My very good friend's birthday...

It was my very good friend Kathy's 50th birthday last week and to celebrate we went out for a meal at our favourite Italian restaurant The Olive Tree at Penny Lane in Liverpool.


The food was, as usual, succulent and very more-ish, although their serevings don't really allow for 'more' - you're usually stuffed before you get to the desert, which you have to ease down your gullet with a shoe-horn!


I haven't enjoyed a night out so much in recent memory, although, to be fair, I don't really 'do' going out - it interferes with my crafting too much! LOL!


I was, however, a bit stuck for inspiration for the card. 
It had to be a bit special, you see, Kath being one of my all-time favourite peeps and it being her 50th, but she's not a 'Tilda' girl and I couldn't think of a starting point that didn't involve a coloured-in flower or something equally ordinary.


I wanted something amusing, as she's as mad as a box of frogs (think of a posh Victoria Wood and you're on the right track), but it had to be classy too as she's a very classy lady.


So, I came up with this. Hope you like it!

I had a similar conundrum with her present.
She has more perfume and 'goodies' than Debenhams so I decided to make her a one-off necklace and bangle set as I know she loves jewellery.


Kath is THE original Pink Lady. She even has apples of that name for her lunch!
So, there was no other colour I could use!

She absolutely adored it. Hope you like it too!
Hugs
Ei
x

Just to let you know.....

I'm having a lickle half-price Sale of my digital paper-kits over at Eiglassing this week so if you fancy any of them, you've until Midnight Sunday 09/10/11 to tell me and then they're back up to normal on Monday!


Go fill yer boots!
Hugs
Ei
x

New Jewellery Section

I seem to be making a fair bit of jewellery lately (...not selling any, mind...!) so I've decided a designated tab is in order.  I'll leave the existing ones on my main blog but any future pieces, I'll put under the new Jewellery 'n' stuff! tab.


I've had some new ideas, so I need somewhere to put them! LOL!


I'll also put 'stuff' under there too (...whatever 'stuff' may be...! ) LOL!


Just before I go I thought I'd share a joke which was sent to me last week - I loved it!

DOG FOR SALE

A bloke is driving around the back woods of Lancashire and he sees a sign in front of a broken down cottage -  'Talking Dog For Sale '.

He rings the bell and the owner appears and tells him the dog is in the back garden.

The bloke goes into the back garden and sees a nice looking Labrador retriever sitting there.

'You talk?' he asks.

'Certainly do mate,' the Lab replies.

After the guy recovers from the shock of hearing a dog talk, he says

'So, what's your story?'

The Lab looks up and says, 'Well, I discovered that I could talk when I was just a pup. I wanted to help the government, so I told the SAS.'

'In no time at all they had me jetting from country to country, sitting in rooms with spies and world leaders, because no one ever imagined a dog would be eavesdropping.'

'I was one of their most valuable spies for eight years running... but the jetting around really tired me out, and I knew I wasn't getting any younger.'

' I decided to settle down. I signed up for a job at the airport to do some undercover security, wandering near suspicious characters and listening in.

I uncovered some incredible dealings and was awarded a batch of medals.'

'I got married, had a mess of puppies, and now I'm just retired.'

The bloke is gobsmacked.   

He goes back in and asks the owner how much he wants for the dog.

'Ten quid'll do' the owner says.

The bloke says,’ten quid? This dog is amazing! Why on earth are you selling him so cheap?'

'Because he's a liar' says the owner   'he's never been out of the darn garden'...! '

Hope you like it even if you already heard it!

Hugs
Ei
x

Christening Day

I don't normally put family events on here - it's primarily a crafting blog - but I just thought I'd put on one or two photos to show the happy, wonderful chaos of the day!


Ada was beautiful - as always - not that you're going to see that because she was also in a somewhat mischievous mood and was not allowing any sensible pap!


See what I mean....?

                                                               

                                     ....and there are loads more similarly messed up....!

and best of all......

Everyone else was fine but Ada chooses the second the shutter drops to slide out of her Daddy's grasp....! 


But at least Toby was on his best behaviour....!

...despite the fact he was absolutely exhausted, he smiled and laughed all day.
                                      He is such a little star!


It was a really lovely day - all the family had a wonderful time and the service was super - Michelle the vicar, was so welcoming and superb with the little ones, even enlisting Ada to help pour the water into the font.


I'm really hoping that other family members may have some better shots, but somehow, with the antics of Miss Bernhardt, I doubt it! LOL!
See you soon with some proper crafting!
Hugs
Ei
x

......and finally!

