ACEOs

I first heard of ACEOs a couple of years ago but just hadn't got around to ever having a go.

ACEO stands for Art Cards Editions Originals. You can use any medium you like to create these miniature works of art, but they have to be 2.5" x 3.5".

As there's a recent trend on Folksy with lots of artists giving it a go, I thought I'd show you my first attempts:


Wonky Alphabet. I messed a couple of the letters up a bit.


Wobbly Orange Jelly. This was inspired by my wobbly jelly glass painted photo.



Flowers at Sunset.

Cupcakes

I did make several polymer clay ones but they didn't turn out too well. I've got a couple more planned which I'll try to do tonight.

Did well at the craft fair weekend before last. Made a profit anyway! My polymer clay bookmarks and earrings seemed to be most popular. Sold some buttons and bag charms too.

Went to visit Father Christmas at the weekemd. The miniature train ride through the forest was nice, especially as there was still snow on the ground, but the 'grotto' was more like a fairground stall! Oh well, Little W enjoyed it!

French Memo Boards!

My latest crafting 'thing' is French memo boards. I love them! They look ever so cute on the wall and it's so much fun choosing all the fabrics and ribbons. I make the buttons myself out of polymer clay.



I've sold one already, within days of listing on Folksy:





I've got two left in my Folksy shop at the moment. This retro cupcake one:



and the Winnie the Pooh board at the top of this post.

I'm busy making others to send up to the Gift Gallery. I also need to get some more prints sorted out to send as well. I'm hoping there'll be a big Christmas rush!

Other good news is that I won a free ad in Creative Crafting mag today. It'll be in the Christmas issue. I've entered this weekly comp a few times now, so it's wonderful to win!

My Handmade Birthday!

OK, so it was nearly two weeks ago, but better late than never to tell you about the wonderful handmade birthday I had. I was lucky enough to go on a Folksy shopping spree, courtesy of my family and these are the delights I found...

A busy bee organiser from AskingForTrouble:

Perfect for keeping me organised. I love to make lists! There’s a magnetic strip on the back so it sticks nicely to the metal brackets on my craft shelves. Marceline also sent a postcard of some of her other kawaii designs.

Then there’s these funny face magnets I’ve had my eye on for ages, from Glassprimitif:

I love covering the fridge and freezer in magnets! And these have certainly brightened them up. Jo also sent a cute little notebook.

I also bought this bag from Purpss:

This is just right for summer. It’s a really unusual design and such lovely, bright colours! Also included was a little free bag, which was very thoughtful.

Then, from Ellie’s Treasures I bought this gorgeous Patchy Pockets keepsake wallet:

I fell in love with the little bear; what a cutie! There are two pegs inside as well, to clip little pictures. I love things like that! I’ve got some photos of my children in there already and need to think of some more mementos...

Lastly, I finally bought some wonderful prints and a pocket mirror from HiddenEloise, which arrived in the most delightful envelope:

I’ve wanted to buy something from her for so long, but could never decide what to choose! Eloise included a little personal note, tag and some stickers as well, which was a lovely touch. (By the way, it goes to show that handmade is really best, as the frames I bought for these prints from a well-known supermarket said 7” x 5”, but when I got them home they were actually half an inch smaller both ways!)

So, all in all, a perfect birthday! Finished off with a family BBQ in the evening and a mountain of cupcakes made by my brother’s girlfriend. They were truly delicious! Lemon, strawberry and chocolate – mmm. There must be something about cupcakes at the moment, as these were very similar to my 'Naughty But Nice' cupcake print and also one of the birthday cards a friend sent...

And not quite handmade, but to help me make handmade, I bought a clay extruder. I’m having so much fun with it! These are some retro ‘70s magnets that I’ve made already:

And last night I made some interesting rope twists, which I think I’ll make into earrings. I’ll post a ‘how to’ soon I think.

Anyway, that’s my longest post in a while, so better leave it there!

First new glass painted photo set in a while...

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been working on some new glass painted photos. I really need a name to describe this technique, as it sounds a little odd - glass painted photos! But that's what they are, after all.

Anyway, my second new set after 3 Funky Flowers, is Naughty But Nice. This is a set of four delicious-looking (I hope) images:

A chocolate cupcake covered with sticky strawberry icing and a cherry on top:



Awhite-coated doughnut sprinkled with hundreds and thousands:


A wibbly wobbly orange jelly:




A triple-scoop ice-cream cone with strawberry, vanilla and coffee ice-creams plus flake:



Now the set's for sale on Folksy, I'm getting to work on my wild animal set. I'm hoping people will buy them for their kids' bedrooms or nursery.

Other crafty stuff... I sold one of my polymer clay bookmarks the other day through Facebook. Facebook seems to be working well for the promotion at the moment. I've also signed up to Twitter, but haven't got the hang of it yet. Will I ever??

It's nearly my birthday and I've ordered a few lovely items from Folksy which I can't wait to open! They're actually from my husband, but you know how it is, it's often easier to buy your own gifts! I'll make sure I blog about them next week. I'll also be able to make a start on those bag charms as I'm waiting for a letter stamp set which my mum and dad have bought me!

Completely off-topic... just looking out of the window at my washing blowing gently in the breeze and thinking how wonderful it is to be able to get 3 or 4 loads done in a day at the moment!