I was so looking forward to.......

...... being back at college and getting stuck into some new work, but I've not to go back now until 25th January, unless my tutor gets in touch. This is because I have passed 2 of my assesments (I'm so chuffed about that) and all my other work has been handed in to be marked. The good thing about not havin' to go back is that I will have a bit more time for doing some mixed media work at home and a few photoshop and Illustrator tutorials. Another good thing is that I don't have to go to the bus stop in the cold and snow in the morning for that long boring cold bus journey to college. Time on the bus is time wasted, I need to find something that I can do on that cold bumpy journey, apart from shiver!!!

Anyway, I have been playing with my paints etc. again and have created another page in my art journal, I love th background that I created for this page. It was done with leftover acrylic paint from another project and scrapped across page with an old credit card (the best thing that can be done with a credit card lol) I did this twice with different colours and then when the paint was dry I rubbed lightly over area with a baby wipe. I call this page Love Hurts........

I can't believe it......

......I've blogged 2 days in a row!!! This is just a teeny weeny wee blog post today though, I just wanted to post another Art Journal page. The prompt for this one was to have a chequered border...... mine is not quite a full border, but it is there :-)
I'm really enjoying this Art Journal stuff, but not sure how long I will be able to keep it up once I get back to college.

I have been feelin......

....quite creative over the last week, as in get yourself messy with paints and other stuff creative. I had planned to do some tutorials for Photoshop and Illustrator for going back to college.... but no! ......the call of the paint was far too strong and the glue was screaming out that it wanted to come out to play. I've been watching Youtube videos by Milliande and been on her website and thought I would follow and join with her and her art community in making an Art Journal. Now I don't know how long I will do this this, as life always seems to get in the way and there is never enough hours in the day for me to do everything I want, but I have made a start.......

The cover of my Art Journal

one of the pages

and a double page spread

Because of the creativity thats been going on my craft room now looks like this.............

I have tried to tidy up as I go along, but then I just need stuff again and it comes out and get shoved to the side till I need it again. I know where everything is.......just need a bigger room and table :-) eclectic creative caos = MESS!!! I haven't bought any new craft stuff for what seems like ages and I am making myself use what I have even though I do have an ever growing list of art/craft materials that I would like. It is like an addiction, I'm going cold turkey on this and I haven't bought anything for 4 weeks now..............not even a sheet of paper or card......I'm so proud of myself lol

While tidying my craftroom (I really did do it a least 3 times) I came across my altered art slide mailers which I have put in my photobucket album here for anyone to see. I still have some blank slide mialers and I'm hoping to find the time (I don't know when) to alter them too.

Now I have a wee dilema!!! OH has said he would buy be a Craft Robo or a Wii Fit...........my waistline is definetly saying Wii Fit .... I sit on my arse far too much on my computer and I think he is secretly hoping I choose that as it is cheaper....but the creative and technical me is screaming Craft Robo Craft Robo I wanna Craft Robo ....just got to think is it really worth the money, will I use it to it's full potential, is it just a passing whim on my part to want one, will I be dissapointed if it doesn't live up to my expectations....need to think about this seriously and fast or I could end up with nothing lol

The one and only....

Christmas card that I got round to making this year was for the tennants of Calum McDonald court, where I used to work.
I had a brilliant day with them, when we went for our Christmas Dinner at Garvock House Hotel and then back to Calum MacDonald Court for the Christmas Party. Santa and Mrs Clause even turned up with pressies for everyone.

I managed to get all my college work handed in a wee bit early, so this gave me a few extra days holiday, I just hope I pass. This was great as it meant I could go and see my grandson Kian play a shepherd in his nursery nativity.

Then we had loads of snow and it has been freezing................ bbbbbbbrrrrrrrrrrr my dogs and chickens are not too keen on the snow......come to think of it neither am I....it looks nice for the first day but after that I just wish it would go away and warm up.........bring on summer!!!

The snow is still here but it is frozen solid and is as slippery as a bumpy ice rink.

