WOYWW 13th Anniversary

 Hello peeps, hope you are all well and been able to get some crafting in?  Well, the lovely Queen of desks Julia has been running this weekly get together for 13 years! Thanks to Julia over the (i think) roughly 11-12 yrs i have taken part i have met virtually and physically some amazing friends and learnt so much. 

Anyway back to the desk, been a bit absent recently what with work and the allotment there hasnt been as much time for crafting or blogging (apart from a trip to Birmingham to see Blondie after 2 years of waiting! It was brilliant).  On my desk this week is my "so called" "one sketch a day" book, this is the first sketch in over 3 weeks!  But its a sketch so that is something! Also the pens and brushes are STILL on the desk waiting for me to start the "watercolour for relaxation" course in the library book I blogged about previously!  Looks like I will have to renew the book again as STILL havent started!  To the right of my sketch book are 2 new badges I bought 1 says "Trust me I'm left handed!" and the other "I may be left handed but I'm always right!!" I couldn't resist these!  Having been called "cack handed" throughout my childhood and forced at school to write with a right handed fountain pen and then get told off for scratching the paper as I tried to write with my left hand!

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are "Cruel Convict Revealed Missing lover!"  well, thats an odd one!  Mind you they often are!

I thought I would also share a couple of sketches i did on location recently too.  On a day trip to Lyme Regis (my travel sketch kit is the black book with a homemade mini pallet and the white (well it was once) was a free sweat band I got from some council event that I use to mop up paint, clean the brush and hold all the kit together.  This was a fabulous sculpture of a juggling hare I came across in a park whilst over looking the sea.

This one was another day trip, this time to Seaton and I sketched this sat in a cafe outside overlooking this amazing sculpture on the sea wall made from metal with a wildflower meadow below and the sea behind, such a fabulous view from our table and the weather stayed nice too!

So, that's all from me, what's on your workdesk wednesday?  Later will be a couple ATCs i will be making to mark the occasion 

kyla

WOYWW

 Happy hump day where we share what's on your workdesk Wednesday with the Queen of Desks the lovely Julia (and I can't believe its almost 13 years since she started it, I think I have been taking part for almost 12 years, it is amazing what a fantastic community she created).

So, on my desk this week is my 365 journal, a bit late in starting my May page so I am going to finish it today so that I am not too far behind.

Also on the desk (on the left) is my ATC die to remind me to make one for the 13th anniversary!  I must admit I forgot to get my "Man Bites Dog" cards out this week, I will try and remember for next week.

So, What's on Your Workdesk? 

Happy crafting

kyla

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

Hello peeps, hope you had a fabulous Easter, Passover, Vaisakhi, or just time out etc over the past few days?  In the UK it was unusual a bank holiday and weekend where nice weather was forecast!!!  Most unusual I can tell you!  So, needless to say it was filled with gardening and sorting stuff out (as there just isn't much time with the pay the bills job and things taking me a bit longer with my rheumatoid arthritis) BUT it was successful as I borrowed from Share Bristol (a great charity where you borrow tools etc) electric screwdriver, drills etc and it enabled me to fix my garden gate and also make a raised bed!  On the downside was finding a rat had eaten a hole in the side of the shed so we had to clear the entire shed out to check no nest and clear the droppings!  But, it was lovely weather so it was all piled up on the wee lawn (goodness knows what our neighbours thought!) and I already had the tools borrowed for the week so I could fix it (we need a new shed as this one is over 10 years old!).  The positive is that the shed is now nice and tidy inside and I have room!!  Unlike my craft room, which at the moment is a split between day stuff, mending hubbies slippers (hence the glue in the blue box and the clips on the right)  a quick sketch and general stuff!

However, I did get a chance to make a card, this is from a speedball lino carving I did, a bit basic but I quite like the simplicity of the hills and fence.

 So that's what's on my workdesk this Wednesday?  What about you?

Happy crafting

kyla

WOYWW

 Hello peeps, and I need to start with an apology as I wasnt able to make it round all the desks last week, time just ran away, after days of meetings and several hours in the dentist chair before I knew it the week had passed!

Anyway, just time for  a really quick update this week.  A few weeks ago a good friend's parents both died within a day of each other.  Really sad and I cant imagine how that was (it was 9 years ago yesterday that my dad died and I cant imagine going through it with both parents).

She is slowly going through their belongings and her mum was a wonderful crafter (even though she was partially sighted, an amazing lady).  So when it came to sorting out her crafting stash a couple of coven members popped up to help her sort through it all.  They kindly sent me photos with "we have put this aside for you!" notes-so I popped over to help (no where near as much help as they had been) and was kindly gifted some new stash!   

