Tea and Toast

Starlings in Winter

2012-01-25T04:22:00.000-08:00

image courtesy of newsandstar.co.uk

Chunky and noisy,

but with stars in their black feathers,

they spring from the telephone wire

and instantly,

they are acrobats

in the freezing wind.

And now, in the theater of air,

they swing over buildings,

dipping and rising;

they float like one stippled star

that opens,

becomes for a moment fragmented,

then closes again;

and you watch

and you try

but you simply can't imagine

how they do it

with no articulated instruction, no pause

only the silent confirmation

they they are this notable thing,

this wheel of many parts, that can rise and spin

over and over again,

full of gorgeous life.

Ah, world, what lessons you prepare for us,

even in the leafless winter,

even in the ashy city.

I am thinking now

of grief, and of getting past it;

I feel my boots

trying to leave the ground,

I feel my heart

pumping hard. I want

to think again of dangerous and noble things.

I want to be light and frolicsome.

I want to be improbable beautiful and afraid of nothing,

as though I had wings.

Mary Oliver (From 'Wild Geese")

Thoughtful Friday 154

2012-01-19T04:01:00.000-08:00

"Our fears are more numerous than our dangers,

and we suffer more in our imagination

than in reality"

Seneca

Finished pieces

2012-01-19T03:55:00.000-08:00

A quick look at the finished pieces following Traci Bautista's workshop

I really loved using a correction pen to do the white outlining and doodles and Indian ink for the black

This was workshop 2, using more stencils, watercolour crayons, pencils, ink and allowing the paint to drip drip drip!! Very freeing!

Creative every day - the weekend!

2012-01-10T01:13:00.000-08:00

I am loving the new free Strathmore online workshops and thoroughly enjoyed these doodling techniques from Traci Bautista and especially using the Indian Ink to outline!

Thoughtful Friday 153

2012-01-06T01:54:00.000-08:00

"We are remembered from the ways

we have walked our ideals.

At the heart of history is this reminder -

you paint the colours of your days"

Mary Anne Radmacher

Walking Every Day

2012-01-05T05:43:00.001-08:00

Stormy days here although nothing compared to what others are facing in the north

taken early morning before I went out for my newly intentioned 15 minute walk locally (as I work from home there are days that I don't 'need' to go out and this is for those days particularly).

Red sky in the morning, shepherd's warning!

Walking in the woods

2012-01-04T12:34:00.000-08:00

Such a glorious day to go walking...

to smell the air and to revel in the colours of the deep blue sky

against the brown and green of the earth.

Creative every day!

2012-01-02T11:44:00.000-08:00

Where did December go? I hardly managed to post anything here but maybe that's because I was busy, busy, being creative for the season? The truth is I was in part but also busy with the day job and preparing the house for guests to stay. We had all four daughters home for Christmas which was great and also my mother-in-law and her friend so we were 9 for most of the time!! Here is a look at some little creative things I made for others. First up were some Multigrain no knead bread mixes from one of my favourite cooking sites Our Best Bites

Here they are all ready to go to good homes with the recipe tucked into a nice envelope, decorated appropriately!

Then for my CPS UK (Cloth, Paper, Scissors) group I made a crocheted snowflake and wrapped it in white tissue and added a red crochet flower to the outside.

Next up were some felted pictures from scratch, which incidentally didn't stay in these frames!

And finally, some Duct Tape Journals for another group of ladies I meet with every month!

I hope that wherever you are, you have had a peaceful Christmas and that 2012 will be a special year for you. I certainly am hoping to be more regular on this blog in 2012!!

Thoughtful Friday 152

2011-12-31T11:25:00.000-08:00

"Always remember that the future comes

one day at a time"

Dean G Acheson

Thoughtful Friday 151

2011-12-04T15:53:00.001-08:00

"Fear is the thief of dreams"

Anonymous

Thoughtful Friday 150

2011-11-19T05:38:00.001-08:00

"Creativity requires the courage to let

go of certainties"

Erich Fromm

Thoughtful Friday 149

2011-11-11T00:53:00.001-08:00

"As you walk, eat and travel, be where you are."

Buddha

(zendoodled diary cover by a friend)

Thoughtful Friday 147

2011-10-28T07:33:00.000-07:00

"For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin - real life.

But there was always some obstacle in the way,

something to be gotten through first,

some unfinished business, time still to be served,

or a debt to be paid.

Then life would begin.

At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life"

Fr Alfred de Souza

Thoughtful Friday 146

2011-10-21T09:29:00.000-07:00

"But words are things, and a small drop of ink,

falling like dew, upon a thought, produces that

which makes thousands, perhaps millions think"

Lord Byron

Thoughtful Friday 145

2011-10-16T12:06:00.000-07:00

"It is by logic we prove. It is by intuition we discover"

Henri Poincare

Crafting

2011-10-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

Recently I was asked to lead the prayers for a very special friend and former colleague who was leaving the place we both worked together at. She is actually going into the ministry and has begun her ordination training this month. It was a joy and a privilege to be at her 'leaving lunch' and as I thought and prepared what I might say, I remembered how helpful I found it to have all the names of those I have said I will pray for regularly easily to hand - I have a basked of stones with names on and from time to time I will take a name out (if someone is going through a turbulent time or if they have asked for special prayer) and it will sit on my desk as a reminder to 'pray often' for that person.

So I decided to make some little cards that people could take away with them to remind them to pray for my dear friend and this is what I came up with. A crocheted flower (like that of Jenny Doh), some Tim Holtz music Washi tape and then a pink 'A' and pink dyed edge all the way round. They were fun to do.

Thoughtful Friday 144

2011-10-07T14:00:00.000-07:00

"Curiosity has its own reason for existing.

One cannot help but be in awe when he comtemplates

the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous

structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely

to comprehend a little of this mystery every day.

Never lose a holy curiosity."

