Happy Easter, welcome to British Summer time, brrr

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Had to share this picture taken earlier in March.

Daffs in the snow, 12th March 2013

Happy Easter and welcome to British Summer Time! The clocks changed last night to BST the joke being that its still like winter! We have been lucky and the snow you see in the picture only lasted a couple of days. Thoughts and prayers for those who weren’t so lucky and have been snowed in and with power cuts. Feel especially sorry for the poor farmers and their animals who have been unable to get to the animals to feed them.

Even the daffodils couldn’t believe the weather

Daffs in the snow, 12th March 2013

The cold weather brought the Fieldfare back, will get the picture edited and posted soon.

How have you fared with the weather in the last few weeks?

Best wishes

Billie

Handmade with Love: Orange Biscuits

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Do not fear, this is still a paper-craft blog, but the light is so low here at the moment that paper-craft and painting are difficult to do. In the meantime, I’ve been experimenting with some baking and yarn crafts to see if I like them. Today I’d like to share a picture of some cookies that I recently made.

Orange biscuits

These were from the book; Complete Baking by Martha Day on page 47. They were simple to make but they came out far too crisp for my own liking. This was due mainly to the fact that the element in our top oven was recently replaced so it’s now cooking MUCH hotter than it ever used to, so it’s a lottery whether what comes out will be edible, or not. I did learn that you can eat cake that has a black top to it, just peel off the black bits from the top and its OK(ish).

Before baking it, I tried the dough and worried that I had made a mistake adding salt to the mix. It was listed in the recipe but I tend to leave it out as I use salted butter and most recipes tell you to use unsalted, so I figure any required butter is already in there. As it turned out, they were fine, although the orange zest and juice had left only a little orange flavour to the biscuit after baking. To increase the orange tang, I used the rest of the orange juice left over to mix with icing sugar and added some as a glaze to a few of the biscuits.

I also tried to run some chocolate ‘zig-zag’ style across the biscuits…and learnt that once chocolate has left the hot bowl it tends to hug the spoon and not want to leave it. A more play school like desperation set in and instead I used the spoon to dab chocolate on the biscuits instead. As you can imagine those weren’t the most photo worthy results, so I took a pic of the plain biscuits instead. DH is a star, didn’t mind a bit that they wouldn’t have done well on the catwalk and said they tasted fine. That said they were ‘dunkers’, rather than biscuits to crunch through. I much prefer the almond biscuits I make from that book, and they will be next on the baking list

How about you, what do you love to bake? I’d love to make sweets n chocolates but being a clumsy sort this does sound like a recipe for disaster right? Anyone know of any easy books for making chocolates or sweets? Do leave me a comment if you have found any books that you would recommend for a total newbie

Best wishes and thanks for reading, see you soon

Billie

Tutorial: Key Charm for Cable key on interchangeable knitting needles

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Regular viewers will remember my new love of interchangeable knitting needles. Although I adore them, I have a tendency to frequently drop the little cable key you need to attach the needles to the cables. On Ravelry I saw someone use a beaded charm to help locate them, brilliant idea! So I’ve added my own twist to the project by adding a bell (so you notice when you drop it, and can find it in the depths of a knitting bag, and also adding a lobster clasp to make it easy to change the design of charm, if you wish to.

Don’t loose you cable key, just make this simple charm so you can easily find it.

You Will Need

Items needed to create the key charm/ stitch marker.

• 1 cable key from interchangeable needles
• 1 set of basic jewellery making tools as shown in picture: (1) Chain nose pliers, (2) Side cutter pliers, (3)Round nose pliers.
• 1 small bell (optional but will help you find they key if its hiding) (no: 4 in picture)
• a selection of beads of you choice. (no: 5 in picture)
• 1 eye pin. (no: 6 in picture)
• 1 lobster clasp (optional but this gives you a simple way to change your charms at will) (no: 7 in picture)
• 2 small jump rings. (no: 8 in picture)
• Bead mat (not essential but VERY helpful, unless you enjoy playing tag with your beads )

Method

The picture shows the order beads etc are added to the project:

Key charm tutorial

• Open one of the jump rings. Onto this ring; place the bell and the eye of the eye pin. Close the jump ring.
• Thread a selection of beads on to your eye pin. Leave about 1cm of pin without any beads, or trim the eye pin back to leave 1cm of exposed wire, if you have used smaller beads.
• Form a loop with the remaining eye pin wire. Do this by using round nose pliers to bend the remaining eye pin wire to 90 degrees to the line of beads. Place your round nose pliers at the very end of the wire and gradually curl the wire by rotating the pliers until you have formed a loop. Make sure you completely close the loop to prevent the piece coming apart.
• Open the second jump ring. Drop the loop you just formed on the end of the eye pin onto the jump ring. Drop the loop on the lobster clasp onto the same jump ring. Close the jump ring, ensuring that it is completely closed so nothing will fall off.

