A Card & A Giveaway!!!

Still bashing away at the quick and easy cards......and using up no end of stuff in the process. I feel quite satisfied when I throw empty packets away......lol!!!

I have a bag of large brads that are surplus to requirements so if anyone would like them just leave me a comment here and I'll draw a name on Monday.
There are brads with slots in for tying ribbon through, shaped brads with patterns and plain round with patterns.

I am taking a night off tonight to watch a film with DD who has had to stay home from work. She caught the dreaded stomach bug and had to be sent home in the early hours of this morning.
After that I had best get some sleep as Ruby will be here for the day tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by.
Sheila-x-

It May Be Winter Outside!!!

 Yes it may be cold and foggy outside but here inside ManicTowers today I have been as snug as a bug. First thing I finished off the card up yonder. Another quick and simple card made using an envelope punch, a multi flower punch and some scraps of paper out of my box.
Once that was done I did this.................

Oh it was so relaxing. I started off with the fruitcake and while that was baking I made a batch of pastry for the lemon meringue pie plus some extra for a tray of mince pies. Once that was all done I started on a roast dinner to warm Mr Manic when he got in from work. One could be forgiven for thinking that I keep him half starved judging by the look on his face when he saw what I had been up to all day......lol!!!

DD has asked me to have a browse around some online shops and make a wish list for my birthday........it isn't until April but she says she wants to make a start picking up bits for me from next pay day and I can't think of a better way to spend an hour seeing as I have been on me poor feet nearly all day.
It's her birthday on Monday and I ordered her pressie today which should be delivered tomorrow. Once upon a time we didn't have another birthday until mine but now we have Ruby who will be one in February. I just can't believe it......gawd I sound like a female Victor Meldrew.......lol!!!
Anyhoo....I shall go and do some browsing as instructed and I'll see you tomorrow.
Thanks for your vist.
Sheila-x-

Simply Simple!!!

Another filthy, foggy day today so I have stayed where it was warm and made some more cards.
I don't know about you but my brain is getting twizzled with all the new dies that are out there now. Anyway I think the lace border is a Marianne die. The scalloped circle is definitely a Nestie and the circle over it is Quickutz.
As for the papers........I haven't a clue. They have been in my stash for ages but have no makers name on the back.
Just a quick matting and layering job with a bit of bling in the form of Papermania glittery self adhesive dots.

Poor Mr Manic has been off work today with a very badly upset stomach. Ooooh he was poorly when he came home last night and obviously with him now working in the food industry it would not have been right for him to go in spreading his germs. All better now though so it must have been one of those twenty four hour bugs.
I had planned to bake today but put that off until tomorrow as I didn't want to disturb Mr M while he was snoozing this morning.
DD is at work tonight so I am off to hog the tv and watch a film.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

A Bit Of This & That!!!

It's been a filthy day weatherwise today and I was so glad that I didn't have to go out anywhere.
This morning we had snow for an hour or so and then it turned to rain for the rest of the day. Everywhere looks very sad and soggy. To cheer us all up I made a lovely warming chicken and vegetable soup with the inevitable cheese scones. My lot won't eat bread with soup since I started making those.
Once I had got cleaned up and laid the fire the rest of the day was free for me to do as I pleased so I hotfooted it upstairs and sorted out my paper offcuts box and did some diecutting for a while then made some cards.
So todays card is more Basic Grey and the card has been cut with my Go Kreate die. Heart is Cuttlebug cut from chipboard and glittered using A4 double sided adhesive sheet and loose glitter.
Just very simple but I need to make a lot of cards at the moment.
No Ruby until Friday so I should have a good crafting week this week and will maybe get to play with some of my new things.
DD really spoiled me and did me bag full of gifts. There were stamps, a die, a Big and Juicy inkpad, flowers, Tim Holtz embellishments, an embossing folder, a holly mask which I had fallen in love with at the garden centre craft shop and loads more.....enough to keep me out of mischief for a week anyway....lol!!!
Right...well I am off for a bit of a browse before I snuggle down to sleep.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Well...That's That Then!!!

I know we say it every year but.......blimey all that hard work and then it's gone in a flash.

We had a fantastic afternoon on Christmas day with our house full of guests. There was Mr Manic and myself, DD and her boyfriend, DDIL, DS and Ruby and DDIL's Mum, Stepdad, sister and her partner. Lots of laughter and merriment and hopefully the start of a combined family tradition.

This is one of the winter warmers I made to pop in with everyone's gifts. I drew heavily on inspiration from the fabulous Helen over at Fiddle Fart. They went down very well.

.......and here is a card I made yesterday. Very simple and using some of my Basic Grey stash which I want to wade through and get rid of now. The stamped image is Magenta. The last few weeks have been so 'full on' that it was lovely to have a nice relaxing day.I tidied away all of the wrapping paper that had taken over the workroom and just sat peacefully and quietly stamping....utter bliss.

The picture is taken with my new digital camera which Santa delivered along with lots of crafting goodies and Sanctuary smellies.
Miss Doodle was thoroughly spoiled and although she had had a very busy day she was still in a lovely mood when she got to us. I really had expected her to be crotchety but no she was smiley and chatty until nearly 8pm when she went to sleep like a little angel.

I hope you all had the Christmas that you hoped for.
Thanks for stopping by.
Sheila-x-

Merry, Merry Merry!!!

Merry Christmas

To everyone who visits

with love

from

Sheila

-x-

The Smell Of Christmas!!!

