WOYWW 499

Good afternoon to you all.  I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas.  Sorry I've missed a couple of weeks - work, family, Christmas all conspired to keep me away from WOYWW.  Thankfully I have time today to show my desk!  Without further ado, here it is.  Christmas card remnants, and at the right side, my new Gemini!

Side desk, aka sewing station, has some calligraphy gifts received at Christmas, I'm looking forward to trying them out.  My sewing machine in the middle, and at the right side are the two sets of squares ready to stitch up into quilts for my grandsons.  I did manage to finish Emily's quilt, but unfortunately ended up without time to start, let alone finish the quilts for the boys.

Photos of the finished quilt that my daughters and granddaughter all loved.  I bought some cute labels that said "made with love by Grandma" and added one to the quilt.  It did turn out bigger than I thought, but it will last for many years I hope. 

Last post of 2018 for me.  I hope everyone is enjoying their break from work, and/or spending time with family and friends, and I wish you all a healthy, happy and peaceful New Year.  I'll be round to visit later today.  Have a lovely week Heather x

WOYWW 496

Good morning all,  photos were taken last night but no magic elves have been in my craft room overnight, so it's exactly the same this morning.  Time to take part in the weekly snoop around the wonderful world of crafty desks courtesy of Julia at The Stamping Ground

Firstly, I should respond to several comments/observations from last week about how the conversation went with Mr M ďwhen we realised that he had got the time wrong for the Christening.  I have always been a c'est la vie type of girl, and this has only increased since my brush with the grim reaper last year.  So no harsh words or recriminations, just a "well, you'd better ring and explain why we won't be there". There are far worse things happen at sea!  The keepsake box, card and present were duly posted, and hopefully our niece will be so delighted she will forget we didn't attend!

So, on to this week's desks.

Side desk has evidence of sewing.  I hand blanket stitched the name to the fabric, stabbing myself with pins several times along the way.  Once finished I found some fabric interfacing in my cupboard that I could have used on the Scan & Cut and probably made life easier for myself.  So I've saved that for the quilts for the boys.  I realise I am so far behind my quilt making schedule, but take comfort in the fact that I am in fact Supergran, and I can do anything (according to my 6 year old grandson).

Main desk has Stamps by Chloe Issue 2 which was on sale online for half price.  Comes complete with stamps, matching die, matching embossing folder and a stencil, as well as lots of A4 printed papers.  I love a bargain!  And the magazine has lots of lovely card ideas.  I did try to get Issue 1 as well, but apparently it sold out pretty much straight away!  The little card in the middle was my attempt at die cutting, then embossing, then stamping, and colouring with promarkers.

Now, I have a question (nothing new there then) for you lovely crafty ladies.  I have just sold my Cricut as I never use it now I have the Scan & Cut, and I think I may want to invest in an electric die cutting machine, a) because I really struggle to emboss with the Big Shot, and b) the Big Shot is quite heavy for me to lift down off the shelf where it lives.  So ... my question ... which electric machine would you recommend?  I have read reviews for Gemini and for Cut & Boss, but nothing beats personal recommendations.

Final pic - we went for our annual extended family Christmas meal on Saturday.  The boys insisted on wearing their bow ties as they were dining out at a grown up restaurant!  My 3 grandies plus my great-niece, who was a bit overwhelmed by my 3.

That's all for me!  Next week I hope to have more crafty time, but we have Santa Express on Saturday, grandaughter sleeping over on Saturday, and a trip to Leeds on Sunday to take her home, so I'll be crafting in the evenings! Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by and can visit you too!  Have a lovely week Heather x 

WOYWW 495

Good morning fellow deskers.  Time to show off the state of my desk, and then hop round to everyone else taking part.  Link up at The Stamping Ground  if you want to join in.

Side desk has been sewing station  this weekend.  I didn't get as much of the quilt done as planned, but progress was made!

