Hearts

Crocheted heart seat cover. I made the heart a while ago and added the border. 

Strange heart shaped grey cloud in the middle of all the white fluffiness. 

It stuck out a lot more in reality. 

 Heart shaped lips of one of my many abandoned dolls. I really should get them out of their box and try to sell them but it is just one thing on the long list of things I should do.

Tiny heart sticker given to me by one of the children this afternoon. 

Added to weird drawing in my journal. 

Goodnight Wednesday, the heart of the week. 

And Old Book and Lots of Gold.

When I saw Lynne Hoppe's pochette (little pocket) I wanted to make one. It is a pocket made from an old book cover, used to hold loose paper. I have quite a few books waiting to be made into journals, so I found one that I thought would be suitable. It is about A5 size, and has a lovely cover, with pretty gold text and decoration, but was not in a very good state, so I didn't mind cutting it up. I took out the pages, then decided to bring out the embossed pattern on the cover using Buff-It. I just rubbed it on lightly with my finger. 

 I was looking for a corner punch in my basket of punches, and rediscovered this lotus stamp. It is a really big stamp and the shape and feel of it goes well with the other decoration on the book. I stamped it in black ink, then sprinkled with gold embossing powder. It is my favourite colour embossing powder as it is such an unpromising dull greeny brown before heating, so the change is really dramatic.

 I found a couple of fabric covered old buttons, and gold embossed them too.

 I added fabric tape to the inside of the spine, to strengthen it. This tape is the only recent purchase. All the other things I used have been hanging around for a while, some for years!

 I decided to add a paper envelope inside to stop the paper from falling out. I remembered this weird green paper I bought in Paperchase about 15 years ago. I have never known what to use it for. It is like very thick glassine paper. I used double sided very sticky sticky tape to put it into the book cover.

 I even did some measuring and used a ruler to ensure at least some accuracy. 

 I found these paper fasteners in my tin of such things. Again something I have had for years. They made a perfect closure with some stripey string.

 Finally I added my third type of gold-gold leaf to some of the edges. I have quite a lot of it, some bought in Paris a long time ago, and some my Mum gave me recently. I am not very good at applying it but I didn't mind a rough look! It is the most shiny of the three types of gold, and makes me want to cover everything in it!

 The elastic loop to keep it closed and voila!

Group of Strangers From the Past

When I was looking for a toy bus that I knew I had, but couldn't find (it turned out to be where I thought it was but I hadn't seen it), I found a little collection of photos that are not mine. Well they are, but they were bought rather than passed down. I think this one came from the bag of papers I bought in Deptford market. Just look at this picture! It couldn't be of a more differently shaped group of women. The lady on the right is so tall with such a tiny head, the one on the end is tiny and the other lady is solid and square. I love the skinny ankles and many buttons of the right hand woman. It looks as if it is from the 1920s-the hats, shoes and the long line of the dresses make me think so. Also the woman in the background with the little girl has a very cloche like hat. Interestingly I think the man's clothes could be from a much wider timespan. They are like characters from a children's book which I would like to read. It looks as if they are outside a park. There is nothing written on the back of the photo, only the printed word 'Northampton. 

 They made me want to draw them. I have done a very light pencil sketch which didn't scan well, so I fiddled with it in Photoshop. I think I will go over it with ink.

 I liked this effect. 

Work and Sheppey

I have now been back at work for two weeks and it has flown by. I am doing a half term in the nursery of the local school I worked at last year. I may do until Christmas but not beyond. It is still supply, and I agreed to do it as the school have not yet got a permanent teacher, and the teacher I worked with last year has left.  I have a massive to do list, and am tired, but have enjoyed it so far too. Only six, possibly twelve more weeks to go! On the last weekend of the holiday, we visited Sheppey, as I wanted to take Andy to the place I went to with my Mum in the holidays. (Minster Leas) We had quite a bad breakfast at the place I had a good lunch before, then went for a long walk along the beach. It was interesting as the landscape is quite different to the place we usually go. The cliffs seem to be just soil and are collapsing. There must have been a rubbish dump there, as there is all this pastel china on the beach which I think comes from 1950s bathrooms. The beach becomes sandy as you go further along. There is lots of metal rusting away, as well as whole trees washed up. We could see someone camping in the distance on quite an isolated stretch. 

These are forts  were built during WWII to defend London and Thames settlements. There were some more nearer to shore but they are gone. These were used to house pirate radio stations in the sixties. They used to have bridges between them. I love the way they look from so far away. Apparently they are about six miles off the coast. 

Look at this rock! A grumpy old man rock. He is very heavy and joined lots of fellow rocks on their way back here. I can't help myself. I wish I knew what kind of rock it is. They are all very geometric. The best one I found is a perfect pentagon.

On the way down the beach. It was a really hot day. I didn't have much water left. Ever unprepared!

I know this is plastic rubbish, but the colour combination in this little scene is lovely. 

Zoom lens of the campsite. 

Football trying and failing to blend in with the rocks. 

Looking back the way we came. 

View back to the grassy cliffs.

An office chair that has seen better days. 

Distant yacht. 

Blurry container ship. I really need to remember to take my mini tripod with me sometimes. 

I couldn't make out how this ship was constructed. Are those cranes? It looks like a structure that should be on land.

Ship and windmill.

Beach huts back at base. They are all perfect and new looking and I think are fairly pricey. I have always thought it would be lovely to have one but would not be happy with the lack of toilet situation. Ha-weirdly when I just looked there was an article in The Kent Messenger, dated today about this very thing. The huts were rented, and the council have said that renters can buy one for £9000, plus £300 ground rent a year,  or a rental cost rising from £650 a year to £950 a year and the tenants would have to pay for three years. 

Finally we sat down on a wall to have a cold drink, before going home. I watched and tried to photograph these cute little birds. They were very busy, running up and down catching food.

They are called Ruddy Turnstones. Cute!

Time for Your Close-Up

Cassie is scared of many things, including the doorbell ringing, unexplained knocking, humans wearing donkey ears and the sight of me putting up the metal clothes drier. She is not afraid of a camera though, and makes an easy subject as she is relaxed no matter how close I get to her. Tiger doesn't mind either. Lily, for some reason, scarpers as soon as I even pick up the case. I think she is scared of the zoom!