Participate in Craft

Christmas is coming

2011-11-26T10:29:00.001Z

We are now selling off our excess stash, we are doing it via Facebook and the link is the title of this post. If you are not a user of facebook then just leave a comment and I'll see if I can get the pictures uploaded here.

A great facebook group

2011-05-29T15:45:00.002+01:00

Found this group and joined and now sharing on there as well. Will not be posting on here much (not that we do anyway :) ) I (John) am having a back operation on June 16th and will be out of action for at least 4 weeks

Havering handmade fair

2011-04-11T09:44:00.002+01:00

Quite a good success and we will be attending next month as well

Dufex

2011-03-19T21:12:00.000Z

We have made a contact from who we can buy some dufex products at wholesale prices. They are the postcards and prints. When I update our website with the details I'll let people know. Also on the 9th April we will be sellling the above and other products at:

Havering Handmade Craft and Farmers Market

Saturday 9^th of April

10am- 1pm

The Harold Wood War Memorial Institute,

53 Gubbins Lane,
Harold Wood,
Essex,
RM3 0UP

Make It follow up

2011-03-05T13:34:00.002Z

A great day was had by all. And some great bargins bought. We are now starting a weekend group from 2nd April it will be once a month to start with.

Make It

2011-02-15T14:57:00.000Z

We have a couple of tickets going for this as a couple of ladies from the group we are taking cannot make it (no pun). If interested then contact us, price is £8 - cheaper than the 'on the day ticket' you can meet us there. The tickets are for the Saturday (26th Feb)

2011-01-28T11:40:00.000Z

This is a young 90 year old who I had the priviledge to meet on Wednesday 26th January. He came from up north with a friend of mine to try and find his citation for his DFC, We were unsuccessful in acheiveing this but he was interviewed by the BBC and also a few vistiors to the IWM. He flew 60 missions as either pilot or rear gunner of lancasters during WWII. God willing I will be meeting him again in a couple of weeks when we hope to have news of his citation. He was a member of 617 Squadron by the way.

twitter

2011-01-19T18:56:00.000Z

http://twitter.com/#!/glasshousejohn

Latest news

2011-01-17T23:44:00.001Z

After a good Christmas and New year the craft club re-starts this Thursday (20th). Also on the right hand side is a link to a daily fun trivia quiz. See if you can get the highest score of the day.

All clear

2010-12-23T12:41:00.001Z

Victoria has been given the all clear from the big C

Creative Fair @ loughton

2010-11-22T13:21:00.002Z

Not many attended, but many blamed the organiser, which we found unfair. they can't drag people in can they? but we talked to a couple of people and could get some further contact at a later date.

Stolen Poppy Appeal tins

2010-11-04T11:18:00.000Z

WARNING - at this time of collecting for the Poppy Appeal please be aware that the seals on the tins this year are BLACK - if anyone is collecting with a tin with a seal of any other colour please report them to the police. Last year some tins were stolen and never recovered. please post this around so that as many people as possible are informed.

November 20th

2010-10-25T19:03:00.002+01:00

A date for your diaries, come and see us in Loughton on November 20th. More details later, but they may only be posted on our website.

Victoria Papercrafts

2010-09-29T08:37:00.002+01:00

Our website is now live, there is only a small holding front page at the moment but keep an eye on it as we will be putting up our cards for sale and other information.

Craft and Chat

2010-09-26T19:33:00.000+01:00

We had a great time yesterday. Everyone learnt how to make a simple box from a square of paper, Nad brought us all some biscuits, and everyone played with the Big Shot Express.

And here is a picture from the craft club meeting from last week

Craft and Chat

2010-09-23T15:46:00.000+01:00

The next session of Craft and Chat is Saturday the 25th September at King's Church, Granville Road, Ilford. Start is 10 am and finish at 12 noon. This time we are going to be playing with the Bigshot Express die cutter. We will show you how to make a very simple and quick box and you will be able to decorate however you wish. Cost will be £2 to cover materials and tea/coffee. you will be able to order from the Particraft catalogue as well.

Ilford Community Craft Club

2010-09-09T13:19:00.001+01:00

The date for the next club meeting is now September 16th, after all the interest we are now going to run on the first and third thursdays at Ilford Sports Club and at least once a month (on a Saturday morning) at King's Church, Granville road.

Community Craft Club, Ilford

2010-08-23T13:42:00.001+01:00

Due to the massive interest we are now looking at running on a weekly basis. If you can't make the 2nd at Ilford Sports Club then please pop along to King's Church, Granville Road, Ilford on the 25th, from 10 - 12 pm.

Community Craft Club, Ilford

2010-08-20T17:01:00.000+01:00

The first meeting is on September 2nd, it is not as given in the Recorder weekly, but monthly. This is to start, if there is enough interest then we can organise other dates and times. All crafters are welcome and it will be a community group. The cost will be £1 for refreshments, and we will have some simple project packs available for a small further cost. So come and swap ideas, learn some new techniques and also most important meet some new friends.

