Fun At The Papeterie

Morning folks...I'm intending having a lazy Sunday....if the weather is OK...maybe a tidy in the garden....if not it's going to be another snuggled up on the sofa day relaxing after a busy day yesterday at The Papeterie...Debbi and I had a fabulous fun Christmas In July Day with lots of lovely crafters all joining in the Christmas Festivities...big thanks to everyone who came along and especially to The Papeterie Gang...Charlotte..Rachel and Alanna for inviting me and making the day go with a swing.  And I got a lovely surprise when my crafty mucker CASS...card maker extraordinaire and rock chick...popped in for a hug on her way home from her holidays. It was so busy I never had a chance to get the camera out....so you will just have to settle for some pics of the demo card variety...

and I had to bring back two of my favourite Hero Arts cards from last year....

That it's for today folks....will be sharing the rest of the cards and pics from the TH Configuration Box Class later in the week and I have some exciting news to share with you all next week but for the moment my lips are sealed...I'll be back tomorrow to announce the winner of the give-away and will be celebrating a very special birthday so make sure you pop over bright and early.

Hugs Kath xxx

Penny Black Saturday Challenge...Week 162

Morning folks...yes it's Saturday and that means it's time to look out those Penny Blacks again.  I loved all your Starburst inspired cards last week and thanks once again for joining in the fun....pop over to Penny Black Saturday to see who was last week's lucky winner.

The challenge this week is.....

PENNY BLACK/GROUND

what on earth is she on about it....

well in a nutshell we want to see you create a background with your Penny Black stamps...not as scary as you think....just requires a little bit of thinking out of the box.

This is right up my street...takes me back to when I first started stamping...long before there were all those gorgeous patterned papers on the market that we take for granted now and is still one of my favourite techniques....perhaps that's why the cubbyhole paper mountain just gets bigger and bigger.

I started off by creating a soft colour background with TH Distress Ink....Antique Linen and then overstamped with icons from Penny Black Salutations Clear Stamp Set in Brushed Corduroy and Aged Mahogany...

using the same technique I stamped the gorgeous Chearful Image.. cut out and layered with 3D Foam Pads.  Then it was time to don the rubber gloves to colour Ribbon Girl Seam Binding with Aged Mahogany Ink with a little help from a Mini-Mister.....simples....so have a go folks.

We have a very special prize this week....something a little bit different...

The lucky winner will be joining the girls on the team as

GUEST DESIGNER

for the month of September...cool huh!

so instead of heading for the hills....why don't you pop over...check out all the fabulous Penny Black/Grounds from our fabulous Design Team and put your thinking caps on.  I'm off to get ready for my Fun Christmas In July Day at The Papeterie and will catch up with you all tomorrow.

Have a great weekend and Happy Crafting

Hugs Kath xxx

I'm waffling again

Morning folks...not a lot of crafty stuff to share today....so I'm in waffle mode.  Did a little bit of crafting yesterday morning....the card for the NEC workshop is done and is meantime pending approval.   Hang on to your galluses folks but the Penny Black DT card is also in the bag....yes I know not my usual skidding in by the seat of my pants this week.  And obviously Mr Sunshine wasn't too impressed with my neck of the woods....he only stayed one day and we're back to dull and drizzly again so I took myself off yesterday to my local M& S for a bit of clothes shopping....well it would have been so rude to refuse their invitation to a special customer event....perhaps the offer of a 20% off voucher had something to do with it.  I've been to lots over the years so how come I conveniently forgot that it's likely to be heaving and hot with lots of pushy shovy going on....not my idea of a fun afternoon....it's that old "I'm getting a bargain thing" that we fall for every time.  I arrived home absolutely cream crackered with stuff I don't probably need and couldn't even muster the energy to try everything on...but what do you bet...some of it will be going back.  There's something to be said for the easy peasy crafty shopping online experience...browsing with a cuppa...a few clicks and hey presto the goodies arrive on the doorstep next morning...that's my kind of shopping.
I'm off to get packed up for my demo and workshop tomorrow at The Papeterie and as it's a Christmas In July Crafty Day I think I need to join in the spirit of the occasion and dress accordingly...NO I will not be going as the Christmas Fairy...crikey don't want to scare the customers away.  And just to ensure that the party goes with a swing...I will be joined by my lovely and very talented buddy Debbi....Letraset's UK Product Coach who will be demo-ing  Xmas Gorjuss Girl stamps...Sugar Nellie Stamps...Promarkers with the new ultra-fine nibs and some Spellbinder Nestabilities Techniques and a little birdie tells me that Charlotte has fantastic offers on CHRISTMAS GOODIES all day and there will be festive treats...what more could you want...

