Saturday 28 January 2012

New Prints in the Art Shop



Hello everyone,

I hope you're having a lovely weekend. Enjoying the sun? I have so much to do I don't even know where to start, I really want to paint, but also have lots of quilting to do and I need to take photos of paintings, originals, to then list them in the art shop too (after I have figured out how to ship the large ones abroad, seems to cost a fortune, let me know if ou have any advice on that).

In the meantime I finally went and listed some more prints in the art shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/ThisCreativeBliss.

I really love these, they all have a story. This painting called "The Red Robe" is inspired by Margaret Atwood's "A Handmaid"s Tale". I think for those who have read the book, that is quite obvious.



The original is 24" x 24" and was exhibited at the Kelvingrove Gallery in Glasgow as part of a charity exhibition in aid of Breastcancer Awareness.

This one is actually a pastel painting in the original and the funny thing is, I was contacted by an A-Level student asking me about pornographic art. He wanted to interview me to ask where I get my inpiration for the nude paintings from. A bit dodgy, ha?




The following painting is called "Waiting for the Sun". The original is an acrylic painting which was great fun to paint. Acrylics create such nice textures when they dry quickly. I am planning to paint lot more in Acrylics and smaller affordable originals too which can easily be shipped.



I hope you like the new prints. Would love to know what you think.

Have a wonderful weekend.
Nadine xx

Saturday 21 January 2012

How to quilt?

Happy Saturday everyone,

I think this is my first "Work in Progress" post for this year. I have been so busy with work and lots of other things that I haven't done much quilting lately.

But I have been working on these blocks for a QAYG quilt. The top will be in pinks and oranges and the back in greens, blues and yellows. All the blocks are 14". I have managed to finally put all the block sandwhiches together and am now stuck. I can't decide how to quilt them before then sewing the sashing on and making the rows and the full quilt.



I keep going back and forth on how to quilt them. I can't do free motion quilting on my machine so it will have to be some sort of straight organic lines or zig zag or boxy lines. Argh. I just don't know. Any suggestions?



Would love your advice one this. I am just too indecisive myself.
Have a lovely weekend.
Nadine xx

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Saturday 14 January 2012

"Reflections on Colour" Exhibition

Hello everyone,

just to let you know the exhibition is now open to the public. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to hang the larger quilts as they did not hang straight and we were not allowed to do anything to the walls. I had planned to use small velcro pieces in the bottom corners and attach the other side with white tack to the walls to make sure the quilts hang flat, but it turns out the white tack leaves dark patches on the wall, wo we couldn't use it. How does on hang a really large quilt without it getting wavy and swaying every time someone walks past? I normally use them as bedquilts or lapquilts, I never hang them up so maybe I am doing it all wrong?

I managed to hang 2 smaller quilts and 7 paintings so that's not bad.









I took some photos of the show, including pictures of Carol's (http://www.fibredance.com/) and Sandra's (http://www.diverse-threads.co.uk/4825.html) artwork but they all turned out a bit blurry due to the bad lighting conditions and I just haven't got a chance to go back and take new pictures. Sorry.

Would be great if you could see the show, if you are in York you could easily take a quick trip to Grays Court. The food there is amazing. It is also a pretty posh hotel very close to the Minster.

So if you get a chance to see the show let me know what you thought of it.

Lots of love,
Nadine xx



the quilts:




Some of my paintings, one of Sandra's and the large wallhanging is Carol's


Carol's and Sandra's Artwork:





Sunday 1 January 2012

Happy New Year!



Hello everybody,

I wish you all a happy and healthy and very creative new year.

I hope you survived the holidays without too much damage, I am still recovering from food and (a little bit of) booze (am not much of a drinker). I love Christmas but I also loathe the holidays and the stress involved and it makes me cringe every year to see the amount of money people spend of presents. This year especially it made me so mad to see how children received big expensive gifts and were not able to appreciate their value at all, they treated them without any respect, and especially without any respect for the time their parents had to work to afford to buy them such gifts. They were broken and dirty and thrown in the corner within a day or two. I can just shake my head in disapproval and think I would do things differently if I had children.

But as I don't have any I will have to let people spoil their kids into a life of material obsession and lack of respect for things and what it cost to produce and then buy them.

Sorry, rant over.

But on another note, I have just listed this original painting in the art shop. It's an acrylic painting on canvas paper sized 13" x 13". I am trying very hard to simplify and paint smaller and not necessarily on canvas anymore.

Close ups:







I hope you like it. It was a lot of fun to create and I am currently in a proper painting rush, especially with the upcoming exhibition at Grays Court.

And speaking of which, I better get back to work, I still have frames to fix and curtain poles to adjust for the quilts.

Have a lovely Sunday.

Nadine xx