The Peculiar Adventures of Joanna

Painting Angels

2012-02-07T13:06:00.000-08:00

Suddenly there is a lot of work to do!

This is a sketch for two angel faces I am painting on glass for John Forbes at Bonny Doon Art Glass. I occasionally do painted glass work there, most recently on the Golden Butterfly.

These Angel faces are for a beveled glass oval dome, and are the only painted pieces - the rest being custom slumped beveled glass, thats why the face is the only shaded area on the sketch and the rest is the lines, or 'cartoon' to show where the glass will be cut. I need to do a detailed pencil drawing such as this before I start to paint on the actual glass, as I follow the drawing very closely.

Painting on glass is also a kind of reverse to tonal drawing, in that I cover the glass with pigment, and them slowly remove the darkness, as opposed to building it it, as you would with pencil on paper. Because of that, I need to know what my 'end result' is supposed to look like, before I start, otherwise it would be very hard. It's bad enough that the pigments used to paint on glass feel like you are painting with cocoa powder - they are very difficult to work with, and have no tolerance for mistakes. If you make a tiny wrong mark, or scratch, or even drop a tiny dot of water on it - it can ruin a day's work. All adds to the stress! But also to the satisfaction, when you get it right.

Each face will be fired at 1150 degrees several times, as I build up the layers of paint. I am up to three firings so far, and there will be several more, including stain and enamel firings at a lower temperature.

I will post pictures of the glass once they come out the kiln!

A new work companion

2012-01-31T15:17:00.000-08:00

Meet Dumpling. He is the new bear around here. I thought I could use an extra paw or two in my studio, so threw some mohair cloth, boot buttons and thread into the Magic Bag and let it steep for a couple days.

I'd almost forgotten what I'd put in there, until I heard a low growl coming from it. I opened the zip, as someone seemed to be struggling with it, and out he popped!

He seems a friendly enough fellow, and was keen to start work immediately, which suits me just fine. The only thing we've come to blows about, is that every time I turn my back, he's all over my tea. I thought I was going crazy - not remembering that I drunk it, until I caught him at it.

Have promised to provide him with his own mug from now on. Suspect that will also lead to cake provisions and who know what else. Now I wish there was a bakery in the Magic Bag, but that's just silly.

It's raining! It's pouring!

2012-01-26T14:01:00.000-08:00

Well - it was a few days ago.

For the most part, my hair behaves very well in the temperate climate of California, but in recent days it has grown in volume as the moisture in the air creeps into it. This is my barometer for the weather: small hair - sunny skies, big hair - rain in the forecast.

Time for Cookie to pull on her wellingtons, and for me to find a brolly!

Sketch 2, the view from here.

2012-01-23T15:08:00.000-08:00

So, onwards with the idea to spontaneously sketch more, as it's a great way to roll into work time. Sitting at my computer, I can see my tea mug, a printer, a bear (more about him another time!) some piles of paper and Cookie.

Ah yes! Cookie. I have a feeling that Ms Cookie Baxter may start to appear in rather a lot of these sketches, but she is a good muse, and tends to be wherever I am - so at least I always have something to draw.

This sketch is the view from my chair down onto her (in her little cat bed at my feet) and the interesting thing about it (well, for me anyway) is that it is entirely digital. That is to say, I started with a piece of blank digital paper and just drew, as opposed to sketching on real paper and scanning it into the computer as a starting point. I love the freedom the digital art gives you. It's so fun to mess around with effects, and not loose what you did previously, as you would with a real picture. I tend to be very 'just so' about my work, so the combination of spontaneous sketching and digital work is a good way to loosen my work up.

Moxa time!

2012-01-18T15:38:00.000-08:00

Do you use moxibustion? If you do, then the following will make perfect sense, and if you don't - I shall explain a little.

Moxibustion is basically like a fat cigar sized incense stick, used in acupuncture treatment. it is held over the skin to heat up the area being treated. I've been having acupuncture for my back since August last year, and moxa is just part of the treatment I receive.

After my recent ACL reconstruction, my acupuncturist suggested I use moxa on the scars - to help in healing the scar tissue. She said I can even do it at home, so I thought this was a great idea.It feels really rather wonderful, heating the area until really quite hot and pink, and the heat stays in the area for some hours after treatment, which is particularly nice on ones back, if you are used to a lot of pain and stiffness. It also smells rather pleasant too - sort of herb-ally, but I recommend the smokeless kind, as otherwise you end up smelling like a bonfire.

This drawing is a spontaneous sketch inspired by my recent moxa adventures. I've decided I need to sketch more. It's so easy to get caught up with 'proper' work and the likes, and I decided that a very quick spontaneous sketch is probably a very good way to start the day - a warm up, so to speak.

Cookie really isn't as fat as she looks in it though. In fact she really terribly skinny (my husband affectionately calls her a wretch) and try as I might, she will not gain weight.

And, conversely, I am probably not that skinny. But then I don't actually have dots for eyes and sausage fingers either, so lets leave it at that!

Oh - one thing that does probably require explanation: my 'post surgical' bangs.

Feeling quite the wretch myself after surgery, with all the joys of pain, drugs, immobility and constipation etc, I felt some 'perking up' was in order.

Answer: jaunty bangs :)

A gratitude ecard

2012-01-10T12:55:00.000-08:00

This design is one of four I have recently created for Gratitude Habitat.

It is a free ecard that can be printed out for you to send as you wish!

The idea is to encourage you to show your gratitude, by thanking those around you you really make a difference in your life. You can even just print it off as a reminder for yourself!

Each card has a gratitude relevant quote on it, and an image to support the quote.

I think just one image is available online right now, but I will post all four images here over the next few posts, and they will all be available on the Gratitude Habitat website soon!

Lola

2012-01-03T14:42:00.000-08:00

Now that Christmas has passed and the new year is upon us, I can finally show the painting I did of Lola the dog! She was a commissioned Christmas gift, which is why the finished result had to stay secret until now.

The painting is acrylic on handmade-paper covered canvas, and the paper has real leaves made into it, so it has a real texture to it. I also started the painting with modeling paste, so parts of the dog are even more textural again. There is a bee in the painting, to symbolize hard work, and as a reminder of pain, and the dogs collar is made of a daisy chain - symbolizing innocence and purity.

The dandelion speaks of happiness, and is the oracle of love. The dandelion clock references time and it's relation to love. The butterfly represent metamorphosis and change in life, and two mean love again.

I love to weave in symbolic reference or secret things when possible, in my work. I love the challenge of sliding imagery in - sometimes unnoticed, that has relevance and meaning to those it is created for! Mostly it's something I've done in my glass work, but since I am currently painting more - put it here instead!

Lola: 30" x 18" Acrylic on canvas

Happy new year!

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-23T16:44:00.000-08:00

Blog silence recently, due to surgery on my left knee to reconstruct my ACL ligament with some donor bone, donor ligament, empty toilet roll holders and glue! So, after 2 weeks of severe pain and a whole lot of drugs, I have returned to myself again.

Funny how you can be absent from yourself and your life, even if you are actually there.

So it is time to wish you all a very Happy Christmas, and post a picture of some custom star ornaments, made from poly clay and painted.

I do have a picture from the inside of my knee, but I thought the stars were more appropriate for the time of year!

My Ad in Gentry magazine!!

2011-11-29T14:31:00.000-08:00

My digital artwork is in November's Gentry magazine (p66-67) in the form of an advert for Corrective BodyworX - who I design for. Hooray!

Here is a copy, if you don't plan on visiting the magazine yourself. It's always fun to see one's artwork in print.

Alice and Andre

2011-11-17T15:30:00.000-08:00

Here are the last of the Grammar Town characters. Now it's on to something else!

Polly Pronoun and Cahn the Conjunction

2011-11-15T11:14:00.000-08:00

More from the project that never came to pass! Polly and Cahn join the other characters of Grammar Town. Polly has a 'can do' attitude, and Cahn is somewhat of a magician.

A painting of Penny Peach

2011-11-07T12:07:00.000-08:00

Things in Blog Land are a little mixed up for me at the moment, which is why I'm posting a painting of my dog Penny, before I even mention that I have a new dog called Penny.

But there it is! I will catch up with things at some point.

I was too excited not to post this though: Kim Santini, the incredibly talented, daily painter (Who's blog I follow) over at paintingadogaday , has painted My Penny, as part of the gratitude series paintings. This is a series of paintings of rescue animals, where part of the proceeds go to the rescue organisation they came from. I suggest you go to her blog to read more about this, and other projects, and you can see the link to the actual painting of Penny here.

I am a great fan of her style, and the painting is a very good likeness of Penny. I will post the picture she painted from, here, so you can see how good she is!

In other news - I have a knee that doesn't work, so needs surgery. And I have been painting, but it's a secret Christmas commission, so may not get to post it until much after, but may sneak in a detail or two in the meantime!

Will be working on more paintings soon, and plan to make some Christmas ornaments when I have my knee surgery (early december) so I have lots of 'sitting down' jobs to do - stop me from going out of my mind.

Victor Verb

2011-10-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

Here is another of the characters from the Grammar Town project I mentioned before.

He is Victor Verb - the King of Grammar Town. (think him and Nancy Noun may have a bit of a 'thing' going.)

He was a digital creation. Each character was created differently, to show the writer some different possibilities for medium and style.

The test results are in!

2011-10-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

Our beloved Cookie Baxter has always been a bit of a mystery, when it comes to knowing what breed she is. Every time we leave the house, someone asks me - and I usually answer with, "well, my best guess would be..." And the answer usually involves something about poodles and terriers, and reasons why she wasn't a chihuahua etc.

Well - I finally went head and got her DNA checked. I got tests for both Cookie and Heidi (results not back yet) and was really quite surprised to find out that she is, in fact, at least 50% chihuahua, with some tibetan spaniel and canaan dog thrown in! So the chihuahua part does explain the size (a healthy 5 lbs) and maybe the tibetan bit explains her fantastic nature and character, and the fact that she doesn't act like a chihuahua at all.