My kitchen has smelled like a proper Christmas heaven today with gingerbread men and snowflake cookies baking, a ham simmering on the hob and then baked with a coating of marmalade in the oven......and a naughty treat of sausages for tea. Absolute bliss!!!
I made some tiny gingerbread men and Christmas tree cookies for Ruby and she loved the one I gave her......chomping away at it with her one tooth that came through yesterday......lol!!!
I'm just about dead on my feet after a very hectic day but now have to go and wrap pressies and make up some winter warmer packs to give to our guests on Saturday.
We have the new car at last and I think we are just about done with shopping apart from picking up the cockerel and beef from the butcher and a few last minute fresh food items from Tesco. DDIL and Miss Doodle will here for the day tomorrow and DD is taking them up to the garden centre for an hour to see the baby reindeer and have a coffee so that the head cook and bottle washer (that'll be me then....lol!!!) can have some peace and quiet before she goes completely mental.
Much as I am looking forward to our guests I think Boxing Day will be very welcome with just Mr Manic, DD and myself. We shall eat leftovers from Christmas Day for our meals and have our roast beef on Monday I think so that I get a day off from the cooking and baking. With a bit of luck I shall get time to play with my new crafting goodies........well if Santa brings me some.....ha ha ha!!!
Rightio.........wrapping here I come.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Sod's Law!!!

I might have known that something would be thrown at me seeing as how I was planning on going out shopping for the day today.....and it was. We awoke to heavy snow this morning but decided we would get out to the main roads and see what they were like and turn back if we thought it wasn't sensible to carry on. Luckily it wasn't too bad and we hit Westfields in Derby just as the shops were about to open, downed a quick Starbucks and then raided the shops. Big presents had been reserved at the Argos nearer home so we left Derby by 11am and headed there to pick them up. Got sidetracked by a new bargain store that had opened next door to Argos where we picked up some useful things and I earmarked a new rug for the lounge which I am hoping Mr Manic will get on Friday........I had run out of money by then.
DD treated me to lunch at Frankie and Bennys which was gorgeous but the restaurant was bloody freezing and full of screeching kids so all I wanted was to get home, get the fire lit and make a cup of tea.
I've been in about an hour now and am still cold so I think I will stick the oven on and do some baking.
Tara for now
Sheila-x-

Busy Bee!!!

Manic Towers has been a hive of activity what with Miss Doodle in residence and all the baking I have been doing to prepare for our influx of visitors on Saturday.
Today I have made a ginormous chocolate and lime cheesecake using Nigella's Bourbon biscuit base from her Grasshopper Pie then Mascarpone with fresh limes for the filling. It smells divine. This evening I will be assembling some mini pizza bites on french stick slices to freeze and then cook on the day ETA at 5:50pm....actually now I won't be as Mr Manic has waded into the french stick to have with his tea!*)^%**!!! I also used up some leftover mashed potato from yesterday and made a couple of cheese, potato and onion flans so that's tonights tea sorted. It's so unlike me to be so organised it's scaring me..........lol!!!
Ruby was a bit unsettled last night after just having returned from a weekend in London so I didn't get time upstairs as I'd hoped.
Another busy day tomorrow with Mr Manic starting his new job, the new car to be picked up, more baking to be done and gifts to wrap.........oh my days........I shall be glad when the day is here and no mistake.
Hope you are all having fun with your preparations too.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

It's A Lovely Day Today!!!

We have a little bit of winter sun this morning which is making the small amount of snow we have glisten and sparkle. So pretty. Tis rather chilly though so luckily I shall be nice and snug in the kitchen making things to go in the freezer for next weekend and finishing off the casserole I started yesterday for today's lunch.
Yesterday I had some time up in my room but did mostly prep work so no finished cards to show. They will get finished if I manage to squeeze an hour up there today before Miss Doodle arrives for the night.
Last night we went out late to Tesco (10pm) and got pretty much everything off my shopping list apart from a couple of things. It wasn't something I would do regularly but it was great not to have to fight for the last lettuce or whatever......lol!!!
Anyway, Mr Manic needs my services as an Argos catalogue looker upper and reservation clerk so I had best get off before he sacks me.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Eight More Sleeps!!!

This is the card I managed to get made yesterday but couldn't take a picture of. The picture is still not brilliant but it's better than it was before.
Stamps used are Inkadinkado and the papers are Basic Grey.
I have done this style of card before using different papers but I do love this colourway....even though it's pink......lol!!!
For the butterfly I have stamped in Versamark onto a piece of the pink distressed paper and embossed using a clear powder. Then I have rubbed over it with a darker red die ink which has coloured the non embossed areas. This has then been embellished with Stickles Stardust.
I have since done another card the same but left off the glitter and I must admit I like it much better than with.

Well tomorrow the Christmas clean up starts 'big time'. Every corner of Manic Towers will be getting an extra special scrub up ready for the visitors on the 25th. I will be sensible and spread it out over a couple or so days though.
Mr Manic had to go out and get another car today as he will have to be at work for 6am when he starts on Tuesday and when DD is at work she doesn't arrive home until after 7am. With only one car and no early morning bus service it would have been a bit of problem.
We started off the morning with a couple of quite violent hail storms and then had snow for a couple of hours which has settled but is not very deep. There is going to be more here tomorrow according to the forecast.

I'm off to phone DD now for a chat as I have hardly seen her all day.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Manic The Scrubber!!!

Eeeeeh by gum....it's been a tad cold here today. I have kept warm though by.......chasing around after Miss Doodle who was in very cheeky mode today.....and scrubbing out kitchen drawers. I hate to think when was the last time I did that job.....they were disgusting.
It's a good job hubby wasn't there to see some of the stuff I chucked out. He's a bit of a hoarder when it comes to things like the key things that come with flat pack furniture and the odd spare screws, plus he cuts plugs off anything that is being thrown out. Well they have all gone now. I bet he won't even notice and I ain't saying anything......lol!!!
We had some snow earlier in the day but it hasn't settled as it had been raining before but just now I am not bothered. If it could hold off until after my shopping trip on Wednesday and then it can lay all it likes......lol!!!
I did manage to make a card today but couldn't get a decent picture of it to post so will have to try again tomorrow....if it gets light at all. It's been very dark all day today.
Well I am off to make my shopping lists. One for the buffet I am doing on Christmas day and one for gift shopping. Hubby and I are off to Tesco late on Saturday night to get everything but the fresh stuff which we'll get later in the week.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

A Final Christmas Card!!!

