Juju Loves Polka Dots

Focus Juju - Focus!

This idea of mine to post on a single topic, over a month, is not working out.

My interests and activities changed and I didn't make the time to shift gears and post about sewing from Japanese clothes books.  Sorry.

I think I'm going to return to my previous format and post about what I'm currently interested in. I will come around to more sewing info eventually, but you might as well know what I'm up to now.

With my discovery of Ravelry, my interests moved back to knitting and crochet. They were already on their way there but this helped get the fire going. I've been doing a lot of knitting from other people's patterns and dying my own yarns.

This one is called Sweet Ernie.

And I made a beret called Honest Ernie with removable flower pin.

I love neckwarmers, cowls and shawlettes. Especially in my hand-dyed cashmere.

Along with the dying, my paints have come out again, too. I'm just mucking around at the moment. Getting warmed up.

Much more to come!

In the Woods

What's black, white and red all over? Half a cat.

I told you there would be bad jokes...

But maybe I didn't tell you that I would be gone for so long...It goes like this every summer. I have the best intentions of blogging from my cabin but never find the time. This year has been my worst. But I'm still alive and well and happy in the woods in Canada.

I have finally recovered from my pneumonia, although it persisted throughout July.

I haven't been painting as much as I planned. I did these three before I left London.

I have been busy beading though. Here is my beading picnic in the woods. That's the lake in the background.

I can sit here and bead, watch the forest life and talk to our friendly chipmunk, Wunky. Next post I might show you what I've been making.

I'll be teaching beading workshops at a new London venue in the Autumn called the Make Lounge.

Today's Inspiration: There are so many great magazines on this side of the pond. I'm enjoying Craft. I just finished making (and drinking) delicious blueberry wine after reading an article in the last issue.

Likes: The call of the loon.

Painting daily

What's brown and sticky? A stick.

That is one of my favourite jokes. Sad, eh?

Hopefully by the time you read this I will be in Canada and recovered from my pneumonia (I'm posting ahead).

I thought I'd show you my strategy for painting everyday (even when I've got other stuff I must do). A while back I was complaining about how difficult it is to paint regularly and meet all my other commitments.

Well, now I have arranged things so that I have a reduced painting kit that I can leave out all the time - or take with me. Basically it includes a tin palette of 26 watecolours with mixing areas, a tube of white gouche, coloured pencils, two jars or water, a small spray bottle, three of my favourite brushes and a postcard size block of watercolour papers.

I leave it out all the time and paint every day now. I'm just painting abstractly but it keeps my hand in.

Here are the sort of paintings I make daily.

Since a lot of my interest in painting comes from playing with the properties of my materials, this is a useful way to keep at it everyday. I hope to complete some larger paintings this summer as well.

Today's Inspiration: The Monster Engine

Likes: These cute acorn earrings on ETSY.

Getting down

How does an elephant get down from a tree?
He sits on a leaf and waits till autumn!

I've found two new (to me) watercolour painters to be excited about. They are mother and daughter, I believe.

First up is Shirley Felts, who I can not find any information about but my friend Joss sells beautiful prints of her watercolours (and Katy's).

I love the way the water is very evident in the paintings but they are not at all wishy washy. She has a beautiful way of loosing edges.

Her daughter, Katy Ellis is also amazing. Brilliant, batik-like,dense colours and awesome draftsmanship.

I wonder if she uses a lot of masking fluid while she floods colour on? I suspect she might.

Both Shirley and Katy make paintings that make my mouth water! Although I said in my last post that I'm not generally attracted to finished watercolours, the exceptions make my heart skip a beat. And these are two exceptional painters!

Today's Inspiration: Shirley Felts and Katy Ellis

Likes: A cool walk in the woods on a hot, sunny day.

Elephant's Pyjamas

How do you know if an elephant is in your bed?
You'll see the 'E' embroidered on his pyjamas.

Okay, so I've started playing with the paint again. I'm so happy! When I'm working with watercolour paint I feel so sensual and liberated!

Funny thing is, I have never been partial to the finished look of most watercolour paintings. But making them is such a joy!

I remember how little I liked watercolours before I started making them. I always preferred the look of gutsy opaque mediums with their strong, dense colours and ability to rework ideas. (An inspiring example of this is shown in this wonderful stop motion video of a painting by Gillian Warden - have a look !).

It is a surprise to me that I have chosen to paint in water based media. But there it is. I feel good when I'm doing it.

So far I have only just started playing again. Making a few experiments in a small square area, based on magnolia blossoms I drew in April.

Today's inspiration: I'd like to say the sun, but can't as we haven't seen much of it. However, roses are blossoming everywhere! And I'm enjoying the yellow ones particularly.

Likes: New toy - Derwent Inktense pencils. They are so much more vibrant than pencil crayons!

Symbolic still life

I'm anorexic really. Anorexic people look in the mirror and think they look fat. And so do I.
Jo Brand

I'm finally finished editing the colour proofs of my book (so tedious!) and I'm really looking forward to making the space and time to paint again.

