OMG It's Been 9 Months Since Last Blog Update!

OMG has it seriously been 9 months since I've even logged into my own blog!!!! That's a bit embarrassing really!  I suddenly remembered tonight that I even had a blog, so thought I really should stop by and catch you all up a bit.

I haven't been crafting much at all in the last 9 months, BUT I was busy at the end of last year making some items and selling me at a local market, which proved to be really successful and I had a great time doing it (great confidence booster which doesn't go astray!).

Well, the time has come to start doing it all again!  I've come up with a few new items to put on my table and I'm really looking forward to seeing if they'll even be a little bit popular.  I PROMISE I'll be back with pictures to share what I have made and what I will be making in the near future!  Please don't give up on me!

On a personal note, life has totally changed again in the last 7-8 months.  I have moved back into my own house (after renting it for 18 months to 2 lots of 'strangers' (!) and really enjoyed some small renovations, and by small I mean small!  I'm the worlds most indecisive person, (have been known to spend far too long trying to decide what dishwashing soap to buy, or what box of bandaids is best!) so it's actually been very difficult for me, choosing colours etc.  But my little home is looking great again!  It has the "Tania-touch" all over it and I'm love love loving it!  Just got one more room to paint and it's done for now though I have so many ideas for the future, for not only my home but a few other adventures I have up my sleeve...I just hope I can make them work!

Thanks for sticking with me....stay tuned, I will try really hard to keep updated a bit more often!   

My life over the last few months!

It has been such a long time since I've even thought of my blog, not to mention actually contribute to it at all...but I have a bit of time to spare at the moment so I thought I would update anyone who may be interested.

For those that don't know...I completely and utterly lost any creative mojo that I used to have.  My craft desk ended up being used as a dumping-ground and it was a constant effort to keep it clean and dust free - which was a real shame, with all the craft products just sitting there being unused and unloved.

Back in October on a very difficult day for me, I visited my fabulous friend (who is also my BF's mother!) at one of her 1st market stalls at Evandale Market (Tasmania, Australia).  She was kind enough to offer a little bit of her table space so I could sell a bit of my "stuff" in exchange for helping her set up etc the next week.  I did this, got busy that week making some new fresh "stuff"....I sold a bit...but I learnt lots about what people want and what they don't want...and that I can't make them buy things that "I" like!  lol

A smalls sample of some of the peg magnets that I've made, all but 2 of these have already sold!

Well, several markets later, I've honed my items and I have found that my peg magnet sets are the most popular, along with post-it note holders, 'jellybeans-in-owls' and my paper balls.  I have enjoyed it thoroughly....more than I ever thought and I've even been brave enough to hold my own stall on my very own...though my mummy did come with me! ;) 

My 1st lot of "jellybeans-in-owls" that I've made.

My 2nd lot of "jellybeans-in-owls" - some Christmas themed.

I have started making some mobiles...and I'm really really hoping that they will take off a bit more but they have been difficult to display at markets not to mention THE WIND!  Anyway, that's an exciting project that I'm embarking on and that I will share more about later.

All these photo's aren't very good pics but it shows a little of what I've been doing lately!  

Here's my end of our little stall...picture taken several weeks ago so lots of these items have already been sold and new ones are in their place!

Now for some personal highlights of my life over the last few months (in no particular order):

1. Having a very proud mummy moment watching my gorgeous almost-7-year-old stand up on stage in front of several hundred people and play her very 1st violin solo!

2.  Enjoying our new kitten...now that's he a big boy and is toilet-trained!

3.  Having a night out with friends to see Kasey Chambers & her husband Shane Nicholson sing from their new Wreck & Ruin album!

4.  Enduring not one, not two but THREE wobbly teeth demonstrations from my daughter and eventually 3 x "MUM!  It finally fell out!!! I pulled it out!!!" (Note: I don't "do" wobby teeth....makes me feel quite ill!)

5. New couch shopping!!!! (very very difficult for an indecisive girl like me!)

6. A trip down to Bruny Island (bottom of Tasmania, Australia) with my girl and my parents...hoping to see some seals, dolphins and even maybe a whale on a boat trip, but unfortunately we had such terrible weather that only a handful of brave seals let themselves be on display for us, but it was a trip to remember, that's for sure!

7. Took my little girl Charlotte to our local show and being as proud-as-punch when she gave in to me and let me take her on the "Gee-Whizz" ride!  lol.  She even did it twice cos I really wanted to go again!  She's so brave!

8.  Teaching Charlotte to drive!  Yep, you heard right, drive!  She's 6!  She's driven my car (on my lap) steering the wheel and controlling the accelerator (I was in charge of the brake) and she did amazingly well!  I so can't wait for her to drive me around, for a change!

Of course there are lots more highlights as I've really enjoyed this last year, living on my parents farm, living the "country-life" again and homeschooling my daughter!  It's almost come to an end though, and a new chapter will be starting very soon which is scary and exciting at the same time!
If you're still with me, thanks for taking the time to read and catch up on "Tania & Charlotte's life"!

One very very proud and happy little girl - with her very 1st trophy (for violin)!!!

I believe in a world without factory farming. #makeitpossible

I dare you....

I dare you to look at this and still keep buying your "cheap" meat and eggs.
I believe in a world without factory farming. #makeitpossible

Please help stop this barbaric treatment of animals that can't speak for themselves.

Go one........dare you!   ;)


x Tania

Ruby - Our Little Miracle

For those of you who are interested in my little farm stories....

