What’s On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 521

Welcome, to the second decade! Oh how ridiculous! Last week was heartwarmingly lovely, wasn’t it. Am pretty sure that I didn’t announce any format changes or new rules or stuff that has to be done. So we’ll get on then.

Some things n e v e r change.

I took this at 10 o,clock on Tuesday night. I note now that the lid isn’t on the tube of silicone glue, so that will be a good start when I can get back to the desk. I was using it to mend my turquoise readers....long story. I remember looking at the time and whizzing out, so it serves me right for pushing my luck against the clock. So you can also see something else unusual on my desk..the stamp platform thingy, under the card under the glasses. I’ve decided it’s time to pull out a skill or two and show people that it’s more versatile than they think. But I had this brilliant idea in between appointments yesterday and didn’t get very far at all! See at far right the hot choc late drum that was to be ‘altered’? Well I’ve pressed it into use as a bin. It may stay as a bin, but I’ll eventually cover it with some scraps or ridiculously expensive scrapbook paper that I suddenly have to have in my permanent line of vision! 

Everything else is as it always is dear Desker, a mess and self explanatory at that. If it’s not, ask me. There’ll probably be a story.

Meanwhile, be more interesting than Julia and show us your desk. Put WOYWW in your blog post title and link here. Please.

Take some advice....apparently I don’t need it...

I went to a workshop at Kraft Crazy about three weeks ago, and made 4 cards that I will happily use and repeat. I even bought some of the lovely Spectrum Noir Sparkle paints. I don’t mind telling you that as a person who conducts the odd workshop, I find being an attendee can be a bit nerve wracking. You kinda feel that you should remember every top tip you’ve ever given anyone as well as retaining every last word of the instructions given in the ‘run through’. 

Well let me tell you, there were a lot of solemn warnings in the run through on this particular workshop. Angie (conducting) and Shopkeeper Gal (host) were in total accord about the potential mess one could make with the paints. Mostly because of course, finger prints make a card look really home made (and we’re all striving at least for extremely well hand made). Then there was the warning that Sparkle paint doesn’t come off the skin too easily. According to Leonie off the telly and Shaz from WOYWW, Imperial Leather soap is the best remover. There were even some erm, surgical type gloves provided. But we attendees felt that gloves were unnecessary, after all, we were all relatively experienced, and we all bragged that we were crafting on the edge because none of us had any of that particular soap to rescue us.

Well, of course, I followed all the tips. I swirled the bottles to get a good mix. I didn’t turn them upside down and shake them like crackers. I swirled until the ball bearing was gliding quietly. Then I carefully placed the bottle and opened it up. Oh beautiful, glorious strong colours full of pearly shine. Love. I used teeny amounts as necessary, kept the paint on the brush, not the finial. Didn’t dribble any. And yet........

I swirled and clearly failed to notice a dribble from the lid, or a loose lid or something designed to catch me out. I only realised that my finger was wet when I wiped it across my cheek. Oh for heavens sake! You learn a lot about a friend when this sort of thing happens. Some rush to help. Some laugh whilst rushing to help. Some laugh so hard that they are incapable. And others grab their phones for pictures whilst laughing so hard they can’t breathe. I don’t know, all those warnings. I didn’t try wiping it off at the workshop - I was worried that it would make it worse. We talked about using gritty facial cleansers and I had visions of a very sore cheek on the non wonky side. How unjust. 

I did something else out of character that evening too....I called in at the chip shop on the way home. Two people serving and one other waiting. No one blinked or commented. When I went to bed I washed my face with my daily facial cleanser and fortunately, it came off. But it was a few of days before my more heavily stained fingers and nails were completely clean. Apparently this wasn’t traumatic enough an experience though, I’ve been shopping at least twice since and forgotten to pick up the Imperial Leather for next time. As there will surely be!

WOYWW Five Hundred and Twenty.

Five hundred and twenty. That’s once a week for ten years. It’s a bit like beans on toast for lunch on a Saturday, bed linen changing on a Monday, grocery shopping on a Tuesday. It’s a part of my week. It’s part of my conversations. I often talk of online friends and find myself asked ‘who?’ and I only have to answer ‘oh, she’s a Desker’ and that’s enough. So it’s fair to say that this Wednesday desk thing on the blog is a part of my life. It’s a rich and enriching part of my life. 

I didn’t start WOYWW for any specific reason, I just wanted to see what other people were up to and to see if other people had a desk as untidy as mine, if they were lucky enough to have a dedicated space. I have worked out over the ten years that part of my untidiness is because it is a dedicated space and I don’t have to clear it off to enable supper preparations or eating, so I don’t.

I most certainly didn’t expect WOYWW to generate the interest it does. I know it became a recommended platform for other bloggers to use if they had products, shops or TV shows to publicise. I’ve received a large number of complaints about this actually, over the years, so now there is a ‘don’t be blatant’ rule. And let’s face it, however subtle, we Deskers are very quick to pick up on a new product or idea. Lordy, the skill is entirely with the enablers. And there are some consistent enablers amongst regular Deskers. *cough, Shazza*.

If there is any success in WOYWW, it’s the spirit that you the contributors have erm, contributed. Online commenting has bloomed into off line friendships, and in some cases where distance isn’t a hurdle, there have been meetings. In all of this, we have a bit of crafting in common. But oh, there’s so much more. I can honestly say that it wouldn’t have occurred to me to mark, let alone celebrate the anniversaries. I can credit any number of Deskers who felt it deserved recognising. That’s very touching, I can tell you, because it showed that for a bit of nonsense, other people felt it important enough to have a little teeny celebration. ATC sized, you know...let’s not get carried away.

