What's Missing This Week?

Here's my desk this morning less the one thing that I am actually working on namely the telephone But I am not going to get started on Doctor's Surgeries, power cuts and that annoying woman from BT who keeps telling me the line is busy because I will here all morning! Instead I will let you revel in the delights of my workspace.

The main theme today is christmas, again, I am really getting fed up with that box of christmas stuff being on my desk and so have taken a break from my scrapping in order to hopefully make a dent in the pile of cards I need to make. I really should check how many I've made against how many I need but I know that the answer is going to be that I've not made enough yet and I'm not sure I can face knowing just how many more I need to create.
Oh and I have ordinary cards to do for the end of the week too but I'd better get back to the phone and see if a) I can get through and b) the computer system is back in operation.

200 Not Out!

I can hardly believe that I have made it to 200 posts. I don't suppose in the beginning that I expected to get past 20 but I have and to celebrate I am going to share my biggest effort yet from Shimelle's Pretty Paper Party class.

I started with a selection of 8 papers and 6 pieces of cardstock, I deliberately went for 'old' papers because the whole idea of me doing the class is to try and get some of those papers used.
First step was to cut them into pieces of varying sizes

And then I got scrapping. The plan was to keep going until the paper ran out.

My first layout was a double featuring more of my photos from Bridgemere Garden World. I added a journalling stamp, flowers, tiny brads, ribbon and alpha stickers to my paper pile.

I then moved onto the cat again and a LO with a totally different feel eventhough that cream and brown polka dot paper appears on both. I couldn't resist using a few themed buttons on this one.

Next I decided to combine the green and blue papers (and more of those polka dots!) and wanted an outdoors shot. Himself off roading on the top of the Clee Hills fitted the bill perfectly.

After that I did leave the brown polka dots alone and mixed blues and cream on a brown background. It also allowed me to use up a couple of things that had been hanging around for quite a while, the kawai burger button and the navy blue diamonte trim, I knew the right page would come along one day!

Back to green tones for the next page and by careful arrangement of elements and using the pale green reverse I was able to use both of my dotty papers on this one without any hint of the pink. The title was a late night play on words that appealled to me for some reason.

By this point my original selection of cardstock had run out so I pulled a sheet of grey out to give a new angle to the blue papers. I drybrushed a little paint around the photo to make it stand out a little better and created a embellishment cluster based upon old postage stamps. I just love this photo of a sleepy calf.

Finally I pulled out some card blanks and made up a selection of greetings cards. I only added a couple of diecut sentiments, an ancient rub on and a cupcake peel-off for these.

At this point, about 1am this morning I decided that, although I still had enough paper left for at least another couple of layouts and another bunch of cards, I had quite honestly had more than I could take of the papers and the remaining pieces were relegated to the recycling. I am really pleased I had a go at this though but next time I would definitely pick papers that were all double sided.

A Winter Walk

Another LO in response to my Shimelle class Pretty Paper Party prompts. This time using a photo from last year's snow.
I did rely on a collection again but I certainly mixed the patterns a little more than I might have done and I like how it turned out. I wasn't sure at first about the flowers but I really wanted to bring some more red onto the page and after a couple of days of it sitting on my desk decided to go with the idea.

My desk is currently covered with more bits for another prompt, the class is certainly getting me scrapping.

It's Wednesday! Really?

The idea of sharing my workspace totally left my mind today and it only just occured to me what day it was and what that meant which is why without further ado here is my desk today. The main feature on the large craft mat to the left is my latest LO for Shimelle's Pretty Paper Party class, not finished yet but well in progress. The papers I pulled out to use on it are balanced on top of my box of christmas stuff on the right of the pic. In between are the various bits that always litter my desk (the black thing in the middle is the transformer for the tv in case you are wondering).

First Class Layout

Here is the first LO from me for Shimelle's Pretty Paper Party class.
I used one of the provided sketches and a selection of scraps of Bo Bunny paper and really like how it as turned out. Lets just hope that I can keep up with the prompts.

Fangs and all that!

Inspired by this month's counterfeit kit I got these papers out and got creating.
The photo is another of my mum's cat. This time she is playing with a nail file, every time you use one she has to have a go although she doesn't actually eat them (unlike the previous cat).
I was also thinking about S's second in good company challenge on her blog. The challenge was to use Making Memories products and to be honest I have never had any of their papers but I do have a lot of their alphabet stickers and used some on this LO.

Today is the start of a new class by Shimelle Pretty Paper Party and her first challenge to the party goers is to post a photo of their paper and here is mine. Well some of it, I opened one of the boxes and pulled a few sheets out. Hopefully I'll be pulling out more than a few sheets and using them real soon.

