Saturday

For the first, in what seems an age, Himself and I managed an escape in the van for the weekend. We did not stray far, the van had been dismantled over winter to act as a workhorse and Himself had only recently returned all the interior to some semblance of order and he wanted to test it in case of any issues.

So we meandered our way over to Heysham - in particular - Half Moon Bay. A romantic sounding name for what is a rather edge-lands coast line wedged up against a ferry terminal and a power station - yes, I know, sounds 'very glamorous'. 

However, if you do the 'instagram thang' where you cut out the grot and only show the glory - it is a lovely little place. Surprisingly so. We followed the coast line discovering sculptures and ruined chapels, ancient churches and cute cottages. 

Our first 'wow moment' was the Anna Gillespie sculpture 'Ship' - it was amazing, the detail or rather the lack of it with its implied meanings were so poignant - the gashed chests hinting at the piece of you left behind when you leave your homelands - that struck home.

The church grounds were awash with glorious purple crocus, we walked up the pathway where several other visitors shared similar sentiments and their memories - it felt like a privilege.

In the church - we had hoped and then were delighted by, to find it was open so we could see the Viking hogback stone. We sat on one of the pews and in hushed tones were just astounded at the visual story telling.

We were joined by another admirer and the three of us just marvelled at the ancient monument. Apparently this type of stone carving is peculiar to the British Isles, appearing nowhere else.

The neighbouring chapel ruins had what must rate as one of my all time favourite views and I think I must have photographed the door arch a gazillion times before Himself was able to drag me away.

The small village of Heysham must be very loved by its residents, every corner, space ground or garden seemed to be filled with flowers and sculptures or signs or coast findings - drift wood, boats, shells and fishing buoys. It was so cheerful and uplifting.  I'll have to share Sunday's stories - they were just as uplifting - it is amazing what a little bit of sunshine and a lot of blue skies can do for the soul x

Today I did a quick water colour of the 'Ship' sculpture - it made me appreciate it all the more.

Bird brain

I lifted my head when a bird song which had been going round my head suddenly made itself heard. Flipping back my fringe - it is getting too long, I listened again. I was on all fours laying a pathway through the dahlia bed - as you do....

I'd been so engrossed with my fingers in the soil, placing slabs in a winding path when I heard, but not listened to the twittering.

With my  neck twisted up, craning it to see if I could track who was singing in the bare sycamore trees behind the glasshouse. I knew the song - the churr and chirrup belonged to one of my favourite birds. The Long Tailed Tit - the 'flying teaspoon'. My eyes flitted across the branches and suddenly I caught their movement. A family cluster of may be eight or ten birds tripping through the twigs hunting for insects.

Like a cat I watched their every move until they came to the edge of the trees and swooped off in a twittery churring wave - gone.

Back to work.

Oh, and the painting I did the other day? Another of my favourites - the Curlew.

Observations

Most of the droplets glisten when they capture the meagre early morning sunlight, others appear opaque. The window pane is littered with static rain beads giving the appearance of pockmarked glass. Then when the fast moving grey clouds curtain the sun, the droplets become almost invisible allowing my eye through the distraction. I now watch the trees in the garden are dancing in the brisk breeze, it fluctuates from a gentle flip of the lighter branches to whole tree contortions. 

We have a stained glass plaque in the window and at the moment, brief flashes of sun sing through the colours scattering speckles of colour on the glass.

Himself left for work while it was still the last drifts of darkness leaving the cat and me in bed, his parting shot - I'd stay there if I were you. So we have. Although I suspect I will be up long before the cat.

The hyacinths in the lounge have both decorated the room and the air with their delicious scent and blue flowers however they are beginning to fade and I am sorry to see them go. It will be another ten months before we have them up on the mantel and in the window again.  Primula have been brought in to fill that hole.

The cat is rhythmically snoring beneath Himself's aged lumberjack shirt - one reserved specifically for gardening and tucking around a cold sleeping cat.

I can see, but not hear, the wind chime in the garden twirling around in the wind. It is an elegant spiral of tubes which normally share a gentle chime as they tink against each other. Today I suspect it is more of an angry clash than a melodic background sound. The blackbirds do not seem to care. They are busily foraging around the plants and bird feeder breaking off only to chase each other around and across the garage roof.

