WOYWW 582

The week has flown by again and once more it is time to reveal my desk in all its glory.  Did intend showing you a bit more of my craft room for a change but bad back stopped it.  If you want to see the desks of others just click here and join in the fun each week.

Well, weekend saw me doing another workshop with Tracy Evans, this time on a canvas, but it hasn't been touched since then.  Not got anything stuck down but everything placed where I intended it to go.  Now I might just change my mind so that is why it is in a state of undress at the moment.  This is my desk and you can just glimpse a teeny weeny bit of the project at the end on the pink mat.

Starting left are the stamps I used then comes an assortment of ephemera on my glass mat and then some poly bags with lots of bits and pieces like watch parts book pages, arrows, film strip etc in them.  Behind them are my Distress Inks and Oxides and the texture paste and gel medium which we used.  

The class started on Saturday morning for about two hours and then we had the same on Sunday.  it has been good seeing all the different interpretations that people have done.  Some carried on more or less the same as Tracy did but some ventured out into other colours and even themes for their canvasses.  I'll try to remember to show you mine next week.  I just want to alter the flow of the ephemera to be more of a pronounced sweep.

Made a card earlier in the week for a friend but forgot to take a photograph of it and must make one later and get it in the post for another friend who has a birthday the day after.  Got to get my journal finished - sorry, started, ready for Thursday too so will be busy all day.

Health Update:

No news from the hospital so will not be having the op this month as told.  Will have to have it next month or the battery will be out and I notice I am falling asleep all the time as it is.  Going to the chiropractor on Saturday so hoping the back will be a bit better after that.

Leg healing nicely, now got the ulcer stocking and wearing it each day which reminds me I have two of them to wash so better get to it.  See you all next week all being well.

WOYWW 580

I am sure these Wednesdays come around far quicker than ever they used to.  It's time once more to join in with Julia and her merry band and show what is on our workdesks.  If you want to join in click here and find out all about it - then post and show us what is on your desk.

Well this week I think I am going to find a struggle with this blog posting as everyone seems to be having problems with the new format.  I think it is the placement of photographs that has got to folks out there and if that happens I might have one big meltdown because I like my photos to be centred.  Now if they are, all will be good.  So I cannot wait to post this and see what happens, hence I will keep it short and sweet.

Need to build up my stash of birthday cards so once again I have opted for a Laurel Burch type card.  The members of the club will all get the same card, maybe different colourways but in essence the same card.  That's what you can see on my desk - all I have been doing is colouring in with my Promarkers and fussy cutting inbetween trying to make a folio as instructed by my bff for the club class this month (virtual).

My Tracy Evans book is lying there waiting for the cover to be glued on and then I can put it to bed.  Otherwise there is just my journal open at last week's page but, despite all I said there is still tomorrow's page to be started.  Oh woe is me I have not a clue where to start with the quote for this week.  Better get my skates on - quick!

Health Update:

Leg still wrapped up like a turkey for Christmas, the lovely nurse I saw on Saturday explained that it is being kept wrapped so that it will heal quicker.  She had replaced the steri strips on the  previous appointment but on taking the bandage and dressings off it was still showing signs of bleeding two weeks down the line.  So it was back wrapped and an iodine dressing applied.  Fingers crossed for this afternoon when I go again.

As you are reading this I am probably in Preston having obtained a cancellation for the chiropractor.  it's the first appointment of the day in order to try to keep me as safe as possible from contact with others.  Boy oh boy do I need a bit of manipulation.  However, I'll play catch up later with the comments.

Well that is it for this week, see you around!  (not sure what's happened, it looks just the same as always)

WOYWW 579

Well, update on last week's post is that the treatment room rang me on Sunday to go through some questions with me and check that I would not arrive before five minutes prior to my appointment and I would wear a mask.  I was also asked all the questions related to Covid to make sure I did not think I had it.  Why?  Because they have had people attending with Covid and people without masks.  I told you last week about the non mask wearers.  Mind you, IMO, the security woman down there should be in the foyer, checking these things.  Oh, and you have to be alone, which I was, Chas waiting in the car.  More on my health at the end :( 

Why have they opened bars and things when they know people will not obey the rules?  It seems so silly to me, guess it is to safeguard the economy but it is a worry.  Some towns are seeing spikes (ours was one of four mentioned on the national news) already, presumably from the beach visits, raves, parties and marches that have been happening.  It is probably going to get worse and worse now.  Worrying!

Anyway, not done as much crafting this past week as before.  However, I did make a tag today - just need to put some fingers on the clock and it is ready to photograph and put on Vicky Stampers.  So as it is time to show our desks for WOYWW I had better show you mine.  Here  is the tag on my desk with my pencils

So this is all that is on my desk.  Cropped, it as it is just a dirty mat that you would be looking at.  However, I realised I had not been showing you my iCads for the past few weeks so yesterday I set them out on my desk and here they are:

As you can see, some days I got a bit busy and just used a diecut that I had around the place.  You will also probably notice that there has been quite a bit of influence by Tracy Evans and her "Lives" on the internet.  A lot of them are stamped with Tracy's flowers and then coloured in using my pencils whilst sat with a hot water bottle on my back.  Bliss!

Health Update:

Well the news is that my pacemaker is cream crackered and I have to go in THIS MONTH to have a new one fitted.  I have always said this would not bother me but to be honest it does.  Not from the operation but from the fact that numbers are really on the up and up in our town.  We've gone from having 1's, 2's and a few zero's to figures like 5, 9 and the latest one - 12.  It scares me silly.  Here am I going to the clinic for my leg twice a week and an operation pending in the hospital.

