Designing Bracelet Kits

My Christmas Crafting really hasn't been going well :(  Between the website work and workshops for Bead Pop in Aberdeen, I just haven't found much time to make things just for meeee.  So no Christmas decorations finished, no tree up yet and no presents made either.. but I have had a chance to finally sit down and design wee bracelet kits, an idea I've had stuck in my head for ages!

No pony beads in sight, just quality acrylic, glass and resin beads - in cool shapes and colours - with coordinating, durable elastic cord!  Too bad it's a bit late for online Christmas Shopping but I'm really pleased with how they turned out so I'll be adding them to the website soon anyway!

Pinecones

I took my new shoes out on an Autumn walk last week to hunt for Xmas crafting supplies at the park..just wait, it'll make sense soon!

I followed the trail of squirrels...

 until I found what I was looking for..

Pine trees!

(how cute is this wee guy!)

Ta-da!  Pinecones!

Why would I buy sparkly pinecone decorations from John Lewis when I can nip down the park, dry these out at home and then have the fun of painting them up myself!

Well, we'll see. The verdict on my homemade version isn't in yet because they're lying in a "to-do" pile of crafts.  I'm still spending most of my days tucked up in bed, totally fatigued by this dengue fever thing :'(

Bead Pop, Aberdeen

I've been working with this great bead shop "Bead Pop" in Aberdeen for a couple of years now - teaching workshops, organising charity fundraisers and managing their website/online class bookings.

I was up visiting last week to take some stock photos and to help them get ready for the holiday season!

It took us until near midnight and we still didn't get it finished but look how gorgeous and Christmassy the shop window is starting to look ^_^

If you live anywhere in the North East of Scotland then I'd definitely recommend paying them a visit to stock up on Christmas Crafting materials, it's an absolute treasure trove of jewellery making supplies.  Here are a few of my seasonal favourites:

Perfect for making some Christmas themed jewellery or beaded decorations, right?!

You can find Bead Pop at:

19-21 St Andrew St

Aberdeen

AB25 1BQ

                                    

Resin Xmas Trees

I absolutely love any excuse for dressing up, meeting up with pals and celebrating so was pretty excited when I realised I was coming back from India just in time for Halloween and Fireworks night this year.. Unfortunately I flew home sick with dengue fever so ended up missing all the festivities while I lay in hospital having three/four blood tests done a day and puking my guts up around the clock :(
Thankfully I'm back in my own bed now and I'm determined to get better in time to enjoy at least ONE holiday season!

So I know I'm starting a bit early with all the Christmas chat but I really need something to look forward to while I'm still sicky. I'm also just too damned excited about it this year as I've decided to hand make a whole bunch of new things as presents!  I've got lots of projects bookmarked to try out in the next few weeks including soap, candle and lip balm making.

This is also the first year in a long time that I live somewhere big enough to put up a wee tree so I've already made a start on making my own decorations.

 It feels like a bit of a cheat start to my season of crafting because I've been working with resin for years but when I saw this cute wee ice-cube tray in Poundland, I just couldn't resist it.   It's not the greatest quality mould (go figure) so my pieces came out quite lumpy and lopsided but they'll do for decorations (no one will be looking at my tree that closely I hope!)   Glitter and snowflake sequins were also acquired in poundland but from years gone by so I'm not sure what sort of selection they have instore at the moment.

Turned out pretty cute?  I don't actually have a tree to hang them on yet so I've left the boring task of drilling holes and stringing them on to ribbon for another day.

hello world

While I was away in India I started browsing craft blogs for workshop inspiration and realised how much I actually miss keeping my own.  It's been years since I used anything but tumblr but I'll be doing a lot of crafting in the run up to Christmas (attempting all handmade presents this year) so it seems a good time to re-join the blogging world!