Inspirational Happy Medium...

There's been alot happening here at A Christy Production lately.  Cleanouts, prospective Market preparations, lots of sales & lots of purchasing new products, replenishing supplies, creating new amazing things, workshops, new catalogues to drool over.... lots of fun stuff.  I have been working on my priority list of late too.  Decluttering my schedule I guess.  I made a goal with myself a few months ago to start saying "no".  I have always very much been a "yes" person.  But saying "yes" to everyone was taking over my life, and I started to not enjoy  my life and the pressures and never ending time crunches.  So I've been practicing saying "no".  So far so good.  Not only have I been decluttering my schedule, I've been decluttering my craft supplies.  It was really really hard.  I even had to call in reinforcements to help me be as brutal as I needed to be.  Husby brought in his comfy computer chair and edudicated alot of the brutality.  This decluttering exercise was all about being realistic.  Asking myself some serious questions:

- Yes this fabric remant is beautiful, but what good is it to me when it is the size of a hankerchief?  I don't use hankerchiefs so I must throw it out. 

- Why do I have 100 metres of brown lace?  I don't even USE lace in my projects.  Oh dear, I have 100 metres of blue, red and white lace too.....

- Do I need 200 zips?  Actually yes I do... *pops them back on shelf*

- When was the last time I even looked at this?  Oh I dunno... *throws in donation pile*

- Will I actually ever be skilled enough at sewing to be able to sew this pattern?  Probably not...

You get the message.

Husby had to step in a few times. 

But we got there.

Decluttering my schedule & my craft room all had a greater purpose.  I have great dreams and goals planned for A Christy Production.  Dreams and goals that require more of my dedicated time, they will require alot of patience (which I am already struggling with), they are going to require experiments, inspiration, constructive criticism, late nights, fresh ideas, ORIGINAL ideas, money, blood sweat & tears, oh, and did I mention more time?   

I'm trying really hard to make it all work.  Trying to find my happy medium whilst maintaining a Madeit Shop, a Facebook Business Page, a Pinterest account, and this blog, all whilst managing life, working, being a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, being a wife and working towards being a mother one day in the future.

I'm not sure what this post has turned into.  I had actually planned on showing you some of my favourite Pins on Pinterest that I've discovered lately that has helped me feel inspired.  I guess the inspiration I find is what fuels my desire to make this all work!!!!  So I will jump back on track to my original post plans and show you some amazing ideas that make me excited to be able to create!  

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  Well done for making it down to the end of the page.  I hope you feel inspired!!!

Button Cluster

I've been working on a custom order this week. 

Just another fantastic excuse to indulge in my love of buttons!

This order was put in after a friend discovered one of these Button Cluster Clips in my personal accessory stash - something I just whipped up one day for fun.  

I hope she loves them!

I think I need to make a few more and pop them in the shop.  What do you think?  What colour should I make next?

Handmade cards that smell good!

I bet you never knew you could make a card that smelt good?  Smelt like vanilla beans, or freshly cut watermelon, or like the cherry on top!!!  Well now you can.  Thank you Stampin' Up!  They have just released their Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue.  And included in this flippin' fantastic Mini is Scented Embossing Powders.  I had to pick my jaw up off the carpet when I found out.  I naturally had to have them all, and just love them!  I am holding two Workshop's in my home this month.  And I of course want to showcase as much of the delightful Mini items as possible and this is what I have come up with!

Project #1 - Mini Features: Pleated Ribbon, Baker's Twine, Framelits, Apothecary Art Stamp Set, Simply Scoring Tool.

Project # 2 - Mini Features: Mixed Bunch Stamp Set, Blossom Punch, Twitterpated Designer Paper.

Project #3 - Mini Features: Scented Embossing Powder, Sweet Shop Designer Paper, Mouthwatering Stamp Set, Framelits.

If you live in the Brisbane area and would like to come along feel to my Workshops, this month or in the future, pop over to my Facebook Page and check out my events.  I hold Workshops every month, sometimes during the day and sometimes in the evening.  I am also available to host parties at your home! 

How pegs took over my life......

....for a couple of days anyway!  Remember my last post?  And remember how I said the set that was featured already had sold and I hoped people popped over to my shop to see what else I had for sale.  Well guess what?  THEY DID.  8 times.  So needless to say I've been Fridge Magnet Peg making ever since :P  I would make a set, and put them in the shop, and they'd sell instantly, so I'd relist the pegs, thinking to myself, I'll make them tomorrow.. but they'd sell, so I'd have to make them immediately so I could ship them to the lovely lady, and so it continues, 8 times haha!!  That will teach me to not list something until it is made!  BUT it was fun.  It's nice to know people out there like what I am making!  So I don't want to bore you with too many details.. but here are a few piccies :)

A couple of sets drying.

Postpacks getting filled with completed orders.

Some of my basic Fridge Magnet Pegs making tools and supplies.

More supplies :)

Madeit was offline most of yesterday after doing some upgrades and the Internet Providers not recognising the upgrades and not wanting to let people back onto the site.  I was secretly cheering that it gave me a few extra hours to catch up a little!! And catch up I did... look what else I've listed in the shop!

