An Awfully Big Adventure... Day 2... Freckles On Tour...

...in America! Tis a fair few years since Freckles went on Tour... but he is back in his starring role as adventurer extraordinaire and joined us at Ranger U today. Freckles has been on tour with me all over the world for the past 15 years... he has been quite the explorer from sampling cocktails in Mexico (he got sloshed), kayaking in Antigua (he got wet) right through to riding a sheep in North Yorkshire (he tried to eat it)... so today was his debut at Ranger... and here is a photo of him looking very cute being cuddled by lovely Claudine Hellmuth (yes, I was fizzing with excitement at actually being in a class with Claudine, she is a brilliant teacher and a right good laugh!)




Freckles decided that I wasn't safe with a paintbrush loaded with Multi Medium (and hey, this time I didn't turn my top into an embellishment lol)... so he took over guarding it...





And he wanted his photo taken with his favourite new drink...




Oh and of course, he wanted a reminder of his time at Ranger so had a photo with THE file! **yes, I have gone completely tonto... blame the excitement**




Today (tis still Saturday here) was amazing... we spent the morning with Claudine and did loads of cool techniques that I have never tried before... image transfer being my new favourite... oh and stamping with Claudine's fab stamps... I haven't tried these before and now.. erm... I need them all lol We had the legendary square pizza for lunch... corrrrr... it is the best pizza I have ever had... and I just want to say a maaahhhooooosive thank you to Mario... that guy is a true star... bringing Dunkin' Donuts and coffee for breakfast... I had never tried a Dunkin' Donut til yesterday and corrrrrr.. they is lush... bringing fresh coffee through the day... and generally making sure we are all fed and watered... here he is with some dim blonde bird...




This afternoon was Distress with Tim... wall to wall tags and Distress products and very inky paws... I was in my element just sitting there getting inky and soaking up all the tips and "how to's" that Tim was showing us... oh and... here's a pic of Candy, Tim and Linda (and me)... check out the t-shirts we are wearing... Candy made them!!! Wow, they are fabulous, seriously cool and an amazing keepsake... I feel very honoured and incredibly chuffed that Candy went to all this trouble to make one of these unique and very special gifts for me... so, a maaahoooosive thank you to Candy too!




So... I didn't really get chance to talk about the start to my adventure because I was bone tired last night... I don't want to waffle on alarmingly so will keep it brief... the flight here was great, we set off early, landed early... thank heavens because there was an almighty storm brewing and tornado warnings for New Jersey. As we were coming into land we flew past the iconic New York skyline... I was awestruck... and then ever so slightly worried because there were huge forks of lightning bashing down around the skyscrapers. The landing was... erm... bumpy... like tummy flipping turbulance... but... we made it. The plan was that I was arriving first, followed an hour later by Candy, then Yvonne and Cheryl and Lisa were due in and finally Linda was due in at 16.30. We had a shuttle booked to take us to Tinton Falls but as the saying goes... best laid plans... because of the horrendous weather all flights were severely delayed or cancelled. So, the plans we made kind of went a bit pear shaped... and I ended up hanging around Newark airport for...erm... 10 hours. I did have a moment after about 2 hours of frustratingly trying to find out information and being sent from one place to another... but then I stumbled across a little shop that was selling Diet Coke and Cheesy Chester Cheeto's and everything just got a whole lot more bearable lol ... Finally the girls arrived during the evening - poor Candy's case went AWOL but thankfully she has been reunited with it - and we made it to the hotel at about 1.30am. The thing is, a few delays and hanging about at an airport are nothing compared to what some of the poor peeps who have been affected by the tornado's have been experiencing - it kind of put things into perspective when I saw the news and the size of some of those twisters...

Anyways... I have the Sunday Stamper post ready to write up and publish so I will stop waffling now and say... thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

An Awfully Big Adventure... Day 1

...Cor Blimey!!! It isn't often that I am lost for words... you know that already from the amount of inane wafflings that go on on this blog... however, tonight... well, I am still totally overwhelmed and... really, really, really... pooped!




I won't waffle on ... I just thought I would show you a few pics that I have taken today... I am actually typing this on Friday night but my blog is on UK time so it's actually Saturday already... that just confuses me even more lol We played with UTEE this afternoon... I had a ball making some agate pieces...




And here is a piccie of the inside of my Melt Pot... do you see what I see? I think it looks like a little alien face - not that I have ever seen an alien's face... mind you, maybe I have and they then wiped my memory like they do in the films... (mmm, you can so tell that I am sleep deprived!)




And finally, a piccie of The Airport Girls as we are now known (L to R) Cheryl, Me, Yvonne, Candy & Linda...