I plan to paint once I have posted this. I  can feel the compulsion to sketch and run a watercolour filled brush across paper. It sometimes feels like a rising tide which I used to suppress - somehow 'adulting' seemed more important - but now I heed that urge.

Life is for living.

A space to breathe

Thursdays are for me. 

Although not always possible, I do try and keep them quiet. It gives me time to quietly bumble around the house or garden to see to things that require more than passing attention and if I have the luxury of time - to paint.

Today I dabbled (both literally and figuratively) with acrylics on blocks of wood to see if I could make 'giftable' planters for the Mother's Day stall we will be holding in March at work. It has to be simple enough to make several and affordable enough for our visitors - not always easy. 

And I painted a barn owl feather for my perpetual  journal - something I look forward adding to each week.

You can do it

During Wednesday's sublime light, this little flowering moss glowed in the sun

After the snow, there was rain, followed swiftly by driech grey mist which seemed to not only hang around the house and garden but around me too.  

Then yesterday the skies cleared and the sun filled the day. 

At work, the volunteers and I revelled in the warmth and light - it felt uplifting. We tackled something I'd planned months ago as an early autumn project which was then thwarted by the weather.

Finally on Wednesday, with a huge pile of chestnut palings, saws, mallets and steaming mugs of tea we started and the joy was palpable.

I quietly listened to happy chatter and bird song. Volunteers and birds all soaking in the light and gentle winter sun. However what made me smile the most was the obvious pride these ladies felt by the end of their session. They'd completed a rather manual and physical task and it looked bloody fantastic !

simple joy

 A personal challenge - try and write something every day for January 2025 

***************

Snow flurries dance past the windows, whirling and rolling before landing on the already frosty white ground. I'm glad to be inside. During the winter months I am home more - as primarily employed as a horticulturalist, I am busy beyond belief during the 'growing season' and although I diversify during the winter months into arty, craft or wreath making workshops,  I have the utter pleasure of have days off during the week to 'play'.

I recently discovered something new to me - 'perpetual journaling'* - which entails sketching or painting an item from nature once weekly in a book and repeating until that book is full which if done correctly can last for years.  Be still my beating heart.

I started mine in November (when I first made this wonderous discovery) and look forward to painting and adding my work each week. I love that each time I add to my book - you can see a visual change in the seasons.  It also makes me look at my subject of the week so closely - making me notice the tiniest of holes in a leaf, the thinnest of spines on a stem, the curliest of fronds, the crispest of dried foliage and it feeds both my gardening and arting heart.  

I love that when I am out walking I could just chance upon the perfect subject for scrutiny then sketching. All this joy and pleasure from something so simple.

 A snow topped teasel from the walled garden

*if you are on instagram - have a look, there are some absolutely beautiful journals out there.
#perpetualjournal
#lgperpetualjournal

And thank you for your lovely comments, they are much appreciated and it is lovely that I am 'meeting' some new-to-me faces - welcome to my little corner of the world 💚x

'Keewik keewik'

A personal challenge - try and write something every day for January 2025 

***************

Carrying a small tub laden with toast crumbs, dried sultanas, cold bacon fat and cake, as well as a full kettle of not quite boiled water, I carefully picked my way through the garden to the bird feeder. The Robin was giving running commentary and a cluster of Blackbirds were loitering by the pond watching me with bead bright eyes. 

The bird snacks were emptied into two trays and the water used to help dissolve the thin layer of ice in the water bowls in the garden. 

The sky was the thinnest of clear blue with ragged white contraflow criss-crossing the expanse. In the distance a barrage of shooting - a 'side effect' of living in a village on the edge of privately owned moorland......

Suddenly the female Tawny Owl whistled a plaintive 'keewik keewik' triggering the garden birds to send up warning calls and flutter nervously through the trees. 

I retreated back to the house, more layers needed as my fingers and feet felt lumpen and cold. I returned with my camera and snapped a few photos of frost covered leaves with daggers of ice acting as temporary armour.