Ilford Craft Club

2010-07-21T17:33:00.000+01:00

We plan to start a craft club at Ilford Sports Club, the first meeting will be on September 2nd and start at 1 pm. Places are limited so please contact us for more details if you wish to come along.

Update on stuff

2010-06-28T17:51:00.000+01:00

After a busy weekend we can now report that there will be a craft club held at Ilford Sports Centre, it will start in September and will be on a Thursday afternoon. Timings and date will be posted soon. If you are interested then please let us know.

We had a great afternoon with Alison and crew at Ilford Sports Club on Saturday, we made some great new crafting friends. Unfortunately Sunday was a disaster at the B.S.F. Summer Fete. But we learn from experience.

Our personalised cards are now getting more orders and we are going to branch out with other items such as invitations etc.

King's Crafters update

2010-04-23T15:02:00.002+01:00

We are starting a new venture at our church. If you craft in any form then pop along once a month to swap ideas. Each month will have a theme, and the theme for May will be 'Papercrafting' and the technique will be 'Waterfall Cards'. If you papercraft then please bring along some basic equipment to help spread the load, if not then just pop in.

Date: May 22nd

Time: Start 10 am - Finish 12 (noon).

Cost: Donation to cover costs (£1.50 would be nice).

Place: Kings Centre, 14 Granville Road, Ilford, IG1 4JY

Ideas for future meets include: Beadwork, Quilting, Scrapbooking, Origami, Iris Folding, Teabag folding, Needlepoint/Cross Stitch.

If you can let me know if you plan on attending, just so we will know how much space is needed.

King's Crafters

2010-04-22T13:47:00.000+01:00

May 22nd from 10 - 12 @ The King's Centre, Granville Road, Ilford. Come and learn how to make a waterfall card.

H4H update

2010-04-19T13:45:00.000+01:00

Helen over at H4H has created a great new group - come on over and help share the knowledge:

http://www.heronet.org.uk/group.php?group_id=77

H4H

2010-04-18T07:42:00.001+01:00

Here is your unique Help for Heroes (H4H) Event ID: 20100415-1520-4679 - so our fund raising project is now official with H4H

Manna House

2010-04-15T23:05:00.002+01:00

The craft club at Manna House is getting close to being started. It will be used as a 'KT' type of club.

Recognise our soldiers

2010-04-13T12:50:00.001+01:00

I have created a simple card that can be bought from us, and you can then send it to a soldier. If you do not know a soldier then we can give you an address to which to send it. The cost of the card is £1 all of which will be donated to Help for Heros, we will send it out by first class post to either your address or any address you wish. Cost of postage is 60p. It can easily be sent by air mail and if you wish us to post it to a soldier then just let us know the message you want to put inside. Please contact us for more details victoria-papercrafts@ntlworld.com

Another Charity Gig

2010-03-27T05:10:00.000Z

We are now fully booked for the 5/6 June, we have a two day event booked on the 5th and 6th for St. Francis Hospice which we will both be doing on the Saturday, and on the Sunday I will be leaving Victoria there and doing the one in Walthamstow.

Last weekend was a great success and many people got to know what we can do. The party last Monday was a resounding success and we also got a follow up party booked the same night for May.

Super Saturday

2010-03-20T16:13:00.002Z

Today is Super Saturday for the RBS 6 Nations, it is also a super day for our Church. We held an open day and Victoria did some Easter Baskets for the little ones. A great day was had by all. I'm hoping that England can beat France tonight.

Another Charity Gig

2010-03-17T17:54:00.000Z

The British Skin Foundation have asked us to have a make and take stall at their fete in Fitzroy Square Gardens on 27th June. More details later.

Scrapbooking

2010-02-27T01:20:00.000Z

We are going to be looking at doing more papercrafting activities and promotions. The first is if you want to have a go at scrapbooking then let us know, we will supply a complete kit with a particular theme and all you have to do is book, pay, and turn up with some photos of your own.

ICQ group

2010-02-27T01:17:00.001Z

If you want to stay in touch more easily then try ICQ 7 - this is our group on there http://www.icq.com/groups/index.php?act=show_group&group_id=12444

Algerian Action - Sunday 6th June

2010-02-17T13:34:00.000Z

We are pleased to announce that we are going to be helping this charity with a fun day of learning something new.

We are going to be showing anyone who attends:-

1) A card,

2) A small box,

3) Something a little different.

And it will be aimed at beginners.

Where is it you ask?

The Hornbeam Cafe,

458 Hoe Street,

Walthamstow,

London,

E17 9AH

How much is it going to cost? For this information you need to speak to Emma:

algerianaction@london.com

Fun in the Park - Barkingside

2010-02-04T14:01:00.000Z

Fun in the Park is now an annual event run by all the local churches in Barkingside. It is not a religious thing, just a time of music and fun to which all are invited. We have been asked if we would like to have a stall, and of course we have said yes. We will be doing papercrafting demonstrations with small make and takes. Date is not confirmed yet so watch this space.

