Hidden sculpture...

Had a fabby weekend with The Babe, as usual...I was barred from going anywhere near work whilst he was here, lol, and you know what, I didn,t miss it one bit..!!! I know, I know, that comes as a real shock to you all, but maybe I am finally learning that there is more to life than work..!!!!

Friday was dancing the night away at a Northern Soul do, always a good start to the weekend... But on Saturday we decided to escape from it all and get away to the country for a bit. We tipped up at Newby Hall and went for a walk through the woods. Halfway round we discovered a sculpture exhibition was on, in the middle of the woods. How cool was that..???  This was our favourite piece.  Yup giant conkers. These were absolutely gorgeous, and for a spare £6000 you can have them in your garden, lol.

How about a game with this one..??? Wonder if it's been soaked in vinegar.

How could we have resisted..???

The Babe wasted no time in making new friends..!!!

I just had to get a picture of this door. It was originally from a prison in 1724, and was the cell door of a local highwayman and local baddie. It brought a few shivers whilst wondering how the frikk anyone could have survived behind it. Loving the stone skull.

There was another sculpture exhibition going on at the same time, The Matombo Zimbabwean Sculpture Ezperienc.  oops that should say experience, but link already done, lol.

This was amazing. Skilled sculptors from Zimbabwe are here displaying, selling and making their art, from various types of Zimbabwean stone, including, serpentine, cobalt, opal, verdite, springstone, fruit serpentine and African jade.

this weeks shoe watch. !!

This was one of my faves...

and heres one of the artists at work. Hewas lovely and chatted to us for ages, about his home life and his work. He was even giving me tips for my dreads, ;lol.

You can even join in the fun and do a bit of the sculpting yourself, or the cleaning and polishing, whichever takes your fancy.

The night was ended perfectly with a trip to our favourite Mexican, Salsa Posada, where we were expertly waited upon by The Goddess, in her evening alias..

Sunday started with a trip to The Gift Fair, where we were oohing and aaaahing over some fabby additionsto the shop...Want to know what...?? Ha ha.....as if..!!!  We then spent the afternoon erecting a wigwam, bouncing on the trampoline, hula hooping, flicking sticky bugs, poking things with sticks and playing I-Spy. Yup you've guessed it, we were in charge of The Most Beautiful Grandaughter in the Whole World..!!!

And then, all too soon, it was time for The Babe to return home before he turned into a pumpkin, lol. Never mind, only 4 more sleeps..!

Tomorrow is the next Altered Originals Spray Ink Art Journal page step by step. So keep an eye out for it.

Enjoy xx

Me, me, oh and me..!!! lmao.

Whey hey the delectable Kirsty has uploaded a couple of my photos onto her blog, so I have purloined them and have them here for you.

She just loves her black and white arty shots does that girl...

Love this one. She always seems to get me when I,m not looking, and it always turns out fabby. Well I think so.!!! A lot of these have been taken especially for my art journaling and can't wait to play with them.

Ha ha, how true is this..??

This one was taken in the middle of the loading bay. These are my fave ever, ever, EVER pair of heels..!!! They don't look too impressive here, but the heels are actually about 6 in high. They send me up to 6ft 2,  but are soooooooooo comfy. No, honest they are, I wore them the whole night on New Years eve, which included a lot of riotous Spanish dancing.

And this one is my favourite. I managed to get my bum slotted into Our Maisies swing, but my legs are far too long to actually swing, lol.

She is not only a fabulous photographer, but also a genius at blog headers. Did you notice I have a new one..??? I just luuuurve it, it's soooooo me.

If any of you are going to the Craft Show at The Doncaster Racecourse this weekend, make sure you go and see her.She is on stand 43d opposite Create and Craft. She will be showing her new CD and she will also be demoing the extremeley hard to find Aquamarkers. Go see her and have a bit of a chinwag. Do me a favour though and just ask her if she happens to have any staples..!!! lmao.

Ace workshop going on tomorrow, its The Altered, Altered Book. We still have a few places, so if you're free come and join in the fun.

And then that's me off. Oh yes, The Babe is home for the weekend, yayy..!!!

Enjoy xx

The result is in...

