ArtyFartyAnnie

Hi Everyone, I've just returned from the Ministry of Mixology event at Coventry over the weekend and what a marvellous time I had. A lovely group of ladies "adopted" me when we all arrived on Friday evening, and I enjoyed the weekend so much more for being in their company. Thank you Denyse, Sue, Andree and Caroline, looking forward to meeting you all again next time! Here we all are in class on the Sunday morning ... Two of my mixed-media heroes, France Papillon and Kate Crane , were teaching the main classes, plus there were make-and-takes, and lots of temptation in the form of the Tando Creative shop and a constant supply of food ... and as the great Oscar Wilde once said, "I can resist anything but temptation." :o)

Hello Everyone, Look what I made woooHOOOO ... How cute is that?! Ever since I was a little girl, I've loved miniature things. My friend Trina and I were reminiscing today about those amazing Blue Peter projects we made when we were kids - a hairdressing salon for Sindy out of a cardboard box; a camping kit for Action Man; and who can forget Tracey Island?! Wonderful what you can do with yoghurt pots, toilet rolls and sticky-backed plastic. I used to say that when I grew up I wanted to be the Blue Peter lady who designed all the projects (I would still love to have that job). When I spotted these little room box kits on AliExpress I couldn't resist trying them out, and now I just can't stop!! The kits come in a little box which contains everything you need to make the room, even the lighting. You can also get them from BangGood . Here's mine all lit up at night ...

Hi everyone, The other day I got together with my good friend Trina for a little scrapping session. I took along my Quirky Kit and basic supplies only - sometimes I am overwhelmed by the ridiculous amount of stash I have at home, so it is refreshing to work with a kit and only the kit and no temptation to add a bit of this or that! Here's my page, showing a photo of one of my son Richard playing at the beach nearly thirty years ago now!!! This is a very subtle colour palette for me, but I think it really suits the picture and the touch of gold gives it a bit of punch. I used one of the sketches which came with the kit and all I added was ink, washi and a scrap of twine. Oh and the BUM letters were from a previous Quirky Kit. I have loads more to use - next I may do a couple of pocket pages to go with this as I have more pictures of the same day out. Thanks for popping in today, see you again soon :o) Annie xxx

Hi everyone, Ooooohh I've missed Blogland while I've been away doing Other Stuff and it's good to be back! One of the things I missed most is catching up with friends over at Julia's Stamping Ground for What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday. First of all, I want to say a belated thank you for the last two ATCs I received for the WOYWW 6th Anniversary ATC Swap. The first one was from Jan  and the second was from Zoe - they're both just beautiful and I will treasure them thankyou ladies ... From Jan From Zoe Strictly speaking, I don't have an actual workdesk to show today as I'm busy packing again for a few days amidst the dreaming spires of beautiful Oxford with some friends. So, instead of cutting and sticking this morning, I was busy gathering essential supplies ... ... various devices, chargers, umbrella, Oyster card, Zentangle stuff - when the postie arrived with my Quirky Kit wooHOOO!! So of course everything had to stop while I...

Hi everyone, Do you ever find yourself away from home, pining for your workroom and itching for a bit of crafty action? Well, during my last trip to London, my son Tom and I put our heads together and came up with the perfect solution ... Pound Shop Projects! Guest Designer Tom with Yours Truly Even if you're stuck in a dreary hotel room and you have no crafty kit with you at all, there will nearly always be a Pound Shop [Dollar Store] nearby where you can get everything you need to while away a few hours and make something fun. Meet Flossie, the result of our first collaboration, made entirely with a pair of socks and a few other bits and bobs which all came from a Pound Shop - even the tools we used to put her together. We cannot take credit for the design - we followed this brilliant YT video by Maqaroon  - although ours turned out a bit differently of course ... Flossie our cute sock kitty We both love browsing Pound Shops and there are several along Walthamsto...

