WOYWW 211

It's time for you all to see what is on my work desk and it is the 211th edition from Julia of her ever so popular program.  Sounds like the opening line of a tv show.

Well to keep it short and sweet in the way Ms Julia likes it here is my desk as it stands this morning because I took the photo just before bedtime last night.

Pan Pastels, Distress Inks and brushes and a few plain white square cards.  (Ignore the decoupage sticky stuff and the upside down Paint Dabbers (the ones that are soaking in water to try to reconstitute them - it has worked on some - honestly but then they have been stood for weeks).

What am I doing?  I am entering a challenge on one of the Yahoo groups which I belong to and doing some 'one layer cards'.  That should bump my box of cards for birthday up a bit as it is sadly depleted at the moment.

What is that to the right hand side of the k-roll?  Why it is the lovely gift from Sam that I don't think I have shown to you before.  I love it and am going to have to buy some dies on the strength of making something similar.  Want a closer peek?

I have the stamps!

Why not pop over to Julia's blog and see what she and others have been up to - here's the link.  Enjoy!

(Did I link Julia enough?)

Flag Tag Book Instructions

I hadn't realised that you would not all have made a Flag Tag Book before so I went on the hunt for a good tutorial.  Try watching this video - this will explain it all and you will see just how easy these books are to make.  No need to make them as complicated as the one I showed you yesterday with 21 tags in it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agEh_0ajaUw

Here are two others I received, in swaps, in the past.  Both of these were swaps in the Ready Steady Stamp Yahoo Group many many years ago and I can still tell you who they came from although neither of them have a name on.

Kath's very boutique styled Flag Tag Book

Liz's Travel Themed Flag Tag Book

So, as you see you don't have to have as many tags in as I did yesterday.  The secret is making sure they are all the same size (in each row) and getting them on the mountain or valley folds of the spine.  Hope you give this a try!

Flag Tag Book

What a lovely surprise to visit Out of a Hat Creations (at last - I have joined in again) Challenge which is a tag book.  Coincidence or what? Today I decided to complete my Flag Tag Book started with Gill at Vicky Stampers the other week.

Here is the cover

with a bit of label stamping and some lettering (not on labels) and two ribbon enclosures.

and this is another example of label stamping which I used on the inside cover.

Here is the inside with the tags showing

And here is the final example of label stamping - a Willow Pattern Circle inside the back cover.

Now to upload a picture to Out of a Hat Creations and see what other peeps have been up to.  Why don't you pop along and see what the Design Team have done - some gorgeous samples there - go on, you know you want to.

WOYWW 210

Cannot believe I got so many ATC's from the 4th Birthday Swap of WOYWW - all truly scrumptious.  Wanna see the ones received this last week?  OK then:

Joy

Krisha

Maureen

Nan

Roudi

Sandy

Jill

Well, it really is just gone midnight, the above was done yesterday but I can't sleep.  This is my desk - I have stage set it for all my atc's by simply swiping everything to the left.  Just been making a little card to tell my neighbour how sad and sorry I am.  They moved in about nine years ago with two cats, Pepsi and Max (get it - Pepsi-Max), sister and brother.  Pepsi went quite ferel but Max was a lovely big ginger cat who wormed his way in once we had lost our ginger cat.

Anyway to cut a long story short every time the neighbours went away we looked after the cats.  Then we started buying food for Max as he included us on one of his "cat milk rounds".  How mad can you get? Today he had to be put to sleep.  He had stopped eating, had lost 40% of his body weight in a week and had made himself a bed in the undergrowth on the edge of our front garden.  I guess he chose where to die.  Needless to say his owner, Carol, was devastated and so was I.  I am going to miss him so much.  Keep having a weep!

Enough of that, or I will be up all night here is my desk as it is - animal stamps to the left in the drawer - inkpads piled up as I looked for the Sepia one - card in her letterbox with some chocs.

Guess I should clear away now.

