Moody Blue.

Maybe because the weather turned cold again, maybe because memories of loved ones past took hold and became overwhelming, my mood this month has been blue.



These are the times when nature soothes and lifts the spirits. I walked in fields of blue, through great swathes of bluebells and forget-me-nots which carpet the woodlands around my home.



and of course nothing on earth keeps a person more grounded than walking with a dog.



There have been lots to keep me busy in my studio, cards and prints to make and post, new paintings to begin and artwork to scan. Listing a new item takes almost as long as its creation followed by the photo shoots. I have to confess to enjoying playing around with the later. As a child I always wanted a shop of my own and am having great fun with my online version.



Last but not least, I have been in the process of making some of my children’s books available as digital applications and have become a creative partner with Auryn Inc. I hope to see the first title “White is the Moon” available soon and am excited about the new opportunities this partnership may bring. Auryn have some beautiful titles on their list, my absolute favourite is “The Little Mermaid” as told by Hans Christian Andersen and illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger. Auryn’s version has the most beautiful underwater effects complete with splashing fishes and rippling waves. You can download a short free version just to try out, you will be amazed at how very lovely it is.

November Giveaway!

No sun, no moon!


No morn, no noon

No dawn, no dusk, no proper time of day.


No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,


No comfortable feel in any member

No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,


 No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds

November!

Thomas Hood.

This month began much like the poem by Thomas Hood, dreary mist and rain, gloomy news from home about the state of our ash trees, and a distinct lack of birds, which was very worrying. Everyone has remarked on the shortage of starlings this year, even the house sparrows were thin on the ground. We watched the news and worried for the safety of friends across the ocean after the devastation of hurricane Sandy. Added to that we had our own drama here in the shape of a car crash which demolished the telegraph pole across the road, so added an extra line to the poem- No internet- November! Fortunately nobody was hurt and the fault was fixed but it took ten days, which made work very difficult.

It wasn’t all doom and gloom however; we had lots of trips and caught up with family and friends. We went to the NEC in Birmingham and handed over the original painting of “Hare’s Hideaway” to Mike and Hilary Emeny of “Art of the Imagination”. It is always a wrench to part with an original painting, knowing that if all goes well I may never see it again! I was comforted by the fact that printing technology is so far advanced as to allow an accurate copy to be made.

We also visited an exhibition called “The First Cut” in ManchesterThe exhibition showcased the work of 31 international artist who specialize in cutting and manipulating paper. I was particularly drawn to the work of Su Blackwell who’s work is book inspired (see paper house- Wuthering Heights). Many of the works were incredibly complex and fragile and made us wonder about the logistics of setting up such an exhibition. Later in the month we visited London but I will save that for next time.

And now, ladies and gentlemen, I have a give away for you. I have a copy of my “Nature” calendar for 2013 up for grabs. This slimline calendar has twelve different nature based images including many taken from my children’s books. You will find an owl, foxes, a puffin, rabbit and hare, hedgehog and many more. The calendar has been published by Judges and is available in the shops here in the UK only. My giveaway is open to everyone, no matter where you live but please note the holidays are UK bank holidays etc that may not be relevant to you. To be included in the draw all you have to do is indicate you wish to take part by leaving a comment below. I will pick a winner at random on Friday 30th of November.

You may also be interested to learn that you can help a worthwhile charity and buy my new Birthday calendar here- and my Gardener's Scrapbook Calendar 2013 here-

Bluebells and bookbinding

We have had a peculiar May this year, as I write this the sun is shining as we would expect but earlier in the month we had miserable, grey, cold dreary weather which cast a gloom over everything. The bluebells have been lovely but not so plentiful as previous years. On one of our dog walks we spied a fox near the canal path. We watched as she made her way to a dense patch of brambles and wondered if she had any hungry cubs to feed. The young fox illustration comes from “A Book of Days”, a birthday book I illustrated for Blackie and Son Ltd.

We had a very pleasant visit from artist friend Celeste Goulding, who had traveled to England on holiday from Australia. You may remember Celeste from a previous post? This time we enjoyed an actual rather than a virtual cup of tea. It was so nice to meet her in person.

Work has been busy, getting design collections ready for Surtex, an annual trade fair in New York. I did however find the time to attend a bookbinding workshop with Glenn Malkin, a bookbinder from East Yorkshire. Glenn is an amazing and inspirational craftsman who has a bindery called Signature Bindings Glenn specializes in affordable bindings and repairs, journals and fine bindings. His website contains useful information about forthcoming workshops and events as well as showcasing his award winning designer bindings.

