The Egg and the Chicken.

Blue skies and sunshine at last, after an unusually cold winter, spring is trying its best this Good Friday. Before I speak too soon and scare the sun away, may I wish you and your loved ones a very Happy Easter. We are looking forward to seeing our family and exchanging Easter eggs and treats.



I made a little time for bookbinding, inspired by some patterned papers I printed, using designs I made for textiles. I only have an A4 printer so am restricted to small-scale books. I even found a use for some old buttons from my collection; I seem unable to pass a charity shop these days without foraging for such treasures. If you click on the photo’s you will see more detail. I also made a few books for my Etsy shop too whilst I was playing.

Ice Age Revisited.

Last weekend we had a trip to London, taking along our camera minus the battery. I had intended to show you all the lovely things we encountered on our walk along the Thames starting at Hammersmith and ending in Chiswick. We walked past Hammersmith Bridge where the book binder and co-founder of The Dove Press, Cobden Sanderson, stood before throwing the type from the press into the Thames. (You can read what drove him to this barbaric act here.)



We saw properties once owned by William Morris and his friend and mentor Emery Walker. Further along the bank we saw and the home of Ravilious and stood awhile under the blue plaque on wall. The level of the Thames was dangerously high and in places spilled over the banks, threatening many properties and gardens. We explored the very spooky graveyard around the church at Chiswick before exploring Hogarth’s House complete with spring garden filled with daffodils and violets. All of which I intended to photograph, now you will just have to take my word for it!



The weather could not have been colder and icy wind chilled us to the marrow. We decided to take refuge in The British Museum where we saw, rather appropriately I thought, an exhibition about art in the Ice Age. I had no expectations about this, thinking that there would be little art surviving from over 40,000 years ago. The art on display was extraordinary, original pieces from ancient civilizations displayed alongside contemporary pieces by artists inspired by the primitive. There was a quote by John Berger written on the wall, next to the exhibits that stuck in my mind-
“Art, it would seem, is born like a foal that can walk straight away..”

Perhaps the creative spirit is something, which has always existed in the human brain, so too I believe, is the sense of the aesthetic and the ability feel uplifted by beauty. Many of the exhibits were carvings on bone, depicting the animals that lived alongside Cro-Magnon man. There was a suggestion that because the drawings were sequenced this was maybe an attempt at animation and that maybe the artist was trying to depict movement. Maybe he was making an attempt at pattern design?

We came away from the exhibition feeling enthralled and amazed by this window into an ancient world. So seldom do I feel so uplifted after visiting contemporary art exhibitions, which seems to have an obsession with the shock factor and ideas over substance. Ice Age man would have found survival difficult enough and yet found a place for art, decoration, jewelry, music and beauty.



And now, for something a little more down to earth. I found two lovely old Pelican Books on Wild Flowers and felt inspired to make some sketches of plant forms. I wanted to keep the drawings very simple in order to incorporate them into a new design group inspired by lino printing and nineteen thirties textiles. Apart from the hand drawn plant shapes the designs were made digitally. I tried to keep the colours very subtle and slightly faded, my husband remarked that they reminded him of remnants of wallpapers which appeared under layers of papers when we decorated our 1930’s house. Wouldn’t it be a good idea if everyone kept a scrapbook of the décor of their home complete with fabric samples and photographs of the interior and exterior?

“The Manchester School of Art”

When I was a student in the seventies I studied printed textiles at “The Manchester School of Art” which was then part of Manchester Polytechnic and is now known as Manchester Metropolitan University. As a student I fell under the spell of the practitioners of The Arts and Crafts Movement, a fascination that has lasted a lifetime. Manchester School of Art had strong links with the Pre-Raphaelites and exponents of Art Nouveau; many treasures are now on display in an exhibition “Art Nouveau” at the Sir Kenneth Green Library. If you are a fan of Archibald Knox, Jessie M King and Aubrey Beardsley or the like you will find this exhibition most interesting.



I owe much to my time at Manchester, in particular to the excellent teaching we received. There was always a strong emphasis on drawing both from life and from plant forms. One of the more celebrated teachers was Adolphe Valette, a French painter who was at the school from 1907 to 1920 and taught L S Lowry. The great designer and illustrator Walter Crane was also director in the eighteen nineties and left a legacy of drawing directly from nature.



It is always strange visiting old haunts; my student days are so fresh in my mind it is hard to believe that over thirty-eight years have passed since I studied there. Much of the old buildings remain although many new ones have been added, the character of the place seems unchanged. I decided to take some photographs to share with you some of the decorative details of the old Art School building.
The modern glass buildings across the park now house the beautiful Sir Kenneth Green Library where you can find The Special Collections Library which includes artist books, decorated papers, a children's book collection: featuring 19th and 20th century children's book illustration and book collections exploring aspects of the book as an artifact. There is also a collection of Victorian ephemera featuring 19th century albums and scrapbooks.



