WOYWWD...Part 2 (see below)

Just emerged from the inky chambers and at long last my project book from the Claudine Helmuth course is all done.

Once again I have succumbed to my girly side and gone for the flowers...uh oh, this is getting serious. Just wanted to share it with any late comers!

WHAT'S ON MY (HOLIDAY) WORKDESK WEDNESDAY - THE SEQUEL

Dearest dabbling darlings,

Back on home ground...have spent all day tackling the waves of washing, plundering piles of purchases and calming the chaos around my ankles. How on Earth did I manage to collect so many plastic bags during just 10 days? A bit of OCD methinks (Obsessive can't let go of Carrier bags Disorder). Already missing the luxury of the flat in Harrogate, sun-rays, big city's on your doorstep and the joy of meandering through all the posh shops...

Victorian Quarter, Leeds

Yet, also rather glad to be behind the Mac again. No internet at the flat, so I had to make do with another type of Mac - that being the hamburger chain - which had the Wifi internet speed of my glossy accents bottle - on a good day. I missed my daily stroll through the realms of the paper and inky avenues, the oooohing and aaaaahing and inspiration, but it is good to get away from the screen and to practice normal social contact and the art of just being in the here and now!!! Well...for a week then.

I had hoped to be taking a serious leap into my craft room today as I have an awful lot to catch up on with my on-line course. But when my house is all messed up I just can't focus. So just about ship-shape again - well, enough to merit the rest of the week getting gunky. Still, I have a lot of goodies to show, as I did do a workshop and also depleted every available store of a bargain! It will probably take me all day tomorrow to find somewhere to put my new stash.

Oooooh - just look at that little lot. I feel a wee bit guilty when I see it all together now - but it just kept growing...yes, all by itself. Actually lots of it was another fab find - at a car boot. Somebody was having a clear out and I picked up loads including all the flowers, powders, ink-pad, spray, die cut letters and huge swirls for just £8. Even my hubby started ferreting through the stall to find some goodies. Far too tempting. At a certain point you just have to "Put your hands in the air and back away from the craft table lady..."

As said I paid a visit to the Art from the Heart shop. My original workshops were both cancelled as Dyan was still in the hospital until Friday with a virus. So I just managed to squeeze into the Printers tray workshop with an assistant stepping in at the last mo. I have to admit I was a little disappointed to miss out on the Melt Art workshop, meeting the famous Dyan and savouring her artistic talents. But that's life and it is good that Dyan is back home. The workshop wasn't quite what I expected as it was more paint and embellishment orientated and I am an addicted stampy, inky, splodger, make-it-selfy type, vintage style fan - but I really enjoyed creating the canvas backgrounds...didn't over-think it - just went freestyle! It's always good to experience something outside your own safety zone...

 Not finished yet of course, but as always, the time whizzed by and you don't want to throw it all together in a few seconds. Leaving with yet another plastic bag full of paper, snippets and metal thingamajigs, I do my best to convince my hubby I have actually done something during the last five hours.

This was actually my first canvas - it was a trial - just to try things out but it came out pretty good. In fact I don't want to cut it up at all so I will keep it whole and add a few elements - maybe some collage elements...á la Claudine Hellmuth et Dyan. Je ne sais pas. More serious homework to do this week.

  So that is the low-down for this week. Off for a cuppa. Thank you for all the remarks, drop-ins and kind words. Feeling so much better than a few weeks ago. Still got another 10 days holiday at home to go and lots of fun to be had - we're hoping to climb Mount Snowdon this week - if the weather gods will look kindly on us mere mortals. Wishing everyone another great WOYWW - have a good one!

  

The sunny dales up North...

What's on My Holiday Workdesk Wednesday?

Hello Everyone,

Greetings from lovely Harrogate! At last - the long awaited holiday is in full swing. Although we opted for a more scaled down break and are taking things easy compared to the original plan, we are enjoying a plush apartment, some wonderful sunny days, great shops, awesome houses and lots of good old Yorkshire tea and cake. I have already scoured the length and breadth of Harrogate and York trying to sniff out the faintest whiff of a craft store. I am already well set up with Art from the Heart with a Printers Tray workshop on Friday. Unfortunately Dyan (owner of AFTH) has been taken rather ill and into hospital with a nasty virus - so no wooden purse & tags or Melt Art workshop. But seeing as I was also lying on a similar bed very recently, I fully understand. Wishing her well.

