The Solar Queen ...

I am betting some of you thought on seeing the title that maybe I had gone green

but no I am in fact talking about my solar Queen Elizabeth ...

she has a little solar panel in her handbag and that makes her wave

I kid you not

it is magnificent

 it sits on the window sill in the kitchen nook

waving regally to me all day

I wish they also made a solar Elvis and he had a knee that waved

how great would that look the Queen and the King hanging out and waving at me

seriously the greatest window sill decorations ever right...

Now before any of you worried that I have made her look a tad dodgy

and that the hand looks suspiciously like a clown hand

I would like to draw your attention to the real thing

on comparing the two, you will note I have been quite kind

the real thing gives her slightly alarming oompha loompah skin

and the dress a weird salmon colour which is quite unflattering

not to mention that her hair is downright scary

my father-in-law swears she is actually a waving Margaret Thatcher

which led to heated debate over the Christmas table

because of course the Queen had to preside over our Christmas dinner

it is quite the event after all

and if you have the chance to have the Queen along then you should take it

but all those faults and controversies are forgotten

the minute she waves me through my day

Her Solar Majesty isn't the only thing working for me at the moment though

I am also loving the 10 day challenge being run over on Facebook

by Jane Spakowsky

which is great fun and getting me back into the swing of doing a little something every day

except for today when I have done two somethings

because I thought if I just put up Queeny here

that they might think it was a touch random

which is no problem on the blog as you are all so accepting of my randomness

but some of these folks don't know me

so I am submitting a painting of this amazing Darjeeling tea tin

not quite as awesome as a solar Queen, but I am still loving it

I have been drinking Darjeeling tea like crazy at the moment 

and is fueling the painting challenge perfectly so it it appropriate to submit it

though mine is a boring box and I am wishing like mad I had this container

but I do feel that my Republic of Tea collection

has reached that slightly embarrassing, taking over the shelf stage

so might just add this to my wish list instead

So here are my paintings from the first four days of the challenge

plus a bonus waving solar Queen thrown in for measure... xx

and my last few posts links are here...

Lobster Tales ...

Glug, Glug Woohoo ...

P.S I wanted to quickly mention Featuring magazine to you all

it is a great mag for Mixed Media artists and it is starting a subscription service with the next issue... head on over to some of these links if you are interested in checking it out...

website

 http://www.featuringmagazine.com

you can buy issue 3 here

 http://www.featuringmagazine.com/archives/product/featuring-magazine-issue-3

or read what people have to say about it...

 http://www.featuringmagazine.com/testimonials

Lobster Tales....

This fair Sunday I am combining a post for the Artful Reading Club

and Sunday Sketches

I would have had it up a bit sooner but yesterday I was suffering some lingering effects

thanks to the glug, glug woohoo of Friday night

and headaches and painting lobsters don't mix as it turns out

So why a lobster

well it was on the cover of the book, The Dinner by Herman Koch

and after painting some prawns last month I am on a bit of a crustacean kick 

So to the book

an international bestseller it says on the cover

but I kind of wonder if that is true

as it also says it is riveting , tremendous, and gripping, not to mention heartstopping

and have to disagree with most of those things

but it does say strange and another mentions uncomfortable

and in uses those as descriptors they have summed it up pretty well

This is a great book for a bookclub because it would cause lots of discussion

if not down right arguments but it wouldn't be dull that's for sure

The Dinner all unfolds over the course of a .... wait for it... a dinner

 and centers around how far you would go to protect your children

even if they have done something awful

now maybe I am overly harsh but by the end of this book

I would have thrown the whole bloody lot in jail and been done with them

there is not a lot to like about any of the main protagonists

but that is the point I suppose

and though it moves along quite well it is a bit clunky in places

but I am thinking maybe that is because of the translation from Dutch

 I did like the cover though and it was quite fun to paint up the lobster

I have been trying to remember if someone actually ordered lobster during the dinner

but  for the life of me can't remember

maybe it was the trauma of spending that time with a bunch of self centred pratts

but it was a fun painting

so all is forgiven

if you are interested in seeing some more artful readers

then just click here and it will take you to the link

or here for Sunday Sketches ...xx

My last few posts links are here if you need a catch up...

