Genuine Devotion should never to be despised...

This is my June post for The Artful Readers Club, reviewing "Scenes of Clerical Life" by(Mary Ann Evans) George Eliot

(St John the Baptist church Throapham)

Where to begin.....after last months disappointment it was with a heavy heart that I started reading this classical piece, knowing it to be written in a similar style. Again it is a narrative piece, describing the lives of several clergymen and their associations with a rustic community during the early 1800's as Methodism and Evangelicalism are starting to get a proper foothold in English parishes.

But oh my...the difference I found reading this amazingly well balanced book!!! Not being a Christian you may think I would have found little to like about the stories it contains, but it seems to me the authoress(Mary Ann Evans) took great pains to show us that clergymen of good and strong faith are not always as grey and serious as we may think.

The book is broken down into 3 stories about Reverend Barton, Mr Gilfil and Mr Tryan...and the depth of emotion that their lives held, unseen by the majority of the people who thought they knew them.

The writing itself is very intense in some areas(in the Dickensian, Shakespearian way of wordiness), but just at those moments that you begin to feel like your trudging through mud the sun sparkles on a dewy leaf and you find yourself surrounded by a veritable oasis of fragrant imagery that leaves your mind in a whirl. I found myself agog, reading passages over to make sure I had the correct interpretation of the story as I was often led into a daydream of far off country gardens and ornate finery. The book is set in a time period when women wore lace caps indoors, never left the house without their bonnet, and "appearances" were all important...again not something I've ever been accused of lol

The best example I could think to show you of the subtle wit of the authoress, is when describing the attributes of one particular gentleman preacher, she says he is popular among the working men of the fields due to "...his ability to dispense with the exuberance of wordy frippery..." (we as a family have now adopted that phrase..wordy frippery..:D)

I don't, however, wish to give the impression that this is a humorous novel...I found the stories intensely moving, sometimes heartbreaking, but they way the whole subject was approached made them immensely enjoyable to read.

After reading "Young Enthusiasts"  last month I was left with no interest in any of the characters portrayed there...but with this collection of stories I came to truly care about each and every one involved. Theirs are stories of hope, love and faith, and the word "Devotion" was left in my heart with regard to each of them. It is not a clergyman's lot to be a burden to his parishioners, but to help them carry theirs, and these stories  so beautifully written are a reminder that they are human too, and suffer just as we do.....possibly even more so. I think this excerpt shows a sample of the humanity and faith portrayed...;

He came forward, and, putting out his hand, said, "I am glad you sent for me-I am so thankful you thought I could be of any comfort to you." Janet took his hand in silence. She was unable to utter any words of mere politeness, or even of gratitude; her heart was too full of other words that had welled up the moment she had met his pitying glance, and felt her doubts fall away.

Not a scene of bodice ripping romance, but the moment a tormented soul reached out, asked for help and was offered it freely.

My only difficulty with this book was choosing what to make from the huge catalogue of inspiration available...but one theme in particular kept recurring through all the different stories...sewing.
Many references are made to the general pastime of needlework by the ladies involved. Whether it be mending, darning, embroidery, knitting, crochet or tapestry work, at some point they all perform this necessary service. So I decided to do a little cross-stitch...

well actually it turned into two...one of field poppies(from an old Edwardian Lady's Diary project book) signifying remembrance, and one of a church window(from the block pattern book I posted about earlier)

Enjoy :D XXX

*Blames Darcy Wilkinson*

My friend Darcy has been/is guest DTing this week at PaperArtsy. She never fails to amaze me with her awesome imagination!!!

One of her simpler projects was to make her own fancy tapes, so with a few minutes waiting for thicker paint to dry I thought I'd have a go...

and this is what I came up with :D

Darcy's post is much more in depth, covering all the different "tapes" you can use, but I just tried basic masking tape...

stuck onto basic greaseproof paper as a carrier sheet...

painted with a thin layer of craft acrylics...

and over stamped with archival ink and *I think* Anna Griffin Iron work stamps...

built up until happy, then strips cut out to use later :D(see top photo)

Nice easy project, why not check out Darcy's post and see if you have any of the stuff she used just lying around waiting to play?

