And then two came along at once....

My last post was about my first swap and yes, I wait and wait and then two came along at once! I happened across a swap and was actually in time to join in- what are the odds eh! This one came with a list of likes and dislikes to lead my gift choices. This got me stuck for a while as I wanted to stay away from the obvious as my swappee loves chocolate, fudge and lavender. I ended up just giving the gifts a bit of a twist and made...

1- Chocolate, pistachio and almond fudge (I hope it makes it there ok)
2-Lavender heart keyring- so she can keep lavender with her all day
3- Everlasting flowers- until the Spring brings out the bulbs!

The fudge was so easy and yummy- It's from Nigella's Express book and can be kept in the fridge but is best in the freezer where you can sneak chunks straight from the drawer and into your mouth. YUM
The flowers were made from floristry ribbon using the kit I purchased from the Glow event in Bluewater last month. I'm hoping to make up some more bunches for Mothers day.
The heart keyring was a wrench to give away as I absolutely loved it. I had so much fun using some of the embroidery skills I've picked up this year to make an old fashioned floral design. I made a mini bag and stuffed as much lavender as I could inside and blanket stitched beads around the edge.

I do hope you love it.

Thanks for organising this snipsnaphappy!

http://snipsnaphappy.blogspot.com/

A pause before publishing this post.....My own parcel arrived on Monday!

I've only just started making things for me to keep as there is always a birthday or celebration to cater for so I LOVED getting these thoughtful gifts. Mine came from lily@makingitvintage and they are all corkers. The peg bag is swinging on the line- one of my many on my to do list- and my fabric, calender and paper will all be stashed for the right project. But my favourite and best are these fingerless gloves! I joined Slimmingworld last year and have managed to lose 4 stone which is wonderful but leaves me with very cold hands and feet! Who knew that those skinny girls with multiple vests and tops weren't being fashionable but were just really, really cold? So, yes, I love them! They go on in the morning so I have nice warm hands when it comes to changing my baby's nappy (don't worry, I take the gloves off for that) and they stay on for morning lessons until I am truly warmed up. I only got them 4 days ago and they are hardly off and the classes I teach think they are fab too. So a huge thank you Lily and I hope your own gift will be as much loved as mine x

Fabulous February Swaps

I love reading about other peoples swaps. I've always seemed to miss them though so I had an idea. Why not do a mini swap with my fabulous crafty sisters? It would be such a treat to get a surprise packet once in a while. So, we all agreed for a February parcel based on the theme of "Hearts". Theming the swap seemed such a good idea at the time but you end up wracked with insecure choices and worry over them liking it. In the end, I opted to just have fun with it and got a bit carried away I must admit!

My parcel contained:

1-A felt notebook cover (for all those designs and crafty ideas)

http://www.craftstylish.com/item/41496/how-to-make-a-button-embellished-notebook-cover

2-A "Mug Hug" from my "Cute and Easy" crochet book

3-Herbal Tea bags with paper heart tags (featuring sentimental notes)

4- Heart Cookie (Christmas box- couldn't resist)

5- Fimo heart buttons- Not my best work but not bad for a first attempt.

One of my sisters posted that this was a monthly thing. God No, it took me most of the month to do these! I will do a separate post for my sisters beautiful gifts. It was like getting a hug in the post my girls- I look forward to our next challenge!

Glow event at Bluewater

I went to my first craft event on Friday and had such a blast! These things are always far away day events that wouldn't be up my husband's and little girl's street. I had heard about the Glow event at Bluewater earlier this year as I was invited to teach there but, as it's on my day with my little tot, I decided not to go. Friday came and I thought I would pop in as I had jobs at Bluewater and I grinned the whole time!

I stocked up on healthy nibbles for my baby, milk and planned rest stops but she spent most of the time holding my hand and toddling around as I one-handed pushed the buggy. The Mermaid's Grotto was our favourite- I don't think we could make one pass without popping in and waving to all the fish and stroking the seaweed strands. The life-sized Mermaid and Fisherman are amazing don't you think? I love her hair and false eyelashes!

I met the wonderful Erika Knight who's books I learnt to crochet by and did finger knitting with Hannah on my knee. She is bringing out her own range of stunning wools and individual patterns for downloading which is a great idea. She also said that she's bringing out a new crochet book for Baby patterns which I must get.

I saw the exhibit of costumes from Downton abbey and managed to even quickly stitch my name into the world's longest embroidery- this was tricky as Hannah was again on my knee, babbling away and pretending to sew with the other ladies.

I did buy myself one treat. There was a stall demonstrating how to turn florist ribbon and tape into amazing flowers. The chap who demonstrated had all the right patter and made it look so effortless that you knew it would actually be really hard. He whipped up two flowers so quickly for my girls and spritzed them with perfume ( which is so 1970s). But it looked like something new and a craft I have never done before so I bought into it happily, knowing that I may flop but I would enjoy the process! I bought the starter kit which came with loads of different colour ribbon, tape, dvd of techniques and the special cutting tool. Then I spent a happy couple of hours getting to grips with it all. Guess what? It worked! I love the ones so far and will pop some pictures up when I have made a few bunches. With Mother's day coming up, I know what I'll be making...