'Grow old...' an Embossing Re-worked

It seems that this piece of work has stood the test of time... there are reflections on the glass, but you can still see the words embossed

Grow old along with me

the very best is yet to be

~ Robert Browning ~

The beauty of embossing is that once a template is made, you can repeat the design for as long as the template lasts. A lady who had received one of these as an anniversary present managed to track me down.... 15 years later!!  


The trouble is I no longer had the template.... i do remember thinking that it was getting a bit tatty & if i ever did it again, i should re-do it. I can only assume that it was a casualty of my clear-out when i moved everything into the caravan, probably thinking it would motivate me to create anew. Well that worked! I never thought that anyone who had seen this early version would ever request another one this far down the line & it's quite amazing that she even found me!

drawn lettering on the bottom... 

at the top, the template is flipped over & stuck down onto card, 

and the 'holes' out of letters put back in, eg from O & D

And so i set about the process of designing letters... i couldn't bear to use the same style as before... besides i write differently now... and think & feel differently. I see no point in copying an old piece of work.... however similar this may become, i need to approach it as a new piece. It's quite a lengthy process.... i drew these letterforms, building them up so the 'thins' weren't too thin for embossing... then traced them down onto bristol board... and began cutting the letters out with a scalpel...

I love the cut-out-bits... they are safely tucked away now, 

ready to evolve into 'something' at some point. 

As i drew & traced & cut & stuck I took photographs thinking of giving you a full tutorial on the process & found myself wishing i had a camcorder to record the process too... so much can be better explained by actually seeing... I used to love teaching & i find myself hankering after it again... i don't particularly want to go back to adult-ed, besides, our lifestyle wouldn't accommodate something so fixed... anyway i had the photos & a tutorial planned in my head... then managed to delete all the step-by-step pics from my camera before they were saved on my hard drive (insert groans/cheers, depending on whether you were interested anyway!!)

a few tests on different papers

If you ever cut any amount of anything with a scalpel, wrap a plaster around your finger, or the top of the blade BEFORE it starts to hurt.... oh, & put a fresh blade in right from the start too, even if you think it's quite a new one. 

a credit to the poet 'robert browning' is lightly written in pencil

across the base of the lettering... 

I love the simplicity of white on white.... with white paper the shadows show up more & help define the letters. I added a line top & bottom to add a bit of strength & definition to the design... and the little rainbows came courtesy of the crystals hanging in my windows!

I've done two versions.... one will stay white, with a mount covered in the same paper, the other will be backed onto a natural paper & have a matching natural mount. This will be an anniversary present & will have names & date across the top, in pencil to complement the credit.... more pictures to follow when i'm done!

Altered Spiral-Bound Wedding Journal

 Quite an ordinary looking spiral bound notebook... but it is being used to record special memories of how a couple met, the tale of their romance & the preparations for their wedding. I was asked to make a "special cover" for it.

The first step is to prise open the spiral spine & lose the plastic covers. If you haven't attempted this before, note how the covers fit for when you put them back.... i have been known to put the back one at the front & vice-versa!

The bride-to be wanted this lovely natural Khadi paper...  cotton rag with banana. The corners are a japanese paper with bits of leather in. It's so long since I bought it, I can't remember the name, which is frustrating... I'd love some more, but the company I bought from ceased trading years ago & several attempts to track it down have drawn a blank (so if any one knows, do get in touch & tell me!)

 I love the natural deckle edges of hand made paper. The next step was to punch holes to fit the spiral... using the original cover as a template, I decided it was easier to use a drill.

Walnut ink is the perfect compliment for the dedication page, and the book is gradually transforming into something more luxurious. On a side note, I've just spotted someone with an etsy shop who makes walnut ink... White Dragon Papers makes paper and walnut ink... just my type of shop, lol.

Remember the silks & fibres I posted about last week from Lisa at Mudhound Studio? This is what they were for.... mixed in with ribbon & leather cord to create a blend of textures.

The lettering on the front is not mine.... it's a photograph of a tattoo that the bride has on her hip... i printed it on to canvas & layered it onto the front... [I had better point out to anyone who knows me, that "my beloved steve" is not my steve, before anyone gets excited or wonders where their invitation is!]