FUN...BARGAINS and NIBBLES...

so if you live nearby...jump in your car and join us at The Papeterie.  In the meantime I leave you with a couple of sneaky peeks...

Catch up with you all tomorrow for another challenge at Penny Black Saturday and lots of exciting things to share with you over the next few days.

Hugs Kath xxxx

Yeehaaa...it's summer

Morning folks...after all the chilly wintry like weather...at long last Mr Sunshine has decided to grace the North East of Scotland with his company...so I am no longer sitting on the radiator trying to keep warm...oh yes central heating on in July is just crazy crazy.  But I suppose it's been keeping me in the Christmas In July mood... I just can't seem to shake it off at the moment and perhaps that's just as well as the afternoon job today is my Fiskars Workshop card for the NEC in November...crikey in my crafty head that's light years away and you know me I am really a skidding in by the seat of my pants crafter...so how that is going to go is anyone's guess.

In the meantime....some cards from this month's DT Project Of The Month Kit....Classics 

from Craftwork Cards... and you can check out what exactly you get in this great value kit HERE
all the cards I've used are Craftwork Cards fabulous and great quality card blanks and are included in the kit...

Papers...Cottontail Collection & Alphabits

and if you are a Craftwork Cards addict...you may be wondering what paper the trees are cut from....wonder no more....I cut up this....too gorgeous to waste...

Tres Chic Collection.....Alphabits & Circle Messages

Sweet Meadow Collection & Alphabits

Now I'm not complaining about the gorgeous sunny weather but Mr Nikon wasn't happy...the combination of foiling on the alphabits...my habit of glittering everything in sight and Mr Sunshine didn't bode well for great pics.

You all know how I love parcels and even better than the ones that I know are arriving at the cubbyhole are the surprise packages that pop through the letterbox from lovely buddies.....check out these gorgeous crocheted snowflakes that my lovely buddy Maureen sent and I'm itching to use them on some Christmas cards...but better not use them on that Fiskars Workshop card...don't think Maureen would fancy an order from Fiskars for 280 do you....mind you that would keep her out of mischief and have her crochet hook red hot and smoking.

Catch up with you all tomorrow 

Hugs Kath xxx
Edited to add: why don't pop over to Craftwork Cards Blog and read Part 1 of what they got up to at the CHA
and if you click HERE....you can watch the lovely Julie Hickey in action

Edited to add: Christine...my lovely friend Maureen has just sent me the instructions to crochet the snowflakes...if you e-mail me I will send them to you....complete goobledygook to me but I'm sure you will know what it means

What's On My Workdesk Wednesday

Morning folks....hey before you know it's the middle of the week...time once again to open your crafty space door and let the world and his wife troop in....it's a bit like a Stately Home Open Day isn't it and if you are wondering what on earth I'm wittering on about....it's that fabulous phenomonen aka Julia and her crafty pals over at WOYWW.
So what's on my workdesk today....a bit of a mixed bag....this month's project kit from Craftwork Cards which you can check out HERE

and the other side effect of a boring Sunday....a goodie parcel. Isn't it strange when you're bored...a little bit of online shopping is guaranteed to chase away those wasted day guilty feeling blues.

The furniture arrived and had me absolutely cream crackered by the time I got it unpacked...it wasn't just wrapped within an inch of it's life...it was practically mummified...2 hours it took me to get it in place...tidy up the debris of bubble wrap...cardboard and the dreaded polystyrene...I just need to charm hubby now to remove that old CD rack from the wall....and we're sorted..

 and surprise...surprise look who turns up just when all the hard work is done with his "sorry Mum you should have said you needed a hand" face on...

Catch up with you all tomorrow

Hugs Kath xxx

More or Less...