Glug, Glug Woohoo ...

Book Confessions ...

Glug, Glug Woohoo ...

I am not much of a drinker these days

well not of alcoholic drinks anyway

I can't say the same for drinking tea of course

but alcohol and I aren't really bestest buddies

not that we were ever super close but we used to hang out occaisonally

and I always felt like we had a pleasant time together

but lately I just can't be bothered

which has to be a sign of advancing age and maturity right

stop snorting... the maturity thing has to kick in at some stage doesn't it...

Maybe I am not getting that much older, or that much more mature

perhaps there are other reasons for our fading friendship

maybe it is the fact that I have to get up at the crack of dawn

or that I always have 50 gazillion things to do

and get a headache if I even look at a drink

or maybe it is the fact that I can be best described as a glug glug woohoo drinker

Glug, glug woohoo means that after one drink I am feeling the love baby

I am relaxed and feeling the state of mild delusion that leads me to think I can do anything

 like be coordinated enough to attempt to walk and talk at the same time

and my randomness filter completely fails me

which means I bring up ridiculous things that I have been storing away in my brain

like wondering aloud whether tea flavored popcorn would be delicious

or whether horses get jealous of zebras, or do they look down on them for being so flashy???

that is all bad enough, but add in that after two drinks I am asleep no matter where we are... restaurants... someone's house... doesn't matter where... I am out like a light

and not the pretty princess sleep

we are talking drooling, snuffling and snoring like a trucker asleep...

Which makes me think that maybe it is a good thing

that my glug glug woohoo days are behind me

because while you can get away with the trucker sleep when you are young and fresh

and your partner still spares your feelings

and so wonderfully lies and tells you that you looked adorable

now it is likely to lead to your nearest and dearest perhaps recording said trucker sleep

and using it as their ringtone...

One of the few drinks I am willing to risk becoming an embarrassing ringtone over

is this summer cider with berries and mango

mainly because it tastes all light and lovely at the end of a stinking hot day

and the clink of ice cubes and the icy touch of a tall glass instantly make me feel cooler

not to mention that it is pink and oh so inviting to draw

so in the interests of having this sketch for Paint Party Friday

I will be running the gauntlet of glug glug woohoo

not right now mind as it is middle of the morning

but later in the day in the cool of the evening...xx

Here is what I have been up to this week in the studio ...

Book Confessions ...

Keen As ...

Book Confessions ....

I must admit to having a book problem

not quite as bad as Phantom's obsession

but it is up there

the New Year's Resolution to not buy any new books was broken in record time

and has been joyously ignored ever since

but in my defense I have been reading a lot of books from the shelves

and did do a clean out so I had gaps to fill

It is also time to come clean and admit to being a bit of a book slag

I am really not that fussy when it comes to what I read

two covers and pages covered with words and I will give it a run

except romance type novels, or the Jodi Picoult type ones

those I avoid like the plague, just not my thing really

I don't hold it against other people if they like them

after all I like shockingly bad sci fi books

I am talking Stargate novels and the like... embarrassing but true

and we all have our guilty pleasures don't we????

and I don't just like bad sci fi,

I  just don't mind a bit of cheese with my fantasy reads

 I also love literary sci fi, and fantasy books like the Game of Thrones series

 and a good dystopia is always welcomed

of course I do like art related books,biographies and art novels

and I collect and read cookbooks like crazy

The latest literary lists and prize winners are my happy place

not to mention a good serial killer or police procedural

a bit of mayhem and violence can make my whole day

especially British crime fiction...gore and violence with a side of humour is fabulous

and lets not foget the classics

these books are my forever friends

Gaskill, Hardy, Wilde, Maugham and about 20 other authors

can be read and re read and always bring me joy

Sinus, Phantom and I all have our reading spots

 and this painting of Phantom's and my reading chairs is a favourite from last year

Sinus tries to nab our chairs but mostly prefers reading while horizontal

and he swears he is able to read while his eyes are closed

though I tend to think the snoring makes tends to give away the game

Phantom is at that wonderful age where she is discovering the classics

and is devouring pretty much any book in her path

not to mention she recommended that I read Perks of Being a Wallflower

which was one of the highlights of my reading year in 2012

You may be thinking a post filled with paintings from last year is a touch random

but books and book related paintings were a bit of a theme last year

and I decided to re visit some of them as the topic over at APR was book related

actually I think it was bookmarks

so I am popping in this painting of bookmarks in case

and as to why I didn't get in and do a new painting

well the truth is I just started a cracking book and want to get back to it...xx

My last few posts have been ...

