Finished Cross Stitch: Baby Groot

Hello! Today I'm sharing my latest cross stitch project: baby Groot. I found this pattern on Pinterest and I knew it was the perfect size to stitch onto some leftover fabric. I think it's so cute but I'm not sure where to put it - any recommendations would be great! 

Thread: DMC Black (310), a light and dark brown, mossy green, and white thread I had in my stash
Fabric: 27 count Zweigart Linda evenweave

A Graduation Layout Using Gossamer Blue Kits

Hi! Today I'm sharing yet another layout I made using cards and embellishments from the Gossamer Blue September and August kits. I blogged back in July about my graduation, and when I had this photo left over, I decided to use it as the centre of a page focused on my graduation. I used a piece of white A4 card as the base and experimented with lots of layering and I love the effect it gives. All the cards used were from the September Kit, but I included a 'so this happened' cardstock embellishment which came in the August kit, a Freckled Fawn wood veneer piece which reads 'happy', and a gold bow clip which came in the September kit. The 'learn' definition was a stamp which came in the September kit also and I just think it was so perfect for this page!

Hexagon 'Love' Layout

Hello! Today I'm sharing something I recently created using the Gossamer Blue September Kit which I blogged about here. I mentioned in that post that I loved the hexagon wood pieces so I decided to use them as templates to cut different pieces of paper and photos which I had left over. It was so fun to create, I've never made a spread like this before, and I really am pleased with how it turned out.

A Closer Look At The Gossamer Blue September Kit

Hi! This little beauty just came in the mail and I just had to share some photos of it before I use it all. 

Hey Little Magpie Craft Haul

I have another month left until I head back to university to start my masters - scary stuff. In the meantime, I've been occupying myself with Project Life and scrapbooking projects. I've decided that this year I'm going to try to do my first ever December Daily album, documenting my December up until the 25th. As such, when I bought some supplies from Hey Little Magpie, many of them were bought with the intention of being used in my Christmas album (hence all the sparkle and gold). I thought the pieces were so cute, and I was so excited to receive it in the mail, that I just had to share what I bought here.

Since starting Project Life last year, I've found that many of the larger scrapbook/Project Life companies are based in the US and without paying ridiculous shipping fees, the only other way to order supplies is online. Subsequently, sometimes things are larger/smaller than they appear online or may be completely different to what they appear on the web. I found this to be true with my Freckled Fawn glitter chipboard pieces which I thought were much smaller than what they turned out to be (not a problem, I actually love the larger sizes), and with my My Mind’s Eye puffy stickers which I thought – and wish – were a bit bigger. Oh well.

What I bought: My Mind’s Eye Hooray Puffy Stickers, Freckled Fawn Chipboard Glitter Hearts, Freckled Fawn Chipboard Glitter Stars, Freckled Fawn Wooden Words Pieces, Freckled Fawn Wooden Camera Pieces, American Crafts Gold Glitter Alphabet Thickers

A Small Crafite Charlie Haul

I've been loving mini albums this month and so I decided to pick one up for myself. I decided to go for the mint We R Memory Keepers instagram album which I'm hoping to turn into a travel photo album. The shop I bought from, Craftie Charlie, also had a sale on and so I added the Teresa Collins chipboard stickers and buttons to my basket too. I hadn't seen these before, but I love chipboard and the pieces themselves looked rather pretty online. Now that they've arrived, I was a little surprised to find that they all have holes cut out to use as buttons. I'm not sure how I will use these, maybe just as standard chipboard stickers, but I do like the idea of incorporating my stitching into my Project Life/scrapbook pages. I also bought a set of washi tapes by Reset Girl, which are beautifully designed, but are very small - smaller than any other washi tape I own - and you don't get much on a roll!

What Delilah Did Storyland Cross Stitch Fox Pattern

I finished this cute little fox from the Storyland Cross Stitch book such a long time ago and I was planning to share it as soon as I made it into a pincushion (as it is in the book). However, due to the fact that I don't have a sewing machine, nor stuffing to make the pincushion, I decided to frame it with a wooden hoop. Although it's not a perfect fit, and I have changed the direction in which I stitched a few times, I think it looks so cute and I'm quite pleased with it! After all, practice makes perfect.