You can now use the lobster clasp to attach the charm to the cable key. With the little bell you will now hear if you drop your key, or by shaking the bag, discover if its hiding at the bottom of your knitting bag

If you find it awkward to use the key with the charm in place, by having the lobster clap on there, its easy to remove while you attach needles to a cable. Remember to put the charm back on afterwards tho, or it will get you playing hide n seek again!

Options/Added Extras

Make a collection of these charms with different beads, and you can change them at will. The charms can also be attached to small key ring loops to create stitch markers, though I’d leave off the bell or it will probably drive you and those around you to go nuts every time you knit

Links

New to beading? Here are a selection of videos from Beaders Companion, for how to achieve some of the techniques mentioned in the tutorial above.

• Opening/closing a jump ring
• Forming a loop
• Original post of Ravelry that inspired me to create this project.

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial and will give these charms a go. I’d love to see your results.

Best wishes and thanks for reading see you soon

Billie

Rose sketch in Inktense Blocks

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Today I’d like to share a picture of a sketch of a rose that I did using Inktense blocks.

Rose sketch in Derwent Inktense blocks

I’ve had these Inktense blocks for a while but haven’t embraced them. After watching a DVD by Fiona Pert for Derwent I decided to go for it and got on much better. I’m hoping to use these blocks for art journalling as once they have been washed out the colour is set and doesn’t rework

Give these blocks a try

Best wishes and thanks for reading, see you soon

Billie

Book Review: Surface Treatment Workshop

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In today’s post I will be reviewing;

Surface Treatment Workshop

• Title: Surface treatment Workshop
• Author: Darlene Olivia McElroy and Sandra Duran Wilson
• Publisher: North Light Books
• ISBN: 13: 978-1-4403-0824-6
• ISBN: 10: 1-4403-0824-6

My Reason for Buying

I’m a fan of mixed media art and since I have collected more colours and mediums, I was looking for some inspiration as to how to get some of the cool effects I’ve seen people create. When I saw this book on Amazon and the sort of thing it contained, it looked ideal. I tell you this as often a review is based on how well the book lived up to the expectations of its reader, for their purpose

Contents

After an overview of the materials you will need to ‘play along’ the book breaks down into the following sections.

Techniques covers: Additive, Resist, Subtractive or combination.

• Additive; meaning you are adding something to the surface

• Subtractive; meaning you are removing parts or areas of earlier layers
• Combination; meaning a combination of both the above.

Inspirational Projects: Step by step projects, featuring techniques learnt earlier in the book

Resources

Pros/Cons

Pros

• At the start of the book there is useful information about archival quality of the techniques. Not everything shown in the book is intended to or will last for a substantial length of time. Each technique warns you of the archival quality so you know if you use it, whether it is a ‘keeper’ or not. VERY helpful, especially if you were creating art that you intent to gift/sell or put in a memory box.
• You are also advised as to what kind of surface any technique will be suitable for.
• Each technique is given a double page spread. The first page is a photographed step by step, with details for what tools and materials you will need, what surface it will work best on and its archival quality (How well it will last). As well as tips to make the technique your own. On the opposite page there are a number of finished examples, showing the technique used in a variety of ways, there is a brief description of what was used in each one.
• Some of the techniques involve household items, so things you will have to hand
• A variety of techniques to suit all skill levels and ideal for the adventurous, or those who want to be more adventurous but aren’t sure how.

Cons

• There are a few things in there that I haven’t seen in the UK, (no idea what Rinse Aid is?) That said, there is a list of suppliers at the back of the book.

Value for Money

Excellent, like a recipe book for mixed media. If you aren’t keen on attending a workshop at an art store or can’t find a workshop that covers the techniques you are interested in, then this book will save you a fortune! Learn at your own pace and with the colours/materials that you like and enjoy.

Would I buy it Again?

Yes, great for dipping into, or finding out how to use that pot of medium you either bought and just look at bewildered or have heard about but don’t know what to do with.

Summing up

This is a great book for those wanting to get more from their supplies and find new ways to use them. If you are a fan of mixed media then there are loads of techniques in here that will really inspire you. If you already use acrylic paints, then you are likely to have most of the core kit and can just add in a few mediums that tempt you, when you see what can be done with them.

The fact that the book explains the longevity of the technique, is really helpful. If you were creating a special project that you wanted to hand down through the family, this will help you choose which technique will stand the test of time. Not everything you want to make needs to last decades but if its nice to know if it would damage something precious if left next to it

The techniques shown in the book, are suitable for paper-crafters, as well as for wall art and dimensional projects too. A great selection that will help you out of your comfort zone and into the FUN exciting world of mixing your media together.

