I must remember to never photograph on a craft mat again! Not a good look.

Puzzles - the third row

Finished just in time to swap tomorrow! M (music) is mine to keep, N (numbers) for Suzanne, O (Owl) for Jennifer, P (Paisley, pretty, pink, pearly princess) for Michelle, Q (Queen Victoria) for Helen and R (Rust) for Gail. I can't wait to see what everyone else has come up with.

Look Good Feel Better

Michelle and I did a fantastic beauty workshop on Tuesday. It is an initiative of the cosmetics industry to assist women during Cancer treatments. All of the products were donated and we got to keep them after spending the morning learning how to use them. We were also shown how to use scarves, head coverings and even try on a few wigs. (I hope those photos don't surface!) The dozen or so who attended certainly looked and felt a lot better on leaving. And my girls were very happy to see what I had brought home in my goody bag.

House page

I did manage to finish another one this month, only two more left to do for May.

This one is "My Mother's House" for Glenda. I had lots of problems with this one, the image is nothing to do with my Mother's House but it was my first choice and I never found a better one so it stayed. I also lost the first "Home Sweet Home" frame I made so had to make another. I bet it will turn up now this page has been posted off.

Collections Art Boxes - the third class

The latest Collections range includes these tricky little boxes. They come flat packed, great value, six to a pack and take quite a bit of work to put together and decorate. By the third workshop Gail and I had worked out that getting to class early and painting/staining/cutting whatever we could first was going to save a bit of time. The work on the torso piece has to be seen to be believed. Even JVO underestimated how long this would take, we only got 4 done in class as there was another class starting straight after ours we couldn't stay back. I spent the rest of Saturday getting them finished, they were so much fun I couldn't stop. We were given a piece of 8x8 cardboard to hold them until we decide how/where to display them. I can't wait to do more.

The first class was titled "Butterflies". This was a real challenge because we had to cut out all of the butterflies and I really struggled with getting the glue/paint dry in the time slot. It looked dreadful the next day but I later re-painted the frame to get a better result.

The Friday night class was "Home is where the art is". I can't believe how beautiful this piece is, mine don't usually turn out as good as the original but I am very proud of this piece. And we finished it in class.

Collections Workshops

We were lucky to have Julie Van Oosten come to Mentone to teach workshops last weekend. Gail and I did 3/5 classes and they were such fantastic fun. We learnt heaps of techniques with each different project and the results speak for themselves.

Our download limits were used up when we were away hence the catch-up posts. These ceramic plates were painted at MartheJane's birthday party last month and have only just been fired. Emma's nickname for Sarah is Booney for whatever reason, so you know which plate is hers. MartheJane is planning next years birthday already. We have painted mugs, bowls and now plates. What next?

Another month gone!

Easter has come and gone and the School holidays went way too quicky with the fantastic weather we had in Lorne. The last day of the holidays Sarah and I spent at Kaisercraft in Geelong. Cheryl organised a group to meet there and do workshops. We made a fairy house and then a box of tags. Sarah is still adding bling to her house, I used the new Baboushka papers.

Jigsaw pieces

These are the second row of the Crafty Mums puzzles, continuing the alphabet from left to right, G - Golden Guitar for Jennifer, H - Handbag for Michelle, I - Ink for Helen, J - Jewels for Gail, K - Keys for Jennifer and L - Lighthouse for Jayne.

Tomorrow we get together and swap our latest creations and hopefully make a few more.