Ladybugs & Daisychains

Our last market for a while

2011-12-10T11:26:00.002+11:00

Well we're all set up at The Handmade Show. Our last one for a while as we get ready for baby to come along. Lots of people here too. Should be a good day!

Christmas Thoughts

2011-12-01T23:23:00.001+11:00

I absolutely love Christmas and can't wait to decorate the house this weekend and go Christmas shopping!
I bought a fab Merry Christmas sign at The Handmade Show from PTG CNC which fits perfectly in the front window.
Last year I picked up some great decorations from Bellissima Glass and she has more available this year, I'll see what the tree needs, maybe a red candy cane.

Every year I make a bag of treats up for family and friends. This year I want to make something different to go in it. I'm thinking fudge is the winner. Might have to do a practice run on the weekend!

Last years Christmas treats

And then there's something for the kids...

Happy decorating...

Nearly half way

2011-11-26T13:04:00.001+11:00

Well its been some time since my last post but when I saw the date I realised it was about the time we found out we're having a baby. I was always nauseous and very tired. Not as bad as some but for some reason I struggled to get on the computer. The good news is we are nearly 20 weeks and I'm feeling much more like myself again. I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.

Only one week to go...

2011-08-07T09:45:00.000+10:00

What an exciting month of markets August is and we'll be making our first appearance at the Southside Handmade & Vintage Market and just can't wait. Its the 2nd Sunday of the month so mark Sunday 14 August on the calendar and come and see all the market delights

11:00-17:00 at Urban Hotel 35-37 Fitzroy Street St Kilda

See you soon...

Cake Pops

2011-07-30T23:16:00.000+10:00

About a month ago I attended a cake pop class at Special Treats by Carolyn. If you haven't heard of cake pops they are all the rage at the moment, doesn't matter what age you are. The class was heaps of fun and I totally recommend it. If you wanna try them yourself you'll need cake, ganache, lollipop sticks, lots of chocolate and decorations. As you can see I had animals on the brain that night. A pig, dog, chicken and of course a ladybug. It was definitely handy being in a cake decorating kitchen with everything at our fingertips; bowls of chocolate in so many different colours, flowers and butterflys to decorate, 100's & 1000's, edible transfers, and of course fondant icing in all sorts of colours.

Happy baking...

Bags are coming!

2011-07-06T21:03:00.000+10:00

There has been a lot of talking about it and I have been designing and redesigning in my head but it is finally out! My first bag design.

Over the next week you'll find me at the sewing machine busily making some of these to take to The Handmade Show which is only 10 sleeps away.

A Sunday Song

2011-06-12T10:39:00.000+10:00

I was a little girl

alone in my little world

who dreamed of a little home for me.
I played pretend between the trees,

and fed my house guests bark and leaves,

and laughed in my pretty bed of green.

I had a dream
That I could fly from the highest swing.
I had a dream.

lyrics from "Dream" by Priscilla Ahn

This is a bit of a favourite song of mine. I first heard it on the UK series Married Single Other and it made it on our wedding song list. I actually walked down the aisle to it. It is just so beautiful, hope you enjoy it too.

Happy Sunday,

Some Wedding Pics

2011-06-02T20:39:00.000+10:00

Wow I can't believe its been 2 months since our wedding day. Here's a few pics.

My pink shoes & gorgeous flowers


Beautiful gardens

The hand made mini golf flags made by us were used for the table no.'s

Our golf themed seating chart & place cards designed by my wonderful friend
Samone from Red Letter Studio

The delicious cake made by the talented gals over at Cake Ink

Was a beautiful day and went way to fast.

Thanks for stopping by...

Worth the wait

2011-05-18T22:26:00.001+10:00

I am so excited about this late birthday pressie my sister gave me on the weekend. I have been looking into some of Nicole Mallalieu's sewing classes and my sister had no idea. Can't wait to make some of her projects the hard part is choosing which one to do first....