I am going to hit the sack now... I am so looking forward to the mornings class with Claudine... hey, you never know, I might get to play with that paint I have heard about... you know, it's called Traditional Tan or something... I wonder if I will like it? ROFL Oh and before I forget... thank you for all the tweets etc yesterday - I have had to turn off the Tweet notifications on my moby cos it is costing me £872 per text and as my phone is steam powered, I can't get emails on it... anyways, I am going to try and catch up email and Tweets & FB stuff tomorrow... I have only just managed to get online this evening and am still reading two days worth of tweets.. that is a very lot you know... lol ... Anyways... more chatterings later! TTFN

Hels x

You Know I Said...

... mmm, famous last words huh! So, you know I have said that I hate packing... I am not fussy what kind of packing I hate... like at the supermarket, yak, hate that... or when we moved house... yakkier, hated that... and packing a suitcase... even yakky yakkier... I really don't like doing that!! So... being Mrs Smug lasted all of an afternoon... because... nay and thrice... I had finished my packing at lunchtime... ok, admittedly, I had packed twice as I wasn't happy with the first load... but yes, I was rather smug... I was planning a nice relaxing evening, chilling out and an early night.




Humph... what actually happened was this: I had a smaller case in a big one... having been advised by loads of peeps who have already done Ranger U that I would have a goody box to bring home... so, smaller case is loaded with clobber.. and larger case is around it. I decided to do the old online check-in doodah at about 7pm. And at 7.15pm I was stomping about the house in a right old huff... because my case was over the baggage allowance by... TWO kg's... and... the online check not only wanted to know everything about me from my name to my inside leg measurement... but they also needed to know the weight of the case. I was fully prepared to pay a few quid extra as I knew I was slightly over my allowance... what I wasn't expecting was a notice across the screen telling me that the excess baggage fee was... TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS!!! I nearly passed out!! That is £125!!!!




Anyways... Grim dragged said case back to the bedroom and I unpacked... took out a few bits... like a pair of shoes and a vest... reweighed it... still the same... so, I ditched the smaller case and repacked it all into the bigger case... and weighed it... and it was still 1kg over... and... yep, still $200 fee! So, poor old Grim then went up into the loft and brought down the other big case we have which is a bit lighter... and I repacked... AGAIN! Another weigh in and it is 3kg under the allowance... phew! Still a pair of shoes less... just hope it doesn't rain over there because I only have my Birki's and a pair of muley things now.





Anyways... this here tag is made using those lush new Fresco Finish Paints from Paper Artsy... the crackle is fab isn't it! And the flower is made from the new Metal on Card... painted with the FF's and then stamped with PA images... and I finally made one of those lovely style flowers that Lin invented... she has loads of tut's on her blog that are worth checking out :O)) Anyways... it is late, I have tried bed already... no avail.. I am just too excited!!! Mind you, we have to leave just before 5am and I really had better get some sleep otherwise I will have gigantic bags under my eyes... and I don't want them charging me excess baggage them!! Thanks for looking... next time I waffle at you I will be in America!!! TTFN

Hels x

PS... thank you everyone who has left me lovely comments and sent messages wishing me well on my awfully big adventure... it has been fab to be able to share it with you x

Oh and... PPS... I just noticed the time... tis... TODAY that I am going to ... RANGER U!!!

WOYWW.... Eeeeek

...Oopsie-daisies... I have a confession... for the last few months I have been smug... showing off my incredibly neat and tidy desk space and snorting when thinking about my old, messy ways... And it hasn't gone unnoticed that several peeps have suggested that I have been doctoring my photo's in PhotoShop... as if I could even begin to know how to use that, let alone fiddle with evidence... plus the fact, I use Paint Shop Pro rofl. So... the waffling today is regarding the most amazing phenomenon that is What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday! Devised and hosted by the one and only, nay and thrice, the very one and very only, Julia Dunnit. Click on her name to be transported across the Blogasphere on the back of a giant bottle of Wild Honey Distress Stains... and you can join in too.




Right then, confession time... are you sitting comfortably? I may be some time! (talk about mixing cliches) Anyways... I was full of goodly intentions on January 1st this year. No more messy Room of Trash, promises of putting away everything before starting a new project... and apart from a minor wobble in the month of March, I have stuck to my resolution. I have even taken to cleaning **sorry, I had toyed with the idea of using the H word and figured that it would leave a fair few of you in shock to I use the C word (noooo, not that one!) instead** Well since last Wednesday things have been afoot in the Room of Stash and I have thrown myself wholeheartedly into getting ready for going away. **more of that later... don't groan, I won't bang on relentlessly about it** I have had several projects to get completed and sorted and done and off the list. And for some incredibly stooopid reason, I forgot my New Year Resolution and ... well, frankly, I am ashamed to admit that there is now a very thin path into the Room of Stash and the floor is littered with... stuff! Desk 2 is not much better, although it is holding my carry on bag so that takes up a very lot of room making it look worse. So, my very dear and incredibly lovely (creepcreep) bloggy friends... can I be forgiven for such indiscretions? Am I going to get away with this lapse into my sluttish old ways? I do promise that I will tidy the desk before I go to bed tonight... I will ... honest!!