Keen As ...

A Sketchy Sort Of Week ...

Keen As ...

 You have to love a food stuff that spawns a saying

and keen as mustard is one of my favourites...

which I suspect may be a saying used in Australia and the UK

but perhaps not in other places

as I can't remember seeing this stuff in Florida when we lived there

I remember sneaking it in in my bags

sweating like I was a drug mule

all for the sake of mustard powder

The thing about this stuff is it bears little resemblance to actual mustard

but it does work as the magic ingredient in all sorts of dishes and so is indespensible

unlike the curry powder which is totally dispensable

and the little box in the pantry is only there to keep the mustard company

I wouldn't even be game to open the box to see the state of the powder inside

but the box is appealing and the mustard sits on its shoulders so it can be seen above the ground ginger and his mates so there it stays

They were quite fun to draw

and I got the idea to add them to my sketchbook

after drawing the prawns the other week

because that painting got us talking about the sayings that were disappearing

like don't come the raw prawn with me

I love that one, so much more fun that give me a break

but sadly it seems to have slipped out of common use as so many sayings do

So I was wondering if there is a saying that you use all the time

or that you miss hearing?

is there one that reminds you of someone special

my Grandfather used to constantly tell me to stop playing silly buggers

which makes me smile just at the thought of it

wasn't quite sure how I would draw silly buggers though

so keen as mustard fitted the bill instead

Happy weekend and Sunday Sketches ...xx

Here is the link to my last post for you ...

A Sketchy Sort of Week ...

A Sketchy Sort of Week ....

Gotta love balls

Chocolate balls that is

Lindor balls are amazing little packets of deliciousness

but have to say they are a pain to paint

or maybe it was the fact that I was eating them as quick as I painted them

and the resulting sugar haze meant I had a less than steady hand

but whatever the case these babies gave me all sorts of hassles

and ended up being a bit sketchy and messy

but it has been a sketchy and slightly messy sort of week

and the subject does fit in nicely with the whole Valentines theme

over at the Artist's Play Room

I have the new computer up and running a treat

largely helped by tech support in the form of tea and chocolate

and it was a good, though extremely time consuming task

to clean up the documents and photos from my old lap top before I moved things over

turns out I am quite the pack rat when it comes to keeping rubbish on my hard drive

but now I have this lovely streamlined machine which will give me more room to work

not to mention I can now find photos, scans and documents

without the habitual scroll down, shake head, scroll back up, have a bit of a cuss dance

that usually accompanied any sort of retrieval

the down side of all this is that I had little time to paint

and pretty much all I have to show for the week is the balls

and this sketch of the last bloom on one of  my agapanthyus

this bloom hung on through the storm of a few weeks ago

which is quite the example of resilience

but this week it finally gave up its last few blooms

so I quickly grabbed the sketchbook and painted it in

which means the last two pages have both been based on blooms in my garden

which is kind of a nice thing

Most importantly though, I see a free and clear week ahead of me next week

which means lots of studio time

which is almost as good as chocolate

can't wait to get back to some paint 

Happy Paint Party Friday all...xx

PS This amazing photo taken by the lovely Lori Moon

arrived to add to my wall in the studio

plus she sent me some Tombow markers to try... how cool is that... thanks Lori...xx

There has only been one post this week due to the computer change over

but here is the link in case you missed it...

A Warning Would Have Been Nice ...

A Warning Would Have Been Nice ...

