WOYWW 221? Happy is !

What's on my Workdesk today?  Not a lot! And it isn't Wednesday yet either though it will be by the time I have finished this post! I have been doing some papercrafting this week but there is nothing out right now because I have also been working on another project, and as It was almost at an end, I took myself out on to a shady porch this afternoon, and did the finishing touches. So here is my 'desk' for today, complete with little red knitting accessory holder that I have had for more years than I can remember, and of course the ever present cup of tea. I just don't function without that. 

And what am I making I hear you ask? Well it is a 'Happypotamus'. I saw one on someone else's blog about three weeks ago so I followed her link to find the pattern and just knew I had to have a go.  And here she is. (I think it's a 'she' anyway).

It was love at first sight. She is made all from African Flower motifs, mostly pentagons, with a few hexagons, a couple of octagons and one heptagon (7 sides). They were nice little pieces of work for me to hold while it is too hot to do any proper knitting. Then they were all crocheted together which is why I have a look of concentration as I try to fit the last motif in the nose gap without all the stuffing coming out!

Here is her face...

and I couldn't resist this shot of her other end as well!

If anyone else is interested, you can find the pattern here. It cost around 6$ but I have to say it was an excellent pattern with detailed instructions and lots of photographs to help with the assembling of her.

Having stopped an earlier papercraft project to make some extra cards for special occasions, I did finally return to my dinosaur card yesterday and the kirigami bit is now done. The rest of the card is still under construction, but hopefully I will be able to do a post on it later in the week.

I will be linking up to Julia's blog in the morning, and setting off to see what everyone else has been doing. If you don't know what I am talking about, go along to her Stamping Ground, and join in the fun.

Six of a kind for Rudolph Day

I said last month that it was time I got cracking on my Christmas cards. So how many have I made since then? None!! I didn't even finish off the last three of last month's run of ten until last night! So this month I decided to go for a more modest run of six and I did manage to finish them.

I started by printing off a few sheets of backing paper from a recently purchased Bearly Mine Christmas Traditions digi set. Then I looked through my Christmas stamps and found these trees by Chocolate Baroque. I have had them for several years but I am not sure they have ever been inked! They have now. I stamped them in Momento Olive grove, and added more colour with copic markers, and then fussy-cut them to mount on the topper panels.

One of the backing papers reminded me of the lovely lattice embossing folder that Di sent to me, so I used that to emboss a white background  and cut it with a labels 20 die. I cut around the outside of the die by hand to make a contrasting mat. (Isn't it time the die companies realised that we want a narrow mat for all our dies instead of the well spaced one they  seem to provide, if they give you one at all?) I used the same contrasting paper to cut  a small panel for the sentiment which was

computer generated and cut with the smallest die in the Resplendant Rectangles set. When everything was dry I highlighted the starts on top of the trees,  the sides of the trees, and the ground below them with stickles glitter glue.

 I made three cards like this which used up a sheet of backing paper, so I then chose a red sheet and made three more reversing the colours. I couldn't bring myself to do red trees though, so they stayed green. Because one of the red papers had snowflakes on, I used a snowflake embossing folder for the toppers on these two.

And just to prove I really did make six this time, here they are.

Now I am going to link these to the Rudolph day Challenge over on Stamping for Pleasure. Pay Sarn a visit if you want to know more about it.

I am also entering them in: 

Christmas Stamping All Year long Challenge 30; Sweet Inspiration.

I met the deadline.

Those of you who visited me on our  Wednesday Workdesk blog hop will know that I had started making a card for our friends' Golden Wedding Anniversary, when I was also asked to make a card for them to be signed by the thirty or so guests at a surprise party for them on Saturday. So first of all I finished my original one and here it is.

As you can see, I again used vinyl cut with my Silhouette Cameo machine. I bought a number monogram set from My Vinyl Designer, but, because each number was in a frame, when I printed the '5' and the '0' together they just didn't look right.

So I opened them in the silhouette software and tried to combine them and that didn't work. Instead I used a combination of photoshop and paint and eventually came up with a '50' that I was happy with. Taking this back into the silhouette software I was able to add names and the other words into the frame, and cut it all out. Once again there was some careful weeding to be done and I then used transfer paper to place it onto some gold mirri-card. This was mounted onto a plain ivory card and that was one finished.

For my second card for the guests to sign, I decided to do a complete contrast and came up with this fussy-pretty one.

I knew it needed to be as large as possible and Spanish 'standard' envelopes are bigger than British ones, so an A4 card has room to spare in them. But from time to time I buy packs of card from Lidl's which are larger than A4 and I was delighted to find that a sheet of this folded in half, fitted my envelope exactly. I used a plain ivory base card and a mat in a very pale green pearl card embossed with flowers. The main image is from  the Heartfelt Creations Bell Rose set, stamped in memento rich cocoa onto white card lightly dusted with memento cantaloupe. The simple flowers are coloured with coloursoft pencils and the panel is cut with Spellbinders Decorative labels 8 die. I cut around the outer edge of the die to make a gold mirri-card mat for it. I then stamped the single rose from the same set twice onto white card and cut one out with the matching die. I cut just the centre section from the other one, and coloured them all with copic markers. I then shaped the layers and decoupaged them onto the panel. I stamped and cut two more butterflies and added one to the panel.