So, last night when I went to the dog park and was asked the usual questions, I actually had an answer! It will take some getting used to though, actually knowing what she is.

I'll post Heidi's results, when they are in.

Pedrini Preposition

2011-09-12T17:52:00.000-07:00

Here is another fellow from the project I mentioned. He is called Pedrini Preposition, and is an earnest chap, Just looking for love!

All of the sketches have a slightly different quality to them, as I was wanting to show different approaches to possible illustrations. I think Pedrini is my favorite of them all. He is created with acrylic paint, and tonal pencil.

Nancy Noun

2011-09-07T16:47:00.001-07:00

A good while back now, I did some illustrations for a friend, who hoped to get a book published. sadly, it never came to anything, but just today I found the folder with lots of sketches in. I thought I should at least share them here, as I realized I hadn't.

So meet Nancy Noun! The text was all about Grammar, so all the characters are names as such.

Next time I'll show another character. I did these when Baby was small enough to be sleeping a great deal still. Now she is stringing words together, and has a thing about 'horsey's'. Oh, where does the time go?

I'm finally finishing up my digital art work, and will soon be painting again. Looking forward to getting back to the real thing! I've got a couple painting projects coming up, so it will be nice to pick up a real brush.

Recent work

2011-08-30T13:54:00.000-07:00

I think I can now share some of the recent digital artwork I've been doing, since it is near completion. I was asked to create a new logo for Corrective BodyworX, and have also been creating artwork for ads, business cards and postcards etc.

The company specializes in precision massage in both spa and sport recovery, so it was fun coming up with imagery to reflect both sides of the business and also the serious and intensive nature of the work. This is no foo foo massage!!

I can't, of course, take any credit for 'Vitruvian man' who dominates the logo, but for me, he was the perfect representation for the company.

There are many iterations of the new logo, but here are the basic ones for the Spa and Sport sides of the business!

And on it goes!

2011-08-08T21:01:00.000-07:00

I know, I know - It's been a shockingly long time, but as is the case with most bloggers, the more crazy you are with work - the less you blog!

And so it is with me. Both the hare and the caterpillar have now been overtaken by Vitruvian man! Who, with his perfect proportions and long legs, was bound to win the race.

(Translation - A work project involving the above mentioned, has taken priority over my others projects, due to imminent deadlines).

Once again, I will post some offerings (artistic) when I can. This time, I am working digitally. Which is different, and somewhat cleaner, than most of my endeavors. Most fun, although it does seems strange to not have a flesh and blood object at the end of all that labor.

Ah well. In the meantime, here are a couple of fun carvings that I noticed on the cliff face of my local beach on a recent visit. Haven't tried poking at the rock myself, but from the look of these, it must be quite soft. I think they are very appealing!

Hare passed by caterpillar!

2011-07-07T17:18:00.000-07:00

Ugh! So much for bounding hares and their long jumping legs. My hare has been completely overtaken by a caterpillar of all things. And a lady bug:

I'm working on a couple characters called CP and Bug. They are real/digital illustrations to accompany a large 'word' document that supports an online workshop, for the lovely people over at gratitudehabitat.com

CP and bug get up to all sorts, and whilst I can't show you specific work sheets at this time, I can show you a collage of assorted goings on!

So, the poor old hare has been left snoozing under a tree, until this more pressing work has been finished, and then I can get back to him.

Running wild in the moonlight.

2011-06-10T13:45:00.000-07:00

I've been working on some new ideas for the Poly clay. Something different that I don't think has been done before. I decided I'd like to depict a hare and the moon, and whilst looking for images on the web, found a real blast from the past - pictures from Kit Williams 'Masquerade'.

I think I must have been about seven when the book came out (was it 1979?) and I seem to remember my father bringing it home one day. The treasure aspect was exciting and fun, but what really astounded me was the art work.

I 'd stare at the pictures for hours. Partly to find all the extra little special details, but partly because I couldn't fathom how they could have been created from a blank canvas and paints.

I thought of those painting whilst I scribbled away at my hare. It's tonal pencil on paper, and it has blank, white spaces for good reason. I won't reveal the purpose until I've continued the project - but will show more as it progresses. I've digitally darkened the image a little (for future reasons!) So the original is not quite so dark.

Anyone else remember Masquerade?

Heidi dog

2011-05-31T20:12:00.000-07:00

Heidi dog is known by that name because she is... umm, a dog.

That might seem obvious really, but to me, she is actually the first dog I think I've had in the house. All of the other furry children we'll loved and owned have been just that - children with lots of body hair that bark.

Pixie and Cookie (commonly referred to as The Buttons) most certainly are not dogs. Pixie - we believe, is actually a guinea pig crossed with a burrito, and Cookie is a widow in her latter years, who has travelled extensively and seen things that some will never get to experience.

Heidi is a dog. She barks and chews stuff, fetches a ball or stick, and eats poop. If she has a more complex and intriguing character in there - I am yet to meet it. She's very good at being a dog though. Almost as if she was born for it.

This is the canvas I have been working on recently. 24 x 30" acrylic on canvas. This one is a little different for me, as I used modeling paste on the canvas before painting it - so it has some real texture to it - I like the textural finish and will use the paste again for future work.

I'll show a picture of Heidi Dog too - so you see what I painted from, and I'll try and show a picture of the texture .

Cookies' frame

2011-05-24T17:50:00.000-07:00

Cookie's new frame is here, and I'm really pleased with it. It's a 'floater' frame, so the canvas seems to 'float' inside it. The finish is a perfect look to compliment the style of the portrait.

War and Peace

2011-05-19T10:19:00.000-07:00

This morning, the waters raged. Battering the rocks and shredding the brittle kelp into strange green snow on the beach.

And yet Peace existed nearby, out of reach from the grip of the tides.

Some kind of life.

2011-05-17T17:27:00.000-07:00

Life is finally settling into a new groove. The fact that I have some part time daycare for baby, means I can actually plan to get some work done too.

I'm at my most content when I'm working, and have especially been enjoying painting of late. Having finished painting Cookie, I have now started work on painting Heidi Dog. Painting Cookie was easy really, each little hair leapt off the brush onto the canvas, but Heidi Dog is another story. She has this crazy salt and pepper hair, which looks random enough until I try and paint it. It's been a real challenge trying to get her to look just right. This is a much bigger painting also - so naturally more hours will go into completing it.

Today's picture is a captured moment this afternoon. It's the trolley I have next to my drawing board, with my brushes and paint. Yes, thats a whole pot of tea - just for me! I always make a pot, even if it's just for one cup - it's tastes better. In the afternoon though - I do indulge in a whole pot. Yes - I do occasionally dip my brush in my tea instead of the water.

If you look closely, you can just see Heidi Dog's paws on the canvas in the background!

My Cookie

2011-05-10T11:53:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to paint my dearest Cookie for a long time now, but there are always more pressing things to do. So, having just moved, I thought I'd snook in some time to paint her, before other jobs and work take over. I'm glad I did. I finished her yesterday, and suddenly there are several other projects demanding time and attention. She is not framed yet - I just ordered a 'floating frame' for her, so will wait for it's arrival.

To me, Cookie's character is one of an older lady. Someone who has seen many things, and experienced a great deal in life. Because of that, I decided to paint her 'portrait'. Just her head, with rich detailed 'Morris' style wallpaper behind, and a necklace instead of a collar. I think the image captures her character well. Cookie and I worked together to design our own wallpaper, and she oversaw the entire project, of course!

The painting is an 8 x 8 inch canvas, painted with acrylics, and she is presented actual size!

Lost month

2011-05-05T14:47:00.000-07:00

April got lost at the bottom of the Magic Bag, and rummage as I might - I couldn't find it.

But what I found instead was May! All moved now: packed and un-packed, wrapped and un-wrapped. Pictures down and up again, and new locations found for teapots and ornaments. Baby faired well, and her bedroom has been virtually duplicated, so in her 22 month old world - life goes on.

Dogs faired fine really, except for Cookie who seemed to think the sky might fall on her head, so took to standing on my toes at all times. That way, I guess, she decided it would fall on mine first? All better since everything settled in one place only, and not in two.

After boxes and sorting came baby arrangements and husband needs, and when everything and everyone else has found a grove, it's time to find mine. So, back to work for me, starting with this poly clay heart (another custom order) destined for the UK.

The brief: Cats, ballet and motorbikes! Which seemed a tricky mix, but I think I pulled it off ok. There are also dates and names, and special song words.

Cookie wanted to sit with the heart when I took it's picture, so here's one of her too.

Talking of Cookie - a portrait of her is coming next! Already started, I'll post when it's done. I like to try and document our dogs with a painting, but don't often get time. Now I have catching up to do, as I haven't painted any of the current family!

Poly clay birdhouse

2011-03-22T12:16:00.000-07:00

Another resin/poly clay adventure: this time a little birdhouse. I love birdhouses - so many possibilities, and somehow I find comfort in the 'home' thing.

Speaking of houses, I am soon to be changing mine. We've wanted to sell for a few years now, but the timing has been so bad with the economy and all. We decided to try again a few weeks ago, and much to my surprise the house sold within six days. I'd like to say it's all been wonderful and we are now moving to the house of our dreams, but that wouldn't be quite right. I take some comfort from knowing that most of the world is currently experiencing economic turmoil, and as such, we have been swept along with most people on that tide. I think this is one of those experiences that I will just be glad to put behind me - no point dwelling on it.

For now we will live like birds, and find a pleasant garden with an empty birdhouse to nest in, and I shall take pleasure finding twigs and fluff to line it with.

I am optimistic about the future and it's possibilities. And there is always the magic bag for new adventures!

Another custom order

2011-03-07T14:32:00.000-08:00

I have just had the pleasure of another custom poly-clay heart order, this time to celebrate a wedding!

So the heart is now wrapped safely and making it's way to the UK, hopefully in good time for the wedding in April. So good luck to 'L and R' on the 15/16th April (the big days)

The heart is bigger than the usual ones, and allows a bit more space for patterns and words which is nice. Painted ochre and cream - the theme being nature and natural.

