What's On Your Workdesk, Wednesday?

 Hello and I sure do hope it's as lovely in your part of the world as it is here today....the sky is blue, the sun is shining and it's a gorgeous 23F.  It's Wednesday so that means I'm sharing a photo of my desk this morning with WOYWW#269 - along with about 100 others who join in the fun - If you'd like to know more pop over to hostess Julias blog to read all about it.   On my desk you can see a busy mess as I'm in the process of creating my tag for Tim Holtz 2014 tags....it's a seahorse theme and you can see the finished card here....Distress inks on the left and a bag of sand, micro beads with the peg - both of which I used to make the sand mixture in that little pot with the popsicle stick stirrer and the emb powders nearby. You can see my shells, seaweeds, tag and seahorse on my work pad ready to be all put together..  Hope you've been able to craft this week at your desk, I did what I promised myself last week and got my tax papers sorted so nothing to keep me from do what I like best....making cards. Cheers and now I'm off to snoop a few desk, thanks to everyone who visited last week Robyn

 PS...look what just arrived in the mail...

A stunning lace needle case from Judy at Judy's Fabrications

Recently she offered a prize and I won....HOW lucky am I, It's just beautiful

Merry Christmas

Hello there once again today...I just had to make a card for Just Add Ink #224 - Just Add Christmas in July,  this week with this gorgeous photo for inspiration.  I decided to go with the poinsettia and to colour it cream...well that really goes against the grain because they are magnificent red usually... anyway I used my Distress Inks to colour it - mixing to get the shade I wanted and rough cut it out to expose the background. For the background I versamark stamped the flower image and dusted it with Inference Gold Pearl. A simple sentiment and a few gems to finish the card.
Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

It's the Little Things

Well this months- July, Tim Holtz tag of 2014 has so many elements...and I've used my imagination to fill in where I don't have his products.  I do hate covering up gorgeous backgrounds but participating in these challenges sure do help in this area.  I ran my acetate through the cuttlebug twice using a emb folder of various sizes circles to give 3D affect. And I wanted my seahorse bright instead of dark, he also has dimensional magic instead of crackle medium and I sprinkled on some micro beads and glitter. My shells are just stamped in DI on fawn card and the inner shell coloured and more dimensional magic. The sand was the fun part, pretty much followed Tim's recipe but added some real sand - not sure if it's going to all hang together. Then to finish off the tag, a few sprigs for seaweed, a stamped sentiment tied on with string and some threads through the tag hole. Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

You're Sweet

SOS #161: Eat Five A Day!

July- Cute & Fun Cards

When I saw the inspiration this week at Shopping Our Stash #161 - I was a bit concerned that I didn't have fruit or vege stamps, paper anything really BUT I looked...as found this bright designer paper that really I probably would struggle to use - so the mind starts to think what stamp image can I use...well I found this jar and amazing one of the tiny stamps with it was a strawberry...and more searching even found this appropriate sentiment...so I am happy with the final card with a mini bow tied around the jar. I'm also going to post the card to House of Cards... the inspiration this month is ***ADD A BOW*** and this week is Cute and Fun so I think my card fits this style. Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

Time

Morning from Yeppoon this fine Sunday as I post my photos for this week 57 at Our Beautiful World with a theme I suggested - TIME. 

Time is a dimension and measure in which events can be ordered from the past through the present into the future... Some simple, relatively uncontroversial definitions of time include "time is what clocks measure" ......  taken from Wikipedia.

So I wanted to catch you eye first so I posted this beautiful ornate tall clock.

This is a very old Louis XV balance-wheel clock which still works. I took the photo on our trip to France in 2008 in the Chateau de Cheverney - wonderfully back then the timepieces displayed the time, the day and the date and the phases of the moon....now all we seem to see are digital numbers which honestly I don't like, I'd much rather see a clock face...how about you?

Clocks have been features in many cities and towns I've visited - on important buildings like town halls and post offices and churches.



The Old Town Hall at Newburgh, Scotland with it clock now an arts studio called The Steeple.

 Big Ben - one of London's famous  landmarks...the clock is part of the Elizabeth Tower attached to Palace  of Westminster or Houses of Parliament.

