That Flower... Has a Baby Brother!

...ooohalalalaaaaa and thrice indeedily! That flower, you know, that one that has become my firm favourite in the last few weeks... on the Accents for Art Studio 490 stamp set... well, it has a baby brother... and I had been really rude and ignored it because my head had been turned by the bigger one. Well, the little one is a darling indeed! It has five petals but still has the same gorgeous markings inside it.



So.. the other day when I was making my entry for the Sunday Stamper, I had some left over bits and pieces and popped together an ATC. I wanted to add a flower (yep, that one) but... it was ever so slightly too big for the ATC size. And then I spyed the other flower stamp, sitting every so patiently on the sheet, waiting to be inked... so, er, I inked it! I stamped it three times onto Grungepaper, cut out the layers and then coloured with Fired Brick DI. The middle layer has been coloured with Brushed Corduroy DI to add a bit of definition in the design. The rest of the ATC is made up of Jenni Bowlin papers, I got the sewing machine out and stitched around the edges and cut a piece using the Label Alterations die, stamped the sentiment (too cute!) and then popped that on there too.




I had forgotten how nice it is to make ATC's... you can get them made pretty quickly because they are only diddy but... you can still add some loveliness to them. Anyways... I would love to be able to sit and chatter and tell you all about what I did yesterday but... seeing as I did nothing, you would soon be bored! Actually, I did watch the Touring Cars... from a very wet Thruxton (thank goodness we decided to watch it on the tellybox instead of going there and getting drenched!) The sun is shining today, which is making a lovely change though. Right... I am offski... thanks for looking... hope you having a lovely sunny day too! TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 203 - Little Red Corvette

Gooooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all! Many thanks for the gorgeous summery entries to last weeks challenge... and hello to lots of first-timers entering the challenge... I know I say this all the time but it sure makes me smile big to see all your fab entries. The challenge this week is staying with the colour theme... and it is... RED. To join in is simples; make a little something - it can be anything you fancy. Add in some stamping and the theme, pop back here and leave a comment for me along with a link to the place you are showing your entry so I can hop over to visit you. As ever, if you haven't got a blog or other web hosting platform, you can enter via email or Facebook. The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 5th May 2012.



So. My entry. I had an absolute ball making this! Jo sent me a few stashly bits to play with this week ahead of my demo day (yesterday) and one of the pieces was this big frame from Kaisercraft. As soon as I saw it I knew that it was going to get some Studio 490 treatment... and I also cut into some of my precious Jenni Bowlin papers - I just love the combo of these colours with Studio 490. I started by coating the edges, recess and a smidge of the front of the frame with Black Soot Distress Stain, drying as I went and then reapplying so it achieved a nice deep tone. Once I had stuck the paper onto the frame I blended around the edges with Brushed Corduroy DI and then sanded them back slightly to reveal the white core giving it a bit of a shabby look. I then set about altering some Art Parts - covering the flowers with more of the papers and sanding the edges so they matched with the overall look of the piece.


I went to town with the Fired Brick DI and coloured three Grungepaper flowers (that flower again folks!) and made a rose (although I thinking this one looks a bit like an hibiscus bloom) The leafy Art Parts were coloured with Peeled Paint Stain, edged with Peeled Paint DI to add some shading and then overstamped with the big background stamp from the Accents for Art set (the one with that flower) using Olive Archival Ink. The fancy corners are more stamps from that set, stamped onto their co-ordinating Art Parts with Coffee Archival and then coloured with Brushed Corduroy DI.


I made a centrepiece to go into the recess... I even got out the little sewing machine and did a bit of stitching (mmm, still not mastered the big machine, I need lessons lol) and then coloured a cut down Scallop Border Art Part with Black Soot, sanded the edges, coloured over with Brushed Corduroy DI and then I glued it to the frame using... yep, you guessed it... Cosmic Shimmer Glue. I added some bits and bobs onto the shelf and then finally attached a little birdy using one of the new Screw Eyes (am loving these!) Ooh, I nearly forgot... I added some little butterflies that I stamped onto Clearly For Art - Blackout flavour using Gold Dabber... and then popped some Game Spinners onto them to make their bodies.


