My first ATC

Let's be honest here - I had no idea what I was doing with this one. No actual plan, and - Oh! the pressure of making an ATC for the very first time... so I grabbed a handful of favourite bits and pieces and went for it.

The film strip is powerfully bendy, so has forced an interesting curve to my ATC, which I hope will straighten out over time. It's currently wedged under some very heavy books.

For this little piece I wanted some Tim Holtz grunge and a few words of enlightenment. It's mid-morning and the fog still hasn't lifted outside, but in the light, the sage colored brad and the sheen from the filmstrip add a little bit of punch to it.

I think I like making these, very much.

Desk Love

A Christine Starkenburg design creation (Andaacht Studio)

Goodies in the post (love you big)

Thank you Kate from love you big - my winning parcel just arrived.

Who doesn't love finding parcels full of mystery on their doorstep? And with the cutest vintage wrapping in the world, I knew the insides would be a lot of fun.... and oh, they were.

The tea cup ribbon caught my attention instantly.

Inside was a whole bunch of wonder, including these little guys... (I love the little brown critter on the left):

A little packet of spotted notepaper and stickers:

Loving the notebooks and the smiggle pens. Is there an age limit on smiggle? I hope not.

Kate - did you read my last post before you sent these little stamps? How did you know?!

 And so much more...

I'm typing away here, and glancing over at the colorful pile of cuteness, wondering what to use first. So again, thank you. It is so nice to have a win once in a while. You have made my day.

Stampin' Up!

Time to start showing my wares, so to speak.

I never intended TFT to be a craft blog, because crafting is just one of many (many) interests. However, there has been a dominance of misadventure in the craft room lately and if I start to give away everything I make, at least I shall have a visual reminder of them.

Thus we arrive at my new favourite funtime: stamping.

To suggest that I am in love with stamping would be an understatement. Which is why I take myself down to the local Community Centre every Thursday night for the Stampin' Up! sessions, where I get to play with their slightly intimidating die-cut and embossing machines, and construct cards, mini-gift boxes and tealight candle-holders, very much like these:

Embossed textures is one of my favorite things - and who would've thought I'd want so badly to buy a crimper? (You can see the crimping on the pink piece, behind the 'CREATE' card - it gives an appearance similar to corrugated iron... I am having future project ideas already).

My first - ever - attempt at embossing (above) with VersaMark and white embossing powder. There is a whole selection of colors to emboss with, and you get to play with a mini-heat gun... kind of like a baby hairdryer.

This is my fave project so far - it's using a die-cut for a teeny-tiny milk carton, which has been remodeled into a gift box, and sweet imagery stamped on the individual panels. Inking the edges gives it a little extra something.

Keep Calm, Cupcake

Sound advice from afar (thanks Nancy). This arrived last week, along with a miniature 'Keep Calm and Carry On' book and a gorgeous easel card. Now, when I am having a craft crisis - I'll know what to do.

Something crafty at the Fair

Bell and I went a little craftin' crazy at the Fair on Friday. Not only did we see some amazing demonstrations, we also got our hands dirty (and the sleeves of our shirts) in a couple of workshops.

The highlight for me was seeing the work of the incredibly talented creator / owner / designer  of DarkRoom Door, Rachel Greig. If I could get my hands on the whole DD collection of stamps, I would be a very happy girl.

And of course, Distress Ink has completely changed my life. And ATC's... where do I start? They seem to be the perfect combination of art: paper, stamps, fabric, and words - all rolled into one.