gingerandgeorge

Happy Spring Garland

It feels like I've been banging on about spring for weeks, but today it's officially here. Hurrah! My inner geek wishes you a happy vernal equinox, while my outer and rather more shallow lover-of-pretty-stuff would like to point you towards a project I put together for the Hambly blog last week.

It's based around a set of paper flowers, made from punched hearts. I've been making these for a while, and am very fond of them.

They're perfect for decorating gifts, not least because they're so clearly made with love (or hearts, at least), and you can also use them as embellishments on cards or scrapbook layouts. 

Like this one.

The step-by-step instructions for both the flowers and the garland are over on the Hambly blog right now.

In the comments underneath the project, Leigh (you didn't leave a link or email address, so I can't get back to you directly I'm sorry, Leigh!) left a message asking where to buy Hambly supplies in the UK. As it's a problem I have too, I thought I'd share a couple of sources, along with a general plea to UK shops to start stocking more - the new lines are so gorgeous, it would be . . . well, maybe not criminal, but most definitely tragical not to.

 

:: Sarah's Cards - one of my favourite UK papercraft shops has a small selection of Hambly overlays, including the Frames Wallpaper, similar to the paper used in this project. (I think a sheet of the yellow overlay may well fall into my cart the next time I go shopping...)

:: The Craftz Boutique - this is probably the biggest selection you'll find in an online, UK-based store. They have over ten pages of papers, overlays and rub-ons, from both older and more recent lines. I'm really hoping they'll pick up some of the new releases - they seem the most likely bet at the moment.

:: The Eternal Maker - I mostly use this shop for their amazing selection of fabrics, and always seem to forget they do a few paper-y things, too. One of those things is Hambly, and although it's only a handful of items, it's a good handful.

:: Craft Island - I think one of the newer paper shops around, but I've used them a couple of times, and they seem great. Again, they don't have a huge Hambly selection, but there are some really good pieces (hello, moustaches), including washi tape.

:: Sugar and Spice Crafts - a little bit pesky to navigate (there's no search box), but they have a few goodies, including washi tape, label stickers and rub-ons.    

:: Hambly shop - you can buy directly from Hambly, and have your order shipped internationally. Buying products from US websites often works out to be just as cost-effective as shopping within the UK. It obviously depends on the exchange rate at any given point, but even taking the additional shipping costs into account, it's an option worth considering. Bear in mind you may have to pay customs/import charges if you're ordering over £15-worth of product (find out more here), but that is pounds, and not dollars, which gives you a little more leeway. Scrapbook.com, Emma's Paperie and Two Peas also have good amounts of Hambly which they're prepared to ship internationally. 

 

I really hope that helps, whether you're Leigh or anyone else shopping for Hambly in the UK. You'll only need the smallest amounts to make a happy spring garland of your own, and I've got a couple more projects later in the week which should help any leftover supplies go even further. 

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Rabbit, rabbit

I should probably apologise for bringing up the subject of Easter quite so early in the year, but the supermarket shelves are already heaving under the weight of chocolate eggs, so it's hardly like I started it. 

Plus, there's no rule which says you actually have to use this project at Easter. Take off the rabbit and it's an any-time, any-occasion idea. Leave Bugs where he is and it could still pass for a general spring-slash-gift-for-someone-who's-fond-of-rabbits deal. 

I'm very happy to be flexible about these things.

Visit the PaperCraft Inspirations website to download the template for both the sachet and the rabbit, or pick up a copy of the current issue for a whole colony of bunny-themed projects.

And yes - knowing that a group of rabbits is called a colony does make me a giant geek. I could also tell you the group name for giraffes is a tower and that a baby pigeon is called a squeaker, but that would probably be pushing my nerd-luck a step too far. 

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Sketchy

So, it's turning out to be a Hambly kind of a week round here, which can only be a good thing. Pretty paper, fancy tape, smart rub-ons . . . nothing you wouldn't be happy to roll around in.

Just me?

Ok.

