of the bed and some extra shelving.

This is what my carpenter Dave and I came up with to match the wardrobes and drawers he created just after I first moved in (below).

Before Pete can get started I need an electric plug socket  moved and another one added to where the top of each set of drawers will be, so the period between Christmas and the New Year seemed to be the ideal time to see where existing pieces of furniture could be moved to or reluctantly got rid of.

 

As it happened the bedside drawers fit perfectly inside one of the wardrobes ….. so that’s a new home for vests, pants and socks sorted!

Initially, I was going to put the Ikea Billy bookcase in the guest room but it just didn’t look right. I had measured it previously and didn’t think it would fit in the hall cupboard but I decided to try it anyway, despite my fears of it getting stuck but it was a perfect fit!  I now have a space for shoes at the bottom and then found some collapsible boxes in Home Bargains that fit after re-spacing the shelves! I was thrilled as it created even more space.  However, in creating space that gives me the opportunity to fill said space, a double edged and very dangerous sword, so perhaps I should add “one thing in so at least one thing out!” to my resolutions!

It all kicks off around 8th January, so I will keep you updated on progress.

Blast From The Past - New Years Smiley Face Favour Bags

I like to make something to “bring the New Year in” on the first day back at work after the Christmas break  …….

….. and as soon as I saw these Thorntons Smiles on a 3 for 2 offer I knew they would be perfect.

So I bagged up nine to a pretzel bag, three of each flavour, I wasn’t being mean, I just didn’t want to be overly generous, as, no doubt, everyone will be on a diet!!!!

I made the tags using punching a large scalloped circle in gold mirror card, and putting a printed calendar tags that I have had for years and really need using up, on one one side and a handwritten New Years message on the other.

Finally, I attached the tag, and a matching ribbon to the bags and trimmed off the excess on the bag. with pinking shears.

The calendar tags are brilliant as you can highlight the date on them.

I tried to look for more pretzel bags on e-bay as I only have a few left, in the past I have only been able to find them from one seller and unfortunately on this occasion couldn’t find them, which means that I am going to have to try out some bookmark bags instead, they are a little wider 65mm as opposed to 50mm, but perhaps they might be a little more versatile, we shall see.

Blast From The Past - Lottery New Year Favours!

As you know,  I like to make little favours for the first day back at work after a major holiday ….  and seeing nets of chocolate coins reduced to 25p with a use before date of August 2013 … well I just couldn’t resist, and came up with this idea…..

I created the sheet of sentiments in Publisher, using  “High Tide”  font free  from http://www.fontpalace.com/font-details/2Peas+High+Tide/

If you would like a copy of my file you can download it free here :- https://www.dropbox.com/s/8vzvploygfll6yl/lucky%20monkey.pdf

I cut the sentiments out and backed them onto the back of a lottery ticket,  trimming the edges to fit the narrow cello bags I used (9cm wide)

I put three coins in each bag,  which then I sealed with my Elitech bag sealer.

I made another sheet of “Happy New Years” which I punched out,  to stick on the front of each packet

Et voila, all that was left to do was pop them in everyone’s sling or pigeon hole on the first day of term.
It's an idea that could be altered to suit other events .....and I shall put my mind to doing a couple more versions of the wording and then offer them as a free download, so watch this space ......

Blast From The Past - New Year Favour

As you know I like to start and end each school term with a small fairing gift that I pop into colleagues pigeon holes ready for the first/last day.

Well, I decided to go very small this term, as no doubt half the people I will give one to will have started a new diet ….. so one teeny, weeny Ferrero Rocher won’t hurt will it?

And, as I feel all crafted out after Christmas, I have used some pre-made, cut and scored wedding favour boxes (from Hobbycraft) that  I’ve had for years, all I’ve had to do is to make them up.  A bit of faux stitching, handwriting and a tiny gift bow on the top and that’s it,  done and dusted!

Blast From The Past - New Years Eve Crafty Gifts - Midnight Feast Box

I was thinking about New Year and First Footing and came up with this really daft idea for a New Years Eve favour - as my sister would say “You have too much time on your hands!”

It opens up to reveal a Midnight Feast – in this case two shortbread biscuits, because I always think of Scotland at New Year, but you could put anything you like in with a New Year/Midnight Feast idea

The box is made using my Sizzix Bigz Shaker Box Die (No. 655134) in a dark blue cardboard. I have doodled on it using a white gel pen and highlighted the date on the scalloped calendar tab which is from Sarah’s Cards.

As I said this is a daft idea but I thought it might set other peoples imaginations off……, you could adapt it for a sleepover party for example.

A VERY HAPPY CHRISTMAS

Well, I’m in Wolverhampton over the holiday, staying with Lucy, my daughter and spending time with the in-laws, and on Saturday we decided to spend the day in Bridgnorth to blow away the cobwebs, enjoy the scenery and just mooch a bit ……..

Once again I came back still thinking what a lovely, lovely place it would be to live, and if I ever had to move again Bridgnorth would be on my list. As a family it’s a place filled with so many happy memories of days and weekends away, camping, fishing and where The Duke did so much work, the Winding House Tearooms (below) next to the cliff railway being one of his particular favourites.

It was a place we never tired of and after yesterdays trip, after two years or so, it is still reassuringly familiar and unchanged in our hearts.

The market was on and I admit I have so missed a good old market rummage, in particular Bridgnorth’s  with it’s mixture of second hand/car boot type stalls,  along with the other usual stalls selling food, clothing, plants, tools, etc..

It was on one second-hand stall in particular I had my two most brilliant finds, this Arthur Wood lustre vase for just £1 ……  which I think will be perfect in my new look bedroom (more of that in a later post) – I looked it up on e-bay and there are a few around with an asking price of around £24ish each.

On the same stall I found this small Royal Doulton Minden dish, which as you know is something I collect but still use on a daily basis, for another £1, I have never paid a price as low for a piece before …… I was thrilled, as you can imagine.

Then we moved into the High Street for some lunch and a look round the Charity Shops.  Now, I had a backpack on my list of things I need for my trip to New York to celebrate my 60th and this vintage Fiorelli was perfect, they are bags I have always liked but couldn't really afford, but this cost me just £7.50 and is much better quality than I would have paid for something new.  It’s in perfect condition despite it having some age to it, I think it could possibly be from the late 80’s?

So all in all it was a brilliant day ……. made all the more brilliant when Lu and I booked our next Greek Odyssey to Crete the following morning on Christmas Eve ……… so far it’s beginning to look like the Christmas that just keeps giving!

Wishing you all a very happy Christmas with love xxxxxx