My two wonderful grand-babbies are both being Christened on Sunday and I've finally finished their cards.
If and when I get time, I'll make the boxes too but at least the main thing is done.


Here is Ada's....

I've used a Magnolia Tilda stamp for the main image coloured with my Copics and I've used the colours of the dress she will wear. She's also going to have gold glittery shoes! Everything is from stash except the Cuttlebug butterfly and Sizzix leaf dies. The inner I have made with K&Co candy stripe paper and a Brenda Pinnock spot. All papers are edged and distressed with Tim Holtz Victorian Velvet.

and here is Toby's!

I have used a right mix of papers for this - all from stash. The plain blue and the 'fan' type pattern is Papermania and the stripe was from C&C. The image I've used is an adorable HouseMouse stamp from Joanna Sheen and I've coloured it with my Copics. 

I chose the image because Toby is HUGE for his age and so very strong! I've used a Nestie label as an aperture for him to peep through. The blue die-cut half behind the image is a Tim Holtz 'Baroque' with a heart 'Mover & Shaper' in the middle. The white leaves are Sizzix and the foil heart borders were the result of my sharpening my Martha Stewart edging punch! The rosette is Tim Holtz again and everything else from stash! 

I hope you like these - I'm quite pleased with them.  I've also made two gift-wallets for them - all papers K&Co Baby Boy and Baby Girl.

They're well looked after children and want for nothing and Mum has enough trouble with the belongings they already have in their little cottage so a money gift will be appreciated! Hope you like them! 


I've also managed to photograph a Christmas Card I made about a month ago - I couldn't find my camera-charger!

I finally got my jewellery out of the way and also finished some pressing family matters, so here is the Christmas card I've been trying to photograph for a month! LOL! 


Anyway, here it is! I made the aperture by folding the lovely dp in half, allowing it to fit though my Bigshot and used the fabulous Nestability Christmas ornament die. It was a bit of a faff positioning it but effective once mastered!


 I used more Nesties to make the smaller ornament and the layered snowflake. Inside the aperture I placed a piece of pearlescent card which I had embossed. It was finished off with ribbon, a couple of tags and a pearl brad.


Hugs 
Ei
 x


Entered for   :-
Simon Says Stamp - Dies to die for
Creative Card Crew - Babies

I don't learn, do I...? LOL!

Well, they say the Lord loves a tryer. I hope that's true because despite the disaster that was my last Craft Fayre, I am not going to let it put me off (...paid out too much in insurance and stuff...!) and am going to have a table again this month.  


Let's face it, I'd be hard pushed to do worse than £12.50 - a net profit of  minus £2.50 (...if you don't count the insurance and stuff...! If you count these I am out by hundreds......!)....! LOL!


Let's just hope there isn't the biblical deluge we experienced last time either!


I've been too poorly to make and show over the last couple of weeks but I'm determined to get back in the saddle very soon, in fact I have to as I have a few family events requiring posh cards in the very near future, so I have to get my skates on!
Hugs
Ei
x

Exciting new collaboration!

Over the past few days I've been in discussion with a talented designer from Crafts-U-Print called Carol Smith.


Carol contacted me with come very complimentary comments on my digis and asked if I would allow the use of some of them on her super card-toppers, which she sells on Crafts-U-Print.


I confess to being a little sceptical at first as, really, I could do as much myself, had I the mind to, and wouldn't need to share any (very small it must be said!)  profit but as I looked at her pages on CUP I became convinced that I should go for it.   I did discuss it with a few of my friends, hobbyists and professional, and ended up more confusticated than before! 


So, in the end I took the bull by the horns and trusted my instinct that Carol is the lovely lady she appears to me to be.   I think it will possibly share my images to a wider audience and that thought makes me happy!


Here is her first creation with my image of my Very Cheeky Snowman!


Isn't that fab?


Carol has, very kindly, sent me the sheet so I was able to make up one of the possible designs with it.

The sheets Carol makes are already coloured in and come with the background scene you see here (plus others) and they come with the separate sections so you can easily decoupage them.


Here's a low-res image so you can see the layout (but thieves can't use it as it will pixillate as soon as you enlarge it). Carol's are much higher res and are a clean print.

Carol's toppers are great fun and a real boon to those with little time to spare or not confident in their colouring and they're very inexpensive!

And don't forget, if you would like the original digistamp, only I have those and Cheeky here is over at  Eiglassing! in the Christmas collection.  Or, just e-mail me and a download code will be sent.

Pop over and have a look!

Hugs

Ei

x