Wedding Planning

2011-03-06T22:32:00.000+11:00

Well its been a busy couple of months getting the finishing touches ready for our wedding but we are nearly done. Less than 4 weeks to go now and its getting pretty exciting. Still have to book accommodation for our honeymoon and that just about does it. Here's a couple of the handmade touches for the occasion.

Our wedding invitations, individually hand stamped and embossed

Decorations for the chapel

Thanks for stopping by

The Handmade Show is back!

2011-02-17T18:11:00.000+11:00

Guess what! The Handmade Show is back for 2011, bigger and better. I haven't seen everyone since just before Christmas and I can't wait to be back there on Saturday to see what everyone has been adding to their range over Christmas. Its this Saturday 19th Feb from 11am - 3.30pm at the Oakleigh RSL. If you don't have anything on come on down and have a look around.

Wow I can't believe how quickly the year is going...it always seems to happen. We have so many birthdays in the family in February that its March before you know it. For those that aren't aware I'm also getting married on April 1st so am getting the finishing touches happening for the wedding too. So exciting but I'll let you in on more of that soon.

Come and say hi if you pop into the market.

A sneak peek at something new

2011-01-23T23:14:00.000+11:00

Looking for a different way to display your photos or even keep your documents, invitations, takeaway menus together? Mine are always falling off the fridge. I mentioned that I had been working on something new, well here it is.

What do you think of these note boards? Just slide the photo, letter, card or whatever it is you want to keep under the ribbon, it's that easy.

I'll be using this one to display my cards at the markets.

What would you use one for?

Hope you had a great weekend.

A little change

2011-01-16T11:40:00.000+11:00

This is a little something I've been working on in January. This cute little coin purse has come in really handy over summer when I didn't want to lug my handbag out and is also great to just keep loose change together. It measures approximately 90x130mm fitting quite a bit in it. I'm also really loving the combination of these two fabrics. The birds are so sweet. I can't wait to make it in all different fabrics for both adults and kids.

Leave a comment and let me know what you've been working on so far this year. I'd love to hear about it.

Cute little monster

2011-01-10T13:51:00.002+11:00

I'm not really sure what this look is meant to be but this is my nephew's latest pose. He kinda screws his nose up and lifts his bottom lip. It was just too cute I had to take a photo and share.

We had a successful visit to the florist, picking out flowers for the wedding. Then we headed to Barclays cafe for lunch. Yum! Back at my sisters place we sat outside and watched Henry playing in his cubby then he got the playdough out and helped his mum stuff her cute little monster softies.

What a lovely day

Hands up if you have an iPhone

2011-01-09T14:17:00.002+11:00

The iPhone! Everybody seems to have one these days except for me. I've been thinking about upgrading to one when my contract is up at the end of the month but was a little worried how it would survive in my handbag. There is not much you won't find in my handbag, my theory is you just don't know what you'll need when out & about.

While I was having coffee with a friend the other day and I noticed her iPhone was tucked away in a little pouch. I've been toying around with different purse designs and thought this might just keep my phone safe within the handbag jungle.

When I got home I decided to play around on my sewing machine. I found some gorgeous little daisy fabric with a chocolate background and matched it with a goldy yellow for the lining. I had to do a bit of guess work on size but was pretty happy with the result. Now I just needed to make sure that the phone would fit. When my sister popped over the next day I asked if I could borrow hers to test it out. It fit! She really liked it too and asked me to make her one. Back to the sewing machine.

Can't wait to get my iPhone now.

80-something days and not counting

2011-01-05T18:21:00.000+11:00

Does April seem a long way off? That's what I thought but with our wedding on the 1st of April I think the next few months are gonna fly. This week I've been pretty busy organising and planning a few things, including the design of our wedding invitations.

The other day I played around with a few ideas I had. Rather than wasting these creations I thought I'd put them to use and make a few cards for Valentine's Day. Head over to my madeit store and have a look. Here's a sneak peek...