Okay, I know you are all waiting with baited breath to see the car crash that is my hair, lol. After frightening Our Tom to death when he brought me a cuppa this morn, I went and washed it a couple of times. I also scrubbed my skin until almost raw!!!! And after getting my slap on and winding on a bright bandana, I was ready to face the mirror. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnddddd...?????

Alothough I hate to admit it, I actually frikkin like it.!!!!!!!!!!! Not that I will let Mrs Notso Wiseman know, lol. What do you think...???

The bandana is made from left over fabric from the dress, after I had, cropped, shortened, streamlined and completley gave it the "Dy" treatment. took me about 30 mins, cool eh..???

We spent most of the morning on a photo shoot. new promo photos have been called for, and so thats what we did. Any of you who know Kirsty will know she is the only one I trust to take them, I hate having my photo taken ( I know, I know, it doesnt look like it does it..???, lol. But I have to have photos for the blog I just don't have to look at them).

We were in the kitchen having a cuppa when she spied all Maisie's toys in the garden...That was it, she had me out and doing triple salco's on the trampoline. Well thats what it frikkin felt like, anyway...

"jump as high as you can, strike a pose, look at the camera, smile ....oh and try to look really natural"

Wtf...???? Is she completely barking or what.??? Look natural..?? doing all that. I'm a 47yr old Grandma, remember. lolling on the trampoline with a bottle of beer, is acting naturally..!!!!! lmao.

Then it was on the swings, which my fat ass can only just squeeze into.!  Then change from dockers to Carvellas. My highest heels were order of the day for some warehouse shots. Unfortunately we picked the only day the loading bay was in use, which was a bit embarassing, as, it was mainly busy with workmen. Still I,m sure the heels made their day, lol.

Seriously though, when we had a quick flick through they looked fabby, can't wait to see them, in the flesh, so to speak... If you want seriously good photos, with an original twist to them, then Kirsty's your gal. Go on , treat yourself, you know you are sooooooooooooooooo worth it, lmao.

One of the girlies who came on the last Ranger weekend, The lovely but loopy Lou, is head of an art department in Manchester. Middleton Technology school, and she sent me some of her year 10's work. |How cool is this..?? Well done year 10 and how lucky to have such a fabby art teacher..

                                   

Right I need to go drag the sewing machine back out and create some more fabulous creations, lol. Tomorrow or Friday ( not sure which, lol ) I will post another art journaling step by step for you all.

Until then

Enjoy xx

Wiseman...step away from the hair dye...!!!

Yaaaaaayyyyy, I,m back. Had a fabby few days with The Babe. Took in the delights of Stratford and surrounding areas. I travelled on the train, for a change, and journaled all the way. Funny looks all round, as per usual..!!! Still, it gives them all something to talk about doesn,t it..??? lmao.

You know when you get a real good idea, and don,t really stop to think it through..?? Well I had one of those earlier tonight. I was just flicking through facebook when I noticed a post by the lovely Kirsty Wiseman, saying she was popping up to Harrogate to visit a friend. I was racking my brain to think who that could be when I suddenly realised it was me.!!!! I had totally forgotten she was coming to stay at mine, lol. Anyway she turned up and we trotted off to Asda for a bit of retail. She decided that she needed to do a new photo shoot of me and I said , oh no not at mo , my hair needs colouring. Don,t worry , we'll do it, .was the reply..  totally thrown off guard, I was lulled into a false sense of security and when blue/black came into view I whole heartedly agreed.

Big mistake, big, BIG mistake....

It started off fine. Kirsty read all the instructions and set to with vigour...

common sense should have stepped in when she told me to hold the bottle for a minute. Do you spot what I should have spotted...???

Yup, she had applied the dye to my hair, my ears, my neck, my forehead, my cheeks, my hands, look at the colour of my hand, after holding it for a couple of mins. I think she thought she was giving me an all over body massage. I couldn,t work out if I looked like one gigantic bruise, or if I,d just been down t,pit..!! To say she was a tad enthusiastic in her colouring is putting it mildly. We rubbed , we scrubbed, but it didn,t want to budge..!! I ended uo using acetone free nail polish remover. Oh yes, can't decide if I feel like I,ve had an acid peel or botox, lol. My ears look like 2 black puddings, and I look like |I havent washed for a week...She left it on for far too long as she collapsed into an hysterical heap on the floor, guffawing.  