Main desk has Christening cards I made and a keepsake box for the Christening in Sunderland last Sunday.  The christening that we didn't quite attend!  Mr M was in charge of the travel plans.  We needed to set off at 10am to get there in plenty of time for the 1pm Christening.  At 10am he picked up the invitation to check the postcode and realised the Christening was at 11am!  So we missed it!  Next time I am in charge!  Besides the card and keepsake box, my desk has some cheap acrylic paints from The Range for use with the Gelli plate, and I treated myself to some new colouring pencils from Amazon.

Close up of the Christening cards

And of the keepsake box, I am really into making these at present!

That's all for me!  Have a lovely week, and I'll be round visiting when I get home from work this evening, Heather x

WOYWW 494

Good morning all, we seem to be hurtling towards the end of the year at a rapid pace!  I had to check, but yes it is Wednesday once more and that means WoYWW.  Head on over to the Stamping Ground if you want to know what it's all about, and join in.

I am once again a Great Aunt.  This time to a beautiful little girl.  My main desk shows the result of this weekend's crafting, inbetween babysitting our grandsons who came for a sleepover (hence the tidyish desks).

A keepsake box - not sure if you can see the glittery pink letters!

Side desk has some crackle top coat and base coat, and some Adirondack inks that I bought to try with the Gelli plate!

Talking of which, many thanks for all the helpful comments last week.  What can I say - you are all so helpful and wonderful!

There are also 4 "C" card toppers.  I bought some fluffy stuff, so I wanted to try it and see how it turned out.  Not too bad.

No sewing work this week, so my plan is to catch up on Saturday when Mr M is out for the day.  Sunday we are off to Sunderland for a christening - great-nephew this time, so no crafting will be done at all.  Oooh, will I still manage 3 quilts before Christmas! Lol.

Have a lovely crafty week, and i shall be doing my rounds this evening when I get home from work. Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by, Heather x

WOYWW 493

Good morning all, I really can't believe another week has gone by so quickly and it's time for our weekly desk hop courtesy of  WOYWW .  Photos were taken last night, but my desk hasn't changed overnight.  I treated myself to a Gelli plate at weekend, watched a few You Tube tutorials and then got stuck in to have some fun.  I was a bit disappointed at first as the tutorials I watched all had lovely clear prints, and my first attempts were all dotty and splodgy, the ink 'beaded up' on the Gelli plate.  I was using Distress Oxides as in the tutorial, and a brayer.  Anyway I persevered, and although not as good as the ones I had seen, I did manage to produce some that I was happy with, for a beginner.  These may end up becoming backgrounds for cards.  I left them to dry on my main desk and they are still there 2 days later!  Some of the tutorials used acrylic paint, others used inks.  I'd be interested in your comments about the best results you've had, and what you used.

My side desk is still sewing station.  I've stitched all the quilt squares into rows and now stitching the rows together.  I've spotted my big mistake- I must have been slightly out on the seam allowance for some of the squares, as the rows do not perfectly line up. Lesson learned for the future.  For this quilt, I don't think 2 year old Emily will complain. 

Julia - my clear stamps were moved from the windowsill within 1 minute of reading your words of wisdom! 

I took a jar of my Apple butter to Leeds on Saturday to give my daughter.  She liked it, so maybe it wasn't too bad after all (although I will be checking next time I go over to see if she's actually eaten any).  Thank you to Shoshi for emailing me some recipes to try.

Thanks for stopping by,  and please leave a comment so I can be sure to visit you too. It will be when I am home from work before I do my visiting, but I will get to you. Have a great day, Heather xx

WOYWW 492

Good morning all.  Time for desk hopping courtesy of Julia and WOYWW .    Sorry I missed last week.  Mr M decided to share his cough and cold with me, so I've been wiped out for most off the week.  I did feel a bit better Friday, and managed to make a Get Well card for a work colleague who is in hospital.

First one looked a bit girly, so I will save this for when I need a female get well card!

I love the leaf stamps.  They came free  with a stamping magazine.  I used my stamp and die set for the flowers (the one that cuts to the right size).
I coloured the flowers with promarkers.

