Hello! Opinions please

Hello!
I'm back and have lots of holiday snaps to bore you with soon enough!!! LOL!!!!
Just before I left I was playing with the new template designer and erased all of my background!!! So I took this as an opportunity to refresh my blog with a new design! With some graphics from The Graphics Fairy and some help from this very helpful post....I was able to apply it without having to fiddle around too much with Html codes( such a pain in the bum!)

I cant decide if the design on this blog is hard to read cause of the background...so I'll ask you what you think! This is the design on this blog

and this one is on the blog shop...click here

I'm personally leaning towards the design on the blog shop...but thought I'd get your opinion too!!

Right off to upload some sunny pics from Cornwall ( including Cath Kidston shop in St Ives!!)

See ya soon and Thanks in advance xx

Annie xxx

Happy Mothers day + Freebie

Hello!

Still busy busy busy getting ready for the Vintage fair next Saturday so please excuse my absence from Blog land!!!

Here's a Digital Art freebie for your own personal use

Wishing all my fellow Mummies out there a Happy Mothers day

Have a Lovely day and hope you get spoilt rotten!!!

Annie xx

Mixed Bag

Hello,
Firstly Thanks for all of your lovely comments on my past couple of posts I havn't had much of a chance to reply to each one but I do read all of them and they ALWAYS bring a smile to my face xxx
Well now that I'm back on form I can show you a few pics and update you about some of the things I have been up to!
At the moment Aidy is on half term and hes just got to a stage where we are really clicking and as he has got a bit older he has found his independance we seem to be having lovely days where we go and do our own thing for a while and then 'meet' up for a drink and a snack ( all under the same roof of course)  where we'll play a game or do some colouring in etc....He is also learning to read and write so I get these Fantastic little notes which he pops on my pillow and I find before i go to bed! Just random little messages like ' I Luv Mume' or 'I am Fiv' Make my day xx

The shop I supply in St Albans have ordered some more of these window clings....they are around 5inches high and are suitable for mirrors and all types of glass...I sell them in a pack of 4...was thinking of putting them in the blogshop...I also paint butterflies and angels also.....heres a few examples...

 

  

  

  

I finally finished making  all the gifts for the giveaway prizes...somewhat delayed by my sickness! But they are now travelling and on their way to their  recipients!!!! Here's a sneak peek

 

  

 

 Also made a few little wooden signs to cheer a few friends up whos been having a rough time of it lately...

 

I now have to make some stock for Mothers day as I am joining an avon home party on Friday week so need lots of little pressies...any gift suggestions? I have designed a set of Mothers day blocks so I'll be back soon to show you them...Then it will be all go for the Vintage and Homemade Easter fair!! LOADS of Stock clearance from me so make sure if you are near enough to come and grab a bargain!! 

Until next time my Lovelies 

Annie xxx

Swap goodies & Thrifty finds!!!

Hello!
Well I'm still not even close to finished yet! There's still presents to be wrapped, food to be bought and pressies to be swapped!
But I thought I would show you my Christmas gifts that  have been sent to me, some that I thrifted and some I have outright just bought for myself!!
Firstly Yes that Is a Beautiful Laura Ashley Birdcage in the picture above...The most generous Secret Santa sent it to me....as if that wasn't enough...look at what was hidden inside...

The most Gorgeous goodies all Butterfly themed!

Thankyou SO SO MUCH..Kelly...you are naughty for sending me goodies over the Limit..but It made my Day I tell you..Christmas came early for me!!!

I unfortunatly didnt take pics of the goodies I sent to Karen but she was enquiring after buying some blocks from me and I had already made some for her to send in the swap as she had entered my giveaway a few times..so I had to pull a sneaky and tell her I was waiting on a delivery of them!! TEEHEEE!! I put a few little vintage crafty bits in also and some chandelier crystals too.

So Onto the  Thrifted treasures...I took my friend to My secret Aladdins cave of treasures and we found some Bargains! She got a Fab heavy Jade green Colander for 10p! a 60's style magazine rack for 75p and sewing treasures in a gorgeous old tin for 50p!!
....I bought 2 of these handmade Cushions with zips for wait for it...50p each!! They were in fab condition and when I took them off the cushion I found ..

these inside..Hand crocheted slip covers! they were in a dusky shell pink and GORGEOUS!

I then found this old box whilst rummaging and happened to peek in and saw that it was full of buttons and bits and bobs! here are just some of them....

When asking how much they were they told us er you can have the lot for a pound! £1.00 Yep you read it right!! After sorting through we found some real pretty ones too including some mother of pearl pretties!

I also decided to bag myself a bargain from Ebay..this gorgeous Fair isle Cardigan was under a Tenner!!! Its brand new with tags too and arrived within 2 days with NO postage to pay!!!

