I won a book.. and some shoes.

I've only entered a few blog 'giveaways' (in brackets because I'm not comfortable with the word). I only enter them on blogs I follow anyway or have recently discovered and plan to keep looking at, so I was really shocked when I won this book. It's a great book, and is really relevant to stuff I'm doing at the moment, and workshops I'm thinking of running. So a huge thank you to Sue. This is her image, and hopefully (if I have the hang of the technology!) if you click on the image you can go to her post about the book (or click on the link below)


http://suebulmer.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/book-review-alternative-art-journals-by.html

Also a huge and belated thank you to my friend up the hill who made these for my birthday. This is her picture as I've become very lazy about taking photos.

My husband ordered them for me and there was some complicated and amusing shenanigans to find out what style and colours I wanted!The final result is that I have The MOST WONDERFUL and MOST COMFY shoes ever.
I can't tell you how much I love them.
Click on the image for her blog, and I love the tiddley poms (tho they wouldn't be at all practical for a country girl like me) and I think I want some merryweathers for Christmas, or is that just being greedy?!!
 

A resumee of book stuff past and present

The long winter evenings are here and I seem to be getting back into book stuff and general creative stuff again. I taught a few workshops this summer, so in no particular order here are some pictures from the workshops.


A two hour multi-section workshop.
Two hours was a bit of a rush, they were quite basic!



Pretty covers

More pretty covers on a one day workshop

Someone used old sketchbook pages as covers.
A lovely idea I later stole for this years diary endpapers...!
 

Someone making a large watercolour book on a workshop
(oh yes...and biscuits!)

I've been enjoying getting into some 'art journalling' stuff inspired by blogs and such like on the web, but haven't taken any pictures of those yet. I've also made next years diary, which includes a fold-out paint palette, a holder for a waterbrush, and a pocket for some crayons or slim felt pens, so it's an all-in one diary/sketchbook/art materials kit!

Palette folded down, waterbrush holder on right
Bottom half of pens showing

Paint palette and mixing palette folded out ready for use
I've also pre-decorated a lot of the pages this year

I used a page from an old atlas on the cover.
This is the Atlantic where we'll be on our boat one day!
That's a real working compass too, from my school days.

Someone was so impressed with this that they commissioned one as a present, and I have a photo album commission in the pipeline. I've not had good experiences with commissions in the past so I try to avoid them, (a bit like the book repairs, see last winter!), but I succumb when friends ask me! And it's certainly nice to have something to occupy me when it rains for days on end and gardening is out of the question.

Watercolour paper, paint palette and waterbrush

I've got two workshops and a talk booked for the spring and another workshop in the pipeline, AND I sold a book through my website which was a bit of a shock! As a result of all this activity I'm all enthusiastic about books again, although I'm mostly enthusiastic about teaching, and I'm mostly making for fun rather than selling.
Here are a few of the fun books I've made recently as ideas for workshops. The beading is pretty fiddley, but I'm pleased with the results

Longstitch books with beaded spines
(click on image for a larger view)

 

Another blogging break.

I'm only doing this one because I think I ought to so I'll be brief.

Busy as usual. 

Not necessarily in any particular order...

Sailing

Map making (West Town Farm)

Gardening

Morris dancing (at Sidmouth Folk Festival)

Sketching, at the allotment

And meals with friends and partys and swimming in the sea (twice) and making birthday presents for Vince. Life's pretty good
That's all for now folks!