Polperro

 Not an exact replica, you understand, but anyone who has visited the picturesque Cornish fishing village will know of its higgledy piggledy houses and quirky old bridges. I was completely led by the materials in this piece, mainly the large "bridge" part, with its cut-out bit (exactly as I had found it on the beach!)

 I added steps and a slope on either side of the bank, and a piece of wood with several layers of blue peeling paint serves as the river.

 It was only after I had attached all the houses that I realised that should the inhabitants step out of their front doors, they might get a bit wet! But asthetics won over practicalities in the end!

 I have been making lots of cottages (only 5 weeks or so until the Contemporary Craft Festival - eek!)

This one is a bit special, as it has a rusty tin roof (again, exactly as I found it - holes and all)

 

And finally, it is my mums birthday tomorrow. She has had so many cards from me these last 4 decades, I worry about giving her the same thing twice, so I set about something new this morning. Following the new camper van and caravan designs, the next stop is the ice-cream van!

I hope she likes it. I may add it to my range later in the year.

Thanks for reading and for all your lovely comments lately!

Breathing new life into an old boat

Steve had a couple of days holiday to take this week, so after we had dropped the boys at school, we headed for the beach to do some serious "wrecking". Don't get me wrong, I love going to the coast as a family, but there is only so far you can walk with a reluctant 4 year old!
At first, it appeared as though our trip was unfruitful....not much driftwood about. Then we started to find loads of pieces which were obviously all from the same boat. And then we stumbled across this....


Such a shame, really, when you see the workmanship that has gone into such a vessel.
But my mind was already planning what I could make with some of these finds...

See here, this large section of the boat? Well that diagonal stripe spoke "slipway" to me!

And from the ashes, something new was born!

You can see the lovely crackle-glazed effect still. I wanted to keep the piece almost as I had found it, so I only trimmed off the rough edges. I am chuffed with the result: I will be looking for other bits like this from now on!

We also found this long piece of quadrant painted in brilliant blue, which made a vibrant roof for this terrace of cottages!
And much more besides, but I had to put the driftwood side on hold as another collage commission was calling me!

Anyone recognise it? Clue: its on the North Cornwall coast

with a tidal pool?

Its is Bude. Only a small piece, it measures 30cm x 24cm.
Well, I feel as though I have been quite prolific this week!
Have a fab weekend folks!

New collage: St Michael's Mount

I finished a second piece for the upcoming exhibition at Delamore Arts!
I fancied a change from boats and harbours, but wanted to keep it local, so chose a famous Cornish landmark: St Michaels Mount. Its the second time I have used it as subject matter, the first was several years ago when I was commissioned to do a collage for a wedding present - you can see it in the right hand sidebar!

I am really pleased with this one, and feel that I have improved with practice!

I found some really pretty patterns in catalogues which I incorporated into the sand - and even included a little bit of lace!

I am also trying to use more relevant text when I can. In the above picture are the words "air" and "white beaches"!

In other news: I am so thrilled to have been accepted to take part in the Contemporary Craft Fair in June!!
This is such a big deal for me, I never thought I would be successful in my application! Their website has been updated this week to show which other makers are participating - some fantastic artists some of whom I think you will know! It has made me more than a little bit nervous, I can tell you!! I am keen to get in the shed and start making driftwood pieces, but, Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! Too cold!

Take care peeps!

Latest work: Mevagissey

It's been quite a productive week: fairly quiet on the orders front, so I've been able to crack on and finish the first of two pieces of work which will be on show at Delamore Arts in May.

I think I prefer the little snippets of the background as they are so simplified - almost like using a large brush - whereas the foreground is more complicated!

I love the colourful buildings and their reflections in the water!

Certainly makes me wish for spring, if not summer!

And here is the finished piece - it measures about 50cm x 30cm...

So... one down, one to go - and I have two commissions to crack on with after that!
It's enough to make your eyes go squiffy!

Have a great weekend!

Latest collage work

It's been a while since I've done any collages, and it has been great to work in this way again: using scraps of old magazines to build up scenes like this one of Polperro.

It's the second one I have done of this popular harbour village - you can see my first effort here.

This one was commissioned by a friend of mine who is moving away and wants a reminder of beautiful Cornwall.

My favourite bit is the reflections....

I have a couple more commissions in the pipeline (which I will share will you in due course, naturally!) and I also have to produce a couple more, because I am going to exhibit in a real-life exhibition!! This is a big deal for me, because I haven't exhibited in a real-life exhibition since my degree show......um, 18 years ago!

So, I'm going to be busy.....but of course, that's the way I like it!

Thanks for reading! Have a great week!

More cottages

I am having an absolute ball this week! Feeling very motivated and enjoying developing new ideas around the cottage theme. I have put my sewing machine to one side and dusted off my paint brushes instead!

Last week I came across this small piece of driftwood which I painted and scratched to create a sweet little cottage. Originally I had intended it for a simple card, but found it was too bulky and heavy. So then I had the idea of doing a whole row of them and framing them, rather like my driftwood beach huts.

Here's the result...

I rubbed some yellow ochre on the roofs, to give it a bit of a St Ives feel!

Then, whilst rooting around in the shed this morning, I found a couple of offcuts from other projects - and it seems they were made for each other! The blue piece here is exactly the right size for the roof - with a little bit of overhang!

Very Cornish, wouldn't you say?!

I also found this lovely long rounded piece of wood, so I thought I'd do a terrace!


The lines are created by putting a layer of oil pastel under the coloured paint - then when you scratch it, the pastel colour (in this case white) shows through.

It's ready to hang on the wall, and will go in my Folksy shop tomorrow, the light's just terrible again today!
BTW, the stitched piece in my last post is sold! Yippee!