Really? You want ME to review your art class????

Well hello folks :D

(one of my gazillion outdoor photos)

You know how we get lots of emails telling us how wonderful our blogs are...and would we be interested..blah blah blah....

Well I got one this weekend, and something about the way it was worded made me hesitate over the DELETE button....and I am so glad I did...it was for real!!!!

A company selling online art classes called CRAFTSY wanted to know if I would be interested in reviewing one of their new classes...just pick one , watch it and review....no strings...no fee!!!

I had a quick looky round their homepage (which I have to say is very professional), spotted a class on Acrylic Landscapes and thought "Oooooooow...I am rubbish at landscapes, wouldn't hurt to give it a try!"

(one of my rubbish landscapes)

So I crossed my fingers(still expecting some kind of scam) and clicked the links, and in less than 3 minutes I was signed in and watching the most professional online class EVER!!!

Now you know how I am, jump in with both wellies and see how deep it is...I have been glued to my puter ALL DAY.

The class I chose is by a lovely young man called Bennett Vadnais. I expected maybe a 45min vid...but this is a full class, broken down into 9 lessons varying in length from 9 to 40 minutes. He covered everything(and I mean EVERYTHING) from brushes and paints to surface preparation to sealing your finished piece!

There was no "art snobbery" at all! He showed you his preferred method of making a study piece to work from, but said that if you were unable to work outdoors it is totally acceptable to work from photos...and then went on to tell you how to use your photos to best effect!( I has a gazillion photos spanning decades of walks in the countryside)

(another lifeless attempt from years ago)

The class is broken down into lessons at what I consider to be "natural pauses", times when you need to let a piece rest/dry or when you are moving on to a new technique. I watched them all end to end lol...and my head is now ready to explode from information and "ooowww, wouldn't of thought of that" overload.

Mr Vadnais has a lovely screen presence, not at all patronising, and very friendly. He explains each stage of the process in steady clear tones with plenty of detail, but without waffle or confusion.

As part of the class you can ask questions and he will get back to you personally to share his obvious talent...did I say his work is awesome?

(my not so awesome and bland landscape)

At the beginning of the class I was all "I could never do this", but now I am desperate to have a go! Couldn't believe the simple techniques required to attain the final fabulous piece....so guess what I'll be doing this week? :D

As a thank you for reviewing their class, anyone signing up to Craftsy via my link  http://www.craftsy.com/ext/DaydreamBeliever_CraftsyGiveaway 

  will be in a draw to win a class for free!! (and no ...I am not on a commission, though I have accidentally entered myself  lol but will not be picking myself) If you already have a Craftsy sign up, you can still enter using your current details.

The Giveaway link will stay open until Friday July 5th 2013.

Assuming all the artists at Craftsy are of a similar standard to Mr Vadnais, I would not hesitate to recommend their classes. Once purchased the class is available forever, which is good for me as you know how quickly I am distracted by something new, and this is a technique/style I am determined to improve.

Will post my first attempt later this week...wish me luck(and patience) :D

Don't worry...BEE HAPPY !

So today is Midsummers Eve here in the northern hemisphere....though being in England it is raining as usual lol

This has not dampened my spirit in the least :D

What a perfect day to welcome a rescued bumble bee nest into my garden (they're not keen on keeping them in school playgrounds)

They arrived at 8.15am, so I brought them a gift/snackie of stocks and sweet williams so they wouldn't stress when released. While taking this phot they were merrily buzzing around my head lol.

