WOYWW 833

What a lovely week it has been with post dropping through the door.  Thank you to Mary Anne first of all who sent me an atc which arrived the day before the anniversary but I didn't want to show it in case I spoiled it for everyone.  Then to Angela who was my Pif for her lovely bookmark - and finally to Jan who sent me one of hers just because ...  Here they are for you all to enjoy and thank you very much ladies.  They brightened my day.

Angela's bookmark, Mary Ann's atc & Jan's lovely card

Some of you know I was hoping to get a new hip soon, well last week I found it won't be happening.  I am too high risk with my heart failure etc.  I've been like a child who has lost her favourite toy since hearing this but please do not feel sorry for me or I'll set off again.  I'll be ok when I get used to it not happening.

Anyway, my lovely friend Ann took me off to a workshop on Saturday, to take my mind off things, with people I don't know and here are a few of the toppers we made.

The green ones are not finished both need words and a butterfly

The blue ones need words on yet

These all fit into a little concertina book and Ann and I are going to continue making two more pages each fortnight until we complete it.  It has 18 pages in all but we could even decorate the back as well - depends on how thick it gets with just one side.  Or if we run out of ideas!  (18 + 16 = 34 pages)

So that's it for this week, hope you all enjoyed the sunny weather again but it's about time we had some rain. The gardens and reservoirs need it and the poor farmers ....

WOYWW 774

 Don't collapse, I have a card to show you.  Should have been two but I only just sent one of them so I can't show it until next week.  Hopefully by then I might have another for you to see.  The weather is so poor here that there is nothing else to do but stay in and craft although I don't do much of that yet.  Saying that it won't be long before I can sit at a table and do a bit, I hope.  

Here's my desk after making the bare bones of the card

Paul might recognise the two boxes at the back of my desk (top left) next to my blending tops.  The yellow card is the waterfall card before the actual mechanism was stuck on.  Inside there was a story about the birthday boy and his travels through the dark jungle in Ababongo Land and the green card is all the bits, left over and cut out wrongly for this birthday card.  

You can just see my carousel peeking in at the left hand side of the photo and there is a piece of kitchen roll on a bit of craft mat by the side of it.  The only other things are my computer and a pair of scissors, a Tim Holtz Clock waiting to be decorated (been waiting for years) and the wires and things for my computer.

Now for the waterfall card.  I do hope that this uploads ok which is why I am publishing my post early so I can check the video.  Apologies for my voice, it's been like that since I had pneumonia a year ago and it disappears altogether if I talk too much.  It was the only way I could think of showing you without too many photos.  

Ignore the "thank you" at the end, I didn't know if Chas had stopped filming or not so I just said 'Thank You" to make him stop.  Hopefully next time I want to do one I can do it myself with the gadget Jayne once bought me whilst sitting at my desk as usual.

See you next week at Julia's for another week of WOYWW.

WOYWW 749

The days are drawing in and it gets dark quite soon here in the north of England, that seems to make my days so much shorter and therefore they seem to pass even more quickly.  Saturday was dry and quite warm where we were and we went for a walk in the park and enjoyed seeing all the families out with the children enjoying themselves.  I guess the kiddie train had stopped running when October came in but the trampolining was still there for them to enjoy as was the crazy golf.  I hope the latter stays open, I fancy a game myself.

I started sticking some of my work in my Lavinia Journal but I spent too much time hesitating as to what to put on the blank part of each page.  That to me is more daunting than a whole white page.  I just need some ideas to link up the rectangular images so they don't look as if they have just been 'plonked' there.  I managed two pages that is all but both still need some work on them.

I did promise you I would show you the pages I have been uploading for my theme at Art Journal Journey although it seems a bit silly as you could just scroll down to them.  Anyway, here are the two from the last week

I did intend making a good start on my "C" cards, especially if the weather kept us in a bit, but the internet was non existent and so I couldn't find anything to inspire me and my own inspiration was lacking.  (So bad was the internet that we had to go to sit outside the 'bins' which are close to reception to get on the internet so I could link my posts for Art Journal Journey and do my commenting.  We got some funny looks from people emptying their rubbish.)

