Whats On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 408

I took this in Tuesday's new evening light caused by the clocks going forward. I know it's contentious, but I love it. Makes my evening useable! My work desk, my work room is a shambles. It will have to be tidied, but I know not when. Mr Dunnit is resorting to using my chair as a surface for changing printer paper sizes. I am working on cards that are for workshops and believe it or not, in between everything else, I'm on a bit of a roll! Nothing like new stamps huh, and Shopkeeper Gal keeps ringing to say 'come over and borrow this and this and this and this'. So I do!

Last Wednesday was an epic fail for me, and I am very sorry. I promise to do better this week. Particularly as we have workers coming to do some magic tricks with our solar panels, so I need to be at home and then...Thursday morning at home alone to catch up if I need to. Thursday afternoon and Friday are a write off. That LLJ is coming to play at mine. Can't wait. Meanwhile, there's no shame here, so it certainly doesn't matter what your workspace looks like - do show and tell, I love to imagine myself in your inspired and tidy spaces. Makes Mr Dunnit wistful!

Against the grain

I don't know if it is actually against the grain or if it's just out of my comfort zone, but when Shopkeeper Gal showed me the sample card, I signed up. And look what I made!

 Now don't get excited and think that I was at a workshop that left me to it - oh no, this would not have been the result at all. It was an extremely guided workshop, which left me little chance to make many mistakes. I'm not a natural flower arranger, I mean, I know about the rule of odd numbers and that sort of thing, but I wouldn't have arrived at this if left to it...I think one problem would be knowing when to stop! That's the joy isn't it, a workshop has finite materials in a kit. Means a great deal to potential 'over the top horror' makers like me.  There were drawbacks; the amounts of silicone glue that were being employed would have had me fainting if everyone hadn't been doing the same! My keen-ness not to be too slow or too stupid - which inevitably meant that when it came to making the box, I stuck the decoration on the bottom half. Ah well, c'est la vie. I had hands on instruction which meant I had to be patient and polite at the same time (this is a challenge for me). I really loved making it, but by the time I'd finished the box, I'd had enough.

I used it as a card and gift voucher carrier for my sainted mother-in-law on Mother's Day, which in the UK was last weekend. Don't start on me about Mothering Sunday, I know; if people can get my name wrong and say it's OK because it's just a name, then I can call it Mother's Day. Meanwhile, my editor husband wants me to point out that I don't 'over favour' my Mother in Law, although I love her very much. My own sweet Mama, as you probably know, has horrid dementia. And she just loves to rip and tear paper and card..so I confess, I did not make her this sort of card. Although I did sit happily and watch her tear her way through cards yesterday (it was her birthday). I don't have a problem with it really, it's just a bit more clearing up to do, and in many ways, aren't Mother's Day and birthdays all about getting your own back from your kids?!!
Huge thanks to Shopkeeper Gal and her excellent workshop woman, Mrs Flowers.

What's On Your Wordesk? Wednesday 407

Well mine's a work in progress, this was taken at about 5pm on Tuesday evening. Cold again here, after being horribly wet and hail-y. Looking forward to continuous spring like days!

So I'm playing with some new stamps from a range called 'For the Love of Stamps' by Hunky Dory. And I have a set of glittery coloured ink pens in the tub at left. They are by Dawn Bibby and called Moon Sparkles. But when I peeled the black label off one them, it clearly says Wink Of Stella. I know that we all buy the same thing under different brands, but this is really a cheap re-brand! Great pens though, I must say! You can just see the flowered tissue paper. It has been stuck to card, so saved from the bin after the 'it's got a week' rule. I now have to move it on a bit as a project or the card and the tissue will have to go in the bin!
Good view of the abandoned building site too - someone asked what we're doing - we're going to add a large room onto the rear ground floor which will actually encompass the door/window in front of my desk, so major changes will have to occur!
Share your surfaces then will ya, it'll be lovely to sup coffee and visit you. Mind, I may be a little later than I usually am - got an appointment with the facial specialists today; am hoping they are as pleased with the progress as I am. The old face is definitely not as wonky as it was!

Cant help myself..

I can't stop using the Crazy Bird set by Tim Holtz. I've waited a long time to buy a set. It's almost a stubborn reaction to their popularity that's made me wait. Ridiculous, but I can cite other examples to prove this slightly-sub-conscious character flaw. I haven't seen Titanic with Leo and whatsername yet...because everyone kept saying I should. Stupid, huh!

I don't have the set of extras - the hats etc, nor do I have the dies - I'm not sure I'll use them, because they're a bit small and fiddly in some cases, and I'm not partial to that sort of work. Although if you saw how often I re-work a card to make the idea in my head come out, you'd argue that I am indeed into trivial if not small!

So I'm planning a birdie workshop - naturally. Tell me, has a stamp set seized your inspiration? I can't say I'd have gone across hill and down dale to acquire this set, but as the hardest part of acquiring was reaching out and picking the bag off the hook, I'm thinking that at last, it was money well spent! Versatility is very important when you have to spend £20. I'm definitely becoming much more picky about stamp sets...I have managed to leave some sets because I can't see my using more than one or two in a set! Crikey, am I evolving?!