Custom order

2011-02-24T15:36:00.000-08:00

I have been rather busy lately with a logo design for a website - not work I usually do, and with a custom order of the bee hearts I made. The bee hearts all have wording on them, and a different name on each one, so each had to be made individually - no mass production here! The bead on the ribbon has my 'makers mark' on it. This is the mark I put on all my work, it's a 'J' and a 'D' for my name.

They are made of poly-clay,which I am still really enjoying working with, and painted with acrylics, which seem to stick just fine, which is nice after the difficulties I had with the resin. You may be seeing more of the poly-clay, it's so fun to work with, and so 'do-able' on the dining room table when baby naps, or I have a moment.

Happy Valentines!

2011-02-14T15:50:00.000-08:00

I have finally resolved the problems with the resin casts, and got them all painted and finished, so I thought I'd post a couple of pictures. I also made some tiny pumpkins, which I will call 'Fairy fruit'. The name is inspired by Cassia, of http://cassiathomas.blogspot.com/ who commented on my Pixie pumpkins, and is the perfect names for these, as they are way smaller than the Pixies, at a whopping 3" or so!

Happy Valentines!

Natures Cathedral

2011-02-10T10:45:00.000-08:00

I can't remember if I've mentioned The Grove before or not? Behind Holy City is a lot of mountain acreage. Not far from the studio is an amazing natural redwood cathedral, that has been turned into a quiet place of meditation and thought over the years. Some people come to celebrate the solstice, others to pray or meditate, and some just come to see.

The trees form a ring, inside of which is a large deep floor. At one end is a kind of Altar. I'm not sure how the Altar started, but little trinkets and charms appear and disappear, flowers are laid, and photos of deceased loved ones are carefully placed.

The photos don't quite do it justice, but I thought you might like to see.

On a roll

2011-02-03T11:18:00.000-08:00

What? Four blog posts this week already? It's almost like the old days! It won't last.

True, but who cares. I suppose it has been a rather creative time. I am officially 'without' commission work at the moment, so these are the times I need to play, experiment and try and make things that might sell! Mostly it has all been 'hearty' endeavors, but on a Valentines pink /red theme, I decided to make a couple Pixie Pumpkins/gourds too, as I know some people like the pink ones.

Not a great picture, but taken (once again) with my Iphone, and it's a case of 'bad picture - or no picture', as I am often to busy to think about taking my camera to the studio to document work.

At least this way I have a record of all the things I do!

Technical difficulties.

2011-02-02T15:09:00.000-08:00

Well, I blog about the successful art - I should blog about the troubles too, right?

I would have liked to have the resin hearts I've been working on all finished by now, and posted with pretty pictures etc. But be honest, I've been having a major learning curve! I've had many problems with failed painting, and failed primers, and have still not figured it all out. Today I went to purchase yet another primer and sealer - and really hope this is the one that will work, but can't paint on it for twenty four hours, so will have to wait and see.

I think one of my major frustrations with this learning curve is that I really don't have time for it. Once upon a time (before baby) I could mess about until I got it right, and it didn't really matter. But now - with such limited working opportunity - I need things to go right straight away, or problem solving can leak into weeks of lost time. I am trying to be patient about it all, given that I have been learning a completely new skill, but it's really hard! Especially when at each stage there is an associated cost involved, which all means it's not making money yet.

Watch this space though. In spite of my frustrations, I find with each step I can still find a little hope that 'this time' it might work, and that drives me forward each day.

Todays picture has nothing to do with work, and everything to do with continuing along a chosen path. Baby, Heidi and my dear Cookie, taking a springtime walk at a local tree farm.

More glass hearts

2011-02-01T12:18:00.000-08:00

Here are some of the hot glass hearts I got to make. They contain pink and red frit, stringers, dichroic glass and a few well placed bubbles for fun!

I often have special orders for these, and they sell quickly, so if anyone wants one - let me know!

Glass hearts

2011-01-31T14:18:00.000-08:00

So, some of the glass cast hearts are out of the kiln now, and a comment from Rosie (thanks Rosie!) made me realize that I hadn't taken photos, so I did so right away. Otherwise they would be sold, and I wouldn't have a record.

The first batch came out well - but not excellent. I have a pretty good idea why: I cast RTV 'positives' out of the plaster negatives, so when I went to kiln wash the molds (to stop the glass from sticking) there was a residue in the mold, and the kiln wash wasn't keen to adhere to the plaster. Tomorrow I will make more plasters - to cast more, and these should be nice and clean.

The effect on the glass is that is is not as crystal clear as I would like it, so we'll see what the next batch looks like.

On friday and saturday I got to blow some glass, so next time I'll show you what I made.

Making hearts 2

2011-01-19T22:34:00.000-08:00

The hearts are progressing. Today I started to cast resin into the RTV molds I cast yesterday. Quite amazing really, how many processes are involved before you actually get the item you are trying to make - I'm only realizing this as I document it here!

I took a couple pictures with my Iphone, so here they are. Some of them are positives, and some are negatives - thats because some are destined for glass, and some for painted resin.

Next time, hopefully, it will be the finished product.

Meanwhile, I've gone a bit Poly clay crazy. I find myself with a little ball of it in my hands, if I have a spare moment, and out pops a bird or a flower, as if by magic - quite addictive!

Making hearts

2011-01-14T15:49:00.000-08:00

Happy new year!

Work is currently quiet, after finishing several projects before Christmas. So I am currently thinking ahead - just a little - to Valentines. I decided I would like to cast some glass hearts, so set about making 'positives' as usual. This time, I thought I'd try a different clay, and got some poly clay. I have to say, I already like working with it. It's far less messy than regular clay, and doesn't dry out, which is so useful.

My husband saw some lying around, and asked why I felt the need to turn them into glass, when they are interesting enough by themselves. My answer wasn't a very good one - I said it's because I work in glass, and thats how I think. But it did get my thinking, and I have decided to make a few poly clay ones, and even cast some resin hearts too. It's certainly far less work than making glass ones, and I'm enjoying the level of detail I can create, without worrying it will be lost in translation to glass.

I will, of course, still make some glass ones to. But it will be interesting to see how they all turn out, and what response I get to them.

The pictures: The painted heart with ribbon and bead is for a friends birthday this weekend, and is kind of a first attempt.

The other two pictures show un-painted poly clay hearts, that I will try and cast resin (having made latex molds first) I will post them again after they are painted.

It's all a bit of an experiment, but very enjoyable, and so easy! I fired the clay in my little oven at home in 30 minutes! So it will be interesting to see how it all works out.

If the resin casts work out, I'll probably try and sell some, if anyone is interested!!

Will try and post more working pictures as I go along.

A different direction

2010-12-14T09:27:00.000-08:00

I was recently asked if I could paint a mural. It's not something I usually do - either painted commissions or large scale murals. But I took the job, and really rather enjoyed it.

The subject matter was also alien to me - cars and a gas station. Don't think I've ever drawn a car before, so I knew it was going to be a challenge.

The owner of the mural used to own and work for 'Signal' back in the day, and he wanted an old fashioned gas station, with a 1948 Chevy, and a 1932 Ford. He owns the Chevy, and his son owns the Ford.

Here are the results! I delivered it last weekend, and it will hang in a large barn, with all sorts of other motor memorabilia. It is 8ft x 4ft.

Zoe's window

2010-12-08T17:38:00.000-08:00

This is the second window for this client, and is in her daughter, Zoe's, bathroom. It is similar to a window I made before, with fused and leaded glass, in subtle colors. It is obscuring enough, without blocking out important light from the room.

The first thing that struck me, as I walked towards the bathroom, to take the shot - was the great reflection t made in the shower door, so I'll show that picture too.

It is a contemporary window - for the clients taste - and reminds me of what I know as 'cow parsley' in the UK. Not sure what it would be called here?

Interestingly - there should be no purple glass in this window. All the glass chosen for the project was subtle shades of blue and turquoise, to match the tile in the room. However, when I fired the fused glass - one of the blue glasses turned purple. I showed this to the client, who liked it enough to keep it in the window instead of me making it again. So I just added a little more, in the leaded section of the window (for balance) After I'd kiln fired the extra glass of course. It happens - glass can do some odd things when put under pressure!

Oh! another note. The window was created, made and delivered to the contractor to install, who promptly broke it within ten minutes, trying to 'twist' it into the frame. The large central fused piece in the upper window, got cracked in two, so the window came straight back to me, to be taken apart and remade - again. Not amused. All sorted now though, and safely back in.

I usually always end up installing my work, or being part of the process at least, but since baby's arrival, have decided that it's something that I just can't be expected to do. So it was particularly frustrating, as this is the first time I said 'no'.

The redwood window

2010-12-07T15:22:00.000-08:00

A few blogs back I showed you the plaster casts for some 3D glass I was making for a client's window. I finally have photos now that the glass has been installed.

This window depicts a redwood tree, with cast handmade glass, and has illustrations of the client's three children at the bottom of the tree. They are painted with kiln fired paint.

Next time I'll show the other window I made for the same house!

It's nice to finally have some work to show. Recently, I have been very busy 'creating' which often leaves little time to blog, and not much to show. Now, I have finished several projects, which means I can take the time to post at last.

At the bottom of the garden

2010-12-02T11:57:00.000-08:00

The Magic Bag has been groaning and wriggling - which usually means it's up to something. So imagine my surprise when I went outside to discover a little cottage had landed in my yard!

Well, that's how I like to remember it, anyway. It could also be remembered as the culmination of an awful lot of hard work, and possibly the cause, or aggravation, to six months of permanent sciatica, but I prefer the Magic bag version.

Since my husband works from home a great deal (when not traveling) and since the arrival of Baby, we've needed somewhere quiet and private as a working space. So this is the result - popped in a bottom corner of the yard that had been yet to find a purpose.

We had a company erect it, but I pretty much did the rest - from insulation to drywall and painting. Lovely husband did the electrics and laid the laminate flooring, and we each have an end: mine with a drawing board, and his with a desk and computer (and the guitar!)

