Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year all my blog friends! It's been a wonderful year for my art. I've come from rekindling an interest in art after a very long break, to now hoping to open my own etsy shop and some how make my passion more than just a hobby! I've met so many wonderful people who have inspired and encouraged me to keep working hard and I'm so grateful for that. I look forward to another productive year where I discover new ways to be creative. I'm having so much fun!

This is a canvas that I have been working on this week. I felt like I needed to paint as I've been working on my pendants and jewellery for the last couple of weeks as well as Christmas slowing me down a bit. This canvas represents summer and a new year for me (it's the middle of summer here). Hope you all have fun seeing the new year in tonight!!!

Look what I made!!!

Today amongst all the visiting I managed to make a couple of pieces using my new Christmas presents. I added some wire to a pair of earrings that I made a few days ago, which I bent into a spiral using my new tools and added a bead. The spirals may not be perfect but I quite like them like this. I think it adds a little something to the earrings. I made the bracelet with some beads I had lying around and some memory wire! I think I'm becoming addicted. I can't wait to team up some of my pendants with my art work and some beads, going shopping tomorrow to spend some Christmas money and buy some supplies yippee!!!

Look what I got for Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!! I hope you all had a lovely joyful Christmas!! I had a great day yesterday and the kids were so excited! Very cute indeed. I got a lovely present from my mum and Step-dad. I really want to add something extra to my glass pendants so want to incorporate some beading perhaps around the pendant. So hopefully these books will give me some great ideas. I can't wait to get to the shops to buy lots of wire and beads etc Yay!!!

Earrings!!

Today some new supplies arrived which I was quite surprised about as its so close to Christmas and I think we're having a postal strike over here so I was very happy to receive this package today. I got some really small square glass and bit and pieces to make up earrings with. So I tried out a few ideas with the Japanese handmade paper I have used before. I think these would look great with a matching pendant. I'm also thinking of trying out some jewellery making as I think they would look nice with some pretty dangly bits as well, (hard to put into words but I'll try and make some soon).

Merry Christmas to all my blog friends!!

Well I decided I wanted to paint something Christmassy. I couldn't bring myself to paint a snow filled picture when we've been sitting in 36c heat! I'll never quite get used to these hot Christmases even though I've been living here over half my life now. In Wales it was freezing at Christmas and every now and then we'd even be lucky enough to have a white Christmas. So I decided to think about what Christmas means to me and straight away knew that its about the kids. Having two little boys really does put the magic back into Christmas as you see it through their eyes. It reminds me how exciting and magical this time of year was when I was a child and I love it. Seeing their faces light up when we put up the tree and the lights. Taking them to
Christmas carols in the park the other night holding candles in the dark. I really enjoy this time of year. So this piece is inspired by all those things.

I'm not sure abou this canvas though. Do you ever have times when you're working on something and it doesn't feel quite right? I kept tweaking it here and there but in the end decided it was finished. It's weird as to me it doesn't look like I painted it but I thought I'd post it anyway as I think I like it, heheheh I'm my own worst critic.

Illustration Friday - Hatch

"Eight eggs hurriedly hatching....."

Well it's not often this happens but I actually have an image that I did earlier this year that I felt fit perfectly. It is a draft for an idea I was working on. But I've been side tracked and haven't worked on it for a while, perhaps after Christmas I'll get stuck back into this one, so many art ideas so little time.

New Pendants and Crazy Christmas lights!!

I bought some handmade Japanese paper the other day and have started making some pendants with it. I really love how they come up and it's nice to have a line of pendants with a different theme. I've ordered some really small glass and materials to make earrings with so when they arrive I shall try making some earrings out of the paper too. I'm thinking that a matching pendant and earring set will look really god!

Also this week my hubby got inspired by the fantastic street next to ours, they all go crazy with their Christmas lights almost every house in the street is lit up. The community spirit is lovely there and we often walk around with the kids so they can have a look. It seems like everyone is out the front of their house chatting away with passers by with a glass of wine in hand. It's become tradition for us now to take the dog for a walk at night and join in their fun. One night our eldest begged his dad for some lights outside our house and so the hubby kindly spent a whole day and quite a bit of money making the house look Christmassy. It's not quite as full on as the next street but it's a good start. I think we've started our own tradition now which is nice and we seem to sit outside at night now (it's summer here) and watch the world go by!!!

The photo doesn't do it justice as the lights twinkle and look much brighter but you get the picture :0)

Mermaid

This is a small canvas, I thought I'd have a go with an oval shape!!

Mixed Media Monday - On the wings of love.....

I'm a bit later than normal with my entry this week but I had so much fun painting it. I straight away thought of an angel when I saw this theme. Perhaps this angel has fallen in love? She doesn't seem to be your average angel so anything is possible.....

