What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #493

Two weeks in a row. What's going on here?!

My desk hasn't seen any action since Sunday, when I had a little photo shoot.  Removing the table cloth and trying to make the most of the natural light from the kitchen window. White on white is so difficult to capture.

I've got a new embossing folder that gives the card stock a very subtle texture and I've been using it on all my card mats. Gives the background a little lift.

Here's the card that I shared a close up of last week. Still can't capture that glitter!

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers this sunny morning. Back to the hospital with Mum this afternoon, after a bit of a cock up yesterday. Thank you to everyone who visited last week. I'll try to do better at returning them today.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #492

Well hello! It's been so long....blah, blah, blah. No apologies. Just life getting in the way and it always being Thursday when I think of it!

My desk was in a barn, up a mountain, at the weekend. I got more done than I had in a very long time and it still wasn't that much, compared to my very productive scrappy friends.

Seasonal crafting has now begun in earnest. Those snowflake dies cut like a dream. The stamping was a practice run for this wreath card....

We made it in class today and although time consuming, building up the layers, it's worth the effort I think.

That's me, coming to you from from a wet and wild Dorset this afternoon. Joining the Deskers hosted by Julia. Time to put the kettle on and visit a few of you.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #470

I taught a class this morning and one of my ladies had to cancel at the last minute. Rather than consigning her unused kit to a box somewhere I've put it to good use this afternoon.

It made sense while I had the supplies on hand. Now I've got three cards ready and waiting instead. This one is my favourite. Reminds me of the china tea set my Mum had when I was a little girl.

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers this glorious sunny day. Happy Wednesday.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #468

It's the 9th anniversary of WOYWW this week. Can you believe it? 9 years of sharing our work spaces and little glimpses of our lives.

If you were here last week you would have seen the card samples from my most recent class. I always have extra 'Blue Peter' bits to make demonstrating flow more smoothly. Sometimes I make them up into more cards for my own use, when I get home, and sometimes they just get flung in a box.

This time I did something different.....

My first 12x12" scrapbook page in a very long time. I followed a sketch by the talented Laura Rumble and scrapped a picture of my girl on her 11th birthday. She turned 19 at the weekend!

I used up the leftovers.....

.....and added a couple of extra bits, like this stamped vellum circle.....

.....and this tab, to bring the pink across to the other side of the page.

I even managed to find a use for the tiny cut out heart. Did you spot it?

I'm linking up with the rest of the Deskers this morning, with grateful thanks to Julia who brought us all together.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #467

Another Wednesday rolls around and I actually have a desk shot this week. Admittedly it's from just before the National Scrapbooking Day shenanigans started! I was prepping for a class and making a few more PL cards for my 100 Day Project.

We had a new lady join us and she hadn't dabbled in paper crafting before. I kept the gift box simple and planned the other projects to include the use of punches and the Big Shot as well as basic stamping. I also need to keep things interesting for the ladies who've been coming along for several years. It's a fine balance.

One card made with a repeated motif to get used to the pressure required and one with a large background stamp used face up, bringing ink to stamp.

The square cut from the frame on this card was used on the other one. Waste not, want not!

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers this morning. Happy Wednesday.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #464

Welcome to another Wednesday of desk sharing. No actual desk shot here. The kitchen table is empty, bar the fruit bowl, and will remain so until this afternoon when I make another card for The 100 Day Project. I do have a couple of things to share.

You'll recognise the stamps I used on this card and box, if you visited last week. These were the projects from my April class, along with a triple stamped card that I haven't taken a photo of yet, apparently.

This one is from a March class. I use my letter dies a lot for personalising things. I was looking for a more general way of using them (they were a big investment) and came up with this card. Also pretending that Spring was coming!

That's it from me. Linking up with Julia and the Deskers.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #463

Thanks for the warm welcome back. I didn't mean to leave it another month before joining in again. I blame the weather.

Despite being notorious for not sticking to things (see above!) I got it into my head that I wanted to try The 100 Day Project this year. I decided to go with something small and easily manageable, even on days when I only had 10 minutes to spare. DIY Project Life cards seemed to fit to bill.

To keep things simple, I picked a favourite set of stamps and a couple of ink pads to start me off....

....swapped the pink for yellow and changed the focal image....

....added some kraft into the mix and a little bee....

....to make a coordinating set of cards. I  have three more that I haven't got round to photographing yet which makes twelve* in total. I can't quite believe I've kept up....so far. Now to pick another set of stamps for the next group of cards.

Anyone else taking part in this project? Let me know and I'll come check you out. I'm sharing mine on Instagram every few days. Linking up with the lovely Julia and the equally lovely deskers on this glorious sunny morning.

*For the eagle eyed among you, who have counted ten cards here, I put the taupe lace background into two photos. My maths isn't quite that terrible!

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #459

Well hello there! Long time, no see.

I didn't have much inclination to blog at the end of last year, for various reasons, all far too dull to go into here. I thought I'd make a fresh start in the New Year. That didn't happen, clearly. Here we are at the beginning of Spring and that seems to have given me the nudge I needed.

As I type this, my kitchen table is full of the contents of my larder cupboard so there will be no crafting happening there today. Instead I'll share with you a couple of things I made with these adorable panda stamps.

If you know me, you'll know I don't really do cute, but I couldn't resist these little chaps. I've made several projects using them, for both birthdays and Valentine's Day, but these are the only ones I've actually got round to taking photos of so far.

I'm looking forward to popping in on a few deskers while I drink my afternoon coffee. Happy Wednesday everyone!

