cardinal arts

happy holidays

2011-12-19T16:47:00.003Z

Happy Holidays !!

I hope everyone has a fun

holiday season!!

feather step down

these were half finished pieces that

were just sitting around

so I worked on them a bit

not too long ago, but never

photographed them

love in my heart

am spending most of my time packing up the studio

the movers come next week to scoop

it all up and put it into storage

have been wondering what to do with my sewing machine

and other materials

do I put into storage?

do I take to the house?

where in the house?

anyway.....

I think I have decided to put everything into storage

(eek!)

it's a tricky one, especially as I do not

know how long this all will take

I could be here for another 4 months

but without the studio

and really; without the room for anything

at home

yup

that's what I'll do

so then......

I can get back to more reading

and writing

and contemplating

and devising

which I have not done in a long time

I need to really think about how I want to proceed with my art

what to keep; what to change

and then there's wax

I like wax

I like stuff covered in wax

I want to start exploring wax

but just really calm my head down

and take the time

to think

since I have it

this move needs to move me too

I need to move forward

and try

really try

again;

happy holidays

thanks for coming by......

__a

cute!

2011-12-08T12:46:00.004Z

how cute is this?!

so want to buy him...

wonder if husband would notice

hee hee

look at that face!!

I spotted him in one of the local antique places

I was actually searching for two other things

to stash away

and take with me to the States

1) a Victorian hot water bottle

weird, I know

but when I first moved to the UK

I saw them all over the place and wondered what they were

haha

will remind me of first moving here

2) pie funnel

a ceramic blackbird

you put into your pie to let the steam out (is that right?)

I don't actually bake, I just think they are cute!

and again......had no idea what they were when first moved here

so......every other time I meander around the local

antique shops - there were dozens

of these things

this time, now that I actually want them,

nothing

nil

nada

zilch

always the way, eh?

next time, I won't think I want to buy them

am just wandering around........

then they will show up again! ha

thanks for stopping by!

I know I am veering off

my usual arty-stitchy topics

such is my life right now.....

it is cold and rainy today

am hoping it gets colder!

want to build a little fire in the front room tonight

hope everyone is healthy and happy out there

__a

pretty little thing

2011-12-05T16:29:00.004Z

isn't she a beauty?

I totally forgot to show her to you

my husband bought it for me

at the local car boot sale

right before my open studios

back at the end August!

I have never heard of Jones, but

many people who have seen her know that name

I have only seen Singers so beautifully decorated

well....now I know why

Jones was a sewing machine company

started in Manchester in the 1800s

I saw these jugs outside of a furniture restoration place down from my house

ok, when I first saw the sign, it said

"100yr old Polish Jugs"

and I wondered why they had jugs from Poland?

luckily, I kept my mouth shut

when I went in to buy them

the guy who helped me started telling me

they had a huge pile of them

in their studio

they were at least 100yrs old........

and stored.......polish

oh!

where am I? furniture restorer.......polish

not Polish!

sheesh

don't tell Mr, but I am secretly hoarding things to take back with me

ok, not so secretly as he immediately noticed the jugs

but he didn't say anything

well, actually, he did start in on

"no room, shipping costs"

but then he stopped

I think it might have to do with the

blue and white plate

you can just see in the background in the photo

which he came home with a few days earlier!

not much in the creativity line has been happening

my main dilemma, other than packing up my studio

which isn't really a dilemma, more of a

just get on with it!

anyway

I have to pack up the studio and have it empty

by the end of the month

ok, no problem

however

I am going to be here for a few more months into the new year

now.......

do I bring my sewing machine to the house?

how bout materials?

where will they go?

can use the dining table....

but there isn't anywhere to store anything

if I actually use the dining table for eating

(yes, I do use it for eating, thank you)

what will I be working on?

what materials do I bring with me?

hm.....

on another note;

it is finally getting cold!