The photos explain themselves, and I thought it would be helpful to see the area before the cottage landed. I didn't find any ruby slippers, and the only evil witch is me - bent double and grimacing with back pain!

Brown rice and black pepper

2010-11-16T14:38:00.000-08:00

This weekend, I took a brief few hours away from dogs, work and baby to spend some time with a friend. We travelled locally to Santa Cruz, and spent a quiet few hours talking and just 'being' for once.

We ate at a place that serves organic chinese/thai food, and were chatting about our crazy lives. I realized that these days - a 'wild night out' means eating white rice instead of brown, and going to bed at eleven instead of ten. I laughed to myself about it - and felt very tired the whole next day.

Well - you all guessed it would happen soon - we have got another dog. Really can't believe Dolly has been gone for nearly a year. The new dog is 'Heidi' and for once, we kept her shelter name as it suited her so. She is a something crossed with something else - part terrier at least, salt and pepper color, and weighs about 20 lbs, so a 'proper' dog by my husbands standards.

She is currently equal parts sweet and demon (she is only 8 months old) and like nothing better than to grab shoes/slippers/bra/trousers/towel/baby book or any available item, and to drag it through the dog door and outside onto the lawn to sleep on/destroy or bury.

I am very much hoping that all these things will be grown out of and leave a well behaved young dog - but time will tell on that!

The picture is her shelter picture - so she has grown a bit already, and her ears now flap down, instead of stand up. She was reluctant to stand still for a more recent portrait, and I don't have the patience or time right now to chase her for one!

Bob cats and bears

2010-11-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

Blog silence - as ever - can only mean one thing: Busy busy busy!

I have, at last, managed to actually complete some projects recently, due to 'Gran R' visiting from the UK, and giving me some baby free time to work (thanks Gran!)

This project contains a bear and a bobcat, and is for a couple who own a house in both: Los Gatos (the cats) and Los Osos (the bears). The window will go to their house in Los Osos, on the central coast, now it is finished.

I showed sneak peeks before of the cast glass around the border, and here is the finished window. It contains hand blown glass, cast glass, painted, stained, etched, sandblasted and fused glass, enameled and copper foiled glass, phew! Not sure I could have thrown any more techniques at it?

Oh - and bevelled glass, nearly forgot about that. I like the bear, although I think the cat is too big - but that was a client request, so not my artistic choice.

More pictures of finished work coming soon. I've finished two other windows and am currently working on a painting mural for a change.

Moon cakes and magic!

2010-09-23T16:37:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the Autumn equinox, and a good friend emailed to suggest I get some moon cakes.

I don't need any excuse to have a tea party, so off I went to Sheng Kee's Bakery in Cupertino, in pursuit of the little brown pies. I returned with a selection of mini moon cakes: nuts, pineapple, and lotus seeds, and these are traditionally eaten in celebration of the Mid Autumn Equinox, also known as the Moon Festival.

As the sun set, I cooked Chinese food, in keeping with the theme, and as it started to get dark, we illuminated lanterns and brewed jasmine tea. We joined our neighbors around their fire pit, to watch the fat, bright harvest moon rise behind the mountains. Incense was burned - to honor the Gods, and its rich pungent smoke swirled around us and up into the fronds of the redwood trees.

The pictures are of my dinner - before I ate it! And the moon cakes (and panda cookies for the kids!)

And my neighbors, with one of their daughters and My Marli, on her lap!

Good fortune to all!

Spare a thought

2010-09-16T15:31:00.000-07:00

I recently received an email from a pet sitting exchange I am part of, about the Los Banos animal shelter being overwhelmed with dogs. They asked if anyone could foster/adopt more pets, and to pass along the email to as many people as possible, as they were quite literally putting dogs to sleep by the dozen.

This, of course, struck a chord with me, as I love dogs, and I passed it along, and considered whether we too, could help by taking another dog. Especially as it has been nearly nine months (can't believe it!) since Dolly's passing.

It is my husbands turn to choose a dog - as I have had rather a monopoly in recent years, and sure enough, he saw a picture of a female terrier at the shelter, whom he thought would make a great companion. We set about mentally adjusting to the idea of another furry body in the house, considered in great detail the implications - a young dog, teething, training etc. Our own dogs, the baby, and all that.

When he called about the dog - simply know as 'dog 1444' it turned out she had been exposed to Parvovirus, and needed to go into quarantine for 10 days. But his name was taken and it all looked positive enough - the only worry was that the pup had not had vaccines as she was too young and had been stray. Ten days or so passed, and she reached the end of her quarantine period, but on the eleventh day, before we were even able to pick her up - she was stricken with the disease and died within three days. My husband got a call, hoping it was the one about collecting her, only to find out she was dead, and I feel compelled to share the sadness.

This dear dog never had the opportunity to know a loving family, and the small 'mug shot' photo from 'Petfinder' may be the only picture of her ever taken. But as least she was thought about - by us, and we had made a space in our hearts and lives for her.

Recently, on a blog I follow - Where's My Effing Pony? A post talked about 'Rainbow Bridge' and meadow. I urge you to pop over there and read about it, if you've never heard of it. It made me think though - that this puppy will be one of those who receive a special assignment in the meadow.

Amazing how sad you can feel about a little dog you never met! If you have a second, spare a thought of caring for this little passed soul.

On the bench

2010-09-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of work currently on the bench.

The cast green is for a redwood tree window - I showed the plaster mold in my last post.

The 'cartoon' (pencil and pen drawing) shows a sneak peak of where the cast clear glass border will go, once I've leaded it all together (also shown in last post)

The other picture is of cut blue glass on the bench, which is being cut for a fused leaded project for a bathroom window - I'll show more of that as it progresses!

Cast away

2010-08-26T11:18:00.000-07:00

I know it's all seemed very quiet here, but as ever - it's the opposite. I've been a busy bee with work, so I just thought I'd show a couple pics of what I've been up to.

I currently have two casting projects and a fused window too - so hot glass in the hot summer!

The pictures are of a border strip of cast glass - cast in clear glass. It's kind of organic, with a loose starfish and some pebbles, and the other picture is of a plaster mold, which is how I make the cast glass. Both are from different projects.

If I was terrible organized, the pictures would follow the process - but alas, I'm not! So I shall describe it briefly anyway:

I sculpt a 'positive' out of wet clay (so it looks as I want it to) and then I cast the positive in plaster (this plaster is the 'negative') When the plaster has dried, I kiln wash it (thats the funny purple color on the plaster mold) Then I can fill it with glass and cast it in the kiln. These are 'one offs' as I loose the wet clay when I pull it out of the plaster mold, and I pretty much always loose the plaster mold after it's been cast once (when It comes out of the kiln and I pull the glass out!) So If something goes wrong - I have to start over, which can be frustrating, but there it is!

I will try and post pictures of each project - when they are complete, so you can get some context!!

Seeing double!

2010-08-17T11:23:00.000-07:00

Just had to share this crazy picture!

On a recent day trip to Carmel beach, we came across this little dog called Bella. Both us, and her owners could not have been more surprised by the similarity of Bella, and our Cookie. Cookie had just had a trim, but they were the same size, color, eye color - just amazing!

Our Cookie was found as a stray in San Jose, with a broken leg, and terribly thin - we then found her at the Santa Cruz ASPCA, where she had been sent for rehoming. We got talking, and were amazed to learn that Bella had been found, not just in San Jose, but the same street as Cookie - so they HAVE to be related. Either Cookie is Bella's Mom, or a sibling from another litter.

Cookie is the most friendly and sweet dog, but strangely when her and Bella met - they completely ignored each other! like they couldn't even see each other - it was the oddest thing.

A Princess in her castle

2010-07-27T20:10:00.000-07:00

We have a plum tree in our yard, and it's never really done much. But this year we have a bumper crop of fruit, I think, because of the wet spring we had.

The branches of the tree have been virtually brushing the ground with the sheer weight of fruit, and today I decided it was time to relieve them of some of their burden.

Marli and I went outside with a large bowl, and I busied her with her Princess castle (more hideous plastic - but once again - she adores it) whilst I reached for the ripest fruit, leaving the rest for another day (and squirrels and jays).

I made the mistake of placing my bowl on her castle, thinking she couldn't reach it, only to be proved wrong, of course. And she was most upset when I insisted upon removing the pits from her mouth, to prevent her from choking. I set Cookie to watch over the bowl after that, on grass that looks very green, but like the rest of the fairytale castle - is plastic!

I didn't mean to pick so many, as there are only so many things I can do with them today, but there were enough for me to have some fresh, stew some for fruit crisps in the winter, and leave some on a neighbors doorstep!

A long, long time ago

2010-07-20T15:16:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, it was Marli's Adoption shower. I say that, as I am so far behind in blogging, that it is now almost a legend! Life has been incredibly busy recently, as as you all know, when that happens, blogs go out the window somewhat.

I thought I'd just take a second, however, to post a photo or two of Marli's tea, as it was rather lovely. High tea has to be one of my favorite things. I think it's one of the only 'British-isms' I have left in me (oh, and maybe Marmite)

Good friends were invited and we supped on cardamon, earl gray and herb teas. My friend Sima kindly organized it for me, and the food was fantastic, from curried chicken sandwiches to lots of cakes. The table looked lovely, and all credit goes to Mr Colin (husband) for taking such great shots of the table before we attacked it. The tea set pictured here is from the UK, from the 20's or 30's I think.

I have been working on many things recently, including glass designing and casting, and creating a work studio in our yard (now we are currently not moving) so I will try and post more of all of those things at some point.

Mr Baxter continues to come and go, although I haven't seen him much as I fear he was scared by all the banging and crashing whilst the studio was being built.

Baby is into everything and more, dogs are well, and me, well, I'm just exhausted!!

Seven seconds

2010-06-15T14:14:00.000-07:00

Oh what to do with seven seconds! Seven seconds is the amount of time I have determined I am able to focus on any one thing, at a time, whilst baby is up and about! This is the time between stopping stair climbing, or phone dialing, or eating kibble. But if I can join enough of those seven seconds together, I might just be able to write a blog post, but only once I persuade baby to stop playing the guitar!

