At last

I am back... I loaned my daughter my laptop as her new one decided to not work and we are having to go through loads to try to get it sorted, being a typical teen she cleared all my info and I lost access to my accounts online. I am using an archaic machine so bear with me as it is very temperamental lol. I haven't got much done in the way of crafting recently as Xander went walkabout again and still isn't home and we have been redecorating pixie's room and de cluttering the house....very long job. Tammy had her baby after an awful time bless her but both are ok and he weighed in at 8 and a quarter pounds.

Rachel

A beautiful award.

Thank you so much to Carol for this wonderful award. I am truely honoured to recieve it. I am awarding mine to....
Vix for being a true friend and inspiration.
Phree for being another inspiration and all the work she did for the SBS.
Alatte stamping for being a lovely friend and inspiration. I could go on but most of the people I would nominate already have the award.
Now for the rules for this Wylde Women Award :

1. You can give it to one or one hundred or any number in between - it's up to you. Make sure you link to their site in your post.
2. Link back to this blogsite so Tammy can go visit all these wonderful women and remember the Purpose of the Award is to send love and acknowledgment to women who brighten your day, teach you new things and live their lives fully with generosity and joy.

Rachel

Another week at the mad house!

I haven't been about much during the last week, I have been hunting for Xander our three month old male kitten that went missing last sunday, Tonks and he got out it took us ages to get Tonks in and Xander seemed to vanish. Monday out of the blue Tonks started fitting and died before we could get her to a vet. We think she had eaten slug pellets in a neighbours garden or rubbed against their lillies and the groomed, there is no other explaination as she was as fit as a fiddle.
Paige was gutted as Xander is her baby he adores her and she him they even sleep together, I advetised everywhere and put him on a database as missing. Yesterday the children went out on their bikes and who should they spot walking down a lane but Xander. He has lost loads of weight and is exhausted but he is home. I have never seen my family smile so much. Here He is.
Thank you Carol for my wonderful award I am thinking hard on who I am giving it to and as soon a I know I shall add it to my blog.
Rachel

I have been naughty.

I won a small amount on a scratch card this week and I was rather naughty I spent it on me. I have wanted a treasure box stamp ever since I saw Jane Nestorenko demo them on TV and I got one, I shouldn't have got it really I just did it on impulse. I am hoping to have a play with it soon.
Rachel

Another award

Thank you to Jacqueline for my award, I have passed my awards on to everyone I know so will have to go blog hopping before I can pass the next lot on.

Rachel

Blog candy

Jannette has celebrated her first blogging birthday and has a mystery candy up for snagging if you get chosen so pop by and say hello.
Cards and Chat
Rachel

I got an award.

I was thrilled to get my awards. I put them in my sidebar so they don't vanish lol. I got the awards from
http://carol-paperplay-carol.blogspot.com/
http://rattytattysblog.blogspot.com/
I am awarding five to......
Phree: http://inkstainsurvivor.blogspot.com/
Sam: http://alattestampin.blogspot.com/
Leona: http://sweet-scrappings.blogspot.com/
Vix: http://vixykins.blogspot.com/
Jannette: http://cardsandchat.blogspot.com/
The rules are..
1. Only 5 people allowed
2. 4 have to be dedicated followers of your blog.
3. One has to be new or recently new to your blog and live in another part of the World
4. You must link back to whoever gave you the award.


Rachel

Good luck

I am so excited, my niece is in labour. This time tomorrow I will be a great aunt again. UPDATE: Labour stopped at two in the morning but restarted this afternoon.
Rachel

A blue christmas

I was sorting in the workshop and found this image so started to play about with it and this is the result. The paper was from a docrafts goodie bag I bought ages ago, I decoupaged the main image, glittered his beard and hat using fairy glitters and for the greeting I used an old faithful, peel off mounted on a cut off bit of card with silver ink rubbed round the edges.
Rachel

My first ATC

Yay I did it I actually made an ATC. I got the sleep tag from a pair of pj's I recently bought and thought it was too useful to throw so put it to good use. I stamped the word dream at least four times before realising I was in no way going to get the letters straight so went for the slightly askew look. The butterflies are velum and were just laying round patiently waiting to be used. The paper in the background is actually a scrap from the bottom of the paper drawer. I made it for the This thursdays challenge over on
THIS THURSDAYS CHALLENGE BLOG

Rachel

Blog candy

Some really cute candy on offer over at Andreas world. Magnolia stamps are rapidly heading into the top of my fave list their just so cute.

Andreas blog
Rachel

Please bear with me...

I am sorry if I haven't posted on your blogs for a while but my own page is playing up...The blog list keep dissapearing and when it is there it's taking me to the wrong pages. I will be working on sorting it today so please bear with me.
Rachel

Another one I found on an old disc, I finally sorted the mess in the workshop so will be able to make a good start on new cards.

Rachel

Another thrown together card, I am not to happy with it really. I could have done with something a little more interesting behind it. The teddy and duck are from a POD from C&C. In my defense I was feeling really unwell when I made it. Sorry for picture quality I am getting used to my camera.
Rachel

Top tips

Thought it an idea to add a top tip section to my side bar, that way any flash of cleverness I get can be recorded for prosperity......that and so I can't forget what ideas I have ha ha. I have also added a link to Michele Marsden's page. There are cracking tutorials there, I find her such an inspiring, original crafter.
I got a pressie today two magnolia stamps, Daisy chain Tilda and Christmas hat Tilda, now comes the inventive part...What to stick them to to use them, I am sure I shall come up with something.
Rachel

Hello again.

