Crafty Creatives - Box 5 Review - SPOILER

 

First up - SPOILER ALERT!

If you don't want to know what is included in box 5 of Crafty Creatives, please look away now! (But come back later once you've opened yours)

 

Right, now that's out of the way.. Box 5!

This is my first Crafty box and I am so so chuffed. The reviews looked great that I had seen but I have to admit I was a little bit sceptical, thinking it must be poor quality, really expensive - just generally too good to be true! Well I'm very pleased to say I was totally wrong, Crafty Creatives is such a brilliant idea I'm just annoyed I didn't think of it first!

 

So Box 5 arrived yesterday and now I've had a chance to go through it, this is how it arrived:

 

The waterproof polylope came in very handy when I went to pick it up!

 

 

Fully branded right from the outset

 

 

Beautiful purple gingham paper - I will be ironing this and using it again! (It's not sad it's crafty....)

 

 

And once you've brought yourself to tear open the beautiful packaging this is what you'll find inside..

 

A lovely artcard with all the contents listed on the back

 

 

 

Scandinavian inspired fabric ribbon (1.5m!)

 

2 Blank card layers

 

 

Zig Zag Craft Scissors

 

 

Fab vintage style christmas card decorations. I've already made two cards with these!

 

 

26 miniature jingle bells in assorted colours. I was just about to buy some of these - how did you know?!

 

 

Gorgeous screen printed fabric - I'm already planning a Cushion with these on for my best friend's daughter

 

 

Alice in Wonderland postcard

 

 

Cinammon Sticks - What a fabulous idea, and my god, I can't stop smelling them! No idea what I'm going to do with them (maybe a wreath?) but I absolutely love this!

 

 

Very cute wooden decorations, my mum has already nicked the bunny!

 

 

3 silver carousel charms

(the perfect partner to a jingle bell?)

 

 

2 Bangle sized wreath bases....

 

 

Which I've already made use of!

 

 

I was supposed to also have a teacup and saucer charm in my box, I didn't have one so tweeted the Crafty Creatives account (@CraftyCreatives) within 2 minutes I had a reply to say one would be put in the post for me. That is true customer service - thank you ladies!

 

And this month's kit....

 

 

....is a very cute crochet mouse

 

 

Well it couldn't all be perfect! I cannot abide crochet, mainly because I so want to be able to do it and I just can't!! Knitting, Cross-Stitch, Embroidery, even Tatting.. fine, but Crochet! It evades me.

However, I am determined, this kit will be the start of a long and illustrious crochet career!

(A New Years resolution to learn perhaps...)

 

 

A £10.00 (plus p&p) these kits are an absolute snip, the suspense of not knowing what it's going to be, opening it all and going through, then actually making things out of the contents is worth twice as much in my opinion, I cannot wait for Box 6 (pleassseeee be lots of scrummy Christmas things) and I will certainly be taking my subscription through to the New Year. Thank you Claire and Isobel for putting such a brilliant thing together for us all to enjoy and long may it continue.

 

What did you make out of this month's box??

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crafty Creatives

Today my first Crafty Creatives box arrived - I'm a little bit late to the party as this is box 5 but after seeing so many amazing reviews I knew I had to get involved. I'm seriously impressed!

I will do a full roundup later on but if you want to find out more in the meantime Click here

 

Box 1 - Florals

Christmas Gift Guide

Christmas for me is by far the best time of year. It's cliched I know but it really is. December for me is all about; amazing food, Birthdays (My mum and Sister), great telly, classic films, presents, time with family, candles, scarves, gloves, a new winter coat, leather boots and buckles and if you're really lucky - Snow! Christmas is the only time of year my whole family is together and arguing is to a minimum.

 

If I could pick one word that I would like to be described as, it would be thoughtful. Christmas is a time to show your appreciation for the ones you love, and the ones you just really like (although you should do this all year round!) Being thoughtful doesn't have to equal being rich, just think really carefully about the person you are buying for and what they would really appreciate, something they wouldn't normally buy for themselves and what will really make them smile on the 25th December.

 

Here are my favourite picks for Christmas presents this year - to my friends and family, no stupid your present is not on this list! I've tried to include a mixture of bargains and higher priced gifts so everyone is catered for!

Enjoy!

 

 

For the Children in your life:

 

Bunny Rabbit Night Light – with a lovely soft glow this one’s battery powered so it doesn’t get too hot and the price tag is fab! They also do a cottage, and a baby bunny one too.

 

 

DotComGiftShop - £4.95

 

My First Laptop - a lovely wooden laptop with chalboard screen and keyboard so your kids can work and play alongside you. Pretty pricey but will last forever. They also do a Smartphone version too.

 

 

V&A Museum - £45.00

 

For the Chef in your life:

 

Cheese Making Kit - A fantastic gift, all the gadgets and gizmos to make your own cheeses. They do a Kids Kit and a Goats Cheese - enough to make 15lbs! For what you get the price is really reasonable and all the stuff can be used again and again.

