Goodbye for Now

I made this for Hel's challenge but, while I don't mind adding a quick link, instructions about putting stuff in the sidebar etc just feels like too much effort, so I didn't actually enter. However, the challenge was to include gold, and as you can see it's there! This is made using a small wooden frame about 5" tall - they were only 99p per pack and are meant for children to decorate (!) with felt tips etc and I bought them in packs of four and threw away the cheapie felt tips. That left me with nice wooden frame shapes for altering, how's that for thrifty crafting?

I coloured the background with Distress Inks then stamped over it and added the gold bits. The sentiment is also a stamp and a message I rather like ... so this will find a home somewhere in my studio, unless I decide to give it to a friend.

Won't be posting for a couple of weeks because we're off on holiday tomorrow, ash clouds permitting .....

WOYWW time ...

Wednesday again ... although to be 100% truthful (which I do TRY to be) this is actually a desk from slightly earlier. You wouldn't like it at the moment - bare, clear, tidy - no, I don't like it either.

So anyway, I was card-making for a Stampin Up project with some new colours. Pot of water is out again (but clean this time) as I was only doing some shading work on that there flower. I do love water-colouring, paint brush in one hand and stamp in the other seems to be my natural habitat!

And in case you're interested, here's a close up of what I was working on.

And this is the other card you can see which I'd just finished - inspired by an article in the Craft Stamper magazine you can see open on the desk. I was messing about creating backgrounds on a sheet of watercolour paper, stamped butterflies with a bleach stamp pad, and you then iron it with a hot iron and it bleaches out the background colour where you've stamped. Simples!

So if you're interested in seeing more desks get on over to Julia's place and join in the fun! I apologise in advance that I won't be able to get around everyone's desk - I literally physically can't sit at the computer that long. I just about managed it when we got to 50 desks but now there's so many it's just impossible. I do love seeing as many as I can get to, and really really appreciate the comments you're kind enough to leave.

MADE AN ATC!

GOOD NEWS! The magnetic stuff turned up! The phone however is still missing ... if you see it, it's pink (well what other colour would it be?).

Sat down the other afternoon and made an ATC, just because I could and because I LIKE doing it. Am just a hopeless case where these lil fellas are concerned. Apparently, I was in romantic mode too because this is the theme I chose - real lace, gorgeous vintage bride, my lovely church window stamp etc etc. Actually I think I did it again - made it for a challenge and then forgot which one it was for. That happens a lot, it drives me crazy. Did I mention that I used to be quite clever?

WHERE DID I LEAVE MY POOR BRAIN...?

Maybe you've seen it - small wrinkly grey-ish thingy ... no, not ME the brain! OK very small indeed and practically moribund. I've just lost something again which must be here somewhere, and despite being an organisation freak, all the places where I should have filed it aren't where it is!

First off I lost my phone - can you tell I don't use it much? Well I hardly ever go anywhere these days so don't need my mobile like I did when I was driving all over the country. I put it somewhere because it was taking up space in my bag (very small bags now, which have to go across my body, owing to needing hands for crutches etc etc). Then I found it again (the phone that is, keep up) and thought "oh there it is!" and promptly forgot again where I'd seen it. This probably wouldn't have mattered except that yesterday the land line developed a fault, and it would have helped if I could have found the mobile. Still haven't.

Then a couple of weeks ago I reported on the idea of mounting nestabilities on magnetic sheet inside CD cases - such a good plan that I bought plenty of magnetic stuff because I planned to buy more nesties. Of course I put the sheets somewhere safe, and then this morning a new set of nesties arrive ... and can I find the magnetic sheet, can I HECKASLIKE!! Ggggrrrrrr .... I know where I should have put it, I looked there first, then I looked in a lot of other places it wasn't. It's inevitable of course that eventually it will turn up again, after all its here somewhere (like the phone) but it's just SO maddening! I used to be quite clever before being hit with a double whammy of menopausal brain death and Fibromyalgia Fog. All this AND a hung parliament and I'm feeling very very cross ....

Oh and I did make a couple of cards I was quite pleased with .... bin painting with distress inks again.

WOYWW Scrapping!

It's Whats On Your Workdesk again over at Julia's place. I love to do altered art but actually the thing I do most of (and teach) is scrapbooking, so that's what on my workdesk today. Unlike card-making (which I also do and teach) you get to keep what you make, and I have some lovely memories to treasure in my albums. There are unfortunately rather a LOT of them now, but they are definitely the things I would save in a fire ...

So anyway, this is what I've been working on - and yes I do consider that a messy desk, although you may notice that the painting water is no longer green, so am not a complete slut! That red block at the back is a project in progress to make a chunky ATC and has had its first coat of Fired Brick crackle paint. Under my scissors are the new Paperartsy stamps I bought last week and am still figuring out how to use - not as easy as I first thought! Those clear stamps on the left have to be my favourite set ever, and they turn up on so many of my layouts its getting boring. That little white glue bottle is the thing I use for absolutely everything - I decant PVA into it from a larger size, and it has a really fine nozzle which is easy to control. I even stick photos with it.

And below you can see the (more or less) finished project - I'm still looking at it and going "does it need something .....?

The thing which has worried me about this journal your year project is what a boring life I appear to lead ... must get out more!!

BIG REVEAL ....

This is the project you've seen bits of on my desk lately, now all finished, and if I say so myself I'm delighted with how its turned out! It's one of those 99p Ikea mirrors of course, and I took the mirror out of the frame while I worked on it. I gave it a coat of paint and then added Distress Crackle Paint in Antique Linen - if you enlarge the photo you'll see how satisfyingly crackly it turned out. Having had previous experience with this stuff I knew the little bits of paint would chip off really easily so I gave the whole frame a coat of Mod Podge. You can't really tell it's there but it seals it so that he bits don't flake.

Then I added the embossed/distressed hinges and keyhole, plus the various bits and pieces I've stamped onto good quality heavy paper and watercoloured using Distress Inks. Once the images were stuck I gave them a coat of Mod Podge too, just for protection. I love how this project turned out (even though it wasn't what I intended to do) and its now on the wall with the mirror stuck back in. Isn't it nice when you make something that you're REALLY pleased with??