Went to the chiropractor on Friday but did not get treated.  She had double booked and as I had no proof that I had an appointment I was the one who had to leave.  I did get ten minutes attention as fortunately the other lady had got lost with the traffic system in Preston (lots of roads closed to make cycling and walking safer in the town centre).   Came home and tried to book something but the earliest I could get was the 4th August - no good to me if my operation is this month.  Now got a cancellation appointment for the 15th so fingers crossed nothing goes wrong before then, I so need some treatment.

WOYWW 578

Another week has flown by, to be exact another month has gone, and we are into flaming July (with the central heating on here) and we are back with Ms Julia and the WOYWW Gang.  Want to know more about it?  Click here and all will be revealed.

What a day I had yesterday.  The world and his wife decided to ring me and for a time I had phone calls queuing up - and one from my little Sis in Oz.  I sent a message to her to say I would ring in 40 minutes but she said it would be midnight there and she would be asleep.  I will have to ring her when I get back from my Pacemaker check tomorrow, well actually we will probably have a Facetime.  The others, except one, I did ring back but the missing one will now be on Friday.  Life has suddenly got so busy and the scare of hospital visits has been taken out of my hands, as most of you know from Facebook.

Well, this is my desk as it stands at the moment.  I got some new stamps yesterday - Stampers Grove had an offer on a bundle similar to Hochanda, following Tracy Evans' weekend Wow, so I could not resist.  But it has to stop now, I have spent so much money recently I cannot really justify buying any more.  Well, maybe some paint colours I want!!!  (Shhh!)

During lockdown I was not spending on podiatry, chiropractic or haircuts so I convinced myself I could spend the money saved on crafting - and I did!  With a vengeance!  Now I have to start paying for these services I will have no excuse so will have to stop.

You can see I bought one of the big A4 stamps with the feather, the camera and a suitcase on, then there was the Beetle stamp which I honestly thought I would never buy but I fell in love with the way Tracy used it so it had to be bought.  I also said I would not buy the bee stamp as it was too much like the Pink Ink set I had, plus I have four others and two dies of bees but then I liked Tracy's bee so that fell into the shopping basket too.

I could not wait to use the bee stamp and so you see the result of my efforts on my desk with the book I made the other week standing just behind it.  I still have not finished the book off as I wanted it to be all Tracy's stamps in it so was waiting for the beetle and the bee.  It can now be completed - hurrah!  I have some circles on my desk with paint on them - they are things that went wrong and so are just waiting to be chopped up and used somewhere in the future.  The craft mat bits underneath are for covering journal pages up when I am painting on them - ie to protect past and future pages from paint spots.  This is the card in close-up:

Behind my new stamps is a box with bits of card that might also come in useful like the circles you see, and next to it is my spritzer and some glues I use.  That's a new inkpad (Wendy Vecchi Forget Me Not) next to the book then it is paint water, brushes, scissors etc.  The roll, from a Kitchen Roll ,houses some lovely mop up sheets that I intended to use but haven't - might end up throwing them out as they have been there for months.

That is it for this week - see you next week with a bit of luck.

Health update:

Most of you will have seen my leg is bandaged from knee to toes via Facebook.  Spent Saturday morning in A&E having taken a chunk out of my leg.  It's a skin tear but quite a deep one and it got down to a vein which was bubbling out.  I now have the beautiful bandage off but still bandaged from knee to toe and having to sit with it up as much as I can.  This time it is a tubi-grip type thing and not half as nice as the proper bandage was.  Now I cannot get my clog on so am walking about on a bedsock and today, Wednesday, it will have a poly bag around it later so I can go to cardiology for the pacemaker check.  Not scared any more of going - I had my christening on Saturday.  What will be will be.

You probably want to know how I did it so: 

because of my bad back and the new mattress being a bit softish we put a board underneath the mattress on my side.  (Well it slowly slides out.)  It was sticking out - one corner of it, and I walked past and the corner dug in and ripped my skin/flesh off.  Well, not really off as it was still attached and the nurse managed to unfold most of it and drag it over the open wound, now it should heal better.

When I went to the clinic on Monday for them to look at it I was surprised at the number of people not wearing a mask.  Two girls got out of the lift not wearing them and I thought "they have most likely been talking to one another, so spittle may have come from their mouths and be in that lift".   In my book it is NOT ON.  There is a pharmacy attached to the clinic and people in there did not seem to have masks on either.  Why do people not think of others?

Apart from the leg as I said I am at Cardiology for a pacemaker check this morning, I know the battery is running low so will have to see, fingers crossed I get another three months out of it, or six?

Thursday is back to leg dressing clinic and Friday it is the chiropractor - cannot wait for that one.  I have so missed her,  Just about coping.  Think that is it - so long folks!

WOYWW 577

Another week has flown by and it is time again for my weekly show of my desk via WOYWW with Julia, our founder.  Find out what I am on about if you don't already know by clicking here.

This week found me joining in with an online mixed media workshop with Tracy Evans where we were making a little book.  I was thrilled to bits with the way the pages turned out when we used the stencil.  Was it because of the choice of stencil or the technique?  Not sure, but I do know that I really liked the finish of each page before we began adding embellishments.  I still have a couple of pages to decorate but that is only because I wanted to put something gardening related on them but not a different flower.  Still thinking on that one so maybe next week you will get to see it.