 

 

Notonthehighsteet.com - £21.00

 

Taste No.5 Umami Paste - Any self respecting foodie will be familiar with Umami (no it's not the thing Ross tries to teach in Friends!) Give the gift of taste this Christmas at a snip!

 

 

Waitrose.Com £2.99

 

For the Jet Setter in your life:

 

Liberty Xanthe Mini Suitcase - An absolutely gorgeous Liberty print minature suitcase that will be the envy of all other passengers.

 

 

Liberty - £65.00

 

Scratch Map - I LOVE THIS. Scratch off the places you have been on the map to reveal a different colour underneath. Amazing idea, more things should be scratchable!

 

 

ScratchMap.co.uk - £15.95

 

Bonuses!

 

For the Creative Mind in your life:

 

 History of the Saatchi Gallery - a 900 page history of the Saatchi Gallery, from Warhol to Hirst this is an absolute bible for any art lover.

 

 

Booth Clibborn - £85.00

 

For the Music Lover in your life:

 

Burger and Fries Earphones - Much better looking than the standard white ones!

 

Urban Outfitters - £15.00

 

 

More to come as I see them!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cursed

definitely jinxed myself with the over excitement about sleep.. One night of 9 hour sleep = 2 nights of 1 hour sleep. Obviously!

Sunday Successes

I do not wish every day was Sunday, for if every day was Sunday, a Monday they would become.

Happy Sunday x


P.s I slept for a good 9 hours straight last night!! I am so so happy, my sleep for the last 4 years has been disturbed to say the least - night terrors, insomnia, apnea you name it I've had it. I'm hoping I'm not jinxing myself but the prospect of sleep is making me quite giddy!

What have you been upto?

What have you been upto? Is normally a question I dread because for one reason or another (namely work, family and lazyness) it never sounds like very much!

 

So this is what I've been upto this week gone.

 

Sweetie Jars - Again! I know, I know i'm going on about them, to say I'm a little obsessed is a massive understatment.

 

 

Painting a boring old pine stool I've had for years. I took ages painstakingly sanding it down so it was silky smooth and then ever so carefully (and ever so messily) repainted it in a Navy gloss which is reeking to high heaven beside me at the moment. I have high hopes for this stool - decopage is running through my mind... watch this space.

 

 

Reading. I will admit that I'm one of these awful people that buys digital books (for my IPad, the feel of a kindle makes me want to vomit) without ever buying the actual book. I have decided to stop doing this, the Ipad is easy, but lazy. So from now on I'm rebuilding my book collection and have started with these

 

A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen - I saw an article about this in the Guardian the other day and it's meant to be a lovely read, it's about a homeless man that finds a cat and the things they encounter together and it's a true story.

 

The Secret Life of Bletchley Park by Sinclair McKay - I have always been fascinated by code breaking during the war, my grandfather worked on the Enigma machine and my great grandmother was a codebreakers assistant. I recently saw a One Show feature on Bletchley Park which was really interesting so I couldn't resist when I saw this on the shelf today.

 

The Woman Who Went To Bed For A Year by Sue Townsend - No unfortunately not my autobiography. The Adrian Mole series are without a doubt my favourite books, so in my eyes if it's by Sue Townsend that's good enough for me!

 

Who Could That Be At This Hour? by Lemony Snicket - This is the first in Lemony Snicket's new All The Wrong Questions series. I absolutely adored the Unfortunate Events series when I was a teenager (don't mention the film, I'm still too angry) and I saw a review of this new series in the Guardian yesterday so ordered it on Amazon straightaway. These are childrens books but the writing is so that they're enjoyable for everyone and I just love the humour and sarcasm - his books really ignited my interest in reading again when I was a teenager so it's like coming back to an old friend really.

 

I've also been reading The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle on my Ipad (tut tut - but it was free) Over the years I've watched every film and TV adapation but never read the book so I felt I owed it really, I'm surprised at how short each story is, but that does make them perfect for reading on my lunch break!

 

I managed to make it out the pub last week to celebrate my friend/colleague Jonathan's 22nd Birthday - Happy Birthday Jono. He's the resident tea maker in our team so it was nice that we could all buy him a drink and bring it to him for a change!

 

My family are visiting from Cyprus next week, and me my parents and sister are going up to see my Nan and meet my Auntie Kay, Uncle Ian and Cousin Daniel with his girlfriend Maria. We hadn't seen them for about 4 years before we went to my cousin Emma's wedding in July this year and we all got on so well and had a lovely time I'm really looking forward to seeing them again - especially when there's a Sunday roast involved!

 

As for the rest of the weekend, I'm currently typing this in my bedroom with the smell of paint making me want to be sick! Whilst watching the Qualifying for the Austin F1 Grand Prix. It's so weird having an evening F1 race/quali as they are usually on very early morning or over lunch but I'm really enjoying it! Later on I'm going to dig out some Scandinavian inspired Christmas Cross-Stitch patterns and finish some more cards (there's 18 people on my list and I've only made 6.. eek!) then tomorrow will be lunch with the family, some shopping, finishing my stool and watching the race!

