WOYWW

 Happy Whats on you  workdesk Wednesday.  Hope you all had a fabulous week?  We were lucky in the UK as the weather wasnt too bad at all, so lots done on the allotment.

Been a bit slow making my return visits, I will try harder, honest!  On my desk this week is a card I need to make for a upcoming birthday and also some paint brushes!  I bought 2 new brushes at the weekend (well I had to walk past the art shop to get to the Bristol Urban Sketcher meet up at the weekend so it seemed like the ideal opportunity!

The reason I was looking for a couple of brushes is that I borrowed this art book from the library.  I looked through my brush roll (mainly filled with my Dad's brushes when I sorted out his kit after he died a few years back) and it didnt look like I had them (the author suggest  synthetic round No 2 and No 6 being the most useful for the 25 techniques in the book).  So, now I have the brushes I dont really have any excuse not to a least make a start on the techniques!!

At the weekend we also had another Bristol Urban Sketchers meet up (physical rather than the zoom ones we have been doing over the past couple of years).  This time it was in Berkley Square, a lovely outdoors venue, nice and quiet with tree cover (in case we had some showers).  There was about 17 of us sketching at various places across the park, some on the grass (some really organised who brought their own small fold up seats)

This was my sketch, I tried something different this time as I splashed some colour down on the page first in the general areas and then added the detail after.  Something I think I will try again as it wasnt as daunting as an empty page!

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week - well, new prez!  You couldnt make this up!  These are random cards, honest!!  Anyhoo, are you sharing your desk?  What have you been up to?

Happy crafting

kyla

WOYWW

Happy hump day where we share our desks across the globe thanks to the Queen of desks the lovely Julia, full details can be found here. After everything going on in Ukraine and the feeling of helplessness (we are regular supporter of Medicine Sans Frontier and they have a page dedicated to how to help here ) I decided when I got home from work to shut off and craft.  

So my desk photo is from last night. I needed to do my bullet journal and my 365 journal so I started spraying coloured waterbased sprays all over the pages and added a water spray to move the colour around the page, i will finish the pages off today ready to start filling in immediately.

The "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are  "Tourist Stabs Angry Exec!"  Well, remembering all the issues many people faced in the past 2 years getting refunds etc from cancelled/postponed holidays I can fully understand this headline!!

So, What's on Your Workdesk this Wednesday?

Kyla

WOYWW

Hello peeps and welcome to my desk!  Well, sort of its actually the garden table with a cover over it as I have been getting the varnish out and it stinks!  A few weeks back I shared with you the wooden plant labels that I bought from a local charity, the Brandon Trust, for adults with learning disabilities and they make stuff out of wood and make these from the offcuts.  They are a decent size (about the length of a paperback book) and are £1.50 for 5 and all the money goes to the charity so I often buy a pack when I go past.  I paint them with acrylic and use a posca paint pen to create the lettering.  I have been slowly making a whole load of them and these are the latest ones.  I then give them 2 coats of yacht varnish to hopefully winter proof them.  Takes a while for the coats to dry before I can turn them over and repeat the process hence it takes a while but I think they are worth it. 

Also thought I would do an update on another make,  my final batch of elderberry vinegar was ready recently.  I do love this and have made it for a few years now.  Its great over salad or even added to soda water to drink like a victorian shrub.  Either way, elderberries are meant to be good for the immune system so its always worth me making some and it tastes delicious too.

So, what's on your workdesk this Wednesday then?

Kyla

WOYWW

Hello peeps, well I am feeling a lot better, still a long way to go with my neck and shoulder but finally managed after almost 6 weeks to get an actual physio appointment so am hoping that they can help as the medication is not great to be honest.  Could be a LOT worse but it is frustrating and has really slowed me down and limited what I can do!

Anyway, back to crafting.  On my desk this week is my 365 journal, I know, get me, ahead of the game and getting it ready before the next month has even started!!  Let's be honest that does NOT happen often, BUT I am very aware that work is crazy busy at the moment and is only due to get more busy so I thought I would take a rare moment to try to get ahead of the game and start Octobers page.