I like that

but....the usual problem

do I decorate for the holidays?

or they should probably go into storage

with the rest of the studio things

since we will be at hubbie's parents

some day......I would like to really decorate our house

and be there to enjoy it for a bit

hope everyone is doing well

thank you so much for being here

__a

projects

2011-11-18T13:35:00.006Z

don't know if you remember the sample

of the soldier I did

to be able to stitch on the community project

for the Battle of Lewes Tapestry

two panels are worked on at once

in the Castle Museum

we work for 1-2 hours at a time

there will eventually be 5 panels

and will be hung in the museum

this is a very bad photo of the

design

this was taken weeks ago

so much more has been done

should take more photos

I am so thrilled to be a part of this!

it is planned to be finished in two years! yikes......

that's a lot of stitching

I also participated in a "craft" show in Brighton last weekend

not much success, I have to admit......

but thought my table look quite fetching!

(if I do say so myself)

see the whitish birds with the brown/orange tips?

they are a pearlized white but I burnt them in the oven!

they came out with these golden tips with gold flecks

a fantastic mistake

my friend from Get Felt had her felted bags there too

all sorts of things have been going on here......

I went to a class at West Dean

that place is a.maze.ing!

such a beautiful house and the college

has a huge range of classes

all run so well

I took a class by Julie Arkell

who is an artist I have admired for a long time

she is such a warm and friendly person

and has fabulous personal style!

(photograph courtesy of http://lovelytextiles.blogspot.com)

I also went into the tapestry studio there

it is one of the last working tapestry studios in the UK

so cool!

they had just finished making 4 pieces for Tracey Emin!

wish I could have seen them

but then again......if they were still working on them

we wouldn't have been able to go in the studio to see them anyway

let's see.......what else is going on?

oh yes

I'm shutting down my studio

because

we are moving

to the US

sometime

fairly soon

happy, excited, scared, anxious,

all at once!

thank you so much for checking in

an hello to the new people who have

stumble upon my blog!!

have a lovely weekend

I know, I know

2011-10-31T14:52:00.004Z

my French still life seems so long ago that I took this

yes, it really is me

been a long time, hasn't it?

not sure what has happened, but am having a hard time getting back to my blog........

so sorry

I'll be back soon

but wanted you to know I am still here!

please check back

Mont St Michel

unbelievably beautiful

a little island surrounded by sand and water

hope everyone out there is doing well

and having a lovely fall.......

what texture!

a random shuttered window

thanks for checking in!

__a

Open Studios at Cardinal Arts

2011-09-02T11:08:00.003+01:00

here are some (rather bad) photos of my Open Studios

we opened over the Bank holiday weekend

and the turnout was.......

terrible

am hoping this weekend will bring more people in

(should mention that the inspiration for these bird charms

came from the amazing, amazing, amazing artist Geninne)

the people that do come in

are full of compliments

about the work and the set-up

my studio is at one end of the town

so it seems to be difficult to get people down here

altho, there are others near here -

and we are listed in the catalogue

and right next to the Buttercup Café!

we'll see what happens

am still optimistic!

lovely felted bags by Get Felt

and the diaphanous knitted shrugs or capelettes

by Tuscan Handknits

(despite the name, she is a local maker)

I have sold the "capelette" hanging above the bags

LOVE to bags! they are knitted and then felted

fantastic colours and shapes

have sold a couple of those too

the funny thing is that I just happen to be in

my studio during the week

all the publicity states the studio is open

on the weekends

but have had more sales during the week

from people just randomly wandering in!

go figure

it is a sunny day today

which is nice

even tho there is definitely a nip in the air

fall is coming soon!

and so is my mother!

she arrives next week - just in time to see the end of my show

then mother, me and S are going on holiday

we rented a gîte in France for 10 days

cannot wait

so looking forward to relaxing......

have a stack of books waiting

but before then

wish me luck!

have a wonderful weekend!

and a big hello to a couple new followers

thank you for wanting to be included in my ramblings!

Artwave getting closer

2011-08-19T12:55:00.009+01:00

well, here I am;

still working towards getting my studio ready

for the Lewes Open Studios:

Artwave

some very patient stuffed birds

waiting for their tails to be sewn shut

while these two are waiting for someone to come

and take them home with them!

other birds in progress

these are made with clay and hand painted

how cute are these?!

more clay birds covered in various papers and tissue

ready to be strung up with beads

like this

(hand not included)

more mini canvases

that will eventually look like these

I made earlier

I also want to do more

of my usual free machine stitched pieces

similar to this

in this terrible photo

I tried to show you one piece I finished for the show

detail of above picture

was experimenting with silk embroidery

lots more to do!!

