What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday - Week 647

Hello Everyone,

Greetings from a cold, wet and dreich Scotland. Just the kind of day to escape to my room to do some crafting, you'd think. Well, that's what I thought until  I spotted the basket of ironing just nagging away at me and so here I am at long last ready to snatch some scrapping time. 

I did grab a moment or two yesterday to stencil this background. This will be the next page for the Nicole Jones class I'm slowly making my way through this month. Needless to say, I'm way behind but there's no time limit on it so I'm not getting to strung up about it. The metal stencil is something like thirty years old. If I remember correctly it's a Laura Ashley stencil which I bought to create a border of shells on the bathroom walls of the apartment that was my home back then. The photos are lovely but they are a bit of a puzzle. I cannot remember which of the many beaches we visited in the 1990s where this one is ... hopefully, it will come to me while I'm putting the page together.

I did receive a pizza box of goodies this morning. Only just unpacked it and spent a minute or too oohing and aahing over this beautiful collection from Echo Park, Day In The Life. As it covers the twelve months of the year I'm thinking I should save it for 2022, but then I might just start it in November as that's my birthday month. Decisions, decisions.

And now the kitten bit. No not the latest delivery but Silver never misses the opportunity to inspect the inside of any box. She had her surgery, for spaying, a couple of weeks ago and has made an excellent recovery. She's back to climbing the big fir tree in the front garden. Trouble is, she can't always get back down so it's usually me or our grandson to the rescue! There's never a dull moment when there's a kitten about.

And so finally: 

These are so apt! 

Isn't that the truth.

To snoop through a lot more What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday posts pop over to Juli'a Stamping Ground where you'll find many more links taking you to desks from all over the world.

Have a fabulous crafting week everyone. 

In A Vase On Monday - Last Roses

Hello Everyone,

It's been a moment or two since I last joined in with Cathy's meme, In A Vase On Monday but it's also a long time since I spent any time in my poor neglected garden.

Not that there's many flowers in bloom now we're in October. These roses are probably the last of the year, although there's still a few hopeful buds on some of the bushes. 

The cream rose at the back is 'Patricia Kent', next to it is 'L'aiment' and the two to the front are 'Simply the Best'. There's a couple of sprigs of Viburnum 'Eve Price' tucked amongst the roses and foliage which consists of frothy fennel, pineapple sage, berried cotoneaster and a sprig from this little tree, 'Amelanchier Lamarckii

It was only planted a couple of years ago so it's still got a lot of growing to do. You can see how small it is compared with the old rowan growing behind it. The rowans have done incredibly well this year, so much so the branches are drooping with clusters of berries, said to be the sign of a bad winter to come. 

As you can see the garden has gone a bit wild over the last year and a half while we've been unable to look after it. We've had 'gardeners' in, only to see one pulling up prized plants so, for now, it's being left to it;s own devices. Although my husband is no longer able to garden, I'm hoping I will be able to get out there in the spring and sort the mess out. Well, that's the plan. 

So to see even more lovely floral offerings, from well-tended gardens, do pop over to Cathy's blog, Rambling in the Garden.

Christmas Card Club Challenge - Cards 27 & 28

Hello Everyone

Its been another long time since I joined in with my friends in the Christmas Card Challenge. It seems I was a bit  previous when I thought I'd have more time to get back into the swing of things. So I won't make any promises but will try to participate any time, like today, I'm able.

Today the challenge is for 'Santa's little helpers' but much to my surprise, and after an extensive search through stamps, etc., I can find nothing at all suitable. So I thought that if I couldn't produce his little helpers, I'd settle for the man in the big red suit himself with these two cards made from toppers recycled from those received in previous years.

And that's it from me. Short and sweet because I'm up to my eyes trying to somehow catch up. This craft room is a disgrace. I should organise myself and tidy away the mess that's cluttering up the place. And I would if I didn't keep getting sick. This last week it was the winter vomiting virus ... like I needed another virus after this last 18 months!!! 

There is good news. Alan has been pronounced well enough to no longer need home visits from his Cardiac Nurse. She's very pleased with his progress, lungs clear, water retention under control, weight and appetite good and he's walking better - not perfect, but better! He's never going to be as fit as he once was but he's a lot better than when he came home from hospital. We have much to be grateful for. 

I hope you are all well. I hope, too, you will pop over to see what my teammates have created for this fortnight's challenge. You'll find a list of their names and links on my right sidebar - as always their work is so much more creative than mine.

What's In Your Workdesk Wednesday - Week 644

Hello Everyone,

It's been a few weeks since I've joined in with you all over at Julia's WOYWW - again! I hate missing any week but, as often as not, I can't make it in time. So, I think it's something of a win for me if, like this evening, late as it is, I get to join in the fun. 

And here's what's on my desk today. Time to craft, like blogging, is also very limited but I've not lost the need to create when there's a few minutes to spare so, perhaps foolishly, I've signed myself up for Youtuber Nicole Jones 911's latest Scrap-A-Thon class. This involves a challenge to create a scrap page a day for the entire month of October. I've completed the first and am working on the second so, no surprise, I'm already behind but there's no pressure to keep up - thank goodness. 

Here's the first of the challenge pages marking our Silver Anniversary this year. The papers and embellishments are mainly from Photoplay's 'Heart & Home' Collection and everything else from stash. 

I've also been invited to join a Facebook group, Scrap Backwards, formed with the intention that we use up old stash, in particular all the sheets of stickers we've amassed over the years. The idea is to create a mini kit - just big enough to make approximately four pages - based on the colours in the chosen sticker sheet. Here's the first kit I've put together.

The sticker sheet, Simple Stories 'You Are Here',from 2016 has been little used since purchase - mainly because we've never been anywhere tropical. However, I've been persuaded more recently that it's okay to use embellishments out of context. And proving, as if proof were needed, I'm a paper hoarder one of the patterned papers chosen is dated 2005! 

One of the reasons I'm so late to the party today is because of this little kitten. We had to take Silver to the vet for a pre-op check-up. She's scheduled to be neutered next Tuesday. 

That's her recovering from the trauma of the car trip to and fro - she hates being stuck in a carrier and cries all the way. 

That's it from me this week. Looking forward to checking out your desks this evening, or more probably over the next few days.

Have a lovely creative week and take care everyone.