Hello there, very long time no see! After a period of time where you probably thought blog wise that  had dropped off the face of the earth, I AM BACK! Who the devil are you, you may ask, haven't see an blog called THAT before! Aha, I will tell you. The last time you heard sound or sight of me on the t'internet blog scene  it was under the guise of my former crafty name, CraftyManxie. Ring any bells? . The World of CraftyManxe? Yes that was me then and this is me now. I got a bit fed up of the CraftyManxie monker where because I had been that for so long, I was beginning to feel a bit stuck in the old proverbial rut, so, I went into my cocoon, and now have emerged with a new crafty name, The Manx Crafter [ my crafty facebook page is now called that too] and a new name for the blog. I think the new name for the blog sounds bit better than the old one and I no longer feel like my wellies are stuck in the mud! So welcome!

So, now I have re introduced myself, where on earth do I start updating you on all the various things that have happened since I was last here> Such a lot to tell you, I really dont know where to start!

Firstly I  have touched base again with a lovely lady I first got to know of years ago when she was a regular crafty guest on the crafty Tv channel, Create and Craft. Mostly back then she was their main demonstrator guest for the digital graphics program that I have used most for the last few years, Serif Craft artist. Back then you could get a lot of the artwork kits that you could use with the program on cd-roms, and you could purchase certain collections from the channel. Create and Craft used to and still do a thing where you are able to email direct to the studio and the particular show on and the presenter would read a few out and I used to do that so thats how I got to know of the lovely Michelle Jackson Mogford. Fast forward a couple of years when she released her own digital collection she asked me onto her design team, [ the Secret Squirrels] who would preview, review and design samples of creations usng her artwork. That was a real honour for me as i had always admired her work.

Anyway fast forward a couple of years and Michelle made the decision to completely walk away from the craft industry so went under the radar for a while. We kept in touch via facebook and then year and couple of months ago she set up a facebook group that was aimed at promoting the fact that everyone is creative , that no one creative is better than the other, everyone is just as good as each other and that everyone is capable of being creative whether they think so or not. And so The Crafty Creatives group was born. We have idea themes, word art days, facebook lives and it is totally non judgemental and friendly group. So I have been enjoying being part of that wonderful group since it was formed. It is a great group for ideas, support, encouragement and general support, so why not have a look, they are all a lovely bunch and always welcome new people joining The Crafty Creatives happy band

Wow, where have those blogs lines gone, didnt realise had typed that much! Better sign off now before you fall asleep, so I promise I will be back again before the end of the week and to sign off here are just examples of  the creating I have  since last spoke to you!   

See you all soon

Crafty Hugs     The Manx Crafterx

Design Time

Who says you have to be a crafter to have a creative life?  In the last few days I have taken upon myself to actually manage to watch a vid or two on youtube all the way through, which for someone whose attention span with anything like videos or films is about as long as a goldfish's memory, about twenty seconds,lol! So to actually set myself the task of watching a few videos never mind just one has been bit of a challenge to myself!
And the reason?  Well, what I wanted to do is to  see how others on this planet of ours defined the word creative.  And what I found made up quite a varied description I can tell you!  Disregarding the dodgy, the dirty and downright strange, I found it backed up what I have always thought, that being creative is not just confined to the world of art and craft
 Creative can mean thinking up money saving yet beautiful and unusual ways to display the things in your home, its can mean being inspired to do something different from the rest or the way people usually do it, it can mean expressing yourself through dance, music, performance theatre or the way you dress. Now they don't have to mean that you are or try to be crafty minded or artistic.
Have you just moved house and are thinking about what décor you would ike for the various rooms? Are you someone like a student, a very low income family or someone who is unable to work and so hasn't got much if any spare cash to spend on making your personal mark on your living space, but still want it to look totally you? Perhaps you are a still at school, college or university and no cash to fork out on the latest look or entertainment?
Creative to me means expressing yourself in whatever way you can by however and whatever means you can[as long as you cant get locked up for it mind you,lol!]. It means saying to yourself,' why should I think that I have to spend loads of dosh for that new look or to have an environment that makes me happy'. You want to have clean clothes, a garden that you can relax in, have a social life that is worth putting in the diary, a house that looks like a home and fits in with your personality, and you want a life that means you can manage to look after yourself, you can manage to stay looking less like a   bedraggled creature from the undergrowth and more like a yummy mummy or even a just a human being instead of an animal. I get you, me too!
There are lots of ways if you look into it [  youtube and pinterest great places to look for ideas] that you can achieve great strides towards these goals without breaking the bank. It doesn't take half a craft shop to do this, just look around your local area.
What I love doing is this. I have a box at home [think maybe waterproof and spill proof box best] with a lid that I put in thing that I think may be useful in making into other things. What I mean is empty plastic pop bottles[ bird feeders, plant waterer, water feature, pen and pencil container, eco-bricks, fruit bowls, picnic ware are just a few things that these can be used for], elastic bands[not just for tying hari back.lol!], old eyeshadow and blushers[for use instead of sink pads or chalks to make wall art with using stencils and adding finishes to furniture],  Baking powder/soda[its amazing how many uses for this there are once you look into it], nets that have held tangerines and oranges[body buffers, gentle pan washers, hanging nets for plant pots and more[, cardboard egg boxes[have you ever tried cooking meatballs in the micro or oven in these, they absorb a lot of the fat]…… and the list goes on.  Visit your local amenity site and have a skeet in the re cycle bit. Its amazing what some people throw away as rubbish that maybe just needs a new plug, a new battery, cleaning up a bit or a splash of fresh paint to make it work as something in your home.
 You see, the actual thinking of different uses for things you might ordinarily throw away, is creative in itself as you are thinking up of a new purpose for it.
After all, one of the definitions of the word Crafting is..creating something new from an existing material,  creating something new. So you don't have to get out the pencils, glue and sticky tape to be creative you see. For ideas galore, just pop over to youtube and if you type in life hacks, handy uses for..whatever, money saving uses and that kind of thing, you will find hundreds of ways you can be creative without even using a ruler!