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 406

Please read about the revision we've had to make to the WOYWW Crop date.

As for my desk, well see for yourself!  I had tidied in order to prepare last Thursday's workshops, and then thought I'd get straight back into it. But life sometimes has an intolerable way of interrupting the plan and I haven't managed to return to normality yet. Didn't stop me buying new stuff to play with after Saturday's workshop though!

Not a bad view of the building site either....a very weather dependant project!

You can see I splashed out on some new stamps and some new pens; considering this is a brag post, I didn't do a good job on the photography did I! Never mind, you'll see it all in action very soon....the set of stamps on a Coffee theme are talking to me! There are remnants of paperwork waiting to be filed too - funny how you miss seeing something till it pops up in a photo. I'll probably get around to that just because they are genuinely in my way!
Show and tell please, we like to see, better yet, we love to be inspired! Put WOYWW in your post title and link here, thank you!

Save the CHANGE of date

Sorry folks. As is the way of forward planning, a few days after we confirmed all the details and date for the Llandudno Crop, an external interference has forced a change.

So now...can you give consideration to Saturday 30th September? All the other details are unchanged and can be found on a separate page, listed at the top of this blog.
Or HERE is a link.

Meanwhile...just look at all the happy faces from last November. Irresistible company if you ask me!

Whats On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 405

I had to clear and tidy up late last week because I needed the desk surface to resemble an office instead of a crafter's junk yard. In clearing, I unearthed

Six scissors

3 pairs cheap readers...each a different strength..

and then Mr Dunnit said that the work I was about to do could wait for a jolly good reason ( I got the dates mixed up and it doesn't need to be done just yet), so, I relaxed back into the slovenly crafter that y'all know me to be.

Again, taken on Tuesday late afternoon. There is a new bulb in the daylight lamp. This is amazing...I actually remembered to buy one last time I was out. My Union Jack tote is empty on the desk, it's basic contents in a pile at front, behind the tiny blue speaker. I store scrapbook/crop essentials in it see, and I needed to take it to a card making workshop that I attended, so all the scrapbook bits came out. That was Thursday, so you can see how much time I've spent at the desk since. There's a roll of masking paper, and at front those white circles are die cuts which I'm pre-cutting for workshopeers this Thursday. The chocolate box at right is empty and shallow enough for a bulky card. It has a week, and if I don't think of a card for it, it's a gonner. My scrap box, behind the heat gun, looks as if it's exploded, and it probably has.  he tissue paper in the immediate foreground is leftover from wrapping a gift. I intend to use it as a master board background thingy. it too has a week. That's enough targets for me!
So, now I've walked you through all the mess, please share your work surface too. It remains a fascination.

Doing the RAK

RAK - Random Act of Kindness

I read on Facebook about RAK week. Or day. I don't remember. I don't remember when it was either. Ugh, hopeless. Anyway, I decided it was a nice thing to do,  a real lesson in 'do unto others.....'

At some other time, I did something very unusual. A recent friend had posted a marvellous picture of herself and her sister on Facebook. It's a lovely picture. I decided it was too good to be filed on a computer, and so I lifted it off Facebook and last time I ordered photos for scrapbook purposes, I had a copy printed. I was going to give it to Liz anyway, but decided the RAK idea needed more than that, so it was my first job at the recent Coven Crop.

Funny story - I've known Kirsty, Liz's sister for yonks, through crafting. I met Liz in an entirely different context and did not know they were siblings for quite a long time.

I made it an 8x8 LO because hey - Liz may not want to be forced into displaying stuff just because I like a certain photo! As you can see, I've kept to my standard format and stuck the photo and bits in bottom right. The tulips and little labels were part of a gift baggie full of hand stamped pieces from Sally at Ohhh Snap!. It is entirely appropriate to make them part of a forward RAK, even if I did hesitate before I used them! Then I bought a little box frame and pouf! Little gift ready and now received. It's the first LO I've made for ages and ages, so it's a double pleasure for me really.

I really have to reassure you that I don't make a habit of stealing your photos off Facebook. Ironically though, I had to lift this picture off Facebook because I forgot to take my own photo of it!

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 404

Gentle desker, there is controversial excitement... I have put up a page about WOYWW's 2017 Crop. You can find it as a permanent page and access it at the top of the blog. Or you can use this link.
Meanwhile, I'm back with the crazy birds...

Just by placing the basket of sponges and Cut N Dry foam on my desk, I've halved my working space. Ah well, tis just for one birdy. I took the picture late yesterday - look it's still light at gone 5pm. This makes me very happy. Still doesn't help the colour matching though, evening card making is too vexatious, so the desk still looks just like this in the gloom of early Wednesday! Nothing exceptional to report really, just happy to have something crafty on my desk at this point....month end and all that!
Show and tell how your desk shapes up as we March into a new month. (See what I did there?!). It's fun. It's free and it contains no calories!