Printers Drawers / Button Drawers

I love drawers, little drawers and I got these a few weeks ago. They are not the best wood but I varnished them and I think they have come up a treat. I love the insides, they are printers drawers, it's what they keep their alphabet letters in. I've been collecting buttons for donkey's years and that is what I am keeping in them now, sorted into colours. Most of the buttons are from old clothes or spares that you get with new clothes. I probably won't use the buttons that often, but I like looking at them. Some of the photos are a bit bleary, I seem to move the camera as I press the button and I probably delete as many as I keep!

The White Village has a Facelift.

I altered one of my 'housey' pictures a few weeks ago. It hadn't been sold at the exhibitions it went to and I didn't put it up for sale on my website because the frame had got slightly damaged & it also had glass [nervous about sending large pictures with glass through the post - I smashed one with glass just putting the picture in it!].

Anyway I took it out of the frame and wrapped it around a canvas frame and then painted over the whole thing with acrylic paints. I then applied metallic oil pastels and went over the stitching with black. The picture looks different colours from different angles. I prefer it to the original, which is shown below the collage.

The Sketchbook Project [62,63]

"Below the Surface"  ----- swimming race

This page was done with a liner pen, brush pens, felt tips, watercolours and metallic paints [Pearlesce liquid acrylic]

Save a bird this Christmas

I designed the 'Turkey March' card with vegetarians in mind a couple of years ago, and then altered it last year because I didn't think the turkey's were clear enough.... I'm still not sure, can you tell they are turkey's?

The Sketchbook Project [64,65 & 78,79] & Illustration Friday

Below the surface ..... of the egg shell

and

below the surface ...... of the sea, which is also my picture for the Illustration Friday challenge - "Prehistoric"

The Sketchbook Project [70,71] & bigger icicles

More & thicker icicles on the shrub

and

ice all around the rose stem below

The Sketchbook Project - 'Below the surface' of the forest canopy

TAST 39,40 & Icicles

I thought these icicles on a shrub in my garden looked really pretty.

The Take a Stitch Tuesday challenge for weeks 39 & 40 are the same stitch done in a different way. It is called Buttonhole Picot Stitch, normally done on an edge. I was having a few problems to start with but I think it was the fabric I was using,it was very creased & layered. I didn't like this stitch a great deal to start with, it looked a bit like I had gone wrong & ended up with a knot in the thread, it has grown on me a little. After my initial problems I thought I would use aida fabric to keep the buttonhole stitch even ... doh...I still veered off onto a different row. The sample on aida below is the stitch worked with bullion stitch bobble [39] and the one underneath is worked using chain stitches [40]. I accidentally deleted my full page view of week 39. On the chain stitch version I followed the flowers on the fabric, that is why the buttonhole stitching is uneven on that one. 

Free Gift Tags to print

Here is a set of gift tags that you may print & use, but please do not sell.

Click on the picture for a larger image, prints on A4, scale to fit.

When printed on thin card, cut around and punch a hole for a ribbon.

The Sketchbook Project [60,61]

Below the surface ...... of the clouds

[liner pen, felt tips, brush pens, gel pens]

The Sketchbook Project [54,55]

The Sketchbook Project, Below the Surface- a kingfisher catching a fish. This one is a bit different to my usual style. Watercolours & gouache

The Sketchbook Project [52,53]

I've just done a load of scanning, I didn't realise I had so many of The sketchbook project pages not done, so here is the first of the batch. One page I painted with gesso [the paper is so thin] and the other was stuck to the next. The sticking of two pages doesn't seem any better than the gesso, so I have gone back to doing that. It could be my sticking that is the problem, it's not flat. I also wonder if people will try to unstick the pages. The gesso has ruined some of my best pens so I've started using some old felt tips, gel pens and cheap supermarket brush pens which is what I have used for the above.

We have had more snow, I've never seen so much here before. I thought these planters looked like giant snow cupcakes.

Sketch Book Doodles

Robins and animal sketches, Illustration Friday

 The word for Illustration Friday challenge this week is 'savour'. Do you think this giant will savour his meal?

People Book [36,37]

Altered Book, drawings, collage

People Book [35] & Snow

Yesterday I saw the first snow of the season, & I was expecting another small flurry overnight but the snow was quite deep this morning. My hubby informs me that the last time we had snow this early in the year was 17 years ago. It doesn't seem 2 minutes since the long heavy snows of last winter. The snow looked very pretty on the branches of the trees [see bottom picture]

The Sketchbook Project [44-51]

I'm posting  four double pages today from my book for The Sketchbook Project because they are linked. The edge of the paper at the top has been trimmed and there are holes in the pages to see what is 'below the surface'. Each page has it's own [below the surface] subject too.

Boxes, Bags and Small Pictures

 I was having a little sort out & came across a box of items I used to take to craft fairs. Well as I don't do them any more I thought I would add some of the items to my website shop, most at reduced prices.

So I have boxes.... [ in the Christmas shop]

small pictures...... [ in the card shop]

these two little frames are so cute

and bags.... [also in the card shop]