oh! and I did get selected to join the

volunteer stitchers for the

Battle of Lewes Tapestry

I start next week

am hoping I can take some photos

of the progress to show you

have a sunny, creative weekend everyone

and thank you, thank you

for stopping by!

finally finished

2011-08-10T15:52:00.008+01:00

whew

finally, after much procrastination and wool drama

I finished the tapestry sample

now.......lets hope it is good enough

to get into the group of volunteers

stitching a tapestry to commemorate

the Battle of Lewes

in between stitching this

or.........looking for the correct wool

I have gone back to making a few more stuffed birds

am done painting my little clay birds too

now, to string them up and add some sparkle!

I tried one

and realised the birds are so heavy

their birdy bottoms stick in the air

instead of their birdy beaks

panic!

and then; clever me

thought about finding some sort of weight

so went to the local fishing equipment shop

they thought I was really strange

(not the first time that has happened)

I guess they are used to people coming in

knowing what the fishing weighty things are actually called

oh; and knowing what size and weight

“can’t I just look at them? hold them in my hand?”

anyway.......got some

and they seemed to be working on my test birdy

after I get that finished;

back to more mini canvasses, I think

I also want to do a few bigger pieces

like I normally do

here are a few photos from the

Southover Grange Gardens

which is not too far from my house

such a beautiful place!

the plantings are so spectacular

and I love how they juxtapose the most

vibrant colours next to each other

(doesn’t really come out that well in the pics)

but.......you get the picture

AND

it all surrounds a lovely Eizabethan house

thank you so much for stopping by

hope you all are having a creative week

and in the States; not burning up

in the UK; not molding....or too badly affected by these riots

I do not even know what to say about all that

back to work!

2011-08-01T13:33:00.005+01:00

just spent a nice weekend in Germany

in a little town we lived in for 3 years

cannot believe that was 8 years ago!

weirdly; it was cold and rainy the whole time

and then I get back to the UK

and it is sunny and warm!

usually the other way around

the town was having a

Middle Ages Fest

check out that hat!

a lovely felted acorn top

minstrels below the tower

even Middle Agers need a coffee break

some Scots had invaded too

beautiful leather drum on his back

(am sure there is a specific name for it......sorry)

am now back home

and back to getting things ready for the Open Studios

a friend of mine brought in some lovely

needlepoint cushions for the show

they look great against my

Guatemalan blanket

(oh - but you can barely see the actual blanket)

oh look - birds!!

haha

have made these little clay birds

some are painted some are covered

with printed tissue papers

am hoping to put them on ribbons and add

little charms and beads to the bottom

have never done this before.......

so, we'll see how it goes

a strange thing happened recently

I have suddenly become attracted to

Elizabeth Blackadder

her realistic botanical paintings are amazing

but that's not what is attracting me

it is her more whimsical, looser still life pantings

now......I am not a painter -

but I kind of want to try my hand

at least try to get the loose, lyrical feeling

and then add things on top; paper, etc

just a thought......but I need to keep ahold of it

and when Artwave is over

maybe get out a little canvas and try it out!

she is having a big exhibition in Edinburgh

but I think that is a little far for me to get to

might obtain a book of her paintings

to keep hold of the inspiration

so........happy week to everyone

and thank you thank you

to my new followers!

yea

mini canvasses n' stuff

2011-07-21T11:07:00.009+01:00

I am having so much fun with these......

and am liking how they are turning out

(for the most part)

I have several more to do - but wanted to finish some off

just to see how they'd look when completely done

detail of one of the canvasses

the other week S and I went to visit friends in Leeds

while S played golf, I went to the Great Yorkshire Show

here are some of the interesting animals I saw:

contemplating

a face only a mother could love

(and my friend; she is crazy for pigs!)

bit too much fake tan?

try to get a comb through that!

this guy loved his head being scratched

those curls!

you lookin at me?!

I want to show you a couple more things:

I went on a little spree in the local antique shops

first up; rusted metal rose

second; a bamboo drinks trolley

I have differing opinions on this one

not that I really care because I love it

but......a few people have looked askance

when I showed them

too kitsch?

not sure what I will do with it;

maybe paint it shiny black? shiny red?

altho I also like the natural colour

use it as an actual drinks trolley

some sort of display unit in the studio?

what do you think?

hope everyone is having a creative week

looking forward to the weekend?

