Merry Christmas!

Well, i'm sure everyone has been busy leading up to yesterday.... and now its all over! We had a lovely day, quiet, delicious food, very relaxing.

I love this week between Christmas and New Year - its kind of a limbo where I get all the days confused. This year though i'm teaching a class tomorrow afternoon and then a camp for the next two days. Thats probably a good thing, it means i'll have to get dressed and venture out instead of being a total hermit! ( I LOVE staying at home)

Its also about now I get all inthused to start online classes and new habits. I don't like new years eve at all, for some reason I find it a sad occasion (which is very odd considering i'm a glass half full kinda person) but the new year is a new start, a clean slate, and each year i'm getting a bit better at making goals and actually (nearly!) achieving them.

Today i'm going to start my list of things I'd like to achieve in 2013 and then choose my "Word". If you could achieve anything in the coming year (like anything in your wildest dreams) what would it be? i'll have a think about it and then show you my list, learning to speak French is on it every year..... but i'm getting better at it.
I think for my new list i'll need a new journal so i'm going to make something to write it all in, ooh, a project! just what I need today!

What a weekend!

This weekend was mad, Friday was Zac's 16th birthday, Saturday was the annual Art&Wine night, Sunday was the Malton Craft fair....... and today is Monday and I haven't done a whole lot!

So, Zac had school and went to the cinema on Friday evening. On Saturday mornings he has a tennis lesson, this is what Ebony made him for a birthday treat, after two hours of running around the court he was ready for it.... (I should tell you that he didn't eat it all, Ebony ate some. It was French toast, bacon and maple syrup)

 The rest of the day was spent getting ready for the art show. The pictures have to be hung in the afternoon, every artist gets one of these grids, so I took eight of my Dads paintings and two new ones of my own. They were mostly sea and landscapes with one acrylic nude that he painted in a fit of doing something different!

I was searching for a nice photo of him and my Aunt Kate (Dads sister) had taken this photo of him and kindly sent it to me at the last minute. This is the small frame you can see in the centre.

This art & wine night is a huge social affair, the whole town goes and you meet people you haven't seen since the last show, so its a chance to get glammed up. Since my hair hadn't been cut for a full year I decided it was time..... I should have known better! the cut is lovely but the hairdresser (Marion, who is lovely but doesn't understand how I can live with out a hairdryer) went all out with the styling process.... 

As you can see! 

 And as you can see in this photo its gone from curly to straight- ish. It was a bit dramatic for my liking so I went home and redid it. (don't tell Marion!)
Here I am with my Mum, I was so glad she went, she seemed to really enjoy it and met lots of people she knew. See that seascape to my right? well we don't have it anymore because it sold!!!

 The following day was the craft fair, so I was back in the same hotel at 10 am setting up. My brother had made me this beautiful little dresser and this was its first show day. It did really well! its light so I can carry it myself  but sturdy so its safe. It was much admired and everything fitted on it perfectly.

 The notebooks and diaries are always the best sellers, but this time I had more cushions, little sewing jars and hand knitted rabbits amongst other things.

 It was hugely busy, I think they had about 95 stalls of crafts and artisan foods. The lady behind me had delicious cupcakes so I didn't go hungry!

So that was the weekend. Today I finally put all the crafting stuff away, you can see the top of the kitchen table and the top of my desk again! but since there is another fair in two weeks time it won't be tidy for long!

Christmas class...

Yes, I said it, and its only Rememberence Day! todays class had a Christmas theme, I wasn't sure if we would fit another one in before the end of December so it had to be done. Plus, when I was looking for papers for this kit I found Kaiser Crafts Twig and Berry collection and went a bit nuts over it!
Those of you who know me know that i'm not huge on Christmas papers, but these aren't red and green and covered with Santas, they are Autumnal colours with subtle festiveness.

I can't believe that I forgot to take photos of the class!
We were in "Just Desserts" in Killarney, so the coffee break was delicious!!! Jacinta, Ann, Valerie, Robin, Kathrine, Noreen and Claire all helped make the class great fun, I hope they were pleased with the albums they made.

This was it, in the kit above you can just about see a bronze, antique looking heart, I hadn't attached mine when I took the photo - but I will because some ladies in the class did and it looked fabulous!

Here are some inside views so that you can see the papers.

                                                  I want wallpaper or fabric like that !!

