The crafting continues

It's been quite a productive weekend :)

After yesterday's workshop I've been putting the finishing touches to the first of my Midwinter/Christmas cards (no pics yet, they're drying). I've also started on my Christmas box for the Cubby Hole swap, and finished off a sympathy card (which thankfully I didn't need). Finally I've added a card I made for one of the many birthday's coming up.

Green fingers

No, I haven't suddenly developed the ability to grow things, but sticky fingers inks don't come off that easily :)

Anybody who has looked at Sue Roddis's blog recently will have seen her blog entries about her ongoing journal page creations.
Well today it was the "Great Journal Workshop" at the Cubby Hole, and those who were lucky enough to get a place got the chance to start their own journal.

Great fun was had by all, trying out new ideas and colour schemes with great abandon. We layered paper, sprayed inks, painted with acrylics and even took a risk and wrote on our pages! Most people came away with a page or two that was complete, and several pages that were started and needed more inspiration.

These are the two pages from mine which are complete (maybe). The first started out as torn papers with acrylics spread over them, and finished up as a Roman theme when I found the picture of a legion invasion in one of the old books we were using ( the scan is a little unclear). The other one was a reflection on the day. It was such fun that the time really did fly (and we even had a treat and talked Paul into doing a chippy run for lunch :)

Winter Shrine

The theme this week over on Gothic Arches is to make a shrine. I'm not sure where the wooden box originally came from, but it was ideal - except that it was black. As a result I've spent quite a bit of time watching paint dry over the last few days.

Having decided on a winter theme, the hardest part was finding bits and pieces to use. I really must start collecting more junk (sorry, I meant ephemera).
The image is a drawing of Beira, a Scottish Goddess associated with Winter (also known as the Cailleach Bheur) perched on the mountain tops. Wherever you go in the world there are local deities associated with Winter. To the Norse she was Skaði, to the Germans Holda or Perchta and so on.

In other news, I'm the lucky winner of some blog candy so there's a nice selection of crafty goodies (and chocolate) winging their way to me. I'd like to say a big THANK YOU to the lovely Lydia for her generosity.

Questions

There's not a great deal to report on the crafting front. I'm still struggling to get the ideas out of my head and onto paper/card/. Yesterday was crop shop at the cubby hole and I managed to get a couple of pages done in my 12 questions book. These are the questions from June and August (I managed to get out of synch somewhere along the way). Only 3 more to do and then I'll be back on track (yeah, right).
The answers are pretty straightforward really. I would love to be able to make music or sing, even if only for my own enjoyment, but sadly I couldn't even carry a tune in a bucket. Oh well, I guess I'll have to listen to other people doing the hard work and just enjoy it.*
Why do I want to visit Iceland? Because when I was about 12 we had a visit to school from somebody who had spent a lot of time in Iceland and gave a talk about this mysterious country. this was long before Iceland became a tourist destination, and was also about the same time as the "Cod War". It has held a fascination for me ever since. I've been there twice, but both occasions were stop-overs at Keflavik while on the way to Canada. One day I will pay a proper visit.
*Bad Company have announced a reunion tour in April and I have tickets :D

Sorting out

I have a little crafty kit that I use when going to workshops, crops, etc; that holds my essentials - scissors, craft knife, pokey tool and so on. There's also a lot of other stuff in there like tooth picks and pens and 'things'. It's all kept in a nice tupperware box, or at least it was. I was rummaging yesterday and managed to stab my self with the pokey tool, so I bit the bullet and bought a mini-toolbox/organiser thingie. All my essentials are now nicely housed, various brads and beads have been returned to their rightful places, and the odd bits of paper and tape have been consigned to the bin. I have no doubt whatsoever that it won't last long. Give it a couple of weeks and there'll be 'stuff' that shouldn't be in there. Oh well, to celebrate my new-found organisation I've made a card which includes fibre and a watch face that were lurking in the old box :)

A star to steer by

At last, something to blog :)

I've been crafting over the last few days, but it's stuff I can't post as it would spoil the surprise. This is one for the blog however. I've missed the last couple of challenges over at Gothic Arches for one reason or another, so I was determined to do this one. The theme is stars, and after musing over "Starry, Starry Night" and "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star", I remembered the line from John Masefield's "Sea Fever" about tall ships.

For those who don't know the poem:

I must down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

Organic

It's about the only way to describe this one really. It's a birthday card for a somebody at The Cubby Hole, and it doesn't look anything like the original idea. I originally started with the of a Crow or Raven and on an autumnal backing, and finished up with an owl and sort of plant-type frond things. Ah well, such is life.

The backing 'paper' is a page from an old edition of The Observers Book of Birds that I found lurking at the back of a shelf. I don't normally go about tearing books to pieces (not even for crafty purposes), but this one is the 1969 version, and it's already lost several pages - so my conscience is clear :)