Shopping for Crafty Sorts

I've still got the colouring bug but this time the result has been more productive - birthday cards. I was itching to get my hands on the Garden Grow stamp set from Altenew's new release and it arrived in the UK last week courtesy of the wonderful Make the Day Special on-line store.  This sketchy informal style is perfect for the Kurtake watercolour pens I've been playing with recently. It really doesn't seem to matter if my colouring is not perfect - in fact the more roughly I apply the colour the better I like the result!

I've also enjoyed a bit of 'me time' stamping these tags (using Knit Bits stamp set from Papertrey Ink) for my friend Jan who has been celebrating a special anniversary this week. Jan's Mum bought this tiny wool shop 50 years ago as a going concern from a Mrs Ceri Griffiths who at the time just happened to be our elderly next door neighbour. My Mum remembers Mrs Griffiths gave up her shop as she was finding the tiny staircase to the first floor difficult to climb.


 

Here is Jan with our lady mayor and in the photo you might just be able to see inside this Aladdin's Cave of delights. If you knit or crochet the shop is a must-visit when in the area.  As you can see the place is absolutely stuffed full to overflowing with yarn and other knitty delights.
 

 
And as from this week there is even more reason to visit as Jan has opened a small patio/garden area to the side of the shop through persuading the Police Station next door to sell part of their garden.  Now visitors can sit and enjoy a little yarn therapy in this secret space.... and might even be offered the cup that cheers!!!

  
So I would like to congratulate Jan on her achievement in keeping this fabulous resource open for us local crafty sorts. No mean feat in these days of internet shopping and vast shopping parks. I'm sure there are precious few local businesses can boast 50 years in the same family and even longer in the same historic building.

I pinched these pics from a local facebook page and hope they don't mind.  And you can read a bit more about the shop here.

Punny Valentine

I notice the US custom of giving Valentine tokens to all and sundry creeping in on this side of the Atlantic too.  The tradition of sending an anonymous card to someone you have amour for but are too shy to tell seems to be slipping away I feel. 

But we crafters never miss an opportunity to 'make' so I got out these quirky children's stamps I bought on a visit to France a while ago and paired them up with suitable sentiments I found in my stamp collection - My Punny Valentine and On the Farm both from Papertrey Ink.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone. x

A Valentine for my........

..... teapot!  Is it wrong?? OK, I don't have a human Valentine in my life but my teapot is the first to greet me each morning, refreshes me through the day, and relaxes me at the end of the evening.  So when I saw my favourite inspirational blogger Godelieve had made a Valentine for her pot, I thought mine deserved one too.  Not only that, to show my appreciation, I cleaned all the tea stains away especially for his (I do see it as a him) portrait. I stamped the heart on a blank coaster, cut it out and then stamped the back.










I did see one lovey dovey couple today though.  On my walk by the river this duck and drake swam alongside me for a while before flying off together.  Sweet!

Getting wet!

The last few days have been weird weather-wise. Its been so changeable- one minute warm sunshine and blue skies, the next torrential rain, then sunshine again 10 minutes later. I imagine this is what monsoon rain is like. I had just walked out the gate of my Mum's house yesterday when the heavens opened and within minutes the rough road was turned into a rushing stream. I had to shelter under a tree - going back to Mum's or carrying on home would have given me a thorough soaking. Can you see I caught our cat jumping the stream and running for home on my video camera!

I only mention this because I'm thinking of all my lovely blog friends over in the US who might be battening down the hatches right now in anticipation of Hurricane Irene arriving. I do hope that the storm is again downgraded before it hits and that you all keep safe over the next 24 hours.
Its a sort of tradition in the UK to moan about the weather but we are lucky that extreme conditions are fairly rare here and I don't ever remember a storm being classed as a hurricane..... correct me if I'm wrong and you have had experience of a hurricane in your neighbourhood!

The heavy showers carried on today and did keep the number of visitors to our craft fair down. However I was pleased with the comments I got on my stall, though cross with myself for forgetting my camera to record what I took and what sold. Here are some of the gift tags I did remember to photograph before leaving home. I sold them all and so much enjoyed making them it won't be any hardship to make more for next time.