Wordless Wednesday
24 February 2010 Filed in: Inspiration, Photography
Hibernating
20 February 2010 Filed in: Journaling, Photography
Airplane in the blue hour
I’ve been hibernating after twisting my ankle two weeks ago while escaping huge icicles falling off a rooftop on a narrow medieval street paved with cobblestones. Lets just say that there’s a whole lot of things I’d rather do than walk with crutches in snow and on ice.
It’s interesting to see how much comes with the role of “being injured”, at first I was so surprised when someone offered me a seat on the bus and then I remembered oh yes, I’ve got these crutches. People can see that… Then again, this is a role I’ll soon be able to step out of, and I’m so grateful for that.
This whole thing has been a drain though, so things have been quiet round here. But enough with the drama!
I found a desktop wallpaper with Forsythia, that somehow didn’t make it into the move to WordPress, and re-released it. I hope it brightens your day with thoughts of spring to come!
These birches grow in the park behind the bus stop. It looks like the branches are sugar-coated! Although it was dark I had to pull out my camera. The photos are in colour but the landscape is in black and white. Monochrome. This scene makes me think of woodblock printing, linocuts, engraving and etching. And again, I’m inspired to create patterns for fabrics.
Scottish Fold
And now there are more kittens in the litter. Pleased to introduce this marmalade tabby, an illustration of a Scottish Fold.
Expanding, meeting new friends, participating in group projects and finding inspiration. Closing in to focus on personal projects and deep connections with both online and offline friends and loved ones. And to swing back and forth between expanding and finding focus. Last year was an expanding year for me, this year I intend to be focused and yet open.
This extraordinarily snowy winter we’ve been giving different kinds of snow names. Feather snow, icing sugar, ice mist, castor sugar, sea salt flakes, snowball snow, movie snow… It’s been playful and imaginative.
I enjoy studying thoughts and ideas, the origin of words, to broaden my knowledge and explore the background. This winter I found out that it’s it’s a popular urban legend that the Inuit or Eskimo have an unusually large number of words for snow. And here I’d been saying “did you know that the Inuit have lots of words for snow!”…
Tags: black and white, cat, cute, Cute as a Button, fabric, focus, Inspiration, kawaii, monochrome, Photography, snow, textile, trees, winter
It’s like someone powdered the trees with icing sugar. Or dipped them in a bag of sugar. Or poured a bag of flour over the landscape. Or something like that… And it’s breathtakingly beautiful!
Turkish Angora
My main focus for January is to create my first design for fabrics based on the Full Cold Moon. I’m so enthusiastic about the whole project and I’ve got such a terrific feeling about it! I’d got the fabric samples and colour chart just before Christmas and only need to transfer the design to a curtain format and adjust the colours so they work for printing on textile before I can have the first sample printed. I don’t know about “only”, but still, I’m so close to being there, and so I was very surprised to find resistance within me! What am I afraid of? The technical process that I need to learn? Getting the curtain dimensions wrong? Is it about putting this project out in the world? Is it about completion and what to do next? About the possibility of failure? Or success? I don’t know. All I know is that these ultra cute cats emerged, at this very time of the process.
They’re terribly cute, kawaii, as sweet as sugar, and really not what I consider “my style”! And yet here they are. I thought about it. Then I decided to just let them come. They’re fun and playful and perhaps they appear with ease because I have no big dreams or strong emotions attached to them?! So I’ve been making more friends for the first cat. A family. A collection of cat breeds. They could be a collection of icons or they could be a set of prints or illustrations in a children’s book. Cute as a Button. That’s it, that can be the name for this cute crew!
I’ve been spending more time offline, unplugged. Batching my internet activities three times a week. It’s bliss. Now if I only got round to sorting out my mailbox too!
And I’m looking for a good recipe for Boeuf Bourguignon for my birthday dinner. I’ll be serving it either with potato puree or Potatoes Boulangères and a green salad. Not sure what the desert or starter will be yet. I’m thinking of trying Delia Smith’s recipe for Boeuf Bourguignon but I’m interested to hear if anyone has any other recommendations?
Tags: art, cat, cooking, creative process, cute, Cute as a Button, design, ease, fabric, focus, Photography, snow, textile, trees, winter
The Days In Between
26 December 2009 Filed in: Journaling, Photography
Christmas Crackers
We had a wonderful Christmas and are now enjoying “mellandagarna”, the days in between Christmas and New Year’s. Peaceful days for contemplation, cosy days at home, long walks in the snow.
Before I return to my new book, The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters, and painting software Art Rage 3 I wish you a “happy continuation”, “god fortsättning”, as the Swedish greeting goes.
