Author Archives: Crafty Kath

#Carvoeiroboxes

Posted on by

Wow.  It’s hot!  The weather has really changed now and I am struck by the vibrancy of all the colours around the town.

On my walk the other day I noticed some of the telephone cable boxes had been painted.  So I’ve been looking round on my trips out in the evening to see if I could find any more.  I have not been disappointed.  It would appear that all of the boxes have a different design on them.

20160514_152338It’s fabulous, really makes a feature of them and they certainly don’t look dull or boring anymore.  They all the hashtag #Carvoeiroboxes on them, so I’ll have to look that one up later.  I told my husband about them and he reckons I’m only interested because I’m still a phonebox nerd since working at BT in the 1990s.  I’m not so sure.

20160514_151821These are a great local resource as well as a necessity in the world today, so why not use them as an art gallery?!

The pictures I have taken of a few of the boxes I’ve seen, I think are rather lovely and very cheerful.

20160514_151726

I might suggest this to BT when I get home.  What do you think?

20160514_151701

Happy painting
x

Carvoeiro

Posted on by

I decided to have a wander into the town today.  The weather has perked up – well it’s not raining – but it’s not quite lie out by the pool conditions just yet.

I started out at the bottom of the hill and had a walk on the beach.  It’s a lovely place, great for a family.  As is customary, I had a look for any interesting shells to take home for Alice,  There were loads, so I was disappointed.  Most were cockle shells but there were a few scallops too, all quite a bit larger than the one’s I’ve found on the beaches at home though.  I love hunting for ‘treasure’ on the beach, it’s so therapeutic and exciting looking at all the shapes and colours and how they change in the seawater.  I could do this for hours, but my handbag was starting to get heavy with all my finds, so I had a quick rationalise of them and headed off looking for holiday gifts for the family at home.

I saw an interesting shop selling tie-die and batik style clothing, so I had to have a look.  I found a lovely dress for Alice with a smocked top which I reckon she’ll be able to use as a skirt as she gets taller.  Bartering is not my forte, but I managed to get 3 Euros off the price.  Well, I was pleased anyway!  I’m sure Alice ill love the dress too.

It was starting to get hot, so I popped into a shop for a postcard – I know I’ll speak to home but I still think it’s nice to send a postcard.  Mind you, I’m rubbish at putting them in the right boxes.  Fingers crossed it arrives home before I do.  I checked where the postbox was this time.

Time to have a drink and a swim to cool off now I reckon!

20160517_172046

Happy Holidays
x

Escape to the sea!

Posted on by

I’ve escaped for a week’s break!  My order books are clear and I’m having some much needed rest and relaxation on the Algarve.  Before all the parents begin to castigate me, I haven’t taken my daughter out of school.  I just don’t believe in doing that.  No, I am fully making the most of a week away without responsibilities.  Basically I’ve hi-jacked Mum and Dad’s holiday – well they did offer – and left Alice, the kittens and the house in the very capable hands of Hubby!

It’s really beautiful here.  I’m in Carvoeiro, a small town with plenty of bars, restaurants and shops, certainly more than enough to keep me occupied in the evenings.  Mind you, I don’t plan to do very much while I’m here.  I’m hoping the weather perks up a bit.  The locals have said it’s been raining for the last ten days!  I could have stayed at home for that, but everyone is sure the sun is going to come out later today.  I hope so, or else I will have to go and buy a jumper.  I didn’t bring nearly enough yarn (or a pattern for that matter) to make one! 20160519_205651

So, my plans for the week are pretty simple (assuming the sun does make an appearance)

  1. Sleep
  2. Sunbathe by the pool
  3. Swim
  4. Read
  5. Eat well in the evening
No sign of any housework this week.  I have brought a couple of magazines and a crochet kit with me, so you never know what I might make.  But my overall intention is to have a rest and catch up on some me-time!
Happy Holidays
x

Growing Kittens

Posted on by

I mentioned back at the end of December that I have adopted two abandoned kittens and they are certainly making their presence felt in the household. We have gone through a tough period of settling in. George in particular has taken his time in getting used to us all, but things are starting to settle down.

They have both had a series of trips to the vet, for check ups, injections, weight monitoring and neutering.

P1040319

But I am now pleased to say that they have a clean bill of health and have started to explore the wider environment. They are both still quite timid with other people and strange noises, but I’m not too bothered about that as it is keeping them close to home. It took over a week of being let outside for them to go further than the patio outside the kitchen door, and they much prefer it if I go out with them. Goodness knows what they will be like when the encounter another cat – and we do have a few around the neighbourhood!