Pictures of actual art work to come. (yes! real work!!)

Cat out of the bag!

2010-06-14T17:06:00.000-07:00

I now can show pictures again, having sorted some software issues on the new computer, and I finally managed to take a sneaky shot of he that shall be known as Mr Baxter - the mysterious ginger cat that still lives under my house. It was hard to get him to pose for photos, as the poor fellow is so starved for attention that he tends to be rubbing on ones legs if he sees you. So I used Marli as bait, and he rubbed on her instead, much to her amusement!

English roses

2010-05-26T13:53:00.000-07:00

Still no pictures, but words can conjure a thousand images!

At the weekend a friend brought me English roses from his garden. Large headed, with tender stems, cloaked in tiny prickles. No picture could do justice to the smell! From sweet lemony to dark blackberry, intoxicating body and mind. All with special names, all known by sight (to my friend) Even the air around them is heavy with perfume.

With each day, the blossoms drop: pink, peach, pale yellow and sherbet. And each day I scoop up handfuls of cool silky petals, and press my face into my hands, inhaling the potpourri of delicate smells, distinguishing new scents each time. Sometimes I put the handfuls down again, as they retain a fallen beauty, besides their smell, that requires salvation from the trash for another day (or two).

The scent evokes childhood memories of worm houses, tiled with broken found china, and perfume, made by mashing rose petals with rocks and water, under the shade of a weeping willow tree. It reminds me that nature often knows best, and that modification isn't always a good thing.

The blooms sag wearily now, heads too heavy for their delicate necks. But their mysterious beauty continues to draw me to them. Today I was trying to show Marli how to smell them, holding her close to enjoy their air. She held out a tiny finger and touched a petal, so delicately, I was amazed! But then she decided it was better eaten. Perhaps if I didn't know better, I would taste one too.

I have taken photos, and will share them when my computer issues are resolved!

More magic bag matters.

2010-05-24T13:38:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for your kind words for Pixie. I am very happy to report that she is doing very well, and has now recovered, except for a lumpy face that I'm sure will soon be covered by a coating of soft blond hair!

The Magic bag continues it's streak of turning out it's nasty crumbs, when last week, the hard drive on my laptop took it's own life. Any of you that have experienced it will understand the horror and realization, as you remember quite how much was on it, and also as I realized the back up drive (set up to automatically back up) had not been doing so since last July.

The first thought, of course, was for the hundreds of photos of Marli, our daughter. Born in June last year, and soon to turn one. Photos that quite simply cannot be reproduced.
Anyway - I won't dwell on what was lost, as there is far too much to dwell on, but instead, urge anyone reading to back up your files right now! just in case.

So - no picture today, as I am typing on a borrowed machine, with none of my files, but I just wanted to check in and say hello. I will hopefully return soon, with more news and pictures of nice things. Hopefully, this is the last of the nasty surprises from the magic bag, and it will produce some joy soon.

Poor poor Pixie

2010-05-03T16:23:00.000-07:00

What makes it's way out of the magic bag is for the most part good, but like all bags, it has it's dark and crumby corners that collect fluff and occasionally throw out the odd nasty surprise.

Yesterday's event was one of those, as I packed the car for a planned day in the city, looking forward to Golden Gate Park, and dinner with a friend. The Buttons happily trotted out towards the car, sensing a trip and excited, only to be ambushed by a neighborhood Labrador. Pixie barked at it, only to find her head suddenly in it's mouth (it fitted) and being shaken about. A moment later she was released and ran towards the house. I ran after her, following her trail of blood. Her screams of distress made it clear that things were very wrong, and one glance at her face made it obvious that our plans were about to change, and a trip to the emergency vet was now on the cards.

I suppose really she was very lucky. She weighs a whopping 4 lbs, compared to the Labrador's at least 70 + lbs. Her eyes were very lucky, being just bruised and not lost, but the other wounds will take some time and love to heal.

Today, she feels very sorry for herself, but I hope with each day that passes, she will rally more, and soon return to a happy button.

In the beginning

2010-04-28T11:00:00.000-07:00

In the beginning you were small and fragile, and Cookie thought you were her puppy. She protected you, sitting and sleeping by you, watching bath time, and trying to help with feeding.

I had wondered how the dogs would be, suddenly having a new little person in the house, but I needn't have worried, as Pixie continued with her usually rituals and Cookie became Nanny.

In the beginning, you were actually smaller than Cookie, which almost seems impossible, and certainly didn't last for long.

In the beginning, you were Peanut, a little brown wrinkled cashew of a baby, with character unknown and future uncertain.

Forever flowers

2010-04-27T15:37:00.000-07:00

The weekend (just gone) marked the seventieth birthday of Nancy - a friend of mine. I wanted to give her a token of sorts, but didn't want it to be fresh flowers, as seventy years almost needs something more special than that. So I decided to paint her some flowers instead!

The style is a bit of a departure for me - and why not! it feels good to try something different, and the style suited the current lack of concentrated time I have for doing things like painting, so all round it seemed like a good idea.

Peanut's finalization went well - actually I guess I can say 'Marli' now, since that is her name and she is now officially ours. I will post a picture next time.

Ups and downs

2010-04-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

Ups and downs and round and round. Sometimes it's just like that.

That's been life for a few months now, and I'm old enough (and hopefully wise enough) to roll with it, and either watch as things unfold, or read the signs that guild you forward.

The house is now on the market, and we have had several viewings, so that's a good thing. Six weeks ago my husband was laid off from work, but I am happy to report he started a new job yesterday, so we feel very lucky that it was for such a short time.

In Peanut news - we finally have a date for finalization! so on April 22nd, we go to court and she will be ours forever. Then I can talk about her as much as I want and show pictures etc, so expect more Peanut news in the future. It's been strange, as she is obviously a huge part of our lives, but I really haven't been able to mention her here too much, whilst she 'belongs' to the state.

Things are starting to shift. Unknowns are becoming knowns, and piece by piece the puzzle is becoming clear. Meanwhile, dear sweet Pixie continues with her daily routine of sleeping, eating, sleeping, grooming,sleeping, sleeping, and refusing to come for a walk - preferring to stay at home and, er, sleep. Amazing how someone within the household can be so unaffected by it all. Especially amazing as, by contrast, Cookie sees it all, and has taken to following me everywhere (even the bathroom) to make sure she doesn't miss out on anything that might happen.

In cat news, I finally caved to poor Kitty's mewing and upset one night, when we came home from a trip, and carried him (pretty sure now it's a him) under the house and made a bed from a box and blanket, and have been feeding him ever since. He's so friendly and wanting of affection, that he has to have been some ones at some point. I'm looking out for 'lost' signs, in case I find one that matches. He would probably be in the house by now if it wasn't for Cookie and Pixie's constant vigilance on Kitty patrol. But I think they are unlikely to let that happen.

Goldsworthy inspired window

2010-03-25T09:17:00.000-07:00

At last! creative pictures of actual work! I made this panel at least a year or so ago, but made the mistake of not taking my camera when I went to install it. I only just went back yesterday to finally get shots of it, so thought I'd post them here today.

The design was for a couple who particularly liked the work of Andy Goldsworthy. So I took elements from his work and wove it into the design. The light in the house was limited, because of the great redwood trees outside, so it was decided that the window would be mostly clear textured glass except for a few colored details.

The wife of the couple is a mid-wife, so her work is represented by the hand blown pink/purple roundel on the right, which looks almost like an egg in a nest, or an embryo. The husband is represented by cast glass chunks (shown in one of the detail pics) which also represent the ice that Goldsworthy frequently uses in his work.

The window is: hand blown glass roundels, painted, enamelled, cast, stained, leaded glass.

The pictures do not really do it justice, but the light is really tricky, both inside and outside the house.

The hand of God

2010-03-24T13:13:00.000-07:00

It may seem here like I haven't been very creative recently, as there is a distinct lack or art posted here. But in fact, it is the opposite. I have been so busy with work (and life and baby etc) that I haven't had the time to post at all!

When I have completed a bit more, I will post some hopefully suitable arty bits, but for now I need to keep my head down and get on with it.

Today's picture is of a couple of Icons from my wall. My husband would like a new tattoo at some point, and would like an interpretation of 'The hand of God'. Course, I was supposed to be designing that too, but passed it up as I am too busy. So we took this picture to take to the artist that will do the design, so she has something to work from.

The 'Milagros' or 'Miracles' are the little brass symbols on the hand, and represent prayers or 'wishes' for things, like love, health, wealth etc. I'll keep you posted, when his tattoo comes to fruition.

Nesting

2010-03-09T09:58:00.000-08:00

Spring in the US feels very much like a time to be nesting - or moving! In the UK, moving time happens at any time of year, but here in the US I've noticed that most moving seems to happen in the spring. As we all know, the housing market is terrible, so I'm not even going to begin to think about that here, but instead dream of the possibilities.

This week, between rain showers, I took a wander round the yard to see what jobs need to be done, prior to listing the house for sale. I have a lot of bird houses - this I know, but it struck me that they are all 'little houses', and with the cottage at 'Potterton Marsh' it made me realize how many buildings I have around the place. Like a whole village or community for little animals or beings.

Today's picture is of one of my favorites. If I were tiny, and looking for a home, this is the one I would choose. But I am big, so I will instead dream that I will one day live in such a house.

Oh! in cat news, it seems that a ginger kitty is renting the space under our house! This explains the unusual activity, the poop, and the dogs going crazy every time they go outside. My husband went under there to have a sort out, and there he/she was, snuggling on a folded patio umbrella. We have seen Kitty several times since, and in fact, when we returned last night from an outing, Kitty was waiting for us, mewing in the rain. I ran in the house and got a chicken treat, which seemed gratefully enjoyed.

I must ask around the neighborhood to see who Kitty is!

Apologies and mysteries.

2010-03-02T07:30:00.000-08:00

I feel bad. On my last post about the winner of the glass hearts, having promised to not reveal the address of the winner, I realised that accidentally posted it - Argh! So in my eagerness to remedy the situation, I have now accidentally deleted the whole post. Hmm, and I was beginning to think that me and technology were on first name terms,.

