A wall full of wonderfullness for Day 30

Day 30 Inktense and pen water lilies

Day 30 of Art Every Day Month and you are witness to an absolute miracle... I have actually stuck to something for 30 days... woohoo..... there have been times when I have felt a bit like it was a monster gobbling me whole, but I have to say overall this has been a spectacularly fun time... full of all sorts of new friends and old, new ideas and inspiration, new blogs to explore and cyber buddies to stalk... just sooo much goodness packed into 30 days.... and as an added bonus when every one gets ordinary presents for Christmas that they aren't too impressed with I can blame AEDM and say I am just still exhausted and recovering... I have pretty much needed that excuse for years now... and now I have it I am taking it out for a spin this year... just good things every where I turn really. I am so heading over to Creative Every Day for the rest of the year and into next, because I am seriously addicted and hope that heaps of you are doing the same. 

extensive research into inktense done on watercolour scrap

So I used the inktense pencils again today... and did extensive experimentation for many many seconds, as shown above, before embarking on the work today ... figured I shouldn't whimp out on showing the results, though the background had to be rescued with my trusty watercolours, I was actually a lot more pleased with how this turned out than the first effort, and before anyone says it, yes they are a touch bright to be water lilies, but I like bright, so bright it is.... they are going to go in that space on the wall next to the mutant gold fish ginger jar...

I also got off my butt and finally finished off the necklaces, rings  and cards to go down to The Collective Store for a quick restock before the Wynnum Up Late event tomorrow night.... they have been half done on the desk for a week now, but that deadline finally get me working, and they look pretty together at this stage, so while the work desk has looked pretty busy and full for the last 30 days, I am going to clear it tonight and clean and get organised for the thoughts and idea I want to explore in December... sometimes life is just too good for words!!!

A huge and heartfelt THANK YOU to Leah for hosting this freakin awesome time ,and to all of the people who have made the last month a wonderful one, who have taken the time to comment and share stories with me, who have inspired me and shown great sympathy through dog vomit and drowning attempts, and have made me laugh out loud... we are a truly witty and inspiring bunch of people... just ask us we will tell anyone who asks...xx

A tale of survival

A little watercolour sketch is all I have managed today.... mainly because I think I killed most of my brain cells and all of my patience when I went Christmas shopping this morning. Now I have to say I am not the best shopper.... I actually believe in blitz it in the shortest time possible and get out of there... none of this hanging around and checking things out, or comparison shopping... except if it art supplies or a book store, but then that isn't shopping shopping it is like grocery shopping, you know necessity rather than the absolute torture that is the shopping centre I usually frequent.

Now some fool in all his infinite wisdom decided that it would be a good thing to embark on a major overhaul of the centre, so there is suddenly a shifting maze of car parking spots, exits appear to move while you are in the centre like some inception type mind bending puzzle and shops are moving... so the shop that was in a certain place for the last 5 years is suddenly somewhere else and I actually found myself turning into a store while hunting in my handbag for my phone, thinking it was a homewares store and finding myself in a store that bizarrely sells these ginormous cat in the hat type hats and the world's ugliest handbags... it was a testament to bad taste and I stood stunned for a good few seconds before beating a hasty retreat... if I wasn't so shocked by the visual assault I would have stopped and taken a photo to share with you, but my retinas were actually singed by a huge purple concoction with a lime green flower and red ribbons... I kid you not... someone is going to buy that and wear it some day.... I actually think I may have nightmares about those hats tonight ... I tell you I eventually came out of the centre happy to have survived and seriously relieved that I had finished all necessary Christmas shopping and won't have to go back there... for months... or maybe until it is finished... certainly not again before Christmas... any and all presents from this point on will be purchased at shops not there...

Home to a huge cup of tea, or two, and then a chance to madly visit blogs and catch up on seeing what everyone is up to, and start doing some following because it has suddenly hit me that I won't have a Mr Linky telling me everyone is... and a little painting, which has calmed the nerves somewhat and means that I am ready to attack domestic chores... oh joy!!!

