Please Vote for me!!!

Hey Everybody!!!

Please vote for me and my most disastrous childhood hairstyle at https://apps.facebook.com/barryshaircutapp/Contest.psp?c=175858&u=39566&a=258026204299000&p=164081956979681&v=Entry&id=504813&rest=1

Would really love to win this 500 euro voucher for Barry's Hair Studio so I can continue to look AMAZING for my hubby!! Heehee!!

Thanks in Advance!!

P.S I have been knitting loads and even thought myself to crochet!! I will put up pictures soon!!

Happy knitting and Crafting

Helena =D

Handmade Manchester United Birthday Card

Hello everyone!! It seems to be a very productive month for up dates! I'm back in the swing of things finally!! So here goes, another blog post on some of the crafty things I have been getting up to!

In February last it was my older brothers 30th Birthday. In May coming it is my dad's 60th birthday. In order to mark these two special occasions our family decided to club together and get them a trip over to Manchester to see Manchester united playing in Old Trafford stadium. Something we knew they would absolutely love! My younger brother organized everything for us so all we had to do was pitch in towards the cost. Of course me being me felt a bit odd at having to do nothing.

A few days before a surprise party organized for my brother's 30th, my younger brother text me asking if I could make up and print off a 'voucher' stating what their present was so we had something tangible to give them at the party. I of course jumped at the chance and got thinking of a crafty way to do this instead of just printing off an A4 sheet of words. A bit of googling later and I came across the following

 http://www.paperthrill.com/2010/03/handmade-manchester-united-birthday.html

I loved the look of this card so got to work designing my own based on this. And this is how it turned out



My dad's Card



My brother's card

I drew the Manchester United crest myself. Many people asked me why, as I could have just printed it. But I wanted it to be more personal than that. Strange I know..as you would think that going to the bother of making the card itself would make it personal enough. I bought the stick on footballs in hickeys of Galway and the 30, 60 and happy birthday stick ons  in the art and hobby shop. The photos are from my older brothers communion 23 years ago. Isn't it adorable that they were wearing matching ties? I apologise for the fuzzy photos, I took them with my phone!





The inside of the card

On the inside of the card I added a photo of old trafford stadium and drew three little bodies to which I attached heads and some stick ons of a football, scarf and trophy (art and hobby shop again).
On the top half of the card is the part telling them what their gift is and again I added more stick ons, as you can see I really dislike stick ons. You can read what I wrote below. I tried to be as inventive as I could given that I understand nothing about football and was terrified I would get some of the wording wrong...I know I know...It's not that difficult but it didn't stop me being paranoid!




The wording on the inside my dad's card

I was so proud with my cards. Needless to say, my brother and my dad also loved them and my younger brother was thrilled as he hadn't expected that at all. Job well done Helena

Hoping to update soon with my finished rib yoke topper (http://helena-ag-cniotail.blogspot.com/2012/02/longest-gap-between-posts.html). I am loving the look of it so far and can't wait to wear it!! Unfortunately I am at the sewing part and as I have mentioned before I ABSOLUTELY HATE SEWING!

Until again,

Happy Knitting and Crafting

Helena =D

Our DIY wedding

It's official!

I am posting today to fill you in on all the top secret craftiness that was happening in the run up to my wedding! Oh how I wanted to tell everyone but I had to keep it on the QT until my wedding day so as not to ruin the element of surprise for our guests! But before I begin I must tell you all about the most terrifying post wedding condition I have ever had the burden of living with:

Wedding Day Amnesia.

WeddingBee describes wedding day amnesia (WDA) in great detail for those also wishing to self diagnose this ailment.

"Symptoms of WDA manifest themselves in a very simple way - they simply prohibit you from remembering anything of major significance from your wedding day. A sufferer might remember the timeline of the particular event, but will not be able to recall the details. For example, he/she might remember that there was dancing, and that they danced, but not who they danced with or what songs were played. Or, the patient will remember being very touched by a particular toast, but have absolutely no idea what was said during said speech.