So, thats it - a big, huge thank you to all the ladies who came today and especially to Jessica and Mike in Just Desserts, they will be hoovering glitter off the stair carpet for a while!!

I hope all you ladies in Dungarvan like the album because this is what we're making on December 1st!! I will make it an event on Facebook but you can message me if you're interested.

Now, i'm going to unpack the car and relax!

Tuesday.

Good morning,

Last night I went to the Rural Business 2012 prize giving, there were 4 prizes for the South Kerry group and 24 shortlisted, there had been 89 entries so I suppose to be one of the shortlisted was quite good. I had no illusions that I might win with my quilt idea (which was entered for me by the way!) but when they were opening the envelope it was more tense then the XFactor final I can tell you!! Everyone was secretly practising their acceptance speeches......

When I heard that last years winner invented a contraption to put on the back of young horses when training them so that the rider wouldnt be thrown off and maybe paralysed, I realised the gig was up!! Sweet as my quilt is its not a life saving device.

But, the speakers were really interesting and it was nice to meet people and everyone had dressed up so it was very glam!

This morning i'm off to Kenmare to see if I can find a room for kids craft classes and then its back to the grindstone getting the kits ready for Sunday ( I know, its a hard life isn't it?!) So far i've made two different designs and I can't decide which one to go with..... but fear not, there will be a plan and it'll be pretty!

The Knit n Stitch show was great this year, Kate and Mike from Create with Kate are lovely and there were lots of people I knew wandering round. There was fabric, fabric, more fabric, ribbon, buttons, paper, beads..... so much temptation!!

here is a little snippet of the papers for Sunday.... A bit Christmasy, but not really, I love them!!

Its Friday again already??

Hello,
Where did the week go? Its been really busy round here, which is a good thing, it would be worse if I had nothing to do!
The tiny extension for my craft room has begun.... the cement base has been laid and the paths around it reconstructed, there is a huge pile of materials ready to start building tomorrow, I can't wait for it to be done but i'm not looking forward to the dust when the wall is taken down!

Next Friday November 2nd (November?!) I will be at the RDS in Dublin where Kate from Create with Kate has a stand, I will be doing a demo of a mini book using some of her beautiful papers, rumour has it she will have not one, not two, but 45 new paper lines at the show!!!!!! oh dear, and I was doing so well with my paper addiction....

What else? well, there are two more classes planned one in Killarney on Sunday 11th November and one in Dungarvan on December 1st. All the details are on the Facebook page so you can check it there or send me a message if you're interested. If you're in Kerry the Killarney class is being held in "Just Desserts" in Market lane, they have the most delicious cakes and lots are gluten free, there will be more then one coffee break that day!

And then, we have the annual Killarney Art & Wine night, its usually on a Thursday but this year its Saturday 24th November, this is a great night, its €20 for a ticket and there are dozens of artists displaying work. Each year four local charities are chosen and 30% of any art sold on the night is donated to them........ its hugely successful, which might be because there are about a dozen wine shops that give out free (yes, free) wine all night!
Anyhoo, i'm painting away for that and here is the first of a new series i'm doing~

There are also two Christmas fairs coming up, one is the day after the Art & Wine night so i'd better have some restraint at the wine counter!  and the other is in December, so there is lots to be made for those and don't forget the next issue of Crafting Ireland is out on November 12th, thats Christmas themed too.

But for now its Friday evening, dinner is cooking and we can all relax. Next week is half term so everyone is very pleased about that.
Have a lovely weekend and half term,
F xx
p.s. I forget to get the Halloween decorations out of the attic, so i'll relax after that!

Today I went to ....

Hello,
I had met Midi at the Finnabair class in Cork and she had invited me over to Dungarvan to teach a mini book class .After much organising and changing of dates I finally got there.
We met in Whitechurch National School which is a great venue, really bright and airy and once everyone had settled in we made this:

 We used Prima En Francais papers and the album has 4 envelope style pages inside that hold tags.
The little fabric flower was hand made which took some people out of their comfort zone,  everyone was delighted with the outcome though, some looked like daisies and some like carnations but they were all beautiful!

 Look how much space we had - lots of room to spread out!

 This is Michelle.... for the last 3 or 4 years we've been speaking to each other on the phone, i've met her Mum lots of times but yesterday was the first time we met in person....... and she is just as nice as I expected!!