Hooky , poppies and lolly bags

Is it really day 28 of Art Every Day Month...I am starting to feel a bit stressed and melancholy at the thought of it all being over, though there are so many great blogs I am now following and 

it feels as though I have found sooo many cyber buddies and kindred spirits...it has simply been the highlight of my year and that is saying something because I have had a pretty amazing year

So Monday morning dawned and I actually headed off to the art supplies and framers early 

to drop in work and they happened to have a little set of inktense pencils on the sale table

so I snaffled those suckers lickety split, and headed home to have a play... I picked some poppies because I have drawn and painted them a million times and jumped in with all excited and fully expecting to have complete mastery instantly...

which was a disaster...

of course...

so I painted over it with my trusty watercolours to get the piece above which is not a bad save I think and I am sure I just need a bit more play time and I will  I start to shout the joys of these little beauties...

maybe it was just that sort of day though because today was slightly weird all round which may be because usually Matt is off on a Monday and we go and have a nice breakfast and hang out

but today he had to work, so it all felt a bit wrong...

lucky Phantom played hooky or else I would have been very out of sorts... and so our day was filled with making bags of mixed lollies for a stall on later in the week...

and the delightful little poppet also had volunteered to make a table cloth for said stall

which as all mothers know means that she had volunteered me to actually do it...

so this is the logo that needed to be reproduced...nothing like a quick little side project hey

which she will take the credit for

as only a 15 year old can...

Thank goodness it is the end of the school year and only a few sleeps until holidays!!!

Winners are announced!!!

I am here to announce the winners

for my Mum's 100th post giveaway...

now not having opposable thumbs I had to enlist 

the help of said mother and the sister type thing

they were going to do a random draw thing using the internet

but looked a bit taxing for their little brains...

So Phantom had the bright idea of using the Bingo set

I am slightly embarrassed to live with a family that has

a bingo set

but hey humans are a bit weird like that...

So Phantom ,

who is apparently quite brilliant

just ask her she will tell you,

spends ten long minutes stuffing little numbers into the bingo thingy

which I am sure could have been done in about two minutes flat if I had 

those pesky thumb things

anyway

finally the time to draw 

and

number 62...

now considering there is only forty something comments

this caused great consternation and debate

and 

led to re draw after re draw

after the first 5 were all high numbers

at which I point I decided to have a lie down because this could take some time

finally

the mother figure stepped in and said we were doing it the old fashioned way

and the next ten minutes were spent

writing all the names on little bits of paper

and three were drawn

so with a great deal of drama and some doggy howls...

the necklace and ring set goes to...

The card and notebook set goes to...

and last but not least...

the prints go to...

Big congrats to all the winners and commiserations to those

who didn't get a prize

I know my mum thinks you are all pretty special

and appreciated you all because

she never stops talking about you all

and how supportive and lovely and 

yada yada yada

you humans sure love to talk...

so with those announcements

I will bid you all adieu

and go back to my normal job...

this modelling caper

is exhausting let me tell you 

much love

Mushu 

Mutant Gold fish

I do love ginger jars and tea tins, 

but to tell you the truth tea tins are usually quite elaborate 

and I just didn't feel like elaborate... 

so today a little pen and watercolour sketch of a ginger jar 

with some fish that appear to have some mutant qualities.... 

possibly they have been hanging out near nuclear waste, 

or a chemical spill or some other such ecological nightmare

... couldn't be my rather ordinary and lazy drawing skills today could it... 

nah... 

actually I used to have nightmares about mutant gold fish... 

trust me that you don't want to know too much more 

than think Hitchcock and birds, 

or in this case gold fish.... 

all those slimy little bodies hitting you in the face and dive bombing your hair... 

gross. 

so need a cup of tea now... 

and to work out how to do the draw thingy!!! 