Now I know I,ve got a thing about black...but I didn't expect to gain a black bath, wall tiles, grout, shower head and towels..!!! Not sure how I,m going to explain it to Our Tom, lol. Anyway to get my own back, I spat in her tea and licked her toasted crumpet.... It is now an hour since she did it and she is still crying with laughter, and |I can assure you that seeing the Wiseman with a snotty nose and hysterical laughter is not a pretty sight. I meanwhile look like I have a massive piece of coal on my head. It had better not rain again tomorrow, cos I just might go all streaky, lol. Then she really will be dead. Yes that's right DEAD.

Luckily I have this thing about wearing my scarves and bandanas, I just might have to wear them all at once..or never go out in public, unaccompanied, ever again...!!!

Gonna leave you with one of the pages I did on the train.

Enjoy xx

Whey hey not sure if this will work as I amposting this from my iPhone. Anything. Ould happen really lol. Best bit is I won't know till I get back!! Anyone waiting for mail from me, I will be back for kids classes tomorrow,

1/2 more sleeps...!!!

Its 2.45am and I am sat in bed waiting for finger and toe nails to dry, otherwise I just know I will wake up in the morning stuck to the sheets, lol.  I am off to see The Babe tomorrow, and have just finished pratting around, soaking in bath, packing bags, journaling, journaling, journaling, noshing on granary bread and Bramble jam, glugging Dr Pepper, listening to my tuuuuuuuuuuuuuunes, finding my train tickets after losing them AGAIN, dunking ginger nuts, gabbing on the phone, and Uncle Tom Cobley and all !!! lol.
I have the Art Journaling for regulars workshop tomorrow and then I am out of here...woop de frikkin woop. And I,m not back till Tues teatime...yayy..!!! We will be shut for most of the week anyway as it is The Great Yorkshire Show, and the whole town seems to come to a standstill as you can't move for love nor money...We will be open for the kids workshops and the regular Tues night class as usual, but probably not a lot else.  So just beware if you are visiting, give us a ring first. Website orders wont be sent out on Tues or Weds, fingers crossed for Thursday, but definitely Friday.

Ooh ginger nuts dipped in Dr Pepper...yummeeeeeeeeeee...

Spent ages on the phone this afternoon with the lovely Patti from Ranger, trying to get my flights organised for CHA in Chicago. Trying to find one that had less than 3 stopovers was a bit of a toughie this time, but we made it in the end. I am demoing on their booth again, at the show. I just love working with them, we have such a laugh and a pratt around. Oops sorry, we are all extremely proffesional and focused...!!!  Ok, ok, maybe not me, but the rest of them are anyway. I, unfortunately, am known as, how can I put it..?? A bit of a loose cannon. Always firing on all cylinders and shooting off at different tangents. Theres no hope of a quick 5 min demo with me, once you stop in front of my demo desk you need a pack up to keep you going, lol. I have to admit half the time they just want me to keep talking in my Yorkshire accent..It fascinates them, lol. All the little colloquialisms that they don,t understand. Tim just stands there shaking his head and saying, don't worry she's not a typical Brit, lol.  I am also going to be reunited with the two loves of my life, my little dragon and the gorgeous bundle of gorgeousness....Mario..mwah, mwah, mwah.   Wonder what tricks the pair of them have got up their sleeves this time around. Its usually always at my expense, and whatever it is I fall for it every time, lol.
So I suppose I should tell you about their fabulous brand new product I will be debuting for them. Ha ha as if I would spill the beans.!! You will just have to keep an eye out on their blog and have a guess when the new products come up
Speaking of Ranger, I keep forgetting to tell you about their new blog. Go see it HERE. It gives you the lowdown on whats going on, at the shows, at the Ranger U workshops, even bits 0f the Willie Wonka machines that work their magic in the factory.

Right, think my nails are duvet proofed, gonna get some shut eye. Just going to leave you with a little gem.




Enjoy xx

inky, painty, journal tutorial....

