2014 has been the year with which I started to branch out a bit in my crafting, trying new things and not just scrapbooking. I have made a few mini books and really enjoyed that. I have made three mini daybook style books for my friend and her two girls, for them to fill out however they wished. I have scrapbooked my usual 12x12 pages also, for my 2014 album, but I have found that I have been doing those less in the last part of the year, pretty much due to lack of free time because of work.
Since moving into our house back in February, I have been filled with a need to make art to place around our home and make it ours - so that has kept me busy! I have made many canvases this year.
One canvas was an actual painting, something which I haven't attempted since GCSE art over 14 years ago. That painting of a lighthouse in the village my mother in law lives is displayed on our landing wall.
I made a canvas with a quote on it "I could travel the world and the ocean blue, but I'll never be home until I'm with you"- again with a nautical theme, as that is important to me and Dave and also pertinent to where we live. I have decorated a hollow cardboard number 2, two letter Gs (our surname initial), and a mini canvas with a nautical theme, with the quote "we refuse to sink". These all are displayed on our landing.
2014 was also the year I gained a craft room! Very exciting times for me. It has been amazing having my own space to put all my things and to craft at my own desk without cluttering up the living room like I used to in our old place. With having my own space for the first time since I began this amazing hobby, I wanted to make some art to decorate my space with. This meant more canvases were made. One which I absolutely love is painted with my favourite colours of teal, sage green, grey and gold and it simply says in gold paint: "eat sleep create repeat". I love looking at it when I am in my room, making things! I have also made three special canvases to hang in my room. One has a photo of my mum on and painted, stencilled etc to match her personality. Another canvas has a photo of my dad on it, done all in blues. I have them hung right above my desk, so that I can always look at them as I work. It was important to me to have them watching over me, it makes me feel close to them. I made a third canvas with a photo of me and my little sister, and it is simply titled "best friends" - because she is, and I wanted to honour her in a canvas.
Along with getting a craft room, came getting specific furniture for it - including my very first turquoise Raskog cart! I love it, and it is my art trolley, with all my supplies in there.
I started working more in my art journal this year also, and it is something I hope to carry on doing in 2015. I plan to do a 2015 album of 12x12 scrapbook pages also.
One thing I have decided to do this coming year is to get organised. I have pre-ordered the new Heidi Swapp Memory planner from Studio Calico which I should be getting through in the early new year. I also have signed up for her Capture 30 class from BPC, which starts tomorrow. I am excited at hopefully getting organised this year, and instead of having lots of bits of paper all over with my thoughts and ideas on, putting them all in the memory planner, along with memories from each month. The hope is that I may be able to document the little details of our daily lives without having to do time consuming project life, or scrapbook every single thing.
I had been looking at the Erin Condren Life Planners, and thought they were amazing, but could not justify the expense since I was already getting a planner from Heidi Swapp. Maybe next year though!
I hope to blog more next year too. I would like to document my attempts at new crafts, and everything I read and craft.
I have actually just received through the post, a hand loom. I have become fascinated in this craft, and I am excited to try it out. I have bought a few balls of wool, to get me started so watch this space!
Talking of wool, I have also decided I would like to try to learn how to crochet and knit this coming year. I am really not sure how that will pan out, but we shall see! My husband actually bought me a book on crocheting for Christmas as he knew I wanted to learn, so hopefully I can pick it up. I have bought a crochet hook just to see if I like it and if I can learn it okay. My kind mother in law has loaned me some knitting needles and some wool plus an instruction booklet, to see if I can get into knitting.
One -slight- obsession of mine recently is Cardmaking. I have started watching videos by Jennifer McGuire and Kristina Werner, and I find them so inspiring. They have ignited in me a real desire to take my time with making cards for people. I already do make cards, but I love the look of their cards and want to try to do that. I have recently bought a few tins of Spectrum Noir colouring pencils, based on their videos! I am definitely going to need to practise a lot with shading and blending the colours together properly.
My hope for 2015 is to craft a lot and read. I managed to read only 26 books this year which is not as good as other years, but crafting gets in the way of books now! I hope to read 24 books in 2015 - which is 2 a month. I think this is an achievable goal alongside my crafting.
This blog will document my reading and my crafting. I hope 2015 will be a very fun, productive and happy year!