Albert Einstein

GPP Street Team Crusade no.55

2011-09-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

Here was another fun challenge set by Michelle Ward and here I am snucking in at the last minute! Well I have hardly had a minute to do art with all the comings and goings here but a little bit of time on my own tonight has made it all possible. I started with some cardstock and a starfish stamp.

Then I chose my colours - my favourite teal and a lovely sunshiney yellow - can you believe we have been having temperatures of 29 degrees (87 F) here in London this week?!! Hotter than it has been for 100 years and hotter than Mexico apparently!!

So a variety of printing takes place, teal on teal, yellow on teal

yellow and teal make green!

At this point I got a bit bored and decided to add a raspberry to the proceedings!

And I liked it a lot!

And you can really see the texture of the stamp here

A fun and speedy challenge and a great way to get back into art-making. Thank you again Michelle - you are amazing!

Arrivals, departures, arrivals!

2011-09-28T02:04:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's that time again in the Tea and Toast household where we are off to Heathrow to pick up daughter no.1 who has just spent 3 weeks in Brazil working with street children. She went there to make a film and to do what she loves to do - art and crafts with the boys and girls. It was both challenging and rewarding. How I love standing at the arrivals barrier - the excitement and anticipation is always there for me. I love watching people reunited with their friends and families after a journey away and then seeing my lovely walk through those doors safe and well!

While she has been gone I have been busy with the quilt I started, dare I say it, last year! Anyway it is now almost finished apart from a wash and dry and a love lable. Of course someone had to test it out first!

It's not really clear from these photos but I have hand stitched hearts all the way round the strawberry border

So daughter no. 1 is just here for 3 days before she sets off again for another job in Dubai! Then a week later we go to pick up daughter no.4 who is finishing her year in Paris and is coming home to complete her degree!

Thoughtful Friday 143

2011-09-23T13:31:00.000-07:00

"The greatest investment in a day is

a dangerous unselfishness wrapped

in joy and tied with ribbons of

laughter and learning, understanding

and compassion."

Mary Anne Radmacher

I love the Lake District!

2011-09-21T08:06:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I met daughter's 2 and 3 for a weekend in the Lake District to celebrate daughter no.2"s birthday! It was fantastic!! We stayed a lovely B&B where our hosts could not have been friendlier or more hospitable. We woke up to homemade bread, homemade jam - all organic - scrambled eggs and smoked salmon and plenty of fairtrade tea and coffee. On the Saturday we took a circular walk around part of Ullswater which was quite spectacular.

We left at 10.30 in the morning and got back at 8.30pm!! Quite a walk! But it was huge fun to be together and to see such fantastic scenery. Just to be in the open, with space all around us and no-one else to be seen was such a tonic for the soul. We'd love to go back sometime and take the rest of the family with us!! And no doubt you will see more photos from this lovely time in thoughtful Friday's in the future (yesterday's was one of them!). I think I might be quite happy to move there with hubby - so that is Devon and Cumbria as contenders for the next phase of life!!!!!!

A special swap

2011-09-18T07:38:00.000-07:00

A little while ago when I first signed up to the Cloth Paper Scissors UK network of lovely people, I had contact with someone called Frances. She and I emailed one another several times and she warmly welcomed me as a newbie and I felt I had already made a friend. CPS UK produce a newsletter every couple of months and I did a little piece siting some things I was happy to swap with someone. You've guessed it! I had a Danny Gregory book which was a duplicate in my library of crafts books and Frances was keen to swap it so we did a little exchange. My little parcel went off with the Danny Gregory book inside and a little junk journal I had made especially for Frances (I didn't take a photo of this one unfortunately. Then on Friday I had a wonderful surprise because the postman brought these wonderful things:

This book is amazing with so many exciting projects to do with many requiring only household items

A little sample of momigami paper - (kneaded paper using oil)

And a special sample of what Frances loves to create - this lovely pendant has a piece of lavender in it!!

A closer look!

and it was beautifully wrapped and inside this amazing paper bag!!

How lucky am I!!!! Frances doesn't have a blog (yet!) and I have yet to meet her at one of our CPS UK events but I feel we know one another a little already. There is something about the hearts of artists and crafters that seems to connect at a deeper level!! Thank you Frances so much.

Thoughtful Friday 142

2011-09-16T13:00:00.000-07:00

"....with an eye made quiet by the power

of harmony and the deep power of joy,

we see into the life of things."

William Wordsworth

Thoughtful Friday 141

2011-09-12T02:14:00.000-07:00

"The challenge before us is to savor the unknown

and delight in the taste of possibility"

Mary Anne Radmacher

Great Big Stitched Postcard Swap

2011-09-04T13:39:00.000-07:00

It has been really busy here at Tea and Toast as we have been away for a week in Devon (which was lovely despite the rain!) and then lots of comings and goings of daughters here, there and everywhere! More of that another time but before any more time passes I want to show you my lovely stitched postcard that arrived some weeks ago now from Germany!

On a painted background of blue, purple and white there is red stitching in diamonds and then lovely felt hearts all stitched carefully around and onto the card. What a treat to get this in the post! This came from the lovely TJ who was in Germany but is heading back to the US after 9 years out there. She can be found at www.studiomailbox.com so do take a look as there is some lovely artwork on there. Thank you so much TJ!

Thoughtful Friday 140

2011-09-04T13:27:00.000-07:00

"Life is curly. Don't try to straighten it out."

Susan Scott

Thoughtful Friday 139

2011-08-19T02:44:00.000-07:00

"Memory is a child walking along a seashore.

You never can tell what small pebble it

will pick up and store away among

its treasured things."