I'm not sure if these smiles are because they are delighted with what they made or because they didn't have to thread any more needles and seed beads!!!!
Thank you Ladies for making me welcome I hope you enjoyed the day as much as I did (who couldn't enjoy a class with that much cake?!)
I promised Lynn and Patricia that I would put up a tutorial for the roses - which I will later in the week, and i'll come up with something creative for the next class!!

Altered Art Fix!

Last weekend was the Great Big Craft Extravaganza in Athlone, which means classes, meeting people, and SHOPPING!!

Kate from Create with Kate had more than the usual amount of goodies, I boughtTim Holtz Pulley Wheels, a couple of sheets of Graphic 45 Curiosity Shop papers and THIS.

(excuse the crumpled-ness, I threw it away before I checked the brand!)

It is a wooden frame with chipboard boxes and measures 6x 5 3/4"

Did you see Cloth, Paper, Scissors this month? it had the most gorgeous altered cigar box by Linda Cain

isn't it fab?! it was the inspiration for my altered chest of drawers.

 There had to be a little DIY to get the wheels on - they're heavy, hot glue wasn't going to do it!

 And this is the finished result..........

 The wheels were distressed with gold Alcohol Ink and black embossing powder,

 and the top was decorated with beads, pins, grunge board sprockets and some metal junk.

 I love this paper, lots of cut outs!

 The background paper is  Graphic 45 Kraft Reflections.

 The drawers were covered inside and out and because they fit in pretty snug I added some beaded pulls to get them out easily.

 This side has an old door knob and a zip pull (are they Prima? I can't remember)

so thats it, thanks for stopping by!
F x

SWAP ANNOUNCEMENT!

Super quick and super wonky video for you!!!

Altered Canvas Class ~

                           G.B.C.E.


Kerry has put together great kits for the class, but you'll need to bring some of the following :


Penil, ruler, scissors, black pencil (Stabilo or similar)


Roll of kitchen towel

Heat gun

Any paintbrushes you like to use, but one for fine detail

A kitchen sponge

Craft sheet or roll of Baking Parchment

Scraps of patterned paper that you love

Any pastels - soft, oil or water soluable that you might have (optional)

tiny stamps (optional)

An Apron - it gets messy!

Mat Medium, Mod Podge or similar

Jam jar for water

A plastic container (chinese take away type) to use as a palette.   See you all on Saturday!!

The Halloween Issue is out!!

The

Open publication - Free publishing

Toby.

                                                          Just because he is so cute!!!!!!!

Here it is!

Classes!

During this last year I have taken part in several online classes, i've learnt loads and have been working away with projects of my own and now its time to get out there and start doing something - and this is where i'm starting...

Childrens art and craft classes!

Starting next Wednesday I will be teaching a childrens art & craft class with a difference. There will be all sorts of things including painting, encautstic wax, sewing, a bit of woodwork, canvas and glitter. It will be a 5 week course, there won't be something going home each week, but there will be two great works of art at the end of it!

So now i'm off to get supplies, I wonder if you can give a soldering iron to a 10 year old....?! (just kidding!!)

NOW, GO & LOOK NOW!!

THIS IS NOW, (well, in 5 minutes)!!!

On the Crafting Ireland Ustream channel at 6pm BST


Timi is going to show you how to alter a simple lunchbox into an arty bag to hold your tools or art journal.

Supplies you will need:



*1 lunchbox ( I am going to use a soft one, but you can get a hard one too) I get mine in the local toyshop.



*acrylic paints



*brushes



*gel medium



*chipboard or grunge board elements/alphabets to decorate the bag



*hot glue gun and hot glue sticks



*old book pages or music sheets



*stamps or objects that you can stamp with (eg.: toilet roll, bottle tops)



*few charms



It will be a messy crafty class so prepare craft sheet, apron and a cloth to clean your hands and desk.



I am really excited about this class, hope you are too…



Happy Crafting,



Crafting Ireland Team

Busy Tuesday....

Hey there,

Its been busy, busy round here this week. I'm going on holiday tomorrow and had alot of things to organise before I go...... but now I'm down to the very last thing!
Its been mostly paper work and form filling, which is about my least favourite thing - it would probably help if I were more organised and didn't forget where I put important bits of paper!

