Monday, December 24, 2012

Christmas Eve

It's dark out, the rain has stopped and the moon is shining onto our now quiet village. Christmas lights twinkle from trees in windows. People are tucked into their homes wrapping last minute gifts or sitting by the fire with a glass of something. I just came back from delivering the remainder of my Christmas cards and looking at all the cosy insides of homes reminded me of how lucky I am to have somewhere  warm and dry and snug to sleep, not just tonight but on all nights and how grateful I am for it. I've finished making the mince pies  and in a while I am going to sit and watch 'The Snowman And The Snow Dog' so I wish you all a very Merry Christmas! x
                                                                           ~X~                                                                                                                        

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Winter King

These past few days I've enjoyed adding the final decorations to our home. Holly, ivy and my favourite, mistletoe. There is just something which attracts me about mistletoe. For those of you who have read this blog over the last few years, you will know that each year I try to get it to grow on my apple and hawthorn tree. As yet I have still not been successful and this years bunch again comes from our local farm shop. So it's not really growing in my tree, I just placed it there to photograph. :)
I  finished a painting the other day. I have named him 'Winter King' seen here in a wintry collage. 
I'm sure Winter will inspire some more icy work yet, so watch this space.  'Winter King' is available to buy as a print in my Etsy shop here. Last posting date is tommorow, so there is still a teeny bit of time to buy if you are still looking for gifts. 

It's raining today but I'm wishing for more frosty weather, as in the picture above, taken last week.
I suppose being mild is easier on the heating bills though, that's one good thing...

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

All Is Covered In Ice

It's bitter cold today and everything is covered in ice. The jackdaws and rooks look even blacker against the winter white of misted sky. A perfect day for hot chocolate and hot chestnuts. I have the hot chocolate but not the chestnuts... yet.


The earth frozen now. All the water that fell only a couple of weeks ago has gone, though there are glimpses of it remaining in solid puddles.

So much beauty visible in skeletal forms and delicate lace of ice crystals.
Even the barbed wire was transformed into an object of fairy tale wonder.
The pictures above were taken yesterday. Today the frost is even more spectacular. I went for a morning walk to soak up the magic.

I've been having a little breather over the last week or so. November was the busiest I've ever been so I'm recharging, getting the Christmas decorations up and doing some of my own Christmas shopping.
The house is beginning to look pretty and most of the cobwebs have been removed, much to the spiders disgust. But I'm sure they will make more soon.
Birds have taken up residence in the garland above the fireplace and there are reindeer on the branch in the dining room.
Just the tree to be put up this evening now.
I hope your festive preparations are going well?

Friday, November 30, 2012

Old Cards For Sale

The other day I tried to get into my wardrobe. No, I wasn't trying to get to Narnia, just trying to access my clothes. It's not really a wardrobe, more a cupboard and is very awkward to get into at the best of times as you have to bend your head awkwardly. It would be perfect for a hobbit in fact....  Anyway I noticed that the cupboard has managed to become filled with clutter, you know the way things do! But not only my clutter, it seems I have accumulated everyone else's too. Hmm?  I started to sort some things out and found a bag filled with old cards. These cards are greeting cards that I did for a publishing company years back. I can't sell them on Etsy because they were produced for a company, so I wondered if anyone would be interested in buying any? It seems a waste just to let them sit in a cupboard?
If you are interested send me an email or message me your email address and let me know which ones you want and I will invoice you via Paypal. I'm afraid I can only accept Paypal payment.

Price  £5.00 for a pack of six mixed cards  P&P £2  (P&P for any extra add 50p  per pack) UK postage. For anywhere else I would add on extra.

Pack 1
A closer look... All designs were painted between 1996 and 2003. In fact, if I waited a bit longer I suppose I could sell them as vintage on Etsy. :-)
White fairy angel hares with wings, and hare and friends festivities. The white hare has been on my journey with me for quite a while.
These are all 7x5 in size.
                                              SOLD OUT

                                                      ~*~

Pack 2  
Angel designs.                         SOLD OUT.
Size 4x7.5
The cards are mainly blank inside, but a few of the Angel one's have 'Seasons Greetings' written inside. The design wraps right around and continues on the backs of each card.
There are a limited amount, so I will sell them on a first come first served basis.
                         ~*~
I'm  trying to fit in as many wooden bits and pieces before Christmas as I can. These pendants were finished last night, and they will be listed in my Etsy shop later today.

Have a great weekend folks.  I'm off to bake a cake now for Husbands birthday today.
 X

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

A Watery Week

"Can you hear it? It breathes, as you breathe.
I want you to hear the whole island-as it is now,at this very moment. There is the sea's stirring,always. But also, there are many sounds on Parla which are more than the waves, more than the stones being moved by them. The sheep bleat throatily. A wooden gate squeaks open. There are tiny bells on a piece of string which dance, and call out sing-sing-sing. In a house with herbs on its windowsill a kettle is boiling- its metal lid is starting to rattle, and there are footsteps coming to it and a woman is saying I'm here,I'm here....to the kettle,as if the kettle understands her...."  