Vinca leaves encrusted with sharp stilettos of ice

I recorded the garden birds - Robin, Blackbirds (male and female), Dunnock, Jackdaw, Mistle Thrush, House Sparrow, Great and Coal Tit who were all still grumbling defensively about the now silent Tawny Owl.

a watercolour of a hen Blackbird from my #perpetualjournal - 

ignore the dates, I wrote them incorrectly, I have since amended them.

Going for world domination

Oh April - where have you gone? Admittedly you were mostly shrouded in cloud and often drenched in rain but were also bathed in sunlight and lifted by the most glorious blue skies.

Among many things keeping me occupied (work, life, gardening, living) I have been quietly painting - a tiny picture a day. I can't explain the simple joy they brought me.  A mini escape in watercolour.

Now, suddenly it is the last day of April and the last day of the challenge - #30minipaintings, so I thought I would, to commiserate/celebrate/acknowledge the last day of the month by sharing them here.

Each little picture (well - 28 of the 30) is a record of a real event on the day or the day before they were painted - 28 little stories of my life. The other two were just quickly done late on in an evening when I'd not had time earlier to paint.

Cats, plants, gardens, adventures, family, tea and life - that sums up April. And to show how small they really are .....

A small and furry for comparison.

Post Script - I am on with another painting/drawing challenge - one I kick started at work at the beginning of the year to encourage folk to get creative - it gently grows with more people joining in - we're going for world domination through the medium of art!
 

Another brick in the wall*

I find that I look forward to the days I can 'art' for a couple of hours. As the weather warms up and I return to my seasonal garden work, my time to get the brushes and pens out has reduced. The escapism it provides is turning out to be cathartic so I am going to try to ensure I can still 'play'.

The small group which we have started at work seems to be enjoying 'arting' too. I am not the only one benefiting from the results. There is a wonderful small wave of pride as the books and work are shared - including one or two who I quite wrongly suspected would not even participate - how wrong I was!

Between us, we share the theme choice - so some are quite out of my comfort zone (as it is for others) and my results each week are rather variable. Below are some from the last few weeks.

World of Whimsy (I went down a rather dark route with this one rather than the cutesy style the others did)

Thunderstorms and Cloudy Skies

Communication - poison arrow frog 

I am also playing around with different ways - so at the moment one of my favourite things to do is 'art-small'. I found a rather tiny tin, cut papers to fit and paint mini pictures to fit the tin! Pocket painting💙

You can not believe the joy this brings me! I have made a bit of a traveling art studio in an old pencil case, small enough to fit in my haversack and plan to do a painting or two, when we are out walking. (Cue eye roll from Himself!🙄🤪) Fortunately they are surprisingly quick thanks to their teeny tiny size.

And, what have I been working on today? Well, this week's theme is 'Building' - happy heart jump! I love drawing wonky houses, tumbled stones, shingles, slate roofing - so - happy me!

It was at this point I discovered that the black pen I'd used was not water fast and as soon as I tried to apply a sepia colour wash - it smudged - oh well, c'est la vie!

Post Script: The title? Well, I was wondering what to call today's post when on the radio -  Pink Floyds' Another Brick in the Wall was requested by a listener - cheers mate! 

Murky waters

 A fair bit has happened since my last post - life does that. It happens and then suddenly you realise you've not actually written any of those amazing stories, sad things, wonderful walks, funny moments and silly snapshots and when you look back - are they really worth re-hashing in a witty or waffly post?

Nope.

So, instead I thought I'd share a photo or two of some recent arty stuff, not brilliant, but for me an achievement. Getting back into art has been a bit of a slog and now I am regularly sketching and painting I can see I am out of practise. 

It is however bringing me a lot of pleasure - which is far more important to me now than the need to perform or provide work for a paid commission  - and a relief. I am painting for me.

An odd post, I agree but, isn't that what life is? 

Post Script : and if you are wondering what on earth the cat is resting her head on in the first photo - she has a fabric toy fish stuffed with catnip which she uses as her pillow - we call it her 'cuddlefish' 

Random Notes on a Thursday

The promised snow has arrived, swirling small pellets of white covering the garden and dusting the trees. Despite this, the blackbirds are cheerfully kicking around in the flowerbeds unearthing morsels and the robin in fiercely guarding the bird feeder. I am so glad I am not at work today!