I spent many happy and inspiring hours in the art school library and am delighted to say that some of my illustrated children’s books and artist books now have a home there.



I’ve been playing around with a few new ideas and have created a set of three printed ACEO’s for my shop and am in the process of offering some original artwork in that form too. I have always been drawn to miniatures and have always had a tendency to paint on a very tiny scale. My husband jokes that is because I have always been so poor and art materials so expensive. I think he may have had a point!
The lovely green Celtic binding decorates a volume of Irish literature, a book I bought whilst in the student area in Manchester at a roadside sale. I really don’t have room for any more books but that cover was talking to me, I am sure you know the feeling.

Winter Fox Trot

Despite several attempts to pretend spring has arrived, placing daffodils in vases and filling the house with the smell of hyacinths, winter still has us in its grip. As I type this, the snow is falling outside my window and the sky is a leaden grey. I don’t mind the snow so much but I hate the bitter cold winds and the gloom.

For the last couple of months I have been busy creating a new collection of designs for the various trade shows. I had a day walking around the Spring fair in Birmingham and enjoyed chatting to my agent, other artists and manufacturers, I even spotted a few of my own products which was gratifying. The show seemed much smaller than in previous years but still a great place to visit and trend spot.



In between days of incessant rain we have had some lovely bright sparkly days, blue skies and light. Heartwarming days that lift the spirits and make me want to paint. Nature is always the most inspiring of subjects and walking Ted in all weathers provides many opportunities to observe wildlife. I decided to start a new painting, trying to capture the colours of winter and the shapes and patterns of the fern stems, seed heads and dead grasses that appear beneath the melting snow. I love the repetition of natural forms, the details on the tree bark, the way the light gives a richness and warmth to a winter’s afternoon. I decided that the painting needed life so added a fox, a familiar sight around these parts and can sometimes be seen in the daylight.



I like to work on stretched Bockingford cold press paper, which allows the paint to be lifted when water is applied and then removed with a tissue. I first painted a wash over the entire piece and then worked on top, slowly adding the details to create the desired effect. I use tiny brush strokes applied with a series 7 Windsor and Newton Finest Sable brush. I used bleach, process white, gouache and white pencil to create the snow-covered areas and to pick out the details on the seed heads. As with all my work I never feel entirely happy, often adding bits, removing, changing and fiddling until a point is reached where I have to say enough is enough. It is not perfection but it is as good as I can make it and overall I am happy with the result. If you click on the images you will see more details and see how the work develops over time.



The final result can be seen here in my Etsy shop.I decided to call the painting "Winter Fox Trot"

Tea with Jeri.

I first came across the work of Jeri Landers when I saw her fabric designs several years ago. This lead me to her website and later her blog at Hopalong Hollow Gazette.Over the years we have become better acquainted but distance has not allowed us to meet, however let that not be an obstacle. Today we are taking tea together and invite you to join us, so pull up a chair and prepare to be charmed by this amazingly creative lady.

How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

My tea of choice is Red Rose, a simple black tea. Since 1969 they have placed a small porcelain figurine inside the tea box, some are quite sweet, and I like the tradition. I take mine strong and very sweet, please. I love this tea cup, because it is covered in acorns.

If you could choose anyone, past, present or future, who would be joining us for tea?

Our tea party would include the writer James Herriot, (he would delight us with his marvelous animal tales), Anton Pieck, Dutch Illustrator and master of meticulous detail and perfect perspective... (Perspective is my nemesis; maybe he could give me a few tips). And last but not least, the beloved Beatrix Potter. How she would delight in the fact that her "little books for small hands" are still in print, over 100 years later! But, I would actually love to talk to her about her sheep, because I have sheep as well... in fact, one of them is named Beatrix.

Will you tell us a little about your background in art and design?

My only formal art training was an oil painting course, straight out of High School. I learned 2 things: Oil paints are very expensive and I do not like using them. We were required to turn in 3 canvases at the end of the class and I turned in 3 eggs. Really, I did. I painted miniature gardens upon the surface of blown out eggs using model car paints. My teacher was impressed and I passed the class. Aside from that, trial and error have been my constant guides. I probably do everything the wrong way, but it seems to work out for me.
Growing up in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado was perfect for an animal and nature lover and I spent many years creating realistic wildlife art, until I discovered Traditional Folk art, and taught myself German and Swiss style Scherenschnitte and Early American - Painted Papercutting



This was a complete flip from realism, with a naive look and a folky feel. Over the years, I’ve utilized watercolor and papercutting for the basis of much of my work, including a line of greeting cards and lithographs. I also “grow” papercut gardens.



