craftjuice

photobooks

This year for Christmas I gave Mr B a Momento book of our last trip to Tokyo, Japan in 2007.  I used the Momento product software which I found super easy and very nice to use. It was easy to upload and order the book as well. I made a 48-page book, which was A4 landscape and linen hardcover with a printed dust jacket. It is a beautiful product.  The only fault I have is that with the laser/digital printing, the colours of the photos are a teeny bit washed out. But that can be compensated for by boosting up the photo saturation I think.  I am more than a bit picky (some would call it freakishly anal) with things like that as I look at stuff like that in my job, but really, the result is beautiful and printed on nice heavy paper stock too.

The content was from our holiday blog Hanami Happiness - I think it was one of the first blogs I'd done. I think its such a lovely record of our holiday, which we think is the best holiday we've ever had.  Miss M was only eight months old and started to crawl when we were on holidays. I can't imagine her now sitting in a stroller all day, although back then she was quite content and as now, happy to perform for whoever was watching her!

There are other photobook products such as this, this, this, this and this. (Note that these are all Australian sites.)  Some of these can get quite pricey (my book was just under A$200), but I think you pay for what you get and for a one-off personalised book that can be passed down to Miss M, I was very happy with the value for money from Momento.

There is also the lovely site Blurb where you can make a book and if you want to, sell it! They just print on order. I've seen quite a few crafty bloggers who have made their own books this way.

They are a commitment to do - the one I made for Mr B took me about two weeks and then another week of fiddling...all up about 60+ hours work I'd reckon. And a warning to all your perfectionists like me...you need to set a deadline to 'finish' it, or you can fiddle forever and never upload it!

felted pixie folk

Who is in my garden?

Well, besides the camera hoggin Boston Terrier? (Zeb always rushes to get in the photo when the camera comes out - I swear this is true)

Look in the flower basket! It's needle felted pixie folk!

Because Christmas is over, I've decided I'm suffering some mental illness as I can't relax and just sit around getting all depressed with 'nothing to do' - I've one more week of holidays and it's driving me insane already.  I need craft!

So today I thought I'd have a go at needle felting. 

I went on a needle felting spending rampage nearly a year ago and bought all the stuff needed, but then, as with all things with me, I suddenly lost interest (plus I think I stabbed myself a few times with some enthusiastic needling) and its all sat in my draw.  But when I saw this, I thought, "I can do that" and with very limited prior needle felting experience, whipped these up! It's very easy to do and takes no time at all to shape something lovely. (And it's imensely satisfying meditative therapy poking a barbed needle a zillion times into something). The shroom was fun to make too (because you can't have pixie folk without a shroom).

I was going to make the lady pixie with a scarf, but it came out looking like a large and unattractive dreadlock. So snip, snip, poke, poke, matching hat it was.

You can see they don't have faces yet, and might never have. I've tried several times and each time they come out looking like the undead and a little too freaky for my liking. So faceless they are for the time being. 

If you've ever thought of needle felting and like me, thought it would be a bit hard to do, I encourage you to give Dabbled's tutorial a go and whip up a gnome. Great pictures and instructions.

I'm thinking big at the moment and have calculated if I make one a week for the next year, I'll have a very special Christmas tree next year. 

(So that thought might last for two weeks tops, oh well. At least it kept me sane for today!)

I've just found this great looking Japanese felting book (ISBN4-8347-6330-7) and the Clover needle felting tool if anyone needs more inspiration ...

And for more crafty Japanese felting love have a look here...and here...

And for hard core needle felting try this group on Flickr

christmas craftspiration and recipes

I've been 'collecting' heaps of amazing Christmasy things on my Bloglines feeds so I thought I'd better file them away all in one place for inspiration next year...

Present ideas
Free The Black Apple gift tags
Free Honor Bowden gift tags
Family embroidered handprints
Apron in an hour
Advent calendar with gingerbread
Fabric flower bunting/garland
Kids and baby gifts for under US$30
Last minute gift tags
Make your own toys
Handsewn font

Decorations
Found object Christmas tree
The Black Apple
Button wreaths
Scrap fabric tree decoration and also here
Paper Christmas wreath
Half eaten gingerbread man decoration
Flickr ornament swap group
Hula Seventy decoration inspiration
Kids paperbag gingerbread man garland
Felt ornaments
Paper ornaments
Holiday house decoration inspiration and some more here
Fabric and felt Christmas trees
Handmade holiday wreaths and some more here
Woodland ornaments
Little house ornaments
Ceramic tree decorations