So, firstly, to ZT, I apologise. It is now gone. And I am hoping that perhaps it was not even viewed. Oh - and your heart will be posted soon!!

Secondly, in the interest of the space/blog continuum, I will post the pictures from said post, as I am still waiting for a response from Clemence, the second winner. Clemence! You won! Email me your address so I can post it!!

Finally, to distract you all from everything, here is a picture of a tiny snake on my deck, basking in the sun that briefly interrupted the rain. Not sure if he is the new tenant in the cottage of Potterton Marsh, in my garden. I will have to go knock on the door at some point when the rain stops, see if he does live there. What does one give snakes for welcome gifts?

In the meantime

2010-02-18T12:09:00.000-08:00

Whilst I wait for Monday to come around (the end of the giveaway waiting period) the rabbits have been back in the yard. All the rain has brought with it new green life, bursting from the usually rock hard and dusty ground.

Most mornings when I open my blinds, one, or both, can be seen having a light breakfast or reclining in the morning sun.

I sneak the pictures that I can, of course, but they do not usually appreciate the intrusion of the paparazzi, so in true 'expose' style, some of my pictures are blurred, or taken from a great distance. This was the case with these shots, as I was unable to get closer as they shared a grooming session.

The shot I didn't get (no camera in hand this time) was yesterday morning. I opened the front door to see a cat shoot by, as if it was being chased. At a safe distance, the cat turned to see if it was still under attack, so I followed it's line of sight to see the fearsome fiend, and saw......

the rabbit. (double-take from me) yes, the rabbit, which stared at the cat and then hop hop hopped towards it (menacingly) All this was just too much for the wide eyed cat who then ran off through the yard.

Cats have been pooping in my yard recently, which is not a problem, but Pixie has been eating the poop that the cats have been strategically placing around said yard, and that IS a problem, so I fed the rabbit a carrot, and hoped that that meant we now have 'an understanding'.

WHOLE new meaning to the word 'Bouncer'

(Note to self: buy carrots)

Today I give away my heart

2010-02-17T09:49:00.000-08:00

Today, after just over a year of blogging, I celebrate my 100th blog post. As promised I have the spoils of last weeks hot glass fun, so if you would like to win a heart, here is what to do:

Post a comment and tell me which heart you would like, all of them have names. On monday next week I shall draw a winner from the magic bag and tell you here! The winner can then give me details for sending the heart to it's new home. Hope you like it!

The hearts:

Cherry Darling: Red frit with gold overlay, deep dark color and weighty.

Midnight sky: Aqua blue frit with gold overlay, looks like a meteor shower in the night sky.

The dark side: Feminine pink and dichroic glass, all wispy, with a black liney dark side. We all have a dark side!

Spring flowers: Light and pretty, multi colored frit over clear glass makes for a confetti like spring flower mix.

How to make a heart

2010-02-12T16:43:00.000-08:00

Into the mold

Necking the glass

Working at the bench

Into the crucible

At the glory hole

Adding the colored frit

Back into the crucible

I've been pondering the 100th blog post, and what to do for a giveaway. Inspired by Valentine's day, I decided to make a hot glass heart or two, post the pictures here, and then give one away to you!

So, here is the process, and when they come out of the kiln tomorrow, I will post pics of the finished hearts, and explain the giveaway!

Happy Valentines to you!

Five years ago

2010-02-08T12:42:00.000-08:00

Five years ago today, having packed boxes and cases, we waved goodbye to friends and family and came west to America.

Everything is so clear in my head. Trying to get Ruby and Dolly to pee at 4.30am in the freezing dark in Staines,UK before kissing them and loading them into crates for the flight. Wondering how there were, 5 hours into the flight, hoping they weren't scared. Landing at SFO, picking up a rental car and wondering where we would be sleeping that night. Arriving at our 'new home' and having to think of strangely practical things like: what shall we have for dinner, and where is the nearest supermarket to buy it?

Each year, we like to remember the day, and recognise it's importance in our life. This year is no different except for the fact that Ruby and Dolly are both gone now, and we have a baby!

I mentioned the anniversary to a friend this morning, and she asked: were we scared?

No, we were not. Occasionally in life you have such clarity and clear vision, that it is remarkable and extraordinary. Coming to the USA on that day was like that. We knew without a doubt that it was the right thing for us, and five years later, the clarity is still as clear as if it were yesterday.

The picture is of Ruby and Dolly in the UK before we came here.

Spring around the corner

2010-02-04T08:55:00.000-08:00

With all this rain recently, I notice that the garden is full of dormant and newly awakening life. Plants bursting with buds and new growth, and green abounds in a way not usually seen in these parts - especially at this time of year. Spring feels like it may be just around the corner.

I realise that come 9th Feb, I will have been blogging for a year! and I am also coming up to the 100th post, which, given the latter part of last years baby related blogging quiet, feels like a little achievement at least.

I plan to do a give away of sorts to celebrate, so watch this space for info!

Random note

2010-02-01T14:24:00.000-08:00

Hooray! Finally got around to ordering giclee canvas prints of bunny and Boo paintings. I will be very interested to see how they come out. Who knows, I may get around to opening an Etsy shop yet. Maybe this year is the year!

This is a somewhat random photo of a book shelf in my lounge. I prefer to upload a picture as well as words. I know I like having something to look at when I visit other blogs.

I seem to have a bit of a thing about pears, as you may see - there are several of them of these shelves. Hope everyones Monday is a reasonable one.

New year, new hope, new painting

2010-01-28T14:30:00.000-08:00

It is time to put some of the sadness from Dolly's passing away, and replace it with warm thoughts and feelings about the thirteen and a half years I was lucky enough to share with her. Thank you, kindly, to those of you who left a comment, they were all greatly appreciated.

My other dogs - the buttons (Pixie Stix and Cookie Baxter) are doing very well, and have adjusted to the new 'shape' of things. They seem closer than ever. Cookie has resumed training (when Dolly was alive, she prevented her from doing so, being the Alpha and all) And Cookie is now rather good at: sit, stand, dance, down, beg, shake, and roll over!! not bad work for less than a month. She seems to love the challenge, and she certainly enjoys the treats that come with it. Pixie on the other hand, just enjoys the treats!

I have been really quite busy with work of late, which is very nice. Mostly because of the sense of achievement it brings. I'm sure many people would think that raising a baby is enough work by itself, but I do put pressure on myself to do more than that.

I have just finished this commissioned painting of a teapot. It is 14"x 14" acrylic on canvas. Still life is not really my thing at all, but I enjoyed the challenge, and think the results are quite successful. I'm a bit naughty posting it here today as the client hasn't even seen it yet, but I couldn't resist, and I'm sure all parties will have seen it by the weekend anyway, so you just get to enjoy it first!

Still working on some illustrating work too, so will post that as its ready.

Happy new year to you all.

The saddest of news

2009-12-23T16:20:00.000-08:00

It is today, with great sadness, that I blog about our dearest Dolly being put to sleep on Monday. I didn't have the heart to write about it before, I still don't really have the heart, but the fingers can type - so that will have to be good enough.

Dolly was thirteen and a half years old, and we had recently discovered she was suffering from advanced liver disease. We did the things we could to help, but after several months of very frequent bloody poop, we felt it was time to make the hardest decision of all. The final straw came last week when she started to poop every hour, 24-7. We were exhausted, and she was distressed, so we booked an appointment for Monday.

The weekend was special 'Doll time'. We took her to Carmel beach, out for lunch, curled up on the bed with her, and gave her so many treats and snacks that she has been unable to have for months. It was time well spent, but didn't make Monday any easier.

Now, my heart is broken, but I know it will mend, and in it's place shall be so many memories and thoughts of a truly loyal companion.

I'll probably post a few pics of Doll over coming posts. Ones which make me smile and remember all the great things. Many have probably been posted before, but all are worthy of posting again.

Moments and muddles.

2009-12-17T12:05:00.000-08:00

My yard is a pile of wood and mess at the moment, as I am having a deck and fence project done. Thought I would share a picture of the pile as it strangely reflects the contents of my head! That too is damp, disorganised and really quite a muddle.

Then we have the gawd, color and plastic 'survive the Apocalypse' exersaucer. Which, whilst horrific to look at, and even 'have' in the house, brings so much joy and pleasure to one (now six month old) Peanut. So - an honorable mention for you.

Next, we have a shot of some sketches I am doodling for a project I am working on with a friend, to illustrate some educational material about Grammar. I am working on A4 printer paper with an IKEA pencil. Yes!! I did say printer paper and an IKEA pencil. This is what I am resorting to as I realise the baby is asleep and I have a moment to do some work. Then - oh, my sketchpads and pencils are in the closet in baby's room (the room formally known as my studio).

Still - I am drawing!! hurray! AND - I am blogging about it, to boot. It's a good day!

Hark! the sweet sound of an awake baby, oh, and a dog just threw up. I'm not joking.

The view from here

2009-12-15T08:19:00.000-08:00

It was nice to take some time out to decorate the tree, and of course, the dogs were there to share in the experience. My husband took this picture of Pixie, from her perspective, and it made me realize what a big and scary place the world is from down there! Pictures are rather blurry, but who cares!

Also - the finished tree. Happy Holidays everyone!

Good reason led her West

2009-12-14T12:56:00.000-08:00

Oh how time flys! I have been creative more than this blog shows, and in ways that I would not previously thought of as creative. But I am learning that art and creation come in many forms and it's important to recognize that.

On the visually creative front though, I have managed to finish this simple painting on canvas called 'Good reason led her West'. It's acrylic on canvas, and has detailed little bird, a Junco a believe, in the corner. I actually painted it for my own bathroom, which we have recently remodelled. I really prefer original art rather than prints, so reluctantly set myself the task of painting a picture for the room. (reluctant, as it was just one more on the already enormous 'to do' list) I am very pleased to finish it, but mainly as I can cross it off the list as completed!! So now I can start on other jobs.

