Another Sunset …

Having looked through my photos recently, I discovered this sunset that I did a few weeks ago. It’s similar in style to others that I have done, but different in colour :

Sewing a Sunset …

If you have been following my blog for a while (thank you!), you may have noticed that sunset colours and tree shadows feature quite often. Yesterday, I decided to have a go at stitching something along these lines. I began with a neutral piece of calico onto which I sprayed graffiti paint, using a simple stencil/doily to create interest. I then cut the calico into strips and rearranged them until I was happy with their order. The strips were then quickly sewn with my machine. Much as I wanted to sew the tree with my machine, I knew that I’d find it really hard to stitch it accurately so I spent an hour or so yesterday evening stitching it on by hand:

I think that this may work equally as well in a range of blues and in a range of greens – I might just have to give them a go …

Psychedelic Finn …

The picture that I started yesterday was finished this morning. I’ve used my lovely dog Finn as my inspiration again, this time he’s had a monochrome treatment :

and here he is in colour:

and this is Finn in the flesh:

An Early 2014 Catch Up …

Looking back through photos taken since the start of the year, I realise how little I’ve blogged recently, hence the catch up.
Brush:
This recent picture, similar to a watercolour that I painted a few weeks ago, was done with brush pens and ink. I’m still trying to decide which one I prefer:

Needle:
Both knitting and sewing needles feature here. First off, I spent about 6-8 weeks knitting my latest blanket, combining my favourite colour combinations of purple, dark pink and green. This is a wonderfully stretchy blanket, it was knitted on a pair of size 20 circular needles and it’s huge!!

Sewing needles arrived earlier this week in the form of a sewing machine. Sewing has always been something that I wished I could do, neatly and well, however I’ve never really managed it. My husband very kindly bought me my lovely machine and I’ve already made something, can you tell what it is?!

Yes, it’s a bag for my sewing machine pedal and plug!
I have a few other projects in mind for the coming weeks and I’m really enjoying learning how to use my sewing machine. I hope that once I’ve had lots of practice and no doubt loads of advice from my mum (who used to create amazing things on her sewing machine), I’ll be able to attempt to make some new curtains for our dining room.

Whisk:
Last week we celebrated Chinese New Year by having deliciously crispy duck with pancakes, hoisin sauce, plum sauce and prawn crackers. We went to our local Chinese supermarket, I’m ashamed to say for the first time in 13 years, and it was incredible. There were dragons parading outside and inside the shop was a complete riot of colour and noise. It definitely won’t be another 13 years before we go there again:

Before I go, I’ll leave you with the additions that we’ve made to our shed/studio (or shudio, if you prefer) – our current weather has made it really difficult for me to get out there without getting covered in mud, however, these concrete slabs, cleverly designed as logs mean that I can get there and back without walking mud through the house:

Feeling the need to make my art space a little more cosy, I’ve added some cheery lights. I must have spent over 30 minutes faffing about with these before deciding to clump them together in the corner:

and yes, that is a set of wool & fur covered headphones hanging up there too – they are incredibly warm!!

Painting Again …

It’s been a few months since I did an actual watercolour painting but today was the day for it. Seeing those colours bleed into each other was great, I’ll not leave it so long until the next time.

Is it too Early for Thoughts of Valentines Day?

I’m sure that I’m actually a lot later than the majority of card designers but nevertheless, I think that now is a good time for me to be thinking about possible Valentine’s designs. I’ll be working on a new idea this coming week but for now, have been looking at using some older designs but in a new way:

Over the next week or so, I’ll be looking at some other ideas and will hopefully find a few designs that could work well as cards.

A Lightbulb Moment …

This picture has taken me several weeks to complete, partly because it’s a busy time of year and partly because I was wary of working on it once the daylight had gone. Time was made this weekend for more work to be done – my son had some art homework to be working on too so it meant we were able to work side by side.
Finishing touches were done today, I’m really pleased with the final result.
Here’s my ‘Lightbulb Moment’:

Work in Progress …

I had a wonderful time at the Fishponds Festive Fair on Saturday. Not only did I sell lots of cards but I was also lucky enough to receive a lot of positive feedback about my art. I had returning customers who have sent cards that they have previously bought and wish to buy the same again plus some of the newer styles. There were also plenty of ‘new’ customers who were extremely fulsome in their praise of my pictures, I have to admit that I was quite overwhelmed!

By far the most popular of my newer designs were these:

Whilst at the fair, I made a little progress with the design below. It’s taking me a long time to complete, I started it over a week ago, however, I am really enjoying working with the patterns and the colours that I really don’t want to rush it:

Hopefully I’ll spend some more time on this at the weekend. I’m looking forward to seeing the final result.

Festive Fair …

It’s that time of year again ! I’ll be at the Fishponds Festive Fair again this weekend and have spent much of today preparing cards and framing pictures:

I’m pleased with how these little prints look when framed in a simple white wooden frame.

 

I’ve got lots of Christmas cards printed and ready to go, any that I don’t sell will be sent to family and friends!

 

Dear, oh, Deer …

Stag heads seem to be all the rage in interiors and today, I thought I’d get in on the act. I hope to get him a frame tomorrow and plan to use his more festive cousin (Merry Christmas Deer …) on a range of cards: