Christmas inspirations on Pinterest

There are so many inspirations for Christmas to be found on the internet, it can take you literally months to them all, whether it be some lovely crafts, scrumptious foods or decorating styles for your house this Christmas

Find inspiration fast

However you could easily find what you need on Pinterest. I love to spend time happily gazing at inspiring pictures of Christmas (and so much more!) that others have picked up & pinned.

My Pinterest Board

I’ve been pinning off and on for a couple of years. And just recently I have been putting together various Christmas boards that inspire me. These will give you a starting point. Here’s a sneak peek.

These and many more can be found on my Pinterest board  Christmas Love. If you haven’t used Pinterest before, you need an invitation so leave your email in the comments and I will invite you.

What about You?

Do you use Pinterest? Do you find it as addictive as I do?

Have you actually made anything you've found on Pinterest?

I am working on one project I found on someone else's Pinterest board. I will post it soon.
Do you actually use any of the ideas you’ve seen, especially if you have a pin board on Pinterest.

Crochet your own mini Christmas Stockings

Click on any photo to see it in more detail

Inspired by my Mother in law

I have made these cute little Christmas Stockings. They were inspired by my Dutch Mother in law, who passed away just 13 months ago. She would often make us something for Christmas in addition to her other gifts.

First I have to learn how to crochet

So after teaching myself how to crochet and doing a few granny square lap rugs, I had the confidence, and the encouragement of friends, to have a go at making a stocking or 2.

First off, I counted and made a stocking but it wasn't quite right. I then unpicked just one stocking that Mum had made for my kids and could actually see and count what she had done. I tweaked it a little to get  a bit more toe shape definition and away I went.

Tuturial offered...sort of

You can just make out the tinsel thread in the green wool

I am not able to write the tutorial 'properly' as I have only just learning crochet but if you are game, I am more than willing to send you the instructions as I have made them. one day i will attempt to write it 'professionally' and then come back and publish it on this blog.

Add caption

 

 

 

Available for sale 

I did get carried away and made a dozen more than I need for all my great nieces and nephews and my 2 grand daughters, so I am offering to sell them for $5 each plus postage.

Just leave a comment below or send me an email.

What inspires you?

I love looking and being inspired by many lovely blogs and I have pinned some here that I would love to follow through with.  I do have more Christmas crafts in motion. You will see them soon.

What crafts are you making for this Christmas?

Blanket Stitch Appliques

With my two delightful grand daughters coming to visit with us in Cairns recently during our road trip around Queensland, I just knew I had to make something special for them.

Here are the delightful results.

Butterfly Applique

Elephant Applique

I decided to applique something on a t-shirt for them both. The designs were chosen from some silhouettes that I googled up. A quick visit to a craft store nearby to buy 2 fat quarters and some buttons and stranded embroidery threads and away I went.

I don't ever recall doing it before though I may have learnt back in primary school. I noticed the size of my stitches became gradually bigger and by the time I reached the beginning, you could really notice it. But these are for my little ones, I doubt they will notice it at all.I am not going to tell them, are you?

You can read more about our visits with them on the Robbiebago blog here. Or you can follow our road trip and other bits and pieces on the general Robbiebago blog. Click here for the latest update.

I have recovered from my breast cancer

I have been absent for so long as I first recovered from my breast cancer. Then when we got the all clear my husband and I hit the road for a long awaited trip around Queensland to include Mt Isa and Cape York. We are still on the road but I thought it was time I posted an update to inform you all of my recovery at least. I did have to have a partial mastectomy though that sounds so dramatic for the little bit that they took out. Still it was surgery and one that potentially saved my life. I was extremely fortunate in that the surgery took all of it and I did not require chemotherapy at all. I will need to have yearly check ups but I have been cleared for now. For those that want the nitty gritty details I had DCI: Ductal Carcinoma In Situ. Thankfully it is the most common non invasive breast cancer there is.

Sympathy Card made using a Z fold technique

Now to move on back to crafts, here is a lovely z fold card I made for a friend. I hand stamped and coloured the back decorative paper to match the commercial stripey paper I had in my stash/ The hearts were cut and embossed on my trusty cuttlebug and layered.

