WOYWW 29th February 2012

Greeting woywwers!!  I was out scrap shopping earlier and picked up a few bits and pieces but they are still in the bag... so on my desk today is the album I am working on... for my son, with all the photos from his trip out here last summer.

Doing male mini books is always a bit of a challenge for me as I have to resist adding all the bling and ribbons and stuff and keep looking at it like its naked, or something!!

and I am still getting over having to clear the driveway and path three times in one day!!  It just wouldn't stop snowing... I would clear it and a couple of hours later you would be hard pushed to know I had done anything!!

Cabbage roses

I was wandering from blog to blog and found a tutorial that Donna had done for Elizabeth making the loveliest roses!!  Only problem was I couldn't find my 2 inch circle punch... I could find a 1 1/2" and a 3" so decided to give it a go with the 3" punch and see what happened...

I like them... I like them a lot!!  I inked the edges and gave them a smoosh of glimmer mist and added a pearl to their centre then touched them up with a little glitter and I think they could stand their own against some of the ready made bought ones!!  They remind me of cabbage roses that grew in my Grandfather's garden when I was a child.  These will go into the parcel that is to be posted off to Elizabeth because I bet she hasn't made any yet...  ;)  Thank you Donna, your tutorial was brilliant!

Canvas and Valentine Card...

This is the canvas finally finished... and yes, I did machine sew that ruffle bit along the bottom of it!!  Impressed?  Well, you should be as I am not really a sewing type of person and I am quite chuffed at how it turned out.  The photo is one of Chris' favourites and it is of our dolphin meeting when we were in Roatan last year on our cruise.  I thought these Graphic 45 Tropical Travelogue papers were perfect for the theme.

Here's a close-up of the flowers and the litte bottle with shells and message inside. Oh and guess what?  I must like as it has left the scraproom!!  Well, it's like this... not many of the things I make actually ever leave the scarproom - except for the stuff I give away, which obviously does.  So it is quite something for me to actually home something somewhere else in the house and this is now on our dresser in our bedroom.

It's a lovely bright splash of colour amongst the greys and browns.

and this is the card I made for Chris for Valentine's Day and I have to thank Cardarian for kindly allowing me to scraplift her card from last weeks woyww.  I just finished it... which sounds a lot worse than it actually is because he doesn't get home till tomorrow evening so it's not really late. LOL

WOYWW 15th February 2012

Happy Valentines Day... I can say that because here it still is... for a few more hours at least!! ;)  So now to show what is on my work desk today....

Hmmm, yes, it looks a little manic... in the front bit is a canvas I am working on... I tried painting on it but it was not good so I have now just about managed to cover all signs of my artwork with paper and ribbon and stuff!!  It just needs some rearranging and sticking down... at the back is a pile of matchsticks because I am trying to do a tutorial for the little book of secrets... anyone know what to do with loads of matches, please tell me!!

This is what I woke up to this morning... which was a bit of a surprise as its been quite mild lately and I was getting used to not having snow!!  My friend and I had arranged to go get some retail therapy so I was out early and got it all put to rights before she arrived!!

If you look at the two photos you can see that the sun has moved across the houses opposite... yep, it took 45 minutes of shovelling to clear it all away.  

Whilst out shopping I found this noticeboard... nice one eh?  Shame I didn't have it last week so that I could have done some proper names for Donna's Paris photos quizz... typical. 

Oh and this teapot fell into my basket... I know... it has nothing to do with scrapping and Julia will probably be around to kick my butt... but it is fab, isn't it?  and I always have a cup of tea near my work desk!!  LOL

and this is what Chris bought me for Valentine's Day... yay!!  Now I can open it and have a play... just as soon as I have rescued the canvas... 

You know when it's a bit chilly outside because...

you got to bed and are joined by both cats.... who seem totally incapable of sleeping on one half of the queen size bed that you have allotted them!  (Nb.  Queen size here is King size in the UK so it's a pretty big bed).

Chris is away in Fort Mac so its just me taking up a strip down one side... so why do I wake up after just an hour and have this Gulliver in Lilliput feeling?  Tom-Tom is stretched out down one side of me and Pandy is stretched out down the other side... the duvet is pulled tightly over my legs and I realise I am sleeping in a strip that is about 8 inches wide and can't move... nope, not even a little bit!!  Do I just ooomph them both off?  Stretch and heave so that I have a little space to turn over if I wish?  Do I heck... I lay there, cramped and feeling like a sardine in a tin so that they aren't disturbed.... which probably means that I am... disturbed, that is!! 