Back to the drawing board for something a bit more masculine.  I used the same leaf stamps and a few different distress inks.

I coloured some MDF letters gold and glued them on.  Job done.

The rest of my crafty week has been sewing.  I thought I had better make a start on the quilts I want to be ready for Christmas.  

I cut out all the squares for the first quilt and the strips for the sides, top and bottom, and a panel where I will add the name.  I laid them out on my bed to see what it would look like.

The layout didn't look too bad, so I took a photo to make sure I remembered where each piece should go.

And that brings me to my desk shot, which is why we are here.  My side desk has been converted into sewing corner, complete with a massive pink mat that almost fills the entire desk.  

I've finished reading the instructions, had a couple of practise sessions, and away we go!  Not sure how long a quilt takes to make, but I'm banking on getting each one finished in 2 weeks.

Lurking on the windowsill in the background is a new basket for my stamp storage, as I want the lidded box for material.  I think I might be a hoarder....

On my main desk is a "maybe" for the name panel.

 I cut the letters out on my scan & cut using freezer paper (as googled and found on you tube).  I'm not sure they are big enough, so I'll wait till I've stitched up the squares of the quilt and see how they look.

I cut a few extra letters to practise stitching the letters. The machine was hard to manage so I might hand stitch them on.

I also attempted to make Apple butter for the first time this weekend.  We had some when we were in Canada and it was lovely.  I found a few different recipes and tried one.  Not anywhere near as nice as the Canadian one ... I'll try a different recipe next time.  Or if anyone has a tried and tested recipe, please let me know.

Thanks for visiting my blog, please do leave a comment then I can be sure to visit your blog.  Have a great week, Heather x

WOYWW 490

Good morning all.  The weeks are flying by at the moment!  Time for WOYWW.  Photos taken last night, as I am on an early start this morning.  Thank you for the lovely birthday wishes.  My craft room has seen some action this week.  I unpacked, but have not yet used my sewing machine.  I'm still reading the instructions.  I visited a local fabric store and bought enough fabric for the 3 quilts I am going to make.  All washed and pressed and ready to cut!  Just need to decide on a pattern now.   So my side desk is currently home to my sewing machine, etc.

My lifesavers from last week were the paramedics who attended when I had a sudden cardiac arrest in February 2017.   It took a long while for me to be ready to meet them, and then took a few months to arrange.  I'm now fighting fit and keen to raise awareness and funds.  My employer is holding a fundraiser for Sudden Cardiac Arrest charity this week, as it is Sudden Cardiac Arrest awareness month.  When I nominated this charity I also volunteered to bring in some handmade cards to sell, so I've been sorting out a box full to take into work on a Friday.  

And .... tada.... evidence of a wee bit of crafting!  I had bought another stamp and die set and just hoped the dies would be better fit to the stamps.  I am pleased to say they are (see above pic).  I also played about creating some backgrounds.  Might use some for more cards this week!   I used the harlequin stencil I made (Jan - it's a stencil that creates diamond shapes), and a couple of bought stencils, and some sprays, all good fun! There are also some flowers coloured in with promarkers, ready to be cut out.

That's all for me!  Desk hopping will continue when I get home from work.  I'm so happy you called by, please leave a comment so I can visit you too!  Have a lovely week Heather x

WOYWW 489

I am bad, I am a full day and a half late!  Will I ever be forgiven by Julia and my fellow deskers at WOYWW

Not only am I late, but very little crafting has taken place. One card, pfft, not even worthy of a mention really. Here it is, in all its glory!

I fussy cut the stamps, as the die was too big.  I made a harlequin stencil on the Scan & Cut (oooh that counts as crafting!!) because it was raining and I didn't fancy going to the craft shop.