Workshops

2010-01-05T12:46:00.000Z

We will be starting workshops soon. Details will be posted on here so keep watching.

Or if you want a small group or even individual tuition please ask, our fees are very low as we only charge for materials used, unless we have to travel quite a way and then we ask for petrol costs to be covered.

Getting sorted

2009-12-11T10:32:00.002Z

After our break in Sherwood, we are looking forward to Christmas and then in the New Year a relaunch of our business. We may even be expanding what we do.

Cat Lovers

2009-11-18T11:00:00.000Z

I've added the YouTube gadget so that our visitors and ourselves can keep up dated with Simon's Cat. If you've not seen them they are a must watch. It reminds me of Scarlet our cat.

This weekend is a free one for us, and hopefully FiL will be down so that Laim can finish our kitchen. We only had a small worksurface about five feet by 2 feet. We are putting in one that is 2.4 mtrs long on the bare wall opposite the current one.

Also our Craft Room is taking shape nicely, and should be operating by the new year, so if you would like some 1 2 1 tution contact us.

Change of direction.

2009-11-18T10:51:00.001Z

Hi all, we are going to change the way that we promote ourselves. It is in the planning stages at the moment so please keep following.

Holy Trinity Womens Union

2009-11-10T16:37:00.000Z

A great afternoon was had by all. I demonstrated how to make an easy box using a square of paper. The ladies loved the idea and some are going to use the idea for their Christmas presents.

I may also get a couple of bookings as obviously some of the ladies attend other groups.

Barkingside Women's Union

2009-11-09T17:13:00.001Z

Tomorrow I'm (John) demonstrating for the Womens Union at Holy Trinity Church, Barkingside. There is a short service before the meeting which starts at 14.00 all are welcome

Up coming demonstrations

2009-11-05T22:58:00.002Z

We are pleased to announce that we are going to be demonstrating at two fund raisers over the next few weeks. They are both for PTA's, so keep watching for more details.

The caravan has been put to bed for the winter, and we are without telly as our Virgin Box has broken down but it should be repaired tomorrow (Friday)

Be a Follower to win

2009-10-11T18:04:00.000+01:00

If you want the chance to win some (A huge amount actually) of blog candy then visit what we think is the best crafting blog around - http://particraft.blogspot.com - it will keep you updated of all the latest goings on of Particraft and Sue.

It is a very interesting and useful blog and most certainly one to follow.

New Home

2009-10-11T17:44:00.000+01:00

We are now happily in our new home, all of six doors away. We will try and be more active with this blog.

Times are changing

2009-09-03T14:08:00.000+01:00

We may be moving home VERY soon. Our flat needs a lot of work doing and our landlord has offered another one in the Close. I am checking it out later.

Create and Craft on TV

2009-08-31T10:46:00.002+01:00

If you are a follower of the above channel, do remember that a lot of the products are available through us. So not only do you save money on the product and get FREE P&P you also get a free set of stamps and a personalised demonstration.

August 20th

2009-08-20T08:31:00.002+01:00

Thnings are certainly looking up for us. we are getting requests for demos and make & takes now. with Ally Pally coming up in September we are now hoping that Particraft is going to take off.

Monday July 20th

2009-07-20T15:44:00.001+01:00

Well we are back from our week away. We have had lots of interest in doing demos, so watch this space.

Business up and running

2009-06-12T11:01:00.002+01:00

We have now created our business, it is called Victoria Papercrafts. This will make it easier to work out tax etc.

We have two workshops in the pipeline, one is on July 5th and the next on July 11th both are for Charity fundraisers so we will publishing more details later.

Thursday 4 June

2009-06-04T10:44:00.002+01:00

Well the weather is great and we are looking forward to the workshop on Saturday, so if you are on Barkingside High Street between 12 and 2 pop into Manna house (33a) and pop upstairs and have some fun with Heat Shrink Plastic.

New Gadgets

2009-05-28T08:47:00.002+01:00

To make our blog more user friendly I've added an extra few features:

You can now play Hangman - just type in your letter and it will automatically put in place if right or shown as not right.

This day in History: find out an interesting fact about what happened years ago.

Thursday 28th May

2009-05-28T08:35:00.002+01:00

After a couple of great parties we have passed on one order and the lady was thrilled. She can't wait to start uising her free stamps. We are going to deliver the other order tomorrow, and the ladies are chomping at the bit.

News:
We are holding two events next week, our craft club is on next Wednesday - 3rd June. We have had some (quite a lot really) of painting supplies donated. So if you want to try painting, using many various techniques, then please come along to The Kings Centre, Granville Road, Ilford next wednesday from 1 - 3 pm.