I painted this on an A4 size canvas and used acrylic paints, inktense pencils, texture paste on the wings and some japanese hand made paper has been glued on her dress. I've made some pendants out of that paper too which I shall put in my next post. Til then I'm off to see what everyone else came up with this week.......

Illustration Friday-Crunchy

Well yesterday morning while I was at swimming lessons with my 6 year old I was thinking to myself 'what shall i do for this weeks illustration Friday?'..... I had a few ideas running through my head but on our way back to the car Rhys was stomping his way through some gum trees and he turned to me and said with a big beaming smile 'Mummy, I LOVE the way this sounds when I stomp on it, it's a great crunchy sound'....well how could I not put that on paper?

There are loads of different types of gum trees but this particular lot that Rhys was stomping under, I think, are called 'stringy barks' they have long bits of bark that just fall off the tree leaving behind different coloured bark underneath. I've always really loved them as they leave such lovely patterns that remind me of jigsaw puzzles. So this was my attempt at bring that to life!!

My first lot of Christmas presents and a blog award!!!

This year I've been able to make some gifts for some of my family,and I've had soooo much fun doing it. It's been a wonderful exercise in practising methods of making my pendants and seeing what works and what doesn't. I've also designed my first attempt at a logo and I've packaged them up so they look more professional. I'm really happy with how they turned out and can't wait to give them to people. I think though that I might work on another design, perhaps with different media, I'm keen to try a dragonfly design too. I really like the banner, which was inspired by tattoo art (my hubby is an art collector of sorts and is working on his second sleeve at the moment). He's got all sorts of tattoos, a Welsh Dragon with the Southern Cross around it in honor of his Welsh Australian connection. (The Southern Cross is a group of stars). He's got traditional tattoos, tattoo's that represent his passions which are me heheh, the kids and motorbike riding. The current piece he is working on is a whole arm dedicated to Japanese tattoo art. I've gone a bit off track now but that's where I got my inspiration for my banner. I know that tattoos aren't everyone's cup of tea but I appreciate the skill that is needed to become a good tattoo artist. I like the banner I've included but I think I need to make it bigger so that you can read the writing easier when it's in the packet.

Also this week the lovely Julie from the wonderful blog The Art & Life of the Ruby Nest passed on this award to me. If you haven't been over to her blog before please check it out, she is an amazing artist who paints beautifully and also makes these gorgeous dolls: The Ruby Nest Dolls Personalized Keepsake Dolls. This is one talented lady!

So with this award I am to pass it on to 7 other artists so I thought I would mention some of my newer blog friends who I've come to love visiting every day! Your art and your words inspire me!!! :0)

1. Val of Val Zdero Art & Jewellery

2. Kristin of Twinkle, Twinkle

3. Julie-Ann Heavenleigh Art by Julie-Ann Bowden

4. Sophia Blue Chair Diary

5. Adrienne of Adrienne Trafford Art Blog

6. Pinkglitterfae Art

7. Hot Tamale Art Studio

I'm also supposed to mention 7 random things about me that you guys wouldn't know ..... so here goes....

1. I LOVE horror movies! Zombie comedies are the best and I love 'Shaun of the Dead'.

2. I have an addiction to dark chocolate, especially with nuts.

3. We have decorated our christmas tree, and put up outside lights for the first time this year!

4. I'm afraid of flying.

5. I hate slugs with a passion!!! Yes slugs!!!!

6. I'm late for something right now because I'm obsessed with my blog.

7. I went to art school for 1 year but dropped out because the passion wasn't there for me. (oh how I wish I could go back.)

That's it from me for now, I think this must be my longest post ever!!!

A Welsh Lady

This week I have been working on a painting of a lady in traditional Welsh costume. A few weeks ago the hubby and I finally booked a holiday with the boys back to the UK for next year! I've been wanting to take my boys to Wales and show them where I come from, where my roots are as my childhood was spent in Wales up until the age of 15. This year was my 16th year in Australia so now I've been in Oz longer than I lived in Wales. I feel mixed emotions about this as I think I struggle with my cultural identity a bit these days. At my core I feel Welsh and always will be but I'm also Australian now as this has been my home for so long and my children are Australian (well half Welsh too I suppose but they sound like Steve Irwin heheh). I think I will always feel this way as my heart will always be torn between Wales and Australia. The Welsh have such pride for their culture and their country. I've been wanting to paint a Welsh lady for a while now and even though I was going to do it in celebration of St Davids day (March 1st) I couldn't wait any longer so here she is.

I also received a blog award from a lovely blog friend recently so I will talk about that in my next post. I think I have a nappy waiting for me ( I'm so over toilet training)......