On a happier note I would like to share a lovely card from Krisha and say a BIG THANK YOU for all the lovely atc's and kindness shown.What a lovely band of friends Julia has brought together.  Congratulations to her too for inclusion in Issue 4 of Featuring Magazine.  Thanks Julia for what you have achieved!

Thoughts and prayers are with those in Colorado who may be affected by the fires.

Flat Susan Moves On and a Button!

Just thought I would give an update to those of you who have been following Flat Susan and her journey through Slovenia, Liverpool and Germany via Jo's blog.  She is now wending her way to Scotland to visit with Elizabeth who is taking her on holiday - they might even search for Nessie!!
Amendment - she is with Elizabeth and has already got a post about her trip to Scotland.

If you are hosting her, or indeed if you are just following her travels, please help yourself to the button at the side which was designed by my friend Paul.  Thank you so much Paul, you are a treasure.

In total Flat Susan will visit and stay with 36 families before she returns home to me.  Yes, thirty six!  That's a lot of travelling for such a tiny person.  If you have not read Jo's account of her trip to Dolores in Ljubliana, her dropping her in a puddle in Italy, her stay in Liverpool and final destination with Jo to Germany I strongly advise you to do so - it is so funny in parts and such wonderful photographs.  The weather was a far cry from when she was handed over to Jo to begin her epic journey one wet day at Port Sunlight.

Now I have to sort out where she will go after she has been to Scotland.  She will be visiting Spain, South Africa, the USA and Australia before she begins a massive journey around the UK.  Think she will be exhausted when she gets back.

I am hoping to copy all the journeys she does into a book for the little girl in America who inspired me to do this and if you have a grandchild you might want to do the same.  You are quite welcome to.

Happy Nessie Hunting FS!

Shoes and Summer

I forgot to post a picture of the birthday card I made for one of my friends BUT first of all I must say a BIG WELCOME to my new followers.  Hope you find it worth joining up to my blog as I post pictures of my 'makes'.  Thank you so much for taking the time.

Anyway, we are having wall to wall sunshine at the moment so I am spending a lot of my time outside. We never know when it is going to break (forecast is Tuesday) so we have to grab it whilst we can.  Our patio table is out for the second time in three years and (gasp, shock, horror) the umbrella came out of its packing!!!  Oh and the chiminea has had it's first airing - cooking burgers.  Hope this week of sunshine is not the sum total of our summer - again!

The big black table at the end (seats 8 - just to give you an idea on size) is where I have been doing my painting of boxes - not a success so they will now be covered in paper.  DOH!

And now to the birthday card.  I bought this stamp from my lovely friend Mary G in America when I was over in January and this is the first time it got used.  Hope Alison liked it and hope you do too. Painted with Twinkling H2o's.

See you later!

Maps - Challenge at Artful Times

Cartography I think is the posh name for maps.  I like anything connected to travel and as it is coming around to the time of the year when lots of folks will be getting ready for their holidays I thought "Maps" an appropriate theme for the challenge.

That was a while ago when we were compiling our list of what to have throughout the year.  When it came to making a sample I sort of froze and then went looking in my box of bits (big box) for some kind of atlas I could tear up.  I came across two small books both dealing with France, and more to the point, Paris.  Well, always a sucker for a bit of "ooh la la" I began tearing and covered a manilla tag, first in distress ink (walnut stain) and then with bits of maps, underground timetables etc.

A quick look through my stamps and I chose this rather elegant lady to go alongside the tag which I had, by now, decided not to cover up with an image - a bit of red and blue cardstock and this was the result

I left room at the bottom right for a greeting for when I send it on to someone and have just the perfect situation to use it coming up so it will probably feature "Good Luck" or "Bon Voyage" shortly.

Why not pop along to Artful Times and see what other inspiration is there and what news there is following Von's departure.  I know Von has been busy over the weekend and she has a lot on at the moment but I do urge you to visit her new blog where she showcases her jewellery - click here to look.