Laura Sparling's Lonelies Prize Draw

Would you like to win these beautiful, top quality 'lonelies' by the renowned UK art glass beadmaker, Laura Sparling? Then head on over to her blog, read this post & add a comment in order to enter her prize draw.

As they say, you've got to be in it to win it, so off you trot and may I wish you 'Good Luck!'

'The Faces' Jewellery Challenge: so what would you make for...

I'm reminded of the 'Faces' jewellery challenge that I referred to earlier this month. My impetus is eluding me at present and my sketchbook of ideas for Ellen Terry ( please see this entry) is a staccato mess. Nevertheless, I have another face for you; a photograph of Virginia Woolf whom I mentioned yesterday.

Both this photograph and that of Ellen capture them before the originality & true colours of their lives had unfolded. Perhaps this is why I find it difficult to pluck out inspiration from these youthful photographs; I know what is to come and it is not yet a highly visible seed in these innocent portraits. Methinks I must bear in mind the character & experience of these extraordinary women and celebrate the beauty of maturity. Perhaps I should challenge myself with a photograph of the poet, Dame Edith Sitwell instead.

But ah me no; Dame Edith had more style in an elegant finger tip than I would ever dream of addressing. I dare not presume!

My search for a face continues...

The Art Journal & Creativity Bookshelf: The Long List!

Our house groans with books. Literally. Walls have been scaled by carpenters & cabinet makers ( being married to someone in the antiques trade has its perks - Bushwood Antiques, I thank you) and shelves have been adhered to any wall not suitable for paintings. I love peering into books & sniffing out their treasures. And my books are more informatively interactive than Kindle. All book lovers should look away right now because I hereby confess to the sin of writing in the margins of my paperbacks. Indeed I have paperback copies of some of my hardbacks purely so that I can carry on a written conversation with the author. Remember the quote from my last blog entry,

"Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: "What! You, too? Thought I was the only one."

Well this is just one of the reasons why I write in my books; the magic spell of recognition.

My little addenda add an extra dimension to re-reading old favourites. 'Did I really think that? Oh shallow youth!' ( I rather enjoy feeling pompous about my younger self; it shows I may have actually learnt something as I've travelled through life and that all is not necessarily lost!) In fact my long standing loves which I refer to again & again, such as Virginia Woolf's diaries or Carrington's 'Letters & Extracts from Her Diaries', have special journals devoted to them which stand by their sides on the bookshelves. Carrington's paintings have always beguiled me, but when I read her enthralling letters & saw the illustrations which she added to them, I fell under her thrall & have remained her slave ever since.

Indeed, many, many years ago, it was Virginia & Carrington who first inspired me to keep a journal of my own. At first it was just a diary, but this one volume has blossomed into many. I now keep a diary, a reading record ( for thoughts I dare not expose in the books themselves!), an art journal, as well as a multiplicity of sketchbooks ( which, to my mind, are another form of journal). The latest addition is a more formal illustrated journal whose shape still hasn't comfortably settled in my mind.

But I digress. The reason for this post is that I've been 'editing' my art journal resource shelves. Not because I'm divesting myself of any of the books which have helped me along the journalling path, but because some seem more pertinent to the shelves in the Shack where I paint & make a mess whilst others seem more suited to the calmer climate of my study.

Now that I've finally finished dusting off & restating the bookshelves, I thought I'd list a selection of favourites books which I've referred to as I've mined my way through my own particular seam of journalling life. They are of particular help in the bad times, but also nourish me in the good. In other words, they are Battle Books!

Here goes...

Firstly the greats. You can treat yourself to books by any of the following authors and each & all will hold your hand and delight, inspire & inform you. Make space for:

Lynne Perella, Gwen Diehn, Danny Gregory, Maggie Grey, L.K.Ludwig, Ricë Freeman Zachary & her wonderful interviewees, Sark, Alan Fletcher, Dan Price & any of the volumes of 'Illustration Now'.

And now, in no particular order, here comes a lengthy selection of my favourites. I've added links to Amazon, not because I'm on commission ( because I'm not) but purely so that you can read a little more about each particular book.

