Creative play

Hello All,

Today I thought I would share a process that I sometimes like to do when I am feeling uninspired. Sometimes I go through a lull and my motivation to create just isn't there. This is when I turn to what I call creative play. I delve into my art supplies and just pick some things that catch my eye..not too much or it is easy to get overwhelmed. On this last occasion I chose spray inks, modeling paste and some stencils, glass bead texture gel, iridescent medium, some ecoline watercolour inks, a few stamps and an ink pad, a few old book pages, and four tubes of craft acrylic.

I then prep some A3 plain paper with some gesso and get to work. Using only what I have picked I just let go and do whatever comes to mind. I don't think too much about it, simply just letting myself play with the colours and mediums and see what happens. Here's what came from this process at the weekend:

Sometimes I really like how they turn out and may add to them to create a finished piece. Other times I just stash them or cut them up and use them in other projects. What is important is that it gets the creative juices flowing again and straight away I feel more inspired. It is very therapeutic to just relax and play with the materials and even if I don't like the results I have spent a happy afternoon anyway.

I definitely recommend it if you have lost your motivation!

Bye for now! xxx 

Finished Painting and Creative Play

Hello All,

I haven't had the time or inspiration to do a lot lately and I think cold evenings mean I end up curling up under a blanket rather than doing any art. Today however I am not at work, the kids are at school and it is freezing outside. The perfect day for some creative play.  So I just got a piece of A3 paper and a selection of art materials, set myself up with some music and a cuppa and just let myself play with the materials, not thinking too much about it:

So far so good and it felt good to be creating. I also wanted to share my latest painting which is now finished:

I am really pleased with this one, I love all the metallic colours combined with the subtle pinks. 

well back to another cuppa, maybe a biscuit and some more creative play before the it's time to pick up the kids.

Bye for now xxx

New painting

Hi All,

I have tried to start the new year as I mean to go on with the start of a new mixed media abstract painting.

I started with the texture with modelling paste and glass bead texture gel both free hand and through various stencils. I then started adding colour to the smooth areas using pigment powders. I decided to use a box canvas and I am enjoying the texture spreading around the sides.

My aim is to ensure that I put aside time every week for painting and hopefully get some of them exhibited somewhere. fingers crossed.

Bye for now xxx

Happy New Year!

Hello All,

Happy new year to you all! I hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas/holiday. I have had a fantastic busy Christmas full of family and laughter. It just goes far too quickly, after so much build up it is over in a flash. Now I am back at work :( but the sun is shining and so far the new year has been a good one. I have a few resolutions this year.

1. To try and get more art/workshops done and focus on maybe getting some exhibitions.
2. Build up my you tube channel (although I hate filming myself!)
3. See more of friends and family.
4. To do the splits for the first time ever by the end of the year!

Please leave me a comment telling me what you got up to over the hols or any resolutions you have!

Now for a bit of art, here are few art journaling pages I managed to do over the hols:

This one is in my altered book journal. I was just playing around with texture and mark making and I restricted myself to just a few colours.

This is in my small journal. I really fancied using a collage background and used an old comic torn into pieces
. Many if the images were of ladies in the 50s looking so glamorous and feminine and it got me thinking about myself and how at times I don't feel very lady like at all! I used a copper paint to highlight certain areas.

I also managed to complete two mini mixed media paintings:

These are painted on canvass board and are only A5 size. I plan to frame them. I enjoyed painting these especially with the use of texture and pattern. I used pigment powders and iridescent medium to colour them.

Anyway lunch is over and it's back to work for me. I will be back with more hopefully very soon.

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

New Painting

Hello All,

Autumn is well and truly here or actually already on its way out with the first snow fall the other day. Christmas adverts are back on the telly and Christmas music in the shops. This is my absolute favorite time of year. I love the colours of autumn and the lovely bright crisp cool days (before it gets miserable cold and wet) The build up to the Christmas season is one the best bits with cosy evenings under blankets and delicious food ahead.

Inspired by the colours I got stuck into another painting:

To me it feels like autumn leaves in the rain. I like how the texture softens into a wash of colour like the colour is draining out down the canvas.

I hope you like it! Bye for now xxx

Some Recent Art Journaling

Hello All,

Apologies for not posting recently, I don't seem to have been able to find the time to sit and type. That is not to say I haven't been creating, I have been doing the odd bit of art journaling recently and I thought I would share some of the pages I have been creating:

This is in my altered book and was an experiment in playing with a hot glue gun to create texture.
I enjoyed adding the colour and bringing back forward some of the original text and imagery to the foreground. The glue texture worked really well, I will definitely be doing this again!

This was a 10 minute exercise simply playing with paint and pattern. It gave me a lovely creative boost on a gloomy Sunday morning. It is a lovely thing to do, just give yourself 10 minutes to play, it doesn't matter how it turns out!

I was using this page to mop up left over paint from other projects and decided to create an autumnal spread over the top. The image is taken from an old calendar I had lying around and the quote is from a Fiona Apple song that I always used to sing to my daughter. I also used a leaf stencil that someone sent me a while ago and I haven't had a chance to use yet.

This is a spread I created in my smallest journal. I was inspired by a lovely evening I had with a friend of mine and I really fancied painting a figure. I am really pleased with how she turned out.

I hope you like these pages, I will hopefully find some more time to blog as I have also been working on a new canvas and had a lovely art swap this month... more on this to follow.

Bye for now! xxx