heading home for christmas

happy christmas everyone! here are o-o and wee baby j having a retro photo booth experience at snoopers' paradise. wee baby j was not at all sure, i love his imploring expression in the last photo! i've shut up my online shops over the festive season but would like to say a BIG thankyou to everyone for buying handmade and supporting my cottage industry, i really appreciate it.

we're heading up to manchester for the holidays. just found this amazing maker on etsy. the pickled onion monster munch piece is so appropriate as we face the epic journey north, my dad banned this flavour from the car when we were nippers - so stinky!

christmas

comedy. gold. more conversations with the kiddo here.

and here he is (with proud expression) displaying his drawing of many-antlered rudolph pulling father christmas' sleigh loaded with a sack full of presents. jingle bells are jingling and it is sunset, there is a christmas tree forest far below.

panicky christmas shoppers, the last posting date for christmas delivery (UK only) is thursday. don't leave it too late! my folksy shop.

on multi-tasking

trying to take some good photos of the new print and tinkering with online listings while being a gallant prince in o-o's game, making porridge, distributing advent chocolate, advising my dad on christmas present purchases over the phone and distracting wee baby j with assorted rattles. i love this painting by elizabeth nourse of another mama busily multi-tasking long-long-ago...

beverage of champions

we've been the house of illness for what seems like MONTHS. in between nursing duties and naps (wee baby j's, not mine) and neglecting this blog terribly, i've finally managed to get a new print finished, photographed and in my online shops. you might remember this obsessive teapot drawing... well, one of those lucky teapots got to be the star of my new 'tea, beverage of champions' screenprint!

 here are the prints drying on the floor of the front room (really must get a drying rack)

and here are some photographs of the print...

it fits in an ikea 'ribba' frame if you trim a little bit off the bottom of the paper.

i'm really pleased with how it turned out (self praise is no praise and all that!). if you'd like to buy one as a last minute christmas present (UK buyers, you have until thursday the 20th, international customers, you've missed the yuletide boat i'm afraid but prints shipped now will arrive soon after christmas) then you can find them for sale here and here.

two fat ladies

you, and your mam...

i've always enjoyed this manc scally version of the traditional bingo call. woke up to find i'd had my 88th sale on folksy, thanks everyone. i love palindromic numbers!

i just sustained a mum injury while putting on my slippers (actually a pair of ugg boots), spiked my toe on the herd of plastic farm animals which, unbeknownst to me, were secreted inside. ouch.

the folksy front page

really chuffed that the good folks at folksy have featured my shipping forecast and cuppa print on the front page of the folksy site. thanks lovelies!

mum tip #4

i love the idea of documenting the kiddos' growing up, weekly photos next to a metre rule, height charts, monthly foot prints etc but i never seem to be able to remember to do the necessary regular photographing/measuring/printing. another problem is what to do with and where to store the resulting items. so now, when i give a book to m or other family members i include o-o's (and now wee baby j's) prints next to my written dedication in the front.

happy belated birthday love to sweet m who's birthday falls on the same day as wee baby j's half year birthday. we gave him the history of the world in one hundred objects.