Get Personal

Merry Christmas Guys! hope you all had a good one and are still in the festive spirit? I had a great Christmas thanks and have at last been finding some time to edit my photos.

With the 25th well and truly behind us and all my personalised orders given out I can at last share a few of them with you. Judging by the amount of 'special' orders I had and the fact that I even ordered a few personalised pieces to give myself I get the feeling it may have been the year to get personal and give a gift that meant alot.

From teachers to babies to newly weds to grandparents to kids to men to women to friends to mums & dads and to even house names....I think I did them all....and I enjoyed creating each and everyone!

 

 

 

 

Have a great New Year guys & I'll be back in 2012 x

A Gingham or A Gold Christmas?

For those of you who know my 2011 Christams Collection you will be familliar with my Block Tree Decoration in greens & reds. These colours are very me and sum up everything christmas and are just the done thing at this time of year in my house. Wheteher it's buying paper & cards, wrapping presents, decorating the house, icing the cake or laying the table the theme in my house is a very traditional red, green & white. I struggle to get my head round purple at Christmas and find gold & Silver a bit old fashiomned & dare I say naff? I also dont do tinsel on my main tree, is that just being a spoil sport or are you with me?

When I was asked to make a Block Tree in Calamine, Cream, Gold & Black I was a little scared! It was explained to me how its resting place would be the contemporary & trendy flat of young couple. I was told about the black sofa, the stripped oak floors, the calamine walls & the cream accents and it all made sense. Working with such lack of colour and pizaz was really not me. However at the end I actually could invisage it in its minimal surroundings and was really pleased with it.

So what look are you, does your house have a theme?

I doubt you have a red & white santa made out of a log (by my daughter aged 3) but does the big red & white man put in an appearence in your home?

The look of these snowmen at the German Christmas Market make me feel all fussy inside & I wish I had a display full of them. And the minute I do my red & white fireplace I'm in the Christmas mood!

Now I associate garlands on fireplaces like this with the 80's and garden centres. Its someting that I'm sure looks ok in some modern houses but in my cottage above the wood burner, on the cast iron mantle? now thats just not right.

My red & white tree just about has room for this gold & lace angel me & the kids made at school last year but her wings are the nearest we get to tinsel on our tree.

Then there's this lantern, created by my daughter at school this year. Now you've gotta love kids & glitter creations but this really doesn't appeal to me, black for Christmas?

So how about you?

Autumn in The Sun!

Today we enjoyed a family day out to the near by National Trust site Croft Castle. On any other 2nd of October I'd be prepared for all autumn eventualities & throw into the car a flask, the raincoats, the fleeces & the wellies. However today we left in short sleeves, with sun hats, bare feet, a picnic & plenty of cold drinks. I'm not complaining but what is that all about?

Its Summer....

Or is it Autumn....

Definitely Summer....

Hang on Autumn....

No Summer, thats a picnic....

but look ripe Autumn apples....

Ok leaves, Autumn it is....

but why are we dressed for Summer?

A Taste Of France

Hi all, its been a while (sorry). I wont even go there with excuses this time but with all the things I have to share from the summer I hope to make up some ground & get this blog back on track. I have just cleared approx 500 photos from my memory card so I have no excuses to get posting!

You may be aware my parents live in France so we are lucky to enjoy many holidays there. I never tire of my passion for wondering around villages eyeing up the architecture and searching out interesting doors, windows and shutters. These are just a snip-it of this years favs, I'll leave my ramble there tonight as the photos say it all......Splendid!

Mirepoix

Mirepoix

Mirepoix

Rouen

Honfleur

Near Rouen

Near Rouen

Buttons, Hearts & Pink Cake!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM!

Yesterday was my birthday, the last one before the big 40 next year which is very scary!

It began with a girly meal out the night before, I spent the day just chilling out & painting in my studio, followed by tea & birthday cake with the kids after school then a nice evening in with the hubby & a few wines!

I dont want to boast but just had to share my wonderful pressies with you. It doesn't take much to get to know me and work out what I like, in fact you only need to read the side bar of this blog to see things I am passionate about. I think every single pressie had ME written all over it and for that & am truly grateful and a still a little excitable today!

BUTTONS!

HEARTS!

CATH K!

EMMA B!

