Winter Weeks

Well, I have been quiet on here lately, but I have not forgotten you guys! January has been busy around here in other things than arts, crafts and gardening, and I can't believe we're already nearing February. The days are already getting longer and that always makes me feel so happy! I absolutely love this first half of the year where daylight stays a bit longer every day and where Nature works its magic on all the plants and creatures, and Life just springs again. I think I probably say "I just love this part of the year" To pretty much any part of the year, mind you. ;)  I just find there's something enjoyable all year round. There's always something beautiful to observe, or something nice to look forward to.

Despite the fact that I was so busy in January, I did manage to find some time for hobbies. I started 3 different projects with 3 different mediums... but none of them is ready for "presentation" yet. However, here are a few samples, just to pique your curiosity... ;)

Acrylics... 

Paper maché...

Crochet... 

All 3 projects are fairly long-term, but I really hope to succeed in completing each of them within a fair period of time. Ideally before the big gardening season starts! If you guys remember well, last year, I did my first vegetable garden ever. It did not go perfectly, but it went anyway and I managed to harvest some good vegetables out of it! I learned many things about gardening and this year is the first time I have to "re-start" a garden. I still have much to learn and I am looking forward to it. I know that soon, I can already start thinking about sowing a couple of things indoors, but as of yet, I only have a faint idea of how to prepare the garden patch again. I'm sure I'll learn... one step at a time. :) I'm excited to see how things will go this year, as I at least know a little more where I'm going regarding what sorts I want to grow and such. 

Anyways, but for now, the snow is covering the ground and it finally looks like winter. I say "finally", because we'd had mild temperatures until about 2 weeks ago, and for a moment I thought we might go straight into Spring after the holidays! But the snow arrived and stayed a while, and is still hanging around. Now, I am not your biggest Winter fan, but I do enjoy how cozy the living room feels in the cold season. Besides, Spring feels even more magical after some snow and cold weather. 

I'm afraid the cats, however, are finding this little Winter visit a little too long! They are staying a lot more indoor and when they do go out, they stay very much around the house. Occasionally, they venture in the back of the garden, but they never stay out very long!

Tiana and Kashew,  bored and wishing the snow would melt already... 

My adventurous Kashew... 

That's it for now! I hope you're all keeping warm and safe... :)

Plant Markers

Yesterday, I sowed 4 different kinds of seeds and set them on a windowsill. I searched for something to use as plant markers, but nothing I came up with was satisfying. I've used popsickle sticks in the past, but I always find that the wood drinks some of the water in the soil, and becomes ugly and mossy really fast. I wanted something more durable and maybe more fun to look at. 

So I took out my polymer clay and made these easy to make plant markers.

It's basically just a rolled piece of clay which I flattened on one end and rolled to a point on the other end. I then shaped the decorations and engraved names. I put everything together and baked the clay. 

Once baked, I washed white acrylic paint over the engraved names and wiped to leave only the words in white. When the acrylic was dry, I finished with 2 coats of varnish.

I had fun doing this project. Now, I just hope my plants will grow well, so I can actually use the markers, and, more importantly, savour freshly picked tomatoes, cucumbers, chili peppers and cape gooseberries!

A touch of lavender

When we first moved into our house in 2010, the backyard was filled with the lovely and soothing scent of lavender. There was indeed, and still is a lot of lavender growing on our lot. At the time, I picked a good amount of the pretty lavender flowers and hung them to dry. I then placed them in a box for later use.

It is nearly 2 years later now and I finally used a little of my time to make some First-summer-in-our-house-reminders in the form of scented crocheted balls. It is amazing how many memories can be associated to one single fragrance. Dried lavender can keep their scent for many many years, keeping your memories alive at the same time. :)

If this simple but fun project interests you, here is how to proceed:

You will need:

yarn,

scissors,

a crochet to fit your yarn size,

a yarn needle,

a stitch marker,

a small amount of polyester toy stuffing (not on picture),

dry lavender flowers.

Crochet about 3/4 of a ball.

Don't know how? go see the Ball tutorial at Greedy For Colors

Here, I chose to use 3 different colours.

When you are almost done forming the ball, put a little bit of stuffing inside it to give it a "bottom".

Place 2-3 dry lavender flowers into the ball.

Stuff with stuffing until you obtain a nice round ball.

Finish the last row or two and fasten. 

You now have a cute little ball with a piece of your garden in it! :)

These can be used in drawers, wardrobes or linen cabinets to give clothes and linens a fresh fragrance. They can be hung in a room as decoration. With the lavender's soothing and calming effect, maybe it would be worth trying to slide one or two of those little balls at the bottom of a pillow case, if falling asleep is a problem. I am also thinking that the colors, scent and size can be adjusted depending on the season and occasion.

Any other ideas?

