giveaway :: creative collective

[image - creative collective]

If you haven’t seen this great new zine, *Bespoke*, from Jess over at Epheriell Designs you have no idea of what you’re missing. The cover art alone for this issue is just divine!

If you’d like the chance to win a copy keep reading! Creative Collective are offering readers a chance to win their own copy and all they have to do is suggest a project for the month of September.

If you'd like to be in it to win it just click here.

Good Luck!

advice...

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I have been thinking of late that I need to get an art and craft box started for Master N - you know the type I mean one filled with egg cartons, cereal boxes, pipe cleaners, pom poms, string, sticky tape etc....

You would think that I would be in my element heading of to the $2 shop to fill a trolley full of supplies but I am perplexed to say that I don't really know where to start....

Considering I am not currently living in a mansion, I want to try and contain it to one of those plastic storage boxes - oh to be able to have an art and craft space like in the photo above...

So I am asking for you advice - what is a definite must have art and craft item that your kidlets have in their stash and love? Is there anything you can have too much of?

wordless wednesday....

Playing along with Faith Hope & a whole lotta Love - you should too!

fat free easter goodies!

I told you they were fat free! Available in the Made It Store now!

quick three :: favourite movies

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Top Gun - I used to sit and watch this as a little girl and tell my Mum that I was going to be a fighter pilot when I grew up! I get goosebumps everytime I hear a song from this movie - sad I know! This is classic Tom Cruise before the jumping on the couch episode!

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Romeo & Juliet - I love, love, love this movie. Every single bit of it. I cry (not sure why) everytime I watch the fishtank scene and the end, oh dear, I am devastated everytime.

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The Social Network - This one is a bit out of left field for me. This was the last movie I saw the the cinema with Uber Claire before Baby H was born. I wasn't all that keen on seeing it but went along and I loved it. This one is definetely a keeper for me.

Playing along with Kasiabear - why not join in too!

a breakthrough....

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So it has been just over 15 weeks since Baby H (yep, 15 weeks) graced us with his presence and I must say that all those people who told me that your second baby would be a better sleeper than the first were right. What they didn't tell me was that the second baby would hate the car and would scream like he was being murdered from the second you put him in the car seat until the time you got him out.......

Yep for the last 15 weeks every car trip has been a nightmare, Baby H has screamed blue murder for the entire time that we have spent in the car. No amounts of loud music, me singing or Master N whinging would drown him out. I knew it was bad the day I turned around to see Master N sittimg in his seat with his fingers stuck in his ears.... So I am not going to bore you the details of what we have done to try stop him from screaming nor am I going to bore you with the stories, like the day when I was driving to Mum and Dad's (2 1/2 hours away) on my own and it took me 4 1/2 hours to get there after the screaming, a number three nappy change and being projectile vomited on, no I defeinetely won't tell you about that.

I will however tell you that something has changed and he has stopped the screaming. Not sure what it was or what we did differently, if anything, but he seems to be happy in the car now so long as we are not stopped for any length of time. This does result in me driving like I am competing in the V8 Supercar Series and doing my best impersonation of Craig Lowndes so as to not be stopped at a red light!

I am feeling a less apprehensive about leaving the house now! Yep, I wouldn't leave the house unless absolutely necessary so that I didn't have to put my little Baby H through something that he quite obviously did not enjoy!

Oh and I have noticed that Master N doesn't seem to have his fingers jammed permanently in his ears during car trips now too!

All I can say is thank goodness! I was starting to get worried that I would turn into a hermit!

etsy shop love......

[all images from Ink & Scissors]

I came across this little store, Ink & Scissors, whilst searching for some gorgeous Fabric Flowers for an upcoming Creative Collective project that shall remain a secret for now!

I love all the delightful items in this little store. The Cards are gorgeous, the little Gift Card Holders are a fabulous idea and this Handmade Mini Album is to die for.