The covers i made were thicker than the originals, & combined with photographs stuck inside the book was splaying open a bit... a couple of holes with copper eyelets through the back cover, and a length of silk with a bit of elastic joined on to form an enclosure soon sorted that out!

So... now i've got a bundle of silks that i'm itching to use on a book for myself now, so i'm on the look out for a spiral bound one with good paper in.... 

Voici mon secret...

today i received an email from someone i hold dear which included these words...

"....speaking to me (but not in words as such) about seeing without eyes..."

so i shall share these now instead of waiting until i have time, lol

i was experimenting last week.... writing on the pages of an old english-french dictionary... this is the first one i wrote.... synchronicity, eh?!

Just quick scans... i'm planning on mounting them on a natural paper, ready for framing, before adding to the shop. I'd like to frame them, as i have a specific idea of how thy could look, but posting abroad with glass in a frame is awkward & expensive, and that is where most of my sales come from.

We'll see... if the picture framer i just found hadn't made assumptions I would have gone ahead & got them done anyway... i asked about getting mounts cut, that i could then cover with paper to match some calligraphy and never got as far as talking about frames... he started getting uppity about not being "that sort of framer".... i didn't get what he meant, cos i wanted several frames aswell...  it never dawned on me that he wouldn't cut mounts to fit standard sized frames and he assumed that's what i wanted ( i hadn't got as far as asking, but i do get standard sizes for my photographs!)

Anyway after telling me he couldn't say when, cos if he had larger orders they would take priority, and there was no way they would be ready for this week he then thought it would be better if i took my business elsewhere! Ah, well... some mis-communication i think, but this 2nd page i did is sort of appropriate!! I felt like a child trying to explain what i needed & not getting anywhere...

ingredients: old dictionary pages & walnut ink

Now... back to packing the last few bits n pieces i need for tomorrow & putting aside the thoughts of... "ooh, i should've.... i could just do a few..."

Out of Chaos...

So, there i was, in the midst of chaos.... printing photographs for my up-coming craft fair.... 

with only stepping-stone-like spaces on the floor to allow myself to negotiate wherever i needed to be... 

when the post arrived.

 Printing abandoned. 

Because of this... 

and inside....  

oooh, look a little closer... touch if you like.

I can't tell you what it's for yet.... 

but i can tell you this gorgeousness came from mudhound studio... 

and this.... 

is part of the most gorgeous textile art made by lisa at mudhound... 

i've written about it <here> with more photos...

or just go to lisas mudhound studio blog and see what she says!

Paper Passion

I'm not sure when I first loved paper.... i think i've always liked nice notebooks & journals... but as a calligrapher, 'good' paper took on a whole new meaning. To begin with, probably like most people i thought the marbled effect paper from most stationers was pretty posh... but very soon the 'feel' of the paper becomes part of the experience. Smooth 'calligraphy papers' just don't do it for me, and I don't know many calligraphers that go beyond a few night classes who stick to them.

I took over selling paper when someone else at a class stopped & up to that point hadn't experienced any more than Ingres ( for pastels) or Saunders Waterford (for watercolours). Eventually i had so much paper that i ended up opening a shop, but that is another story! At some point i discovered Khadi and I distinctly remember the first order i got from them (http://khadi.com/) Not having a clue what any of their paper apart from basic cotton rag was actually like, i ordered a few sheets of everything. (I had just discovered credit cards, so I could!) 

After the stomach churning moment of realising how much it cost, the experience of opening the parcel a few days later was the most exciting, sensual, pleasurable experience I think I've ever had. Honestly. It was a first. But that excitement & pleasure of receiving new unknown paper has never gone away. Even now, going through a pile of paper or a box of paper scraps can send me into a rapturous daze.... dreamily stroking and muttering 'precious...' under my breath

The shop went about 7 years ago & i was able to keep some things in a friends studio... eventually she needed her space back & i brought everything with me in the caravan. Oops. How much 'stuff'? I managed to dispose of so much... trash, charity shops, friends & strangers all benefitted, but i still hung onto the paper.... precious.... 

I cut it down and keep it under the bed, lifting it all out every time i want some to get my fix. Some of the stuff i have has been discontinued years ago. I'd often buy up the last stocks of papers i knew that I or my students, or other calligraphers would love. Actually i wasn't that bothered about other people, they were my excuse, it was for me really!!

