3BT 4/1/13 Pirates, Welcome back and Pudding

• A book I ordered off amazon arrived today, it's a Dorling Kindersley eyewitness guide to pirates. I always liked these books, they have enough information to be interesting, but not long and boring and plenty of pictures. It looks like it'll be really useful for my mini pirates.
• It was my first day back at work after Christmas today, it's always nice going back after a break because Shaun is always so pleased to see me, he is on his best behaviour.
• Digging out the last few chocolate buttons from the sweetie bowl to feed to Nick, who is suffering from over-gymed legs.

3BT 3/1/13 Humpty Dumpty, Perfect fit and Check.

•Today we got a kohlrabi in our veggie box, I thought it looked like a chubby little alien, with long wispy hair. While I was looking up what to do with it I found a quote from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall saying it was "like Humpty Dumpty hiding in a hedge" I can sort of see what he means.
•We did another training walk for our trekking holiday, and I got to try out my new rucksack properly. It is perfect, It barely felt like it had anything in it.
•I finally thought I'd got the hang of chess, I was getting check after check after check... then I lost spectacularly.

3BT 2/1/13 Tidying, Gobbling, Just one more

•Now we're in a new house, we've decided to have a good old sort out of *stuff* and first on the list of *stuff* to sort out are all the letters and bits of paper that seem to have spread themselves across the house. By the time I finished sorting the rubbish from the useful bits, I was quite pleased to find my rubbish pile was bigger.
•I feel like I really REALLY earned my enormous lunch, after such a tough hour in the gym.
•Staying up til long past our bed time to watch *just one more* episode of lost.

Three Beautiful Things

Ok, so it's been nearly a year since I wrote my last blog post, and that's not good, but I have been pretty busy! We FINALY moved house in September, so I now have my own little art studio to work in, which is very exciting. I have also been busy with lots of arty things, which I will post pictures of soon.
Part of the reason it has taken me so long to write this post is that I just didn't quite know what to write, but this year I really want to get better at it, so I am going to have a go at doing my own three beautiful things, as well as blogging about my art. My cousin Clare started the original three beautiful things blog about 9 years ago and I always enjoy reading about things that have brightened up her day. Her blog is here.

And here are my three beautiful things for the 1st January:

New year, adventuring and bubbles.
•Spending New Year's Eve surrounded by lovely people, I was especially pleased to see Abi, who has recently had brain surgery, and had been unsure if she would be feeling up to going out for a late night party.
•Finding the path we wanted to walk down in the woods had turned into quite a deep stream, but walking down it anyway, because we're adventurers!!
•Celebrating the new year (again) with some left over Christmas fizzy wine, all to ourselves.


P.s. having said I will try to keep this blog up to date, I am going on holiday in a couple of weeks and it is very unlikely I will have any internet access!

It's been a while!

Well I know I said I was going to try to keep on top of this blogging thing and post more regularly, but it turns out, I am just useless!! I would like to use the excuse that I have been very busy, which I really have, but I'm sure I still could have made time to write something if I'd really tried.  Anyway, from now on I will try to be better :) Here are some pictures of what I've been up to anyway.

It's a bit late, but here is my Christmas card, I am hoping to make my own from now on, I always mean to, but this Christmas was the first time I actually got around to doing it! Once the cards were printed, I added different coloured sparkly inks to the snow and leaves, but I don't think that shows up particularly well on a screen.

After I learnt how to needle felt last year, I haven't had much time to actually do very much, so before Christmas I used some time I had off from work to make these as presents.

Then I made this little bear for my cousin's one year old, Alec's birthday.

Then I made this little bear for my cousin's one year old, Alec's birthday.

Now, since Christmas, I have been working really hard on my portfolio, this year I WILL start sending off pictures to publishers. 

I have realised for a while, that the way I work always takes me forever to get anything finished, which is completely impractical if I ever want to earn a living from my art. So, I have been experienting with using collage as well as painting, so that I can still do lots of tiny details in some areas, but can cover some bits much more quickly. These are my two pieces I have done in the last month.

 

 Now I know two pictures doesn't seem like a huge amount for a whole month, but it is a massive improvement for me :) and I have to say, it did take a while for me to track down and sort through all the paper and things I used! 

 Now, I must get back to work so that I have something to write about again before next Christmas!

To see more of my art, have a look here.

Hello? Is there anyone still there?

Hello, to anyone who hasn't given up on my blog!! I am still here, I have just been INCREDIBLEY busy!! I have had a couple of commissions from various family members, and have finally finished them.
The first one was a painting for my Aunt, she wanted a portrait of my cousin with her cat as a graduation present.

 
The most recent painting I have done is this for my uncle. It is his house and family, magically transported to a snowy mountainous country, but still with all their local Kentish birds. It was quite a fun project to work on, but took a very long time, and drove me slightly mad paiting each flower individually, but I think it was worth it, and everyone seemed very impressed.

I always find it hard to finish a painting like this, there is always just something else that could be added, so I was quite pleased to hear that if new members of the family appear, I will be called on to add them in :)
Hopefully it won't be quite so long til my next post, I have lots of things planned, so keep watching!!

Ink

 No, I haven't got a tattoo... yet!! But I have discovered the magicalness that is pen and ink drawing!!! I started off having a go at a botanical illustration class, and had a bit of trouble getting it to flow nicely, but after a bit of perseverance and the discovery of bristol board, I LOVE it!!! This was my first attempt, of a really crinkley, scrunchy leaf, and I am really quite pleased with it!! (Apart from all the smudges and blotches that got themselves all over the edges!!!

Then I tried this, as a monthly challenge done on deviantart. The idea was to recreate Little Red Riding Hood, I decided to go for a sequel, in which the wolf decides he is so good at catching children and Grannies, he decides to make some money out of it!! There is a recession going on after all!! (Please click on it to see all the detail.)

I have also reopened my facebook page, so please 'like' me!!! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Laura-Thompson-Art/186050654748981