Recipes
Marshmallow
Meringue mushrooms
Pinecone cheeseball
Candied citrus peel
Vintage cookies (1941 - 2008)
Christmas snowglobe cookies
Melted snowman cupcakes
Lots of snowman treats
Christmas tree 3-D cookies
Meet Me At Mikes Gingerbeer parts one, two and three
Christmas Yule Log cake

Crafty
Snowflake curtains
String of lights advent calendar
Needle felted gnome
Saffron Craig's Christmas panel fabric
Advent calendar parts one, two and three
Handmade holiday links
Christmas fabric sources
Holiday inspiration
Wee Wonderful embroidery
The MAMMOTH list of festive tutorials

And finally, a very Martha Christmas and six week Christmas Workshop

crafty presents

Well today we're just hanging out, playing with presents and eating (of course!)

Here's some lovely things my lovely husband gave me for Christmas - some 'mail' stamps, some lovely fat quarters and a lot of this gorgeous fabric to make something for myself! 

Miss M gave me this lovely flower pin.

Mum bought me some little clippers to have next to my sewing machine for clipping threads - I can't wait to use them!  Miss M received a gorgeous doll house from her Nannie and Peepa, so perhaps today I'll make some tiny tablecloths, towels and bedding for it...

I hope everyone had a great day yesterday and you're taking it easy today!

handmade Christmas

As you know, I've been trying so hard to make as many gifts as I possibly can this Christmas.  Here's some handbags I made for family using a fabulous Japanese sewing pattern that the fabulous Jacqui sent me a little while ago that I've not had time to make up until now...I'm super pleased how they turned out and really enjoyed selecting the fabrics that 'go' with their intended owners! (I can't wait to make one for ME!)

Here's my sister in law's bag...

Here's my mum's bag...

And here's my Mother in law's bag...(I used some of my Ikea fabric for the main part of the bag)

To each I added a folding handbag hook and a little Jurlique hand cream. Noice.

And for some lovely little boys, I made library bags full of books, finger puppets and Black Apple bookplates. (I think I made the straps too wide for little fingers in an attempt to use the lovely block fabric as much as possible...)

And you'll remember I also made these and these ...

merry christmas!

And Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight!

Have a fantastic Christmas everyone!
love
nxxx

one sleep to go!

All ready for Santa and the reindeer... cookies and milk for Santa, carrot and magic food for his hard working reindeer

And a secret Santa note...

Ahhh, all ready to take on the trip around the rest of the world...

Reindeers? Really?

My cousin's kids are at that age where the magic of Christmas is starting to be questioned...is Santa REALLY real (of course! and he won't come and leave you presents if you don't believe!)? 

Are you REALLY sure he does? 

My cousin's kids are super smart (and cunning) and the youngest went one step further asking for photographic evidence (lordy!) of Santa's reindeer eating the carrots they leave for them out on the lawn!

Well, I happen to know a reindeer myself and last night laid out some carrots on our back deck, waited patiently for the jingling of bells (they obviously do a trial run the night before Christmas Eve) and collected the said photographic evidence to arm my cousin with and give Mr S a dose of his own reality...

What do you think?

They are a bit blurry because reindeer move very fast....

Good luck Mr G!

Maybe you need some of this magical reindeer dust...

our gingerbread house

This morning we made this lovely gingerbread house from a special pack I'd bought at Aldi a little while ago.  All we needed to do was put the house together and decorate it - perfect for a Christmas Eve morning activity!

Miss M 'helped' me piping the snow on...she loved it so much she thought it was Christmas...oh! it is!

The icing was made with icing sugar, the white of an egg and some lemon juice - this apparently helps to increase the 'stickiness' of the icing and the egg white helps it set hard.  Who knew.

It came complete with the pretzel fence and these gorgeous little icing people...

So sweet!

Tonight I've bought some lovely champagne for Mr B and I to enjoy in front of the tree after Miss M goes to bed.  I also bought these amazing hibiscus flowers from our local deli to enjoy with our champas - you pop a flower in the bottom of the glass with a teaspoon of the syrup (apparently it tastes like raspberries) and fill with champagne.  The bubbles of the champas open up the flower in the bottom of the glass...sounds divine and oh so festive!

Just the thing to wait for Santa to arrive!  Ho ho ho!

Swedish Christmas braid

I made this delicious Swedish Christmas braid with Amy's recipe...the smell was wonderful cooking and tasted fantastic! (Especially hot with a big slab of butter...).

It takes a little time to make, but is a very easy recipe - I encourage you to give it a try!