Pierce Harris

Stitched Postcard Swap

2011-08-16T12:48:00.000-07:00

Yes, I have been stitching away for this little postcard swap organised by Beth Nicholls at Do What You Love. I had the idea to use some hessian from a garden sack which I bought for a £1 in the £1 shop a while back and to use some quilt wadding and calico as a topping. I also thought I would like to needle punch a design on there and so we have it: hearts of course, and some needle punching round the edge using the wonderful 'Phantasmagorical' (love that name) wool roving from GillianGladRag plus some stamping and a little pearl, a stitched word (create) and a tiny stitched heart ribbon.

of course it couldn't really go just like that could it? I had to prepare a little bag to put it in

I love these wax bags and just used a scrap piece of fabric and stitched some paper with script on top and then stuck it on the bag. It has gone off to my swap partner in the US and I really hope she likes it.

I have received my stitched postcard already and I will show you that tomorrow!!

Latest Index card a day

2011-08-13T05:05:00.000-07:00

Top left is a patchwork paper hankie heart and some hessian and a little label with a quote on the back.

Bottom left was using a Daisy yellow prompt - a colour I usually use (turquoise/teal) and one I don't usually use - black

Top right, some acrylic paint sponge rollered on in dots with buttons stuck and edged in chalk pastel

Bottom right a little watercolour scene from a card I have on my desk.

Top left is a collage using painted paper from a previous creative endeavour!

Bottom left acrylic paint with Tim Holtz music tape

Top right is experimenting with a new(very cheap) italic pen

Bottom right is a very random piece of sewing using my machine!

Top left is using a Daisy Yellow prompt and the words of a song I love at the moment called "Just the way you are" by Bruno Mars and if you don't know it, here is the link - just terrific words

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjhCEhWiKXk&ob=av2e

Bottom left is a picture of some cinnamon bun flavoured coffee mate which I am absolutely certain I would love to bits only they don't sell it here in the UK!!! boo hoo!

Top right is some stamping with a ticket stamp

Bottom right is a Paris stamp, some coloured pencil and chalk pastel to edge

And finally, top is some writing with gelly roll metalic pens given to me by my US friend when she came over last year to stay with us and on the bottom is a very random acrylic sponge rollered piece with chalk pastel edging (really loving the chalk pastels at the moment!)

Thoughtful Friday 138

2011-08-12T04:03:00.000-07:00

"A five-to-one ratio of appreciation to criticism helps

people think for themselves"

Nancy Kline

A Fabulous Day

2011-08-07T14:07:00.000-07:00

Today I was invited to a gelatin printing and monoprinting workshop hosted by the folk who have set up the Cloth Paper Scissors UK network (CPSUK) which I have joined! What a wonderful day it was.

Everything was so well prepared and set out - and the sun was shining!

Our host had prepared the gelatin prints already for us to use - 56 sachets of gelatin for 6 printing plates!!! She had been very busy indeed!

Not only that but she had prepared a fantastically yummy lunch

with cute items for the table

down to personalised names on stones (my name is actually spelt Sheila but it often gets spelt this way and who worries about such things on such a lovely day!!)

and one of the other attendees brought some amazing cupcakes

And look what I came home with....

You might need to zoom in on some of these to see the detail - I love the one in the top right which I did using leaves and a heart Indian wooden block - these were all with the gelatin printing plate.

these were the mono prints using oil based paint - a different technique and one that needs a little more experimentation I think but I like the results so far

My little contribution to the day were some homemade junk journals

popped into some lovely wax bags with fabric and paper labels. Oh, and I also made some lavender cookies which I failed to take a photo of but which I will make again and post the recipe.

I came home having made lovely new friends, eaten beautiful food, with lots of paper and fabric prints to use in future artwork projects - what more can a girl want????

Thoughtful Friday 137

2011-08-05T16:45:00.000-07:00

"To be perpectually thrilled with life

need not detract from the solidarity

of your goals or the soberness of your purpose."

Anon

Latest Index cards....

2011-08-04T12:16:00.000-07:00

Delight, you may remember is my word for the year so it had to appear somewhere in these cards!

The one below I tried using tacky glue as a resist and it produced an interesting result

From a Royal Acadamy leaflet I cut out a painting and had a go at reproducing it in chalk pastels

the one below i the view outside the window of a log cabin I was in last week!

playing with chalk pastels and watercolour crayons here on the the first two

the lower one is some fun paper collage

Using watercolour pencils, collage, reminder of a journey

More tacky glue resist here on the left, doodling on the right and practising lettering below

and on we go.....

Home Alone with slate!

2011-08-03T13:45:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I found some pieces of slate in the garden - left over from an old fishtank we gave away which was no longer needed. There were some nice big pieces and some smaller ones too. As I saw them I had this thought about how fun it would be to paint them and so..... that is what I did....

this was the first one I had the inspiration for - the quote is a special one for hubby and I

this one is in progress and will probably have some words on it like "because she chooses to see the world in bright bold colours"

this one is destined to have the quote from the Little Prince "It is with the heart that one sees rightly, for what is essential is invisible to the eye" - love it!

here is my trusty companion who insisted on being right by my side on the floor with all the mess!

we are alone this week as hubby is away working!

This one takes the quote from Mary Anne Radmacher (whose name will appear at the bottom on black)

I love all her quotes and words and writing. I'm reading her book "Live with Intention" just now and it is terrific.

and this one I had no idea about until I picked the palette of colours and then just started to paint. I do like what emerged.

I still have a couple of pieces left so I'll see where the inspiration takes me....... and let you see the result.

more index card a day designs

2011-08-01T10:44:00.000-07:00

favourite quote from Confusius

experimenting with duct tape

rubber stamping and distress inks

stickers

ink and stamps

more ink and stamps

stamps

favourite podcast from Steve Maraboli at Empowered Living

inks and favourite stamp

more ink and stamps

collage

doodling

fun quote from Pret a Manger!

Washi tape

fun stickers

Thoughtful Friday 136

2011-07-31T11:43:00.000-07:00

"Don't ask yourself what the world needs;

ask yourself what makes you come alive.

