Tuesday, 18 March 2025

WOYWW 824 canal boat, sketching and teddy bears

Hi all, I’m back for our weekly  crafting bloghop care of Sarahscraftshed. I finished my canal boat painting his week. 
The ink proved not to be waterproof but I’m pleased with it. For my watercolour class tomorrow we’re starting  a study of flowers in the style of Kurt Jackson. He uses a lot of recycled jars, like this one, below. 
My flowers will be:
My pussy willow was from a painting this time last year and it dried happily. I wanted the ivy to drape but it’s firmly up-sprouting. 

I’ve also been sketching. It’s been 10 years since Terry Pratchett died so I’ve made a sketch of him. 

I don’t think I ve quite captured him but I’ll try again. 
There’s a huge set of video tutorials from Adebanji Alade’s The Addictive Sketchers Movement site so I could sketch happily forever more!
When my knee improves, I’ll be going back up to see my aunt. I spoke to her on the phone this week and she’s better since she’s been in the MacMillan hospice, eating and drinking well, and was able to have quite a conversation with me. The nurse said she still has some confused days and with her cancer, she’ll not get better, but she sounds more comfortable. Fingers crossed that I can get back up there soon. I’ve had an X-ray and have a consultation in 2 weeks. 
I had the idea of making her a twiddle mitt/ cannula sleeve. When I was six months old, she bought me a teddy bear which I still have so I thought I’d put a teddy on her twiddler, though less battered looking than mine. 



It’s surprisingly easy to make them look demonic though:
See what I mean?

Redone, and improved, they’ve multiplied😹. What have those teddy bears been up to?
I’m very fond of giving them a nice fat belly. 
They look happier now!

Bella loves to have her belly rubbed, too, and sends you all purrs. 
Her fur gets very staticky when she’s stroked. 😻

And finally. 

I can’t resist that one, this week, sorry!
























Happy WOYWW everyone. I’ll be round to visit after my art class. 
As I mentioned last week, I’m uncomfortable with unsigned comments and they will be deleted. 
Have a great week, all!
Hugs
Lynnecrafts xx









Tuesday, 11 March 2025

WOYWW 823 Sketching and hobbling

Thanks for all your good wishes for my aunt. She’s now in a Dougie MacMillan hospice close to her home in Blurton, Stoke-on- Trent. I’d like to go up and see her but my blasted knee has given up again. I’ve been back to my physio for a cortisone jab and have had an x-ray as the first step in getting referred to the osteopathy specialist. 
So here’s my desk today, catching up with my sketching lessons. 
Adebanji has a good way of getting you to see shapes and lines. 
This drawing started off as squares, triangles and outlines of the negative shapes, made by the spaces between things. 




He always says it doesn’t have to be perfect, it’s a sketch. This alpine scene was one to copy rather than a tutorial, but it was enjoyable to work on. 
At art class we’re doing ink and watercolour wash of canal boats. I had far too much fun wafting a feather loaded with waterproof black ink to make tree reflections in the water (everyone else’s were very neat), and drawing various thicknesses of line with my Lumos pen. Anyway, I’ll see how it comes out tomorrow. 


I couldn’t resist this photo of Bella, who sends purrs to you all. 


And finally…







I’ll be back to visit after art class tomorrow. I’d be so glad if you can leave a comment when you visit.  As I mentioned last week, I’m not comfortable posting completely anonymous comments, so please sign any comment at the end (I don’t mind about Google shenanigans at the top. 😼
Happy WOYWW
Hugs
Lynnecrafts xx

Tuesday, 4 March 2025

WOYWW 822 Sketchmad

Hi all, I’m back for our weekly bloghop courtesy of Sarah’s Craft shed. Here’s my first sketch from the new online sketch course I’ve joined. I think mine looks more like the late, lamented Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead. . 
Adebanji Alede is a good teacher, I think, and £10 for 5 lessons is good. I think he makes more from the long term  group and from affiliate links for supply purchases. 
The purchase I’ve been most pleased with are these jumbo pencils. You can shade with them on the side of the lead to good effect. There was a bonus session this afternoon, which didn’t go so well for me. I should have stuck to the dimensions of the display as I’d printed the reference photo too big. 

Tonight’s sketch will be this one:
It’s quite a leap! 

I’m knitting again- a cardigan for my elder god-granddaughter (aged5). I will go back to the crochet hat but it’s too much intense counting at present. My head’s not there. 


I’ve a new god-granddaughter, born yesterday to my goddaughter. She’s lovely and I look forward to meeting her when next in Stoke. 
I’ve not been back up to Stoke but my cousin let me know my aunt’s now much worse and they’re trying to get her a place in a local hospice. I’m not surprised but it’s terrible news, she was so vibrant and practical. This was only last August. 

