I'm melting

I've been a rubbish blogger lately. I went away for a week at the beginning of the month and I am still paying for it now. I've been spending most days in bed and the days I haven't been in bed, I have been sitting and staring at the wall like a mannequin. I'm completely exhausted and also I am wondering if I really was trampled on by a horse last night. Is it possible for one to sleep through that sort of thing? Very achey indeed. But I've been wanting to do SOMETHING creative for a while. So, I got out my unused birthday toy (a mini quilting iron) and began melting! I melted beeswax onto an older painting I did (pics at the end of this post) which gave it the finishing touch I had wanted. Also, I did an art journal page using melted crayons. Very fun indeed. Have you ever melted crayons before?

I LOVE the smooth finish of the crayon once it had solidified (which doesn't take long). So tactile. So stroke-able. Yes, that's right: strokeable.

I will post again soon. I will. Promise.

backdated art cards

I haven't forgotten about showing you the pictures from the scrapbook. In fact, not only have I already taken the pictures, but I have put them on my desktop ready to upload (it's easier from the desktop, trust me). But for now, I thought I'd show you the backdated art cards starting with this one which I have updated. That was when I was in London for the weekend and wasn't feeling particularly arty. Nothing like a hole-punch to jazz something up!

This 'play' one (above) was the day I got my belated birthday present: the Crop-a-Dile. I was punching holes in anything I could find: paper, card, chipboard, CDs, records, tin cans. It was only appropriate that I used it for that day's card.

Scraps from my scrapbook. I will post pictures today, I promise.

advice, please...

I did this painting a couple of weeks ago and have since forgotten what else I was going to do on it. I wanted the text like that and an image of a tree/some trees on a hill, so I've got that... but what now? I'd like to get some beeswax on there but that will have to wait until I actually have beeswax... and one of those mini quilting irons. I think it needs something. Any thoughts?

I lied

Okay so I didn't post pictures yesterday. It turned into quite a busy day. Today I have some art-journal pages to share with you. This one is one from a while ago but I jazzed it up with some ribbon, which I really like.

This spread is on 'rest'. As part of the recovery process for ME, I am having to teach myself how to really rest. I don't have the energy to be taking part in high-demand activity, so my days are generally filled with low-demand activity OR sleep (which I am VERY good at!). However, I need to be making time to really rest - just sit down and breathe for ten minutes. Don't read a book (that hurts my eyes and I have to use my brain, which is mush most of the time), don't watch TV: just sit. There are just so many other things I could be doing though!

I find blank pages quite daunting so on this spread I stuck down a wallpaper border (I always pick up some free samples when I'm in DIY shops). With a border like that, I needed a spread that was quite flamboyant, so the rest just happened. But I have no idea what to journal about on it! I think I'll wait until I have something so celebrate and dance about.

And finally this page. I really really enjoyed making this spread. Lots of layering and ripping and painting. It reads "one of my favourite places is the land of dreams". That's right folks, it's a whole spread about my love of sleep (or should that be my love for sleep?). The sketch I did of the sleeping girl (possibly me?) was one I drew years ago, so I just copied it.

Ah I do love sleep.

this and that

Well I've been working on a few different things recently, but I can't upload the photographs just yet because the camera batteries are charging. So here's a collage I did last week. Well, more of a mixed media piece really. I was just playing about but I really like it.

I'll post lots of pictures tomorrow (I scanned this).

come fly with me

Hi there folks. I have a LOT of pictures to share from my new colour-themed collage book, but there are too many to upload at this late an hour so, instead, here's an art-journal page.

I love kites!

my first moleskine

This was my Christmas present from my in-laws: a moleskine! I've wanted one for ages and I finally have one. I didn't use it immediately as I didn't want to ruin it. I have so many beautiful sketchbooks (not many that I can actually paint in though) and I'm the same with all of them - I don't do anything in them for fear of ruining them. THIS MUST STOP! If we forever save things for something perfect, we'll never use them! So, I have been getting out those beautiful sketchbooks and using them. I feel like I'm breaking the rules. Like going to the supermarket in your wedding dress (I've actually done that!). So here's my beautiful moleskine. Over the next few weeks and months it will look very different.

My first page spread. The beginning.

Second page spread. Time to have some fun!

Third page spread. As you can see, I've only done the foundation. Not sure where I'll go with this page.