Circles

Thats right I bought a circle punch. I was passing by hobbycraft on the way to a meeting in Greenford and I had some time to spare so I wandered in looking for one and I found a nice 1" punch for £2.99 but it was even better because when I got to the till, it was half price so I only paid £1.50. That made me very happy. Well I was busy over the weekend with my Dad visiting however I was up in Rugby Sunday night as I had an early morning meeting the next day and I had a little play with it. It was fun and I made sure to use lots of colours. Now I am thinking of all the other things I can do with it. Magazine pages and such, I could create such interesting patterns. I can see lots of fun to come in the future.

I also did a page on the way home from Greenford on Friday. This one is about weight and eating and I created the pattern to look a bit like a timeglass. It is a work in progress at the moment as I plan to add colour inside the patterns. This page was more about getting off my chest how I felt.

Zens

Thats right I was zening it up last night and created my very first Zen ATC's. I decided to go a little bit different so used black card and silver pen. I really liked the effect it created. I have been worried about creating these before as I just wasn't sure what to create and was worried they would look rubbish. However I have seen many pictures with the rest of my blindswaps group having been making loads over the last couple of months and last night I just fancied it. I got started and really enjoyed it. Rather than worry about what designs I was going to do, I just went with the flow and followed my idea's as they came. This made it very peaceful and enjoyable. And so I give you my zen ATC's :)

Works in Progress

So many journal pages I have started and that as such are works in progress. The first was created as a background as such and I have never put anything else over the top. It doesn't necessarily need anything else but I am sure I will.

The lady did not turn out as she should have at all. This was me experimenting with the pastels my friend bought me and I was going for a lady in a flowing dress with flowing hair - almost fairy like. It did not work, in that the whole overall look didn't turn out right and the face is awful. However I am not giving up on this page. I will do something with it, even if it is to write about how it didn't turn out right.

Then you have the garden one which I started as part of an illustration friday and since the deadline passed I have done no more with it. I love the idea when I first started as admitedly it didn't turn out as I had originally in mind I still liked it. I do plan to continue this and then to decide whether to add colour or not. I was umming and ahhing at the time as to whether I would and now I definately have more time to decide.

Finally this journal page is one I started on a train when I was on my way Coventry. It is part zentangling and part bits of conversation from the 4 american youths playing cards. I found aspects of their conversation funny and captured tiny snippets to intrigue the reader. I do plan to add a little colour to this. I only had my biro at the time so I did as much as I could and I have never got back round to adding the colour. Again this is something I will do.

Treats from the States

I had family visiting for a couple of days from the states and Angie brought gifts for me. Some crafting treats for me. They all have sticky pads on the back so I am looking forward to making use of them in the future. Apart from that its been quiet in my crafting world. I have been busy, what with having a couple of days off to spend with my family, then 2 day meeting in Rugby with work and a birthday party this weekend in London. I was on the travel for 4 days and forgot to take my journal with me. So I got on with other things but no crafting. Clearly I will have to try and make that up this week :)

Journals

I want to work in journals, I feel a need to work in journals and yet none are coming my way at the moment. Its been a bit slow on the swap I am on but I know one is heading my way. I have been looking on 1001journals.com and signing up for a couple more journals but the couple I had already signed up for are going nowhere. Odd because you would think I could just work in my journal and I can but somehow I feel more committed to work in a journal that is only mine to work in for a couple of weeks. To have one I can work in anytime does not push me to work in it. Admitedly over the last month I have worked more in my own journal but somehow it is still not the same. I am thinking about setting up my own journal on 1001journals, because it would be nice to see strangers work. But it seems to take so long for sign ups to take place and get going. One I signed up for is closed now, I was the last spot so hopefully the person will send it out soon.
I don't know what I would write in my journal - I see to shy away from writing person stuff in my own journal because then I'll have to look back at it and see it where as I have no problem putting it in someone elses journal and sending it off for people I don't know to read. Weird but not weird I guess. Who knows maybe I will work in my journal this weekend or maybe someone elses journal will turn up to work in.

Grafitti Postcard

On my mixed media group we are doing a grafitti postcard swap at the moment. When I started I wasn't sure what I was going to do as my grafitti but I was going to have it on a brick wall. I started to colour paper brown to make a wall when my other half pointed out it wouldn't really work like that. So I drew my grafitti first and then drew the wall around it so it looks like actual grafitti on a wall. This is my first one, I wasn't sure what to do my grafitti and this is what first came to mind. As sam pointed out my lines are a bit too sharp for grafitti but I liked it how it was. For my next one though I am going to try and make it more rounded but will do the wall behind again. Its time consuming but it makes a really good effect I think.

