Reflected

Posted on March 7, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Fun, Humour, Lake, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, Trentham, Trentham Gardens, Wire fairies, Wire fairyLeave a comment

Caught on camera, this fairie metallic us, seen flitting over the lake at Trentham Gardens. Like a dragonfly. Was she catching gnats for supper or taking a drink of water from the lake.

Fairies rarely stay still long enough to be photographed. Their magic powers mean that they can hide from view. I only caught this image by dodging out from between the trees and having my camera on zoom. That is why it suffers from camera shake.

Lol actually there are lots of wire weave fairies at Trentham but I just tried to write a small fiction about this one.

Cycling home

Posted on March 7, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Age, Cycling, Fun, Humour, Lake district, Life, Scotland, Short story, Silly story, Very short story2 Comments

“I used to be fit.” The old timer said as he looked down sadly at his old bike. “I could ride up to the lake district, round Windermere and back home in a day. Now look at me, my knees are wrecked, my back aches and my balance makes me wobble all over the place.”

“You need to keep cycling though, I said, I know it’s tough, but if you stop now you will probably stop for good.”

“I’ll ride to Scotland and back he said, no doubt it will take some time.”

“But you don’t know the way. Why not try cycling on canal towpaths?” I suggested.

That was two weeks ago. I haven’t seen him since. Though I did get a post card from John o’Groats saying “in Scotland, can’t find the canal!”

Calligraphy

Posted on March 7, 2019March 7, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Calligraphy, Ink, Learning, Write, Writing3 Comments

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A couple of years ago I went to a calligraphy workshop. As well as doing English Calligraphy we also tried doing Arabic script (I don’t have much memory of it). I do remember we used sticks cut down to make a chiseled edge to write with. Then like children learning the alphabet we wrote each letter over and over again until we started getting the shapes right.

I enjoy drawing patterns so it was really interesting to see how this style of writing worked. The artist who taught us showed us some beautiful calligraphy. Unfortunately I did not take any photos of his work. Calligraphy is clearly an art in its own right. I would love to learn more.

Tonight’s sketches.

Posted on March 7, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Beehive pub, Drawing, Fun, Honeywall, Life, Portraits, Sketching, Staffordshire, Still life, Stoke-on trent, Urban sketching1 Comment

These are the best of the bunch of sketches I did at the Beehive pub in Honeywall tonight. Some of the others were not too bad, but when you are trying to draw moving people it is difficult to get enough information down rapidly enough. That was what happened with the other ones – I was not speedy enough.

One image I do want to get is my friend Kate playing the trombone. It’s a wonderful sound in a small pub. I’m also in love with the gleam and reflections on it. Next month I will try and get closer and do a better drawing if I can.

These drawings were done in a Seawhite of Brighton Plein Air Sketchbook size A5 with watercolour paper. Using a Bic grip roller black roller ball pen.

Trentham lake

Posted on March 6, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Art, Lake, Landscape, Painting, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, Trentham, Trentham Gardens2 Comments

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I painted this out in the open air a couple of years ago. It took a couple of hours to paint. As you can see the day was very overcast. This is a small acrylic on canvas. I don’t actually know where it is. I have a feeling that I sold it?

I’ve painted from this position a few times, looking down the lake towards the Italian Gardens at Trentham. The end of the lake at this end is next to Trentham monkey forest where they have two troops of macaque monkeys.

I hope to go back soon and try and draw some of them. They are beautiful animals and they are so cute when they are babies.

In the meantime I’m feeling a bit better so over the next few weeks I will try and get some new paintings done.

Rocking horse

Posted on March 6, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Blogging, Horse, Illustration, Life, Long ago, Love, Memory, Missing it, Poem, Poverty, Remembered, Rocking horseLeave a comment

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Did I once have a rocking horse ?

How fast did it go,

Over hills, over fields,

Up mountain paths,

Down into dales and vales.

If I had a rocking horse

Where did it live?

In stables or a farm yard

Or the back bedroom in our house.

What colour was that rocking horse

Was it a bay?

A white maned charger

A gentle, dappled grey?

I once had a rocking horse,

So long ago

I don’t remember anything-

Where did it go?

Cats play

Posted on March 5, 2019March 5, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cats, Fun, Play, Pounce, WaterLeave a comment

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Our female cat loves playing in the bath, chasing drips or drinking water out of the tap. She can be really silly and pounce on anything, including my feet! She doesn’t seem to mind if water drips on her head.

Both my cats love chasing each other. I’ve seen them hiding down behind a shoe then a swift pounce and they are off chasing. They also stand on their back legs and sort of box with each other. Sometimes they start washing each other then one decides it’s all too much and it results in a squabble.

But I would not be without them. I’m sure my blood pressure has improved since we got them.

Painting

Posted on March 5, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Artists block, Creativity, Life, Painting, Poem, Poetry, Rescue, Stuck, SubduedLeave a comment

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Sometimes my creative juices freeze

then like a bird I flit and flitter

from one path to another

sit and shiver.

Like a lonely lark.

Sometimes they thaw

but not enough

so the thought is there

but cannot reach from my brain

through my heart

to my hands.. ..

In other times my mind is woken,

colours flow

shapes fly from my fingers

hot sharp ideas stagger me with their invention.

Later, all is quiet again.

The mood has stormed its way through me.

Calm descends and I am lost in fog again.

Almost midnight

Posted on March 4, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Creative writing, Fantasy, Green glow, Life, Sci fi, Short drama, Short story, Very short storyLeave a comment

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The green glow outside had intensified and was visible in her living room now. It was almost midnight and she knew if anything was going to happen it would be soon. He heart was pounding and she felt sweat trickle down the side of her nose. All she could do was hide.

She stepped into the old oak cupboard, pulled the door shut and hung on to the catch.

Suddenly the rushing noise outside was everywhere. She stuffed her hand in her mouth to stop screaming.

Gradually the noise calmed down, it quietened there was a moment of a shrill scream and then silence.

In the morning it was on the news, her neighbour dead of a heart attack.

She never saw the green glow again…..

Classy lighting

Posted on March 4, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Chandelier, Guildhall, History, Lamps, Life, Newcastle-under-Lyme, VolunteersLeave a comment

Having taken a photo of an old gas lamp in Rhyl last year, I came across these today.

The lamps seem to have almost the same design as the lamp in Rhyl. But these are in much better condition because they were protected inside the Guildhall in Newcastle-under-Lyme and seem to have recently been restored.

Each lamp sits at the bottom of a sweeping curved staircase that splits at the top and comes down on either side of an almost circular lobby. Above the upright lamps hangs a formidable, eight branched chandelier with curving arms. Both the lamps and chandelier are lit with electric light bulbs. But looking at them they appear to have had gas mantles in the past.

Presently the guildhall at the ironmarket in Newcastle-under-Lyme is being run by volunteers. They are holding a cake making competition on Saturday 9 March 2019 for the finish of the fair trade fortnight. They are always looking for new volunteers.

As a bit of extra information apparently the hall was once used for grand ballroom dances. With stairs and lamps like this I’m sure it’s true.

Mallaband-Brown

Author: artbychristinemallabandbrown