Window

Week three art prompt is "look out the window and create a piece of artwork based on what you see outside". Using an app on my phone I did a rough drawing.

The drawing has been used to make a card. And because I like seeing what I can alter in PS there is another in different colours.

Emma asked me how I was saving the collection. At the moment I am reusing cello bags, taping down the quote and then I put a small label on to identify the week. They are being stored in a box. I may well need to alter this arrangement as time goes on.

Week four "take out an unfinished project and do one thing to it: take off a piece, add a piece, add colour, etc. I found out some part made fabric paper. Added one colour in the form of oil pastel, colour 222 from the Sennelier® range, which is Phtalo blue. Then sealed it with a gel medium [iridescent] And reasoning that black is not a colour, doodled on it.

Before:

After:

I will use this for notebook covers and cards.

Wishing you a happy weekend.

Project for 2012

I have decided that I will use the 52 art prompts from Cloth paper Scissors. They have all been cut up and folded and placed in a container. I tried not to look at them, not easy. The first out was "sew strips of fabric and/or paper together and cut them into more strips that can be glued into a collage". The first batch were a bit too ordinary for me so I had another go which I feel happier with.

The orange paper came from Ethical Superstore. My sister in law spotted it and thought I would like it. It is great, not too thick and easy to stitch.

Week two required me to "draw and paint small images that can be cut and stored for later use in larger works."

I am enjoying the element of surprise and have started work on next weeks already. Not sure how long this will last. The next module of my course starts in two weeks time. I have been using my machine to make designs. using black thread on white paper I just drew with my needle. One sample, which I am using for several designs.

This is just one example.

Wishing you all a peaceful week.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year. It has certainly been a windy one so far. I took a few photographs on new years day which are out of season. A daisy in flower on the meadow and then a dandelion.

On the way back I found a hollyhock still in flower but lying on the floor.

Then blossom on a tree at the end of the road. The wind has made it hard to photograph, but I hope you can see a bit of blossom.

I love this hydrangea skeleton.

A post without much colour would not be me so I leave you with a colour mood board that I have made.

Not sure what I am going to do this year as a project, thinking about that. It may well be the 52 art prompts from Cloth Paper Scissors.

Last Post of the Year

I have just looked at how many blog posts I have written this year. Must try harder next year. Have finished all my notebooks. Number 49 is a card cover with a photograph of my Father when he was about 5 or 6 which I used on the invitations to his special birthday party.

The cover of notebook 50 is a black and white photograph of the meadow taken several years ago which has been printed onto silk then machined onto paper with plain paper pages.

Corrine at dosfishes inspired me to paint a large sheet of paper. I used orange, magenta, lime green and turquoise.

Which has been used for notebooks 51 and 52. 51 has been made up using strips of painted paper with coloured tapes and circles of the painted paper.

The back of 52.....

...and a section of the front.

They have plain paper pages. I have been listening to "The Best of Van Morrison" while writing this, there are so many lovely songs on that CD. This evening I am going to watch "The Way" about the pilgrim route.

Thank you all so much for your kind comments and friendship throughout the year. There have been points of this year when I have almost given up blogging, then suddenly there is a lovely message from someone and you know why you do it. I wish each one of you a very Happy New Year with lots of fun, laughter, creativity and good health.

Notebooks 47 and 48

I hope that you all had a good Christmas. Mine was different than I expected still had a lovely day. Have been for walks on a wet meadow with grey clouds overhead, not ideal for taking photographs.

Have been experimenting with a drawing programme which has been fun, gradually getting the hang of it. Made my "thank you" cards yesterday.

I was very lucky to be given a Bamboo Pen® for Christmas and will show you how I get on with that another time, once I am able to draw something that I feel pleased with.

Notebook 47 is a copy of an old envelope that I picked up at the Oxford vintage market a few months ago transferred onto fabric. I've stitched it onto cartridge paper and the hand stitched in a few pages of plain paper.

Notebook 48 is a watercolour picture that I did many years ago and found recently. It has hand stitched in cartridge paper pages.

Will be back soon with more notebooks. Going to sit and watch "Little Women" on the box this evening, love the story.

Christmas

I am so far behind with my notebooks they will have to wait until after Christmas. I have really enjoyed the course that I have been doing and I have spent far too long learning how to use a drawing programme.

Wishing you all a very happy and peaceful Christmas. Will be back soon once the notebooks are made. I will leave you with this card which I could have done freehand in a fraction of the time.

Notebook 45 and 46

Like many of you I am sure; I am wondering how to get everything done at the moment. Decided that I needed to use two notebooks that I made some time ago for these two. The first has a photograph of my Mother's grandparents taken a very long time ago as Gt. Grandpa died before my Mother was born. I am using this notebook as it would have been my Mother's 80th birthday this last week. I have used felt to line the inside and it has plain paper pages.

Number 46 has a crazy patchwork cover including some fabric that I printed from fabric paper that I had made. Again lined with felt and plain paper pages. Both have handmade cords which were made from knitting yarn.

I have been out on the meadow again and this time I took my camera. Pictures of the vast expanse and one of the allotment.





Hope you are all well.