I Wasn't Supposed To Be Buying.................

 ....................card making bits.

 

Most of my card crafting stuff went to charity shops or was sold at car boot sales. I've kept my cross stitching threads, aida, some small kits and card blanks, sticky fixers and a few other bits - just in case.

But this, seen at last Sundays boot sale, just appealed and has everything included to make a black, silver and gold owl card.

And then the lady said "there's another nice pack to make more bird cards in the pile too" as she looked through and handed me this pack that has everything to make 8 cards.

and I found myself buying the lot for £2.50.

Bother!

Then I went home before I could be talked into anything else and made a note-to-self  NO MORE CARDS NEEDED!.

Back Soon

Using It Up

I've gradually been using up my stash of card making materials . I just don't enjoy it anymore and life's too short!

Last week I got the few remaining sheets of Christmas  3D Decoupage sheets and card blanks out onto the table to turn into cards for this year....I've got enough that I bought from charity shops in the January sales in the drawer already, but the cards made will mean I don't need to buy many in 2025 sales.

16 Christmas cards made, pity 3D never shows up in photos.

 

There are  some birthday decoupage sheets that needed using too. That's a job for today after I've walked up the road for tree photos (weather permitting) and made some sort of cakes for the weekend.

Back Tomorrow

Sue 

The Flood/Car Saga is Over

I looked after the MG and YGD on Saturday so that Son and DiL could go and find a new-to-them car. Second-hand cars are crazy expensive nowadays - now that 'they' want everyone to buy electric which most people can't afford and will be impossible to charge for the majority who don't live in homes with driveways and room to park and plug -in. 

 Thankfully they found something suitable so my car is all mine again and if it had been fine on Sunday I would have gone to the Woolpit boot-sale ........but of course it rained YET AGAIN - All Day.

Stayed at home instead and decided to craft a few cards using up some more of my craft stash. After 3 Easter cards I remembered why I don't enjoy card making much anymore....rather be reading or writing.

The cookery section of the Bacton Fayre and Produce Show in August is organised by the WI and I've been helping for the last few years. So I spent some time searching through the WI Cakes and Biscuits cookery book for ideas ready to send off details to  the Schedule editor. I seem to have volunteered to assist the judge on the day as I have done for the last couple of years. Not sure I'll enter much this year, it makes a very tiring couple of days, baking the day before then on the day having to pick fresh vegetables and  get there early for putting entries in and then 3 or 4 hours helping and then looking round the Fayre and going back again to collect entries at the end of the day -  I'll see nearer the time - I'm probably too competitive NOT to enter something!

Mother's Day pressie from Son and DiL made me smile - hanging here until I find a hook

and lovely flowers for this weeks Flowers On The Table

And more good news, my car had it's annual service and went through the MOT on Monday, so that's sorted.

Back Tomorrow

Sue

Craft Stash Shrinking

  I found a few old  Craft Creations decoupage papers at the bottom of the Christmas drawer among some other bits that I've had for years.

I used them up to make 3 cards for Grandchildren for this year, just need to stick on Happy Christmas labels. Then I put everything else into the Charity Shop bag.

More 'stuff' going or gone.

It was interesting yesterday to read all the comments about the three authors mentioned.   

 I'm just happy to read what I like and leave everything else to others.

Back Tomorrow

Sue

Where and When...............?

 There weren't many birthday cards for men  left in my card box after sorting out one for son and nephew so I checked out the decoupage folder.

And totally surprised to find these..............

They are not decoupage but die-cut sheets for making layered pyramid cards. But I don't remember buying them ...............no mention of them on car-boot posts ................ they wouldn't have been new that's for sure ................. so where did they come from? I have no idea, which is odd as I usually remember.

Anyway, I got stuck into a bit of cardmaking - these are so easy to do they feel like cheating.

I made up a couple of proper 3D decoupage too from sheets bought years ago from Craft Creations (still think it's a shame they stopped trading, especially as I have some large cards that I can't find decent envelopes to fit and it would have been so simple a few years ago)

Enough for several birthdays for the men in the family - next year and more.