Thread: DMC Black (310), DMC Burnt Orange (947) and an off-white thread I had in my stash
Fabric: 27 count Zweigart Linda evenweave 

A Peak Into My Traveler's Notebook

After deserting my 6x8 Project Life album, I decided to have a go at journalling in my first Traveler's Notebook. For me, the notebook is the perfect size and I'm having a lot of fun filling in the white space. So far, I've been playing a game of catch up (two months to be precise) but I've found that working in a smaller size is so much less demanding than my 6x8 Project Life folder, and without the need of page protectors and cards (although you can throw them in too if you want), journalling in my Traveller's Notebook gives me more freedom and room to experiment. I think I've finally found what works for me.

I've been treating the notebook as my own personal diary of sorts and as such I don't feel too comfortable showing all of my journaling and pages. I've decided to show some details of my pages instead to give a sort of idea of the way I use my Traveller's Notebook and my overall style of scrapbooking. I personally love looking at other people's pages (it's why I have a board dedicated to it on Pinterest) and I gather a lot of inspiration from looking at how others have documented their lives. I hope that mine may do the same!

What I used:
My Traveller's Notebook
The August Gossamer Blue kit, including the digital files which I edited on Photoshop
Heidi Swapp for Project Life embellishments (as part of the mini gold foil pack)
Papermania Wooden Numbers
Heidi Swapp date stamp
Studio Calico mini wooden stars
Papers from Crate Paper and the Project Life Everyday Core Kit

The Gossamer Blue Life Pages Kit: My First Impressions

I recently ordered my very first Gossamer Blue kit and decided to share my 'First Impressions'/review!

In this month's kit, we got: 24 3x4 cards, 6 4x6 cards, one stamp set, one gold washi tape, one sticker sheet, one chipboard sheet, four wood veneer pieces and two spiral paperclips.

Pros

• The colour scheme and designs are beautiful.
• The cards and embellishments are all of very good quality.
• The cards are double-sided.
• It comes with a stamp set (anyone who knows me knows how much I love my stamp sets). The stamp set offered with the kit this month, designed by BananaFishStudio, is so gorgeous and the reason why I was so drawn to the kit in the first place. I've tried out all the stamps and I would compare them to my Kelly Purkey stamps in terms of quality. I also think that, as the majority of clear stamp sets can range from £5-£15, this definitely makes the kit worth the price. Overall, I love the stamp set!
• The price. At around £25 (including shipping to the UK) the Gossamer Blue kit is one of the most affordable kits on the market.
• Considering I'm in the UK, the kit was delivered very quickly. I ordered it on the 6th and it arrived on the 13th.
• I'm unaware as to whether this is a standard thing for every Gossamer Blue kit, but this kit came with three pages of digital download embellishments which I have printed and included in some of my pages already.
• As for the subscription, there is a no-fee cancellation policy which is great considering the other boxes, such as the Studio Calico boxes and the Messy Box, charge you if you want to cancel your subscription.

Cons

• The wood veneer pieces are a little on the thin side.
• Unless you buy the Scrapbook kit, there are no patterned papers.
• The kit itself is not as nicely packaged as, for example, the Messy Box, and arrives in only an envelope.

As you can see, for me, the pros definitely outweigh the very minor cons. Overall, I'm very, very happy with the Gossamer Blue kit and will remain a subscriber of the box. If you'd like to see more of what is inside this month's box, you can see it in full on the Gossamer Blue website here.

Currently: August 2016

Watching a mixture of Stranger Things, That 70s Show and, my guilty pleasure, Celebrity Big Brother.
Buying too many stamps for Project Life.
Making a mess. And by that, I mean I've took the plunge and started my very own Traveller's Notebook.
Registering the fact that we're now over halfway into 2016. Where has it gone?
Reading Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas. I'm currently halfway through and I'm not too sure what I make of it yet!
Needing more glue as my trusty Crafter's Companion has went to glue heaven.
Finding inspiration in julimakesthings' YouTube videos - love them!
Lusting over Kelly Purkey's stamps and stamp sets.
Adding things to my Christmas list - of course I've already started.
Waiting for my very first Gossamer Blue kit to arrive. How could I say no to the beautiful August kit?
Wishing that there was a Five Guys closer to where I live as those milkshakes are to die for.

I Graduated!