Anyways... today is my very last day on the Stampotique Design Team... it has been wonderful to be part of this team, working alongside very talented designers who's stamps make it so easy to work with. There is a new challenge HERE - which is a sketch, I do love a good sketch!! For this card I used some yummy Stampotique stamps and Distress Inks... if you fancy a little stashly purchasing and want to own some Stampotique stamps, they are HERE at The Stamp Attic :O)




So................... well, I wasn't going to mention that this time tomorrow I will be waiting, patiently *and ever so nervously* at Heathrow airport. I am sure I have muttered a few times in the last few weeks that I am going to America to Ranger U and to see Ellen... well, the day is almost here! For one, I am beyond excited now... like fizzes and shivers of anticipations... and butterflies that are mahoosive... and I am ever so slightly scared stiff that I will be embarking on this awfully big adventure on my tod! I know I have been waffling on about packing my case... and... I have just started! Well, teckernically, that is a bit of a fib, I haven't started actually putting stuff into it yet... but Grim has opened it up and lifted it up onto the bed for me. And... after I have finished waffling I will be going to do it... well, after I have had a coffee and defluffed the tumble drier and descaled the kettle and degunked that slidey drawer in the washing machine that always collects fabric softener no matter how many times it gets wiped clean... Ahaha, just kidding... am doing it now... I am multi-tasking!! ROFL Right, if you are still here... thanks for reading to the end... have a fabby day... TTFN!

Hels x

**See Hels wander off doing a little boogeywoogey happy dance**

Bling, Bling...

...I been playing with Distress Stains and Trad Tan paint... again... I know, I should have been doing other stuff but I can't help it, I am trying out all the different colours and am loving the peachy colour of Trad Tan and Wild Honey mixed together. Anyways... a little ATC had to be made, it would have been rude not to use my new ATC Alterations die... I mean, I have owned if for a few weeks now and haven't used it yet!



So... Victor was hungry, so I fed some mountboard with the ATC die through him and he was happy again... then I fed some Crowded Attic paper thru... I tell you, I used to faff with a Stanley Knife and a cutting mat to make my ATC bases and it took forever... hurrah, this took seconds! The paint was mixed with a spatula, a splodge of Trad Tan and a splodge of Wild Honey Stains... then applied with a spatula so it is a rough application. Once the paint had dried, I splodged (hey, I am loving this word today lol) Vintage Photo and Wild Honey Stains onto the craftsheet and spritzed with Sunflower Perfect Pearls Mists then dipped the ATC into it. Where the paint has missed, the colours soak into the paper so they go darker.. cool! The little flower is made from Kraft Glassine... another of my new faves! In the middle is a little Accoutrement button... and that was spritzed with more of the Perfect Pearls...




Oooh, and before I forget... I have popped a demo tag onto the Artistic Stamper Creative Team blog... a real quicky affair when I was playing with Distress Stains at Ally Pally earlier this month... all the deets are HERE.




Anyways... I won't mention that in 2 days, 3 hours and 40mins I will be on my way to America and in three days I will be at Ranger... I thought that I would give it a miss today.. I mean, I don't want to start getting boring or anything rofl... And yes, I still have to pack... the way I am looking at it is this... I am notoriously baaaad for anything packing oriented and... I always forget something, so if I get everything together and put it on the bed, then I can just bung it all into the case... I have a heap of chocolate to take with me too... and no, it isn't for me either!!! (well, a little bit might be, but that is only so I don't feel left out lol) Right... time for me to get going and sorting, ironing, packing... inking ... Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

2 Days, 18 Hours And...

...25 minutes until... I go!!! Eeeek, that has come around sooooo quickly... which is a good thing 'cos I haven't had that much time to wait til I go to Ranger U. I am still at the "cannot believe it" stage... I am sure once I get that case packed I will be believing it a bit more :O)) So, I have to pack... I really do not like packing... putting it off to the last minute is NOT going to happen this time though... no, I shall be organised and be ready and not haring about like a loon on Thursday morning.



