Golden Plovers at New England Bay

Golden Plovers at New England Bay

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some 'on the go' photos

Crows of Damage Barton

My latest print is inspired by the crows that wheeled and careered above the tall pines at Damage Barton. They completed these amazing dances each evening as the sun set, appearing to settle before all setting off again in restless choreography.
 

Folksy 100th sale! Time for a giveaway

This week i sold my one hundreth item on Folksy. Whoop whoop!

For this I owe a big thanks to the Folksy team and, of course, all my lovely customers :)

Although global domination is obviously some way off, reaching this milestone has put a big smile on my face. 

 To celebrate I  am giving away one of my latest prints "Red squirrel" and a framed version of my paired aceo-sized prints "Winged Seeds East and West". 

For a chance to win leave a comment below, I'd really like to hear about the little achievements in life that have made you smile this week.  

 I'll pull a winner from a virtual hat on the 14th July. Tweet, facebook and share for more chances to win (but let me know in case i miss it :))

blue grey I art selection

available here

Collared doves work in progress

I love the look of the chalky white against the soft grey lino and always pause at this stage in the lino cutting and debate whether to carry on or just leave it as it is. I'll aim to match that soft grey (perhaps a shade or two lighter) in ink when it comes to printing. I might add a smudge of buttery yellow too. I've steered clear of yellow in the past but I rather liked it in Betty's Hen no.3 so i'm emboldened to try again, albeit much softer this time.

wet sunday

We took a trip over to Brimham Rocks near Harrogate with a lengthy walk in mind but after an hour of persistant rain we took a short cut back to the rocks and had a scramble around & picnic. By then it had dried up and the sun came out so we looked a bit daft wandering around in our full wet weather gear. Especially with mouths and hands stained deep blue from bilberry picking & eating. If any one knows an idiot-proof recipe for dyeing fabric with these berries i'd love to know :)

Despite (or perhaps because of ) the wetness, nature was in full force. We watched a pair of hares chasing each round and round a field for at least five minutes. And we heard two calling to each other from fields on either side of the road, one watching over their offspring. Lapwings fledgings are incredibly beautiful! Skylarks trilled overhead accompanied by the occassional baleful mew of the curlews. But the best bit was the sheep whose baa sounded like a long belch. 

The scramble round the rocks reminded me that I had intended to do a companion piece for my Crow and Anvil linoprint, something to think about this week.   

Newt Love - linoprint

A little window into the life of a Peak District pond, newts courting, tadpoles wriggling, & skaters skimming the surface. Last year's reeds shelter a frog and new spears soar skyward. Blossom petals from an overhanging crab apple tree float gently down and sail away. I could have sat and watched this little world all day.

You can see my original sketch here,  the simplified drawing here, and the marked up lino here. It is available here and here

Goldfinches amongst the beech and hawthorn

I love these small but striking finches. Unlike many bird with interesting plummage the females and males have equal dibs on the glad rags so they make quite a sight when seen together on the bird feeder or in the hedgerow. This latest lino print will soon be in my Etsy and Folksy shops.

Competition time

To celebrate reaching 100 PWFMs in my Folksy shop I am having a little PRIZE DRAW competition. 

The Prize: A custom printed Spiral Rabbit in the winner's choice of COLOUR. 

How to enter: 

1.     FAVOURITE my folksy shop &

2.     FOLLOW this blog &

3.   Leave a COMMENT below stating which colour you would like if you win and why. Don’t worry if your choice of colour duplicates someone else’s. 

Closing date: I’ll be pulling the winner from a virtual hat on 31st May (or thereabouts) 

I’ll aim to print and dispatch the prize by the 3rd week of June (impending house move permitting)

Good Luck!

PS black is ok too!