'Kaleidoscope' by Suzanne Simanaitis
'Exhibition 36' & 'Digital Expressions' by Susan Tuttle
'Celebrate Your Creative Self' & 'The Creative Edge' by Mary Todd Beam
'Art Escapes' by Dory Kanter
'Collage Sourcebook' by Holly Harrison, Jennifer Atkinson & Paula Grasdal
'Mixed Media Collage' by Holly Harrison
'Journal Spilling' by Diana Trout
'Life is a Verb' by Patti Digh
'1000 Art Journal Pages' edited by Dawn DeVries Sokol
'1000 Journals Project'
'Complete Guide to Altered Imagery' by Karen Michel
'Exploring Colour' by the late Julie Caprara
'Handmade Prints' by Anne Desmet & Jim Anderson
'Drawing & Painting People: A Fresh Approach' by Emily Ball
'Painted Paper' by Alisa Golden
'The Artist's Sketchbook' by Lucy Watson
'Sketchbooks: The Hidden Art Of Designers, Illustrators & Creatives' by Richard Brereton
'Mixed Media Self Portraits' by Cate Coulacos Prato
'The Nature Diary of an Artist' by Jennie Hale
'Art Stamping Workshop' by Gloria Page
'Printmaking + Mixed Media' by Dorit Elisha
'Drawing From Life:The Journal as Art' by Jennifer New
'Journal Bliss' by Violette
'Drawing, Seeing & Observation' by Ian Simpson
'Sometimes I Think, Sometimes I Am' by Sara Fanelli
'Experimental Drawing' by Robert Kaupelis
'Creating Sketchbooks for Embroiderers & Textile Artists' by Kay Greenlees
'Making Journals by Hand' by Jason Thompson
'Artist Trading Card Workshop' by Bernie Berlin
'Mixed Emulsions' by Angela Cartwright
'Practical Printmaking' by Colin Gale
'Creative Awakenings: Envisioning The Life of Your Dreams Through Art' by Sheri Gaynor
'Taking Flight' by Kelly Rae Roberts
'Collage Unleashed' by Traci Bautista
'The New Creative Artist' by Nita Leland
'Keys To Drawing With Imagination' by Bert Dodson
'Creative Paint Workshop' by Ann Baldwin
'Drawing Matters' by Jane Stobart
Jim Krause's Colour Index Volumes I and II
'Sources of Inspiration' and 'Pattern, Colour & Form' by Carolyn Genders
'Connecting Art to Stitch' by Sandra Meech
'Acrylic Revolution' by Nancy Reyner

There are more, but I fear I may have exhausted you and that, dear Reader, will never do.

PS, I'm avidly awaiting the arrival of 'The Journal Junkies Workshop' by Eric M.Scott & David R. Modler which is available in the States, but not here in the UK as of today. Help! I'm not known for my patience! I have discovered Eric's blog though for which I shout 'Hurrah!'

On friendship...

My sweet friend, Jean Yates, the Rock CHICk™ shared a lovely quote with me about friendship.

"Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: "What! You, too? Thought I was the only one."

At this point in my life, as I emerge out of a bipolar exile and meet up with old friends and exchange smiles with new ones, it seems entirely pertinent to share C.S. Lewis' fine words with you.

I also liked his quote about the soul; it's delightfully loud & proud! We are each of us so much more that can readily be perceived, but do we always remember that about each other?

Shine your light, dear Reader! And shine bright!

Today's happiness comes courtesy of...

This choker featuring beautiful beads by Laura Sparling,

Catherine Witherell's blog posts,

Jafabrit's über-coolness,

Katherine Treffinger's Flickr Gallery,

Jennifer Sanchez' website,

Roz Wound Up's archive,

and Kelly Kilmer's journal pages.

Kelly's Pen List thrills me & she has kindly given me permission to share her pen video on Facebook. If you're a pen-head or stationary-drooler like me, I guarantee that you will feel the love!

Before you go, here's how today's happiness crept up on me:

Creating an illustrated journal - but how to start?

Let me state my case clearly; I'm on the lookout for advice. I've kept private therapeutic art journals for years, my written journal is my best friend & alongside my dogs, my constant companion is a sketchbook. But now I want to take what seems to be the next logical step and start an illustrated journal. Maybe it's because I've got another birthday on the immediate horizon, but I have a fancy to leave something behind me & an illustrated journal seems to fill this archival need.

But...

This won't be my first attempt - not by the longest chalk imaginable. Time & time again, I've fallen over the twin hurdles of layout & my calligraphic inabilities. How do I produce a legible text? And how do I stop myself from committing drawing-squeeze or over-elaboration? Now the latter is a major problem. The art teacher who successfully sapped my self-belief & enthusiam for art at the end of 13, told me that my work was 'too detailed'. Since returning to the art fold after years in academe, I've strived to stay true to the line ( hence my love of unwinding with blind contour drawings) but my darned meddling brain gets in the way & before I know it, I'm restating until my page is a whirling mess. This isn't a problem in a sketchbook because leaves can be detached. In my art journals, gesso, paint & collage sort this problem out for me. But how to stay the hand in a journal? I'm seeking to display a clarity that I don't find in life itself; I want to sift my life & get the essence of it on to a page. So how to do this without getting in a mess?

If any of you have tales of discoveries you made when you first began your own illustrated journals or have tips about layouts, I would deeply & gratefully appreciate your advice. You never know; you might one day be doing my great-grandchildren a favour! How's that for an example of running before I can walk ;-)

The things I sweep under my carpet!

Speck of Speck's Sketch Blog has reminded me of something else that didn't go to plan. I looked under the carpet under which I sweep these things and lo, I've found a few of the sketches which I drew for the Everyday Matters Challenge. I followed the Challenge from a distance as I don't possess the necessary talent to be a formal participant, but then my big, bad, bipolar blip got in the way & my plans went completely awry! However, I've still got the list so I can always start again.

Here are a couple more, 'What on earth was she thinking of' sketches, namely:

Number 1 - my espadrille



and Number 24 - an apple



Now, aren't you glad I shared these ;-) I do like to make a fool of myself of a weekend!!

I think the challenge has ended now, but to view the drawings submitted by the group, why don't you pay a visit to the Everyday Matters Group on Flickr. I promise you'll be enthralled!