New year, New decade, New start, New beginning, New hope

Happy New Year to you all! And not only that but Happy New Decade. With my design today I have wished you all a Happy New Year but in manx gaelic.
As we start this new year and decade, and indeed over the festive season we often spend a bit of time reflecting on the year gone by and all the different things that have happened in it, and well as think about what the new year may bring.
This time of year is a time where we think perhaps of friends made, friends lost, and family, both those still here and those who are no longer with us, as well
It is a good time to reflect as it mean we can also reflect on the way we see things and view life.
A new year is a time to perhaps think about how you can tweak the way you view the world or find better ways to deal with issues that you find hard to process.
To that mind, I have brought together a few sentences that might give you pause for thought. May this new year bring you peace , calm and happiness within yourself and in your world


Every child that is born brings a new beginning and hope for the future

The innocence, trusting and gentleness in a child's eyes can melt the hardest of hearts

It doesn't matter how large the step or how long it takes to make it, the important thing is that you have made that step

Bridges are built so people can meet in the middle

Whenever you feel like life is making you go at break neck speed in order to get things done and have to be a certain type of person to be able to do that, just look up at the clouds. They move at their own pace, they move in different directions and in different ways, they don't rush, sometimes they are big, sometimes they are small, but they all get to where they go. Life your life like clouds

When you count all the things in life that are beautiful, don't forget to count yourself as one of them

Our bodies are just vesssels for the person inside. They do not define who we are, they are just there to be a house for the beautiful person contained within its walls

Every day is a new chance, a new beginning, a new start and a new opportunity to be the person we want to be.


Enjoy today and indeed the new year with all it has to bring and all its possibilities! x

Dont be Boxed up like the Presents!

How full was YOUR Christmas stocking? Did it contain the presents you had asked for or the ones people thought you would want?
Life is sometimes like that. WE know how we think, the way we can do things, how we feel about things and how we feel, and we like to think that by what we say and how we act and do things, that this will give other people an idea of how we are feeling and the type of person we are.
Unfortunately that doesn't always happen, and people often still think that they know who you are and think that they can sum you up by the impression they have formed of you.  Then because they think they know it all as far as who you are is concerned, they think they know what you should and shouldn't do, who you should and shouldn't see, how you should or shouldn't bring up your children, what job you should or shouldn't do and so on and so forth. Its more that frustrating because here you
are doing the best you can and there are people who think you are this completely different person and treating you like they would that completely different person who is completely different from who you really are.
 Because of the way society still is, even in this so called enlightened 21st century, all to often we
try to fit in with these expectations that people have so that we wont stand out, so we will blend in with what our environment and the people in it expect. We perhaps go to work in jobs that we hate, dress in a way that wont make us stand out, live in little box type houses because that is what we are led to believe will show we are stable dependable non rule breakers that can be relied on not to stir things up and break the rules.
BUT is this who we really are?Would it really bring the world to a standstill if we followed our dreams and went for what WE wanted, lived where WE  WANTED to, did what we felt brought us th happiness and security not what convention dictated. Do we REALLY want to look like everyone else?
So hold on to those dreams of you and don't be afraid to go against the grain. Set your own rules, the rules that allow you to truly be yourself and bring your and the people who live closest to the centre of your heart true happiness and let your reach those dreams, grab hold of them and make the dream a reality x