It's been a tough day on the farm today...we unfortunately had to put down 2 pregnant sheep because they were very very sick (hard to understand and accept, I know, but it was the kindest thing to do)...and we were able to save one of the unborn lambs.

She's tucked up inside tonight - away from the terrible wind and rain.  She's just had her 1st feed of colostrum and is now able to stand for a little while before falling over.  She's a true miracle, our Ruby.  Unfortunately her twin didn't make it but she will have Maggie to keep her company now.  Let's hope they like each other!

This photo was captured mid-baa!
I have a little video of her taking her very first steps and standing for more than 5 secs and falling over and baa'ing but it won't load here for some reason - grr.

Maggie

Introducing Maggie!
We found this little girl down a ditch - she couldn't get out and had been there most of the day.  She's was lethargic and on her way to dieing - but as I upload this, she's had 2 feeds from us and is now walking around and baa'ing.  That's great news!

WARNING: Not For The Faint-Hearted

WARNING: the following photo may not be everyone's cup of tea!

This morning we woke up to find this poor girl having a spot of bother....I managed to get her in the shed, while mum raced off to pick dad up from work.

 *I spared you the graphic details and photos - but in between the 1st and 2nd photo was a difficult birth which resulted in the lamb being born, what we thought, dead.
But after just a minute or two, he suddenly came "alive" and started to improve from there.  He's a very strong brave boy!*

Here's dad helping it have it's first feed as mum was in a bit of shock and denial at this stage.

Here he is with his mum....and of course Charlotte had to get in on the photo too!
At this stage, mum wasn't accepting the lamb as well as we'd have like but she wasn't rejecting it and butting it out of the way like they normally do.  So we've put her and baby in a pen on their own and we've left them to it for a few hours.  We are pretty sure all will be fine from here on - but for those of you who are interested in some farm-ey stuff, I will let you know if anything changes!

My first scrapbook page in ages!

It's been way too long since I've made another page for my scrapbook album....I've had heaps of photos hanging around - so yesterday I went through them all and just couldn't go past this picture of my little girl when she was 2 - oh she was so so cute!!!

Anyway - I was having a look through Pinterest and found this page made by Katherine McElvain and couldn't resist having a go at it.
Thanks to my special friend Patrice Easton from Spring Blossom Musings who made the crocheted flowers for me - they have come in very useful to me - so thanks heaps Patrice!

Just Add Pearls 121 JAI

Oh my!  It's been 6 months since I've last posted on my blog! That is just plain terrible!
I've been having a little break from creating - just felt I wasn't enjoying it anymore which I felt very sad about. I also have been super busy working at a seasonal job - which has been fun in a way but lots of long hours.  That has pretty much finished now - and I've found I suddenly have some spare time on my hands - bonus!

For 6 months I have successfully avoided my craft table...until today!  I finally had a few minutes where I found myself doing a bit of blog hopping etc on the computer and remembered that I have terribly neglected Just Add Ink since I finished up on the Design Team last year - so I visited and saw that this week's challenge is Just Add Pearls - and if anyone knows me well, they'll know that I LOVE pearls and wear my pearl earrings most days!

So... I took it all as a sign - it's time...time to dust off the craft table and let some creative juices start to flow!

I had a person in mind when I made this card - and I know she's gonna love it when I get to deliver it to her in person very soon!

Enough babbling...here it is!

I realised once I had finished this card that there is no stamping on it at all!  I used a bit of ink around the edges of each piece and the sentiment is a Rub-On I found tucked away in the forgotten Rub-On folder!

Thanks for coming to look - and hopefully it won't be another 6 months before I create again!

CAS Card Making: Day 3 - Tone On Tone

Day 3 of the Clean And Simple Card Making Online Course had Jennifer McGuire showing how she used a die to make a tone-on-tone background!  I really liked this and couldn't wait to try it myself.

Here I've used this butterfly die, some Whisper White and Regal Rose (I know, I know, more Regal Rose!) cardstock to make each butterfly a little raised and "popped"!  Each butterfly has about 5 white dies and the top pink 1.  I probably shouldn't have used as many as 5, but I guess I got a little carried away Big-Shotting!  I chose to use Stampin' Up's 2-Way Glue Pen to adhere each layer, but I did find it was getting a little sticky so I started to just use Snail which worked really well.

I have white embossed the sentiment which is PaperTrey's Signature Greetings Vol. 3 No. 63. Some little pearl bling and I had to stop myself from tizzing away - reminding myself CLEAN and SIMPLE!!!

My card base is Glossy White again - I love the feel of glossy!

CAS Card Making: Day 1 - Copic Colours

And here I go ago - I can't believe it, but I've made not one, but two cards this weekend!  YAY!!! 

Here I had a go at colouring cardstock with Copics to give it a wash of colour - just like Maile Belles did on Day 1 of the Clean And Simple Card Making Online Course.  I used glossy cardstock and love the look and feel of it!  Feels very lush indeed!

I've stamped the Stampin' Up Congrats stamp in Versamark, then Stampin' Up Basic Black ink and then clear embossing powder to make that sentiment "POP" even more.  The main part of the card is also glossy, so I've used Black Stazon to stamp the "on getting a little bit older and better than ever!".  A bit of Stampin' Up Whisper White Taffeta ribbon and a little bit of bling and done!  Oh, and I popped the coloured strip up on Dimensionals.

I love how rich the colours of the Copics (V01, V04, V06) turned out, especially on the glossy.
Hope to be back soon with something else before the mojo disappears again!