So no piccys of my creations yet, but a little pot of gold I wanted to share...I found some really great vintage cigarette card photos at a flea market - just look at those faces and eyes...there's no such thing as too much glamour.

Also added a few more cards to my postcard collection. It can be the image, the colours, or the mood that grabs me...hope they will inspire you too. And just one more stamp from Tin Can Mail. There's no such thing as too many stamps...! So today is short and sweet but couldn't go without my WOYWW. Enjoy all the desks, stashes and ramblings. Over and out.

 

Got that Friday feeling...

At long, long last after a whirlwind of events (see previous blog), it is Friday. I'm all packed ready for oodles and oodles of holiday bliss. Hard to know which bikini to pack - leopard skin print or neon pink polka dot - you know, seeing as we are having such a heatwave...

As said, just going up to Harrogate but I am so looking forward to getting away, meandering through the streets of York, lying in the Turkish spa and......being able to just stroll down the road to the Art from the Heart shop. Ooooh - just think - being able to reach out and touch things instead of staring into endless website windows. I live miles away from any half decent shops so it will be a surreal and unique pleasure. Going to follow two workshops; A wooden purse with tags and later Exploring Melt Art. Just had my nails re-done today - only to be splodged, glazed and stained next week of course.
I am more or less up to date with my Claudine Helmuth course. We are in the process of assembling the technique book - will put it up here after my hols as I need to do some major tweaking. Had to play serious catch-up with my course but called it quits late last night. I want the time to savour and ponder, not just sit and reproduce carbon copies. The pleasure is in the journey as well as the destination - I think that could already be a famous quote - so don't consider me too wise. Anyway just going to leave you with three pictures of my Victorian Keepsake Trio. It is three ATC cards made using vintage Bible pages, rubber stamping, embossing, distress inks and embellishments. They are tied up in two blue-velvet lined covers which have been decorated using alcohol inks, stamping and hand-embossed metal.

When I started this I was just having a bit of a faff around with inks and this slowly surfaced. Funny how some things show the way themselves - if you just let them...




Stamps by Paper Artsy, Stampington and Hero Arts








And all wrapped up - maybe a secret love story...




Just wanted to leave a little blogette tonight - hoping to share some piccys from the workshops next week...still doing little happy jumps!

What's on your Workdesk Wednesday - (with Freebie!)

 Hello to all the dear WOYWWers and any other folk having a mooch around here today. Well - what a week. I was already for a mega-creative marathon after playing host to all the guests but I had a slight detour. Just an hour after placing last weeks WOYWW blog I found myself lying in hospital having a blood transfusion with a suspected appendicitis and the realisation that the surgeon might be seeing more of the scissors and a "craft" table than me. Turned out to be something else abdominal so I am still intact, but I was completely out of it, laid up for a week, played human pin-cushion to trainee doctors, and yet again devoid of my craft room. My lovely hubby could see I was suffering from withdrawl so he loaded up his i-touch with 30 videos from the CHA and I got to lie around all day and digitally sniff out the new stash on it's way in December. So blessings to be had after all...
When I was discharged and on the way home we stopped at a garden centre and stumbled across a craft corner - and SALE! Mega-goodies and bargains - what a fab treat after the last week.

 I was so chuffed I have even bought something for you guys to celebrate! Here is one of the goodies - my 50p stamp! Read on for your little treat......
So nowt new on my blog until today... Despite everything being all over the shop as we say - I shall blog, I shall babble, and I shall bag...I use bag as a verb as it has been an intense two days trying to finish my Claudine Helmuth project for this week...It was originally a project to jazz up a vest top but I wanted to do a bag. It was all fine until the sewing machine stitching started looking like fungi and I sewed the handles to the bag three times. I did get an A in this at school - really. Anyway it is the left-over bits of my sticky-back canvas decorated with the faux batik technique. Then it is random stitching and a few buttons (yes mum - it is supposed to look like that...) Despite some major stumbling blocks - I got there and as Monty Python would say - "And now for something completely different..." It is a swing in a very different direction compared to my usual thing but I lurve sewing anyway. I am quite pleased and glad to be fighting with needles and thread instead of drip cables and stands!

