New Blog Name - bjcraftcorner

I have decided to change my blog name,
The "ccraftcorner" can be a tad confusing to tell people verbally.
Is it an extra "c" or "see" or "sea" before the craftcorner?

To bring names in line with my new e-mail, the new blog is:-

bjcraftcorner

I was so glad that was available and it works oh so much better when you tell people about it verbally.

I set it up a while back but have only just got around to doing the switch.

See you on my new blog.

The bridge photo, top right, links to my new blog and vice versa.

The Parakeets Are Coming

The Green Ring-Necked Parakeets have been resident in Surrey for some years but this is the first time I have seen them in our neck of the woods in NE Surrey.

I first spotted them on a next door-but-one neighbour's tree on Armistice Day
(Wednesday 11-11-15)
How does the song go?
Ten Green Parrots Sitting in a Tree!


More recently in the next door neighbour's tree eating the fruit there.




But today they ventured into our garden.

Not sure if I am pleased or not.

They do look exotic but I hope they don't discourage our abundance of native species.

Season of Mists...

... and Mellow Fruitfulness - To Autumn - John Keats

The SWAP theme for this month was leaves and would you know good old Tim Holtz decided I'd need a tutorial for some Distressed Leaves, wasn't I the lucky one?

First I swiped lots of autumnal coloured Distress Ink Pads on my craft sheet sprayed with some water and then dabbed the two halves of a piece of A4 white card in the mixture.




I splattered with some gold paint using an old toothbrush.

Then diecut a load of leaves using the various dies I have.

I decided to make a tag which I embossed with a woodgrain folder.

I added a little hedgehog mooching around in the leaves as they do.

Hessian braid and raffia added to the Autumnal feel.

Poppies and Doves

I had some duplicate photos included in my last order from Photobox. First time this has happened, a slight overrun I assume, but quite welcome.

I had a spare poppy photo, so I put that in my little CD flower album along with a garden photo which hadn't made the cut for the main Garden Reclamation 12x12 page. I used my new poppy die to embellish the page.

Spurred on by the poppy die I eventually finished my page on Morden Hall Park which had been sitting unstuck on my craft table for a few days. We'd visited the park to get some photos of the iron bridge for my Summer Scavenger Photo Hunt.


I found a new craft magazine jumped into my shopping basket the other day as it had a lovely dove die as the freebie, despite me already having 2 other dove dies!!

Well this in turn inspired me to my next page which was of a bit of geocaching we did back in the summer which took us to West Horsley so I could suss out where my new harp group was located.

I used some hexagons I had cut out when I got the set ages ago. Also the frame was sitting in my purple folder awaiting a time such as this too. All because my husband had a purple t-shirt on.

Sixteen

My son gave me a remit for a card for his friend's birthday.

A big number sixteen in red with a white background.








I offered adding some gears, which was taken well, so I got to work.


Amazing what you can do with ink and stamps to some patterned paper.


All the pieces ready for sticking.






All done.

Up to Birthday Shoot!

Here's my latest scrapbook pages from the Summer just gone.

A synopsis of one garden border reclaimed from the weeds!

Is that a harp I see in the distance?







A knitted mermaid and Remembering Dad.

The bees in the garden were very busy.






Enlightened French Doors (or are the windows??)

My son couldn't resist going through the hole left from the panel before the glass was put in.

He'd never be able to do that again was his reasoning!

My son through 5 years of secondary school, phew glad that is over!

He got 10 great GCSEs and long hair.

He is now on to pastures new - horrah!

My husband's birthday photo shoot.

He's the only one with a Summer birthday so we could get out in the garden for some family photos.

Trees, Paths, Stools & Harps

Some more scrapping, firstly my husband up a tree getting a geocache back in May on our mini ramble which brought us out on Harps Oak Lane in Chipstead. Also the leveled path as last!


Then my harp stool in the making and me playing in the garden at home and in my lesson back in June. Got to use some lovely embellishments gifted to me from a craft friend too.


The little tag in the photo pocket is the photo which didn't "fit" and is of my first broken string in July.

Sweet Peas & Sadness

Gosh a whole month has passed since my last post, where did September go?

New College for our son so new routine, also tinged with deep sadness from a friend.

My first pages are from photos taken back in April.


Firstly, when my husband fixed us new kitchen taps. The old ones had been dripping for a while so we popped into Wickes and got some new ones which surprisingly were on special offer, we found out at the checkout.

Secondly, photos of our Bible Study group. The close up shows the emblems of Canada and America befitting our leaders.

My next pages are of my Sweet Peas which were a birthday present from a friend.










I dedicate these pages to my friends' little girl, Lucy, who died suddenly on 22nd September 2015.

I only knew her on Facebook but the adventures she had in her short 5 years were a delight to share.

RIP Lucy Ceri Smith.

Scavenger Hunt 2015 - part 9

Sometimes in this life you just have to work out how to do things yourself.

#15 - A Flag pole with at least three flags on it.

Not having been able to locate a flagpole with at least 3 flags on it, I thought I'd make my own. I just knew I had some little flags "somewhere", so under the stairs I went.

I found the Scotland flag (top) in the first cupboard, but it took emptying out the old dressing up bin from the second cupboard to find the others.

The other British flags going down are the Wales, Union, England and Lion Rampant of Scotland (but I don't think this is a complete version.)

Then I had the task to get them all on a piece of bamboo where the joins were too thick.

So out came the penknife to whittle down the thickness!


Then where to place it for a good photo. Upright didn't work, but into the ivy on the fence at an angle was much better.

I hope this counts.

Scavenger Hunt 2015 - part 8

My husband came home yesterday from his cycle ride and mentioned there was a "proper" Carousel up on Epsom Racecourse (as opposed to my playground Merry-go-rounds).

We braved the pouring rain on this UK Bank Holiday Monday to check it out, just in time for the end of month round up over on Rinda's blog.

I just had to include the Helter Skelter we saw on the way to the carousel.


#13 - A Merry-Go-Round or Carousel

We walked down a public footpath next to where the carousel was situated and got this tantalising shot through the railings also showing the Carousel Lorry and the farm animals for the "fun day".

In the pouring rain I think not!


Further down still I managed to get a complete shot of the carousel, aren't they colourful.




So still outstanding for me are:-

#15 - A Flag pole with at least three flags on it.
#A - People Eating Outside
#C - A Rocking Chair

However as I have got one of the substitutes I am essentially done.

Battenburg Cake...

...or as we call it here, Daddy Cake! As it is my husband's favourite cake.

Plus point is that I don't like it at all so it is safe to buy as I don't eat it!

This version is even less fattening too.

Knitted Plane

I knitted a little toy plane from a pattern a friend had sent me.

Here it is being created.

Guess what I'm knitting next?

Yes CAKE!