Postcard Post - Yarn Heaven

I'd been meaning to visit Black Sheep Wools for a while, so with a rainy Saturday on the forecast I thought the trip was ideal. I had a little wish list for future projects, and I'd just been paid!

I parked the car and entered the craft barn. Well! I was a little overwhelmed, I'd stepped into yarn heaven. There was an amazing choice of everything to do with knitting, crochet and all sorts of sewing and embroidery. It was a good job I had a list to keep me slightly focused. Otherwise I would have traveled off on tangled knitting tangents.

So why is this a postcard post? Because I couldn't resist buying a couple of the yarn themed postcards that they had for sale, told you it was yarn heaven!

Here they are:

Now I can hear you asking, so what else did you get?
I completed my list of yarny wants plus an extra yarny bargain that I couldn't resist, from the bargain section, and I will let you see those in due course when I do the projects I have in mind.

 But here was something that I did treat myself to...

A new pair of 4.5mm needles made of carbon fiber, my wooden faithfuls had become splintered at the tips and kept snagging my yarn and driving me mad.

They have lovely pointy tips that you get with metal needles but without any of the weight or coldness. Can't wait to get them in my knitting. Whether I can knit any faster will yet to be proved, I doubt it though!

If you're in the Cheshire area, then a visit is a must. There is a lovely cafe too for that well deserved cup of tea (and cake) after making your purchases or if you need a breather to help make up your mind. If, however, you live nowhere near then you can always visit the website. Click on the logo below for yarn heaven.

Till next time...

Postcard Post - Swanage

As you may know, I have a thing for old postcards!

I also like to send old postcards to friends and family. This one of Swanage, is destined for my Aunty Jean.

My Brother and I used to stay with Aunty Jean and Uncle Cliff for a week during our summer school holidays – many moons ago now! They would take us to all sorts of places in and around Dorset, where they lived. Swanage was one such place where we went to see a huge stone globe on the coastal parkland nearby.

When I’m sending an old postcard, I usually just tuck it in a letter or pop it in an envelope. Then I had the idea to come up with a folding card design which can temporarily mount the postcard on the outside, and have space to write your own message on the inside. This is what I came up with…

By cutting a couple of shaped slots in opposite corners, the postcard can sit quite happily in place, ready to be posted and enjoyed all over again.

 Till next time…

Postcard Post - Getting Better

May I first say sorry for the delay since my last post. Things were busy in the run up to the wedding of my partner's Daughter, and since then I've been suffering quite a nasty chest infection. Today is the first day that I'm feeling a little bit better, and have the energy to do things again. The wedding went extremely well, and everyone had a great time. I have taken some photos and will post those at a later date.

At last, I do feel like spring is finally in the air. Sunshine has brought out the first blossoms on a couple of trees at the front of my house. That, along with feeling better, has lifted my mood. I feel like I could spring clean the whole house from top to bottom, although I know I don't have the energy for this yet! I did, however, have a little sort through of my old postcards and arty things and in amongst the postcards was this one. Which I thought was quite appropriate for the way I was feeling, and I had to share it with you.

I remember seeing it in an antique and collectors type of place, and I thought the picture was lovely. I then turned it over, not really expecting it to be written on, thinking it would have been bought just for the pretty picture. I had a real (out loud) ahhhh moment, when I had read what was on the back. The postcard was totally sold on me.

It reads:
Dear Miss Addis
Harold and I are nearly better now, and hope to go down stairs tomorrow from,
Wilfred

I bet Miss Addis, too, had an out loud ahhhh moment when she received this in the post.

Postcard Post - Thank You Doodle

I just wanted to say a big thank you to my friends and family who have been so lovely with their comments about my designs and doodles and this blog. So, I thought what better way to do it than to design a doodle postcard for you.

I love to do the kind of doodle that starts with a dot, then a circle, followed by another, a few lines and then it just evolves from there. Its very therapeutic and you can just loose yourself in the flow of lines.

Once the lines are done, what's better than a spot of colouring in! A bit of type and a groovy background, to set the scene.

Flowers and leaves to bring to life....

And a pop of colour, to give it a finishing touch.

Thank you, to you all xx

Postcard Post - Squeeze Me

Love is definitely in the air, as well as the wedding stationary that I'm working on, thoughts have turned to Valentines Day. My Sister-in-law bakes wonderful cakes. She does some of the most amazing occasion cakes I've ever seen, as well as scrumptious fairy cakes. Around Valentines Day she bakes and sells some fairy cakes and decorates them with all things love.
This year she has asked me if I would like to make some cards to sell alongside the cakes, and could I especially come up with something that is a bit more appealing for a man to receive.

This is what I came up with

I thought a more clean, graphic content would be more appealing than something cute and lovable. I kept with the red theme as this is always associated with love, but then, the men I know will also associate red with certain football teams! Not to be out done, I thought, I can always do the blue alternative as well!

Postcard Post - A Christmas Bauble

I've finally got around to sending out my seasonal greetings. This year it had to be in the form of a Christmas postcard - what else! I had my Christmas Lights postcard from earlier, but couldn't resist doodling another.
Christmas baubles come in all shapes and sizes as well as colours and patterns. I've doodled a few little baubles for a Christmas card before, so this time I decided to doodle one large bauble. Here it is...

With the doodle done, the fun bit is to colour it in and see it develop.

Add a background colour, some Christmas text and a bit of shadow detail, to bring it to life...

It also needs a back design...

Oh, and then I can't resist a little play around with the colours to produce another version.

Merry Christmas to you all.

Postcard Post - Christmas Lights

Why is it, when you see some song lyrics written down, you try your best to just read them but you inevitably end up singing them. These lyrics then get stuck in your head, on an endless loop, and you sing the same bit over and over again, driving you (and anyone who can hear you) a little bit madder each time you do it.

For once, this worked to my advantage and sparked an idea for a Christmas postcard.

What I needed was some Christmas lights.

Switched on.....

And then those all important song lyrics, to get us into the spirit of things.

Are you singing it yet? Enjoy.

Postcard Post - Ace Brill Fab!

I love postcards!

I have quite a few pin boards and wire rack thingy-ma-jigs full of postcards and art cards that I've collected from all sorts of places. They act as constant inspiration to me whilst I potter about my house.

I pick them out, initially, because of the image on the front, but in the case of postcards, especially old, used postcards, it is also the design of the 'blank' back, the stamp and the handwritten message. Here is one from my collection. A photograph of a very windy Newquay, with a bit of a cryptic message for a Miss Hill.

As well as the fun of collecting them, I like to design my own. This too, is a collection that keeps on growing! I hope to bring you a series of 'Postcard Posts' showing you my designs. This first one is simply called Ace Brill Fab!

I think I must have been feeling pretty good at the time. There is also the 'blank' side.

In this day and age of texts and social media, it is easy for us to keep in touch with friends and family. But I don't think you can beat the joy of sending or receiving a hand written postcard 'the old fashioned way'.