Stamping and craft shops

I've been crafting since I can remember. As a child I was already using my little hands to create all sorts of things. I was always busy cutting, drawing, writing, sewing, putting things together. I enjoyed so much starting from zero or from spare bits and creating something (unexpected).

So when I decided to move to Scotland (Edinburgh), it was oh so natural to take a few of my craft materials with me.  I was unfortunately limited in the weight of my luggage, which means I could not take enough stuff to satisfy my crafty needs on a long term.  And as there's no way  I would stop crafting, it is vital for me to have a supplyer close at hand - just like any addict...
So I made a few research on the web and I located two interesting craft stores in Edinburgh:

• Hobbycraft.  It's a big chainstore (they have stores all over the UK) just outside Edinburgh, in Ford Kinnaird retail park. They sell supplies for all types of crafts: papercraft, sewing, knitting, crochet, cooking, painting… It’s a big supply store where you can find basic material to keep you (and your kids) busy. No excuse for not crafting.

• Stampers Grove. It's a family shop specialised in stamps and paper crafts (card making, scrapbooking...). The shop is on the corner of Grove street and Fountainbridge. They offer a large range of stamps and papers for all occasions. Emma and her husband James are very welcoming and full of good advice. Definitely the place to go. It's still one of the few shops left (comparing to online stores) where you can look at and touch the products, ask for info, get a demonstration... And they do run workshops.
  I attended a workshop on Stamping and Masking techniques. As I've been crafting for more than 20 years and I have gained a lot of knowledge in stamping and other paper craft techniques, I must confess that I did not learn a lot on a technical point of view. But as it comes to creativity and art, technique is a small part of the creative process.  The most important is to share and exchange ideas, visions...   It was a very enjoyable 2 hours workshop where I got the opportunity to meet some nice crafty ladies. I must also mention the lovely shop owner Emma who gently welcomed us in her craft room with a cup of coffee and a piece of homemade cake. I enjoyed it a lot.  Let's face it, I'm always happy when I keep my hands busy with papers, scissors, stamps and ink.  

I realised 2 cards for which I used a blank cardboard, 2 wooden stamps and a lot of inks and some doodles for the finishing touch.

I also realised an A4 page that will for sure end up in a frame. I used ink to create the background, I draw and stamped a few flowers to make a flowery scenery. I coloured the flowers with pen/markers and I added some doodles to finish up.

Random cards:

Feel free to contact me (akhatan@gmail.com) for any details, questions or further information.

Craft

Oei!  ‘t Is al een maand geleden sinds dat ik iets op de blog gepubliceerd heb.

Het is niet zo dat ik helemaal niets te vertellen heb.  Integendeel.  Ik ben zelfs vrij aktief geweest.  Misschien te veel om wat extra tijd te maken om iets op de blog te zetten.

Ik heb onlangs veel tijd besteden aan knutselen, wandelen, naar de bioscoop gaan, uitgaan, studeren ( opleiding  “Journalism Magazine “ is bijna af – ik heb meer moeilijkheden met mijn opleiding in aromatherapie:  ik zal die hoogstwaarschijnlijk naar volgend jaar verzetten).  Ik geef toe dat dit mij een beetje te veel wordt  en dat  mijn hersenen  niet meer kunnen volgen. 

Hieronder een paar kaarten en andere knutsel projecten die ik onlangs gemaakt heb.

Kerstkaarten

Kerstkadootjes

Herinnering dat alle vorm van creatie KUNST is (ART in het Frans en in het Engels).

EN version

Oops! I just realised it’s been a month since I had something published on the blog.

I can’t say that it is because I did not have anything to write about. On the contrary I think I’ve been pretty much busy and I could not find the time or maybe the words to feed the blog. I’ve been busy crafting, walking,  seeing people, going to the cinema , studying (Magazine Journalism course is almost done.  I neglected a bit my course in aromatherapy; I will probably postpone it to next year) .  I  have to confess that I am keeping myself maybe too busy and my brain is not always working as I wish it would….

Anyway...

You can have a look at a few Christmas cards and other crafty projects  I realised lately in the dutch version up above.

Version FR

Comme le temps passe vite!  Cela fait déjà un mois que je n’ai rien publié sur le blog.

Ce n’est pas que je n’ai rien à écrire.  Au contraire.  Je crois plutôt que je suis tellement occupée ces derniers temps que je ne trouve pas le temps d’alimenter le blog.  Je passe beaucoup de temps entre les bricolages, les balades, les sorties, le cinéma, les études (j’ai presque fini ma formation “ Magazine Journalism”; par contre je néglige un peu ma formation en aromathérapie – je crois que je vais la postposer d’un an). Je me rends compte que je me suis attelée à trop d’activités et que mon cerveau court-circuite un peu….

Bref, ce poste-ci  est dédié à partager avec vous quelques-unes de mes récentes réalisations (cartes de Noël et autres créations manuelles).  Les photos sont visibles plus haut; dans la version en Néerlandais.