These online workshops are ideal for me as I have not been able to attend one at a store in ages on account of my back but doing them at home it does not matter if my back gives in because I just stop and then carry on at my own convenience.

This was my desk on Sunday afternoon following the workshop and it remained like that whilst I did a couple more pages on Monday/Tuesday so due to my back beginning to rebel it is like that now and is likely to stay like that until Thursday or Friday.  It might have a bit more stuff on now than on Sunday.  

The only thing I have done in my craftroom since is sort out a couple of drawers.  I have so much stuff for Tracy's classes now that I have had to give her an extra drawer.  So one is labelled "Tracy's Stamps" and the other "Tracy's Stuff" - I have become a real fan of hers and her Facebook group are lovely.  Everyone is so friendly, someone even sent me some calico because I did not know what it looked like and was unsure if I had some - and wanted nothing in return, didn't even put her return address on the envelope so I could send a 'thank you' card.

Also when you post your efforts you get lots of people giving you a "like" and quite a lot of people will comment as well.  So unlike my monthly group, which is closed at the moment but which I am trying to encourage to do something online to keep us in touch.  Very little traffic on there.  One thing I noticed was that ten people had viewed a card someone had made and put on the group, but it had only three likes so does that mean that seven of the ten who viewed did not like it?

Health Update:

My back has been playing up a lot more but I can help the pain to lessen by sitting down.  Standing does not seem to be good for me at the moment.  My shoulder is no better despite constant icing when I can.  Not long before I can have treatment thank goodness.

I have been having a lot more episodes of breathlessness and am wondering if it is time for the battery to be replaced in my pacemaker.  Next Wednesday I will be missing for a short while as I am due at the hospital to have it checked.  Prayers please for it to have enough life in it to keep me going for another three months at least.  I am not ready for going into hospital for an operation yet with the Covid figures in the north west as they are.

WOYWW 567

Another week of isolation for so many of us - I just hope you are all safe and well and listening to Boris and his band and staying at a safe distance, washing your hands, and doing basically as you are told, to keep you and your loved ones safe and well.

It's at times like this we miss our family and friends but realise we are not alone because out there in the big world there are lots of others going through what we are going through, some going through a lot more, but we are always there for one another in whatever way we can.  That's what happens when you are in  the WOYWW family - there's always somebody to talk to when you need them.  (Thanks Jan for the messages yesterday).  So, if you are reading this and you are not a WOYWW'er then I say "join in" just show us your desk and chat on your blog, you'll find a great welcome and make lots of new friends.

This is my desk today - well one of them.  I have commandeered another table in another room and have a trolley in the dining room plus a large footstool where I put things.  In short I spread all over the house.

As you can see I have been using my Pan Pastels because it is the easiest way I know of colouring the background to my Journal pages for tomorrow. I decided to get all my sponges out and wash them - they looked so dirty.  After about five changes of water and constant squeezing them in and out of the water I could see no difference so I bunged them in the washer and gave them a wash.  What do you think of them now?

Yes, this is after the washer treatment and a good dry out in the sunshine - not much difference is there?  Still they probably won't contaminate with colour by now - good job I have some I have never used.  Think I must have gone overboard buying sponges back in the old days!

I did have a couple of cards to show you but they went in the post without scanning so that's normal for me - one of these days I will make one and you will get to see it on here.

Stay safe and well, keep posting so we know you are ok and join in with my #Cheers on Facebook if you would like to join some of us posting each day something to brighten FB up.  Just put #Cheers so I see it and then I will comment, as will some of the others.  Your lovely work deserves to be seen and shared (and that includes cooking, gardening, sewing, knitting, crochet, or just something to brighten the page up).

God Bless you all and keep you safe.

Health Update;

Back's just as bad, I haven't bothered to mention it of late because there's a lot more going on in the world than me having this pain.  Really bad pain last night but hey ho, it's another day today so a brand new start again.

WOYWW 563

Wednesday means only one thing here WOYWW time is here and I am joining Julia and her little band of cfrafters showing what is on their desks.  Last week I tried to comment on Ali's blog but it kept coming up saying I was "blocked as a suspected bot" no idea what I was doing wrong, tried three times but still the same message.  What is a bot"?  Others had posted - what did I do wrong?

Well, I suppose the topic on most people's minds will be the Coronavirus.  After Boris and his talk about families losing a loved one on Thursday and the papers being full of the quote I don't really want to dwell on it but I do hope that you all are ok.  It upset me so much and still does if I think of it.  Is the man thoughtless?  Sorry, but it did and I had to say it.

Then tonight on the BBC they were offering advice where people had rung in.  One thing was a query about shopping and did you need to wipe it down?  The answer was that really you should wash everything in soap and water.  I felt like some chocolate tonight but after washing it in hot soapy water it had shrunk to almost nothing, my hands were a mess - and I only sang "Happy Birthday Twice" whilst doing it.

I am thinking of you all, and wondering about those in Spain (craftyani in particular) who I don't recall having heard from for a week or two.  I just hope you are all well and safe and you post on WOYWW even if you have nothing to show so that we know you are ok.  Please.

Nothing much to show you on my desk except my new pencils - all 72 of them - from China!  Being paranoid I wiped the package, got rid of it all safely and put the pencils in this box.  Not touched them since but only because I have had no need to.  Then there is my journal but I can't show you inside as it is due to be on my blog tomorrow.   As you don't visit on a Thursday I can show you an older page - this is from three weeks or so ago, just so you know I do something each week:

She had umbrellas for her skirt

Was going to show you my birthday cards but as they are still in the window sill I have not got around to scanning them.  Hopefully next week. 

