Rocking My World Friday...

Well look at me only posting a day late. Kids are on summer holidays now which means I'm already losing all track of what day it is - I actually thought it was Sunday.

It's that time of the week when we look back over the past seven days and think about what made us smile. What? You don't do that? Whyever not you crazy fool!

So, we were treated to another pretty cool sunset on Friday night, I think it was. So pretty...

We've been to a couple of car boot fairs over the past two days. My bargain was this framed Klimt print. Craig looked at me a bit strangely when I picked it up. I'm always after nice frames I can re-spray to house the bits of art I'm collecting. This one, the owners had painted thickly in emulsion and it was all over the glass. But it was the print which had caught my eye. I love Klimt. When we got home I took it apart to clean up - the glass cleaned up really easily and I sanded the emulsion down a bit. I am probably going to repaint it either black or gold. But the print is a really thick glossy one from a gallery. I was so chuffed. £2 it cost me!

A few weeks ago I won a giveaway on Derwent's Facebook page. Actually it was an offshoot to the giveaway they were doing - an extra prize draw if you shared their link to the actual giveaway. And I won one! It came today - a really nice sketching wallet.  Pleased as punch - the girls are always 'borrowing' my drawing pencils and then they disappear into the vortex of the unknown - probably along with all the socks and biro's we lose too. These are going to be strictly mine!

I'm going to be the good and loving Mum now and say how happy I am that the girls are off school. For the long, long, loooong, long summer holidays...

*Ahem*

Other things that have made me smile this week:

• Finishing the painting I was working on and the lovely response it's had both here and on Facebook.
• Feeling like I am getting the hang of Facebook. Finally. 
• Knowing that one of my Wonky Cats was found on the Swindon Free Art Friday launch and sounds like he went to a great home.
• My sister and her partner popping in for a catch up and chat. 
• Planet of the Apes - the newish film, not the 70's ones. I've never really fancied it but it was on the telly this week. We all sat and watched it together. Ended up really enjoying it. Devvie went to see the new one at the cinema last night so I shall be interested to know what she thought of that.
• Virtual window shopping on Amazon. Craig doesn't understand it. But I spend ages window shopping the books and art supplies, adding to my basket or wishlists. (Yes, wishlists, plural.) Pretending I have all the money in the world to stash shop. Then I close down my tablet and go to sleep. He thinks I'm bonkers. Maybe it is.
• Walking the dogs.
• Talking with Craig - proper good chats, while walking the dogs.
• Thunderstorms.

And that will do me. Fancy taking a look back on the things that made you smile this week? Why not drop by Virginia's and link up.

Thanks for stopping by today - how was your week?

The Watcher - Mixed Media

Morning all. 

I've finally got back to my Soul Food lessons. This week I've been beavering away on the wonderful Mitsi B's class. I adore her style and boy, oh boy does doing one of her classes really give you a feel for what goes into one of her works. 

The above picture has a bit of glare where I've varnished it - the one below is just before I varnished it - still need to get better at taking photos :)

I started out on a 20x24" canvas board...

The beer is Craig's ;)

 Built up layers...

I had so much fun with this one - worker on a larger scale was so different for me but I really enjoyed it.

I love the interpretation from my friend. She said "The picture, to me, is all about caring and cherishing. The focus of the picture is the person on the right - it all revolves around her" Do you agree? What do you see? I'd love to know.

Collage
Liquitex acrylic paint
Posca pens
Copic Markers
Water soluble graphite pencil
Neocolour ii crayons
Winsor Newton Drawing inks
Perfect Pearls mists
Probably a lot more...

The Watcher is now for sale in the Whoopidooporium. Slowly, slowly adding my work there.

Thank you for stopping by today :)

WOYWW... already?

Quickie quick post as I just realised what day it is :)

Hello! I'm still catching up with the deskers who visited me last week (thank you!) I'll get there, I promise, if you get a random post on last weeks desk. That's me huffing and puffing, bringing up the rear, to repay the visit.

This weeks desk out in the shedio - oh I've been so busy, busy, busy. And it makes me happy, happy, happy! This is the Mitsi B inspired canvas board that was on my desk from last week. Nearly done. Have had so much fun with it. Really makes you appreciate what goes into her paintings - have loved taking her Soul Food class - very much!

