Travel Beading Inspiration Tins

Ok, so i have been busy making up some of the Travel Inspiration Tins to put up for sale in my My Etsy Shop click the link and you shall see them :)

Bead kit tins are now available in 2 sizes, but will soon be available in 3 sizes. There is the Mini, a Medium and  A5 size. Each tin kit comes with approx 25g of seed bead soup, a tube of accent beads, a glass rivoli, a reel of nymo thread, 2 beading needles, and a piece of bead mat to work on. Then on the mini and A5 sizes a nice piece of pretty elastic to hold your lid shut when transporting in your bag or luggage.

The Travel Tin Kits come in 3 colour blends at the moment, but more colour choices and mixes will be available soon.

These tins are fantastic for weekend's away, or holidays, or just for beading at home. You can remove the bead mat so that you can use it in the lid or the base, and the reason it is removable is so that you can wash it.

Here is a couple of pictures to whet your appetites.

This is the Mini Tin with free fitting lid.

This is the A5 Tin with hinged lid.

So if you want to purchase any of the tin kits, just go to My Etsy Shop :) There are limited numbers and contents may vary. So if you see something you like, get it while you can,

I would love to hear back from anyone who has purchased one. Just email me carol@classycrystals.co.uk and i will make up a review post for others to see.

Happy Beading

Carol xxx

New Monthly Blog Theme

Ok as most of you who know me know i am terrible at blogging... Very erratic with it in fact, but i have had an idea...

How about an Artist / Designer / Person of the month? 'Featured Artist' 'What on earth are you babbling about'? i hear you say...

In an attempt to get me 'blogging' more and getting rid of my technophobe attitude and get me use to posting in blogger, how about a designer / artist blog of the month to be featured on my blog?? Personally I think its genius, and as this is my blog, i will do what i want lol. Each month the person will be picked at random (permission asked previously of course) and someone i 'know' or admire their work will be in with a chance to appear here.  (ok, you get the idea right?) ;o)

So here we go...

This months 'Blogger featured Artist / Designer' Of the Month is.... (drum roll please)...

NANCY DALE of  NEDbeads

I have been fortunate enough to get to know Nancy through the Operation Tackle That Bead Stash group on facebook.
Nancy is such a kind and generous person, with talent that is out of this world! No really! Nancy's work is just so beautiful and inspirational to so many beaders. I have nearly all of Nancy's tutorials, and i am embarrassed to say that i still haven't made them all, BUT i WILL get around to making them all eventually.

It was Nancy who introduced me to the wonders of CRAW (cubic right angled weave) and how versatile this stitch is. A fabulous tutorial for craw can be found HERE This is how i learned, and Heather Collin explains the stitch very well indeed.

Since learning craw I have never looked back. At first i was hesitant to make a rope with bead soup, but on further experimentation i decided i LOVED it! Anyhow, i digress....

If you want to buy some of Nancy's tutorials, you can find them in Nancy's Etsy shop HERE and boy oh boy are there some blummin stunners in there! Pwoar!
You will find it hard to choose which one to buy, and i know for certain that once you try it, you will love it! Nancy has a fabulous way of writing the tutes out, and there is always step by step pics along the way. A lot of time and effort goes into each and every one of her tutes too so you won't be disappointed in anyway!

Nancy's latest pattern tutorial is called Hexagon Bangle/Rope and OMG it is divine! Here are a few pics to whet your appetite...(bibs at the ready)??

You can get your hands on this tutorial Hexagon Bangle / Rope in Nancy's Etsy Shop and if you want to read more about Nancy here is the link to Nancy's Blog.

I hope you have enjoyed my Featured Artist of the Month blog post. Keep a look out next month to see who the next lucky beader will be!

Happy Beading

Carol xxx

Well that is another month gone, and another giveaway has come to an end. I popped all the entrants names into random.org and picked a winner for the May Giveaway over on OTTBS blog and i would like to say a huge thank you to all the entrants.
You can find all the info here http://tacklethatbeadstash.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/may-giveaway-winner-is.html
Congratulations to Tammy Norton on winning the Inspiration Travel Tin.

I shall be busy this week listing more beady inspiration travel tins in my Etsy Shop. There will be a few of each to start, until i have a chance to make up different selections.

So far this week i have designed a new pattern which will also be available in my Etsy Shop once i have finished writing up the instructions and taking pictures.

Here is a sneaky peek in the form of a bracelet.

I hope you all have a great weekend.

Happy Beading

Carol xxx

Operation Tackle That Bead Stash - May Giveaway

I have put together a lovely little Travel Inspiration Tin for this months giveaway on OTTBS. To be in with a chance to win this lovely prize, just leave a comment on the OTTBS Blog.

Good luck everyone.

If you are not lucky enough to win this month, keep a look out for Travel Inspiration Tins that i will be putting up for sale in my Etsy store, coming soon.

Happy Beading

Carol xxx

Playing Around

Yesterday I was playing around with a stitch called 'Craw' Cubic right angled weave. While I was busy making a strip of bumpy bubblicious craw I started thinking what would happen if I did this??? Hmmm then the beads started taking a different shape, and the design ended up looking totally different.

I guess the moral of my story is... Unless you take a different thread path, you will never know what you will be capable of.

I will be making a tutorial on how to make my bubblicious craw pendant soon, so watch this space ;)

Happy Beading

Carol xxx

My Dad

Mr William 'Bill' Thomas Roberts 

1930  - 2013

Today we say goodbye to the only person I saw fit to be called 'My Dad'.

My mum married Mr William (Bill) Roberts in the May of 1988, It would have been their silver anniversary in may this year (2013). He always said I was the daughter he never had.

When dad married my mum I inherited two step brothers. Although not very close, due to distance and busy lifestyles, we are always there for each other when it matters most.

Dad was a ambulance driver for South Wales Ambulance Service here in the UK for 20yrs and that is how mam met dad.

Before that dad had quite a bit of an experienced and exquisite life. Dad was in the army, the South Wales borderers and dabbled in many different professions and jobs before finally joining the Ambulance service. Mam & Dad were avid Country & Western fans, and attended quite a few clubs and venues with their fellow Country & Western Friends. Dad had lots of memorabilia and his favorite outfits were his Mexican & Gamblers outfits.

Dad has been ill for a while now, it has been quite traumatic for us all including him. But unknown to us the cause of dad's death was totally unrelated to his problematic medical conditions. We found out after many further tests two weeks ago that dad had cancer.

Thankfully dad wasn't in pain that we know of, and towards the end he was unaware of his surroundings. Dad died at 8.15am Tuesday 09/04/2013.

May a very special man rest peacefully where he can now be reunited with his mum & dad in the afterlife.

Rest in peace my dear father. You will be missed so much.

Your Daughter Carol xxx

Time Flies

Wow has it really been so long since i blogged last? eeek! I am not sure anyone reads it anyway, but if you do i am sorry.

A lot has been happening since my last blog post, Not all good either, i won't bore you all with details, as i like to be as positive as possible.

I am trying to create a new item for sale in my Etsy Shop and have put on my big girls pants and created a couple of tutorials. Both have been very popular and i have sold quite a few already. Fantastic, thank you so much to everyone who has bought them, tested them, and given me positive feedback about them. I plan more good things through the coming year, and have some cool ideas lurking in the sales area ;)

Here are the tutorials i have up for sale...

Buddleia Blossoms

Also i have done a tutorial for a beaded ring called Pearl Elegance Ring

Both of these can be found in my Etsy shop

Happy Beading

Carol XXX