And then go and do that.

Because what the world needs

is people who have come alive."  

Howard Thurman

Thoughtful Friday 135

2011-07-22T01:02:00.000-07:00

"Nobody has ever measured, not even poets,

how much a heart can hold"

Zelda Fitzgerald

(image courtesty of google)

More index cards

2011-07-16T15:21:00.000-07:00

Japanese tape, gold and white paint and black paint marker

felt pads left over from the Ranger blending tool for alcohol inks

New alphabet stamps

distress inks, pastels and lace stickers

Teal acrylic paint and foam stickers

blue masking tape, alphabet stamps and gold and white paint

rubber stamp

black paint marker

blue spray paint over a doilley and violet and blue pastels

aubergine paint and various pastels

rubber stamp

spray paints and pastels

music tissue tape and cath kidston sticker

icad - celebration

2011-07-16T15:11:00.000-07:00

Top card - spray inks, pastels and gold paint lettering

Bottom card - water colour crayon, lace stickers, paper flowers and white paint

Thoughtful Friday 134

2011-07-16T08:44:00.001-07:00

"Live closer, every moment,

to that thing that makes you sing"

Mary Anne Radmacher

More Index cards

2011-07-08T14:05:00.000-07:00

A variety of paper scraps, paint, doodles, rubber stamps and even some sewing (immediately above)! Having fun!

Index card a day

2011-07-07T03:05:00.000-07:00

I signed up to do an art index card a day over at Daisy Yellow which I think is a great idea. And indeed I have been doing my index card each day but I just haven't been posting them so here is a few to start with:

I used all sorts of things on these: top one - sequin waste and spray inks; one on left - covered in Tim Holtz tissue tape then gessoed over and stamped on; one on right a mixture of script tape and fabric tape with washi tape, paint and pastels and a stamped word. It sure is fun!

Thoughtful Tuesday

2011-07-05T08:31:00.000-07:00

(image courtesy of google)

"Friends who understand each other

speak with words sweet and strong

which emerge from their hearts

like the fragrance of orchids"

Confucius

Thoughtful Friday no. 133

2011-06-24T13:00:00.000-07:00

Be yourself. Above all, let who you are, what you are,

what you believe, shine through every sentence you write,

every piece you finish."

John Jakes

And there are more....

2011-06-19T06:47:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in my last post I think - these tiles have become quite addictive! The one above was created just by dropping Ranger's Alcohol inks on a clean white tile and then adding blending solution drop by drop - love this result!

Then I wondered how it would be if I used Ranger's black archival ink and some rubber stamps! Love this result too!

I used a blending tool to create the outside here and then smooshed the tool for the inside.

Opposite effect above.

Blending solution added in the layer outside of the centre to create larger circles.

Having fun with more stamps.

This one didn't work out quite so well and I found that although I used coffee archival ink, it did not set the same as the black but I've no idea why?

Lots of fun here and endless possibilities! Maybe I might even do a tutorial?!!! If I did, it would be my first!!

GPPS Street Challenge No. 52 - seasonal wardrobe

2011-06-17T13:02:00.000-07:00

Another great challenge from michelle this month all about our chosen colour palette. I decided to put some alcohol inks on tiles which I found in our shed, left over from our kitchen refit a long time ago now! This is something I had a hunch about but hadn't seen anyone actually having done it. Wow, what fun it turned out to be, using a blending tool and some blending solution (but only a little) and seeing what would happen. The colours I chose seem to reflect summer and warmth (although it is really cold here today and raining heavily!)and I thought carefully about which word should go on which colour. I used the Uni Posca markers for the words and find these pens to be really excellent. These tiles are on the little window ledge in our stairwell where we see them every day as we go up and down. I like them a lot and have done lots of others too which I'll show in another post. Thanks again michelle for this fun challenge.

Thoughtful Friday no. 132

2011-06-17T11:59:00.000-07:00

"The most important promises are the

ones you make to yourself"

Mary Anne Radmacher

Thoughtful Friday no. 131 and a 33rd wedding anniversary!

2011-06-10T05:23:00.000-07:00

"You are, at this moment, standing,

right in the middle of your own acres of diamonds"

Earl Nightingale

And I certainly am as I celebrate being married to the man of my dreams for 33 years today! Here's to another 33 and more!! Thank you darling, for being my loving, patient, consistent hubby and my very best friend!

Junk Journals

2011-06-10T00:54:00.000-07:00

Here is the wonderful junk journal that Sue sent me in the swap which I promised to show:

Lots of lovely papers inside and look at this fantastic cover

And one of my favourite blog artists - Diana Trout has a great video tutorial on an incredibly easy peasy junk journal to make so I just had to have a go and this was the result.

All you need is a bit of cardboard (cereal packet etc), some papers (anything recycled is fine) and some duct tape and an elastic band! What could be easier? Then have fun decorating the front and back covers with all sorts of delights (I still have this to do as I got sidetracked on another wonderful project that I will show you next week! It involves white tiles!!! I'll say no more until then.....)

Swaps - how I love them!

2011-06-08T13:10:00.000-07:00

I joined another swap over at Lawendula and this time it was a paperback swap where we had to send a paperback of our choice to someone else. My swap partner was Sue in Australia and I realised that I had never, in all my years of trotting to the post office and back, sent anything to anyone in Australia!! We could choose to send other things if we liked but that was not obligatory. Well just look at the parcel I received from Sue! It was SO exciting.

There were so many lovely things inside the parcel, all beautifully wrapped

and there was a delightful letter telling me all about the paperback she had sent.

napkins, gorgeous paper samples, emphemera and a beautiful 'junk journal' that Sue had made herself which it seems I failed to capture in any of these photos which I can hardly believe now. It will have its own showing tomorrow, I promise. Thank you Sue so much.