Thank you everyone for comments yesterday about all the things our Mum's dosed us with back in the day. Children in 2022 don't know what they are missing!

Back Soon

Sue

Greetings Cards

 At one Sunday car boot sale a few weeks ago I came home with nothing except this bundle of lovely cards to use for birthdays/Christmas, they are mostly hares or owls and were 50p each. 

Finding these gave me a nudge to sort out my card making stuff - I really needed to have a sort out and clear out as when the en-suite is rebuilt in the bedroom my craft shelves and boxes will have to be moved out and after the work is done there won't be as much room for them as previously.

This year I think I've only put together a couple of cards from die-cut toppers and can't really get up any enthusiasm for card making anymore.

So I had a big clear out - material I was keeping "just in case I ever bought another sewing machine" was reduced to a smaller box; a large box of ribbons and bows was whittled down to just a small bag that went in with the material; another big box of random bits for decorating cards went out;  lots of papers were put into a box ready to go to grandchildren for crafting and all that meant  I went from 2 sets of shelves full of stuff down to one and several empty storage boxes to put in the garage/sell or give away along with the spare shelf unit.

 

I've kept the cross stitch charts, a few small kits, aida, threads and card blanks and the peel-off labels,  because perhaps sometime in the future I'll be glad of doing X stitch again. Also hanging onto a folder of die cut sheets that are easy to use for cards. I've kept a box of shape cutters and serrated scissors which hopefully will be passed onto the grandchildren when they are older. But everything else is in the car ready for a charity shop.

How did you get on during the first of the Red Hot Days? (We were only in the Amber warning area here but plenty warm enough) It would have been nicer here without the workman next door - carrying on with laying their patio with his radio going all day. I had all jobs done by 10am and settled down with the World Athletics Championships on TV, lots of glasses of water, a Sudoku book, another of my library books and the start of turning an old watercolour book into a scrapbook to keep all the best bits from the old scrapbooks that I found in the boot sale last year and to add some of my own old postcards and scraps.

 

Back Tomorrow

Sue

Made Cards and Plant Labels

Another week mostly hibernating through January, except for a trip to Diss for shopping and to meet up with Rachel-from-Norfolk for our regular catch up in Morrisons cafe. (BTW in my defence, I only have a bacon roll and 2 coffees if I've not eaten breakfast before going up to Diss!)

It's been a cold week but there were several spells of sunshine and I got out for a quick walk most days to catch some vitamin D - I work on the principal that a mile is better than nothing! 

I finally got round to making some terracotta plant labels for myself after finding the pack of air-drying  Das clay at a car boot sale last year. (I made some the same for the Hampers in 2020)

Yes, there is one printed the wrong way round.

These are now drying, they will just need a little sanding on edges and then I have to find the tin of clear varnish - hope it moved here with me - I shall be very cross if it didn't

I also made up the 3D Decoupage cards ready for Christmas and, with what were left from this year, I don't need to buy any unless there are any cheap charity packs at a boot sale.

And, with all the reading I mentioned yesterday, that was another week gone.

This week I am grateful for

• Good books again
• Sunshine
  
• A Warm house
  

Hope you have a good weekend 

I shall be back Monday

Sue

Made A Few Cards & Read a Book

First of all I must say Thank You for everyone who commented on posts and I didn't get round to replying especially on the book posts. Several people said they got ideas for reading which is good news. Also "Bye" to people who've un-followed (not that I'm counting or checking of course!)

 

 I call this cheats card making as it's basically just sticking toppers and 3D Decoupage sheets onto card blanks.

I think these are from bits picked up at boot-sales, but can't remember finding the cat-on-armchair sheets at all and no picture of them in any posts with 'Carboot Bargains' or 'Charity Shop Finds' labels. The teddy card 3D sheets made a card for Middle Grandsons 2nd Birthday next month, they came among a bundle from a friend for Christmas.