Some common causes of WDA include:

• The rush to complete last minute projects
• Family stress
• Lack of wedding planner
• Guest list approaching 200
• An overwhelming outpouring of love from friends and family
• Euphoria at finally being married to your best friend

It is believed that when one or more of these causes combine during a person’s wedding day, the patient is unable to properly absorb everything that is going on around him/her. The excitement of the day is so overwhelming, that it fails to register in one’s long term memory. This can be compared to cramming for a big exam the night before the test: you store all of that data in your short term memory, and forget everything right after the test is over.

Unfortunately, WDA doesn’t just affect brides. Grooms have been known to suffer from it, and it can affect anyone with close ties to the organization of the event... Although there is no immediate cure, there are things that you can do to reverse the damage caused by this awful ailment. Make sure to review pictures taken by your photographers and friends on a daily basis. Listen to the stories of loved ones who attended your wedding but were not afflicted. Watch your wedding video over and over again. Listen to the music playlist from your wedding. Slowly, the symptoms will fade."

I agree with most of it...except  "Slowly, the symptoms will fade."

This is codswallop! Over three months later and no amount of discussing the events of the day or looking at photos has helped me recover my memory. Neither has it helped my dear husband who was also affected by this awful predicament. Maybe our wedding DVD will help. I will keep you all updated!



Our DIY wedding items
What I do remember much to my delight..was the DIY mayhem in the run up! For those of you who have just come across my blog, you may need a recap on what I couldn't keep under wraps. There are some links below to help you on your way.

Young Sweetie Knitted Clown for our DIY candy reception
http://helena-ag-cniotail.blogspot.com/2011/06/young-sweetie-is-complete.html


A knitted Bertie Basset for DIY candy reception
http://helena-ag-cniotail.blogspot.com/2011/09/bertie-bassett-is-complete.html


A knitted bride and groom for the cake and our handmade wedding invites
http://helena-ag-cniotail.blogspot.com/2011/08/it-has-been-while-unfortunately-i-was.html

And that's not it!! Some may call me over ambitious but I knew with hard work and dedication I could pull off everything! As well as knitting a sweet laden clown, a bertie bassett, a bride and groom and making our own invites....

....I made christmas cracker favors and a seating plan! And I wasn't the only one going all DIY, I even had my husband, my father-in-law and my mother on the job as well!

It was certainly a busy few months! Take a look for yourselves!

Our hand crocheted ring cushion

Above is the ring cushion my mother crocheted for us. She was so great in keeping our white and cream theme. The crocheting itself was done in white cotton yarn while the lining was cream satin with cream satin ribbons to tie on the rings. She also attached some elastic to the back so that our little pageboy could slip his hands through and make it easier for him to carry without dropping. It was such a lovely personal touch and something we can pass down through the generations (provided they want it of course).




Cathedral aisle complete with hanging lanterns

Unfortunately we do not have a closeup of the lanterns so I am unable to show you the tremendous work of my husband and his dad. Although I am pretty sure if I have a rummage through my husbands smart phone gallery there is possibly a photo of a lantern hanger in there somewhere!

Our seating plan

The tree was missing half it's baubles by the time this photo was taken but it's still pretty awesome I think! I will start at the bottom and work my way up! The pot in which the tree stands is the work of my father in laws gifted hands. It is made from wood and he carved our monogram (which I had designed for the wedding invites( on two out of the fours sides. He also engraved our full names and wedding date around the bottom. He then spray painted it black and I got to work painting the engravings white. The actual tree part is a dead tree we found in a nearby woods and brought home. It is surprising big although it is difficult to determine that from this photo. It was probably near ten foot high (can you see the computer desk in the background? Might lend it some perspective). When it was dry I got to work sealing it with priming and spray painting it white to look like snow. Each of the baubles had a piece of card strung on which had the guests names and table name. We named our tables after the sweets we had at the sweet counter. We then topped the container with fake snow and voila!! I think this was one of the more exciting ventures as we were not sure how it would work out and were extremely pleased with the results! Each table then had the name of each sweet and a picture of it instead of table numbers. The hotel did up a room layout to help the guest find each table! The guests could take home the baubles as a favor to remember the day by.

