25 June 2008

Amazing Ice

Icebergs in Antarctica sometimes have stripes, formed by layers of snow that react to different conditions.
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Blue stripes are often created when a crevice in the ice sheet fills up with meltwater and freezes so quickly that no bubbles form.
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When an iceberg falls into the sea, a layer of salty seawater can freeze to the underside. If this is rich in algae, it can form a green stripe.
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Brown, black and yellow lines are caused by sediment, picked up when the ice sheet grinds downhill towards the sea.
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The weather is so cold in Antartica, water freezes the instant it comes into contact with the air. The temperature of the water is already some degrees below freezing. Just look at how this wave froze in mid-air!
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Isn't Mother Nature clever?
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(Has this made you feel any cooler Cara Lou?)
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23 June 2008

UK Weather Forecast

Today sees the start of the tennis at Wimbledon.
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Which can mean only two things.....
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A fortnight of rain.
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And Cliff Richard entertaining the crowds
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. Time to dig your brollies out!
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21 June 2008

What Do I Win?

Having seen the 1930's Housewife Test results on quite a few ladies' blogs, I decided to take the plunge and have a go myself.
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You must understand that I have to look up the word "housework" in the dictionary from time to time, just to check what the word means.
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However, I am a little troubled by my result :

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As a 1930s wife, I am
Very Poor (Failure)

Take the test!

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I can only assume it had something to do with answering 'yes' to these questions :
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Fails to wash top of milk bottle before opening it.
Often late for appointments.
Is more than 15 pounds overweight.
Serves too much from tin cans or the delicatessen store
Wears red nail polish.
Wears pajamas while cooking.
Tells risque or vulgar stories.
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Oh well ... it's probably just as well I live in the Naughty Noughties then!
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19 June 2008

Well I Never!

I received an email out of the blue yesterday from this lady on etsy :
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(Check out the bent spoon rings ... I did say I was going to "bend a spoon in June"!)
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She wanted to let me know that one of the necklaces in the JB*JB shop on etsy had been featured on their home page!
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It was picked by : rafya which was very kind of her.
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Lilac Corsage Flower Necklace (middle, top)
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10 minutes later it had sold - making it our first international etsy sale!
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Very short post today because we've been inundated with orders and there aren't enough hours in the day!
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16 June 2008

Best Laid Plans

Well what an exciting day I've had today.....
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There is a lovely gift shop in the nearby village of Bradford-On-Avon, called
'Best Laid Plans' that sells gorgeous things .... and they now stock jellybelly*jellybrain products!
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Claire, the shop-owner, has been so generous and allowed me to infiltrate her shop with lots of our products.




She's even made a window display with our personalised items!


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. To see descriptions of everything, please view these pictures here on flickr.
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15 June 2008

Happy Father's Day Dad!

Too Cool For School

13 June 2008

Personalised Tractor Plaque

Remember I showed you these buttons back in April?
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What do you mean, "no"? Well look here then!
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Well, this is what I was planning to do with two of them all along....
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Personalised Tractor Name Plaque
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Available to buy on the website.
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12 June 2008

Resimay

To hoom it mae cunsern, I waunt to apply for the job what I saw in the paper.
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I can Type realee quik wit one finggar and do sum a counting.
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I think I am good on the phone and I no I am a pepole person, Pepole really seam to respond to me well.
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Certain men and all the ladies.
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I no my spelling is not to good but find that I Offen can get a job thru my persinalety.
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My salerery is open so we can discus wat you want to pay me and wat you think that I am werth, I can s tart emeditely.
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Thank you in advanse fore yore anser.
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hopifuly Yore best aplicant so farr.
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Sinseerly,
BRYAN (nikname Beefy)
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PS : Because my resimay is a bit short - below is a pickture of me.
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Employer's response:...
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Dear Beefy-I mean Bryan,
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It's OK honey, we've got spell check.
See you Monday.
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10 June 2008

Mums Can Be So Cruel!