I used the smallest die from Elegant labels 4 to cut the mat for the sentiment which was printed on the computer and hand-cut to fit. I threaded some gold ribbon through the label and glued it across the card. Next I cut to two gold leafy swirls using another die from the Bella rose set and linked them up the side of the card, and then added a paper rose I made from white paper and sprayed with buttercup and bright gold inks. When it was quite dry I filled the centre of the rose with glossy accents and 'floated' a clear gem in it for a dew drop, and also added a small gem to the rose on the main panel. I used some cut-off pieces of the flourish to balance the panel on the right side, and glued the second butterfly to the sentiment label.

It ended up bigger and fussier than I usually make, but it was right for the occasion and they were delighted with both cards.

They were totally surprised to find us all waiting for them at the party and we had a wonderful evening together.

I am entering this in:
Let's Craft and Create Challenge 76; Say it with Flowers. and,
Kort'o'Mania Challenge 91; Flowers.

WOYWW 219

This is a quick one for a change as I am actually in the mood to be crafting and with a deadline to meet, that is a good thing.

The items I was working on last week all had to be put on hold when I learned that a lovely couple from my church are about to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary. Of course my first thought was to make them a card. So I had just started on that when I had an e-mail inviting us to a surprise party for them on Saturday, along with a request for me to make a card for everyone at the party to sign (about 30 I think), so now I have two cards to finish for Saturday. That sounds like plenty of time, but with our thermometer registering 38 degrees on our shady porch this week - goodness knows what it is out in the sun - I have to work in the early morning or the evening as I can't touch any of the papers when I am so hot.

So here is my desk on Tuesday evening.

I have turned to the lovely Heartfelt Creations Bella Rose set of stamps and dies again, this time working in yellows and browns. My copic markers are out as usual when I am working, and on the left is my set of Coloursoft pencils. On top of them is one of my folders of magnetic sheets to hold dies. Then there's a couple of ink pads and a messy, inky sponge, my copic pen colour chart, and an empty tea mug. Tea is still my drink of choice. Even on the hottest days it is more refreshing than anything else. In the background is a grumpy Arwen, ousted from her desk again, and sulking by the window. I had better get on and move my work because she'll be back and sitting on it, the minute I take my eyes off her.

Do visit our lovely hostess Julia over at her Stamping Ground if you would like to see what other crafter's are up to this week. I shall be linking up with them first thing tomorrow morning.

Not everyone's choice, but fun to make!

Our fourth son celebrated his birthday this week. Making cards for him is always a challenge as he spends most of his time running a coffee and churros cart, or working in a mobile shop, at rock festivals all summer and food festivals for the winter. In his spare time he is a drummer in a Heavy Rock band, and in a drum/guitar duo. So your standard male card of cars or boats, doesn't really move him! I have exhausted my repertoire of drum/music themed cards, but both he and his partner, love skulls and other gruesome art, and you have already seen some of the cards I have made for them in this genre. So once again I hunted around for a suitable image. 

I found this one on the Silhouette Cameo facebook page. There are some excellent designers on there and they are very generous with sharing their designs within the group. Helen Geaves designed this one for cutting in heat transfer vinyl to go on a sweat-shirt. She cut some areas in pink and added lots of rhinestones and it looked fabulous. 

I downloaded the file and resized it to fit on an A5 card. It made some of the lines too close together so I removed a few pieces and I did not cut the dotted lines. I then cut it from black glossy sign-vinyl and used tranfer paper to place it on the card. I used a printed image as a guide to place small black gems where the dotted lines are above the eyes and around the teeth and chin.

To finish the card I made a frame from narrow strips of vinyl and also used it to cut out the birthday greeting. Handsome fellow isn't he?

This was quite a challenge because it was an intricate cut, which took ages to weed (remove the bits I didn't want), and I had to be very careful not to distort the shapes when I transferred them. It's not perfect but I was quite pleased with the result. And although it is not a card that I would particularly choose for myself, I know Jonathan will love it and that is what matters.

I am linking this to the Left of Centre Challenge blog where they like anything creepy, goth etc.

Joining the Rockettes for Friday Happiness.

Yes, if you want a dose of 'feel-good',pop over to Celtic House and see what is Rocking our worlds this Friday morning.

I am starting with another photo of my lovely cat Arwen. So many folk loved the photo I posted a few weeks back, when she was sitting on my work-desk, apparently studying my 'complete and unabridged' Spanish dictionary. Well this week, she has decided it is just too hot for studying, so my dictionary is providing her with a (very uncomfortable) pillow while she snoozes under the fan!