I wouldn't mind a bit less rain

altho, am not too envious of the

blistering heat wave in the States

thank you so much for stopping by

appreciate your interest

__a

sold!!

2011-07-12T15:07:00.006+01:00

woo hoo!

I walked into the Preview party for the show I was in this past weekend

and was told one of my pieces had been sold!

how exciting is that?!

only thing is; I have no idea who bought it

would be nice to know

I wonder if the people putting on the show would tell me

anyway.......

that was such a thrilling thing for me

am going out of town with my hubby for a few days

and then back to the mini canvasses!

I did work out how to stitch into them

so am adding various stitches and embellishments

to the backgrounds

also need to find some old-looking beads

bought a bag of old ribbons that I hope to use also

will show you when I have finished

I know its only Tuesday and all

but hope everyone has a productive week

and a fun-filled, sunny (but not to hot)

weekend!

thank you SO much for coming by

do appreciate your interest!!

__a

and now for something completely different

2011-07-07T15:14:00.003+01:00

our beautiful hydrangea - when we bought it, I didn't realise

it was a lacecap

and such vivid purpley blue!

the middle bit has started to shed parts of the little petals

so there is a sprinkling of blue underneath the plant

the stems, which I didn't get a picture of

are very dark; almost black, which looks amazing next to the blue flowers

I bought some mini canvasses

so today have been playing around with them

love the colours of the background paint

dress patterns and other bits of paper I have added

I want to add some texture with textiles and stitching

guess I should have seen whether I can get a needle

through all this before I started.......oops

but will find out soon enough!

have to admit; this is kind of fun!

when they dry - I want to add

embellishments with stitching (if possible)

maybe some beads or buttons

and whatever else I can find

hope all is going well with you

thanks so much for dropping by!

__a

new family member

2011-07-01T14:02:00.004+01:00

this is Sirus

he is our new kitty

he is 9yrs old

half chinchilla (apparently, that is also a type of cat)

half Persian

and yes, he is very fluffy

and likes to make sure every piece of clothing knows it!

he looks a bit scowly, but that is just the markings on his head

(I think)

practicing his movie star look

well, we are all getting used to each other

and settling in

two of my pieces have been accepted to go into a local show,

which I am VERY excited about

I was asked to be in it last year

but this year it was an open submission

so was unsure whether I would be included

Last July our front cover heralded the first-ever Artists United exhibition, a spectacular collaboration between Lewes FC and about 70 of the town’s artists, which saw over a thousand visitors to the Foundry Gallery in one hot, hot weekend. The show was a fine fundraiser for the community-oriented football club (though the artists got over half the proceeds from the sale of their pictures) and organisers are hoping for more of the same this year. A couple of changes have been made, however, as Artist’s United - The Replay is open to everyone, subject to selection from an anonymous board of judges, and to make the exhibition more affordable, there is a cap of £500 on the sale price of each entry. Last year we heralded the show as ‘the art event of the year’ and while this might have been a little unfair on August’s massive Artwave Festival, you know where we’re coming from.

Foundry Gallery, 1am - 5pm (closes 3pm Sunday), free

another project I am getting involved with is a tapestry

my town is making to commemorate the

Battle of Lewes

I went to a little workshop this week

to learn a few of the stitches

they commissioned a local artist

to make the “cartoon”

and local volunteers will be working on it

using traditional stitches

in order to qualify, I have to make a sampler

of the stitches I learned

we were given images to copy and fill with the various stitches

once I start mine; I will give you a little peak

looks like a nice weekend

think I might like a little BBQ tomorrow

oh; and husband is threatening a clear-out

he keeps focussing on the piles of clothes I have all over the bedroom

have a lovely weekend!

__a

well, who’d have thought?

2011-06-24T15:13:00.004+01:00

I finished the woodpecker!

haha

almost forgot to take pictures of it

to show what it ended up like

I think it turned out kind of sweet

I hope my mother-in-law likes it

I hope it cheers her up just a teeny bit

but.......where the heck did all those shadows come from?