My art is an odd combination of folkart, realism and illustration. A few years ago, influenced by my love of beautiful storybooks, I wrote and illustrated a book about a character on one of my greeting cards, a rabbit named Hopalong Jack. During the year it took to illustrate the book, I wrote 8 additional stories and Hopalong Hollow was born. Nowadays, I spend most of my art-life working on these books, which is pure joy!



Where are you based and does it influence your work?

Twenty-one years ago, we bought a 40 acre homestead with a rundown century old farmhouse in East Tennessee. My husband and I have spent years bringing it back to life. We’ve filled the property with cottage gardens and all creatures great and small, everything from donkeys to peacocks. It is here that I get my inspiration, my models and my stories. It is the world of Hopalong Hollow.

What have you been doing/working on today?

I am finishing up a book illustration, here-


I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?

We started with tea, so I guess we should end with another cup poured from the acorn pot. This is one of the latest illustrations I have completed for new book. Thank you so much for inviting me!



Thanks for coming all this way and for sharing your world with us. I hope it won't be too long before you visit again. Your work is a delight. I especially love your paper cuttings.

Winter Skies

The New Year got off to a busy start with the arrival of my niece, husband and their delightful daughter. It was touch and go if the visit would take place at all on account of their recent acquisition; a retired greyhound also named Ted. We were all very unsure as to how our little Ted would react to suddenly having another strange dog in the house. Oddly enough, he did not mind a bit and life took on a new dimension, especially walks where big Ted was let loose to gallop across the fields. It is one of life’s great pleasures to see dogs playing; their “Joie de vie” is infectious. It was also very amusing to see how amiable they became, lying side by side in front of the fire in the evening.



The winter skies have been most inspiring, I love the way the stark tree branches appear like black lines engraved upon the heavens. Earlier this year I attended a workshop taught by Emily Martin of The Naughty Dog Press, where I learnt to make a magic book. I am not sure of its proper name but to me it appears to work like magic. Even though my brain understands the principle behind its construction my eyes tell me a different story. It is very difficult to explain but if you look at the photographs you will see that the book appears to be like a very simple concertina book. When it is opened it has inside covers decorated with trees. The first and last spreads have trees and the middle has snowflakes and a fox. When you hold the cover pages and pull, the book becomes flat and the fox disappears. When you turn the book over there is no sign of the trees or the fox. Now if that isn’t magic I’ll eat my hat. Whilst out walking today I noticed animal tracks in the snow, which has given me the idea of decorating the empty back page with fox prints. You may have worked out that the woven design has something to do with the magical transformation.

Since I wrote this post I have found out that the name of the structure is a woven flexagon.







The weather then took a turn for the worse; cold grey skies brought sleet and then snow.
My elderly mum had a very nasty fall and just as she was getting over that, I hurt my right hand trying to unscrew the top from a jar of marmalade! I was feeling extremely glum when a parcel arrived containing the most wonderful creation in the shape of a winter hare called Mademoiselle Ciel d'Hiver made by Stephanie, known to you and me as Millefeuilles
This little work of art has been most lovingly stitched, using perfectly chosen materials and is full of little details, tiny glass beads, hand made lace, silk ears, I am still discovering and marveling at her artistry.You can see more of these wondrous hares here in her Etsy shop. As you can see she has already made herself at home with my collection of hand made bears; acquired over the years for drawing reference material- (Some of the bears have featured on my china mugs).



With a painful hand there was nothing to be done except rest; painting, sewing, book making, housework were all out of the question. On days like that there was only one thing to be done and that was shop! Below are some of my more recent findings in various charity shops and second hand bookshops, all bought for inspiration.
The opened book with the goose engraving is ‘Footnotes on Nature” illustrated by Nora Unwin. The other opened book is “Nature and Ornament” by Lewis F Day and that beautiful tree drawing is by Mary Newill.

A Blessing for the New Year.

"May the roof above us never fall in and may the friends gathered below it never fall out."

I came across this lovely Irish blessing and thought it would be appropriate to share it with you. The new year makes us reflect on what is important in our lives and friendship, family and home have to be at the top of the list.

The designs featured here are part of a group of four which I created this time last year for a major high street retailer. They are part actual cross stitch and part digital and were great fun to do.

We have had a very busy Christmas and have enjoyed having our family and friends around. Many of them are in the process of moving house, through a variety of reasons including work, downsizing etc. So many of us find ourselves putting down roots in places which are unfamiliar, it has made me reflect on the meaning of home. I suppose I agree with the old saying "Home is where the heart is" and for the moment at least my heart is right here, in the misty, moisty and oh so muddy part of the North West of England. This year I have not made any resolutions, last year I wanted to spend more time outside and then it rained for nine months! I would like to try to spend more time painting and making artist books instead of fiddling around on this computer. Speaking of which, I have finally worked out how to add a page. Can you see it above? "Artist Books" is a work in progress. Happy Days.