Anyways... in the meantime... and as a bit of a diversion, I got a bit inky last night with a mini canvas... this is just slightly larger than an ATC. I love those new Distress Stains... they have to be another "fave" product... and one thing I particularly enjoy doing is mixing them with paint... Claudine Hellmuth's Traditional Tan paint in the case of the blues/browns and Blank Canvas for the others... so... mixing a generous dollop of Trad Tan with Faded Jeans Stains... using Cut & Dry to apply it... then drying and then making some drippy bits of Trad Tan down the canvas... Ellen gave me a coolio tip yesterday, spritz the drips... they then go more splodgy on the edges... which is what I did. The flower is made of Kraft Glassine, painted lightly, splatted with Distress Stain, dried, scruched and then a Maya Road Resin Bloom, also painted, in the middle.





I used the Cut & Dry to alter the colour of the Idea-ology Trimmings... and dabbed a bit more Stain over the top and allowed to air dry... well, I had to allow them to air dry because... disaaaaahhhster... Horace Heatgun died! Yes indeedily, yesterday afternoon I went to dry something and Horace didn't work... well, I flicked the switch and a few seconds later it worked... so I turned it off (doh!) and tried again and bums... it didn't work! To say I am miffed is an understatement and I never really thought about how much I use the old thing... anyway... I have one of those nasty long blue ones but it doesn't get very hot and it is noisy and... it blows stuff all over the shop... time for a new Horace to come and live in the Room of Stash methinks!



Right... I have a date with a little project I am doing for Sunday... the Sunday Stamper is going to be scheduled next week... and I have it on very good authority (ie, Ellen said and she is really clever so it must be right) that as long as I don't change the time on Lionel, the time of posting will still be midnight GMT. If you see it at 7pm on Saturday you know I made a boo-boo... now that wouldn't be the first time lol Thanks for looking... enjoy the sunny weather! TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 151 - Wind Beneath My Wings

Goodly Morning Stampers and a VERY Happy Easter to one and all. Many thanks for all the wonderful entries and comments for last weeks challenge... I had 95 comments/entries in total so I have asked Mr Random.org to pick out a number for me... and he chose # 78 which tallies with the entry from DALLYING DEBZ. Thank you all again for all your amazing entries!


So... a brand new challenge today and yes, I am a little later than normal posting. This is because I started making my entry yesterday evening and ... erm... got a bit engrossed in the goodies I was playing with, to the point that I looked up at the clock and it was nearly 1am and wasn't anywhere near finished! The theme this week is WINGS. To join in is simples... all you need to do is make a little something, it can be a card, ATC, altered art, tag - anything you fancy... simply include the theme and some stamping and then pop back here and leave me a link to the place you are showing your entry and I can hop over to have a nosey. This challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday April 30th 2011.


My entry is a shadow box which I covered with paper from the Crowded Attic stack and then I went to town playing with those wonderful new Fresco Finish paints from PaperArtsy. I can't crow loud enough about how chuffing gorrrrrgeous these paints are... basically, they are really creamy acrylic paints that once applied and dry, they turn chalky, so the finish you have is set and won't budge but it actually feels chalky and they have a lovely matt finish to them too.



I used the new Sewing Room Alterations (which is so going to be my new favourite) cutting some mountboard that was covered with Crowded Attic paper and then using Cut & Dry to add some colours to it. The paints used were London Night and Vintage Lace with a spot of Snowflake thrown in for distressing. The "wings" on my entry are from the very first stamp that I ever bought. It's a PSX butterfly - probably the one stamp that I would have to save from a fire... tis special and still stamps so well about 983 years later lol



The little frame in the shadow box is actually hanging from the top by some Jump Rings and little hooky screwy thingy's... can't remember what they are called! The surfaces of both the box and the frame were painted with Fresco's... applied with either Cut & Dry or a babywipe, depending on the depth of colour I wanted... the script stamping is done using Dusty Concord Distress Stains... which just goes so well with the Fresco's... I also swiped a light application of this Stain onto the surface of the box and used a babywipe to just dull it down a bit. The little bottle have ribbons around them and in them which were coloured with the Stain, as was the little cummerbund on the dressform. The finishing touches were added, using Idea-ology to fancy up the butterfly and making a little dangling lacey trim across the top {I got this idea from Lin & Leandra's project on the Artsy Crafts event :O))}



Anyways... sorry I am a bit late posting this challenge... next week Lord knows what time the new challenge will be posted... am going to schedule a post on here for 00.01 next Sunday morning... but... Lionel Laptop will be in America with me so will he be posting on EST or GMT? Who knows!!! Actually, if you do know, could you let me know please? Otherwise... the new theme will post at 7pm on Saturday night instead... you see... I knew I would have...erm... issues with the time difference rofl. I might have mentioned once or twice (ok, ok, several times lol) that I will be in America at the end of the week. Today it is THIS WEEK that I am going to America and now 4 days til I fly, 5 days til Ranger U and 7 days til I see Ellen!!! I cannot even begin to describe how excited I am... so... erm... I won't!! Right... there is an Easter Egg somewhere with my name on it... chocolate for breakfast is ok isn't it?? Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

SIX....