Firstly sorry if I haven't added you to the SBS bar or if I haven't dropped by to say hello, courtesy of hubby and children I have a chest infection. I got some great news from my rheumatologist yesterday the awful pain in my elbow is not as I feared arthritis it's where I over compensate for my right side. I tend to avoid putting my right shoulder under stress as it triggers a huge fibro flare. I do have swelling in the joint but as far as the doc can see it's not unfixable with rest.
My workshop is in chaos at the moment, I found a post on my local freecycle group an architecht's office was moving and was offering all the furnature. I got a fab set of drawers made for blueprints etc. Ideal for the larger papers,card and some stamps. I am waiting to rearrange the place as soon as this infection abates a little.
I have to say I am somewhat daunted visiting my fellow sisters pages, I am no where near all of your standards. I craft on a very very tight budget and don't even have many of the basic tools. I mainly rely on bits and bobs I recycle and printable images but even then it's a matter of getting ink (a continuous ink feed system is priority on my wish list). I use what stamps I do have and adore experimenting with them, I was going to remove the wooden blocks from them and use rocka blocks for storage reasons, but that is on hold until I get the blocks lol. I am hoping from being a part of SBS I will learn loads and make some great friends.
I am off to watch it's a wonderful life remastered in colour no less now, in case I forgot to mention it I am a christmas a holic.....Watch this space for the festive season we are notorious for our decorations.

Rachel

Sisterhood 20 of blogging stampers.

Well here goes, my bit about me for the sisterhood. I appologise in advance if I ramble and
understand if you fall asleep before the end.
My name is Rachel, I am mam to four amazing kids ranging from 22 to 11. I used to work in small animal
rescue and still do take in the occasional one or two now. I had to give it up due to Fibromyalgia.
I have been married to Chris for fourteen years. I have two dogs, morgan a cavalier king charles and suki
a shitzu with a skin issue, Xander is a black and white kitten and Tonks is my familiar also a kitten
and is a lovely dark mottled tortoise shell. Nero is a year and a half foriegn exotic and is a rescue.
I have yet to find "my" specility in crafting as I have waited a few years for the room to use my
stash in comfort, it used to be too much for me to get all my stash out then rush to put it away
to feed the children. I now have a craft workshop in my garden,it's small but it's mine and I can
create in freedom. I am hoping to one day be as great as Jane Nestorenko at stamping and love
Joanna Sheen's work.
I don't know how the sisterhood works to be truthful but it looked fun and I guessed it would be good
to have some HONEST opinions about my cards when I get started in earnest. I am always asking
questions about crafting and may possibly be annoying for doing so, but if ou don't ask you will
never find out is my motto. I am currently ona mission to get a way to use my perlex mica powders
as I can't find gum arabic locally or for a reasonable P&P. I usually craft on a very tight budget
and make use of many odd things I come across.
I shall finish this essay saying, I am also considered a wicca and have been told I am a cetic ethnic
witch, I live by the law of three and contrary to popular belief some of us still abide by god's law
too. Not all of us live life only by the pagan ways some of us especially Celtic Ethnic take the good parts
of varied religions and the ways of nature and vow to do no harm to others, what you give out
returns threefold.
I am so look forward to getting to know you all.
Rachel

Some of my first cards I discovered on some discs I had stashed.

Father's day card

One I made in a hurry using scraps of rescued old cards and some aging papers. I also heat embossed the wording in platinum.

Congratulations

A huge congratulations to my mate, she just has a gorgeous baby girl. Now I have to get into the workshop.
I was a bad girl last night and bought the foxy fairy kit on C&C, I just couldn't resist. Bang goes the groceries this fortnight...I just can not resist anything fairy,christmas or angelic. I know I was saving for my CISS but this was a seven day deal and the CISS will be there for longer than this kit will.
Everything seems to be coming together, I have been desperate for a new kitchen tap as we have had no cold water for ages and always wanted a leather sleigh bed, now we have been given the two things that need sorting plus my mate is coming to stay the weekend and the kids are having friends over for the evening tonight and tomorrow so it's going to be even more insane from now till next week. But hey if it were not manic here I would miss the activity.
I was dead chuffed yesterday, I emailed C&C and they read my email out, an old dear friend from my first days online was watching. She recognised my village name and contacted me. It was so good to hear from her.

Withdrawal

Having crafty withdrawal......All I can think of is cardmaking....I need help. I need this bedroom done to get into the workshop. I ordered the fairy princess kit earlier to cheer me up. Getting stuck on envelopes, where do I get decent sized ones or how to make em. The need for my CISS is getting stronger the bigger my cd rom library is getting. I didn't realise just how little craft items I had until I moved it into the workshop. I need to trade my heat gun for a hairdryer style, the longer shape doesn't go well with my fibro hands.
Anyone reading this blog that has a card gallery please feel free to say hi and leave a link to your site as all inspiration is welcome to this lowly, naff crafter.
Good luck to my mate who is in being induced today, I gotta go right now my familiar is chewing my arm asking to be fed.

The picture here is one of pixie's creations, not bad at all for a 12 yr old.

Another monday at the asylum.

Welcome to the madhouse!! Yet another monday morning and the same ole rush to get the darlings to school, well mainly Paige as Ben is still on two mornings a week due to the lump in his groin. I am giving crafting a miss today due to the bedroom having a much needed makeover, it didn't need one when my craft stuff was in here hahaha.
Spent most of the night figuring out how to set my new phone, typical technology, got it saturday before BT had activated my new sim so spent an age chatting to mr nice man on bt tech desk. Got told to keep the phone on till monday when the registration should kick in, but did it wait till a civilised time.....NO! Three in the morning it demands attention and will not shut up till it was sorted. I also spent hours hunting for a decent skin for this place in purples but no luck all the coding wouldn't work so back to the drawing board...