◍ shades of shades

finally I have finished painting our studio:

today some winter sun peeped through sheer blinds:

shapes from my garden:

a screen show:

and shadows on the walls:

creating even more tones of grey:

□▫▯ let's play

we looked after my friends three children, dog, cat and two 

guinea pigs at the weekend:

a whole Saturday of play:

who can resist the lure of bricks:

what am I?

star biscuits and glitter topped chocolate fairy cakes:

such well behaved children:

°° beforebetweenbeyond

last week I managed to squeeze in a little visit to see

another excellent exhibition at the TAP gallery:

I couldn't make the private view due to bad weather:

but I got a real treat when Emma gave me

a personal tour of the brilliantly curated show:

*well done Amy*

my highlights are ☞

☝ this little video loop of a diver jumping into a teacup of water

by Alice Mahoney:

watching for a good few minutes, it really made me smile :

I do like humour in art:

☝ I fell in love with this piece by Cheryl Lane:

there's a sad beauty to it:

recycled and re-sited to excite me:

☝ cut paper and collage from Seth Guy:

the monochrome architectural theme and layering of coloured

paper keep your eye busy and wandering wondering:

☝ more humour in these simple line drawings by

Stuart Blackmore:

charming and evocative of human behaviour: ☟

☟the graphic montage by Joseph Kopiel has real impact:

bold dream scapes and riotous colour:

*I later discovered that Cheryl Lane has very recently passed away:

deepest condolences to all who knew her:

a rare talent that I was privileged to enjoy*

☷ not in my head but on my phone

normal service will be resumed when this has less lines :

ironic when I collect the lists of others :

♦♦ saturdays are made of making

the goddess of motivation smiled on me today :

after stripping one corner of the study last week :

a rummage in the shed today & I found 5 paint tins :

all shades of grey :

so I painted the newly prepared wall in paint number one :

then I emptied our big old school cupboard :

and huffed and puffed and moved it to it's new place, 

in front of the freshly painted wall :

so tomorrow I can start all over again :

strip, wash, fill, paint ....

for tea I decided to make 

Potato and 'green' chapati with Tomato Chutney

as posted by my friend Louise who is having a gorgeous time in India :

she shared her landlady's *Pushpa* recipe with us :

some cooking therapy is just what a wet and dull saturday afternoon needed :

sunny red tomatoes to make me smile :

a little taste of India on a plate :

*and there's enough for lunch tomorrow too!  yUm :

☙ dig deep

while we are all in our cosy homes ~ dry, warm, food, family

Haitians are fighting on :

I read this the other day ~ it's humbling :

January 15, 2010 5:52 am

This morning we woke up to aftershocks around 5am.  Again, the tremors were met with singing.  The singing is almost as forceful as the quakes.  They are still singing now with all of their force – Hallelujah!  It is as if they are saying “we are not afraid!”  These people are so beautiful that I cry even now, as my ears are filled with their voices and I am writing these lines, hoping that the power will hold out.  There are no others like the Haitian people.

The singing was all night.  There were other aftershocks throughout the night.  But this singing now is the singing that will also meet the sun as it comes up to show us all of the damage once again.  Bittersweet sunrise.

if you haven't given already :

then click the DEC picture at the side of this blog ☞

one less treat for us can make a little

difference for someone far away : 

❩) new new just for you

not content with two blogs :

and with a burning desire to bring back

the age old art of recipe swapping :

*see old blog about that here*

I've started a new blog called 

cakeinthecommunity
☝ click it and see ↑

pop on over and grab yourself a slice of cake :

^_^

go : go : go :

『』what lies beneath

another snowbound day :

so I cleared a space in the study and set to stripping the walls :

whoever invented plastic coated wallpaper 

should be made to remove it from every house,

then be slung in a pit with the inventors of

artex and woodchip!

after painstakingly picking off the plastic layer ....

*this takes forever as it only comes off in tiny pieces and

a scraper or soaking won't budge it plus
I ripped a nail which is really painful!*

and steaming off the paper backing :

a pattern appeared on the plaster :

floral designs of a past paper :

a glimpse of a previous life ~ before we came here :

I have a strange notion that buildings give a feeling

of good and bad karma :

have you ever felt that?

think of an old tape cassette :

a magnetic strip that records sound :

even when you tape over it, 

it leaves a trace of what was once before :

✱more snow? you bet!

ormomo : guardian of la martini

⌘ cabin creative

more snow and school's out for the rest of the week :

it's time to make and do as well as daydream and watch

the birds in the garden:

*don't forget to feed our feathered friends and leave fresh water*

when you've a pile of uneaten apples in your fruit bowl 

that are on the brink of bagginess :

peel, core, chop and tumble into a saucepan :

with a generous sprinkle of cinnamon, a little sugar,

the zest of an equally on-the-turn lemon

and a splash of water :

heat until soft but not too soft :

get out your cutters and make some pastry cases 

*you all know how to make or buy pastry right?*

brush the lids with beaten egg and sprinkle with a 

little demerara sugar :

bake until golden and your house smells 

gorgeously applecinnamonyum :

then wrap up, grab your wellies, scarf, gloves and hat :

*and camera*

and go stretch your legs and get some air :

I never tire going to the woods :

the snow transforms the known to a magical place :

the colours are so bright :

and I feel the cold more than I used to :

and Libbie will never forgo style :

↪ skipping school

this afternoon I should have started doing something with these ☟

and these ⬇

and these ↴

and these ↓

and thinking about these ⤵

with some talented children in a local school :

but instead｟because of 'severe weather warnings'｠

there is no play today ~ only at home :

so I made this ⇙

*I want the children to make some too,

carrying special messages from nature*

I flicked through this ⥥

and smiled at these ⇩

before I sit down to begin making something cosy with this ⇣

and wish you all a good day whatever the weather!

仝 visiting friends

'still on 4 sat, tom soup and cheesy garlic brd, lunch bout 12.30. C ya's then? Lol S x'

how could I resist a text like that?

'Ooo yes please!  Sounds yum x '

armed with a bottle of my sloe gin and some corks *more on those in a bit*

we drove to claim our soupy prize :

Sandra and I have been friends for 14 years ~ saying it out loud makes me wonder 

where the time has gone!?

we met soon after giving birth to our little bundles of joy and just 'clicked' :

apart from being 'outsiders' in our *little village, we had and still have

loads in common.

*little village being Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex where I lived for 3 years*

she always makes us feel so welcome when we visit :

the time flies by as we talk books, art, fashion, recipes, film, 

kids and we eat, chat more and laugh :

she's very modest about her skills but I can tell you she's a talent all right :

her writing is a joy to read,  her cooking sublime, 

her knowledge in the garden is vast and her skills with the 

needle fabulous  :

no wonder her youngest is artistic already :

the corks were for him :

*no dear reader, I didn't drink all those bottles of champers,

although I did enjoy quite a few glasses at Mr B's 50th birthday*

he's quite the entrepreneur, charging a small fee for portraiture :

*this is a good likeness I'm told so I'll have to watch out for the

noseless Mr Hunt*

but what does he do with those corks you may wonder?

he has created a whole world of people :

carefully drawn and glued :

the queen and the grass cutters :

the knights and swordsmen are as scary as they look :

can't wait to see the new members of his imagination :

after our scrumptious soup we went for a walk :

through the country park to the marina :

then along the prom, past boats and huts and chandlers :

until the coming twilight signalled us back :

via Jennie's for a warming cuppa by her logburning stove ....

*the lush drank all her sloe gin already and had I known I'd have given her a bottle too!*