...It's the final countdown... oh dear, now I am going to be singing that ALL day long... anyways... tis now six days til Ranger U... on the excitement scale of 1 to 10 I am now heading for in excess of one million... so, to calm myself down I have been totally inspired by a fab project in the latest book by the Wonderful Wendy Vecchi... which is book IV.




All of the deets on how I made the box etc are HERE on The Stamp Attic blog... I had greeeeat fun using all my favourite products... which leads me nicely on to reminding you that there is still a teensy bit of time left to enter the Sunday Stamper challenge this week... closing at 21:00 today... and yummy candy is up for grabs... CLICK HERE to see all the deets about how to enter :O))


So... I am ready! All I need to do is pack... which I absolutely hate doing and always leave it to the last minute... like the time that me and some of my girlfriends decided that we deserved a really special holiday in St Lucia. I had got all my stuff together the day before we were due to fly, all I needed to do was A) iron it and B) pack it. But... we decided that seeing as we had to be at Gatwick for 7am, we would only go out the night before until 10pm and go straight to bed... and not... erm... imbibe much of the strong stuff. Aha, best laid plans and all that. I got home at about 3am and decided that I would have a little 40winks before I got myself ready. Next thing I knew it was 5am and my doorbell was ringing...




You know "that" feeling you get when you realise that you have overslept? Well, it was that feeling times by about a hundred... and yes, my case was still sitting empty on the bedroom floor. It is fair to say that I recreated that famous scene at the start of Four Weddings & A Funeral... running around the flat hurling things into my case... and then dashing off to Gatwick pronto. Trouble was, I had not removed my make up from the night before (dirty moo) and actually was a lookie-likey for Alice Cooper. Oh and... when I finally got to St Lucia and unpacked I realised very quickly that the woolly poncho and thick black tights would so not be suitable!! Anyways... I am NOT going to let that happen again so I shall start packing... now! Yes, right now... well, after I have just gone and done the dishes and cleaned the lavvy... Have a lovely weekend... new Sunday Stamper theme tomorrow and the winner of the candy will be announced too!! TTFN!!

Hels x

Taxi.....

... you know that fabby Old Jalopy stamp from the Duke of Distress that he has now had made into an Alterations die? Well, I have had my beady eyes on it ever since I first saw it... and I have to say... it is faaaaab!! Tis Friday today which means that it is my Bubbly Funk DT day... I altered a canvas, used the Old Jalopy and got very painty and messy... all the deets on how I made the canvas are HERE. I wanted to make the Jalopy into a Taxi so I used an Idea-ology Plaquette on the door and a little orange bulb that was taken from an old Xmas decoration... cute!




So... tis Friday... yep, Friday... which means... this time next week William & Catherine will be wed and.. erm... oh, yes, something else is happening isn't it!!! Ah, yes... I will be AT RANGER!!!! Actually, factoring in the time difference (oh my poor old brain is going to struggle with that lol) it will actually be 7am, which means I will hopefully be sitting watching the wedding on the TV in my hotel room (ermm... hoping hotel room has TV!!) and getting the biggest butterflies ever about my day ahead... I mean, the butterflies I have now are large and we still have a week to wait... I think I could quite easily cancel my flight and flap across the pond on the back of my butterflies!!!




Anyways... I managed to go clothes shopping yesterday... eeeek, I hate shopping at the best of times (unless it is for stash, obviously) so trying to clothes shop when the place if full of kids running around and making noises that only a mother could love... well, suffice to say, I got a few new things and came home with a free headache lol They should have a holding area in department stores for children... they could be put into a play area that is sound proofed and then miserable old bags like me wouldn't get all vexed and uppity because there wouldn't be any annoying brats skidding around in the aisles and dragging racks of clothes down on top of themselves... Oh, I sound like a grumpy old woman (maybe I am!!! EEeek!!)




Anyways... time for me to get moving and stuck into the ever growing list of things to do before I go away in... a weeks' time!!! Right... enough of me waffling... have a good Friday (did you see what I did there!!!) Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

Kaboom...

... a silent kaboom at that... I have been playing with inky things again... yesterday Mr Mojo naffed orf on his jollies... so I had to sit and go through the motions of trying to make something... then I spotted the bits I had made already for one of my WIP's... there it was, sitting on Desk 2 looking a bit folorn... and seeing as the base of it is the new Kraft Resist paper with some Crowded Attic thrown in for goodly measures, I figured I would try and tempt that rascal Norman (the name I have given Mojo) back into the Room of Stash.



Hurrah and thrice, he came home - only because I was playing with Crowded Attic and Vintage Photo Distress Stain though... anything else would have ended up in the bin, of that I am sure lol Tis a while since I last made an Exploding Box... in fact, it was the very first thing I made that wasn't a card or ATC all those years ago... so revisiting this after so long was rather refreshing.