I mentioned to Mr M that I wanted to take up sewing again, and as it will be my birthday on Monday, he bought me a nice present!  I haven't unpacked it yet, as I have not cleared enough space for it!  My plan - quite ambitious for me - is to make 3 quilts for my grandchildren for Christmas.  I've got as far as buying The Absolute Beginner's Guide to Quilting, and this weekend I'll start reading!  Then next week I'll be asking questions no doubt of LLJ, Wipso and Twiglet!

I had a few special visitors on Monday. First time I had seen them since last year. It was lovely to meet my life savers, who along with Mr M are my heroes!

That's all from me, I'll be desk hopping as soon as I've made a cup of coffee!  Have a lovely week, Heather x

WOYWW 488

Hello blogging friends.  Time for a very late WOYWW!  This post is very late in the day as I am running behind this week!  That's what happens when I fall ill at work, and Mr M picks me up and decides to take me to the walk in centre rather than home, as requested!  A quick ECG followed by a transfer to Resus and then blood tests, chest xray and hooking me up to lots of things!  Everything came back normal so several hours later they finally released me!

My desk should have seen some crafting action this week, but instead I sorted my stamp storage.

I used the same idea as my die storage, just A4 wallets instead of A5.

At this rate I'll be totally organised,  and will then have to start crafting lol.
Oh my, the pressure lol!

I used some new stamps that I bought, Periwinkle Posy, but when I used the co-ordinating dies, Perwinkle Garden,  I was annoyed to find they don't cut out the stamps - they are way too big, so back to fussy cutting!

I had a practice with some texture stamps, and some spray bottles.  Didn't like the end result but it gave me some ideas for a base card for the flowers.

Mr M cannot believe I am running out of room so soon, but here is the evidence!

Boxes and piles of stuff everywhere.  Or is this normal crafting environment?  I'm having fun, so he's happy ... I just don't like having to move lots of stuff to get at other stuff.


That's all for this week!  We finally have a free weekend this week, so some crafting is on the cards, pardon the pun!  I will be late visiting, but I will get round as many desks as I can.  Have a lovely week, and please leave a comment so I know you stopped by, Heather x

WOYWW 487

I can't believe my holiday was over so quickly!  After a 3 hour delay at Manchester airport we finally made it to Canada, and my sister had an action packed 10 days planned!  Time now to relax and desk hop courtesy of Julia and WoYWW.  My desks have seen no crafting but I have emptied my suitcase and there are bits and pieces waiting to be put away.  First up my side desk .... Oooh it's the 'C' word!  We crossed the border from Canada to Michigan, USA and visited a year round Christmas store - I have never seen anything like it.  I love all things Christmas, and I love traditions - and starting new ones!  So I decided that we will need to buy a second Christmas tree this year, and adorn it with tree decorations representing all the countries that Mr M and I have visited during our 8 years together - we met on Christmas Eve in 2010, so Christmas really is extra special for us.  I bought 5 country decorations- USA, Canada, Italy, Ireland and Egypt.  All the other countries I will either have to make the decorations or visit again and buy decorations... Oooh that might mean another trip to Grenada, Jamaica, Barbados, Maldives, Morocco, amongst many others!  Also on the photo is a musical snow globe that plays Oh Come All Ye Faithful, one of my favourites.

I also fell in love with a few decorations for my regular tree, shown here on top of the light box/tablet that Mr M bought me for practising my calligraphy!  Not sure what I am meant to do with it, but I'll figure it out no doubt.  The Michigan at the back is a fridge magnet, I also collect them from wherever we go ...

No crafting on the main desk either.  Just a selection of goodies bought when I popped in to Michaels - two more storage boxes (I love boxes), some rolls of washi tape, 50c each! New square punched dies bought with my 50% off coupon, and two rolls of hessian/ribbon.  I also bought a notebook so my sister and I could start tracking our family tree/history, but not a single word was penned, so I will have to postpone that for a while.  The pink on white is a picture from my great niece.  There are two postcards for my travel scrapbook - both from Tobermory.  One is Flowerpot Island (how cute is that name), and one of two fantastic shipwrecks.  They are only in 7mtrs of crystal clear water,  so when we visit again Mr M is thinking of diving there, and I'm thinking of coming out of diving retirement!