I'll be sure to let you know how the invitations turn out. I can't wait to make them. I'd love to hear from anyone who has also made their own wedding invites with any tips you may have for me.

Sunshine in the garden...

2011-01-04T23:47:00.003+11:00

When we bought our house just over a year ago we thought it was great as there wasn't much to do to wit. Inside was all painted with feature walls and outside was perfect with a deck and fabulous palm tree.

Well it didn't take long for us to decide there was actually a lot we wanted to do to the backyard & garden. We talked about paving the deck area, putting up a new pergola, pulling out a few trees, the list goes on!

Last Easter we had great plans but only got as far a removing the borders of agapanthus, the wisteria that was creeping under the roof tiles and painting the deck. Later in the year we put a couple of roses in the front garden only to find the grass liked to grow into the rose bushes. Not fun weeding around them, very prickly. Then late last year we filled in the sandpit in the middle of the backyard and tried to grow some new grass.

before, after & getting ready for the grass

Today we got out in the garden once again (it should happen more than it does) and attempted to get a little bit more done. With a little help (a lot really) from the in-laws we got to work. Project 1. Put border around roses. Project 2. Chop down unwanted trees. This is how it turned out...


Project 1.

This was what I spent most of my time doing. It took a couple of goes to line them up but I was pretty happy with the end result.

Project 2.

While I was out the front with the roses, Dan & his parents cut down some trees...and what a great job they did. The backyard looks so BIG. With a few trailer loads we managed to clear the grass of all the tree branches.

Until next time...

New Year - New Designs - New Products

2011-01-02T23:03:00.000+11:00


2010 Creations

Well what a year it has been. Many a paper creation was made.
This year is going to be an exciting one with a few new designs as well as some new products. I have a few paper creations up my sleeve and I've been playing with some ideas on my new sewing machine...paper & fabrics, so many possibilities.

I look forward to sharing 2011 with you all.

And the winner is...

2010-12-19T15:57:00.001+11:00

Jen! Thank you all for leaving your comments about Christmas. I really enjoyed reading them. Congratulations to Jen, for winning the giveaway. I hope enjoy your gift.

A touch of Christmas & a card giveaway!

2010-12-12T10:19:00.002+11:00

When it come to Christmas I'm like a kid, I absolutely love it! Decorating the house, Christmas parties, sweet treats & giving presents.

I had fun decorating the house with some bargains I picked up last year on Boxing day. The tree shines bright, lighting up the room and you can even see it sparkling from the street. I've just finished sewing the bunting together which adds a touch of Christmas to the kitchen.

This week I made up these cute little owl bookmarks for my market stall. I can't get enough of owls at the moment. I even found these gorgeous earrings and just couldn't stop myself from buying them.

...and a giveaway!
As its the festive season I would like to thank my readers and Facebook followers by holding a competition. All you need to do is leave a comment below telling me what you love about Christmas. You will then go into the draw to win a selection of Christmas cards valued at $25 & the winner will be selected at random on Saturday 18th. Australian entries only.

December Frenzy at Stampin Up!

2010-12-02T22:30:00.004+11:00

Christmas has come early at Stampin' Up! and in the December Frenzy a selection of products have been discounted up to 50%. You can view the flyer by clicking on it. If you'd like to place an order just email it through to me at ladybugsanddaisychains@gmail.com

The Summer mini is finally out. You can view the brochure on the home page to see the new products now available.

Getting ready for Christmas

2010-11-28T14:50:00.097+11:00

Well today was my first time at Fairy Floss Markets and if you are looking for babies and kids gifts this is the market to be at. So many stalls to look at and great fun meeting lots of new people. Here's a peek at my stall.

There was a bit of a cupcake theme today as I got to show off my new cupcake wrappers and cupcake notepads. Owls are still proving to be a big hit & are just so cute.

