Cards from The Craft Extravaganza.

While at the QVC craft Extravaganza I was lucky enough to be able to try out some new things for me and some news kits and crafts. The card above is an easel card, which looked to me to be quite complicated but is actually quite simple. If I was doing it in my own time, I would have made sure things lined up a little better, but I am happy with what I managed to achieve in the short time we had. The card above was made from Kanban goodies, including a stamp from their elegant ladies range.

I then made a card using the Gorjus range of images, I do like the images but I never thought that I would ever be using the term 'twisted pyramage' as something that I would do!! Again if I had completed this card at home I would have made sure the little spots where the cuts outs were attached to the card were removed. That said I do love the images and its something I might try again.

This card looks better in real life than it does in the photo. This was one made using a mini kit from Stix. This had a variety of double sided shapes and metallic foils which we used to cover the shapes, it is three dimensional as the flower hangs over the blue circle behind. I think it needs something else to finish it, but again it was something made within time constraints!

This is my favorite one, there is a new product due out on the market called 'Silkies' (I think) they come in packs of four colours in little bottles that look like nail varnish. They can be used for a variety of things and can be used on a wide range of things, so I think they have good potential. I made this card by sponging the colours over a template onto shiny card. Its very effective and I can see that it could have a variety of uses. Its one of the products that I might well look at when it hits the market.

QVC Craft Extravaganza (its been a week of Extravganzas!!!)

Yesterday I was pleased to take the day off of work and to be invited into London with my 'other' friend called Karen, to the QVC Craft Extravaganza which was being held in the Queen Elizabeth Conference Centre in Westminster.

We left home at 10am and headed for Cockfosters on the Piccadilly line, the train was waiting when we got there,so we set of for Green Park where we changed lines to go the one stop to Westminster. The underground was unbearably hot, how people travel to work day in and day out on the underground is beyond me, I simply could not put myself through the pain.

We left Westminster Station and came out opposite Big Ben and the London eye. London is on our doorstep, but you forget just how fantastic it is, all the beautiful buildings, the constant activity going on all around its a fabulous place to people watch!

We stopped at a pub and had a couple of ice cold drinks and lunch which was much needed.While in there we noticed that there was a news report on the TV about the Iraq War enquiry, this was happening at the same place as our craft extravaganza, so we could see the reporter standing in front of the building, with ladies starting to queue up outside to go into QVC!!!

We went and joined the queue and once we got to the front we had to have our bags xrayed and walk thorough a detector, all because of the enquiry!!

Once inside we were given a goody bag, a booklet of vouchers and a raffle ticket. We headed upstairs and got started on the craft!!

There were twelve tables set up with all sorts of things to do, some were techniques based, there were card making stations, mini books, three dimensional Christmas trees, Santa cards, all sorts really. At each station you had to give in a voucher and they exchanged it for a pack that you could do at the table or take away with you.It wasn't possible to do all the activities in the time allowed, but we made a good attempt at it!! I will post some of the things I have made over the next few days.

While we were in the room they had constant refreshments which we needed as it hot. Its funny the things that impress you, for me it was the toilets, (sad or what!!) they were spotless, spacious and marble, with lemon verbena hand soap and hand cream, what more could a girl ask for?

Could my day get any better?? well as we reached the end of the day there was a raffle, there were some fantastic prizes, craft kits, papers and even a motorised Big Shot (a what?? I can hear all my non craft friends saying!) So we all gathered in the main room and awaited the results. I was lucky enough to be drawn out of the hat and won a huge box of Kanban goodies. I was standing next to the Inspire Me stand and I was talking to the lady in charge, I said to her I was pleased to have won, but I liked the style of her papers better, she asked to look at the papers and when she handed them back to me she also gave me an A4 box of her own goodies! I could not believe my luck, so I have given my prize to Karen who does like Kanban!

I have no idea where the 6 hours that we were there went, we had been fully occupied and came away with stuffed bags of goodies, it had been a fantastic day where I learned some new techniques and discovered that I needed to add to my supplies some of the new goodies that are about to be released. Thank you Karen and QVC for a great day!!!