Health Update:
My chiropractic has closed because of the coronavirus so I am hoping and praying my back will be ok enough with the heat, ice and Chas rubbing it until she reopens.  I did buy a hand massager (special one at £50) in the hopes that I can use it, if desperately needed, despite having my Pacemaker.
Got a sore throat, prickly eyes and runny nose but do not think it is anything to worry about, fingers crossed.

Stay safe Everyone!

WOYWW 558

Last week I visited Shaz in Oz (via blog only, sorry, did not go to Australia) and she mentioned that she had stopped using baby wipes as they were not good for the environment.  That prompted me to tell her about the 'Lawn Fawn Shammy'.  I looked it up on Google and found that it was £5.20 at CraftStash, there are others who stock it but that seemed to be the best price (last week).

It is a green piece of 'something' and you just wet it under the tap, wring it out and then clean your stamps.  Perfect for polymer as well and no messing about disposing of it, it just gets rinsed out under the tap again at the end of the crafting session and it is ready for future use.  I keep mine in a poly bag to keep it damp but if it goes dry it just hardens and needs the tap water again for use.  Caro saw me using one at the last Crop and she bought one too, as did my friend Paul who saw it at my house one time when we had a crafting day (gosh, over a year ago now).  The only thing is it becomes stained with the black ink but it does not affect its use in any way.  Took me a while to get used to it not returning to its green look but I am well over it now and not having bought baby wipes for my stamps for a couple of years I reckon it has paid for itself over and over.  Plus it's my bit for the environment - we all need to think of that don't we, and I am a Goody Two Shoes when it comes to recycling.  Anyway, that's my bit of enabling for you all.

Hope none of you suffered with the terrible floods over the weekend.  It was heartbreaking to see folks having to leave their homes and businesses and most of the news I saw was for areas around me and places where I have friends and family living.  I am going to sort some clothing out and see if it can be donated to the flood victims close by.  Wonder if I could make up a craft kit for a child?

Once again I have been crafting on my knee and using the trolley to hold my supplies.  Here is the top tray

You can see my box of Promarkers (the one I made from two Felix cat food boxes years ago) and in front is my little Moleskin with my latest pages showing my birthday present from my bff (see later).  Behind it just peeping is my pencil case which has all sorts of things in, scissors, ruler, pens, pencils, collage bits; my silver mug with the straw is for my water that I take my tablets with and the yellow topped container has my pain pills in and the long one my daily 'other' pills.  You can just about see the brown and pink bag that Wendy once made me which hangs there for my paper rubbish ready for the recycle bin but I am sure Julia will straight away notice the large gin glass with my Rhubarb Gin and Tonic in.  Yes, I needed a pick me up last night.  Not sure I should with the tablets I take but hey ho, I've been ok before.

Most of you who visit are WOYWW'ers but those who aren't can find out what I am on about by visiting the Queen of Deskers here.  And my 'real' desk yesterday afternoon looked like this

I had been wanting some swirls for my Journal tomorrow so I started to go through my small inkpads.  I could not believe it.  Most of my small 'Chalk' inks had dried up and so they got thrown away (a full tier of that container to the left of the cardstock) but you will never guess what are still working!  I must have had these inkpads from the early days of crafting, if not almost the beginning of my craft life.  How many of you remember Ancient Page?  They are just as good as when I first got them and they have stood unused for at least five or six years.  Shame on me, I found four that were still wrapped, brand new!  Guess who will be using them from now on?  Does anyone still sell them?

Those swirls are Dylusion images that I inked up ready to cut out and put away for a rainy day, ie when I want to use them on a journal page.  When I came to it for my tomorrow's page they weren't really the right shape - story of my life.

I did promise last week to show you my little book that Miranda had shown me, sorry, I fully intended to do a video of it as that is really the only way to show it without repeating or missing some bits out.  So no pictures of that today but I did start making another book with more characters from PaperArtsy in it but that one needs a bit more on the flaps so I think I will have to buy another set or two.  This second book features the little mice as in my Moleskin, and the two stamp sets were an early birthday present from my bff.

On Saturday I went to the club as it was the AGM but my back was giving me some gip when I set off so I got Chas to wait for me whilst I attended the meeting but I came away before the workshop.  Lorraine gave me my birthday present with the instructions I had to open it when I got home.  She knew I wanted one of the mice sets so she bought them both for me PLUS a gorgeous pad of 12 x 12 papers featuring 'bees' because she knows I have a thing about them.  She is so good to me.

Health Update:

Still not heard about the Endoscopy Camera Capsule Test I had so am working on "no news is good news" and there is nothing sinister happening.

Went to see Johanna, my lovely wonderful chiropractor, yesterday and she worked her magic fingers on me.  I cannot believe what a difference she has made to my life.  Three weeks was a long time to go, at the moment, without treatment, so we have discussed me going to the training college in Manchester when she next goes away for anything over two weeks.  It was my suggestion and she thought it a great idea so has said when it happens she will forward my notes to them so they don't have to go through things with me before starting treating.  For now I will just be glad to see her again in a fortnight

WOYWW 555

Julia thinks her desk looks a mess - I think mine is too.  It's been a funny old week with a lot of back pain and a procedure to have at the hospital.  But more on that lot later, you are here to see my desk in all its glory.  Why?  Because that is what I do, each Wednesday joining in with Julia and the other deskers and baring my, ahem, desk.  Pop along to see Julia's and join in the fun.