 St Pauls Cathedral London, the clock in the southwest tower of which the mechanism as made in 1893. 

 While sorting through my photos I came across this  sign at the front of the church in Braemar where the Queen of England worships on her visits to Scotland....so signs give us times of availability

And that started me thinking that TIME is not just what a clock on the wall or a watch on the arm or nowdays all means of digital clocks attached to anything electronic (No Photos) OR calendars displaying endless days and months and years

....it's much more ... it's all about...LIFE, sun and moon, day and night 

It made me think of the passing of time....

This is a photo of my daughter as a new baby with four generations of mums

Jacalyn 1985

Robyn 1953

Joan 1930

Isabella 1898

 And here we are again with four generations of mums as we see my daughter with her new new baby girl Sophie 2013.

Do you have any thoughts on TIME...

why not join in and share a photo at Our Beautiful World or pop over and see what take the other team members thought off for this theme.

Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

Just for You

My last card for today is using the layout at Sketchbook Saturday#126 and the pallet is from The Card Concept 15 challenge using Aqua, Lime and White. I created the background with mist and stencil and die cut a fancy edge to mount under my stamped image. Add some sequins to brighten the flower cup and mounted this and the stamped sentiment on a large cut banner tag. Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

  

Happy Birthday Fushia

This afternoon I'm trying out something different....came across this gorgeous card by Heather (tutorial video) at Make It Monday #173 where the techinique is No Outline Watercolour. - isn't it just gorgeous. So I've used a fushia shadow stamp and my Distress Inks to colour it and then mounted the panel on gorgeous homemade papers I found in my forgotten about stash. I tied some coloured twine and a mini bow above the Birthday sentiment. As I've used twine on my card I'm posting it to Seize the Birthday where the topping this month is string or twine. Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

Make It Monday #173: No Outline Watercolor

Stringing Along More Birthday Wishes!

Noel

Today I find myself making another Christmas card for the stash...I cut up an snowflake embossed sheet and layered the squares onto an off white background to give it some depth. I stamped up part of a House Mouse stamp to give me the candle, coloured it in with silver and made a little flame with some die cut left scraps then added some stamped pine cones when I mounted it in the corner. The Noel sentiment is part of an embossed sheet so I highlighted it also with silver mounted it on gold metallic flag and finished off the card with a snowflake and gem. I've made the card for Festive Friday FFC#36 which is predominantly white with lots of elements to chose. I'm also going to post it to Christmas Cards All Year Round - July they are asking for non traditional colours and at City Crafters week 221 the theme is Christmas in July.  Pop over to their blogs to check out some awesome cards. Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

Friday Smiles

 Week 79 for Friday Smiles....it's been ok at our house this week, most of it spent on my own with hubby working away again...lucky I have my boys for company and too keep me smiling.
Here's the story - I'm in the shower and they're both in the bathroom too.....then I notice Henry at the basin, he's spotted a drip on the tap so what's a girl gotta do...jump out of the shower wrap up in a towel and grab the camera....just to share with everyone

...then it drips into the basin  - over and over he watches it go down the plug hole

Then decides to maybe catch it

But this one really cracked me up... (clilck on the photo for a closer look)

Of course Arthur had to find out what all the fuss was... (see me in the mirror) 

Other things to smile about this week FIL had a great 90th birthday, got some more phone pics of gorgeous Sophie and the weather is warming up slightly, now hubby is home so I'm off to spend some time with him. Want to join in and share a few smiles or a joke or two, pop over to Annies blog, we can all do with a good laugh, Life is too short. Cheers and hope you've had a great week and looking forward to a lovely weekend  Robyn

What's On Your Workdesk, Wednesday?

WOW don't the Wednesdays come around fast, but then I suppose I'm looking forward to them so's I can join in with the crowd at WOYWW week 268....why not pop over to Julias blog if you're not sure what I'm talking about and join in the fun.

