Off we go

It’s the start of September and time to begin Learning Something New Every Day.  I know, it’s the second of September today, but come on, I’ve got to live the day before I can know what I’ve learned and write it down, haven’t I?

Of course, I was champing at the bit, raring to get going because I knew that I’m working almost every day next week and getting ahead of myself is one way of keeping up.  So, yesterday afternoon, in between getting a few things ready to make a paella for friends last night, I bound those pages I painted into a concertina binding.  Exactly the same method I showed here, but the more pages there are to manage, the trickier it is to keep the whole thing straight.  But hey, I was trying not to be too neat on this one, wasn’t I?

The end result wasn’t half bad, the pages opened flat and gluing them back to back strengthened the pages too.  OK, there were one or two wobbles here and there but once the glue dried, the whole thing hung together rather better than I had dared hope.

Of course, it needed covers though.  Sticking to my principle of keeping this thing all hand made and “unplugged” I pulled out a sheet of random painting I’d done earlier in the year, following a free online class.  I know, it was exactly this kind of instructor-driven stuff I’m trying to avoid, but the painted sheets were there and this seemed a good use for them.  I glued them to stiff cardboard covers and left the thing to dry.

It wasn’t without the occasional minor disaster.  The bottle of glue I’d been using was somewhat fragile; the plastic had become brittle over time and it was already bandaged up with duct tape.  Nevertheless, when it was still half full, I couldn’t bear to throw it away so I was happily squeezing the bottle to get every bit of it out when SPLAT!  The bottom of the bottle burst open and the contents oozed everywhere.  aaagh!   Fortunately, my paint palette was on hand and I dumped the lot in there (yes, still couldn’t throw good glue away…sad, isn’t it?)  Using an old credit card I used every last drop to bind the book and even had the unexpected but very enjoyable experience of peeling all the dried up glue from my palette this morning!

The bound pages are pretty secure and now it’s all dry, it’s pulled together well.  I used a couple of pieces of Japanese linen tape to hold it together – I have a roll of wider, lime green linen tape somewhere but until I track it down, the plum check will have to do!

I used some of the denim blue acrylic paint to colour the edges of the cardboard, too.

So, what about the inside, then?  Time for the first observation and the entry for September 1, 2012.

The paella.  I have never made it before but fancied having a go when friends were coming for supper this weekend. I didn’t think our shallow pans were big enough, so had looked in a couple of shops in Gloucester Quays (Le Creuset outlet and similar) on Friday afternoon after work, but nearly fainted at the price – I was not prepared to spend £100 on a new pan just to make a paella in!  But shopping in Cirencester yesterday, the kitchen shop had a window display featuring…paella pans!!  (The real McCoy too)   One was perfectly sized and at £9.99 a rather more affordable purchase.  My hero and I got all the ingredients prepped in good time and were able to enjoy the company of our friends as I cooked Jamie Oliver’s Paella and ate a few tapas at the same time!

So, the Paella adventure prompts the first observation of the project.  Easy peasy!

No safety net needed

Yesterday, I cut 32 pieces of paper, got out a few colours, the mod podge, the gesso and a big brush.  I spent a slap-happy couple of hours not really thinking about what I was doing, trying not to be too neat and tidy but just going for it and hoping for the best.

I tried not to be too precious, but of course, a few favourites appeared.

In just a couple of hours, a long row of pages were laid out on the floor to dry overnight.  Some need a bit more of a tweak, others are ripe enough and ready to become the pages of my Learn Something New Every Day journal.

It felt good to stand back and admire an afternoon’s work.  I used the panorama function on my camera to record the whole lot and giggled to myself when I saw a few pairs of feet: Memories of those old school photographs when some little oik would run around the back and get himself into the photo twice!

It dawned on me

Sadly, the realisation came not under an early morning sky in California, with the sun rising over the Pacific Ocean but on a dreary drive towards Cheltenham.

(I was thinking about my art journal, discussed in a recent post, btw)

What if instead of recording the events of the day in a kind of narrative, I used a single event or conversation of the day to inspire a creative response of some kind?

I know.  You got there ages ago.

Weather

Whether the weather be fine,
Or whether the weather be not,
Whether the weather be cold,
Or whether the weather be hot,
We'll weather the weather
Whatever the weather,
Whether we like it or not!

The forecast has been dire for today, Bank Holiday Monday, which didn’t bode well for the village show I was booked to judge.  As I walked over to the marquee, the black clouds were gathering overhead and everyone was scurrying about, trying to avoid their lovely entries getting blown away.

Once inside, it was a different story.  Safe from the elements, the results of a season in the garden, a day in the kitchen or a few week’s busy fingers were there to see.  I couldn’t wait to get started! 

We got off to an excellent start with the most exquisite piece of knitting I’ve seen for a while.  Using a traditional Norwegian pattern, the exhibitor had knitted this beautiful cardigan and must have held her breath to do the steeking.  It’s rare to see such lovely work in a village show and I was thrilled to think the visitors would be able to admire it later.

