So good so far!

I'm keeping up!  OK - so it's only day two but that's good given my track record with these things.

Yesterdays lesson then.  "There is no adult space in this house".  I was merrily minding my own business, happy in the knowledge that the TV was switched off (for a change), and I could hear no bickering.  The joyous sound of my two playing happily together was ringing through the house.  I then realised the sound wasn't coming from it's usual place, i.e. their bedrooms.

Our bedroom door was closed. O-Oh. 

I opened it to find Rosie rolling round on the bed, Jamie sitting in a moses basket (one that's usually home to Rosie's soft toys and in her bedroom) and our carpet transformed into a toy factory.  

My question is this... Did you ever dare go in your parents bedroom?  I know I didn't, and Chris didn't.  It was a sacred place, an adult only space.  You didn't play in it. If you were lucky you may have sneaked in the occasional bounce on their bed, but generally it was off limits.  Even now as adults it seems wrong to go in your parents bedrooms.  So how did this happen? The kids have taken over and we need to reclaim our space.  I don't think it's going to be a tear free affair.  Wish us luck!!

Learning Something.....

Yesterdays lesson - Nothing makes me smile like the sight of the delivery van driver pulling up outside.  Nothing makes me frown quite like opening the door to the Royal Mail "you were out" card.  Not sure if it's strictly a lesson on this page, but I'm planning to write a note about the day's lesson to pop inside the envelope.  Maybe today will sound more like a lesson... think I still have my art journal head on!  Onwards and upwards!

From making a very simple book I've ended up making very inky, messy collage style pages for my LSNED book.  Last night I sat and started to created pages ready to go up to the 4th September, aided this morning by some new 7Gypsies stamps and my trusty Tim Holtz tissue tape.

Right, I'm off to wash my inky fingers now!  Thanks for stopping by.

Love her or hate her...?

I know I have literally just posted but I left blogger to check my email where I found one from Waterstones.  As a book lover who likes to eat (more than she should!) I had to check it out and I can't tell you how excited I was to see that there is a new Nigella Lawson book due out.  I know a lot of people hate her, but I love her.  She a cook who looks like she eats! Yay!!  I hate skinny cooks.  I have a collection of her cookbooks and have yet to have a recipe fail me, so you can imagine just how keen I am to get my hands on this.  I won't blindly order it though, I want to read through it first.  Looks like a trip into town then.  Oh no, what a chore.

I'll leave you with the blurb about the book.  If you get your hands on a copy before me, pleeeease let me know what you think, especially if you are a Nigella fan!

"A big, compendious, comfortable, informative and utterly engaging book, "Kitchen" brings us feel-good food for cooks and eaters, whether Express-style and exotic-easy during the week, or leisurely and luxuriating (in the spirit of How to be a Domestic Goddess and Feast) at weekends or for occasions. Divided into two parts - Kitchen Quandaries and Kitchen Comforts - Nigella gives us the wherewithal to tackle any situation and satisfy all nourishment needs. But real cooking is often about leftovers, too, so here one recipe can lead to another...from ham hocks to pea soup and pasties, from chicken to Chinatown salad. This isn't just about being thrifty but about demonstrating how recipes come about, and giving new inspiration for last-minute meals and souped-up store cupboard suppers. As well as offering the reader a mouthwatering array of new recipes, both comforting and exciting - from clams with chorizo to Guinness gingerbread, from Asian braised beef to flourless chocolate lime cake, from Pasta alla Genovese to Venetian carrot cake - Nigella rounds up her kitchen kit must-haves (telling us, too, what equipment we don't need) and highlights individual ingredients - both basic essentials and modern-day life-savers. But above all, she reminds the reader how much pleasure there is to be had in real food, and in reclaiming the traditional rhythms of the kitchen, as she cooks to the beat of the heart of the home, creating simple recipes to make life less complicated."

I wasn't, but I am now....

In the last six to eight weeks I am guilty of doing no scrapping at all.  Not even the tiniest bit since my last crop which always at the start of the month and we skip August.  Hmmm, Art Journaling has seriously taken over my crafty time, my me time.  It's generally all I think about and I feel cheated if I don't at least get a doodle in on a page.  This is the reason, along with not getting any further than day six last year, I had decided some time ago that I wasn't going to take part in this years Learn Something New.  

