Radio Silence...

 Apologies for being MIA for the past month or so - I have been working on a knitting pattern for Nudinits which has taken up a fair bit of my time as it is very complicated to design.  Unfortunately I cannot show it, has to be kept under wraps for now!

Talking of Nudinits, we were all over the media last week after a pair of knitters in Shepton Mallet used our patterns to create a display of naked Morris dancers in a charity shop window.  Someone passing by objected to seeing woolly naughty bits and complained...and the rest is history!  Great publicity for Nudinits once they started to mention the book that the patterns came from rather than assuming the ladies came up with the designs themselves. Read all about it here

As for painting, I am suffering the worst case of artist's block, just totally uninspired.  Rather than sit and gaze out of the window miserably at the rain, I decided to paint another Otis trinket box - this one just needs lining with fabric then it will go into my Etsy shop.  Hopefully with the recent sunshine I will feel more like putting brush to paper.

Not Otis...

 After painting two trinket boxes with a picture of Otis the bear on the lid, it was a welcome change to be asked to paint this gorgeous mother bear and cub.  This is bear 910 and her adorable little one, as seen at Brooks Falls, Katmai Nation Park, Alaska.

Because the lid painting is so light, I made the decision to paint the rest of the box a light blue to match the water rather than the usual black.  It's going to look good - I just have to add the lining fabric and it is done, well in time for Christmas.

I've also been fulfilling some more stuffed Otis orders and have more stuffed cub toys on the go. On the easel is a pet portrait - it's been a while since I did one of those!

Bears, Boxes & Eagles...

I have been painting, honest!  Here are the lids to a couple of trinket boxes that have been commissioned.  The first is, of course, Otis in his favourite fishing spot.

I have painted so many Otis boxes with the same picture on them that it made a refreshing change to be asked to paint a different bear.  This is Popeye, a magnificent boar who also lives at Brooks Falls, Katmai National Park.  

Both paintings look a little faded here - photo taken in the earlymorning light and they also need varnishing which brings out the colour.  I have one more to paint - Otis again, but in a slightly different pose.

As it has been really hot here this week, I can't bring myself to knit or crochet the current WIP's I have on the go as it would be the equivalent of sitting under a blanket, so I crocheted a little eagle just for fun.
 

Not Been Resting On My Laurels...

Work has been a case of bits and pieces lately, but at least it has been work.  There has been another one of these painted trinket boxes - Otis of course!

Complete with tasty fish lining.

I've been sampling the free kits in another Let's Knit magazine - here's beagle pup.

From another angle...

Hello!

And a tiny squirrel finger puppet - I jusdt cannot get a decent photo of small things no matter what I use when there is no daylight!

The best bit - the fluffy tail!

Ont the easel - just finishing off a bear - and then will start another bear...
 

Yet More Bears...

I took a couple of evenings away from commissioned work to knit this little finger puppet from a kit free with this month's Let's Knit magazine.

He even has a tail!  There are other animals in the kit - looking forward to making them too.  I have the excuse that I have a baby granddaughter that I need to make toys for...

I'm also in the process of making another painted trinket box for a commission.  This needs lining with fabric and re-assembling.

And then, two more bear paintings...it will be nice to paint something different after months of bears!

Bear Cubs & Boxes...

I completed this last week - bear 435 Holly and her cub, using a photograph that Ranger Naomi at Katmai National Park took last year.  This cub is now ten times the size!  This was painted in watercolour on paper. It was snapped up within minutes of me posting it online and is now winging it's way to Spain.

I've also been working on another painted trinket box - this one is a prize in the American magazine Travel Guide summer competition.  The painting on the lid is of Otis, winner of this year's Fat Bear contest.  I assembled it yesterday after lining it.

I think you will agree, I found the perfect fabric to put inside - loads of fish for Otis to snack on!

 This box is already spoken for but I will be making a couple more at some point between now and Christmas.  I can't say when - they are very labour intensive and I have to fit them in around other work.

Otis...

 I have painted many trinket boxes with a picture of Otis in his 'office' but have used the same reference photo every time.  This year I decided to update it a little, although the pose is pretty much the same because...well, that's what Otis is best known for!  This year he showed up a month later than usual and incredibly thin - as he is an old bear, most people thought he had gone to the great fishing ground in the sky, but no, he was just waiting for the late salmon run to begin.  Since then he has eaten goodness knows how many fish and put on weight paw over fist and now looks fat and ready for hibernation.  So I used a snap I took on the Explore.org web cams of him this year, fishing in his favourite spot and looking nice and fat.

