New Year, New Mojo

With no exaggeration, 2012 turned out to be the WORST year in my life. It has been such as a difficult year, that I would really like to just write it off, but in between all the dramatic events has been a few but very sparse good moments.

My family entered 2012 with negotiations well under way for the sale of our house in Newcastle, after having rented it out for the last 4.5 years after moving away from Newcastle in 2007 for hubby's work and living in an employer supplied house. Late 2011 we moved to our current town for a promotion for hubby, where we moved into a (very small) rental house while we waited for our house to sell. We were sad to be selling the house that held so many memories for us, but excited about being able to purchase our own house again. 

Ethan in his pavlik harness

 

We had also just discovered that our baby, Ethan, had DDH (hip dysplasia/clicky hips) and had just had a Pavlik harness fitted which kept his hips in the correct position for them to develop. This turned our already unsettled baby into an extremely unsetlled baby who would only go to sleep, being breastfed, for about 20-45 minutes during the day and then at night-time, doing a 4 hour stint, then every 2 hours. Needless to say, it didnt take long for this to do my head in, but it wouldnt be until he was over 12 months old for his sleep to become better. 

Barely a few days into 2012, we discovered that my beloved mother-in-law Valerie, had a blocked bile duct. Further investigations discovered that it was a pancreatic tumour causing the blockage. Valerie underwent one operation straightaway to put in a shunt to reopen the bile duct, and then had to build up her strength for a huge 10 hour operation a few weeks later, to remove the tumour and to basically re-jig her digestive system. The day of her operation, was also the day our house settled, so we were on tenderhooks all day until we finally had the (separate) phone calls to say that a) our house had finally sold and b) Valerie had come through the sugery really well and that the surgeon was quite confident that he had removed it all.

A week after Valerie's operation was the 25th anniversary of the passing of my mum, Deanne, so it was a very difficult and emotional week for me, in remembering my mum's passing and also having Valerie, who has been like a 2nd (or should that be 3rd, with my step-mother for the past 22 years as 2nd) mother to me for the last 17 years facing such a large operation. It also made me think a lot about the situation surrounding my mum's passing and that led to a lot of soul-searching and very negative memories.

Our new house, not much to look at, but it is ours!

Once the sale of our house was completed, we begun looking at houses to purchase, having a big list of not only the items that was essential, but also the things that we would like to have, in a house. After discounting quite a few, we eventually found our house. One look through it, and we made an offer on the spot. The only thing the house didn't have that we really wanted, was a second bathroom, but the laundry was large enough that we could easily fit a second toilet, as being the only female in a family of 6 there is a lot of mis-aiming that occurs. I really dont understand how it can be so hard to aim. but apparently it is. Enough said on that subject I think.

In March, my Dad was also diagnosed with cancer, multiple myeloma, which is a cancer of the blood, where too much plasma is produced and it attacks the bones, causing them to soften and weaken. A few weeks after beginning chemotherapy, Dad had an episode where he was unable to speak and had a few seizures. He was flown to Melbourne by air ambulance and spent a couple of days in ICU. It was a very emotional time, seeing my father who to me, has always been as strong as an ox, laid up in hospital with tubes and wires coming out everywhere, and coming on top of Valerie's prognosis and the significant anniversary of my mum's passing. Thankfully, Dad recovered very well and there has been no more seizures since. He has recently undergone a stem cell transplant and although recovery from that is slow (as we were warned it would be) his prognosis is great. We were told he would still need neuro-surgery at some this year to have a metal plate inserted where there is a defect in his skull, but this may actually not be needed as the bone has just started to regrow and is covering the hole.

With my precious MIL Valerie, at Disney on Ice, 2011

In July, on our way back home from a holiday, we spent a few days at Bendigo with hubby's parents. Valerie had been unwell for a few weeks, with constant nausea and vomiting, and had been admitted to hospital. They were unable to discover the cause of it and after a few weeks, referred her back to her specialist in Melbourne. There, her doctor discovered that the tumour had returned and was blocking her bowel, causing her to be so unwell. Although his team was willing to operate and attempt to remove it, both Valerie, her husband (hubby's dad) Geoff and the doctor felt that it was best not to proceed with the operation, but to spend her remaining time which was only a few days/weeks at most, not recovering from such a major procedure which may have given her at best a few more weeks. We raced down to base ourselves in Bendigo to spend time with Valerie in hospital in Melbourne. It was such a sad time knowing that we were losing her, but it was joyous in knowing that the pain and suffering of the majority of this year would soon be ended and that she would be going to meet her God and eternal home. On the Thursday, we spent the majority of the day with Valerie where she was able to tell us all that she wanted to, and how proud she was of each of us, and us telling her everything we wanted to. On the Friday, hubby, his sister Karen (who had also arrived the day before) and Geoff were able to spend time with Valerie, reminiscing over all their family memories, and Valerie was also able to plan her Thanksgiving Service with them. Plans were also made for Valerie to be transferred back to Bendigoto the hospice the following day. We were again able to spend some time with Valerie on the Saturday before she was sedated. On Sunday afternoon, we returned home as Valerie was going to be kept highly medicated and would only have brief periods of wakefulness. In the early morning hours, of Tuesday August 21st, Valerie peacefully passed away in her sleep and went to meet God who she had so faithfully served all these years. We still miss her, each and every day, but are slowly adjusting to life without her.