At Play Day, yesterday, I was mucking around in John's Art Journal and decided to use some of the new Graphic 45 release...Halloween in Wonderland.  This is how far I got..

I,ve still got loads of doodling and the journaling to do, but I am really liking it so far.

So I thought I would do you all a step-by-step, along the same lines, but with one of my inky, painty backgrounds. So stand by your beds and here we go.

 I started off by babywiping Lettuce and Espresso Adirondack dabbers over the pages.

I then added acrylic gesso in "the Dyan wiggle" using a Splodger.

Added Gesso rings using the dabber lid.

I then had a break for a late lunch. How gorgeous does that look..???  A little treat from Our Ben....

Its from the new cafe that,s opened up just below us. This is their sweet potato, feta cheese salad. Get in there.!!!

Anyway, to continue.....I then sprayed Pomegranate Altered Originals ink over a chipboard stencil and blotted with a kitchen roll.

Flip the chipboard over to create a negative image

You can make your own masks from your used sheets of Alphabet Grunge board. If you coat it first using Gel Medium, it will seal the Grunge enabling you to use the reverse as well.. My inks are really vibrant, but if you want a more muted effect, spray the colour (lime) and then immediatley spritz Granite over the top to tone it down.

Thats a cool colour isn't it...??  See..... two for the price of one!!! You always get brill value with our products, lol

I then mixed some of my Altered Original inks with some of my Blonde Moments Pearl Pigments, topped up with water in our large spritzers, to give you a shimmer spray.  No need to have to splash out on ready made ones, just make up what you need, when you want it.

The shimmer gives a stunning contrast on the matt paint. I then sprayed the ink directly onto the pages and let it slowly drip down.

As you all know, I am a massive doodler, so this was the next obvious step for me.

I then sprayed the Granite inkthrough a chipboard stencil at the top of the page, blotted it dry and doodled.

When I get to this stage I can't help but sit there and stoke it, lol. I absolutely love backgrounds, can't get enough of them, and would quite happily make them all day.  But a background on its own is no good, so onward and upward.

Onto the papers.http://shop.afth.co.uk/halloween-in-wonderland-collection-415-c.asp We ordered double the normal quantity, and they are skidoodling out of the door faster than you can say "white rabbits"....!!!!  They are sooooooo lush, and I love the fact they are not just the "normal" Alice drawings, but have injected a unique twist into them. Don't be put off by the word Halloween in the title, as this is Halloween unlike any other.

When I have cut out my main elements, I always lay them down onto the pages. I don't stick them straight away, as I invariably move them around completely. I then stick all the elements down with gel medium. This is a fabby substance for sticking as it isn't actually sticky, so you don't get yourself into a right old 2 and 8...

Then, yes you,ve guessed it, more doodling. I like to draw outlines on any hand cut elements, and I also like to outline them completely. Never neatly mind you, I prefer the slapdash look myself, lol.

The bird cage was made by covering a sheet of Grunge Paper with gel medium and sheet music. I then ran it through the Big Shot using the Tim Holtz die. It was then given the doodling treatment and inked with Crushed Olive Distress ink.

I thought it would be funny to put the Cheshire cat in the cage and have it dangling down.

I then gelled a butterfly image to the Grunge Paper and cut it out.

I bent it around my fingers to make the wings curl, added some d/sided tape just down the body stuck it on Alices head. The image will flatten when the book is closed, but spring back out when open. You gotta just love Grunge don't you..???  I cut out two of the quotes from one of my Altered Originals Download sheets, and combined them together on the page. Added the ubiquitous doodling, of course...

I added more butterflies and insects to the pages, and journaled with a white souffle pen. One of my favourite pens in the whole world, you may remember. Along with the clear, black and white Glaze pens.  It doesn't take a lot to please me, does it..???

And here we have it ....the finished piece.

I really friiiiiiiiiiiiiikkkkkkkkkkkiiiiiiinnnnnn adore it..glad this one is in my journal and not John,s lol. Is that bad thoughts..?? lmao. Heres some close ups.

                                   

                                     

Hope you enjoyed this and that I have inspired you to have a go....

Enjoy xx