When I got home I stamped some hats for the two "C" cards I had done whilst away.  I thought the Santa hat looked fine on these cards but had to try a dickie bow and a straw boater.  There's also a top hat and a witches one to play with, courtesy of Crazy Birds.

On the way home we went for our jabs to a walk in centre as our GP surgery is lacking in sorting them out for us.  I've been a bit more wary of being in a crowded place as the news tells us that hospitals are getting full of Covid patients once more.  A stern letter is on its way to my GP asking why I had not had mine as yet.  Yesterday morning I woke feeling a bit like a cold was starting and then the pharmacist who did the jabs warned us that we may feel like we have a cold for the next couple of days.  Ah well!

So it's Toodle Pip for now, see you over at Ms Julia's for the linking to all the WOYWW desks.

WOYWW 738

 It's WOYWW time once again - time for us to have a nosey at one another's desks.  Are you ready WOYWW'ers?  We just need Julia to set us off and then we can start running around the internet.  You are all invited to join in with the regulars, just take a photo of your desk and link in with Julia.

Yesterday I was at a funeral three and a half hours away so that meant going down the day before and an overnight stay.  It was Chas' brother who had passed rather suddenly and my favourite BIL.  I don't sleep well in a strange bed and so had very little sleep.  I will link up some time today but when..... rather depends on me and Sleep.

So what have I to show you?

Yes, I have been making some more of those DL owl cards with the mice.  This is Jo Rice's design not mine but i have enjoyed making them  that's four in total now.  The top one is my own and maybe I should have taken a scan of it on it's own so you could see it clearer - it might feature again next week.

Right, this is short because I am tired and it is Tuesday evening, past my bedtime (I had to catch up with Cooking with the Professionals).  Hope to see you all in the morning complete with your desk.

WOYWW 737

It's Wednesday again, time for a nosey around desks for the WOYWW'ers who meet up regularly.  At last I have some stamping to show you.  Do you want to see my desk?  It has something interesting on it - I couldn't wait to get going on something with my new Owl stamps from Lavinia.

Did I show you the other week what I had bought when I went for a quick visit down to Ruthin?  Maybe not as I was absolutely shattered, having taught the day before.  Still it was lovely to have a run out in the car after staying in for so long but maybe two days out together were a bit much.  Anyway, here is my desk:

Here are the cards I have been making

The one below needs mounting 

Well, that's it for this week hoping to make some more cards with these cute owls and maybe a couple more samples for the next workshop.  Got a funeral to go to next Tuesday and certainly not looking forward to that one, for several reasons. 

WOYWW 736

These Wednesdays come around awfully quickly at the moment.  It seems not long ago we were rejoicing that Spring was with us, then that Summer had begun and now we are on the other side of this lovely warm season.  I say that tongue in cheek as it has been raining steadily most of the afternoon and early evening.  So glad we are not having temperatures like Arizona though (111 - 113 apparently).  Phew!

Well, Saturday saw me teaching a class at our local Stamp Club.  The tutor pulled out at the last minute, quite by chance I saw her comment under a message saying she would not be able to come.  Panic!  So as Chair this year I had to think on my feet and luckily I had my class for next month partially ready so was able to step in.  More photos next week as I have not got around to taking them as yet, but here are two that I took along as finished samples.  We were decorating these tiny 3" tins.

I can show you the birthday card I made for my friend as it is her birthday today "Happy Birthday Ann".

Now, having shown you my 'makes' I think it is about time I showed you my desk.  The aftermath of my teaching session (ie nothing put away) but a picture of three of my latest stamps, done whilst stamping the ones I had bought from Lavinia's new collection.  I just love these owls but I do wish they were a wee bit smaller.

Most things are self explanatory to most of you.  The tin with thme clear top contains lots of little bits and pieces for the ladies to include on their work for next month.  The punches have been lined up for ages - again for next month but the corner rounder was for this month so can be put away now.