My mum is on holiday in Cornwall at the moment.
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Whenever she goes, she always has fantastic weather.
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She also sends me phone-texts with pictures.
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I sighed wistfully when she sent this one saying
"Our Walk Today"
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Then I had a slight pang of jealousy when she sent this one saying
"My View"
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But she seriously crossed the line when she sent me this one saying
"Wish You Were Here?"
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. Moshulu Shoe Shop
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So mum, while you were swanning your way round balmy Cornwall enjoying yourself, this was my view ....
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Wish You'd Been Here?
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8 June 2008

How To Decorate Wood With Paper Napkins


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Skill Level : Easier Than You'd Think!
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Click on any photograph to see larger image.
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You will need :
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A wooden or mdf object
White / light colour matt emulsion paint for the undercoat
Mod Podge – either gloss or matt finish
Paintbrush
Paper napkins
Any trimmings, ribbons, buttons for embellishment
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1) Remove all the hinges from the box
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2) Mark on the inside of the box where the holes for screwing are – this will make life easier at the end of the project!
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3) Apply one coat of matt paint to the surfaces of your box that you wish to cover
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4) When the paint has dried, apply the Mod Podge – again, to all the surfaces you wish to cover
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5) Separate ALL layers of your paper napkin until you have just one layer. (This takes a bit of practice but it is crucial that you only have one layer of napkin.)
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6) Gently lay the napkin onto your box trying to avoid getting any creases.
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7) With Mod Podge on your brush, gently apply a layer over the top of your napkin, smoothing it onto the box carefully with your brush. This layer of Mod Podge seals your napkin and acts like a varnish
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8) Don’t panic if you get some tears or rips. Try to find a matching part of the pattern on another napkin and tear a piece off to cover the rip. Don’t cut it with scissors, as you want the torn edges to blend into the ripped piece. Stick your “repair” piece onto your box with the Mod Podge on your brush.
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Fixing a tear

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9) Fold down all the corners, trimming off any excess and smoothing down with Mod Podge on your brush.
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10) When your box has gone tacky, gently poke some holes through the tissue paper so that you can screw the hinges back into place later.
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11) Leave to fully dry and that’s it!
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12) Screw the hinges back into place and decorate with any embellishments.
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You could also line the inside of the box in the same way, just make sure the outside is completely dry first.
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If you don't want to use a box, this process will work on any wooden or mdf shape.
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I got my box from Steve at Craft Shapes and if you ask him nicely, he even drills holes in his hearts for you.....
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Just say I sent you!
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I hope maybe that's inspired you to have a go ... I'd love to see pictures of any projects you make!
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7 June 2008

Flickr Mosaic MEME

I've seen this meme on a few people's blogs lately and decided to join in.
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The concept:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into
fd’s mosaic maker.

The Questions:
1. What is your first name? Emma
2. What is your favorite food? Lemon Meringue Pie
3. What high school did you go to? Corsham
4. What is your favorite color? Pink
5. Who is your celebrity crush? David Tenant
6. Favorite drink? Tea
7. Dream vacation? Bahamas
8. Favorite dessert? Profiteroles
9. What you want to be when you grow up? A good mum
10. What do you love most in life? Family
11. One Word to describe you. Generous
12. Your flickr name. jellybelly*jellybrain
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And here is my mosaic :
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I think it's a very appropriate visual portrayal of me!
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It's All About Me Dahling!

Trumpet-blowing time I'm afraid.
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jellybelly*jellybrain had a recent press article in a local-ish magazine that gets given to all the schools locally and the surrounding area.
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Have a great weekend!


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6 June 2008

Anyone For Onesies?

I managed to make some more baby-vests (onesies) yesterday and have added them to the website and Etsy (with free worldwide shipping!)
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5 June 2008

Posey Rosie

This is my bestest friend's little girl, Rosie.
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I have been so busy lately that we lost touch for a little while ... which is inexcusable as she only lives 5 minutes away.
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I embroidered this onesie for her and will shortly be adding them to the website, along with cupcake, flower motifs etc.
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"I like this posing malarky"
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Can you think of any funny slogans I could use on baby vests?
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All ideas gratefully appreciated ... and probably stolen!
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