Trip down memory lane

I was having a peek through some of my old post.

It's hard to believe I've been blogging for at over 10 years, since 2007 to be exact.

Anyway I've picked out a couple of favourites to share again

A Day at Doncaster - 2011 - hubby didn't enjoy the day and I just can't imagine why 😂 lack of trains I reckon

Happy Anniversary - Less is More - 2011 - got to love a One-Layer card

No Mistletoe Just Wine - 2016 - the saddest thing about this is my sis-in-law never got this card because I put it in a safe place.......................🤦

Kraft Away - 2016 - Ah my adventure into quilting.....

Fab'n'Funky Time Again - 2016 - Looking through all these posts, we seem to spend a lot of time at Donington Park Racetrack

Card Tutorial PLUS Hire a stall?? Oh Help  -  ah Christmas cards for the masses or should that be for my children to give out😂

Holy Crochet Batman - 2012  -  I can't believe how excited I got when this happened, especially since I can now whip up anything I set my heart on making. 

But you know what they say "You can never beat your first time 😉

Well that's it for this trip down memory lane, I hope you found something to inspire you.

I have met some amazing people an made some great friends, Thank You xx

Hugs & Happy Thoughts

Buffy xx

Ice-cream key-chain Crochet

Hello again,

I promised you I would put the Ice-cream key-chain pattern on my blog so...........as promised....

(disclaimer - I'm not great at writing patterns up, so if anyone finds a problem I would welcome the feedback)

We are talking about these little guys 

Ignoring the centre Ice-cream (he's my little desk friend), the Key-chain ones are approx 3" in height

You will need :- 

2.5mm crochet hook

DMC Petra No.3 crochet thread

Key-chain accessories

6mm Safety Eyes

(you can of course use whatever thread and hook you have available but the size will vary)

Pattern :

Ice-cream Scoop 

•     Magic ring, 6sc  into ring, leave longish tail for sewing on key-chain later. 
• R1 -  ch1, 2sc in each st, join sl st. (12)
• R2 - ch1, *[sc, 2sc in next st], *repeat 6 times, join sl st (18)
• R3 - ch1, *[sc2, 2sc in next st], *repeat 6 times, join sl st (24)
• R4 - ch1, *[sc3, 2sc in next st], *repeat 6 times, join sl st (30)
• R5-R9 - ch1, sc in each st, join sl st (30)
• R10 - ch1, *[sc3, sc2tog], *repeat 6 times, join sl st (24)
• R11 - ch1, In F.L.O. sc, *[3dc next st, then 2sc next st], *repeat to end, join sl st. Leave a long tail.

Ice-cream Cone

•     Magic ring, 6sc into ring
• R1 -  ch1, 2sc in each st, join sl st. (12)
• R2 - ch1, *[sc, 2sc in next st], *repeat 6 times, join sl st (18)
• R3 - ch1, in B.L.O. hdc in each st, join sl st (18)
• R4 - ch1, sc, *[hdcfp, work B.L.O sc1], *repeat to end, join sl st (18)
• R5-R8 same as R4
• R9 - ch1, work F.L.O. *[2dc in next st, dc3], * repeat to end, join sl st (24)
• R10 - ch1, work B.L.O. sc to end, join sl st (24)
• R11&12 - sc to end, join slip st (24) on R12 fasten off after sl st leaving a long tail.

Finishing

• Place 6mm safety eyes on scoop between R6 & R7 and approx 4 st apart.
• Using contrasting thread, create a mouth 1 row down from eyes.
• At top of Scoop, using the long tail from magic ring sew on the key-chain (I usually sew 8 or 9 loops around the chain ring to ensure it is firmly held in place)

• Stuff the 2 halves with toy-safe stuffing (I am personally very strict on this one, stuffing must meet UK standards)Yes it's only a key-chain but why not play it safe
• Using the back loops on the cone and the back loops in the scoop, stitch the 2 pieces together.
• Weave in the ends.
• ENJOY or GIFT but post a photo on your blog and leave a link in the comments below.

