A March ACEO swap!

A super team on Etsy.com that I belong to is called Boomers and Beyond or BBEST for short.  You may have heard of us or, certainly, read about the group in this blog.  Do check out the group blog link above to find out more about them. 

Each month we have an event and for the month of March members were asked to join in and create an ACEO (an item measuring 2.5” x 3.5”) in any medium they wished but the theme was to be Spring.  Quite a few of us signed up and as the ACEOs were created they were posted on this site for all to admire.  The fun of this swap is that you are given the name and address to whom you are to send your ACEO but you have no idea whose ACEO you will receive in return.  Of course, I did try to suggest that all ACEOs could easily be sent to me!  Somehow I think that request fell on deaf ears, can’t think why?  Anyway, as many as possible are always encouraged to join in the fun as it is such a brilliant way of communicating with each other and learning more about other artisans in the group.

Several members had never created anything so small or in this format but it just goes to show that if you decide to step outside of the box you will surprise and surpass yourself!

In my capacity of PQ I wracked my brains for quite a while before I came up with my Spring ACEO.  I had some old buttons which I wanted to feature.  Then came the idea of using the buttons as flowers with an embroidered sun.  I even found a butterfly!   See what you think? 

OK, you will want to see what I received?

Today the postman stopped by with a package from Milton Keynes.  That would have to mean something from Makeyourpresentsfelt!  If you remember from the Flickr gallery pictures you might have spotted the chicken already.  I had already mentioned/suggested that it come to me….. well, it did!

It is so cute!  But, not only was I lucky enough to have won this ACEO but Chrissie also treated me to another using her felted expertise to create an ACEO entitled Spring Seedlings.

As if that wasn’t enough look at the pretty envelope that held them safe from the outer wrapping.

I would love to tell you who is due to receive mine but it would spoil the surprise.  I do hope they like it!!!!!

 

 

PQ

It was….. Mother’s day yesterday

Well, better late than never!  I should have posted about this yesterday but as you can imagine I was more involved with the family and being outdoors in the wonderful spring sunshine than wanting to spend time indoors on the computer!

I rose to a beautiful sunny spring morning.  During the day the kids came round (my youngest baby is going to be 29 this year!) with lovely flowers/plants and cards.  Aaaaaaah!  I know it is a commercial thingy but, heck, it is nice to be spoilt any time, isn’t it?

Anyway, we had several jobs to do which were outstanding like putting up a new clothes line.  Sad really.  To think of the things that excite you as you get older!

Then, since the weather was being so kind we decided to go for a walk and I took these pictures.  Yes, I know they are of the usual spring like flowers etc but  it is a wonderful time of year!

 

I have this as my desktop background.  I just love the way the daffodils are peeking out!  If you click on the photo you will see the enlarged version.

Here we have a host of golden daffodils!

Walking round the corner we spotted this swan.  There is usually a mate nearby but today this one was the only one in evidence.

 

Usually you would see plenty of green algae and moss on these rocks but I guess it was still a wee bit too cold.

To finish up I couldn’t resist taking this shot of the sun shimmering and twinkling on the water.

As the seasons change more colour will appear and we will be able shed our winter overcoats to enjoy the warm sunshine once again!

PQ

Who was Saint Patrick?

Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, is well known for all sort of stories like the belief that he rid Ireland of all snakes.  Totally untrue and merely a result of many years of folklore and handed down stories that were often exaggerated. For your information Ireland never had snakes but it is thought that the meaning came from the fact that St Patrick was to eradicate all pagan beliefs!

It is known that St. Patrick was born in Britain to wealthy parents near the end of the fourth century.   At the age of sixteen, Patrick was taken prisoner by a group of Irish raiders who were attacking his family's estate. They transported him to Ireland where he spent six years in captivity.  Lonely and afraid, he turned to his religion for solace, becoming a devout Christian. (It is also believed that Patrick first began to dream of converting the Irish people to Christianity during his captivity.)

After more than six years as a prisoner, Patrick escaped. According to his writing, a voice which he believed to be God's, spoke to him in a dream, telling him it was time to leave Ireland.

To do so, Patrick walked nearly 200 miles from County Mayo, where it is believed he was held, to the Irish coast. After escaping to Britain, Patrick reported that he experienced a second revelation; an angel in a dream telling him to return to Ireland as a missionary. Soon after, Patrick began religious training, a course of study that lasted more than fifteen years. After his ordination as a priest, he was sent to Ireland with a dual mission to minister to Christians already living in Ireland and to begin to convert the Irish.

His mission in Ireland lasted for thirty years. After that time, Patrick retired to County Down. He died on March 17 in AD 461. That day has been commemorated as St. Patrick's Day ever since.

So, are you feeling Irish?  Why not find out how Irish by completing the Irish quiz at this link?

Meanwhile I thought I would search through Etsy to find some Irish related items that had been created by the Boomers and Beyond Street Team (BBEST for short!).  Here goes…….

Irish Eyes Earrings

by

J Stinson

 

 

4 Knit Shamrock Mugrugs

by

Blazing Needles

 

Dichroic Shamrocks Brooch

by

Designs by Christine

 

 

Neighborhood Girl - Original Watercolor ACEO

by

Six Sisters

 

 

St. Pats Day Can Cozies

by

Bags and More by Pam

 

Why not take a scroll over to Etsy and search for more wonderful items from the BBEST team?  Follow the BBEST link or just type in BBEST when you do a search and see what comes up!  I think you may be amazed by the talent in this team, but then I am biased!!!