Extract from 'The Silver Dark Sea' By Susan Fletcher

For the past couple of weeks I've been reading into the quiet hours past midnight, enchanted with the words of Susan Fletcher's latest book The 'Silver Dark Sea'. Submerged in nightly bathwater, I've been captivated by a watery tale of an island and a fish man.  
I just love how she writes. You may remember last year I shared another of her books 'Witchlight' which has become one of my all time favourites. I've put the link to this book on the Amazon widget  (further down on the right hand side bar)  if you are interested in taking a look.
The book and the very wet weather that we have had lately must surely have contributed to my inspiration for a new grey seal/selkie  hanger design. 
It has rained and rained and again there was not enough room in the river, so the fields have been turned into lakes that glisten in moonlight when the rain has a rest from falling.
So much water. Beneath, the grass has turned into swaying water nymph hair.
We are lucky as we live on a hill, but I feel so very sorry for everyone that has been flooded.
~*~ 
It's been extremely busy here. Between packing orders, answering emails and numerous trips to the post office it has been hard fitting in any new work and many things I had planned to do, have been put back for now.  But, it's all wonderful and I'm so very grateful to anyone that has bought from me, recently or in the past. Without you, I wouldn't be able to have the time to indulge and 'create' as a job. So here's a big X for you!  ;) 
These hares below are the one's I told you that I was working on in my last post. Blackberry, hazel, hawthorn and  oak. These have already been added to my shop and have already sold, but I thought I'd share anyway.  

Have a good week and stay dry if you can. 
 ~*~

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

New Cards

This photograph taken the other day, is to me, just what I always imagine a typical November day to look like. I love days like this.
Misty, quiet, sheep peaceful, rook chatter, the smell of bonfire. So different to last week when we had our first hard frost. I love days like this too.
It was wonderful again to see the frosted branches. I've missed them.

Later the sky was clear and the remaining hazel leaves shone in the lowering Autumn sun.
So pretty.
                                                                            ****
I've been having a digital play about with some of my small Aceo paintings. Adding some words and making them into cards.



I've already added some to my Etsy shop, but they sold out pretty quickly, so will be making more.
I also made these too, which haven't been digitally played with.
Now I'm working on more hares (soon to be revealed) and here are what I like to call my helpers or watchers because they overlook my desk. 
The egg is the dragon egg made of moonlight that I mentioned in my last post. 
Here's a closer look...
I think I might leave it on the windowsill in the moonlight one night, it may need recharging of magic? ;)

                                                                             ***
Oh before I go...one more thing!  Remember back, not so long ago. When the roses scented the path and the corn flowers danced in the breeze I was working on some illustrations for a book. Well that book, Madeline, Maddy And Midge, Positive Thinking For Children, is now available to buy here and also here 
  :-) 
                                                                              ***

Thursday, November 1, 2012

A little Of What I've been Up To

I wrote this last night as the rain fell. It was a very dark 31st October. We had pumpkins reflecting  their light out of the window down our puddle strewn path. Only two lots of children ventured out in the rain for trick or treating. The basket is still filled with shiny boiled sweets and chocolate eclair toffees. The fire was lit, candles flickered and the sweet smell of treacle tart hung about in the kitchen. Not home made I'm ashamed to say. Everything was a bit of a rush, so a thanks to Mr Kipling for the treacle tart and the Halloween french fancies. I hope you had a good one, however you celebrated it.
I've been busy with making stock for my Etsy shop which I'll show you in a bit...
Time has been zooming by and  half term seemed to arrive here just hours after school had returned from the summer!
I've been out and about quite a bit. My very bestest old friend from college days came to stay. :-) We had a lovely time catching up and wandered around Avebury  in the rain.
We breathed the salty misted sea air at Lyme Regis.

And met a lovely cat.
I bought a tiny egg in the fossil shop, that looks like a dragon or phoenix egg. It also looks as if it is made of moonlight. I will show you another day.
Talking of magical things, I saw amethyst in the hedgerow the other day.

And more magic....
This time at Warner Bros Leavesdon  Film Studios, to see the Harrry Potter studio tour.
It's a wonderful place to go for a Harry Potter fan. All the detail that has gone into everything is a joy to see. A lot of it made, because it was in the books but only glimpsed for seconds on screen in the films.
Below, the Leaky cauldron.
 And the attention to detail that brought it even more to life.


We had a butter beer, brought home a chocolate frog and got a Dumbledore wizard card!

So, back to the here and now and my new creations. Which are all about to be listed in my Etsy shop.

                                                   ~Sleepy Woodland Pendants~
                                                                          ~Hearts ~
                                                                    A few hares...
And there is still lots to do, to get things in the shop in time for Christmas, so I'd best get on then.
Take care. x