I know the actual piece will be shadowy

since it isn’t flat

but I always seem to have mystery shadows at the edges

when there aren’t any I notice while taking the photos

sheesh

anyway.......

it is actually sunny out today

first day in quite a while

so am going to go out and enjoy it!

got my latest Cloth,Paper,Scissors

so will sit outside and peruse that

(thank goodness for International subscriptions)

hope everyone has a nice weekend

and a burst of creativity!

thanks so much for being here.........

__a

2011-06-23T13:17:00.006+01:00

hello

thanks for stopping by

I really appreciate your interest and lovely, kind messages!

have been doing various things this week

I worked on this tulip piece to submit to a local show - not sure when they decide who is in

I am a little unsure about this one........is it finished? I usually add much more to things,

so am having a hard time letting go

maybe if it doesn't make it into the show, I can rework it.......or not

what do you think??

Tulips are my speech

I have to say..........

am getting a little tired of all this rain

I know it makes all the flowers happy and all

but I am getting a little mouldy!

the men of the garden

I also find it quite ironic that as soon as

the government declared the Southeast as a drought zone

it has rained non-stop!

ooh! just saw a sliver of sun peak out as I wrote this

at least it is trying

our upholstery class ended

I enjoyed it so much am planning on

signing up for the next session in the Fall

we didn't finish our chairs

for the black one; all I have to do is put the final fabric on

the other one is missing the springs!

(no wonder it was so cheap)

so.......it is partially started and will be worked on in the next session

and finally;

I am in the middle of a Green Woodpecker

a request from my mother-in-law

she hasn't been too well lately

we are visiting them this weekend

so I will need to finish this by Saturday morning

to take to her

I have done quite a bit of the stitching so far

and haven't a clue what I will do next

guess just see what happens

bit of lace......a few buttons......

the usual!

thanks again for being here

hope you are having a flower-filled Spring/Summer

oh! almost forgot

a few years have gone by since my beloved Sophie passed away

and we are getting a new cat!

we pick him up from the cat sanctuary on Monday

he is THE FLUFFIEST thing I have ever seen!

so, guess I am diving back into the world

of cat hair everywhere

__a

back again

2011-06-16T12:24:00.005+01:00

huh.....

well, that didn't really go to plan

the plan of thinking, writing, relaxing, etc

the good thing is; my sister

and her daughter had a good visit

and one of the days they were there,

there were actual waves!

never been waves there before

it was fun

we were the only people in the water

the not so good thing:

husband spent almost the

whole holiday sick in bed

hence the no relaxation

oh well

did get a few lovely days together

before my husband was felled,

we all went to the Alhambra in Grenada

a Moorish palace

the architecture is simply amazing

so mathematical

and beautiful

and ornate

we weren't able to get into the actual palace

they limit the amount of tickets they sell

but we did get to walk around the gardens

such a beautiful place

now; back in the studio

(which I still haven't cleaned out!)

am getting back into my projects

have made a few more stuffed birds

am beginning to like them more

this weekend, we have another

upholstery class

so have been collecting chairs

these will be a bit more adventurous than the last two

I have several more projects

to get on with

for our open studios, Artwave

I have loads of time

but as usual, struggling with

procrastination

and uncertainty

wish me luck! ha

thanks so much for stopping by......

hope you all are having a lovely summer

__a

adios

2011-05-27T16:24:00.005+01:00

just a quick note as I am going on holiday for a bit.......

our annual Spain trip

am really looking forward to some reading........

thinking.......

looking........

calming........

planning

before I go

I thought I would show you some photos I took

a couple of weekends ago

while at the Horse Trials

at Chatsworth House

what an amazing and beautiful place!

and this is just the gatehouse!

while at the horse show

we saw this amazing horse whisperer

Jean Francois Pignon

he had his horses doing amazing things

without any sort of yelling or whipping

they really seemed to be communicating

after the horses were lying down

the little pony came over and jumped over them!

of course, I didn't get that photo

it did make me a bit teary

missing my Dad

knowing he would have loved to see that

several times I have seen him stand by a fence

and all the horses come over to him

there might be several people standing

by the fence

but they always went straight to my Dad

I hope everyone is doing well

having lovely creative thoughts

and actions

thank you, thank you for coming by

maybe leave a message and say hello

have a good weekend

bye bye

for now

__a

birds and chairs

2011-05-23T15:23:00.005+01:00

not sure about my stuffed birds......not sure about them at all

they are kinda cute - but not sure I like their heads...should I keep putting eyes on them?

think I will do a few more and then move on to my next project

whatever that is.......

oh! me and S went to an upholstery class this past Saturday - loved it!!