May the roads rise to meet you.
May the wind be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
The rain fall soft upon your fields
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
A GAELIC BLESSING

 

Happy St Patrick’s Day to you!

PQ

Spring is in the air!

An Etsy team called Boomers and Beyond or BBEST for short, are having a new swap challenge this month is to create an ACEO with the theme entitled….. Spring! 

I love sitting back to see what comes out of the woodwork.  Truly inspirational pieces are being created in all manner of mediums.  The excitement is always that each person who contributed is given a name of their swapee but they do not know who will be sending them an ACEO.  To remind readers, an ACEO has only one rule.  That is, it has to measure 3.5” x 2.5”.  It can be created in any medium.  You will note there are glass based ones, fabric, painted ones.  The list is endless.

What did I create?  Well, under the name of Precious Quilts I decided to create an ACEO depicting Spring in the form of the sun shining down on some pretty flowers made with cute little buttons I had in my stash.  For the centres of the flowers I added some seed beads to enhance the image.

Oh yes!  I love butterflies and have one in my avatar  on Etsy so, of course, I had to include a pretty pink one to complete my picture composition!

Now, I urge you to follow this link to see the other ACEOs offered for the March BBEST swap.

Hard to choose my favourite and even harder is the waiting and wondering which ACEO I will be lucky enough to receive!

This is my Rainbow!

My rainbow is shaded violet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is says about me: I am a creative person. I appreciate beauty and craftsmanship. I am patient and will keep trying to understand something until I've mastered it.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.

Why not see what your rainbow says about you?

A Monday…. a day for an award

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Reason for being quiet…

Yes, I know I haven’t actually been posting lately but I do have a good excuse!  Actually one of our boys has started an amazing adventure.  He has driven from UK to the Costa Del Sol in Spain to do a dive master’s course.  He has his own blog about how he began this journey after leaving Continental Airways after 14 years!  Just follow this link http://davesscubasaga.blogspot.com/ where at the moment he is writing about his adventure but he hopes to add pictures as soon as he has his internet working.

The blog might be of special interest to those of you who are interested in diving the Padi way.  Certainly, if you are not interested in diving I am sure you will find the blog amusing and informative.

So, you see I have been experiencing very mixed emotions of excitement, apprehension and a mother’s worry! Now that we have actually spoken during his journey through the marvels of Skype and by following the blog and, of course, his wife, minds are more restful and can again concentrate on a sort of normality!!!

Entrecard… what’s it all about?

‘Entrecard is a free blogging network that truly brings visitors to your blog.’  This is directly quoted from entrecard.com

Entrecard is a FREE advertising exchange network.  Ads are paid for through Entrecard Credits that users earn by visiting other blogs in the network and dropping off their "cards" at those blogs through a special Entrecard widget, which appears on every participating blog in the network.  Entrecard provides a unique way for you to market your blog. Its purpose is to bring bloggers together through advertising widgets.

To get started with Entrecard, simply sign up on the Entrecard website. Once your account is activated, click on the "Get Code" tab to copy the code for the specific widget you want to use on your blog. Simply paste that code into a widget on your blog and you're ready to go.

When you join Entrecard, you'll have the opportunity to create your own 125x125 business card. This card will also serve as your ad when you advertise on another site in the network. You can change your card's appearance at any time. Remember, this card is your ad, so try to create something that users will click when they see it.  Make it snazzy and eye catching – you want to be noticed!

Every participating Entrecard member will display a special Entrecard widget on their blogs. That widget includes an icon for Entrecard members to click on to drop off their virtual card. You earn one Entrecard credit (EC) for every virtual card you drop at other sites in the network. You also earn one credit for every card another user drops off at your site.

When someone drops a card off at your site, their card will appear in your Entrecard in-box. You can simply click on that Entrecard in your inbox to visit that user's site and reciprocate by dropping your card off, thereby earning another EC credit for you and the other person.

You can also earn EC credits when another person advertises on your blog and pays you with the credits they've earned.

You can soon see how loads of traffic is diverted to your blog.  The more you ‘drop’ the more exposure you get and, obviously, the more adverts you buy with your credits the more exposure – and, it’s all for FREE!!!!  It allows you complete control over who advertises on your widget, and where your logo is seen. Although there is no monetary gain from using EntreCard, the benefits are worth it.

You can be rewarded if you are a loyal ‘dropper’ or you can reward your top 10 ‘droppers’.  Each month I write a post to thank my 10 most loyal readers by naming them with links to their blogs.  Check out http://artinthewax.blogspot.com to see what I mean as I wrote a post today to this effect.

If you get traffic, it means people are coming in. If people are coming in, you start asking yourself if they like what they see. Is your header presentable, is your theme loading easily, are your ads a turn-off? etc?  If you have hoards of visitors at home, won’t you at least clean your house to make it presentable?   So make sure your blog is worthy of all your visitors!  Check it regularly, update and just refresh it on a regular basis.

Since spending some time on Entrecard I have come across some wonderful blogs.  Entrecard will allow you to download a toolbar.  This is so useful as it allows you to see how many credits you have, how many you have dropped, what category you are interested in etc. 

So why not give it a go?  I love it since it doesn’t cost me a penny and I can get exposure in places I had not every heard about!!