Nothing dramatic's happening here ...

 

Well, apart from my front room looking like a bomb site, there's nothing much happening in my quiet corner of the world.  February seems muted, rather a dull grey like the sky.  I reckon we're all waiting impatiently for Spring, and days that aren't constantly punctuated by the whooshing of the combi boiler as it lumbers into life and sends out another blast of central heating.  I've made a tentative start with the Spring Cleaning.  A bag or two of stuff's gone to the charity shop, and I've begun listing things on eBay.  There's only so much vintage china you can hang on to before you're knee deep in dainty tea cups and dessert bowls.  I'll keep some of them, and use the ones I really like, but the rest can be sent on their way to new homes.  

I've also been finding things I'd completely forgotten about, like these pretty pink glass dishes.  Should I keep these?  Or should they be eBayed too?  I'm undecided.  Meanwhile ...

I'm more than a quarter of the way through Ann Wood's stitchbook challenge, though have stalled a bit - but not given up entirely - with Tori Chatfield's Abstractuary.  I'll be more of a tortoise than a hare with the latter.  It'll all get done later rather than sooner.

This morning I spent way more time than I should've with the gell plate, stencils and acrylic paints.  I'd eaten my breakfast while watching a fellow crafter gell printing on YouTube, and that made me want to play too.  

I usually print three layers on each sheet of paper.  The first is a single colour in a lighter shade.  The second's a more vivid colour and the top layer's often either white or gold.  

I love the effects you get from layering stencils on top of each other.  

The gell prints are now laying on sheets of newspaper scattered across the carpet.  Adding to the general chaos of the room. 

I may have to ignore the mess and spend the afternoon reading instead.  I've finished 'The Earthquake Bird'.  It was ... okay.  The plot was interesting enough for me to want to know whodunnit - there'd been a dead body found in the water, a woman had been murdered - but not gripping enough for me to seek out any more books by this author.  I've got Louise Erdrich lined up next.  Not read any of hers before, but the book's a Pulitzer Prize winner, and that's a good recommendation, don't you think?  

Hope you're well, and relaxing into the weekend.  Thanks for stopping by.