WOYWW 8th February 2012

Our esteemed leader of the desks, Julia,  has really got me moving this evening... its only teatime here!! :)  So another week has disappeared but I do feel as though I am back into some form of groove and creating again.

I thought I would go from the distant angle this week... for two reasons... the jigsaw puzzle on the desk is a gift for someone who visits and has been owed for many months now so I don't want her to see the details and I am also trying not to stand in a pile of glitter which landed on my chair and floor and... yeah, glitter... so my next task will be to try and vacuum it all up!! Amazing how far that stuff can travel without any assistance at all!!  At the back of my desk you can see the secret drawers mini book which got finished this week (details if you are interested are in the previous post to this).  

The Less Patient Secret Book ;)

I have in my favourites the most amazing piece of work... it is aptly named patience and I love it, but I have neither the patience or the skill to produce something like it so came up with my own version... called 'Less Patient'!! ;)

Front cover using Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante papers.

This is the side view which shows the two large matchboxes as drawers.

A thin book slides out of the gap between the two matchboxes.

I am going to add all my favourite music titles to the pages.

Then you open one of the drawers to reveal another book...

The ribbons are so that you can remove the books... a bit like battery compartments!! :)

When you open the book you see that there is a small matchbox attached to the end...

and inside of it is another wee book...

I sewed all the signatures of these books...

and decorated the pages with papers...

Then you open the other drawer to reveal a divided compartment...

and remove the smaller mini book...

all pages decorated...

ad the larger of the two mini books...

and voila... the complete set... pretty cool eh?  LOL

Little Book of Secrets - Vintage Sewing

So at last the second of the little books of secrets has arrived at it's destination in the UK!!  Yay!!

Lynne's chosen theme was vintage sewing... so I hope I have covered both ideas.

I did encounter a certain fatness problem once I started to decorate all the signatures!

As you can see.... but I think the effect is vintagey fatness of a good sort!!

I used lots of sewing themed stamps and did some embossing.

I got my sewing machine out and did lots of sewing on the pages.

Made an extended flap page with sewing themed pictures.

Added some Maya Road chipboard sewing pieces.

Made some slide in tags to go under the velvet ribbons.

Some lace frames and embossed stamping.

Made a couple of pocket pages and added some tags.

Lots of lace from Saudi Arabia.

More lace and some vintage pattern downloads.

A pull down tab with silver embossed dress form image and a pocket page.

The pocket was supposed ;) to look like a paper pattern holder.

and inside are some patterns stamped onto brown tissue paper to represent patterns.

More stamping and embossing...

My Grandmother's favourite quote.

This is the base with the four drawers filled with sewing bits and bobs.  I hope Lynne like it.

What's on Your Work Desk Wednesday 1st February 2012

Oh my goodness me... February already?  I didn't do enough in January yet!! ;)  So here we are with another Wednesday upon us and the phenomenom of people noseying about other work desks, floors, beds etc... don't forget to check out Julia's for the linky list!!

On the side of my work desk this week is my new toy!!  Chris bought it for me when we were in Michaels the other day because my old cutter had started cutting crooked.  We had a couple of vouchers so managed to pick this beauty up for 40% off and 25% off the 40%... which made it go from the most expensive cutter in the store to a very reasonably priced one!! ;)

and it unfolds to use so doesn't take up very much space.

Also on my work desk are the results of a trip to the Home Depot... we were there to get some plumbing bits and I wondered into the kitchen section and found racks of samples for kitchen work tops!!  Wooo hooo... they are fabulous and now all I have to do is think of a way to use them!! LOL (The Home Depot mannie asked me if I was getting new kitchen work tops soon and I said no... but he didn't make me put them back)!!   Then I wondered down the aisle that sells the vinyl siding which coats all the houses here... and promptly took an assortment of those too... and a quick bypass of the Martha Stewart paint chips and I was set up for serious playing materials all for free!!

Aren't they pretty?  I can see them on a canvas with letters... a little mini book.... oh lots of ideas are floating about but suggestions are always welcome!!