So What Did You Think?

Was my short post last week, short?  I do have a hard time with keeping things concise.  

I'm the kind of person who, when telling a story, will tell you the colour of the sky, or the fact that the sun was shining that day, or that it was 2p.m. when this happened, whatever it takes to paint the picture in your minds eye so that you see it as I tell the story.  

However, that can sometimes be annoying to the person listening who just wants to get to the point of the story.  I had a conversation with someone on Monday about much the same thing.  Is it better to get to the point right away or pad the point with some words?

My point here?   Not sure I could ever do a "short" post, my mouth (or fingers in this case) runneth over!  Of course being wordy can sometimes be an asset I'm sure you would have to agree.  If a letter/email has to be written, I'm likely one of those that would be asked to at least draft it out, so not all bad.

However as you see, I once again digress. I'm supposed to be talking crafting, not words.

So what did you craft at this week?  Some of you may know that we have a wedding coming up in the family and it's coming up quickly now too.  To us, a wedding means lots of opportunity to craft in different ways, but often not to be able to share all those crafty ideas just yet.

Sandra's theme for her wedding is peacock colours and to that end she made some beautiful invitations that when folded doubled as the envelope too.  

Here you see the envelope folded where the address label was placed.

Also the opposite side with the seal to hold it closed. You can see where Sandra stamped a peacock feather on the left side using tone on tone ink to give a very subtle look.

Below is the open invitation showing the actual invite and information on the left matted in blue for this card.  Again the peacock feather was stamped in green and the centre enhanced with some colouring.

And a more detailed look of the coloured feather. 

Sandra had a hard time deciding on which colour combinations she preferred, so some invitations were made using the green as the predominant colour and others made using the blue.  

Either way I'm sure you have to agree they came together beautifully didn't they.

It makes you aware of how a handmade invitation can be uniquely personal. With some thoughtful colour choices and a little help from our friend Buffy at the UPS store in printing the actual invite, which Sandra designed in the font of her choice.

Over the weekend we designed and made a necklace and earrings for Sandra to wear, which of course I can't share with you right now.


Outfits are being either being put together or final touches being made to them.  Here you see the shrug I knitted to complete the flower girl outfit.


Rachel was excited to have the bodice of her dress fitted tonight. Not too much more work before she will be wearing it now.

Later  this week Sandra and I will be having some "girly" time as we work on the flower arrangements.

Working on  a wedding can be an exciting crafting experience as ideas are explored, tossed around and zeroed in on. 
However the going as a group to your local clothing store to purchase the right tie or shirt for the event can be a fun experience too it seems. Changing the thought process together and making that event so much more than a shopping trip. 
Mind you, you have to have a bride that is just happy enjoying the whole process, and striving to be sure everyone involved is as happy as she is.

So there you have an insight into the crafting I've been up to....how about you?  What are you busy with right now?

Unfortunately in being busy in this way, Linda and I messed up a little with dates for this coming week.


You all know how family is important to us and we strive to be at all the events that the children are involved in.  

We confused the day of Rachel's concert this week and it unfortunately impacts the regularly scheduled Thursday Night Technique class.
So this week only, the Thursday Night Technique class will be held on Friday May 16th!

That could be good for some people who find Thursday not an option for them.
Let's make lemonade from the lemons we have found in the basket.
As we only realised this mix-up tonight, those registered for class will be called tomorrow morning.
If you're not registered, maybe you would like to now?

I was very fortunate to be at Grandparents day at Monck Public school last Friday.  This was the first year I didn't have to visit the classrooms of three grandchildren. 

I did however have a wonderful opportunity to listen to Emily as she played a flute solo in front of a packed audience in the school gymnasium.

You can well imagine how happy I was for her, when I heard a grandparent across the aisle say...."Wow" as she played.
She is a grade 6 student taking music at Monck and was truly amazing. Composed and confident as she played her solo. Yes she loves her flute and practices a lot at home and that time spent shows in her ability to perform in this way.
Above you see her performing last year at the Rene Caisse Theatre. 

Here's a little look into what Rachel has begun in her Home Economics Class at school (not sure if that's what they call it, but you get the gist).

They have moved from sewing to knitting now and though her teacher said she could opt out of knitting in favour of sewing her dress, she wanted to try it.  So last night we went over the basics of casting on, a knit stitch and purl stitch, along with decreasing in two different ways.
That was about eight last night. She now has two legs, an arm and body made for the "Mittens Lamb" stuffed toy.
This is what she's aiming for, though hers is a grey body with a white snout, feet and hands.

She knows she still has quite a bit to do to complete it, but has begun to think of her next project now.

It may well be a stuffed toy for Interval House she thinks.

The pattern for Mittens Lamb is a free pattern on Ravelry.com take time to check it out.

Linda has some pretty nice sales going on if there's an artist in your midst. Drop into the store to check them out.

Did you take the opportunity to pick up the $10 box and cards kit last week.  Still a couple available, you can see them here.  

One of the ladies put her kit together at Crop and Craft Night last Friday and tells us she'll be making more of those now she  has the pattern.  
Did you miss Crop and Craft Night?  It's a great time to learn more of the craft that appeals to you.  Last Friday we worked more on the Silhouette Program, unlocking yet another aspect of it for one of our crafters. We had another crafter that needed help with her crochet, and she was so pleased with the evening and what she accomplished.  If you haven't been attending these evenings, you've been missing out on an opportunity to grow in your craft.  Make sure you drop in or call to register for the next one, May 23rd...not it's not the long weekend then.

Well that's all for tonight folks.  Our words for this week...let me see. Well I think I have to share two with you this week.  One I'm pretty sure I've shared before, but the timing is right for it again this week.



I've shared with you all the different crafting I've been doing lately in my craft room.
Sometimes sewing with Rachel, jewelry making with Sandra along with any crafting I've been doing myself so you can imagine what my craft room looks like right now.

Imagine is all you'll get to do, because you won't get a chance to see it in the state it's in, believe me!


The real thought I'd like to leave you with though is this...

It's so easy to give more meaning to anyone's life with a simple act of kindness.
We all like to be the giver don't we, but sometimes we have to allow that role to others. I am blessed to have someone who often brings meaning to my ordinary day.
It may be with the goodie she drops into the store and we simply hear the bell as she slips in and out, never seeing her but seeing the goodies she's left for us on the counter.




This past week she dropped in to bring me these.  Aren't they beautiful?
She said it was in case my children forgot to get me some on Mother's day, as if, but lovely just the same.







I thought you may like to see the lovely flowers that I also received from my children and grandchildren who were a little intimidated by Janet's kindness to me.  Feeling that she was "muscling in" on their space they wanted to make sure I appreciated them too. Here's their gorgeous bouquet.   Maybe I need to get them into some water.


My point here though is that  and you can do that with a simple act of kindness to someone.  As simple as opening a door for them, or carrying their groceries to the car.  It doesn't have to cost you anything but a little effort and thoughtfulness.
Try it, you'll be surprised how good it makes you feel. Why not set yourself a goal to give some extra meaning to three people's lives this week.

Until Later....Happy Crafting,

Lilian