Wow, what a month, the beginning of which started with my graduation. It was such an amazing day; my parents, grandparents, sisters and boyfriend all came along to the ceremony, we took a tonne of photos, ate lots of food, drank lots of alcohol, then headed back to celebrate with the rest of the family. It was a long day and, despite my constant worry that something would go wrong, everything was fine - I guess I will now be prepared for my graduation next year too.

The best news though was that I graduated not only with a 1st in English Language and Literature, but the fact that I had the highest overall grades and therefore won the 'Best Overall Student' prize! How crazy is that?!

Just to add the cherry on top, I also got a letter of acceptance this month onto a masters course at university. I'm going back in October to study Human Resource Management which is pretty exciting. I've already started the reading and my student finance is all set! #prepared

Officially a graduate!

Postcards From The Lakes

Windermere, Lake District National Park

Currently: January 2016

Registering the first month of 2016 is almost over. How?

Writing my final year dissertation. I've kind of fell in love with my dissertation topic all over again (Harry Potter) and so I've wrote quite a bit of my first draft. It's due in at the end of April and I'm feeling on track and organised (for now). 

Reading Not that Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham. This is my second attempt at reading it and I'm enjoying it a lot more this time round. 

Planning Valentine's Day. Probably one of my favourite days, Valentine's Day always cheers me up and makes the awful, cold days not seem so bad.

Celebrating getting a first in one of my assignments. I was over the moon with my latest grade on an essay I submitted on masculinity in Jane Austen's novels. Woo!

Preparing for long reading lists when I return to uni on Monday. After a very long winter break, I return back to university on Monday for my final semester as an undergraduate. I'm wondering if the emotions will start pouring in as I have to hand in over five essays plus my 6,000 word dissertation. Right now, I feel very calm, collected, and a little bit excited too. Let's see.

Watching a mix of Celebrity Big Brother and Project Life Process videos. I love watching PL process videos; in particular, I love watching Juli, Stephanie and Kelly. 

Creating a mini album for David for Valentine's Day. I recently bought the Heidi Swapp Project Life mini kit and I was desperate to use it because it's filled with hearts, pink, and gold foil = perfect for Valentine's.

Needing painkillers for my wisdom tooth.

Wondering what will be in the February Messy Box (I'm hoping for heart embellishments and lots of pink). I recently bought my very first Messy Box when they were on sale at the beginning of the year. Although I bought the March and April kits off last year, I've still found ways to include the 2015/new year cards. They took two weeks to arrive from the U.S. and I was like a big kid on Christmas when they did.
Loving this Tooth Fairy receipt by Nicole Reaves. I recently found Nicole's blog and stumbled across the Tooth Fairy receipt she made which I absolutely love.

Storyland Cross Stitching and My First (Successful) Attempt

I used to cross stitch all the time when I was younger and quite recently, I had the 'itch to stitch'. So, for Christmas, my boyfriend bought me Storyland Cross Stitching by What Delilah Did. It's a beautiful book, filled with lots of gorgeous designs and ideas, and even comes with a mini starter kit and postcard too. It is divided into three sections: 'projects for beginners', 'practice makes perfect' and 'projects for the brave & determined'. Since I haven't cross stitched since I was about ten I decided to go back to basics and try a beginner pattern.

I really loved the look of the first design which is a delicate little key bookmark. In the book, they use gold thread but since my thread stash is at the bare minimum, I decided to use grey instead. The book recommends using Aida 14 count thread for beginners which is what I initially used (and failed at, it ended up in the bin, how I managed this I don't know). But I had also bought some 27 count evenweave, which I have never used before, and I soon got back into the hang of it. I really love how it looks and I'm eager to stitch more.

Thread: A random dark grey I had lying around

Fabric: 27 count Zweigart Linda evenweave (I bought mine from this seller on eBay)

My Goals for 2016

This year, I wanted to do something a little bit different for my New Year's Resolution; I wanted to give myself little goals to fill monthly, such as going out for a meal once a month or visiting three new places. It took me a while to think of what I want to accomplish this year, but I finally came to 12 (my lucky number) goals I challenge myself to do this year.

1. Go out for a meal at least once a month
2. Read 25 books
3. Start a new creative project
4. Document life more
5. Save for Florida
6. Graduate with a good grade
7. Work, work, work
8. Drink more water
9. Visit three new places
10. Take more walks
11. Finish half-done projects
12. Try something new

After I worked through my goals in detail, I’m excited (and also a little nervous) to see how well I achieve my goals this year.

What are your goals for 2016?