Next I have a some Christmas Card decoupage cards to put together. They must have come from a boot sale sometime too and were in the drawer underneath the cards I had ready to send out this year. It's odd that I can't remember where these came from either and also no photos..They were all muddled up in a plastic folder, so after sorting out there was enough  to make 8  cards. I need to get busy with the sticky fixers next week.

  I've also got  some Christmas bits and bobs that came from my friend for Christmas along with the teddy decoupage above. This is all looking hopeful for not needing to buy any Christmas cards this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first book read in 2022 was this, which has been sitting on shelves for a year or so. It will go on the pile for selling when I've collected enough to make it worthwhile sending them. I'm determined to move books out as well as buying.

Details on the Books 2022 page

 

That's what I've been doing this week along with a shopping trip for fresh fruit and veg, some cleaning,washing and ironing, one morning up the road at The Old Schoolroom for WI Knit, stitch and natter group -I'm  just knitting a dishcloth - and a day of driving and looking after Eldest Granddaughter and a day of recovering from driving and looking after EG!

Have a good weekend

I'll be back Monday

Sue

A Windy Sunday

On Saturday I arrived at the big Boot Sale at the same time as it started to pour with rain, so I turned round and went out again.....and so did everyone else.
Didn't even bother to try on Sunday as it was grey, chilly and very windy. Instead I baked scones and went out for a walk across the back field.

I have no idea if this video will work,  and because it was so windy you can't hear the skylarks that I could hear and most of my words were blown away too.

The footpath down my meadow and out onto the field isn't used much and mainly by local people, but if I'd done this walk just a while later I would have turned round and seen a large group of ramblers appearing - which would have been quite a surprise. I looked online and found they were Ipswich Ramblers group doing a nine mile walk in the area.

If we all have to stay at home and isolate ourselves at least I'll still be able to walk the path in the middle of nowhere.

Later I finished  this cross stitch, after it had been sitting half done in a drawer for about 2 years.  I've been right off stitching for all that time.

I used to stitch this design a lot when I was stitching to sell cards at the Country Market. It's quick and easy but looks quite effective especially when done on this marbled blue Aida. Just need to get it into a card blank......which mustn't take two years to do.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Using It Up

It was way back in October 2018 that I first thought about downsizing the card- making stash. I wrote....................

Owning all the card making stuff that I have means that if I see nice cards somewhere and buy them (like the ones  from the art exhibition)   I then feel guilty because I know about the bits and bobs sitting on the shelves at home.............I also don't want to shift everything yet again when it comes to the time to move house.

I made a few cards in January last year and some more for Easter and then a few more at Christmas, and cleared  lots of equipment out -  some at the two car boot sales and a few bits to The Big C charity shop in Diss where they run craft courses and have lots of crafting items for sale.

After all that I still have some 3D decoupage sheets left so got busy again and every female friend and family member this year will get  a vase of flowers card. All I need to do is add a"Happy Birthday" sticker/topper  and  "sister/sister in law/daughter/DiL" peel off  at the time.

I've not got rid of everything as I kept lots of card blanks, a few paper punches and rubber stamps, some papers, decoupage sheets, toppers, stickers, peel-off labels and other  things which might come in handy for grandchildren later.

This means that if I see a lovely card at an art exhibition which seems just right for someone I'll be able to buy it - supporting local artists- without feeling guilty that I have tons at home yet still I've enough bits and bobs to rattle up a card or two if need be.

And scaling down meant a whole chest of drawers was emptied and passed on to Son and DiL who needed something for Willow's Big Girl bedroom.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

All of a Sudden We Are..................

...........................halfway through March

When I was out last Sunday a little orange spanner symbol appeared on the dashboard- Bother. I rang the repair place and took the car round on Monday and luckily it was nothing, or rather nothing to worry about, just something to do with settings from new, showing when it's due for service......which has already been done. NOTE TO SELF..........when this happens in March next year I have to hold down throttle and brake pedals together for 20 seconds to clear the prompt signal.