F.L.O. = front loop only

B.L.O = back loop only

hdcfp = half-double crochet in front post

sc = single crochet

dc = double crochet

hdc = half-double crochet

dc = double crochet

Faux-box card - Apology

I haven't quite finished writing up the Faux-box card instructions just yet, but hopefully they will be ready for tomorrow

Hugs & Happy Thoughts

Buffy xx

Creative Free for All at Fab'n'Funky

Hello my lovely peeps,

So this week we have a really exciting challenge over at Fab'n'Funky challenges

CREATIVE FREE FOR ALL

But Add PINK

(we want to see your creativity set free, so you can make a card or crochet or knit or paint or sew or paper-piece. Absolutely any craft BUT make sure there is a good dollop of PINK!! 😁)

Lets take a better look at my little creations

Lets start with a clean and simple card.

It's just a plain white card with a PINK layer topped with a simple design of multiple butterfly stamps all in a PINK ink that matches the PINK layer. I deliberately left space on one side for a sentiment stamp. Here I've used happy birthday but on a design like this you could easily use "just for you", Thank you".....the list goes on.

(INGREDIENTS - plain white card blank, SU  Strawberry Slush Ink-pad and card-stock, Momentos Tuxedo black Ink-pad and plain white card-stock. TOOLS- Acrylic stamp blocks and Stamps from "For the love of stamps" range.

These 3 are my evening relaxation past-time, I happily sit crocheting whilst my husband plays on our PlayStation or we watch TV together. It's a nice simple pattern, I created the smaller ones as key-chains. (pattern can be found in tomorrows post). (INGREDIENTS - DMC Petra No.3 [54458 pale pink, 53803 fuschia, 5712 beige] and 2.5mm crochet hook and key-chain accessories)

 

We return to our Strawberry Slush card-stock for this little 3D card.  On a piece of 12x12 card-stock draw a line 5" from the bottom edge and cut along this line. Now on the 5" wide piece measure 2.5"  from long edge and draw a faint line (this is your centre fold-line) now measure 2.5" markers along the line you've just drawn, these will be the flaps of your faux-box. Once marked up cut down to the centre fold-line but no further than this. (the rest of the instructions can be found in tomorrows post)

Last but by no means least in the top left corner we have my Bedtime Story Buddy 

I designed this cuddly toy with a book pocket at the back to help encourage a love of book in very young children. No plastic eyes or nose so it's safe for children under 2, although I've put them up for  sale as 3+ (mainly to reduce the quantity of drooling 😂) I'm sorry but no instructions or tutorial for this one, I spent the best part of 3 months perfecting this pattern, I am on version 3 now and kind of happy with it, this Owl is not the only character in my Bedtime Buddy range but that is to follow.

If you would like one check out this link - ow.ly/mKh550AthYa

PLEASE - check out the wonderful inspiring design our lovely team at

 Fab'n'Funky Challenges 

have come up with and leave love x

Back tomorrow with the Ice-cream cone crochet pattern and the faux-box card instructions.

Hug & Happy Thoughts

Buffy xx

Anything But A Card

Hello Lovey peeps

We have an exciting challenge for you this week over at Fab'n'Funky Challenges. So put away your card-making gear and get ready to make.........

Anything But A Card

(yes we want to see your crafty creations just NO CARDS

you can sew, knit, crochet, clay, paper-mache.....so go wild)

I can honestly say I have been sewing my heart out over the last 6wks. But I haven't made anything for myself or family, so I decided to take a little time to make something special for someone special.

I whipped up this little top for my granddaughter

The adorable love-heart fabric I picked up whilst out on a girly day with my friend Dawn, I rediscovered it in my stash two days ago and instantly knew who I wanted to use it for.

We all know how messy little ones can be so I used the darker jade-coloured fabric for the upper section. But to add a little bit of gentleness to such a strong colour I picked out the peachy pink from the centre of the love-hearts to edge the armholes and bottom.

The most unusual thing about this is I used a pattern with making major adjustments....YES....No major adjustments!!!!.......Menopause I reckon......😂😂😂

Pop over tho see what other makes our wonderful design team have created.

I would also like to give a big shout out to the adorable little shop where I got this fabric "The Corner Patch" in Eccleshall. It is only a tiny shop but friendly and welcoming.

Back soon with more sharing
Hugs & Happy Thoughts
Buffy xx

Pink!!

