FAMILY TREE PAPER CUT GIVEAWAY :-)

I am sorry I have neglected my blog recently, but I have been overwhelmed with paper cuts I have been commissioned to do.  If you don't all ready, you can get more frequent updates about my work via my page on facebook.

I am however taking 5 mins out from cutting to let you know that I am giving away one of my beautiful Family Tree papercuts.  I have had a good year, and I just wanted to share the love and thank all those people that have shared my work and helped make 2012 successful for me.

This link will take you to the image seen below, and all you need to do is share it and write a comment (please do feel free like my page too!!).  If you do have a browse around my photos, please do feel free to click like on anything you like and help me spread the Loula Belle At Home love :-)

I'm not sure whether I will have time to post again before Christmas, so just incase I don't, I wish you all a fabulous Christmas xxx

The Owl and The Pussy Cat Commission

This is a recent paper cut commission that I have been working on this summer, finally framed. 

I love the Owl and The Pussy Cat by Edward Lear and find myself singing it quite frequently!  

It was a pleasure working on it and I am really pleased with the outcome. 

If you are interested in having one of these created for you, or you would like something else done as a paper cut, please do not hesitate to contact me.  You can find more of my work in my shop and can follow my progress more frequently on Facebook.

p.s don't forget my giveaway on Facebook!  It finishes this Sunday evening (GMT).  Pop over and tell us what your favourite pudding is!!!  If you like what you see, hit the like button for my page, and please help spread the Loula Belle love by sharing it with your friends and family by hitting the share button (this is really important as FB has changed and less people are seeing posts... they want us to pay for advertising... small business need all the help they can get so please share things you like.  Thanks x).

It's time for a GIVEAWAY :-)

I have reached over 500 likes on my Facebook page, and to thank people for their support and kind words, I am having a giveaway... and of course I will say thank you too!

THANK YOU everyone (I shouted that from the roof top!), it's lovely to have met so many lovely people and I hope I continue to do so, and it's lovely that so many people think me work is lovely too :-D.

I will be announcing the winner round about this time next week, and the winner will be able to 'choose from one of the following options' ;-)

One of my cosmetic bags, chosen from this collection...

... or a £10 discount voucher to spend in my Etsy shop...

... or alternatively, £20 discount off one of my paper cut trees.  A Memory Tree (perfect for a new baby gift, a Christening or Baby Naming gift, a first birthday, a wedding or other occasion you would like to remember), or a Family Tree.

So, what are you waiting for?  Get yourself over to my page.  If you don't already 'like' my page, then please do so, and then leave me details of your favourite pudding (?!!) under the giveaway post.  Oh, and please do be very lovely and like it and share it with your friends.

Yey.... have a lovely Sunday evening.  Here's to week two of the summer holidays *raising glass*.  Have a lovely week :-)

Foxy Loxy Giveaway

I'm having a Foxy Loxy giveaway.  I have three purses and a washbag to giveaway.  Pop over to my facebook page to find out how one of them could be yours!

Winter Sun

Each year our family get together in France to enjoy a week in the snow with each other.  As the years increase, so does the family!  This year we had 6 adults and 6 children (7 and under)... pretty hectic!  Fortunately for us there was lots of snow at the chalet (last year was pretty miserable, and the younger children didn't enjoy the snow as much as we would have liked) and so the children spent lots of time wrapped up throwing themselves around...

... climbing...

...making an igloo... 

... sledging...

 

... and learning to balance on ski's!

We also enjoyed the beautiful scenery, although there aren't too many shots... it was very very cold, and time up the mountain was spent skiing as it was so limited (we took skiing and looking after the children in shifts!)

One of the things I love about France are their patesseries and chocolatiers.  Fabulous cakes, breads and chocolates, and the most beautiful displays.  This one is in Samoen.

These are yummy, they are a bit like a doughnut pastry with
myrtille berries (a bit like blackcurrents but not as sharp). 