Tonight's card is the last one for this year and is made with some old favourites and a new toy that will definitely become a favourite.
Old Faves are the poinsettia stamp (Stampendous) and the holly stamp (Magenta). I'm also quite fond of the Fiskars brayer with patterned rollers and have brayered the backgrounds with Versamark for a subtle watermarked effect. Colouring is done with watercolour paints which I very rarely use and then the berries and the poinsettia flower have been given a coat of Distress Clear Crackle which doesn't show too well in the picture.
The card base has been cut with my new toy......a Go Kreate die (the largest of a set of three). This card is pretty thick and it cut through it like butter so I am very impressed.

Today has been really nice. I went into town with Mr Manic this morning as he had to go for an interview. I hung around town until he came to meet me afterwards and we did a little bit of Christmas shopping before he took me for lunch. As we ate out I didn't have to cook tonight so got the chance to go upstairs and do some stamping until Apprentice time. Oh thank goodness Stuart Baggs has gone....he has been driving me nuts every week.
I nearly forgot to say that Mr Manic got the job he went for and goes for an induction tomorrow for four hours and then starts next week.....yay!!! The only downside for me is that for all our married life he has been at home for two weeks over Christmas from three days before Christmas Eve until just after DD's birthday in the new year and it has always been my most favourite time of the year. This year he will have just three days off. I know how lucky we are that he has got this job and how lucky we have been for him to have that amount of time off every year.....I'll miss him though.

Anyway....I am off for a soak in the bath and a read while I am there and then off to bed as we have Ruby Doodle tomorrow so I need to get my strength up. This will be the first day without a pair of helping hands so I guess I will be spending most of the day on the floor entertaining her royal highness......lol!!!

Bye for now and thanks for visiting.
Sheila-x-

How Pink Can You Go?!!!

Well on this occasion.....very pink and very happy to do so.
Image. papers and alphabet are from the Hot Pink collection at The Clipart Fairy
I added lots of glitter.....Stardust Stickles, punched snowflakes and a fluffy pom pom.

Had to leave Miss Doodle with DD for an hour today while I went to the hospital to get squished. Came back and she had a new trick of holding hands with DD and pulling herself up onto her feet. Honestly you turn your back for five minutes. Last week she was wiggling across the floor like a little worm, this week she can crawl and pull herself up. I am just captivated by every little thing she does.

Went down to do the first check on the card stand at the new shop on Friday and it's looking promising from the first couple of weeks sales. I put some new cards in and now need to get seriously making so that I can replace the Christmas cards with everyday stock just after Christmas.

The cupcake tower was a huge hit at the birthday party on Saturday which was a relief.....well you're never quite sure when you're doing it for someone you don't really know.

I am so happy that Matt won The X Factor and I loved the single he is releasing so that is on my shopping list. This one has been one of the best of the lot I think.

Well....that's it from me for today. I need to get an early night tonight as I could hardly drag myself out of bed this morning after too many late nights.

Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Crotchety Doodle!!!

Sorry....it's another Graphics 45 card tonight from the batch I made the other day.
Yesterday was just so busy as I ended up making the cupcake tower instead of doing it Friday because I went down with a bad headache. I made and decorated 60 cupcakes and a large chocolate fudge cake in five hours and just finished about half an hour before Miss Doodle was dropped off.
HRH was in a very bad mood today.....mainly I think because she got woken from her nap when she was taken out of the car seat. She didn't stay overnight because her daddy was able to collect her.
All in all I was on my feet for ten hours today and they sure are letting me know about it. So I am off to put them up and am hoping for a lie in this morning.
Bye for now...and thanks for visiting.
Sheila-x-

All Change!!!

Yay........I stamped. Very simple but at least it is stamping. Plus I used my H20's for colouring which I haven't done for a long time.
When Ruby is really happy she gives a great big grin and goes 'Eeeeeeeee'..........and that's just how I feel after a stamping session....lol!!!

Well it's all change here around Manic Towers. The view on my blog header is now no longer deep and crisp and even. It's more brown and soggy looking and the photo I took of the two birch trees......well I am so glad I took that as today one of them has been felled by what has to be the most incompetent tree surgeon in the history of tree surgery. He only went and felled it onto a neighbour's car didn't he? It's made quite a mess I can tell you. Apparently he was heard to say 'How the 'rude expletive' did that happen? Mr Manic was beside himself when he heard that. Not funny for the car owner obviously.

I now have to go and have a mega baking session as I have had an order for a fortieth birthday cupcake tower from one of DDIL's friends for tomorrow. Chocolate cupcakes with a large chocolate fudge cake for the top and DD wants a tray of cupcakes to take to her boyfriends tomorrow night. Oh well at least I will be warm while I am doing that.
DDIL is picking the tower up tomorrow afternoon and dropping Miss Doodle off here for the night. I've missed my kisses and cuddles today so I'm looking forward to that.
They liked the house when they went to see it yesterday and there were going to be discussions of the financial kind before a decision is made. I am keeping everything crossed that they take it.

Have a great weekend.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Paying For It!!!

Baby cards made with the lovely Clipart Fairy images. These are 6x6 cards so the baby is quite big....perfect for sewing on buttons and bows. For the card edge I traced around a freebie card Edger onto the back of some paper, cut it out and stuck it onto the front of the card and then trimmed up the side of it to remove part of the card blank.

I am paying in spades this evening for my play session with Ruby today which involved me crawling around and laying on the floor so that she could use me as a climbing frame. Very unseemly activities for a 53 year old with not very good knees but boy was it good fun. Ruby had a ball and spent the afternoon giggling while grandma spent it groaning. Ah well nothing a hot bath won't cure.

Thanks for your visit today.
Sheila-x-

Winter Witterings!!!

Another couple of cards made with leftover bits from my Graphic 45 collections. Just small 5x5's.