I had a FAB day yesterday at Jo's shop... many thanks for inviting me Jo and also thank you to your lovely Mum for looking after me and making sure I was topped up with coffee and cake. Oh, you should have tasted the cakes!!! I erm... sampled them all (not all at the same time of course!) they were scrummy. It was lovely to meet so many lovely crafters too... am waving hello to you all! Right, I must away, I have a date with my bed, book and hot water bottle... brrrr, tis chilly here tonight! Thanks for looking... have a fabby Sunday... I shall be installed on the sofa, watching the British Touring Cars, they are at Thruxton today... Go Plato!!! TTFN

Hels x

Travel Tag...

...those new Destinations papers are lush aren't they? I think that this is fast becoming my fave Tim paper-stack... I know, I have said that everytime there's a new one but this is really up my street because it is all about travel (ahem, quite, hence the name!) but the backs of the papers are gorgeous too... they are all patterned so they look like they have texture... loooove them!


So, I was faffing in the Room of Stash and decided to bung a quick tag together... a Challenge Hels that I was only allowed to stamp the new train stamp... nothing else (!) and all the decorations had to be from the stack *but I did allow myself a bit of Idea-ology otherwise I would have not liked the challenge setter (me) and gone off into a moody (not good, being moody with self) so I liberally sprinkled some onto the tag too* Oh and... I cheated a smidge because I had a couple of Grungepaper strap jobby things from the Hardware Alterations die kicking about on my desk, so I used them to look like fastenings for a suitcase... mmm, I think a bit of squinting needs to go on because they look nowt like that but... well, it is the thought that counts lol


Right... better get a wiggle on... I need my beauty sleep, I am away to Coningsby in Lincolnshire to Jo Channon's store, Let's Create, for a demo day of Ranger goodies and Studio 490 loveliness... if you are in the area, it would be fab to meet you! Thanks for looking... have a goodly Saturday! TTFN

Hels x

Branching Out...

...well, not me... that would be far to energetic! No, I am beginning todays waffle-athon with a tag made using my new Bird Branch Alterations die... this has been living in the Room of Stash for nearly a month now and... tis only the second time I have used it! The first time was on my 12 Tags of 2012 "April" tag... oh and if you haven't seen about this... click HERE to whizz off to the Duke Of Distress' website... all the deets are there.


I don't know about you but... I sometimes start thinking about projects just as I am about to fall asleep... I should keep a little book in the bedside cabinet so I can draw my ideas down and then feel free to zip off to the Land of Nod with a clear imagination... but no, I don't have suggested book (although I may just make one) and being as I couldn't get off to sleep last night, I figured I may as well get up and get inky. For some reason, I always find crafting during the night to be the most fruitful... even though I have been tippytoesing around so as not to wake Grim (and yep, guess what? I dropped said Bird Branch die onto the floor... cue frozen statue like stance and face holding a wincing expression... phew, thankfully I didn't wake him, although Alf was none too impressed as he was asleep on his bed and it made him jump *payback for all those times he has taken a flying leap at my toes in the middle of the night lol*)


Where was I? Ah, yes, insomnia... well, I have choices for these nights of insomnia, I could sit and read my book, watch the tellybox, try to get back to sleep or... get inky. You should see the state of my paws now! A rather fetching shade of purple they are! Can you see the background stamped onto the tag? It is from the new Mixed Media set - I stamped it in Coffee Archival onto the Texture Fade and then embossed it through Victor (who was not being quiet!) I love this technique and I really do need those Reflections stamps (next on the wishlist!) Once I had done the inking - Shabby Shutters, Broken China and Seedless Preserves, decorated the tag with bits and bobs, I decided to try out another of those Gem Clips. Now, I have used four so far and am trying to be frugal with them but... I love 'em. This time I added a Jump Ring and some Foliage to the clip and bobbed it onto the side of the tag.


This here card that I am showing...well, I was asked by my lovely neighbour if I could make a card for her dear friends birthday. Sure, no probs... it gives me an excuse to go "pretty" and make a "proper" card. I say proper because the cards I usually make end up more tag-like. I have used some cream cardstock and made it into an easel card (yes Caz, I tried the stepper card thingy and got cross... I am stoopid, tis official *must try harder* lol)



The papers are Basic Grey Capella which I have had for a yonk and a half and only stroked... and the flowers are from a packet that the lid has fallen off so I have nooooo idea who makes them or if you can still get them. I bought a shed load of paper flowers several yonks ago when I was into *dare I admit this....* cute cards. The thing is, I see talented peeps making cute cards all the time, I marvel at their layering skills, their colour finesse but when I try to create something like that it just turns out all inky and stampy. I shall stick to what I am comfy with I reckon.