Close up of one of the wrecks, and you can understand my excitement at wanting to dive there.

I will aim to have something crafty on my desk next week, but no promises!  I will visit as many as I can today, but still got a bit of jet lag, so may be Thursday or Friday. Have a lovely week, Heather.

WOYWW 485

Good morning lovely people.  Another week has flown by and what a busy week it has been!  Just got time to post WoYWW then head off to work for my last day before my holiday.  We fly to Canada tomorrow, so this evening will be busy packing.  I'll try and visit as many desks as I can before exhaustion sets in!

I took everyone's advice and made a simple, but lovely sympathy card.  I forgot to take a pic - but it was a butterfly card out of the Scan & Cut free patterns.  It was a lovely service, and ended in laughter as my cousin had insisted on Spirit in the Sky being played as his committal song - he loved music and laughter!

Anyway on to my desk.  Oh my goodness, not only am I still inspired from the Crop, but I also had a brainwave.  I was thinking of triple layered cards again, and how the stamps missed a bit when stamping over 3 layers of card.  I decided Scan & Cut could solve the problem - stamp one layer of card, colour it in if needed, and then cut each one into three squares! Voila, I must be related to Einstein!  I also cut 4 perfect sets of the backing card.  On the one hand, it

worked perfectly, I get 4 sets out of one 12 x 12. The problem - I set the card up to stamp 4 times using the stamping platform.  I even created a little guide, so I stamped in the right place.  Most of the stamps stamped fine, but my poinsettia stamp (wouldn't you know I only have one poinsettia stamp) and a foliage ivy stamp both would not stamp all the image.  I then tried an acrylic block and it also missed some of the image, so not sure yet what the problem is!  I will have to investigate further when I get back from Canada.

My  main desk has the spoils of a retail therapy trip after my cousin's funeral on the right hand side.  Some nice new periwinkle stamps and matching dies, some cheap stamps that were on sale: more flowers, dandelions and ballet dancers. A couple of packs of bling, some pockets for stamp storage, some removable tape, a StazOn ink pad, and a pack of foam daubers.


My side desk has a big tub of paper/card, inkdusters, two boxes of disposable gloves, my travel scrapbook and a little tool Mr M made me for shaping paper flowers.  I spent one evening colouring in destination names for some of the travel layouts using paints, watercolour pencils, promarkers - variety is the spice of life, eh!  I also created some layouts, which I will use in the travel scrapbook.

Sorry for the long post!   Have a lovely week, please leave a comment, even if just to say hi, and I will visit inbetween packing!  I shall catch up with everyone in 2 weeks!   Take care, Heather x

WOYWW 484

Good morning everyone, time for a weekly desk hop courtesy of the lovely Julia and The Stamping Ground.  But before I show and tell, I have to say what a wonderful time I had at the Crop!  I don't know any local crafters so it was marvellous to spend a day with like minded folk who were all absolutely lovely.  And Shaz from Oz - what a wonderful surprise!  Do we really have to wait a year for the next Crop??  😁😁

My first crop - first of many I hope!  ATCs were exchanged, and some gifts.

Lots of coffee, cake and chat.  A delicious lunch, lots of coffee, cake and chat.  Oh, and a bit of crafting!  I practised colouring with promarkers.  I need to improve my 'blending' skills.  6 hours at the Crop and I managed to colour 3 flowers and then messed up with the 3D pearl drops to decorate it.  However I managed a rescue job when I got home.  And this will be a birthday card for my daughter's 30th birthday, complete with a couple of spare flowers for the envelope.

I was inspired by the Crop to carry on with more practise at the colouring/blending, and triple layer cards.  Four butterflies on each card, each one blended differently. And a couple of snowmen in the background!