There was more.  Not just one piece of lovely lace, but two with the same entrant id number.  Someone had been busy and I wondered it there had been a wedding in the family?  Along from a delightful little Elizabethan style bag with appliqued lace motifs was this tiara.  Sadly, each of them lost a half mark because they weren’t as pristine as might have been hoped, but my goodness, what beautiful lacemaking! 

Then, just as I was running out of superlatives I began judging the Men’s class.  Now, last year, I’d written them a serious letter because even though the schedule said that everything had to be made in the last 12 months, some of the items were dated a long while earlier than that.  Things were tired, dusty and far from show standard and I issued them a challenge to come up with some things we could really admire.  Perhaps they took notice, because this time I had two “perfect” entries and the hardest decision – which one will win?  The beautifully made cross for the local parish church was so well-balanced, had lovely contrasting woods and every last detail had been considered.  But I awarded the cup to the macrame sampler keyrings, each one made to a different pattern and finished with a turks head knot.  Beautiful – and far from easy.

It’s a long time since I saw such a wealth of crafts in a show: woodwork, marquetry, willow weaving, stained glass, knitting, patchwork, macrame, needlepoint, canvaswork…and the delight of a little stitch sampler in the children’s class from a 7 year old.  Who cared what the weather was doing outside?  What better way to spend a dreary Bank Holiday? 

My chauffeur was waiting for me outside and we went off for some lunch, to the highly recommended Royal Oak at nearby Gretton.  We arrived as the GWSR steam train puffed by at the bottom of the garden and spent a happy couple of hours overlooking the beautiful landscape.

Not the brightest and most settled of August days, so far we’d avoided getting wet and we were counting ourselves lucky as we explored a little of the garden before we left.

I was especially intrigued by the huge growth of mistletoe on this very small tree.  See the clump on the stem, just beneath the canopy?

And since my hero is currently taking care of our friends’ chickens whilst they’re on holiday, the curious design of this wonderful hen house struck a chord too.

Watching the train steam by one last time, we decided it was time for home and pulled into the drive as the heavens opened.

Timed that one well!

Art. Journal.

I’ve been looking at a few art journals recently.  Wondering why I generally only work on a journal when I’m travelling?  Thinking that though I can do a pretty good job of assemblage, I’d quite like to get a bit more of actual art in there.

I’ve seen plenty of journals which really don’t float my boat.  I’m tired of seeing faces of moody women with long necks, scribbled in charcoal on a highly coloured background.  I’m bored with pointless doodles which mean nothing and are really just some instructor-led scribbles and encouragement to go out and buy more, expensive materials (or indeed, more expensive materials!) 

I’ve dabbled in digital journalling and learned a lot about Photoshop and what can be created without moving away from my computer.  I have folders of digital sellotape, ink blots and jpg lines of stitching.

I’ve played with hybrid methods; real cutting, sticking and gluing on top of printed out, digital images, because I recognised that getting my hands dirty and creating some dimension was all part of what I enjoy and that simply printing out didn’t quite do it for me.

I’ve followed online prompts and classes, which have inspired me to do something outside my normal comfort zone, to work in a different style or even to identify a way of applying my style to a different framework.  The envelope page above was part of Shimelle’s “Learn Something New Every Day” project and with September on the horizon, I think that it’s a good time to consider this year’s challenge.

I took a favourite book from my shelf and thought about how I’m going to approach this.  In particular, a paragraph on the page about collage leapt out and struck a chord:

“..collage makes use of appropriated images and words.  These will bring their own accumulated meanings and connotations with them into their new configurations on your pages.  These items are marks and as such should contribute to the overall meaning of the work and not dominate the piece. Work that is basically an enshrinement of an appropriated image fails on many levels”

Amen!  Here, in a couple of sentences, is what has been niggling me about so many of the journals I see here and there.  Exactly what I’ve been trying to avoid in my own work and I think, why I find it hard to do any kind of journalling unless I’m travelling.  Normal, everyday life doesn’t seem to produce the ephemera, the unusual situations or the interesting enough experiences which are worth recording* and using some commercial or product-driven theme: Put a bird on it or the current overused image (button? butterfly? pointy hat?) really doesn’t work for me.

an image from page 77 of “The Decorated Journal” which I particularly like

So, the challenge I’m setting myself this year is to create something more authentic.  I’m going to use the  Learn Something New Every Day prompts to try to bring a little more art into my 2012 journal; to leave the computer out of it and get the real colour flowing.  Not all pages will be masterpieces, I know.  Perhaps I won’t be able to do a whole page each day and some days will be a mere note or intention?  Maybe I’ll get into the habit and find that I can’t stop?  Perhaps I’ll fall at the first hurdle and discover that writing blogs, taking daily photos and creating an art journal doesn’t leave any time at all for actually living the life I’m trying to record?  Who knows?

But there.  I’ve said it here.  I’ve committed!  Anyone else playing along?

* You’re right, normal life does produce the most extraordinary situations and the most mundane and routine experience is well worth recording, of course!  But do I have the energy or the commitment to record it all?  Let’s see.