Anyways... I just checked the time and it is nearly 7am! Which means that I should really go and try to get 40 winks... then again, there's that other thingywotsit that I was thinking about last night, I could go and make a start on that... ahh, decisions, decisions! Thanks for looking... have a loverly day! TTFN

Hels x

It's That Flower Again...

...Hello, my name is Hels and I am addicted to Studio 490! Ok, so you knew that anyway but... that new flower on the Accents for Art set? My total all time fave 490 stamp! And that is saying something cos I love them all so much... but this one? Just speaks to me :O)) Anyways... I had a play and made a spool piece using Art Parts and Grunge and a smidge of Idea-ology thrown in for goodly measures. The base Spool Art Parts were coloured with Black Soot Distress Stain, a coat then dry and then another coat and dry to make sure it is all nicely inked. I used a sanding block to roughly treat the edges (I wanted a shabby look) and then a Gold Dabber to add a bit of bling around the edges. The "stalk" was also coloured with Stain and then I pounced Gold Dabber onto the big background on Accents for Art, rolling the stalk along the painty surface to add some stampy interest to it.



I made a fancy rose using Grunge, Distress Ink (Victorian Velvet & Aged Mahog) and popped that onto the top of the Spool with an Ornate Frame and an Accoutrement button. I used the "sticks" from the Art Parts Sample Pack to pop into the centre of the stalk, inked and stamped them and then added a couple of Grunge butterflies. The leaves are from the Leaves Art Parts pack, coloured with Peeled Paint Stain, overstamped with Olive Archival and then snipped into two so I could use one on the stalk and one on the top. I have had loads of questions about Art Parts and how to use them: well, I like to get a few out and shuffle them about until I like the look of where they are sitting, then I colour with Distress Stains or Ink... you can covered with paper, add some paint, sand them, cover them with fabric... they are really versatile and because they are so sturdy, they will take some bashing... just remember that they are a compressed paper product so if you do use Stains, make sure you dry them straight away otherwise the paper will pill ever so slightly and could leave you with a warpy piece. Another thing I get asked a lot is... "what kind of glue do you use?" Well, I use Cosmic Shimmer "dries clear" for most of the pieces and if it is a dimensional addition, like the rose and Ornate Frame on this piece, I use hot glue to hold it in place.


Right... that's all from me for today... I am in a bit of a funk because I can't have any more acupuncture... the lovely nurse lady said there's no point (pardon the pun) because it has aggravated the condition so much, it would be silly to carry on. I am a bit disappointed because I really hoped that the doo-dah's would work... well, it was worth a try. Thank you all for your lovely messages of support and advice... all very greatly appreciated. Anyways... back to the desk of ink, things to do... pieces to make... fun! Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

WOYWW... A Winner!

...Cor blimey and thrice alive it is that day of the week again... already! Oh yesh, it is Wednesday, time for the amazing hop that is What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday. Devised and hosted by the one and only Julia, HERE are all the deets on how to join in with this brilliant hoppety-skippety around the crafty desks of Blogland. Last week I had a little giveaway on my desk... and I had 80 lovely comments left... and I went over and demanded that Mr Random.org do the maths for me and he picked... Comment #4 which was left by Craftimamma. Thank you all for your fab comments... and if you could email me your addy please Lesley, I will pop your pressie in the post :O)


So... this week I am polishing my halo! Oh yesh, that is cos I spent a couple of hours last night cleaning up and tidying away and banishing junk to the bin so the Room of Stash is looking totes-amazeballs tidy! On my desk is my trunk of Art Parts... I know, I know, there's a lot of Art Parts in that there trunk but... I have been collecting them for a while and erm... I am kind of addicted and... erm... well, there's no excuse really... apart from the fact that I love 'em! I am going to make a couple of samples ready for my Demo Day on Saturday at Let's Create in Lincolnshire... I am really looking forward to that... if you are in the area it would be fabbydabby to meet you! Remember that chunk of wood from last week? You know, the one that I was altering to make something pretty? Well, I am no further forward with it but I did make a couple of metal roses and then decided that they didn't suit the piece... back to the drawing board on that one lol


Right, I must away to my bed... I have a date with the pointy doo-dah's again in the morning... although I have come to the conclusion that acupuncture doesn't work for me :O( Still, it was worth a try... Have a goodly day... thanks for looking.. TTFN!