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are "Hubby Convict Sues Judge"!!!!  Well, that really is an attention grabbing headline, that is for sure!

 Thought I would also update on the latest make from the allotment.  This time 3 jars of piccalilli.  Last year was the first time I have ever made it and hubby really liked it so I made 3 large jars this year and hopefully it will mature over the next few months and taste as good as last years.

So, Whats on Your Workdesk this Wednesday?  Are you sharing?  Go on, you know you want to!

Happy crafting

Kyla

Woyww

 Morning peeps, so on my desk this week are some plant labels.  I bought some thin wooden blanks from a local Farm that is run by the Brandon Trust (brilliant charity working with adults and young people with learning difficulties and autism).  In their farm shop they sell some wooden items they make in their workshops and they were selling 5 wooden labels for £1.50 so I bought a couple packs.

I am using old acrylic paints up and then will use my white posca pen to write the produce eg Beetroot and do a couple coats of yacht varnish (again as I have part used tins to use up).  If I can get a couple years at least out of them I will be very happy.

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this weeks are 'Indicted Brave 1st Lady Weds Mob Boss!!!!'  Well, no comment is probably best with that headline!

Hope your not melting too much if your in the UK, the west (where I am) have had the first ever UK Amber Extreme Heat warning!!! Needless to say all the allotment watering etc is being done VERY early before work at the moment when its still not too hot..

Stay cool and feel free to share what's on your workdesks this wednesday

kyla

WOYWW

Hello peeps, sorry wasn't able to post or visit last week as been chokka with pay the bills job. But, I was determined to take part this week so i took this last night (in the now lighter evenings in the UK- woo hoo, happy days).  I made my April page for the 365 journal challenge and my 'Man Bites Dog' cards this week are 'tourist tricks killer, again!!'  It's the 'again' that makes me wonder!! 

So the desk has some stuff on it, but i thought i would share how it was at the weekend- well I think lockdown 3 in the UK may have gotten to me finally as I decided to clean my craft room!!! I know!! Not just a quick dust but taking stuff off shelves and proper damp dusting!!! Well, once every few years I suppose isn't too bad! This was the during shot

But this was the after and I must admit it does look and smell better!!! 

Then on my dailywalk i spotted this in a bus shelter

It was lovely finding it, mainly as I also abandon art so it was lovely to see someone else does it also.

So, what's on your workdesk Wednesday? 

Kyla 

WOYWW

 Happy hump day so that means sharing our desks with the lovely Julia queen of desks for What's on your workdesk Wednesday. 

To be honest this was taken last night as i had a day off work so could spend some decent time in the room actually crafting and making some cards  

 

My 'man bites dog' cards makes you wonder what else the 'orange one' has been up to?! 

I thought I would post a photo from the weekend too. For the past year the Bristol Urban sketchers group that i have been a member of for a few years have been doing virtual zoom meetups where we have a pre arranged location and you can sketch and chat on video for a couple of hours. It's lovely seeing places from all over the world (this one was Norwich but the next is Singapore), sketching and just the general 'chat', boy i have missed general chatting! 

So, what's on your workdesk this Wednesday? 

Happy crafting 

kyla 

Woyww

Hump day again so that means sharing our desks with What's on your workdesk Wednesday and the queen of desks Julia on Here. On my desk this week is a Christmas present i am making, i had some blank mdf pieces like this glass holder (you place this over a wine bottle and hang the glasses on the side) so thought they may make nice presents just need to find something to decorate it with. 

My 'Man bites dog'cards this week are 'devoted actor weeps for bored wife'!!! 

 

For those that were on the 600th WOYWW zoom calls at the weekend (it was brilliant and the longest i have crafted for since last year so brilliant) i spent the calls making my first ever willow wreath with items from the garden, allotment and bits foraged on my walks. This is the finished wreath, quite pleased with it as it was free! 