And look at this for a sweet shop!!!

This was the front...

... and this the rear.  A gorgeous balloon display.  I love it!

Fabulous France!

N.B.  Just a reminder, I am celebrating, and so have...

...one of these...

... ans two of these up for grabs...

... if you want one just let me know by leaving me a message on here, on Facebook or on Twitter

I am also offering 20% of in my shop until the end of Feb.  Just enter CELEBRATION2012 at the checkout.

Spread the word :-)

Celebrate Good Times...

... Come On.  

(As if the song isn't running through your head now!  If not, join the groove and click here! :-D)

In my last blog post I wished my blog a Happy 2nd Birthday, but didn't celebrate as I was flying out to France to catch some winter sun on the slopes (more to come on that soon!).

It is also the 1st anniversary of the introduction of Loula Belle At Home on the 25th February 2012, so I thought I would tie the two together.

I have some gift vouchers for my Etsy shop to give away.

One of these is up for grabs...

... and two of these

If you would like to receive one of these, let me know by leaving me a message on my blog, on my Facebook Page or on Twitter.  This give away will close next Wednesday (22nd Feb) at midnight. 

I am also offering a 20% discount in my shop to all those that have helped support me over the past two years, including family and friends, fellow bloggers, tweeters (or twitterers lol), and facebook buds.   Enter code Celebrate2012 at checkout to receive your discount.  Code expires on 29th February 2012.

Thanks to everyone for making this journey such an enjoyable one xxx

Giveaway Result: Foxy Loxy has been found a new home!

This gorgeous Foxy Loxy Journal has been found a new home.  

This morning I went through all the people that 'like' my page and shared one of the Foxy Loxy giveaway posts, and created a lovely pile of pieces of folded paper.

They went in to my shower cap where they were given a little shake by the Tinker...

... before choosing one!

And the winner is:

Well done to you Kerry Hunt.  I hope that he becomes a very good companion to you!  Please get in touch and I'll arrange for him to be posted out to you.

  If you want a Foxy Loxy Journal, you can buy them here, and I am offering them to all those who 'like' my facebook page for £17.60 (that's a massive 20% discount) until Thursday 2nd February.  If you want to make use of this limited offer, contact me to let me know and I'll put you a personal listing in my shop (I only have 4 in stock at present!) .

Thanks to all that entered the Foxy Loxy Facebook giveaway.  Keep your eyes open for more fantastic giveaways and offers!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Fantastic Mr Fox Giveaway

I am going to be giving one of these lovely Foxy Loxy Journal covers to one lucky person.

It is made from black linen, has a fantastic Mr Fox appliqued (using a mixture of hand stitching and machine stitching) on the front...

... and comes complete with a hardback A5 sketchbook (white 150gsm cartridge paper).  A perfect size size for carrying around in your bag ready to create fabulous sketches, or write important notes you need to remember!

 

Once you have filled your pages, you can remove the sketchbook and add another.

Can you resist having this little fellow as your companion?!!

Okay, this is what you need to do to get your 'name in the hat'.  It is pretty simple.  Pop over to my facebook page and 'like' me, then share the Loula Belle At Home: Fantastic Mr Fox post on my facebook page with all your friends.  You must do both of these things to qualify!

Do you want an extra chance to win it?  You can gain an extra 'name in the hat' by doing one of the following (if you do both you will get two more 'names in the hat'!):-

1.  Follow me on my journeys in blogland by clicking on the follow button on the right hand side.

2.  Tweet about it by clicking on the tweet button at the bottom of the post.

The giveaway will finish on Friday 27th January.  I will announce the winner on Saturday 28th January. Please note that the winner will have to contact myself to claim their prize within 48hrs (let me know if you know you are going to be away!).  If this is not done, I will choose another winner.

Good luck everyone!

p.s.  These are also be available to buy in my shop.

Master baker at work!!!