This beautiful sight is what I can see from my front window. They are silver birch trees and they look just like they are draped in lace.
The house you can see in between the two trees with the white door is the very first house Mr Manic and I bought in 1982. To the left of it and forward is another row of very similar houses and DS and DDIL are going to view one of them on Thursday with a view to renting it. I am so excited. Here we are about halfway between where they live now and where DDIL works so she has a half hour or so journey here on the mornings I have Ruby and then another half hour after she has dropped her off then the same in the evening so it would be much better if they get the house. DS has a really rubbish shift rota but he works near here so it would be better for him too.
The photo I am using for my blog header is the view from my workroom and is beautiful whatever the season.

Tomorrow Ruby may be leaving early so I will have a whole afternoon and all the following day to myself and I am going to stamp 'til my fingers bleed. I'm fed up of paper collection projects now but it's all I have time for most evenings.

Anyhoo........now I've bored you to death I shall go and finish my very naughty mug of Ovaltine and then I am going to watch a film until bedtime.

Bye for now and thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Oooooh It's Cold!!!

Just a very simple card tonight using Clipart Fairy papers and a Sizzix bauble die touched up with a bit of Stardust Stickles. This one was for an order and very much to the taste of the lady who placed it.

It's been a bit chilly around Manic Towers today but the views across the fields very beautiful with the frost......until the fog came down that is. After that I couldn't even see the bottom of the garden.

Had a fab day with Ruby today. She's been a proper Chatty Cathy. I wish I knew what she was saying.....it sounds so interesting.
I spent most of the day cooking a warming soup with cheese scone tray bake to go with it and a date and walnut sponge for pudding. From the amount of washing up I think I must have used every pot and pan in the kitchen.....lol!!!

Last night I curled up on the sofa and watched The Holiday with Kate Winslet, Jude Law and Cameron Diaz. Love that film. Tonight it is Love Actually. My treat to myself for being on my feet all day.

Keep warm.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Where Did The Weekend Go?!!!

Well that's the weekend nearly over. Mine has all revolved around HRH Princess Doodle who has been an absolute angel. You won't believe it but at lunch today we discovered that she loves brussel sprouts and ate five of them......whole. Apparently they were yom, yom ,yom.....lol!!! She has just gone home for the night and will be back tomorrow morning bright and early.

Not a cat in hells chance of getting any crafting done while she is in residence so I am posting another card made with the Graphic 45 papers.

I was so pleased that Stacey won I'm A Celebrity. All I need now is for Matt to win X Factor and I shall be a happy bunny.

I am shattered now so I think I'll go and have a soak in the bath before X Factor and then chill out for the rest of the night.

Thanks for dropping by.

Sheila-x-

Nice....But Not Cute!!!

I've been busy today wading through my stash of Graphic 45 papers, image sheets and tags to try and use some of them up as it is an embarrassingly large stash. Here's one of the cards I made. I apologise for the still wet Glossy Accents. The sentiment is one of those awful really shiny peeloffs but it has been toned down with a black StazOn ink pad.

Not left the house for about a week so I was going a bit stir crazy and got DD to nip me up to the garden centre today. Was a bit naughty and treated myself to a set of Nestabilities and a couple of stamp sets. The main roads were fine but the lane up to the garden centre was a bit scary to say the least. It was lovely to get out in the fresh air....however brief it was.

Later today we will be collecting Princess Doodle who is coming to stay for the night. Mummy and Daddy are having a night at a hotel which they had vouchers for. So perfect as it is their one month anniversary.

We've just had another couple of hours of snow so it's looking nice and clean outside. I don't like it when it gets churned up by peoples feet and doggie paws.....it looks messy.....lol!!!

Well I am off to do a bit of online Christmas shopping.

Thanks for dropping by.

Sheila-x-

Snow And Babies!!!

Well here's what I have been up to for the last few days. I've got babies coming out of my ears........lol!!!

Papers and images are from The Clipart Fairy and I love them.

As you know....I am not a huge fan of making baby and kids cards but since discovering The Clipart Fairy downloads.......and spending much more than I should have done...lol.........they have become a pleasure to make. Before I would struggle with papers because I don't buy pastels much and now I have hundreds of them to choose from without taking up any space in my paper storage.......fabulous.

This is the gorgeous view from my workroom window today. It snowed all day up to about 4pm so on top of what we already had it is now quite deep.
I have been sitting with my back to the window so that I wouldn't just sit staring at it. There's something so soothing about watching snow.
It's seemed a lot colder today but despite that I had a bit of a fancy for ham and salad for tea. I was getting a bit fed up of stews and casseroles that stick to your ribs.

No Miss Doodle today as her mummy had to take a snow day from work. I have missed her.

Right....I am off to make a few more cards until it's time for I'm A Celebrity. I've really enjoyed this one and I am rooting for Stacey.

Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Another Cutie!!!

I'm afraid it's another cute card tonight. I have had to make quite a few lately and now I am on baby cards as I didn't realise how low my stock was until I went to put the stand in at the community shop. Mind you my everyday cards were pretty low on most things so I shall have to get cracking and boost the stock a bit.
The image and paper for this card is once again The Clipart Fairy

Miss Doodle has been a tad tetchy today. She is definitely after some teeth. She is gnashing on everything and drooling so much that we are thinking of getting life jackets in case she floods us out....lol!!!

It's just started snowing again here and I have switched the garden light on so that I can watch it and have got myself wrapped around a hot water bottle. Honestly I am like a big kid. If it keeps on at this rate we shall have quite a bit by morning. Luckily I don't have to go anywhere. DD and I are putting the Christmas tree up tomorrow ready for Ruby coming on Wednesday. Can't wait to see her face when she sees it.

DD ended up at the doctors last week her sore throat was tonsilitis and she has had to have antibiotics. She's much better now. I hated seeing her so bad. It's very rare that she is ill.

Ah well.....I suppose I had better get to bed. I feel more like going upstairs and cardmaking but I don't want to disturb anyone.