So here they are in all their glory, climbing the trees and shrubs.

IMG_20160409_123439642

IMG_20160419_191304074

Both of them have grown a lot in the four months they have been with us. I think George is going to be a big lad, and Lily is all set to be a dainty little thing. They are both very keen on my crafting! Not surprisingly they love my bags of yarn, so I have had to be much more disciplined at putting everything away when finished with. Of course, I still indulge them with the odd pom -pom and piece of yarn to chase.

What has surprised me most is how George just loves the cursor on the computer screen, so I frequently have a little ‘helper’ when I’m on the pc. The best part though is when I’m snuggled up on the settee with some crochet or knitting and I’m joined by them both, Lily on my knee …..

20160126_215501

20160130_200045

and George has taken a liking to my project bag! (I’m not sure he’ll be able to fit in it for long though).

Ah well, they are growing fast and are great company although it is somewhat distracting when a kitten decides to jump on my desk while I’m working!

Happy crafting
x

Personalising Cards

Posted on by

Over the last few weeks I’ve been thinking more about personalising cards and what sort of cards to make in order to have some to show as examples. So, with a neighbour’s birthday party around the corner, I decided to sit down and work through the various ideas in my head.

As I’ve been obsessed recently with the ‘dangler’ cards I thought I’d set about making them into frames into which I could add a sentiment or number depending on the celebration or occasion. My first one was for my neighbour’s birthday. She didn’t want any presents, just donations to a charity that she is very close to, so I thought an individual handmade card would be a great gift for her. I decided to have a change from mostly white card and made this one with some Create and Craft topsy-turvy cardstock in shades of turquoise. I also had a real play with my small die collection. The frame was made using spellbinders scalloped circle nesting dies and the layered flower on the acetate dangler is from a sizzix die set.  I added some little punched flowers with clear gems for centres and a tied a piece of co-ordinating satin ribbon into a bow.  To finish off the front of the card I used a tonic number die set for the ’70’.

P1240865

The card was very much appreciated and several other people have since asked for a similar style of personalising. So I have set about making up a few cards in different colours ready to add numbers to. I have again used the topsy-turvy cardstock as the colours are lovely. I think the bright yellow paired with the softer pastel yellow make a great combination, so sunny.

Yellow Heart

Yellow Heart

Orange Frame Card

Orange Frame Card

I also made a white and turquoise combination card……

P1240847

This has now been personalised for a horse-loving 21 year old’s birthday. I hope she likes it!

P1240937

I was also recently asked for a 50th birthday card for a man. I always find men’s cards difficult, even when I know the man in question. But these age related quotes in the Hunkydory little books are proving popular. So I added some 50’s using my tonic dies and Hunkydory adorable scorable cardstock.

P1240938

I really love these styles of cards and they lend themselves to some personalising. So I think I will set about making up another batch in different colours to add to my stock at the local newsagents and to put into my box for the craft fair later in the year!

Happy crafting
x

Spring Babies

Posted on by

It seems that it’s not only the animals that are having all their babies at this lovely time of year. I have been amazed at how many of the school Mums have announced they are having a baby or have given birth. So I thought it was a good idea to start on some more new baby cards.

My daughter’s ballet teacher is also due to give birth in the next few weeks, and all the Mums have had a collection. I offered to make the card as my contribution, so I decided to use my ‘dangler’ card style but make it A4 to allow enough room (hopefully) for all the Mums to sign it. We know it’s going to be a boy, so that made the choice of colours pretty straightforward! I added some blue gems as well after I took this picture. I hope she likes it!

P1240868

I really am loving making this style of card at the moment and having made a blue card I wanted to even up the score so, I made a pink one as well. This one is 5×7 in size and will be on sale in my stand at the newsagents down the road.

Pink pram

Pink pram

I can’t wait to make some more. I’m liking the idea of a yellow one, but I’m not so sure how popular that will be. Everyone seems to find out what they are having these days. I wanted a surprise, but I think I am in the minority.

I think I will go and enjoy some of the dry weather and add to my stock of baby blankets to go with the cards!

Happy spring crafting
x

Change of Pace

Posted on by

It’s been a while since I found myself in a coffee shop on my own for an hour, but that’s where I find myself today. Such luxury. But I feel I should be doing something, so after a root round I have managed to put pen to paper (so to speak). I’m pleased to say that for once, the sun is shining and I am slowly munching my way through a bag of fruit and nuts along with a lovely cup of tea.