Saturday June 6th we are holding a workshop on using heat shrink plastic to raise funds for Manna House - it is at Manna House, 33a Barkingside High Street, and will run in two hour long sessions. First one starts at 12 (noon) and the next at 1 pm.

We hope to see you there.

Friday 22 May

2009-05-22T10:23:00.002+01:00

Happy Anniversary Victoria - I Love You and Thank You For 5 great years.

The party last night went really well, we had about a dozen ladies of various skill levels. We demonstrated the many different ways of using just one stamp - we used the Daisy (stained glass style) stamp, and also how to turn a plain bit of card into a wonderful piece you can use for backing or scrapbooking. We are hoping to get further parties as the ladies were very nice.

Thursday 21 May

2009-05-21T16:24:00.001+01:00

Things have been hectic today getting ready for the party tonight. The lady has said that there will be 14 there, we are going to show 1 stamp - five different ways, and also we are going to show how turn a boring bit of card into a great scrapbook paper.

Last night was good as well with the Q & A session.

Monday - 18th May

2009-05-18T17:42:00.002+01:00

Well the service yesterday was really great, and my family enjoyed a happy day together. We are now getting ready for our two parties this week.

I'm feeling better in myself now.

Also the craft club and workshops are having an interest shown in them so we are praying that people do turn up and we can raise some money for some worthy causes.

Friday 15th May

2009-05-15T08:27:00.002+01:00

What a couple of days, On Wednesday night I (John) was taken into hospital with a blinding headache and I had to keep my eyes covered because any light really hurt. The hospital gave me a CT scan and thank God that it came back clear. But they wanted me stay in all weekend just to see a nuro specialist possibly on Monday or Tuesday, so I thought why clog up a bed when I've been given the all clear of any possible brain bleed, so I discharged myself.

We are now getting ready to renew our wedding vows on Sunday with my family down in Kent.

A lady who does spinning is going to join our Wedneday craft club which will be great.

Tuesday 12th May

2009-05-12T16:25:00.002+01:00

For those who live in the Redbridge area, (Ilford, Barkingside etc), we are going to start doing workshops for crafters @ Manna House, 33a High Street, Barkingside. The door is next to the jewellers (on the right) and to the left of where the Halifax used to be.

Places will be very limited and so you must book, you can do this by emailling us @
craft@britanniabear.demon.co.uk and please use Manna House Workshops as the subject line.

We will be running workshops on such things as Grungeboard, Heat Shrinkable Plastic, How to make your own embellishments , and other great project ideas. We have the knowledge so come and pick our brains. We are aiming to be up and running probably the first Saturday of June.

Friday May 9th

2009-05-08T11:51:00.002+01:00

Well after sorting out the missing bits from the catalogue we are looking forward to the training day tomorrow. On Wednesday we had three people turn up for the craft club so things are starting to move onwards and upwards.

We have two parties booked for this month, one of which will probably be a monthly thing which is great.

Tuesday 5th May

2009-05-05T13:25:00.002+01:00

After a wet weekend away we are back home, but are we unhappy - No - we are looking forward to the Craft Club fianally getting up and running tomorrow, the Particraft training day on Saturday and also the party booked for the 21st.

Over the weekend we did some more samples ready for our party bookings and also the charity fete on the 5th July. Haven House is a hospice for Children, it has wonderful grounds and the fund raiser on the 5th July will give people a chance to support this very worthwhile charity.

Craft Club in Ilford

2009-05-01T16:57:00.002+01:00

For those who follow this blog, just a reminder that the club will be running on Wednesday 6th May, this month we are going to be looking at stamping on Acetate, there will be knitting, needlepoint and painting all going on as well.

Bank Holiday Weekend

2009-05-01T16:53:00.002+01:00

Well the weather looks like it will be great this weekend, so I'm sure that apart from getting out and about we will get some crafting done.

We had a booking today for a charity fundraiser on July 5th. It is in aid of Haven House Children's Hospice and will be held in the grounds of the hospice, watch this space for more details closer to the date.

Sad News

2009-04-28T14:10:00.002+01:00

After a good weekend away crafting I came home today to some sad news, Lopez the leopard shark that I sponser at Hunstanton Sealife Centre has died, the letter said that he passed away during the night of the 22nd, probably of old age. I know that at least he had a good few years at Hunstanton and ended his days as 'King of the Tank'.

We are attending a Particraft training day in a couple of weeks and are looking forward to a fun day of learning some new stuff. We are also looking forward to next Wednesday, May 6th, when the craft club will hopefully be regenerated after 3 meetings of nobody, people from King's have said that they will attend and the main technique being looked at will be 'How to stamp on acetate' Club starts at 1 pm.

Assegai

2009-04-04T22:06:00.002+01:00

I got to meet one of my favourite authors today - Wilbur Smith. He did a book signing at Bluewater and I was first in the Q and not only got my book signed but also spoke and shook hands with the great man.

