Archive for Painting

Week 2, Day 11

Friday tea time

Well hello there. I can’t believe its only been 11 days so far, that’s probably because Dickie DooDah has been working from home for 3 weeks now. As we come to the end of another work week it’s a good time to look at what I’ve achieved (or more truthfully Not). To be honest I don’t feel I’ve done much this week, as I’ve had good days and bad days, and oh my, the distractions and sad news. I’m trying not to read too much, enough to keep well informed but no so much that I start feeling miserable. Very important that one, and so are the daily walks if I can manage it. Here’s a tangly pile of wood we saw in Leechpool woods this week.

Tangled wood

Soooo, I’m keeping up my painting afternoon on Thursdays. I usually go to the group run by the brilliant teacher Kate Tugwell of Kates Art Classes, and what she calls ‘Artynoons’. We gather and paint or draw, everyone using different mediums, chat and have tea and Kate’s home-made and very yummy vegan cakes. This is a follow on to my taking a course in acrylics 2 years ago (wow, can’t believe it was that long ago) as I was a complete beginner with proper painting, and had always wanted to be able to do it, like my maternal grandmother. She painted weekly with a group, almost until she died at the grand old age of 94.

10 minute pot of lavender

This weeks painting is another watercolour, this time I followed a You Tube tutorial to produce a 10 minute pot of lavender. I think it worked quite well, I still can’t quite believe I do seem to be able to paint. Thank you to my daughter for encouraging me to do this, although I think I’ll never have her natural flair.

creative mess

I’ve also today joined a ‘30 day sketchbook challenge‘ #AtHomeInApril organised by Magenta Sky. She usually runs one in the new year, but has started this one to help creativity in adults and also give ideas for parents looking after children at home from playgroup or school. My sketching is OK, but I’m hoping to improve this over the coming days, trying new techniques and hopefully becoming a bit looser in the process (no not a big looser). I didn’t really need himself telling me that some of yesterdays sketches weren’t so good…..I know…but that’s not really the point of the exercise. This challenge is more about fun, experimenting, being free, and most importantly about mindfulness, especially in this weird time that we are in. It’s never to late to join in…..

Banana & white chocolate muffins (G&B of course)

I’ve also done a spot of baking this week. These are simple ‘Banana and white chocolate muffins’ that I haven’t made for about 5 years now, taken from Nigella Express, although hers have butterscotch chips. I only made half a batch as I figured 12 was waaaaay to many sweet treats for the two of us, and it worked nicely with one egg. It’s nice to feel I have a little more time to do stuff like baking.

Who knew? I’ve actually done more this week than I thought. Enjoy your weekend, Sarah x

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Day 4 UK Lockdown

Friday tea time (This post was written a few days ago…….photo insertion now sorted)

Yesterday (Thursday) was a good day. Washing of some sheets done and hung in the warm sunny garden to dry – tick (but nearly left them out all night as I got distracted putting the rotary dryer cover on :-)). Other washing chores done – tick. A bit of new bookcase filling and reorganising – tick. Small watercolour painting done from flowers in our garden and Facebook art sharing session – tick. I’m pleased with my new original painting but it looks botanical which is not really the look that I want. I will have to have another go with a concerted effort to produce a loose version, should be fun.

Watercolour Hellebore

After a lovely email from one of my friends sharing with me what she’d been up to this week I was also inspired yesterday to check what provisions we have in our somewhat scattered ‘pantry’, and I use the word loosely because its a shelf here and there, a pull out drawer or two and the top of a cupboard. Dust, high in calorie, low in calorie? Its amazing what you find squirrelled away and how old it is…I had a rather suspicious puffed up looking tin of peaches that had started oozing (who knew they could even do that, right?) which went straight in the bin. I also came across three 1 litre unopened bottles of ‘Coffee Anise’, a brilliant concoction of Ouzo and coffee, made and sold in Rhodes. Anyway, I have now successfully divided and conquered our provisions and we know exactly or thereabouts what we have or not, and can shop accordingly…..result.

Newly strung beads

Today was not so good productively, but I have strung some more of my new beads, which does take a while. To string a set of beads I Bubble Sort them by diameter and shape in a long line then split them into groups, removing any good pairs that would be suitable for earring pairs first. I choose a good colour rocaille bead (seed bead) to go between the beads in the set (or look at previous similar sets) then get stringing. I’m pleased with the sets I assembled today, some repeat sets and some new lovely pink and pastel pink sets, and a few pairs. Enjoy your weekend at home.

Sparkle donut pairs

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Learning new skills

Helloooo. And welcome to a newish new year of beads, thoughts and life.

I made a promise or resolution (again) to try and get out and about more this year, including finding and joining a new art/ craft/jewellery making course to replace the one I used to attend in Bromley.

So in that vein I’m halfway through my first ever painting course, learning to use acrylics, and totally loving it. It really bugs me that I can’t paint, and have only ever achieved a sort of ‘colouring in’ style of work. Of course my daughter is a fantastic painter and artist, and my maternal grandmother painted until she was about 92, so I feel it might be in me to do this.

The class is brilliant, teaching us techniques so we can (hopefully) go on to do anything, and we even get ‘healthy’ cake during tea break, yum. So far I’ve painted……..

week 1) a part done woodscape (first ever attempt at a proper painting with a wash and all that). this used a wash, then trees, then another thin wash, then more trees and a scrubby bit of land to settle in the trees. It needs way more work, branches, more washes and more trees, more ground and grass stuff, maybe even some leaves, but I think I rather like the skeletons of winter trees.

Week 1 woodscape, 1st 3 layers

week 2) a mutant cockerel …using acrylics like watercolour and a very floppy brush that was extremely difficult to control and kept going all over the place. I do know he’s dreadful, looks like he’s wearing wellies.

Week 2 Mutant Cockerel Done water colour stylie

and week 3) a hilarious blocky mountain scape using a palette knife and thick paint. I think the flowers are the best bit.

Of course all the paintings could be way better, but were done in a very short space of time and I am of course a complete beginner, so it’s good to be reminded how frustrating it can be when you see the expert show you something that you think you can replicate, only to find you can’t and she makes it look so easy!

I know they’re not very good so please don’t judge me, I am a complete beginner after all. I wasn’t going to show you these but it’s always good to have a starting point so you can see how you have hopefully improved over time, whether it’s painting or making beads.

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