Stitches - Agapanthus, Fimo and lots more.

Just got back from the Craft,Hobby & Stitch trade show at the NEC. Two days of seeing all the new stock, watching some amazing demo's and attending a few workshops. Now comes the trick of trying to remember all that I saw and how it was done!

This gorgeous stamp is from Woodware. We went to a workshop run by Stix2 which had us using a hot glue gun to make a puddle of glue on a heatproof craft sheet and then using the stamp to make an impression in the puddle. Once cool we removed the stamp and dusted the glue with mica powder.
There is a similar technique used with UTEE but unlike UTEE this stays a little flexible when cold, ideal if you want to put it on a curved surface.

This technique had us using double sided sticky film placed on chipboard and run through a die cut machine to make a frame. We then used transfer foil to make marks on the sticky side, I chose to stamp the foil leaving flower shapes which you can just about see in this picture. we then filled in the sticky gaps with fine glitter. I was really impressed with the finished look and have arrived home full of renewed interest in foils.

This AMAZING creation is stunning when seen face to face. He was made by Bonnie McGough who is the most inspiring of ladies. Her area of expertise is polymer clay, mostly Fimo. We spent 45 minutes in a workshop with Bonnie and then I spent over an hour with her on the Fimo stand. I came away (eventually) with so many tips and ideas as well as a fantastic book 'The Wonder Of Polymer Clay'.
I now have another whole new world to play with. There aren't enough hours in the day or days in the week anymore!!!!
I think a few cards will now have Fimo elements on them. The main thing I learnt was 'it's not as hard as you think', now that's a challenge I can't resist!

Not only did I have the lovely book I bought but thanks to Bonnie's generosity and enthusiasm I also brought home this gorgeous dragonfly so I wouldn't forget how to make him. He has to be cooked so I'm hoping that I may be able to make a few small bits for him to share the oven with.

There were some lovely new products on show, too numerous to mention all of them but keep yours eyes on your local craft shop as I'm sure things will start to appear soon.