It was so cold and windy this week that I wimped out of swimming, stayed at home and sorted through some more craft bits instead. And, on a whim, decided to make some Easter cards. The only Easter-ish bits I had were some small "Happy Easter" peel off stickers.But what I did have - from the 2018 car boot haul -were some big square peel offs that I'd kept even though I wasn't sure when I'd use them.

 Inspired by stained glass in all the churches that I've been visiting I got out the fine-line felt-pens

Colouring in all the little spaces was quite therapeutic.


This week I am grateful for

• My wonderful children and grandchildren
• The ease of printing out photos to keep 
• An invitation to  roast dinner with my brother in law and sister in law
• The car problem that wasn't a problem after all
• Letters from penfriends
• Finding out that if I knock 1mm of car wing mirror on the garage door and it falls to bits then I can click it back together again! Another  NOTE TO SELF.... probably not a good idea to try this again!

Thank you to everyone for comments over the week, I just don't seem to have time to get around to replying, which must be annoying for everyone - sorry.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend, wherever you are and what ever the weather.........the forecast is awful more windy weather, rain and snow in some places.

Back Monday
Sue

A Few Cards

Using a few bits from the card making stash and then some more of the 3D Decoupage sheets that I got last year I've made some thank you cards and a couple of birthday cards. I think there are now enough cards in my card box for the year.

 I'm working my way through all the card making stuff acquired over the last 30+  years, really don't want to buy more or move it all again.

Thank you for all the comments yesterday

Back Tomorrow
Sue

December 11th and the Slightly Naff Purchase

When I told son and DIL that I'd bought a slightly tacky Christmas decoration and they would probably love it, they wondered what it was, and when I described it they said they'd bought something very similar from a car boot sale too - knew it would suit them!

Wouldn't have looked twice at this Christmas canvas picture if I'd seen it in a shop but it was at a Car-boot sale for £1 and the lady selling said it just needed batteries and I had a plan.

I took a photo of it with the lights on..................maybe it should have more lights? Possibly the reason someone got rid of it.

Then  loaded onto memory stick and took it into Boots, printed off a few which will be turned into Christmas cards next year.

I might pass the picture to the charity shop  now I've got the photos or just keep it lit up on the shelf for Christmas or give it to son and DIL to start a collection..

Just looked to see how much they are new.............good grief............some are £10!

Diary Notes
Sunday was a good morning in the kitchen (It's all very well gadding about taking photos for the blog and keeping busy but it doesn't leave time to do anything at home!)
 I'd bought local bacon and chipolatas from the Co-op, so spent a while twisting all the chippos in half to make mini sausages and wrapping them all in a third of a slice of streaky bacon. Then I heated a bit of honey in the microwave,stirred in some whole grain mustard, left it to cool and spooned over the sausages and bacon in a oven tray. Popped the whole lot in a freezer bag and then into the freezer. One job done for Christmas day. Wondering if I should do another lot for the 3 vegetarians although veggie sausages and bacon always look pretty awful.
Next I mixed up some fruit cake mix for 3 mini cakes for the hampers. I like the idea I found for decorating them which involves tri-coloured glace cherries and pecan nuts.
And while the cakes were in the oven I also cooked some chicken thighs  for my lunches this week.
While they were cooking I made my favourite "make early and freeze" dessert. It a Chocolate Meringue Gateaux - suitable for vegetarians and gluten free but very, very bad for for people on diets! (the recipe's on the recipe page somewhere), I've got a medium sized Christmas pud in the cupboard, bought last year and unused but still in date so that's dessert for Christmas Day sorted.
Finally I did the tomato, garlic and ginger soup that I was asking about (Jack Munro's Hot Nurse ). I keep waking up snuffly and thinking it's a cold coming, so far it hasn't come to anything but I'm hoping the soup will stop it in it's tracks.
(Tried the soup...........think I over did the ginger! ..........Phew)

Another book read in December thank goodness. Nicola Ford - The Hidden Bones. First novel by this author, who is an archaeologist  and the story is set around a Dig, missing finds, murder and secrets hidden for 40 years.She has a follow up due in May, I shall make a note to check the library.