Bye for now and thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Hi There!!!

Sorry I have been AWOL but I have had one or two things I have had to get done.
One of the things was to thoroughly clean my workroom which I have nearly finished. WOW who ever knew I had so much space.....lol!!! You watch....I'll sit down to make cards this afternoon and find my mojo went out with the rubbish.

We've had some snow......oh yes we have. Usually it snows everywhere but here and I am left gnashing my teeth and sulking because we don't get any. Anyway we woke up Saturday morning to a winter wonderland.......although I had had a sneak preview at 4:20am when I woke for a while. Today is pretty treacherous as it's frozen over so I hope you are all being careful out there.

Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Picture Free Post!!!

Oh lordy......how shattered am I today?
DDIL had to work late tonight and Miss Ruby has just left the building. She has been very hard to entertain today and with her cold a little out of her routine with feeding. She's over the worst now though so hopefully we will get back on track next week.
As you can imagine there has been no time for crafting so unfortunately this is a picture free post. I will however be in manic mode with the cards over the next few days as I have been lucky enough to have been asked to supply the village shop again which re-opens as a community shop on Saturday. I am now frantically looking for a reasonably priced card spinner that will hold assorted sized cards up to A5. The previous shop owner provided the stands but they seem to have been disposed of when the shop closed.
Tonight is Apprentice night so I am taking what's left of the day off.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Ruby The Reindeer!!!

 My card today is another from the special order ones I have been doing. The paper and image are from The Clipart Fairy and were just perfect for a little boy's first Christmas.
No fancy techniques here...just cutting and layering.

Miss Doodle needed some fresh air yesterday so we took her for a ride to Byrkley Park Garden Centre where she just had to try out the seasonal accessories. The grumpy look on her face was because she had just woken up.

After she had gone home last night I went upstairs and between 5:30pm and midnight I made sixty cards.......yes you read that right....sixty!!! They were the thank you cards for DS and DDIL and I was determined to get them finished before bed time. Very simple I used the design from the cupcake boxes of just a band with a printed heart.

Today I have two invalids in the house. Ruby is still recovering from her cold and DD is snuggled up on the sofa with her cold just starting to come out. She is looking very sorry for herself so I am just off to feed her tomato soup and TLC.

Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Mans Christmas Card!!!

Morning all........and what a lovely morning it is. It feels slightly warmer and there is a bit of sun. How long that will last I don't know.
Today I get to spend the whole day upstairs.....well once I have have tidied and vacuumed the lounge and put a load of washing in...lol!!! I plan to finish the card order and then make the thank you cards for DS and DDIL. They shouldn't take long as it's just a very simple design. After that I shall need to tidy up before doing anything else as I have left a bit of a mess up there.

The card I have posted today is for a guy who renovates cars so I have used embossing folders to add detail to the trees. Not the folders you would normally use for Christmas but I thought it was quite a cool twist to use the cogs and the metal plate folders with the stripe.
Paper is from the Snowflake Papers collection by The Clipart Fairy
You should check out the shop......there are some beautiful papers and I may have purchased one or two sets......the prices are amazing.
I do apologise for the quality of the photo. It was very difficult to get a good one because of the mirror card.

Anyway.....hope your Sunday is fab.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Really Cute Christmas!!!

Ah......I love these cute little snowmen from PC Crafter and here I have used them for a commissioned card.
The card blank is 8x8 and the images have been twinkled with Stardust Stickles.
All my cards for the next couple of days are for orders so not much time for inking and stamping I'm afraid.
I would say that I was having a lazy weekend but I think slightly less manic than normal would be nearer the truth. I need to get this order finished to post out on Monday. I have a huge pile of washing to tackle and am trying to get ahead with the cooking for next weeks evening meals.

Mr Manic and I are totally shocked by the explosion at the Pike River Mine in New Zealand. This is where he would have worked if we had gone to live over there. Our thoughts are with all the miners and their families.

Well back to work for me now.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Thursday....Already!!!

Well that's the end of my working week for this week.
Quite a hectic day as Ruby wasn't awfully well. She has a cold and quite a nasty cough. When she wasn't coughing she was her normal happy self but when she coughed it was like it frightened her and she got quite upset.
Mr Manic and I decided to take her out for a while so we took her to a local garden centre to see the Christmas lights and decorations. She loved it. We had a quick look around the new craft shop too and I was very impressed. Mr Manic treated me to a couple of new stamp sets and a set of Marianne snowflake dies bless him. Not had time to play with them because as soon as Miss Doodle had gone home I fell asleep and when I woke up I felt like someone had thumped me in the head. So the crafting will have to wait until tomorrow now.
I'm just gentling pottering around on the www now before I go to bed and I am soooooo looking forward to a lie in in the morning.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Robin Red Breast!!!

Just a really quick card tonight as it is all I had time for. It's been a totally mad day here at Manic Towers. The chimney sweep arrived at 7:45am to get us all clean and ready for the cold weather. Ruby arrived at 8:20am ready for her breakfast and I seem to have spent the rest of the day cooking and washing up in between bouts of feeding, bathing and cuddling Ruby and writing in her daily journal which we keep for mummy to read when she comes home.
Then at 3:45 I was due at the doctors for my diabetes blood results which turned out not to be so good and I have to take extra medication for that. The good news was that since I was weighed last Tuesday I have lost another 2kgs and my blood pressure was excellent. I was down there quite a while and just got home in time to get Ruby ready for home and pack DS and DDIL's evening meal ready for them heat up. It makes sense while I am cooking for three of us to do extra and hand over a meal which just needs heating up so that DDIL doesn't have to spend her evening cooking and I know that it is much appreciated.

Anyway onto the card. I haven't the faintest idea whose the paper is. It was a stack that Deb and I split between us last year. It may be DCWV but don't quote me on that.
Robin is made up from the Tim Holtz Caged Bird die and a circle punch.

