Cat plate present

Posted on February 21, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Art, Back stamp, Blue, Cat, China, Friendship, Fun, Pottery, Sepia, Stoke-on trent, Victorian design2 Comments

I’ve been given a couple of these cat plates by a friend recently. I really like them. They remind me of Victorian illustration, but the sepia toned cats are on a nice blue background. The back stamp says PrintRun.co and made in China. Microwave and dishwasher proof. That doesn’t give you much information. I could investigate further, but I don’t think I will.

There is a thing which people who live in Stoke-on-Trent do, which is to look at the backstamp on pottery and see where it was made.

So anyway sorry to be quiet, busy trying to learn lines!

Panto went well!

Posted on February 21, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Aladdin, Comedy, Dancing, Fun, Funny, Life, Panto, Pantomime, Penkhull, Penkhull Village Hall, Scenery, Singing, Song and dance, Stoke-on trentLeave a comment

Oh yes it did! All my hard work seems to have been appreciated with the scenery. The panto is a hoot, with compliments about how good it is. The songs were OK. I almost remembered them! I only forgot one line, but non of us were 100%, but that doesn’t matter as the audience haven’t read the script! We even seemed to dance well. All the cast were enjoying themselves and the audience were appreciative, even with a delayed start due to a parking issue. They laughed all the way through and there was some brilliant clowning about.

Well, only three more performances. I’m shattered, but too tired to sleep.

Above our door

Posted on February 20, 2020February 20, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Art, Cat, coloured glass, Design, Door, Fun, Glass, Leaded glass, Pretty, Stained glass, Stained glass cat, Stained glass window, Window2 Comments

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I designed this about 25 years ago. A cat resting in the window above our front door. My friend Phil Shaw who was a carpenter also knew how to make stained glass, so I drew out the pattern and he made this up for me. It’s been there ever since and I love it. When we had our house double glazed I wanted to have this incorporated into a window but they couldn’t do it, so it remains, behind the single glass window. Letting the sunlight in. Coloured patches on the carpet.

I want to post some panto photos.. But I can’t!

Posted on February 19, 2020February 19, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Break a leg, Comedy, Dance humour, Environment, Fun, Life, Music, Panto, Pantomime, Penkhull, Penkhull panto, song, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trentLeave a comment

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Sneak peek of the washing machine front I’ve painted. Today was the dress rehearsal, one person had a problem as her trouser elastic snapped and they fell off as she was trying to make her entrance. I was practicing part of a song, and forgot to go on stage to sing that song. We got a lot of feedback on the mike’s. One of the helpers or cast got a parking ticket even though they were arked correctly… I still can’t remember all my lines, and in one scene the person before me completely forgot his so I didn’t know where I was! And breathe….

But on the whole we are getting it. There are lots of songs, dance, sketches, a nice story, an evil villan and lots of fun.

Got to start painting again

Posted on February 19, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Art, Design, Fun, Green woman, Humour, Imagination, Life, Painting, Portrait, self portrait, Work in progressLeave a comment

_20200219_130113 this is a self portrait I started last year, but haven’t finished. So where best to start when you have been a bit blocked, than to work on something like this.

I want to do a series of ‘green’ portraits. The idea being that I can make a different image that is striking and interesting. Although there is a basic structure done on this I may make a lot of changes. Its definitely a work in progress.

Pink dawn

Posted on February 19, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Clouds, Dawn, Environment, Life, Pink, Rain, Red, Sunlight, Sunshine, WeatherLeave a comment

Sky to the East of us about 7. 10 am. Barometer showing fair but the old saw that red sky in the morning is a shepherd’s warning seems appropriate after all the bad weather we’ve been having. Apparently if the sky is red its because the dawn is reflecting off the underside of clouds (yes I can see that), and that means the bad weather is more likely to be overhead now or later. Red sky at night shepherd’s delight? The weather will have passed over and be moving away. I guess the point is also that it depends what direction the wind is blowing in?!

Waiting for the next storm…. It will probably start with the letter E…. How many more?

Old glass lampshade

Posted on February 18, 2020February 18, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Antique, Blogging, Etruria, Glass, History, Holy Inadequate pub, Lampshade, Light, Pub, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trentLeave a comment

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Saw this in the pub a few days ago. I’m not sure if it’s antique or a reproduction but it has a feeling of something from the start of the last century. I liked the main shade surrounded by three smaller shades all held together by solid but delicately shaped metal. I wonder if it’s converted from a gas mantle?

I imaging its a considerable weight, so I guess it’s screwed into a ceiling joist. I didn’t think to look at the lights in the rest of the pub so I don’t know if it’s the only one there. Perhaps it’s from a reclamation yard? There are a few round here. Anyway it’s good to see old things about.

A drawing of a steam engine

Posted on February 18, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Black and white, Cartridge paper, Drawing, Middleport, Middleport pottery, Sketching, Staffordshire, Steam engine, Stoke-on trentLeave a comment

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I like to try and sketch things when I’m visiting places, and this is my attempt at a steam engine when we were visiting. Middleport pottery in August 2018.i don’t know why I thought it was bad, it doesn’t look too awful now in hindsight. I can be too critical of myself sometimes. It’s a bit wonky but when you are trying to draw a moving bit of machinery it’s not easy. Anyway I’m publishing it, so I’ve forgiven myself for my mistakes.

Black ink pen on cartridge paper, it’s probably in one of my numerous sketchbooks, somewhere in the pile of drawings and sketches I have built up over the years.

Choir practice

Posted on February 18, 2020February 18, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Aye Waulkin oh, Choir, Choir practice, Fun, Learning, Music, Practice, Robert Burns, Singing, Summer is a coming in, The Green ManLeave a comment

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Learning new songs tonight including ‘Summer is a coming in’. That was the song towards the end of the film ‘The Green Man’. Its a joyous song of the coming of summer, but I can’t get the image of Edward Woodward being captured and killed at the end of the film out of my mind.

We also started learning a wedding song but I left the words behind so can’t remember the title. I know it was sung by the Copper family, who are a folk singing group. We also continued to practice ‘Ay waulkin oh’ by Robert Burns. It means I’m still awake, and does not mean I’m walking…. Its about a woman worrying about her lover and when he will come back to her I think.

Talking about songs I still need to remember the words to ‘Prince Ali’ for the panto. I think it’s from the film ‘Aladdin’ with Robin Williams? Anyway I’ve got two days to learn the bits the chorus sing, so that’s OK then….

Sunlight finds a way

Posted on February 17, 2020February 17, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Letting light in, Light, Photo, Poem, Poetry, Short poem, Sun, Sunlight, WordsLeave a comment

The sunlight sneaks in

Through the cracks in the door

Through the chinks in the fence

Under the trees

Through the blinds

Past the steel reinforced concrete

Over the brick wall

Tumbling down the chimney

Through the grid over the window

When it’s sunny

Sunlight finds a way.

Mallaband-Brown

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