Keep forgetting to welcome new followers as I see numbers have crept up to 444. Hello and hope you enjoy reading. Do leave a comment - sometimes I get time to reply and other days I don't so apologies for those days in advance!

 
Back Tomorrow
Sue

Card Making..... Dilemmas, Discussion,Guilt and Decisions

 When I had a tidy up and move round in the craft room a few months ago I came to the conclusion that the only stuff I would keep would be card blanks and peel off labels  because cards made now are usually done with 3D decoupage sheets but that feels like cheating, or cross stitch, which I haven't done for ages.
All that it takes to make a  3D decoupage card is press out the die-cut pictures, layer them up as per their numbered layers using glue dots or double sided sticky tabs, mount them in or on a suitable card and add a peel-off greeting. Not creative and no skill involved.

Owning all the card making stuff that I have also means that if I see nice cards somewhere and buy them (like the ones I got from the art exhibition)   I then feel guilty because I know about the bits and bobs sitting on the shelves at home. What I don't have is things like die cutting machines and I'm never happy with cards I make from papers and toppers - I have no imagination!

I also don't want to shift everything yet again when it comes to the time to move house. But then on the other hand all the crafting stuff might come in handy when the grandchildren are bigger!

Anyway, over the last few weeks I've been using the die-cut sheets that I got from Craft Creations in the summer to make some birthday cards. They look OK (although 3D doesn't work in photos) but I  know they are quick to make and it just doesn't feel like proper card making.

So........... I think I've decided not to buy more craft stuff, to use the decoupage sheets I have  and then clear out most of the small bits and pieces. Then I'll search charity shops for nice cards.

...........I think I've decided.......... but I am allowed to change my mind!


Hope you all have  a lovely weekend. Welcome to some new followers, hope you enjoy reading

Back Monday
Sue

Easter Cards

March.....and it was my turn for a Penny Pincher Letter. I've mentioned before how a group of us who subscribed to The Penny Pincher Paper kept in touch after the Paper finished.There were 7 of us

writing originally...........now we are down to  5 taking it in turns to write.
My Penny Pincher Letter is rarely about Penny Pinching because it's all old news but I just write about what's been happening in the last few months, books read, bargains found etc. much the same as the blog...........but without pictures! Luckily 2 of the people who I send letters to don't read the blog so it's new news to them.

Anyway, as Easter is coming up I thought I would make some cards to include in with my letter. I had a quick look through the stash and couldn't find anything that gave me any ideas for cards. So I went on Craft Creations website and did a virtual shop - putting all sorts of things in my basket. When it got to check-out the total came to over £30....WHAT! I went back and took things out of the basket but it still came to over £20......too much for someone with shelves and boxes full of card making stuff. I switched the lap top off and looked through my stash again and at last came up with an idea and made the cards above.

Spending £0.....satisfaction 10/10!

Even though I printed out the letters and got them into envelopes we were then stuck at home due to the snow and  I didn't get them posted off to arrive on the first of the month............ Finally got them posted when the snow went .

We had a very good morning at Addenbrookes yesterday. Col's specialist nurse had organised his usual clinic appointment + CT scan + bone marrow sampling to perfection, we were in and out and roundabout without too many hold ups and home by 2.15pm. And Good News -  we don't have to go to Addenbrookes for 2 weeks and he can have the Hickman line dressing changed in Ipswich next week instead. It will be nice to have a week without that trip along the A14.

Thank you to everyone for hankie comments yesterday. I love to think of boxes of fancy hankies going into charity shops after each Christmas and then selling again before the next Christmas! Hankies and tea towels were the things I was first "allowed" iron when I was young and I do keep a box of soft tissues for visitors, those ones with balm are much kinder on small noses.

Have a good weekend.