 

I've also been listening non stop to my new favourite band 'to the moon' they're made up of brilliant musicians from around the area where I live and some of them I'm lucky enough to know. They are beautifully soft with lovely lyrics and their videos are amazing, usually done in really stunning locations. This is my favourite song of theirs, Photograph

 

 

 

What have you been upto this past week and have you got anything nice planned for the rest of the weekend?

 

 

 

 

 

Sweetie Jars - Update!

Finally! My silicone order arrived today so I was at last able to do the orders I've had so far for my sweetie jars.

I did three Christmas ones and two normal sweet ones and I've got 9 left to make!

They're so easy to make and it's so satisfying to see the end result!

Drop me a line if you would like one, I will take guidance from you on the design or you can leave it totally upto me.

Jewellery Bargains! - Ebay

Just wanted to let you all know about my newest Ebay lot - ALL of my Jewellery (well bar the stuff I love!)

 

I have listed all of the below items (72!) as a job lot starting at 99p - grab yourself a bargain just in time for Christmas!

 

Happy Bidding!

 

Necklaces:

Diamanté anchor on silver chain - accessorize

Large silver chain bow - accesorize

Thumbprint and angel wing on silver chain (distressed effect) - pilgrim

2 gold bows (one diamanté) on gold chain - accessorise

Gold horse on chain - primary

Eiffel tower, heart and flower on gold chain - accessorize

Silver hoop on chain - Avon

Turquoise beaded necklace - holiday purchase

Multicoloured long beaded necklace - accesorize

Large diamanté star on long chain - new look

Sausage dog on bronze chain - top shop

Sewing tools on chain - accesorize

Sterling silver chain with pink cubic zirconia heart charm - Goldsmiths

Hair accessories:

Faux pearl and diamanté head band - new look

Bead and diamanté head band - top shop

2 x leaf style hair band gold and silver - matalan

Fabric head band with feather and diamanté decoration

Accessories:

Moroccan Hamsa wooden and fabric keying

Keep calm and stay Reem keying

Green enamel prefect badge

Next union jack white diamanté watch (needs new battery)

Bracelets:

6 x zig zag enamel bangles - ASOS (matching rings below)

4 x leather effect braided bangles - H&M

Fabric and pearl bracelet - H&M

Links of London style bracelet with heart charm - Avon

Big pastel beaded bracelet - Next

2 x big red and gold beaded bracelets - Primark

Gunmetal and translucent colour beaded bracket with charms - Avon

Coral bead and wishbone charm bracelet - Accesorize

3 x faux pearl bracelets - Matalan

Large mother of pearl effect and wooden bangle - holiday purchase

Cord bracelet with tiny bells - holiday purchase

Brown resin bangle - holiday purchase

Cord and bead red bracelet - H&M

Silver thin bangle with large green glass beads - holiday purchase

Gold disco effect bangle - Primark

Rings;

3 x woodland animal rings, fox, rabbit, bunny - ASOS

Leopard print gem ring - Primark

3 x silver ring with clear diamond like stones - Avon

Silver ring with pink stone - Avon

Resin bubble ring with charms - ASOS

Gold Aztec style ring - ASOS

Silver cubic zirconia ring - unknown

Gold rope style ring - ASOS

6 x enamel zig zag rings (matching bracelets included above) - ASOS

Silver large bubble pearl ring - Matalan

Gold bended arrow ring - ASOS

Gold sparrow ring - ASOS

Black and white polka dot bow ring - ASOS

Purple flower ring - ASOS

Large blue stone with diamanté border - ASOS

Large clear stone with diamanté border - H&M

Glass Bargains

Picked up 12 200ml terrine jars for £24 on eBay - £2 each! Perfect for my sweetie jars. Then a couple of hours later saw this beautiful candle in a gorgeous glass jar in homebase for £3 (half price in the sale)

Chuffed!

New 2013 Diary - Frankie Press

I have FINALLY found my diary of choice for 2013.

I am so picky about my diary, it has to be big enough to write in, but small enough to have with me all the time. Note pages are a bonus, and of course it has to look good!

 

This year I had a Smythson miniature, purple faux crocodile leather one that I lost a few weeks ago (sob) it was way too expensive to justify buying another one and lose out. So I've been hunting online and in shops and as soon as I saw this 2013 Daily Journal from Frankie Press I knew it was the one.

 

 

 

It worked out for me in the UK at about £25 including shipping (all the way from Aus!) which in my eyes is a bargain, and now I've received it I wish I'd ordered more because everyone loves it!

 

Sorry for the photo heavy post but it's just so pretty!

 

 

 

It has brilliant extra sections such as Lists, Budgets, Birthdays, Time Zones and many more

 

 

 

 

 

It even has stickers, perforated personal contact detail cards and a great quality stock card pull out desk calendar!

 

 

I absolutely love it and I hope they make them for many years to come because I will definitely by buying more next year!