Particraft news:
I have a party booked for Thursday and we will be at Ally Pally in a couple of weeks. so if you are attending do please pop by the stand and have a chat.

Particraft Update

2009-02-27T16:50:00.002Z

There has been a change of management at Particraft but all being well things will still run as normal. Unfortunately Traci has had to pass on the reins.

The Craft Club @ Ilford is going to be running on the 4th March, so if you want to pop over to The King's Centre, 14 Granville Road please do. You do not need loads of equipment or materials as we have have some that can be shared, such as Sizziz, Xcut, Sidekick etc. We will be looking at Waterfall Cards this month. I'm hoping that the club will enable those who have never tried to make their own cards or scrapbook pages to be able to have a go without costing the earth by having to buy loads of stuff and then find it is not for them, by coming to the club you can try before you buy.

Feb 12th

2009-02-12T12:31:00.003Z

With Valentines day approaching I'm hoping that the card I have made for Victoria is alright. I'm doing a demonstration at 'Trimmings Galore' next Wednesday, it is a small shop/cafe just outside Ilford. Also we are going to Make It on the 21st so if you are going to be there do please let us know. I have had 2 card commissions, one was a birthday card which I handed over today and the other is for a husband who is going to get his Doctorate in April. We are still selling cards via Manna House, the Christian drop in centre on Barkingside High Street.

New Craft Club

2009-01-15T16:41:00.002Z

New Craft Club for Barkingside/Ilford and surrounding area.
The inaugural meeting of the club will be held on Wednesday 4th February from 1pm - 3pm. The meeting will take place in the King's Centre, 14 Granville Road, IG1 4JY and then on the first Wednesday of each month.

What will happen at club meetings?
It is hoped that the experienced will assist the inexperienced to gain knowledge about any new techniques that are around.

If you do not have any papercraft materials yourself then there will be some materials available, at a small cost, to complete a papercraft project.

You will learn how to save money by making your own personalised greeting cards.

We may even have a prize draw to win some wonderful *Particraft materials.

So if you make your own cards, make scrapbook pages, rubber stamping, quilling, iris folding, decoupage, pyramage or anything similar then do please come along. Or if you would like learn about these techniques then also pop in.

There will be copies of the *Particraft catalogue available for purchasing materials from.
You will also find out how to get FREE products from the *Particraft range.

How much will it cost?
The initial cost of membership will be £3 per month, you are asked to bring your own materials and equipment. Some equipment will be available for papercrafters to use.

There will be free tea/coffee available. Please note that if you bring any young children then you are responsible for their behaviour, there will not be a crèche nor will there be amenities to entertain young children.

If you cannot attend but still wish to be a member then please contact John or Victoria on 82207766 or email craft@britanniabear.demon.co.uk If the need is there then an evening club night could be arranged.

*www.particraft.co.uk

January 8th 2009

2009-01-08T15:55:00.002Z

Happy New Year to our readers. Sorry that we have not updated for some months.

Christmas was a bit fraught as Victoria was unwell from Christmas Eve, and is still suffering a bit.

We are currently trying to get an idea off the ground. Fund raising for charities. If you are, or know a charity that would like to hear about a sustainable income idea then please contact us on craft@britanniabear.demon.co.uk

Also we are going to be supplying Manna House, Barkingside with cards. Also we are now 'open for business' if you require a card making for someone. All we need is some idea of what the person likes etc and we will create a unique card just for them.

The new hostess gift for January is now viewable on the particraft website, don't forget that this new stamp set is only available via the hostess gift promotion of Particraft.co.uk.

30th October

2008-10-30T14:17:00.002Z

Well what strange weather, rain, snow, sun and even a bit of frost. We have had a message from a very happy freecycler - we donated some craft stuff to a little girl, who is quote: My daughter squealed with such excitement to see her lovely present and hasn't stopped making stuff with it. End quote. So if you have stuff you don't need then don't throw it away - Freecycle it.

27 October 2008

2008-10-27T11:34:00.002Z

The first of our up coming stalls is a Make and Take at :-
The Pre-Christmas Shopping event and Pamper Evening on Tuesday 11th November 2008 at Brandon Grove Community Club, Brandon Grove Avenue, South Ockendon, RM15 6SB. Event 7-10pm. This event is in aid of Treetops School for special needs children. We are going to be making Christmas Gift bags, and the cost will be £2 with 50p going to the school. If you can attend do please and help support this wonderful school.

19th October

2008-10-19T08:50:00.002+01:00

Some good news, we are going to be having a stall at two charity fund raisers. Stay tuned for more details or pop over to www.particraft.co.uk and check out the forum.