Definitely knitting weather (and red petticoat weather too!) I have the warmest red flannel 'underskirt' I wear with my tartan pinafore - that with thick leggings - I find cozier than wearing jeans, tights and boots. 

At work we keep finding conkers the local park squirrels have buried in the kitchen garden. Some have started to germinate. So seeing the same squirrels keep digging up our snowdrop and bluebell bulbs we see this as payment and have gently planted up the Horse Chestnut seeds and hope they all grow.

It is so dark inside today - I have switched on our fairy lights and moved the glitter ball to bring a little 'light' relief into the lounge. I also lit a candle for the wax burner and now the room smells gently of amber and warm spices, perfect for today's weather outside.

Yes I am waffling - sort of procrastinating too - I am part of a weekly art challenge to get us all back into 'arting' and once I have started - I am fine, it is the STARTING I am dancing around. That and the theme this week - PIRATES. Hmmm. I don't want to draw something gimmicky or box office inspired (think Pirates of the Caribbean) so this needs a bit of thinking. Last week's was BIRDS and I was in my element!

 

Still snowing..... Oo arrr me hearties - I better get swashbuckling!

Post Script: Blogger is still playing up - I am unable to comment on several blogs - so excuse me if I seen to be silent, I am not. I have, however, found a couple of ways to get around signing on and not be anonymous hopefully things will get back to normal soon - here is to spring xx

It's just a phase 🌘🌗🌕🌓🌒

I have, for some time, been having a case of the 'wanties' but was refusing myself as I suspected what I wanted was probably being made in some sweatshop.... So I fought off those 'wanties'.

A little later I saw an artist making tree decorations using the metal from a used tomato puree tube and it was like a light being switched on. Firstly I made some tiny decorations for my tree ..... 

Then I used and saved my next tube of tomato puree for - the waxing and waning of the moon.

Want to know how I made it? Oh go on - I'll tell you seeing how nicely you asked!!

What you need is:

1. metal tube of tomato puree (Aldi's is a lovely gold colour on the inside, don't know about other brands)
2. Wooden spoon
3. Scissors
4. art paint brush - I used the wooden end for all the mark making 
5. needle and thread
6. black paint - I used acrylic
7. Cork board/mat
8. kitchen towel or rag
9. something circular - I used a large reel to make the shape of the moons
10. A nice twiggy twig

• When using up your tomato puree, don't roll or scrunch the tube as you go along, try and keep it as flat and as undented as possible. Cut off the top and bottom and along one side.
• Open - CAREFULLY as now you have sharp metal edges
• Wash and dry and then with a wooden spoon, rub out any crease marks or kinks as gently as you can
• Using the back of the paintbrush, draw around your circular template - you need FOUR moons to complete this particular pattern.

• Cut out the circles CAREFULLY!!
• One circle remains whole - this is the full moon
• Cut the second directly in half
• The final two circles, cut a large C shape off leaving you with SEVEN moon phases.
• New, Waxing Quarter, Waxing Gibbous, Full, Waning Gibbous, Waning Quarter and Old.

• Using the back of your paintbrush and leaning on your cork board (a folded tea towel works too), dimple and pock mark your moon phases.
• When happy with the texture, use the side of your brush and gently curve down the edges to give more of a three dimension shape.
  

• Using the acrylic black paint, I painted the backs to hide the origins of the tin - fully dry.
• Splodge black on the front, allow to partially dry then remove the excess with kitchen towel, add extra paint if you feel you need more depth - allow to dry fully

• Carefully pierce the top of the moons with a needle and thread - making sure you have a mirror image of the segments. 
• Tie to a suitable piece of twiggage
• Hang up!

• Step back feel chuffty wuffty with yourself and go and make yourself a brew and wash the paint off your fingers! 

Post Script - trying not to huff too much when the moon phases gently twist round and settle back to front.....

Have you had the 'wanties' and realised that you can make/do/find what you wanted without breaking the bank?

Let me know if you have made something like this or you try this one out - but if you do - PLEASE WATCHOUT FOR SHARP EDGES (yes I was typing firmly😁🌓🌕🌗)