It took me an age to get all the little pieces of Crowded Attic cut, painted, inked and stamped... but it is rather therapeutic to sit and create inkyness... you should see the state of my nails!! Let alone the splats of Vintage Photo that were decorating my arm... so I used the good old Craft Scrubbie to get all that off... works a treat.



Off I went to bed last night thinking that I was nice and clean and inkless... ahem... well, when I got up this morning, I went to put my lenses in and saw splats of Vintage Photo Stains all over my face!! Either that or I have a seriously bad illness. I got into a bit of bother with a Fired Brick Stain the other night when I was making my Passport Holder... I had rubbed my cheek while I had the Stain on my finger and looked like I had a very bad vitamin deficiency lol


So, this morning... Vintage Photo freckles... an altered face... I should rename the blog to be Ink All Over The Place Including Feet, Face and Fingers... doesn't flow as well as Ink On My Fingers though, does it?




So... this time next week... I will be in mid air... oooh, I am having huge butterflies now... and yes, watching Air Crash Investigates and Seconds From Disaster is not a good idea... I am going to have to go and purchase some new "crafting clothes" because it says on the info from Ranger that we should wear our arty clothes as we are working with inks etc... however, upon reflection... and upon looking at the state of my crafting clothes, they are bad, like stained, covered in paint splats and trails of Glossy Accents where I invariably drop whatever I have just Glossy Accented on to my lap... and I so don't want to look like an old tramp... wish me luck, I hate clothes shopping... and it is Easter holidays which means the shops will be over run with... children... eeek!! They scare me lol Right... am off to do battle in the town centre! Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

WOYWW... A Whole Year Ago...

...cor blimey, it is a whole year ago today since we moved house! Now, that has gone past in a flash!! A whole year in the Room of Stash and erm... I am a teensy bit better at keeping my desk clean... not 100% cured yet because you can't see the mess on the other desk but that is all WIP's and I didn't think you would want to see a whole pile of stuff waiting to be artified lol So, why am I going on about desks and things? Well, it is simples...tis Wednesday which means it is time for What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday... led and devised by the hilariously witty Julia... just click her name and you will be whizzed off on the back of a giant parasol (tis still sunny here!)




So... my desk today features my latest project and the next one too... I am planning of getting both of them done pronto... I am running out of time you see... being as I will be away at the end of the month... don't worry, I won't bang on about how is it only 8 days until I jet off to America and 9 days until Ranger U and 11 days until I hook up with Ellen again... nope, shalln't mention that at all!!!



Anyways... I did mention the other day about me perusing Passport Holders and being a skinflint and having a go at making my own... well, ahem, I did... make my own... and it is so hilariously rotten that I had to show you it... merely for amusement purposes of course! Somehow the design in my noddle came out alllllll wrong... and ended up like this... I tell you what I need to do.. I need to find my chuffing sewing machine and stop using hot glue so much... anyways.. I shall use it because I made it... needless to say, I might just buy myself one in Accessorize at Heathrow lol



Anyways... I have something to tell you... my AlfieCat... bless his little paws, came through his hole in the fence (we had the fence man make a little catsized hole for Alfie so he can get into the Spinney) well, he comes through his hole in the fence yesterday morning and I can't hear him... he usually rings tinkley-tinkles cos of his bell on his collar....Mmmm, he is minus his collar... again! So, I shut him in the house and tell him off for losing his collar again... and go a-wandering to see if I can find it... not a hope! So, I get into Ferdy and drive to the pet store, buy two new collars (one for now and one for a spare) and a new tag... so £11.67 lighter (I know, how much for a tag!!!) I get home and put the new collar onto Alfie... he is such a good boy and just lets me put the collar on... so I am doing this and saying to him "Do not lose this one boy.... go and find your old one" I don't know if you remember but he lost his collar last year... we got a new one for him and he went out and found his old one... well, I let him out again, saying "Go find your old collar Alfie" So, ten mins later he is back in the kitchen with something in his mouth... yep, you guessed it... his old collar!!!! HOW does he do that??? He is so clever!!! Now, we have a theory... he doesn't realise he has lost his collar... then he gets a new one put on him, realises the old one is missing, goes and finds it and brings it home... OR... (I prefer this one) He is fully conversant in the English language and understands me asking him to find his other collar... I like that one better... he is a clever boy ... so do forgive me for doing the proud mummy thing there but I can't help it!! Right... enough waffle for one day... Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

Starlight...

