EVENTS, CARDS AND KITTENS

Hi everyone

Another beautiful day - days like this are very welcome at this time of year because we never know what is around the corner.

This week has been busy, busy making stock for this week's 3-day event at Secretts in Milford.  The marquee goes up tomorrow and we can start piling in at 7.30 am on Friday.  Exciting and nerve-racking really, but really looking forward to being with lots of lovely crafters and, yum-yum, food sellers too.  Just in case your are local or likely to be in the area it would be lovely to see to see you - complimentary mulled wine and mince pies are being offered.

A few years ago I used to be a big fan of Jolly Nation (or was it called Paper Nation then?) and made lots of different cards using their decoupage sheets.  As with most crafters (and customers) tastes change and I 'filed them away', but came across them during the week while ploughing through the massive stock of craft materials I have accumulated.  I am still trying to reorganise everything in a tidy way so that I don't keep doing crazy things such as buying something and then discovering I already have it!  I decided to make up a few for my bigger mini-cards range and these are some examples:

I love decoupage and also spent time making up some A4 Christmas cards with decoupage poinsettias on, which I will photograph and add to my next Sunday blog.  My problem at the moment is that as soon as I make something I pack and price it ready for loading into my boxes for events, this means no photographs.

It's Handmade Monday (although we all post on a Sunday) time and I am linking up as usual.  Lots of great blogs to read and all posts are getting more and more Christmassy.

I am in the process of setting up another 'bricks and mortar' (B&M) spot for my cards.  I am going to visit the shop and meet the owner next week, and I will add some more information to my post-visit blog post.  I hope it works out, it certainly sounds good, and the rental terms are also good, so watch this space.  My plan (or rather my hopes) has always been to have other B&M outlets in addition to my spot at Bourne Mill, so this, fingers crossed, may be my second venture.

I hope you had a look at this week's guest blog spot - a really great way to use what must be our most favourite confectionery, chocolate.  Thank you Vicki for a great post and I think your chocolate sounds gorgeous and really is a great promotional idea.

I have one more guest blogger for November and then I am going to 'hang up' the guest blogging spot until next year.  Everyone is very busy and I know it is hard to write our own blogs, let alone a guest spot.  Thank you to everyone who has been a guest blogger and thank you to those who have visited and commented on the posts.  The spot has been running for ten months and only two Fridays have not had a guest blogger.  I hope it has been successful for everyone who took part - I have really enjoyed the variety of the posts that I have received.

Here is a photograph of Jasper and Wallace; Wallace is the kitten on the right hand side and the reason Jasper looks as though he is about to jump off of the chair, is because he has seen a biscuit on the edge!  He is a little bit of a piglet and nothing much appears to put him off of his food.  I have a family coming to see them this afternoon with a view to adopting them - I hope so as it would be lovely to see them settled into a new home.  They are still rather nervous, but so gorgeous and I am sure with lots of TLC they will soon become fantastic feline friends.

We went out for a meal with a friend on Friday to the Harrow in Compton.  We go there quite regularly and the food was, as always, very good.  Massive portions, so if you go to this place don't have a starter!  We forgot our own warning, but did have a Meze-like meal between the three of us, so we managed (just about) to eat the main course.

The pottery hair cracked on my mask - soooo sad.  He now just has a very small toupee.  Oh well, all good fun and I learn something new every time - what not to do more often than not.

Back to work now, plenty to do and I might try to get a little gardening done.  The weather is too nice to not try to get some outside time.  Enjoy the rest of the weekend everyone. I will be back on Wednesday with my post, which will be a cat-related one for Woking Cats Protection.  My last guest blogger of 2012 will be here on Friday, so please come back and read their great post.

Jill