Hels x

Curiously...

..Patina...erm...Patinad? Patinaed? Well, however it is supposed to be spelt... that is what I am today! Oh yesh, it is time for the Compendium of Curiosities 2 Challenge again. Hosted by the delightful Linda Ledbetter, all the deets on how to join in and what the theme is are HERE on her blog... and don't forget to hop over to see the guy whom this whole challenge is about... Tim Holtz... his website is HERE. This week we have turned to Page 58 in the book and are playing with Alcohol Inks... I shalln't go into the details etc on how to do this technique as it wouldn't be fair... Needless to say, this is the first time I have tried this technique and I am... in lurve! I expect to see it on everything I make from now on!


All the stashly goodies I made the tag with are detailed over on The Stamp Attic Blog... along with links to the website so you can click over to have a little spend if you fancy. **I am such an enabler lol** Right... I have to tell you all about my near death experience! I have just about calmed down and can now talk openly about it (ok, so I may be milking this a little but, for the first time, I am not exaggerating with this little story) So, I am driving back from my T'Pouch class on Sunday evening when I spy a storm in the distance... I even said to myself "cor that looks bad" Next thing, the car is being pelted by hailstones the size of baked beans... now, I didn't get out and measure them but... that is how big they looked on the road ahead of me.



Nothing deathly about a few little hailstones... no, true... however, the lightning that shot out of the sky and walloped into a 60ft conifer as I was just passing was very deathly... because said conifer literally exploded outwards, all the branches and the trunk were shooting over the road and clattering onto the car!!! (and... I wasn't in Ferdy, oh no, I was driving Grim's car, which is probably just as well because I tend to be a bit... ahem... slower in Grim's car) So, I managed to swerve (thank goodness nothing was coming the other way!) out of the way and carried on my journey for about 5 minutes, by which time I was shaking and in need of, ahem, nicotinely calming measures ... so I stopped in a lay-by and took several deep... erm... breaths!


Being as I had cheated death by seconds, I decided that it might be a good idea to milk the situation... so I spent most of yesterday either snoozling on the sofa or watching telly... I know, I know, I should have been unpacking my tote bag and putting my Room of Trash back into the tidy state it has become accustomed to but... I needed to rest... get over my ordeal and all that lol **yes, and any excuse to get out of cleaning the Room of Stash!**



In all seriousness though... it was chuffing scary.... I have driven through some manky weather in my time but never been as close to lightning as that... the boom that it made was literally instantaneous and the ground shook! Anyways... I am ok, alive and still waffling so it can't have affected me that much (don't groan and say worst luck lol)


Check out the pics... these are from my classes this weekend. Many thanks to Caz, Lewis, Yvonne, Jan and Sue for taking part in the Altered Book class on Saturday and to Wendy, Gayle, Judy, Tessa, Karen, Sue, Lewis and Caz for taking part in Sunday's T'Pouch class. I had a splendid time... oh and if you hop HERE, you can see the finished T'Pouches they all made... I forgot to get pics so good job Wendy was on the case!


Right... time for bed methinks... thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 202 - Summer In The City

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all. Many thanks for all the fabby entries to last weeks challenge... and hello to some newbie entrants too :O)) This week I am inspired by the weather! Well, the kind of weather that I wish we were having at the moment and not this rainy, cloudy and hailstormy stuff... no, I am wishing for some bright sunshiny days. So, the theme for this week is... SUMMER COLOURS. To join in with the challenge is simples: make a little something, it can be anything you like... add in some stamping and the theme and then hop on over here to leave me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry. If you haven't got a blog/Picassa/Flickr etc, you can enter on Facebook or by sending me an email with a piccie of your entry. The challenge will remain open until 21:oo Saturday 28th April 2012.

