It's Spring, lets meet up and build a snowman!

Hello you little bunnykins, how are you all,.... cold? I know I am, so desperate to get into the garden, yet it is freezing. Any way I will console myself with art. Not done a great deal this week as I have had  Maisie, my youngest off with cold, then tonsillitis then conjunctivitis,  poor kids been through the mill. And all she worries because she is missing school, and her work.

I have been playing with my large altered book, nine double page spreads with a face on each, well nearly. It is coming along nicely.

Painted background, gesso out where I am going to paint face.

In style of Natasha May class I have been doing.

Life book this week did not have a piece of art to play with, but an interview with Dion Dior  which was fabulous, nice to get to know people better.
Book of Days has taken a week off as Effy was needing some personal time, so I will not get that lesson until Thursday or Friday, therefore I will show you that next week. However I have been doing lots of work in my Grimoire, book of spells. Playing with artist medium and pens, two things I just love.

Some wonderful news is that I have enrolled on a class with Teesha Moore and Jane Davenport, Mermaid circus, starts on 8th of April, I can not WAIT!

The new studio has had the rest of its new floor laid and is taking a while to set as the weather is so cold, however it should be OK for the weekend which is a final push before Andrews York Open Studio. I want to get the floor and doors painted and finished. Skirting boards up etc. Then we need to halt work in there and concentrate on tidying all building kit up and setting the seen for Professor Broken Cross Steampunk Emporium. Which will be in my living room, access through my kitchen! This means allot of cleaning! Still we have until the 13th of April. If you are able please come along, and pick up a leaflet to my open studios!. Oh and see Andrews wonderful work. Don't tell anyone, but he is a little nervous about it all, and needs encouragement, sussssh!

Like a good girl I have been doing my home work for Cotton Candy Girls, by Natasha May. here are the pictures. I didn't have time for doing the background at the moment but will get on with it. I have put one of these designs in the large altered book.

this is the one I altered and put in the book.

Making posters for my Open Studios,

I am getting so excited about this, see you next week.
OK, I am going to leave it there for this week as Maisie need hot chocolate and meds. Love to you all.

Has another week pasted?

I was here, staring at the lap tops blank screen, thinking, "Help" what have I been doing all week! Then It starts to filter through!  At the end of last week, apart from trying to keep warm and dry I was playing with my large altered book, and having a great time.

There are nine double page spreads and I would like a face on each. Then I will journal the page also.

I gesso over the page. This is just the way I do it. You may prefer to draw and paint your face first then add your back ground, whatever works for you. Once Gesso is dry, I seal it with, Artist fixative, when I remember!

Once the seal is dry I draw in the facial detail. Don't worry if you think you have gesso on too big an area you just keep adding more paint and layers.

There just had to be a blue girl........

Next I think I will have to think up some text.

At the weekend I was with a lovely group of ladies teaching them the joys of the Big shoot. Now I have a Big Shoot Express which you can not get anymore, which is a shame. The Express is motorised,  that is the only difference.  I suppose this is because they brought in the Vagabond.

Needless to say a great time was had by all,

You should have heard all the ooos and arrrhs going on. Lots of people were missing this month for various reasons which was a great shame, but never mind,  lots of love to them. So that took place on Saturday, then on Sunday I was in the new studio. Painting and then the new floor was going down. Andrew and I were having a great time and very busy. Imagine our shook when we came out to find it snowing!

What a view, of the studio of course.

Two thirds there.

No, the washing machine and dryer will not be staying there.

Other things I have been doing. Working on Life Book 2013, Love it. this week we had a lesson with Mindy Lacefeild.  What joy,

I guess you had to be there.

But I enjoyed it.

The lesson was about connection. And my painting was about connecting with the little girl I once was, which was both fun and very therapeutic.

I am still working on Book Of Days with Effy Wild, who is a very talented and gorgeous person, just love her work. This course ends for me next week, but I will be joining her course in July,  in about 65 days not that I am counting or anything. I will show you that work next week I think as this is getting very long already. So I will say bye bye for now. xxxx

Is it Wednesday again?

Hello my little pumpkins, I can not tell you how much I love talking to you all and getting your feed back one way or another. I am in such a gushy mood at the moment, life is so good and I feel I could do anything, which is just as well as I have lots to do both arty, worky and family!
So what have I been up to this past week. As you may remember I am participating in Effy Wilds Book Of Days Boot Camp. I am just loving it. Journaling every day, just as it should be, if you like that sort of thing. I can not recommend Effys work enough so go and have a look at what she is doing. At The Glitterhood.

Last week we made the journal, this week we were making  an artist grimoire, book of background spells.