That's it for this week, It is late Tuesday evening when I am typing this as we have been running late all day.  Should have had new patio doors fitted yesterday morning so we were up, breakfasted, showered and things moved (mainly down to Chas), before 9 am which is when they should have called.  By lunchtime we rang up to be told the fitter had rung in sick but nobody had told the woman to ring us.  Was I cross!!!  Unfortunately she had a strong Scottish accent and I found it difficult to understand her.  

Anyway, finally tonight after waiting all day for someone to come it was just after 7 pm two guys arrived and put the new doors in.  So I cannot see me getting up early in the morning and writing my blog.  Thank goodness these two were conscientious and wanted to do a good job - they had started at 6 am.  And one was celebrating his birthday!  How I wish I had made a cake!

WOYWW 725

Why is it that Wednesdays come around so quickly.  No sooner have I had one Wednesday than I am having another.  A bit like chocolates!  I only compare it to chocolate because Wednesday's are a day to enjoy.  Why you ask?  Because we get to see one another's desks by joining in with Ms Julia and her merry band of crafters who bare their desks for all to see.  It's WOYWW day!  Hip Hip Hooray!

Now what do I have for you today?  A desk that was like this on Monday and remains like this until the end of today when I return from an overnight trip to Cheltenham to see my bil.  As you can see I have been playing about with the Gelli Plate yet again.  Not too many prints from the plates as I decided I did not want too many hanging about waiting for decoration to turn them into finished cards or whatever.

You will see, however, that I have also used my stencils to make pages in my journal for decoration at a later date.  Well, why waste perfectly good ink and wash it down the sink?  I do hope that last week I inspired some of you to get out your Gelli plates and give them a try with ink as it seemed one or two of you were put off, like me, with the washing up and mess of using acrylic paint.  This is so much easier and cleaner.

I did turn a couple into cards though

I haven't got the hang of doing even shading as can be seen in the first one.  I did some spatters of water to try to draw the eye away but it didn't work.  However, I am sure if I stamp some words randomly over the top it will make all the difference.  I refuse to throw it away.  The last one looks better and it is meant to be darker in the actual corners.

Well, that is it for another week.  Must get on with some workshop prep and my ATC's as I don't like the ideas I had so they have ended up as card toppers.  See you all next week.

WOYWW 720

Hi and Welcome to my newest follower, Glennis F - sorry I cannot return the favour and follow you but I do not have your blogs name.  If you send it to me I will return the favour.

Well, it is another Wednesday and time for WOYWW again.  The days seem to fly by and I am longing for a lovely Spring morning when I wake up to lovely sunshine ..... or a bit will do.  It always makes me want to get up and get doing things, even cleaning up!  Must say the way it has been all I want to do is hunker down and sleep.  However I do have a card I made this week for a friend.  It had to be one of the lovely hares from Lavinia, Lupin, I am sure she will like the thought behind it.

I need to get another card done asap for my niece's lovely little one.  Not a clue what he is in to but I am sure I will not have the appropriate stamps so will do a generic one instead.  I bet I forget to upload it as it is a real failure of mine, made a 70th for a man the other week but forgot all about doing a scan.

Well, at last I took my birthday cards down and have managed to do a quick video of them.  So here you are, my handmade birthday cards for this year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoW_6gbemgc

Tomorrow it is the funeral of my friend who passed on my birthday.  There is something ironic about it all - the night before she passed we had been for a meal with friends up in the Valley and we are back there again tonight for another meal with the same friends but including the ones who did not make it because of the snow.  Tomorrow, after the funeral we have been invited to go back for something to eat with the family and guess where it is?  Yes, the same place yet again.  Not sure how I feel about going tonight and again not about after the service tomorrow although we will.  

Well, that is it for this week, hope that things brighten up for us all and we get to feel a bit of sunshine on our faces before too long.  Take care all you lovely ladies out there, must get thinking about the ATC's before too long.  It will be on us before we know it.