Back Monday
Sue

December 10th - And the Card Making

This was my desk several weeks ago

Making Christmas cards for the family with 3D Decoupage sheets, which I got from Craft Creations two years ago. There wasn't anywhere to work on them at the very small bungalow so I couldn't do them last year but got busy on them in the Autumn.
I thought they looked quite good when finished, but put them all in envelopes the other day without taking a photo - Duh.
 I think Christmas card writing is all finished now. The Christmas card stash has been greatly reduced as I avoided buying any in 2016 and 2017 January sales and at two years of boot sales so this January I give myself permission to look round the charity shops again.

Thank you to more new followers and for comments - much appreciated.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Cross Stitch Rescue

From a car boot sale a couple of weeks ago I bought a big envelope full of  beautifully neat cross stitch pictures. The seller was one of those house clearance bods with boxes full of all sorts. I paid £2 for the lot and when I got home and had a proper look in the envelope I found 17 little pictures - mostly Christmassy -  right ready for putting in cards.

I've got plenty of card blanks so did some straight away - those on the right  -  and just need to iron the rest and get them mounted.

But then what?
Can I really pass them off as my own? There's hours and hours (and Hours) of work there and I wouldn't ever choose to stitch penguins and polar bears they are not 'me'.

So I thought I'd donate them to a charity but............ most of the chain charity shops sell their own Christmas cards anyway and I'm not sure these would be put out for sale.

So I'm still puzzling over what to do with them, maybe the Macmillan Cancer Information Centre at the hospital could sell them for fundraising - I shall ask but they might not be allowed to.

I'll let you know.

And thank you for most of the comments yesterday! 

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Card Making from the Stash and Almost Fraud

When I've had a spare hour or so in the last couple of weeks I've been busy making some cards.

Most of these are from die-cut 3D decoupage sheets that I got from Craft Creations over a year ago. They are the cheats way of card-making! ( 3D  doesn't show up on photos)

We had a letter from the Department of Work and Pensions who've told us off for not telling them that Col was getting a Suffolk County Council pension. We thought we had told them......... the Tax Office certainly knew but I had no idea that  HMRC and DWP didn't communicate, so we've been getting too much Employment Support Allowance  money for the last few months which is akin to fraud. They'll claim it back from us of course.............thank heavens we saved the inheritance from my Dad is something I say quite frequently! Time to tighten belts again methinks.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Pleased With These Cards

Three more cards made recently. I have to admit the idea isn't mine, it was something I saw in an old copy of Craft Creations Magazine but all the bits were in my stash including those owls which I'd had for Years without finding a use for them.

A space has been left at the bottom under the owl for adding a peel off greeting. I'm quite pleased with them.
I'm much better at card making if I have an idea to follow....in other words I'm not very arty!

Had a re-arrangement of the craft room so that when the Surrey family come to stay we can put Jacob's cot in there - then he won't disturb  H and J and vice versa. Made a good space in the middle of craft room then discovered the cot won't come out of the bedroom without taking it to pieces! Duh! Means when they come to stay we shall have to put the cot back together in craft room each time - how annoying.

Thanks for comments about everything over the last few days. Thank heavens the weather was better yesterday. I did some clearing in the greenhouse and garden and washed pots. 

Back Soon
Sue

Last Sunday Afternoon was................

................damp and dreary, no good for gardening and Col with the horrible head cold and wanting to snooze. So I disappeared upstairs to the craft room and put together two cross stitch cards and made the garden shed card. The two cards on the left were made a few weeks ago using some patterned papers with flower toppers and peel-offs stuck over the print flowers and gems for the centres of the flowers. Bottom right is just 3D decoupage.

Recently made cards

 Then  I sorted out a few more pages for the scrapbook. I'd left a space for our eldest's wedding before  doing a Jacob page last year. So two wedding pages (Eldest daughter and son) and then a page for Florence.

Next I'm going to sort some photos and do a page for the move here,  another for Col's 60th birthday and then  a page in memory of Mum and Dad C.

 Monday's weather was even worse than Sunday..........we had rain all day bar about an hour, which is quite unusual for Suffolk, so after house work and food prep I went and made another couple of cards and started looking for  photos for the scrap book.



Back Shortly
Sue