So i decided to make another one, this time for the front door. We spotted someone cutting their hedge so grabbed a handful of evergreen bits, added some ivy, holly, rosemary and sage. No idea how long it will last, but again cost nothing apart from a bit of time and research. 

So, what crafting have you all been up to? Feel free to join the gang over on Julia's blog and dare to share! 

Happy crafting 

Kyla 

Woyww

Happy hump day so that means sharing our desks with the lovely julia as Queen of the desks (for almost 600 times. I haven't been since  the start but certainly from early on, and through her blog I have made and met some great friends). 

So what's  on your workdesk Wednesday? Well, finally after seeing so many of your desks with the C word makes I thought I would make some cards. 

For the past few years I make Christmas cards in January and put away so that I know come November I don't need to panic too much as I have a stash already. 

 So looking through my pre cut stash in my craft room whilst on annual leave last week I came across some Christmas die cuts from previous crops and decided this was a great opportunity to make a dent in the stash and use some of the small card blanks that I also found at the back of the card blank box! 

I thought it would be safe to use the 'Man bites dog' headline cards again-maybe  not!! This is the order they were drawn in but any order isn't the best headline considering!! 

So, dare you bare your desk? Clean, tidy, creative or full of new stash (looking at Shaz Silverwolf and Helen as the long standing enablers!!) feel free to share via Julia's blog (link on the right hand). 

Happy crafting

Kyla 

WOYWW

So, hump day and that means What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday where we share our desks thanks to the lovely queen of desks Julia here  and it is also the reason some of us know it is a Wednesday in these strange times!!

So, on my desk this week, dont be too shocked, some crafting!  I know, go me!!  I admit I have a couple half days off work in the past week so I was able (between the garden and allotment) to get some crafting done.  Not much I admit, but its a start and does use up some more stash so that can only be a good thing to be honest!  As well as a couple of handbag cards (I think I may have bought the card blanks at a WOYWW crop years ago and still have about 4 or so I haven't used so thought I could use some of the bigger pieces from my off cuts box up.

Also is a sketch of a lady picking lavender that was cut out of a calendar from last year (tell me I am not the only one who reuses/upcycles calendars etc to make cards/tags etc and it seemed fitting since I have just started cutting this years crop from my front garden ready for drying.

My "man bites dog" cards this week are 'Lost Blonde Blames Brave Nude'!!  Well, considering some of the scenes we have seen in Weston Super Mare and Bournemouth over the past week I could imagine this as an actual headline!

Happy crafting

Kyla

WOYWW

Happy hump day!  Yep, today thanks to the Queen of desks the lovely Julia here for running (nearly 11 years now!) "What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday" - several of us across the globe actually know it is Wednesday in these unusal days!!

On my desk this week is my 365 journal.  After all these years I am still doing these, just a quick one liner of something that happened that day, I can fit a couple years in one book and they are really interesting to look back across.

Behind the journal is the lovely card Julia send me in the post, it was fab to get it and some lovely words inside too, hence pride of place on my desk (until my work gets spread back all over!)

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are 'Mayor Blames Angry Wife'-ooh will watch the news!

So, do you dare to bare your desk?  Be it tidy, creative (aka messy), full of work or anything else?  Full details are on Julia's blog linked above, we are across the globe and a friendly bunch

Happy crafting

Kyla

WOYWW

Morning all and if you are joining for "What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday" then hello!

Rather than just my workdesk I thought I would show how it looks after my day off last week when I decided to tidy it.  Well, I was going to do the desk only.  This is it all stripped off and blue tack peeled off and cleaned etc.  BUT that spread out across the week and weekend and I ended up clearing the large bookcase next to it, then at the weekend the smaller units and a hidden one that is behind!  I have only just got it all back together and I haven't even started looking at the unit on the left where I store my dies, papers, resin etc!!