COLOUR & PATTERN!

CERAMICS!

MUSICAL THEATRE TICKETS!

PINK CAKE!

In the Spotlight - Muddy Puddle Crafts

Evening guys, the lovely Tracey over at Blueberry Barn has featured me on her blog!

Please go and check it out? dont stop at reading about me, its a lovley blog with loads of links, have fun x

In the Spotlight - Muddy Puddle Crafts

Juggling!

I am all in a bit of a mess at the moment, maybe its the sun? maybe its April? I dont really know but life is a bit too manic. I'm not even that busy in Muddy Puddle land so I dont know what I'm on about, I only have a few orders here & there coming through. We have put our house on the market and are having a lot of interest, I think I am sub conciously focusing on that too much and have put life somewhat on hold. With viewers coming its a constant battle to tidy & shove things in cupboards & not start doing anything major just in case?

Thats it!

I dont seem to properly start or finish anything...I start it, put it away somewhere then I dont finish, in fact some days I have so much to do but dont want to get stuck in too much I dont even know what to do first. I tried yesterday to do so much but feel nothing actually got achieved. This is the job list I made myself last night to spur me on, its not all I have to do today...add to it the Pta cake sale, the washing, the ironing, the phoncalls etc, my ceramics class & you may be just about there. The kids break up tomorrow so thats even more jobs out the window as I enjoy the holidays with them. Grrrrr, thats it moan over, roll on May so I can put

this month behind me.

I took part in a 'Heart' swap back along with fellow bloggers and was paired with the lovely Beki. My gorgeous parcel of all things hearty arrived over a week ago, all wrapped in pink paper. I ripped it open, ooohhhed & aaahhhed and quickly stuffed it back in the envelope. You've guessed it, we had a viewer, so it was shoved in the under stairs cupboard. And there it stayed, how bad is that? so today its come back out, been photographed & oohhed & ahhed at and I have taken some time to give it all homes.

The sewn house hanging is perfect! I recently gave my loo/utility a makeover with this heart I won in a previous giveaway as the inspiration. I teamed it up with my house plaque I made at ceramics class, hey presto a spring fresh look was born. Well now it has been joined by Beki's masterpiece, perfect co ordination or what!

The gingham heart now lives in my conservatory where it matched with the sofa cushion! This was another gift from a fellow blogger, again perfect match! I am beginning to think you lot know me too well!

Anyway I'm off, things to do, another task crossed off my list! no doubt it will be May till I blog again, so toooodles x

Are Flowers & Chocolate Really Enough?

With Mothering Sunday a week away and Easter Sunday just 3 weeks later I've been a busy bee lately running up some pretty hand painted goodies.

What do you normally give on Mothers Day?

Flowers? Lunch at the Pub? Smellies?

A plant and smellies are what I remember from my childhood. Dad would take my brother and I to town for a potted chrysanth from the fruit & veg shop and some talc & bubble bath from M&S! He normally gave mum the plant & my brother & I fought over the smellies!

Times seem to have changed, even Tesco had half an isle of what I can only call 'Tat' I noticed today. Basically anything mass produced that they could stick mum on was displayed along side the cards. Its a shame really because to me Mothers Day is time to give a well thought out little something that comes from the heart. The card you made at school with normally a daffodil on meant so much!

Then there's Easter, what does it mean to you?

Religion? Chocolate? Family Time? 2 Days off?

As a fairly non religious family it wasn't about going to Church for us. However looking back we did things quite traditionally. Fish was always for tea on Good Friday, we baked Easter Biscuits with Mum and she always made a Simnel Cake (which the kids refused to eat).

We also had a big family lunch not far off the scale of Christmas dinner with turkey and all the trimmings & a special Chocolate themed desert.

I of course remember the eggs, but when I was little they were huge and I didn't get that many. Maybe 4, from M&D, grandparents and Auntie's.

How times change, it seems all its about now is eggs and how many you get

3 for 2 here, 3 for £5 there and only £1 everywhere.

Whats that all about? yes of course I buy them for my kids but only 1 £1 one and some mini ones to have a hunt.

What do you do to celebrate it? We also do an Easter Tree, buy the kids a decoration, make nest cakes, do some kind of craft activity and have some good old family fun.

xxx