Handmade Christmas Cards

These are some of my handmade Christmas Cards that I have been making and then teaching classes from lately.

I love the gold and brown colours as a change from the traditional green and red. They look like a box of Ferrero Rocher chocolates!

You can check out further details over at my papercraft website Splendid Stamping. 

New Year Readiness

I refused to start 2011. It came around far too quickly and I just told it that it had arrived too early and that it would have to wait at the front door until I was ready to open it up and let the new year flow on in.

So now, a couple of weeks into the year I am finally ready to get going again. I think the problem I have each year is that our annual holiday is just too damn good. I become so relaxed that it is too difficult to come back to reality!

Perhaps a little too much of this....

 and this.....

 and this.......

Anyway, nothing like a little bit of this to get me back into my baking and making.....

Speaking of making....
After such a successful year of teaching paper crafting last year I have taken the plunge to throw myself 'out there' some more and have a store at the local Paper Arts Festival for the next three days.
Here is a taste....

You can find out more at my paper crafting site  Splendid Stamping

New Handmade Cards

It is so lovely to be back home again. I have been away so much over the last three months. Now, I am home to stay, for a while at least.

I took the opportunity to make some cards today. As you know, this is my therapy!

I am teaching classes based on these designs. You can check out more details on my Splendid Stamping site.

Paper Crafting Distraction

I needed some major distraction on Saturday afternoon. So I paper crafted like a woman possessed!

My youngest son went for his first sleepover. He was so excited that he was finally old enough to be let out! He turns nine in May.

I was excited for him as well. He was acting super grown up and playing it really cool. As he marched out the front gate with barely time for a cuddle and for me to spit on a hankie and wipe his little face like the embarrassing mother that I am - he was off!!

I was........ lost..... reflective maybe ? Can't quite explain it, just a little .......... delicate perhaps.

So, what better way to distract oneself that cracking out some coloured paper, some good wine and some great music.
These are some of the cards I made. You can see more of them at my stamping site www.splendidstamping.com

Do you want to know something really funny (?).......

When my eldest son went to Sydney for the first time on a school excursion it was the day of the major dust storm that brought Sydney to it's knees. So, you could imagine how I felt when I packed the youngest boy off to one of our local beach suburbs and they announced the tsunami warning for that area ! LOL

Coloured paper....... red wine..... loud music........ {thank goodness for the distraction}

Papercrafting With A Personal Touch

When I make a card I like to match it to the person receiving it. This card was made for my friend Liz, who we had a surprise party for on Saturday night.

It is elegant, classic and beautiful - just like her!

If you are into papercrafting goodness and want more details on how I made it, head on over to my other site www.splendidstamping.com

Back From My Blogging Break

Ahhhhhhh!!! { Standing and Stretching}.

Time to return from my blogging break. It has been rather nice to have a break from writing, although my brain didn't take much of a holiday. It is always churning through philosophical analysis of events that are taking place around here.

Thank you to all the readers who sent me emails worrying about where I was {lol} I didn't realise you cared so much! {blush}. Your kind words were very encouraging.

One of the fabulous things about working from home or for yourself is the ability to take time out as required, depending on your family's needs or the need for a personal sabbatical.

So..... what have I been doing ?

Well, quite a bit actually. I have been teaching a lot more card making classes, organising ourselves for Christmas, 'gyming it' every day, learning lots more 'from scratch' recipes, planting lots of things in the garden ready for summer and selling excess possessions on E-Bay to create extra spending money for the holidays.

I am hoping that you are all ready for Christmas. You may enjoy reading Seven Steps To A Simple Christmas that I put together for the ABC radio interview last year.

And lastly....... I have written previously about having problems with my email system directing emails from the website to my inbox. I have been able to access the emails ( particularly the newsletter email form) from inside the site and there are over 200 emails yet to process! I am working through them, but please be patient if I take a little while to get to yours. I will do my best to respond.

More Handmade Christmas Cards

Hope you like them !

The Beginning of a Handmade Christmas

I have started making some Christmas Cards. Firstly, because I wanted to fiddle with some designs for some upcoming classes I am teaching and secondly to prepare my stash of beautiful cards, ready to send out joyful messages when the time arrives.