A Touch of Blue Treasury

One of my polymer clay necklaces has been featured in this fab treasury by hybridhandmade.

Pay It Forward 2011

Well, it's still all cold and frosty outside and there is no better excuse to stay inside keeping warm and getting busy with making stuff. Currently that means finding new ideas for Pay It Forward 2011.

There are probably lots of versions of this doing the rounds but I signed up after a friend posted it (on a social networking site that shall remain nameless). The plan is that I will receive a lovely handmade item from this friend and in return I promise to send 5 other people an item I make myself (who then promise to make items for 5 people and so on). I did see a comment along the lines of "this is the worst pyramid scheme I've ever seen" and this is very true since each participant will actually give out far more than they receive. But I love it. How fantastic to join in with something that is designed to bring a smile to someone's face, give them a bit of a boost, or even make their day. And what a great excuse to try out some new crafts!


Here is my first item and my first ever try at coptic bookbinding, which will be sent off soon. I'm hoping to make something different for each person and I'm trying to match the gift to the person it is for. Each of my five will also get a Morsbag I have made from recycled fabric (if you like to sew and care about our beautiful planet, please take a look at the Morsbag site).

Happy Crafting!

Quick News Spot

I'm currently busy creating more polymer clay octopuses while the snow slowly turns into multitudes of icicles. Looks like another intense winter for Scotland.



I have just posted a giveaway on my facebook page



And Suzanne, a lovely fellow McEtsian, has done a little feature on me on her blog.

Some Day ...

Here I am almost 2 weeks into NaNoWriMo and falling dreadfully behind on my word count. I see posts on the NaNo forums whose authors are already past the 50,000 word count and we're not even halfway through the month. I haven't even hit 11,000 yet. And while I am managing to write something every day (even if it's only 100 words or so) so many other things are just not getting done at all.


For example, I haven't found the time to work out how to photograph my Medieval belt designs so that the details are clear while at the same time the whole item fits in the picture (see above). Suggestions very welcome, oh pretty please!

It is so easy to get caught up in all the little things that seem urgent but aren't terribly important in the long run. And then there are such a lot of them that they seem to work like a black hole and suck all of your time away. So many things you would like to do fall prey to the "I don't have time right now but I'll do that tomorrow" and tomorrow is always a day away. So time passes and you find you still haven't done whatever it was. I've got a long list of those things, waiting for the day I finally have time to do them.

Well, I'm no magician when it comes to ticking off those "some day" plans (hence the list) and I have a notebook that my sister gave me 18 years ago with the inscription "I look forward to seeing this published!" which is still empty. But for me NaNoWriMo is about making a start and, even if it takes me another 18 years, I'm going to get there.

Words, Weekends and Wickerman

Why do I always seem to find more to do when I already have a list as long as my arm? As if I didn't already have a queue of things patiently awaiting my attention, I decided to sign up for NaNoWriMo. For those not in the know that is short for National Novel Writing Month and it is happening now.

I must admit I have always wanted to write a novel but never had the motivation. This seemed like the perfect way to get started. You have a clear goal (50,000 words in 30 days) and plenty of support if you join in on the forums and events. What you write doesn't have to be blindingly brilliant, it's just a first draft after all. Four days in and I'm just on target, my hubby has read chapter one and says he wants to read more (always a good thing to hear) and I have a rough idea of where I want the story to go (although I neglected to do any advance planning - oops!).

Unfortunately there are side effects I had not counted on. My eyes seem to be losing the ability to focus due to spending hours starting at a blank white page. I have a head that feels like it's stuffed with cotton wool. I feel guilty if I do anything, including eat, before I've at least managed to write a few hundred words for the day. And I'm beginning to worry that I won't manage to leave the house for the whole of November.

At least I spent my last weekend of freedom (for a month) out in the fresh air at Archaeolink and just to prove it ...


(Did I say fresh air? Better change that to flame-filled.)

Autumn Madness

No new photos to share and the bag tutorial has been put on hold while the house undergoes a good clear out and some re-organisation. Everyone talks about spring cleaning but I find that autumn is when I get the urge to completely re-vamp my home. I guess it's a preparing for winter instinct (like hibernating animals stuffing themselves to build fat).

There will be some great benefits when I'm finished though. I will finally have all my fabric organised so I can actually see what I have and start to plan some projects. There is currently a pile of storage boxes waiting to be filled, but this will require getting ALL my fabric out so I can sort it by colour (OCD here we come). I will also have a little more space as I've steeled myself to be ruthless and actually give away items I will probably never use. Mind you, this will most likely lead to an uncontrollable urge to buy more to fill the gap.

I also have a small flurry of sewing alterations that have just come in. All of these customers have been looking for someone to do this for several months at least. It seems strange to me that so few people offer this type of service, especially when it is mostly just taking up hems. Oh well, at least it will keep me busy.

Roman Food Evening

Well, another victory for the Romans. On Monday I was involved in a Roman Food Evening at Elgin Museum that turned out to be rather a success.

Tickets for the event had sold out some time before the night, making me rather nervous to say the least. And, unlike the brilliant Museum Curator, David, I am not in the habit of speaking in front of an audience. Hence this rabbit-in-the-headlights picture of me taken by my lovely husband just before the event began.


I think I only put one person to sleep during my talk and everyone seemed to enjoy the food tasting afterward. Shona, the chef from the Beach Bar in Lossiemouth, had done a magnificent job with completely unfamiliar recipes and some unusual ingredients.

All in all, a successful event, although I doubt this is the beginning of my worldwide lecture tour.