Happy Monday, Happy Mail!

Happy, happy Monday!  A brand new day with no mistakes.  A new beginning of a new week.  A new opportunity filled with new opportunities!

Last week, on two separate days, I was the luckiest girl,  for I received some very happy mail.  The first was from a fellow WordPress Blogger, Beverly, (of  MoreInkPlease blog).  Beverly won the very first Giveaway on the Cobweborium Blog here, when the Random Number Generator picked her number to win the ‘ Just for you . . . if you’d like it.‘  <—(clickable link) which was a handmade Card, with a country theme and featured some chickens in their hen house, (and even had a feather donated by one of my own chickens!).

Beverly and I have got to know each other through blogging comments, on each others blogs, over the last couple of years, and a few weeks ago I got a message from her telling me that something had happened and that she’d write again when she could.  True to her word she wrote,  . . .  telling me that her husband had passed on.  I will admit that I read that message I don’t know how many times, trying to make sense of it.  Just a few weeks previously to this, on June 30th this year, Beverly had posted a picture of her and her husband on their wedding day,  and told everyone that they were, that day, celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary.

I truthfully thought that I’d read that wrong, or that I was getting mixed up and that she was talking about someone else – because, had someone asked me to guess how old Beverly was, I’d have said she was maybe somewhere between about 38/39  and 44/45.  So to hear she’d been married for 50 years was a real surprise.

When I learned of her husbands passing,  I felt the need to write to her.  Send a card.  Send an Email.  Something.  But Beverly and I were only on-line friends.  We’d never given each other our snail mail address’ – in fact, we’d never even exchanged email addresses!  Yet I loved her like she was as real to me as one of my neighbours.  She really is such an absolute darling.

I know, at the moment, she’s not able to post crafty things.  She’s still in that ‘waiting area’ ….  waiting for ….  what?  You see, that’s exactly it.  WHAT?  What next?  What now?  Where?  Why? Who?  How?  Why?  WHY?

That ‘why?’ is something that she probably won’t get an answer to.  And as for all the other questions (and there are more than I’ve written), they will, perhaps, be acknowledged eventually.  However, until the ‘numbness’ is over-come, moving forward is something which is difficult to do.

So anyway …  I was overjoyed when I realised that the Random Number Generator had picked  Beverly as the winner of the card.  Even though this was a more light-hearted ‘something’ it didn’t matter.  It was something that I knew would deliver a smile when it arrived.  But …  I didn’t want Beverly feel that she had to send something in return … so…  I was a little bit sneaky.  I didn’t put my full address on the back of the package I sent to her.  I simply put the name of our cottage, and the number, and the post code.  (a bit like the US zip code).

I guessed that this would be enough for the Customs department, but that Beverly would look at it, see that it wasn’t a ‘proper’ address, and so not feel she had to send anything.  PERFECT!

Then, last week,  a package arrived from her.  [tsk tsk Beverly!]  Beverly had trusted both the US postal system, and then the UK postal system  (I can hear people of the UK laughing up and down the land right now!),  and the address on the package that she’d sent to  me had been carefully read, de-coded and then the UK postal system had written the full address onto the package and my postman had brought it to the door with a grin.  Bless him.  I love my postman.

When I opened the parcel I couldn’t believe what was inside!  My eyes grew to the size of saucers.  I’d never received this type of Happy Mail before.  Beautiful die cuts, for me to use  – images, note cards, flowers, incredible sea related die cuts,  pretty butterflies, die cut words,  OH!  all manner of things which I can use in crafting … and tucked inside was a fabulous handmade card, made by Beverly herself.  It was an amazing easel card, which could be displayed as it was, or … with the addition of a battery operated t-light,  which she’d even packed into the parcel for me,  the card would suddenly burst into life and glow!  I’ve taken photographs …..

The beautiful card from Beverly, with all the Happy Mail items which she’d packed into the box which she’d sent to me.

Without the flash.

Close up, with the big over-head light on.

photograph taken without any lights, just the glow from the battery operated t-light.

This started my week off in such a wonderful way.  I felt like the luckiest girl alive.

Then … the following day I received another happy mail!