In the one-day workshop we managed to complete three books. One wrap around binding, one Japanese stab binding and a little single section cased binding. All the materials were supplied including the lovely marbled papers. I was especially pleased with the book, which utilized part of an old map, an idea I am sure I will use again. Maybe next time I will remember that as this structure is covered with a map it has a front, back a head and a tail. I managed to create a back and a front the same way up but would have preferred the back to be the front, although in Japan it would have worked perfectly! Finally I have been creating an online print shop with Society6, the shop currently offers art prints and stretched canvases, and I hope to add more images in due course.

Children's Book Giveaway

Thank you so much for all the lovely comments you left about my children's book. It has been very heartwarming to read them, I really do appreciate your visits. This week I am hosting my own giveaway open to anyone who cares to enter. I have a signed copy of “White is the Moon” to give to you but first, I hope you will help me in a little market research. I have recently had some postcards printed, there are two sets available in my Etsy shop and I am wondering which people will like the best? So, if you would like a free, signed copy of my book please leave a comment below and say which animal postcard appeals to you the most.

I have always loved frogs, though I know that many hate them, it was lovely to see so many tadpoles whilst walking yesterday. We have been experiencing very heavy rain and cold, wintry weather but yesterday saw a bit if sunshine so we put on our dog walking boots and headed to the fields. The rain has made everything look so fresh and green, cowslips and primroses in flower, every cloud has a silver lining I suppose!

I will choose a winner on Wednesday the 2nd of May, so bye for now and good luck.

My heart is like a singing bird.

Illustration taken from "White is the Moon"

“My heart is like a singing bird” from the poem “A Birthday” by Christina Rossetti best describes how I feel right now as we prepare for Easter. This year we hope to also celebrate my husband’s birthday together with four generations of our family.

You may have noticed the addition of a link to “White is the Moon” in my sidebar. This children’s picture book was one I first worked on when our boys were little, now we have a grandson old enough to read it, albeit with his own hilarious adaptation. “Once there was a fish and the fish was called Seymour” and “Pink is the pie” has replaced “Pink is the crab” after he saw it had a close resemblance to a cheese and onion pie! I am waiting for samples to arrive, of the book that is, not the pie. When I have them I will do a giveaway.




We have also been enjoying unbelievably sunny March days; warm enough to sit in the garden in tee shirts and jeans. Ted the dog has been treated to extra long country walks, making the most of the weather before it changes back to cold and grey.
The woodland near home is carpeted with wood anemones and shining stars of celandine, birdsong fills the air, in particular the very lovely music of the song thrush, blackbird and yellow hammer.
Grandson George can be seen proudly wearing his Easter Bonnet, made with help from his clever mum.

The lovely little embroidered bird is from Chloe Redfern, a mixed media artist who has an Etsy shop called Slightly Triangle. Her decorations are absolutely delightful.



I have been painting daffodils for my portfolio, maybe to end up on a paper napkin or greeting card one day? Sometimes it is nice just to work for the sheer pleasure of painting from life.


I hope your Easter days are filled with sunshine and birdsong too.

A little bit of Whimsy.

For the last couple of years I have been working with Wentworth puzzles, makers of quality wooden jigsaws. This spring they have chosen my rabbits design to feature on one of their puzzles. Each puzzle is contained within a sturdy box, inside the box is a fabric drawstring bag holding an amazing array of different shaped pieces.



This puzzle contains specially themed shapes called 'Whimsy" pieces. There is a rabbit shaped piece, a lamb, a butterfly and many more. You can find the puzzles here on the Wentworth site. They are not cheap but they are a quality product and one meant to last. I think they make a good alternative to chocolate eggs which can be more style over substance and like all jigsaws they are good for sharing.



We have been making the most of the mild spring weather, walking the dog and wild flower spotting. Today was no exception, the fields were alive with birds nest building, queen bumblebees looking for new homes and primroses, marsh marigolds and pussy willows all competing for attention. It does the heart good!

$150 gift voucher to give away!

It’s April already, I can’t believe how quickly this year has flown. Here in Cheshire, England where I live the weather has been typical; March winds followed by April showers. Everything is greening, buds are opening and many wild flowers are making an appearance.

