Autumn already!?

Where has the summer gone? I can't believe it's the first of September already.

Aaanyway, in August I spent just over a week travelling around the beautiful British countryside in our camper van (with my OH), followed by 4 nights in a hotel in Glasgow (work-related).

When I'm away from home I usually take some prepared backgrounds and my little travel kit because I like to create little pieces of art when I have the time. I've whittled down my travel kit over a number of trips and it works very well for me. Here it is:

On this trip I decided to make some ATCs as I have just joined a swap group, so it seemed like a good idea to stock up...

I absolutely adore anything miniature and it's very satisfying to have a stack of these completed by the end of a trip. I always keep a couple in my bag in case I need a little gift for someone - you never know!

Sooo...it's been a while!

After having a conversation with some very talented arty friends who also have blogs it seemed like a good idea to try and revive this little blog of mine and rejoin the blogging community. 

Over the last 2 and a bit years my interest has changed quite dramatically from "nice clean" card making and scrapbooking to "the messier the better" mixed media. I knew nothing about acrylic paints, ink sprays, structure paste or gel medium back then but I have it all now, and then some! Amazing how quickly a new collection of "stuff" can grow!

As I explained all that time ago when I first moved to this lovely little town I had my first taste of mixed media at The Artistic Stamper which is right on my doorstep (how lucky am I). Jennie is an expert on all things messy, not only does she have great workshops but she also has all the goodies that your heart may desire in the shop.

I will post some of the art I have created so far over the next few weeks by way of a little recap, and then hopefully blog current stuff as and when. It's good to be back!

The joys of spring...

I've spent a long time (almost a year!) deliberating whether writing a blog is really for me.
I'm still not sure. So I'm just going to give it another go. It's not that I don't like the idea per se, I'm just not organized enough. I still procrastinate like I've always done. 
This year is my 50th year and I very much want to make some changes, get fitter and healthier (I have made a start on that), explore mindfulness (this is something I keep dipping in and out of but don't seem to be able to commit to on a regular basis), take a photo each day, write in my art journal each day, continue with a Project Life type of project, continue with Postcrossing and therein lies the problem - I spend time doing one thing and forget about another. I need some structure but I'm sooo not good at having a routine. Maybe I will make a list...
Are there any other disorganized people like me out there??

As for the joys of spring, the Kent countryside around us is at it's very best at this time of year. I love it and I like to spend as much time as possible out and about exploring it. I especially love apple blossom and bluebells. We saw many beautiful places over the bank holiday weekend. I can't wait or the next one...

Art Journalling

Hello everybody, how are you all?

Summer continues in our pretty little corner of England and we continue to love our new home and surroundings - we have lived here for 8 months already! Time flies...

Following on from my Altered Book adventures I also discovered Art Journalling and booked a weekend workshop (yes, a whole weekend - how lucky am I??) with Kate Crane at Jennie's shop. It's not until November so I decided I'd give myself a bit of a head start, bought a gorgeous Art Journal, some pens and pencils and also enrolled in Kate's online class, Journal Soup. I love everything she does and just wish there were more hours in the day for playing!

I've always liked the idea of a diary but have never managed to keep one up for any length of time, and although I like writing it's not necessarily what I want to do when I need to work through some feelings and emotions. I've always thought it must be nice to be able to draw in those situations but that's as far as I got, thinking that my talent didn't reach that far. However, after having a good look at Art Journalling I think it may be the outlet I've been looking for all these years. I spend some time most evenings now doodling. As I love anything to do with words and language I tend to start off with a quote I like and then go from there. I love it so much!

Altered Book update...

Hello everyone, I hope you're enjoying the summer sunshine!
It's a bit on the hot side for me personally but that's a good excuse to be indoors in the shade and do some crafting! I don't mean to sound miserable and I am really happy that we're having a proper summer but I've just never been a sun worshipper and that's just how it is!

Since starting Jennie's Altered Book class at the Artistic Stamper I've been immersing myself in all things altered and journalling and I feel like I've discovered a whole new world and have been going on a journey of self discovery. Playing with techniques in my Altered Books (yes, books - I have 2 now, isn't that exciting?!) or doodling in my Art Journal is sooo therapeutic and I completely lose myself for a while and maybe work through some feelings or emotions - and most of the time there's something pretty to look at at the end of it! That's a win-win situation in my eyes. I'm also meeting some lovely like-minded people along the way which is great.
Life is good!