♥ Jade's blog needs YOU! ♥

yes well... it turns out i've somehow reached 96 followers (you are all insane and i thank you for that) and you know what that means...

when i reach 100 there will be another GIVEAWAY!!!!!

aha NOW i've got your attention!

the last 2 giveaways have been sooooooo successful (and fun!) so i'm determined that this one will be just as awesome (if not even more so) 

so far we've had winners from the USA and Canada, proof of my willingness to ship the prizes anywhere! 

so who knows... maybe this time it could be YOU winning a big bundle of cute goodies!

anyway none of this matters because i'm NOT at 100 followers... yet!

this is where you come in my humble minions... sorry, i mean 'followers'! 

if you think you know someone that might like my blog (think.. hard!) then recommend it to them, 

suggest they 'follow' it and then we can get going with the new Summer Giveaway Extravaganza!!!

i only need 4 people... just 1-2-3-4 come on! that's not too tough is it!

and in a last ditch attempt to entice you to help me get these 4 followers, i'm giving you a sneak peek at some of the goodies up for grabs!

now if you've entered past giveaways you'll know that i buy a HEAP of awesome stuff to giveaway, i buy stuff for many weeks/days before i ship it all off so this is just the start of this bundle...

so, since i have a lot of followers from many different parts of the world, the first set of goodies have a British Summertime theme

ooooh don't they look pretty!

it's a groovy little set of jewellery bits and bobs from a shop here on the island

there's a little ceramic Union Jack teapot (and check out that cute polka dot bow!)

a (sort of) matching pair of dangly polka dot bow earrings

a sweet itty bitty ice cream necklace with cute charms

and my personal favourite.. in keeping with traditional British Summers... a teeny tiny little wellington boot! (+ a cute tartan bow and pearl charm)

aren't they divine!

it's further proof of my devotion to you all that i'm giving these beauties away and not keeping them for myself!!!

so... now you know what's up for grabs so far, and believe me... there will be a lot more stuff going into this bundle, as if these gorgeous bits and bobs aren't awesome enough!

ok, go forth my darlings and get me those 4 followers! then i can start the giveaway and YOU (yes... you) could be winning these pretty little treats!!!

you know what to do...

that's all folks ◕‿◕ ★ xX

ps - just heard the sad news that the singer Amy Winehouse has died! sad news, she was an incredible singer! what a voice :(

such a shame! she was so talented! here's my fave Amy Winehouse song, 'you know i'm no good'

Cards and Charms ★

oh me oh my . . .

so it's been a quiet week blog wise hasn't it! i genuinely intended to post yesterday evening but blogspot was still down and by the time it came back online i was busy making stuff again!

so what have i been so busy doing? well on Tuesday night i went to my friends exhibition at the Erin Art Centre in Port Erin (it's a fab exhibition by the way so if you live local, go and have a skeet)

but the truth is i've just been cooped up in my sewing cave (bedroom) making things for the past couple of days!!!

for example . . .

yup that's right, at long LONG last i've finally gotten round to sorting some greetings cards with my designs on!!!

there are loads of different designs since i just went a bit trigger happy with the printers AND each card is finished with a little 'JADE' logo sticker

oh, there are A5 ones as well

and each card comes with an envelope + the cards are left blank inside for a personal message

some of the cards will be available on the etsy shop within the next week or so, so for those of you in far off places that think 'oh i'd quite like one of those' do not fear because soon you'll be able to get yourself (or someone else) one

oh and one of these last two designs below holds a special clue to why i've been so busy making things so if you follow my work on Facebook you might be able to figure it all out . . .

because the truth is i HAVE been uber busy making things

i mean we've had the little toadstool necklace charms

the strawberries

and remember Beatrice and Bernadette the Bears??? well meet the rest of the family . . .

and NO they're not all individually named

they are however deliciously adorable and i'll be sad when they're no longer brightening up my room!

so 'what's with all the stuff Jade???' i hear you cry

well i can't really tell you . . . yet

but tomorrow i will be able to so you know. . . be sure to tune in then!

* * *

in other news

look at the gorrrrrrgeous pairs of sunglasses my friend Ciara gave me on Wednesday!!!

aren't they brilliant! ah so retro and funky i LOVE them! currently rocking the black pair every time i leave the house

also . . .

guess who's going to see Imelda May perform live!!!!

MEEEEEEE

my lovely big sister Nicola got us tickets to see Imelda when she comes to the island during the TT, i can't wait! i love her stuff sooooo much, she has this great rockabilly/blues/pop vibe + her sense of style is totally awesome

i've been a big fan of her songs since last summer when i spent 3 weeks in Ireland (Imelda is from Dublin) but if you're unfamiliar with her music, you can check out her website here - Imelda May

* * *

and that's it for today cherubs

tomorrow i shall reveal the super duper secret to you all, although i should imagine that the clever clogs out there will have already worked out what's going on . . . 

enjoy the rest of your weekend!

that's all folks . . .  ◕‿◕ ★

Terrific Tuesday ★

so i vanished for a few days again didn't I . . .