Tomorrow should be a little less frantic as we have no visitors due apart from Miss Doodle and no appointments to keep. The evening meal is ready to be cooked and I'll just need to prepare the veg and cook it so we may get our meal at a reasonable time. That'll save Mr Manic sacking me....lol!!!

Thanks for your visit today.
Sheila-x-

Shattered And Happy!!!

Today has been wonderful.
Ruby arrived at 8:15 this morning and apart from a couple of grizzles at nappy changing time.....which she hates.....and when she got a bit tired.....she has been amazing all day.
I expected a bit of difficulty at meal times but there was none at all.
The only downside of the day was the weather which was foggy and cold so we didn't get to road test the pushchair.
I have spent a lazy evening in front of the tv with Mr Manic as I was quite shattered by the time Miss Doodle went home at 6pm so no crafting done tonight although I did have half an hour rearranging my Spellbinder dies into an easier to use system.
Time for me to snuggle up and get some sleep.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Santa Blue!!!

I don't know about Manicstamper today.........I've been more like an old scrubber.......lol!!! I've been doing some serious mucking out at Manic Towers along with furniture shifting and cooking as well.
After tea I was shattered so went upstairs to make a start on an order for Christmas cards and wouldn't you just know........no mojo for the kind of cards I needed to make so ended up just doing something inky.
I have used a Tim Holtz stamp, a Magenta stamp, a Hero Arts stamp, Distress Inks, chalk inks, Moonglow spray, various diecuts and punches for the snowflakes and a touch of stickles.
Started off by stamping the Santa image and colouring it with Broken China, Stormy Sky and Dusty Concord DI's then sprayed with Scintillating Silver Moonglow spray.
For the background I inked first with the same DI's and sprayed with the Moonglow then over stamped using a holly image by Magenta and white and blue chalk ink.
The snowflakes were inked before layering and given a bit of twinkle with Frosted Lace Stickles.
The winter word is Hero Arts stamped in StazOn Jet Black.

Well Miss Doodle will be here for her first day with grandma tomorrow and I just can't wait. Hopefully I will get chance to road test the pushchair........I've nearly worn out the kitchen carpet....lol!!!
I'm just off now to plan her mini menu for the week. She's a bit of a gourmet so she'll keep me on my toes there.

Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

My Sunday!!!

Most of today has been spent in the kitchen or tidying up as we have had DD's boyfriend over for lunch. While they have gone out bowling I have been baking some goodies for tea in the form of a fruit cake and a sponge cake. I'm just about ready for dropping as I haven't stopped all day. It's been a nice day though.
Tomorrow I have to sort out the back room and make storage space for all of Miss Doodles stuff. We don't have a very big house and it just got an awful lot smaller with the pushchair, the travel cot, a big box of nappies and what seems like a lifetimes supply of baby wipes. Tuesday DDIL will be bringing the highchair, baby walker and a box of toys. We may well find ourselves living out on the back yard......lol!!!
At the moment I am collecting store Christmas catalogues and enjoying looking at what we can buy for Ruby. The choice is quite bewildering and I still haven't a clue as to what we shall get for her.
Looks like the bowlers have returned so I had best go and put the kettle on.
Bye for now and thanks for visiting.
Sheila-x-

Happy Inky Fingers!!!

I fell in love with this project in the latest Craft Stamper magazine and just had to give it a go.
I changed the colours and style slightly using Distress Inks in Pumice Stone, Crushed Olive and Forest Moss with Desert Moon Cactus Gold Moon Glow spray.
The stamped pattern is from a flourish set by Artemio.
The shrink plastic embellishment was inked with Antique Linen and Vintage Photo before being stamped with chalk inks and finished with Antique Linen Distress Stickles.
I added wire handles and a poinsettia from Wild Orchid Crafts.
I also changed the box inside by making a box rather than using another of the diecut shapes as I didn't think it was quite big enough.

Had a fun day out with Miss Doodle and her mummy today. Boy that little girl can shop......lol!!! Toys R Us, Mothercare, Boots, Sainsburys. I've never been in a toy shop or Mothercare for over twenty years........lol!!!
Anyway we got the car seat and a gorgeous pushchair which I can't wait to test drive.
We didn't get home until gone 3pm and I was dying to get up in my room and do inky things. Was going to finish the one I started yesterday and decided that I didn't like the colours so did a green one instead.

Hubby and I have a night on our own as DD has gone to her boyfriends so we are having fish and chips and watching X Factor.....bliss.

Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Fiddling Friday!!!

Sorry I haven't got a project to share tonight. I should have had one but I didn't quite get finished so have to go back to it tomorrow afternoon. I will tell you that it's gloriously inky and my fingers are very blue.

I have to go out in the morning to meet DDIL as we are going to buy a car seat for our car and a pushchair ready for next week and I want DDIL to choose them so that she is happy with what we have.
I'm quite excited......lol!!!
She has been out today to buy stocks of essentials for us to have at home so that she doesn't have to bring stuff over everyday.

Mr Manic finished his four month stint back at work today. He had an interview for a job this week and has another next week so fingers crossed that something will come of one of them.

I'm ready for a schlomp on the sofa now as I have had a pretty busy day.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Let It Snow!!!

Today I thought I would get out my very neglected embossing folders and pigment ink pads and have a bit of a play. This what I ended up with.
For the embossed panels I inked up my folders before rolling them through the Big Shot and then added a sparkly embossing powder and heated.
The word snow has been diecut using a Cuttlekids alphabet and attached to the panel with foam pads before being embellished with Frosted Lace Stickles.
The snowflake border is a Martha Stewart punch and has been embellished with blue gems.