Hopefully we will keep in touch more from here on. By the way you can read about our trip on my Robbiebago travel blog. 

Even Miracles take a little time scrapbook page

Sorry I have been absent for a month. First off we went away for 3 weeks to Australia's largest Country Music Festival, which was absolutely fantastic and we are not even really country music fans but that didn't stop us experiencing all the different styles of music especially in the zagillion street buskers and the shows etc. We even sampled some bush poets. All this was just after being diagnosed with breast cancer and the doctor wanting me to be operated on immediately, even though it is not an emergency. We decided to go anyway but knuckle down when we come back which is now. I have another appointment next week and can expect to be in theatre within a week after that.

I love this title for an ultrasound page!

Getting news like that tends to make you stop and re-evaluate your priorities and as such one of the things I don't want to put off any longer is making a scrapbook of my 2 darling little grand-daughters.
So whilst away I did another page on a 6x6 inch scrapbook I started for the first one. Eventually I will show you the three pages I have done. I think I will have an animal theme on most of the pages - let's see how it evolves. I have even decided that when I am tied to a bed or lounge in my recovery period I am going to make mostly baby stuff and animals paper piecing and list them in my shop and then when I am up and about then I will use some of them on my future pages.

I hand cut and coloured these giraffes.

Here is my first page. It is an early glimpse of the joy to come - the ultrasound!

 PS Don't be alarmed about my diagnosis, we've caught it early - there's not even a lump - just some spots that were discovered in a routine mammogram. The prognosis is very good and they just need to take out a section of my breast. Apparently I will be tender for a few weeks and then back to normal. I am not the type to worry -it doesn't achieve anything. I  have all my family and friends to support me and most of all I have a heavenly Father who knows what and why and that is good enough for me.
See you soon with the next page.

Garlands and Banners for Valentine.

I’ve been working on some Valentine’s stuff. First off are some banners or garlands, which ever you may call it. I have 2 listed in my shop already to ship.According to Wikipedia, a garland is a decorative wreath or cord, used at festive occasions, which can be hung round a person's neck, or on inanimate objects like Christmas trees . A banner is a flag or other piece of cloth bearing a symbol, logo, slogan or other message.

First there is my trendy and stylish Pink Hearts Valentine Garland/Banner

This banner is just perfect to celebrate your love on Valentines and versatile enough to be used at an engagement, wedding or anniversary party. Made from quality 180gsm card. Each of the hearts themselves are approx 9cm/3.5 inches high and 10cm/4 inches wide. The banner is approx. 2m or 6.5 feet wide and has 40cm/15 inches ribbon ties on each side for easy hanging.  The hearts are all hand cut and interlocked.

The second one offered is my Pink Valentine Garland which is just perfect. It is approx. 2.6m or 8' 6" long or rather wide and the scalloped ovals being approx 4 inches wide. The ovals can be slid closer or further apart as desired for your spacing.
The message on these ovals are "Love", "Be Mine" and "Valentine.

The ovals were cut on my Cuttlebug and the hearts were hand cut before being embossed. The word labels are computer generated.
Aren't these just great for announcing to the world your message this Valentine's Day. These are available in my Zibbet shop

Ladybug ladybug, fly away home

For the second part of my blog entry today, I wanted to introduce you to my ladybugs or ladybirds depending on where you live.

Engine Red Ladybirds in 2 sizes Card Candy

 I don't know anyone who doesn't love ladybugs. They are just great for many different themed pages, invitations, parties etc. Who says they have to be Fire Engine Red. I have made them in many different colours and sizes.I am even thinking of making them in a patterned paper... too many ideas... so little time.

Candy Pink Ladybugs set of 4

Magenta ladybugs set of 4

If you are interested in any of these adorable ladybugs then just click on the photo or go to my Zibbet shop to see what else is around.