WOYWW 715

 Valentine's Day yesterday, WOYWW Day today - such a busy week.  Hope you all had a nice (romantic) meal yesterday we had one courtesy of Morrison's Meal Deal and very nice it was.  I was impressed by the Prosecco which went down rather nicely with the Coq au Vin and Gooey Melted Chocolate Centre Sponge Pud!

Tonight it is a nice simple quiche and salad but we are here to talk about our desks rather than food, so here goes with my desk:

On Saturday it was club day and we had the lovely Jo Rice as our tutor and she certainly did not disappoint.  We were reintroduced to using Brusho's and our Lavinia images as you can see from my desk above.  The ones on the left are Jo's samples which she kindly loaned me so that I could show the ladies who were absent for one reason or another, what to do.

The ones on the messy paper are mine, one is still to be finished.  I've had a bad neck, it doesn't like being in a downward position for long and a day at a workshop comes at a price.  I will be getting my Brusho's out today and finishing the last one off,  Then I bought a magazine featuring some of Jo's work so I will be doing some more Lavinia samples later on.

Talking of my bad neck, the chiropractor recommended I got a box pillow which I did, and some Tiger Balm - but this other cream arrived which we had seen advertised in the TV times.  Well, no idea which it is, the pillow or the new cream but my neck is definitely much better.  Of course, it could be the chiropractor and all the work she did on it with the hot stones that has done so well.  Perhaps a culmination of all three.  Will see what my normal chiropractor has to say when next I see her.  Lindart - I really feel the box pillow has helped - that's just another name for the side sleeper pillow apparently.)

I will leave you there for now and see you next week when we once more celebrate WOYWW and snoop on others desks.  Toodle Pip!

WOYWW 712

 Another week has flown by and I have a card to show you - at last.  It's cold but the snow has gone although yesterday we went to see a friend about 6 miles away from where we live and they had some little piles of snow still.

Did an online workshop on Saturday last and this is the card I made.  I've done a second one, at my own pace - and where I could stop and start the video so I could look closely at some things but ... I've messed it up ... at the end.  I can resurrect it to make another card, just a wee bit smaller, but I still want to do the card again but this time put it into my journal.  My new journal that is.

You can't really see but the surrounding card has some light stencilling on.  Something I intend to do on my journal page when I get around to doing it correctly (or to my satisfaction).

This is the kind of mess I got myself into and left ready for my second (and now third) attempt.  Not messy - a work in progress desk.

and my two girls from last week further down

Yes, I took your advice and used a darker Promarker to colour them in.  I love them.  I'll do lots more like this in future.  The eagle eyed amongst you will notice there are bits, mainly where the legs are, that still need cutting out.   That's tomorrow's job and then next week on WOYWW  I will have them in the little black concertina book that is peeking out left.  See you then (yes it's short and quick this week - lots to do).

WOYWW 711

 Thank you all for including my BIL's in your prayers, they are working as I have had some good news from Oz.  I really was getting stressed worrying as to what was happening with Rob but Karen has come up with some much better news.  The surgeon has returned from his holiday and sorted things out and now he thinks Rob will recover much quicker and better in his own home so he is now home.  I have believed in the power of prayer for such a long time and am so thankful to you all who included him in your prayer lists.

BIL on the other side (Chas' bro) is sounding stronger in his voice now and has been having physio on the parallel bars so they have obviously got him on his feet at times.  Spoke yesterday and he had not been down for a few days so they are not rushing him.  Just hope they can get him up on his feet safely.

My desk has not seen much action as yet.  I did the card for one of our club members and that went off but the long legged girls are being held up because my flesh coloured Copics' have run out - well the main one has - and I can't manage without it.  My Promarkers went long ago so which shall I get?  Must send for some new ones.

Here is my desk/table with work in progress, ie colouring

the two top left are the ones I cannot complete

My desk is unchanged more or less

This was Olive's card.  It's open with a piece of acetate across spelling her name.  The yellow is just the background it was stood against.  (apologies for the shadows)

That is it for this week.  Got an online workshop this weekend so hopefully will have something crafty to show you next week over at WOYWW with Julia and the Gang.  See you then and Thank You so much for the prayers.