Journalling it up

I was journalling it up at the end of last week as it was just me in the house. The first page is making use of my pastels again. Then I did electro city page. This was making use of bits of a birthday card. I love the colours and the black felt on it so wanted to make use of it somehow. I had already cut an ATC background out of it which I have not used yet and decided to make use of the cut off's. I just started laying them on the page and it made me think of tower blocks and such. Thus electro city was created. The side bits are supposed to be liked bits of cloud coming out of the pipe.

Making use of a zen doodle I did on the train to Leeds over a week ago, I created my Zentangle page. I put the original doodle on and though about how I could extend it. I wanted there to be a difference between the

small page and the large page which lead to the using felt pen instead of pencil. I like the effect it created and the hypnotic feel to the page.

I haven't been doing much paper crafting/journalling this week as have been working on a cross stitch piece I am doing. A noah's Ark for my nephew's birthday in June. I started ages ago intending it for his birthday last year and just didn't work on it for ages so am getting on with it and getting it done.

Spring Inchies quilt

Thats right my spring inchies quilt has arrived. So all those inchies I made have been put into everyone's quilts and now I have lovely inchies from all these other people. I really like the quilt, its very nice but I do wish I could see which are everyone elses. I am now not sure what to do with. Some people are going to frame theirs, I feel like it would make a good coaster but it is too big and I don't want to cut it up. Hmm somethinking will have to be done.

I also completed my Unusual Alphabet ATC's to send to Rixta and they are now on the way to her in Australia. I was having a look through all my card and such looking for an image to go on a great background I had found and instead found this paisley card. It inspired me to make a paisley themed card as P for Paisley certainly is unusual. I really like the colours, more interesting than some paisley you find :)

Journal Joy

Thats right, I have started a new journal, this one to be used in my swap with Lia. We are going to trade our journals every few weeks so that we end up with a journal with eachothers work in. On my trip to cardiff yesterday I decided I would find a journal and after a small exploration found a great arts store that sold the perfect journal. Smaller than I have worked in before but perfect for putting in your handbag and therefore a take along plus makes it easier to send. Its got a feely cover which I like.

So to celebrate I got started straight away last night, doing a couple of pages plus the background for another. I wanted to have a play with my acrylic paints for creating backgrounds and although myfirst page didn't turn out a originally intended it has taught me a lesson on acrylics and this journal. Its a sketch journal really for dry use and the use of a paint on it had impact on the page. I think If I want to do that again in the future I will do it on paper first and stick into the journal for the background. The yellow you can see through the brown but then I was watering it down a little so thats probably why. I kinda like and dislike my first page as I think it could look better but then it is a learning experience. At the moment I have just done the otherside in purple acrylic but not continued plans yet.

I then was inspired to do my 2nd page by the starting titles of the mighty boosh. Was watching loads last night and loving it which created this page of fun. I found it fun to make and liked the bold colours with the white. The lines make a bold statement which I might use for a background in the future.

Unusual Alphabet

I was away at a hen do this weekend so I didn't do much however I was busy creating friday night with my man by my side offering me some idea's actually. It was good fun. I created 2 Unusual Alphabet ATC's to send to Rixta and I am going to do the 3rd tonight so I will be sure to post pictures tomorrow. I did a geisha one and a mermaid one. I was impressed with my mermiad one as I drew it myself - based on a picture I had. Some learning points gained from it and going to draw another one and learn from the experience of drawing the first.

I also made a geisha postcard which I am going to send to one of my pen friends in the states. Probably Nina as I think she will appreciate it. I got an image from the Mary Dover sampler and then coloured in only parts of the image to create a nice Japanese looking postcard. Again pictures and a longer update to follow tomorrow.

Had a good time at the hen night and was very tired when I made it home yesterday late afternoon hence no crafting, just lots of watching House.

Organisation is key

Thats right I have got a new organiser which is great as the 3 drawers I had just didn't hold it all and Sam wanted to get it all put away together so we bought a 7 drawer thing from B&Q and I managed to fill up 5 drawers very neatly with all my bits and pieces. Well it started neat and tidy but since I have done some bits with it, it is not so any more :) I will sort it out again. If I keep it tidy it will be easier to find things, it just when you are in the flow, tidiness is not on your mind. That was actuallyabout a week and a half ago but it has made a difference plus whilst sorting through I found some new stuff.