Well it's proper wintery here today. Strong winds and thrashing down rain. So I have made a lovely warming Cottage Pie for tea and DD and I are going to be proper slobs and eat it in front of the telly while we watch some more Law and Order. We are on Season 10 now and pacing ourselves with it as we haven't yet got hold of Season 11.
Now that the weather has turned so cold I shall be snuggling up at night with my favourite winter book......Winter Solstice by Rosamund Pilcher. Well I will once I have finished the book I am reading at the moment. Regular readers will know that I read this book every year to get me in the mood for Christmas. It's familiar and cosy and does the trick every time.
The decorating didn't get done.........why am I not surprised....lol!!! But I did clean the cooker which desperately needed doing. Mr Manic has been on afternoons this week and it is so hard to get started on anything while he is about and by the time he has gone off to work the urge to do anything has gone. So DD and I are doing it on Saturday morning now that she doesn't have to go in to work tomorrow night.
Tea is starting to smell very appetising so I shall go and see if it's ready.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Back To Christmas!!!

Today I thought I would have a play with an idea that has been rattling around in my head for a while. I wanted to pair this little girl image from Docrafts with a large tree and was toying with using the Cuttlebug embossing folder. Tried that and it didn't work out so good then I remembered the large tree stamp from this years Papermania collection and voila.
The little girl has been stamped onto various layers of plain white and patterned paper and then cut and layered. Her flesh and hair were coloured with pencil crayons.
The tree was stamped onto a precut layer and finished with red Stickles and a gold star.

Well I have to say that I am enjoying this staying at home lark. I spent a lovely morning baking and rearranging some of the kitchen and then a couple of hours upstairs making the card. This evening DD and I have finished Season 9 of Law and Order and I'll be back off upstairs when Mr Manic gets home and has been fed and watered. Tomorrow I plan to tackle some more of the bottom staircase and hopefully get it finished so that I can start painting. Need to get it done before Christmas as we have a houseful on Christmas Day afternoon. We are having DDIL's family over as they will be up visiting. I have all my festive cookery books out and plan to get ahead with my preparations by cooking and freezing some things so that I don't spend the whole afternoon in the kitchen.

Right......I had best go and put the kettle on for the man of the house.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Oh My Word.......A Card!!!

This is the card I made the other day when I felt like getting inky.

The background is made using some cheap pigment ink cubes and Isopropyl alcohol. I then stamped over it using some of the images from a set of Eco stamps and Black Cherry StazOn. Over the top of those images I stamped using a large background of circles by Just For Fun and white ink.

The main image from the Eco stamp set was stamped in Black Stazon onto another pigment ink background.

The gems were added with Glossy Accents.

Another wedding pic. From the left is DDIL's stepfather, DS, Mr Manic and Dave....the Best Man. Mr Manic scrubbed up real nice and it was great to see him in something other than scruffy jeans and t shirts.

I've had a busy day today doing various things. Started of getting a huge pile of Christmas cards packed as I had a lady coming round to choose some. The I had an idea for a card so worked on that for a while before coming down and sorting out the evening meal. Now I have a pot of soup on the stove bubbling away for tomorrow's tea which has used up some of the excess veg from the wedding salads.
I think I'll go and change into my PJ's then snuggle down and either watch a film or catch up on the second part of The Little House on ITVPlayer.
Thanks for your visit.
Sheila-x-

Introducing...........!!!

The new Mr and Mrs Manic Junior and Mini Miss Manic.
Aren't they all just gorgeous?
Need to find a family member who has a picture of the wedding cake/cupcake tower as I didn't get one on my useless camera.
Mini Miss Manic came to spend the night last night while her mummy and daddy had a night out and some quiet time to themselves. Oh she was sooooo good and has us in fits of laughter at her new antics and chattering.
So it's been a fabulous weekend here and tomorrow I shall begin to get the house ready for when Ruby starts to come to me three days a week. Wow........that will be a week on Tuesday so I had better get meself sorted out and get on with things.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

The Wedding!!!

Well it came.........and now it's over.
Yesterday was one of the most wonderful days I have ever had in my life.
The ceremony was so emotional and beautiful. My son handsome in his wedding finery.My new daughter in law looked stunning as did my grandaughter.
DD gave a reading which even made her brother cry so you can imagine the mess I was in. Let's just say that Kleenex ain't going out of business any time soon..........lol!!!
We had a wedding lunch at the most fantastic restaurant in Derby and then home to pack up the car for the evening reception.
The pizza and salad bar went down a storm and if anyone fancies doing the same......the service from Pizza Hut was incredible. I would recommend though that you bribe someone to prepare the salads. I don't care if I never see another vegetable or jar of mayo  in my life.
I'll be back with pictures when I have had a chance to sort through the hundreds we took.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Chop, Chop!!!

Phew.......the cupcakes are nearly there. All baked....plus extra for mishaps. Fifty are frosted, decorated and boxed. I am going to finish the rest while DD sleeps as she has just come in from a night shift and then we are starting on preparations for the salad bar.
The newly weds are having something a bit different for their reception food.......pizza's........delivered by Pizza Hut to the hall, then a salad bar with huge bowls of assorted salads and a dessert table.
Early evening we are all going over to Derby where Mr Manic is going out for a meal with DS and a couple of the male relatives from DDIL's family while DD and I will be joining the female relatives at the house for a Chinese takeaway. We won't be staying late as there will still be a bit of stuff wanting doing at home.
Managed to get in and get my haircut yesterday which was a relief so I should manage to look partway human for the celebrations.....lol!!!
So my next blog I should think will be when it's all over. I can't believe it's tomorrow. It only seems like five minutes since we were sitting waiting for the phone call from DS to say that his proposal had been accepted and here we are on the eve of the wedding. Soooo exciting!!!
Thanks for dropping by and letting me waffle on.
Sheila-x-

Today Will Be.........!!!

Mad, hot, busy and filled with the sweet smell of the cupcakes baking for my little boys wedding.
First I have to nip down to the local surgery to get my repeat prescription, then back home to start the baking. At 2:30pm I have to rush in to town and get my hair cut as the migraine was still there yesterday and I felt quite ill. I think tonight we will be very naughty and let the chip shop cook our tea.....lol!!!
I did get a card made yesterday as I had very strong inky urges which couldn't be ignored no matter how awful I felt. So if I get chance when I emerge from the clouds of flour I shall take a photo.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

ETA......Nearly at 100 now and I can honestly say that we will not be having cupcakes in the Manic household for a very, very long time.......lol!!!

