woyww536

On my desk today, lots of pretty cards as I’m busy trying to catch up on penpal letters and a plethera of thank yous. At this time of year, we’re spoiled by neighbours sharing their veggie garden produce (runner beans, squash, courgettes, marrows), and beautiful flowers (mainly dahlias – who knew there were so many varieties??) Also, it’s been a busy week visiting friends for tea, coffee, or lunch, and I do like to send a thank you card afterwards 🙂

Looking forward to visiting desks around the globe. We meet up over at Julia’s.

PS I’m still lagging behind with my 14-day writing challenge, but I’m plugging away over at my other blog.

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woyww535

Hello again – back after my August blog-break 🙂 I didn’t get half as much done as I hoped (hot weather just exhausts me!) and I watched way too many dvds – mainly this (now I know what all the fuss is about – it really is quite supperb!)

On my desk is the moonboard I made last Friday for the new Hazel MoonIt has a definite end of summer, beginning of new school year feel (I really do love September so!) and I can feel my energy rising as the temperatures cool 🙂 Here are close ups of each page:

left then rightI’ve also been making cards (September is full of birthdays!), but did I think to photograph my creations? They’re now all sealed up ready for posting… And on Monday, I started a 14-day writing challenge over on my other blog, where I’ve been writing directly on the blog and just hitting Publish after my 15-minute free-write. Here’s Day 1, and Day 2. Day 3 hasn’t been done yet as I wanted to get my woyww post up 🙂 Really looking forward to catching up with you all over at Julia’s Stamping Ground ❤

woyww530

I couldn’t post last week – the overnight storm last Tuesday took out the village power supply, so no electricity and no computer! Thankfully, this week it’s been a tad cooler and more bearable, both indoors and out. This past week, I’ve been busy testing and recording all my ink pads, sprays and paint-dabbers……. and pens and markers – to see what works best with my stamps and what colours I still need to purchase.It’s been a fun, useful exercise 🙂 Sharing with other deskers over here.

PS I’m planning a blog-break throughout August, so if you don’t see me around Blogland, you’ll know why 🙂 I’m hoping to return refreshed and renewed in my favourite month – spectacular September ❤

woyww528

The other week, a dear friend took me to Retford (it’s only half an hour up the A1 from us, but I’d never been before). And who knew, one of my all-time favourite art companies is based there?! We had a wonderful time perusing all their yummy stock and chatting to Alfie 🙂 He told me all about this – which I’d never seen before…As you may know, before the stroke I used to stamp A LOT – art journalling, making cards, swapping ATCs – then, when I thought I’d never stamp again, I gave away 100s of clear and rubber stamps and dozens of stamping blocks! I kept a handful of wood-mounted stamps, which I sort of manage to use left-handed (the image is invaribly squiffy, though).

Now, with this wonder-tool, I can stamp to my heart’s content. The clear top is gridded and can be removed – one side is set deeper for rubber stamps, and the shallower side is perfect for silicone/clear stamps – and it’s incredibly easy to wipe clean!

Here is my first attemptIt is just SO wonderful to be stamping again! Now, I just wish I had more stamps to play with… And I need more ink pads – over a decade in storage, many are bone dry 😦

Sharing over at, you’ve guessed it, the Stamping Ground!

PS I found the lovely storage sleeve half-price on ebay 🙂

PPS I’m continuing writing each day in my journal – up to 110 days and counting…

woyww526

It’s been a long, hot** week, and I can’t settle to anything At such times, I do what soothes me – scribbling my thoughts, cutting and pasting beautiful images…On the desk from left to right: The Writer’s Life, a wee book full of great advice and quotes; the current Toast catalogue, I’ve read the articles, now I can cut out the pictures; images already clipped from old diaries (the Virginia Woolf cut-out is actually a card – I love that she’s busting her moves :D); my daily diary (cheap and cheerful from Rymans – I like the purple ❤); and my ultra-bargain – this year’s We’Moon diary (which I got for a £1 from here), always a favourite source for images and poems.

Sharing with the lovely folk at the Stamping Ground (I shall miss next week’s gathering – Dear Daughter is coming home for a couple of days, yay! :D)

** I know we, in the UK, have had it easy compared to the rest of Europe, but as those with health issues know, any change in the weather is difficult – it takes our already-challenged bodies a long while to adjust.

woyww525

Today is National Writing Day in the UK (see here), so I’ve been writing…Notice the ‘new’ desk blotter (a canny ebay purchase 🙂 It’s a vintage one and has suede underneath, so no slippage!). I spent the Summer Solstice doing a Mid-Year Review, which I really enjoyed. I wrote more than I thought possible – this lightweight pen with the pen-grip is really helping!Also I’m 90 days into my 100-day challenge (not that I officially joined any of the online groups – this was purely a personal thing to keep my hand working despite the tennis elbow). Answering the daily prompts from here and writing one side of A5 is the perfect daily challenge for me 🙂

Sadly, though, typing and scrolling are proving still very painful, hence I blog just once a week. But I did manage to visit (and usually leave a comment) every desk last week, of which I am very proud 🙂 We’ll see how this week goes – I have physio first thing this morning, so I won’t manage many today.

PS Sorry, but I had to add one more photo from Esther’s graduation – our beautiful, beautiful girl ❤ ❤Sharing over at Julia’s.

woyww524

Totally missed last week – overwhelmed with things going on every single day – and nothing to show on the desk today (hope that’s allowed)! Too busy being a proud, proud mama 🙂 What a memorable day (Monday, 17 June 2019) and how surreal, remembering my own graduation in the same city 34 years before, oh so vividly (how can it be that long ago? How can this wonderful young woman be my daughter? And why don’t they make the hoods smaller for women’s shoulders? In my graduation photo, my hood’s slipping off my left shoulder exactly like Esther’s! Esther graduated with a truly amazing 1st Class BA (Hons) degree in Architecture from Oxford Brookes.And a very kind chap took a photo of us all

(l to r) my dad, Esther, me, hubby Nick

At least now I have a free week to recover, phew!

Sharing over at Stamping Ground.