Starting a new thing, and finishing an old thing

The last two days have been full of preparation for a new thing. Strictly speaking I'm not starting a new thing, as it's a journey that started in about November last year, when I decided to become a childminder rather than go back to teaching!

Today was the day of the Ofsted pre-registration visit, where they come and spend a couple of hours checking you have child locks, know which end to put a nappy on a bay, and are aware of how to spot a toddler terrorist. I may be kidding about some of that...but only a little!

Anyway, the lady who visited us was very friendly, and encouraging. She waded through all my paper work (3 folders of paper!) and did the tour of the house, and said...she would be recommending me to go on the register! Ofsted now check her report and make the final decision, but I feel like it's done now! My new career as a childminder will be starting very soon! 

So all this creating a good environment and 3 files of paper has left not much time for other creativity, until tonight when I finished something I started over the weekend.

Here it is...

It's a Bible journalling page which I've had a mind for a couple of weeks. We're working our way through Luke's gospel at church and hearing about the stories of the rich ruler and of Zaccheus helped me make some links and comparisons. 

The rich ruler thought he was perfect. He had obeyed the law entirely since he was a boy (our vicar pointed out that the rich ruler was lying about this, and for some reason that had never occurred to me!) and he wasn't prepared to change his lifestyle and give away his wealth to follow Jesus. Zaccheus knew he needed Jesus, he knew he had done things wrong, but he was prepared to go to extraordinary lengths to see Jesus. He was a man of wealth and power but he shinned up a tree! He gave away his wealth by his own volition, Jesus didn't have to ask him. 

What a contrast! I know I sometimes forget I'm a sinner, just like the rich ruler, I know I can be unwilling to give away the things that hold me back, just like the rich ruler, but I hope I would also be willing to shin up the nearest tree just to get a glimpse of Jesus, just like Zaccheus, and that an encounter with him would inspire me to change my life, just like Zaccheus.

The image shows Zaccheus up the tree, which is all my own, and the rich ruler in the front, looking sad because he was very rich and did not want to give away his wealth. This image is copied from this website http://ministry-to-children.com/skit-the-rich-young-ruler/ 

I'm pleased with the shading, with the composition and with making a link between two bible stories that I have known since I was a child, and had become probably over familiar with. A new insight always feels good, like a precious nugget of something wonderful that has come your way.

Quilting and cooking

Here's what I cooked yesterday, to welcome back the wanderer! 

Moroccan chicken from the Good Food pressure cooker cook book. (You can just see it in the background)  I did it in my electric pressure cooker, which I love and is one of the most used kitchen gadgets. 

I also made this in my food processor, another much used kitchen gadget!

A blackberry and clotted cream shortcake! I spotted the recipe on Facebook and shared it with Adrian who said 'yes please!' It's a BBC Good Food recipe and you can find it here. http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2857/blackberry-and-clotted-cream-shortcake-

Both were delicious! 

And here's some better photos of Simon's I spy quilt. The idea is to have lots of fun print and then play I spy with all the pictures. I made mine a snap and I spy quilt so I had two squares of every fabric, so we can play matching and spotting! I used a disappearing 9 patch pattern. I backed it with fleece.

Here's the finished quilt draped over the sofa.

Here's some close ups.

I quilted either side of the seams.

Here's the back.

I even put one of my labels on it!

I'm really thrilled with how it turned out. And of course I have two more quilts in the planning stage!

Creativity comes in all shapes and sizes!

This weekend has been a little odd - I'm writing this on Sunday morning - as Adrian has been away, leaving just me and the little guy to amuse ourselves! So what did we do, and did it involve creativity?

No smoothies for a start! I joined the boy and had cereal and toast breakfasts, but I think I was less messy than him! (I hope so anyway!)

No dinners either! Fish and chips on Friday - Simon loves both! And leftovers on Saturday.

Trip to the park Saturday morning with Aunty. Good conversation and fun, which always energises me. Somehow, for me, things seem better, funnier etc if you can share them with some one, either at the time, or afterwards! Perhaps that's why I like to make art? I like to share my feelings and experiences!

And my evenings?

Friday was creative in that I worked in paperwork for my childminding business. I don't really call writing policies creative, but it is working towards the life I want to create I suppose. I'd still rather not be doing it though!

Saturday was fun! I'd set that aside for creativity and did the following...

I finished the I spy quilt! Yay! I'll try and get some better photos, but this shows that I gave it a test run and snuggled up in the sofa to do...

These are blind contour drawings, where you look at the object, not at the drawing! I've recently started following this blog http://taraleaver.com/ and she offers a free drawing course! Free! Drawing! Got to be worth a try, right?

So this was the first lesson, and it was fun. It reminds you to look and frees up your hand to move. Drawing definitely needs practice to get better.

Tomorrow's post will include food...I'm welcoming my big fella home with a nice meal! 

Coloured scribble and snickers smoothie

Today I am posting about smoothies because I tried a new one yesterday, mostly because we'd had raspberry based smoothies for two days, then I went and bought some more raspberries, but I wanted a change! (I could have got strawberries but I thought, yum, I like raspberries, then realised we'd had a rather raspberry heavy week! At least it's all healthy!) 