 

I thought I would organise my findings and embellishments too (WHY????) and decided that the bottles my tablets come in would be perfect storage!  All labelled, really pleased with these and how they turned out.

 Stumbled across my mums old sewing box from when we were kids, brought back SO many memories, mainly of mum having to sew yet another patch on my trousers!

 This is the after shot, yes I know it doesn't look much different BUT there are a few empty drawers in the small sets in the bookcase and now I know where things are!

 A few of the gifts I have been lucky to receive from fellow crafters over the years (sorry I cannot remember who this is from, but I loved it and all these years later it is still on display)

 This amazing tag book I think was from angela the crafty cat and in the background is my first time printing, the black pointed finger I think was Donna (adoone thing) at a WOYWW crop many years ago too.

 and in the middle is  a cut away book swap in 2015, with Sarah, Carmen and Jaz who are all talented artists which was based on Discworld (love Terry Pratchett)

So, bit of a cheat this week as it is my desk today but also a catch up!

Happy crafting

Kyla

WOYWW

Hello peeps and I hope you are as well (mentally and physically) as can be expected in these unusual times?  So, after a hectic few weeks I got some crafting of sorts done!

My rhubarb this year is very poor but a fellow allotment plot holder kindly gifted me some of hers so I set about making some of my chutney.  This was last night and my "desk" is the kitchen but at the moment I am full on with work so have only had the odd evening I have been able to catch up.

The great thing is that the chutney will be for next year, sadly not enough for the usual Christmas presents I make, but just about enough (hopefully) for us (I do like chutney!)

So, What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday?

Kyla

Oriental cards

 Finally made some cards recently, I know the recipient of one of these has opened it so I can publish it now.

I used pages from a book I bought as background papers, love oriental books as the papers are often really thin but smooth so take inks etc really well.

I also added images I matted and layered and some embellishments in the bottom right.

Now off to make more cards, I may be on a roll!!

kyla

Birthday cow card

I made this card recently for my mates birthday.

I love the saying "call when its time for cake"!

The background is once again my paint sprays this time with some watercolour splashed over the top.

I fussy cut the cow out and mat and layered the sentiment onto green foiled card and edged the card with the chisel tip end of a promarker, which if you draw it along at an angle is really easy to get a nice even line all around your card.

Happy crafting

Kyla

WOYWW

So in an attempt to keep my crafting up I am trying to do a Whats on your Workdesk Wednesday and one other crafting session a week, who knows how long this will last?!

So, I am trying to play catch up.  I haven't got my March 365 Journal pages ready yet and already we are almost at the end of week 1 so I need to sort this out quickly.

I have gesso'd the page and added some pale blue spray which I smooshed around with a cloth and sprinkled water over to lift some of the colour off.

Not sure what else to do with the page, but I plan on coming back to this later to finish the page so i can start capturing each day before I forget what I have done in March already!

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week is 'Star Sues Heiress Convict'!!  Ooh intrigue!

So, there we have it, are you joining us showing your desk be it clean, dirty, empty or full of some amazing stuff?  If you'd like to all the details of how you can join this happy band across the globe can be found on the lovely Queen of the desks Julia's blog here

Kyla

A little bit of what you love does you good

Following on from my previous post  about crafting being my mental saviour there are a few things I make sure I try to keep up to date with, and they only take a few moments.

As I explained previously I love to abandon art, quite often just a quick sketch on a tag, but the act of making art for me is important.

Another thing I do is I keep a tin where I write down a small snippet, maybe something we did or a joke I heard.  Not every day but most weeks there will be a couple of things.  Then at new years my husband and I sit down and relive all the lovely moments that happened over the past year  (I blogged about it here)

The other crafting thing I like to make time for is my 365 Journal, started by Kate Crane over on her blog, they are a group that do a small journal entry each day.  I have been doing this nearly every day for 4 years and it is fantastic to flick back through and remember things that I have forgotten, still dealing with, or made me smile.

Some small but simple things that bring me pleasure and cost very little.

Happy crafting

Kyla