Portfolio

Posted on July 30, 2020July 30, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Blogging, course, Design, Drawing, Illustration, Learning, Life, Not right size?, Portfolio, Sketching, WorkLeave a comment

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I’ve been working on my portfolio for college today. I’ve got to upload it soon to show what I’ve been doing. I was halfway through when I found out I should be uploading images at 72dots per inch (dpi?) and I’ve set it at 300. I think I will have to delete all the images and save them all to the lower size limit…. So annoying because it was looking good. But at least I’ve found out in time. I need to go back and read the course instructions.

I think I’ve taken on too much sometimes. Not because I can’t do it but because I’ve got so many other things going on. I like writing here because it acts like a diary and also let’s me get ideas down that aren’t part of the course. Plus with limited contact with people it’s giving me some freedom.

Model trains….

Posted on July 30, 2020July 30, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Engine, Fun, Humour, Layout, Model train, Playing with trains, Random, Released, Southern railway, Steam engine, Stored, Train tracks4 Comments

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My hubby collects n gauge and oo gauge model trains and has set up a layout to play with them. He knows that this is an 044 side tank M7, southern railway engine…. just from looking at a photo. He said its an old fashioned steam engine that was introduced in about 1964. I find it fascinating that steam engines are still being used across the world. Maybe they will be used for decades to come? His layout is basically an oval with a siding. When it’s set up I will add a photo. The layout had been stored with cobwebs and possibly a spider or two for the last few years, but we’ve decided to release it into the wild (of the garden shed). It is about to become friends with the hedgehogs and the stray cat. I hope it survives.

White lily

Posted on July 30, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Environment, Garden, Gardening, Life, Lily, Nature, Plant, Random, Thinking, Walk, Walking, What is it?Leave a comment

Another one has flowered, sitting in among the nettles and the convolvulus. There’s monbretia in there too.. What’s its newer name? Crocosmia I think. Its like when Fushias suddenly became Surfinias and Geraniums started being called Pelagoniums to differentiate them from the perennial ones.

I went on a walk on Tuesday and found myself pointing out the names of garden plants to my hubby. I don’t know why. I saw a couple of plants that I didn’t recognise.

What is this. From a distance I thought it was a fushia?

Prompt ‘hanging’

Posted on July 30, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged #uskstoke, Art, Blogging, Colour, Design, Drawing, Picture, Sketching, Usk challenge, Usk Stoke-on-TrentLeave a comment

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Back yard colours. The Usk Stoke-on-Trent challenge today was ‘hanging’ so I got my new permanent markers out. I tried not to do any black outlines to make the colours jump more!

The picture includes our hanging baskets and a dream catcher that hangs in our back living room window. There is a little glass angel hanging in the dream catcher. When I asked my hubby what he thought he said it was a bit amateurish!

The only problem with permanent markers is that they dry up quickly. You can be half way through shading something and they run out. More in a couple of days.

Moving paintings

Posted on July 29, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Blogging, Building work, College, Commission, Lots to do, Painting, Spode, Storage, Studio, TiredLeave a comment

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I really must get all my paintings stored down at my studio. These are a tryptich of Jupiter. I need some work doing on the house, but I’ve got things hanging around that could be put away safe, they are up in the bedroom where I’m doing college work and everything is crammed together on one side of the room. Plus I actually have a commission. Someone contacted me. My first real job this year! I need to start getting things sorted out…. Spring cleaning – in late July. Perhaps I will get it done by September! In the meantime I need to get the college work done. The date for handing in work is soon. Help!

God preserve me from student funding!

Posted on July 29, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged A tragedy of errors?, Annoyed, Art, Beauracracy, Blogging, Five months, Frustrated, Illustration, Poem, PoetryLeave a comment

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Or how to get very annoyed in five months!

I applied for funding.

They said ‘we need more proof’

I said ‘I sent it in?’

They said, ‘you missed a word’

I said, ‘here is that word’

I rang.

They said ‘the word was wrong, please re-send in CAPITALS’

I SENT THE WORD BACK.

I RANG.

‘We duplicated your account’

‘I can’t answer that, it’s on your other account’

I said, ‘I have two letters one reference 123456789,

The other 987654321,’

‘we will merge them’

A letter arrives, ‘we confirm you identity,

but you need to put in an application’

I ring ‘you had that in April’

Later ‘we have approved your finance,

Please ask your university to confirm you are on the course’

The university did.

This week.

No money yet

Emailed university

They replied ‘student finance say problem with your bank account’

I couldn’t make it up!

Grr!

Colour v black and white

Posted on July 27, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Black and white, Blogging, Colour, Colour blind, Greys, Infra red, Life, Spectrum, Thinking, Ultra violet, Visible spectrum, VisionLeave a comment

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When I think about my vision I am so happy that I can see with the full spectrum of visible light (colour) . I know different animals can only see certain colours, sometimes just black and white and but others like snakes and insects can even see into the infra red and ultra violet.

Then there is colour blindness, where some cells in a person’s eye are not properly developed or can be missing. Then they have colours missing from their vision. For instance red green colour blindness. Apparently males suffer from this more than females. As I say I feel lucky to have good colour vision. X

Keep away from cats!

Posted on July 27, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Damaged kidneys, Danger to cat, Don't grow?, Flower, Lily, Poisonous, Pollen, Take care4 Comments

Lilies, and particularly their pollen are very dangerous to cats. We have moved ours away from paths in the garden so the cat cannot brush past them. I think it effects their kidneys and can cause serious health issues, possibly including death. We don’t normally grow many as they are usually killed by lily beetles. This year we were lucky? They are still lovely flowers, but I might reconsider planting them next year.

Green man?

Posted on July 27, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Environment, Flowers, Green man, Life, Living, Nature, Plants, Poem, PoetryLeave a comment

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I create, then wither

I grow and then die.

You breathe my air,

you eat my leaves

you take my fruit.

I let you…

But I am green,

I am life

Chlorophyll,

Xanthophyll,

Phloem,

Xylem,

I nourish.

You damage me at your peril.

I am the green man.

Chilled cat

Posted on July 27, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Animal, Blogging, Box, Cat, Cute, Feline, Happy cat, Life, Photo, Sleeping, Sweet2 Comments

My cat has taken to sleeping in this cardboard box, and I just saw the sign on the side ‘Chill 2/4°C’.

I had to get my camera and take a couple of photos on him. He might not be the cutest cat in the world, but he certainly is the sweetest to me.

He half closes his eyes, and I’m sure he smiles! He finds various places to sleep. This is his favourite place at the moment.

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Blogging