I did say a couple of weeks ago I would show you what I did with some fairy stamps - well, still haven't done them.  Not for lack of trying as I have started but realised I needed more stamps to do the background (the ones I thought would work didn't).  So here is the start of some fairy cards.

Just to prove I started at last

turning the corner - my Vagabond

and the whole picture (below)

As you can see my desk is in a bit of a pickle.  I am trying to get my journal done for tomorrow's challenge, I have my box of white card out, my trusty old Vagabond is waiting to be put away along with the circle cutters and the sticky backed paper I use for the circles on my fairy cards.  Oh, and there's a few tiny inkpads in a tiered container that I thought I might use but didn't.  A bit further down on the left is my box of Christmas stuff (not put away yet because I cannot reach into the cupboard for fear of my back going) and a bag of dumfing which I have not been able to do - again because of my back.  My Distress Inks are in the lounge on a trolley so I can do a bit whilst resting my back.

Health Update:

Went to the chiropractor on Friday and she was thrilled I had been having such a good couple of weeks so she went even deeper.  Well, it has not been that good since.  I have had pain at the slightest movement in a morning including Monday when I had to go to the hospital for the Endoscopy Camera Capsule.

Getting into the car, ever so carefully, it went and so began the agonising journey, in rush hour, to the hospital for the 8.30 visit.  Just made it.  Luckily they let Chas stay with me and he rubbed my back for a solid half hour and got it stable.  Then I had the belt fitted, the receiver attached and I swallowed the copper pill.  Luckily for me I had the 'new' pill which meant instead of a sip of water I could have a glass and I could drink water when I got home.  At 2.15 I had a slice of bread and butter and at 5.30 I had some fish, veg and boiled potatoes.  Bliss!  At 9 pm I took the contraption off.

(T shirt tucked into my bra so you can see the size of the white belt full of those stickers and wires and the receiver attached by a tube sticking out of the bottom of the belt.)  Brilliant technology!

Next day they rang early to remind me to take the belt and receiver back but as my back was so bad it ended with Chas having to take it and me having to lie flat with a hot water bottle on my back until the neighbours and our gardener had a row!  But that is another story.

Not a good week for crafting or anything - hope it gets better so am resting for two days (if I can, I hate sitting about) in the hopes my back settles.  Can't see the chiropractor for three weeks as she is in India on a much deserved and needed holiday. 

WOYWW 553

We are already one week into 2020 and today I went to see my cardiologist for the annual MOT and came home with an appointment for 2021!  Plus this is my second WOYWW this year.  Can you believe it!

I have been doing a lot of reading into the fires in Australia and I feel very strongly that I want to do something to help.  There are lots of organisations we can donate to and so I wrote a long post about the fires ending with a list of places that you could donate to.  Then my computer went silly on me and the whole post looked like it was on a piece of 'ticker tape'.  (Like a white strip with black writing on it, made for uncomfortable reading).  So I am going to set to and rewrite it but in the meantime please join me in praying for rain - lots of it for them.

As for crafting, well, I haven't done much.  I did stamp all those Zinis I showed you last week, cut them out and coloured them ready for my small Moleskin Journal.  Now I need to do backgrounds.  I don't make resolutions, because they never last with me, but I am going to go back to drawing and painting portraits like I was taught by Tracey (Scott) and I want to try to make cards a bit like those I see others do with Lavinia stamps.  Now I do not get on with Lavinia stamps but I managed perfectly well with Cardio silhouettes at Christmas so I bought a couple of silhouettes of fairies.

My desk shows my portrait journal, the two new sets of fairy stamps and my new journal which I found in the cupboard.  Brand spanking new!  I only have about six pages left in my current Thursday Journal so I was delighted to find two brand new ones - the other has all black pages so was not really suitable for what I want at the moment.

Now I am going to go to You Tube and watch a few videos to see how they do those lovely fairy cards I see.   See you next week - will it be fairies or faces?

Health Update:

Yesterday was not good, neither was Monday when I went to see a friend and walked up and down all the time nursing my back but Sunday was a totally pain free day.  I could not believe it!  Having had a visit to the chiropractor on Friday, first in three weeks due to the holidays, I did not expect a full day like that so it was lovely to reflect on it.  But on the whole I think there is a marked improvement and I keep telling myself there are folks out there far worse off than me.

Cardiologist gave me a thumbs up and as I said at the beginning I have an appointment for my next one - in 2021!

WOYWW 549

Well, I thought I had taken a picture of all my Christmas cards made this year but the one I made for my crafting friends is the one I forgot to take a picture of.  Silly me.  This year, for the first time, I got my 'foreign' cards off well before the final date and quickly followed with a lot of my inland cards.

Then things slowed down such a lot and I was making cards right up until last night and I still have a couple to make - one for Ireland which is going to get in just on the final posting date!

This was my desk yesterday with what I had thought of as my final three cards (some hope)

This is one of my Nativity Cards

and the cards sent to family

Here we are again, two weeks to Christmas and sharing our Christmas goodies with all our WOYWW friends.  Pop along here to see what others are up to.

Such a silly old thing for forgetting to take a photo of my Robin cards which were made using the Crazy Birds from Tim Holtz.  These are the ones I thought I had probably sent to one or two people last year and I made 18 this year thinking it would be quick and easy to do.  No....... t'wasn't!

