Wonderful Wood.

Where did January go? A month almost over in the blink of an eye. I did manage a lovely day over at Tatton Park; I needed to deliver a painting to the folks here, so it was a perfect excuse for an excursion. I was dismayed to see that a much-loved ancient tree had been very badly damaged by the wind. When my boys were little they loved to hide inside the hollow trunk. The land manager has left the branches to decay naturally so other life forms will benefit, some consolation for the near demise of a very old oak.

I have been working on a new collection of designs for the spring trade fairs, mostly hand drawn but with lots of digital work added. So much for my intention of spending more time outdoors! The reaction to this new collection has been very positive and I am keeping my fingers crossed that some of the designs will make their way through the final selection process. All this sitting at the computer has made me determined to make time for more printmaking.



The very lovely thing about wood engraving is handling the wood. It arrives so beautifully wrapped, like a very pretty bar of soap. I love handling the tools, the feel of the paper, and the smell of the ink. The whole process is very satisfying though not without its frustrations. I have been making good use of my new press and keeping fit by all the pulling involved.



I got so obsessed with getting a rich, black, even print that I almost obliterated the finer details. Each print is unique in its own way, the first few are total rubbish, and then as you get into the swing things improve. Just as you think you have it cracked you notice a smudge here, a blotch there, an uneven bit where the ink wasn’t quite evenly applied. The stack of rejects steadily grows until you feel like throwing in the towel altogether. Now, I am talking about my own experiences you understand. I have met many fine craftsmen who do not have these problems but sadly I am a long way off that. However, I did enjoy getting back into the craft and managed to get together a little collection of prints and even made a little portfolio to contain them.



If you feel inspired to have a try you might like to visit this website for information about the wood, tools etc.

We have a winner!

We have a winner to the Calendar giveaway 2012. In total there were 31 worthy winners with the very best intentions and aspirations for the coming year. The random number generator chose number 15 which is Ta Dah…… 4roomsandthemoon

This is what she wrote-
“my plan this year is to worry less about things that aren't really important! More time spent for making art - and just "seeing" the gifts in front of my steps!”

Thank you so much to everyone who took part both old friends and new. Happy New Year to all of you x

Calendar 2012 Giveaway!

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas and are looking forward to the New Year and what it might bring.

It has become something of a ritual for me to hang a calendar in my kitchen on the first day of January. I like to make a note of birthdays, appointments for the dentists, meetings, exhibition dates etc and store them where I can see them, in a place where I spend lots of time which for me is next to the kitchen sink!

This year I will be hanging a copy of my calendar, which is now in its fourth year, and plans are underway to reprint again in 2013. I have one copy of "A Gardener’s Scrapbook Calendar 2012" to give away so If you would like to take part all you have to do is tell me what your New Years Resolution will be and I will choose a winner on Tuesday January 10th.

My resolution is to spend more time in the fresh air and less sitting at my computer, not so easy when the weather is dull, wet, cold and grey like today.

Christmas Blessings.

This year I am trying very hard to be positive and to focus on my many blessings but this Christmas will be a challenging time for us as we remember our loved ones who have passed. This time two years ago my brother was critically ill over Christmas and later died in the New Year. Last December it was my father who was reaching the end of his life, we lost him in January. I know from reading your blogs that I am not alone, you too have your problems and losses to deal with. I try each year to reinvent Christmas, make a new tradition, try some new kind of food, and decorate the house slightly differently. Life moves forward, change is inevitable, we have much to be thankful for and this year our home is gearing itself up to welcoming family and friends from near and far. We will raise a glass to the memory of those we have lost and give thanks for the new lives that have brought us great joy.


I would like to thank everyone who has visited my blog throughout the year; all of your comments are greatly appreciated. I wish you all a peaceful and joyous Christmas.

Shine up your buttons with Brasso!

Since my last post I have hardly had time to draw breathe, it has been such a busy time. As any of you who are self employed know, it is usually a case of feast or famine. Luckily, the former has been the case and I have had the luxury of working on Christmas projects in December, so much more inspiring than July. I have promised to keep this work under wraps for now so you will just have to take my word for it!

I am otherwise very late and disorganized regarding Christmas; not a single Christmas card sent and no decorations hung. I have, however, been doing lots of clearing, sorting, cleaning and polishing. Oh, the joys of Brasso! There are few things more Christmassy than a brass candlestick shone to perfection.