Bella much prefers me knitting or crocheting to sketching as she can supervise. 😻 She sends purrs to you all. 

We went for lunch at a lovely pub on Saturday: the Duck at Pett Bottom which used to be owned by Ian Fleming’s aunt. 


I know who I’d like to put in these stocks. (Hint below)


And finally…


I’ll be back to visit after my watercolour lesson tomorrow.  I’d love to see your comments, but please could you remember to sign them - I’m not comfortable with totally anonymous comments. Thanks. 
Happy WOYWW and all the best to you all
Hugs
Lynnecrafts xx

Tuesday, 25 February 2025

WOYWW 821 crochet for girls

Hi all, I’m back for our weekly blog hop care of Sarahscraftshed.
Last week I went to Stoke to see my aunt, who’s very ill.  At best she’ll have to move to a nursing home, I guess, once she’s out of hospital. 
This Wednesday I’ll miss art class as the audiology clinic for my tinnitus insisted they only had this Wednesday 11:00 am appointment. Still, I do want to get rid of this blasted tinnitus. I took my hat crochet with me but have made loads of mistakes. It requires precise counting and even now I’m not sure I’m doing it right! At first I thought you had to make separate slices but now I’ve seen you do it in one. 

Useful to learn at least! I had a lovely time having dinner with my goddaughter (who’s 9 months pregnant with her second) and her daughter. I’m now commissioned to make a cardi for the first one in ‘pink and gold.’

Bella is making it clear that I have to do extra cat cushion duties to make up for the days I was away. 
She sends you all purrs. 

I’ve signed up for an online sketching course that runs from 3 -7 March. It only cost £10 and although it’s live at 7:30 pm you can watch the recordings. 
The link is here if you want to join. £10 sketching course

And finally…



You’re very welcome to comment but please sign your name at the end. I’m not comfortable with totally anonymous comments. 
Take care and happy WOYWW 
Hugs
Lynnecrafts xx

Tuesday, 18 February 2025

WOYWW 820 Stoke

Hi all, I’m scheduling this as I’m in Stoke visiting my aunt in hospital. I brought a bit of crochet with me: 
This is a paid pattern for a hat made of strips of leaves:


You make 5 or 6 of these and sew them into a circle. It may work, I’ll let you know. 
It’s a bit hard to predict what I’m doing as my aunt is a bit up and down. (Sorry, Sarah, I’ve not had chance to come over to Trentham; I’m staying at the Hilton in Shelton. Yay it has functional WiFi so far!).
It’s half term so no art class. Next week is the start of a 3 week project doing an ink and wash painting of a canal boat. I found this one, which will be fun when doing the tree reflections:
Bella’s at home looking after Brian but I’m sure she sends you all purrs. She did a good job supervising my crochet:

And finally:



Take care all and happy WOYWW. 
Hugs
Lynnecrafts xx

Tuesday, 11 February 2025

WOYWW 819 Crochet, shirts and ink

Hi all, I’m back for our weekly bloghop courtesy of Sarah’s craft shed
Thanks for your good wishes last week. My knee is now improving, thanks, and I’m rebooking to go to see my aunt in hospital next week. Next week I may not be able to post or comment- it depends on how the WiFi is. 
Still, here’s my desk.

It’s all a bit pale as my shirt is, too. I’ve found a wonderful watercolour by Winsor &Newton called ultramarine ash. It’s a transparent, granulating colour and mixes beautifully with copper blue to provide my shade. 
I’ve also finished the crochet slipover for myself. 
B says it looks military with the right shoulder buttons, but I like it. 

Bella helped me of course. 😻 She sends you all purrs


I had some great happy post today. Firstly a crochet bag that our LLJ made for me. 

I love it!
I also had a pen arrive from Tom’s studio with some gorgeous sea shades of ink. It’s a felt tip, brush tip, writing tip pen that’s refillable and comes with two pen heads and eleven different tips. 

It’s not cheap and I had a few niggles but I love how it writes and draws and that it’s not a throwaway pen. 
The second head is hidden in the middle and reverses for use. You’d struggle to write with both tips exposed as it only comes with one cap. I’ve just ordered a second one. 
Also you can buy ink sample bottles but the shade label is on the cardboard, not on the bottle so I’ve just added labels. 
And finally…

An oldie but goodie 😻
I’ll be round to visit after class and lunch. 
Take care, all, and happy WOYWW 
Hugs
Lynnecrafts xx