The second Happy Mail was from another wonderful lady who is a truly fabulous Jewellery artist:  Hannah – of  The Artisan Duck  <—click

Hannah is a multi talented, amazing Artist –  continually making jewellery,  changing, and developing new ideas,  and I can see how her style is really coming out,  for her makes are incredible.

However,  as if being a Jewellery Designer and Maker wasn’t enough;  her talents don’t stop there  … she also makes beautiful handmade cards, and is a most talented artist of the pen/pencil & ink (drawing) variety.

If I ever actually set about writing the children’s book which I’ve had buzzing around my head and heart for a couple of years or so now, I’ve already told Hannah that I would love her to do the illustrations for the book, as I adore her artwork.

Hannah recently did a craft fair but because of a  ‘mix up’  . . .

(for that  ‘mix up’  read: someone put an ill equipped nincompoop in charge of the craft fair two weeks before the due date and he completely ruined the craft fair in various different ways – for ALL the crafters and artists who were there,  –   apart from,  strangely enough,   those artists who were his personal friends  . . . . enough said,  as I zip my mouth) 

. . .  although she sold some of her beautifully hand crafted items, she only sold a fraction of what she could have sold, so she’s told me that she’s going to fill up her Etsy Shop with items for sale.  (So if you’re interested in taking a peep, go to her blog, and find the link to her Etsy Shop – she’s currently filling it with goodies, so you might have to wait for the link to appear).

Hannah made some blog posts showing everyone what she was making, and it was in one blog post where I saw some really lovely earrings.  I wrote her a comment, and asked her if she made Brooches in the same design.  (I’m a bit of a scarf and shawl wearer, and use brooches to keep them pinned to me so that they don’t fly off in the wind.).  Hannah said that she hadn’t thought of making a matching brooch, but she’d make one for me if I’d like her to.

WOULD I LIKE HER TO MAKE ME A BROOCH???    I darn well nearly passed out with excitement!   I wrote to her and said a polite yes please, (all the time panting like a dog whose owner has bought her a new tennis ball!)  and asked her to let me know how much, and how she would like me to pay her for it (paypal, bank transfer etc).

Last week …. the brooch arrived!!  I could barely contain myself. It’s SO pretty.  SO beautiful.  And … I felt like such a peacock when I wore it for the first time a few days ago.

I’ve tried to take photographs – but you all know that photography really isn’t my forte, so these photo’s don’t show the true beauty of this magnificent brooch . . .

The brooch was carefully crafted in Polymer and then treated to an Abalone Leaf Metal finish, which then, as the piece is heated, cracks and shows the background colour of the Polymer.

A  close-up, to show the cracks.

It looks, in these photo’s that the brooch would be rough to the touch.  It’s not.  It’s very smooth and very tactile.  You don’t ‘feel’ the cracks.  But you do see the amazing colours – which again, I’ve tried to capture but failed.  Imagine a rain puddle on a black asphalt road,  then gentle float some motor oil onto the puddle, and see the colours which suddenly appear, like magic!  That’s what this brooch looks like.

The brooch shown from a little further away…. so that you can get an idea of what you’d see if I was wearing it on my scarf and you were stood in front of me.

Hannah also made the card you see in the photographs.  See … I told you she’s multi-talented!

The brooch, in real life, is far more beautiful than these photo’s show it to be.  The colours change as the light hits it in a different way or from a slightly different angle.  So as you turn or walk, the various colours show up and catch people’s eye.  It looks really rather expensive.

BIG THANK YOU  to Beverly for her box of happy mail – which is already now sitting in my craft room and I have plans to use something out of the box later this afternoon.

BIG THANK YOU to Hannah for the making of my beautiful brooch.  I’m thrilled to pieces with it Hannah, and it works so well with my scarves – be they light, floaty scarves or woollen ones.  This brooch is perfection.  Thank you.

And now I’ve talked the hind legs off a donkey … I shall turn to something which will give you a smile …

How to Shock a Time Traveller:

• If someone from the 1950s suddenly appeared,  what do you think would be the most difficult thing to explain about life today?

• One answer: . . . .  “I possess a device in my pocket that is capable of accessing the entirety of information known to man. I use it to look 
at pictures of cats and get into arguments with strangers.”

Have a truly blessed rest of your day all.

Sending squidges from my corner to yours ~

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