Products galore!

Phew! It's almost here....the New York Gift Fair starts in only a matter of days, and we've been busy, busy, BUSY mocking up product ready for display at our booth. Here is a snapshot of some fun tableware products I created from my gingerbread and cookies set...I quite like how they've turned out; hopefully a lovely customer will too! :)

If you happen to be going to the Gift Fair then look out for Inspire By Design Ltd; booth 7875 in the Licensing Gallery...here you will find more of my work, along with that of Rachel, Beth, Sally, Lauren and lots more talented artists. Fingers crossed it's a successful show for us all! :)

More woodland designs to add to the mix...

It's been busy, busy, busy here; as usual before any show / trip / deadline...but, I managed to hit my goal and get the remaining designs finished to complete this set...although now I'm thinking more wraps?!

Here's a little look at what I've been up to..

Woodland theme

As promised, here's a sneak peek at a current Christmas set I've been working on...

 - there's still a few more to add to this set; so fingers crossed I get it all done in time for the first show.

More tomorrow.....

A bit of this and that

It's been a busy old week or two; with the New York Gift Fair drawing ever closer, and the Spring Fair shortly after, there's much to be done. Here's a visual summary of what I've been up to since my last post:

Birthday Balloons

Happy Birthday wording

Bridal bouquet

Halloween

As you can see, it's been a fair old mix of everyday designs so far...completing sets and adding to the collection. It's the first time we'll have been represented at the New York Gift Fair, so we're not quite sure what to expect...fingers crossed we all get something positive from it!

After all that everyday though, it's back on to Christmas again now...look out for my very latest offerings tomorrow - one last push before the first deadline; wish me luck! :)

Tasty Treats

Here's a little bit of a new repeat to co-ordinate with the birthday cake design I shared with you last week:

Mmmmmm...all these cakes are making me hungry! :)

Happy Snowy Weekend

Hi everyone, hope you all had a lovely weekend...this is me on Saturday afternoon; armed and ready with my bag full of bread, ready to feed my feathered friends! We braved the snow, donned our multiple layers (hence the big, puffy sleeves of my coat!!), and went out for a lovely walk - it was just the thing I needed after being cooped up inside all week.

We're so lucky to have a nature reserve right on our doorstep..it's always so beautiful down there - especially at this time of year. We saw swans, ducks, moor hens, pesky seagulls (the lickle scavengers!!) and even a friendly little robin.

Here are some snaps from the waterside:

....my favourite duck of all is the affectionately nicknamed 'Mr Waggle' - you can see him here in the top left of the picture....if anyone knows his real name, then let me know...he has a cute, curly tuft on top of his head, and makes the most gorgeous sound.

Hot off the press!

I've been sketching away like a mad'n' this week; all in preparation for forthcoming trips and shows at the end of the month. I'm currently working on a new birthday range, and here's a sneak peek at my latest offering...

                           Mmm..mmm..mmmmmm - my that looks tasty! :)

Still snowy..........

.......and brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-zing! It's got that bad that I've even had to resort to drinking more than my usual 2 cups of tea a day (!) Which, for those who know me, is pretty darn amazing... :)

So today, I wish I was a polar bear....that way, I might appreciate it a little more! :)

Snow, snow and more snow

Well, I'm sure if you're in the UK you will have woken up to the sight of a real-life Winter Wonderland today; there's quite a covering here, with more (unfortunately) expected later tonight. Hope you're all safe and warm, wherever you are....

The last heavy snowfall for us was back in February last year....here's a little family that turned up in my garden:

....I wonder if they'll decide to come back for a return visit?

I wish..........

As the week goes on, and the weather gets colder, I've been thinking to myself more and more how perfect it would be to morph into a.......

 

Just imagine....bundling yourself up with all your supplies and cosying down for Winter, never to be seen again until warmth returns and green leaves appear on the trees; flowers and plants springing back to life......oooooooh; sounds like heaven to me! :)

 

With lots more snow on the way today, I hope you're all tucked up inside out of the cold...oh, to be a squirrel..... (sigh!)

Wow - it's 2010!

......from Pocketful of Patterns x x x

I hope this is going to be a fabulous one! :)

Getting a lickle bit crafty for Christmas!

This year, I decided to add a little personal touch to some of my Christmas gifts, and made my first ever Christmas truffles (or rather, truffles of any kind) to give out to some of our family...

I quite enjoyed packaging them all up and making them look pretty too; they seemed to go  down a treat! :)

Continuing on the festive theme, I put in some sachets of mulling spices...again, all prettily packaged by my own fair hand :D

White Christmas!

Well....much to the dismay of the bookies this year, it WAS officially a white Christmas in the UK...snow was falling as we went to bed on Christmas Eve, and the leftovers from the last week or so have only just cleared....here's a few snapshots of our 'Driving Home for Christmas' trip....it was all very pretty...

                                    

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

Who lives in a house like this?

Hmmmmmmmmmm......I wonder?

......it's Mr Gingerbread man! :)

 - Here's a fun one I completed last week to go with my cookies and candy wrap...it's my first attempt at a gingerbread house, and I quite enjoyed it. :)

Well, there's only 4 more days to go until the big day arrives, and I'm off on a Christmas 'do' later with my fellow designer buddies.....so I think the time for festive fun is finally here and it's time to put away my pencils, tablet and mouse for an ickle while.

Have a great Christmas everyone!

A Sprinkling of Fairy Dust...

.....that is all. The snow hasn't amounted to much so far around here; though to be honest, I'm hoping it stays that way, as I'm not a huge fan of snow....or the cold, darker days.....roll on Spring, I say! :)

I can't believe that Christmas Day is only one week away!! I finally got all my cards posted yesterday afternoon (not as organised as usual this year for some reason); don't forget - if you're in the UK - the last day for posting is today for 2nd class, Monday for 1st.

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Brrrrrrrrrrrrr - it looks like we're in for some......

....wrap up warm everyone!!

Christmas Cookies & Candy

Ooooh....Christmas is nearly here - hope it brings lots of lovely treats like these!

A vision of Christmas loveliness...

Ahhhhhh...don't you just love the way cats cosy up by the fireplace? Magic! :)

Calendars galore!

After the success of the craft fair a couple of weekends ago, I've been busily working on an order I received. I have 12 new calendars to create, and here's a little taster......

 - I think one or two people may be receiving these in their Christmas stocking this year! :)

Cutting and sticking

The task for this week was to create fun gift card holders for Christmas, so here are my offerings......

 

                

Have a great weekend everyone - hope that Christmas shopping's nearly done! :)