I also did a custom Red Collection, and foolishly forgot to photograph it.  Which means I'm obviously going to have to make another, because it looked flippin fantastic!

Sorry for the photo overload!  Have a great day xo

Featured!

I love being featured on Madeit. It's only happened once before today.  It just makes me so happy.  It makes all your hard work worthwhile don't you think?

The best part is, I only just popped these gorgeous Fridge Magnet Pegs in the shop a couple of days ago!  Oh wait, there's an even betterer part, the set has already sold!  Hopefully people will pop on over to my shop and discover the other gorgeous sets of Fridge Magnet Pegs I have listed at the moment :)

Woot!

Zip it, or Button it?

I recently stumbled across two GIGANTOR tubs of buttons at the Thrift Store.  I of course purchased them.  I had no idea what I was going to do with all those buttons.... but I knew I had to have them!  

I've been having fun going through these buttons.  Many of the really special ones have made it into my button collection box.  

I've been brainstorming all the other beautiful things I can make with these buttons.  And I've made a few things already.  

What's funny, is I've made 4 things so far, and the tub of buttons I was using... you can't even notice that I've taken ANY out.  The tub is that huge my friends. 

  

Just think of how long you are going to be looking at button projects now.  Oh dear.. I hope you all like buttons as much as I do, cause you're going to be seeing ALOT of them.

Oh and I have a fascination with zips too.  This is the first successful attempt I've had at incorporating them into a funky accessory.  Many beautiful vintage, unique zips have been wasted in the past.  Hopefully only good things can come about in the future.  Cause lets be honest, I suck at sewing zips into clothing.  I need to find other uses for them.  Did I mention I have a whole tub of zips too?  

I've got flowers coming out of my ears!

A few days ago I was bored.  It doesn't happen often, but when it does, I try and find something new to do.  I've had a Big Shot for a few months now.  Up until this week I had only run paper through it.  I decided it was time to run through something else.  I have tonnes of felt, so it was an easy decision to experiment with some of it.  I used my Flower Folds die, (found on page 160 of current SU catalogue), and ran a piece of felt through the Big Shot.  It cut it out perfectly!  So off I went... before I knew it I had cut out 14 flowers, each flower having 3 different sizes/coloured layers.  I then picked out my matching buttons, and started to sew them all together, and add a clip on the base.  One plus about being sick and stuck in bed on such a beautifully sunny day, is that I can photograph the clips on my bed in the natural light, and lay in bed editing them all and listing them in my Madeit store :)

Oh! And don't forget about the giveaway on my Facebook Page :)  Wouldn't want anyone to miss out winning this...

Giveaway!

Hey everyone :)  Just wanted to let you all know I have started my giveaway over on my new Facebook business page!  Pop on over and like my page, and join in!! 

Stampin' Up! "Elementary Elegance" stamp set.

Good luck :)

Caramelised Onion Rissoles

If I haven't made it clear in the past, let me make it clear now.  I.  Hate.  Cooking.  I wish I was wealthy and could hire someone to tend to my every eating and meal desire.  But reality is, I have to cook every so often to keep husby happy.  We often eat eggs on toast for dinner.  Frozen dinners.  Oh so healthy I hear you saying!!  But I do cook on occasion, and sometimes my knowledge of flavour combinations surprises me. 

Now I bought some lovely fresh bread rolls at the shops this week so decided homemade burgers was a good idea.  So I defrosted my beef mince and somehow managed to come up with this SUPER tasty awesome excellent delicious makes you want to eat ten of them rissole recipe.  :)  Enjoy!

Caramelised Onion Rissoles  

500g beef mince

1 large onion, diced small

1 tbspn minced garlic

1 tbspn raw sugar

1 tspn vegetable stock powder

4 tbspn fried shallots (found in Asian section)

2 eggs

Polenta

Plain flour

Cook your onion, garlic and raw sugar over a low heat, stirring regularly until the onion is soft and caramelised.  Then in a large bowl combine the onion, mince, vegetable stock, dried shallots, and 2 eggs.  Mix well, and add Polenta until consistency is right.  Then roll into balls and cover in flour.  Cook over a medium heat with a little bit of olive oil in the pan. 

Add it to a fresh bread roll and some salad and get some of that into ya!! Mmmm!

But wait, there's more!

So I have a blog, I have an online store, I work part time, do Hairdressing from home, am a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, am an Administrator on TWO Facebook group sites (which is a huge job in itself).  I was starting to get too comfortable.  So I decided to add something else to the list, for good measure!!!  

I finally got around to starting up my own Facebook Business page yay!  I would LOVE it if you had a chance to pop over and say hi and 'like' the page!  

I am looking to do a giveaway on my new Facebook page very very soon!  I am hoping to get a few more followers first.  So make sure you 'like' my page so that you can be apart of it!

I've been super busy lately detoxing my house!!! We live with my parents in the upper storey of their house, we don't have much space.  So everything is very cramped and it's been driving me BONKERS so the last couple of weeks I've been pulling apart the cupboards and boxes and drawers and everything!  Getting rid of things, repacking things in a better way.  I'm ALMOST done.  So there hasn't been TOO much crafting going on lately.. just a few cards :)  Hope everyone's doing well!