My journal again.........

I have been spending as much time as possible outside on the deck. Its very cool in the mornings. I am enjoying being outside. It has been a very long winter. Not a lot to show on here at the moment and I have neglected my blogs. Ah well......will catch up soon. Meanwhile, just a few things I have done recently.

I like that one (above) not often that I do, but that one I like the way the watercolour cooperated and did that shading for me.
Sort of liked the next one too.

Foxy did not turn out exactly as I hoped but ah well, I sort of like him.

This is based on me seeing the sheep this Spring and imagining them now the blossoms are out

I really do not ever have anything in mind when I start a new page. I never know what I am going to do. I usually sketch a few and colour later.

The last couple I am not so fond of, but it shows what I am trying to do. I am putting in quotes and sayings or verses with the pictures. I go back after and fill the pages with other little things as the mood directs

Its a fun thing to do and relaxing. It has also taken up time I should be doing other things. Like sewing.

some pictures are from my own imagination, some are inspired by something I have seen. I never copy, but I do use ideas. Other peoples work can aid in poses and body positions. Things like that.

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Just a few more.......

I have not been doing a lot of painting of late because I was working on my outdoor ornaments. I am back to doing a few things in my sketchbook. I can't seem to do much that impresses me. I will post these few for now and I have a few sketches done, I can always hope they will be better but they are not really things worth posting.
The next one I saw on a flower pot. So I bought it so I could get the idea...

It needs to be done in acrylic so I can get the shading proper. Then another that is just goofy

I liked this sketch and only painted it very lightly

This is a rough sketch for St Georges Day...........tis all I have for now.

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How its done................

A few people asked me how I made the garden ornaments. I will try to show you in pictures. You need a good clear waterproof glue. I found the E6000 worked for glass on glass. I have used it also on wood. We will see how this works. I can't really give any of these as gifts until I know how they hold up. If they do then maybe next year I can make some to give away.

You can see the fittings that I got at a hardware store. They worked on the wood and the plates. You do not have to use copper. YOu can use wooden spindles, anything that will fit in the hole. These copper ones screwed into the silver fitting and then the pipe popped into that. Hey, I am not a plumber, I don't know what these things are called. Hence the pictures.

This is the glue that I had tested last year with glass on glass.

Here you see the fittings glued to a plate

The finished plate

The bird house thing in its place outside

This was a set I got at GoodWill, one plate, one bread plate and a pot with lid. All glued on each other and then the fitting put on like with the other ones. At this point they are just stuck outside. I have not found where I want them yet.

This one needed no fittings, just glue. Its being tested in the rain..........the fairy is swimming at this time.

Well if you have any questions just ask.........
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Some of my garden ornaments.............

Here are a few of the pictures taken today. I have made a few ornaments. They were not exactly what I had planned to do but it's what I ended up doing.
First. I got the big red vase at the thrift store for 9 bucks, the silver glass bowl was about 7......in this case I didn't do anything but stick them together. I used the open end down so I could secure the vase on a metal rod so it does't blow over.



What is it? dunno, maybe a bird bath? I will have to stand something inside because its a bit deep. The next one is an over large cup and saucer. I have attached a fitting on the bottom and a brass rod will screw into it. It will be placed in the flower garden among where the Black eyed Susans come up.

The next concoction is just to sit on the glass table on the deck. The fairy I just love but one of her pigtails broke. Didn't want to throw her out but because I have so much stuff around I had decided anything broken must go. So why not put her in the garden. I painted over the break and she finished off my table topper.

This next one will go on the front porch. In the teapot I will put an ivy.

Another broken fairy. She got her butterfly mended and I attached her to a dollar store plate and candle holder.

This one is smaller and is a candle holder as the base with a fancy plate and a blue glass plate on top. It needed something else.....a blue ball that I already had. That finished it and will just sit on a table on the front porch. I hope looking pretty with a white table cloth.

This is an old ashtray. I found long ago and this year is a tad rusty so I put one of the 3 blue dishes I found in it fo this year. It will be a bird bath. I got the three blue dishes and teapot for 7 dollars and used everything.

I found two bird houses at the the thrift store. I have put attachments on the base of both of them and they will now go on copper pipes in the garden beds. I have used up all my attachments I bought and there are still a bunch of things left on the table. SO ...........what next?????

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Thrifting again.............

As we took two poodles in to the groomers I just had to stop and see what was new. As I have found every other time they had much more new things in. I cant resist. Two cups and saucers made in Japan.I may find a small shelf and put them in the blue room.


