Miscellaneous

 Had another play with a couple of the backgrounds I made with my Gelli plate......this one I did the background straight into the journal.......is a little passport sized journal.

 LOVE this chimp image, it's by KATZELKRAFT

 You can just about see the pink and orange background!

 This one is on a tag and then stuck into the same journal.

 I like this slightly strange image.....it's by LOST COAST DESIGNS

 And finally.......found these in Sainsburys this morning.......ripe for altering:)

Wibble wobble Gelli (on a) plate

 Yesterday this fell through my letter box so today I decided to have a play. 

As with all new things some of the results I liked, others I didn't! 

Here are a few  tags that I quite liked:)

 And here is a tag I worked on further.......have to say I didn't much like the background of this one before I started but I reminded myself that they look much better when worked over.......and now I like it!

I got my Gelli plate from THE STAMP ATTIC

First Cut

Yesterday it was wet and cold (well, it is Winter) so what to do?

 I know let's go to Manchester Art Gallery and see the First Cut exhibition.

 I waited AGES to get this pic with no-one in it:)

These trees were hanging from the ceiling so they slowly moved around and you could walk between them

Remember this is all PAPER!  
 there was also

 

leaves

  a flock of birds

 houses

  aliens

  a big black swirly thing

 and even a motorbike!

 There was work by Su Blackwell.......I love her work

And then there were skeletons and skulls:) 

I liked these!

Just to prove it's not just me with a skull obsession:)

It was a fabulous exhibition worth getting wet and cold for.......go if you get chance.

Common things made plain

 Today I just felt like having a bit of a play around ......had nothing in particular in mind......... this hare was sitting on my desk, it was sold as a Christmas decoration but I used it on the front of this old book instead.

 The book is called

Think I'm going to use this as an altered book journal.....anyone remember when the whole altered book thing started years ago?

 

 Found these stickers in a box the other day...............

....used the heart and hare stickers on the first pages inside the book

 

Paint brush forest!

 The theme on STAMPOTIQUE DESIGNERS CHALLENGE is paint,

to use paint somewhere in your piece........not that much of a challenge for me as I use paint a lot anyway........

.......so I decided to use some paintbrushes and made a sort of paintbrush forest! I also used paint throughout the rest of my piece......in the background and to colour the images

 All the images used are from Stampotique......the figure....Queen of Life.... is one of my all time fav Stampotique images

 I added a sort of FINNABAIR inspired collection of "stuff" in the corner.

Family tree houses

Last week was my monthly Embroiderers Guild meeting, the speaker was 

RACHEL GRANT

 She has done a lot of work involving demolition of old buildings in her local area and in that work she uses old photos inside the houses.......

I loved her work and this piece is completely inspired by her.

 These are my FAMILY TREE HOUSES!

  I did something on these pages that I rarely do.......I wrote on them.

I used old family pics to make my houses......here is my Dad with my brother and I, all loaded on the bike ready to head off fishing........and the other is my Grandparents wedding pic

this is me with my Mum and Dad

 this is my 3 brothers standing on the back doorstep of the house we lived in as kids.......my Mum is actually stood behind them but she got a bit lost in the gesso!

 Stylised tree

 I liked this streaky paint idea!

The middle house here shows my Grandma on her bike outside the house they bought in the 30's......she rode a bike into her 60's and my parents now live in that same house. The pic on the right is my Mum with her bike.....it goes with the pic of my Dad off on the fishing trip.