With Christmas fast approaching everyone is looking for table decorations. Bon bons, favour boxes & little pillow boxes are just a few options, then have them customised in a colour to match your table for the day.

Hope you all have a great week as the Christmas countdown begins.

The Handmade Show - November

2010-11-21T22:10:00.001+11:00

One down and two more to go before Christmas. That's right it was The 2nd last of The Handmade Show for 2010. I had a great day and I'm sure all those who came along would say the same. Some amazing crafts were available including jewellery, kids clothing, hand painted home wares, scented candles, soaps & of course paper products and stationery.

It was a busy week getting ready for the market. Some of the goodies available were the ladybug & bear decorated lollipops which were a winner with the kids, notepads, bon bons, gift boxes and Christmas tree decorations.

Well it's another busy week ahead for this little bug! This Sunday I'll be at The Fairy Floss Market in Berwick from 9 - 2pm. Lots to make between now and then so best get back to it.

Have a great week.

Stampin' Up! Punch Art Blog Hop

2010-10-29T07:40:00.000+11:00

Hello and welcome to the inaugural South Pacific punch art blog hop!!!

We are a bunch of Stampin' Up! demonstrators from Australia and New Zealand who love our paper punches. We have come together to showcase a selection of the punches you can purchase from Stampin' Up! We know we will inspire you and encourage you to use those punches in new and beautiful ways.

Please leave a comment and let us know what you think to go in the draw to win some yummy scrummy punch art blog candy (offer not available to su demos).

I've chosen the X-Large Tag punch to show you a few different ways to use it. The obvious is to use it as a tag. Stampin' Up! have some great stamps that fit nicely in the tag punch. I've used the hostess gift 'Silhouette Sentiments' stamp set to create some cute little gift tags.

You can also use the tag to put a sentiment on a card. Here I've stamped the tag with the Happy Birthday stamp from the 'Afterthoughts' stamp set which is also a level 1 hostess gift. The tag is topped off with a twine bow.

Here I've made a couple of cards using the tag punch a different way. On the left, the punch is turned upside down making a cute flower pot. The daisy is made using the 'Blossom Party' die in the Bigshot. On the right card I have used it as a border. I punched a hole in each tag and tied a ribbon between them.

One last way is as a cupcake topper. The 'designer series paper pattern stack' has been used to punch these out. Then just add a sentiment for the occassion!

Now head on over to Melissa's blog and check out her amazing creations. Don't forget to leave your comments for a chance to win BLOG CANDY!!!

Here's the list if you've missed any:
1. Karen Southwell - www.kareniescrafts.blogspot.com
2. Carol-Ann Torrie - http://queen-of-scraps.blogspot.com/
3. Sally Williams - www.sallycancraft.com
4. Julia Leece - www.juliascards.blogspot.com
5. Amy Curran - http://ladybugsanddaisychains.blogspot.com/
6. Melissa Davies - http://beedevinedesigns.blogspot.com/
7. Michelle Dyson - http://www.stampinkpaper.blogspot.com
8. Clare Mcilhatton - www.crafty-cow.com
9. Lisa Bullock - http://daffyscrapper.wordpress.com
10. Pauline Bennetts - www.paulinebennetts.com/stampede
11. Tia Routledge - http://craftingwithtia.weebly.com/my-blog.html
12. Emma Kirton - www.emmakirton.blogspot.com
13. Angie Jones - http://angiescraftfusion.blogspot.com/
14. Andrea Buckland - http://creatingcardswithandrea.blogspot.com
15. Steph gray - http://stampinsteph.wordpress.com/

Happy hopping!

A WEEK OF FIRSTS

2010-10-24T14:34:00.000+11:00

Well this has been a busy week. My first market and my first card class.
Last Saturday I packed up all my cards and went to The Handmade Show - a boutique market for crafters. I met some lovely stallholders and even bought a couple of goodies myself. What a great day it was!