Part of that process is keeping a new diary and tracking my ideas. Part of it will be going to galleries to feed my eyes. Part of it will be clearing up my studio to make space. And as always, I'm reading a lot. Lots of myth, fantasy and now the Bible. Okay maybe not quite the bible, but about the bible. Interesting, I have no religious education of any kind.

Which brings me to this wonderful paintings.

Once again I have to credit the incredible Ulla for finding artist Dorina Mocan.

They remind me a little of Victoria Crowe's work.

All of it good food!

Today's Inspiration: Dorina Mocan

Likes: Julia Sweeney losing God, on  This American Life

I'm having some strange Typepad problems but am looking into them and will be blogging again soon.

Painting time

I'm a genius, but I'm a misunderstood genius.
What's misunderstood about you?
Nobody thinks I'm a genius.
Calvin and Hobbes

How do you make time to paint?

I've made a bargain with myself that I will not take any more jobs between now (or when I finish editing the work I'm doing now) and September, so I can get some painting time in this year.

But that isn't going to be enough time, is it? Not with children, housework and summer holidays coming up. I would really like to find some way of painting regularly next year. Which means making more physical space and dedicating time. Time where I don't turn on the computer or answer phone calls. I just ache for that kind of time.

I recently completed a sketchbook full of ideas for painting from. This is the cover.

I sent it off to Cloth Paper and Scissors, so you may see more of it there soon.

I was delighted to see some of my fairy tale interests coming up in it. I worked very intuitively with a pencil and eraser. Lots of erasing, until subjects began to mysteriously appear.

Today's Inspiration: The town of Wall as invented by Neil Gaiman and Written about by Suzanna Clarke.

Likes: Diana Jones. Her song, Pony, makes me cry. If you like Gillian Welsh, check Diana out.

Inspiring paintings

An intelligence test sometimes shows a person how smart they would have been not to have taken it.
Laurence J. Peter

Thank you again for all your kind comments after my last post. One question ~ in America, has there been much press controversy over American Idol's auditions? I know Simon Cowell is always controversial (or so the press would tell us) but did other people get upset about these episodes?

Last weekend I got out for a couple of hours, with my sister, to the London Art fair. I'm so glad I went! I found much to be inspired by.

My favourite new (to me) discovery was Scottish painter Gary Anderson, who is represented by Ewan Mundy Fine Art. He is a member of the Royal Society of Watercolourists but clearly mixes his media a bit. I can't find anything about him on the web but I bought all of his exhibition catalogues. So I'll share a few pictures from them.

He works on paper, very small and says anything over A4 (letter paper size) is a BIG painting. The texture of the paintings and density of colour won't come across as well on the net or in print as in real life.

"To see my paintings, to read them properly, you have to get close, only inches away; as close as you would to the page of a book. Close enough to smell the paint and the varnish and to see every line, every brush mark, every fingerprint. I like that intimacy."

This one is "A Little Blue", 2003, watercolour, crayon and leaf, 16.6 x 16.7cm

Deep, Deep Blue, 1995, Mixed media on paper, 7 1/2 x 7 1/2 inches

Subject and Medium, 2002, Watercolour, crayon and leaf, 15cmx15cm

I could have looked at his paintings all day!

I also really liked the paintings of Jia Juan Li, a Chinese painter, now living in Paris. These are oil on Canvas.

They were very magical looking, reminiscent of Vulliard and Bonard.

Today's Inspiration: Gary Anderson

Likes: Dense, heavily pigmented watercolours

Dislikes: I've been stuck inside for so long with my son that my muscles have atrophied and I've pulled something in my lower back. It's making me miserable and grumpy!

Friday was a play day

Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you'll be a mile away and have their shoes.
Frieda Norris

I've been having a big paper painting session which will carry on this week. I paint with water based house paints/gouche/acrylic on brown parcel paper; painting many layers, sanding, crumpling, stitching and using other techniques until I get something I really like. Then I have a selection of paper that feel a little like leather and can be worked in lots of different ways as they are very durable. Sometimes I paint both sides and sometimes I iron interfacing on the wrong side.

I like to have a selection of these papers in my studio for all sorts of projects, like this sketchbook cover.

I'll try and show you more later in the week.

Oh, I must add that although I'm still grieving Lyle I have found two great Internet radio shows.
I'm loving this from BBC in Scotland. Not only do I get to listen to the kind of country music I love but I get to hear a lovely Scottish accent too.
Also loving dysfunctional country from Boot Liquor.
I may be all alone here but I'm just celebrating my pleasures.

Storms and migraines

To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.
Steven Wright

It was a beautiful weekend in Whitstable. We've had really hot weather here leading up to storms this week. Unfortunately for me, storms mean migraines and I couldn't paint on Sunday. I was only getting started when I had to stop. But I enjoyed my migraine with a cool sea breeze which is better than a city migraine.

So I took away my little pages and began painting on them. I was still working from my pieces of jade. These are just beginnings, ideas - not  paintings so I'm not sure I should be showing them. But of course I will.

At least some of them.

I thought I would have time to do more painting this week. How come it's Friday already?