I refound illustration friday as Lia started doing some pieces for it and I thought I would have a go but as usual did not finish it in the week timeframe, so at the moment I see it as a work in progress as I am unsure whether I want to add colour to it or not - hmmmm a little thought and then I will see. I wonder what this weeks theme is, see if it inspires me :)

I finally got my 4 elements ATC's done, horray - i don't know why its been such a challenge, they are very late so thanks to Julie for being so patient, my idea of what to do changed many times and a hald made card has been discarded for the moment but I am happy with these pastel creations. It was fun to play with the pastels and I learnt a little about blending from Sam which was good. There a bit abstract but I like the water and fire ones the best because they are so abstract.

I also did a little work in my journal. Without a journal to work in at the moment I am trying to work in my own journal as much as possible anyway. I want to try and work in it most days, even if its only a little bit. So i found these trees from a card and I liked the way they looked so decided to do something with them. I did the background and the trees but then was not sure what else I wanted to do however when working on my element ATC's I decided to see if I had a white pastel and see what effect that would have. I like what it did because it is like they are invisible clouds. I think I am going to leave it as it is without words. I think it says more that way.

Spring fun

Last night I decide to get in the spirit of spring and get moving on my spring postcards. In the end I made two. I bought a couple of years ago a 365 day calender about scrapbooking in that each page can be used to scrapbook. I had done nothing with it until this year and picked out a couple of pages to make use of in spring postcards. One had a nice flowery background and I took some tags from a craft magazine to spell spring across. I really like the effect it made and actually used brads rather than just glue them down. Just sitting here now I have realised I could have put hidden pictures behind them and you could have moved the tags to reveal them. I will use that in a future postcard - I like the idea.

My other postcard is a bit more random. I used another page, it has a flowery border and then took some pictures from a different page to put in the corners. I think found a spring chicken tag as such. That looked cute in the middle but I realised something was still missing. So i dug out some flowery confetti and put that like snowflakes on the page. After creating it I decided it would probably have looked better without the corner images but they were already there.

Finally I finished off an Easter ATC I had been working on. I only needed to glue the final flowers on it but I think they just added a final touch to the card.

Ideas

I haven't done any more art over the last couple of days but whilst driving back from my dads I had a couple of idea's for creating journal pages. It was frustrating because I could see them in my head and I was driving so there was no way to put them down but as soon as I got to where I was going, I dug out my journal and just jotted down the idea's with a little picture so I knew what I was thinking about. Then when I get back home tomorrow I can get started on them. A bit different to what I have done before so I am quite excited about giving them a go and hope they turn out the same as I saw them in my head.

Blog Revamp

I am sure you have all noticed a few changes in my blog recently - like the creation of my very own title. I am having a little play and looking to try and make it how I want it to be rather than just how the template lays it out so it will probably change a few times other the next couple of weeks. Heres hoping you like the changes :)

Inchies and journals

Been a little while since I updated because it appears I did not update at all last week - tsk tsk, plus I had things to talk about. So I got all my spring inchies done in one day, thats right 13 inchies in one day - I am not quite sure how I managed it but I did, I went on a theme as such making all 13 similar so I am guessing that helped. I have found inchies to be tricky before because of their small size but I just went with the flow this time and didn't worry to much and they came to me. I only have a picture on my phone (my camera had no batter power) so I will post a picture once I sort out getting it off my phone. But they all had bugs or flowers on them on either a green or yellow gingham background. They looked very cute and seasonal.

I also did lots of journalling work on Friday night. Having received 3 journals through the post from norma, sitting there when I got home from work that day and still having my own to complete (which I am glad I hadn't started as I thought we were making ATC's to go on them but not in this round) I felt I should get started so that I can send on to Katz as I felt like I had been holding things up (although wanted to send 2 journals together so had been waiting for them to come through). So Having had a flick through them earlier in the evening I had another look and was inspired to create in Vix's journal which was on friendship.

I found some background paper I liked, wrote how I felt about friendship in some of them and then thought about how to embellish, did the butterflies and then had quick search through my stash thinking what would fit. I had everything in but the kitten picture when I remembered about it and thought it would be perfect.

Then I though I better make my own so looked back through my papers and decided to cover it with musical paper. Thought be best to keep my page to the same theme but only a bit of paper left but looked better with the blue behind. Right from when I started the journal I kept thinking Money makes the world go around from Cabaret in my head so felt I should include. Once I had that done, my mind wandered to the music cat stickers I knew I had and bingo a page was created. Its not fancy but I like it.