Morning folks...I thought this was going to be a "just me having a crafty play" kind of a week but can I let you into a little secret...after only one day the crafty brain switch has flicked to OFF....stuck fast and won't budge...yesterday was more or less another faffing around not doing much of anything day...could it be that old story of the more we have to do...the more we get done...perhaps this crafty holibob thing isn't such a good idea after all.
So what's a girl to do when the going gets tough....yes...it's time to look out the big knickers and perhaps another challenge card might turn that stubborn switch to ON...crikey this is definitely a first....another card for this week's Less Is More Challenge...

using the Alphabits from Craftwork Cards Project of the Month Kit....Classics
and those gorgeous scalloped edge cards

Fiskars Bracket Punch...that yummy Doo Hickey die and
Hero Arts Envelope Pattern

So what's planned for today...first off...a job I have been putting off for days...the dreaded step-by-steps for the latest Fiskars projects won't do themselves so nothing else for it but put the kettle on...grit my teeth and pull my knickers right up to my chin and get on with it. Then I need to clear out the family room ready for the new furniture being delivered this morning...crafting is definitely out of the question because the cubbyhole will probably end up being the temporary storage area for all the CD's DVD's and books I have collected over the years...but it's not all doom and gloom....after lunch I am off out to meet up with my lovely crafty buddies for coffee and a chat.

See you all tomorrow over at WOYWW

Hugs Kath xxx

Less is More Challenge...Week 25

Morning folks...when life is hectic do you fantasise about having lazy days doing absolutely nothing....sitting around watching telly or with your nose stuck in a book...yes me too.  And yesterday was such a day...hubby was off out so The Furry Boy and His Mum spent the morning snuggled up on the sofa with the Sunday crosswords and endless cuppas but by lunchtime the natives were getting a bit restless and what do we girls do when we're bored....yes our thoughts turn to food...the snack lunch turned into an afternoon of raiding the biscuit tin...the fridge...anywhere that contained anything remotely edible...so before I began to feel like a beached whale...it was time to get back into the cubbyhole and keep those hands busy.
The sum total of activity for the whole day was 2 crosswords and a card...so can you tell me why by evening I was absolutely shattered and by 9 o'clock struggling to keep my eyes open...off to bed by 10 and I'm sure I was spark out as soon as my head hit the pillow...there must be a moral in there somewhere.

Time to share the card I made for this week's Less Is More Challenge...

BUTTON OR RIBBON

(or plurals thereof)

Nitwit Collection Die Cuts

Hero Arts: Envelope Pattern

The Ribbon Girl....Divine Twine

Button from stash

Glamour Dust

Sentiment: Hero Arts...Holiday Sayings

And I struggled with this one....either because challenge cards have been few and far between in the cubbyhole recently....fast becoming a rare species or Mr Mojo has jumped the gun and taken off on his holidays already.   I think I may have confused some folks about my holidays...I'm not disappearing off the radar for 2 months...I'm not flying off to exotic climes nor will I be lazing around under a palm tree on a beautiful white sandy beach in the Caribbean....I wish it were true but I'm just taking some time off from demos and workshops...taking a break from the stresses of crafty deadlines...instead I'll be putting on my lady who lunches hat and having lots of "out and about" days with friends and the grandkiddies and hopefully lots of time for crafting of the play variety...I'll still be blogging although it might be more waffling than anything else and doing my DT stuff as usual...so I'm afraid you're not getting shot of me that easily.

Catch up with you all tomorrow

Hugs Kath xxx

Time for a little Give-Away

Morning folks....from a cold...very windy and definitely not summer North East of Scotland...needless to say yesterday was not a garden day...well there's a surprise...in fact it's feeling a bit like winter here so there was nothing else for it but to take myself off to the cubbyhole for a die cutting session....more of those pesky snowflakes...not quite hundreds and thousands but the floor looked like there had been a mini snowfall for sure...

but it wasn't long before I had a "fed up of snowflakes" kind of a moment and wandered off on another tangent...playing around with some ideas for an future workshop but that didn't go according to plan either...

so it was back to the kitting and yeeehaaa it's done and dusted...it's amazing what oodles of coffee and cracking the whip achieves...the crafty list is disappearing like snow off a dyke and unless something jumps into my Inbox tomorrow....that's me foot loose and fancy free...yes I am counting down to my 2 months of no work stuff holibobs and to celebrate...well what better way than have a little give-away...

Echo Park Victoria Gardens....Paper Pad...