I shall be linking this photo to Annie's Friday Smiles.

So what else has been going on here. Well not a lot really. We did do a little bit of work on Tuesday when

we decided to clean all the blinds from around the house. Unlike Venetian blinds at home, these hang outside the window and the mosquito nets, and they aren't adjustable. So they become a trap for all the dust that is blown in from Africa! They are either up or down. Right now they are often down as they go a long way to help keep the house cooler, though in my room I only have them at 'half-mast' as I prefer daylight to work in. Anyway, we took them all down and draped them along our front railings. Then I used a stiff hand brush to scrub them while Chris hosed them down. A great excuse to mess about with water on a hot morning!

On Monday I drove over to Arboleas to my wool shop. This is really just a small wooden hut in Elaine's garden, but she manages to stock a wide range of British wools, needles, patterns, buttons etc. She has one ball of everything in stock on display on the shelves, and when we have chosen what we want, her husband finds it in the garage! She has a huge clientele because Spanish wool is very harsh and either very thick or very thin, so we are happy to travel a bit to buy from her.

We have started taking the dogs out in the evenings now. This is partly for their enjoyment, and partly

because it is good for us to walk! We go around 8.00, so we can just get back before sundown. It is a little cooler by then and we take our time. As you can see there is not a lot of traffic or people to contend with! Everywhere is looking a bit sunbaked, but the setting sun makes it all look golden. It is very dusty though and we have bottles of water with us for the dogs and for us!

One  evening we got back to the beginning of our walk, just as the sun was dipping behind the hills. It was so beautiful!

Last week I showed a tiny praying mantis (It was a very young baby and could grow to several inches in length). So this week I am showing some cicadas. I know not everyone likes bugs, but I am quite fascinated by them. These creatures make sure they

tell us that summer is here. Their noise is deafening, and is continuous for most of the day. You kind of get used to it and tune it out most of the time. If they fly into anything they make an awful 'clunk'. They must be quite strong. They like to sunbathe. The two in this picture are on a telegraph pole by our gate, and on the fly screen around our porch. Their sound is like a high pitched electrical fault in the cables. If you approach them they instantly fall silent, but start up again as soon as you walk away.

My Life Group is taking a short break for the summer, but on Wednesday evening we met down on Mojacar Playa for a meal together. The food was excellent and we all had a good time together.

And finally I will share another lovely sky. For our

evening walks with the dogs we go towards the Cabrera mountains. I love them because every day they are different. The sun sets behinds us, but the reflected rays often turn the mountains a lovely rosy pink. Unusually, last night there was a bank of sea mist rolling over the top which gave us this lovely view.

Right I'm off to link up with Virginia's blog while it is still Friday! Hope to see some of you there.

WOYWW 218

Follow me to Stamping Ground where our hostess Julia links us up to crafting friends from around the world. Why not join in too?

My own desk is in a muddle which does at least mean that for once I am doing some real craft!

So what can you see? There are three projects on the go; (four if you count the knitting pattern at the back that I have just downloaded!). I am having another go at kirigami. Buoyed up by the success of my first attempt I thought I would do something for my grandson's birthday. Let's just say there is a dinosaur involved, and it is proving a lot more difficult than the lion family were. This is just a rough trial using ordinary copy paper to see how it goes together. Hopefully it will be easier when I cut it in card. I am hampered by the fact that I couldn't survive in here without both the ceiling and floor-standing fans on, so every time I put a piece down, it blows away. (I turned them off for the photo!). You may also just glimpse a rather cute little dinosaur which is also a trial to see what colours I am working with. It is a digi stamp and I will be using it on the front of my card. The copics are out to colour it but I think that was a bit optimistic of me for today.

Also out are the sticky carrier mat for my silhouette and some green vinyl, along with a photo frame that I picked up on my last visit to Ikea, which is about to be altered. I have no idea how, but I'll have to do something with it!

I think for now I had better settle for just one of these projects, and clear the rest away. I may just go and start the knitting!

Just for fun here are three more photos. I come down to my room every morning to check e-mails etc and usually the first thing I do is turn on the fan. Immediately  Arwen comes to my table and lays out in front of it like this. She might stay there all day if I go off and forget to turn the fan off. I don't blame her really. I feel the same.

Today, I left my desk in it's current state, and went off to feed the dogs, make a cuppa etc. This is not something I often do because I am likely to come back and find all my bits and pieces scattered, but the heat makes Arwen lethargic, (and me!) so I thought it would be safe today. But I came back to find her trying to find a place to lay in front of the fan! I shouted at her and she fled! I had my camera in my hand so I was just in time to catch a blur of white fur.

She's back again now, and I've given up and left her to it. It is only a trial run after all. I'll fight her off tomorrow when I do the real thing! She can be a real a pain sometimes, but I would really miss her if she wasn't in here.

It is late on Tuesday night now so I will tidy up and get to bed. I'll be linking this up with Stamping Ground in the morning. See you all over there.