Announcement tomorrow peeps!!! 

A Cheat's Guide to Resolutions

Day 25 is here and I am on the homeward run for AEDM

which is a little bit sad

because it has been quite a mad fun ride

and I have found many wonderful blogs 

and everyone has just been too sweet for words...

and no one has complained 

yet 

about the tea cup stacks 

which have made quite a few appearances

especially on PPF day if I am remembering right

sorry about that all PPF people... 

no tea next week

but as the month draws to a close my thoughts turn to...

December
and for me that means one thing...
time to set my 2011 resolutions... 
that is not a typo, I did write 2011 and there is a very good reason for this
you see I hate being locked into things 
and the chances of me sticking to resolution for 12 months are thin...
ok they are improssible...
but I figure I can sneak up on it...


and if aedm has shown me anything
it has shown me that I can do things for a month
and that means I could finish the year on a high 
and can smuggly say on
new years eve 
that I kept my 2011 resolutions.
so here they are


I will not whinge and whine, bitch and moan about the alarm going off at the crack of dawn...
now this is a deceptively easy one because there is only one day of school left for the year as summer break starts on December 1, and then the alarm gets turned off until late January... but  if Sinus Man decides to sleep upstairs on the night of the 30th then this could be touch and go...


I will make amazing lunch boxes for Phantom...
see note above regarding the fact that I will only have to make one...  but don't be fooled here either because to qualify for this I have to end the war of the cheese stick, which has involved me placing said cheese stick in lunch box every day for the last week, and it coming home every day... I know she isn't going to eat it, and quite honestly if she did she would probably end up with food poisoning, but I feel like a better mum if there is some dairy in there and it is my excuse for not making something mind blowing... as in ... you didn't eat what I put in there yesterday so don't expect me to make an effort today... in my defence can I point out that said lunch box is put together at approx 5.45 am so the fact that she doesn't get an old mango seed and the dog's breakfast is a miracle...


I will not grinch out when Christmas shopping...
this is going to be tough... maybe all pressies can be bought on line... then again cracking up when the internet connection goes down is still grinching I suppose... may review this one


To not kill any plants for the whole month...
including the artificial Christmas tree... almost did last year... trust me you don't want to know...


To make sure there are fresh... preferably insane looking flowers in the house all month... this is a late addition due to the purchase earlier today of these insane green chrysanthemums... how positively cool are these

To not put any more bread in the freezer...
Phantom is a coeliac, and I don't really eat the stuff yet we have enough bread in the freezer to see us through three winters


To always check painting water for little midgies so I don't paint them into work...
the tiny black specks on the tea cup stack above are actually dead midgies, painted in ... because I couldn't be assed to get up and change the water every five minutes because they insisted on dive bombing the stuff...


Ok
just scrolled back and that is starting to look like a scary list
and I want to ease into the whole thing
so unless you can think of something huge I have missed 
let's call that complete...


and a final reminder that I will be drawing the giveaway
in the afternoon Australian time
so pop over here if you haven't got an entry in


Happy PPF and AEDM all !!!

The Chrysanthathingy

The Chrysanthemum is finished and I now have a pair

which is nice

 but not as nice as I thought they would be

need a bit more white on today's

so it matches this a bit better

but it is rainy and grey

and still stinking hot and humid

so the paper won't dry

and the gouache is seeping through

so it can wait until tomorrow ...

Started laying in the colour for the tea cup stack

and had the same sort of problem...

but it is progressing

so I will take that as a win

and get back to it tonight when it cools off a little...

and don't forget the

giveaway

and last 

but not least...

happy turkey day to all the Us of A er's who are doing AEDM

hope you have all had a restful and fun day

filled with family and not too many dishes ...

Wondrous Wednesday

Today has truly been a wonderous Wednesday

my beloved decamped downstairs last night because...

and I quote...