This is my altar space today :D Welcoming the Mother Goddess and celebrating the power of her husband the Sun....

decorated with yellow scented rose petals from my garden....

cleansed with musk incense and water from an icicle that froze around the first flowers in spring(sweet viburnum) mixed with some water from the breast of mother earth (Mam Tour in Derbyshire)...

and a solstice candle decorated with an image from the summer Brambly Hedge cd :D....

and you can also see a sneaky peek of the sampler I am making myself...with bees on...

using elements from the "beekeeper's garden" section of this book ISB number 1-40270069-5

It will contain wording such as Bee Happy....and Home Sweet Home...cos that is how I feel about my home :D

Blessed Solstice

My your day be as bright and joyfilled as mine XXX

A stitch in time....

While reminiscing about past works my mind turned to the pieces I used to stitch.

This was the last cross stitch I worked on, and hangs on my bedroom wall.

While tidyingish...I came across my sewing box (upgraded baby changing box)...

 the contents of which didn't look at all inspiring until I started to unpack...

 and then I was hooked again...by odd scraps of Aida and bundles of rich coloured threads.

Then I found the box I'd wrapped and stored some of the colours I'd used previously, for all the world a rainbow of memories.

 Memories of my first embroidery attempt as a married women(I had done a few pieces for peoples jackets back in the 80's)...

 The Aide Memoir that hangs near my altar space...

the cross stitch panels I made as gifts for my female family members...

using a combination of book pattern elements and my own sketches(the female figures and the landscape in these 2 pieces are my own)

The thrill of "painting" with thread got into my blood again, and I reached for 2 pattern books I treated myself too years ago...

and that's why I am MIA....can't stitch and blog at the same time :D

Can't show you the projects I am working on at the moment, but I will soon...promise X

I love painting, but their is something a bit more spiritual about needlework for me...maybe it is that you are sitting still and quietly concentrating on each tiny stitch.

Bright Blessings to all of you...may you always have the right thread to mend what ails you :D XXX

..and sometimes I just want to play!!!

For those of you who think I only ever do messy bright abstract stuff, before joining the online community I used to only draw with pencil...like this...

and these...

But you should never throw anything away...or forget about them, as you never know when they may come in handy :D 

Letraset have been running a competition to celebrate Africa, and as I have been busy I forgot the deadline is friday!!!(or possibly tomorrow)

I scanned my sketches and printed off the elephant onto super smooth paper(best for using promarkers on)

Then I cut him out...doesn't he look gorgeous???..and that is printed on draft setting!

Next I grabbed a bunch of Promarkers to make a simple background...just dragging the chisel tip end across the super smooth card stock to give a "sunsetty" effect.

Colours used from bottom up;

Honeycomb/Peach/Pink carnation/Gold/Cool aqua/Powder blue.

I used a Prima stencil to add the balloons to break up the "blueness" and coloured them with the same pens...adding Pastel green and Orchid to the mix.

As I had made a very bright warm background I coloured over my printed image with Satin promarker, only a subtle colour change, but enough to "warm" him up :D

I glued him to the background and used a TCW stencil I bought from Craft Den called "Branches" to draw around...

then colour with Black promarker...

and this is what I ended up with...

a lovely day dream of soaring over the plains of Africa in a hot air balloon :D

I am calling this my Piece a Week entry, my very late Paper Saturday entry and my piece for the Letraset challenge

Why not try a little play time your self? I bet you all played with markers as kids :D 

Enjoy :D XXX

Any port in a storm?

This months journal prompt from Dawn is "Numbers", and I am combining it with Inspiration Avenues "Nautical" theme for the week.

I know this isn't a very pretty journal page, but it is full of love all the same :D

The journalling reads:

No matter how stormy the sea or how long the voyage...

I am your Harbour

(process shots, starting with a pre messied page)

added a ripped piece of scrapbooking paper with lovely big numbers on...

tore an ocean liner from a piece of Hunkydory travel themed paper, and overlayed this with a torn piece of scrapbook paper with a tape measure and waves on from K&Co.

used acrylic paint to "stormy" the skies...

added journalling with Sakura soufflé pen and Poska paint pen, and the finishing touch...a superb lighthouse stamp from a pack sent me by my friend Silvia :D

Enough numbers for you there Dawn? :D

Enjoy :D XXX