Hey you

yes you on the other side of the screen

why didn't you warn me that changing to a new computer would do my head in so much

 I thought we were friends

but friends would have warned me that a computer change for a tech hopeless like me

is not something to be attempted in a day or so

that moving files and setting up everything

on the new instrument of torture machine would be crazy hard

but I am not giving up

I will be sitting here surrounded by dirty tea cups and chocolate wrappers

occasionally banging my head on the table and cussing like a sailor

until it all bloody works

see you soon my so called friends...xx

linking up with Sunday Sketches...

and here are my last two post links

just in case I never get another one up and running again...

So Many Types Of Wrong ....

The Pantry Pineapple ...

So Many Types of Wrong

I can't describe to you just how wrong this stuff is

who on earth decided to add Tabasco sauce and chocolate together

I can totally get the pairing of red wine and chocolate

after all who hasn't sat around with a bottle glass of red and a box of chocolates

and thought life would be easier if they were just put them together

so you would have a spare hand for the remote

And it's not like I have anything against flavoured chocolate in general

orange infused chocolate is glorious

and tea infused truffles from T2 are the stuff of dreams

but Tabasco and chocolate should never be paired

I can't even begin to describe how this stuff tastes

it is eye scrunching, head shaking, I need a drink to wash away the taste wrong

but of course Phantom Steve loves the stuff

she is one sick child...

Phantom has loved Tabasco sauce since she was really young

and while I quite like it, I certainly don't love it like she does

and on spotting this chocolate abomination she had to try it

and unlike many weird and wonderful food stuffs she has tried

she actually loves it, so much so I was sent to buy more this morning!!!

I honestly thought I would never meet a chocolate that I wouldn't love

I thought chocolate was like your children

in that even when you don't like them that much

you still love them and will always welcome them if times are tough

Chocolate was my friend... it had never let me down

but no... this chocolate will never be forgiven for shaking my faith like this

So I am painting this as a warning to those of you out there who love chocolate like I do

and need that relationship to be the one pure thing in your life

and while you might be one sick puppy like dear Phantom and love the stuff

there is a bloody good chance that it won't be for you

so approach with caution people...xx

Linking up with Paint Party Friday

My last two posts have been...

The Pantry Pineapple ...

The Pencil Tin ...

The Pantry Pineapple

There is a pineapple in my pantry

well there is a tin of pineapple

several in fact

and this pineapple is actually sitting on the bowl on my table

but the challenge over at APR is In Your Pantry

so for the sake of this post let's pretend that the pineapple is in my pantry

because it is more fun to paint a pineapple than a tin

And it is fresh pineapple sort of weather

late summer is upon us and we have been making smoothies

for breakfast, lunch and dinner

my favourite at the moment is pineapple, mint and yoghurt

I was going to draw up the yoghurt container

and no I don't keep it in the pantry

the yogurt brand is Roaming Cow

and it has this great cow image on its label

Sadly my effort at drawing the cow had a head that looked like a dog

and the second attempt inexplicably looked like a bat

so rather than painting up dog/bat/cow

I stuck with the pineapple

I have to come clean and tell you I have attempted a drawing of a pineapple

when I was in my botanical phase

but I never got past doing the top spiky bit

because it was taking forever and I ended up eating the bottom part

so all I have to show for it is spiky bit

but in the spirit of not wasting old drawings

here it is adorning the smoothie 

which I made after I painted up the pineapple used in this post

see I am learning not to eat my subjects before I am finished painting them

the old drawing sort of looks like it was meant to be used for this

because it is the right size for the glass

Painting up the pineapple also gave me the chance

to try out my new Peerless Paints and Strathmore Mixed Media Journal

that I ordered from Jane Davenport"s Institute of Cute

and can I say I ordered these on Friday and had them in my hand on Tuesday

how great is that

 there is nothing worse than waiting and waiting for an art supply order is there

the paints were pretty great

good clear colours and easy to use

you can see the palette I made up in the photo below

and the journal was nice... I would still like a smoother paper

and crisper white would be just perfect

but it stood up to the assault of buckets of water well

and it does open nice and flat so that is always a bonus

I am looking forward to getting back to working it again today

and all in all I am very happy with the new toys

So happy in fact that I am off to play with them some more

hope you all have a wonderful creative day...xx

My last two posts can be accessed here...

The Pencil Tin ... 

The Breakfast Sorbet ...