 I think I am going to snore like a Bastard...

and he was right... 

so right the poor dog came and woke me up

 obviously worried he was going to be sucked into the vortex

being created by sinus man!!!

even with that small interruption 

 I woke refreshed and ready to take on the world...

or at least my little corner of it...

I had time to catch up on blogs for AEDM...

 got this Chrysantha thingy drawn up ...

to form a set with the other Chrystantha flower I had drawn earlier in the month

 before school drop off no less...

Mushu came for said drop off...

 and only cried half the way home...

 and didn't sneeze on me once!!!

I worked on cards ...

while sinus man did manly things and installed a new dishwasher...

no more dish hands for this little brown duck!!!

Sinus man then promptly  returned to the workplace

leaving me to continue working in blissful peace...

I managed to attach some pics to create some notebooks....

which is just as well 

as I have said one of them is part

of the giveaway

that I nonchalantly and with no planning whatsoever

announced the other day...

and I worked on making pendants and rings

and as I am not yet at the stage where I have to superglue them to anything

my fingers

are at this stage

still as they are meant to be

rather than the normal glued together mess that they inevitably end up in ...

which would be handy if I had a sideline as a thief or a bank robber...

cause I would like to see them try to CSI my ass when I have  

super glue modified fingerprints!!!

I even did some little Christmas gift cards...

partly out of shame

because I am doing WOYWW 

this week and I feel like the grinch when I stalk 

all those desks and see

all the seasonal loveliness...

not that my design was greatest I have ever produced...

but a start at least...

so now I am off to gaze at the dishwasher 

and eat chocolate cake for a rather late lunch

because there is no one home to see me other than the dog

and he loves me no mater what...

The complications of a simple stack

So task for the day...

simple line drawing right... 

maybe a little painting...

just a stack of tea cups and a rose...

A4 so not too big...

 not exactly a subject I haven't tackled before...

clear idea of what sort of patterns I want and the like...

should take no time..

no real interruptions...

like the dreaded drop off and 

pick up from school... 

I swear that line is the greatest buzz kill in history...

Phantom off from school...

but she has a stack of books and

the latest season of Supernatural to

keep her busy while

she becomes half kid half couch

and does her best impression of a sloth...

so why

 why 

why

did this take me forever...

seriously...

like hours....

cups look good...

 rose looks rubbish...

rose is good...

cups all wonky...

finally on go three get less wonky cups and half decent rose...

spill cranberry juice on it...

lets try one last time...

so far so good... drawn and clean...

thinking I should cut my losses for the day ...

maybe not attempt any painting...

 visit some blogs from other AEDM'ers instead...

be inspired by people having better days...

or find out how to work the draw thingy

for the people who have entered 

to be part of the rather hastily put together

giveaway...

still plenty of time to be part of it...

visit here...

http://traceyfletcherking.blogspot.com/2011/11/fur-baby-model-madness.html

and leave a comment and we are sweet...

Fur Baby Model Madness

Day 21 of AEDM and it is my 100th post anniversary... which is huge for me... not exactly known for my ability to stay on a single path, and this is two paths I am sticking with thanks to AEDM... so a doubly unlikely milestone... now I didn't actually realise I had actually achieved anything until this morning when the blogger round up informed me... but am feeling kind of proud of myself ... so I am going to do something I have never done before and do a bloggerversary give away...

Really wanted to have Phantom model the wares, but got the withering glare and I did detect a slight flaring of the nostril  and there was muttering about just got into school uniform... I am writing this before school drop off and posting later.... she didn't just get ready for school in the afternoon... so thought better of it and decided to not let sleeping dogs lie... so this is Mushu stepping in and showing us his best model poses... work it baby work it ...

He hung in there really well for the first one, though think he was still a little dazed as he had been tricked into sitting up with the lure of a walk... Can't believe how often this dog falls for that one!!!... and had no issue being cross dressed in the gerbera necklace and ring... he is secure like that... then managed to hold it through the cards and the notebook that isn't finished yet... it will be I promise, but hey I am working this out on the fly...