Getting There!!!

Just a simple card I made along with the one I made for the Creative Sketches card the other week. I thought I might as well use up the leftover paper while I had the stamps out.

Wedding preps are steaming along now despite a last minute job thrown at me by DDIL yesterday and an absolute humdinger of a migraine which has left me feeling like I have been run over by a truck.
Today I have cut out more sugarpaste hearts and I did them a little thicker than the last lot. They are soooooo much better. I also finished the traditional cake for the top of the cupcake tower but I won't show you a pic until I do the dry run and can show you the full thing. I am mighty pleased with it for saying I have never done this kind of cake before. It's very simple but nice.
Didn't get my hair done today with having the after effects of yesterday's migraine. My head was too sore to cope with anybody messing about on it so that has to get done tomorrow. I'm only going to Super Cuts so no worries about appointments etc.
Nothing else I can do on the wedding front tonight so I may have a couple of hours snuggled upstairs in the workroom as it's pretty chilly here in Manicshire. Wouldn't be surprised if there is a heavy frost tonight.

Thanks for dropping by today.
Sheila-x-

Sunday-A Day Of Rest?!!!

Just a quickie blog this morning and another card from the K & Co/gcd Studios mix.

Another Joy Fold card.

I'm just taking a five minute break from cooking and tidying up as we wait for Ruby and her mummy to arrive. Drinking a well deserved coffee as I have been up since 6am. Mmmm and I thought Sunday was the day for a lie in. Must have been putting the clocks back that threw me.....lol!!!

Right I'll go and put the Chicken and Brocolli Bake together and then get the vacuum out.

Thanks for dropping by.

Sheila-x-



Halloween Birthday Card!!!

This is the card I have made for DDIL's birthday tomorrow.
The backing papers and image are from a PC Crafter Creatable that I have in my collection but have never used before. I love the colours but don't usually do Halloween.
I printed two images of the boots and added eyelets before layering them with foam pads.
The spider web and spider are hand drawn.......very wobbilily.....lol!!!
Twinkle is as always........Stardust Stickles and I printed the greeting onto a piece of printed background then cut it out with my Quickutz Cookie Cutter circles.
Stars are Paper Cellar.
The card is 8x8.

Well I have had a lovely day today. DD whisked me off to Bridgemere first thing this morning where we had breakfast and then shopped for a few extra bits for the birthday girl. Had a quick look around the Christmas displays which although nice, were nowhere near as fab as they used to do them and it doesn't seem such a big area this year either. However we did pick up some gorgeous tree lights and I got a lovely crafting/cook book.
Nipped into Hobbycraft to see if they had any ivory icing as I am not happy with the white icing I coloured and yay........they had some so I am a happy bunny. Got a couple of magazines but nothing else as after the wedding I need to have a good sort out in the workroom and see exactly what I have got before buying anything else.
Finished off with a nice quiet afternoon making the card and now I am going to polish off me tea and wait for X Factor to start.

Hope you're having a lovely weekend too.
Sheila-x-

End Of An Era!!!

Well......that's it. Today was my last day at Monks Den Crafts. A very busy day thankfully with no time to get emotional. I think it won't quite sink in that I am not there any more until the busyness of the next week is over. I was just going into my eighth year with Deb so we had been together for a long time.
The lovely ladies on the class today gave me some beautiful flowers....thanks so much.
This time next week the wedding reception will be in full swing and I will be breathing a sigh of relief that all the planning and preparation is over and I can let my hair down and dance the night away.
My blog will go on and hopefully I will be able to share a variety of crafts along with my papercrafting and rubber stamping so keep popping in to see what I am up to.
The next week will probably be a little sparse on the crafting front which I apologise for.
Off to marzipan the wedding cake now then.
Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Creative Sketches-Week 4

Welcome to Creative Sketches Week 4 challenge.
This week we have a holiday theme to go with the sketch. So check out the sketch and then create a card following the sketch with a holiday theme. It can be any holiday you like.

For my 8x8 card this week I have used Basic Grey paper and the stamped images are from a clear stamp set by Papermania.
Colouring has been done using Adirondack ink pads in Stream, Denim, Red Pepper, Cranberry and Lettuce.
I started off adding the twinkle with Distress Rock Candy Stickles but it didn't look right so went over it with Stardust instead.
For the stamped border image I used StazOn Teal Blue.

Thanks for dropping by.
Sheila-x-

Doin' The Happy Dance!!!

Yes that sound of thumping feet means that the cupcake boxes are finished at last!!!!!

There they are......all 150 of them. I wrapped them up to keep them safe from stray ink and spilt coffee as I couldn't face having to make any more.

Next jobs are to handwrite the vows onto some handmade paper and make them into scrolls and to marzipan and ice the small traditional cake but not tonight I'm afraid as I'm not feeling 100%. I'm just going to wash the tea pots and then loll on the sofa with my book for a while until Apprentice comes on.

Don't know what posting will be like from now until after the wedding. I'm at work tomorrow but doubt if I'll get chance to make anything. Friday we have an all day class. Saturday I have to go out with DD. Sunday DDIL and Miss Doodle are coming for lunch. Monday I have to go get my hair cut. Tuesday is Trial Cupcake Day. Wednesday is actual baking day. Thursday is decorating cupcakes day and start prepping the stuff for all of the salads and Friday is The Big Day. Saturday will be 'Where is Sheila ? Day' and the answer to that will probably be....totally knackered and fast asleep........lol.......but I'll need to be awake later as we are having Miss Doodle for the night. Blimey.....I'm tired just reading that back.

Anyway if I do manage to snap anything interesting and I have a spare minute......you can be sure I'll blog it.

Thanks for your visit today.

Sheila-x-