Snowed Under...

Hi folks...hard to believe it's the first day of the merry month of May already and let me tell you that I won't be partaking in the old custom of dashing out first thing and washing my face in the early morning dew...the so called elixir of youth apparently...well let's just say this craggy old lived in face is beyond redemption in that department.  Forgive the rather misleading blog title...we're not snowed under weatherwise...in fact we're back to all seasons in one day again...bonny blue skies...chilly winds...monsoon rain and the occasional hailstone storm...nothing out of the ordinary in this neck of the woods...it's what we refer to as The Gab Of May...unsettled weather at the beginning of the month is Nature's way of reminding us that she's not ready to let go of winter just yet.
It's the cubbyhole crew that are snowed under...bogged down...up to their eyes in crafty stuff...I'm sure you're familiar with the old "don't know where to start" syndrome and with no hot date with the Friday Girls on the cards today to drag me out of the doldrums...we're vacating the cubbyhole...leaving it all behind for a day in the great outdoors...I'll be blowing away the cobwebs in the garden...getting mucky planting up some some great garden bargains I found in Aldi this week...

a new herb pot...

the hanging baskets and pots...

and fitting a trellis for the new clematis...

but will it be joggy bottoms and T Shirt or Souwester and Wellies

and I'll be popping back to the cubbyhole for the reveal of this month's new Distress Colour...will it be a hyacinth blueish lavender purple perhaps and to check out the May Tag for "12 Tags of 2015"

Enjoy your Bank Holiday weekend

Hugs Kath xxx

How Can It Be Thursday Already...

Hi folks...I'm not sure where this week has gone...it's Thursday already and the last day of April no less...I need to get a wiggle on and get the projects for Kath's Klub at The Papeterie on 9th May in the bag...we'll be playing with Tim's fabulous Flower Garden and Perspective Stamp Sets...Butterfly Duo Die and Embossing Folder and you're probably not hugely surprised at my choice for this month...

but first I need to empty the materials boxes from the weekend...they've been out of sight out of mind in the back of the car since Sunday...not my most favourite job so no doubt the big girl knickers and lots of coffee will be required...

 and the garden seems to be as confused as I am...not sure if it's wearing it's Spring or Winter coat...

Toodle-oo for now

Hugs Kath xxx

Crazy Birds...

Hi folks...I'm sharing the 6th and last project from The Retreat...aptly named Crazy Birds and I'm sure I wasn't the only one feeling a little bit crazy by the end of our fabulous fun weekend at The Papeterie...a big thank you to Charlotte and her team for all the hard work they put in to make The Retreat such a success and to Graham for feeding the hungry hordes...yummy lunches and full tummies make happy happy crafters...

It ain't crazy birds I have to worry about this morning...it's the herd of stampeding elephants that trampled me underfoot when I wasn't looking or perhaps it was the hedge I was dragged through backwards...no prizes for guessing...this old body is in "the day after the day after" protest mode again BUT and there's always a but...it's back to work and the crafty list so I need to put my "onwards and upwards/ man up and get on with it" hat on.

See you all tomorrow

Hugs Kath xxx

Shiver Me Timbers...

Hi folks...it just goes to show you can never take Mother Nature for granted...shocked by the tragic news of the earthquake in Nepal with devastating loss of lives...less shocked but slightly miffed that Winter has returned to my neck of the woods. The journey home on Sunday was interesting weatherwise...lashing rain...big fat "driving snow" snowflakes and brilliant sunshine all in the space of 20 minutes and I was elated to see the reseeded grass was beginning to poke through the ground...10 minutes later I was watching an almighty blizzard raging outside and scraping thick ice off the windscreen of the car on Monday morning...crazy crazy weather...

A huge thank you to our 36 superstar crafters for a fun "messy painty inky lots of banter and a fair bit of hammering" weekend and I look forward to seeing you all again in September...

but back to Sunday's projects...a repeat of the Make A Wish Canvas...

and The Love Frame...

I'll be back tomorrow to share the last project of the weekend...in the meantime I'd better look out my pillar box red duvet coat and wellies for this morning's Winter Wonderland stroll with the Furry Boy.

Hugs Kath xxx

We Have A Winner...

Hi Folks..it's been a fun weekend but a bit crazy weather wise...we've had brilliant sunshine...rain like stair rods...sleet and even a little bit of snow but it's time to announce the winner of the Ribbon Girl Give-Away and without anymore ado...the lucky person is...

DIANE (11) 

well done Diane...please e-mail me so that I can pass your details on to Mary at The Ribbon Girl who will arrange for you to spend your £10 gift voucher

and it's time to share the remaining 2 projects from Saturday's workshops at The Spring Retreat...

using Tim Holtz stamps to make an envelope album...

and the "Distress Your Storage" project...

I'm planning a snuggled up in my jammies with my furry bundle of deliciousness kind of a day but I'll be back tomorrow to share Sunday's projects.

Hugs Kath xxx

Make A Wish...

