What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday - Week 487

Morning Everyone

WOYWW again! All the excuse I need to post a pic of my desk and then go snooping, with the help of Head Desker, Julia, over at the Stamping Ground, around other crafter's desk. And, as promised last week, I'll make it brief - well briefer than usual!

Tidyish! Only because I was gone for the day yesterday so no time to craft and make a mess. I've been making Christmas cards for the last week so what you see are the materials needed - boxes of ProMarkers, Christmas themed stamps and paper pads. Under the pile of paper pads is a box of white scraps - essential for stamping. You've probably seen the stuff at the back - it's a more or less permanent feature, as is the latte ... my new addiction!

Before I go here's the book bit:

The Child by Fiona Barton. This book has very mixed reviews on Amazon but I found it a good read. When an old house in London is being demolished, the body of a small child is found buried in the garden. The story doesn't attract much attention to begin with until a journalist, Kate Waters, spots it and was intrigued enough to follow it up. And it slowly becomes clear that the story behind the tiny skeleton was a lot more complicated than anyone would have thought.

Murder Wears Mittens by Sally Goldenbaum is the 12th book in the Seaside Knitters Society series, but the first I've read by this author. I enjoyed  this book, not least because it is set in Cape Ann, Massachusetts, albeit a fictitious seaside village, an area I'm familiar with. The story centres round a group of knitters who are able to get inside the head of the deceased, a woman they barely knew, just by chatting together and exchanging experiences, as knitters do! The uncovering of the murderer was very satisfying too.

Heavens, I've somehow managed to finish this post before midday ... a first in a very long time! I'd like to say it means I'm turning over a new leaf but really it's a fluke and next week I'll be back to my usual tardiness. Nice while it lasts though!

Have a great WOYWW and a wonderful week ahead.

Snowman Birthday Card

Morning Everyone

It's a very quick post from me today - I'm off out to Gatehouse of Fleet in Galloway for the day - but I thought I'd share this wee card before I go.

A couple of months ago I found this snowman stamp, in one of my favourite haunts, a charity shop, so this is the first time I've tried it out and I love it. It's very easy to colour. I stamped it on a scrap of smooth white card then coloured the hat, nose, scarf and twiggy arms with a selection of Promarkers - job done! Couldn't be simpler. .

Materials used (as far as I can remember!)

• white A6 card base Papermania,Docrafts 
• the scrap of previously embossed and inked card
• plain white card for stamping
• stamps - Hero Arts Snowman, the  pre-loved stamp, that may not be it's full name, and greeting from the Scenic Stamp Woodland Cottage set I've been using a lot recently
• ink pads - Memento Tuxedo Black for snowman and Studio G Turquoise for greeting
• a selection of ProMarkers
• stitched square die from The Works
• Crystal Stickles
• Snowflake embellishments from Make & Create, The Works

The turquoise blue background is out of the bits and bobs box ... I can't remember exactly what ink/paint I used for the colour but I do remember that it was already embossed with snowy spots well beforehand.

That's it for today - got to fly!

In A Vase On Monday - October First

Hello Everyone

Monday again, not just any Monday but the first in October which, for me, means that it's officially the beginning of Autumn ... though I'm sure the Met Office would say different. I like Autumn - I may have said that before -I especially enjoy the flowers that linger like the ones I've picked for Cathy's In A Vase On Monday this week.

My roses continue to bloom even though the temperature has dropped like a stone throughout September.

The 'Douglas' rose, with it's beautiful apple like perfume, is enjoying a second flush, as is the creamy 'Patricia Kent' - also nicely scented.

The buds of 'Patricia Kent' are usually a very pretty pale green colour but sometimes the weather does odd things to them as can be seen on one of the buds in this photo.

The other red rose in the vase is 'Eternity' which is completely different in appearance and scent from 'Douglas'. Both are growing in pots and doing very well there for now though I may have to find a more permanent place in the garden eventually. Last week I said cosmos 'Candy Stripe' was the only flowers I'd grown from seed but I lied. I'd completely forgotten the huge pot of godetia 'Little Frills' growing by the 'Man shed', though I can't think why because it's been one of the most colourful displays we've had since late August. Picking the best of them, they are starting to go over now, I noticed and included a few of the fabulous seed heads from Clematis 'Gillian Blades' and 'Nelly Moser' nearby - they grow up and over the shed in a glorious tangled mess.

The final addition to this arrangement is a couple of sprays of fennel seeds. The foliage and seed heads are perfect for flower arranging but I really dislike the flavour of fennel and would never use any part of the plant in cooking!

Talking of cooking, though this is more to do with brewing, I've been harvesting hop flowers, humulus lupulis aureus, to dry them on lines of twine I've strung up in my little blue hut. Normally our vine wouldn't produce this many ripe hops - we're too far north - but the heatwave has worked an amazing transformation this year. Once dry, they'll be passed to my son who is a keen home brewer.

Last week's vase stood up well to the heat of the sitting room but I've had to remove the roses and Cosmos - the petals started to drop. All that is left, looking fresh and pretty still, are the blues of the centaura montana and aster nova-anglaie.

If you have enjoyed this post, and would like to see what others have in their vases today, do please pop over to Rambling in the Garden where you'll find plenty links to many more beautiful arrangements.