I suppose this is a variation of ‘when life gives you lemons make lemonade’… we leave the garden lawns alone in May to make sure the bees have food, (dandelion abundance) until more flowers come out next month.
But, the gardens are full of them, including their beautiful seed heads, or ‘clocks’ as we used to call them as kids (pick them and blow on them, each blow starts ‘one o’ clock’ etc until all the seeds were blown away and the time is the count of the last blow. Always wrong!).
So seeing their glorious gossamer-like clocks, I made up a sugar/water solution in a fine misting spray bottle and gave several a spritz. I was very mindful to select isolated patches of them away from active bees or reclusive spiders or any insects to protect them. They breathe through spiracles in their exoskeletons and I wouldn’t want them to suffocate.
They last for ages, though the stems will shrivel. So, when life gives you dandelions, make a dandelion bouquet.
Easter’s been and gone now. Only had the one egg but, as they say, an oeuf is enoeuf… .
A Ferraro Rocher. Seven euros, I think.. or was it eight? But… Urfff it wasn’t nice. Between us, we ate half and chucked the rest away. And it was an empty shell. No sweeties inside. Bleh. So, with a face like a dropped pie, tried to appreciate the pretty foil packaging. It IS pretty.
Husband got his absolute favourite. A kilo bag of mini eggs. Sounds like gluttony and death by chocolate but they’ll actually last us him weeks.
Anyway, had a passion to fulfil. A project that jumped into my head a couple of weeks ago.
Since starting art classes, have been looking for a nice folder to carry artwork in. Keep paintings separate from other art supplies in bag. Nothing on Amazon or proper shops (do leave the house occasionally) had anything to inspire me. Those black polyvinyl carry cases look nasty.
Lessons learned and all that. Took measurements and documented the process. All good. Still very functional but lacking finesse.
Second go. Got out the operating table for the tools and equipment.
It has fold over flaps in the back, decorative metal corner protectors and cotton-twill ties (for when it goes to dinner or attends interviews, etc, ha ha).
Designed the labels in Illustrator. It accommodates A3 so large enough for my art work.
I made the flaps wider than those in the original (above) so they overlapped better.
The metal corners are bigger than the original as well. Secured with a spot of glue and a crimp.
Still a few tweaks to make but not in a hurry to make another just yet because I love it.
Talking of leaving the house, the sun is bloody shining today so can wear new DMs – Clarissa leopardskin sandals – and show off newly-painted Plum Pudding purple toenails. High gloss. Brill.
That’s it, really. The sun is out and the sky is blue. Spring is here and all is lovely.
Tubby Tubchops is out of hibernation and investigating the foliage for slugs and snails in his snuffly hedgehoggy way. Glad he’s still with us.
Seem to be a good few bees around. Hopefully, this will be a good year for them, and all insects, actually. Their decline is worrying.
I’ve started on a monthly phenology wheel. All throughout March, I took photos of leaves, flowers, bees, etc, and intend to ‘document’ their sightings on my wheel. I got the idea from Marion’s World on You Tube. Her artworks are just lovely.
Life is wonderful and Marion’s capture of the seasons in her wheel and shows her mindful appreciation of nature and the whole wonder of nature with its cycles of renewals and rebirths.
From rebirths to rebrands. Couldn’t help but notice the massive reaction to Madame M’s depiction of the Queen (allegedly!) in the form of a green waffle on St Patrick’s Day. I thought it looked more like the face of a blow up sex doll. It’s bizarre how much of a storm gets brewed up over silly trivia!
My life lacks such wild drama. This afternoon will be spent watercolour painting. Just recently got a glorious set of paints from Amazon: Kuretake Zig Gansai Tambi.
Just finished an exercise from Creative Abstract Watercolors (beautiful book by Kate Rebecca Leach):
The media is Cotton Rag Paper made in India.
She is inspired by a postcard I got many years ago. I’ve painted her many times, usually against a dark, atmospheric background but chose a lighter one this time.
Also working in After Effects adding some inertial bounce to a space scene for (hopefully) Earth Day. I get distracted so easily so no guarantees.
So, Easy Osey at the mo.
Life is so good.
Popping off to get some quinoa for a recipe I’m trying out for tea. Sounds delish.