Hi folks...crikey how time flies when you're having fun...what better way to spend a Saturday than in the company of lots of lovely crafters at the Spring Retreat at The Papeterie. The first project was creating texture on a canvas with crinkled tissue paper and Tim Holtz die cuts...painting all over with Black Americana Decoart Chalk Paint and then lots of  finger waxing fun with the gorgeous Inka Golds from Viva Decor

and the good news is I get to do it all over again today. I'll be sharing the rest of the projects later in the week.

Hugs Kath xxx

Happy Days...

Hi folks...all set up and raring to go (and that statement may come back to bite me on the bum after my night on the town last night with the Friday girls)...

I'm looking forward to a fun day at the Spring Craft Retreat at The Papeterie with lots of lovely crafty folks...

 and tucking in to a yummy "all you can eat" lunch

Happy Days...

Hugs Kath xxx

What a load of waffle..

Hi folks...this is Post No 3,000 on this old blog...a bit of a milestone really...crikey that's a lot of waffling but I doubt you need confirmation that I was right at the top of the queue when the ability to talk the hind legs off a donkey was handed out and I haven't run out of conversation just yet so you'll have to put up with my daily witterings for a while longer. And woohoo...it's also Day 1 of the April Craft Retreat at The Papeterie...I bet all the lovely Retreaters are feeling mega mega excited and looking forward to a weekend of wonderful crafting fun. I'm not teaching today but I will be loading up the car with crafty projects for Saturday and Sunday...heading for an appointment with my ever patient nail guru and then to The Papeterie to set up my workshop space...I'm super duper excited to be meeting up again with my lovely buddy Annie who won a place on today's workshops in a recent Papeterie Facebook Competition and if I play my cards right...wangle some yummy lunch from the always fabulous buffet tables.
And just when I'm going to be absent from the cubbyhole for the whole weekend...Mr Postie decides to call with my April DT parcel of absolute crafty deliciousness from Inspiration Emporium...

 and the cleaner for The Misti has arrived...

I didn't order this from My Sweet Petunia when I ordered The Misti because frankly it was going to send the already high cost of postage into the stratosphere so I had a root around on T'internet and found it HERE from a UK supplier...£9.50...free P&P...2 day delivery with a complimentary cloth. You can see how big the bottle is so I think it's great value and also suitable for cleaning the cubbyhole's mucky acrylic stamping blocks.

But that's enough waffling for one day...see you all tomorrow

Hugs Kath xxx

Is there any willpower going spare...

Hi folks...I'm wondering if anyone has some spare willpower they could send my way...I'm struggling to stay indoors in this wonderful sunshine weather...looking for any old excuse to play truant and duck outside...hanging out the washing and snatching a quick 10 minute coffee break....popping out to the photo studio...sounds posh but it's just that old storage room at the back of the garage ended up in another 15 minutes in the sun coffee break and wow...my willpower flew right out of the window when Mr UPS came to call...

with a parcel of new goodies from Fiskars...by the time I got to grips with my nemesis...releasing everything from it's packaging...the day was gone...

but I have managed to finish some projects and there are sneaky peeks to prove it...

one more play with Flower Garden...I did warn you I was a "have no willpower" hopeless case

See you all tomorrow
Hugs Kath xxx

It's Time For A Give-Away...

Hi folks...the sun seems to have taken up permanent residence in my neck of the woods...3 weeks of beautiful sunshiney days with just the occasional hiccup...I can live with that and what better way to kick off a gorgeous blue sky Wednesday than with a give-away...a very generous £10 voucher to spend in The Ribbon Girl online store from the lovely Mary and Andrea...

you could be treating yourself to some of these gorgeous goodies...

all you have to do is leave your name with Inlinkz below before 8pm on Sunday and I'll announce the lucky winner bright and early on Monday morning...
And sunshine means alfresco breakfasts at silly o'clock...my favourite time of day with only my furry companion and the birds for company...

I'm slightly obsessed at the moment waiting to see if the re-seeding of the lawn is going to work...eyes peeled for the slightest hint that eventually there will be an all-over carpet of green again...a bit like watching paint dry but the resident sparrow population have other ideas...the news that there's a new restaurant in town has travelled fast...the cheeky little beggars are obviously embracing their very own social media technology and "tweeting" all in sundry to come and enjoy the "all you can eat" breakfast lunch and dinner bonanza...

my scary "scarecrow morning hair" look doesn't seem to work and the resident guard dog is too busy snoozing so we may have to resort to drastic measures and kidnap one of the neighbourhood cats for a week...here kitty kitty.

Hugs Kath xxx

Besotted or what...

Hi folks...it's the start of a crazy busy headless chicken " only 3 sleeps until The Retreat" few days but I'm not complaining about my "out of harm's way" exile in the cubbyhole...time to share my Sunday playtime card and another DT project for Inspiration Emporium. You've probably worked out by now that I'm absolutely besotted with Tim's Flower Garden stamps...hopelessly addicted...can't leave them alone...they are officially my favourite...favourite...favourite stamp set ever...

but I need to restrain myself...file them away for now and hit the rest of the crafty list

See you all tomorrow

Hugs Kath xxx