WOYWW 705

Another week has flown by and my Christmas cards are done and ready to send (those going abroad are gone, hopefully not lying in a sorting office somewhere in  the UK).  Such a worrying time in a way, to send or not to send is the question.  Are they going to arrive for Christmas or are they all going to be delivered some time in the new year if at all.

Not having a good time of anything at the moment.  My bil, in Oz, was diagnosed with bowel cancer earlier this year.  Has undergone intensive chemo then a spell in another city (they had to go and live there for five weeks) of intensive chemo and radio therapy at the same time.  On return he was informed the tumour has not shrunk but equally the cancer has not masticated.   Surgery was scheduled for November, the surgeon came down with Covid, so it had to be cancelled.  Yesterday he went in for the operation and when he went in for anaesthesia it was cancelled again because the hospital was on fire.  My little sis sent photos of him in his hospital gown, hat and slippers stood outside!  She's decided they are jinxed.

Last Friday a panel in our kitchen peeled (laminate peeled away from the backing).  This happened once before and they replaced the offending panels.  They have agreed to replace the panel this last time but we have to pay the fitter £100.  Saturday I switched the washer on, it was dead, I pushed the button again and the whole thing caved in.  Irreparable.  New washer arriving Monday.  Sunday I was using my new circle cutter (£25) for the very first time and a tiny important bit broke clean off.  Monday we were out shopping when the phone went from the caravan park.  The antifreeze level shows it needs topping up - approximately £200.  Happy Christmas!!!

This is not to mention the nasty emails (yes to the person who knows about the first one, I had another, yesterday) I have been getting from a member of our craft club who has obviously decided to use me as a scapegoat despite the fact that I am one of four members organising the Christmas party.

So you see, not a good week.  Here is my desk with my cards on display waiting for the envelopes to be done.  

and this (below) is the stuff I have to take to the club on Saturday - my box for my Make & Take

These are prizes for the raffle, Secret Santa gifts, my passing the parcel game which includes a gift for everyone, a birthday present for a friend, and a steamer which is not for the party but which Chas is using at the moment for his coughing spells.  Sorry that snuck in.

For now I will enjoy reading what all the deskers on WOYWW have been up to and do the card envelopes tomorrow, have a glass of  Gluhwein and put the tree up with my lovely other half.  Oh, and marzipan our Christmas cake.

WOYWW 699

Next week is another Magic Number - we reach 700 posts - well some do - thanks to Ms Julia the inventor of WOYWW.  I wonder how many regular WOYWW'ers were here at the beginning?  Gosh, they've notched up a lot of paragraphs if they were here from day one.

Well, crafting has taken a back step this week, no reason, but I am going to have to pull out the stops if I am going to get a couple of special cards made this week.  I only made three last week and two of those were the same as cards made in the past so the third one was for my friend's daughter who is horse mad and is another of those Thelwell type images (not him but a similar copy)

This is the last of the three images on the stamp plate so I will have to think of something else for next year - guess it will have to be a horse of some kind.  This time I coloured the images with my watercolour crayons.

A bit more interesting than my desk which is just containing a couple of bags full of crafting goodies.  Now am I coming or going?  That is the question.

Both are full of crafting goodies, but where are they going?  What are they in bags for?  Notice the bags, both Ranger ones and the one with four panels has been signed on each panel by the artist who created it.  Still a treasure and one I will not part with for a long time to come.

Apart from the two bags you can see, in the background, my Oxide inks, now all labeled up and there, in splendid view, my lovely coaster, a beautiful gift from Jo via her talented daughter Maxine (aka Tilly).  Too nice to use, I jut don't want to put a cup on it and hide the beautiful image.

Well, this makes a change from me, short for once.  Hopefully some crafting by next week but don't hold your breath.