I'm really sorry I've just been pretty busy with sewing stuff + i got a new logo commission the other day that I've been working on + yesterday my big sister and her boyfriend came round to show us their holiday snaps from their 9 week 'around the world adventure' (of which i am insanely jealous!)

but that's no excuse for me to abandon you all i know so . . . "I'm sorry"

moving on

today is a Tuesday hence today's blog title . . . just in case you were wondering!

maybe i should theme all the days of the week?!

we could have 'Marvellous Monday', 'Terrific Tuesday', 'Wonderful Wednesday', 'Tremendous Thursday', 'Fabulous Friday', 'Splendid Saturday' and 'Super Sunday'

ok maybe not! (maybe i should shut up and write this post huh!)

anyway I've been hiding in my room for a few days sewing and THIS is what I've been making

here we have a little toadstool charm, a sprinkles covered ice cream charm + a bright little Bauhaus coloured Owl charm (you can take the girl out of the library but she'll always be an Art History nerd I'm afraid!!!)

these are part of the little handmade felt charm series i seem to be working on aaaaaall the time!

 here they all are hanging on my mirror (just ignore the psychedelic mess of stuff on my walls in the reflection)

so what else?! well this afternoon i popped into Ramsey for a 'sort of but not quite' business meeting (it's for the hush hush thing that i can't tell you about yet) 

anyway the 'meeting' was great, i think i'm meeting the super duper girly behind it all again tomorrow for another meeting type thing in the Alpine where we will probably end up eating cakes and talking about buttons such is our shared love for all things haberdashery related . . .

speaking of haberdashery, look at the gorrrrgeous ribbons i got today in Ramsey

aren't they divine! i just loved the colours, couldn't resist

i also got a little pack of felt sheets since you know . . . you can never have too much felt!

this is to add to the ever growing stack of felt i have on my desk

ah . . . felt glorious felt!

oh while i was in Ramsey i bumped into my old friend Jeni from College as well, she's studying for a BA in design at University in Liverpool, check out her arty blog here - Jeni Grose

* * *

in other news . . .

i just HAD to share this with you!

look at the view outside my bedroom window at the moment

so looking past my garland of handmade origami cranes, my Manx Fairy charm + my bamboo wind chime and can you see that gorgeous cherry blossom tree!!!

most of the cherry blossom i've seen out around the island is beginning to flutter to the ground now leaving swirls of pink confetti-like petals on the pavements and roads but our tree is just coming into its blossom

isn't it pretty! every morning i open my curtains and it makes me smile to see those pretty pink petals brightening up the garden

* * *

right so nothing else to report on . . . i think!

tonight i need to draw stuff for this new commission + whip up a new polka dot pinup girl illustration for aforementioned super secret business type thing

so I'll bid you adieu my dears, until next time

that's all folks ◕‿◕ ★ xX 

Meet the Bears ★

so yesterday i spent the day sewing and watching movies (the dark knight + anchorman + the blues brothers) 

would you like to see what i made?!

why do i even ask, i know you all want to see!!!

i'd like you all to meet 'Beatrice the Bear' and 'Bernadette the Bear'

these little darlings are only a couple of inches tall so i thought they'd look nice on necklaces or keyrings, but seeing as i always lose my keyrings i thought necklaces were a safer bet

do you like them? they sure were fun to make + they're made of the same thick felt i used for 'Fifi the Fawn' (go and meet her here - Fawns and Fabric) so they're quite sturdy really, i also used some tiny gingham bows + cute buttons from 'Just Enough' to brighten them up a bit

i've ordered some pretty chains to put them on so fingers crossed these little bears + the plushie cupcake charms will soon be available from my etsy shop

* * *

in other news, a parcel arrived for me yesterday from London and i was super duper excited to open it since it contained the new Postcards and Mini Cards i ordered

check out these sugary sweet postcards with my 'Sugar Skull' and 'Let Them Eat Cake' designs

and i also got three 'Where's Charlie?' themed designs printed up as well

they're pretty cute right?! the postcards are printed with a glossy finish but the backs have a lovely silk finish making it easier to write on

i'm quite pleased with how they printed out, the print quality is amazing, the lines are flawless

anyway they're all up for sale on the shop at the reasonable price of £1 each (this is reasonable to me seeing as in the Sayle Gallery here on the Island they charge £1.50 per postcard!!! + i know dozens of other artists that charge £1.50 - .£2 for their postcards!)

or you can buy them in little sets of 3 in which case they work out slightly cheaper . . .

go forth and have a skeet for yourself at the shop - The Candy Cove

but that's not all that arrived because i also ordered these . . .

now i love the business cards i got printed up a few weeks ago but there's only 50 of them! well, there was 50 of them before i started giving them out to people . . .

they're diddy compared to my business cards but i think that just adds to their girly charm

so i wanted something simpler to just hand out to people + pop in with all the etsy shop orders, i mean i enclose a little business card with every order anyway but now i'll be able to pop in one or two of these

i got 10 of my 'Girl' designs printed up and i'm liking how they turned out, they kind of remind me of old fashioned cigarette cards + i like the idea that people can pick out their favourite girl from the set 

and of course they still have my website + email on the back

total genius! i love them, i should make them little collectibles, so that people can collect the set of 10 girly mini cards

but of course, the ONLY way to get YOUR hands on one (or two) of them is to buy something from my etsy shop

* * *

that's all for today i guess

i got another order for a custom plushie Fawn this afternoon so i guess i could make a start on that but to be honest it's been so long since i did any quantifiable college work i might just spend the evening drawing out new character ideas for the Cupcake Princess story

until next time, that's all folks . . .

◕‿◕ ★ xX