Thursday 3 January 2013

The "Tidy" Has Begun

Oh my goodness, what a mess all that last minute Christmas creating created! My first venture into the cabin left me feeling glum, piles of off cuts and remnants on the bench and floor, piles of 12x12 papers cut into from when the Scrapbooking classes ended,so there was nothing else I could do. A black sack joined me and after several hours of being ruthless, most of my bench is now fit to create on again but oh my, the drawers need a serious overhaul! I'm sure I might regret it but the pile of 12x12's are now chopped into 6x6 and seem less daunting now that they are neatly bagged in their "collections". I think I could do with investing in a basket so that I can have them on my bench nagging at me instead of being forgotten in the drawer. I've even put all the diecuts in an envelope ready to send to my friend in Scotland.

So still no paper crafting has been done but what I have done is started making some bracelets after a request before Christmas by my boss. My bench is now covered in small boxes and packets of beads, threads in various colours and dobs of glue that I keep dipping the ends of the thread in to make it easier to slide through the beads.
I'm new to this game so any advice greatly received :)
 
 
These are the first couple I made in November as a trial but made on twine before I got some jewellery thread, I'm loving that I found a link on Pintrest as to how to make them adjustable.
I'll show you all the new makes once they're finished.
Oh well, that's me for today, hope it's a good one for you,thanks for stopping by, catch you later,
Julie.x


6 comments:

Di said...

Hi Julie

Happy New Year. Just thought I'd let you know you aren't alone - I almost lost the will to live when facing the craft room here. Work has begun and at least I can sort of see the desk now.

A thought, why not use up some snippets regularly and come and play in the Snippets Playground? I don't promise that your piles of paper will go down rapidly but it's fun, folk are so friendly and there are some super little ideas.

I think you were probably right to chop your papers into 6" squares - that's the size I use most of - plus you can always join 'em up and cover with a strip of ribbon or lace if you want to make a bigger card :)

Love your bracelets BTW, I'm not a beader but Lunch Lady Jan is very friendly, helpful and makes jewellery. Why not hop over and say Hello and ask away - http://lunchladyjansfabricfrenzy.blogspot.co.uk/

Tell her that Di sent you :)

Hugs, and don't despair, lots of us are frantically trying to do some sorting out right now.

Di
xx

Lunch Lady Jan said...

Hi there Julie! Happy New Year :)

How nice to meet you through Di! She's one lovely lady, isn't she?!
I don't know if I'm qualified to suggest anything as I only started beading myself a few months ago and am very much self taught. There some amazing tutorials on YouTube, I would start there for basic techniques and tips. The bracelets you've made look pretty fine to me!! I find the sales rack in BHS and Evans are great to buy necklaces really really cheaply and then take apart. Hobby craft is incredibly expensive I think. Try www.cooksongold.com for reasonable findings, cord, equipment etc.
I would be reluctant to offer any more advice...you could always look for local classes as well....
Let me know how you get on, it would be great to see your stuff. I just muddle by somehow :)
Jan xxxx

Chris said...

Julie, what a good girl you are! -and how brave!! Cutting your papers to 6"! I have so much 'stuff' everywhere and the best I seem to do is shove it in a drawer so that the desk is clear (well, clear-ish, I can see a little bit of desktop (sometimes!)
The bracelets look fab!
Chris
x

Unknown said...

I have never really did any beading myself. But I have lots of them pinned on pinterest as well. Maybe someday.. I love the look of these..

Hugs~

Susan said...

I'm a keen beader myself - and purchase most of my things from eBay very cheaply. Just make sure you know the sizes of beads you want - I have made many mistakes and ended up with beads I'll never use.
I think your creations are fab though - and as already mentioned you tube and pinterest are great inspirations....

Hugs xx

Nancy in Iowa said...

I wonder if I sat and cut all my 12x12 papers into usable sizes if I would find them more accessible and user friendly...will have to give this a thought. I hate to admit that I love getting lost in a day of reorganizing and straightening. I usually do it when things get really out of hand (messy) or when my muse has left the building...
Lovely bracelets you! I've used beeswax for frayed ends.