Unfinished

I enjoy painting skies and backgrounds. Hmm. That's fair enough, right? But now I have projects starting to pile up because I paint the backgrounds but don't always get around to finishing the whole painting. This can be because I have a background idea but not really a foreground one. Or it can be because the foreground idea is more complicated and I don't really know how to do it. It can also be that I try mediums or a new paintbrush out and end up with a lonely background.

These canvases are just leaning against the wall of my hobby room, waiting to be given some much awaited attention. Perhaps I should give myself the goal to finish the 3 following ones before I start anything new. :)

Acrylics

This painting is supposed to go on the wall over the sofa-bed in our guestroom / my hobby room.

Acrylics

I was testing the use of flow improver and slow drying blending medium. I could definitely do something with this, but my conclusion still is that nothing flows, blends and mixes as well on canvas as oils. (while keeping their vibrant colours, that is)

Watercolours

This has been in my pile for well over a year. I really had never tried watercolours at all and just decided to see how it works. I can't say I pushed the experiment very far at the time. I ended up with a very deserted desert. Maybe it needs a cactus and a camel. teehee :)

Stone Age Scene

I've always had strong interest and curiosity for the Stone Age. I love to learn about how our far ancestors might have lived. How did they survived the obstacles Nature put on their way? How did knowledge go around and through the generations and the different families and groups? How complex was their society at the time? How did they show their love for each other? What were their customs? How different were their customs from group to group? Did the various groups meet to learn from one another?

Jean M. Auel wrote a serie of books called "Earth's Children", where we follow the life of a main character by the name of Ayla. I can't say the story is interesting all through the 6 books, but the first 3 books are my all time favorites.

- The Clan of The Cave Bear
- The Valley of Horses
- The Mammoth Hunters

I've read them numerous times in French and in English and am planning on reading them in Danish soon. The author travelled and learned from researchers and specialists on the topic, and is using our knowledge of the Stone Age to build a story that is extremely believable.

Anyways... All that to say that it is this story that inspired the following creation. It is a scene I imagined of Ayla and her mate, Jondalar, with their first born. People in the Stone Age did not actually lived IN caves. It is more accurate to say that they chose sites against rock cliffs to build their dwellings, so that the rocks would help protecting them against the elements.

But here on this image, Ayla, Jondalar and the little one are travelling, and this is a small cave they are temporarily using for protection.

Digital painting done from scratch on MyPaint with the use of a Wacom Bamboo Pen tablet. 

While the shape of Jondalar (the silhouette standing) is off, I am still quite content with the over all result. I particularly enjoyed making this scene warm and cozy with the fire and light in the little cave. It was a very good practice piece for light and shades, especially with the baskets. 

What are your impressions?

Tree of Life

I always liked trees very much, and they often appear in my creations. I find them beautiful, peaceful and inspiring. Sometimes, I enjoy drawing or painting trees by themselves. Other times, I like giving a different meaning to the tree and its branches, by mixing other components in the picture.

This is a digital drawing/painting i made with a painting software called MyPaint, using a wacom bamboo drawing tablet. Here, the tree and its branches are holding and protecting Life. The composition is most probably (and quite obviously) influenced by my deep desire to have children. 
To me, in this image, the tree represents safety, the foetus represents life and hope and the butterfly represents growth, maturity and freedom. 

What does this creation invoke in you?

My first watercolors

I like to try nearly everything that is related to arts and crafts. Some things I try once or twice, and then let go... and some other things I take up again every now and then. The mediums that came back the most often for me are probably acrylics, drawing pencils and polymer clay.

However, watercolors also recently entered my life, and I tend to believe it will remain in my favorite box for a good while, along with the 3 I mentionned above.

I, of course, heard about watercolors before, but for some reason always stayed away from them. I was never that attracted to the results I saw, and it seemed rather difficult to manage and control. I like vibrant, slightly unrealistic colors, for one thing, and watercolors didn't seem to allow this sort of color expression.

I was wrong.

I decided to explore the medium a few months ago and though I felt very clumsy with it, I was surprised to find out that I actually liked the feel of it. I tried a few techniques and I liked the way colors mix together and the role water plays in the creation. I discovered a whole new way to put my abstracts together.

And then I was lucky. I received a watercolor kit as present (thanks mom and dad!), and I only very recently got to try it. Here are my two first "real" creations with watercolors.

This one with the trees started as an abstract background.  I was experimenting with mixing and using water to play with the colors on paper. The lines and shapes it created made me think of trees... so I continued from there. I do often use vibrant colors in my creations. I find it gives them a hint of fantasy and a tone of deep happiness and warmth.

This next one was also an exploration of colors and water mixing directly on paper. The abstract result reminds me of a dense forest leading to a source of light, or opening into a warmer place.

What do you see in this abstract watercolor painting?

:)