Lazy days

We have just come back from holiday, I mean literally just come back. The washing machine is going round, the cat is meowing like crazy having been left to his own devices for 12 days (apart one of the local kids coming in to feed him), and we have been to our local half pub/half indian restaurant for something to eat, because the fridge is empty and I couldn't be bothered to cook. We have had a great time walking, cycling and generally kicking back in the Lake district. I spent a lot of time journaling, and the picture above is one of the views I had to admire whilst I was sloshing paint about. I have a few bits and pieces to show you, and wonder of all wonders, I have actually got my September journal page ready in advance! Well, I haven't stuck the squares on yet, but the page is to all intents and purposes ready. I bought these Stampotique stamps ages and ages ago, but just haven't got around to using them, so I took them away with me with the express intention of inking them up.

Whilst I was away, it was my birthday, and I had a lot of luvverly presents, including lots of journaling books:

And this, beautiful journal of rag paper from my friend, you know the one I made the journal in my previous post for? It seems great minds think alike! I have already done one page:


Yes, I know, it is very much the same as my September page, but when I had finished the September page, my husband said, 'I can't believe you are going to stick squares all over that, it's a shame to cover it up'. I had to agree, and so I decided to do it again. Actually it was an interesting experiment, as the different kinds of paper made for a very different result.
A long time ago, at a workshop with Kate Crane, I did an atc in hot pink, lime green and orange, which I look at everytime I use our downstairs loo. It bugs me a bit as I really like the colour combinations, but I was in a bit of a rush, and I didn't blend the colours very well. I decided to have another go, well two actually, one where again, it didn't work brilliantly, and one where it did. This is the not so good one:

The one I really like isn't quite finished yet, so I'll show you that next time. I need to keep a few things back, as I will back on with the decorating from tomorrow, and who knows when the journaling will fit in around that...

Holiday fun

So the holidays are upon us, and I promised my children I would take tham camping for a few days. The campsite is a looong story, but suffice to say whilst the views were fabulous, the facilities were a little...filthy? As we were not keen to use the showers, this waterfall and natural pool were a much more attractive option.
This view made the campsite worth the trip.

And who doesn't take Twister on a camping trip with them? Really, I must supervise my children's packing better...

Since we came back I have been pressing on with the wall and woodwork painting, but I found a few minutes one evening to do this page in my A5 moleskine journal.

Then, do you remember that I posted a while ago that I had been on a bookbinding course? Well, of course, part of the fun of doing a course in a new technique, is the shopping for new supplies afterwards! Whilst I had stocked up in various bookbinding goodies, I haven't had the chance to do anything with them. However, some people in your life are so special that you really want to give them something that you have put a bit of yourself in. So, I made this book for my friend, who as well as being like-minded, is an incredibly generous, supportive, shoulder-proffering, star. (And if she is reading this, she's probably reaching for the tissues now!)
This is the finished product, complete with 7gypsies bookband and 'little feet' stamp from Paperbag studios.

Here you can see that I made the register from 4 sections of handstitched watercolour paper:

I made a little bookplate to put inside with a message:

The book is about half way between A4 and A5, and 3/4" thick. I hope it holds together long enough to get a year's worth of journalling in it!

Ta -da!

In my last post, I said that my new studio was habitable, but not yet showable. Well, now I think I can share a bit of it with you. This is the very old bookcase, which came from husband's grandparents, which I have loved since the first time I saw it seventeen years ago!

Here is my desk, with my favourite pebbles on the windowsill and Charlotte the penguin, and lots of natural light. Believe it or not, if it weren't for the roof of the house opposite, Kate Crane and I could almost wave to each other!

As you will all know, we need somewhere to store all the 'paraphenalia' so I have this bookcase, which has plenty of space for baskets of paint, babywipes, etc, my collection of old books and the journals I am currently working on



and the books which I call on for inspiration..

But my favourite thing is this:

My husband was kitting out a his new office and whilst at the office furniture showroom, saw this and thought of me. Not only can you move the shelves depending on what you want to store, but at the bottom, there is a pull out table. Oo, but I was a happy girl the day he brought this home!
And this is the first creation from my new room. This year, having spent all our money on the building project, we will be spending our summer holiday in the UK, so we will be subject to the vagaries of the British summer - which, at best, could be descibed as unpredictable!

The background is a very patriotic red white and blue, and the figure is a Stampotique stamp.

Woo-hoo!

