What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday #348

Hello lovely Deskers,

Wednesday has rolled around again, and a very chilly blowy one it is this week. No time to play today, and my desk is sort of between-projects tidy for a change ...


On it you can see the dodgy flower painting I showed you last week - thanks to your kind words of encouragement, I didn't give up on it, but decided to do a little more work on it and then I got to a point where I was ready to call it finished and move on to the next Life Book project.

Thanks to the suggestion from LLJ Jan - I knocked back some of the scarier colour a bit, then remembered I had some transparent gesso. This seals the layer beneath, but leaves it visible and with a good "tooth" to work onto. This enabled me to add some shading, highlights and details with various pencils, crayons and pens. I'm still not that enamoured of it, but I've decided to embrace it as part of my Life Book journey and it will have a place amongst all the others which I'll be creating over the coming year. Safety in numbers ... cheerleader effect and all that!

Also on my desk you can see some mystery objects ...


Whilst sorting my knicker drawer over the weekend I came across several blasts from the past. Most of them I wouldn't post pictures of on my blog (?!) but I was so delighted to come across this little bag of goodies which was given to us by my dear friend Polly when we got married nearly five years ago. The card attached reads:

"An eraser to make your mistakes disappear; a coin so you can't say you never have any money, marbles in case you lose yours; a button to press in times of panic; an elastic band to stretch yourself; a piece of string to hold things together when they fall apart; and a sweet heart, because you are one."

Isn't that so lovely? Makes me smile every time I come across it :o)

The paintbrush is there because I've been bringing it back from the dead - having left it ALL NIGHT covered in Matte Medium, it was in a very sorry state. Rather than consign it to the bin, I thought I would try some PAintbrush CPR, and after repeated applications of rubbing alcohol, shampoo, hot and cold water, conditioner, a comb, fingernails and perseverence - it's looking pretty good don't you think?!

Thanks for popping in today - I'm off to Julia's Stamping Ground to link up and I'll be back later to have a good old snout around other people's workdesk and see what they've all been up to this week. See you there! :o)

Annie xxx

Comments

The things you keep in your knicker drawer, LOL! I wonder what I would find in mine - I haven't sorted it in a decade! Glad you didn't give up on your painting - there's nothing worse than the feeling when you decide to "chuck" something out. I sometimes paint over a picture, but never throw it away! I think it looks very pretty - I really don't understand while you don't like it. You're right in that whatever our feelings, we should embrace them as part of our journey. I think some of our perceived "failures" can be very encouraging to other people who perhaps would like to have a go at making art, but are too afraid to jump in. I have several projects on my blog that I didn't want to make public, but then I convinced myself that I should, for exactly that reason! Happy WOYWW! zsuzsa #32
Laura said…
Certainly doesn't look like a dead paint brush to me. Unlike one of mine which came in to contact with some metallic ink recently! Lesson learned!
Happy Wednesday
Laura
52
Unknown said…
Such a cute saying with the bag of goodies! I have been working on cleaning out my drawers too. Happy WOYWW! Sandy Leigh #44
trisha too said…
What a sweet bag of goodies, a very nice memory!

Oh golly I do hate it when that happens to a paintbrush, we've probably all been there a time or two!

Happy WOYWW to you, Annie!
:)trisha too
#49 this week

Sharon said…
What a great find in your knicker drawer lol! The painting is looking very good - much better than I could even dream of doing!

Happy WOYWW
Sharon K #45
Lunch Lady Jan said…
You're a brave girl, blogging that you found some interesting things in your knicker drawer!!!! The flowers are looking great actually, I'm glad you rescued them :-)
Hugs, LLJ 17 xx
Julia Dunnit said…
Well done Annie, bringing that brush back from the dead was quite an undertaking! Prolly will prevent you from leaving another covered in medium! The vase of flowers picture looks great - might actually be a lesson learned too - knowing when to call something finished is hard!
Helen Wallace said…
What a delightful little gift bag you found lurking among your knickers. I absolutely love the thought that went into it. It made me smile too when reading about it. Well done for persisting with your painting and with restoring the paint brush. I shall try some of those remedies on mine as well :D
sandra de said…
So glad you didn't abandon your painting it is stunning. Love love love the little wedding gift and poem.
sandra de @27
that is such a sweet present. And what length you took to revive that brush. Vicky#9
Lisca said…
Well done for not giving up on the flower vase. There will always be stuff that you are happier with than others. Put it down to experience.
That little bag of tokens is so sweet. I am tempted to copy it and keep it, but I don't know anyone who is going to get married... (and I'll only lose it)
Good girl for cleaning the brush. I have learnt from my husband to keep my brushes in a good state and if I make a mistake (like leaving it too long) then I scrub and rub and soak until it is like new again. (my punishment for forgetting)
Thanks for your visit and your encouragement,
Happy WOYWWednesday,(even though it is now Thursday)
Lisca
Kelly said…
the floral picture came out lovely! Great to have friends in the community to lend a hand, isn't it? Go you on resurrecting the brush! If nothing else, next time wrap the brush in a wet baby wipe until you can get to it. Creative Blessings! Kelly #43