I'm especially happy with today's project though, partly because it's the first time I've done anything like this, but also because you get to play along.

Over at the Hambly blog, Allison has launched a monthly sketch challenge. Not being a scrapbooker, I haven't used sketches before, but one project down and I'm already sold on the idea. Obviously, I didn't make a layout, but part of the fun was working out how to apply a scrapbooking idea to a different kind of project. 

I picked a card which was the same shape as the sketch (i.e. square), adjusted things a little to make up for the lack of photos, and am pretty happy with how it turned out.

It's also been fun to see what everyone else did with the sketch, and how different their projects all look.

If you want to have a go, use the sketch above (designed by Leah Farquharson), post a link to your project over at the blog before 1st March, and you could win a Hambly prize. 

Rolling around in it, completely optional.

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Paper Bead Projects

A nice, easy, mid-week tutorial you say?

Oh, go on then.

(Find it here.)

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Hey, handsome

Have you met my hipster friend, Mr Hambly?

We're not on first name terms yet, but you know . . . maybe one day.

Like Pinocchio, he started out as a block of wood. A bunch of Hambly papers, a couple of rub-ons and a strip of exactly-the-right-width-by-freaky-coincidence washi tape later, and there you are.

He's a real boy, I tell you. A real boy.

x

Fancy Flowered Cardigan

When it comes to plagiarising, there's nothing quite like ripping off your own projects. I say 'ripping off', but it's probably more like following one of my own tutorials. I don't very often do this - new stuff is good, right? - but sometimes lazy needs must.

Very pretty but slightly plain cardigan + templates from this tutorial = happy present for a friend's little girl.

I love soft shades of grey, and those Liberty prints make me very happy, too. Sadly, I'm too old to carry off appliqué flowers on a sweater, but I'm thinking they might work on a cushion instead.

Our sofa is just the right side of thirty to get away with it.

x

Biscuits with moustaches

What - you've never had them before?

You're missing a treat. Seriously.

To find a full set of instructions, head over to the Hambly blog. Or, if you're here for my more or less idiot-proof biscuit/cookie recipe (delete as culturally appropriate), behold:

 

PLAIN AND SIMPLE VANILLA BISCUITS

Ingredients

225g butter

175g sugar (I used brown, but caster is probably better here)

Pinch of salt

1 egg

2 tsp vanilla extract

300g plain flour

 

Instructions

:: Cream together butter and sugar. 

:: Beat in the egg, salt and vanilla essence. 

:: Add the flour to form a smooth, soft dough. 

:: Place in the fridge for 1-2 hours to chill.

:: Roll out on a flat, floured surface, then follow the cutting out/inserting stick instructions here. 

:: Place on a lightly greased or good non-stick baking sheet.

:: Heat oven to 180ºC (160ºC fan oven / 350ºF / gas mark 4) and bake for around 10 minutes, until the edges are just starting to turn light brown.

 

Alternatives

Replace the vanilla with almond extract for a marzipan-ish taste, or with a few drops of orange oil if citrus is your thing. 

 

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Raiders of the Laundry Cupboard

Should you be in the market for a wreath - holiday or otherwise - you may want to hotfoot it over to the Hambly blog right now. There are instructions and everything. 

And while we're on the subject, don't forget you still have a whole 12 hours to enter the giveaway. 

Happy Sunday, festive types. 

x

Hambly Design Team Blog Hop

Welcome to the Hambly Design Team Blog Hop!

We'd like to introduce you to the new design team members through a blog hop (and giveaway). Visit all 16 designers' blogs, where you can read a little bit about each member and see a project and/or tip about Hambly products. Leave a comment on each of their blog hop posts, then go to the Hambly blog and leave a comment. On 19th December, 2011 at 12 noon PST (that's around 8pm, UK time) we will randomly pick and announce the winners on the Hambly Blog.