We save that for the WOYWW Crop. Started by Jan, because again, it never occurred to me that anyone would want to. They continue to be a lot of fun. And seriously, although the meeting and bonhomie is huge, we really do only chat. It’s kind of like commenting online but much much faster! Of course there’s a 10th Anniversary Crop in a couple of weeks. 

HERE are details of that.

I can’t really thank you enough for visiting, sharing and contributing. Please go on. I will if you will!

Now, remember our ATC celebratory swap today....if you’re taking part, please don’t forget to add * to your name when you link.

If you do forget, link again with a * (or as many times as it takes to remember). I’m the only one who can remove wrong links so I’ll be on hand to tidy up the links if necessary. And don’t worry about mistakes, good grief, they aren’t going to affect anything!

What’s On Your Workdesk Wednesday 519

Welcome to whizzday 519.  Next week is therefore the 520th week, which means 10 years of WOYWW weeks.  In anticipation of that  HERE is an explanation of how we’re going to do an ATC round robin swap. It’s much easier than it sounds! 

Whilst I have your attention, there’s a celebratory get-together on June 1st, all details are in the post below this, scroll down why don’t you. Meanwhile...a desk

Gosh I didn’t realise how untidy it actually was! Last Saturday I attended a class to help me understand the design software for the Scan & Cut and here you see me attempting to use my new found knowledge.  It didn’t go too badly. In fact, the sheet of ‘scrap’ scrapbook paper you see in the background is covered in test cuts that would pass muster on the real paper. Colour me surprised! That large tub container is waiting to be erm, altered. By which I mean covered in pretty paper and used as a container for something. The sun flare is probably caused by the washing line filled with a glorious, Suzy-Homemaker-perfect white wash load, or because I took the photo at lunchtime yesterday when I had to leave everything to go do something apparently more important.

Please join in, show us your ATC heavy desk! Put WOYWW in your post title and link here please. That would be ever so nice of you.

Repeat, and no apology

There’s a WOYWW 10th Anniversary as you know. we are celebrating in person. That is not a ‘royal we’, I mean, there’s a get together planned.....

Our event will take place on June 1st 2019    10am – 4pm

It will be held at:

Radbrook Community Centre, Calverton Way, Radbrook Green, Shrewsbury SY3 6DZ

This is the link if you want to find out more    https://www.radbrook.org.uk/

The venue is about 1 mile east of the A5 junction with the A488.

It is easy to find by road and about 10 minutes from the centre of town by bus.

The bus station is a 5 minute walk from the rail station.

Bus Number 20 Radbrook Green.

There is a Premier Inn next door to the bus station but also lots of other accommodation in town, should you want it.

Lunch will be a finger food cold buffet. Cake and tea/coffee will be available all day. 

The cost will be £10 per person to cover food, hall fees etc.

In the past some of our lovely menfolk have also joined us so please let us know that too so we can count them in the numbers.A

 

There will be the usual activities plus some celebratory frivolity!!

So…

• Bring any crafty activity you might wish to do on the day

• There will be a raffle table and, in the past most folk have donated a little raffle prize.

   All proceeds will go to the chosen charity for the day.

• We will also set a table aside for any items you may wish to swap/pass on to others.

   (If they are still there at the end of the day, please take them home with you)

SO, think the power of the third thought.....

1. Having read this article, immediately decide you can’t come.

2. Think about what a great day it will be, consider the distance and the accessibility - all things are possible after all.

3. Decide. Tell us you’re coming, if you haven’t already.

Oh you beauty....

I probably brag about this every year, but I don’t care. Take a look at the tree peony in my garden. 

It’s like a bouquet of ballerinas, all gently bobbing in their paper white tutus. Can’t tell you how much pleasure we get from it. It’s now about 24 years old and apart from some timid pruning, it’s been self managing. Just behind it - you can see a few of the buds - on the same root is a red round flowering peony, flowers in the traditional peony shape. It comes much later. Meanwhile though, we’re on tenterhooks, looking out for hail or heavy rain and cursing late frosts. They all conspire to batter this beauty and it only lasts a couple of weeks anyway. 
Excuse the fat hand, it’s just to prove the size of these blooms. Not to you, but to future readers of my scrapbooks. The more info in the photo means the less verbose the journaling, see. Not something you can benefit from as a reader of this blog!

What’s On Your Workdesk? Wednesday 518

Gentle desker, there’s sunshine in my photo because I took it yesterday, at lunchtime. You can’t see it, but the room is covered in gritty dust and even walking into it this morning will cause underfoot crunching and I can’t face it. My desk is protected with a dust sheet each time; so that when he stops, I swing it back into place and use it. Of course, I signed up for a scrapbook challenge to keep me motivated, and I’ve got ATCs to make and I genuinely can’t see the end of the grit just yet. Mind you, I’m not the one doing the digging and wheelbarrowing and emptying and sweating. So I haven’t complained. Except here, now, to you. You get it though, huh.

Lunch time coffee and packaging tapes probably explain a couple of office jobs. I managed to finish the LO and move it out of shot, but hey, it’ll make a great decoy picture some other time! The ‘ball’ of string sitting on the iPad stand is the only thing that gives away my weekend work. I worked in the garden, the string was to bring some order to a plant that deserves a stake and some string. So I Dunnit.

The plastic box contains stickers for scrapbooking. Not alphabet stickers, oh no, they occupy a MUCH bigger storage solution.

So if you’ve decided to take part, how are your ATC designs going? I had a fab idea whilst lying in bed apparently sleeping some time ago. Now all I have to do is get it from head to card.......

Please join us on this round robin of desk tops and work surfaces. Put WOYWW in your post title and link it here. That’s all. How very kind you are.