Tussie Mussie Challenge for The Craft Hole

The Friday Night Mini Challenge in The Craft Hole was to make a Tussie Mussie out of a toilet paper tube in a maximum of 3 hours. As I had no idea what a tussie mussie was I googled it!!!

"A tussie-mussie, nosegay or posy is a small flower bouquet, typically given as a gift. 

They have existed in some form since at least medieval times, when they were carried or worn around the head or bodice. Doilies are traditionally used to bind the stems in these arrangements. Alternatively, "posy holders," available in a variety of shapes and materials (although often silver), enable the wearing of these arrangements "at the waist, in the hair, or secured with a brooch." ^]

The term nosegay arose in fifteenth-century Middle English as a combination of nose and gay (the latter then meaning "ornament"). So a nosegay was an ornament that appeals to the nose or nostril.

The term tussie-mussie comes from the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), when the small bouquets became a popular fashion accessory. Typically, tussie-mussies include floral symbolism from the language of flowers, and therefore may be used to send a message to the recipient."

So having raided my crafty stash here is what I came up with:  

G45 12 x12 Decoupage

A while ago I set myself a personal challenge. For every G45 collection that I have bought I want to make a 12 x 12 decoupaged canvas using the signature sheets from each collection.

So I have been "fussy cutting" like mad and have made these

so far. The plan is to put them into picture frames and hang them on the wall of my craft room so that I can have a whole gallery of G45 loveliness to look at!

Purple Box Fest!

My mojo is running low at he moment, (too much going on work and home wise) so  thought I would have a play around with my WRMK Envelope Punch Board.

I ended up makng a selection of mini gift boxes  (2 inch by 2 inch) with some purple cardstock I have had for about 6 years! They were so easy to make and I am so pleased with the results.

You start off with a 5.5 inch square of card and then score and punch at 1.5/8 and 3.7/8 - can't take the credit for the measurements as I found a really usefull link from the Crafty Owl on the web that helps you make a box of any size!

http://www.thecraftyowl.co.uk/boxbuster/

The boxes were decorated with small tags punched with one of the few Stampin Up punches I own and a few flowers and lengths of garden/parcel string.Each of the boxes holds two scented tea light candles and I plan to shortly give them away as gifts.

Something Different - Lavender Pots

Have woken up aching all over, full of cold, and a bit short of crafting mojo today. So I have  decided to make something very quick and simple.

I took 3 lilac candle holders and filled them with grey floristry foam, (this is the type you use dry)

I then covered the top of the foam with a strong wet adhesive (I used glossy accents but I think any adhesive would work just as well) . I then sprinkled  some decorative gravel chips on the top and pressed them into the adhesive making sure I covered the foam right up to the edges. 

I took a very cheap bunch of plastic lavender and cut each stem down into two or three sections, one with the just the  flower and the others just the foliage

I then simply pushed the stems into the foam to make a pretty little floral arrangement. As I said they were very quick and simple to make but I am really pleased with how they turned out.

"Mother's Day" Tags made for the May 14 Craft Hole Swap

The May 14 theme for the Craft Hole Swap was "Mother's Day" (Mothers Day in the US is later than in the UK). As my late mum was a keen needle worker I decided to use a haberdashery kind of theme to my tags and mini notebooks.

The paper and cardboard embellishments came from Kaisercraft, and  simply added a bit of bakers twine, a few pin, buttons and some good ole Glossy Accents.

I was very lucky to receive these three beautiful tags and a mixture of crafting goodies in return. Thank you all so much for swapping with me.

From Carol Cryer

From Rachel Hart

From Karen Regan

"Anything Goes" Tags Made for the April 14 Craft Hole Swap

I've recently joined an international group of crafters who make crafty items to swap with each other. One of the regular swaps they do, is a monthly tag swap. The theme for April was "Anything Goes" so I used the Typography collection by G45 and made 4 tags and matching mini jotters. It was a really nice surprise to see that two of the recipients made videos of the tags they received  - mote to self I must sort out a camera so that I can do the same. 

I have also posted photos of the lovely tags that I recieved, am looking forward to doing it again in May!

G45 Little Darlings - to celebrate the arrival of my new nephew

I have a beautiful new nephew called Alfie, so to celebrate his arrival I decorated an old gift bag with the last few sheets of G45's Little Darlings collection. I also made a very simple card.

Tarmac Workshop with Karen Clare

I recently attended a Tarmac workshop held by Karen Clare. Not being a messy crafter at all I was a little nervous that I wouldn't be able to do it, but with the encouragement of my crafty companion Roy Pakeman (of Candy Box Crafts) I put all negative thoughts out of my head and threw caution to the wind! Absolutely loved learning something new and would wholeheartedly recommend Karen's workshop to crafters of all levels.

Here is what I came home with:

Simple Decoupage Cards with the Santoro Collection

I just wanted to do something very simple this evening , so I used some Santoro die cut decoupage and made this pretty collection of notelets.

Graphic 45 - Botanical Tea Card

I haven't done much crafting of late as have been busy with work and home life, but managed to make a quick card with the Botanical Tea collection from Graphic 45. The card was inspired by one that I saw on the G45 blog. Love the way it turned out.

Front of card

Inside of card