The vintage is out of my system, for now...

A 1-4-1 swap on an Aussie art group I belong to. 4 x 4" canvas boards painted, inked and embellished for Lucy.

Take a couple of old hair scrunchies,

.. some old files from the recycling bin, three ink pads and a handful of images. What do you have? A couple of weeks of relaxation, time to fiddle and arrange, without really thinking, after long, long days at work.
At the end I wondered what to do with my offerings, so thee ATC's became notebooks - I am so glad I bought the Zutter.

Cards and tags will be packaged together and, "Voila!", some of my Christmas preparations are made. Nice cards are so expensive here in Australia and packs of hand made tags will be appreciated too.

I have been soothed by my needle going in and out of paper, calmed by the rhythm of my brush as it dances between ink pads adding a little colour here and there and strengthened by the time to be inside my head.

Would you like an ATC? No need to trade, just ask. If you are one of the first three I will send you one.

Thank you Jesus, for the peace I feel today. Thank you friends for being there for me through the hours, days or years.

Have a wonderful week!

Just Sharing...

Another crazy couple of weeks and yet I have still managed some creative time and a laugh or two (usually at myself) so all is well in life. Many thanks to all of you who commented on the earrings in my last post, I am often uncertain when I try new things, this weekend I am aiming to do some more in a similar style. However, for this past week or so it has been back to paper and pieces of history floating on my desk.

One of these giant pegs has gone to a new home as a result of a monthly 1-4-1 swap I am a part of, the others will reappear at Christmas.

A page from an Altered Book Round Robin with the theme Still Life.

A breath of spring; the print I was blessed to receive from Julia's blog give-away.

Tags made for no reason other than the fact I felt like playing wi th paper and thread.
A rare picture: Charles and Phantom keeping each other warm on a cold morning.

A season of giving and receiving.

It was only after I photographed this pair that I realised they were not opposites - and had to rehang the roses :)

It has been too long since I blogged so I will load as many photo's as I can tonight.

My life is truly crazy at the moment, I am acting in a promotional position at work and loving the adrenalin that comes from stretching myself, learning new skills and conquering my emotional responses to high pressure situations. I am not even minding the looooonnnnnnggg hours or the cakes I cook to bribe, er encourage, my team to attend meetings.

At home, the heater died and a water pipe burst in the back yard so I have been co-ordinating tradesmen - aaaaaaagh, how is it they are never on time? Even, when I am the first one they come to in the morning. Is it part of tradesman school; How to Annoy the Client 101. I wish they could replace it with:
Putting the toilet seat down 101
Picking up your own Rubbish 102
and
Wiping your feet 103
That said it is nice to have some heating again, and time will tell if I made the right choice.

It was fun to draw balls on sterling silver wire to form the basis of these earrings - gifts

for three dear friends with birthdays in the same week, and another skill from Stephanie's class practiced.

My beautiful hand sewn owl and crocheted sari silk nest were my Art-of-the-Month

gift from Jacky. I was so excited when this little fellow arrived as I had 'lusted' after him on Jacky's blog - hoping he might wing this way.

The tin covers are another Etsy purchase and brighten my desk at school, the happy puppy is also a gift from Jacky - I just love his squishy nose!

Bright vintage style ATC's received from Gaby; I so enjoy swapping with this kind

overseas artist.

Cheerful ATC's from a swap with Doreen, very beautiful the felted card too. Thanks Doreen!

I'll try and get back later in the week to add links. oxo

I have been shopping on Etsy...

This is Paprika a darling little cat with her own personality, from here. Is she a gift? Or am I spoiling me?

Hand knitted cotton dish cloths, no chemicals, no plastic, no middle man eating up the profits. So I got a practical and useful bargain from here.

Pot holders, do you see my sad, faded and frayed old one in the middle? I bought it 20 years ago! I went to grab a pretty one from a chain store shelf a few weeks ago and stopped myself. If something is going to be in my home another 20 years I like the idea that it is a one-off made with care and in fair trade conditions. I got these ones here.

Bracelet - At Last

Yes, at last I have used the bezel making skills I learnt in Stephanie Lee's wonderful class back in march. This bracelet is a gift for a special person. Can't say who yet, as she may read my blog.

I was asked to make 200 "Gratefulness" tags for a wedding - all identical - so am surrounded by a sea of lavender card and lovely sage ink, while looking forward to doing something a bit more individual very soon.

More Steampunk Earrings

As I post these I am chuckling to myself at the contrast between the grunge metal appearance and the Dancing Ladies a few posts back. I was over-the-moon when the two pairs of Dancing Ladies I listed sold fairly quickly - just love the thought of someone on the other side of the world wearing my art.

In case you are wondering the background here is a rusty old enamel tin I have sitting on my deck. It has holes in the bottom, and until now has been of no use other than holding the odd incense stick - and yet it is a favourite of mine.