I did. Got a Black Friday deal on the Adobe suite and am back in the Adobe fold. Sadly, There were tools that Affinity just didn’t have that clinched the decision. It’s still a great app and still does some things that beats the pants off Illustrator but it’s just not there yet. One thing Affinity does (at least for now…) is sell full programmes rather than subscriptions so the Affinity suite is still installed and can be used for its strengths when needed.
Christmas Hare My Christmas fairy Harey is finished and looking sparkly and glam.
She’s instead of a stocking – see the gift bag? Apparently, there is something small but lovely for me for Christmas…. oooh! Don’t you just love waiting for the big day??!
Amazon … bleh. Ordered a pair of Dr Marten brogues (weirdly described as trainers) for Himself a couple of months ago. Despite not being available until between Nov 22 to 29, Amazon took full payment. Queried this as it wasn’t their normal practice but apparently, IS their new normal now. Okey Dokey.
But, come the evening of the Nov 21st, Amazon say they shoes can’t be shipped and they’ve cancelled the order. Got a refund a day or so later so no money lost. Just not a great customer experience and pi**ed off cos the shoes are gorgeous and would have made a brilliant present.
Fairy
Back to fairyland. As always, having made one, better ways of doing some things became apparent so have modified the template and am making a smaller one as a tree dec to trial my ‘improvements’. Making the first one was actually a lot of fun and really enjoyed it.
Can’t believe Christmas is just a few weeks away. We’re putting the tree up on the first and looking forward to decorating with some gorgeous new decorations. The Animal Shelter bazaar is this Sunday, as well, so will be attending.
Baby Blanket and Hat
The crocheted baby blanket is some seven rows from the finish. Matching baby hat is ready, complete with pom-pom. This is for the animal shelter bazaar if I can just get on with it but am being pulled In a few different directions at the moment. Fingers crossed. If not, they’ll auction it on their Facebook page before Christmas.
TK Maxx had some adorable ‘Guess how much I love you’ gift bags and I already had matching tissue paper just perfect for the baby blanket. Will make a lovely present for a new mum and baby for Christmas.
The Moffymakes Etsy shop is not getting a tickle or a tit. Not an admirer, let alone a sale. The high prices might be off-putting but the yarn is very expensive. The baby blanket being donated to the shelter is much, much cheaper.
Do I care? Not really. Am as stressed as Charlie about it:
Gracie is nearly as upset:
Anyway, the time to marzipan the cake is near! The cake smells very heady and alcoholic…lush! Christmas is wonderful and am excited, as usual, for its coming.
The recipe. Better than Baileys. Substitute brandy or Southern Comfort for whiskey, if you prefer.
It’s as nice or nicer than Baileys and about a third of the cost. The only downside is that I’m not sure how long it keeps for. I’d say use within a fortnight; that’s how long I’ve kept a bottle for and it was still perfect.
On the plus side, it’s so easy and quick to make you can make more in no time.
The fudge ganache is freshly poured in the pic so still looks shiny but it dried down to a gorgeous matt colour. It’s very rich but every bite is full of flavour. Am giving it five stars (or the 5 arse inches rating in every slice).
Made two small Christmas cakes and have poked them with a knitting needle and started the weekly brandy feed. Got a few months before they need marzipanning so they’ll be good and rich by then.
What else have I been up to? Went to see Sarah Millican at the Gaiety theatre. Third time but still makes me laugh.
Joined a crochet gang about 2 months ago and enjoy the weekly hooks ups. Pun intentional. Currently crocheting loads of little crochet granny flower squares. I drew up the symbol pattern for it (just visible in the pic) in Affinity Designer so chuffed with myself on many fronts there:
I need 99 squares. Still about 30 to go and the sheer tedium of pattern repeat has me totally demojoed. Then there’s the thought of sewing or crocheting the squares together… and crocheting a border … all very daunting.
Have two other baby blankets on the go so have other projects to pick up and alternate. My intention is to have all three done by Christmas and maybe on Etsy.
Onto yet more fresh stimuli. Have always loved art nouveau and the resurgence of Art Nouveau designs and graphics have got me going. It’s brilliant to feel passion igniting my creativity but am kind of concerned that burn out will follow. Totally self-induced. So the reference books are out on the table full of bloody gorgeous designs and an online Liz Kohler Brown ‘Make sellable graphics’ course has fired me into taking action by presenting a new challenge… can I come up with a compilation of Art Nouveau-inspired spot graphics, borders, repeat patterns, etc, etc, etc? Yes I can. With Affinity Designer, that I’m still learning. On a Mac and an iPad. The interfaces are not exactly alike, not least is not having a keyboard just ‘there’ for the shortcuts.