I was hoping I would

I had no idea what to expect from the class, so I got two really (cheap) simple

chairs to work on

when we walked in, it was like we had walked into the middle of the class

everyone seemed to know what to do

some people had taken the class before - but the new ones even seemed to know

I panicked -

but then settled down and started taking the ugly, stained, ancient

(not ancient in a good way)

green fabric off the seat (duh, forgot to take “before” photos!)

I thought perhaps there would be some sort of opening talk or explanation

from the teacher - who is a very old, sweet man who has an upholstery shop in town

but no......just dive in

then he'd come around and show you things - or answer questions

I loved watching the others - who brought far more complicated chairs

deconstruct their chairs - seeing the layers of old fabrics,

horse hair or ancient fillings

I especially liked the chairs with just the bare bones

and hessian (burlap for you US people)........the rough materials

with the tans and brown colours

anyway - we finished our little chairs, who have actually been growing on me

study and capable with a bit of mid-century “design”

I settled on a simple, linen stripe with lovely muted colours of brown, tan, grey and a minty-green

with the original seat colour; the orangey colour of the wood was really awful

but with the new seat; it tones it way down

I still want to strip the wood and stain it a dark brown

what do you think?

leave it or stain it darker?

tomorrow; I am spending the day ion London

there are so many show I want to see;

V&A, Mall Galleries, Hayward

not sure how many I will actually get to

I always have such good intentions;

and then forget that it takes forever to get to each one..........

you walk around.......back to the tube.......next one, etc

then; I am going to the opening night of

CAMERA OBSCURA AND OTHER STORIES

a show of works by Ellen Bell

beautiful work.......check it out!

and as always; thank you so much for stopping by and seeing what I am up to

I appreciate it.......very much

I know.......I know.......

2011-05-17T16:03:00.011+01:00

well, that break ended up being far longer than expected!

as you might imagine; my passport did indeed show up in time

our trip to Mexico was lovely - perfect weather and nice company

the view right outside our gate

the wandering mariachi band!

on our first day; we came back to our place after shopping -

and the maid (we had a maid! I know......a maid!!)

had folded all of our towels into swans!

she had a bouquet of flowers from a wedding and used some

of the bougainvillea petals to decorate two large towels in the front room -

so pretty and such a lovely surprise!

my favourite thing!

mango on a stick with chilli pepper, salt and lime juice

she cut the mango into a flower shape -

convenient to eat it on the beach so you can wash off all the juice that

inevitably drips down your arms

so good......had one every morning for breakfast

my sister’s dinner

I wish I would have been closer to this statue;

so serene and beautiful overlooking the little cove

now I am back at home -

and as usual......trying to get myself together!

I finished the bird I left before the trip

it is on its way to the US now

for my next project; I am working on some little stuffed birds

(I know......again with the birds!)

using these fabrics.......

the top of the bird will be one pattern

with the bottom being a contrasting fabric

will of course show you when I have a few done

similar to the aprons I made

which I have put in the cafe next door

and have sold 3 of them!! yea

so......that’s it for now

thank you so much for not giving up on me!

I will try to get back into “the groove” of writing more posts.......

and getting on with all the different projects I have in my head

and on several different lists floating around the studio

happy spring!

__a

yikes!

2011-03-29T16:36:00.004+01:00

random photo of buttons

my head is about to explode

I cannot think nor do much of anything

and of course, my to-do list is massive

I leave early Thursday morning for the States

however, my passport hasn't come back from the embassy!!

I sent it off to get pages added

and miscalculated how long it would take

now I have been spending the last few days with

a stomach full of acid......worrying

I have spoken to someone in the embassy twice now

and they have said it will be with me tomorrow

and if it isn't?

aaaarrrrggggghhhh!!!!!

