Painting, it's Friday and a new book

Last night I dusted off my half finished canvases (literally) and carried on with some painting. After a long day at work and commuting to and from London I was a bit tired, so didn't get as much done as I had hoped......but boy did I enjoy myself.

I have a box full of things to make marks with instead of a brush. Old credit cards, string, feathers, hair slides and empty toilet rolls to name a few.

And this morning I treated myself to a new book and sat in Starbucks to have a read before the madness of the day begins.

Happy Friday to you all :o)

Thelma and Louise

I was talking to a colleague at work the other day who was planning a road trip to the west coast of the USA and it reminded me of the road trip I did. Arriving in San Francisco and spending two weeks in a car with my best friend, Thelma and Louise style. A fantastic adventure seeing parts of the USA that I never knew existed.

This photo was taken in Yosemite and it was about 7am in the morning. It was also one of the most peaceful places on earth I have ever been. Sitting on a rock taking in the view has stayed with me. Some places do that.

Have a wonderful Thursday.

Alan Oliver

I've been going through old issues of my painting magazines so that I can add the pictures I find inspirational into my scrapbook and then discard the magazine. I used to keep them.....all of them, every single one......and all I ended up with was a pile gathering dust that I never looked at again. So the scrapbook is a much better idea. It's also really interesting to look at the pattern that emerges.....it really helps define your style.

Anyway I digress. In the October 2010 issue of The Leisure Painter magazine there was an article on Alan Oliver and his use of gouache. Perfect timing to go through this magazine as I have just received a lovely gouache paint box. So I read on in earnest.

I must say I really liked Alan's style. I loved his loose expressive brush strokes and his use of colour. He paints mainly on mount board and he suggested for anyone who would like to try this to visit their local framers to see if they could purchase any scrap mount board - some even give it for free.


The colours in the painting above are wonderful - I just love the lilacs and blues against the white.

I am struggling to find a favourite painting and the one above and below are on par with each other. I love the abstract look to the above snowscape, how Alan scraped the paint on and off the board to get the desired effect. Again I love the lilacs....but then again for some reason I am always drawn to paintings with this colour in it.

The painting below is called Thatched Cottage and Alan has used Indian Ink to draw in the dark shapes. I love the way the paint has merged into each other to create this beautiful soft effect. I am seriously in awe of these two paintings.

I will definitely be adding these to my scrapbook and I really couldn't recommend creating one of these for yourself. Very inspiring.

If you want to find out more about Alan, then please check out his website.

Hope you are all having a good Tuesday :o) xx

Silent Sunday

Daydream Believer

I was really saddened to hear about the sudden death of Davy Jones. I am a big Monkees fan - I grew up watching their TV show and I even had a secret crush on him. Their show was fun, a little bit silly, but I loved it!

His sudden death is a stark reminder to make sure you enjoy every day you are here and most important of all.......to be happy.

So, be happy, watch the music and sing away....I mean we all know this song right? xx

Elbow and Happy Birthday to my Betrothed

Last night Jim and I went to see a preview screening of Elbow's latest remastered DVD's. We got ourselves on the guest list and made our way to Notting Hill to watch it. We are both massive Elbow fans and it was a lovely evening. Not only because we were watching our favourite band perform but also because we had a date...together....no children. It was lovely.

Unfortunately we didn't win either of the two signed canvas prints but we met some nice people, had a date and we were back home at a decent time - it was a 'school' night after all.

And it's my lovely Jim's birthday today, so happy birthday my darling and I hope you have a lovely day.......and I hope you all have a great day too.

Helen xx

My little sewing project

At last my little sewing project is finished....and here it is in all it's glory. Nothing exciting I know but after a lot of trial and error I eventually managed to sew a little cover for my banking pin pad.

It wasn't difficult at all, but I cut the felt wrong, made it all up as I went along and decided that I would not put on the embellishment I had made as it just looked silly. I don't like anything too fussy and I really just wanted something simple to protect the pin pad from all the dust and bits when it is kicking around my handbag.

And although it's not perfect I found the sewing very therapeutic and immensely enjoyable.

To think today I was looking at sewing patterns for a dress....talk about run before you can walk. Anyway, I love my little pouch and feel very proud of it.

Hope you all have a happy Wednesday. Tonight Jim and I are off to Notting Hill to watch a special pre-release of Elbow's latest DVD. Should be a good evening!