WOYWW 689

Gosh, nearly didn't make it this morning.  I have my days muddled up, so much to do and so little time to do it and I just had to get my hair cut.  Suddenly realised last night that it was Tuesday and no WOYWW done so it was a hasty photo and here I am.

I think the hot weather of the past couple of weeks has got to me, we are not used to it up north and I was wilting - like a dandelion in the heat, all droopy and no energy and things to do but nowhere was cool enough to work.

We had a fabulous workshop, despite the heat, and I melted but managed to get on with things, on Saturday.  Jo Rice came and we learned lots of different techniques but I can't show you what we did because to be honest I don't know where I put it.  Will find it for next week though.  I had seen one or two photos of what we were going to be doing and one of them struck me as being perfect for a tag book I was making.  So I found it on You Tube and watched what she did and proceeded to make three tags for the covers of my three tag books.

It was a blend of Oxides and then some Lavinia stamps across the base and yes, we did just that on Saturday, slightly different colours, but very similar to what I am about to show you.

Why three the same?  They are for family members of my bestie who passed in June and the club members have been making three tags each so that we can give the family a tag book each to show how much we thought of their mum.  This is going to be the cover and the other side has a verse, a different one for each sibling, and then a list of the names of the club members who have contributed.

I also made a card for another friend who is very ill in hospital

but this is on its way to Liverpool

Right, am going to leave it there this week as I have nothing else on my desk except a pack of babywipes and you don't need to see them.  See you next week, maybe a bit more interesting.

Take care, hope it's a bit cooler where you are.

WOYWW 685

Morning WOYWW friends.  These numbers keep on creeping up, we will be at 700 in no time.  Well I have been really busy this week one way and another.  Saturday was a teaching day for me and these are the cards I taught -  the first one took us until lunchtime (I promised some cards, well here is overload)

There are doors that fold over and the belly band to keep it closed is hanging over the door on the dino one.

The heart/best wishes in the centre pops out when you open the card. You can arrange this to stand in different ways with the doors.  The belly bands for the outside go around the whole card when the two side doors are brought to the centre.

Only a few got so far.  The one on the video has a rosette to hold it together (where I have the small |RH triangle) but most of the ladies liked the quirky triangle so chose to do that.  A few have said, since, that they will be making this at home.

We also managed to sell some of our friend's stash and raised just over £120  which wasn't bad for a small class of twelve.  We had three away on holiday and two went down with Covid the week of the class.

I have been trying to make my "thrinchies" for the Aall & Create Challenge, I have made up to and including number 12.  Was thinking I would show them to you but I think that really would be overload so I'll save them until next week when I might have nothing to show.

Here is the proof - my desk for today (well the little table I am working on)

Hope you have all been keeping out of the sun during the middle of the day at least.  Lots of warnings on tv to be careful.  Up north we had a glorious weekend and Monday but Tuesday was a bit overcast - we never get weather like the people down south.

Right, will leave it there for this week.  Had more bad news on Saturday that an ex member of our craft group is very poorly.   I hope to make contact in a day or two, honestly sometimes it never rains but it pours is a true saying. 

WOYWW 682

Tuesday evening and I am getting my post done early for WOYWW.   These Wednesdays come around far too quickly these days and as I look out of my window I can see the rain steadily coming down on another dismal day.  Yes, we had the weather last week up north, but honestly, one week in the month is not enough for me.  I think I need to move to somewhere a bit sunnier.

Still suffering from the work I did the other week and despite going away for four days of complete rest (lazing about to be honest) my back kicks off at the slightest bit of movement.  Anyway, on a brighter note, my lovely friend, Jayme, is coming over on Thursday to sort out the stuff we have in the garage for taking to the Club.  I sorted it as I went along but it still needs a lot more work doing to it and she loves organising - what a super friend!