I know, it is totally my fault

once again a product of my not getting things done

got.to.stop

I am flying into KC to stay with my mother - and then she and I

and a few other family members

are going to Mexico for a week

I am really hoping to spend a good portion of my time

emptying out this head of mine

it is so cluttered......and noisy

I think some people are good with that

I am learning it stops me

stops me from doing things

distracts me so much

I cannot settle anywhere

with anything

am not too thrilled with being away from S for so long....

my main purpose is the few weeks I will be staying with my mother

we will be tackling all the cupboards, closets, boxes, drawers, shelves, etc

that are completely filled to the brim

donating, selling, keeping - clearing!

I think it will make us both feel really good

altho, I think there will be some emotional moments

a couple of scenes of my desk....which I am leaving in a terrible mess!

and the unfinished bird I was supposed to finish before I left

wait..what happened?

2011-03-21T16:00:00.008Z

I didn't mean to have such a long pause between blog posts!

just never.........took the time

have been busy doing non-creative/paying design jobs

but have also finished a piece that I am submitting to a local show

(which I probably now have jinxed by mentioning it)

a couple of weekends ago S and I went to Budapest. I have wanted to go there

for years!!

such a beautiful and elegant city

lovely, lovely Art Nouveau buildings everywhere

you had to keep looking up

sometimes the most amazing part of the buildings were the tippy tops!

below is a wall of tiles and statues in the hall of the thermal baths we went to

I was quite intrigued by the wings coming out of her head!

Parliament in the background........so ornate!

this statue was so beautiful

she looked so modern

it is Queen Elizabeth, the wife of Emperor Franz Josef

such a delicate statue

this was a man in traditional Hungarian dress playing some sort of instrument -

I couldn't get closer to take a better photo

looking from Pest over the Danube to Buda

such stunning scenery; its hard to take a bad photo!

it was actually sunny and even slightly warm today

I actually sat in the sun a bit

I am still going to do a collage from the items I took from the collage box

a label for onion chutney

and finish another bird I have started

it's only Monday - so I still have a chance!

hope you are having a sunny, creative day too

and thank you, thank you, thank you for coming by!

__a

Alice

2011-03-03T13:24:00.002Z

I wrapped up the collage box and have sent it on its way to Monika

I will now get to work on that collage

but first.......I have another date night tonight!

(Monday, we went to a private preview party at the National Gallery and then dinner at Terroir)

My lovely S. somehow got us tickets to the new ballet, Alice in Wonderland at the Royal Opera House, which we will see tonight.

The Gala preview was this past Monday.

the shows are all sold out

but we were able to get a pair of tickets........probably in the clouds

so.......for Valentine’s Day, I gave S. these French mother of pearl opera glasses;

I am sure we will need them!

the sun is shining, but boy is there a strong, arctic (or Siberian?) wind blowing!

hope it is at least shining where you are!

__a

collage box

2011-02-26T13:55:00.003Z

I signed up to be included in a collage box swap through LaWendula quite a while ago.

The box just showed up!

I have never done anything like this and thought it would be an interesting way to

challenge myself with new materials, etc

dopey me didn’t realise how much paper would be involved

uh.......I know.......what else would there be?!

I think I was thinking there would be all sorts of different materials

fabric, ribbons......

but, of course, most collagers (if that is a word)

would be using all sorts of different papers and things

anyway; this is what I found in the box

so, the deal is now I take 12 pieces out of this box

and put in 12 of my own

below are the things I took out

and here is what I added!

thought I would do a mixture of fabric and paper

there’s also a bit of bark, which I thought might interest someone

(upper left of photo)

a green feather, button, and a fabric heart

hope the next people to receive the box find

my things interesting

at first, I thought I was just taking things out of the box

and using them however I wanted

but upon reading the rules a bit closer;

I am to make one collage with all the bits I chose from the box

this might be a bit more difficult

only because as I chose things, I was thinking of using them

in several different projects

I can also add other things to the piece

this should be interesting

something different for me to think about and work with

have a lovely weekend

and thanks for dropping by

are you there Spring? It’s me, Anne

2011-02-24T15:29:00.002Z

well, looky there, it’s already Thursday!

and what have I done this week??

nada

ok; a tiny lie

I have started on a bigger piece - and yes, it is yet another bird........

the deadline for the submissions are Monday

and frankly, don’t think I’m gonna make it

silly goose......had MORE than enough time!