In September, just after Ethan's first birthday, he had his two-monthly appointment with his specialist and the x-ray showed that after only 10 months in his brace, his hips had developed absolutely perfectly and had finally turned to bone, meaning that he no longer needed his brace. While Ethan had learned to cope with his brace and had learned to sit, crawl, stand and even walk while holding onto things in his brace, it was such a relief to get rid of it. The specialist is confident that he will not need any further treatment and is not at any increased risk than the normal public of needing a hip replacement later in life. He has since become a lot more settled and happier which is also a great relief, especially as he is now sleeping a lot better at night time.

So there we are, 2012 in a nutshell. With everything that has happened, my crafts have really taken a back seat, so my New Years Resolution is to get back into scrapping and cardmaking and all my other crafts. Of course, to effectively do that, I really need to find the motivation to clear out our garage, so that my dreams of a "Craft Cave" (as our whole house seems to be a Man Cave) can come to fruition. Here's to a great 2013 with plenty of craft!

 

My Washi Storage/Dispenser Unit

Realistically, setting up my craft cave in the garage is still a few more months away, sadly. There are still heaps of boxes and stuff to sort through and work out what we want to keep and what to get rid off, now that we plan to stay here for the forseeable future. So I have a very small section of our bedroom that I keep a small (for me!) amount of my scrapping and other craft gear for the moment.

I have only just discovered washi and am slowly building up my stash but was wanting to be able to keep it all neat and tidy and possibly be able to have some kind of dispenser to cut it as needed.

So one night, when putting away the leftovers, I began to look at the new "easycut" gladwrap dispenser in a new light.

So with a bit of a play with it, I was able to make it into a washi storage and dispenser unit!

Start by removing the core like you were changing the roll of cling film, the circular piece on one end rotates and pulls out.

 Then you need to remove the removable end like this. You may have to cut through the glad stickers on both sides to allow it to come off.

Inside is a flap of plastic that keeps the roll of cling film in place. This needs to be removed as I found the washi would stick to it. This flap can be cut with a craft knife or scissors but I actually found it easier just to tear off after making a small nick at the beginning.

The unit with the flap removed.

Then you need to remove the removable end from the core. Make sure it is the end with the circular piece that you had to twist to remove it from the unit, not the other end.

The core is about the same diameter as the end of the washi so peel back the first layer (white paper) from the core.

Then repeat with a second layer of paper from the core. I found I only had to peel it off about this far, not the entire length of the tube.

 I'm not sure if there are different brands of washi but some were on plastic rolls which fit well, but some of my washi are on paper rolls and needed to have a layer of two peeled from the inside of their roll.

 Then just thread the washi onto the tube from the peeled end. So that it rolls the right way, you need to have the unpeeled end of the core facing up and have the roll so that it unwraps over the top. Trust me, it is very difficult to use if you it so that it unrolls to the bottom. Unroll a cm or two of the tape to make it easier to find the end when it is all in place. TIP: Place your least used washi on first, that way you dont need to pull all your rolls out to change one when it is used up.

Continue adding the washi ensuring they unroll the correct way. Through trial and error, it is best not to have them all pushed up against each other but to leave a bit of space between them. They do move around a little bit when the dispenser is moved but at least if they start with a gap it is easier.

Thread your completed core inside the unit so that the plastic tab on the end matches up with the notch inside the unit. If your washi is new, it may need a bit of help fitting through the hole but once you use it once or twice it will fit fine.  Once they are in, rearrange them a little so that they have gaps between them again.

 This is the notch that the tube has to be aligned in.

 The end piece can now be put back in. Make sure it goes up the right way, with the cut out part facing up.

 Then you just need to put the circular piece you removed at the beginning back on, ensuring that it goes into the core tube, then matching up the notches and turning it.

Sorry about the photo, didnt realise it had a dark patch until I uploaded it. To use, simply pull out the required length of washi ....

then push the lid down hard over the piece of washi. The cutter should line up but if your washi is new (and causing the unit to bulge a little) you may just need to realign the lid a bit. 

 The cut washi to length washi tape.

 Because it is a serrated cutter it leaves a nice rustic, serrated finish to the edge. If you dont like it and want a straight edge, use a pair of scissors to trim it off.

Now my next project will be to remove all the Glad stickers and to decorate it!

I am more than happy for people to share and re-create this but if you do, then please acknowledge me as the original creator.

August P4P Challenge Kit

Another one of my favourite suppliers is Tracy from Passion 4 Papercrafting. This month she created a challenge kit that you had to use to create a layout or card. The rules were that you couldnt add anything about from your plain base card or paper and you could use as little or as much of the kit as you wanted. You could add mists, stamps or inks and you could use  punches or diecut machines with the paper from the kit but you couldnt add any other embellies.