I have realised that i can't keep it there for ever... it is a sacrilege for it not to be used, kept like some zoo animal to be drooled over occasionally (i promise i haven't actually drooled, just salivated a little... ok, a lot) I suppose to many, this may seem like behaviour fit only for an institution, and that the men in white coats should be notified. 

I finally started listing some paper packs on etsy, in my suziscribbles shop > suziscribbles.etsy.com You would not believe how many times I changed my mind about this... i took the photos & procrastinated... i put a couple of packs on & waited.... i put a few more on and sold a couple.... and didn't know whether to be pleased or not. How posessive am I? I never get jealous of people. I reasoned with myself that i can always buy more, when i have space... & sold a couple more. I started to let them go with a bit more grace & listed a few more.

I'm looking at these pictures now and thinking "OMG.. I can't get any more of some of that stuff!!" But tough!!! I haven't used it all up in 10 years so someone else can have the chance!

I'm also starting to think that if i sell most of my current stocks, i could maybe buy a bit more to sell. I mean, the paper i need to use most often has already run out & I really NEED to get some. There's none available locally, i've scoured the shops & internet.... what i have found means paying extortionate prices....  it would make sense to get a wholesale batch... wouldn't it?!

There is a link to my suziscribbles etsy shop in this blog side bar, and there is a section for 'paper' on the right in the shop.... but the easy way is to click just <here>  That will take you straight to the precious paper page!

A treasury, a craft fair & business cards needed!

It's raining cats & dogs outside, so perhaps these raspberry pinks will brighten things up a little. I'm hoping this widget from www.craftcult.com will work. I've often wondered how people include a picture of their etsy treasuries.

Treasury making seems to be a big part of the etsy experience, but I haven't made one yet! Both my calligraphy and photography get featured regularly by other people... i always look at their shop when I am featured, so if I made some it would get people looking at my shops too. The thing is, it's too easy to spend time looking instead of doing as it is!!

A group of etsy sellers in the North East of England have got together to organise a craft fair in Seaham on 5th May... I shall be there.... and other uk artists/crafters can be too, in a way... on our Big card Table. All you need to do is send some business cards & a £2 donation.... all the details are here at the keep calm events blog (as in 'keep calm & craft on!)

Memorial Canvas

I've been looking into these twinkly eyes a fair bit this past couple of weeks & it's just dawned on me that I don't even know his name! That may seem strange, but it hasn't been important until now... I've been more concerned with the 'feel' of this man... his energy. I know him as 'Inghinn's Dad' and he recently crossed the Rainbow Bridge to the Summerlands. Ing wanted a canvas with his photo & a quote from 'Le Petit Prince' by Antoine de Saint Exupery in remembrance of her dad.

To begin with I just couldn't 'get' what I needed to do with this. Inghinn told me her Dad was a farmer who loved nature and she asked for dark green lettering. She would have let me change that if I wanted, but the photo background definitely lent itself to greens.

It took me a while just sitting with the photograph... connecting & feeling the energy. After a little while I had more ideas than enough. I printed the photo onto canvas and frayed the edges for a raggedy effect.... i didn't want any hard lines. The lettering too was a quite loose italic, done with a draftsman's ruling pen.

 

Wenn du bei Nacht den Himmel anschaust

Wird dir sein, als leuchten alle Sterne

Weil ich auf einem von ihnen wohne

Weil ich auf einem von ihnen lache

(Antoine de Saint-Exupery)

It's from The Little Prince, and roughly translated it means, when you look at the sky at night, it will be as if all the stars shine brightly, because on one of them I'm alive, because on on one them I am laughing.

the canvas size is 10 x 14 inches...

 small enough to be personal & large enough to have a visual impact

Once i started, everything came together. By then I had an idea of how it should look.... the format, the colours... and a tree. For some reason I felt that a tree was important, and Ing confirmed that her Dad had trained as a tree surgeon in his youth. How I represented the tree was important too...

The bare branches with just a few leaves suggest the end of autumn, moving into winter... which is how I see the end of our life... more like a change of season, a time of withdrawal, returning to earth, preparing for the next stage of growth. The spirals suggest that continuity too,  the cyclical nature of life and ancient connections...