Front of T'Pouch

So... my entry is actually my class sample for today's workshop at The Stamp Attic. It is all about overloading tags... something that I lurve to do. I have made a T'Pouch for the tags to sit in... oh and if you are new to my blog and are wondering what a "T'Pouch" is... basically, about a year ago, I got all exciteable and decided that just a tag wasn't enough... and I wanted to carry on the piece I was making, giving it more space to add more embellishments and stamping... so I came up with the Pouch design. After yakking over a suggested name for said Pouch with a pal, he suggested the "T'Pouch" so it is a bit of a play on words like the 80's pop band T'Pau... and it kind of went from there!

Back of T'Pouch

If you fancy making your own T'Pouch, I did a tut a few months ago with all the measurements and pics etc... details of which are HERE for you to see. In keeping with my desire for sunny days and a bit of warmth on my old bones, I decided to make this sample using hot Distress Colours... namely Scattered Straw (heavenly with the following...) Wild Honey, Rusty Hinge and Fired Brick Stains. The stamping is with Jet Black Archival and Snowcap Dabber and the stamps are all Tim Holtz collection apart from Photographer Guy - he is a Studio 490 stamp.

Front of Tag

I did some die-cutting using Alterations dies and Grungepaper and cardstock... and added some Idea-ology for embellishing the pieces. I am going to be making another one today in my class... so this time I will pick different colours (or, maybe because I am loving the hot colours, I will do another the same!)

Back of Tag

Tis time for my bed... I had a lovely busy day ripping and old book apart and cutting it (it didn't squeal lol) and getting messy with Gesso and sprays... I will blog pics tomorrow .. I have "my own back" to get on Wendy and Caz today.... they were snapping away with their cameras and I just know that there will be plenty of "Hels looking like a goof" pictures being bandied about... I need a bargaining tool... quick! LOL Right then, that's all for now... thanks for looking... have a fabby Sunday! TTFN

Hels x

Saturday Show & Hels - Fancy Grungepaper Rose

Cor blimey, I go away for a few minutes and come back to a post I started a couple of days ago and... it has changed!!! What has Mr Blogger done???  He has gone and changed the layout... which confuses the chuff out of me... here's hoping that this will post properly... and on time!!!   Right, on with today's tutorial.  This one has come about because of all the wonderful comments I have received about the Grungepaper roses I have been making recently.  Now, you know I LOVE Studio 490 and I LOVE making roses... so, as soon as I copped sight of this new flower, I knew instantly that a rose had to be made.   This one is perfectly designed to make roses with a bit of a special something because it has ruffled edges and is printed in the middle... so when the roses are assembled they take on the look similar to a carnation.  Below is a step by step picture tut along with a list of ingredients and written instructions too.  I hope that you enjoy this latest Show & Hels... on with the tut!!

INGREDIENTS:
Studio 490 Accents For Art (LCS078)
Grungepaper
Strong Wet Glue (I use Cosmic Shimmer Glue)
Distress Ink
Archival Ink
Heat Tool
Craft Sheet
Clips
Sharp Scissors

STEP 1
Stamp the six petal flower three times onto the "furry" side of Grungepaper and cut them out.

STEP 2
Colour both sides of the flowers using Distress Ink and a blending tool/Cut & Dry Foam. Remember to really work the foam into the fibres of the Grunge.

STEP 3
Flower 1 ~ Cut up in between two petals into the middle of the flower. Cut out a circle around this cut, this will make assemblage a lot easier.

STEP 4
Flower 2 ~ Cut out one petal from the flower, again cutting out a circle from the centre (as shown)

STEP 5
Flower 3 ~ Cut out two petals from the flower and again cut a circle from the centre (as shown)  You will now have 5 pieces of Grungepaper.

STEP 6
Flower 1 ~ Snip off the top of the petal that will be underneath when glued. Bring one petal over the top of this tab, add glue and secure with a clip.  Set aside to dry.  Repeat Step 5 for Flower 2 and Flower 3.

STEP 7
Take the two petals and snip off the pointy bit - you don't need this... it is...ahem... pointless (grrroan)  Use your thumb and finger to curl the petal back, rolling the Grunge - the heat from your fingers will help the Grunge to curl.  I do this because when you come to assemble the rose, the Grunge will remember it has been stretched that way already.  To glue this layer, bring the two edges of the petals together, glue and secure with a clip.

