patchwork crochet

anyone know how u join crochet squares together?

shell and bone

it was weird drawing these two things one after the other. I drew the skull first but when i went on to the shell i started seeing a skull in it. Brian Cox was telling us the other night that everything on earth is composed of the same chemical elements...and now i'm kinda wondering if skulls and shells are made up of similar stuff? drawing one seems a bit like drawing the other.

And what happens on a sheeps head (or whatever this thing was before it died and i drew it)...where it's skull becomes it's horns? What happens to the skin around the horn?...it cant just stop otherwise it would just peel back and little beasts would be able to crawl inside. How weird that horns are just bones sticking out.

oh well..i'm going to make some eggy bread.

plump

we've been making cushions around here...

and now we've got a lot of plumping to do

yay

spring is finally here

1000 birds

n

If you haven't already visited

the blog of my friend

and colleague, Makiko Hastings,

then I recommend that you do.

Not only will you

find the most magical post I have ever seen in blogland,

but you will see

gorgeous photography,

a giant teapot,

her wonderful studio being built and

her perfectly yummy ceramics being made.

Desperate to do something to help

her beloved Japan and her

compatriates at a time of such

unimaginable crisis,

Maki is now working on her

1000 bird project to

raise money for

the Japan Tsunami Appeal.

We need to get behind her.

please visit Maki's blog and show your support

publisher patchwork

st ives palette

one of the things i don't like about blogger is that its such a bloomin faff to get pictures in the order that you want them (aaargghh). I've just tried dragging this lot around and its taking forevever so here they are in the wrong order. now that little rant is over...what i wanted to say is...

one of the things i like about blogging (says she who hasn't been around here much for decades)

is the distance it gives you from your artwork, a chance to record and look again with a slightly altered eye or perspective.

i've always known that i love st ives in cornwall. it's a special place for me and one of the things i love about it is the colour. the light is special in st ives and i just love the colours of the sea, the sky, the white washed houses, the cobbled streets, the weathered boats and the rugged rocks.

i didn't realise how much this had seeped into my bones until i took these photos for this blog.


in response to a recent post helen commented that my painting reminded her of rusty boats by the sea which put a happy smile (thanks helen) on my face because i luuurrrrve rusty boats by the sea.

i didn't realise as i was painting these (unfinished as usual) canvases that they remind me of st ives...all chalky and weathered


I'm sure there's some boat shapes in there too

perhaps even a harbour wall

but this is the picture (above) that most surprised me its like i subconsciously painted the rocks the sky and the sea in my sketchbook. Even the potato print when i stamped it twice on the page came out as the cornish flag (the cornish flag is the coolist ever..a white cross on a black background). st ives must be calling me.

the final hidden message came when i checked the photos i'd taken - on top of a sketchbook i bought in st ives last year.

ahhhh if only it wasn't so far away and so expensive to stay there...house swap for the summer anyone?

untitled post

once paintings are started, almost finished or complete i like to pick parts out with a camera and make new compositions

i dont have a very good camera -

so these colours aren't quite the same

and no matter how hard i try

i cannot fathom the mystical ways of blogger

so that i can display the images

in the order that i want them

so in some sort of random fashion

here are a few mini compositions

details

scratchy bits

perhaps some shapes and lines

that i can use again or develop

this is almost finished..

but i wish i'd used oils

and not acrylic..

especially for the printed parts

i'm not into the plasticky

look of acrylic just now

gonna save up for some more oil paints

i'm enjoying painting again

and have quite a lot of other work

in progress from just a few 'stolen'

days avoiding other commitments

i'll show you them soon

more layers and thanks

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

its the weekend

and i'm not

prioritising

work or study

or a million jobs

that

need doing

why wait until courses finish,

houses are tidy

(let's face it that'll never happen)

until lessons are planned

and essays are written?

i have a feeling that if i put art first,

everything else will slot into place.

Or if it doesn't

I'll be happy making art anyway.

Thank you

to those who commented

about the post below

it's good to be reminded

that I'm not the only one

jumping

from one thing to another

and

Grrl's right,

the media we choose

are just different channels

for

our creative voice.

Any comments about

my creative voice

are very welcome.

happy weekend

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

day off work, ignore chores, paint

not finished but at least they are started a few layers made
the main problems i find with my art
(apart from finding the time to do it)
are......

whether or not to stick to one way of working:
knitting, making, sewing, painting, collage?
one style of working or different styles?
and what themes to explore?

i flit between so many things
and wonder if ever i should just stick to one thing?

does anyone else have these problems?

some pages from my new note/sketchbook

just doodles really I've been messing around with watercolour

something I haven't really used much in the past
most of the lines are drawn with ball point pens
something I have used a lot in the past
i love using cheap materials to draw with
this one is wax crayon and felt tip
I'm counting the days till i finish my current studies and
have a few less work commitments
and have more time to blog and make art
life's too short not to spend time doing what you love
`

sticker and book love

Forget smoochy nights, rose and chocolates.

I have fallen for my new

Lotta Jansdotter

stickers in a big way. I've been in love with stickers for a while

(If I could fight my way through all the debris

in my studio I would show you my sticker drawer,

brimming with stickery goodness).

These are just

yummy.

some of them are in my new

moleskin like

notebooks

already.

The notebooks with little pockets to hide stickers in.

with nice lined paper just waiting to be scribbled on

just look at those end papers.mmmmmmmm.

did i mention i like stickers and books?

I hope your valentine's day is filled with such gorgeousness.