And that's me done! See? I can do quick posts! Off to link up with Julia in WOYWW land now. Fancy a snoop through some more work spaces? Follow me over by clicking here.

Thanks for stopping by today :)

Giveaway...

I feel like the White Rabbit! I'm late, I'm late for Summer of Colour, for allll my classes (and I just bought another one.) But - ack, well. I'm getting on more than I have been of late. So lets celebrate that... oh and my Facebook page getting 200 likes! 

Did you know I was on Facebook? Well, I am. Still getting the hang of it - still wondering whether to just stick with my blog. But in the meantime, having a go at it. In between my posts of finished pieces here I show Works in Progress over there - I always think they would clutter up the blog. But would you like them here too? Or cool giveaways I find, or just ramble about the weather. 

I'm doing a custom Wonky Cat giveaway over there right now - ends Friday. Why not pop over and chuck your name in the hat? Just click the image below...

Right - back at it and one of those WIP's - the Mitsi B style canvas I mentioned in my WOYWW post. It's coming along. Blimey but she makes it look easy!

Thanks for stopping by today :)

Rocking My World Friday...

On Friday! Again! Getting to be a habit!

Well then so what made me smile this week?

• Two - not one but TWO people compared my Summer of Colour face to Dr. Seuss's secret art. Can you imagine the amount of air punching and glee on this side of the PC screen? Can you? To be compared to this? Really? I don't think you can - this calls for a visit from happy cat!

I had never heard of Dr. Seuss's secret art but it's gorgeous - another book added to my wishlist - I prefer it to the well known stuff.

So. To those people - thank you.

• I lost 5lbs this week and now fit into my size 16 jeans. You know - those ones that still have the tags on from when I bought them years ago? My most expensive pair of jeans at £16 (That's expensive to me.) They not only go past my thighs now. They go past my bum and they do up comfortably. Still with a little bit of muffin top so not wearable outside yet but enough for a little Happy Cat dance in them this morning.

I also went for a walk with my lovely friend yesterday. We walked along the beach and decided to take the steps up the side of the cliff and then to walk to the top of the cliff... And I did it. Without stopping, without feeling like I would have a heart attack and I had an amazing catch up with my friend in beautiful surroundings. I couldn't even have contemplated doing that a few weeks ago.

• Craig , my girls and the Bear. Always.
• I have been contemplating about adding this last grateful, whether people would think it in bad taste. But, it is my gratefuls so I am. 

My sister told me this week that one of our friends passed away. Suddenly. We don't know the full details yet and it's not my place to put it here anyway. But she was an amazing woman. An author, an actress and in training to be a stunt woman too. I had only seen her the week before - you might recall in my gratefuls that a friend had dropped some canvas and frames round for me to play with. That was her. A strange thing to put on a positives reflections post you might think. But reflect on her positively I have been. We weren't what you would call close friends, but still she had a hugely positive impact on my life. She was so encouraging of my art and in going for my dreams - like she was herself, I suppose.

I have found myself working more on my painting and drawing this week, making firm in my head what my dreams exactly are - not dwelling on "what if's" like I had been. (Still, what if I'd gone to art school, what if I had more time, what if... what if...) I have been bucking up my ideas. And doing stuff rather than wishing I was doing stuff. Because I'm here and I can and she would be if she was here. And it can all be taken away so quickly. Still, she has that positive reinforcement and that's why this is on my Rocking post this week. I'm choosing to dwell on her legacy and what she achieved and how she inspires, rather than anything else.

And for that I thank Virginia and Rocking Fridays. Why not have a little look back on your week and see what you can pick out to smile about?

Thanks for stopping by - how was your week?

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday...

Hello there. If you visited my sparkly clean, just purged shedio last week, you'll be pleased to learn I have broken it in with some *ahem* gentle paint throwing...

I'm working on a large Mitsi B inspired canvas board - I am doing her excellent class through Soul Food. I've stepped away at the moment to work on something else. Partly because my (obviously half rabbit) youngest two monsters keep nibbling through the wires on my earphones when they use the PC. So I cannot listen to my class till another pair arrive in the post... this time cordless. No, I cannot use my speakers as they wrecked those too! 

Also, to think about what to do next - I thought I'd gone overboard but thanks to some good friends advice to walk away and leave it rather than gesso over the whole thing... Well, they were right - I'm kinda loving it again. 

Fancy a zoom out for better rummage? Here we go...

