Blue Mono Printing and the Midnight Garden

A bit of a printing fest going on this week, and it's all a bit blue!  I've continued with the mono printing from last week but changed the colours to suit my midnight garden theme - I seem to come round to that each summer as I really do love the muted colours and beautiful shapes of my garden as it goes from dusk into night.    

The bright sunshine we've been having has meant I can get some more cyanotype printing done - topping up my stash for card making and collages - always a favourite activity!

 

  I've also been running low on notecards so I have printed off another run of them using some of these photos of old and new cyanotype prints. I need to trim them all up - about 30 in total - a job I don't enjoy so we'll see if it gets done by next week - I'm betting it doesn't!!

I'm linking up with Julia over at WOYWW this week.

Making the Most of the Sunshine

 I have been meaning to get some Cyanotype printing done all summer to

replenish my stocks for collage and card making.  Yesterday it suddenly dawned on me as we head towards autumn that I ought to get on with it - the results are better when the sun is at it's highest and strongest, ideally the middle of a summer's day. 

My desk yesterday afternoon was the garden bench and the kitchen sink - I just remembered in time to take some photos!

Out in the sun 'cooking'!

  Foliage removed and ready to rinse

Just starting to turn blue in the bowl of water - the stripes are the shadows of the sun coming through the kitchen blinds!

I'm linking up with Julia over at WOYWW this week.

My Mobile Desk!

 My studio has been too hot to work in over the last couple of weeks so I transferred some embroidery bits into a tin lid and that has been my mobile desk!  It's accompanied me around the house and garden letting me settle wherever I want to and although the weather has cooled down a bit, it is currently on the table next to my armchair so I can watch the Olympics!  

In the lid is a jumble of everything I need - embroidery threads in the colours I'm currently obsessed with, some rust printed cotton and cyanotype printed silk that I have torn into squares, plus needlebook and scissors - all set for making card toppers!

I assembled a few cards yesterday with some of the squares but still have quite a few to do. These are in my favourite summer theme of the garden at night. 

I'm linking up with Julia over at WOYWW this week.

Midnight Lavender and WOYWW

I'm loving my garden at the moment - especially at night when the colours come alive and the moonlight creates such a beautiful glow on the plants. This tag is made using dried and pressed lavender from the garden, some collage scraps and some metallic wax.
Some of you who visit my blog regularly will know that I love working seasonally and for the last few years have been working during each summer on my 'midnight garden'.  If you are interested you can see some of my older work here.

I wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who left good wishes for my carpel tunnel operation last week - I finally had it done last Friday and it's now well on the mend.   I'm struggling to type (this post is taking ages) or do much art but I made some tag bases before the op and have been able to do the finishing touches one handed - in fact it was surprisingly easy gluing on the lavender flowers.  
I am linking up with Julia over at WOYWW.  I shall try and return visits but might just have to leave my mark rather than a comment - I hope you don't mind!

Silver Clay Pendants and WOYWW 10th Anniversary

I haven't done much arty crafty stuff lately as I've been making the most of the lovely weather we've been having and working in the garden.  But I have taken a break to mess about with some silver clay.  After doing a wonderful workshop  recentlty I just had to have a go at home, so after a small investment in colours and a larger investment in a UV light box this is my first attempt.  

I had some left over bits of silver clay and had to use them quickly, so I made this second pendant and had a go at setting a stone, which I'd also never done before.  The design emerged from ideas about pollen and seeds, possibly because I've been getting hay fever, but I'm thinking it looks a little bit more like coral!

I'm linking up with WOYWW this week for their 10th Anniversary - what an amazing achievement, I've loved being part of it and look forward to many more weekly meet ups in blog land.

A Happy Anniversary to all you lovely deskers out there and a HUGE thank you to Julia who has kept it all running so smoothly and for so long. 

Playing About With Gelli Prints

I've been finding a little time to mess about in my Summer Night Garden sketchbook.  I came across some gelli prints that I had printed a while back but never got round to doing anything with. So I thermofax printed, cut, tore, glued and collaged!

I want to say a big thank you to everyone who left such kind wishes last week for my hubby's recovery from his hip replacement operation - I really appreciate your thoughtful comments.  He is doing incredibly well and is pretty much pain free now - I'm still amazed at how effective this has been - hats off to the NHS, they have done a fantastic job.