Christine was a pleasure to deal with and I can't wait to receive my little package!

pretty pictures :: comfy chairs

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Happy Sunday!

this week i am grateful for....

[Photo by One Craftee Mumma! notecards from Whimsy Whimsicals]

SNAIL MAIL!

I love to receive little bits and bobs in the post that don't come from Mr St George Bank, Mr Origin Energy, Mr Brisbane City Council, I could go on and on with the people that send me 'yukky' mail!

This week I received a lovely little note from a gorgeous bloggy friend. Put a huge smile on my face, thank you xox

I have also decided to join a couple of swaps on Swap-Bot, sent off a package earlier this week and can't wait to see what i get back!

I am discovering lots of great ways to connect with people and can't wait to continue doing my bit to bring back the snail mail tradtion!

Joining in with Maxabella Love's grateful blog hop which is being hosted over at And then there were four this week......

all i am missing is a library....

[image via dazeychic]

paper owl swap....

I signed up for a Paper Owl Swap on Swap-Bot and yesterday I sent off all the little goodies shown in the photo to my swap partner in British Columbia, Canada!

Have you ever participated in a swap before?

my creative space....

So this month hasn't been a good one for craftiness in my little world.

Instead the last couple of weeks have been filled with creative writing in the form of a submission to the Council regarding a proposed three storey, 12 unit development proposed for the property right next door, obviously we are a little upset about the whole thing but understand that it is progress and we can't stop it but would think that asking for a couple of things to be changed isn't unreasonable. One example, I don't think that having an industrial sized bin situated right outside our kitchen/dining room window is something that we should have to put up with. I could go on but frankly I am a little over it and have decided that by putting my submission with my objections into the council that I have done everything I can do.

Just got to sit and wait now....

For more creative types head on over to Kootoyoo....

wordless wednesday....

Joining in with Faith Hope and a Whole lotta Love - you should too...

etsy shop love....

[images - knot & bow]

I love this little Etsy store called Knot & Bow.

It is filled with so many gorgeous little bits and pieces!

I think my favourite little item would be The Classics Gifting Kit!

So handy to have in the cupboard!

pretty pictures :: perfect parasols

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Happy Sunday!

if you say so....

[image source - Joys Hope]

Not one to normally do what I am told I thought that I just might try it today, so I am off to do something good!

my creative space....

Not much happening in the way of creativeness in my little world this week but here are a few snippets of things that have been done....

Some Easter Bunny Punchies for the Shop...

Some more stitching of the Softie - although not as much as I would have liked...

Fabric purchased to back the Softie - couldn't let a 20% off sale at Spotlight slide by without purchasing something or maybe a few somethings....

For more Creative Spaces head over to Kootoyoo.....

quick three :: favourite magazines

Country Style - I only started buying this magazine about six months ago. I was drawn to it for it's gorgeous covers and dreamy content. Lots of beautiful things to be found in this magazine....

House & Garden - I have been a faithful subscriber to House & Garden for a long time now! I find it full of beautiful things every month without fail. Always good with a cuppa and some peace and quiet!

Home Beautiful - I received a subscription to Home Beautiful for Christmas from my gorgeous SIL and I love it. It is filled with so many fresh and pretty ideas!

Playing along with Kasiabear - why not join in....

wordless wednesday....

More Wordless Wednesday fun here.....

etsy treasury....

image source - Chantal Vincent on Etsy

Found myself looking at Easter Greeting Cards on Etsy today. Thought I would make a Treasury whilst I was at it. You can see it here.

Happy Monday!

etsy shop love....

[images - artmind]

I have always love the little ceramic sculptures by Artmind on Etsy. I was reminded of this little shop the other day when I was searching for ideas for Easter gifts for the kiddies!

You can also check out the Artmind Blog which is always good for a little inspiration.

pretty pictures :: vintage vans

[image source - little miss wedding]

[image source - hilary walker]

[image source - i am blessed]

[image source - snailtrail.co.uk]

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this week i am grateful for......