Thank you for all your visits last week  - and to Princess Judy who said she'd encourage me to work through that stack of canvasses but I had to get my butt in gear too. (Or words to that effect.) Message heard. This canvas board was one of the stack and underneath the desk is an old shop printed canvas, gessoed, sanded and waiting to have new life breathed into it :)

Fancy snooping through some more desks and work spaces? Follow me over to Julia's where you'll find a snoopers paradise.

Thank you for stopping by today :)

Summer of Color - Week Five

I'm posting on time, I'm posting on time! Eeeeh oh me daddyo, I'm posting on time!

*Ahem!*

The second to last week of the Summer of Color brought us the colour combo Red, Royal Blue & a smudge, splash or pop of Light Blue.

Do not ask me where this little fella emerged from in my subconscious... because I couldn't tell you. I have struggled mightily with the colours this week. This is the result of sitting down, flipping my sketchbook open to a page, grabbing something, anything, and just drawing.

#18 of 40Portraits 
Oil Pastels
Kimberley 9xxB Pencil

The pages in my sketchbook were pre-gessoed and had the remnants of where I had cleaned stencils off a while ago. You can see kind of what it looked like in this picture on the opposite page.

Cheeky little devil.

If you'd like to see what oodles of talented people have done with this colour combo then click here to see the list of participants - maybe take part yourself. Any medium is allowed.

Thanks for stopping by today :)

Rocking My World Friday...

On FRIDAY! I know! So, making me smile this week...

One boy and his dog. The Bear can actually hold the lead with Lily. He would be pulled over by Cooper but Lily... well, lets just say at one point he was behind her, shoving her bum, trying to make her move. She won't be rushed for anyone...

Huge declutter and purge = tidy workspace - now if I could just get out there...

Beautiful sunsets...

This gorgeous zine I won from Manon's page. I love it - definitely a laugh out loud moment when I opened it! Thank you Manon.

Breaking through the 2 stone barrier - 'only' 2st 3lbs to go now. I love the support at my Slimming World group too... Great bunch of people.

• Aldi's Danish blue cheese.
• The German/Brazil football match - am not a footie fan at all but actually enjoyed that one - well, most of it. I fell asleep before the last goal.
• Craig - the various ways he's supported me this week - from my weightloss to my painting and a few other ways besides.
• My four little monsters - Devvie with her studying, Pheebs still drawing away (at 5am in the morning! Crazy child!) Ruby and the Bear making me laugh...
• Logan and his nightly jam and boogie sesh on Devvie's guitar - mad thing is, he sounds quite good. I foresee lessons in his future.
• The Summer of Color - only one week left - noooooooo!
• Pheebs again for just walking in the door with a box of Viennese Whirls, having checked the 'syn' value on her phone before buying! Bless her. Will enjoy that tonight! 

And that's me done. Am going to link up with Virginia - why not spend a few moments thinking about the positives in your week? It soon becomes second nature.

 Hope you had a good one! Thanks for stopping by today :)

What's On Your Workdesk? Wednesday - Shedio Organisation

It's been so long since I've been out to my shedio - there were curtains of cobwebs upon cobwebs draping across the shelves and dangling from the ceiling. Oh how I wish I was exaggerating that. I've missed being able to leave things out to dry without little fingers pulling them down - so this past weekend it was time to remember my word for the year. Organisation. And sort this out!

Before!

I have decided that massive pile of half prepped, half started canvasses and wood has to be severely dented by Christmas. You have my permission to hold me to that! Look - I need to otherwise what excuse have I got to go buy more stash, eh? 

I had another purge - I don't usually do it till January but I thought enough was enough - I'd wandered so far off my organisational track, it was a joke. So - two bulging carrier bags removed later - I reckon I know what's out there and where it is now! Recycled are the many coffee jars that might come in useful one day. They hadn't in the three years we've lived here or the however many years I'd hoarded them before we moved! Yes - I carefully wrapped empty coffee jars in newspaper when we were packing. Some people have antiques - I had empty jars! Saying that - I have not got rid of any Marmite ones! 

After!

There was a desk under there!

So now I just have to sort out my internet time again, reduce that and actually get out there to play! I've been using my neocolour ii's and watercolours in the house a lot because I can squidge on my tiny indoor desk but I'm feeling the urge to spread out and splash some paint again ;)

Think I might link up with What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday - it's been ages! Follow me over to Julia's if you fancy a snoop through loads more desk spaces.