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #443

November is a month with five Wednesdays, which finds me with no class and a little breathing space this week.

Yesterday I completed a few cards for upcoming birthdays. I always get more requests at this time of year. The selection of birthday cards in the shops diminishes as Christmas approaches.

I'll leave you with this matching set we made in class a couple of weeks ago.

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers on this frosty morning.

What's on Your Workdesk? Wednesday #440

A production line at the kitchen table this morning. Scoring and punching.....

.....ready to assemble closer to the time.

That involves gluing along one side and tying the ends with ribbon to make the basic cracker. Very quick to do.

We fancied them up a little more in class last week. The bear decoration took longer than the cracker!

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers 

Butternut Squash and Chickpea stew

I haven't shared a recipe on the blog in a very long time. A few people asked me for this one, after I posted a picture on social media, and it seemed the easiest way.

one onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
thumb sized piece of fresh ginger, grated
one butternut squash, peeled and chopped
one red pepper, chopped
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp cinnamon
one carton of passata
750ml vegetable stock
one tin of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
150g of lentils

Fry the onion in oil of your choice until softened.
Add garlic, ginger, pepper and squash and fry for a few more minutes.
Stir in the spices.
Add the passata and stock followed by the chickpeas and lentils.
Give it a good stir, bring to the boil, then cover and simmer on low until the squash is tender and the lentils have absorbed the liquid. Season to taste.

This makes 6 good portions to serve with couscous or 4 if you're laying off the carbs. Excluding the spices, which I already had, it cost just under £2 for the ingredients.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wedesday #439

Last Wednesday passed me by, but I'm back this week to share the cards that were in the making when I last showed you my kitchen table.

Simple, yet effective. Looks like much more effort went in than actually did. My favourite kind of card. Ideal for mass production at this time of year.

More work in this one, of course, but I need something a bit interesting to break things up. Masking, sponging and stamping. One of my favourites so far this year.

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers this afternoon.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #437

Another six weeks have rolled by, seemingly in the blink of an eye.

This was the scene at the kitchen table around 6am, hence the grainy picture. It was still dark when I took my boy to work this morning. All my supplies laid out ready for class. As you can probably tell, from the stamp sets on show, seasonal crafting is now underway. I can't resist any longer.

This afternoon, I've swapped paper for fabric. A Christmas Day dress in the making. Coffee and a stroopwafel to smooth the process.

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers,  just as it's getting dark again!

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #431

This morning my desk was a table at the local Arts Centre. I taught a class of nine lovely ladies how to make a little box and two birthday cards in shades of pink.

We die cut these little girls from paper.....

.....layered them up and added to a stamped background. They remind me of Mable Lucie Atwell images fro my childhood. Sweet without being too cutesy.

Linking up with Julia and the Deskers this afternoon.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #430

August has been a busy month and it's been great to have a complete break from card making. With my first class of the Autumn term only a week away, I need to get my head back in the game.

All the new seasonal goodies are coming in so I need to start planning. Now I love Christmas, but firmly in its place, which is after Halloween. With that in mind I like to come up with a few alternative ideas for the Christmas products.

I'm easing myself in gently with the Quilt Top embossing folder.

Linking up with Julia and the deskers this afternoon.

What's on Your Workdesk? Wednesday #426

With only a week to go until we're off to the Netherlands, I'm supposed to be whipping up a quick peasant style maxi dress at the kitchen table today.

I cut it from this fabric a week ago.

The rain lashing against the windows is not providing much motivation.

Hoping it looks more like August somewhere out there in the land of Deskers.

Stampin' on Saturday ~ Bird cages

In a bid to try and get back into a blogging routine, here I am with two of the cards that resulted from the clutter on my kitchen table earlier in the week.

A stamped lacy background, recessed birdcage and some water coloured flowers.

Another stamped background, with a repeating image this time. The bird cage popped up on foam pads and a simple sentiment banner, which I hand cut.

Enjoy your weekend, whatever you're doing.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #424

Hello lovely Deskers and anyone else stopping by today. I taught my last class, before the Summer break, this morning.

This was the state of play just before I packed everything up.....

Third Wednesday in the month is always a four card session, usually focused on one particular stamp set. Today it was the turn of Badges and Banners.

I'll share the cards on Saturday as it's too dark to take pictures here this afternoon. If you want to see the projects from the last time I showed my desk, they are in the previous post. Happy Wednesday. It's good to be back.

Stampin' on Saturday

It's been quite a while since I had the inclination to blog anything. Instagram is so much simpler when you're short on time. I was sorting out photos on the laptop just now and came across the end products from my last desk sharing outing.

A one layer card using a current favourite, Touches of Texture. Simple two step stamping for the flowers. A little water colouring on the leaves and bees with Wink of Stella for the wings. Add a sentiment and you're done. Twenty minutes max.

The matching box took a little longer, but it's not complicated to make. You never know I might even get round to a tutorial once my workshops end for the summer.

Have a lovely weekend.

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday #418

Good morning lovely Deskers and anyone else who is dropping by. I've done my first taxi run of the day, taking my boy to work for 5.50am. I've got time for a quick blog post before I head out again.

This was my work space on Monday morning.....

.....I'd decided on a stamp set and picked two colours.

Things had moved on a bit by Tuesday morning.....

.....and I was ready to cut the kits for class.

I use the sheet to help me pack the supplies I'll need, while I run through the process for the project in my head. I like a visual reminder.

Linking up with Julia and I'll be round to visit once I get home at lunchtime.