We have had some lovely joyful events including a 30th birthday celebration of our eldest son, now that does make me feel old! When our boys were little I had a bit of a craze for cross stitch and managed to complete two samplers celebrating their births. Well, guess what, I eventually got around to framing them, better late than never, and now have them hanging in my newly tidied and sorted “office corner”. When I took my prints and things into the framers I noticed a shop selling hand made custom furniture at very reasonable prices so I had a desk made to fit my small alcove. I am so pleased with myself for getting around to a mammoth tidying and sorting, a place for everything and everything in its place. Well that is the theory anyhow!



Still on the cross stitch theme, I was contacted by a Turkish company who have made some of my designs into cross stitch patterns. They have promised to send me copies and I am very intrigued to see their interpretations. It seems that everyone is asking for cross stitch again and the more I think about it the more inspired I feel to do some more. It lends itself perfectly to cosy firesides on winter’s evenings.



We also had an invitation to John Rylands library in Manchester, to see their annual exhibition of Designer Bookbindings, always a treat. Manchester looked particularly festive with Christmas street markets in and around Albert Square. All in all, it’s getting to look a lot like Christmas, I really must get a move on.

Curwen Patterned papers

Ever since I was a child I have had a fascination for pattern, pattern as being defined by the repetition of similar forms. I suppose that is what I try to achieve when I paint, I look for pattern and decoration in feathers, leaves, bark. Maybe that is why I have admired designer’s rather more than fine artists, being naturally drawn to those artists and craftsmen who can both draw beautifully and design. One such artist is Eric Ravilious, so when I saw this Curwen patterned paper (see top left) I seized upon it with glee. The gorgeous collection of Curwen papers was for sale at the Oxford Fine Press Fair (mentioned in my last post), on the John Purcell stand.

There is some dispute over who actually designed this paper. The folks at John Purcell papers said that the man to ask was on the Incline Press stand so I decided to enquire further. Having a head like a sieve I got him to write down what he knew of the pattern, the story he told me was fascinating. It seems that an artist and textile designer called Enid Marx, who had worked with the Incline Press, identified the pattern as a 1928 Curwen pattern by Eric Ravilious. Apparently Enid had desperately wanted to learn wood engraving as a student but her tutor thought her drawing skills too poor. The young Ravilious took it upon himself to pass on the skills he learnt in his lessons and Enid would go around after class and Eric would go through the day’s lesson with her. There is another school of thought that believes the pattern to belong to the era of the Festival of Britain but I am going with Enid on this. What do you think?



The black, white and red paper is by Edward Bawden, I am not sure whom the lovely deep red pattern is by, maybe someone can help here? Anyway, needless to say I came away with samples of all three papers and have enjoyed covering diaries for Christmas presents. The tiny diaries are covered in a Japanese paper, again I knew the name once but my brain has long since shredded that bit of information, I should really write these things down!

footnote; since I posted this The Incline Press have been in touch to say that the lovely deep red Curwen paper is by Sarah Nechamkin, a wonderfully prolific paper pattern designer in the late 1940s. Thank you Graham for that information.



Oh yes, before I forget, I finally finished the owl painting. The two tawny owls are standing either side of a very old oak tree, which put me in mind of the rhyme about an owl standing sentinel, I think from Mother Goose? The tree appears to be keeping watch also, maybe they are looking out for each other.

Like a kid in a sweet shop!

"Like a kid in a sweet shop" is how my husband described my behavior yesterday at the Fine Press Book Fair in Oxford yesterday! You can visit their website by following this link.
Oxford Fine Press Book Fair

Amongst the many exhibitors was Andy English (in the photograph above) whose work I admire greatly. It was a pleasure to see him in action carving a new block. I also got the chance to see his new collection of engravings for "The Woman in Black" by Susan Hill. Amongst his collection of exhibits were individual prints, bookplates and miniature books including a new, limited edition of "A Prospect of Ely" which you can see in the foreground of the photograph. (If you click on the photograph you will see more details.)

Andy is a full-time professional engraver, he has a blog called The Wood Engraver where you can learn more about his work with links to his website and shop.

The book fair was a great place to buy papers, so many beautiful hand marbled and paste papers and a lovely selection from The Curwen Press in particular caught my eye. There were stalls selling leather and bookbinding supplies too as well as stands selling beautifully produced hand bound books. The overall effect was so exciting and inspiring that today I feel rather exhausted.

I should be putting the finishing touches to my latest painting, shown below, almost finished now but I need to think a little more about the last bits. I had toyed with the idea of using gold leaf but now am not so sure.....?