Mon petit Albert, work in progress.

Here is mine. The idea of this grimoire is to experiment with backgrounds and all the mixed media we like to play with. This takes place on one side and on the other you write about what you have done. This is a great reference for when you are working on a bigger piece.

Oh how I love playing with paint and art supplies in general. Having great fun, but I do find it hard to stop here, which I have to do in readiness for Effys next lesson. I feel like I have lots of things on the go but nothing finished which I don't like.

Life Book is just wonderful and the latest piece I did for that was heart connections,

The heart is a pocket and the tags come for you to journal on.


Also doing Cotton Candy Girls With Natasha May,

This was so much fun, must do the others.

I have been making an altered board book. You know then kind that babies have. I love these. This is quite a large one, 20 cm x 44 cm, closed. With front and back cover and nine double page spreads for me to paint and journal on, yipeeeee.

Babies board book and Gesso........., heaven!

So first things first. Sand down the book, just to get rid of the glossy shine, ( not to mention snot and drool! yuk. ) thus enabling the Gesso to stick.
You will need to gesso every page, which does take a little time.

Stamped tissue paper glued to front and back.

I added stamped tissue paper to the front and back as this gives great texture. Next it is the application of paint, life is good.

I am only showing you three of the nine double spreads as you will see them as I add more and more to them. Its all about layering.

I spent the weekend in what was my garage, but now is my new teaching studio! Not finished by any stretch of the imagination,  but I can now see the space I have to work with and what I think I want to do, where. I can not tell you how amazingly grateful I feel that this is actually happening, I have dreamt of this for so long. Andrew has worked so hard for me, and he hasn't started on the toilet and utility yet! Sorry darling, but you will keep having these fabulous ideas. Thank you. x.

Look at that, sockets high on the wall so I can have pretty lights. I LOVE pretty lights. I have so much painting to do, best get on with it. See you next week, lovelies. xxxxxxx

P.S, 6.35 pm, but it is still Wednesday. xxxx

Happy March!

Can you believe that? Well yes I can. Trees are budding, the snow drops look fabulous and the crocuses are just popping up. I am so looking forward to getting into the garden this year, didn't get much chance last year with the weather as it was.

A kiss from one Cherub to lots of others. x

However my garden looks rather like a building site at present due to the garage transformation. It is so worth it, but I won't be doing open gardens this year, too much going on. However Andrew, my gentleman friend will be taking part in York Open Studios and using my house as his venue. Please check them out and see all the fabulous artist there. Also there is a link for an article that The Yorkshire Post did on me and my arty home last year, take a look. They have a face book page too. Andrew is using my venue due to the fact that I am close to the center of  York and his place is out in the sticks! I, and Artefact will not be open on those dates, but I will have my own open studio in July.
http://cognoscienteblog.blogspot.co.uk

As I mentioned things are really moving with my new teaching studio,

New door!

That door now leads into my potting shed and green house, which will be demolished later and studio extended.......,  how exciting.

Taking about exciting, I started Effy Wild's, Book of Days Journal class. What a wonderful, honest and talented lady she is. The course is great fun. My home work for this week was to create a hand made journal.

Step one

I took some stiff calico and 300 g s m, ( 140 lb ) water colour paper. This was all cut to the required sizes, then I glued them together with Gel Medium. Next I stitched on the sewing machine. I just needed to have a stitch element to my journal. I didn't follow Effy's class to a T, but I am sure she won't mind. After all art is for the individual, you need to do what is right for you.

Sewing with the machine

Next I began to paint my cover. I drew on a face, then coloured the back ground, with KoH- I- NooR dyes. Then I added dylusions ink, sprits throw stencils  Rubber stamps were added. When the back ground was completed I finished the face, using Neocolour II crayons and acrylics paint.

Then I made five signatures each containing three pages. These where stitched into the book. Added a ribbon as the closure.

I have changed that ribbon, for a matching green one.

White ribbon, becomes green ribbon.

I am going to have to add beads at some point.

Yummy

I am doing some more journals, but more on that next week. Also I have been playing with fabric , which is a passion of mine, one of many. You may remember that I played with a cotton spool last week and I mentioned that the electrician left some interesting stuff in the skip. Well here we go,

Don't they look so sad?

Poor, neglected, cast aside. Not any more they were rescued from an uncaring world, strengthened and painted.

Extra card added

Glued with gel medium, where would we be without pegs?

White cotton was tea stained.

Images were transferred.

Fabric was stitched

Images were added and beaded

Spool was decorated.

Family Album in fabric on a spool.

See you all, I hope next week. xxxxxx