I didn't manage to take any photos of the parcel I sent (just haven't got it quite together yet!!) but I sent a paperback "Miss Pettigrew lives for a day" and a collage canvas I made especially for Sue. The whole thing was just great fun.

Thoughtful Friday no. 130

2011-06-06T00:13:00.000-07:00

"We are emissaries of hope when we give our focus

to the present moment rather than to

regrets of the past or concerns about the future."

Joyce Rupp

GPP Street Team - creative challenge - home

2011-06-02T04:40:00.000-07:00

I have been so busy with work and other things that I have seriously neglected this little blog and seriously missed these challenges! This was a fun opportunity to document creatively all the places I have lived so here is a glimpse at what I did:

Some gesso prepped pages followed by teal and gold acyrilic paint and some circles printed with an old cotton reel. Then some spray paint over a stencil or two in a different colour, followed by some tea-dyed tags which not only have the number on the front of each house I've lived in but also a little writing on the back to remember why we moved!!! They are stuck on with a little orange washi tape from Japan - really love this stuff!

Thanks again, Michelle, for a great challenge.

Thoughtful Friday no. 129

2011-05-20T07:47:00.000-07:00

"I will not die an unlived life.

I will not live in fear

of falling or catching fire.

I choose to inhabit my days,

to allow my living to open me,

to make me less afraid,

more accessible,

to loosen my heart

until it becomes a wing,

a torch, a primise.

I choose to risk my significance,

to live so that which came to me as seed

goes to the next as blossom,

and that which came to me as blossom,

goes on as fruit."

Dawna Markova

Thoughtful Friday no. 128

2011-05-06T09:04:00.000-07:00

"Creativity means letting go of trying to be "perfect"...

it means being willing to be wild, silly and

downright outrageous"

Christine Mason Miller

Birthday in Paris!!

2011-03-28T12:25:00.000-07:00

It's my birthday tomorrow and I am off to Paris for three days to see daughter no.4! I am so excited and can hardly wait.

Thoughtful Friday no. 127

2011-03-25T12:41:00.000-07:00

"Have the fortitude to walk your dream to reality.

Have the courage to change.

Play.

Have the vision to see possibility.

Have the strength to participate with innovation.

Dare to be different from expectation.

Exceed yourself.

Imagine... "

Mary Anne Radmacher

The Collage Box

2011-03-18T06:56:00.000-07:00

As a little girl I used to love swaps! As I didn't have any brothers or sisters, it meant I relied on friends or school to be able to swap things. I remember having treasure boxes of 'jewels' and cards that I would swap with others and it wouldn't stop there, there were dolls clothes, my clothes, accessories etc. What fun! So when I discovered Lawendula I was very happy indeed. I have participated in one paper swap already (photos to come hopefully as my swap partner has had a few problems so it hasn't arrived yet) and I also signed up for Collage Box 3. It arrived this week and had all these lovely collage snippets inside.

The instructions were to take 12 or up to 20 snippets out and put the same number back out of your own supply and then make a collage with the goodies. Here are my chosen snippets.

Here are the snippets I put into the box for others:

And here is the collage I made in my art journal:

Besides the collage elements I used a colourwash spray in teal and gold and some acrylic teal paint, having prepped the pages with white gesso to start.

This second page picks up my thoughts about all the suffering and tragedy our brothers and sisters are facing in Japan and my hopes and prayers for each one.

Thoughtful Friday no. 126

2011-03-11T06:21:00.000-08:00

"Besides the noble art of getting things done,

there is the noble art of leaving things undone.

The wisdom of life consists in the elimination

of nonessentials"

Lin Yutang

Thoughtful Friday no. 125

2011-03-07T02:31:00.000-08:00

"Use what talents you possess. The woods

would be very silent if no birds sang

except those that sang the best"

Henry Van Dyke

GPPS Street Challenge No. 48 Been there, done that.

2011-02-28T00:39:00.000-08:00

As soon as I saw this month's challenge from Michelle Ward for the GPPS Street Challenge I knew what I would do. However actually getting some time to do it was another matter as it's been a busy month with time away from home at board meetings and conferences. But I REALLY wanted to do it. So yesterday, amidst packing the case for yet another conference (this time one I am running for 2 days plus an optional retreat), I just got the paint, gel medium, stencils and pictures together and went for it!

This marks a really fun day I spent with daughter no.4 when she came home for Christmas part way through her year on placement with designers. She was working for Lanvin in Paris but has a real interest in Yoji Yammamoto and Issey Miyake as well as Maison Martin Marjeila who all do very interesting things with shapes and fabrics. There were two exhibitions we went to. One at the Royal Academy on Art, Fashion and Identity where we saw Alexander McQueen's famous red lace dress (sorry no photos could be taken!) and then on to the Barbican to see the Japansese Fashion exhibition. Both were fantastic with lots to see, be inspired by and thought provoking. In between the two exhibitions, we headed off to Dover Street Market and into the Rose Bakery for a spot of lunch - one of the their special quiches with salad and some delicious jasmine tea. Best of all it was time spent with a lovely young woman who is full of creative ideas and who I love very much!

Just some info on what I did to the pages of my journal: I painted the two pages in acylic paint (one red and one black) and then stencilled over some white paint in places. I made a pocket with red carpet tape, to put some more little photos from the brochure in, and secured the cut outs and pictures with gel medium. Note to self - don't put gel medium all over the page if you want to write on it afterwards, which I did!!! I tried to write with both a white and a black pen but it didn't really work too well. I think I will add some more journalling probably on other paper and stick it in unless anyone has any other thoughts? Ok, must finish the packing and start concentrating on the day job!!

Thoughtful Friday no. 124

2011-02-25T11:41:00.000-08:00

The journey to happiness involves finding the courage to go down into ourselves

and take responsibility for what’s there: all of it.

Richard Rohr

A delighted Fluff-a-tier!