Yesterday, Monday, was the last trip down to sort through what was left.  So what was left after that I just told her son to "bin" as there weren't the kind of things people would want to take left.  It's made me realise that I need to do some 'pruning' of my stash before too long.  When did I last use my Brilliance inkpads, or my Twinkling H2O's?  So I haven't done too much in the way of crafting.  Although I did make four "Thinking of You"cards for members of my friend's family and I have asked club members to make some tags in memory of a long standing member who loved her Vicky Stampers.  (still mine to think about)

I don't like "Sympathy" cards and feel that 'Thinking of You' is better, especially for younger people.  Hope they all got them.

On a brighter note I have moved a small table into my craft room, it can easily be moved in and out as necessary and so that is what I will show you today

This is crafting I took away with me.  Did four backgrounds for something I have to do in August and the oval things on the right are my attempts at shading with coloured pencils.  The dirty looking duster on the left is one for cleaning stamps with.  Hopefully I can get on with something tomorrow and then Thursday I can sit and watch my friend tidy up whilst I knock up a curry.  She knows what's happening and is quite happy to do it.   As I said, a great young friend!  Love her to bits!

With that I will leave you.  I should be back to normal next week and my only whinge will be that it is July already, how did time go so quickly?  See you ...

WOYWW 680

Morning WOYWW friends.  

At last I have something to show you  other than an empty desk, as last week.  Here are two cards I sent out to Switzerland to two friends - but one of the birthdays was not until the 2nd June so I held them both back (in truth I forgot about showing them to you last week - memory is slipping now, it's my age!).  It's good that they are close together as I always remember their birthdays.

As you can see both were Janet Klein type cards with an Abs stencil background.  I tried to keep them as simple as possible so as not to incur too much postage.  On taking them for mailing I discovered Europe is nowhere near as expensive to post to as America.  I could have paut more embellishments on.  Ah well!

Apart from that I have been doing some GD work ready for August, seems early but there is a lot to do but that is the only crafting up to now.  I have a new stamp coming tomorrow for one of my pages and that will make three done.  Seven or so to go.

My friend is not good.  I was down last Friday and quite shocked at the change in her but four days later she just slept all the time I was there.  Still, I was able to help out practically which is what I was made for - I prefer to do something to help rather than just sit as a visitor.  I've always been like that - prefer to be in the background washing up.   I will go down again tomorrow, I need to help as much as I can, whilst I can.

Well, the weather is a bit better at the moment (talking up north) so we have managed to get a bit of sorting in the front garden.  Neither of us are gardeners so we need to make it as easy to handle as possible.  I think today will be the perfect day for a picnic in the back garden, fingers crossed.  Just hope you are all enjoying the weather and maybe have plans for the great outdoors yourself.  in the meantime I am off to the chiropractor and then its a hop around the desks at WOYWW.  See you there!

Oops!  my desk

My laptop

Plus some shaving foam backgrounds that went wrong, an old book someone made me and my JK stamps.

WOYWW 677

Wasn't the thirteenth Anniversary a lovely one?  Certainly thirteen is not a bad number for WOYWW'ers and what lovely ATC's I have to show for it.   Here are the ones I received:

Starting top left:- LLJ, Cindy, Diana, Ali - bottom left Annie, Jo, Tracy, Julia - thank you so much ladies - for lovely ATC's and for fun and friendship along the way - roll on 1st October.

And here are some of the lovely cards that accompanied them, envelopes and stamps - delightful!

I must confess my own ATC's were under the theme "communication" and not "connections". I read it wrongly and should have gone to Specsavers.  The trouble is I did!  And only 6 months ago!  However, they did loosely fit the theme, I think.  My ATC's not my specs!  Sorry everyone.

I still have not made any progress on the project I began with my friend last week, neither has she, in fact she has not taken hers out of the bag whereas I have done more die cutting.  I think we need another session together to make any real progress.  However, I have a card I made the other week and forgot to show you - it is Aall & Create as per usual with me these days.

I don't think I scanned the one made last week, however, I will have a look around and if I find it I will post it next week.