... yesterday was a moobag day for me... you know, do you ever have those days when you feel like a moobag, look like a moobag and mope about like a moobag? Well, that was me... mainly because the stooooopid pain levels are getting high and the even stooopider pain meds aren't quite working... anyways... I flopped about and huffed and puffed my way through the day and eventually found my way into the Room of Stash. Now, I can never be moobaggy when I am in the Room of Stash and I soon found myself getting thoroughly inky and messy and making this little Art Parts hanging. So... no more Mrs Moobag for me, the pain might still be here but I am not letting it get the better of me...



Anyways, it is no secret that I lurve all things Wendy Vecchi and Studio 490 stamps are my faves... in fact, the whole Studio 490 range are my faves, they can do no wrong!!! Naturally, because I cannot seem to craft without Distress Stains at the moment, they have made an appearance on this piece too... what I really should be doing is leaving them alone for a few days and remembering my other inks but... alas, I have found THE perfect inks in the Stains... I just need ALL the Distress Range in the Stains now :O))




So, this hanging is made as part of my DT for The Stamp Attic... oooh and while I think on... goodly news from The Stamp Attic DT... Ruby 2 Shoes has joined the team... her cards are fabbylush... HERE is a linky to the Stamp Attic blog where her latest card is showing. Oh... and... Wendy has just got some brand new brass charms in... they are to die for gorgeous... HERE they are... be warned though... stocks are getting low and they are so lovely you will want them all... (unlike me who didn't buy a single one.... no, I didn't... well, ok, I might have popped a few into my basket but sssshhh, that's between you and me lol)



Right... enough of the going off at tangents and digressions... this Art Part is one of the large Circle Frames and it was covered with Crowded Attic cardstock which was then given the Distress Stain treatment... using Broken China, Wild Honey, Fired Brick and Dusty Concord. The hanging stars stamp is totally inspired by Gillian... I saw her use them this way and I had to use them this way too!!! Aren't they just FAB? The star border is an Art Parts piece, covered again with paper and then coloured with Wild Honey and Fired Brick. I went a bit bonkers with Rock Candy Stickles - did I ever mention they are my faves?? Probably, I seem to repeat myself a lot.. I do... you know, repeat myself ;o))




The leaf is another Art Parts piece... coloured with Peeled Paint Stain... stamped with Olive Archival. The flower is layered up using Grungepaper and Clearly For Art (another fave product...) The centre of the flower is an ickle Maya Road Resin Bloom and there are some Maya Road Trinket Pins behind the flower. The hanging is actually an Idea-ology D Ring... yep, I saw this idea on Wendy's artwork and borrowed it... the idea... not the artwork (although that would be awesome!!) There are some Idea-ology Snaps on the stars and a Memo Pin with a Tassell hanging off it.. oh and an Ornate Frame... and a little Clearly For Art butterfly that has a chopped down Maya Road Heart Trinket Pin for a body. Phew... I think that is all...



Anyways... did I mention that I am popping away for a few days at the end of the month? I am sure that I must have mentioned it once... or...erm.. several hundred times... anyways... the countdown clock has hit 8 days!!! EIGHT DAYS!!! Chuffing chuff!!! I am all prepared too... I have my flight bag sorted, my tickets, my hotel and I am just about to go and make a Passport Holder... well, I was mooching around Accessorize on t'internet and saw some fabby ones that were like £12 and being as I am a skinflint I thought I would have a bash at making one... you might see it if.. and it is a big if... if it works well... otherwise, forget I ever mentioned it lol Right... time for me to go and get creating... tis gonna be a late one... thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

Simon Says...

...Tim! Actually, Simon Says Stamp & Show says show us a Tim Holtz Technique... yes, that is the challenge this week over on the ... erm... (I am repeating myself already!!) Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge Blog (wondering now if I mention Simon Says Stamp & Show whether or not I will get carted off to prison for the misuse of English, syntax, sentence construction, over punctuating...actually, when I was at school 99% of my English assignments came back with red words scrawled on saying "punctuation!!!") Anyways, as you can see, I am off on my rambling tangents already...blame it on the celebratory swig of beer I pinched from Grim's glass yesterday... I just cannot hold my drink lol




Right... let's start again... today a new challenge has been set.... oh dear, I am off again... ok, I have made a tag using only the finest products on the market, namely a whole lot of stashly goodies from the fair hand of the one and very only Duke of Distress. So, we have to show a Tim technique... and I chose my ultimate, 100% top ten favouritest technique ever.... Wrinkle Free Distress. Basically, I love this because it means that each time the tag/card/ATC is dipped into the inkyness, it comes up with a totally different look... lushly indeed!