My contribution to this coolest of Christmas parties is a quick and easy hanging decoration, made all the more fabulous by a little Hambly. I've folded paper versions of these in the past, and although they work perfectly that way, cutting them from patterned overlays gives a much smarter effect. If you store your decorations from year to year, they're also much more long-lasting than paper, which has to be a good thing.

To make one, you'll need four strips of patterned overlay and a piece of card or thick paper for the centre. (I used two pieces of self-adhesive glitter paper, back to back, for the white decoration, and some plain white card with strips of Little Hearts paper glued to either side for the blue one.) 

Cut the pieces out, using this template, then hold them all together, lining up the short ends, with the card strip in the centre. Glue, staple or stitch to hold all five pieces together. Then, line up the first set of marks. This will be quite a bit trickier, but as you do it, you'll see the decoration start to take shape. Secure the pieces together, as before. Now line up the second set of marks and secure, then finally join all the pieces together, lining up the bottom edges. Loop a piece of thread through the top section, and you're ready to hang. 

I have to say this would probably have been a little easier if I'd had a long-arm stapler. My normal one didn't come close to reaching the two centre joins, so I ended up stitching the decorations together. Glue works really well on paper (use a clothes peg to hold the layers together while it dries), but is trickier on overlays. I think next time, I might try using tiny brads as an alternative.

Ok, that's the project, so now we need some introductions. 

Hello! 

If you're visiting for the first time via the blog hop, thanks - it's lovely to see you. Feel free to have a good look around. You might want to start with a browse through some more tutorials, or maybe help yourself to a free printable or two. I also have a shop, a Twitter and an honestly-I'm-not-obsessed Pinterest account. Or, if it's the personal stuff you're after, there's this:

 

TEN RANDOM THINGS ABOUT ME

:: My name is Kirsty, not Kristy. People get it wrong a lot, although never quite as wrong as the time a group of senior citizens misheard and thought I was called Percy.

:: I grew up in the middle of the countryside, but moved to London when I was 22. I can't imagine ever wanting to leave.

:: My first proper job was as a Backstage Tour guide at the National Theatre.

:: Despite being British, I don’t like tea, rain or fish & chips.

:: I do like vintage fabric, Scandinavian design and reading.

:: When I’m not designing or making things, I write children’s books for a living.

:: I am obsessed with, and also a little bit afraid of, windmills.

:: Raspberries are my all-time favourite food.

:: I am quiet, ambitious, thoughtful, creative and prone to silliness.

:: One day, I’d like to have a butler.

 

As lovely as it would be to stay and chat all day, I know you have some giveaway-entering to be getting on with, so I'm going to send you off to visit some enormously-talented makers and their blogs. These are the names and links you need. Don't forget to leave them each a comment before you make your way back to the Hambly blog to enter.

 

Angela Gutshall  PA 
Corrie Jones  GA
Felicitas Klink Germany
Iris Babao Uy    Philippines
Janna Werner Germany 
Jaz Lee Soo Hui  Singapore
Jennifer Rzasa  MA
Karine Cazenave  France 
Leeann Pearce   Australia 
Leah Farquharson  FL
Maisa Mendonça  Brazil
Marie Ramirez  CA 
Mou Saha  FL
Paige Evans  CA
Pearl Lui  NY

Heaps of luck, and thanks again for stopping by.

x

Soctopus invasion

In case you haven't noticed, there are some new residents in the shop. 

Quite a few are already heading for Christmas stockings in various parts of the world which makes me very happy. In case you'd like a little extra proof of their general sturdiness, I offer up the following.

In my experience, little girls like to tip them upside down and pretend their legs are hair, while boys mostly like to throw them. At things, off things, and with as much force as their sticky mitts can muster. Older owners so far have been slightly more restrained, at least in my company. What they do when I'm not there is anyone's guess.

Along with everything else in the shop, you can order soctopuses for Christmas up until the end of this coming Sunday (18th December) if you're in the UK. Last Christmas posting dates for international mail have now passed, but there are still a handful of downloadables you can order, shipping-free to anywhere in the world.

Ho, ho, ho. 

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