Shopping in the Sales

I gave up going to the Boxing day sales because they never had anything I wanted but this year I made an exception. I bought a new bag earlier last year on a market stall for £5. I should have guessed it was false economy in the long run because it's started to split and I was getting so fed up of it slipping off my shoulder when I was out shopping. I've seen a lot of women with across body bags so I thought I'd go look for one last Monday.

When first got up it was foggy but by lunchtime it had cleared so I nipped to town and got this in the John Lewis clearance sale for £20 instead of £40.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year
to all my blogging friends may you all find
love, creativity and peace.

I've written before that I don't make New Year resolutions then I can't break them but in 2010 I hope to do the following:-

Finish Module 5 and 6 of City and Guilds Embroidery before June otherwise I will have to pay another 3 years registration.

Finish OCA The Art of Photography so I can put in for Augusts assessment. I should get Assignment 2 in by the end of this month and 3,4 and 5 don't seem to have as much work to do so I should make it.

Start OCA 'Printmaking 1: Introduction to Printmaking'. I'm looking forward to this course. I can see how I can use it in Textile work as well as Fine Art.

I must be a glutton for work because I've enrolled on another Open University course. I have always been a doer i.e. using my hands, being artistic as apposed to using my brain (not that I don't) but I've never really been good at maths etc so I thought I would attempt something more cerebral.

I've never really been very good at expressing myself especially in written work - probably why I failed my O'level English exam so I hope I will be able to do this with 'Art and its Histories'. It should be an interesting challenge for this year.

Update 8th January, because I get certain benefits I've got the funding of £630 for this course so I've just finished registering and now await the arrival of the course material if they can deliver it through all the snow that is currently gripping the UK.

Happy Christmas

One of the first photos I took with my new 'nifty fifty' lens.

This is of the large wheel that is in Liverpool One over Christmas. I thought the centre looked like a star so what better photo to put up to wish everyone who celebrates it a very

Happy Christmas

and best wishes for a peaceful and creative New Year.

New glasses

I had to get my eyes tested for new glasses this afternoon. It's 2 years since my last eye test and I've noticed over the past few months my eyes had deteriorated, been using the computer too much I think. I've had a separate pair for close work but this time I'm getting varifocal lens but I got a bit of a shock at the price. I get some help because I'm on benefits but I had to pay £174 towards them. Good thing I had some money saved. It will take 7-10 days but I should get them in time for Christmas.

The optician didn't mention it but the young man who helps you choose your new glasses said I had an 'astigmatism' it had me worried until I looked it up on the internet. Now I know why I had some blurring of my vision sometimes. It makes you realise that you really shouldn't take your vision for granted and get regular eye tests.

Update 23rd December

I got my new glasses yesterday. I suppose my eyes had got used to the old ones so it will take a while for them to adjust to the new ones, but everything is so much clearer and I can read now without any difficulty.

Calendar Girls postcards

I've not been able to do any work for the past few weeks. My Mum was rushed into hospital in the early hours of 21st November with pneumonia and fluid on her lungs. She came home on Friday but for 2 weeks my life revolved around hospital visiting. Anyway my life is back to normal now so I'm trying to catch up.

I am late sending this first postcard to Sharon but hopefully she will think it was worth waiting for.

This is the picture chosen by Jenny for November.



I have had a piece of fabric I dyed using the 'shibori' method for my C & G work and it reminded me of the bark of a tree so I used it for the base and backed it with a piece of wadding and FME around the shapes.

December's postcard is for Doreen in Australia, so I worked on it this afternoon. I want to get it in the post so it will get to her if not before Christmas at least before the end of the year.

This is Neki's choice.


I used my embellisher to attach some silk fibres to a piece of black felt.



PS I bought the silk fibres from a UK distributor but they are from Treetops so they are going home.

Go Penguins update.........

The Go Penguins are 5ft high but I forgot to say in my last post that Liverpool schools have designed and painted 3ft high penguins see here. Aren't they good. If this is a sample of what our youngsters are producing "Art" is safe in their hands. They also seem to be more aware of the Environmental issues that are facing the world than many adults.

3 primary schools near me have done one each 'Arnot St Mary’s C of E Primary School' which is my old school, 'Gwladys Street Primary School' and St. Francis de Sales Catholic Junior School.

Go Penguins......

...... last year as part of Liverpool's Capital of Culture year brightly painted 'Superlambananas' sprang up all over the city and where a surprise highlight of the year. I don't think anyone knew how popular and successful they would be.


This year Liverpool's year long theme has been the Environment. As part of 'A Winters Trail' for Christmas this year the council commissioned the same company to come up with something new .......... Penguins.

I missed out on doing a design last time so I made sure I did one this time and this is what I submitted but unfortunately I wasn't chosen boo hoo!!! I thought perhaps it was because I hadn't done a design featuring the Environment but now I've seen the finished ones some have nothing do with it. Never mind maybe next time they do something similar.


I called him/her 'Oddles of Doodles'.


They all went on display yesterday and this website has them all - click on one of the photos and it will take you to a slideshow with further info about each one.

Some of them are brilliant but is it just sour grapes on my part but are a few of them a bit mediocre?

I particularly like Carrie knitted from 300 recycled plastic bags, Gustav Penguin, Waterfront Penguin, there are some fun ones Sleeping Beauty, Snowy and a celebrity one Owl Ma Penguin. I'd love to see these but they are over the Mersey on the Wirral Grow Your Own Penguin and Strawberry Fields which given its' name you would have thought would have been on this side.

Now I've just got to try and get photograph of as many as I can. I can at least see what my design would have looked like Home Bargains one of the sponsors have been selling 6" high ceramic penquins that you can decorate and enter a competion to win a 3ft version with all the proceeds going to the Lord Mayors charity appeal. I've bought my nephew one each and a few for myself.

Lest we forget

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning.

We will remember them.