Blogging

Blogging has kind of lost it's appeal now, with Facebook and Instagram being so much quicker and easier to share snippets of your daily life. But I know some family like to check in here now and then so I will keep blogging. I look back to when I first started blogging in July 2005, and all the things I blogged about, special times in our lives, it's a great online diary. But what will happen to it in 20 or 30 years time? Will it still be here sitting in cyberspace, will I still be able to read it? I wonder? It makes you think how technology is progressing so fast, almost out of control, it's hard to keep up. We thought it was so cool having a blog back in 2005 but now it's all about Facebook and Instagram and Pinterest and all those cool cyber places. Taking photos and they are instantly there for everyone to see. Quite amazing really.
Anyway, I do like my blog, it just takes a little time to sit down and do it, resize photos etc etc. Because a post is much better with a photo or 2 I think.

Sadly Robs Dad, Bob passed away recently. He had been sick for awhile but it's still always very very sad and heartbreaking. He had an awesome sendoff on the day of the tangi. It was lovely weather. And it was good to catch up with family members we hadn't seen for years. Here's a great photo of 'some' of the extended Gray family.

About time for something crafty I think. More art journal stuff maybe? Just some recent additions to my art journal. Love the colours in this one.

Art Journal pages

PAD Day 21 - Where You Slept

Iphone app - Instagram

Small Pleasures

Daisies picked on a morning walk.

The fact that something tattooed into your skin can end up looking so perfectly drawn on.

Loving something I created in my art journal.

The lovely sweet strong smell of the flowers on the lemon tree.

This photo of the Super Moon setting.

Love Life!!

Autumn Escape

Starting to get excited for Autumn Escape. I am helping Nic and Lucy again, so will be loads of fun as always. Counting down to April 13th.
Teachers and crew from last year

Just found this site with cool ideas using Faber Castell products, there's a good art journaling section. I really want some of the Gelatos.

A couple of photos I took of Sunset Beach last week on our day off. So beautiful. Had the loveliest swim and lay in the sun. Mmmmm love it. Water was gorgeous, love when it's flat and I can just float around in the water and no one was around. Nice!!

New art supplies

I forgot yesterdays post. I have been so tired with work being busy. Anyway, I was going to post about my latest art supply purchases.
While doing Christi Tomlinsons She Art Workshop I learnt more about different art mediums to use in your art journals and on canvases.
I've been collecting the Neocolor II Water soluble pastels, the Faber Castell Pitt Pens and the Bombay India inks. This time I thought I would buy the stamp carving set to have a try and a dip pen. FUN!! Can't wait to dip that pen in those lovely inks and write something. Haha! What, I don't know, as I do have trouble with knowing what to write, but maybe this will inspire me.

More Art Journal play

It's funny; when I scrapbook I never do double pages but somehow I just always end up doing a double page in my art journal. Weird!

Art Journal

Thought I'd share some pages from my Art Journal. I use it to play around with techniques and ideas.
Here are some older to very recent pages.

Some of these aren't finished yet, they are just backgrounds. As I've experimented more I've decided I prefer the ones that I've used book pages as the base for the backgrounds. I also like using magazine images, either as a main image for the page or as a silhouette.
I joined Nathalie Kalbachs Creative Jump Start Summit. It's FREE. You receive an email each day to Jump Start your creativity and they have been brilliant. So pleased I joined in. It has really made me think about spending even just 10 minutes, when I can, creating something. ANYTHING. It doesn't matter, just playing is the key, a little or a lot whenever you can.