The white card with the poinsettias was for family and people like my doctor, podiatrist and hairdresser.  Yesterday when I went to podiatry I also took one for the guy who used to be my podiatrist (it's his premises that my current one works from since he retired) and she informed me that he loves my cards and brings them out each year and puts them up with all the new cards he gets.  I took that as a lovely compliment - just hope he is not disappointed this year as it wasn't as labour intensive as the others have been in the past.  Mind you it took me a long time to do all seven of them.

I got some new stamps and they are only tiny and too late to use on cards so as we had no tags and the weather was awful I decided to make them this year - here they are - last night's efforts (more to do today)

My alternative desk - the one for when my pain is bad - a tray with one of those polystyrene ball bags underneath and some crafting fabric on top.  It works well when the pain has reduced and I can sit upright with my hot water bottle and just colour in.

Health Update:

A mixed bag - two wonderful days with no pain until evening time but the rest of the time a bit 'come and go', some worse than others.  Sunday was horrendous and I was in tears.  Chas could not believe it as he hasn't seen me so bad in ages (his words) which has rather upset me (read on).  

Chas was to go to hospital on Monday to have a cyst removed from his lower lid.  It was to be a day job and we expected him to be in and out quite quickly - but not as quick as it was.  His blood pressure was sky high and they could not do the minor operation.  (200 over 108)  It was something to do with the local anaesthetic which has adrenaline in which would have increased his BP even more so it was dangerous to continue.

Now I am worried about him and thinking that maybe seeing me in the state I was in on Sunday had caused stress to make his BP so high.  Especially as he had it taken again last night at the hospital and it has gone down to 144 over 89.  Now he has to have a blood test and see his own GP.  Fingers crossed for a stress free Christmas (Chas is so laid back, he never gets stressed but I know seeing me in so much pain upsets him an awful lot).

WOWW 547

Another week has gone by and we are getting ever closer to Christmas as we share our desks on WOYWW with Julia and the gang.  Want to join us - click here and show us your desk and look at ours?  Mine is below.

This is my desk, the hive of activity in our house.

You can see the production line in process for one of my cards.  Had I realised it was going to take this long to make I would not have done it.  For seven cards I have cut out 14 large, 14 medium and 21 small poinsettias.  I have only stamped the pattern on the large ones at the moment.  Then there are 7 sprigs of holly, 7 scenes which were first stamped, then had Liquid Applique put on then Stickles, which has now run out.  I still have to cut out the card and fold it, Emboss 14 panels and mount the panels and the scenes on metallic card.  Why did I choose to do this?

There are also two nativity scene cards that I made as a trial and now I am making another two for sending abroad.  I want to make some other cards similar to these but as I have almost finished the Christmas cards that I am making I think I might (just might) make some ready for next year.  I bought some stamps from Cardio to make them with after getting the free ones on the magazine that they talked about at our club.  Here they all are:

The top one and the last three are all from the magazine and you can see I used the nativity one on the cards.  Now I want to make some with the other stamps as well.

Guess I had better get on and stop wittering on here.  I need to leave time to visit some desks and see what others are up to so I'll say cheerio for this week and see you next week if I don't see you at your desk.

Health Update:

Not had a good week with the back but at least it is better than it used to be with the periods of getting rid of the pain being quicker than they used to be - and I have gone two weeks since I saw the chiropractor - roll on Friday when I see her again!  Most times it does not take as much massaging as it used to and I am following the advice of a friend who has read that you should take your medication before you get to the stage where you really need it.  

Finished with the Pain Management Classes so now got my Wednesdays free - and I got a certificate to say I had attended.  The last session was taken up a great deal with filling in a questionnaire.  This was not anonymous and I feel that people do not give honest opinions when their name is on the front.  I did try to be honest in some areas but must admit I was a good bit lenient in some.  I know for a fact that others just filled in with what they thought the staff wanted to hear.  It's human nature I guess.

Not heard from the hospital re the Meckle's test, just hope it does not come at Christmas for the operation but I really don't think it will.

WOYWW 539

Another week has flown by.  Or should that be Whizzed by?  Again I have not much to show on my desk as crafting has taken a bit of a back seat and tv watching has taken over.  I am hooked on Celebrity Masterchef, Homes Under the Hammer and Antique Roadshow.  Not sure what the link it there.

My lovely friend Lorraine came over, all the way from Liverpool, to show me what she had made at the Eileen Hull workshop.  Well, not so much what she made but the die that was used.  She hadn't bought one but then she had entered a draw to win one and she had - first prize which included lots of other stuff too.  She brought a die for making a little Gingerbread House which you can see I have the components cut ready for assembling and she left it so I could do more along with the suitcase die you can see at the back on a pop up card which she also left.  Afraid this has been like this for a few days now and can't see any changes before weekend.

Health Update:

Well, the main reason for non-crafting is that on Thursday night I must have had my hot water bottle too hot and fallen asleep on it.  Woke up next day to find I had some fabulous blisters on my back, the largest one ended up filling with blood and measured about 2" long.  Needless to say I could not have my usual chiropractic treatment as a result and so this has been a bad week with pain and the blisters.  Tried just putting a dry dressing on to protect it and some Savlon cream (a 'no no' apparently) but had to go to the triage nurse at our surgery yesterday.  She put a dry dressing on and I am awaiting a call from the District Nurses who will dress it for me.  Hope they don't shout at me.  I know I was stupid but the pain was so intense and now I am suffering - no hot water bottle, blisters and pain!  Hopefully should be back to normal soon.  But not using a hot hot water bottle ever again.

