Crafty As L

Happy New Year! I’d hardly got used to writing 2022 and here we are already in 2023.   How time flies!   I hope that you had a peaceful time over the festive period.   Ours was railroaded by the lurgy – I had a cold and Mr L is still suffering with the flu.   As I’ve not been feeling very creative, I thought I’d share the makes I gave away for Christmas. Earlier last year, Mr L commissioned me to make a housewarming present for his friend.   I’d just bought the Animal Heads to Crochet book by Vanessa Mooncie and he wanted me to make the stag.   Talk about in at the deep end!   The pattern is quite easy to follow although making the antlers was a bit of a challenge.   It was great watching him come to life as the various bits were stitched into place.   Here’s Dermot. My sister was leafing through the book and said she liked the zebra so I decided to make one for her for Christmas.   Meet Zander. My sister and I also have a great lov...

Well, it’s been feeling very festive this week, what with the extended period of very cold weather and the occasional snow flurry and our visit to the local garden centre to see the reindeer.   They were called Rupert and Ronnie; I think this one is Ronnie. I also have finally finished Mrs Claus - it’s only taken me 3 years!!!   This is another pattern by the very talented Larissa at mmmcrafts .   My Mrs Claus hangs a bit wonky on account of the massive ball of mistletoe she’s carrying! Anyhow, she’s now reunited with Mr Claus on the tree. Finally, I got some quality crafting time with my sister and my friend when we made our door wreaths.   I went for a natural theme this year.   My quick crafting this week has been to make some tags.   I sometimes make a special tag for birthday gifts, particularly if I want one to match the card.   However, for Christmas presents, where the tag’s just going to get thrown away in the jumble of paper, I just wan...

One of the things I like about making my own cards is that they can be different shapes from the standard square or rectangular shop cards.   I used to make my fancy card bases by folding the card in half and partial die-cutting, leaving the top or side edge overhanging the fold.   The only problem with this is if the die is shaped on all 4 sides, the folded side is plain.   By making card bases using this method, the shape remains intact and you can use any size or shape die to create your own custom cards.   This post contains affiliate links and I may earn a small commission if you purchase via the links, at no additional cost to you.  Thank you :-) For each card base, I cut 2 of the shape.   On one, which would become the back, I scored a line approximately ½” from the top edge.   Glue was then applied to the small section above the fold and the front piece adhered onto this section. For some shapes that are curved or pointed at the bottom, I...