Category: birdie

Pen and Ink

This is a picture of three of my favourite things – a bottle of coloured ink, a beautiful fountain pen and a sheet of writing paper.

I also have bottles of orange, fuchsia, lavender and green ink! Alas I don’t have a fountain pen for each ink colour, but it puts me in a happy place when I write with any of these colours. Sad that not many people use fountain pens these days and the only ink colours you seem to be able to buy in the shops are blue or black or even blue/black! I buy my inks from The Writing Desk. I’m like a kid in a sweet shop when I go onto this site. You can even get scented ink – reminds me of handwritten love notes sly exchanged by Jane Austen’s characters. I never buy Fountain pens over the net as I think they are something you have to try in person, a bit like shoes!

While on the subject of ink, here is a rubber stamp I carved at the weekend.

I’m rather pleased with this one as I’ve just started learning how to handcarve stamps. I also have this brilliant book on how to make your own stamps.

The author Geninne D. Zlatkis has also posted a video tutorial on her blog on how she carves stamps. Very talented lady.
More makes –

I’m getting a bit addicted to machine applique now I’ve figured out how to use the files. I downloaded this design from Cherry Stitch Design as a single Flamingo and then using SewArt software I copied it, pasted and flipped the copy and merged it with the original one to make a pair of Flamingos. Hours of fun!

Also over the weekend i had to feed my addiction for crocheted Birdies. This is the newly hatched Patriotic Birdie!!

I’m resting from Birdie crocheting at the moment – well at least until I can think up another colour combination! Most of the crocheting was done while watching the wonderful birdie and animal web cams that the rather wonderful Simon King has put up around his home. Well worth a look. Along with hundreds of others I’ve spent the last few weeks watching a Bluetit family grow up and was almost tearful as the last one left the nest this morning. I hope they have a wonderful life.

Slàinte Mhath xxx

PS Simon King has found a second Blue Tit family for us all to watch over

May 27, 2014
Universe

My interpretation of ‘Universe’ for this week’s Illustration Friday.

Also as well as chucking paint around I’ve been feeding my addiction for crocheting Birdies. This is Lemon Birdie making friends with my Bluebird of ‘Appiness.

I also knitted a toadstool to act as a prop for when I photographed Harry Hedgehog Tea Cosy.

I hired a stylist for the shoot!

This is what happens when you attempt machine applique for the first time without a clue what you’re doing.

And this is what you get when the penny drops!

Slàinte Mhath xxx

May 25, 2014
Back in Harness

I didn’t realise I’d been away from my blog for so long. I did feel down after my Uncle’s passing in January. He was the last member of the family on my dad’s side, so I was also grieving for that as well.
Anyway on to better and happier things. I have been busy and these are a few of the things I’ve been making. I got this pattern from Heidi Bears.

It was so much fun to make that I crocheted another little friend for her. As you can see they have become the very best of friends!

Although the warmer days have finally arrived here I felt compelled to make myself a hot water bottle cover. So I made one knitted on 4 needles (pic to come later). I like knitting on 4 needles and really don’t do enough of it. Maybe I should start now and make some Christmas socks for pressies.
I’ve been trawling around the charity shops as usual an last week I found a brown and badly stained bamboo table. It had a lovely ornate base, so I took it home and sprayed it white. It now serves as an art table and holds all my brushes, paints and paper. I think it originally had 2 chairs to go with it, but they were nowhere to be seen in the shop, but my little white bamboo stool works well with it.

What about this for a bargain! I found this beautiful pristine book in Oxfam.

The illustrations are fabulous. So much colour and detail.

The foreword is written by Sir David Attenborough, one of my all time heroes. It’s going to get a place of honour in my birdie library.
Getting back to makes, I made this tote bag for my friend`s birthday.

She’s into Egyptology so I thought this design of Isis mother of Horus would look great embroidered on the bag. I’m quite pleased with how it turned out, I hope she likes it.
I also embroidered the back of a denim waistcoat (for me) with a Surf Bird. Every time I look at this it just makes me smile!

A short post this time as I’m just getting back into blogging with baby steps at the moment!

Slàinte Mhath xxx

May 13, 2014
Sewing is bad for your health!

Well it is when you pick up a very heavy black and gold vintage Singer sewing machine from under the stairs. And it’s especially dangerous when you forget to bend your knees and tug at your machine from a very odd angle. I did all of the above with my old Singer and thought I’d got away with it pain wise until the middle of the night in bed when all sorts of aches and pains struck. I couldn’t bend down or pick anything up for days and when you have cats that need feeding and litter trays to clean out you can imagine the fun and games I had. Still all my important little places seem to be healing and contact with the floor and the lower levels of life is a lot easier now.

Daisy has been feeling sorry for me and has been trying to help me with pain relief by hypnosis.

And Tabikat has gone for a more relaxed form of hypnosis.

I wrote this on my FB page in November – “Quote from my vet to me this morning “Only you could turn up saying I have a Moorhen in my handbag”. As I was leaving Rustington this morning I saw a Moorhen get clipped by a car – so parked up in golf club driveway and dashed across the A259 to pick it up. Miraculously it was still alive, so grabbed it and dashed back. No box for it so emptied my handbag and stuffed it in there. I think it’s just a bit stunned, my vet will check it over and the lovely vet nurse has a place at home where she can release it with other young Moorhens. Now going to clean the s**t out of my bag xxxxx”
I’m pleased to report back that the dear little thing survived and has joined up with a gang of juvenile Moorhens in her garden and is living a happy life by her pond.

I‘ve been combining a little bit of machine and hand embroidery to make these covered notebooks.

Of course they are animal themed. I’ve had such fun doing them that I think I might develop a line of them for my shop. I’ve just finished embroidering a German Shepherd dog silhouette in white on blue denim (pics to follow). Animals and crafting – sheer bliss!

Slàinte Mhath xxx

January 27, 2014