Oopsy!

Goodness, I can't believe it's been a week since I last posted! I must apologise for neglecting my blog.  The days pass so quickly and there seem to be so many other things to attend to. My attention has been very much drawn to the passing of time at the moment, as I have been helping my parents to sort out a humungous  collection of old family photos, many of which feature people who are no longer with us (and more than a few which feature me sporting unspeakable permed hair"styles"!). I love these trips down memory lane although the task is tinged with sadness for those that have been and gone.  It makes me determined to achieve as much as I can while I'm still around because time speeds by so quickly and before we know it, it's curtains!!

Whew, sorry about that, just slipping into a serious frame of mind there! Don't want to depress everyone! I'm glad to say I've enjoyed my week, which is perhaps why it's rushed by so quickly.  On Saturday my Dad and I attended a craft fair; I had a few sales so was happy enough because fairs can be so hit and miss.  Sunday was spent gorging oneself with food at Himself's parents' house at a big family get-together, and yesterday H and I worked off some of those extra pounds swimming lengths at the newly-reopened Commonwealth Pool! Being out-of-practice, I think we were even holding up people in the slow lane but we managed 20 lengths each and were quite proud of that! My legs were like jelly for the rest of the evening but I would definitely go again.

Well, after all that, what have I been up to craft-wise?  I finished a card order which included three wedding cards:

And I decided it was time for some new owls- this time in Halloween colours!

I love using that selection of colours!

Now I'm set to begin another card order and start thinking about products for Christmas.  Yes, I hate to use that word but it has to be done!!

I'll try not to leave it so long before I'm back again!!

Custom Crafting!

I've finished a couple of projects this week, one being the big card order and the other being mini clipboards, inspired by suggestions from my readers!

Chipboard squares + patterned paper scraps + ribbon = Yay!! :)

I've also been designing a flyer so that I can have something to hand out at craft fairs, etc, which lets people know what I do.  It's not always easy to get across the fact that my standard range of cards can be personalised or that I welcome custom orders, so hopefully my flyer will explain that!

Recently I've been making quite a few cards to specifically suit people:

For my cousin who's a scout and has spent most of the summer camping!

For a friend's hubby who is always in charge of the barbecue at get-togethers!

And for another friend who loves birdwatching and had recently been on a trip to the Bass Rock where there were loads of gannets nesting with their chicks!

I love making custom cards; it's always a challenge but so rewarding!

Back soon with some new Christmas embellishments!

What I've Been Up To...

Thanks to a couple of  helpful suggestions from my lovely readers, I am now working on items using the binder clips I showed in my last post - pics coming soon!

I have been working my way through a custom order for seven cards this week and it's coming along nicely. I really do enjoy coming up with designs that are really specific to the recipients, such as this card I made for my uncle featuring his dog:

I'll be able to show more custom cards as and when they are sent out!

Meanwhile, I've been fiddling about with bits of card (again) and have made as batch of rosettes which I think would make great embellishments!

I love my trusty circle punches!

Keeping Up With The Neighbours (or not!)

I like finding new things to decorate with paper so I was delighted with these binder clips, especially as they used up many teeny scraps and were very easy to do!

Only problem is, I'm not sure how to market them for craft fairs, etc.  As they are, in packs of three or four? As part of a stationery set like my Little Notes set? I'll need to get my thinking cap on.

I couldn't help noticing just now that my neighbour's plant pot was a riot of colour at their front door:

My own pot has a little way to go - and it won't go far if the snails keep eating it! :(

It's nice to see that some of the plants have flowered though!

Busy Busy!

I've got a couple of craft fairs coming up so I've spent most of today organising my stock.  In doing so I realised I had an abundance of cards and notepads, etc, but felt I needed something else.  So I've been beavering away this afternoon and have made a batch of paperclip bookmarks!

I think they look extra-cute in their packaging!

Going Potty!

It's funny the sights you see when you're out and about.  These alternative "plant pots" in a garden in Dunbar really made me smile!

We also spotted some more conventional methods of planting but they were eye-catching displays none-the-less:

I really must get more inventive with my plant pots next year!

Scraps Getting Smaller...

Another week is flying by here at Mushroom HQ.  I have been beavering away in the craft room, making the most of my shiny new printer (yay!) and creating lots of different things.

I'm getting really into making oval embellishments which can then be used as card toppers or gift tags, depending on your "fancy"!

I've even tried some Halloween ones, although, as a rule, I'm not really into making things for Halloween.  Here's a sneak peek:

And I've been having fun trying out a new product - glass nugget magnets!

It's a great way to use up the tiniest paper scraps in my collection! But now I'm left with scraps smaller than amoebas! What will I do with those???