WOYWW? Again?

Wednesday and WOYWW time again and I haveno idea where the last week went eventhough I managed to post in between it still seems like yesterday that I was posting my desk for the world to see. Amazingly considering the cold that last week's sore throat developed into (great) there has been progress on my desk and although I slept the morning away (again!) here it is for your inspection.
A different angle this week and shock horror a glimpse at the pile of boxes etc that lives beneath.
Front left is a pile of bits that I am looking to do some counterfeiting with. I saw this month's inspiration kit over on the counterfeit kit blog and thought I have some of those papers (thanks to the TKMax sale) so I've looked them out intending to do something wth them. In the middle of my desk you can see the LO I blogged about yesterday needing to be moved to the LO waiting post (or the dolls house roof as it is also known). On the right is my overflowing box of christmas bits for when I feel the urge to knock out some more christmas cards (it might be all anyone gets at this rate) and on the shelf you can just see my rainbow of buttons.

I have added to my christmas card pile this week, thanks yet again to craft club at the bunch.
Three very different cards all made using a single robin postage stamp embossing folder and velums.

Thanks for popping by and remember if you want to see more desks stop by julia's blog

It's all about the story... Really?

Since I've had the freeview set up in my craft room I have had a certain crafty channel on in the background quite often while I'm crafting away and to be honest one of the regular experts is starting to get on my nerves.
Basically she keeps on that scrapbooking is all about the story and that she doesn't use patterned papers on her pages because it detracts from the photos. Well I'm sorry but patterned paper is the main source of embellishment on my layouts and although I do pages without I love the stuff.
I will also confess to doing layouts that are not about a story but rather that showcase a photo that I love, very decadent of me if she is to be believed. Anyway it makes me happy and surely that is the most important thing.

Talking about layouts that are just about showcasing a photo I was creating this afternoon and this is the result.
The photo is another self portrait from earlier in the year and the layout uses patterned papers from Cosmo Cricket's Early Bird range. A choice prompted by a challenge issued by S over at Snaps and Snippets to use Cosmo Cricket products. The rose is by Prima and the 'believe in yourself' rubon was an old one by Making Memories. The background cardstock is actually not as blue as looks in the photo but works really well in combination with the red of the papers.

Seeing Orange

Thanks for all the kind thoughts regarding my sore throat, they didn't exactly help though because it developed into a stinking cold. I feel a lot better now than I have done for a couple of days mainly because I slept most of the morning and into this afternoon. The fun isn't over either because himself came home today complaining of a sore throat himself and whilst he is not one of those men who develop flu at the first hint of a sniffle he is not a good patient either.

Anyhow because I was feeling a bit more human I decided to spend a little time on the pair of LOs I had on my desk the other day.
I played about with a few embellishments before I decided to keep it simple with punched black circles that I stamped on in orange (I don't remember buying this background stamp but like it). I also went with silver ink for my journalling to reflect the silver on black of the number plate.

Maggie commented that the land rover was in need of some mud but this was the easiest kind of trial and a nice dry day. The monday of the same bank holiday weekend was totally different which is why I have no photos of the off road buggy competing in the CCV (the big boys trial) with himself's friend at the wheel however there is a video compilation on youtube here but even that doesn't show you the true state of how bad the rain was that day or the state that the buggy came home in (the footage of it being pulled out of the hole was the day before SIGH)

Sorry to Post and Run...

...But I'm doing the feeling sorry for myself routine today due to a sore throat that developed without warning yesterday afternoon.
Here's my desk though playing host to two scrapbook pages that I started at scrapbook club last night (two trips to the craft shop in one day!) They are designed as a double layout but because they are from the same event I wanted them to go together even if they could end up in different albums. They are in need of embellishment and journalling but I am liking them.

Christmas Candles

Because of the exceptional weather we have been experiencing I'd not touched anything on my craft desk until today. We've been out and about and I've been taking lots of photos for future scrapbooking.
However this morning was craft club at Crafty Bunch and we were working with clear stamps. My set was focused around this pretty candle design
Now I started colouring it in quite quickly and went straight for traditional christmas colours but hadn't even finished the poinsettia before I musing about alternative colour schemes and even plotting one out. I think that I've been influenced by Julie over at Notes on Paper who is currently experiencing a purple phase because I really wanted to have a go with purple shades. Needless to say I wanted to start straight away but I made myself finish the traditional card before starting again in my alternate palette.

And here it is

I'm really liking how this as turned out and I think it might be a colourway that I return to. I used promarkers in Plum, Orchid, Blossom and Satin with hints of Holly and Pastel Yellow (I think that's the right yellow and green), silver pearlescent paper and a sentiment and Candi from Craftwork Cards.