Little Foggy Garden Embroideries and WOYWW

 I've finally got round to finishing the little 'foggy garden' embroideries that I was making in my last post and I've attached them loosely to my sketchbook - I'm not yet sure if they will stay there or if I will do something with them. 

Not a desk shot but this is a corner of my studio that just had the late evening sun hit it while I was up there - it made the glass jars sparkle so I grabbed a photo before the sun went down completely.

 I'm joining in with Sarah over at WOYWW this week. 

Studio Makeover!

  OK I know I've mentioned it a lot lately, but I've been having a clear out!  Not all of it went to charity as I've found some long-hidden treasures that I've used to give my studio a bit of a makeover!

I've replaced my old brush pots with the jade coloured jars that I have had stored away and forgotten about, and the pretty floral jug which was found in my late father-in-law's suitcase of memories!  I decided they looked quite good together and although a creature of habit, I'm enjoying the change of colour scheme!

I also came across a dinner plate and mug while doing my online supermarket shop and they match the 'new' pots very nicely - perfect for a pencil pot and a tray for 'mess'.   

I'm feeling quite smug that I remembered to clean my water pot to a passable standard before photographing it - it was mud coloured yesterday, inside and out!  

It has been a week of quite terrible news and I feel very blessed to be able to indulge in such trifles as these and to feel safe in my own home and surrounding area.  My heart goes out to the people of Ukraine and I hope and pray they will find peace soon.  

I'm linking up with Julia over at WOYWW this week.

A Tidy Desk and WOYWW

 It's been an unproductive week craft wise but I have finished sorting through my textiles and pretty much fitted them into the space available - now that's something that doesn't happen very often!  This shelf unit is at the end of my desk where a large trunk of fabric used to stand with a vintage suitcase and decorative baskets on top of it.  Consequently the trunk never got opened as it was such a faff.  This doesn't look as stylish as the trunk but is much more user friendly!  Each box is labelled and despite having a massive clear out you can still see that two large pieces of fabric wouldn't fit anywhere so are wedged around the boxes (top left cube) and the lid won't properly fit on the decorative box (top right cube) as it is stuffed to capacity!  However it's hugely better than it was so I'm happy!!  The tall pile of plastic boxes next to the shelf unit are all for different ongoing projects.

And here's the most boring desk photo you'll see today!  You can see the A1 cutting board and where it  buckled along one edge due to heating something with the heat tool and forgetting to use the heat board - I turned it around and then did exactly the same thing to the other edge - soooooo annoying!

I'm linking up with Julia over at WOYWW this week.

More Studio Organizing

I have been doing some gentle sorting in my studio, continuing on from last week - just a little bit here and there in the hot weather - and believe it or not this cupboard has been completely sorted and is looking a whole lot tidier!  When I sit at my desk this is on the far side of the room to my left.   

In the cupboard are treasures such as old bones, dead insects, half a crab, surplus teacups and milk jugs, antique baby shoes and many other precious bits that can't possibly be thrown away.  To the right of the cupboard you can just see my Grandma's carpet beater and some sewing machine drawers stuffed behind a pile of old suitcases (I'm a sucker for a vintage suitcase!)

At right angles to the cupboard I have three small shelves with lots more little precious bits and pieces including my collection of old teacups and saucers.  The individual shelves are generally grouped in colour order and my justification for collecting more treasures is that I often use them in photography!

As you can see I have a strong hoarding instinct but it's coupled with a strong desire to live with no clutter - it's a constant battle!!

I'm linking up with Julia over at What's On Your Work Desk Wednesday.  Why not pop over there and have a nosey around other people's work spaces!

Studio De-Stash and WOYWW

Cooler weather - what a relief - and so much more energy to do things!  I have been having a clutter clear and reorganisation in my studio this week and although the changes aren't big, it feels nicer!

Only the most necessary yarns have been kept (!) and they fitted neatly into four large wicker baskets - at the start my plan was that they would all fit into one, but I think I was being unrealistically optimistic!

More organising on the other side of the room - my large trunk of fabric, sitting at the end of my desk, was sorted out but instead of reducing it I found that once all the fabric was out it wouldn't all fit back in - hence the basket on top is now stuffed with overflow bits and I managed to send one small bundle of fabric to charity!  

This really has to be the ideal lazy-persons desk, as all I have to do is swivel my chair around and everything is within easy reach! My desk is empty as usual, as I can't stand having anything on it, but the pile of A4 boxes in the pictures is where the clutter is kept. Each box is for a different project/subject and the pile is getting taller and wobblier.

I'm joining in with Julia over at What's On Your Work Desk Wednesday this week.

A Little Corner of my Studio and WOYWW #357

There's nothing going on on my work desk this week but this is what's going on with my studio cupboard - I've been busy sorting and organizing all the treasures and curiosities that I've collected over the years and I've now utilised my collection of old jars too!   
Here are some of the treasures that were stuffed haphazardly in all sorts of places and are now neatly sorted and easy to find - seashells, clay pipes and pipe stems, sea glass and sea china, chess pieces, antique spectacles and bits of an old dead crab!

Talking of pipe stems by dear blog friend Lynn from One I Made Earlier Today sent me a lovely little surprise gift - this funny little chap is made from an old clay pipe and will now be sitting on my desk keeping me company when I work!  Thank you so much Lynn - I now need to think of a name for him!

I'm linking up with Julia over at What's On Your Work Desk Wednesday.

Focus On Life - Collage of Love

The theme for February over at the Studio Sublime has been cabin fever.  This week is all about beating cabin fever and creating a collage of love.

 I have had rather a long stretch of artistic inactivity, but the greyness of winter, the appalling weather conditions and the dark, cold evenings have encouraged me to nip off to my studio and make things!  So I decided to photograph some of the little areas of my studio (the not so messy areas actually!). 

I love my space, I love working here and I love the bits and bobs around me that I've collected over the years from flea markets and antique fairs.   

When the lid got smashed my great-grandmother's sugar bowl became my new brush pot! I know the bottle is a bit wonky but it is very sweet and I can't bear to chuck it out!

I have a weakness for anything arranged in colour sequence - I think my OCD tendencies come to the fore when I'm sorting and storing ribbons!  I also have a weakness for sari silk and I like to have jars of certain colours on hand to grab when needed!