oh well

things I HAVE done this week?

been to bootcamp......in my third week

it is really hard, but am so glad I started it

now, if all my effort would manifest itself into actual weight loss;

or even better;

easier fitting clothes.......

today, I inexplicably bought orange nail polish and lipstick!

what the.......??

must be the pollens in the air

oh, and yes; have started taking allergy medicine already;

a bit early, isn’t it?!

need to get some local honey and start in on that

I got a mystery package in the post today

well, I know what it is.........or where it is from

but

you’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see what is inside

and what I am going to do with it

and where it will go next

all will be revealed!!

and hello to my new followers!!

how exciting!

thanks for joining

and to all you commenters - thanks to you too!

see you tomorrow

hope the sun is shining where you are

__a

valentines

2011-02-10T13:04:00.005Z

I finally finished a couple of heart pieces to put in the café next door

almost missed my deadline!

they take so much longer than I think they will......

but I like they way they came out

hope everyone else does too!

I am going to try and maybe do a couple more

maybe make them less elaborate (if possible) so they won't take so long

it is a grey and rainy, rainy, rainy day today

boo

and now.......back away form the computer, Anne - and get to work!!

so much to do.........

so little focus

thank you to each one of you that takes the time to come by my blog - and especially to leave a message

and a BIG HELLO to those of you who have recently started “following” my blog

welcome -

really appreciate all of you

__a

that is so nice!

2011-02-04T14:04:00.005Z

I had the most amazing thing happen the other evening!

I came home and found an envelope had been shoved through the letterbox; addressed to the homeowner

At first I thought ; "oh no, we have annoyed our neighbours"

but then again, we aren't the ones with the screaming toddlers (both behind and next to us!)

then I thought; maybe someone wants to buy our house and were leaving their details

I opened it and here is what it said:

how nice is that?!

I had the biggest grin on my face for the rest of the evening

the funny thing is; I have only done two displays

the first one is the photo of the cyclamen at the top of my blog

the other was the scene I did for Xmas (below)

our house opens right up onto a small alleyway

a pretty popular throughway into the centre of town

there are only 4 houses on the street

(can't really call it a street.......but you get it?)

anyway - I thought it would be nice to put something

in my window, for people to look at as they go by

but I was starting to get a bit discouraged

noone seemed to pay any attention

until I got this note!

someone has noticed

so, of course, now I have to come up with something

for the next display! no pressure.........hahaha

I got the go-ahead from the café

they'll display my valentines - so am working on them

have almost finished the first one -

I hope all my US friends are keeping warm and watching out for ice

and to everyone; I hope for you a creative and inspiring weekend

__a

finished

2011-01-31T15:25:00.004Z

I am sure you are all kinda sick of seeing this piece- well, never fear; it is finished!

I just wanted to show the last bits of hand stitching I did

It now goes off to the States

oh; and to answer your questions, Susanna; the background is an old cotton sheet

that I have cut.....then a sheet of music that I put a bit of gesso over;

actually, too much gesso as you cannot really see the score

I only knew that it had to have a cardinal in it

so looked on the internet for a nice image -

and use that as a guide to free machine stitch the bird

everything else just sort of happens

I don’t really have a plan

yikes, it is almost 3.30pm.......and what have I done today?

paid bills, filled out a form to get extra pages added to my passport

(I know; weird - but have run out of space for stamps -

the passport control people are getting quite annoyed

every time I come back into the country)

things I haven’t done:

arranged my studio.......I have a new big table and wanted to see if I could rearrange

the furniture in here......haven’t done it so am sitting here with stuff and

boxes and storage containers and piles of paper and piles of magazines and

piles of books and piles of cloth all around me

oh, and a bike I brought back from France

in the middle of the room (long story)

I have two more bird commissions, but they don’t have a pressing deadline -

so before that, I would like to do a few Valentine’s like I did last year

and see if I can put them in the café next door again

I also have a huge pile of magazines I have been collecting but never take the time

to look through them - they all look really inspirational

maybe schedule in an afternoon where I just sit and look through things;

without feeling guilty for "not doing anything" (even tho I know it is actually doing something)

hm.......all jumbley, jumbley, jumbley

__a