It has been a busy time in the Haslam house recently, so a weekend away with very little on the agenda, other than relaxing and spending time with the kids has been something of a treat - not least because I actually got my June journal page finished! Well, I say finished, I haven't finished colouring it in in yet, but nearly there...
This month time seemed to be either flying or dragging - depending on the situation. My little sister was awaiting the arrival of her first baby, so for her, the time was dragging. For us, the end of the school year is approaching, ever faster, and it always focuses the mind on how much you have yet to achieve before time runs out.
Suddenly, the building project that we have been living through since last November is almost nearing an end, so I have had a mad dash on to get sanding and painting complete before the flooring people wanted to get the floor laid and carpets down. We are still a way off completing, but the children have moved into their new rooms and they love them! (So do I!)
So, my June journal page was pink and blue (with a bit of yellow in between) as we didn't know what 'flavour' the baby was going to be, and I have used old timetables as a base layer, clock stencils over the paint layers, and cut up a watch advert to make the body of the creature juggling time(the face is from Crowabout). I typed up several different phrases about time to complete the page.
Something of an indulgence was the fact that the first habitable room was my workroom! It isn't quite 'showable' yet, but I have a space to create in for the first time in 6 months! I'm hoping that I can squeeze some journal painting in between the wall/woodwork painting on a more regular basis now!

Playing catch up again

I always look forward to seeing everyone's new blog posts, so I feel that I have been a bit lax recently. I think that five weeks is a bit of a no blogging record for me, but I promise that I am still here! Things at home are not really conducive to creating anything but mess, and the only painting that I have done is acres and acres of new plaster with a bucket of emulsion! I have been 'camping', creatively, in the dining room for the past five months, and I have to say, it is not really the best environment, wedged in between large pieces of furniture, my husband's two best bikes, my horse tack, and various other non-arty bits and pieces. But, the end is in sight. Today I went to buy the flooring for my new 'studio', which measures 2.6m x 5.2m. How lucky am I! However, in the absence of space to create at home, I have taken advantage of opportunities to learn some new skills elsewhere.

In my last blog post, I mentioned about my glass fusion course that I did with my friend Nicky. I can't explain the alchemist kind of thrill that you get from putting sharp edged pieces of glass with mysterious looking powders sprinkled on them, and then how amazing the creations look when they emerge, still warm from the kiln. We spent the first day learning how to cut glass and mastering differing techniques, and then we went away overnight to come up with our designs for our final piece.
Here is my final piece before the kiln:
And here it is after:

Then, a couple of weeks ago, I went on a bookbinding course at artison in Masham. Run by Victoria Lucas, who has created some beautiful collections of images in hand bound books, we learned how to make Japanese Stab bound boooks, a concertina book and then a traditional hardbound book. I can't tell you how exciting it was, not only making the books, but thinking of the possibilities for creating my own journals. Needless to say, I was online as soon as I got home, buying supplies to make more books! Here are the three books I made on the day:
As far as normal journaling goes, I have almost finished my May page for the calendar journal challenge, which is good, seeing as May is almost over... It's half term here now, so hopefully, in between the painting and sanding, I might get some journaling done!

Catching up again!

I have to admit I have struggled to find inspiration for my calendar page this month, but a visit to my Mum's garden gave me the push I needed to get something on paper. Her garden is a riot of daffodils, tulips and grape hyacinths, and the combination of colours is so cheerful, I thought I should try and capture it. My attempts to draw and paint the hyacinths however, were pretty rubbish, so they didn't make it onto the page! She and her neighbour have an ongoing joke where they hide a garden gnome around the outside of their houses to make each other laugh, so the little Stampotique character had to sneak in too!

Things here are as hectic as usual - the building work continues with the constant demand for tea,coffee and decision-making - I always thought of myself as a pretty decisive persion, but I am becoming seriously decisioned-out! Hopefully it won't be too much longer until the builders are done, and I will share my new studio with you when it is ready!

Mary-mare has settled in well and is now well and truly part of the family. I still have to pinch myself from time to time to believe that something so beautiful is mine! We have had some great fun together, and I have realised a long held ambition to jump the hunt jumps in the woods near us, much to both of our excitement!

My first art teaching experience went well, in fact so much so, that a second date has been discussed. They were a lovely bunch of people and I have heard from several of them who are now committed journalers!

I have just come back from a weekend away with my friend Nicky. We attended a two day course on glass fusion with a lovely and very talented lady called Genevieve Thompson of Wicked Gen Crafts is her blog, but she also has a website here. It was very exciting and there is more excitement yet to come, as my final pieces have yet to be fired and so I won't find out how they have turned out until next week. I'll tell you more about it next time, with pictures too!

The cat that got the cream

Although I have about a million things I should be doing at the moment, such as finishing my teaching models for my art journaling course at Artison on Friday, I spent last Saturday afternoon at the Great Northern Papercraft Extravaganza in Harrogate, so that means new rubber! Purely in the interest of research, I have obviously had to have a bit of a play! This is one of three stamps I bought at Art from the Heart from Octopode. After some really tricky times last year, this year is definitely going our way, and I do feel like a really rather naughty cat with a really large pot of cream, especially since so many people around the world are having such a horrible time at the moment. A member of our family lives in Lyttleton NZ, and has all shades of carnage surrounding her, and a really good friend of mine in Japan has survived an earthquake and a tsunami, but now faces radiation from the Fukushima leak. It's hard not to feel a bit guilty, but equally, I think some of the events recently just reinforce that you have to live life to the full and seize the moment. And, on a lighter note, who could be downhearted in this beautiful weather!