And while on the topic of tables and favors.. I also had chosen family and friends (those allowed in on the top secret mission: DIY wedding) collecting toilet rolls (the bit of them that is left over after all the toilet paper is gone) to use in the production of handmade Christmas crackers. It has actually led to a serious affliction in those close to me, especially my husband...he now has the inability to throw out finished toilet rolls so instead leaves them lying around the bathroom. As his new wife I am forced not to pick up smelly socks but to pick up and dispose of finished toilet rolls. I smile to myself every time I see one sitting on the cistern. It is a little funny after all!

Handmade Christmas cracker

These are remarkably easy to make. Cut out some wallpaper, stick a cracker snap (eBay) on the back of it along with some double sided tape, insert toilet roll and roll, tie up one end with ribbon, insert favors (in our case we added a joke and fact, a balloon and one of the following: love heart sweets, popper or noisemaker), and tie up the other end with ribbon! Voila! Cracker complete! Happy snapping! We were so unsure if they would snap or not and just had enough material to make the 200 required for all out guests so we could not test them. I remember my new husband turning to me during the reception meal and saying 'do you hear that? they're snapping'. If I wasn't already beaming I would have beamed some more.

Our sweet counter!
Young sweetie and Bertie Bassett did us proud!!

For our sweet counter we kept it retro and had lots of 80s and 90s sweets! Unfortunately neither hubby or I got any! It was all eaten by the time we made it back to the reception! We are still very raw about that! The good news for us though was that the hotel had still some of our reserves left, so we left the following day with a stash of drumsticks, refreshers and fizzy cola lollies to enjoy! I think we deserved it! Most of the sweet jars were collected by friends and family in the lead up to the wedding and what few we were lacking we bought in the euro shop the week before the wedding. The chalkboard was an idea I had to keep the theme reminiscent of our youth! And I think it gave it more of a sweet shop feel!

My hand knitted bride and groom

Two brides and two grooms..
can you see the resemblance?

Our hand knitted bride and groom really stole the show and sat centre stage in front of the top table with our cupcake wedding cake! I think more guests ventured up to have a look at them during the meal than us! My mother-in-law even ran off with them for a while to show people. They are the most ridiculously adorable little people I have ever seen if I do say so myself! They now sit proudly at home with young sweetie and bertie bassett. Forever to be cherished.

Well I think that is it...have I forgotten anything?...probably..but I'm sure I will remember someday..amybe after we have watched our wedding DVD


Until again,

Happy Knitting and Crafting

Helena =D

My hen weekend - November 2011

It all started on Thursday 24th November 2011.

My cousin and my best friend, a bottle or two of wine and some girly giggles. After an attempt at sleep somewhat akin to that of a child on Christmas eve, I woke in time to see the two girls shoot off for a final bridesmaid dress fitting, allowing me time to ponder as to what they may have organized for my surprise hen weekend!

It wasn't long before they were back (and a few more joined them) and the celebrations started with the popping of champagne bottles.

At noon it was time to leave and to my astonishment, parked outside was a limo! We travelled in style from Galway to Meath that day, champagne flowing, my favourite cheesy music from my teenage years playing and a hen party survival kit complete with a mini blow up fiancé. The giggles continued.

Arriving in Meath at The Headfort Arms, we were greeted with wine and paninis, the latter of which was most certainly needed at this point as it was only 3pm and we had drank 4 bottles of champagne between 6 of us! Shamefaced!



My very own limo

Champagne for a princess, heehee!

Blow up Fiance! Ain't he handsome!