I did the painting above some years ago for a children’s book called “Down the Lane” which depicts the sights and sounds over the year. I recently had the artwork carefully scanned and now can offer prints in my Etsy shop. Like many other artists I have been able to use the internet to reach a wider audience. Not only have I been able to sell my wares but I have discovered many new talents, and new ways to shop.

If you appreciate the handmade you may be interested in the second part of this post and a special give away sponsored by Novica. If you haven’t come across this internet marketing company they work with artists and artisans across the world giving them a global platform and enabling them to sell their wares to a wider audience. They are a fair trade company who believe in creating a relationship between their artists and customers, they say:-

- “At the deepest essence of our philosophy, we want to create a bridge between you and the many talented artisans across the globe.”

And now for the fun part, I am able to offer a $150 Novica gift voucher to you! This free drawer is open to anyone who follows my blog, all you have to do is take a look at the website and choose which gift you would like from the many wonderful objects featured. You can learn about the artist who created it and where they are based. Just leave a comment below and tell me if you want to take part and your name will be entered into the drawer. One important thing to consider however is that the winner may have to pay some import duty or taxes on their gift so please bear this in mind before entering.

They also offer an extensive range of handcrafted, fair trade corporate gifts.You can see for yourself the very wide selection they have here.

I will choose one lucky winner on Wednesday the 20th. Good luck everyone!

You can learn more about this company and the work they do by following these links-
Novica Live
Green gifts

In search of Squirrel Nutkin

Tony and I decided to escape for the day last week; the blue sky beckoned so we packed our walking shoes and camera and set off in search of Squirrel Nutkin.

We headed for the National Trust Reserve at Formby, on the coast just north of Liverpool. Alas, we did not see a single red squirrel probably due to the devastating effects of recent disease outbreaks. It is estimated that numbers are slightly on the increase now but they were certainly very thin on the ground the day we visited.

I have seen red squirrels in the wild in Austria and was amazed at the colour variations, some very dark sable brown, others bright orange/red. Sadly they are very rare here in the UK despite a great deal of conservation work.

The day was not wasted however as the reserve has some lovely picnic areas and walks through pine forests, sand hills and down to the sea. A huge expanse of sandy beach stretches as far as the eye can see, north towards Southport and south towards Liverpool and the walk helped to lift our spirits.



The illustration is taken from my "Illustrated Address Book".

House to Let

Dog walking is one of my favourite forms of exercise; it forces me out of the house no matter what the weather and gives me time to appreciate the wildlife on my doorstep. There has been so much to see recently, wild orchids, a grass snake, a heron chasing a buzzard, some rather unusual wild flowers which turned out to be orange hawkweed (sometimes called fox and cubs), and yesterday we watched a very industrious solitary bee.

A flash of green passed at eye level, at first I thought it was a dragonfly but on closer inspection saw that it was a bee carrying a piece of leaf. It took the leaf into a hole in the canal bridge wall. We watched in total fascination as the bee emerged from a gap between the bricks and returned with yet more pieces. Despite the fact that we had focused the camera on the hole, we did not manage to get a good shot but you can just about make out a piece of the newly cut leaf being dragged into the tiny space in the motar. We think that the bee must have been a leaf cutter bee, which makes nests similar to a cigar, rolling the leaves into a cylinder. Please click on the photograph to see more clearly.



Earlier this year I placed a bee house in the garden, so far we have had no takers. It has been thought for sometime that pesticides may be killing our bees and it is clear that more research is needed. The Co-Operative Plan Bee is campaigning for more research into the effects of pesticides on bees. You can visit their website and sign a petition and learn more about our bees. If you enjoy flowering plants, juicy pears, almond and cherries then please spare a thought for our bees without which we would have none of these things. If people had to take over the job of bees in the UK it would take a workforce of tens of millions, to find out just how many visit this link. In some parts of China humans now have to pollinate fruit, it could happen here, please help.

Do you like butter?

I have spent the morning walking my dog and taking lots of photographs of buttercups in the meadow so I will have lots of reference material at the ready when the occasion demands. I hope to incorporate some of these yellow beauties in my ongoing illustration project.

There is something very innocent and child like about this flower. When you were a child did you ever hold a buttercup flower under your chin? If the petals reflected yellow onto your chin that meant that you liked butter. I never met anyone who answered no, did you?

