There’s a new cardboard Octonaut in town…..Captain Barnacles has joined the gang.

He was rustled up last week, along with a new bracelet for me. I got these beads at the Creative Stitches & Hobbycrafts event at Event City in September (totally forgot to tell you about it – more later). I also picked up magnetic clasps, but in a different metallic finish (DOH!)

I went to the bead shop in Afflecks Palace to try and find some thick leather cord and matching magnetic clasps. I picked up some dark leather thonging, that turned out to be too fat for the  beads, and a matching magnetic clasp.

I eventually found this paler, thin thonging in my own stash and decided it might work if I put 3 strands through each bead. I rather like it – even though it’s not what I had in my head when buying the beads.

Back to the Creative Stitches & Hobbycrafts event. My mum and I went last year, on free tickets won by my cousin. This year we went on free tickets won by me.

We tried to get there early to make sure we got places on the free workshops that we liked the sound of. Success!! We got the last 2 places on the felt houses and also got on the button necklace one. (No photos from the event – no surprise!!)

It is a fun day out if you get to do the workshops. They are really good, they are free and you get some good ideas and great things to take away. Obviously there are loads of tempting stalls to make you part with your pennies. I bought the beads, magnetic clasps, cardboard calendar blanks, pretty papers, cheap crafty magazines and blank cards. I was reasonably restrained!!

Here are the finished goodies I made:

The necklace kit was great. It’s not my colour at all, but a couple of sister-in-laws look good in red, so it may be a present for one of them. It came with instructions, so making one that is my colour out of my huge button stash shouldn’t be too hard (one day!!)

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I have recently become aware of adverts appearing at the bottom of my posts. These are nothing to do with me, I don’t know why they are there or indeed how to get rid of them. I apologise.