You are currently browsing the monthly archive for May 2011.
I seem to have suddenly reached a magic number.
A number that divides nicely into 9′s.
With enough colours to co-ordinate.
That when pinned together make quite a big blanket.
This time last year I never believed that I could ever make one of these myself. This is a golden moment 
What a week! Shall we have a catch up? After the flat-out painting marathon that was required to reach recent deadlines I fell into a vacuum of not painting for a while. I still have loads of shots locked in a camera that won’t talk to my computer nicely and release said pictures. Maybe they are so good, and the camera has become sentient, that it won’t let them leave. Or maybe somethings just broken! Anyways while I’m waiting on technical compliance before my next show and tell this is what else I have been up to…
… really enjoying reading this book and still haven’t worked out how it all interconnects and I’m nearly at the end (love stories like that, that keep you guessing).
…reading this new magazine. It was all over blogland in the week it hit newsstands and had favourable reviews. Maybe my expectations were too high, maybe I looked in too many shops before I actually found it, maybe it was a tad too expensive at £5, maybe I read too many blogs and had seen some of the images before but it was a little disappointing but not so much so that I wouldn’t buy another sometime.
… been swiftly moving on from completing one decorated bedroom to the destructive side of decorating another. My strategy is to begin the second one so quickly after the first that no one living here really even notices. And no it hasn’t worked out that way but what is begun can only be finished right?!
… no need to garden much this year because the previous owners were horticultural geniuses. However I am in love with this flower – bellis – which I planted into a patio pot in the spring.
…excited about my page on this website and fingers crossed for some sales and more projects developing.
…still trying to get a picture of Lottie when she isn’t moving and hasn’t got her tongue lolling out. So that’s not happening. She is so adorable. If I had realised the unconditional love of dogs sooner I may have opted for dogs over children! Not really!
…especially enjoying seeing the seasons develop as I’m forced to be in the woods everyday to walk Dottie Lottie ( I don’t really walk her – she runs around like a small pony and I play scrabble on my phone).
…really enjoyed this blog post which prompted me to think that some creative inspiration should be had soon in the form of visiting a London gallery or two or three…
…enjoying two new (to me) blogs. This one is enjoyably educative and I found out about an upcoming Mary Fedden exhibition that I might otherwise have missed out on hearing about. And this one which is simply so inspiring I want to go and paint something right now! Even though I’m ‘resting’. Contrary I know.
Red Anemones May 2011 © Claire Leggett
Here she is all finished and sold (possibly) before the paint has even dried.
It’s been a blur these last few days. I have been painting my little socks off recently (I’ve got lots to show you) and I succeeded in making two deadlines for submissions this week. I was then going to treat myself to Friday off, but I just got busy with other stuff instead! Now I (we) have spent all weekend wallpaper stripping so I (we) am/are bushed. And I’ve got loads of photo’s trapped in my new camera ( don’t get me started about this camera again!) so…I’m going to breathe deeply, go and watch a DVD and come back another day in a serene mood with lots of downloaded photos to share – I hope Have a good week.
Hillers is one of my favorite places to go to. There’s a lovely farm shop to keep my cooking orientated hubby happy, a cafe for the hungry kids, a gift shop and garden center for me and even a fenced field for the dog to run in. It was here that I spied these beautiful anemones. Actually the whole family agreed (rarely happens!) that these should be my next subject matter and I wasn’t to going to disagree.
This painting is being kind to me in that it’s coming together easily and I appreciate that as I feel really tired this week having put in six (sometimes seven) days working at school and painting at home over the last couple of weeks. I’m trying to push through things a little bit and meet some deadlines and I’m nearly there.
This beauty is almost done and seems to have brought itself into being. I love it when a painting just springs forth from the page with very little drama along the way! The shapes are pleasing, the tones of colour are working, it’s simple yet complex. Bit like me then
On Friday I had a day out to The Malvern Spring Show in the Malvern Hills.
And took nearly 200 photo’s.
50 of which I’m showing you here…
There was so much to see I found it hard to edit down.
I loved all the settings in the show gardens.
And the flower pavilion was awesome, so many of the best …
…and most unusual flowers.
Amazing displays of the finest specimens…
… and delightful mixtures of inspiring planting.
But these were my favourite flowers overall.
And I would love one of these one day pretty please!
I know a lot of you like gardening too so I hope you enjoyed my day out too.
The farm shop provided more floral inspiration. It’s great, every where I look there are things to paint!
Am learning to use my new camera. I’ve had it a year. It took some months to realise it needed rechargeable batteries. I know how that sounds but honestly they did replace it as faulty at first. They didn’t tell me then and there. Anyways the camera purchase rant is old news so I won’t get started again!
Even other people are wanting to use it (hence photo of me).
I feel it’s a great days work if I can set up, draw and block in all the colours. And I discovered this guy a few days ago and bought an older (but more bluesy) album and have been listening to it on rotate today. Hope you enjoy him too (probably all you in the USA will think it’s crazy I’d not heard of him yet but hey we’re an island what can I say!)
Little Pot Of Pansies © Claire Leggett 2011
Here is my finished entry into today’s Purple madness over at Mr Toast’s Creative Tuesday.
I’m not sure that I hit the brief head on in the end, as the entry had to be in the majority purple and mine isn’t quite. So Mr Toast here’s two other choices – hopefully one will make the cut
Creative Tuesday is open to everyone and with a theme each fortnight it’s manageable to join in and still get other projects done – come and join in next time – the guidelines are here.
Tomorrow is Creative Tuesday where the theme this time is Purple.
I thought I’d show you what’s been inspiring me ahead of tomorrow’s finale.
Every year I shop optimistically for bedding plants and regret it later because I don’t have the concentration to deadhead and fuss like you should.
However this year I seem to have struck lucky. These are growing very happily without me getting involved. And yes Dad that is your jam pan! I had a vision for it which didn’t include jam jars and fruit
I love snooping around other people’s houses don’t you? I will always go to the bathroom just to get a sneak peek all round the house. Sometimes I’m just bold enough to ask for a guided tour. The only plus to house hunting last year, was to look about and see what others were doing with their spaces (mostly…not the man with cat’s doing everywhere!) Back in December we had a decorating marathon here (studio – tick, guest room – tick, study – nearly ticked)and I never showed you. It’s still not quite finished but I was in the mood to show you some interesting corners so far.
This is Ollie’s study which is also known occasionally as his ‘man cave’ and he had very specific ideas about its decoration. He wanted it really dark (that’s Brinjal by Farrow and Ball) and for it to have a gentleman’s club vibe (the old-fashioned kind, not the modern Spearmint Rhino type!) BTW that photo is of Ollie’s late grandad meeting Winston Churchill – cool eh?
It’s yet to be furnished with a big olde desk and leather wing back chair but I hope you enjoyed that little peek. Some Cath Kidson wallpaper went up elsewhere today so I look forward to showing you that really soon. Have a great weekend.
Have you seen this amazing video by Philip Scott Johnson which documents 500 Years of Female Portraits in Western Art?
And if you are the sort who wants to identify them all or if there is just one that you want to name, then click here because someone else has done all the work for you!
