Deck the Halls!

With the nights drawing in, I've been enjoying cosying up on the couch, crafting the long evenings away.

Actually it's dark about 4pm, so the evenings feel like most of the day too.



But hey, that's more of a reason to enjoy the warmth of the twinkling fairy lights from the tree.




Each year I like to make an addition for the tree collections of my family. This year its Bells! And what better way to collage a bell than with sheet music.





I covered with a layer of straw hat varnish and added bows and ribbon for loops.

They are best displayed in pairs I think!

Carving the Lino for Christmas

I find Britain quite different from New Zealand at this time of year. Firstly, it's freezing cold! I arrive into work with a red nose and rosy cheeks.

Christmas is such a bigger deal here and it the build up starts on November 1st! The Brits do it well though, department stores competing for the best snow scene window displays, German markets on the Thames, mulled wine and roasted chestnuts, lanterns strung up lining the cobbled lanes. It's all terribly romantic and like something out of Dickens.

Full of inspiration, I've designed and carved out my Christmas cards for this year.

Choosing to try a lino print, I've been loving experimenting with one, two and three colour prints. Layering and layering. It takes ages!
But worth it.

Mixing up colours change the feel of the print, from cold snow scene to dark starry night sky.

And Finally..

Here they are, these are the pieces I put into the exhibition...

Both works are mixed media, using found textiles, papers, stitch and mono print. 

They are based on the sense of belonging which is an important theme for me.

Postcard with moustache lady

Part of the Widford Arts exhibition is to donate a small postcard sized artwork to be auctioned off on the opening night. Generous of me, I know.

I don't normally work at this size but I must say I really enjoyed the scale. It felt manageable, like an achievable sized work I could just whip up with ease.

So I started playing with some offcuts I had hanging around from my main works. Some of the map transfers, the impression plant prints, collage from newspaper and a mono print image of a girl...

Only problem is the girl looks like a man with long hair and a moustache. Somewhere along the lines, that print went very wrong.  Time to rethink using her/him! Shim!

Playing with the composition again, I hid the awful mono print behind the lovely print from my meadow plants. Ahhh, much better. Magical flower.

 This way, that way, until finally the final decision is sewn in place. It's done now, no turning back. And certainly no telling me you preferred the 2nd composition!

Field day

After 7 years of patiently waiting in the rain, I finally got a decent British summer this year. Every 7th one is a good'en apparently. Damn, should of got married this year..Anyway, the sunny mornings soften the hard fact I must get out of bed, and I have been strolling to work via the river and meadow route I found.

This is wonderful as I can delay the reality of the working day ahead and I pick myself some treasures up on the way. Plant treasures, just so we are clear.



The Widford Arts Exhibition is fast approaching and my mixed media prints are nearly complete!

Playing with plants and flowers found on my walk, I found that actually inking up the stems themselves works a treat! They create a delicate printed image on the fabric. The ink only touches the raised edges so it creates a stamp like look. I like this. Might have got a bit carried away with this.


These are some detail pics of just one of the final works. You can see the final pieces on display, along with other local artists, on opening night, Friday 6th September at Widford village hall, 7:30pm - 10pm.

work in progress

You may think I've been slacking off for the past few months but no! I've actually been beavering away, designing, sewing and working on my wedding dress! It's so exciting and I can't wait to show you but alas, you will have to wait another year yet...

So what else is new?

My next exhibition is coming up in September and I'm planning on contributing a piece based on their theme 'Hertfordshire Landscapes'.  Well, loosely based on this... A lot of my recent work has been exploring my Hertfordshire village, inspired by the stories behind all the old buildings and churches. My take on the exhibition theme is looking at my landscape within Hertfordshire and what I see around me on my day to day. No meadows and watercolours for me, yawn.





I've made a start..inspired by the colours in the sky outside my lounge. It's nice being on the top floor, not only do I get a good view of my neighbours and their fascinating living habits, I am treated to a clear skyscape (more like cloudscape, am I right?!).

On my morning walk to work, I pass several ancient wooden doors which I never see open. I love to imagine the life behind them or who has been smuggled in. I spot windows and doors that were once used, clearly still visible where they have now been blocked up. Secret rooms and passage ways? Forgotten spaces? Window taxes, Daylight robbery.
Every brick tells a tale.