Hi Everyone, My workroom is out of action again this week until after Christmas, so I've been trying out some portable crafty stuff. I found this little set in our local supermarket (affectionately known as Uncle Roy's) for less than a couple of quid ... Remember these?! We used to call it "French knitting" for some reason. Here's what was inside the box ... ... and here's my first effort at French Knitting in over 40 years ... There are lots of ideas on Pinterest and YouTube for things to make with the resulting long, thin tube of knitted material. Here's a brilliant tutorial  for a heart-shaped knot by J D Lenzen which caught my eye - check out his channel Tying It All Together for lots more fun ideas. Here's how it turned out ...

Hi Everyone, Here's another really quick and easy Christmas card which looks far more clever and complicated to make than it really is! This idea was inspired by my son Tom, when we were hunting for nothing in particular in his local "Pound Shop" and came across these pretties ... Ignore the tissue paper for now and check out the cool textured snowflakes printed onto a sort of clear clingy sheet - they are meant to be for decorating windows, and you get two sheets in a pack for only £1. To make three cards, I took a sheet of 12x12 cardstock and cut it into three 12x4 pieces ...

Hi Everyone, Whilst my workroom has been Otherwise Occupied for a couple of weeks, I've been catching up on a few Unfinished Objects which have been lurking in my crafty tool bag for ages ... These were all made from those little freebie kits you get on the front of crafty magazines. I love them! Just one magazine had all this with it ...

Hi Everyone, Today I've had a lovely time playing with the "Georgie" stamp set and my box of paper scraps. First, I made three cards with matching gift tags ... It was fun colouring in with Distress Inks and blendable coloured pencils and trying out different looks ... Then I realised I would have to work out how to make coordinating envelopes - luckily my son was here to help me with the maths ... The daisy from the stamp set made a perfect repeating motif for some home made gift wrap ... ... I just stamped it onto white copy paper and coloured the centres with pencil - easy peasy!! Photo tutorials will be appearing shortly if you would like to see how I made these cards - check the next couple of posts or click on the "tutorials" tab at the top of the page. If you would like your own "Georgie" Mix It Up stamp set, please visit my Etsy Shop . Thanks for popping in today, see you again soon. Annie :o) xxx

Hi everyone, Today I am VERY excited because at last I can share with you a project I've been working on for quite a while - in fact, I'm SO excited that I want to run about squealing like a piglet wooHOO wooHOO!!! So, without further ado, please allow me to introduce "Georgie" - my brand new stamp set ... Georgie is the first in a series of Arty Farty Annie "Mix It Up" stamp sets - so called because in each set, the central character is made up of separate components, which are designed to be put together to create different poses and gestures. They can also be combined with components from other sets in the series to give endless creative possibilities. As well as the whimsical character which is the main focus of the stamp set, I've squeezed lots of fun images into every spare inch of space! I wanted to make these stamps as useful and versatile as possible, so I've included design elements and motifs which will lend themselves to all...

Hi everyone, It's been a bit quiet on the blogging front around here lately - life has been getting in the way, as it sometimes does and there hasn't been much time for cutting and sticking :o( I have made some progress with my first ever patchwork quilt though :o) It's the perfect portable project to pick up and work on even if you only have a few minutes to spare and I'm really pleased with how it's going so far ... This project started few weeks ago, when I spent a wonderful weekend in Oxford with three of my best friends - we always take along a crafty project to work on in the evenings and I decided to finally have a go at patchwork, using the Foundation by the Yard method ...

Hi Everyone, I've just returned home after a lovely long weekend in Oxford with three of my favourite people. The Radcliffe Camera We stayed in University Halls of Residence and enjoyed several days exploring this beautiful city. Attempted quadruple selfie - Me, Em, Chel, Poll The university accomodation was great - clean, comfortable and very reasonably priced ... Love this little pack of freebies with a Christ Church coaster We had everything we needed, including a shared kitchen-diner where we gathered around the table in the evenings to eat, drink and be merry and do a bit of crafty stuff ...