It finally twigged by the third pic that walkies promises were just a cruel ruse and that he had been duped again.. so he promptly lay down and I got this shot just before his head hit the couch and the eyes closed... he did well though and I am proud of him.... much more pliable model than Phantom and much better at taking direction.... 

So I need you to leave a comment, any comment and I will enter you into the draw and I will call my good friend Tracey Grigic Potter to find out how I do a random draw thingy, because if I have any question in the world Tracey is my go to and she is always right and good and puts me on the correct path, and then on Friday I will draw three names and you will get one of the pressies above... ring and necklace, cards and notebook , or an art print or two.... now they will be packaged nicely and all that but I have all week to get to that right, so you can just imagine how they will look...

Phantom has also asked me to mention that the model is not included in the prize pack... seriously she made me promise to write this... like I would give away the dog... what sort of person does she think I am... just because I regularly offer to give her away, doesn't mean I feel the same about the dog... he is a keeper!!! 

Trauma Averted

Day 20 of Art Every Day month and the creative fires are burning a bit low... today's work is also for Inspiration Avenue where the theme was Harlequin.... now I have a bit of a history with the IA challenges in that most of them have dealt with things that freak the bejesus out of me... owls, sewing, Masquerade Ball, fear and beach treasures to name a few... there have been rare glimpses of topics that are calming and fun to explore like Art Nouveau, Viva Espana and the first one , which totally sucked me in , which was sunflowers. 


So to Harlequin... thanks Stephanie...and  it is looking like I am going to need some therapy... I have no hassles with clowns... but Harlequins freak me out a bit... the whole creepy costumes and bells on hats just make me squirm....except in a scene in the Tudors where there were Harlequins, but that was also because the gorgeous Henry Cavill was in the scene and I was too busy gazing at his loveliness and imagining just how perfect life would be with him in walking around looking all manly and sexy... nothing could scare me if I could just gaze at him all day... if you have no clue who I am talking about do yourself a little favour and Google image him... oh my giddy aunt he makes me weak at the knees...


There was no way I was going to paint one of those freaky things, so went google searching... looked at the Wedgewood Harlequin patterns stuff... I actually have the cake stand in my studio... but way to complicated for my tired little brain... then I found a Malaysian harlequin Butterfly and a Harlequin Butterfly tea cup.... problem solved and no trauma has been induced!!! I even think It will make an okay addition to the little weekly roundup I have happening above my desk, which is all quite blue and orange on reflection... might need to change up the palette a little next week.

So happy AEDM and Inspiration Avenue Challenge... off for a Sunday afternoon nanna nap... and hopefully some Henry Cavill dreams...

Splice of Summer

you know summer has arrived when...

you wake up and

the sun is searing through your eyelids

and it is 5am...

when the cicadas can be heard

over the drone of the air conditioner...

and it is 5.10am...

when pomegranate and lychee iced tea

qualifies as a breakfast food...

when the path down the side of the house is searingly hot

when you are hanging out the clothes...

which are dry in ten minutes...

when the dog spends all day lying on the tiles in the bathroom...

which gives him the worst 

bed head 

ever...

when the leather seats in the car burn your bum 

when you get in...

when you go to the grocery shop...

and the mangoes are the cheapest fruit...

and cherries are finally here...

and 

there are kids walking around in their swimmers 

and sunscreen

at 9am

gazing into the freezer section

and discussing the merits of different ice blocks...

for what it is worth it is a Splice all the way...

the kids made the rookie move this morning of going for

the banana paddle pop...

they will wear most of it down melting down their arm 

before they can eat it ...

so you only get half an ice block

for your money...

amateurs...

they'll learn...

sending warm thoughts and apologies to all of you freezing through

snow and grey skies...

not meaning to rub it in...

but summer is here with a vengeance...

off to the pool...

 minus Phantom ...