It was one of those jobs that from start to finish felt special, and was an honour to do... I hope that it gives some comfort when you think of your dad, Ing xo

The Story Of The Pencil

I came across an inspirational short story taken from Paulo Coelho’s book on short stories and reflections ‘Like the Flowing River’

I love working with pencil; 

even without words, or perhaps, especially without words...

The Story of The Pencil....

A boy was watching his grandmother write a letter. At one point, he asked:

“Are you writing a story about what we’ve done? Is it a story about me?”

His grandmother stopped writing her letter and said to her grandson:

“I am writing about you, actually, but more important than the words is the pencil I’m using. I hope you will be like this pencil when you grow up.”

Intrigued, the boy looked at the pencil. It didn’t seem very special.

“But it’s just like any other pencil I’ve ever seen!”

no... there's nothing 'normal' about the pencil as 

textures & patterns emerge... flowing from it's tip...

“That depends on how you look at things. It has five qualities which, if you manage to hang on to them, will make you a person who is always at peace with the world.

"First quality: you are capable of great things, but you must never forget that there is a hand guiding your steps. We call that hand God, and He always guides us according to His will.

“Second quality: now and then, I have to stop writing and use a sharpener. That makes the pencil suffer a little, but afterwards, he’s much sharper. So you, too, must learn to bear certain pains and sorrows, because they will make you a better person.

a different challenge on black paper,

but see what depths can be reached... 

“Third quality: the pencil always allows us to use an eraser to rub out any mistakes. This means that correcting something we did is not necessarily a bad thing; it helps to keep us on the road to justice.

“Fourth quality: what really matters in a pencil is not its wooden exterior, but the graphite inside. So always pay attention to what is happening inside you.

"Finally, the pencil’s fifth quality: It always leaves a mark. In just the same way, you should know that everything you do in life will leave a mark, so try to be conscious of that in your every action.”

and what results can be achieved...

if you keep sharp 

& pay attention to the spaces as well as what is already there

& allow the marks you make to unfold...

Meet me at the water's edge...

This canvas was done around the same time as 'hear the ocean' I've just been looking through my list of posts to edit and realised I never finished off writing about this canvas!

Meet me at the water's edge

and dance to an ancient rhythm

feel the beat of forgotten song

re-discover what time has hidden

ocean dancing, ocean dreaming

with the gentle tidal rhythm

feel the healing waters flow

a soothing song to help us grow

call on water's energy

the power to nourish, nurture & heal

endless potency

ride the tides of ancient truths

meet me at the water's edge

ocean dances, ocean dreams

meet me at the waters edge

and dance to an ancient song

heed the urge to come ocean dancing

will you be carried on an ocean dream

wherever it may lead?

The 'ocean' background came first... then words at the top. I started the central spiral with the words 'ocean dancing, ocean dreaming', then just let it unfold... making up the words & the layout as I went along. The blue is FW acrylic ink, with white acrylic paint for the base coat & lettering.

It was written after reading of a call to bloggers to 'meet at the waters edge' at New Moon, and offer healing to the waters of the world after the earthquake in Japan... however, as I wrote it became a message to re-connect, our-selves, to the energies of water.


I started this one below at the same time... but it resisted my efforts to write on it! The first time I made mistakes in the lettering, then on the next attempt 'threw' the bottle of ink all over myself... and the carpet... so i abandoned the quotes i was using & started again with my own words!

ocean dancing

ocean dreaming

she holds me in her arms

and rocks me

in her surging tidal rhythm

ocean dancing

ocean dreaming

A Christmas Love Story...

Years ago a young man asked me to make a concertina card for his love at christmas... red & black & gold, with a mediaeval feel....

...he returned the following year, and the year after and the one after that.... this was when I had a shop, selling my own work & that of others....

... each year he writes his own words, telling of the love story between him & his lady.... expressing his feelings in such romantic terms....

...my shop went six years ago, but every year I still get a text or email with the next instalment for me to inscribe in an accordion book for Christmas ...

... the Proposal... the Boxing Day wedding... the anniversaries... yes Christmas time is a very special time for this Knight & his Lady...

... and I think I would be as disappointed as she, if he didn't get in touch & share a glimpse of their Christmas love story.