Brambly Hedge

Everyone seemed to like my teacups I posted yesterday, but I was surprised at how many people had never seen the Brambly Hedge books by Jill Barklem. I just love them. Her attention to detail is amazing! Here is the cover of a book I have, which I highly recommend. It has four of her stories, and a section at the beginning where she talks about her work and has drawings from her sketchbook. If you like Beatrix Potter, you will definately like Jill Barklem.



Here is an inside spread from the book. Please remember that these images are copyrighted. I am only showing a couple for the purpose of this book review, which I think I am allowed to do. Someone tell me if I am not! Look at the fantastic detail of the food and dishes on the shelves. That is one thing that impresses me most about these books: she has planned out every detail of her characters' lives. She mentions in the interview that the things they do and make are all physically possible. If you would like to learn more, her website is :
http://www.bramblyhedge.co.uk/

Guess What Day It Is

That's right, it's Teacup Tuesday!

Today I am featuring two very special cups. These cups are from Royal Doulton and they have Brambley Hedge artwork on them. Have you ever seen the beautiful Brambley Hedge books by Jill Barklem? I just love them. These cups are the ones that my daughter and I used to use when we had special tea parties. She's too old for that now, so now I imagine her using them with her own daughter some day. The Queen Elizabeth II coronation jug was my mother's and is another one I rescued from the Goodwill pile. The blue and white jug I bought at a flea market just because it was so pretty! The fabric in the background is from my "Purrfect Garden" line.

Here is a closer view of the cups. This style of cup is called a "beaker" in England. Someday I should probably look on Ebay for the remaining two in the series! Thanks for visiting me! As usual, if you want to see more teacups, head over to Martha's Favorites or Artful Affirmations.

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Fourth of July, everyone. It is shaping up to be a great day here. A lot cooler today, with a high of maybe 70 degrees. I am getting ready to go outside and watch the neighborhood parade. All the neighborhood kids gather at the clubhouse by the pool and decorate their bikes and scooters with streamers and balloons, then parade around the neighborhood. One of the Dads has a big drum, so he sets the pace. It is the most adorable thing you've ever seen. Our neighborhood is great for that kind of thing. It has a very friendly, small-town feeling. We have summer movies on the clubhouse lawn, Christmas cookie exchanges, a book club, etc. Then later today we are going to a cookout at a friend's house, then back here to watch the fireworks.

Hope all of you have a great day too!

Where Bloggers Create

Its a studio tour! "My Desert Cottage" blog is having a Where Bloggers Create party here:http://mydesertcottage.blogspot.com/. I thought I would join the fun; a little late, but that is fashionable, right? It is a pity it isn't a "messiest studio" tour, because this is what mine looks like after I have tidied it. I have sort of a mish-mash of furniture that I have picked up here and there. I look at some of the beautiful studios in magazines and drool over them, but my little messy space works for me right now. Maybe someday I will be more glamorous!



Here is my drawing/painting table. I like to do so many things, so I have so many supplies! You can see that my drawers are full to bursting. And all the brushes! Who can bear to throw out an old brush? It might still be good for something!




I bought some organizer cupboards from Michaels this year and assembled them without too much trouble. So I have managed to put my watercolors in order by color, which makes me very happy. No more rooting through a jumble of paints to find the right tube!




I keep my brushes and pencils in old jugs and tins. These are just a few. You can see the edge of my new curtains, made from my very first fabric line!



Here are some antique shelves on top of my paper cutting area, which is the top of an old map chest where I keep papers. Collecting antiquarian books is a weakness of mine, but they are very useful for research purposes! I also have so many still-life props. I only have room to keep a few in the studio. The rest are scattered throughout the house.


Here is a closer view, so you can see the lovely portrait of Ian, painted by Victoria Lisi, author of "Vibrant Children's Portraits". You can see her portrait of Margaret in the background of the top photo.






One of the best things about my studio is that it is here in beautiful Colorado. We spent the day hiking for Father's Day today and now I am pleasantly tired and can't wait to get back to painting tomorrow. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone else's studios too!

Motto Ware

I love pottery and I especially love Motto Ware. Motto ware was made in Devon, England for the tourist trade from the 1880's to the 1940's. Each piece had a colloquial phrase on the back (I have turned the teacup so you can see it a little bit). The most common decoration was the cottage scene- each one is slightly different because they were hand painted. However, I really like pieces with a seaside theme, such as the lovely sailboat above. The pretty lady in the photo is Nettie Watts, Mr Right's grandmother.





I have turned all of them around here so you can see the mottos. My favorite phrases are written in the local vernacular, such as the "Don' ee be 'fraid o' it now" jug.





This is the jug that started it all. It was my mother's and she used it all through my childhood for milk or custard. A few years ago she said she was going to give it to Goodwill and I was horrified! I decided it needed to grace my table, so that my children would grow fond of it too.





Last week I saw a lovely motto ware teapot for sale online for a very good price. I was thrilled, as I had been looking for one that I could make my morning tea in. I was so sad when it arrived smashed! As you can see, the handle and spout are broken. There were numerous chips in the rim, and a long crack in the body of the pot. The lid was broken into six pieces.





I got out the Gorilla Glue and started piecing it back together. It will never be useable for tea again, and is best viewed from a distance, but at least it might be a good prop for a painting. A lot of the broken pieces were pulverised, so there are still a lot of chips and gaps. I couldn't find the tip of the spout or all chips that came from the rim, and I had trouble getting the lid to go back together too, as some of the pieces were very small and fiddley. But I managed not to stick my fingers together with the glue, so that's something! I'll just have to start teapot hunting again. It is fun to have something that you are searching for when you go antiquing!

Hooray For Art Supplies!

Don't you just love art supplies? Today I have had one of those days where the art just doesn't want to turn out the way I want it to, but at least I have the fun of playing with my "stuff". Oh, fresh, clean, white paper, juicy paints, and nice pointy brushes! So I decided I would periodically tell you about the favorite products I have found over many years, (and many dollars) spent!

My favorite brushes are made by the Silver Brush company. They can be a little hard to find, but I usually order mine from MisterArt.com, or directly from the manufacturor. I should mention that I have done demonstrations in the Silver Brush booth at trade shows, but I am not being paid for this endorsement. These really are the best brushes if you want to paint tiny details, like I do. The ones above are the Silver Ultra Mini Golden Natural Designer Rounds. Those very fine lines were painted with the #12 round, so you can see what a tiny point it has. But since it has a big body, you can really load the brush with paint so you don't have to keep dipping it.



This brush is very useful for painting fur. It is a Ruby Satin Filbert Grass Comb. You can see how the bristles are uneven lengths and slightly separated. This means you can paint many hairs with one stroke. I mostly use watercolor, but these brushes are good for acrylic too.

Do you have any favorite brushes for painting details? I would like to try the Winsor and Newton designer rounds one of these days, to see how they compare. Designer rounds have longer bristles than regular round brushes. and I feel like they give my strokes a better flow.

Favorite Things

It is Teacup Tuesday again! The days sure do fly by. This teacup isn't antique and I don't have a special story about it, except to say that I think it is so very pretty! I drink a lot of tea, and I especially like all the accoutrements that go along with it: Teaspoons, pots, and strainers, sugar tongs and basins, and above all, milk jugs!

Today I decided to photograph just the blue and white ones, as I have the most of those. I'm very fond of these, and I love to include them in my paintings. As you can see, I use them for more than just milk too! Am I the only one who takes milk in her tea, or do any of you do that too?