WOYWW #343

Wow. It's been quite awhile since I had time to sit and write on my blog! I have a new job at Lee Valley Tools (which sells much more than tools!) and we got crazy long hours over the few weeks before Christmas. Of course, now that that is over, I'm sick, and resting up at home. Hopefully will be able to go back tomorrow, but that means I can catch up today! 

First, my Christmas tree. We had it up since the end of November, which was great, since I don't know if I would have had time after that. The lights can be colored or white, the colored shows up best in photos!





Here is my desk today, the last thing I did here was madly put tags on my presents to go under the tree.


Just a tiny spot to work on right now!




The mess to the right. . . 
and to the left. . .




3 of my 4 boxes of Christmas stamps sit on the floor for me to trip over, and there is a box of unmounted Christmas stamps as well!





So that's my craft room for today - hopefully next week my desk will be all cleaned up for the New Year!




Bye for now - thanks for visiting!

WOYWW #337

Another week has flown by! Time to see what everyone has been working on! If you don't know what WOYWW is, just click on the paisley square on my sidebar!

Here is my desk this morning:

I was making Christmas cards yesterday (finally!) and needed to weigh one down to dry, which is the stack of stamps and gesso you see!

Here is the card:

You can't see it in the photo, but the white background part of this photo is embossed Swiss Dots, so it needed the night of drying for the image to stick to all the tiny dots!

Here are my cards so far. Sometimes I choose one to mass produce, so I don't have to make a different card for every person. Which one would you choose? (click on the photo to enlarge)

Here is my finished journal page for this week, such a sad ending to the week.

I have detailed the Paris attack under the flap. In the circles I have put a Dalai Lama quote:"Don't pray for the people of Paris, pray for peace in the world" In other words, focus our energy on the positive (peace) and not on the negative (ISIS). But our hearts still go out to the people of Paris who had to suffer through this terrible attack. Pray for Peace.



Here is my new journal page, ready for writing on.

I love this little detail stamp!

I find it very interesting how when I make these journal pages at least a week ahead of time, they seem to be just the page I need on that particular week, For example, when I made the flap on my last journal page I had no idea what I was going to put there. But then Paris happened, and that was the obvious place to journal that horrible night.  

Thanks for looking, I appreciate any and all comments! Don't forget to vote for you favorite card! I will need to choose one to mass produce! Thank you!

WOYWW #336

Another Wednesday! I have the day off today, wonderful that I can catch up on bloggy things! To find out more about WOYWW just click on the paisley button on the the sidebar!

This is my desk this morning - just working on my journal, writing my daily "stuff" - very boring! But my cat Inky likes to come and sit right on top of it! I think she's trying to send me a message. . .

I finished my next background page for my journal - started writing on it today

It has a flap for secret writing! Not that I have any secrets to write at the moment - we'll see how I use it! I used a cloth doily as a stencil in another journal, ripped it out and used it on this page!

Next I need to start on my Christmas cards - you heard right - start!! None done so far!

Must get back to life, thanks for looking! Remember - comments make my day! I appreciate each and every one!

WOYW #335

I've been away for quite awhile - I got a new job! It has been a bit of a juggle with new job which has crazy hours, my online business, keeping house, and making art. For some reason art seems to come as a reward for doing all those other things! I'm winding down my online business, but hat housework keeps on going! Work is fun and challenging, and I'm getting lots of exercise, and it doesn't come home with me like owning my own business did! So I want to get MORE involved with my art.

Here is my desk today - I actually got a bit of a shock when I went to photograph it today! It's very rarely this clean!

I was keeping my journal up until my crazy hours happened, then I picked it up again just last Monday. I did have lots of morning "zen" time to do zentangles, but no more, so my journaling will change. But here are the last of the zen pages:

I also just finished a commitment to an online Yahoo group I am on. More on that next time!

Thanks for looking! I appreciate all your lovely comments!

WOYWW #324

Back to my workspace again this week! If you don't know what WOYWW is, please go HERE and find out, and perhaps join us!

I started making a set of 3 ATCs this week, following the theme of "Girlfriends". Since it is summer, friends on the beach seemed like a good idea!

I was all set to stamp "Bathing Beauties" on the ATC holder I was making, when "POOF!" one word went flying away!

Don't you hate when that happens! A full search, with flashlight, revealed nothing. This is the stamp set I was using, the word "beauties" was the one that disappeared. 

Well, what could I do, but leave everything and come back to it another day.
I went to take pictures today, and. . .

there is was. How I could have missed it a few days ago, I don't know, but I'm glad I found it! WOYWW saves the day!

I finished my journal page this week, here is the before and after:

And here is the "before" that I am working on now. I had the 2 frames sitting on my desk, I often pick up leftover things from my desk and incorporate them into my journal. I used a large Tim Holtz gears stencil, and the red is from a previously used stencil that I just popped inside a long time ago to use up the paint. 

Well, that's it for today, thanks for looking! Don't forget, I love to hear from you!

WOYWW #323

Back again to look at my workspace! Every week or so I go to my friend Marg's to "play". She has a wonderful room - full basement-full of space!! This is what our workspace looked like yesterday when I went to play: 

You can't see it, but her floor is carpeted in white carpet!I love her dearly, but in my house that carpet would not be white for long! At least she has some brown small carpets under this table - probably because I come over so often!
We rarely go to my house, because this is what MY space looks like:

This is NOT because I have more stuff than she does, but because she has about 5 times (or more) space than I do! And I tend to want everything within reach, and because I don't put things away very often. . .! But even so, I'm not at all sure my desk wouldn't look like this anyway, even if I did have all her room!

I have been working on a few cards:

The Labyrinth has meaning to the person I am sending this card to!

And my journal:

This is the page I'm working on now, before I started working on it.

This is my last page: 

Thanks for looking!

Inspiration

I have made 2 cards for my monthly CST card swap, both were inspired by a card I found in a June 2013 Stamper's Sampler magazine. The cards in the magazine were made by Rene Zerate. It's why we buy the magazines, right? I flip through my huge stash when I need some inspiration, and find a card I like. Then I make it my own, taking the elements of the card I liked. Here is Rene's card:

I liked the black borders, and the text background. Here are my cards:

In the first card, I had this stamp of a woman who could either be singing, or screaming for her life! She looks like she is singing opera in this card! The words "sing" and "peace" are from a set of fridge magnets - fridge magnet poetry I think it was called. In the second card, I used book text as the background, and a day after I made the card I read the text beside the word "peace". It says: " I will allow "peace". How's that for serindipity! I hope the 2 ladies getting these cards will like them!

Thanks for looking!

Summer days!

I have been busy with my online business, and have had little time for art, although I need to MAKE TIME!!!! Art is important, and I keep putting it on the side, something to  be done when I have nothing else to do - I think I treat it a s a reward in my mind! Once everything else is done and dusted (as they say) THEN I am allowed in my stamping room. Silly girl!
Anyway, I have started my daily journaling again, I love the zentangle part, and find it very relaxing in the morning, on my porch, listening to the birds, watching the dog walkers, and having my cat wrap her long furry body around my legs! Even in August, the porch in the shade is cool, so I'm always wrapped up in a blanket!

In this one, I stamped the leaves with a large leaf foam stamp - perfect to zentangle on! I will have to find more of these stamps!
I am almost finished with the next page, I will post soon. I also have a new idea for my new page, hopefully it will work as I planned!

Here are my 3 ATCs for a monthly ATC swap  I am on. July's theme was Red & White:

Well, that's it for today, I'm taking today off from work and will spend some time stamping!