I tried very hard to photograph some bumblebees, to no avail but they did seem to be quite a few around. Having said that I am never too sure what is a bumblebee and what is a solitary bee, according to the Bumblee Conservation Trust “there are 250 species of bee in the UK. This is made up of only one species of honey bee, 25 species of bumblebee and 225 solitary bees species which rarely get a mention.” The trust are looking for volunteers at the moment to record bees and to give talks etc. If you want to learn more you can follow this link.

Everyone knows that buttercups are yellow so imagine my surprise when I saw a red colourway of my buttercup design! It seems that it made more sense economically to switch the screens around from yellow to red rather than print a similar poppy design in the “Buttercup Farm” series by Makower.

Bluebells and Barthomley

It is so hard to stay indoors when the bluebells are in bloom. For a brief spell, before the leaf canopy gets too dense, sunlight dances on the woodland floor and the bluebells take center stage.



This little woodland is only a mile or so away from our home but as yet, remains an area of great tranquility and natural beauty, despite being so close to the town. As you can see we took Ted for a walk over the May Bank Holiday, as usual he chose his walking stick with great care and attention. (Click for a closer look.)

The weather was bright but cold and before too long the rain started in earnest, there was only one thing for it, we headed for the pub where a roaring fire awaited us. You can see more of this old inn in Barthomley which dates back to 1614 here. It is the sort of pub where dogs are welcome but we decided to take Ted home first as he had got rather wet in the rain, he did not seem to mind too much as he snuggled into his new blanket.



The water colour illustration above is taken from “A Book of Days” which sadly is now out of print.

daffydowndillies

I have been reading an old gardening book which refers to daffodils as daffydowndillies, isn't that a lovely name?
Our daffodils have more or less gone past their best; they have been so much later this year than last thanks to our very prolonged winter. We have a few in flower at the moment but I don’t think they will last much into next week. The painting here will be an Easter card to be published next year in the UK, actually I finished it last year and had the luxury of painting it from life which is always preferable to working out of season.

The weather has been truly wonderful here and we have been taking photographs of wild flowers in order to have lots of reference material on which to draw. Our usual walking place is now scattered with cowslips, primroses and wood anemones. Baby rabbits have been keeping Ted on his toes, fortunately he is hopeless at catching them, in fact I think he enjoys hunting for sticks! We have noticed a few rabbits with what looks like Myxomatosis, something I thought had died out years ago, it is quite heartbreaking to see them limping about by the wayside.





I have started to work on a new book project, which is a bit daunting; I hope to share more news of this soon, and in the meantime I hope to catch up with reading your blogs.

Picnic by the river.

We have just returned from a little trip down to Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire. As well as being home to Wind-in-the Willows it is also the home to Makower, the fabric company who produce fabrics for crafters and quilters. I needed to meet up with the people there to talk over my new Christmas Collection for 2011 and as my husband was still on his Easter break it was a good excuse to turn the trip into an overnight stop.

It was a delight to drive under a blue sky, past fields of green, hedges flanked with daffodils and trees full of blossom. One of the most thrilling things for us was to spot red kites circling overhead, we never see these magnificent birds in Cheshire, in fact they have been brought back from the edge of extinction fairly recently. Red kites have a huge wingspan of about two metres; this combined with a relatively small body enables them to circle for long periods without beating their wings. I am not sure how long they have lived in the fields over Oxfordshire but they are very easy to spot so I am guessing that they must be thriving. Now I am not clever enough to photograph red kites but you can read about them here.

We had some time to picnic by the river, the first time this year it has been warm enough to walk about without a coat! Gentle breezes stirred the famous willows along the Thames and we sat for a while and watched the ducks and coots building their nests. After lunch we strolled along the riverbank and admired the many pretty cottages built of red brick and flint, something else we don’t see in our neck of the woods. After a quick visit to the market it was time to visit Makower.

It is quite rare for me to actually meet the people I work with face to face, so much work is done via the internet so it is quite nice have opportunities to talk things through and to pool ideas. The meeting went well and before too long we were back on the road again, this time to nearby Oxford where we had booked B and B here, I shall tell you about this in my next post.

It's getting to look a lot like Christmas?

Despite the spring like nature of this post it seems more like Christmas here in my home studio. I can see snow on the lawn outside and I have my heating switched on. My desk is strewn with eighteen pots of gouache in classic Christmas colours, mixed especially for a new design collection that I am working on for Christmas 2011.