I'm linking up with Julia over at What's On Your Work Desk Wednesday this week - why not hop over and see what other people are up to.

A Nature Themed ATC Swap

 I have recently been involved in a lovely ATC swap with Elaine over at
 Craft Shed Girl - I was so pleased when she let me know she was up for a swap, as we have similar tastes and a love of nature in our artwork! 

This is the ATC and matching box I sent to Elaine, it's based on my current work around the moonlit garden ...

... and this is the beautiful ATC holder and gift tag Elaine sent me...

 Elaine very cleverly designed and made the holder herself - it's absolutely ingenious and such an effective and beautiful way to present the ATC.  I felt I was opening a birthday present when it arrived!

As you can see once you undo the ribbon holding it closed, it opens up to display the ATC which is held in the card groove - and what a stunning ATC it is. Elaine thoughtfully and carefully worked with images, colours and subject matter that she knows I like and if I had sent her a list of my requirements she couldn't have got it more right!!!

This has been such an enjoyable swap - thank you Elaine!

I must add that for anyone interested Elaine has listed her supplies and techniques over on her blog.   

I'm linking up Julia over at WOYWW this week.

Pink and Green Tag

A busy week but I managed to fit in an enjoyable hour spent making paper flowers! 

And a tag that is sooo not in my usual colour range, but I really wanted to use one of the beautiful vintage buttons I found at an antique fair recently.

The flowers were made from scratch (no dies) using this tutorial from 
Such a Pretty Mess.

I'm linking up with Julia over at What's On Your Work Desk Wednesday today.

Summer Night Garden Velvet Tag

I'm enjoying working on the night garden theme - and I love this blue/mauve velvet which has a bronze thread in it and seems to glimmer as if in the moonlight.

I used Infusions for the background and sprinkled them liberally on clear texture paste through a stencil for the darker shapes - does anyone else find the powder gets everywhere, or am I just a messy worker!

I'm linking up with Julia over at WOYWW this week.

Embroidery for a Summer's Night

I've been embroidering the garden again, and using more of those tiny little vintage photo album pages!  I also used eco prints, black lace, antique tapestry and hand beading.  I'm pleased with how the black lace and dark eco print gives it a real night time feel.

I am linking up with Julia over at WOYWW this week.

Summer Nights

While wandering round my local DIY store recently I discovered some new style paint sample cards, and they looked perfect for little pieces of arty crafty stuff!   Laid out in colour sequence they were totally irresistible to me!  

Working on my theme of the summer garden at night, I thermofax printed on them, used Infusion powders on clear texture paste and stitched velvet flower buds on top.  I wanted the effect of twilight sweeping over the garden, so I smudged the Infusions with a baby wipe, which I then didn't like as it just looked a mess, so that's why the other two look 'cleaner'!

 I forgot to initially coat them with clear gesso, so some of the texture paste flaked off - I quite like the effect though!

And here are the cards on my work desk!  I chose some lovely rich shades of red for Christmas, the blues for the summer night garden, yellows for spring, and a few pales that were actually to help choose paint for our dining room walls!

I'm linking up with Jan this week (who is doing a superb job of being Julia) for WOYWW.

Summer's Night Garden

'I often think the night is more alive and more richly coloured than the day'

                                                                                     Vincent Van Gogh

In the summer I love my garden more at night than in the day - it's at it's most beautiful in the late evening, just as the sun has gone down.  The scents are stronger and the garden is more alive with insects and moths.  The shapes and outlines of the plants are more highly defined and the although the bright colours are muted the blues and whites are quite spectacular. 

Here's a garden tag to celebrate the summer we are eventually going to have!

I am linking up with Jan (who is temporarily Julia) over at WOYWW this week.

LAZY SUMMER DAYS

On one of the few sunny, summery days we've had lately, and let's face it there haven't been that many, I decided to flake out on the lawn with a good book, a jug of lemonade and an ice cream!  As I gathered together all I would need for the arduous task of relaxing, it all started to look rather appealing - so out came the camera!  I put to good use the daisies that hadn't been mown for weeks and made a daisy chain, although unlike my childhood days I needed a pin and pair of reading specs!

I am linking up to Color Me Weekly and Mosaic Monday.

Hope you are all having a wonderful summer!