Also if anyone has anything they want to get rid of, but don't want to dump it then check out www.freecycle.org find a group near you and join. You can offer or wanted, but etiquette states that you have have offered before you can post a wanted. Also I'm recruiting for a couple of other groups on yahoo - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/crafters-UK/ for all those crafters out there, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/royalsignals/ for all ex and serving members of the Royal Corps of Signals or signallers from other countries.

Popping out to see the grandchildren today, it was their birthdays last month and Dani (their mum) last week, so we are going to go Pizza Crazy @ Pizza Hut.

13 October 2008

2008-10-13T17:40:00.002+01:00

After a cold start to the weekend, it was very nice on Sunday. I got up at 04.00 to watch the F1 Grand Prix. And to prove that men can multi task, I created a pattern for a Christmas cracker. I thought that it must be easy, but how fiddly it can be to get the colours right and also the iris. I'll be adding the picture of it soon to our album of non particraft stuff. We met up with Paula on Sunday and spent a very nice couple of hours chatting etc. Victoria fell in love her craft cabin, and if we can ever get a place with the room it will be top of the 'must have' list.

8th October 2008

2008-10-08T21:32:00.002+01:00

well after a damp and windy week in Blackpool we are back. We have had a lead from our day at Ally Pally for a party so things are looking up. We are also going to look hard now at starting a craft club in Barkingside. I'll be checking out a few Churches to see how much they charge. Christmas card making is now hitting full steam ahead, and I'm trying to compile a record of our Stash.

19th September

2008-09-19T13:22:00.002+01:00

Well it's been a while so must catch up.
First: Particraft & Jenome have teamed up, so we will be sellling the craft packs from Jenome. Victoria is hoping that we may get discount on their sewing machines as we are needing one.

Second: John screwed up with an Ebay auction, to help Victoria I sent out stuff that had been paid for - except I sent someone the wrong item. I'm now trying to contact that person so that I can get it back and give them the right item. They only live about 15 miles away so it may not be that bad.

Third: We have our tickets for Ally Pally on the 27th so we are hoping to see any of our friends there, you will find us at the Particraft stand.

8th September

2008-09-08T20:44:00.002+01:00

After a wet weekend, Victoria helped her dad at Woburn Oyster Festival and apparantely he actually sold some of his old oil lamps. We are going to be starting our Christmas Card making now as we have booked a stall at Wickford Willows. Our website is slowing growing and soon I'll be adding cards that you can buy. Currently it just has the ones we have made and are using as samples. If you want a Christian Wedding Invite then please contact us, we have searched everywhere and can't find anyone who makes them! Well now we do.

5th September - Ebay

2008-09-05T09:07:00.005+01:00

We started to list Victoria's Wade collection yesterday. The link below should take you to the one for the Rovers Return from Coronation Street. Victoria has over 130 items up for sale so please check them out.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=300256094860&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=020

I've got some books up this link is for a Star Trek book by Bill Shatner called Dark Victory
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?
ViewItem&rd=1&item=280263495012&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=018

4 September

2008-09-04T11:42:00.003+01:00

I've been playing with a product that allows you to print onto cotton, I've designed my own Particraft t-shirt front. Could be whole new business idea? I can even personalise them for people if they want one, just let me know. Got a busy weekend coming up, mostly doing things for FiL, but with my back playing up it may not be so bad. Cheap Ebay day today and Victoria is selling a lot of Wade so if you are interested in Wade collecting then please check out her auctions. When we have uplisted today I'll put up a few links.

2nd September

2008-09-02T13:14:00.002+01:00

What a great weekend, the Church we celebrate in when in Norfolk celebrated it's 1st Birthday. The Gateway Church, Kings Lynn was planted last year with 11 people, it now has a membership of over 50, including some local Rusians. I made some cards and one Christmas card has been claimed by Victoria as hers, so I'll be giving it to her. A gentle reminder that at the end of the month 26/27 September there is a great show at Ally Pally and Particraft will be there with demonstrators doing a make and take.

18th August 2008

2008-08-18T12:30:00.002+01:00

Well after a wet weekend at Heacham it is still cloudy. We did some card making over the weekend and the finished products will appear in one of our albums soon. I renewed my sponsorship of Lopez. Hunstanton Sealife Center is busy with 4 pups at the moment and also they have a new shark - a bonnet head, it is similar to a hammerhead but it's head is more spade shaped. We won some nice little bits on the 2p machines includind some little piglet dolls (as in Winnie the Pooh). We also got some trolley tokens which we thinking of putting onto cards. Our website should be live soon and when it is I will let you know.

Click here to see our card samples

2008-08-15T14:02:00.002+01:00

Check out this link to our webshots albums.