And a close up of one of the butterfly cards

Next up, I have a set of flowers stamps and matching dies, so as I need a lot more practice - more colouring!  I will need more pens at this rate!  And a piece of stamping card that I threw some colour on.  Not sure what I will do with that yet.  Watch this space!  Lurking by my glue basket is a pink flamingo sellotape dispenser - Thank you Julia!

I need to make 2 sympathy cards this week, as my lovely cousin passed away yesterday.  He has been more like a brother to me than a cousin, and I will miss him so much, but he had been very ill for over a year, so I am thankful he is now at peace.  I have not made sympathy cards before, so haven't a clue where I will start - maybe with Pinterest or other blogs!

I've also been inspired by Jan, Annie and Jo ... and have an idea lurking in my head for Christmas presents for my grandchildren!  All will be revealed soon - but I can say it involves a sewing machine - which I don't have, but I can borrow!  That's all for this week - I'll do my visiting when I get home from work.  After I've had my first hour in the gym - if Mr M advises it is ready for action!  Have a lovely week Heather xx

WOYWW 483

Good morning ladies.  Wednesday again, and that means time for WOYWW.  It also means only 3 days to go until the Crop!  I'm so excited!  I made some ATCs, as I read a couple of people were making them.  I haven't yet had time to tidy up, and as we are at the Crop this weekend and no grandchildren visiting I can leave it messy if I want to!   Go me, what a rebel!  Time to treat you to three desks shots - photos were taken last night, as I have an early start today!

Side desk has my sample book on the left.  Stamping platform (makes life so much easier when multiple stamping),  calligraphy box at the back (I have realised cheap calligraphy pens are not worth it - I know what's on my list for christmas), box of disposable gloves (unwanted sample from work), three mini RUB boxes with starfish in them, my ATCs stamped on the back, and to the right, some wooden letters/numbers that were half prices from B&M bargains, so I bought 2 trays.

Main desk hasn't got any thing new on it, just things that have not been put away.  Label maker, cutter, new Derwent pens, colouring book, oxides and the blue folder is full of A4 stamp sheets, ready for my new zip top folders when they arrive.

Other side of the room is now neat and tidy.  I bought a new basket for the die storage, which is deeper so works better.  I started labelling the trays where I am going to store nesting shapes.  Well would you look at that, my steam iron still muscles in on some photos!

Quick update on the gym conversion.  I came home from work yesterday, floor is in, just skirting boards left to fit, some shelves and the edges round the doors.  And some new matting for under the machines.  Mr M has been busy!  Machines are a bit dusty as they have been under dust covers in the garage, but I'm sure they will scrub up nice and shiny! I even have an iPod and docking station in there.  TV will be installed next week!  Wonder how long if will last as a gym, before I change it to my craft room?

Have a lovely week, and for those going to the Crop, I look forward to seeing you on Saturday.  Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by, Heather x

WOYWW 482

Good morning all.  Time for another tour of desks courtesy of head desker Julia and WOYWW.  I spent part of my weekend in Keswick catching up with some friends.  Whilst we were there can you guess where we visited - the clues are on my desk.  Mr M felt the urge to treat me - who am I to spoil his fun!

Yes - the Pencil Museum!

On my other desk I've been finishing off my die storage with my new label printer.  I'm quite happy with the end result, and even emptied my UFO box to put the little wallets in.  Just need to find another UFO box now.

I also have one of the MDF die storage units with 10 A4 trays.  I'm using that for all my nesting shapes, that should be finished next week.

I'm thinking of doing something similar for stamp storage, but maybe using A4 wallets instead.  I think the zip top ones are better than the popper fastening ones. Hmm, watch this space!

Crafting is planned for this weekend, a special birthday card for my youngest daughter who will be 30 when we are in Canada, so need to make a start on it this week, or I'll never get it done.  Still waiting on inspiration!  Plus brother and sister cards for October, which are needed as soon as we get back home.

Short and sweet post this week - apart from a question about the Crop - any recommended hotels nearby?  Mr M and I still not sure if we are staying over or driving back.

Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by.  Have a lovely week Heather x