Good Mail Day

Lately I don't seem able to catch my breath...  
life seems to be moving at such a pace.
And I am doing far too much of this:

               .......... and not enough of this!







And so imagine my delight when I arrived home from work and found this amazing envelope on my doorstep! 
I was lucky to receive it, because Deb was desperately rather sad to part with it!! This is part of the Pass the Book exchange, created by the very talented and generous Sian.

I hope Deb is not tooooo... sad though.
  Because I have just looked at her
latest post and she has also

received a Pass the Book.  And what is more, it is one that I also received  and reluctantly passed on.  So this is a coincidence and time for celebration, and a reminder that what goes round comes round.

I am still dashing and have a hall pcked with boxes and bags.  I am off on a 3 day creative retreat, you see.  I am making books about Me, Me, Me!!!  Ideally it should include photos and I tend to delete more of myself than I save, so this should be an interesting project.  I am packing my Explore album,  there is barely 2 pages done and this fits in well with the residential theme.  Hopefully I will come home relaxed and creatively challenged satisfied.

SYNCHRONICITY

         Today I went to London where I met friends for lunch and visited Spitalfields Market.  

And when I got home I used the Random Generator to choose

the lucky person who will be next to receive Painted Pages.

Drum roll............

5th person to leave a comment was

Alexa !

CONGRATULATIONS!  I'll be Passing the Book as soon as I have your details.

Thank you to everyone who left comments, and to Sian for the idea.

I'll be sad to part with the book but I know I can buy my own copy if I miss it too much!


POSTSCRIPT: 
I had my finger posed over the 'publish' button when 'ping' a new comment arrived on my screen.


It was from Alexa.  Guess what she said? 
"Isn't synchronicity wonderful!"

Her comment related to chance happenings, something I had written about in my previous post. 

Yes, Alexa!  It certainly is, especially when it happens in succession !!!!

   

  

  

MONDAY MEANDERINGS

Just a quick reminder that I shall be picking a lucky name to receive 'PASS THE BOOK' so to be in for a chance post a comment today!

It has been a 'colourful' week.  Shimelle has focused on colour in her 3rd week of Explore.  I've not done any of the prompts as yet, I'm saving them for when I have more time so that I can enjoy them and not feel under pressure.  However, I did put together my Creative Color Challenge which was to create a colour spectrum using any medium.  Since my workspace is still inaccessible I chose to do this on my computer, I was pleased to be able to use some of my photos.  I knew they'd come in useful one day!

Do you remember I have complained recently that I frequently can't leave comments and am having lots of problems with Blogger?  Well it seems I am not alone.  I was hugely relieved to see this post by Sarah at Blog Guidebook, so if you are also having difficulties it may be worth checking this out.  It looks like I need to delete lots in order to identify the authentication cookie that is causing the problem.  My computer needs a good detox, so perhaps I need to allocate some time and do this.  Then I need to do the same with the house!  Working full time and trying to organise my new creative space means everything is sadly neglected.  But  s-l-o-w-l-y  headway is being made.  Then it will be time to start creating again, I can't wait!

Finally, I had a wonderful day out on Friday with friends.  We went to Charleston House in Sussex, home of the Bloomsbury Set.  I confess, before my visit I knew very little about the artists or their style.  Unfortuantly we could not take photos inside the house, but imagine my surprise when I visited Julia Kirk's post on my return.  A part from the fact that Julia had visited Masham in North Yorkshire, a place I LOVE, she showed photos of a wonderful studio called ArtisOn.  And inside they had a fireplace decorated in the style of the Bloomsbury Set, complete with a painting above it.            I must have learned something from my visit as this artwork jumped out at me and I immediately recognised it! 

I'll be back soon with the name of the lucky person who will receive Painted Pages.  What are you waiting for?  Post your comment now!

It's time to ' PASS THE BOOK'

Recently I was the lucky recipient of Pass the Book.  I knew I would love it and I was not disappointed.  I especially liked the 'Try it outs!'  and these can be adapted for any creative idea.

For example, writing prompt cards is something I did last year when I needed inspiration for my Project 365 photos.  But rather than a one word prompt, the author of Painted Pages, Sarah Ahearn Bellemare, suggests you can use this idea as a two-minute warm up exercise.  For example:
- Paint only with white paint
- Write a few words with rub-on letters
- Rip out a page of a book and use a piece for collage


The techniques shown in this book could easily be used on a scrapbook page or a handmade card, so this book would be of interest to those like me who are not purists, and who like to experiment and express themselves in a wide range of creative arts. And of course, if you are a wanna-be or an art journalist!  The book is also lovely just to browse, admire, and read, and there is a good range of examples as well as techniques to try.  I read it from cover to cover within days of receiving, and I have since picked it up frequently just to look again.

