What’s On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 638

638. It struck me as I was typing the title, 638 is a lot isn’t it! How many times since you started with WOYWW have you had a conversation with real life friends that has involved you saying something about an online friend who does that/lives there/makes those/has a pet that does that/eats those/uses that….I think I refer to one or other of you in almost every conversation I have these days! Round of applause for yourselves, you’re all so interesting.

So, to the bit that binds….my desk, early Tuesday evening:

I had come home from being out and had half an hour before himself was due home. I did think I was going to put some washing on and get some stuff ready for this morning. In readying mode, I came to my desk and sat down to write an address on an envelope. Then I noticed two bits of patterned paper that had flowers stamped on them. I can’t remember what for, and they’ve been shifted from place to place… suddenly, no time like the present! A quiet twenty minutes of cutting was very nice. And for my next trick…that small pile of stuff with my name written on it is a workshop waiting for me to do. Christmas cards no less. I know.  Now this may not be inspiring or arty, but for the first time in a long time, hey, it’s showing stuff I’ve done and intend to do. Let me work up to arty, creative and erm, inspiring. Yeah, right.

Share then do, good sights bad sights, good news, and if you need help, bad news too, turns out that we’ve been here for each other for 638 weeks, can’t see that changing!

What’s On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 637

Well now, I’m at end game. So this section of the workspace is not my desk, but is incredibly useful isn’t it! I’ve emptied the cupboard that contains cards and envelopes and am corralling and arranging and pairing. Again, I’ve got loads and many sizes do not speak to me. DL for example, and A5s and 8x8 squares. Time to admit it it, cull them, move on.

Roughly speaking, the pile at very far left is pre-scored cards and envelopes in packs. So they’re already paired which helps. The pile in the middle of the shot is pre-scored blanks that so far I haven’t found envelopes for. But as you can see, there are plenty of envelopes about, so I’m confident that another afternoon will have them sorted. Spares, sizes I no longer want are, happily, already spoken for, so am not wasting a drop. 

Now I can slide a basket from the cupboard shelf and see what size and shape I’ve got. Don’t faint at all the quantities you see, remember, I conduct workshops (in normal times) and when the samples are popular, I can need 16 of each card at kitting stage. Pleased so far. Relieved too, starting to think I may get an afternoon of cutting and sticking soon!

Join me do, tell the tale of your desk, work surface, creative space, what you’re doing. Puhleeeeese.

What’s On Your a Workdesk? Wednesday 636

Thanks very much for asking. Actually, there’s not a huge amount on my desk. Sorry, did you faint? 

I KNOW! There’s so little there and no dust! You’d expect this to be a really short post then wouldn’t you..but it won’t be. It rarely is, let’s face it. Wanna know something really stupid? The desk isn’t positioned correctly yet, it’s not against the window/door on account of architraves and linings. Yawn. That’s not the stupid bit. The stupid bit is that I allowed myself to get so excited about having a desk I could sit and work at that I forgot the location thing. And have hung stuff on the wall according to the height of the desk and my eye level.  The notice board has always been there, but the text picture at right is newly hung. And in totally the wrong place…once my desk faces the door, it will be right in the way or totally obscured by the scissor holder or something like it. Stupid. Argh. The plastic box has picture hanging bits in it, the hammer then becomes self explanatory. The little pile in the middle is the really interesting thing. New stuff! I must be coming round a bit!

Talking of coming around….how do you like the look of things behind me, soon to be at my right…

Am a little bit smug, but don’t worry, it won’t last. I’ve got to do some test run work in this new arrangement before I can be full on big headed. Don’t hold your breath. Am still a bit busy in real life which is by turn lovely and well, work! 

Meanwhile though, share your lovely spaces please, tell of your triumphs and share your disasters. Because they aren’t really disasters, just pretty loops in a long length of ribbon! 

I’m just tidying..

