Watercolour sketches, part 2

More pictures of the sketches in my Etsy store. Still more to come as I had a very productive weekend last week. I had hoped this weekend would be just as productive but I spent it trying to figure out Search Engine Optimization for Etsy. My head nearly exploded last night with all the information so I am going to stay well away from the PC after this morning. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Watercolour sketches, part 1

I've been busy playing with my watercolours recently. I've come up with a few watercolour sketches that I am in the process of listing on Etsy. Most of the creatures in the series live locally and I often get the opportunity to sketch them as they pass through my garden or while out walking. Each is a quick study of these animals, subtle representations done with minimal brush strokes and plenty of watercolour paint. Great fun to do and much quicker than my more detailed work.




Over the next few days I will be listing more sketches, which range from British wildlife to more exotic creatures not found here. I'll post the pictures here as I get the listings up.

Sneaky peek

Just a quick post to show off my first attempts with fabric paper. I haven't had a lot of success with the glue I use but I added a goodly dollop of paint and seem to have rescued it. I made this little journal with it and decorated it with some of my paper beads.


This is a sneaky peek of some of the new beads I will be listing on Etsy over the next week. Lots of colour. In all I have 16 sets to list, including some Halloween themed ones. Plenty of choice for everyone.

Bugged out by summer

Yes, it's summer, my least favourite time of year. What is inevitable, apart from it being too hot, suffering from allergies and feeling totally lethargic, is the influx of bugs. I don't mind bugs, I have a soft spot for beetles, but flying insects drive me to distraction. So you may find it strange that I bought a books called Wire Bugs and have been making a few wire and bead bugs over the last few weeks. But these are cute bugs. They don't sting, they don't fly in at your face, they don't cause irritation or illness. They just look cute. Ants, beetles, bees, dragonflies ... they are all in the book. I even came up with a few hybrid ideas of my own. Great fun.

Surprise!

I had the most amazing surprise yesterday. I ordered a book last week called Skulls by Noah Scalin, published in 2008. It is based on the hugely successful Skull-a-Day blog and shares images from the year long project to create a skull a day, fun projects to make yourself and a few fan creations. While Scalin was in the midst of his project I sent him some hand made crafty creations using hand carved rubber stamps I made from his own images. The surprise? My creations are in the book! I had no idea they had been published and it was only by chance that I went back to Skull-a-Day and found out the book had been published. Being a fan of all things creepy I felt I had to buy a copy and when it arrived and I was flicking through it, SURPRISE! Let's just say I was on cloud nine, ten and eleven yesterday. Although the book doesn't seem to be available on either Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk to buy new, it is available from several second hand sellers. If you like all things skully you might just love this book. The really spooky thing is that the book was published on my birthday in 2008.



In other news, I have been making new beads, indulging in some yarnful creations and trying to get work ready for the local exhibition next week. All after a week of dog sitting for my sister. No rest for the wicked.