Getting back in the groove

I have a number of paper craft embellishments available that will spark YOUR creativity!! These paper trees have a simple, clean line. I am making some more varieties of the Scrapbooking embellishments that I introduced into my Zibbet Shop. Now that Christmas is over and the kids are all back in their own homes and back at work, I need to knuckle down and get back into a routine. I love how some people are organized and structured in their daily lives and as such can get a lot accomplished. Each new year (or new week even LOL), I intend to be more organized and I am to a fair degree, but I am also a creature of impulse and flexibility.

The organized routine of doing the washing on this day and the ironing on this day etc is well and good and maybe even my ideal but I know I am an all or nothing type of gal. For example, I love gardening, but you don't see me in the garden on a regular basis. It frequently gets left until the weeds are a foot high and then I spend one or 2 full days going crazy on it and I love it too.

The same goes for my housework and probably most areas of my life. I am a great beliver in making a list. I tend to review my list daily and I rarely get frustrated that that I never reach the end of my list. It is a growing, living creature that alters frequently during each day.it's main purpose is to help me to stay focused and even if I end up spending too many hours cruising the internet or reading the latest novel, at least I know where to start and move along from there. Life happens and I want to grab it with both hands especially if it involves other people. House work will wait, circumstances and people can't always wait. I have found that as long as my house is not a health hazard then, it is OK to let it go a bit. I always catch up sooner rather than later. I am relaxed enough to know that if it doesn' happen today or even this week, it is not the end of the world.

The new year is full of hope

Christmas has come and gone. It is easy to get carried away with all the Carols, extended family gatherings, visitors, Summer weather and the beach, holidays, etc.  and forget that the true meaning of Christmas is this is when God chose to send His Son to earth.  Now that is gone, it is time to make a fresh start on a new year. I love a new year. The old is gone along with any heartaches, mistakes and disappointments if there are any and the new is full of promise and hope. Without hope we have nothing worth striving for. I have a firm belief that God has the course of my life in his hands. This gives me the confidence to go forth in this world, to make plans, to reach out in love and to try to encourage others to have the same hope.

Busy Bees Card Candy

Dancing Dragonflies

Ice cream cones

On a personal level there is one thing I want to strive to be with God's help, that will impact all around me. I also want to expand my online shop to include other product lines. The first of these being the introduction of Scrapbooking Embellishments also known as Card Candy. These embellishments could also be used in card making, tag art, bookmarks, aceo's, gift bags, altered projects and various other crafts, in addition to various themed scrapbook pages on holidays/spring/summer/picnic etc... . Some have textures embossed in the card, others the tint of colored edges adding dimensions, some may be accessorized with bling, lace or other media. Mmost are hand cut and thus are one of a kind. Any one of these are just perfect for your projects.

Whoot Owls #2

Blue Mountains Forest paper Trees

Old Fashoin Ice cream sundae

I also love Mondays and greeting the dawn of each new day. They are all symbolic of the opportunity of a fresh new start.So lets go forth and see what this week and this new year has to offer. If you love to look at more of my Scrapbooking Embellishments, then go here to my Zibbet Shop Inkspirational Designs.  I love to custom make and designs for you too, so just send me an email and we'll see what I can do for you.

Happy New Year

I have had a lovely break over Christmas. Our son and his family come down a few weeks before Christmas and we also blessed to have the baptism of his second daughter whilst here. Below you will see Ezzy Jean in her 61 year old baptism gown that was handmade & embroidered by her great grandmother -  a treasured family heirloom. Ezzy's Groot Oma passed away just 5 weeks earlier and we all missed her, especially over the Christmas celebrations.

We were also grateful in having time to spend with all the family, extended included, in various family activities, parties etc. The Dutch foods mentioned in the earlier blog went down really well as did all the party foods.

One of the food tables

Edible Poinsettia flowers with chocolate truffle centres

Reindeer cake pops

Mini Mars Bar Christmas Trees

Cup Cakes

 The food was a labour of love and I enjoyed it all. I hope you had a wonderful time with friends and family too. My heart goes out for those who had a difficult time remembering friends and family who may not have been there for what ever reason.