 Next week I am off on my hols up to lovely Harrogate - staying closer to home due to the last week but still excited as I get to snoop around the Art from the Heart shop all week -  and - I am doing two workshops there !!! Happy jumps and little squeals...So next week is all luxury, Betty's tea-shops and shopping in York. What more can a gal want? So my WOYWW blog entry might be on tour next week...!

So to end - just a little treat for anyone out there who fancies them. Keeping in theme with all the love hubby shows me and the joy of a little flutter with the pennies ...here are two packs of Papermania rub-ons up for grabs. Just leave a comment and your blog/e-mail so I can contact you and I will soon be sending them on to one lucky WOYWWer. No gimmicks - just like giving pressies - so enjoy!

Thanks a lot for visiting and all your great comments last week...

Still loving my type-writer.

This is me - signing off - over and out - and until we meet again...xxx Sarah

WOYWW...?

Well - Wednesday has descended upon us yet again and it is time for the weekly snoop, drool and nose around...I am starting with a piccy of my oh so spiffingly lurvely type-writer. Still ecstatic about my find but I must focus (see previous post for the complete saga). So here is my desk... which had lain unloved for a week due to a household of guests. I am so glad to be let loose again and couldn't wait to mess it up for once.

 Been diving in from all angles...getting back on schedule with my Claudine Hellmuth course which involves doing battle with my embossing powders love affair with the Tim Holtz mask.
 Lots of Perfect Pearl and paint stuff going on but not as messy as last week. Also received three ATCs from a Craft Stamper swap - they are lying on the blue tool box. I do love ATCs - and their momentary escapism - time for a dabble again.

Also a few wooden hearts and butterflies. Found two bags of them for £2 in a craft shop. I don't normally buy ready made embellishments, I don't normally do hearts or many butterflies (no, no, no... I cannot publicly admit my closet girlishness)...

...but they are covered in such a lovely fabric I just couldn't resist...


And finally one of my projects from the CH course. It was quite a journey. The girlishness broke loose and I went all out for the flowers...I was about to add the final gem when it and a blob of Glossy accents did a triple salto onto the little darling's head. I almost died. It was already my second photo tint as the first made her look like she had had a Botox lip job and bad perm. So I was totally gutted because there is no way you can shift GA from photo paper. I really had to decide to be challenged - not perfectionistic. So after a few sighs and mutterings I went for the little label - and even got to use my type-writer. All in all things turned out just fine and I lived to see another day! Tomorrow I'm going to do a modern take on a shopping bag with CH paint, sticky back canvas and the old sewing machine - so that should balance things out on the girly front.

Time to love you and leave you. Enjoy your WOYWWing and thanks for taking the time to pop in...Do come again...!  Sarah

The sanctuary of space...

Well, the guests have all departed, Chez B&B is officially closed, hubby off viewing the A-Team (!) and I am relishing the return to the calm and space inside my little housey. Had to make to do with blog-hopping, on-line window shopping and random flicks through my Stampers Sampler to keep me charged this past week. The busy Hostess with the Mostest job, and work meant an abandoned craft room and a tortured soul...
But this week did bring a visit and a mini-spree in a reasonable craft shop where you can actually touch the stuff. I am a major on-line, "sniff out a bargain" gal...but you can't beat the real thing. I love a good forage and rummage around any shop with even the faintest aroma of an ink-pad. Major catch-up to play this week.

But the crème-de-la-crème this week is a major find in my local charity shop yesterday. I have to thank Mr. Eagle-eyed husband for it as he spotted it. For ages I have wanted an old typewriter and was actually talking about it again just this Friday. I adore using words and texts in my work and just can't quite forgive myself if I just run it up on the computer. But then again it isn't always practical to stamp a whole sentence with individual letter stamps or good for the mortgage to buy every attractive quote stamp...plus being a slight vintage diva means I've just got to get that old feeling in there somewhere. So after just one minute and a double-take at a staggeringly cheap £4 price tag - I have another addition to house in my craft room...the old Epic 6 will have to move right along the bus and share a little space with its new pal, thank you. I could consider knocking through into next door...but not very smart as we are an end of terrace!

Here are a couple of shots for you all - and a close-up of an inspirational text just given to me by a friend. Hoping to get ticking away soon...It is in great condition, everything works and it does red too - just love it! Also bought a great little flower punch, so every unguarded bit of scrap paper and fabric lying on my table has acquired a random typed word and daisy-shaped scar....

 Wishing everyone a great week. Be inspired, be yourself and - just be...