….. wouldn’t it be wonderful …….
……. to have a special set of bedding ……..
…….. just for Christmas! So this year in the sales, this is what I will be looking for, especially for the Christmas's that Iris will come to stay, it's a natural progression from Christmas pyjamas .... Primark has a "Nordic" set .... so I am off to mooch as soon as the festivities are over!
I think I have been doing Christmas more or less since January, starting with ideas using stuff I found reduced in the January sales, and now, I think, I deserve a few well earned days off!
…… And then, I need to pull my finger out and tidy my craft room, ready for the New Year as it is an absolute tip, nothing is in its place and I can’t find anything!
I have to say that my usual Poundshop hunting ground for festive inspiration has been a great disappointment this year when it’s come to finding bits and pieces to craft with ….. and as for stickers, my embellishment of choice for Christmas crafting …. forget it, save for the Paperchase robins that I think I did to death over the past few weeks!!! 
Seeing his childish handwriting on it, and then opening it up to look at the pictures, it was as if it was only yesterday ………
It then seemed so sad to leave those memories alone in the cold attic until the next time someone picked the book up ….. 
……. so I wondered if I could take them and make something for Iris …. to live on for another generation, and so I decided to put them in a new, smaller ring bound book …
……. but keep the wording exactly the same as in the original book (made to help Tom to learn read) …….
……. and keep the pages as equally plain, so that the pictures told the story, although it would have been so easy to go wild with embellishment!
…… but, I did add everyone's names on each page, so that even though Iris will never have known her Great Granny Shelia or Grandad Andy, she will eventually recognise them and know what a huge part they played in her own Daddy’s life.
The pictures of the Bridgnorth Cliff Railway were especially poignant for me, because about 25 years later Andy did the plumbing and heating work there when they renovated the Top Station to create a tearoom. It was a job he was very happy at and so every visit I make there is always special, as I know there’s a little bit of him still there ….. looking down at the river…….. and some of his pipework is still visible, I know, because he always pointed it out to me when we were there, saying “I did that!”
We had very many happy times at Bridgenorth, camping by the river or just going on day trips …. and as I said at the beginning of this, it all seems like yesterday.
I cut the strips to fit the depth of the holder and then others to fill the gaps across the top and the bottom.
Although I thought I had cleaned the glass well, a couple of the gems unpeeled slightly, but nothing that couldn’t be fixed by a dab of PVA glue here and there . 
They measure one inch square, with a background made up of a white glitter and snow patterned papers.
Once the gingerbread men were in position I flooded the pendant with Anita’s 3D, clear, glossy dimensional finish, which, when set, the gingerbread man stand everso slightly proud, but with a seamless finish, giving an almost enamelled effect.
I am hoping that next year someone pulls their fingers out sticker wise, however I think I am going to start looking farther a field for my supplies in the coming year, most probably to China ….. you may have to wait an extra week or two for them to arrive, but you just can’t compare choice and prices ….. and I get to work with something different, that perhaps other people may not have.
My father in law has cut me lots and lots of little branch slices for tags and other festive ideas that might pop in my head over the next few months. I simply drilled a hole in the middle with my modellers drill and then just stuck in the end of a Christmas tree branch that I had sprayed with glue and sprinkled liberally with translucent micro glitter 
I was then tempted to over egg the pudding by adding sequins and beads, but then controlled myself, less should be more ….. 
…… and these, I thought, had the “cute” factor ….. I shouldn’t turn them into brash and gaudy for my festive table …… that’s not my style …… LOL!!!!
So in the end I just added a tasteful wooden star (stuck on with a glue gun)
Knitted by our beloved PE Lady, I had to have them for Iris’s first Christmas. Sorry, I don’t have the pattern, I just wanted to show them to you.
Firstly this wasn’t the picture I intended to use, I had a lovely picture of “The Boyz” being snow angels, but the reproduction just wasn’t right as I had compressed it, to put on their blog, doh!
So, then I had to “arrange” a Hello Magazine photo shoot” with them, but as I was doing it in November, I didn’t have a festive back drop to use and them just sat sitting on my stairs just looked deathly dull, even with the help of a piece of Poundshop tinsel!
And so reluctantly, as it isn’t an activity I particularly enjoy, I decided to cut away the boring bits using the Paint programme on my computer, which gave me a blank canvas to work on ……
……. and allow me to superimpose the monkeys onto a new, more festive background
I can’t believe it came out so well and that you can’t see the join! But putting a card together using the picture was the nightmare. There were too many colours, on plain, white card blank it looked like something was missing but on a patterned card it looked far too busy! Agh!!! After over two hours and only a bin full of rejects to show for my toils, I was still tearing my hair out and resorted to looking at card layouts, which helped, in a round about way.
But, after a little more frustration, a card finally emerged …… with a card blank cut from this A4 pad of glossy, green card (above) I got from a market for £3 a couple of years ago, and the picture mat and layered on more of the green card then silver, plus i.5 ins strips of silver down the side and a sentiment made using The Dukes old Dymo tape maker. Phew!!!
It’s very different from The Boyz past Christmas cards. It’s contemporay and I think it works …. but lesson learned, at the first sign of any snow I need to get those Monkeys out there, in their Christmas jumpers and take as many pictures as I can …. and just keep them until I need them next Christmas, as I now know it’s much easier to work with/on white!!!!
The design for the packet insert is almost the same as the one I made in 2010 using digi kit, which sadly now seems to have been retired. The font I used is 2peas Typo.
All I have done is print of the design and then mat and layer it on some PaperCellar snow design card to fit my cello bags, that I found in Home Bargains for a bargain 89p for 50 bags.
In the bags I have put a packet of hot chocolate, a candy cane and a marshmallow Christmas pole. I used to make my own little packets of mini marshmallows to sprinkle on the top of the hot chocolate, but I think using pre-packed marshmallows is more hygienic, leaving the recipient to either dip or break up the marshmallow as they choose. However at the last minute I decided to add a mini gingerbread man from a pack from M & S (99p for 12), which I sealed in a small cello bag with my vacuum sealer and a couple of starlight mints, again left over from other projects …. but all with a couple of months on the sell by/use by dates Today, if you would like to click over to Wayfair ….. my second tutorial is now live in their festive “Inspiration” section!!!
http://www.wayfair.co.uk/Inspiration/DIY-Clay-Heart-Ornaments-and-Gift-Tags-E6205
This project was the first time I had ever worked with air dry clay, so another steep learning curve, where I decided it best to keep things simple ………….
I am soooooo jealous, I want it so badly!!! Perhaps, even badly enough to want to start sewing!!!!! 
Incidentally, the “naked” wreath came from Poundland …… I feel another shopping trip is imminent ….. they are well worth stocking up on for 2015 projects …..and not just for Christmas!
I need to use more vibrant colours to make up the background, use a finer permanent pen on the faces and perhaps use a touch of clear varnish or less Anita’s 3D clear glossy finish, as the gingerbread men seem to be made from an mdf which might be coloured and I think some of that colour has bleed just a little ….. 
However, from a distance they look pretty OK …… I think having to go so close to get a decent picture just goes to show up all the tiny imperfections on something that is already very, very small!
I have had the silver, plastic buckles forever, and wasn’t originally sure if the proportions would work, but I think they are OK. 
To make the belt I just cut a black matchbox lid using the die and then trimmed it so it could be threaded through the buckle and then wrapped it round the middle of the matchbox, securing it with double sided tape. A small, black button and a scrap of white, self adhesive, border finish the box, making it ready to hang on the tree.