Right now, I'm working with a mix of materials which include mono-prints, magazines collage, photocopies of previous works, maps of the area and of course my fave, stitch.

I'm still playing with composition and gathering everything I want in the work, so stay tuned folks for the next instalment!

French summer dress

This weekend was the first BBQ of the year, the birds were singing, the sun was a shining, I even gone a bit pink on the nose! Spring has sprung and the promise of summer is around the corner.

This is a favourite of mine. Inspired by a trip to Saint Malo in France a few years back, I fell for the little walled town with it's medieval layout and coastal air. Not to mention the delicious crepe's and a hilarious mistaken identity attempting to order scampi in French, naively expecting to get the breaded kind...














As always, I tend to collect things while I'm away. Maps, train tickets, receipts, flyers for local exhibits etc. I was drawn to the map the hotel gave us and have used it here in my print as the background. The foreground print is an image you might recognise from an earlier post, a sketch of the Duomo Cathedral in Florence, Italy.

After dying my dress a fresh green, I've screen printed my images by hand in a darker shade of green to create a subtle design.

The dress has a cute pocket on one side which I've highlighted with my favourite detail in the print.


Think it's surely time to plan another trip..for inspiration purposes of course!

Doily love

On a Sunday morning you may find me digging around in second hand stores, searching for old treasures which are new to me...actually who am I kidding...on a Sunday morning you will find me asleep. I'm no good at getting up for Portobello market.  But try me in the afternoon and the energy is buzzing! Best markets in my opinion are in the East end anyway! Spitalfields market, Brick lane, Petticoat lane, Columbia Road....all teaming with vintage and hand made goodies. Drool!

 These bad boys were made over the festive period to bring joy and peace to my flat.
I love a doily, especially the handmade crochet kind. They seem to be rare these days, so I find it hard to resist if I do come across any beauties...besides... there's always something they can be used for!


























In this case - tea light cups!

This is my sweet collection, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. They reminded me of snowflakes.

In order to create the 'cup', I used an olive dish which just happens to be THE perfect size to hold a candle. This posed as my mould.

Brushing on PVA glue (all hail PVA!), this dries clear and gives it a strong enough finish to keep its shape. Cute!

I keep them on my kitchen table and make every meal a candle lit one.

'Found' Pendant

 

Snow capped roof tops

While it snows and snows, I have been keeping warm in my little studio. This week, pottering away with found images and used jewellery.

Practice makes perfect...and mess.

Inspired by a magazine image of a 1920's model, I transferred her image onto fabric small enough to fit in a pendant.
To complete the ensemble, I wanted to add some text to help capture the concept of the piece, playing with pre-loved pieces. I am yet to find a font more desirable than handmade stamping! Yes it takes time but the result is definitely worth all the trials and messy ink. And hey, that's half the fun!

stamping on found papers..

Starting out.

Resin poured and setting

Resin is my friend. The image and stamped paper is set under a layer to protect it from the day to day abuse my jewellery goes through.

The pendant.

This pendant's bezel is deeper than normal as it is from an old door lock. The layer of resin is not quite flush so there is room to add another layer, perhaps with a smaller image or some beads? Top it off with protective coating and BOOM. Depth. But for now, I like it how it is.

From old to new

Ok I'm done with Christmas now! I had other posts with Christmassy crafts but I have simply lost any desire to post them - will have to wait 11 more months folks!

I must say, I've had a bit of a break over the festive period. The main reason due to becoming ENGAGED on Christmas day! And since then becoming consumed by all things 'wedding'!

But I'm starting to come down from my cloud now, its back to work and cold January nights. So what better time to get back to creating, fixing, making and selvaging?

When I'm strapped for cash but need seating for the kitchen table, I can't go past Ebay. We picked these little beauties up for just £14 for 4. Thank you very much. Just look at the detail in that back, I love how the wood has been naturally rubbed away over time. Ooooh past life.

 
I actually really like the emerald coloured leather the chairs came with, but my fiance (eeeee!) didn't, so we compromised and chose to recover. Que gorgeous duck egg upholstery fabric splurge!

Armed with a staple gun and scissors, I placed the seat over the fabric, snipping around it with enough room to fold up the sides. I wanted to keep the original seat cover...just in case. A couple of staples and about 15 minutes mastering those tricky corners and voila! Just like making a canvas but for a chair. Try it with your own patchwork fabric designs or mismatched fabrics with a similar colour theme.