The Sneeze House...

I must admit that there is a mild chance that my brain may in fact implode this week

 The dreaded/much anticipated renovation starts for real and for just three messy and noisy weeks my studio will be smack bang in the middle of demolition central

I am not sure how much painting will be tackled, but I am hoping that at least enough to maintain my tenuous hold on my sanity will be possible

 added to this excitement, spring has arrived

 with its seasonal swathe of sneezing and watery eyes

 not to mention the truly awe inspiring sneezes from our neighbor

 you have to admire a sneeze that can be heard through two sets of walls, a huge bloody fence and  across the yard... this sneeze is so epic it stuns me

the only disappointment is it is always a single so it scares the bejeezus out of you and then disappears before your heart beat even looks like returning to normal

sometimes I wish it was a pair, or a triple so I could truly admire the force of them, but I am always mildly stunned from hearing it so I don't get to stop and truly admire its volume

not that I admire it so much that I want to be too close

as I fear such volume may come with flyers... and that is never pleasant

But neighborhood sinus stories aside

and you will note I am blithely ignoring the fact that we are in peak snore season here in our house... I scarily think we may all be quite something to hear and perhaps sneeze house call us snore house... though I doubt we can even touch the volume required... perhaps as the season progresses we may work achieve such heights.. maybe

 Hayfever matters aside, I do love Spring well except for Barry's shenanigans

there is always something isnt there... Mushu used to sneeze on our feet and generally snot us to bits, but Barry seemed to be completely uneffected by seasonal snot so I was hopeful that spring life would be quieter with a cat

unhappily with the return of the warm weather sees a return to Barry sleeping in his self proclaimed cat hammock that is the shade cloth over the pergola

this is a genius spot as he can safely watch all that is going on, happily taunt the poor dog that lives in the sneeze house

and drop bear me like crazy when I go out to hang out the washing... every time he gets me

I swear I will just get used to looking up when I go outside and it will be high summer and he will have retreated in front of the aircon like the smart feline that he is

he got me twice this week

washing dropped on the ground, nerves shot and muttered curses that would make a longshoreman blush

quite frankly I sometimes wonder if my nerves will survive the season

When my sanity is in doubt there is always work to get me through

the blue and white love is continuing

This large lino printed urn is finally done 

and awaiting a frame to hang beside the other one

of course on seeing the two together I am more certain then ever that a third of the same huge proportions is required for them to really look great

so I will be turning my brain to planning another this week

on top of the painting I have been crazily filming and writing and the lino class should be up 

October 1

I am so excited to finally have this class opening and if you want to be kept up to date with it all and get the early access to introductory/ explantory video and information then scroll back up to the top of the page to sign up for the newsletter

I am actually filming and doing it as two classes... one for beginners, and one the next step on, so people can do the one that suits, or bundle both together

it is just such a huge area and if I was teaching it in person I would run it this way, so Lino Printing 101 and Lino Printing 201 will come in to being soon

exciting times ahead

happy painting all...xx

Dear Paperwork...

Dear Paperwork 

 I think it is time we broke up

 I know I am supposed to accept you as part of my life

 and yes I know that you are always there for me, quietly waiting on my desk

 but I have come to realize that you aren't my friend

 well not really

 Yes you sit patiently and wait for me to have time for you

 but there is something passive aggressive 

 about the way you stare at me while I am painting

 you don't ever say anything but I can feel the hurt you feel at my neglect

 and I am ever so slightly freaked out by the way you multiply while I am not looking

 I really don't want to know what you get up to to cause such multiplying

 let's just keep that as private paperwork business

  And while I am being open with you I also am not keen on the way you ever so slightly threaten to topple at the slightest provocation 

and paper cuts... I have come to realize that friends don't cut friends!!!

relationships shouldn't hurt and you have cut me one time too often now

 But the thing that really makes me wonder about you is how you say you don't really want to be friends with Tax Paperwork ... and Bill Paperwork

but you seem to hang out together a bit too much for my liking

and this week yourself, and Tax, and Bill have kept me from my real friends

the friends that make me feel good and happy

they might be showy with their splashy colours and their vigorous lines

but they make me smile and feel good and I never get to the end of the day feeling depressed or annoyed when I am with you

you aren't my friend Paperwork no matter what you say, so you can go hang out somewhere else, find friends who like your games 

might I suggest Sinus or Phants... they both seem to have lovely clear desks and I think you would be happy there

I wish you luck Paperwork but the time has come to say I don't want to see you anymore

Kind regards

Tracey... xx 

P.S make sure you take Tax and Bill with you... I really don't want to see them anymore either

Proofing The Next Vase...

This week has been all about the blue and white again

 I printed an edition of the large lino block of a vase which was awesome fun and resulted in half the house being blanketed in blue and white prints which was truly a sight to behold

They were printed onto A2 size paper so they were covering every spare surface

beds, floors, countertops... they were everywhere

 but it was a complete joy and Astrid was a fabulous printing assistant as it turns out she  has quite the talent for spotting uneven ink on the block and it is quite fun watching someone who happens to be a tad height challenged carry a wet print with the breeze wafting... it was like watching an adorable smallish person carrying a blue and white sail

 so she's not just a one trick pony with her ninja fence climbing abilities it turns out

Today was all about proofing the next block

and I am almost happy with it

it looks pretty close when I slipped it in the frame which is the first pic on the post

 and while it isn't quite there yet, it is very very close

Barry the cat was supervising and despite the whole walk across a wet print incident

 followed by his genius tip toeing across the perspex I roll out the ink on

 and finally rounded out with the constant flicking of his tail across ink 

he kept me company the whole time and watched with interest as every print was pulled

until he was bored at which point he meowed with increasing volume until I put his favourite box on the table so he could nap

I was kind of panicking about proofing this one as I believed bloody Sinus when he said he could carve the background for me to save me some time

so I was happily starting to carve the giant ginger jar I had drawn up

and we were chatting away and then he proudly showed me my poor block

needless to say a lot of repair work was required, including the need for superglue

but it has survived relatively intact after my initial misgivings and it is close to being sorted

Turns out he needs way more practice before being let loose on a block again

 Between drawing up blocks, carving, proofing, doing illustration work, ignoring jobs and chores, harassing Barry, buying even more fixtures and fittings and choosing endless stuff for the renovation I squeezed in some more painting

it was about the only time I felt sane all week

which is saying something I know

happy painting all...xx