A stroll up town following food was next on the agenda while we waited for a few more to arrive. This was followed by cocktails and pizza in the hotel bar in our own reserved area. Switz woo! A live band, good food and not to mention all the hen party games and prizes. I scored 16/20 on the 'how well do you know your fiancé' quiz. Not bad given the trick questions! The giggles continued. The night turned a little sour when one of the party organizers (a bridesmaid) got miffed and went upstairs sulking because I would not go upstairs to play the games, but I was enjoying the live band and had suggested the games downstairs. It's my party and I'll cry if I want to =D but I didn't...she did. Go figure!

A late night had by most and up early again the next morning to head off to Causey Farm for a day of fun, no sore heads happily. We were joined by my 11 year old god-daughter. She is as crazy and animal and farm lover as me, strange for two girls raised in the city. But I guess when my dad (her granddad) is from that neck of the woods it is genetically bred in to you. A few calm activities such as bread baking, cow milking, and playing the bodhrán were quickly replaced by the chaos of an Irish jig, catching a chicken and herding sheep round an obstacle course (minus the sheepdog). Giggles continued. The day was wound down with some freshly baked scones and a nice cup of tea. Top marks to causey farm for such an unforgettable experience!

My God-daughter and I ready for the farm!

On the farm, milking a cow!

Then it was back to the hotel for a well deserved rest before meeting with some more of the girls who could not make the farm. The party continued with dinner and some dancing. The theme of the night was the hen and her chicks. I dressed in white while all the girls dressed in yellow! My aunt sent my dress from the states! And I was in love with it, a one shoulder empire line dress with a feather skirt! =D A real princess dress! I even managed to get another wear out of it when I went as a fairy my department Christmas party. Cost per wear my friends cost per wear!




My princess dress!



The girls dressed in yellow but missing the one behind the lens :(


Dinner was yum in our own private dining room. I had the steak of course. Ate so much I really thought I would have to change out of above mentioned dream dress as my waist had grown about 3 inches! More champagne flowed and then it was off to The Palace nightclub in Navan for a night of dancing! And oh my there was a lot of dancing. Giggles continued. Finally with aching feet we made our way back to the hotel to pass out from sheer exhaustion! The following day was greeted with a large fry up and a very sombre limo ride back to Galway despite the free flowing champagne.





The longest gap between posts

So...it's been a while! But a lot has happened, so much in fact that if I began to write I would never stop. Since my last post, I have done very very very very very very (you get the idea) little knitting. Instead I have been wrapped up in the world of wedding planning, hen celebrations, Christmas partys, wedding day jitters and jubilations, honeymoon romance and house hunting. I would like to say that things are quietening down but I am afraid that I would be lying. For those of you who are well acquainted with house hunting...it usually results in then packing up and moving house, which is the next task at hand for myself and my new husband! I guess the easiest way to do this is to write a series of update blogs of the past few months with pictures attached (as pictures are always fun to look at right?). I would really like to write a wedding day report for all of you who followed my wedding day knitting but as I am still waiting to receive our wedding photographs I might just leave it another bit longer so that I can give everyone the full effect of what an amazing day it was (despite some hiccups) =D

But just in case you were wondering...Although I have done very very very very (etc) little knitting, I have managed some. On my needles at the moment is a wonderful rusty red soon to be jumper from a pattern in the Vogue Knitting Fall 2011 magazine! I am really excited about it as it is the first thing I have attempted from Vogue Knitting. It was hard to choose a pattern however, for two reasons. Number 1 was that there were so many I liked and Number 2, the recommended wool appears to be unobtainable in Ireland, not to mention an exorbitant price so I had to pick a pattern which I could as closely match the recommended wool at a reasonable price!

Rib Yoke Topper image from Vogue Knitting Fall 2011
and the Tivoli Tweed Aran I am using to knit it.

Next update: What I got up to on my hen! NOTE TO HUSBAND, DO NOT READ MY NEXT UPDATE!! Just joking hunny! It was all very sophisticated and well behaved! But lots of girly fun, farm antics and nightclub dares!

Happy Knitting and Crafting,

Helena =D