Everybody has their own craft style and on Friday night ten ladies got together and stamped up a stack of cards. Given that Christmas is just around the corner that was the theme for the night. With my samples in the middle of the tables, the ladies were able to copy them and put their own flair onto their cards. There was lots of fun, food and laughs - an enjoyable night for everyone.

Have a great week!

11 weeks until Christmas - Time to make cards!

2010-10-07T19:58:00.000+11:00

Wow its not long until we start decorating the tree, buying the pressies and working out how we're gonna catch up with everyone in the space of 2 weeks. I may not be able to help you with these but I can make sure you have cards to give your friends and family.
I'm holding a Christmas Card Class where you get to make your own cards using the Stampin' Up! "Season of Joy" stamp set.

Date: Friday 22nd October
Time: 7.30 - 10.30pm
What you get: We will be making 8 cards in total, 2 of each design.
Cost: $25 includes cards, envelopes and supper
RSVP & payment due: Wednesday 13th October.
Location: This class will be held in Mooroolbark and I will provide the address upon rsvp.

Call me asap to book your spot in the class 0407 273 700 or email me at ladybugsanddaisychains@gmail.com

Welcome Spring!

2010-10-05T15:52:00.000+11:00

Well wasn't Saturday the most beautiful spring day! I had the pleasure of making the decorations for a champagne breakfast birthday party held on Saturday. We were served an array of croissants, pancakes & fruit skewers with a marshmallow dip...YUM! A variety of juice and sparkling wine were sipped upon as the guests mingled in the sunshine. The bunting decorated the entrance onto the balcony and was matched with bright coloured balloons around the room. Such a great morning.

Here's a sneek peek at some of the cards I've been working on....

Thanks for stopping by,

Cards, cards, cards

2010-09-23T15:36:00.000+10:00

Here's a few things I've been working on over the past week...

I just love the Always set! The bird and the flower have had a workout this week. I'm also loving the new In Colours. The bird is stamped in Pear Pizzazz. The Blushing Bride pink was just beautiful for a baby girl card. I made the pram using the extra large circle punch and the tiny flowers stamp.

I came up with the early bird invitation for my brother and sister-in-laws breakfast birthday party. I used the Two Step Bird Punch and the Top Note die for the Big Shot. The Little Treat box was inspired by the milk carton in the Ideas Book & Catologue. I thought the box was just as cute and the little cupcake which is also from the Got Treats stamp set, just added to it!

I hope to have a few more cards to show you soon, better get stamping.

Thanks for stopping by,
Amy

I've been a busy lady-bug

2010-09-21T15:33:00.000+10:00

Well its been a few weeks now. I received my SU kit and had my first workshop on the weekend. I just placed my first order and can't wait to play with all my goodies including the Big Shot. I'm busy making cards and getting projects ready for workshops. I have a kids party in a couple of weeks and they are gonna love what I have in store for them. Will have some pics up soon to show you what I've been working on.

Enjoy your day,

Amy

Bringing paper back!

2010-09-11T01:09:00.000+10:00

For years I have dabbled in craft and all things arty; sewing, scrapbooking, folk art, photography, drawing, floristry, fabrics....the list goes on. After years of creative brain storming I've decided to put my ideas on to paper! Cards for all occassions, invitations, party packs, notelets and paper packaging to name a few. I have so many ideas in my head that just can't wait to get out and be created.

I love movies and being crafty, so inspired by one of my favourite movies "10 Things I Hate About You" here's "10 Things I Love About Craft":

It always puts a smile on someones face to receive a handmade card
Lets me be creative
I enjoy playing with different colour combinations
There are so many things to make
It can be a relaxing afternoon with the girls
Its an outlet after a day at the office
One stamp set has so many uses
Gets me out of cleaning the house
It allows you to look at life in a different way and appreciate the small things
Sometimes my creativeness spreads into the kitchen and can taste delicious (the baked goodies)