I have had a lovely day with the little Tinker today.  We decided that we would make some gingerbread men (people) using the baking set he got for Christmas (he had been hankering after one for a while!).  I made up the gingerbread before he came into the kitchen, and left it to cool before he put on his pinny and set to work...

... rolling...

...cutting...

... popping on to the baking tray

... and putting in the oven to make these delicious little people (and they really are delicious!).

After lunch we set about icing them.  We used Royal Icing (the stuff you can buy from supermarkets that you just add water to) and some tiny little chocolate beans that I'd found in Asda.  I put spots of icing in the appropriate places, I used the pointy end of a teaspoon to do it, but wished I had an icing syringe (I love this Tala one!).  My husband informs me that some of their eyes are a little scary!  The Tinker then put on the buttons (I suspect more went in his mouth!)

The very last one, he did himself.  He was fantastic to watch, really careful about where he was putting his decorations.  I fully expected him to cover it in both icing and chocolate beans!

A lovely activity to do.  Gingerbread is a great dough for children to work with, it feels great, doesn't mind being handled and doesn't tear easily.  

The recipe I used comes (in disguise as a gingerbread man)with these lovely 'Budding Chef's Cooking Sets', which can also be personalized.  They are available to buy here.

And on a completely different note, tomorrow I will be letting you know what you need to do to become the owner of one of these lovely Foxy Loxy Journals that I will be giving away in my New Year Giveaway.  Don't miss out!!!

The outcome of last weeks giveaway

Time just seems to be flying at the moment.  I can't believe it is over a week ago since my last post regarding my facebook wash bag giveaway.  Some of you may be aware how it turned out, but for those of you that don't, this was the outcome...

... I was over in Yorkshire stopping with my lovely little sister for a couple of days, so I had a couple of assistants to help me.  My sister wrote out the numbers on little pieces of paper and we decided that number 1 would be the first person after me (I was the first person to 'like' myself!!!), and we would go up the list.  My brother in law got out his hat and put the pieces of paper in his hat, my sister gave them a shake, ruffled them around, blew on them and asked her hubby to pull out her number.  Blowing on them for luck failed her, and he picked out the number 3.  We were very shocked when we looked down the list to find that it was actually my sister-in-law!!!  Well done Cheryl, and sorry to all those whose numbers were left in the hat.  

If you would still like one of these lovely bags... 

you can buy them in The Royal Exchange Gallery Craft Shop in Manchester, or in my online shop.

If you want to be kept up to date with future giveaways and offers, they will be posted on my Loula Belle At Home facebook page.  Just click on the 'like' button so that you don't miss them.

Would you like one of these bags?

I just love this fabric, it's like taking a walk in the woods.  Because there is so much going on in the fabric, each bag I make is different.  Fabulous.  Anyway, I thought that I would give one away to one of my facebook 'likers'.

All you need to do is hop over to my facebook page (or alternatively, click on the follow us on facebook link in the right hand side of this page), and click on the like button in the left hand margin, you are welcome to leave me a message if you wish, but you will automatically qualify for the bag that I have sitting here waiting for a new home, by simply 'liking' my page.  I will be picking the winner from a hat Sunday 14th August at 9pm, so you will need to get it done before then!

Good luck!

Calling out to cosmetic bag competition winner!

At the beginning of the summer I ran a giveaway for one of my cosmetic bags, and announced the winner as the tenth person to leave a comment on the post.  That was a lady called Kerry.  I have tried to contact her but have been unable to, so I have an unclaimed gift.  My plan therefore is to give Kerry another week (until 7pm next Sunday night) to get in touch with me, and if she doesn't, I will re-run the giveaway.  If you are out there Kerry, get in touch.  Everyone else I will keep you posted!

Have a good week everybody.  Those with children at school, enjoy the last week or so of them at home (I'm off for school shoes in the morning and have loads of labeling to do!!!).  I know I am exhausted having them both around, but know I will miss it when school starts... in particular the lazy starts in the morning!!