Just a note for anyone who is having problems with comments on blogs.  I read a comment on a blog (Sirkkis from Finland left the comment) saying if you have Chrome or Safari as your browser the solution is that you turn on cookies if you haven't already.  If you get a message that cookies are turned off, you need to turn them on to use your desktop account.  This is from Google and it solved her problem.  Worth a try?

Also last Wednesday, for some reason unknown to me, I went to my comment section and began clicking on the ticks and then as I scrolled down past the 'bins' I found a tick (one not published) so I published it and then a bit further down another.  Later I checked through quite a few and found two more hidden in the depths between the ones I had already published.  How on earth they got there I do not know - so if you are having problems it might be wise to check through your already published comments.

Wanted that to grab your attention just in case you have some missing comments or cannot comment.

Now to my desk.  

The coloured card on the left of my little Artisan Explorer is coloured for me to cut out letters so that they stand out on the cards.  The greenish paper to the right is some I coloured with Oxides for the project I am still doing with my friend.  I need to do more of that paper too.

This was my desk last week with my ATC's (communication not connection - although I may have got away with it if you think about it - we connect by phone?)

Well, that is it for this week - quite a long post so I had better sign off.  See you all next week - hope to see lots of ATC's on show today from the awesome event last week of thirteen years of WOYWW.  Thank You so much Julia.

WOYWW 676

 It's Wednesday again, but this week it's a special Wednesday, a great Wednesday it's What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday for the 676th time.  Is that a record for a blog hop?  Thirteen glorious years of friendship.

Today we are swapping ATC's, little works of art that we have made and will exchange with others who have made them as well.  Actually if someone does not want to make an atc they can make something else or not do anything.  I've run out of mine now.

So my desk, my real normal desk, was covered in my atc's but obviously I don't want anyone to see them until THE DAY so I threw my crafting shirt over them and that is my desk for the time being.

Can you read the message on the left - it was from Seth (Apter) - such a lovely guy.

Yesterday a friend of mine came over to craft with me.  It was a lovely day but we didn't finish what we started - too big a project so you will have to wait for that one.  My tiny craft room was crowded with the two of us because we moved a table in.  This is it this morning - empty of most anything.

On the left are the plates for my EBosser, then there is some black tape, my rubbish bin (emptied and folded down, it's one of those pop up ones) and finally some card with Distress Oxides on. So sorry it is  -b-o-r-i-n-g.

So that's it for this week.  I did a couple of cards but never scanned them as they were needing mailing rather quickly.  However, this is a twisted gatefold card I made for the club class next month - and a little shadow box with wings.

Happy Anniversary WOYWW.

and Thank You Julia x

WOYWW 674

A scheduled post because I am probably not going to feel up to posting early in the morning tomorrow.   I didn't want to miss, don't think I have ever missed posting since I joined way back in goodness only knows when, so I am showing you my latest bit of crafting.

It's ages since I did any of these pointy cards and to be honest I had forgotten how to make them so the trusty computer had to come out for a refresher course.  Thank goodness for You Tube.

That's my little Artisan Explorer you can see on the left - the footprint is only 4.5" but it is a powerful little machine - all metal inside!  The pot with the yellow lid holds my tablets for the day and there is a glue sitting on top of it plus a large one at the side of it.  The circles were what were cut from my circle cards and then I used them to cut the ovals for these cards - that's the scrap.  Along with the bits on the right hand side.

I have also been making more of those circle cards with the crafty things on them - these are mainly for members of the stamp club but none of them come on here so no danger they will see them - they still want names adding in the circles but i did make six.  One went a bit wrong as I stuck too much on and could only fit 'happy' on the circular bit so the 'birthday' will have to go across the centre instead of a name.  These were done a couple of days ago when I wanted my mind occupying mindlessly.  

No two are alike because of the images stuck on

There may yet be other cards in the making - all for club members but not all for the club I go to - some for my internet club friends.

Well, that is me for the moment and so I will link myself to Ms Julia and the WOYWW'ers for the weekly desk hop/snoop.  Why not join us, it's all good fun and your desk can be tidy - messy - or in between.