I'm very pleased with how this one has turned out - I have spent the weekend putting on lots of layers off varnish and now the box just needs lining with some fishy fabric.  This box is spoken for already - it will be one of the prizes in the Travel Guide summer competition, but I will be painting another one fairly soon.

Peanut...

 While all this virus malarkey is going on, I still had a couple of commissions to do.  I finished this cute little wooden trinket box a couple of days ago - it has a picture of the bear 902 Peanut on it.  It was nice to paint a bear other than Otis for a change, and seeing as I have nowhere to go, I spent a lot more time on it than I would have normally.

 Instead of painting the rest of the box black as with the Otis boxes, I decided to paint it to look a bit like water, with shades of blue & green.

As the box is smaller than the usual ones, it wouldhave been impossible to line it with cotton fabric entirely, so I used a greeny-blue felt for the sides and lid, with a piece of fishy cotton fabric for the bottom of the base.

The only sad thing is that due to the recipient's location, I can't send this until their country's lockdown is relaxed.

The other commission is a watercoluor of a bear - looking forward to that.

Some Bears...

Although I'm finding it hard to concentrate at the moment, there is a bit of work getting done.  This is a hand painted pebble, with a picture of a bear cub on it.  The pebble is from Brooks Camp shoreline, Alaska, and will be a gift for a lady who is currently in self isolation and could do with a bit of cheering up.

 It has taken me twice as long as usual, but this box was completed yesterday.  Another picture of Otis the bear in his office!

I've lined it with a different fabric this time, still with the fish theme,  This is currently for sale in my Etsy shop.

Apart from that, I seem to be cleaning a lot, washing a lot, feeling anxious a lot, crocheting that blanket, and trying to retain some semblance of normality with everyone home indefinitely.

Stay safe and well people.

Box Of Bears...

 I've been a bit busy of late - not only have I had to make 9 felt monkeys for an animation, I have also got an order for four of these painted boxes to fulfill by the end of the month.  Three complete, the last one nearly done.  I think I would be able to paint Otis the bear with my eyes shut now!

Lining the boxes has been a nightmare - the fabric I ordered came from Australia as it was simply perfect with it's salmon print.  However, nothing prepared me for finding out it was silky and stretchy and definitely did not want to be manhandled into a box.  I ended up using about 30 small clamps to hold the edges in place while the glue dried - worth the effort though.

Also sewing a number of stuffed bears, also Christmas commissions.  So with the glue and the fluff, it's a bit messy round here!

White Lace, Roses & An Exotic Bloom

A couple of months ago, I started a scarf/shawl in white lace-weight pure merino yarn but it got put to one side as I had other more urgent projects to complete and also I was having trouble seeing what I was doing, particularly whilst I was ill.



This week it was time to finally finish this little beauty - it's not a shawl, more of a lace scarf. The yarn is so delicate that this is as light as air and soft as a cloud. It will be up for sale on Etsy shortly.


I've also been working on a small painted box - the design was based on my Valentine's Day bouquet, although I have added the tiny blue flowers as a bit of artistic licence. This has been painted in acrylics, given three coats of varnish and now awaits a pale green silk lining. Once that has been put into place, this will also be in my Etsy shop.


Once again I have managed to grow a humongous tropical flower, although this did not take nearly as much effort as my Bird of Paradise plant. I was given this Amaryllis for Christmas and it is the first time I have grown one of these - it was just a matter of keeping it watered & in sunlight and watching the magic happen. Each flower here is about the size of a soup plate, and you can just see the tip of a second bud coming up fast behind. I can't capture the richness of it's redness with the camera, but you get the idea!

Butterfly Meadow Painted Box

Here it is at last, the second of my painted trinket boxes. This one is slightly smaller than the toucan box, and painted in acrylics again. It has a soft blue sky with fluffy white clouds....

....a meadow full of wild flowers - daisies, poppies, buttercups, speedwell, dandelion and vetch.....

...all growing among the long grass. Fluttering and flying above are a handful of butterflies - a Red Admiral, White Skipper and Meadow Blue........

.... with a couple of bees visiting the flowers. These were painted with a ridiculously small brush!

The box has been lined in cotton daisy fabric, cunningly matching the colour of the sky and the daisies...I do plan these things y'know!

This will be on my Etsy shop shortly.