I've also been crafting like a mad thing because there are deadlines to meet and they too had to be done before I go....... and I can't show you any of those yet (how dull !) But, amongst all the other stuff this just appeared in my sketchbook and insisted on being painted -  I'm having a bit of a thing with garden fences at the moment so there will be lots of these appearing!

Oh, there is big news coming next week - but I can't tell you about that yet either, its exciting though....
I can tell you that i'm teaching a class at the Great Big Craft Extravaganza this year, there is a great timetable and I'm wondering what else I can fit it while i'm there.. you can check it out here
Ok, i'm off to pack (which i'm rubbish at!)

Byeeee! x

Take an empty peppermint tin......

This old tin measures 4"x2 1/4"

so it was really quick and fun to alter, I think i'll make a tiny album to sit inside.

I used a Prima Almanac paper, "Composition" a bingo card, some bling, lace and other bits and pieces.

There you are, a short and sweet post for a Monday morning!

Have a lovely day! x

Crafting Ireland issue 12!

Its out today!! lots of lovely Autumn goodness, of course Krissys Halloween book is my particular fav, but then there is Mary Jo's spooky door signs, Timi's altered desk tidy and you'll be drooling when you read Kates report from CHA...... loads to choose from!
Just for a change and because not all crafts involve paper, (just most of them!) I have made an Autumn coloured necklace. The basics of attaching clasps are there with lots of photos so you can see how easy it is, and then you can apply it to any necklace....Endless possibilities!!

Here it is!

Open publication - Free publishing - More design team

Better late then never!!

This tutorial went up on the Crafting Ireland blog last Tuesday..... and i'm only putting it here today, bad blogger!!!!
Better late then never I suppose!! There are loads of great tutorials on Crafting Ireland, a great place to go for a bit of inspiration.
Anyhoo, here it is:
http://craftingireland.wordpress.com/2012/08/07/wedding-card-and-gift-envelope-felicia-thomas/

Memory Quilt- Warning, its a bit teary!

Last month, the 3rd July to be precise my Dear Dad died peacefully at home.  He had been sick for a while with cancer but when he got very weak he went to bed and slipped away, waking only briefly to have a final cup of tea (he loved tea!) and to give us all a kiss. He was the coolest Dude ever - only 65, far too young.

As you can imagine I miss him very much, but I'm a crafter, and what do we crafters do?

WE KEEP CALM AND MAKE SOMETHING!!

He had a great collection of shirts, so last week I went and chose 5 and then took the scissors to them,

Its amazing how much fabric is in a shirt!

Now, I have made 3 quilts before this, I am no where near an expert and as you know my straight lines are never straight so there were bound to be mistakes......
In fact if you are a quilt maker then this will probably hurt your eyes - Woefull attempts at patches lining up!

 I cut all of the shirt bodies into 7 inch squares and the sleeves into bias cut strips for the edging.

then I put my trusty sewing machine to work - the light is to bright here because it was late at night and all the kitchen lights were on. The funny thing about sewing is that once I start time just flies by! At 2pm I looked at the clock and thought, I'll keep going for an hour, then I really have to go shopping for dinner...... the next thing I knew, they were all home because it was somehow 6pm!

 When it came to hand stitching the border, I was sat on the sofa with half an eye on the Olympics and Toby decided this was the best thing in the world  - comfy dog or what?!

And this is it! it measures 66x45 inches, it took me forever to work out a plan for the patches, I had all sorts of elaborate designs but settled for the simplest - I'm really happy with it.

 Now, when Dad was sick he was always cold and so he had one of those Snuggy blankets to keep him warm - you know the ones with the sleeves in them? well, Mum is still using that one but Zac has one that he never uses and the colour was just right so he kindly donated it. I had to cut out the sleeves which left great big holes and no matter how I placed the patchwork squares I couldn't avoid the holes. There wasn't enough fleece left to cover them, so I improvised and used leftover patches......... it is nothing if not unique!! (or just plain odd....) and its not really that wonky, thats just the way I took the photo .Honestly, even i'm not that bad!

Look how snuggly it is!!!!! its big enough to wrap up in, in fact i'm wishing the winter upon us so I can wear it around the house all the time.

  If you look carefully you can see that I made the breast pockets into patches (see the button?) there are 6 pockets in all.

 So thats it, a memory quilt made of shirts that will be treasured and well used, in fact if he could see it i'm sure he would be taking it off me to use himself!



                                                             The Cool Dude Himself!