WOYWW 538

"Another Day Another Dollar - Another Week Another WOYWW.  September is almost through and it will be Christmas before we know it, the days are going just that bit too fast for me.  Did a card the other day for a Mingle I was in and put it in the envelope without taking a scan of it to show you.  However I was up in the night for an hour or so and began using some of the Laurel Burch cats I had already coloured in to make some cards I wanted to post out to say thank you for some flowers I had had sent.  

Starting left we have a postcard from the lovely Tracey Easson which is covering a package she sent to me with a little project for me to do whilst my back is bothering me (to take my mind off things).  Won't show you until it is finished.

Then we have the Laurel Burch cards I made at the back plus some of the cats waiting to be put on more cards - plus a mountain of butterflies.  Oops, I can see a very dirty water jar there extreme right, how remiss of me.  The kitchen roll is one I used to use when I was doing a background in my journal, I used it to roll over the whole page taking some of the ink/paint off to help it dry more quickly.  The kitchen roll usually turns out good too - for backgrounds!  It's there for when I start doing backgrounds again.

Just my usual stash of things that are always there in the little cubby holes ready for when I need to use them.   One of the canisters/containers must have leaked as I found a 'crusty' little mess on my desk a while ago - still don't know which one it was.  The shiny thing behind the two cards is my tin for my Gelli Plate.  I didn't even think to move it before I took the photo but when I came to crop them i saw my reflection in it.  Good job I got to crop the photo and therefore mostly remove it.

Well, that is it for this week folks.  Hope you all had a good week and there is another ahead.

Health Update:

Hate to tempt fate and all that but I really do think the chiropractor is helping.  I went out on a 'jaunt' last Thursday and apart from a couple of twinges which we soon sorted out with a bit of massage and a hot water bottle (yes we travel everywhere with a hot water bottle and large flask of hot water) I had a relatively pain free day.  Friday was a mixed day, but not as bad as it has been.  Then the weekend was much the same as Thursday, this time very little pain both days until early evening but again quickly sorted.  Monday was a different story - had another of my awful days spent mainly in the chair with a hot water bottle and the occasional ice pack.  Occasional because I needed the hot water bottle most of the time.

Yesterday was an ice/heat/rest kind of day but not as bad as it has been.  I expect I will get days where I am in pain but at least I am having some life now and then. Sorry about this folks but I feel a bit like sticking two fingers up to the national health people who told me it could not be cured, that chiropractors and the such like were a waste of money.  Glad I believed in the power of prayer and the intervention that He was sending me.  Thanks for the prayers folks, means a lot.

WOYWW 537

Not much to show on the desk again this week.  Did mean to show you a t-shirt I have been painting but cannot find the photograph taken earlier.  Still, that will do next week maybe.  In the meantime this is my desk, with a couple of Journal Pages on it:

I want to enter into the challenge on Art Journal Journey (with our very own Elizabeth (and Bleubeard) at the helm alongside Susi).  The challenge is to use polka-dots, stripes, plaid, pattern or any one of these, not necessarily all of them.

Here's a complete view of my Journal which is done with magazine collage on a painty background.

The background was left over brayer paint and then I put some numbers on with a deeper ink colour through a stencil, outlined in white Posca pen.  Then I stamped some circles (polka-dots?) with Sepia ink and attached my bird.  Apparently he haunts Art from the heart so if you go up there one dark night you might see him flitting about and collecting leaves in readiness for his new home build.

Health Update:

Went to pain management clinic and they have given me some websites to look at prior to enrolling me on the group study (which I did not want) in October.  Sounds as if they really do believe this pain will stay with me for ever.  

Tried to come off the codeine myself - terrible symptoms.  The worse is the restless legs and so I am having very little sleep.  Will be up early in the morning or maybe I will fall asleep - time will tell. Still, there are those who are a lot worse off than me.

WOYWW 536

Well, here we are again - another Wednesday - another WOYWW - these weeks are simply flying by.  It will be Christmas before we know it - hush - we have Halloween before that - but as I don't make Halloween cards to send out it doesn't quite matter as much.  I do like a good old Halloween display though.

Not been doing much crafting.  I do have a little project on the go but it is like walking in glue with it as I have only been able to do a tiny bit at once, I need to be in my craft room to do it.  Not too far off finishing but then it is only a tiny project.  Can't show you as yet, it wouldn't be worth it for what little there is of it so you will just have to wait.

I can, however show you two cards that I missed putting on here when I first did them, waiting for the recipients to get them.  Both were for "Mingle challenges" on one of my favourite internet groups.  The first one was to make something that was black and white with a hint of colour.  For this I chose to use white embossing powder on a black background.

The words are a bit squiffy aren't they, they were done in black with clear embossing powder over the top and the touch of colour was on the stems of the stylised flowers - you can just about see the pale green.

My second card was another of my Laurel Burch purchases.  Bought to make a card for my 'horse mad' little friend who has a birthday coming up.  Hope she likes it as she is only 12 and may not understand Spirit Horses and why I have coloured them as I have.  Anyway, the one I am showing you today was for a "Rainbow" swap and I coloured the horses in various shades of the colours of the rainbow.

Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain - gives you the colours of the rainbow - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet.  That's how I remember them.

