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A very warm welcome to my teeny, tiny part of the huge world of blogging. This is where I share my passion for making hand made greeting cards. So - why "Always with a Heart"? Well this is for two reasons. Firstly, it is because every card I produce carries a heart on it somewhere. This can be big and bold or small and almost hidden - the fun sometimes is just trying to find it! Secondly it is because I put my heart into everything I produce. I hope that any visitors enjoy seeing what I post. If you drop by then please leave me a comment so that I know you called. It would be nice to know that you have found my heart in what I do.

Tuesday 21 February 2017

THE WANDERER RETURNS .. .. AGAIN

Hi Everyone

Happy Tuesday!

I hope your week is going well.

Mine feels like it only started today because the weekend saw Mr Heart and I head off to CHSI Stitches trade fayre in Birmingham and have a couple of nights away into the bargain.

At least I am managing to keep the new year's resolution of playing as hard as I work .. .. even if the Christmas card making one is falling by the wayside!!   LOL!!

I got to meet up with some great new suppliers at the exhibition who I am hoping to work with in the near future and was also invited to the champagne reception and presentation of the British Craft Awards for 2017. Such a lovely happy event to be part of .. .. I loved every minute!

Regular visitors to my blog might remember that I was nominated for the "Papercraft Designer of the Year" award.  One that I was no way expecting to win because I was the only "small fry" bod on the list .. .. but how special to have my name alongside so many inspirational crafting geniuses (shown below in the order they appeared on the voting list .. .. otherwise I definitely wouldn't have put my name there)

Stephanie Weightman
Anne-Marie Catterall
Julie Gibbs  (that's my Sunday name)
Barbara Gray
Joanna Sheen
Sheena Douglass
Sara Davies
Leonie Pujol
Sue Wilson
Tim Holtz

The award was won by Sara Davies who you will all know from Crafter's Companion.  I don't know if you know, but she was made an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours list last year for services to the economy .. .. .. I am guessing that means that us crafters are doing a good job at keeping the country afloat with all our crafty spending LOL!!

I also got to catch up with Hayley and Rebecca from Quick Cards Made Easy and Sienna from Cardmaking and Papercraft which was really nice.

So an exciting time has definitely been had and my fingers have been itching to get crafting after seeing all the new "up and coming" crafty goodies that are coming our way!

My head is buzzing with things I want to try .. .. but so far since I have got home it has been admin work all the way .. ...  catching up with emails and with new wedding enquiries, ordering of materials and signing up to some of those lovely new suppliers I met.

I can't believe that March is peeking it's nose round the corner already!!!!

Eeeek!!!

Hopefully one day soon there will be a picture of a card here for me to share .. .. but for now I will have to love and leave you and say a huge thank you to everyone who took the time to cast a vote my way .. .. you are very kind to this very random blogger!!


Tuesday 14 February 2017

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Hi Everyone

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Sending lots of love your way!!!

Gosh how busy has it been in the House of Hearts?

It has definitely been all go .. ..especially on the wedding front.  In fact it has been so busy that I decided to take everything downstairs otherwise Mr Heart and I wouldn't have shared much time together at all for about 4 weeks!!  LOL!!

Lots of samples made for prospective new "happy couples" and a lovely big wedding order finished. I am getting to know lots of lovely couples .. .. which is brilliant.  

Judging by the number of brides I have already spoken to this year I really think that 2017 is going to be a bumper year for weddings.  Both of the wedding fayres we did were very, very busy!!

But my little life is slowly getting back to some resemblance of order and control and everything has been taken back up-stairs so that the dining room table is nice and clear .. .. .. in readiness for that romantic dinner for two this evening .. .. .. and my attention has now turned to the lovely magazine commissions I have, and the general card orders that have been mounting up.  There is never a dull moment in my life .. .. and certainly no lack of variety!

Believe it or not I actually do have a share for today .. .. which is my Valentine card for Mr Heart:




This used:

Backing Papers:  Craft Sensations "Chalkboard Love" and First Edition Paper "Love Story"
Sentiment:  Pink Petticoat Ribbon Sentiments and Tag Computer Generated using fonts Aracne & Wreath
X-Cut Heart Die
Die'sire Scalloped Tags Set
Distress Ink:  Worn Lipstick
Ribbon, Cord, Key

and that is me!!

Enjoy your day everyone.


Thursday 2 February 2017

SORRY .. .. .. I LIED !

Hi Everyone

Happy Thursday!

I hope all is well with you all .. .. and if not that it improves smartish!

Well it would seem that I lied on my previous post when I signed off by saying "see you soon" .. .. .. I have been nowhere near my blog .. .. and nowhere near making anything to post onto it!  Sorry!

My last post was telling you about the very busy wedding fayre that Mr Heart and I did nearly two weeks ago .. .. well as a result I have received lots of sample requests and still haven't caught up with them all.  But I am having the time of my life playing with my ribbons and sparkly bling as well as completing a lovely order for vellum wrapped boxed invitations.  They should be making their way to the recipients now as they were collected at the weekend by a very excited couple.

To be honest I do find it hard to switch from one type of crafting to another within the same day .. .. my days are most productive if it is all general work or all wedding work.  Must be something to do with what frame of mind I get into first thing in a morning.

So I have nothing new to share .. .. but can show you the commissions I worked on for the current issue of Quick Cards Made Easy, which has now hit the shelves.

My first card is from a collection called "Ways with Frames" - I love these download papers very, very much and will be using them lots and lots I'm sure!
  

and this card is from a collection using "Watercolour Pencils".  


So at least I have woken my blog up a little and you know I haven't been sitting around twiddling my thumbs.  

I can't believe January has already come and gone .. .. and those Christmas cards haven't been making their way into my Christmas stock box either.  What a rash new year promise that was .. .. .. to make a card every week!!  There are already some i.o.u. chittys (if that is how you spell it) posted into the rather empty box!!  Perhaps every i.o.u. needs to be replaced with two cards instead of one!  LOL!!

Take care everyone and today I will simply say "I'll see you when I do" because who  knows when I will have something to post .. .. we have another wedding fayre on Sunday and I haven't caught up from the last one yet!!  

The one last time was an unscheduled last minute offer for a new venue which turned out to be the best one ever .. .. whereas this Sunday has been booked for at least 6 months.

Enjoy your day . .. I hope your weather is brighter than mine here!