I used Distress Stains to do my Wrinkle Free... first of all, I cut a piece of Crowded Attic paper (YES I am still in my Crowded Attic phase), coated with a light covering of Trad Tan paint, dried it and then smooshed Vintage Photo Stain onto the craft sheet and spritzed with water... dippy, drying, dippy etc... voila! Beautiful background... simples!!! There's a whole lot of Alterations going on too... the butterflies are Movers & Shapers and the Rosettes... ah yes, to die for (geddit, die for... ) I over stamped the butterflies with the butterfly stamp from the ~Spring Sprung~ Tim collection set. Oh and finally, do you see the ickle bottle cap on top of the rosette pile? That is just THE most darling little embellie... from the Bottle Cap Company... which I treated myself to at Ally Pally when I saw Lin demo them... a must have! I cheated slightly, I have a jar full of bottle caps that I bought in a brewery shop for a quid... so I didn't buy the beautiful decorated ones ... instead I painted one of my boring green ones and the spritzed some Espresso Colorwash over the top...



Cor blimey... how much yakking?? Well it is my 1001th post so I am being self indulgent and waffling away... what I am actually doing is putting off chores... sitting here waffling is far nicer than washing up or helping Grim chop down 300foot high nettles... but, alas, I should go really... things to do, inky to get messy with and stamps to play with... thanks for looking... if you got this far lol Have a very goodly day... TTFN!

Hels x

A Very Special Sunday Stamper - Week 150 - All You Need Is Love... & Candy

...Goodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all. So, I have been dropping hints about the special post today... and this is because it is my 1000th blog post! That is one serious amount of waffling from yours truly! And, it is also the 150th week of the Sunday Stamper challenge... and the very first challenge theme was LOVE so we are revisiting this theme this week... with a twist!




I would like to see your favourite products, techniques and designers on your entry this week... as well as adding in a lurve theme too if you want to :O)) As well as it being the 1000th post of waffle and the 150th week of song title-themed challenges, it is also high time to say a maaahooosive thank you to every one who joins in with the Sunday Stamper... so I have put together some yummy candy... all the deets about how to join in and how to win the candy will be at the end of this post :O))



So... LOVE... and the products, techniques, designers that I love. Well, that one is simples... namely Wendy Vecchi and Tim Holtz... over the years I have been heavily influenced and inspired by the gorgeous creations these two amazing designers have made, not to mention their brilliant products and stamp designs too. My favourite colour scheme has always been black and white/black and cream... and these Jenni Bowlin papers are right up my alley... adding in a bit of red for goodly measures.




I have had this project on the boil for weeks... nay and thrice, months even... it isn't a fluke that the 150th Sunday Stamper and the 1000th blog post coincided... I have been carely marking dates on the calendar and making sure that I have blogged on the right days... sometimes twice lol




The Printers Tray is by 7Gypsies and has been lurking in my stash for a while now, waiting for the special project and goodies that were needed to fill it up. I have been ever so patiently waiting for Art Parts, Idea-ology and more of the Jenni Bowlin papers to arrive and now seems the perfect time to put it all together. I have a space on "Hels' Wall" over the stairs ready and waiting for this Printers Tray to go (don't worry, I didn't do any drilling or banging in of nails, Grim did that for me already... ahem... I being of a dangerous disposition!!)




I used just a few inky products to add a bit of distressing to the papers; Vintage Photo DI and a sanding board worked well for the papers... the Art Parts were either coloured with Vintage Photo or Peeled Paint Distress Stains or covered with more of the Jenni Bowlin papers. I used Clearly For Art BlackOut, stamping Studio 490 images using either Gold StaZon or Snowcap Pigment ink.




So... I have put together some candy for one lucky winner... the candy consists of: Maya Road Chipboard goodies - house book, 4 keychain sets, mini flowers set, alterable box & Apple coaster book, as well as Maya Road Trimmings/ribbons, Trinket Pins and Felt Flowers. To go with these goodies is a BNIP Tim Holtz Ruler Book (rare indeedily) a pack of Tissue Tape, Ruler Ribbon, an alterable wooden birdy, 2 packs of my fave gemstones, a 2Crafty chippy frame, a tag chippy book, a pot of Croco and finally... a pot of my very favourite paint, Traditional Tan Studio Paint.



To join in with the challenge all you need to do is make a little something, include the theme and some rubberstamping, then pop here and leave me a linky to the place you are showing your entry... you will be automatically entered into the "hat" twice if you enter the challenge AND leave me a comment. If you just leave me a comment you will be entered once into the "hat". Finally, please take the piccie of the candy and display it in your sidebar, along with the link back to this post... phew, I think that is all the stuff you need to know... oh yes and... the winner will be drawn at random and announced on next Sunday's challenge. This weeks challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday April 23rd 2011. Right... that's all for today... I just want to say... THANK YOU to everyone who has joined in with and supported the Sunday Stamper and also left me the wonderful comments that has egged me on to make more stuff... here's to the next 1000 posts!!! Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x