That was until I got today's prompt.  It's all changed now.  When I read the prompt I loved Shimelle's idea of using envelopes, and guess who has a box of hundreds, all leftovers from my old card making days. So, i whipped out 31 of them and the back of an old notebook.  Had a quick rummage through last months scrapagogo kit and knocked this together....... 

I will confess part of me wasn't going to join in because i couldn't be bothered to make or prepare a book for it but this took me a grand 15 minutes to put together.  I know I've copied, or should that be lifted, the idea for the book from Shimelle but I sure she wouldn't mind at all, and it's an idea I think I'll use again after all I do have at least 169 envelopes left!  All that remains to be seen is if I can get past day six this year.  Wish me luck!!

Made with....

Yesterday afternoon I got some time to lay down some paint for my JYC Art Journal, I know it's early but I love painting the backgrounds.  While I was waiting for a page to dry, Rosie who is 3, came to join me and asked to sit on my lap.  She then asked if she could do some painting with me as she was eyeing up my baskets of paints. What was I to say other than yes and let her choose the colours....oh it had to be pink!  I added a pale background wash and then let her do the rest.  Admittedly she only helped with the background but I've used the page to record the moment.

Does this mean I'm a bad scrapper..?

We've just (and I mean just) got back from a couple of days in London with the kids....and i didn't take one photo.  Not one.  Didn't even get the camera out. I think I may need to address this issue as I can't actually remember the last time I did take a photo.  I know i haven't scrapped for a few weeks and i have felt like scrapping, it's not a lack of mojo, more a lack of desire.  Don't worry though - I'm not about to sell all my scrapbooking stash.

In the meantime, during this art journaling interval I seem to be having I'll share a couple of backgrounds I have done recently. 

That's it from me for now.  Thanks for stopping by!

Another page...

I've started a couple of new journals using some moleskins, the ones you can get in packs of three.  The paper is quite thin so I've been spending some almost therapeutic time gelling the pages together and then giving them a coat of gesso.  They have a soft leathery feel now which I love. I've got two journals like this now, one for general use and one I'm preparing for this years JYC.

This is the first page in the "general" journal, all ready to go with my winged girl.  I think this journal may be used for rants and out pourings so, in the main I'll only be sharing the "before" and not the afters with you.   The scan isn't great but I love the wings made from patterned paper.  I knocked them back with gesso and went over the pattern with a sakura glitter pen.  Maybe I do have a girlie side after all.

Life brings...

...for now, another page from my art journal.  I don't intend to share every single page I do with you, just the one's that aren't "private".  So far I'm not producing any private pages.    I forget where I saw this "Granny" in her pink punk outfit, but I loved her.  It also wasn't what I intended for the black & white background, but ho-hum, going with the flow again.   All I thought when I saw this image was what great attitude, which led to the phrase along side it.... " Life bring experience, experience brings attitude" (you have to read the experience twice). Gotta love a bit of attitude.

I do have some LO's to share...still trying to find them.  Odd that, but I'll be back with photo's as soon as I do.

Thanks for stopping by!

Another one ready to go...

I know I should be doing the dreaded housework, and I have been, but I have the odd ten minute escape to pop up to the spare room where my patch of creative space is, to do a little more in my journal. I now declare this page ready to be written on.  Not sure what about though yet.

Sorry the picture is a little wonky, I decided to scan it.  That meant having the scanner perched on my lap as the PC is on Chris' desk...and as he's been away working most of this week, I have my crap all over his desk...hence said scanner perched on lap.  He's due back tonight so maybe I'd better clear my stuff away so he can have his desk back.

Rosie is in nursery tomorrow so under the guise of getting Jamie a new water bottle for school, I'll be popping into Paperchase York and may happen into an art shop or something while I'm there as I've decided to do JYC this year, but you guessed it, as an art journal. Just need the journal now.... 

Got that Friday feeling...

well, almost even though it is only Wednesday.

I've finally got round to scanning the border designs for my art journal.  At the moment they are just line drawings, but please feel free to download a copy here if you think they will be useful to you in some way, be it as idea's for your own borders or to cut out and use directly in your journals. If you do - can you let me know if it worked ok as i've not done this before so it all could go terribly wrong!