STEP 8
Curl the single petal around on itself and leave a little bit of the top of the petal to curl outwards, glue and secure with a clip.

STEP 9
When you come to assemble the layers, a handy tip for you to remember is assemble the rose from the bottom layer up, so 4 petal will go into 5 petal, 3 petal will go into 4 petal... then to avoid jiggling the glued layers, pop the centre petal into the 2 petal layer and you will see that the bottom of the centre petal will poke out of the bottom of the 2 petal layer... snip the excess off, this will make this final layer sit snuggly into the half assembled rose.

 

FINISHED ROSE:

So, here it is... the options for this flower are plenty, it has its own Art Part shape to sit on... (see pic of artwork) it looks amezzzzin stamped on to different mediums... for me, it's the perfect flower stamp!

Right, I had better away to my bed... I was planning on scheduling this post but... I am not 100% sure about this new Blogger layout... I have just spent a yonk and a half putting all the photo's in the right places... then they were all out of alignments... shame there isn't a tutorial on this new system!

Thanks for looking... have a FAB day... I am excited cos I am at The Stamp Attic this weekend... today is an Altered Book class... and tomorrow is all about ink and tags... fun!  Oooh, and... a new Sunday Stamper theme tomorrow too.... Right, I am really offski this time...  TTFN!!

Hels x

Fantastic...

...Backgrounds! Oh yesh, the theme for the DT over on the Fantastic Ribbons blog this month is... to use ribbons as a background. So, there I was, scratching my bonce and wondering what on earth I was going to come up with... I mean, after all, I am no cardmaker... and I don't do pretty or clean or neat... so... I thunked outside the ...erm... ribbon... and came up with this tag:



For all the deets on the challenge HERE they are... and if you fancy a little competition, Fantastic Ribbons are running one... to design a Washi Tape... which, btw, they now have several lush designs on order (I am going to smile sweetly and see if I can nab some of that to play with.... ) All the deets for that are HERE... oh and... Team Leader Kirsty is designing some too! Tis all exciting stuff!


I used a couple of different ribbons and lace for my design... and coloured them with Distress Stains to tone them down a smidge. I then got it into my head that I would do some weaving... oh ho! How difficult was that... tis a good job that I wasn't doing that there weaving in the presence of anyone... they would have had a right old laugh Anyways... I did it... I weaved and woved... and did some stapling with a Tiny Attacher and added some Brads for a bit of extra texture. The tag was finished with a smidge of stamping, some Idea-ology and a beautiful paper flower.


Right... that's all from me for today.. oh, before I do go... THANK YOU to all you lovely folks who have clicked to follow this l'il ol' blog... I just noticed it is at 1101 now! My gob is still smacked and my gast is still truly flabbered and I do have a very warm fluffy feeling... it is nice to know that you like all this nonsense that I waffle everyday! Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

PS... almost forgot... so many peeps asked about the rose from Wednesday's post, I thought I would do a little tut tomorrow...

Curiously Custom...

...Foam that is! Ah yesh, indeedily and thrice, tis exciting because the Compendium of Curiosities challenge has returned... this time it is the Compendium of Curiosities II Challenge.... hosted by the ever lovely Linda Ledbetter... please do hop on over HERE to see all the deets. If you haven't heard about the challenge, Linda has kindly explained it all in full on her BLOG... basically, it is a journey through the latest book by The Duke of Distress, Tim Holtz... click HERE for his website. As ever with the challenge, I won't go into great detail about the "how to" with the particular technique, that wouldn't be fair and all that... I can tell you, however, that this weeks challenge is all about the Custom Foam Stamps on Page 66 of the new book. All of the stashly goodies I used on my tag, including the book, are available from The Stamp Attic and... I have done my tag for my DT piece so all the deets on colours, stamps etc are over on The Stamp Attic Blog.