I found another rooster plate that went up in the dining room and I will soon put the other one up now.

I also found a couple of small vases, something that will make nice toppers for the garden ornaments

Teleflora have some nice gift holders, this little cottage was one I found.

This is the other little pot and behind it a hand painted vase. Not sure I want to use either one outside. We shall see

I also found these two china balls. I may try to find some more at Pier 1......I think a basket of them would be nice and I cant see me finding any more like this.

Then there was this sugar bowl, a button glass two handled thingie, I will keep that it will be handy.

I have to stop going there. I really dont need anything else at the moment and I really don't need anything else in the house but its addictive and even though I have spent way too much money there, I console myself that it does some good. This little plate was to go with another glass plate to make a flower.

I have taken pictures of the things I made and will show those when I am sure they are stuck. That the glue is dry.
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RECENT ACTIVITY,,,,,,

I have not really had much chance to do much in the way of painting or crafts recently. What with the flooded basement Dans surgery with Danielle staying for a few days. Then this past week Gabby and Tony stayed because her car was being fixed. So everything has been a mess and somewhat in an upheaval with Cooper around 24/7.
I did manage to get my friend Edna's old saw finished finally after many years of being lost in my basement.

That thing is huge and its also very sharp. She may put it up in her cabin in the U.P

I am so glad that is out of the way. I did start a new journal but have somewhat lost my enthusiasm. I think I will try to improve this spatter method, I have a few ideas.

I am still enjoying Zentangles. They are never done, I can always go back and add more, they are very relaxing,,,,doodling.

Just regular old bits and bobs, nothing special to offer

Not much here

Thats enough mediocrity. I will be getting this blog printed and so don't want too much here that I don't want otherts to see (smile)
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The Blue Room.............

I finally got around to getting some pictures. After the flood in the basement.......It was prior to this the library with a bed in it. The girls liked the room when they stayed here because of all the books in the room, and all being book lovers. However. It is now a nice bright room.

I didn't buy anything to decorate the room except for a couple of plates. The rest I already had.
The bottom quilt I already had in Alex's room (the lavender room) The floral pillow covers were an old set we didn't use as the sheets didn't fit on the beds right. The pillow is one I found at a thrift shop last weekend. The other quilt is an old one. The shelves were given to me by a friend and I got that and the furniture out of Tristens room. He was breaking the drawers by sitting in them or whatever 4 year olds do.
The glass balls were already here, mixed in with my other collections. I grabbed everything blue from several other rooms including mine. I love blue but it didn't fit anywhere till now.

The chair is covered with one of the sheets that match the pillow cases. The plates I got a long time ago at a thrift shop and never had a place for them

This one I wanted to show the hand knitted blanket. I got that at a garage sale. How can people get rid of things like that. It was in perfect, unused condition when I bought it years ago.The bear is wearing
a crochet collar I made. There are two white bears on the bed that are Tristens from when he was born.

This plate I got last weekend at a thrift shop. I suppose I am paying too thrifty dollars for the plates at 6 to 7 dollars but its to a good cause and they are there, what can I say. The lamp I got for 6.99 and it was just what I wanted for that corner. Trouble is it doesn't work, it needs a rewire. Still it looks good for now, or at least it looks how I wanted it to. The wall light was the original light in the room as its a dropped ceiling. We cant put a proper one in as all the pipes are up there.

The plate on the wall I bought recently at an antique shop. Got it for 1/2 off and there is a small round one somewhere I bought to go with it. Just have to find it. The quilt rack is holding another blue quilt that was in the other room before Dan moved in. That was the blue room before then. When he moves out I will be doing that room a different colour. Meanwhile I have a bunch of stuff packed away and when I find that I will find a place to put it. I have some shelves I can paint white/cream and finish off this room.

My friend Nancy gave me the pitcher and bowl. There is more to do in there but it can wait until I find what I already have. While I am showing the downstairs I will show you the doors. When we remodeled we kept all the old doors. The blue room has our old back door with the window in it. There is a lace curtain for privacy. The door to the furnace room is from our old porch and the other door is an old back door also.

The lace curtains all came from my mums house. She had a bunch accumulate over the years so when we closed up the house I brought them all back with me. They are in different rooms throughout the house.
You may think it looks like the lavender room, Alex's room but if you go back and look you will see its not anything like it. I still have plates to hang in that room. I want to paint some pictures for this room yet.
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