A Blanket of Comfort for Japan

May we join together in our thoughts... sending healing, love & calm across the ethers...

May those threads of energy twist together, forming ever stronger strands... weaving together with the thoughts of others across the world and beyond...

forming a healing blanket... infused with love & calm & hope...

Let us spread that blanket over japan & the ocean where the effects of the earthquake are felt....

A blanket of comfort & calm... gently soothing the Earth... absorbing the anguish & pain... gently transmuting them into loving, peaceful energy... a blanket of calm gently soothing & settling the tremors... feel the earth's heart beating steadily once more... calmed by the blanket of love...

A blanket of comfort & calm... gently settling the ocean... absorbing the anger & fear... transmuting them into loving peaceful energy... quelling the tidal reactions.... feel the ocean breathing easy once more, soothed by the blanket of love...

A blanket of comfort & calm.... settling over the nuclear reactors.... gathering in the radiation... absorbing it into the strands.... gently soothing & transmuting.... settling unstable energy... converting it to loving, positive energy.... feel that power reigning in... calmed under a blanket of love...

A blanket of comfort & calm... surrounding the people... absorbing their shock & grief, their fears & uncertainties.... comforting & healing... scattered emotions & physical pain... all being absorbed... and transmuted through the strands of our blanket... into loving positive energy... see them renewed with love & hope & strength... comforted under a blanket of love...

See the blanket growing.... boosted by every thought... every energy transference... see it extending out around the world... tucking it in around everyone affected... around creatures of land & sea & air... a blanket that never wears thin... a blanket that renews & heals & grows...

settling itself over the world.... calming & loving... comforting & healing... people in every walk of life... gently reassuring & encouraging... helping more & more people to breathe easy & feel their connection....

...& feel free to share this...

Pencil Warm-up

I have work to be done. Lettering for a couple of people & projects for myself... stuff to list on etsy (i've a stash of handmade paper cut, packed & photographed ready to go)... but i keep putting it off. Adamant that 'today was the day' (that was on tuesday) I dug out my calligraphy gear & set things up. But... no black gouache, which meant another root around. So, with the excuse that I needed to warm-up (after all i've done no real lettering for a few months... doesn't normally bother me, but...) I rummaged through my pencils...

I just picked one up & started to write the first thing that came to mind... i'd just posted about 'grey days' at spirit whispers, and the silhouettes of branches reminded me of pencil lettering. So I just continued the theme... picking up one pencil or the other with varying hardness... 2B, charcoal, 6B, 2H etc... more an exercise in procrastination to get my hand in than anything else...

I soon realised that my application of pressure was a bit haphazard and really could have done with my glasses on and the pencils really, really needed sharpening.... but i was enjoying the movement of pencil over paper, the forming of words, the build up of texture... just 'doing'.

Hmmm... what did I say to my students when i was teaching? "Always warm up, even if only for a few minutes, before you start writing". And so I did... next!

The idea of the "pressure & release" technique is to apply more pressure to the ends of straight strokes & the sides of curves. That's the simple explanation 'cos there are exceptions & variations etc etc. And it's supposed to be a gradual transition between hard & light pressure. It really does add another dimension to lettering.

One of the best ways to practice is to begin with lines(no pressure to get the right letterforms to begin with).... vertical... horizontal... diagonal... then curves... then move on to words when you're relaxed and more consistent. Also, a tip is to gradually increase the length of lines or size of letters.... going back to 'normal' size then seems much easier! (the last couple of words shown were a couple of inches or so).

So.... now, in theory at least, I am ready to get started.... just gotta go & find that box with my paint in!

Crafty Individuals Blog

Yaaay... Jean at Crafty Individuals has started a blog

http://craftyindividualsblog.blogspot.com/

I'm long overdue to get some more calligraphy to her for rubber stamp designs, but it has been on my mind to get started. We've moved with work several times since autumn & I just haven't done any calligraphy or arty stuff at all. I always tend to work best when I have something on the go rather than starting from scratch and my gear was packed away for moving.... and stayed there. Honestly, it doesn't take long to unpack, but it's been a case of out of sight out of mind. Tut-tut suz.

She's not the only one a-waiting either... i started preparing calligraphy reversed ready to use for transfer techniques, and was really enthused til we started moving about... think the time has come to get re-motivated. I know once I start I won't want to stop.... mmmm, the time has come to stop thinking & start doing!

Calligraphy Exhibition at Ripon Cathedral

North Yorkshire Calligraphers are holding an exhibition in Ripon Cathedral in North Yorkshire, UK. It runs until 31st October... so if you are nearby or can make the trip you have time to catch it. Going by the standard of previous exhibitions it will be well worth seeing....  the Cathedral is a stunning setting & Ripon is a lovely little town to wander with plenty of places of interest in the vicinity.