2011-02-16T11:38:00.000-08:00

I had such a fun day recently at the Fluff-a-torium learning how to wet felt a picture and then add some needle punching for added effect. I haven't done any wet felting for a while and it was great to get back into the swing, to choose from all the deliciously coloured wool tops and to come up with a design from nowhere and give it a go. I chose to do a picture which included my 'word for the year' which is delight. As you can see it became quite a flower affair! Gill is a great teacher and provided great music for us to 'felt' by like The Gaton Project and the Kings of Convenience amongst many others. Such a happy day. Thank you so much Gill!

Thoughtful Friday no. 123

2011-02-11T11:37:00.000-08:00

."........When it's over, I want to say: all my life

I was a bride married to amazement.

I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.

When it is over, I don't want to wonder

if I have made of my life something particular, and real.

I don't want to find myself sighing and frightened,

or full of argument.

I don't want to end up simply having visited this world."

From the Poem "When Death Comes" by Mary Oliver

The Dabbler

2011-02-09T09:20:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time there was a dabbler who liked to dabble in all sorts of crafty techniques and artistic endeavours. One day, amidst many of her daily emails, there was something which caught her eye! It combined lots of things that she truly loved just at that moment - paper, canvas, paint, text, fun embellishments and a new thing - beeswax! So she just had to give it a try - just have a little dabble in it to see how it felt and what she might come up with. So some lovely people received these as gifts at Christmas

And one lovely lady had this for her birthday recently

Then a little dabbling with wrapping paper and ribbon sent the packages on their way

There'll be more dabbling for sure and maybe more dabbling with wax and canvas too!

Thoughtful Friday no. 122

2011-02-04T14:13:00.000-08:00

"The highest reward for a person's toil is

not what they get for it,

but what they become by it"

John Ruskin

GPPS Street Challenge No. 47 It's a Wrap!

2011-01-30T10:48:00.000-08:00

Another great challenge from Michelle Ward over at the GPP Street Team, this time all about using some of the wrapping and ribbons we used at Christmas to make a journal page. So here is mine. I started out by gessoing the pages as the paper in this journal is quite thin. Then I added some gold acrylic paint which I love. I really wanted to do something with doors opening so cut my different sheets of paper up into door shapes and added ribbon for handles. I tend to use tissue wrap for gifts at Christmas and then add showy ribbon in red or gold. Inside the doors I wrote about each daughter who came home for Christmas - three from overseas so it is fun to record a little of what was going on for us this year.

The second page has a little wrapped parcel at the top (I did many parcels with white tissue paper and this red glittery ribbon) and a fun cellophane poinsettia bag (cut for the purposes of the journal) which I used to put homebaked oat and spice cookies for the postman, the milkman and the vegetable delivery guy plus anyone else who I thought might like them!!!!

Inside the bag I put two tags similar to those I used for some parcels and then on the back I made some notes of the recipes I used this year for my turkey and vegetables etc., and I added some other shop bought parcels I used too. It will be a fun memory - thank you Michelle as always for these prompts. I especially need the deadline too!!!

Thoughtful Friday no. 121

2011-01-28T00:33:00.000-08:00

"May the colors of your soul rise greatly within you

and the light which weaves your soul to greatness

will continue to shine and make a clearer way for others."

Mary Anne Radmacher

Thoughtful Friday no. 120

2011-01-23T14:01:00.000-08:00

"What is necessary first for visionary power is an undaunted appetite for liveliness - to be among the active elements of the world and love what they do to you, to love 'to work and to be wrought upon'; to be 'alive to all that is enjoyed and all that is endured'; to have the loneliness and the courage to take in not only joy but dismay and fear and pain as modes of being without bolting for comfort or obscuring them with social chatter."

Alec King, "Wordsworth and the Artist's Vision"

Best Shot Monday - everything x four!

2011-01-17T09:35:00.000-08:00

When you have four children, or in my case, four daughters, you soon learn the importance of fairness in the family so rather than buying one of anything you end up buying four, ideally four slightly different things so there is a measure of individuality. So it is with making things for the girls and this Christmas I decided it was time to make the recipe files I had been talking about for the last few years and they had been asking for for the last few years!! It wasn't just one recipe file though it had to be four and they had to be different (but in some ways the same!!). And so the above were created just before Christmas using ordinary black binders with two binder rings inside and fabric and batting to make it tactile and cosy to the touch with a few little embellishments and the trademark different names they tend to call me. All in all, I was pleased with them and the beauty of ring binders is they can be added to (the recipes are all in punched pockets) when new family recipes are created. Of course if you are in Dubai or Paris then you probably don't want them much at the moment but they will always be here for when you do!! I miss you all, you wonderful young women!

Thoughtful Friday no. 119

2011-01-14T08:49:00.000-08:00

"Courage doesn't always roar"

Mary Anne Radmacher

Thoughtful Friday no. 118

2011-01-07T12:18:00.000-08:00

”Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow;

it empties today of its strength.”

Corrie Ten Boom

Best Shot Monday - Little things

2011-01-03T14:00:00.000-08:00

Some little handmade gifts for some lovely ladies I meet with once a month. They each left our gathering wearing their fun flower brooch! The year before they had a crocheted snowflake each and one friend couldn't make it so this year she had both, hence the snowflake in the picture with the parcels.

Thoughtful Friday no. 117

2010-12-17T14:32:00.000-08:00

"The only true gift is a portion of yourself"

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Would you believe it?!!