[image source - Cadbury]

Panadol and Chocolate.....

To say that this week has been one of those weeks would be an understatement and I don't know that I would have made it through said week without a good dose of chocolate and panadol - daily!

I am not going to go into the sad story because after all tomorrow is the beginning of a new week and to tell you the truth the happenings of the past week are something that I don't want to relive! I should just say that none of the happenings were disastrous or life threatening and were just what I assume are normal happenings when your life includes a two year old, a three month old and a husband that is very busy at work at the moment!

So here's to tomorrow being the start of what I hope will be a more normal week in our little household!

Playing along with Maxabella Loves - why don't you join in....

quick three :: favourite stationery items

[image source - Handmade Pencils by missIsa on Etsy]

Pencils - I love writing in pencil, I also think that pencils are never the same once your sharpen them so I don't, I just buy new ones!

[image source - Flickr]

Post It Notes - You can never have too many of these useful little items! I love them and use them for lots of things - notes, page markers, lists etc.

[image source - Kikki-k]

My 3am Notebook by Kikki-k - Sits on my bedside table and sometimes get a huge workout in the middle of the night when there are lots of ideas floating around in my head!

Playing along with Kasiabear - you should too!

my creative space......

Whilst spending some time at my Parent's place this last week I managed to get started on the packet mix softie that I had purchased a while back. I am really enjoying the embroidery side of it, so therapeutic......

For more Creative Types head on over to Kootoyoo.

wordless wednesday....

Playing along with Faith Hope and a Whole Lotta Love - you should too!

wordless wednesday.....

'YES! Please'

Joining in with Faith Hope and a whole lotta Love - you should too!

creative collective :: march project

Can you believe that it is March already! Only good thing about the months passing by so quickly is the new Creative Collective Projects each month!

Here is the Project for March!

Be Inspired:
In recognition of St Patrick's Day the theme for this project is Green!!! Whether that's simply to do with colour or because you've upcycled, recycled and reused items to make a green craft.

We’re asking you to create a "green" craft project. You could do anything from reusing old buttons to make a clock, using everyday items to make inspired images or re-purposing everyday items into something extraordinary. Or you could simply be inspired to use various shades of green to create your masterpiece.

Through out the month of March the Creative Collective Blog will be showcasing some green themed projects, artists and items so remember to come back and check it regularly!

Don't forget the Creative Collective Forum is also a great place to get together with other crafters and swap ideas, talk about what you're working on or simply just to hang out.

Share:
We want to see what you have created! Take a photo of your newly created craft item and then upload it to the Creative Collective Flickr Group or the Facebook Page. Don't forget to include, in the comments/description fields, what items you used to complete your project, why you chose to do what you did and if you have a tutorial so others can do it too. The more information you can leave the greater the chance of the image being used by other people.

As projects are posted to Flickr and Facebook the ladies of Creative Collective will post them to the Creative Collective Blog with your details about how you made your craft project. (Remember: leave information about your project when you post the photos.)

This project runs from today until March 31, 2011. At the end of the month we're asking all members of Creative Collective to blog about their favourite projects. The founding members will certainly be blogging their favourites!

Now it is time to get your craft on! We can’t wait to see what you all come up with!

Conditions:
- All items must be handmade by you.
- Items must either be predominately green in colour or 60% of the project is made from recycled or re-purposed items.
- By submitting your photos to the Creative Collective Flickr Group you are agreeing to letting these images be used on other blogs associated with this challenge.
- All photos you submit to the Creative Collective Flickr Group must not have copyright restrictions. This will allow the Creative Collective Members to feature your images on their blogs.
- All images used to promote this Creative Collective project must be credited to the source. Failure to do so will result in possible removal from future projects.
- Please only submit photos related to this challenge. Any photos that do not relate to the current challenge will be deleted.
- By submitting photos to this project you are agreeing to adhere to these conditions.