12 x 12 Alphabet Sticker Sheet

12 x 12 Element Sticker Sheet

Tim Holtz Texture Fade... Notebook Embossing Folder

and a bundle of Divine Twine and Seam Binding from The Ribbon Girl

and some bits and bobs 

And you know the drill folks....just leave your name with Mr Linky before midnight on SATURDAY 30th and I will announce the winner on MONDAY 1st August....the first day of my holibobs.  And what have I planned for today...well first off it's clearing up the snowflake debris and then a snuggle kind of day on the sofa with coffee and the Sunday crosswords.  Enjoy the rest of your weekend whatever you're doing and I'll catch up with you all tomorrow.

Hugs Kath xxx

Penny Black Saturday Challenge...Week 161

Morning everyone...my heart goes out to all our lovely Norwegian friends...another senseless tragedy in this insane world we all live in....my prayers and thoughts are with you all.
Saturday comes round once again and it's time for another challenge over at Penny Black Saturday....I loved all last week's Bunting creations and a big thank you for taking time out to play along...pop over and check out the lucky winner of that gorgeous Penny Black stamp....who knows it may just be you.

The challenge this week is....

STARBURST

fairly self explanatory I think...star embellishments or star themed paper..it's entirely up to you what you use....it's all about having fun.  The cubbyhole is still in Christmas mode and I just had to dig out one of my favourite Penny Black's....isn't he just the cutest dude...

Craftwork Cards....Scalloped Edge Card
Papers: Pink Petticoat...Little Fleurs
Papermania Kraft
Image: Penny Black....Sweet Snowman
Stars: McGill Punch
Fiskars Lever Punch
Sentiment: Hero Arts...Holiday Sayings

and we have another fabulous prize this week for one lucky winner who will be chosen at random and announced next Saturday from

4 Rolls of Ribbon of the winner's choice
a visit to this "stocked to the rafters with gorgeous ribbons" online store is a must and if you subscribe to receive The Fantastic Ribbons Newsletter....easy peasy...just enter your e-mail address in the box at the top right hand corner of the Home Page....you will be entered in the draw with a chance to win £100 of ribbons of your choice.

So what are you planning for this weekend....all a bit weather dependent isn't it.    If the sun decides to put his hat on...I think I will be out in the garden...if not it could be playtime in the cubbyhole.  I'll be popping by to see what you all create for this week's challenge....have fun whatever you're doing.

Catch up with you all tomorrow

Hugs Kath xxx

Everybody's Happy Happy...

Morning folks...peace and calm has been restored in the cubbyhole....all is well and everybody's happy especially The Furry Boy when I showed him this from the Fiskars website...

it's all systems go...full steam ahead with the prep for next Saturday's TH Christmas Configuration Box class at The Papeterie....

the papers have been cut and scored and now it's time to hand over to my able assistant Mr Vagabond..I haven't told him yet but he's in for a marathon die-cutting session.....with oodles of these...

You just can't do Christmas without Snowflakes...can you?

And on a completely different note....the rest of my Spellbinder/Candi cards for CHA...

The Craftwork Cards Team will be on their way home....probably exhausted and I can't wait to hear all about it.  Catch up with you all tomorrow for another challenge over at Penny Black Saturday.

Hugs Kath xxx

The Furry Boy Ain't Happy

Morning folks...things are looking a tad tidier around here...the Fiskars Boys are back on their shelf but all is not well in the cubbyhole....

I have a feeling that ears may well be ringing at Fiskars HQ this morning...The Furry Boy's in the huff at missing out on his 5 minutes of fame...having a bit of a doggy strop and the cause of all the canine angst...

I was asked to do a Fiskars project for this month's Simply Cards & Papercraft with a Summer Theme featuring the Everywhere Window Punch..the punch that allows you to punch anywhere on your project.. right in the centre of 12" x 12" paper..if the fancy takes you.  Now scrapbooker I am definitely not but with the "L" plates in place..on a wing and a prayer I had a go and was feeling slightly pleased with myself thinking I'd nailed it...

BUT...apparently not...could I possibly change the photo to something more fun...oops how can I break the news to The Furry Boy that he is going to end up on the cutting room floor in favour of my second attempt...they've never met my gorgeous bundle of golden deliciousness so how could they know that when they handed out the fun gene...he was right at the front of the queue...

Not to worry he'll get over it....our morning stroll will do the trick and he'll be back to lazing around in the cubbyhole snoring his head off as happy as larry which means I can get cracking with the Configuration Box prep...I feel a "could sure use Mario the king of prep right now" moment coming on.

Catch up with you all tomorrow

Hugs Kath xxx