Journal Page

I did a small amount or artwork over the weekend. I was away and didn't really take anything with me however what I did take was my journal and a 4 colour biro. Working on the basis of zentangles which really is done on an ATC sized card/paper I purposely doodled in my journal. It was an interesting experience. I stopped and started a couple of times as I was travelling on a train and such but over the weekend I ended up with a finished page. At first my doodle looked like an eye which I wrote about but I had lots of balnk space on the page and I didn't want to leave it like that. So I decided to use a totally different colour (I had been using blue and black up until this point) and I started doing little squares in red. As you can see the finished project (photo to be added tomorrow) it ended up looking like a tunnel to me. I like the effect it created but hoped people can still see the eye. I was pleased with this page and I enjoyed creating it. It was quite calming which zentangles are supposed to be so from that perspective it was.

Pastels and Unusual Alphabets

Last night as I was unpacking the bag of birthday presents I got from my friends I refound the pastels that my friend Adam had bought me. Immeadiately I wanted to play with them which is exactly what I did. I got out a journal I have only used a couple of times because I have not got into the swing of doing journal work not for a swap. Not sure why, maybe I should start trying to do it more. Anyway I haven't used pastels since I had an old set and used to draw on my walls at my Dad's - he didn't mind as it was wallpaper and he knew he would take it down one day but that was in my teenage years where you have all those emotions and you feel you want to make a statement. So I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them but decided I would just have a play. I started just rubbing them on at first but it didn't look right and that's when I started blending it with my fingers. I of course ended up with different fingers for different colours and I can only really blend with one hand so I soon ran out of space but it was fun. I started with the background just thinking about enjoying using the colours and such knowing I would put stuff over the top soon, maybe some writing or something. The other page didn't turn out quite as I wanted it. I thought I would create a dreamy looking woman with flowing hair and a flowing dress but my drawing skills were not up to it, especially in pastel. The second I drew the high neckline I was like ahhhh no thats not what I wanted but I kept with it anyway and in the end turned out better than expected but not to what I held in my mind. Practice, practice will be the key.

Unusual Alphabet ATC's. I was glad to get these all done in the one night as I should have sent them yesterday but one day is late is ok. Well its not ok but its done now. I had thought about my idea's during the day and printed off the pirate and guinea pig pictures. The monster was a sudden inspiration upon finding the monster wrapping paper someone had wrapped one of my birthday presents in and thinking - AH HA. The pirate one was fun to make as I basket wove the background for it to give it a nice patchy effect which was realistic. Trying to stick squares on would have been a nightmare. That left with one left to do and i just looked at what I had and what letter I could do and thats where B for buttons was born from. I don't use my buttons enough and I do like them so it was nice to play around with them. So smooth :)

Plus I found the picture of the valentines postcard I sent and here it is. Couple of years ago I bought like a desktop calender which had pages you could use for scrapbooking everyday. And this is the first one I had used, Only took me a couple of years and I didn't use it for scrapbooking.

So thats it. I am off up to Rugby tonight with work for a conference tomorrow so I might take my journal with me to work on those pastels pages some more turning them from WIPs into winners :)

ATC's, Cross Stitch and more

I got creative the other night and was busy finishing off cards, making news ones and working on a couple of postcards to go out to pen friends. Firstly these are my cross stitch cards which I made for a swap on MixedMediaATC_UK on yahoo. My cards arrived too late for the swap and due to lack of internet over the weekend I was unable to let Amanda know but we are going to do a one for one swap and so she will get to pick from these 3 cards. So the two she doesn't pick will be open for trade. Also I will have my all cross stitch card which I have yet to have refound yet. So if anyone is interested let me know, Always happy to do one for one trades. My favourite of these is the flags card. I like the though of stitching flags so I did this first not really thinking about what the background would be like but once stitched I decided that some different languages behind the flags would bring across the sense of other countries. I think the white paper is polish from a polish newspaper and the more brown paper which was a page I got sent, I think it is spanish but could not tell you for sure. I like the layering effect they gave and that is what inspired me for what I wrote around them.

Then we have this love theme card which seeing as were around valentines it is unsurprising I ended up making a love themed one. I love the material that I put over the top, again sent to me, probably in a grab bag win. You can't see it very well in the picture but I wrote love underneath in red which is what inspired me to call the ATC Hidden Love.

The one below is stitching meets doodle, I like that effect. I sometimes worry that doodle looks rubbish although I love to do it however I think

for this ATC it framed it nicely. Plus its what I wanted to do and enjoyed :)

I also made a couple of valentines card to send to Catherine and

Norma in the states in return for the lovely ones they sent me. Having got some vintage valentine images from the mary davis sampler I decided to have a try with them as I rarely use vintage images using more modern stuff but fancied giving it a go. I like the though of a secret admirer giving flowers. I loved the backgrounds for these, just images I searched out on google images and then printed out thinking how great they would be for back grounds but totally not knowing what was going to go on top of them at the time.