Hello lovely people,

this week over at Fab'n'Funky challenges we are going a bit girly, this weeks theme is

PINK

We would like to see your Pink creations please

I'm feeling very happy for this challenge as my new stamps had arrived just in time and they are delicious 😉 Dolly Dimples Crafts, Fab Cake 2

I call it strawberry delight, you can just make out the strawberry backing paper. I used a darker pink strip with strawberry backing to tie the different layers together.

So dig out your Pink, pop over to our blog and join in the fun.

Remember our lovely team enjoy sharing their creations with you, so send a little love their way. 

Back soon with more sharing

Hug & Happy Thoughts
Buffy xx

Dainty Doily

Good morning to you all

It's a wee bit foggy here but it looks like the sun is going to win the battle.

We have a fabulous challenge for you this week over at Fab'n'Funky Challenges.

Doily

We would love to see your card/project with a doily

 I have turned my doily into something girly

Yes I've taken the Fan option, it was originally a circular tea party doily from Dovecraft. 

To make each fan blade stand out I used a sakura clear gel pen.

Give it a nice shiny edge

We always look forward to seeing your entries so pop on over to Fab'n'Funky and remember to leave our lovely design team some positive vibes.

Back soon with more crafting

Hugs & Happy thoughts

Buffy xx

In the 10th Advent.....

I am very delighted by today's advent treat.........ready to sing along??

"In the 10th Advent window

my calendar gave to me

a scrummy yummy cupcake die"

A yummy cupcake deserves sparkle & sprinkles with candy colours and shiny ribbon....

 So I used my new advent die and added the cutouts from the 2nd Advent die (stars) as sprinkles. A nice shiny Pink and purple ribbon to go with the card and cupcake bases. I covered the icing section in iridescent ultra-fine glitter.
I know a little girl who is going to love this.
Oh, remember how I couldn't think what to do with the skull from the 9th Advent window, well I worked it out.......

 Carol Singing Skulls

Yes, it's a little weird I know, but hey why not, and they do look festive with their little bows (advent 8). Believe it or not I can think of a few people who would think this is hilarious.

I am entering my skeletal choir in 

• The Male Room - Christmas/Winter/December celebrations

 Hope you have enjoying my Advent countdown and you are having a great time preparing for the festive excitement.

See you tomorrow

Hugs and happy thoughts

Buffy xx

Pretty on Pink

We have a great challenge for you this week at

Fab'n'Funky Challenges

this week we want to to see your take on

Pretty in Pink

Our lovely sponsor this week is

All Dressed Up

My take on our little challenge this week is a little Thank you

She is such a cute character , "Little Flower Fairy".

What will you design? We look forward to see to your entries, remember to Tag and Link your post to the Fab'n'Funky challenge blog.

And please visit our lovely ladies blogs and leave a little note.

Back soon with my adventures at J-Con Derby.

Hugs

Buffy xx

 

A Cheeky Peek

I mentioned I was creating a pram blanket for my neighbours daughter.
Well it's not finished yet but I thought I'd give you a quick peek

It's coming along quite nicely and I shall reveal all hopefully the end of next week.
I hope that has engaged your interest.

Hugs
Buffy xx

Pretty pink flower

Good morning all,
I hope everyone is well. This morning I am bringing you a 2 challenge card.

• CR84FN Colour Challenge
• Waltzing Mouse Sketch Challenge

These two wonderful challenges gave me the perfect excuse to create something with my new ability I have just acquired....

 

Yes it's a crochet flower!

But more importantly I've attached a broach clip on the back of it. So it not just a greetings card but also a gift. It is held in place by a paper tag that can easily be ripped off without destroying the card.

• Card - Cream, Pink and Kraft(closest thing I had to Tan)
• Stamps - WMS Dainty Doillies 2 and Compact sentiments
• Ink - S.U. Pretty in Pink and Crumb Cake
• Pearls from stash
• Crochet flower Broach - 3cm broach clip, 1.75mm crochet hook, DMC Petra 5149(flower) and DMC Pearlescent E966(leaf) PLUS Mom of 5 Daughters how to video (see previous post - crochet how to video)

I aged the edges a little as it just felt right.
I've almost always believed in doing what feels right.

I shall endevour not to bore you all to death with my crocheting escapades....but I can't promise :-)

Hugs

Buffy xx

Hint, close your eyes and die cut

Hello,
I'm sure the title of this post will be made clear in a moment....
So a 3 challenge card

• Lili's Little Fairies - White with a Hint of Colour
• Stampin Royalty - Use Die Cutters
• Papertake Weekly - sketch

 Hence the strange post title...hint(of colour), close your eyes(the stamped image on my card) and die cut....
and now without further ado.....