I’m moving back into my workroom. I will do a sort of ‘tour’ when it’s done and before I make a hideous mess of it all. Meanwhile though, I want to reassure you that I’m not doing a massive purge. Yes, a few things have gone….ink refills for example.  The refills were taking up a whole basket and didn’t match my ink pads, seriously. Anything that didn’t sell in the shop closure came home with me and I just put them away thinking I’d deal with them at a later point. Well, *cough* 18 years..but that’s still ‘later’ isn’t it? 

Ribbons have been rolled, clipped and given away too. 

I had a 12 x 12 Art Bin filled with them that I don’t think I’ve opened since Christmas, so I’m obviously not using much ribbon. I’ve kept a smaller box full, and I’ve written the date on the lid. It will be fascinating to see how long it is untiI I next open it.

Here is another activity (actually more time consuming than I thought it would be).

I decanted a load of inherited cards and envelopes into an under bed type plastic storage box. Long and low. It worked at the time, but I’ve managed to use quite a lot and this storage is a bit big now. So I decided to match every card to an envelope and put them in the storage drawers that will go under my desk. Nice and accessible.

It’s not the time it’s taking me that’s the problem, I have the luxury of leaving and re-visiting when I like. It’s not the quantity even, although there are still a lot. It’s getting over the fact that I’m folding every card. I’m a HUGE and mildly bossy proponent of working on the card flat. I have always stored them unfolded. When you’ve made the crease, they tend to need holding shut whilst you work on the card face and it leads to misplacing, cards pinging open just when you don’t need them to and well, you know, less control. Shiver. But it’s a necessary evil now. If you ever get a card from me, know that my dear father’s paperweight was involved in the making too. I can see it will have stopped being an heirloom ornament and actually gone back to being a useful lump of glass! 

I’ve set myself quite a task involving my clear stamps too, I’ve worked on and tried several ways of storing them over the years and none have really suited me. So the aforementioned drawers under the desk situation will come into play. This will be quite a long game though, there’s a lot to do…I have some in their original packets. Some mounted on their acrylic cover sheets and some others just loose and wild. They all need to be washed to regain sticky, they need at least to have acrylic sheet mounts and then we’ll see. Watch this space. I guarantee photos that will make you shudder.

Now I need to get back to it, or I’m going to run out of whatever it is that makes me want to get on with it. 

What’s On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 635

Ta Na! Shelves! I practically had to sleep with the joiner, but they are in, and all mine to arrange as I like. Considering they’ve been like this for five days, it’s me that’s slacking, not him! 

Note the bottom left shelf;  it’s a start and I’m super pleased with my new storage for embossing folders and big dies. The rest of the dies are under the shelf thing in folders, so it looks pretty neat at the mo!

I totally accept that one shelf does not free up my dining table or finish my craft room, but I am doing other things. And now and then I try to decide what needs to be on the next shelf - criteria include frequency of use, ease of reach and tidiness to the eye. Stunning that I should consider that it needs to look tidy on the shelf, but I can’t help it. The frequency of use thing is a double edged sword….if I use it a lot, it deserves an easy reach space. But if it isn’t at least in my line of vision, I probably won’t use it! Argh. So - now you’re lulled into a great sense of reasonable tidy well being…..

Here’s a shot of part of my desk! Argh! It makes me smile a bit actually, because so often I read that one or other desker has zoomed in or cropped a shot so it doesn’t look too untidy, and here am I just showing a portion because it’s no better or worse in full size glory! There’s a good selection of stuff on there too, some die cut snowflakes, some sticker tabs (probably my most used punch/sticker/embellishment in scrapbooking particularly). There’s a water brush a pencil and a glue pen. The glue pen is great, really good sticky, controllable glue (zig, I think), but oh boy, it smells awful. I think it used to be called rubber cement. Stinky when wet. The ATC is on the theme of City, and is far more sophisticated than the one I sent as the swap. Under that is a 6x6 pad of very male suitable papers, sent by a friend as a gift. Nice huh. Not that I’ve come up with any ideas yet, I sure hope that her plan wasn’t to wait for me to come up with ideas in an instant!

Talking of instants…snap a pic of your space, show us your stuff, please. You are so much more interesting than the mess to be found here.