Friday 15th August (2)

2008-08-15T13:27:00.000+01:00

Yesterday we went to Chessington World of Adventure, as I needed to renew my annual pass. It is even better value now as it encompasses all of Merlin Enterainments, so we now have a year of unlimted access to: Alton towers, Thorpe Park, Chessington, Warwick Castle, all sealife centres, the London Eye, Madame Tussards, London Dungeon, Legoland, London Aquaium. Also we get 20% off food at their own retailers at the various parks. The weather forcast was for heavy rain, but we only had about 20 minutes during the afternoon. We won some great little fluffies, check out our webshots album for the pictures. Also we delivered the Particraft order that arrived on Wednesday. The hostess has become a friend and we have even referred her to a secret shoppers site. The thing to remember is that if you host a party you are not just a hostess for an evening, you are a friend who can contact us at anytime to ask questions about any product in the catalogue.

Friday 15th August (1)

2008-08-15T13:22:00.000+01:00

Well what to mention first?

Last Saturday we held our first party. It was in Tottenham and we were expecting 6 guests but ended up with 10. The hostess laid on a really great buffet as well. We did a demonstration on medallion card stamps. We showed how you could use them in many various ways, and could decorate them using different embossing methods or just glue and glitter. The glue and glitter one went down really well. One lady had got a heat embossing tool for Christmas but was scared to use it. So we sat her down and let her do a small bit of embossing, she immeditately ordered some embossing powder and said that she would no longer be scared of heat embossing. In fact we also sold 3 embossing tools. During the evening we were able to answer many questions. We not only made a customer happy but we made some great friends as well.

August 10th 2008

2008-08-10T15:43:00.000+01:00

Just back from Stamperama. Although not a big show, it was well organised. We met Lynne today and had a nice chat about our latest parties. It always nice to meet people who you meet online. We bought some great stamps and also are going to register with Craft Inspirations as they are holding some classes that we are interested in whilst we are in their area.

Last night we had our first party. We were expecting 6 but in the end 10 turned up. The hostesss was brilliant and even laid on a very nice buffet. We demonstrated medallion cards and everyone who saw how to do them suddenly realised that they are so versatile. We did a prize draw and gave away 3 prizes. One lady had been given a heat tool for christmas but was too worried about using it, so we gave her the chance. She is now very confident about using it, and even ordered some embossing powder. We had great feedback and may even be able to convince another lady to be a demonstrator. Her reason not to at the moment is because she doesn't have a car, but she may be interested at a later date.

Due to the rain we did not go to Chessington yesterday. It is very cloudy today, but at the moment no rain.

Dagenham & Sunday

2008-08-05T10:12:00.000+01:00

Well it did not start very well. we turned up at 09.30 to find no marquee, but where told that it was on it's way. The day went on and at 11.00 everything started, but still no marquee. We were told that the van had broken down in Ilford. Then the story emerged - the company had loaded their van on the Friday night, it was stolen overnight. So they had to borrow another van and load a spare marquee, this van then broke down. Luckily another man who was running the mini train took his lorry to where the van was and transported the marquee to Dagenham. But watching them put it up was like Kerno's Circus. They did not have a sledge hammer to hammer in the 4 foot pins to hold the uprights, but used a little club hammer, and the crew to put it up was on man an his wife, with an older couple and a fellow off another stand. Putting the roof on was a joke as they did not even have the right stuff for that. But eventually at 14.00 we managed to get started at one end as they finished the other end.

Trade and interest was not too bad, but we had lost half the day. We had 2 tentative enquires about holding a party and also 2 tentative enquires about holding demonstrations. So we will see what happens over the next few weeks.

Sunday: We went to my son's for a BBQ, and Dani his wife went totally OTT with the food, there was enough left over after we finished to feed my son with packing up for weeks. It was good fun and the grandchidren enjoyed bouncing on their tampoline with Andy (Dani's mum's boyfriend). The weather was fine, bit overcast but the rain held off, unlike what we left in Barkingside.

Wenesday 30 July

2008-07-30T15:36:00.000+01:00

Bit of bad news, Wickford has fallen through for this weekend as the shop man can't get enough people to fill the place. But never mind we will still be at Dagenham. So pop by and say hello, we are always happy to meet people and exchange ideas. Also we will be visiting stamperama in Stevenage on August 10. So give us a call and we could meet up.

25th July

2008-07-25T10:46:00.000+01:00

Well we have finally (?) got all our stash together. We are going to spend the weekend getting stock ready for next weekend when we have our two stalls. If all goes well at Wickford we may have a regular stall there, possibly once a month to start with. The weather is glorious. My back is feeling good now due to the hot weather, it gets really bad when the weather gets damp or cold.

Catch us @

2008-07-23T12:58:00.000+01:00

2nd August
Dagenham -The In the Mix festival will be at Parsloes Park, in Dagenham from 11am – 6pm

3rd August
Wickford - The Wickford Willows Arts, Craft and Antique Market - situated in the Willows Centre, Wickford, Essex. Just off the High Street, 3rd August 2008.

We will be selling handmade cards and accessories. We are busy making up our stock so that we ave enough stuff to sell. We are also working on a Christian Wedding Invite, having looked around we could not find one with a Christian look. So watch this space.