Anyway...snickers smoothie! Three bananas, three teaspoons of peanut butter, three teaspoons of coco (not drinking chocolate!), a couple of handfuls of baby kale and some almond milk. (I always fill our blender up to the 3 cup mark, once I have put the other ingredients in, but it's about 500ml)

It was very yummy! Probably because it's not quite a healthy as our normal smoothie, but still healthy!

I also did some scribbling with coloured pens yesterday.

I wanted to see what some of my previous scribble techniques would look like if I used colour. I really like the circles! 

I also started a kind of zentangle, but as they are a very specific technique and I have messed about with it here, I'm not sure it it strictly speaking a zentangle, more a filling in with patterns and colours! If you're not sure what a zentangle is, this website has some good information http://tanglepatterns.com/zentangles/what-is-a-zentangle

Interestingly it felt a bit restrictive so I may not finish this one. I feel at the moment that I want to be a bit more free, a bit more random, a bit more go with the flow!

If you want find out more I can recommend this book about zentangle, which helps you get started and helps you develop and personalise the technique. You can get it on Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/One-Zentangle-Day-Relaxation-Inspiration/dp/1592538118/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471592610&sr=1-1&keywords=one+zentangle+a+day

I don't get any money for plugging Amazon (I wish!) but I do love to share a good resource...it comes from being a librarian's daughter! 

Have a fun and creative weekend! 

Erm...

Erm...well...yesterday was a busy day, spending time with friends, then out line dancing in the evening. So what did I create?

I made a breakfast smoothie, but no new recipe.

Dinner was stuff out the freezer, so no real creativity there.

And that's it. No time for any sketching, or sewing, or baking. 

But I had lots of fun anyway. So I have learnt that though I need creativity in my life, a day off is not the end of the world, especially if it full of fun stuff! 

Scribbles and visions

After my doodles on Monday I did some more doodling, trying out shapes and just going with whatever came into my head, no plan, no design.

It's so nice to just get drawing again!

To inspire me further I bought this book, all about drawing with red, blue and black biros! Perfect for this time of life, when I might just have those lying about the place, when I don't have time to get out lots of paints or want the 'help' I might get from a certain small person, when I don't want fabric full of pins lying around everywhere in case it gets stepped on. It's full of good starting points. I can't wait to try some out!

I also got this book.

Well, maybe I don't mind fabric with pins lying about in certain places, like behind the closed door of the spare room where I have my sewing corner! Plus it's just full of cute ideas I could adapt and make my own.

It's always tricky when you get to a certain level of expertise and in a way you don't want another step by step book as you have the techniques already, but they are good for ideas, and you can adapt them.

I like to have a vision, to have ideas for what I want to work on next, and I think that has been missing for a while, as my vision has been all about the house. Now is the time to re-envision myself, to think about my hopes and dreams.

One thing already in my plan is some monoprinting. This is a cool, quick, fun technique. Here's a quick YouTube tutorial from a guy called the Snake Artist...the video has got some snakes at the beginning so if you don't like snakes...the tutorial is good though!

https://youtu.be/El6aIKAIvTA

Tracey Emin, who is one of my favourite artists, has done lots of monoprinting. (If you google it you will find some stuff that is not suitable for kids, just so you know!) 

Here's a longer tutorial that she's done, which is more the technique I've used.

http://www.ideastap.com/IdeasMag/the-knowledge/sky-academy-southbank-show-masterclasses-tracey-emin

Just need to find where I put all my printing stuff when we moved...

Doodles and dinner

Yesterday was a rather paper heavy day, but not in a fun, creative way! Instead I was busy preparing policies and procedures for my childminding business.  I suppose it could be viewed as creative, because I am making something, but for me, it's a bit like mopping the kitchen floor; yes, it helps create a clean and welcoming home, but...

Perhaps I am missing out on something here? Perhaps these tasks that I deem boring, repetitive and relentless have creativity in them, or at least are building blocks to creating something bigger. The policies are needed to create the successful childminding business, with my vision of fun, creative, home from home care I want to provide. Mopping the kitchen floor means my home is clean and so I can cook without giving anyone food poisoning. It is also part of the tidy up after being creative in the kitchen, never my favourite bit of any creative project, but unless you tidy up, you haven't got space to do something else, or enjoy what you've done.

So what creativity did I have space and time for yesterday? 

I did some doodling on some redundant documents!

I also made dinner and forgot to take photos...again! The trouble is, by the time it's cooked I just want to tuck in!  I made chorizo and potato jumble, my own invention.

Boil some new potatoes until just cooked. I did 10, chopped into quarters.

In a roasting tin, put some chopped mushrooms, red onion, tomato slices and chorizo. I used about 100g for two of us. 

Add the potatoes and drizzle on olive oil. Add some black pepper.

Bung in the oven, on 180 for about an hour. Keep an eye on it and stir occasionally to get those lovely chorizo juices on everything.

Yummy!