I do intend to do a colour version of the designs, and have some idea's for other bits and pieces, all things I want to use.

Have fun!

All fired up…

…even though I’m shattered.  When Chris left for work just before seven yesterday  morning I got up and headed to my desk to start a new page in my art journal before the kids woke up.  I think I have been bitten by the bug after this weekend.  I found it hard to get to sleep as the ideas for pages were bouncing round in my head.

I thoroughly enjoyed the weekend and it gave me permission to do “something” with the pages I’d prepared in my journal. It could well have stayed a book full of backgrounds, not there is anything wrong with that, but that’s not what I did it for.  So far the three pages are all about me but I' don’t think that there will be a theme for the book.  I’ve already planned to create or buy a smaller book to work in and have dug out old art supplies from my college days which saves a few pennies.  Having said that I have a huge paint shopping list now…eeek.

So, quickly, here’s a page I started while at AFTH. 

And one I was working on yesterday making use of the new goodies I picked up while I was there.

And finally another quick page I did this morning. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with this one but then the words just seemed to flow.

On top of the huge shop I did over the weekend for some things that quite honestly, I needed, I’ve been on to Amazon this morning and ordered a couple of books to help give me a bit more of a creative boost.

So there we have it, the beginnings of my art journaling story and I’m loving it. 

Pssst....

Did I mention I'm running off this weekend to do some art journaling?  Maybe?  Ah well.  I just wanted to leave a short note to let you know that I'm working on a little freebie which I hope to have ready towards the middle of next week.   I'm quite excited about it!  Until then I wish you a lovely weekend.

Will I, won’t I?

I’ve been creating some backgrounds in the journal I shared with you here.  I’m love creating them, but wonder if I will be able to bring myself to stick and scribble.

So far I have two absolute favourites.  This first one was done with studio paints.  The idea is that I use the light circles for the journaling, just one or two lines on each.  Have to say I’m not sure about covering the pages up with anything else yet though.

Next, using Altered Originals ink sprays from AFTH.  Oh I just love these.  I’ve had so much fun with them so far.  The stamps are Tim Holtz and Paper Artsy.

 

A slightly more subdued page next.  If you’re looking hard you’ll notice that that’s the alphabet and yes, it is meant to be upside down.  I haven’t posted the photo the wrong way round…LOL.

For this one I stamped on the alphabet using some sassafras stamps, then painted over it.  After that I smooched some gesso across the whole page using an old credit card. Once dry I liberally sprayed the page with granite ink and let it soak into the area’s where the gesso hadn’t covered and then wiped it off.

And a few more.  I won’t talk you through all of them, but these pages use stencils, stamps, more ink, dabbers, studio paints and gesso, and a whole lotta fun.

View Full Album

When I get brave enough I’ll come back and show you the before and after (hoping that you’ll be interested to see them!)

Little silver beads….

Last weekend I spent another day at a silver clay workshop.  This time it was making beads and findings and I learnt so many new techniques.  My sketch book is filling up fast with projects now.

So here are some of the beads I made on the day. 

First up, my favourite of the day, a small lentil bead.  I just love lentil beads, and this one is tiny at 10mm in diameter.  

This textured tube is now on a snake chain as I think it makes a wonderful focal bead at just under 30mm long.

 

Lastly, my etched pillow bead. Two brilliant techniques, although I do need to refine this one but it’s not bad for a first attempt.

As always, now all I need is time!  Bit tricky with the school holidays in full flow as I won’t be getting my usual me time each week.

Window shopping….

I just love window shopping.  Don’t mind if it’s in real life or on the internet.  If I had the space and money I’m sure our house would be crammed full to the rafters with all manner of lovely things.  Even if I have the space and money it’s not very often I do buy as I worry about the cats or the kids wrecking stuff.

Are you a Monsoon fan?  I love the place, and am hoping when we finally get round to decorating our bedroom to make sure some of their homeware range is featured.  What I didn’t know until a few minutes ago is that they have a crockery range now by Denby. Denby, I am also a fan of! Double points.

It’s a shame I don’t have room for a second set.  I’d love to serve something swanky up on that platter and I’m desperately in need of a new teapot, but a small one as I hate making tea in the cup.