And finally on this creative night, although thinking about it I think it was over a couple of evenings. I made postcards to send to a pen friend. One was a valentines postcard which I don't seem to have a picture of at the moment - the question is did I take one. And the other was making use of some patterns I had printed off forever ago knowing I would love making a postcard from them and then losing them in the ether which turned out to be hidden in a work folder.

So that has been my creativity of late. Apart from that finished watching Season 3 of Lost and loved it. Might have to rewatch them as was really ploughing through them and I like to contemplate what I have seen and thinking about possible future storylines and how linked to previous stuff. Been playing with our new cute guinea pigs. Patch and Takumi. Both boys with black and white coats and such different personalities. Patch is bolder and easier to get a hold of where at Takumi is more jumpy and can run ever so fast, round and round the cage when trying to catch him. But both very good when you get them out, so loving them and spending time taming them. Bit of Guitar Hero last night, got it for my birthday so was loving the new songs to play to. Plus needed to chill after spending most of the day on trains travelling to different meetings. Yesterday was a long work day!

Pictures galore

Thats right, having finally moved into our house properly and set up our PC i got the pictures off my new camera and thus I can share them with you lovely people. I added some pictures to a couple of older posts that I said I would add pictures so have a look back and see what wonders you might find (its only a couple of posts). Now I can show you the work I did in Seren's journal that I had around christmas time. I did quite a few pages before sending it off, although I did have it a little longer than I should have :( But I got it off after christmas which at least means it didn't get caught up in the christmas post.

Firstly I did a page based on the pantomime I went to see with a colleague at work. We went and saw Dick Whittington at the Hackney Empire. This was at he beginning of the first journal and so it was more writing than colour and art. At first I found it hard to encorporate art into it and at times felt that the page might be seen as boring as its only writing but I guess that is interesting as well as that is the insight into what the person is thinking. I just sometimes think the background might look dull.

I then created a page on butterflies - I love butterflies - I think part of it is you can make them so colourful and I am not sure what else it is. I like the shape. My writing is a bit rambling talking about how Seren's bubble page inspired me but in the end I wish I had cute out the shapes rather than colouring them in. However this did lead me to create the page on the other side so maybe not so bad after all.

This page made use of the fact that where I had used colouring pens for the butterflies on the first journal page that they showed through onto this side. It made me think of the fact they were faded and almost made them look more like real butterflies than the bold colours on the previous page did.

This is a page that never was. I had this whole plan about how I would write down all the songs I listened to on my ipod on my journey back from Bristol one weekend on the train. I normally drive so no chance to create however I was getting the train back this sunday and so I thought it would be a good time to create. I drew the IPOD bit in advance and then got it all near the top of my page for the journey however once on the train I realised I did not have my ipod and thus the page never became. Thats why its says "This page never happened".

This was me rediscovering some card and paper I had bought leading up to Christmas on one of my trips into ArtBase the little craft shop down the road from us which I try not to go in too often because I always discover fab things I won't necessarily use but want anyone thus spending money. I had though the sparkly card was awesome and that I would use it in Christmas cards which in the end I did but only after I had rediscovered it and used some for this page. I like the winter effect the 2 pages give and I made squares because I like the pattern they make, I have a thing for patterns and have always loved making different patterns by colouring half the squares in a 4x4 block to see how many patterns I could make. When I was younger I did so many pages on them. In recent it has been Lia who has helped me move my pattern love to a different medium with her love of 1" squares and I decided to use this on this page.

This was my final page in Seren's journal. This was just after New Year and so thats what my thoughts were on. I don't really like making New Years Resolutions as I never stick to them which means I then make them with no real faith however I felt I should try and make some differences. So I wrote down my idea's of things I would like to do or what I wanted to change.

There you go, finally some decent pictures uploaded and some info on some of the work I had been doing.

Cross Stitch ATC

As promised here is a picture of my cross stoitched ATC. It was fun to make although of course time consuming doing all the little flowers but I like the effect it has given. I plan to make some other all cross stitch ATC's in the future as it is something different.

Actually I have an article in a cross stitch magazine about people making mail art envelopes all in cross stitch - the put nice pictures on it and stitch the address on and send letters or such in it. I mean I partake in mail art but had never thought of that. It is awesome but can see it would be time consuming. Plus you need to keep stuff in plastic inside incase the envelope gets wet. So I do have a plan to see about making one in the future, I guess the question would be, who would I send it to :)

Hmmmm so many plans. Once I am in the new house though, much time for bringing these plans to life. Today is my last day at work so I have cakies with me and I must get on sorting everything I need to hand over. Then tomorrow is my birthday - wooooo. I start my new placement on tuesday next week so get a few days off :)