Wednesday, 9 August 2017
Tuesday, 8 August 2017
happy birthday Eternal Maker!
Saturday's birthday bash at the eternal Maker https://eternalmaker.com
was a brilliant success!
Such a lot of visitors, and such a lot of inspiring makers selling their wares. Look at these woolly superheroes, made by Heidi, at Handmade by Heidi.
And this tee shirt, made by Millie who works at the Eternal Maker. Who wouldn't want two crocheted fried eggs on their tee shirt?
Such a lot of people came in beautiful handmade clothes. Love this robot dress,
and Anna's wonderful pirate galleons.
Thank you to the wonderful laughing ladies from the Best Shop Ever!
https://www.eternalmaker.com
was a brilliant success!
Such a lot of visitors, and such a lot of inspiring makers selling their wares. Look at these woolly superheroes, made by Heidi, at Handmade by Heidi.
And this tee shirt, made by Millie who works at the Eternal Maker. Who wouldn't want two crocheted fried eggs on their tee shirt?
Such a lot of people came in beautiful handmade clothes. Love this robot dress,
and Anna's wonderful pirate galleons.
Thank you to the wonderful laughing ladies from the Best Shop Ever!
https://www.eternalmaker.com
Wednesday, 2 August 2017
sewing madly
At the moment I am sewing madly, to get enough items ready for a table at the wonderful Eternal Maker fabric shop's 10th birthday party sale next Saturday!
https://m.facebook.com/events/322582988164699?ref=m_upload_pic
I'm making pouches, big enough for pencils or makeup, decorated with rather eccentric ladies.
They all start off in much the same way,
but then seem to take on a life of their own without my permission. This lady appears to have decided to do a little light dusting in her bikini...
…and this lady has forgotten most of her bikini completely.
The small purses I'm making have just hands on them, but they are each fully equipped with nail varnish and jewellery.
I will also have fat lady and muscle man brooches, and hopefully more besides.
Maybe I'll see you there if you live near to Chichester?
https://m.facebook.com/events/322582988164699?ref=m_upload_pic
I'm making pouches, big enough for pencils or makeup, decorated with rather eccentric ladies.
They all start off in much the same way,
but then seem to take on a life of their own without my permission. This lady appears to have decided to do a little light dusting in her bikini...
…and this lady has forgotten most of her bikini completely.
The small purses I'm making have just hands on them, but they are each fully equipped with nail varnish and jewellery.
I will also have fat lady and muscle man brooches, and hopefully more besides.
Maybe I'll see you there if you live near to Chichester?
Sunday, 2 July 2017
butterflies and bracken at Birtley
Four lovely ladies came along yesterday for a sunny art day on the beautiful Birtley Estate. The sun shone, and the woods were full of butterflies. Fiona told me that the small brown ones we saw everywhere are called 'gatekeepers' because you find them around field gates. there must be an interesting origin to that name- maybe they congregated there because the cattle trod the mud down and water collected? One of the nice things about meeting new people is the fascinating things you learn.
They all took to monoprinting straight away and were soon trying out their own ideas. the day went so fast that I didn't have time to take many photos.
Fiona creating a misty landscape print.
Clare made some stunning prints using bracken, which she is going to frame for her summerhouse.
We all enjoyed a very inspiring day!
They all took to monoprinting straight away and were soon trying out their own ideas. the day went so fast that I didn't have time to take many photos.
Fiona creating a misty landscape print.
Clare made some stunning prints using bracken, which she is going to frame for her summerhouse.
We all enjoyed a very inspiring day!
Saturday, 24 June 2017
an elegant tern
Other people's hobbies always seem a trifle mad if you don't share their passion. Why on earth would anybody sit fishing under a wet tarpaulin for hours, and then throw the fish back in? Or build model planes you can't fly in? Or (like me) buy a lot of fabric, cut it into little squares and sew them all back together?
Last week I went to paint with friends at a lovely coastal nature reserve, and I was surprised to find that not only could I not get into the car park, but I ended up leaving the car about a mile up the road, perilously perched on the verge. It was a beautiful day for a walk, though, so that wasn't a problem.
When I arrived at the shore I discovered the reason for all the crowds- LOTS of twitchers! Apparently they were all watching a single 'elegant tern' who should have been in California but was snuggling up to one of our common old British terns with a view to creating a nest full of not-so-elegant babies!
The nature reserve warden said that men (and they were 99 percent men) had come from as far away as Glasgow for that elusive 'tick'.
What an opportunity for a fun painting, though!
We didn't see the elegant tern, but I hope it has a happy time on the British foreshore. It seems a shame to treat it just as a statistic, though, rather than enjoying the beautiful weather and atmosphere of the place.
Last week I went to paint with friends at a lovely coastal nature reserve, and I was surprised to find that not only could I not get into the car park, but I ended up leaving the car about a mile up the road, perilously perched on the verge. It was a beautiful day for a walk, though, so that wasn't a problem.
When I arrived at the shore I discovered the reason for all the crowds- LOTS of twitchers! Apparently they were all watching a single 'elegant tern' who should have been in California but was snuggling up to one of our common old British terns with a view to creating a nest full of not-so-elegant babies!
The nature reserve warden said that men (and they were 99 percent men) had come from as far away as Glasgow for that elusive 'tick'.
What an opportunity for a fun painting, though!
We didn't see the elegant tern, but I hope it has a happy time on the British foreshore. It seems a shame to treat it just as a statistic, though, rather than enjoying the beautiful weather and atmosphere of the place.
Wednesday, 21 June 2017
Monday, 5 June 2017
thinking about drawing
For me, drawing is a kind of meditation, and every new drawing is a journey of discovery. This week at the life drawing session I found myself thinking about the sensuality of making marks on textured paper, and the joy of making varied marks in response to what you see, trying to capture movement and gesture.
Drawing on brown or coloured paper means you can show the lights and the darks of the subject.
Sometimes its good to isolate part of a drawing, or turn it upside down. These marks could be a landscape, or something completely abstract,
or part of this lady's ear.
Three minutes of mark-making:
Make this quick drawing of a wonderful dynamic model.
I know its just my preference, but I think one thing that stifles creativity is the dead hand of a neat box of pencils (or any other medium), all arranged in colour order, so you are scared to actually disturb them. Here are my favourite pastels/conte crayons:
The best thing about them is the element of surprise, not knowing until you make a mark if its going to be grey or bright blue or purple, and then letting the rest of the drawing take off from there.
I'm looking forward to making some 'surprising lines' at the next art day at the Birtley estate, drawing and monoprinting in the woods.
Drawing on brown or coloured paper means you can show the lights and the darks of the subject.
Sometimes its good to isolate part of a drawing, or turn it upside down. These marks could be a landscape, or something completely abstract,
or part of this lady's ear.
Three minutes of mark-making:
Make this quick drawing of a wonderful dynamic model.
I know its just my preference, but I think one thing that stifles creativity is the dead hand of a neat box of pencils (or any other medium), all arranged in colour order, so you are scared to actually disturb them. Here are my favourite pastels/conte crayons:
The best thing about them is the element of surprise, not knowing until you make a mark if its going to be grey or bright blue or purple, and then letting the rest of the drawing take off from there.
I'm looking forward to making some 'surprising lines' at the next art day at the Birtley estate, drawing and monoprinting in the woods.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