2010-12-16T09:51:00.000-08:00

The lovely daughter no. 4 in Paris had a birthday last week and I had been planning for some time what to do! Post didn't seem to be getting to her apartment so we decided I would send to the Lanvin office! So far so good. What do you send to the gorgeous who love beautiful things? Beautiful flowers of course! So having scanned the websites for delivery to Paris I found one and ordered a delightful bouquet of pink and white flowers to arrive on her birthday. I also made a card and crocheted a necklace and sent that off too. Did they arrive? No No No!! She got the card on Tuesday this week but there was a hole where the necklace had been taken out!!!! Boo Hoo I say and she did too when she found out. So all alone in Paris and no presents!!! But she did get a beautiful cake from Lauderie from her colleagues at Lanvin so not all was lost. And today I got a refund from the flower company who could not explain it at all. And another crocheted necklace is in process so we will celebrate when she is back next week. In the meantime, here are some other things I have been up to lately;

Same pattern and different colour combination yarn and I am very pleased with the results. They are now packed up and in the UK postal system so I sincerely hope they do better than the stuff destined for Paris!!

Best Shot Monday - checking in

2010-12-13T11:26:00.000-08:00

Just to say that I am still here although not in blogland very much at the moment. I have been finishing a big job and had to stay focused plus busy trying to get some creative projects finished for Christmas and I have a hubby who likes to use my computer each evening and at the weekends!!! Guess what I am hoping Santa will bring him for Christmas?!!!! As Arnie says "I'll be back!"

Thoughtful Friday no. 116

2010-12-03T14:29:00.000-08:00

"The real voyage of discovery consists not

in seeking new landscapes

but in having new eyes."

– Marcel Proust

Best Shot Monday - I'm back!

2010-11-29T02:30:00.000-08:00

I've been away for the last 10 days or so in North West Wales on retreat. Every day I took a 3-4 mile walk in the beautiful countryside. It was a real gift.

Best Shot Monday - I'm watching you!

2010-11-15T00:23:00.000-08:00

Thoughtful Friday no. 115

2010-11-12T00:54:00.000-08:00

“Until you value yourself, you will not value your time. 

Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.”

M. Scott Peck

Best Shot Monday - Departures

2010-11-08T04:51:00.000-08:00

While this cannot be construed as a 'best photo' it is nonetheless where things are at today! For at 4am we got up to take daughter no.1 to the airport for a new job opportunity in Dubai!! It's been a tough couple of years for her workwise with the recession (the media has cut back drastically) but this is an amazing opportunity. Another goodbye and another daughter overseas (that makes 3 of them now!) has left me feeling somewhat emotional but this is a great opportunity and one I hope turns out to be truly fabulous in every way. And she'll be back for Christmas so.......no need to get too emotional.... although you just can't help being a mother can you?

Thoughtful Friday no. 114

2010-11-05T06:17:00.000-07:00

"Every artist dips his brush in his own soul,

and paints his own nature into his pictures"

Henry Ward Beecher

Best Shot Monday!

2010-11-03T01:36:00.000-07:00

I'm going to try and have this as a regular feature on a Monday each week, both to help me post more regularly but also as an incentive for me to improve my photography skills! So here goes:

GPPS Street Challenge No. 45!

2010-10-30T09:47:00.000-07:00

Another street team challenge , this time to use a background which has been prepared earlier so here we have two layer-painted pages.

fairly uninteresting as they stand but layered using credit card and acrylic paint

time to brighten it up a little with some spray gold paint and some stencils and a little metallic rub on along the sides and a hint of script stamping

I wanted to use tags so thought I would use three and put some messages on the back

I used distressed ink in a variety of colours on the front of each with a theme of yellow/orange/red and a bit of green

I loved seeing Michelle's hand print - such a personal message, so I cut a stencil of my hand and sprayed black copper paint (crafty notions) over it (I nearly didn't as it looked so dark in the bottle and I thought I might spoil it all but it's all about taking a small risk here and there and going with the flow. The inner critic would have me cautious and careful but this is so much more fun)

And I love the result!

So to the next page (base colours purple, black and white) I added a stencil made up from Tim Holtz's alphabet masks and outlined it with a sakura pen. Then I added some flower stencilling with distressed ink in purple. I then wrote words on some voile fabric and used gel medium to stick them down. Some of the words just melted into the page which was really cool.

Thank you again Michelle for this challenge. It was fun and I was surprised by the results. I really had no idea what I was going to do today with those pages but it just all came together.

Thoughtful Friday no. 113

2010-10-29T13:28:00.000-07:00

"Who you are is more important than what you do"

Anon

Amazing!

2010-10-28T01:07:00.000-07:00

Thoughtful Friday no. 112

2010-10-22T09:09:00.000-07:00

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it.

Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."

Goethe

Seven More Things...

2010-10-20T01:52:00.000-07:00

I so enjoyed capturing 7 things I am enjoying at the moment that I thought why stop at 7 when you can do 14 so here are another 7:

This is such a fun online course for art journaling and I am enjoying it so much. 21 different techniques by 21 different artists. It is a rich and nourishing 'playground' indeed. More to come on this in another post!

I am just loving this new series by Jamie Oliver. His meals are scrumptious, accessible and reasonably priced. It just makes my mouth water watching each episode. A delicious main course and sumptuous dessert all in 30 minutes - yes, really!

I watched this when it was showing live on the TV and was really hooked. I love the character development, the high performing team dynamic and the sharp, super fast dialogue. So now we are watching it on dvd and taking our time to cycle through the episodes - it's just great!

Playing with paint on canvas and some interesting texture paste - lots of ideas on how to use this as it also works with fabric!

Some lovely new Kaffe Fassett fabric bought in a very good sale of almost 50% off!! and it's all ready to go with this pattern

Experimenting with some free motion quilting having been inspired by the very talented Jenny Doh

Enjoying this website The Women's Room where fashion, art and all sorts of thing feature on a regular basis.

Wow, so much to enjoy out there, what are you enjoying at the moment? Do leave a comment and let me know.

Seven Things I am enjoying just now

2010-10-15T09:33:00.000-07:00

Tess at the lovely Driftwood nominated me over a week ago now to list 7 things about myself so after what can only be described as a very emotional week here are some things that I am really enjoying:

Enjoying the colours of leaves so much just now and pressing a few in a very old flower press!