The holidays are looming, and a whole new year is right around the corner behind it. I am not much of a swimmer, but find my head just above water, thankfully. Hopefully, even if I sink I can muster the imagination to be able to breath underwater, and embrace that as a peculiar adventure instead. In the new year I will, at some point, roll to the one hundredth post - I'd better start thinking about how to celebrate? perhaps a give away or something?

The Golden Butterfly (part deux) - color!

2009-10-30T07:31:00.000-07:00

Here she is - finished in color, I've included a detail shot and one with me in the corner - mostly so the scale can be seen, as it's a large piece of work!

The Golden Butterfly

2009-10-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

This is a drawing I did for a stained glass window. I completed it at least two years ago now, but the window has only just been finished so It's taken this long to blog about it!

The image is taken from an old 'Kellar's' magician's poster, and depicts the 'latest wonder' known as the Golden Butterfly. It's hard to tell from this, but it is virtually life sized, and the drawing took a good week of full time work to complete. This was work I have been doing for John Forbes of 'Bonny Doon Art Glass', as my traditional glass painting skills are unusual here in the US, so I occasionally work for other studios.

Tomorrow I will post the pictures of the finished glass window. The colors are quite beautiful, and it really is a very good copy from the original poster!

An orange time of year

2009-10-16T13:05:00.001-07:00

I was really rather shocked to see that it was September when I last posted, so decided to do something about it! Whilst it may appear that there has been no creativity - in fact there has been rather a lot, which probably contributes to the quiet front!

I have recently been designing for a few glass projects, and am working on one of those currently. Other creative endeavors have included curtains and pelmets for Peanut's room, and I even managed to leave baby at home with husband, to go and blow glass for a grand total of three hours (whoop!) Life has certainly changed, and I am realizing that creativity comes in many unusual forms, and I need to appreciate each bit - no matter how small or seemingly insignificant.

I will try and post images of the various works in progress, as I can, but for them meantime I thought these were appropriate pics for the time of year. This was actually taken a couple of years back - this is me and Lil miss Pixie-Stix, choosing Pixie pumpkins for our local 'Magical Glass Pumpkin Patch'. Pixie likes to check each one (as they bear her name) as she will only endorse the best!!

Cutest Dog Competition

2009-09-28T17:00:00.001-07:00

Tent rocks

2009-09-23T12:53:00.000-07:00

On our drive towards the airport on the last day of our vacation, we stopped by 'Tent rocks' for a short hike. These peculiar rocks were formed after volcanic activity many thousands of years ago, and then eroded into their current shapes between then and now.

It was a muggy and hot day in the high desert, thunder clouds brewed over the mountains ready for the daily afternoon pour. The rocky canyon looked like a city of tepees, colored pink and beige - stripped with each strata of ash and gravel, spewed from such violent beginnings.

Only hardy plants and cactus survive here. I was surprised to see the yellow green shiny skin of a cactus, and even more surprised to see the lean body of a jack rabbit beneath it - nibbling at an unknown and scarce food source. As the thunder rumbled closer, we walked faster. When we finally got back to the car and continued on our way, I took the picture of the angry sky through the windshield of our car, as the clouds opened their arms and drenched the parched earth - probably enough to darken the soil colors a hue or two, but not enough to quench.

Do you know the way to Sante Fe?

2009-09-16T15:02:00.000-07:00

OK - so I know those aren't really the words to the song, but it fits!

We are back from our latest adventure to Sante Fe, and it was a most enjoyable one!

We stayed in a little Cassita three miles or so out of town, and spent the days wandering galleries, museums and shops, and spent the evenings listening to heavenly groans - as the dense black clouds swept over the rolling pink mountains like waves, and the thunder cracked and rumbled until the town was sprayed with rain.

Thanks for the suggestion Laurie - I did get to the Georgia O'Keeffe museum, although was sadly impaired with a migraine, so I have somewhat abstract memories of it.

Little Peanut did great with all the travel, and we were able to introduce her to the joys of art. I took her to see an exhibition of American Impressionism (she mostly slept - perhaps the pictures were to idyllic?) But she enjoyed the work of O'Keeffe, and was carried around by my husband to see all the works at eye level, and he tells me they discussed the merits of each image.

One day we took the high road to Taos, and enjoyed the scenery and many galleries along the way. We took a wrong turn at one point, and ended up having a micro adventure onto an unpaved road, which wound around the mountain side and led us through the silvery skinned aspen trees, that I had seen portrayed in so many artworks around Sante Fe.

I would love to go back in the fall, to see the leaves turn from green to gold - maybe another year!

Here are a couple pictures from our travels! I may post a few more soon.

This little pig

2009-09-03T09:11:00.000-07:00

Here they are - All ten of them. And on her ankle you can just about see the bluish gray coloration of her mongolian spots. Interesting thing - mongolian spots. I didn't know about them until Peanut came to us. She has several: on her ankles and wrists, but the most amazing ones are on her back and bottom. Those are completely blue in color! She could be Veruca Salt from 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. Either that or she's been wearing new jeans, and the denim blue dye has stained her behind!

A good friend Kim took this picture. She takes wonderful photos, and has a great lens on her camera.

All better!

2009-08-31T16:44:00.000-07:00

At last! Here is the magic bag - restored to it's former glory, hanging on a giant bird house outside my front door. I've never had the pleasure of having giant birds nesting in it - but I live in hope. The mirrors on the bag glistened joyfully in the sunlight when I took this a moment ago, and the zipper flapped in the breeze, ready, I think, for a new adventure.

On saturday we will go on vacation to Santa Fe (New Mexico) and I am ready for a break, so will soon have some exciting new photos to share, I hope.

My current adventures have been odd - in as much that they mostly involve the baby, and those are the ones I am fairly un-able to share here - either in word or in photos, as the adoption will not be finalized for a while. But they are the ones that I wish I could share - as every day has been a new adventure! I have been writing a journal (for Peanut) so that when she is older she knows how and when she came to be with us, and I have been sewing curtains and such for her room.

I have a rather beautiful photo of her toes - perhaps I could share that next time, as I don't think that would constitute too much information!

Dolly and the banana slug

2009-08-20T14:46:00.001-07:00

Well, Dolly seems to be the one having all the adventures at the moment! At the weekend we took a drive up to Mill Valley, over the Golden Gate- shrouded with fog, and barely visible to the hundreds of summer tourists walking across it trying to take photos.

We had brunch in Mill Valley, at a favourite place called 'Toast' and it was whilst walking around the town that Dolly had the good fortune of spotting the most 'bananery' banana slug I have ever seen!

It was large - thats the first thing. You can tell that by looking at it's size next to Dolly. But it was so speckled with brown, like a banana almost too ripe to eat and better used for banana bread.

I've seen many of these slugs, but all of them have been very yellow, not so spotty. Perhaps as they mature they gain the brown? just like their fruity namesakes? I don't know, but luckily I had the camera handy to take a snap!

I have, at last, finished mending the magic bag! I'll have to post a picture, as it is looking quite restored and fine. Restoration of magic things is always more complicated than ordinary items, as you are never sure how the magic will respond to alteration, but it seems genuinely happy for the attention, and I guess I'll see if my adventures are adversely affected over the coming weeks.

Dolly again

2009-08-04T16:37:00.000-07:00

At the weekend we spent some time at the coast in our 'weekender' camper van. So nice - sitting on the clifftops allowing the cool salty breeze to come in through the open door of the van.

Course - Peanut and the dogs came too, and we made tea, and had tea and cake and snoozed a little. The dogs love these sorts of days, and I'm rather partial to relaxing a little since the baby came along! Dolly was in a thoughtful mood, and also managed to find a comfy spot in baby's chair, whilst she wasn't there!

Happy accidents and dream catchers

2009-07-28T09:34:00.000-07:00

Thought it was about time for some art! And as I have been unable to produce any lately - thought I'd delve into the archives and see what I could find.

This is called 'Dream catcher'. It came about after a happy accident: We were making roundels (hand blown glass) at Holy City for the Atlantis mermaid project (she is who I use for my profile picture) and the glass was supposed to be a mix of blue/greens and peach/greens - for her lovely scaley tail.

When glass chunks are in the kiln waiting to be used - they all look pretty dark in color, so the wrong piece got picked up, resulting in a roundel that was red and green. Then, when the piece came out of the kiln, the middle had broken out - but it was beatiful and unusual, so I was determined to use it for something.

I then had the idea for a dream catcher panel. Dreams flow through the holes in the glass - the spidery web bits filter and catch negative thoughts or bad dreams. The other shapes around represent unformed, or incomplete dreams - swirling and forming around.

This is hand blown, sandblasted, stained, dichroic, copper foiled and leaded glass, free hanging 50 x 50cm.

Dolly and the bird

2009-07-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

Can it really be a whole week already since I posted last? How is that possible! I had great plans for blogs and IF sketches, that somehow got carried away - perhaps rising out of the house with the hot stifling air, the same air that fills it during this past week of 100 degree weather.

I know people have told me that the first few years with a baby go very fast, but I didn't actually realize that's because time itself speeds up. Peanut is now six weeks and counting, and changing and growing by the day!

So - to today's blog. After the mouse adventure comes other little creatures! This little bird flew into our french doors with a horrible thud, so I ran outside SO hoping he was alive. It seems to happen often where we live in the woods (that's what happens when pesky humans build solid structures in them!) And it always makes my stomach turn - waiting to see if the bird survives or not.

On this occasion I am happy to report the bird was alive - but badly stunned, from the experience. I scooped him into my hand and popped him in a plant pot - hoping it would be a safe place for his recuperation (and somewhere less scary). It turned out to be just that - with nurse Dolly on hand (much to my surprise) just watching very closely whilst the little fellow came to and got a bearing on his surroundings, before finally (some 30 minutes later) venturing back into the sky. Dolly watched him flutter away and then returned to her bed, content that her work was done. Another adventure! Tiny, perhaps - for me, and yet huge in so many ways!

Mouse adventure!

2009-07-13T11:30:00.000-07:00

It's all babies! Besides Peanut, here is another baby adventure that crawled out of the magic bag a little while back!