Thanks for stopping by today :)

Summer of Color - Week Four

Better late than never, eh? We all knew my uber organisation from last week would never last - though I have cleaned and de-cluttered the shedio this week. That's my excuse.

Last weeks colours for The Summer of Color were Pink and Apple Green with a smudge, splash or pop of Dark Green.

What was your first thought with these colours? You know you want to say it. Yep - The Incredible Hulk in pink troos. That's what you were going to get. Did I get time? Did I heck.

So this morning (on the morning the next colour combo is announced) I'm frantically splashing paint. I decided I wanted to try doing a face with my non-dominant (left) hand. I'm really enjoying this at the moment. This is how she started out, nice and loose... 

Watercolour Paints

The more I looked, the more I kept thinking zombie. Then I had to go out and do a bit of work stuff and, as my mind wandered, I kept thinking about skulls. Like you do. So when I came back, she ended up like this...

#17 of 40Portraits (Skulls count!)
Watercolour Paints
Neocolour ii crayons
Uniball pens

I'm pretty chuffed with her on one hand - she's my first left handed skull. She's not how I pictured her in my head - that's always annoying. 

Next I did another Wonky Cat - also done with my non-dominant hand. I always love Wonky, no matter how he turns out - he's just makes me smile.

Neocolour ii Crayons
Twinkling H2o's
Fineliner pens

If you'd like to see what over a hundred other people did with this colour combo, click here. So much variety not just of subject but medium too. You wont be disappointed!

Thanks for stopping by today :)

Double Rocking My World Friday

I forgot to post last week even though I had been drafting a post! Tch! So this is a two weeker.

What's made me smile then? Well...

• Firstly I am absolutely loving Summer of Colour. We are in week four now so only two more weeks to go and I'll miss it. It's flown past - so far I have managed to do a face each week and also some wonky cats!

• I am slowly getting organised after a manic couple of weeks - getting back to doing some arting every day. Loving it.
• And.
• AND...
• ...
• ...
• After much nagging from Craig and Devvie - I've opened my shop. It's a bit bare and minimal at the moment but it's a start and it's something else I can cross off my to-do list for this year. I aim to fill it now. Eep!

• An unexpected pressie from a naughty friend. At just the right time too. And so me. Thank you x x
• The equally unexpected offer of an old canvas and a couple of frames to repurpose from another friend. Love that she thought of me. The canvas is huuuuge - bigger I think than even the family canvas. Now there is a challenge!
• Slimming World - I am now half a pesky lb away from a 2 stone loss since the 1st of May. Love going to group, love the support. Love how I'm feeling health wise lately. 
• A certain little Miss lost her first tooth at 6 years and 9 months. She has been wanting it to happen for so long - all her friends have been talking about theirs for ages. She's one chuffed bunny to have the tooth fairy visit - never mind daft old Mum saying she should be proud that her teeth want to stay in her mouth! *Much rolling of eyes*
  
• I went to Devvie's art presentation evening last night where they showed 3 different age groups body of work. There were prizes for each year - only two for her year and she came second. I was so proud - she was very embarrassed to go and have to shake the mayors hand and accept her prize, probably be in the paper too *evil snigger* She hates having her photo taken. She still says it must have been a pity vote *More rolling of eyes* I said I very much doubted that they would go to all that trouble - wish she would believe how good she is.
• Talking of little artists - I'm loving watching Pheebs discover YouTube tutorials (only been telling her it's a wealth of information for years!) She is powering through them - love seeing what she is doing.
• Tesco cherries. £1 a punnet - I think I have single handedly ate two punnets. They are so yum and tasty!
• Walking. I am rediscovering my love of walking. For to long I've done it because I have to, because petrol cost to much... But it left me alone with my thoughts to much. I'm starting to remember what I loved about it pre-car and pre-losing people. It's coming back. That love.
• Catching up with my friend Caroline, totally child free. Cuppa and natter without censorship. Loved it!
• Craig taking all the kids and a neighbours grandchild to a local fun day, telling me to stay home and enjoy a painting sesh. Man, I love him!

And that'll do me :) Fancy taking a positive reflection on your week? Way more fun than moaning about the bad bits. Come with me over to Virginia's for the low down and the link up - you wont regret it.

Thanks for stopping by today - how has your week been?