How wonderful is this? Some of these items I can think straight away how to use them, others I am going to have to do some research to work out (there is a pack of Tim Holtz distress crayons so will pop over to his page to see how best to play with them).  

A huge thanks and hug to my mate for this and everything she is going through.

Kyla

WOYWW

Morning all, and another What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday thanks to the lovely Julia the Queen of desks (full details are on her blog here).  This was my desk last night it has stuff on it!!!  Some of you may know I have been a member of Bristol Urban Sketchers for many years and we used to have monthly live sketches as a group in various locations around the city.  Over lockdown this moved to Zoom, which was great as we could still see each other and chat and we could sketch all over the globe!  But, it was lovely on Saturday to be able to do a physical sketch crawl, this time at Bristol Beacon.  Its a fantastic airy space and lots of interest outside and seats too so it was a great place to be.

I haven't had time to post the photo of my sketches on the urban sketchers group or indeed clear out my travel sketch kit until tonight, hence its all over my desk!  Also I have new stash!  Well, one of my fineliners ran out whilst sketching and since CASS Art is about 10 mins walk away from where we were sketching it seemed fate to pop up!  They didnt have the type I was looking for BUT they did have a special offer of a set of 5 pens and a free sketch book so it seemed like fate!  I also bought some more watercolour postcards as they are a great item to take with me for art abandonment when I am out and about, also I have recently borrowed a book on technique exercises for watercolour from the library so I thought I could use these as my testing pages.

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are 'Brave Angel Wanted Thousands', well I think we can all think of thousands of brave angels at the moment!

So, What's on Your Workdesk this Wednesday?

Happy crafting

kyla

WOYWW

 Happy What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday, well on my desk is sewing! 

 I haven't sewn for ages BUT I didn't really have a choice.  My old allotment jeans (which have already been patched on the bum and crotch a couple years ago) were on the verge of getting me arrested as I realised my knickers and goodness knows what else were on show!  Now, I cant be bothered to patch the knees but the crotch is a different matter!!  So, first I had to trawl through all my scraps to find some demin then I did a quick repair job!  I doubt I will get another year out of them, but if I can get them to last until the summer then chances are a pair of my non allotment jeans will be ready for re purposing!

Also peeking out of my sewing box is (if I recall) a pin cushion from Lunch Lady Jan at one of the WOYWW crops from many years ago, still in use and going strong!  Thanks Jan!

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are good, nice and simple "Wanted, Hero Cop" - nice.

Hope you are all ok and happy crafting

kyla

WOYWW

 Happy What's on your Workdesk Wednesday and first of all an apology as I didn't manage this week to make it round all the return desks, had hubbys birthday (so day off and we went walking round the harbourside and museum for the day and the light trail) and spent longer than I intended catching up on housework over the weekend!  Anyway, I hope you are all ok, with everything going on, not easy but I forget that crafting can be like minfulness as you often get lost when cutting, colouring etc (oh and I will be honest - often cussing as I cut something too small, drop the glued topper upside down etc - you can understand I hope!)

So on my desk this week is a special card I am making so I have made some green resin toppers to add to it.  I just need to remember that they will take a while for the glue to dry when I stick them on! 

Also last week Bristol held its annual Festival of Lights, it's one week where they place huge specially commissioned light installations around the city. They have a map (think there was about 14 installations) and you wander round for free.  These are some of the installations, a huge slinky on top of cargo containers, buildings lit up with moving lights etc

This is a classic Bristolian saying!

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week whilst not a full statement (as I drew 4 random cards and the first 3 seemed to cover it) I do think the sentiment is fitting "Thousands Devoted Defends".  

Take care and 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

 Happy What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and I hope those in the UK survived the 3 storms we had in the past few days.  Boy it was windy, then floods, then hail, more rain and then more wind!  Red alerts from the Met office (let alone 2) are thankfully rare.

Anyway, on my desk this week is an absolute mess!

I am making the last of my Christmas cards (well until November).  Most years I try to make 20 cards by the end of January.  However, this year has been a bit manic and like many of you, by the time I finish work I am too knackered to do anything let alone housework or crafting.  However I have managed to make 18 cards in readiness for Christmas!!  I know, the C word, BUT I do find making this many at the start of the year just takes a little bit of pressure off the latter end of the year.

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are "Judge Blames Suspect Mayor!"  Well, as I live near a city with a Mayor that are currently undergoing a bit of "debate" regarding their budget probably best not to comment!  

I am now going to put my festive papers, off cuts, stamps and toppers away and I need to crack on with making some birthday cards as I have gotten a little low on them in the past couple months.

So, do share, whats on your workdesk?

kyla