FAREWELL SUMMER

Hi everyone

Summer seems to have disappeared rather quickly, although (ever the optimist) I am still confident we will have a few more sunny days before the bad weather sets in.  Perhaps we will have a warm autumn.  The forecast for today is pretty grim, although at the moment (early morning) it looks lovely outside.  Cool, but very sunny - hope it lasts longer than predicted.

This week has been full of bag-decorating, card-making, list producing (for what I need to get ready for Christmas events), an 84th-birthday supper, collecting kittens that I am fostering and, despite the frequent soggy weather, gardening.  It seems to be a bit of a rush to get things tidied up in the the garden for winter now that the weather has changed.

The working week began with decorating bags with my cake-making friend, Linda.  We made some lovely cupcakes (sadly not edible ones), which we lightly padded and then fixed them to the jute bags.  I forgot to take photographs (what's new?), but will do next time we meet up - they do look good and I hope they will be popular.

Decorating jute bags seems to be a popular activity at the moment and it is interesting to see the variety of methods that are being used: ironing on pictures, material, etc, making things, ie cupcakes, to fix to the bag, as well as printing - not sure how this is done, although I know you can buy pre-printed ones using your own design.  Here are a couple of photographs of ones I have decorated this week:

This was produced using a panel of fashion and sewing pictures that I found.  I have cut the small pictures up and using Bondaweb, fixed them to the bag.  A slow process really, lots of cutting, trimming and ironing.

This is a work-in-progress as I want to add glittery mini-butterflies to the design.  I used a similar process to the above bag, good old Bondaweb.

Last week I promised that I would post pictures of some of the beautiful Heucheras I bought from the Wisley Plant Fair and here are some of them:

The colours are so gorgeous.  The first flower bed nearest to the back door into our garden was turned into a Heuchera bed last year and the plan for this year is to move the table and chairs on the patio well over to the left so that when we look out onto the dark, grim and grey winter days we will see these beautiful plants and the weather will not seem so grim and grey.

Many years ago we purchased two geese (no, not real ones).  We put them in various places around the garden and have to anchor them to the ground because various members of the Pie Five like to jump on them or knock them over!  Here is a rare photograph of them upright.  We, unimaginatively we know, named them Goosey and Gander:

Final picture for this week is of my two new foster kittens - I was able to name them and in keeping with my love of plants I called them Rosie and Violet.  They are 9 weeks old and, as you can imagine, very small.  On day one (Thursday) they were nervous, Violet more so - she is on the right hand side of the photograph.  Three days later they are bundles of adventurous inquisitive fun.  You can find out more information about them on the Woking Cats Protection website

Last but by no means least, don't forget to visit this week's Handmade Monday blog posts.  I love to see the variety of work the contributors to this event make - everyone is so talented.

Thank you to everyone who visited my blog post last week - I love to read your comments and the feedback and help is always appreciated.

My Friday Guest Blogger spot is 'open' if anyone would like to join in.  I have some lovely bloggers signed up already and I am looking forward to getting things up and running again.  If you would like to be a guest blogger, do get in touch: christmaspiecrafts@virginmedia.com.

Have a great week everyone - 'see' you next weekend.

Jill

SUCH SADNESS: A NO CHOCOLATE EASTER

Hi everyone

Oh, it has been sooo hard not to pop a gorgeous chunky chocolate-filled chocolate Easter egg into my shopping trolley!  I am trying (slowly it seems) to lose weight and I know that one chocolate egg would be the beginning of slipping down the slippery slope of the return to chocaholicism (think that's the correct spelling).  Alas poor chocolate, I knew you well - very well in fact.

Happy Easter everyone - I hope the weather has been kind to you and you have been able to spend time with friends a family.

What sad weather it has been this weekend - yesterday in Christmas Pie it was dull, dreary and chilly.  Today started off with rain, then the sun came out and quickly rushed back in again.  Tomorrow is forecast for non-stop rain - I know we need it, but my weeds don't as they certainly manage very well without anything liquid.

I had several card orders this week.  One was for a card someone who likes their whiskey and also Zambucca - hopefully not at the same time or in the same glass.  Another was for someone who likes gardening - plenty of scope for that one.  However, another one is intended for someone who makes really beautiful greetings cards - no pressure then.  I love getting orders for unusual cards, even the ones that prove hard to produce designs for - very challenging and they do provide ideas and inspiration for other cards.  I will be adding them to my blog as I get them all completed.

A friend of mine is organising a flower show in May and my bags are going to be on sale at the show.  I don't need to be there as it is not a 'stalls for hire' event (although I will go as a visitor I think), but she will do the selling for me - what a star. I decided I would make a range that are floral-themed and as I have begun work on them I have included some pics here:

I used silver mirror-card (or mirri-card depending on where you buy it) for this one and added a floral embellishment.  I used part of the back of the embellishment pack to decorate the gift card.

Papermania flowers were used for this, I added dark pink glitter to the centre of each flower  I placed butterflies in the centre of the design and also to decorate the gift card.  Daisy sets the pic off quite nicely too.

A poor pic, but I wanted to include this as the colour of the mirror/mirri-card is gorgeous.  Again, I added a small spray of flowers and a butterfly.

I have a few weeks before the bags are needed, so I will continue to work on making some floral-decorated ones.

Lots of lovely new followers this week on my blog and Twitter - thank you all, and thank you to everyone who comments on my posts and my guest bloggers posts.  I know it can be hard work keeping up with everyone's blogs, but all comments appreciated very much.  Have you read Eva's Friday Guest blog post about Budapest?  It certainly sounds and looks a lovely place for a holiday.  There are some more 'places' posts coming up over the next few weeks, so don't forget to check in each week and if you have a project, place or something about your business that you would like to talk about, do get in touch at christmaspiecrafts@virginmedia.com.  Don't forget to check out the LOVE UK CRAFTERS initiative that Popular Crafts are promoting - my Wednesday blog of last week referred to this and also included a reference to a report produced by the Crafts Council that is worth reading.

It's that time of the week when my fellow crafting bloggers will be posting their lovely makes from last week - and adding their words of wisdom too, so don't forget to visit Handmade Monday and while you are there, click on the link to Wendy's Handmade Harbour - lots of helpful advice and information for everyone involved in the handmade world.

I hope you enjoy the rest of Easter everyone - I will be back on Wednesday with my usual mid-week catch-up post.

Jill