When times are tough….

Sometimes when you know a friend is struggling, there's not a lot you can say,

but a hug always helps…. and if you can't be there in person, a card is the next best thing...

sending a hug to help you through. you know i'm never far away

& always with you in my thoughts.

Something handwritten to lift their spirits… to let them know that you are on their side, 

however far away you might be…

You're in my thoughts… anything that hurts your heart hurts mine too. I'm here when you want me, whether to laugh or cry, especially to remember times gone by.

The tiny cornflowers in this handmade cotton rag paper are so delicate… and there aren't that many either, so the effect is quite subtle, not too 'flowery' at all.

Healing wishes…

sending love & healing thoughts to help you through while things are tough.

Holding your hand every step of the way.

Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, 

and sings the tune without the words, and never stops at all.

Emily Dickinson

Thinking of You…

there are no right or proper things to do, but I hope you feel the love & strength 

I'm sending from me to you.

my friend

Thank you for being that friend who knew the song in my heart 

& sang it back to me when I had forgotten the words.

Concertina Cards are available at 

Inky Whispers

and can say whatever you like!

One Card Leads to Another...

And so, having done a selection of blue 'friends' cards, a request came for pinky/purples. It's always just as easy to do several as to do one...  a session of writing 'pink stuff' & painting splashy backgrounds to use for decoration resulted in a mountain of pages of words & quotes. 

All are duly scanned & saved for future use in other projects, & finally a batch of cards assembled & photographed. It takes ages sticking those 'diamonds' in place & making sure they look randomly scattered!!

splashy background = technical term for splashing paint around

I often use watercolour for these, but the inktense blocks i got a while back are really vibrant colours & run together nicely with a good sloshing of water (sloshing= another technical term). For this sort of thing, there's no point being too precious over it... they're only going to be cut up or used as backgrounds for other things.

cards listed at suziscribbles.etsy.com

I love how... when they're cut up or little bits are taken out... how they look so delicate, or how individual little pieces look like miniature works of art in their own right, no matter how messy the full sheet was!

In Honour of Friends... a give-away

There are some extra special friends around... & I'm lucky enough to have some of them find me to help tell their best mates how much they are appreciated!! In this case, my daughter when Thornton's didn't have the particular chocolates she wanted for her friend's birthday and she was going round to see her in a few hours... huh, how dare she...!!!

The recipient of this canvas is always saying, "Well, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger", so that had to be on. These two are always texting quotes to each other and this was one that she particularly remembered, "Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly"

Aaaargh... having someone stand over me is really strange, especially a bossy version of me being extra critical about whether a splash of paint is in the right place! Anyway, cerise splashes & lettering on black, with a dash of silver powder is always eye-catching.

prints available as an 8 x 10 print in the

suziscribbles shop on etsy

So.... in honour of friendship... for friends old & new & those yet to be made... i thought we should have a little give-away! I'm offering an 8 x 10 print of the image above (3rd one down!) or the one below...

these were on 8 x 12 inch canvas originally~
i can create something similar, 
but no two will ever be the same

... all you have to do to enter, is leave a comment with a quote about friendship or tell me about the meaning of friendship to you... how easy is that? And if you tell your friends & share it on your blog,  facebook or twitter, you can have another entry for each place, but make sure you come back to comment & tell me you've done so or i won't know! (And don't forget to say whether you prefer the quote or the heart)

You have til the end of the month... 31st July... I'll make the draw on 1st August, which happens to be Lammas (or Lughnasadh) in the northern hemisphere...a celebration of the early harvest... it will be Imbolc in the southern hemisphere, looking forward to spring.... a perfect time to celebrate friendship wherever you are, so get digging to find me some quotations!!

Cards for Friends...

Friends are the family we choose for ourselves...

same words...

different ideas...

available in the shop

Mini Gift Book

Sometimes, it feels like a simple note just won't do.

just click the pic for a closer view!

When a customer asked if I could post a canvas direct to her friend & add a little note, I couldn't resist. It seemed only fair that it should match the canvas.... after all, it is something rather special & personal.

Ingredients:
A strip of canaletto paper
Walnut ink
Ultramarine watercolour
Extra water
Brown organza ribbon

It folded down to approx 2 x 3 inches (...ish, i never measured!)

Mantragrams

A mantragram is a short quotation, affirmation or message written in a vertical format, designed to hang anywhere. The finest Swarovski crystals hang from the bottom of the mantragrams... catching light and scattering rainbows. The back is decorated to complement the lettering... handmade indian paper, or japanese tissue... or perhaps painted...

Mantragrams are designed to be hung up... ideally in a window where the crystal decoration catches the light, but they look good anywhere!

Any mantragram may be personalised with a name & date, or a short, personal greeting, and of course they can be in any colour. They are a special gift for any occasion... new baby, a christening, birthday, anniversary, wedding etc... or just because you care... and you can choose any wording you like!

The size does vary... i tend to just go with the words & see how they turn out rather than be restricted by measurements. However, they are quite dainty... on average about 7cm wide & about 20-30cm long... (ish), but if size is important to you I will stick to your limits!

The price is £12-50, or for a double-sided one, with wording on the back too, £20
 click the link at the top of the page to see more... these ready made ones are £10

Friendship Mantragram

The value of friendship cannot be measured, only treasured...