We have had some brief respites between showers and have managed a few country walks along the canal towpath. The wildlife seem to think that it is spring and the air is filled with various chirpings and squabblings as birds seek out their nesting sites.

Every year a couple of swans raise a family along the canal side, this one in the photograph seems to think it has found the perfect spot. Ted found a few new friends as you can see; it is hard to think he will be ten years old in July. I will have to keep a close eye on him when then cygnets appear, as those mute swans get very protective of their young. click for a closer look.

It will soon be time to tidy away my work and set to preparing this empty nest in preparation for our family visitors over Easter. There are metal Easter eggs to fill, beds to be made, a house to clean and lots of shopping to be done so without further ado I would like to wish you all a very happy Easter!

And the winner is....

Thanks so much to everyone who entered into the Easter Egg Giveaway. I have enjoyed reading all of your comments and was so intrigued by your answers to the question “What would you like to find inside your perfect Easter egg?”

We had chocolates, candy, acorns, shells, jelly beans, memories, plane tickets, wild flower seeds, silken thread, goji berries, tea, a tiny cookie, mini eggs, sunshine, signs of spring, a fluffy baby chick, jelly belly favourites, biscuits, cake, paper wrapped hearts, fluffy chicks and last but not least, a lost wedding ring! I was astounded by your creativity, what clever answers you came up with. I hope I have not left anybody out.

All of the above are worthy winners, however I had to choose just one, mmm….
In the end I decided to let fate do the choosing, so the winner as picked by the random number generator is Judy at CJ Stitching and Blooms. So Judy, if you would kindly email me your postal address my little ducklings will prepare themselves for their long flight across the ocean.

The above illustration is taken from my book "Down the Lane", it depicts a blackbird sitting on our hawthorn hedge. If you live in Britain you will be familiar with this adorable, gentle bird with its sweet, melodic singing. We have many blackbirds visiting our garden, they are permanent residents and as I gaze out of my window right now I can see them hopping about looking for worms. The older I get the more appreciative I am of living in a place where bird song fills the air. It is the one thing that I miss the most when I visit inner city London. I will try to get myself organized soon to show you something of our latest trip to the London galleries and museums but right now duty calls. I am busy working on a new Christmas collection for Makower and I have a meeting tomorrow so I better get a move on.

Work in progress

I have been testing out my new Christmas present brushes, there is nothing more inspiring than new equipment! I have posted the work in progress so you can see how I paint. I took lots of photographs of hens and cockerels when I last visited Chatsworth. (A great place to poultry watch!). Some of these showed good close up details of the head, some of the tail feathers etc. I suppose the final painting has selected the best references from over twenty shots.

First of all I make a drawing in pencil on water colour paper, here I am using a tinted Bockingford. I then do a colour wash base before adding the final details. many tiny brush strokes over many hours. As with all my work, I am not 100% happy with the outcome, I have learnt to live with my shortcomings and hope to do better next time!

A bright and frosty beginning.

click to see more detail.

I have not ventured out of the house today as my wellington boots are in my car and my car is buried in snow! So much for my girl guide training to be prepared.

I took these photographs yesterday when the ground was hard and covered with frost, the fields looked so pretty, It brought to mind this song.

"Brightly shone the moon that night
Though the frost was cruel
When a poor man came in sight
Gath'ring winter fuel."

It is a pity that we do not burn logs because Ted just loves to collect firewood.

December activities.

The weather has now turned, today has been frosty and bright, a welcome change from the damp and dreary days of last week. I have been busy in much the same way as most people, trying to organize shopping and present wrapping, card writing, housekeeping, working and party going.


I bought some mistletoe at the supermarket and decided to do some studies of it before it dried up too much. I had forgotten how nice it is to draw a subject just for pleasure.


My poor garden has been sadly neglected but I did manage to trim the overgrown Virginia creeper and made a simple wreath out of the twisted stems. I saw a television show about bird feeding, which was rather alarming, until now I have been hanging up fat balls for the sparrows but it seems that they can injure their feet on the nylon mesh! I have now purchased a fat ball holder and the birds seem to like it.



Tony and I have now consumed three Christmas dinners, not all at the same time I hasten to add! The most recent one at Keele Hall, a rather grand old house which now belongs to the university in Staffordshire. There was a huge log fire, carol singers, a library decorated in Victorian splendor, all of which proved to be a good excuse to change out of my usual dog walking attire!