Craft Club this Saturday 5th June

Hi all,

Just a reminder that the Craft Club is on this Saturday in June and I cannot wait for you to see what we will be doing. I have brought some fresh ideas straight off the plane from France and we are going to be doing some amazing layouts.

You will need to bring photos and we will be dedicating this class to 12x12's like you have never seen before!

Also a hint for one of the projects is that you will not be using adhesives but it will be a fully layered project so disarm your ATG guns and put that pritt stick away for w while while we have fun without our gluey friends. Don't worry if you have adhesive withdrawal symptoms even thinking about it you can use your favourite adhesives for the other projects we will be doing on the day!

So email myself or the shop if you want to sign up and see you Sat from 2pm to 5pm.

Cathy x

Card Making Class

These are some of the cards that were made at the card making class today. Its amazing how much I didn't know about cardmaking, Yvonne has a quick and easy way to do everything. The baby boy and girl cards were really sweet, all I need now is a friend to have a new baby!
All in all it was a great morning, Thank you Yvonne for sharing your knowledge!

Card Making workshop

We're pleased to announce that Yvonne Lovejoy is giving another cardmaking workshop!
For those of you who haven't met Yvonne, she is an amazingly talented lady from Cornwall. The three hours will be packed with information, designs and a good giggle!
Date: Wednesday 26th May
Time: 10.00am -1.00pm
cost: €25.00
Venue: The Crafty Alley Shop
Places are limited, so please call us on 064 66 30800 to book a place.

Plein Air Painting in Killarney

Hi all, I wanted to share with you what I got up to last weekend. I decided to have a little painting "me" time so I booked in on a Plein Air Painting weekend with local artist Tina Reed. I painted with Tina last year and had loved it and the challenge of plein air painting with oils in Killarney was too good an opportunity to miss. Oils are still quite a new medium to me but I now adore them and find I am reaching to the oil tubes more frequently then the acrylic tubes these days but it depends on what I am working on.

The setting was the Lake Hotel in Killarney which has stunning views. As you can see the day started off quite dullish but we watched our paint palette get brighter and brighter over the weekend and the magnificent colour change on the mountains (Torc and Mangerton were our main focal points) and the lakes. We had it all, swans, boats and also some very interested patrons from the hotel having a gander at our work. 

I shared the weekend with 6 ladies and Tina our teacher. Everybody was at different levels in painting from people painting for the very first time to some very talented experienced painters. 

We painted mostly with palette knives but as a brush lover I did sneak in the did brush stroke throughout the weekend. 

One of the bonuses of oils (which I used to consider a negative in my impatience) is the slow drying time which allowed me to work on the painting in more detail when I got home. The composition in its vastness was quite challenging but very interesting. I haven't quite completed a masterpiece yet in oils but slowly but surely I am learning more and more with each project. 

If you fancy a weekend with a difference I would highly recommend Tina's courses. And for those of you looking for regular oil painting classes we are honoured to have Tina teaching Tuesday evenings in our own workshop room whilst she builds a new studio in the stunning Clydagh Valley.

Thanks Tina and to to the lovely ladies I met over the weekend. I hope to see you back on a course very soon.

Cathy

Yarn and Needles Summer Sale

Attention all you lovely knitting and crochet lovers. This weekend (Fri, Sat and Sun - 21st -  23rd June) we are giving extra special promotions on wool and needles both in store and online. There will be a minimum of 10% and up to 50% off some selected yarns to make room for new yarns arriving shortly so spread the word!

Mosaic Chair

Hi all, well I have had another lovely weekend. Yesterday we had the Craft Club in the shop where the ladies made a Bo Bunny Friendship album . I will share some pics later in the week.

Today I decided to finish off some projects I started earlier in the year. I had two mosaic projects - a chair and a mirror. I had placed the mosaic on the chair but had not finished it off but yippee today I did! This was an old black chair with a wooden seat. I added the ceramic and glass mosaic to the center of the chair. I then added gesso to the rim of the chair and painted in acrylic red. The metal back and legs of the chair were sprayed in bronze. Now I have to decided where I will put it. This chair makes me very happy just looking at it so I hope it does for others too! Hope you all had a lovely weekend too....Cathy x

Paper Bag Mini Album

Paperbag Mini Album for Dee

Hi all - this is a collage of the paper bag mini album I made for Dee as part of the Scrapzville Swap. This is actually a remake as sadly the first album never arrived to Dee. The packaging arrived damged without the album inside. The theme of the swap was an album incorporating a line from a song that had the word love in it. I chose "A song for Ireland" as Dee had asked for an album to help her remember a holiday she once had over here. It would have broken my creative soul to try and copy the first album so I started on a new blank page for this one. I really hope Dee likes it. You can also see a video which shows you the images in more detail here.

Cathy

Saturday's Classes.

Hi Everyone, this Saturday (8th May) please note the times of the classes:

Junior Craft - 10.30-11.45 AM - Places still available, please call us to book a space.

Jewellery Class - 12.00-1.00pm - Full

Craft Club - 2.00 - 5.00pm - 2 places remaining.

See you Saturday!!

Vintage Findings May Kit Now Online

Hi all, 


I am delighted to announce our latest kit which is based on Making Memories Vintage Findings Range.

In this kit you will get 


This month we bring you an amazing kit based on the Making Memories Vintage Findings Range. In this kit you will get 

• 3 Bazzill Cardstock in 12x12
• 1 Sheet of Vellum 12x12
• 1 Prima Paintable 12x12
• 8 Double Sided Vintage Findings Paper 12x12
• 1 Polka Dot Ribbon
• 2 Lace Ribbons
• 1 Butterfly Ribbon
• 1 Scalloped Chipboard Piece
• 1 Card and Envelope
• Darkroom Door Art De Fleur Thumbnail Images
• A Magic Mesh Roll
• A Distress Stickle
• 2 pots of gems
• Tim Holtz Swivel Clasps, Fragments, Hinge Clips
• 1 Large and 2 Small Prima Flowers
• Vintage Findings including Envelope, Labels, Tickets, Stamps, Flower Pin and Garment Pins
• 2 Cut Piece of Fabric (Red and Ivory)

The value of this kit is well over €50 but we are selling it to you for just €30!

Don't forget to see what our design team are doing with this kit by visiting The Crafty Alley Design Team Blog


Cathy