This was the group I started off with way back... err, a few(?!) years ago (1992 ish). Some of those people are still involved and some are calligraphers I have taught... the group is thriving and talented.... and I really wish them well with this exhibition x

Christmas Rubber Stamps

The season is fast approaching....

and Crafty Individuals have produced some rubber stamps with 

my calligraphy on here....

and also a selection of background papers to use in your crafting...

If you are interested, you can find them at craftyindividuals.co.uk

and various stockists around the world. There is a list on their site.

Silver Strands...2

Another re-working.... here is what i wrote last time I can't really add anything about the words that mel wrote... they still move me....

This time though, they were for the gallery and the visual impact of the words was more important. When creating any piece of work, some of the questions to consider are "who is it for" "where is it to go?" "who will read it?" Calligraphy in a general art gallery is still relatively uncommon, and unless people are familiar with modern calligraphy, they do like to be able to read it... just capturing the sense of the words is not always enough.

I loved the pencil texture of last time, but silver gouache on canvas was my choice this time around. I kept the plaster 'rocks' as before, and splattered silver paint & powder to emulate the 'strands of light'.

The first and last phrases were with a draughtsman's ruling pen... the centre part was with a Mitchells broad edged steel nib. The brighter, silver lettering created a much stronger effect, which I softened with the lighter italic in the middle to balance with the silver & grey in the background. Some glossy black added to the shimmering reflection of light.

Silver strands thread light downwards...

Into the heart of darkness...

Winds with the ebb and flow of time...

To send our hearts and minds

once more into these weavings...

Of magic and the old ways to bind and connect

our hearts once more with She who knows

Melanie Leavey

Cheers mel x

Silver Strands

24 x 36 inches

mixed media on canvas

£175 plus postage

Sisters Of The Red Moon ~2

This is a re-working of a piece I did earlier... the original version is here.
This time I have gone for a 48 x 36 inch canvas... although I loved the first one, there were a couple of issues I wanted to adjust slightly, then the gallery asked for some dark or mysterious pieces in time for Halloween, and I knew this would be perfect!

(click to enlarge & see the detail)

I wanted a slightly softer feel to the swirl of the 'red moon' & to lose the dominant red streaks between the verses of version 1... also the red lettering first time around got absorbed into the background & I had to go over it which resulted in a loss of sharpness to the letterforms. To counteract that, I sprayed fixative over the background first & used a more orangey red that would contrast more.

The background was a matt water-based black, with various black acrylic & enamel streaks & splashes to create texture with a few tones of red acrylic, topped off with some bronze powder to add highlights that catch the light.

This time I opted for brush lettering to give a bit more freedom to the lettering, but also more weight so that the words carried as much impact as the background. Also, this was a new piece of work... i didn't want to just re-create the first piece. I felt that the title & author should be integrated into the text, not just placed top & bottom... i went for a total contrast... an out-lined version of Neuland, a typeface designed by Rudolf Koch. 

to visit Mel, who wrote this go here

Mel wove a tapestry of feeling in this poem with layers of meaning... I tried to create layers & depth... both the words & the canvas can be taken at face value.... or you can look deeper & intuit the mystery beneath....

we have met before, you and i
somewhen, somewhere.
in time out of time, the space between,
the  space where the veil thins and the mist floats across
moonlit oceans.


in the swirling chaos of now,
tendrils of light flicker in the darkness.
reminders of a lost tribe,
of ancient ways where blood was holy
and wisdom shared.


reaching across the chasm of time.
over expanse of space and the shackles of fate
there is hope that in the dreaming
of this and other things, we shall meet again.
somewhen, somewhere.


by melanie leavey

Sisters Of The Red Moon

36 x 48 inches on canvas

sold

Lilac & Lavender Hearts...

 believe in the power of your dreams

 love is the magical meeting of two souls

I quite like these last two as they are... I was torn whether to add a quotation or not... perhaps they can stay as they are unless someone wants to choose their own words...

These cuties are 5 x 5 inches square.... cost £12-50 including uk postage, can also post overseas, just ask.

Cute Little Hearts

lavender...

 

4x4 inches, deep sides

lilac.....

 

4x4 inches, deep sides

aubergine....

 

 5x5 inches, shallow sides

Sweet & simple... with room for a name to be added if required.... just £10 each including uk postage, but can also post overseas. 

A Copper Sun...

Here are a couple of coppery canvasses that I've just finished...

 90 x 35 cm

Aeons ago before life had begun

Love existed 'neath a copper sun

Creation's explosion put time in motion

Now life exists 'neath a copper sun

 Both are done in acrylic, with copper powder dropped into the wet lettering. I used a glue gun to adhere copper leaf.... gorgeous shiny raised strands of light....

40 x 30 cm

Copper Sun whose tender rays bring forth the harvest

brings me comfort and warms my autumn years

For this one, the words 'copper sun', is metallic copper paint. The lettering on both is done with ruling pens... a folded one for the italic & a draughtsman's for the capitals.

They have been delivered to 'A Box of Delights' Gallery in Thirsk, North Yorkshire... just in time for a new Autumn display Bridget is planning. Hopefully, they won't remain there for too long!