If you like mad science experiments with your materials, just to see what will happen, you will love this book. If you like projects with layers of hidden colours, textures, and with dimension and want to add more of these to your own style, then this is the book for you.

Links

• Surface Treatment Workshop on Amazon

Best wishes and thanks for reading, see you soon

Billie

Free Download; Calendar page for April 2013

Welcome Back

Today I would like to share a free download with you. A calendar page for April 2013.

Free download Calendar Page April 2013

How to Use

• Click on the image to open the calendar picture to full size.
• Click on File, then choose landscape option for paper orientation.
• Click Print

To Change the size of the calendar

• Click on the image to open the calendar picture to full size.
• Right Click and choose ‘Save As’ from the list of options.
• You can print it as, is or open a Word Processing programme and insert the image. (Once it is on your machine.) This will give you more control of the final size of the calendar page.

Feel free to tell your friends about this offer and forward them a link to this site. If you missed this month’s calendar page you can find it on the Calendar Downloads page.

Let me know what you think, of these calendar pages. If comments suggest this is popular…it just might become a regular feature.

Best wishes and thanks for reading, see you soon

Billie

Mother’s Day Card & a dilemma!

Welcome Back

Today I’d like to share a picture of the Mothers Day card I made for my MIL. Its the first card I’ve made in ages.

Mothers Day Card 2013

Created using digikits and Craft Artist v1. Digikit used True Romantics by Angie Hinksman. I’m a big fan of Anna Griffin and this kit reminded me of AG style papers. Especially the roses. The large pearl in the picture isn’t part of the digikit and isn’t on the card, its to cover the photo of DH & his Mum, who aren’t keen on having their photos being on the internet

Links

• Daisy Trail From here you can find out more about Serif Craft Artist and digikits
• Angie Hinksman Digikits available by this designer.
• True Romantics

Hope she likes it

What are you making Mum for Sunday?

A nasty surprise at the bottom of the garden!

When I went out to my studio at the bottom of the garden to collect a rubber stamp, I discovered a nasty shock. Most of my stamps are stored in  metal drawers, inside a cupboard, inside an unheated garage. I have feared the rubber may not like this situation but DH reassured me that given the stamps were inside drawers, inside a cupboard they would be fine.

After seeing Indigo blu on C&C the other day, I decided to hunt out my checkered stamp and off mount it (remove it from the wooden block), so that I could try a technique shown on the demo. I wanted to apply just part of the stamp, rather than the whole image and have been considering ‘offing’ this stamp from its block, for some time. Now the stamp in question is elderly! It was an elderly stamp when I got it in the sale in a shop and has been ignored in the drawer, save for an occasional coating of stamp conditioner to ward off the worst of any issues its dislike of the storage situation might create. I have noticed that very old stamps have a tendency to leave their foam backing and to lift a bit. Having decided to remove this stamp from its block, I dug my nail under the edge of the rubber stamp itself and it lifted off the foam easy as pie. Now in this case, that was a good thing, but I had the idea that perhaps a couple of other stamps may be more useful off their blocks, so I found those too. I was horrified that these newer stamps, also lifted off their foam backing just as easily eeekkkk!!!   :0

Terror set in at this point and I left the studio in shock, afraid to touch any more stamps and risk damaging any of them further. Now the question is, has storing the stamps in these conditions caused the glue in the backing to perish and therefore most of them will be in this condition? Or is it just because it’s winter and very cold, perhaps this happens each winter and they will be ok by the warmer weather. I don’t normally mistreat my stamps by digging at them with my fingernail, and they have been stored like this for about 5 or so years.

Dilema

Have you un-mounted any of your wood mounted stamps? Did you regret it?

• Do I un-mount my precious wood mounted stamps so I can store them in a smaller space and maybe as a result have room to bring them indoors or hope for the best and leave them where they are?
• I haven’t done a great deal of rubber stamping in the last few years, partially due to poor health the digi side of crafting has taken more of my time.
• Think I might use the stamps more if they were unmounted as they would be easier to store and easier to position on a project.
• I’d like to use the stamps in a different way to in the past. I am tempted to use some (OMG am I really going to do this?) maybe even with acrylic paint or mediums. This seems more the way my creativity is going and I’d like to try using them with a brayer, ie rolling a brayer over the stamp so using the stamp flat on the table, would make that easier.

DH just got back and said it could be that the glues often get weaker bonds in the cold weather, it might all be fine when it gets warmer. Given the stamps are over 5 years old it could just be that the glue has come to the end of its natural life.

Best wishes and thanks for reading, see you soon

Billie