Oooh, and whilst I think about it... I have two classes this weekend at The Stamp Attic... Saturday is all about altering a book, making a diddy book to go with it and lots of cutting and folding... Sunday is all about tags... overloading them, inking, stamping etc... and... there's a couple of places left on both if you fancy having a crafty time with me this weekend (and I have it on very good authority that there will be cake on Sunday!) Right, a short one from me today... the acupuncture yesterday was painful, I felt the doo-dah's going in... and my ear was bleeding afterwards! Dripping all over the place it was, I must have lost a couple of pints of blood you know (ok, so that is a slight exageration lol) The lovely Pain Nurse said that the doo-dah's could have inflamed things so I just had ears and hands done this week... and now we have to see how it goes... I am keeping everything crossed (including my eyes, so I look a bit...erm... deranged) that this time works. Thanks for all the lovely good wishes... bless you all, it keeps my chin up and cheers me too! Have a good day... TTFN

Hels x

WOYWW & Giveaway....

... Wednesday! Already! How can it be huh? One minute it is Sunday and then the next it is Wednesday which means that it is time, once again, for the hop of the week to commence... namely, What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday... hosted and devised by the inimitable Julia... hop on over HERE to see what this is all about. Being as I didn't get chance to get around to everyone last week, I thought I would have a little giveaway, open to all who comment on this post... the usual randomly picked winner jobbything... one person will win this piece that I made at the weekend using Studio 490 stashly delights, the winner will be announced next Wednesday :O))




So... this past week has seen me return to my slatternly ways... yes folks, the halo has well and truly slipped and the Room of Stash is once more the Room of Trash... I blame the sample making frenzy last week... but the truth is, I just haven't had the will to start... cleaning! I haven't even emptied my bin (not to mention the jar of mucky water... tsk tsk)



Featuring on my desk is... a chunk of wood that Grim had cut up the other day to test his power-sawthingymajig... and when I spotted said pieces of wood I said I needed them... Grim looked at me as if I had lost the plot (he does that quite often though so nowt new there eh?) When I explained about painting and altering he sort of got what I meant so he kindly screwed the two pieces together to make a shape... which is mid way thru the transformation... ok, I have painted it with Traditional Tan paint and then started playing with metal and flowers so ... erm... I haven't got much further.


Right.. I best go, I have more acupuncture later and... ouch, I have been in agony this past few days... not sure if it is over-doing it at the weekend or a reaction to the long-pointy-sharp-things (am not going to say needles again.... whoops!) Thanks for looking... have a goodly day! TTFN

Hels x

And Relax....

...cor blimey, what a totes-amazeballs weekend that just was! Alexandra Palace is my favest show... I think it is because it is such a lovely venue and there are soooo many stands to look at (I have never once managed to see them all) and of course, I get to sit and play with ink and Studio 490 stashly goodies all weekend... fun! Best of all, I also get to meet up with loads of lovely crafters - some whom I have been chatting with in Blogland and on emails... time to catch up with friends old and new... perfection eh?



So.. that there is my demo desk yesterday morning... I should have taken an "after" shot too... it was a whole lot messier than that by the time I had finished. I was sitting next to Julia this weekend... and I was full of intentions to get loads of pics during the show... so, Saturday, armed with camera, I set about taking pics... only to find the battery was dead ...whooops!!! So... re-charged battery and camera came back with me yesterday and the first thing I did was get a snap of Julia... it's a lovely pic isn't it?



And... if you nip over to Julia's blog, you will see some of her pics of the weekend... including this one of me... getting messy with ink....



Meeting up with Minxy, Gillian and Alison was as fab as ever... Gillian was my personal shopper for the weekend too... and thank you girls for keeping me fed and watered... here we all are, sitting on the steps yesterday afternoon.. posing with our Tim bags...




And then Minxy says that she has this journal book thingy and she wants me to add a page to it. Well, ok, I am rubbish at journalling, I just don't "get" it... but... Minxy was insistent.. and having been totally fazed by the other entries all in there from Lin, Leandra, Laura and Sam, I set about doing something Studio 490... and because I can "be like that", I added a grunge rose to the book too... well, Minxy will always remember that look on my face when I was trying to colour that page ... every time she can't close the book lol *snort*


Anyways... that's all for today... I have to unpack (yuk) my stuff... and put it away again.. and tidy the Room of Stash (all that sample making made it a bit... erm... messy) oh and I have some tellybox stuff to catch up on.. Dexter & Coronation Street omnibus, here I come!! Thanks for looking... have a grand day ... TTFN

Hels x