WOYWW - 92

This was actually taken yesterday when the sunshine blazing in through the windows did give me a few problems with light and dark patches, but it was so good to see that big yellow thing in the sky.  Did anyone see the 700th edition of The Sky At Night on Sunday?  Brilliant programme but Brian Cox did say that the sun loses several billion tons every second - scary - but he did say we don't need to worry any time soon, as there is plenty to lose.  So I think we shall just enjoy it while we can see it after all the dull weather this year.

Back to the desk now.  From a very tidy craft room, I have deteriorated to the push the piles back state.  A bit of tidying up required, I think, but not in the next couple of days.  It is looking very much as if, by the time, this post is published, our fourth grandchild should have arrived, so I need to find the iron under all the plaster dust, get that shawl pressed and finish the card.  That is on my desk, looking a bit pink here, but there is a piece of blue card there too, so both are covered.  I also went out this afternoon down to Hayley West's shop (Little Lou's Craft Supplies - Hayley is one of the resident demonstrators on Create and Craft) to get some pink and some blue ribbons to finish off the birth card - I only spent 90p, and came away with the only thing I went for.  I must get down there again soon to have a good mooch round at all her new stuff when life calms down and I can really spend time.

I have also been playing around with another of Barbara Gray's Clarity stamps - the feather, which is so delicate.  My only complaint is that the W in Wing in the verse is a little hard to read initially.  What I did with the cards you can see in the background was to stamp the image and import it into the computer into My Craft Studio.  There I could change the colour to one I do not have the ink pad for, but more importantly, it allowed me to change the sizing to create and print out the background card with smaller feathers.  I changed it all to a sepia tone, and reduced the opacity of the background, and lifted it on the topper.  The card was just from a stash of cheap hammered cards I have had for ages, but I think they worked really well.  The toppers were mounted onto dark brown card from Papermill, using coppery coloured brads (I wish I could remember where I got them as I have run out).  I did have a problem with one as I forgot I had printed on vellum and went ahead and applied adhesive, ready to mount it.  Mistake!  So I then mounted that one on silver leaf and mounted that on the brown card.  It still worked, and looked pretty good.

When we were designing the layout of my craft room, one or two friends said I should have my work desk across the window, but I objected.  If you look at this, you may see why.  If my desk had been across the window, it would have been far too hot to work whenever the sun was out.  It would also have stopped me from just swinging round, grabbing the binoculars to see what bird life is around at any time.  Our lawn does not really exist, and in the wet, resembles runny chocolate (without the taste or smell) rather than grass.  Two dogs tearing round do not help.  However, the feeders do bring in quite a wide range of small garden birds which are fun to watch.  Must clean the windows to get rid of that plaster dust again.

If the baby does arrive in the next 24 hours, I will put a PS, and show the finished card.  In the meantime, if you arrived here by other means, do slip across to Julia, our leader, at http://stamping-ground.blogspot.com/     where you will find lots of interesting desks to mooch through.  To all those who are feeling less than 100%, good luck this week and may you all feel fine very soon, and to everyone, thank you for coming to see me and leave such lovely comments.

PS Still nothing on the grandchild front.  Watch this space.