Let’s not leave things there. Let’s up the ante. Cross stitch patterns. Recently got a book of vintage cross stitch alphabets. Have cleaned them up digitally and created a clean grid and replicated the pattern. The grid is now a template and the design below is to fit a frame specifically for it. The available space to surround the initial with corners, borders and fillers clearly delineated so it will have some breathing space in the frame:
As you can see, there’s a lot of dead space around so have started bringing in some little graphics like the flower. So far have only got one petal converted into cross stitches… it will be a big job.
Of course, I have cross stitch books to look at for inspiration for borders and doodahs. Therein lies yet another avernus. They’ve inspired me to do another two cross stitch pictures. A sampler… to be designed first (why keep things simple?!) and a gorgeous design from an Emma Congdon book.
On top of all this is the 30 day Glyphs trial. Make your own fonts with Glyphs. Am keen. It’s right up my street and Skill Share have a course on making fonts with Glyphs. I’m on it.
Let’s not forget the sketchbook club… or a big bit of serious academic work… year 2. Did finish a one-years remote art therapy diploma so have that under my belt. Doesn’t mean the list of to-dos gets any shorter.
My plate is overflowing and I need at least two new sets of teeth for the biting off more than I can bite, let alone, chew. The feeling of what is set out for me to do is overwhelming yet I WANT to do them all.
Some minor setbacks along the way are to be expected. Remember that pic of the crochet squares above? Charlie thinks it’s a very good box for a chap to grab some shut eye in. He’s having a groom and getting his pyjamas on as I type.
Been using Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign for over 20 years. Admittedly, I did get cracked copies and was very much a pirate in the early days until I became proficient and loved them. Then I bought the programmes. But, my love affair with the suite finally came to an end and I kissed goodbye to the ever-flakier and capricious software just last week. The Adobe suite licence came up for renewal and I cancelled all but After Effects. Adobe had p*ssed me off once too often a few months ago and that’s when I bought the Affinity suite. Is Affinity awesome? Nearly. It needs a lasso tool and the curve layers… so, so many get generated. Gah.
I’ve been working on a collection of art nouveau spot graphics and other elements using Procreate on an iPad. Trouble is, the graphics need to be vectorised. Inkscape trace works well enough. There’s Adobe Capture (free) but is also a bit of a PITA. Then they need to be taken into Affinity Designer. AD then presents a list of Curve layers a mile long. Grouping elements together takes forever. There has to be a better way. So, awesome? Nah. Is Illustrator? Nah with knobs on. Caught somewhat in the devil’s bargain, but there you go.
I’ve also got myself onto a Blender course and given myself a year to see if I can live without AE as well. Love After Effects. Dear God. It’s like crack cocaine.
So, depending on how it goes, I might go back to Adobe or I might not. A year will give me time to decide.
Meanwhile, scammers are just everywhere. Like herpes! I posted something on Done Deal and within minutes had two messages saying they were interested in the ‘item’ I’d posted and could they talk to me on WA. Apparently, this is a known scam strategy… get you off the DD private messaging… then what they do if they’re successful I have no clue. Both got refused and blocked.
Then listed some crocheted baby things on Moffymakes
Within 5 minutes got a message to say my account had been blocked, please contact the Etsy security team… but , amazingly *ahem* was able to carry on happily listing a few other things…
followed by another message asking me to contact the Etsy support team… apparently, a potential buyer tried to make a payment but their payment couldn’t get through… please contact Etsy to verify my banking information …
Both reported and blocked. Very annoying.
They give me a sore head.
Go stick the boot in, Ted!
Found a fabulous vintage collection of cross stitch alphabets on the Gutenberg site. Pretty crappy state but cleaned them up and can use them fairly easily:
The set above still need cleaning up but have two sets done already and tried out a pattern:
Also very excited to have a book of Art Nouveau cross stitch on its way from a private seller on Amazon so not new, but seeing as the book is out of print, I don’t care. Just loving the potential.
Lots to be busy with. Sketch book group, crochet group (several crochet projects on the go… ), academic work, digital artwork, motion graphics and planning on some Tilda sewing before Christmas as well.