Under the rules of the competition, I cant upload the photo of my creation until after next week so please come back after then to view the card I created.

Of course I would love you to vote for my card so please become a fan of Passion 4 Papercrafting's facebook site and look out for card once voting opens this Friday.

Sketch challenge

One of my favourite suppliers is Kerry from Kerry's Crafty Cards and Cuts. This month she has started challenges on her blog. The first was to turn either a layout sketch into a card or a card sketch into a layout (or do both). I choose to turn this:

into this:

July S2P Inchie swap

I'm still getting my head around inchie's but this is what I created for the July Inchie swap over at Scrapping 2 Perfection.

The theme was free choice, so I chose flowers and bling!

My CHA Craft Swap Gift from Adornier

In my last post, I showed the Birthday Card Organiser and bundle of 10 birthday cards I made for Sheryl of Adornier for the 2012 Contemporary Handmade Alliance Craft Swap. Now its time to show you what she made for me:

 A beautiful matching earring and necklace set and ....

 .... this wonderful tote bag. The inside has pockets all around to keep all the small stuff separated. Although I still generally lug a nappy bag around everywhere I go, I do look forward to the day when I can permanently say goodbye to it. And the times I dont take the nappy bag, I seem to take an enviro bag rather than a handbag, so this is going to be just perfect.

 I love the care and effort Sheryl put into creating this bag for me and all the little details she included such as this little "hand made" charm. 

If you too create handmade items then consider being a part of the CHA Craft Swap next year. The rules are very simple see here for details, follow the CHA blog or Facebook page and watch out next May/June for the signup.

Where have I been?

Whoops. I didnt realise it was so long since I last posted. Life can be so hectic sometimes but I have still made sure there has been time for crafting.

In the school holidays, my family enjoyed a lovely time away at Warrnambool on the Victorian ShipWreck Coast for the Fun 4 Kids Festival which we had such a fun time at and there was activities suitable for all my boys. Even though we have just upgraded our car to a Kia Carnival as we really werent fitting into the Pajero anymore, space was still reasonably tight with the 6 of us, but I did manage to sneak in a small (for me!) craft tote as I was working on a very special project for the 2012 Contemporary Handmade Alliance Craft Swap. This is the 3rd year it has run and the 3rd year I have been involved. In 2010, I received a lovely handmade tote from Piper and Lily which I still occassionally use. Unfortunately, even though my swap partner received a lovely package from me, I received nothing (but excuses) from them. As I was in my 3rd trimester in a very difficult pregnancy and about to move house, I didnt have the energy to chase them up too much, but I did let the organiser know that they hadn't completed the swap. As disappointing as it was, I'm not bitter about it, I just hope they appreciate the time, effort and expense that went into creating something special for them.

While I was away, this is what I had been working on for the lovely Sheryl at Adornier.

 A birthday card organiser and ....

.... 10 birthday cards to go in it.

The birthday card organiser has pockets for each month and on the pocket is each of the dates for that month. You simply fill in the name of the person next to the date of their birthday and store the card you've decided to give to them in the pocket, ready for posting or giving it to them. If you are really organised, you can fill it up during the year and have them sitting there ready to go, or do a month at a time or if you are like me, use it as a reminder for whose birthday you need to make a card for and store spare ones in the pockets!

 With album rings as a hinge and a ribbon to tie it together, it can expand pretty wide.

 Each double page was decorated differently, but this shows the pockets with the dates for that month on it.

 THE CARDS

 I love how just a bit of pen ink (the outline around the plane) can really make a die cut pop!

 Black and white always looks effective together and I am still loving using bottle tops. I think the doily flower looks wonderful in the middle of the bottletop.

 3 little boat die cuts each in their own frame, some lettering, a few bits of bling and some printed background paper makes a very easy but effective card.

My 3 oldest boys loved this card. Why? Because it is Herbie the Love Bug. I really love the road Washi tape. I can see quite a few little boys I know receiving a card along these lines.

 Again, 3 die cuts on their own frames, some lettering and bling, but this time it is a cut out card and although it is hard to see, the cupcake frames are standing up through the die cut squares of the card.

 Sometimes the card I have in my mind does not quite translate into reality and that is wahat happened here. I dont know if it is because the red contrasts too much with the blue of the dragon, but I didnt like this card, it didnt turn out at all the way I had planned it to in my head. But I kept it in as when I asked my boys if they liked it, all 3 said "Yeah it's cool" or "Yeah can I have it?" So if it has my boys approval than I thought some other little boy (or girl) would love to receive it.

 A flourish rub on, fabric flowers, some bling and lettering, I love the simplicity of this card but it does look so beautiful and tactile.

I found it hard to give this card away to a complete stranger, I just fell in love with it. Just means I will have to make it again.

 The bear and borders were from a paper tole kit, and teamed with a die cut banner, greeting sticker and some matching paper, again it was very simple but effective. And in real life, the paper tole effect is much more pronounced.

The last card of the pack. Some cupcake Washi tape, a few die cuts, a stamped greeting and outlined in pen. Another simple but effective card that I am sure any little girl would love to receive.