Summer Sketches

Hello All,

So the Kids have gone back to school today marking the end of another summer. It always seems to go so fast. We have had a good one, very busy as usual going here there and everywhere and shipping the kids off to various family members to cover the days we had to work. Despite this we did manage to get a long weekend away just the four of us. A few days camping near Scarborough which was lovely. You can't beat fish and chips by the sea.

Here are a few quick sketches I managed of the girls whilst they were playing on the beach.

Done in pen and watercolour I think they work really well to capture the moments perfectly. Lovely memories to treasure. 

I hope you like them too! Back to the routine of school and work now and my workshops are starting very soon so time to get organised!

Bye for now xxx

A Few Art Journaling Pages

Hello All!,

I'm sorry its been a while, we have just got a new kitten and my time has been taken up with her and with it coming up to Christmas by evenings become busier and busier! I haven't managed to do a great deal except the odd bit of art journaling

This was a page in my small journal with a sketch of my daughter who just turned 5. I always struggle to draw my own children and although this is better attempt than most it is not quite her. I think because I know their faces so well I struggle to capture them, even the slightest line out of place means they aren't quite right.

This one is again in my small journal and is a happy doodly sought of page, I was feeling very content and I think my mood is quite well reflected in the page.

My mind has now turned to Christmas and all the crafty things that I love this time of year. I will hopefully be making some presents and I always like to make some decorations as well as doing some creative stuff with my children. I will get stuck into all this over the next few weeks so look out for some pictures coming soon!

Bye for now! xxx

Finding Inspiration

Hello All,

Sitting at work last week listening to music that I hadn't heard for ages and suddenly a song called 'Oh My Mama' by Alela Diane came on:

It is such a simple and beautiful song and really struck a chord with me. At the moment my eldest daughter is finishing infants and moving up to junior school and my youngest finishes nursery today and starts school in September. This week is the last week when it is just the two of us and although I am looking forward to some time to myself I also feel really sad. It is the end of a chapter and it has gone too fast, I feel I haven't been able to keep up and I will miss her a lot! This song really captures the feeling of being a mother for me.

I decided I needed my journal to channel some of these feelings:

I was also inspired by a fantastic artist called Mary Wangerin whose use of colour is fantastic! This page was done in my altered book and you can see in the top right an old fashioned image of a mother figure coming through from the original page. The text is taken from the song as is the imagery of the little bird.

I also did a quick page in my small journal:

This one is to express that feeling of time moving on relentlessly and not being able to keep up while days slip away. The text on the feather reads "days are lost to distant memories"

I will still struggle this week and in the coming months to adjust to the changes happening but journaling about it helps me to get my head around things and move forwards.

Bye for now xxx