Here's a standing on a chair view of my desk today... I'm in the throws of making another Christmas card (here if you want a close look).  So on my desk you can see the DIs I've been using - see the box on sponge pieces below my laptop, I use these to add the ink, there's one for each. The stamps I've been using, my heat gun - because I love embossing - this card is in white. There's my pink phone on top of a folder of cling stamps and see underneath on the floor - a tray of old inks....Adirondack and Ancient Page...they're pretty much useless - BUT - yesterday I played about with them and some were fit to add soft colour and then I figure what the heck and I sprayed a few with a bit of stamp cleaner and whooppie they're slightly revived. I found the Adirondack act a bit like DIs with water misting....here's yesterdays results and here.  That's me for today, I'd say my shortest post ever...so I'm off to snoop some desk, Cheers  and thanks for taking a peek Robyn

ps here's my card in a box from last week... for F-I-L 90th

Christmas Joy

My card this fine Wednesday is for - Christmas in July...the theme at City Crafters, week 221 and Merry Monday #118 would love to see ribbon and buttons on your card...so I've combined the two and made a cream shades card - white embossed my stamp image and used Distress Inks to colour in the background.  I've added some touches of liquid pearls and silver glitter pen, a garland of tiny heart and star shaped buttons and a cluster of pine cones to finish the card. Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

To Cheer You

SOS #160: Can't Put It Down (or Away)

Well I've decided I'm on a roll and why not post another card to the Shopping Our Stash #160 challenge.

Having decided my Adirondack Inks could be reused I had a go on water colour card with very dried up Ancient Page Inks...got some soft colour from sage, bordeaux and cobalt, no yellow so used my mustard seed Distress Ink...very lightly sprayed with water. Then I group stamped and masked some outline flower stamps and stems - I discovered with nothing to lose to try to rejuvenate the pads by spraying with my 'stamp cleaner' solution...that works too.... wow having fun today, move over distress inks these don't bleed as much. Finished the card with a blue embossed sentiment. Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

Wishing you well

SOS #160: Can't Put It Down (or Away)

Hi and happy Tuesday... I'm waiting to go to the airport to pick up hubby, so of course I'm at my desk making cards.... Don't know where this card came from... last night I was thinking about making a scene with a stamped image in the forefront. Anyway my can't put down for Shoppping Your Stash #160 - is my distress inks and die cuts - they've both been coming out lots lately. But this card isn't actually made with distress inks - this morning I wanted to know if my dried up, faded old Adirondack Inks would work like DIs if you sprayed water on them... guess what they do.

I sponged ink over some water colour cardstock kinda like a garden off to one side, then just sprayed on water...whooppie my pads are not juicy enough to stamp with but they'll be getting used for backgrounds now. When it was dry I added some "flowers" - just dabbed the corner of a paper scrap in the ink and filled in the flat colour areas and some drag lines for stems. Stamped on a simple sentiment and finished off with a die cut flower spray that I cut and re-positioned to fit the space. That was fun... Thanks for taking a peek Robyn

Our Beautiful World

 Happy Sunday friends...this weekend Manuela has suggested VEGETABLES as the theme for photos at Our Beautiful World Week 56.

Did I catch your eye with my first photo of  Brussels Sprouts?? - tiny cabbages and I believe may have originated in Belgium. Many people I know don't like them at - maybe because they weren't cooked properly, but I love them especially these baby ones. I thought they were Brussel Sprouts not Brussels Sprouts.

We don't have a vegetable garden at present  so ours are bought from the supermarket.

When I go grocery shopping these are some of the  staples in my basket...Red Capsicum, Zucchini and Broccoli.

This week I also got Parsnip, Swede, Celery, Carrots and Brown Onions...

  ....because I'm making vegetable soup, because there's nothing like a good home cooked soup on a cold winters night...

 In the pot previously was a lamb shank and pearl barley simmering for a few hours, now in go the veges....

Do you have a favourite vegetable or are you fortunate enough to have a vegetable garden, well take a few snaps and join in with the others sharing their photos at Our Beautiful World. Have a wonderful weekend, I'm so looking forward to my bowl of yummy vege soup....incidentally my kids call it singing soup because we can't resist saying "UH, AMMM" as we eat it.
Cheers Robyn