We were walking in our lovely local town of Los Gatos, waiting to cross the street, when we noticed a tiny mouse on the edge of the road, starting to crawl towards the middle. Standers by squealed at their children not to touch it, and a small crowd started to form. To my surprise it was Colin (my six foot husband) who stepped out to rescue it from certain death.

On bringing it to safety, we were going to place it in a hedge until we noticed that it was only a baby - so young infact that it's eyes were not yet open! We knew that if we left it, it would certainly die, so found ourselves coming home with a tiny grey mouse with white paws.

On the first night, it really seemed touch and go, we'd stopped at a pet store and got a tiny feeder and special baby pet milk, and I furnished an old shoe box with some fabric and tissue. We fed the little mouse several times, and stimulated him with a cottonbud, as we knew his mother would, and went to sleep - half expecting to wake up the next morning and find a tiny body.

To my surprise he was alive! and his tiny eyes were now open! Over a couple of weeks we fed and then weened him, watching him grow stronger and delighting in watching him eat grapes and seeds. We never planned to keep him - especially not as he was supposed to be wild, so we gradually withdrew human contact, and at about 3 weeks after he had come into our lives, I took him to a safe and wonderful wild space, and watched him leave the shoe box - now a grown, strong mouse. Our work was done!

We took a few pictures during his stay, my favourite is one where mouse and Cookie sniff each other hello.

Dolly got skunked!

2009-07-09T09:55:00.000-07:00

This actually happened a couple weeks back now, but I'm only just getting round to mention it now. It was late (midnight) and The dogs were let out for the last time before bed. When Colin, my husband, went to let them in, Pixie and Cookie came, but no Dolly!

Moments later he shouted 'skunk!' and shut the door, as a skunk stood in the pathway where Dolly should have been. By the time I got to the door, Poor Doll was back on the step, coughing and squinting and trying desparately to snort away the thick yellow greasy liquid that now covered her face.

What a nightmare! the smell filled the entire house in seconds, and I scrubbed her with rubber gloves, 'no tears' shampoo, followed by vinegar, for an hour before having to give up and go to bed.

The next day I called the grooming salon, and by the end of the day she had been as 'de-skunked' as possible, having had all her hair cut very short and special salon shampoo.

At least her coat is now really short for the summer!

IF: Shaky

2009-07-08T09:34:00.000-07:00

A quick sketch this week!

They were big shoes, and she didn't know if her feet could fill them. Her jelly legs quivered, shaky and jittery as her toes wriggled about inside, trying to find firm ground!

The tree house

2009-07-06T14:42:00.000-07:00

I had to show you this treehouse in the Santa Cruz mountains near where I live.

It belongs to Sue Cristallo, for whom I had the pleasure of doing a commission a few months back (the free hanging sun one). Each summer, she has a mini rodeo on her ranch, followed by a BBQ, and this was a couple weekends back now, but I'm only just getting round to posting about it.

It is the most incredible building, wrapped around trees and balanced on stilts, with rope bridges leading from the ground to it and other platforms floating high above the ground. It has a magical feel about it, and I am so glad that my peculiar adventures led me there to see it.

In the other picture is me, and swaddled in a green sling on my chest is Peanut! I am, of course, not allowed to post pictures on her directly, but I hardly think a green cotton lump on my chest constitutes one! And besides - it shows how incredibly small she was a couple weeks back, and tells me just how much she's grow already!

Thank you, by the way, to everyone who has posted comments recently. They are all enjoyed, and give me a boost to make the effort to blog, even when there don't seem as many hours in the day as there were before!

IF:Worn

2009-07-01T16:10:00.000-07:00

I had a quiet determination this week to participate in Illustration Friday, and am happy to say I did it! The subject may appear a little strange, but to those who know about the recent appearance of baby 'Peanut', it should make perfect sense.

I pondered the subject for many days, and kept circuously coming back to the same thing. Not surprising perhaps, as babies are now my main event each day. Funny - the baby in my picture even looks like a peanut! Couldn't decide on tonal pencil or colored - decided to go with colored for a softer look. Who knows - if I get really crazy with my time I might do it tonal as well, just to compare!

So - IF: Worn: As worn as she felt, the sleeping warmth of the new little soul lifted her weary heart!

Fabric in glass

2009-06-30T08:51:00.000-07:00

A fleeting visit to my blog, as the magic bag lets me up for air - but just for a moment!! I'm still contemplating this weeks IF callenge: Worn, wondering if I'll have a chance for a quick sketch before friday? perhaps it should be a self portrait (joke)

In the meantime, here is a panel I did a while back. The brief was to copy a piece of fabric that the client particularly liked. This was an odd one for me, so I decided to try and make it more interesting by adding irridised glass and by fusing certain areas so that all shapes were not just dictated by lead line. The brief was also only to use clear glass, but again - I sneaked in some very subtle color in the end. The results were quite pleasing! I've shown a picture through the glass, and one reflective picture - so you can see the irridised glass.

IF: Drifting

2009-06-23T14:41:00.000-07:00

Drifting.....off to sleep! A quick sketch of Dolly drifting into dreamy sleep. A quick sketch is about all I can manage myself right now, with the arrival of baby Peanut, and my own lack of sleep which also makes me want to drift...of......to.........sleep.....

A new adventure

2009-06-19T18:53:00.000-07:00

I have been very quiet for a couple of weeks - and with good reason!

The magic bag is old and familiar to me, but even so, contains compartments and depths which have still not been explored, so even now it is possible to be amazed and assounded at it's contents. This week it delivered to me a 3 day old baby girl, who we shall call 'Peanut', and Peanut came from the magic bag in search of a foster/adopt home. Whilst I knew the bag had the cabability to produce such life, it was un-doubtedly a shock to decide whether to take her within an hour, and pick her up within just a few hours.

Yet now, just a week later, it's almost as difficult to remember pre-Peanut time! And her presence and soul join, and fill our world as if they were always part of the puzzle - just perhaps a piece lost under the sofa - until now, when she suddenly completes the picture.

Because Peanut is currently a foster placement, I am unable to share too much information, and especially not pictures, but I just wanted to share her arrival - this 6lb bundle of possibility, who's life journey has joined with ours. For a short time or forever - still things unknown, but here now!

IF: Craving

2009-06-05T10:08:00.000-07:00

Mmmm, this little girl is craving candy. It it were me, it would be tea and cake, but everyone craves something a little different!

Poor old magic bag

2009-06-04T17:15:00.000-07:00

The poor old magic bag is in a bit of a state and needs some repair! Even though it's magic qualities enable all my peculiar adventures, and it contains untold mystery and whimsy, like any old bag it needs human love and affection to remain in good repair.

I suppose it has been somewhat busy this year, with the starting of my blog, and all the extra things it has to carry to accomodate my journeys and the need of followers. But I did not realize how poorly it had become until I called on it once again recently, to create kettle corn for a cinema trip. It managed to produce the dried corn kernels, but spluttered to a halt, coughing out a little of it's zipper in the process.

As you can image, I felt terrible! So today, on a trip to Santa Cruz, I purchased some new lining material and thread, and shall set about the repair as soon as possible, in the hope that my adventures will not be more adversely affected. I guess I have had the magical fabric for many years - perhaps twenty! and have only made one repair before, so it's about time.

The magic bag is the biggest one in the picture. The other bags retain no magic, but have other qualities - ranging from the ability to hold objects to making the wearer appear as a princess or Romany gypsy.

Button friday

2009-05-29T09:47:00.000-07:00

Friday rolls around yet again, and today's button offering is Pixie's tongue. This velvety pink nubbin of a tongue seems to spend most of it's time on the outside of her mouth rather than in it.

I'm not sure if it's just a small dog thing or whether it's more of a chihuahua thing, but when she is happy and content it just comes out! Sometimes it's a tiny pink nail polished sliver of a thin tongue, and sometimes it's a chubby mallow nub of a tongue, but it is amusing to see.

This week I passed through the lounge room to see her in one of her favorite spots (her bowser bed) and saw an un-presidented amount of pink, so I grabbed my camera and took a couple shots, so her tongue could be shared.

IF: Cracked

2009-05-27T11:19:00.000-07:00

This weeks Illustration Friday word is 'Cracked'. I thought eggs, I thought Humpty Dumpty. And then I thought nuts: A squirrel cracking and eating nuts - walnuts. So here he is. Always one to kill two birds with one stone, I made it as a circular design. I may one day turn this into a stained glass panel, similar to the 'Morris rabbits' that I already posted here.

Bath time for Boo

2009-05-26T13:30:00.000-07:00

Here is another finished painting in the 'Bunny and Boo' series. It's Bath time for Boo, and he doesn't look best pleased about it. But there it is, we all need to wash sometimes! This is another painting based 'on actual events'. It's not that Cookie and I actually take a bath together, but when it's bath time, she does come in the shower with me!

Like Boo - she's a little scared of the water, so I take her in the shower, so I can at least hold her whilst I wash her. Then she sits at the end of the tub whilst I wash, then I bundle her up in a towel and dry her. She curls up in my bathroom sink in a towel and I blow dry her there, all tucked up. Then she goes crazy and runs around the house - all poofed up fluffy black and white. Then she gets a treat for her troubles!

Button friday

2009-05-22T11:39:00.000-07:00

Sometimes they really are like little old spinster sisters. Here they are at a Santa Barbara motel last year. I'd opened the door to our room for a moment, then became distracted by something, next thing I knew - they were gone, so I wandered out in the sunny courtyard to find them, and there they were, sitting in these two chairs up against a sunny wall.

I almost expected to find them making crochet dollies and muttering about bingo, but maybe they were just thinking about those things instead.

A ghost at Potterton Marsh?

2009-05-21T17:11:00.000-07:00

Is someone living in the little stone cottage at Potterton Marsh? No sign of boxes or curtains, but flutterings and mutterings make me wander outside. No faces spied, or footprints trodden, just traces of energy felt and perfumes smelt, if someone is there, I'm sure they'll let me know when they are ready.

But I can't help but be curious.