The reason for my luxurious bit of ‘me’ time is that I am waiting for Alice, who is at an extra study class. This is the prize she won from the Rock Easter Egg Hunt. So we have a whole month of tuition to look forward to. And so far so good, she loves it! I think the combination of a different type of learning – she’s concentrating on creative writing and working on her writing speed – being somewhere new and meeting new people, is a real hit with her. Plus we seem to have the added benefit of a growth in her self-confidence too. So long may it continue.

I, on the other hand, now find myself with some time to spare. So today I have come ladened with crochet hook, yarn, pattern and phone, in the hope that I will achieve something from my ever growing ‘to do’ list. I am working on a number of crochet projects at the moment, the main one being orders for little snowmen. It does feel wrong crocheting snowmen just when it’s starting to get warm again outside, but they were popular amongst the dance Mums and I have orders for five more ready for next Christmas!

P1240690

So I’m trying to get ahead and make a few more so I’m ready for the Ramsbottom craft fair at the end of October. I’m trying not to think too far ahead but I know it’ll be here before I know it. I’m hoping to put together a collection in a rainbow of colours. So fingers crossed and I might actually have them ready in time. They will look quite cute alongside my little lavender chicks.

Time to finish my cuppa and collect Alice now, so

Happy crafting
x

Easter activities

Posted on by

We’ve had quite a lot to do this Easter holiday and this week Alice has been entering lots of competitions in our local shopping centres. First the small independent shopping centre, Millgate, ran a competition to design an Easter egg, the first prize is an Easter egg and an egg for everyone in their class at school.

I love watching Alice doing this type of thing. As the deadline is at the end of the week, we went for a cuppa to give her time and space to do her design entry. As usual I had my ‘big’ bag with me which has a box of crayons and some coloured pencils in – I feel this is a real sign of being a Mum!

20160325_124052

20160325_130327

Last week we entered the Easter egg hunt on The Rock shopping complex. There always seems to be something like this on there in the school holidays, and it’s something different to do outside. Surprising though, this time Alice won the first prize – a month’s tuition at Explore Learning and an enormous Thorntons Easter Egg filled with Millies Cookies!!! So we collected the prize this afternoon.

P1040400

I think we have one happy little girl this Easter holiday and we might just have to share the egg and cookies around friends and family!

Happy Chocolate Eating!
x

Mother’s Day

Posted on by

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mum’s out there. I hope you have a lovely day and are able to spend the day with your loved ones, or doing whatever it is you like to do.

P1230797

I’m hoping for a little bit of crafting time and no housework!

Happy crafting
x

World Book Day 2016

Posted on by

Like many parents World Book Day plays an important role in our children’s lives. This year school were doing a dress up day. Fortunately the only theme for us was a favourite book character, but as seems to be the way with all children, this was not a simple decision.

As we’ve known about the dress up day for several weeks, we’ve been thinking of something to wear for a while. Alice was given a Rarity onesie for Christmas and she decided she would wear that with a little bit of purple make-up from me we were sorted! For all those wondering who on earth Rarity is, she’s one of the main six My Little Ponies. She actually isn’t Alice’s favourite but she was happy to go in the onesie all the same. That is until Wednesday night at 8pm as I’m putting her to bed.

Talk about giving me plenty of notice! She announced that she would like to go as Fluttershy (another of the My Little Ponies), but not as the traditional pony, she wanted to go as the Equestria Girl (alternate world human-like form of the ponies). So urgent crafting was called into action. I raided her dressing up things – not that much as she’s never been a fan of dressing up. I found fairy wings, and a pastel rainbow net skirt, a yellow netted skirt and some pink leggings. I then raided my craft room and found some butterflies that I had taken off some old greetings cards and some tapestry yarns in pastel colours.

Yesterday morning was an early start as we had lots to do to put everything together. The main outfit was quick enough, but it was freezing cold, so a cardigan had to be added to keep her a bit warmer. I used some high tack tape to add butterflies to the cardigan and skirt and plaited some of the tapestry yarn together to make a tail. Pink hair chalk and some butterfly clips went in her hair and I finished the look with a pit of pastel eyeshadow and little butterflies on her cheek, arm and ankle.

Here’s the finished result

20160303_08505320160303_085127

Alice absolutely loved it. When she came home there were several butterflies missing and all her hair accessories had fallen out, but that’s not surprising really. We now have another dress up day for World Book Day on Saturday at dance class, and she wants to go in the same outfit. I think I might have to rethink it a bit though as she will need to move about and not have bits falling off her!

Happy crafting
x