15 July

2008-07-15T15:02:00.000+01:00

We had a great weekend away at the caravan. We sorted out our craft stash and found stuff we never thought we had, bliss. The weather was not too bad, especially on Sunday. On Sunday we went to Tacklefest in Peterborough. It was not Victoria's thing but I love fishing, I managed to pick up some great kit at low prices, but best of all I met, shook hands with and got the autograph of Bob Nudd (4 times world coarse fishing champion). He even signed an ATC for me and we had a short chat about fishing and ATC's. We have a stall at two events over the weekend of 2/3 August so we are going to busy making things to sell and to show.

In the mix Festival - Dagenham, Essex

2008-07-10T14:17:00.001+01:00

We will be having a stall at the above festival on August 2nd. We would encourage people to come, if not to see us but to support the charity that is running it. The charity is called Seedtime

"The In the Mix festival will be held on 2nd August 2008 at Parsloes Park, in Dagenham from 11am – 6pm. This year we are expecting 1000+ people to attend. Further information about the festival can be found at www.seedtimeprojects.org.uk/inthemix"

We will be selling our handmade crafts and also demonstrating Particraft products, with a special promotion. We are going to be busy now making things to show and sell. As we are also considering a stall @ a salamarshops site in Wickford we could be busy over the next few weeks. We also have a couple of parties to organise as well.

Thursday 3 July

2008-07-03T15:37:00.001+01:00

I've lost all my digital photos from last week, (BIG R please) I had some of our sample cards and mine and Victoria's ATCs. Still I have managed to get 3 pictures and made one very short video using my camera today and uploaded them to the webshots site (see the link for it on the right). Well we have had an order from the Particraft website today so things are starting to take off (albeit slowly :) ) I will take more pictures soon. Also Scarlet has got a wonderful bed to sleep in but what does he use ---- a cardboard box lid. Pictures soon. Well that's it for today.

June 22 - July 1st

2008-07-02T16:30:00.000+01:00

we were away at the caravan last week and had some great time going around the local area. we went to Holt, Sherringham, and Langham Glass where we saw some more fascinatig glass sculpting and blowing. we also got on with some crafting and also celebrated Victoria's 30th Birthday. I made some more ATC's and a couple of cards. Victoria has also started to make ATC's so we are on the look out for swappers. Over the weekend an Monday we did our Theme park bit by going to Alton towers and Drayton Manor. I had to use a wheelchair at Alton Towers and it was tiring for Victoria to push me around. On Monday at Drayton Manor I was able to hire a scooter which made it much easier for both of us. At Drayton Manor I won a Thomas the Tankengine toy for my grandsons. I had taken a load of pictures with our digital camera but they disappeared from the SD card so I'm hopeing a mate of mine can recover them if not I will be very unhappy.

Quiet but busy

2008-06-15T18:36:00.000+01:00

We have been a bit quiet but that does not mean we have not been busy. We have been trying a lot of various stuff to see what works and what doesn't.

Last weekend we were at the caravan playing with loads of bits and peices. Victoria has renewed her adoption of Amber @ Hunstanton Sea Life Center, I'll be renewing my adoption of Lopez later this month.

One very happy lady

2008-05-31T11:48:00.000+01:00

I forgot to mention yesterday about the prize draw details. As I was collecting the tickets one lady said that she would only enter if she won, I said to that I'm sure she will. When Rita drew the tickets it was in fact that lady. As we gave her her prize she said that normally she never wins anything. So she left a very happy lady.

Our First Demonstration

2008-05-30T16:05:00.001+01:00

We held our first demonstration today @ Hertford Heath, it is 24 miles from where we live but as we were the nearest we took it on. It was at a well established craft club in the village and was held in the church hall. We had about 22 members turn up and Rita introduced us and then Victoria introduced us with a bit more information. To get things started we did the icebreaker of Hide & Seek. First we asked the ladies to find the glue pins in the catalogue. Then we presented the winner with a sheet of 12x12 paper. We then did the same again but asked them to find a particular paper which we then gave to the winner. We then mentioned that we would be doing a prize draw after the demonstration. We then went on to do a demonstration of the Teddy Tag. After we had finished we had some ladies come up to us to try the heat bonding, and we discussed with various ladies the different sort of things that you can do with the fibres. We then drew the prize draw and gave the winner some fibres and film to play with at home. We got 10 orders (inlcluding the hostess), she actually used her commisson to buy a stamp set for the club. We both really enjoyed ourselves and it was not as bad as we thought it would be, nor as nerve racking. So thanks to Traci for her excellent training and to Particraft for having such wonderful products to demonstrate.

Our first Demonstration

2008-05-27T21:28:00.000+01:00

Our first demonstration is on Friday 30th May at Hertford Heath. It is a local craft club and we are going to be demonstrating heat bondable fibres.