February 2012

MAN-day Monday – Clean and Simple Flag Thank You Card

by Lesley Oman on 27 February, 2012

Another Monday morning = another MAN-day Monday. Thanks for joining me today.

I know things have gotten slow and i’m really sorry about that. Working full time and being a mom doesn’t leave me as much time in my life for crafting. I’m ok with that, because i am just so thankful that i still get a little time to do the things i love. The good news…we have managed to get a new laptop! Yippppeeeeee! That was really the big thing that was slowing me down, as my ‘craft table to website’ workflow wasn’t as streamlined as i needed it to be.

I have been being crafty, and eventually i’ll get to tell you all about the things i’ve been making- when i get a chance to photograph them all. AND, i even went to the Craft Show in Farnborough at the weekend, watch this space for a video of my purchases!

Right…on to MAN-day Monday!

This card has a little back-story….
Last week I had a wonderful surprise at work.
One of our Regular Meeting Room hosts was in the centre one Monday morning last month and asked me what i did at the weekend. I was telling him about the NCT Nearly New Sale that i went to, trying to get stocked up on 12-18 month clothes for Piper. At nursery they are always playing with chocolate pudding or flour or paint or some other messy stuff, so I don’t want to pay a fortune for clothes that will get ruined, and lots of the clothes at the Nearly New sales are almost like brand new.

So then…last week I arrived at work to find a big bag by my desk, brimming with pink and red fabrics. I couldn’t believe it! Dear sweet Simon had raided the closest of his daughter to clear out the clothes that she had outgrown. What a sweetheart! I was so excited i had to look through them all at work and then again when i got home. {It won’t be long until I need to refresh the wardrobe again, just a few weeks until the big O.N.E.!}

So I needed a extra special Thank You card with a masculine feel, and here it is. I chose grey for a cool, professional, masculine fee – I think this paper reminds me of a pin stripe suit! The white twill and embossed greeting gives a lovely contrast with the background and adds a little interest and texture to the simple card. The flag – well that bit was just for fun!

Have a great week you guys.

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MAN-day Monday – Alfie’s mini canvas

by Lesley Oman on 20 February, 2012

Hi everyone, it’s time for another MAN-day Monday, and today it’s a home decor item for all those little princes out there.

I made this little canvas hanging for little Alfie. He is at Piper’s nursery and is usually there in the same room when I collect P in the evenings. He is always hanging around P, playing with her or watching her from a distance. He even comes up to me with toys so I play with him or read him a book for a few minutes whilst the team get Piper’s day sheet organised. He is a sweetheart, and because of that I always say that he is Piper’s boyfriend.

You can pick up these mini canvases at some art shops- these ones I got in France yeaaars ago.

To decorate the canvas, first I cut a heart out of red scrapbook paper. Next I stamped the Friend Definition stamp from Hero Arts onto white card stock using the grey Pumice Stone distress ink. I stuck the heart to the stamped card and cut around it, leaving a border. I used wet glue to stick the paper together- Anita’s tacky glue, as I wanted to ensure that it had a firm hold and that it would withstand time. Next I popped a brad through the two layers, and stuck the whole thing onto the canvas.

The next bit was the tough bit- choosing which letter stickers to use. I decided to go with these doodlebug ones as they had a childlike, whimsical feel.

I thought about adding twine, but ribbon would secure better- i lay the canvas face down and placed the ribbon on top, securing to the back of the canvas with staples. I had to hammer the staples in a little bit (I didn’t have a staple gun, just an office stapler) but they were 100% secure.

Why not make a cute little wall hanging for your little princes and princesses!!?

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Valentines Treats – Paper Hearts

by Lesley Oman on 16 February, 2012

I wanted to do something special for the guys at Piper’s nursery who work so hard to make each day different, exciting, educational and FUN!
I always love reading the little section on her day sheet that tells us what she has been up to that day.

I got some jellybelly jelly beans {everyone loves those right?} and got crafty, here’s what I came up with…

First i took some copy paper and cut out a heart template, then i traced around the template, onto the back of some scrapbook paper. Next i cut out the hearts with my scissors {note to self: BUY some heart shaped dies!!!}.

I dug through my stash and found some mulberry paper – geez that was a blast from the past! I’m sure i bought it in Glasgow when I worked at Millers Art Shop. It’s also called Silk Straw paper in case you try to find it.

I chopped up pieces of silk straw paper that were bigger than the hearts and then took to the sewing machine. I wasn’t caring about being exact, so i stitched 3/4 of the way around the heart, pausing for a few moments to push in 3 little jelly beans in between the scrapbook paper and the mulberry paper, then i carried on sewing the rest of the way around the heart.

Next step – fraying! With a paint brush dipped in water i drew a line along the mulberry paper, just where the edge of the paper heart was. The water seeps into the mulberry paper and softens the fibres so you can gently pull away the excess paper, leaving a beautiful frayed edge around the heart.

A quick hole punched with my crop-o-dile and of course some bakers twine.

Next step…embellishing! I cut strips of cream coloured paper from the Slice Ledger paper stack (love that stack!). Using a square punch, I cut notches into the ends to make a flag type banner. I managed to find a stamp in my stash that said ‘Happy Valentines Day’ which was perfect for the occasion.

A couple of circles cut with my circle dies and my cuttlebug, and then it was all about the layering!

To finish I made little name tags for each of the girls – which was the worst bit because i was so paranoid that i would forget someone. Luckily i didnt…or maybe they were just too nice to tell me! LOL

I hope you had a lovely week, full of lovely LOVE!

Love and hugs,
x

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MAN-day Monday – Valentines cards for Men

by Lesley Oman on 15 February, 2012

(Better late than never…..still having laptop issues but thankfully have been able to publish this post today.)

Its that time of year again- shops are full of pink, red, hearts, frills and pretty, pretty romantic things.

Err, what about the dudes?

It may be a bit of a sweeping statement, but I feel that valentines day is primarily for the ladies, or at least the decorations seem to be. I’m not saying that the boys don’t enjoy the holiday, on the contrary I know lots of guys who spend ages making plans for Feb 14, but I’m sure very few buy into pink and red frilly hearts!?

This led me to a challenge. What kind of cards would a man like to receive for Valentines day?

This was my project, and this is what the result was…

Happy Valentines day.