Christmas was great this year with a big family dinner at my mums, 15 of us. It's been a while since we were all together. I have ate and drunk to excess and my waistline is telliing me to stop, but there are too many goodies left in the fridge that I must finish off. When the fridge is empty then I will maybe start to think about losing some pounds. :-)

Some of my college work can be seen here

Oh and how could I forget, I am going to be a gran again. This time it is my youngest son Sean and his partner Katie who are having a baby. I'm so excited, just look at their 15 week scan.

I wonder if it will be a wee girl this time or another wee boy?

It doesn't matter what it is, I'm just so looking forward to another grandchild arriving.

I've not been well but....

.......woo hoo look what got delivered today (a wee stop feeling sorry for yourself 'cause your not well pressie). Well it came in a box bigger than expected

But then there was another box inside with lots of white 'wotsits'


Then inside the second box even more white 'wotsits' (have to make some kind of crimbo decoration with all the white 'wotsits')

But then there it was, in all it's glory.......................my screen printing starter kit :-)

I had a wee taster of screen printing in a class at college, but just not enough for me......I want to do more screen printing and try out different techniques and designs.
Well of course even though I'm still feeling ill, I had to have a wee play in between coughing fits. So now that lovely new screen looks like this.....

..... and this is the result of my playing today~~~~~~~my beautiful daughter hanging up to dry

I still need a lot of practise with this, just can't get it totally right yet.....not enough ink than too much, not lining up right etc. But I'm not one for giving up............tomorrow is another day

This year we have got a real Christmas tree, not had a real one for years. It is all decorated now and I'm starting to get a wee bit excited about the festive season. Might need to buy some new decoration next year, some of my glass balls are over 20 years old now and starting to look their age

Good old St. Nick has come out of his box for yet another year of standing on my fireplace, with the fir cones that my children glittered years ago........

Oh and before I forget, I did a wee bit of crafting 2 weekends ago......... I made personalised christening gifts. A keepsake box and a guestbook/photo album/journal in it's own wee box. Sorry photos are not very good

I now have a thumping head ache with coughin' so much :-(

I really must....

.. find some time and update my blog!! :-)

I have been ....

crafting this afternoon and look what I did. I had 4 boring candles

and look at them now. Potential Christmas pressies :-)

Well thats all the crafting I've had time for.

My mixed media canvas, that I started the other week, is hanging on the wall in my craft room, but it's not finished yet and definetly not ready for the world to see. I am hoping to get some more done to that this week.

Oh I nearly forgot, I did manage to fit a wee bit of drawing in this morning, while munching on a bacon roll. Much to the disgust of my son, who now says I'm weird, because? .......... I drew my very first manga elf.


I am quite pleased with it, for a first try, but going to try and draw a better one during the week

College is on....

... holiday for a whole week. I have had the house to myself and it is so quiet, even with 3 dogs and 6 chickens!!!

I learnt a new stamping thingy this morning ..... a resist technique ... it was in the November issue of Craft Stamper. As I didn't have all the materials that were used in the magazine , I had to improvise with what I had. I made a thank you card for the tenants at the sheltered housing court where I used to work, to thank them for the fuss they made of me and the gifts I received when I left my job so I could go to college.

I have a few ideas going round in my head now of other ways I could use this technique. It was good to be crafting again :-)

I have managed to ....

squeeze a bit of crafting into my day ....... Hooray hooray

One of my projects at college is a magazine project and we are to decorate our project book to reflect what is inside. Well my magazine brief is for an arts and culture magazine called Juxtapoz and I am thinking of doing a feature on Alterd Art, but I haven't totally made up my mind about that yet. Anyway here is my very boring grey sketch book before I altered it

Thanks to some Paper Artsy stamps, which I stamped onto colourful magazine pages, my ATC that was published in Craft Stamper magazine and my trusty Sakura glaze pens, my book looks like this.....

I might add some ribbons or fibres on the spiral spine, but that is it for now as I've got to get on with some real work for another college project that has to handed in this week.

A new banner...

... for my blog. Been having a wee play in photoshop today with a few things that I have done at college. Just put them all together with my favourite fairy ATC. Not totally happy with it, but it will do for now for a wee change. I need to have a play around in Illustrator and get more familiar with that, than I might come up with another banner.