ITS TOO COMFY!!!!!

So that my treasures...Come visit with me tomorrow and I'll take you on a a day out to London at Christmas Time! Until then..BYEEE XXXXX

Success at the Vintage Fair!

Hello!
Well I have had a busy weekend!! So this is the first chance for me to post about the Fantastic Vintage Fair Saturday.
After a slight delay we Got there and set up stall!! The time flew away and before I knew it. 12 noon had arrived and there was a queue of people waiting to come and see all of our treasures!
I didn't STOP!! I was waiting for a lull to go and scan everyone else's treasures but it didn't come!! I managed to sneak away for a scan of the stalls at about 3.20pm!! It was so BUSY!!
SO I didn't even get a chance to take pics! Luckily my mum managed to take a few but I hadn't finished setting up properly yet but you can get the idea!!

Birdcages and Butterflies.....

Well that was my stall and as you can see I still had more to put on!! This was my Mums Sew Lolly..It looked fantastic!

I love the embroidered things..and have just ordered a Christmas cushion from her in duck egg blue and Red cottage scene with Pickett fencing! Cant wait to see it!!

The Whole day was buzzing and I was so impressed by the efforts that Ann and Debbie had put into the day, the success is really down to their hard work and I tell you it really did pay off!

So as I didn't get a chance to take any pics at all but managed to arrange a lovely lil swap to get a gorgeous button heart decoration from 2 lovely ladies who had a stall there their company was called Spots and Stripes...time to get a blog ladies to show off those gorgeous treasures you make!!! Their e-mail address is spotsandstripes@live.com

Sharon from Clover Cottage was an Absolute sweetheart and lovely to talk to! She took some great pics of all the stalls so go and have a nosey as she has details of most of the traders there..Including Lindsey of Elsie Sparrow who's stall was just FANTASTIC!! ( I bought some Gorgeous Mirrors and a Spud gun as a stocking filler for Aidy too ( Which i may live to regret just yet!!)

What was also Fantastic was meeting some lovely peeps from Blog land! There was Lovely Wendy from Ticking Stripes who gave me some dried Hydrangeas from her mothers garden which I will be including in a future project! Ann was amazing and did work so hard as well as Debbie did also they were both Fantastic and I felt as if I had known them for years!! Lovely Family too!!

Thanks so much for all your hard work x

SO a huge Success and a really lovely Day...Hope you are hosting another in the spring...I'll definately be there!!

Annie xx

P.S If you are the Lady who bought the printers tray please E-mail with your address because the Large O tile was hiding on the table and came home with me!

Inspiration & Random thoughts

Hello!
DO you ever have those realisation moments when you see how the everyday things you always thought were pretty inspires you? Well I was going through some old photos of some of my products and had this very thought!
SO I thought I'd show you a little bit of how things around you can creep into your thoughts and your designs!!
I think you can guess where I took inspiration from for the salt dough biscuit ornaments!! They look yum but had to keep these pretties high so that little ones didn't try and nibble!! Salt flour and pva glue does NOT taste very nice!!!

I love Winged things like these little pretties
so here's how they have influenced my designs!!
Since reading Enid Blyton's Tales of the Faraway Tree, the woods and forests are places I love to spend time in especially in the Autumn time ( although watching Blair Witch Project kinda spoilt it a little for me!!) and these little Toadstools are what I always look for but never find!! but this inspired a wreath which would look great in a kitchen!
Feathers are just beautiful especially peacock ones, this headpiece was designed for a bridesmaid of one of my brides and had diamantes adorning the base stem
Roses are a Fave of mine too especially in pastel or muted colours so these ones are made from paper so they last forever and has a hint of sparkle too them too...of course! I have some attached to fairy lights and my birdcage and also used bigger versions on my Christmas tree last year too!
So other random thoughts this week are......

...where do those objects that you know you have but just can't find go??? I have looked everywhere for this item for hours now and have seen it recently but just don't remember where?? and the thing is I WILL find it...after I don't actually need it any more!! Its like a mean trick that is played on you!! Maybe if I was more like Anthea Turner and had a place for everything this wouldn't happen....but that will never be so will just have to keep looking!!!!

....Why is it that its always YOUR things that end up getting broken and smashed? My Vintage teapot was smashed to smithereens yesterday by my 4yr old boys football, I was livid and he was devastated cause he knew how much I loved my china and also knew he is not allowed to play footie in the house either!!!
I'm gutted because it was the first thing I bought with my wages when I started working again and you don't usually find a coffee pot by itself but I have found the whole set for a reasonable price on E-bay which I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I will win!!! ( at least I'll have spares too!)
Do these things happen to you?
Hope you have a great weekend x
Annie x
Edited to add- I WON!!! 21 piece set including a salt and pepper set that I never had before too!!! YAY!