Sadly I have not had opportunity to try out any of the techniques shown in this book.  But I will in time and I have recorded lots of notes and inspirational ideas.  And if you would like to be the next recipient of Painted Pages just leave me a comment.  I will pick a name from random in one week.  If you are not sure how Pass the Book works, pop over to Sian's where she explains it beautifully.  And finally, a huge thank you to Sian  for buying the books and sharing them!  A wonderful gesture that is much appreciated by all who receive them.  I wonder who the next lucky reader will be?

You've got mail

I LOVE getting post through the mail, don't you?







Recently I was the lucky recipient of Sian Fair's monthly Pass the Book.
I couldn't wait to unwrap and read the pages, which I did at every available opportunity.  Such a lovely thing to receive through the post.

I will say more when I offer to Pass the Book next week.  So if you would like to join in this fun and gesture of sharing look out for the blog post and leave a comment.

 
I also received another wonderful surprise through my letterbox, an amazing original painting by the very talented Natasha May.

Called 'Changes' this painting is based on Alice in Wonderland and it formed part of a story told by Natasha.  I love the vidid colours and whimsical style.  I was the very lucky name randomly drawn, so imagine my excitement and gratitude!

If you want to check out Natasha's other wonderful works of art she also has an etsy shop.  



 

And finally, they postcard that I sent to myself arrived! My husband asked who it was from and when I said 'me' he quietly said something about 'Billy no friends' and walked away.  Well, I wouldn't know where to begin, in explaining, so I left it as that! I know he said it in jest, and that he appreciates this is part of my wacky world of creativity.  He also knows he would never understand and so he watches and supports me, and more than that he tolerates my chaos and mess.  I consider myself lucky.
 
But I digress......  this postcard was part of the new Explore online course that I am taking part in and mentioned here.  There are daily prompts as usual life is happening and I am not able to participate every day.  But I am collecting ideas and materials so it will all unfold in its own time. I am quite excited by some of the ideas and yesterday's prompt suggested writing directly onto a photo.  And if you like this idea or want to experiment Photojojo also shows ways of doing this.

I like the idea of receiving and sending postcards.  So I have signed up toJulie Kirk's 'Going Postal'.  This is involves another fascination of mine, Pinterest. I regularly add to my boards and if you have not signed up you need to be invited before you can create your own boards.  I am happy to send you an invite so just pass on your email address to me.  But be warned - it is addictive and even more hours will pass in front of the computer screen!

And I have also signed up for The Great Big Postcard Swap.  In fact, I got so excited I have signed up twice, but that means double the fun!  The idea is that you create a postcard using any medium, but must include a stitch or two.  Then you post it to your assigned partner and receive your swap.  I took part in last years swap and was inspired to join in again.  So I need to start making my two postcards ready to post and to look forward to more mail dropping through my letter box.

My workspace this week is covered with a dustsheet and tins of paint.  Yes!  I am STILL painting and it feels like the 4th bridge.  I wonder when it will end?  The excitement has gone and is replaced by frustration and an aching body.  Only the knowledge that this will have a good outcome keeps me motivated, and perhaps a paint party would have been a good idea! To see what other people have on their workspace go to Julia's site here.  I will persevere and at least I am full of creative ideas ready to burst when I have the time and space.  Meanwhile I did manage to quickly make my two grand daughters a Smash Book each to take on their holiday.  I am just as excited to see what they put in them.
More about this another time, because the day calls.

Have fun what ever you are doing and I hope some lovely mail drops through your door too.

RAIN STOPPED PLAY....

 

No, not at Wimbledon but in my garden.   Because we have been busy building my new craft space.  I wonder if I will take the jump one day and call this my studio?   At the moment I am thoughtful about what it will be called and hope that once it is filled I will know.  Meanwhile I have been busy on the outside, painting and making it mine, all mine.  

I wanted it to blend into the garden, so that it feels that it has grown out of the ground.  Once I have planted around it and added a plaque and lantern or two I hope it will look like it has always been there. Because,  it has in my dreams. 
But for now rain has stopped me painting.  I could go out and buy paint and start on the inside, but there is still small work to be done and so I will be patient.

 So instead, I will finish the last page or two of my Journal Your Christmas Album.  Yes, I am still working on it.  But you will understand the reason why it is not completed.  I still have two days left before I post my next 10 things on the 10th, so it will be done.

But before I start I am going to have a cup of tea and browse ‘Painted Pages’.   I was lucky enough to be picked for Sian’s ‘Pass the Book’ and have been turning the pages at every opportunity.   I will say more about this another time, but for now it has given me the inspiration to get out the paint instead of ink pads.  I also bought a template the other day, so my Journal Your Christmas album will be getting a new look. 

Best get started!