A new project on the go in some very different 'yarn' which will make its debut as a scarf hopefully as a Christmas gift.

Loving the colours of this blanket I have started working to the lovely Lucy's pattern

These beautiful blooms keep on greeting me each morning even in October. There are regularly 10 or 12 gorgeous flowers open in the conservatory - yes they climbed on in and made themselves at home through a tiny open window!

Ahhhh, isn't he adorable! A super picture taken by my lovely son-in-law when he and daughter no.3 were over for the weekend recently. Can it really be a year since they got married at the end of this month?!!!

We took a lovely visit to The Hop Shop where all things lavender can be bought. It's a tiny farm shop (Lavender and hop farm with an apple orchard too) and I bought some lavender essence and just had to make some lavender and honey bread when I got home!

Another project with some really gorgeous yarn (the picture doesn't do it justice here) for someone who is quite special.

So there we have it - 7 very enjoyable things - I'm feeling better already!

Thoughtful Friday no. 111

2010-10-15T09:00:00.000-07:00

"Happiness is not a matter of intensity

but of balance, order, rhythm

and harmony."

Thomas Merton

Thoughtful Friday no. 110

2010-10-08T00:38:00.000-07:00

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can do begin it.

Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."

Goethe

Thoughtful Friday no. 109

2010-10-01T00:51:00.000-07:00

"O cooling breath of Autumn, tame our desire

to have summer last forever"

Joyce Rupp

GPPS Street Challenge No. 44!

2010-09-28T10:01:00.000-07:00

Challenge time again and more fun to be had. This time it was all about scraping paint onto the page with a credit card/hotel key card or some other such card and watching how the layers take shape and then adding some stencilling. So what to do? I chose my larger journal which is A4ish in size. First decision, what colours to use? I don't have that many although my collection is getting larger as I do more journaling. First up it was teal blue and light beigey pink:

which turned out like this

Then I just had to do another page with different colours this time red, blue, purple and gold!

I had a hard time deciding on the stencil to use and in the end punched out three hearts and used the spaces as a stencil which I did in different colours on the background

I really loved the gold on the red so wanted to do more of that using the hearts again

But neither looked finished somehow so .....

I added some shiny stones I had in my stash and some tissue tape. And for the red one I ummed and ahhed about what to use. I really wanted to use black but didn't want it to overtake the page!!!! In the end it was a case of " c'mon girl loosen up here and just go for it" and this was the result!

And I like it. I like it alot!

At the same time I did some experimenting as Michelle suggested using gesso then black paint, scraping back and adding several colours. These will be good background pages for journaling sometime. Any ideas for taking them further?

Thanks again Michelle for a great challenge!

Thoughtful Friday no. 108

2010-09-24T04:42:00.000-07:00

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning,

but anyone can start today and make a new ending."

Maria Robinson

Gift of jewels 2

2010-09-21T05:48:00.000-07:00

Here is the 'gift of jewels' I sent to Kirstin in the US, I blended the card all over using distress ink (Straw, I think) and then used my favourite swirl mask by Tim Holtz and a favourite quote with some other stamping techniques. In the top left corner there is a mustard coloured brad holding a beautiful french lace heart. Then inside there were some twill ribbons which I hand stamped with words from a poem on my windowsill and inside I put this postcard of the Welsh mountains - can you see the person standing at the top? And there was more stamping inside too. Such a fun project, thank you Se'Lah G!

Gift of Jewels arrival!

2010-09-21T04:51:00.000-07:00

I participated in the 'gift of jewels' exchange by Selah of Necessary Room and my 'gift' arrived at the weekend. Here are my lovely cards from Paula in the US, who doesn't seem to have a blog so I can't link her name to it. Thank you so much Paula!

It's such a great idea to send a little love around the world and to receive some too!

Thoughtful Friday no. 107

2010-09-17T00:31:00.000-07:00

"This is my wish for you: Comfort on difficult days,

smiles when sadness intrudes, rainbows to follow the clouds,

laughter to kiss your lips, sunsets to warm your heart,

hugs when spirits sag, beauty for your eyes to see,

friendships to brighten your being, faith so that you can believe,

confidence for when you doubt, courage to know yourself,

patience to accept the truth, Love to complete your life.”

Anon

Duvet days

2010-09-14T09:02:00.000-07:00

We all need a duvet day once in a while!!

Thoughtful Friday no. 106

2010-09-10T00:54:00.000-07:00

"What would you attempt to do if you

knew you would not fail?"

Robert Schuller

30 years ago today!

2010-09-08T07:27:00.000-07:00

These two little pumpkins were born!! Here they are about 4-6 weeks old and you can see by the size of hubby's hands just how wee they were! 5lb 12 oz and 6lb 8oz they weighed when born 4 weeks early and now they are 6ft 1" and 5ft 10" and I've no idea how much they weigh!!. I was only 24 and had been married two years. It was a special time but very exhausting to say the least as I fed them myself for the first six months. What a joy they were then and are now. Lovely young women with so many gifts and skills and delightful personalities. I love you my girls and I'm so glad you came into our lives!

(my scanner isn't working and the drawer the photos were in is stuck shut so this is a photo of a photo but was the best I could do as I wanted to mark the occasion - roll on a new printer/scanner!!).

In car - will crochet!!

2010-09-07T08:51:00.000-07:00

Yes, after a long journey to Cornwall and back and a very very wet holiday week, I had this to show for it:

and a closer look at the colours

so when we decided to travel to Paris in a day I had to take the next one with me!

which I finished on the way home! These are for lovely friends, one whose birthday is coming up and one, just because...

These were crocheted with the same chunky acrylic yarn by James C Brett which I bought at PurpleLindaCrafts. I have one more that I want to make for someone special and then we'll see what happens!