Hi everyone, Today my good friend Trina and I headed to Papermaze for a workshop with the talented Louise Collins . The sun was shining, we didn't get lost, and we spent several very happy hours scrapping, shopping and eating cake - what a perfect day! I love Lou's work, so it was great to meet her in person today and pick up lots of brilliant tips, ideas and inspiration. As you can see, my page is not quite finished (I am always a slow scrapper!) - I didn't have any photos with me for a start, and anyway for me more is always more and less is never enough, so I probably won't be able to resist a few little tweaks and additions, but I was very happy with what I managed to achieve in a couple of hours ... Louise showed us lots of clever techniques - we used some Tim Holtz dies to cut the clockface and cogs from vellum, used them as masks with Distress Inks to create a grungy background, then layered them over the top. We learned how to create perfect splats ...

Hi everyone, Sad news today on the SJ Crafts Blog - the lovely Sarah has decided that the time has come to close the shop, so SJ Crafts is closing down OH NO!!! Read all about it here on the SJ Crafts Blog The good news is that this means there will be a Closing Down Sale - so pop over to the shop and check it out now to make sure you don't miss any bargains! I've really enjoyed getting to know Sarah and all the ladies on the DT, so I'm hoping that we will all keep in touch. Sarah is planning to keep the challenge blog going, so watch this space! Thanks for popping in today, see you again soon Annie :o)xxx

Hi everyone, We just returned from a lovely sunshiney week in beautiful Northern Ireland - it was totally relaxing and we had so much fun. Of course I took lots of photos and brought back some keepsakes for my scrapbook, a magnet for the holiday wall at work and a tin whistle which I'm hoping to learn to play ... One of the highlights of our stay was attending an awards ceremony as guests of the Mayor of Antrim (my Uncle Roderick) - a brilliant evening full of sparkling entertainment, great company, delicious dinner, oh and maybe a glass or three ....

Hi everyone, I just found out that there's a special offer on over at SJ Crafts this weekend - check it out! See you there! Annie :o)

Hi Everyone, I'm still catching up on the fun challenges from the Wonderful World of Color event on the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog last weekend - it really was a feast of ideas and inspiration and loads of prizes to be won as well. Challenge #2 by  Jemma challenged was to use black/white/grey and shades of just one colour to create a project. I decided to combine this with a sketch by Marsha Valk for the  Scrap365  May challenge (quick quick you still have time, there's a fanTAStic Prima Prize to be won) ... I rotated the sketch clockwise by 90 degrees ... The photo shows my eldest son with his beloved bike back in the 1980's. I've framed my grey background with red cardstock, then added shades of red with washi tape, a diecut shape and travel-themed stickers by Papermania. The chalkboard-style piece from the MME Chalk Studio 2 collection makes a striking focal point and some splatters of Mister Huey in red and white create a diagonal line across ...

Hi everyone, I'm a bit slow off the starting block this month, because we were away for my birthday and then I was a bit poorly for a few days, but I'm back and raring to catch up! The inspiration kit over at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Blog this month is from Cocoa Daisy  - and Wow! what a LOT of inspiration, because as well as the main kit there are lots of "add on" options here . Here's the main kit "Color Swatch"... I decided to start with the main kit and then "go shopping" amongst the add-ons to create my own version, which I'm going to call "Flea Market Finds". Here are my papers ...

Hi everyone, I've been a bit poorly for a few days, so there hasn't been much action on the scrappin and bloggin front, but I wanted to share these pics we took on my birthday a couple of weekends ago. We decided to have a totally self-indulgent weekend away to celebrate, so we booked three nights at the Beechwood Hotel in North Walsham, and it was FABulous! Here's our room, with a four poster bed ... ... a beautiful bathroom ...

Hi everyone, I can't wait to show you what was waiting for me when we got home on Monday after a weekend away! My fabulous parcel from SJ Crafts :o) wooHOO! This is my first month on the Design Team, so I was very excited to see what Sarah had sent me to play with (and of course I had ordered one or two irresistible extras - well, it would have been rude not to!) .... What a pile of gorgeousness! Here's a closer look ...