So that is it for this week, no desk as such hope I am forgiven, but here is a

health update:

Last week I told you I had a window of 'no pain' on the Monday.  Well, it happened again on Saturday and I had a good day with less tablets than usual, same on Sunday so I was getting quite hopeful.  But then on Monday it started off well but soon the pain was back. Tuesday not good either but it is back to the chiropractor on Friday and then on Tuesday next I will be having my first session with Pain Management.  No doubt I will report honestly on the latter.  See you next week!

WOYWW 535

Cor blimey, it's September already and here we are with Ms Julia again and her WOYWW blog hop.  Pop along to find out what I am on about.  To explain it a bit more here is my desk, photo taken yesterday in readiness for the hoppity hop hop.

Yes, rather set up.  It was Shaz mentioning those ColorBox tools (see the RH pot) last week.  Those are mine.  The pot is a can I made years ago when on a CHA workshop.  It was using Lumiere paints and we painted the can first of all, then stuck some sand like stuff on to give it a bit of texture, a picture and some plastic buttons.  I still remember it well.  It is finished off with a piece of string tied around the top for a handle

Couldn't show you that one without showing you my funny faces.  This was one I made with my friend, Liz Welch a few years ago on one of our weeks away crafting.  It was not long after she had done a Nolitex exhibition where she made this HUGE pocket watch and covered it in faces for numerals.  Well, she had me putting some gauze type fabric on a can, wrinkling it up and then painting it. It must have had some kind of stiffener in it before I coloured and draped it on.  Next was to make those little faces with paper clay.  Each one had to have a different expression so it was good fun making eyes, noses and ears in different ways.  Wish I could find a photograph of her pocket watch, it really was something rather special.  She had it on a wall in a spare bedroom later and I was thrilled one weekend to be sleeping in the bed by the side of it.  Hard to believe she is no longer with us.  Such a talented lady.

Well, this is turning into a lot of chit cat and, as it is Tuesday evening when I am writing this, I am falling asleep.  Think I dropped off twice already!  Just before I leave you, remember the little guy I asked you to identify a short while ago?  Well here he is and as you can see he is a hand held fan - perfect for the hot sunny days we had.  He came, originally, filled with sweets.  Think he can go away until next year now though.  Don't you?

Health Update:

Nothing to report really.  My chiropractor is on holiday as I mentioned last week so no treatment until the 13th.  Bad weekend but then Monday brought about three hours of 'no pain'.  I was beginning to think something had moved in my back and it was over.  No such luck and yesterday was a bad day again.  Ah well, Rome was not built in a day.  And there's a lot worse than me out there.  I keep reminding myself - I have 'hope' and I have 'faith'.

WOYWW 534

Well here we are, another week has just flown by and I don't really have much to show you on my desk.  I have been busy putting the finishing touches to the painting of my rag book and I think (after checking and re-checking several times) all the painting is now done.  So the next thing is to get some lining (cannot remember what it is called) and start to stitch it up.  I might even show it to you before it is sewn on the machine, ie, just tacked into place.  Then again, I might even have it sewn up if I can remember how to thread my sewing machine never mind use it.  But, think that is a big "might"!

Thought I would show you what is on my real desk - my boxes of paints.  Well some of them - the acrylic ones

My desk - full view

Deco Art & Golden

All kinds

PaperArtsy

Amsterdam (small ones)

The two nappy boxes, left over from my cake icing days, are now full of paints, one with my Deco Art and Golden products in and the other with Stewart Gill, Dylon Fabric Paints, Lumieres and many, many more.

I do have some large Amsterdam tubes on my shelves but these are only repeats of some of the small ones so I just left them there, preferring to use the small tubes.  I know I have nowhere near as many PaperArtsy paints as Helen but I have promised myself I will not buy any more paints until I have used some of these up.  

Why am I showing you these?  Because it is What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday again. The day when lots of us gather together and celebrate ten years of desk sharing.  We actually share a lot more than just desk sharing.  Friendships have grown and there is a lot of love and loyalty within this gigantic blog hop started by Julia here.  If you have happened here by accident and never heard of this blog hop then why not join in and make some new friends, I can promise you will get a warm welcome.  See you there?

Health Update:

As you know I went to see a chiropractor last Wednesday and I was a bit of a wreck.  Well, it was a very pleasant meeting and despite what I have heard about chiropractors she did not hurt me one bit.  She is so gentle and said she has to be extra so because of my Pacemaker etc.  She treats a baby of five months and an old man of 93 so needs to be careful with them.

After establishing my past history and the state of play up to now she more or less said I was a bit of a mess ie there is a lot wrong.  In her opinion (and that of my Chinese doctor) it is nerve pain and not muscle that I am experiencing, my nerves are twisted in my thoracic area and my rib cage is out of alignment.  Think I have that right.  Anyway, after a week of doing as much "heat/ice/rest" as I could fit in each day I went back to see her yesterday and had a second treatment.  This time it was more manipulation and she feels positive that she can help me.

I am not pain free, in fact I have felt pretty much the same but whilst doing the treatment above I have been comfortable - and I have "hope".  The biggest thing for me is that she has given me hope! Unfortunately she is on holiday for two weeks and I will not see her again until the 13th September but she is going to work out some exercises that I can do, so not to cause problems with my Pacemaker, and will send them through to me in the next day or so.  In the meantime it is "heat/ice/rest".  So I am a much happier bunny than I was.

Lots of you came up with great suggestions and you made me feel better knowing that there were other options out there that I had not thought about.  So, should this not work there are other things I will explore - I am not going to give up!  YOU made me feel so much better about myself and restored my faith.  

Thank you so much, being part of WOYWW really is being part of a big family.