Stag Wreath

I must admit I am a little tired this morning.  The tail end of Storm Oscar hit the Island yesterday so it has been blowing a gale all night.  The wind is howling around our little cottage, the rain battering on the windows.  I think you can imagine the noise.  We have yet to go out to access any damage.  There were no Ferries yesterday on or off the Island and none scheduled for today either.  Hopefully normal service will resume tomorrow.   I am truly thankful for the extra store cupboard that we have and our warm and cosy cottage.

My Christmas makes continue and I now have the added luxury of Christmas music now that we are into November.  What a great sing along we have as I craft...this time a stag wreath.

Tulle and some curtain ling were cut into 8" strips and tied onto the ring. 

I did 2 strip lining 1 strip tulle pushing the strips quite tightly against each other to make the wreath as full as possible.

I then painted a wooden pre-cut stag and then once dried added a bell.

A little feathery embellishment to add a little luxury.

Then the stag was added and a bow using burlap and tulle.

A painted wooden heart added to the bow, finished it off nicely.  The bows are a little addictive I then went on to make several to be used for the mantel.

The Christmas decorations and indeed tree that we have are a little too large for this cosy cottage they swamped the rooms last year.  It is my intention to reuse as much as possible but downsize some of  the decor such as the tree.  We have already passed some of the ornaments on to our daughters who treasure some of the memories of previous years.  Have you made a start on Christmas yet?

As always I do thank you for your support, comments and emails.

See you soon.

Nativity Story Stones

As always I do thank you for your comments and support and I think you all guessed it was going to be rock painting.  Whilst I consider myself creative, I am not an artist.  So the stones are simplified for my very young grandchildren.  They are story stones depicting the Nativity on two sets and the other set to go with a book of Christmas poems.

The original stones which were collected on a cold but beautiful day which I shared with you.  All the children have been down to the Port and played on the beach so there is a link that they will know.  They are all familiar with the Nativity story but we have two that are non readers, so it is hoped they will be able to retell the story using the stones.  The poems are for the two eldest girls who enjoy rhyming words and it is hope the stones will help stimulate them writing some Christmas poetry of their own.

The tops were given a little base coat of paint to help stop the colour sinking.  Then very simple shapes drawn on, no artistic skill required at all.

Due to the ages of the children I am not sure they will become family heirlooms but are appropriate for them now and then can just be repainted.

Three story sacks have been made and voila a great learning aid made.

A warm welcome to a new follower I hope you enjoy my little adventures through life.

See you soon.

Lets Take A Walk

Got some Celebrations left, don't be tempted to eat them.  Cut some tulle into squares and make some table gifts or add a hanger and add them to the tree.  You can really go to town and embellish as much or as little as you want.  I kept mine fairly simple.

I used some florist wire to tie them at the top and then added a ribbon and a bell.  Simple but look quite effective.

Its quite cold out but thankfully not a lot of wind so 'don your hat and gloves and jump into the car I will take you down for a walk at the Port to prepare for my next project.  Take some deep breaths and clear your lungs, the beauty is quite breath taking.

Here I am, looking for the perfect stones.  Some are better than others and if you look a little closer it  can be quite surprising.

Take a walk with me and let me show you the other side of the wall.

As the sun shows its face through the clouds its glows on the ever moving sea giving dappled shadows onto the tidal flow.

Not a lot of wind so the waves were quite gentle and not the usual thrashing against the harbour wall or surrounding rocks.   The perfect day for collecting a few rocks.  Although always mindful of the sea and the damage it can do.

Shall I give you a clue...

I will share the project in my next post.

As always I thank you for your support, your encouragement and friendship.

See you soon.

A Celebration Bouquet

What fun I have had making a bouquet out of a tub of Celebration chocolates, kebab sticks, florist tape, cellophane and tulle.  I had some burgundy, white and green with gold fleck tulle which made the individual flowers look so real.

I wound some florist tape onto the kebab sticks, which made it a little easier to adhere the chocolate.

I undid the wrapper a little and then secured it again using the florist tape.  Once secure tulle was added, a layer of burgundy and then white or visa versa.

The outer row green tulle was used to represent leaves.

2 layers of cellophane added and then a wired edged ribbon.

A believe embellishment painted green bound to a kebab stick and a Santa added.  The wooden shapes used in my crafting this Christmas have all been bought.  Gerard usually cuts them all out for me but circumstances have been a little different this year so we opted to buy them.

To finish off popped into a gold gift bag.  Drum roll please...

The finished product...a celebration bouquet, made with love.

Everything I make at the moment is for gifts for the family and friends, just token gifts but made with love.  I did do a lot of craft fairs and events prior to moving here to our beautiful Island but haven't pursued it since moving. 

As always I thank you for your encouragement.

Se you soon.