Live a Creative Life

What do you think it means when a person is described as being creative? Do you have this picture in your mind of someone who is good at art, painting or things like that? Or maybe you have an image of someone who thinks up ideas ? Perhaps a creative is to you someone who is in the arts like an actor,or an author?
  Whilst the term creative can be applied to all these, the word can also apply to other people who are not necessarily into all those things.
 A creative person can be a person who  creates ways to make the most of their time, a person who  creates a lovely home, a person who has a very good imagination and can think up plots, stories, games and activities, or a person who finds lots of ways to use the gifts they have been blessed with[and everyone of use is gifted or has a talent in some way] to help perhaps fund raise or help those less fortunate, or promote an event , to spread awareness about something or to teach their children about life and develop skills so they can grow into well rounded ,selfless, ,environmentally aware and  knowledgeable about the world around themthrough the skills they have been taught.
 You may think that you are not creative in the slightest. WRONG! Everyone is, it is just a case of drawing out the particular way that you can be.  It doesn't have to be in a huge, dramatic gesture kind of creative, it doesn't have to be in big letters painted across the wall , announced from the rooftops sort of way either
 How many of you have moved into a flat or house that is 100% the way you want it? How many of you  have a spare million pounds lying round to throw at projects or what you want to do? How many of you often find yourself in a waiting room twiddling your thumbs for ages because the doctor/dentist/nurse/ job interviewer  is running late?
All these give you opportunites to be creative and it really doesn't cost many pennies.  Lots of people even now is the light of discount stores, bargain bins and charity shops, still think it costs a lot and takes ages to do something creative. They are so so wrong!  How many minutes would it take to pop into a discount shop like poundland and pick up a couple of glasses for a couple of pound and some nail varnish? Five, fifteen if there is a queue/ Right so that's fifteen minutes out of your day. Add to that say ten to fifteen minutes to dot blobs of nail varnish on the glass. There, half an hour and you have a decorative glass to put a battery operated tealight in, so making a nice, cheap decoration.
 How many have loads of buttons in a tin?. Pick up a cheap painting canvas from pound shops or baker ross/the works or sometimes local supermarket. stick the buttons on the canvas to spell a word and there you have it, a new piece of wall art.
Are you regularly having a clearout and going to the local amenity site with stuff you don't want? Before you do, see what not too damaged and do you bit by bringing it to a charity shop. If It is beyond help or redemption, yes. go to the amenity site, but before you come home, pop your head into the section they often have for items that suitable for re use by someone. You can often pick up chairs, tables, dishes, mirrors, lampshades and many more items that you can paint up, and give a new leash of life. And if you are a newbie crafter, its a great place to find bits and pieces as often a more experienced crafter may upgrade their model of sewing machine, printer, or particular craft tool, bringin their old one, that might just need a new plug or new batteries, to the tip. The tip is no longer just for rubbish anymore!
 You can be creative with your life too. To keep the 'Im bored! cries from the kids at bay, use that creative brain to think up in advance of the hols, items that you can pick up or collect to keep them entertained and creative. They don't have to cost loads. Pick up cones and leaves when you are out and about as these can be used to be cone animals with the addition of coloure pipe cleaners[ or 'chenille sticks' to give them teir 21st century correct term, though to me they are still pip cleaners,lol!], and googly eyes.  A good time to pick up bits and bobs from the likes of Craft shops, The Works, The Range, Hobbycraft or discount shops lie Poundland, BM bargains etcs is about now when the sales are just starting. Get a big box or one of those plastic boxes with lids and go online and scrawl through the arts and crafts section of places like them, or maybe from now till the easter of summer hols, make the decision to pick one one thing for your creative box per week. the when the hols arrive you have lots of different activities that you and/or your kids can do. Here is a list of box contect suggestions :-

Cones                                               Cardboard Egg Boxes                             Coloured Card
Twigs                                                     Paint Pens                                      Flat surfaces pebbles
Plant pots                                               shells                                              wool
simple kids craft kids                             drawing paper                              cheap canvasses
Colouring books                                      puzzle books                             shiny paper
material scraps                                         wooden clothes pegs               small cardboard boxes
faux gems                                               air dry clay                                 pipe cleaners
pens and pencils                                      coloured pencils                        sticker
notebooks                                                 feather                                  

Just a few suggestions.   You could all be creative together in thinking about what you should put in the creative box. Another way of being creative is by just doing activities together. For a change, don't let your together time just involve watching a programme together on the tv, playing a playstation game or  going food shopping. Learn to enjoy going on an adventure in the glens, invent a treasure hunt and invite your friends for a meal then look around for clues to the treasure. Explore more your surrounding, taking in sights and sounds that perhaps you would miss just driving around, set yourself and your family challenges with a small prize when so many have been completed, but a prize like the winner gets to choose where they want to spend a day out  or where to have a meal out at.
Think about the way your family life works. Have you got the balance of work/rushing around time and leisure time right. Do you have time just to properly chill with the members of your family and not just doing the shopping together?  Do you make time to properly sit down and talk about your week together? If the balance is a little bit off, try sitting down together and thinking up ways to  make that little bit more together time. The more imaginative and creative the better as the more it is the more likely it is to keep you doing it!



Creative is not just art, its a way of life!

Its creations time again!

Its Saturday night, time for some digital partying! So here are the performers in tonight's digital creating show tonight. Enjoy!