I rotated the sketch, for my hint of colour I distressed the edges of my die-cut shapes with blushing bride inkpad. To give the white more depth I decided to emboss it with my brand new M-Bossabilities EG-002 [put a few of these on my list for Santa ;) ].
This is one of my favourite LOTV stamps it's called "Close your Eyes"

and as you can see, she is.

I used ProMarkers to colour the image and went over the sentiment stamp with the Stampin Write blushing bride pen as it was a little too pale on it's own.
The lace was sitting in my stash.

Time for bed me thinks
Back soon
Buffy xx

Bloomin internet

Well ladies, I had created this following card with the intention of entering it in the WMSC57, but unfortunately due to our lack of up/download limit remaining I was not allowed to put it up.
But here it is and I hope you like it

 

Oh well, maybe next time

Buffy xx

Pink n Blue Wedding

I can at last enter the Lili of the Valley challenge, thanks to my new stamps. I am very pleased with them.
The challenge was a Pink and Blue,

I used the Lili of the Valley wedding couple stamp, ProMarkers - China Blue, Powder Blue, Dusky Rose and Cocktail Pink, Pink rose paper from my stash, ribbons, WMS - celtic heritage set and scalloped circle and circle nestabilities.

Buffy x

Colour challenge card

I really adored the colours the CR84FN blog set this time. Warm and cheerful

So after digging around in my craft area I found the perfect paper and stamp for this job

I've used my Polka Doodle house with Waltzing Mouse sentiment, the blossom three nestible, white A5 card blank, some red ribbon and momento ink pads.

It's nice to have our internet back, although listening to the rumbles from outside, I'm not going to hold my breath....LOL

Buffy x

Cute card for three challenges

Hello again, aren't I busy today.

After downloading an adorable little free diggie stamp, I was inspired to create this little card for the Truly Scrumptious sketch challenge Flutter by Wednesday colour challenge Pink, Orange and Green and the Gem of a Challenge 2

Truly Scrumptious sketch







So here is my card:

 

The paper is from my stash, the caterpillar was a free digi stamp from Pink Gem Designs.
I kept the sentiment simple to cover any occasion, although I think it would make quite a nice new born card.

Buffy xx

Anne's 21st Birthday

I look back and it seems like only yestarday Anne was this tiny little monster getting up to all sorts of mischeif.
When did her 21st birthday sneak up on us!!!!!!!! Dear god I'm getting old...lol

This is the card I made her for her special day, I based it around two challenge, CR84FN colour challenge #31 and the Card Patterns sketch challenge #118
 

 I had these floral papers in my stash for months and wasn't sure how to use them til I saw the challenges.

I then cut them to fit the cream card blank, with the leftovers I die-cut the scalloped embelishment and punched the frilly border with a martha stewart border punch. I aged the edges with corresponding inks, added pink pearls to the flower centres and stamped her name and age on the card.

So a nice girly card for my very gothy daughter.......lol

Buffy x

Triple Challenge card

I have combine three challenges for my new card, a little bit daring for me,

• Dream Valley Challenges - Challenge 6 "Flowers"
• Colour Create Challenge Blog - Challenge 69 "Pink, Blue & Brown"
• Truly Scrumptious - Sketch challenge 56

I decided to combine all three after I looked in my stash box and had a little lightbulb moment. I'm reasonably pleased with the outcome:

I found some wood effect paper, whilst looking for some brown, this then got me thinking of flowers, which then lead to the thought of trellis and so the card came together.
The 2 large flowers were created using Blossom 3 die, the 2 smaller flowers are cut with a Marianne die (as are the leaves).

Truely Scrumptious challenge

My dear friend has convinced me to try out some of the challenges.
So here is my attempt at the Pink, Green and Brown challenge,

Brown paper pink spots and green floural paper are from Creative Cardmaking Spring 2010 collection.
Free clear stamp - dog - coloured in with Promarkers cocoa, cinnamon & tan.
Free clear stamp - good luck
A5 Pink card blank

http://trulyscrumptiouschallenges.blogspot.com/2011/01/challenge-49-brown-pink-green.html