Oh, also trying out Glyphs – font making software. Free trial for 30 days (I think) then decision time. It’s 300 euro so not cheap but have a course on Skill Share on font making with Glyphs so worth taking a deep dive before parting with a substantial chunk of change. Bottom line is no chance of getting bored.
Posted the Call the Midwife blanket (above) on Moffymakes. Not sure if I want to part with it… we’ll see if it or anything gets bought. The traffic on Etsy is immense. Listings are only something like 36c a month (though you have to pay 17 euro to register) so costs are fairly minimal. It’s the online equivalent of stack ’em high, sell ’em cheap. My site will probably never get noticed.
Sounds like I’m full of gloom and despondency but am pretty sanguine. Once it’s listed, it’s put away and forgotten. I’d like to get enough to be able to donate a nice lump to the KWSPCA so fingers crossed.
I finally got round to opening an Etsy shop to sell my crochet work. A momentous day as we are, apparently, experiencing (according to Met Eireann) a hurricane. This is unheard of for Ireland but we are hunkered down and keeping an eye on the window should we see our favourite locals, aka, The Flying Handbag and Shirley Valentine, get swept up into the maelstrom, fly over the rooftops and be the last sighting we’ll ever have of them. They were out there earlier defying the elements, angering the weather gods with their boldness.
Anyway, the shop is called Moffy Makes. I had a brilliant morning designing the shop banner and getting more familiar with Affinity Designer. I love the banner and am loving Designer.
The Affinity suite is proving, so far, a terrific alternative to Adobe Illustrator/Photoshop and InDesign. I still have the Adobe suite subscription until November so have time to use the Affinity apps and then decide what to do about Adobe when the time comes to renew the Adobe licence.
So p**ssed off with Illustrator crashing. Misaligned alignments, Bézier curve giving the app a full death spiral spasm, unresponsive drop-down menus… bug after bug after bug. And despite frequent Saves (I have RSI from twitchy Save fingers) the ‘recovered’ documents always lost work. $*&@*&%!
If Affinity does the job. I’ll only subscribe to After Effects with Adobe as Affinity don’t (PLEASE Serif, create an alternative) have a motion graphics package. So,stuck in the Devil’s Bargain until such time or maybe learn Blender.
Anyway, back to the shop. Listed a couple of things; this baby blanket:
With free ‘matching’ bonnet and booties:
And a lovely baby bonnet:
Hopefully, I’ll be able to make enough to keep me in yarn and donate some profit to the KWWSPCA. The local shop does a good business – completely manned by unpaid staff but every bit helps.
Talking of charity shops, I found the loveliest, wooden bread bin in St Vincents for 5.00 euro. Needed a good cleaning and is now in bits and being painted red to fit in with my kitchen. Can’t wait to get it finished.
Another great find was a frivolous little beady bag:
Not quite so nice as my gold one but very lovely:
And, they’re useful:
Just perfect for crochet hooks.
So, providing we survive the hurricane of 2024 (currently causing the Egg chair covers to bluster in a most terrifying manner and already blown a small, but substantial, plant pot over) I’ll be posting pics of the shiny red bread bin soon.
Very glad to have stumbled across No Sleep Creative’s tutorial ‘Master Study Wavy Trails’. I added some Bezier stripes and created a star (using the Repeater function’ to the leading orb.
I have so many things on the go, it’s not true. I keep lists of them. But sometimes I just don’t want to do anything, really. Just day dream.
Apparently, maladaptive daydreaming is a ‘thing’. Creating scenarios in the imagination, populated with characters and narratives and immersing oneself within it isn’t as mainstream and common as I thought. To me, they’re like parallel universes that offer wonderful escapes and freedom to just BE. And occupy the mind in a very comforting way unlike hyper-focus that absolutely locks you into intense processing with the ensuing disorientation when you come back into ‘real time’.
So, no idea where the ‘mal’ comes from to describe the very pleasant reveries and escapism MD affords. But just sometimes, I like to lose myself or, possibly, find myself, in the magical worlds inside my head. No masks.
MD is my magical world where the acceptance of authenticity and real me can exist can never be maladaptive.
So, sometimes, I like to do nothing. Just be.
Original Illustrator paper cutting design from a while back.
No More Mondays 