Hot off the press

Issue three of Answers on a Postcard is here! This month’s theme is Ultimate Crafting Goals and we have a grand total of 27 contributors. As ever, it’s not too late to take part, so convo me via Etsy or drop me an email (address over to the right, there) if you want to take part.

I’m also accepting suggestions for new questions to go on the list, so post here, or shhhh, keep it a secret and contact me in either way suggested.

A huge thanks to everyone who’s been involved so far, as a customer, contributor, and the many of you who are both! The promised blog features on individual contributors are coming soon…

Market day

Today's the day - remember the clocks have gone forward!



If you forget, never fear, there's another Mafia event tomorrow - called Trade Secrets. Mafia members and local crafters alike will be getting together at Creation Studios to swap skills, tricks of the trade, and have a good old chinwag in this creative hotspot right in the heart of Glasgow. It's at 16 Trongate, just along from the old clock tower. It all kicks off at 7pm, and promises to be a fantastic evening! Click here for a taster of some of the kind of discussions we're hoping to have.

New for Easter – Egg cosy kits!

A lovely little project for young ‘uns and more experienced crafty types alike are my new bunny egg cosy kits. All wrapped up in an upcycled egg carton, is everything you need to make these adorable little rabbits to keep your eggs nice and warm on Easter morning, and every day of the year. All you’ll need is a spare hour or so, and your own pair of scissors.

Each box contains a full colour tutorial with photos for every step, written and compiled by me, and formatted by the lovely Marceline of Asking for Trouble, who is nothing short of a genius at these things. You’ll want your eggs to dress up every single day. Once you’ve mastered the basics, why not make personalise your bunnies to match your pets? Or turn the basic pattern into yellow chicks or other easter-related (or not) creatures, depending on what yarn remnants you have available.

If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to knit on a clothes peg, this kit is for you! It’s easy as pie once you get going, and you can use the same technique to make coasters, placemats, coffee cosies, decorative trim for your gifts and parcels – all kinds of useful things. I’ll be working on a couple of tutorial PDFs to pop into the shop shortly, so keep your eyes peeled for those if you’re too late for Easter. I’d love to see any creations you make from my kits and tutorials, so drop me a line with your pictures, or leave a comment pointing to your blog or flickr pages.

Out of time, or not in the mood to be creative this Easter? Get some ready made craftiness with my hand knitted easter chicks.

Remember, catch me at the Handmade Haven this Sunday.

It's my first market this year, and I'm looking forward to catching up with the other mafia members, and meeting some new vendors, too.

Hope to see you there!

Supplies mania!

I'm destashing with gusto over on eBay, where you'll find me under the pseudonym Kippersmum. I've got ribbons, buttons, yarn, fabric and notions galore. I'll have stampers, punches, paper and stickers, too.

Winners of multiple lots always get combined shipping, so hop on over for a bargain. I need to lighten the load before our house move later this year. And of course the extra cash never hurts, either :-)

I've also put together a button pick'n'mix for the Glasgow Craft Mafia Handmade Haven I'll be at over in Mono this weekend. Woolies, eat your heart out!

I've also been busy today making up some new cushions - they are for the new house but it never hurts to test them out, right?

500 things update

My goodness, this little challenge has been keeping me busy! One of the jobs I keep putting off is organising my collection of newspaper clippings. One of the traits I’ve definitely inherited from my dad is cutting and keeping, or clipping and sending articles from newspapers and magazines to friends and family. And they all do it for me, too. You’d think that tweeting links, as well as blogging, would satisfy this need to share good information in a more up to date way, but I like to keep it old-school, too. As long as my dad takes the time to send me interesting things to read, I’ll continue to think ‘how thoughtful’ and place them in my clippings box file (yes, I have such a thing).

So I’ve found a new way to combine technology with this hobby, and vowed to keep on top of it. I now scan all my must-save clippings, and I’m trying to be more discerning in what I feel that I need to keep.

For example, I was a huge fan of quilling as a teenager, as well as very interested in music. I love these feature covers from the Guardian and the Observer last year which combine these two loves to a tee.



So now I’ve been able to add my box of clippings to the recycling pile, and I can update my list from numbers 18 to 23.

I’ve decided to be a little more strict with myself and count the weekly newspaper clearout as one (22) and on the more lenient side, I’ve included at (20) the prevention of more things coming in…

For six years we’ve been receiving organic fruit and veg deliveries from the good people at Stair, and with great sadness we’ve cancelled our regular order in anticipation of our move. As I start to shop from our freezer and cupboards, I’ll spare you the details and count this as a single tick off my list instead. Sound like a deal?

Today is Sport Relief day!

I’ve been forgoing my twice-weekly latte for the last couple of weeks to support the efforts of my friend Shonagh's little boy, Euan, who wants to help others who are in need. Click here to find out what he’s doing to raise money, and here to find out more about Sport Relief.

You can also help by clicking here - a penny is donated to Sport Relief by the company hosting the website.