wine postcard

Hello peeps just a quick update as I am presuming this has gotten to the recipient by now as I posted it about 3 weeks ago (to NZ).  This was a postcard (as not able to post overseas cards at the moment as that means having to go into a post office for weighing them for the stamps whilst I had a couple international postcard stamps left over) that I made for my Uncle's birthday

The background bottles were stamped and distressed and the main topper was matted and layered, not sure where I got the image from as it was in my scraps box but they love their wine festivals so it seemed fitting for the recipient.

Hope you are all keeping ok and catch up soon

kyla

Doodling a postcard

Just a quick update as I am slowly uploading my recent photos from my holiday.

I did several sketches whilst away (but not downloaded those photos yet so they will follow) but I also did some 'doodling' (well, when you are sat near the pool, with a beer what else can you do)?

This is the small postcard I doodled to leave with some wine at the apartment we stayed in just to say "thanks".  Not a great piece of art (especially when you realise the owner of the apartment is an artist!) but a pleasant few hours were spent mindfully doodling away.

Happy crafting

Kyla

Mail Art RAK

 Look what came in the post?  Fabulous hand drawn and painted Mail Art all the way from France!  A huge thanks to the lovely Donna of http://redoingsofdoone.blogspot.co.uk/

I met Donna via the WOYWW blog and when we met at one of the early crops we got on really well and when she moved to France we kept in touch (see Julia, your hard work on WOYWW creates real as well as virtual friendships).

It has been great to follow on her blog Donna and her husbands hard work in building their dream in rural France (which is odd as two other friends of mine have recently also moved to France to build their home and another two friends are planning on moving there in a few months!!) and now art is being made too.

I love this postcard and the delicate ink drawings (so fine and detailed) and the free abandonment of the watercolour splashes.

On the back of the postcard is also a sketch of a young woman.  

Donna, I love it and thank you-watch the post as something may be heading your way too!

Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) of an arty nature are lovely and this is now sitting proudly blue tacked to my craft room wall which is filled with postcards that people have sent me over the years on their travels.

Happy crafting

Kyla

WOYWW

Hello peeps, it is Wednesday again so time to share our Workdesks.

On mine this week I am preparing more small pieces for Free Art Friday and Art Abandonment.

I am making some tags with my carved face and "Good Times" stamped underneath and yet more of my devil stamp with "Smile" stamped on the side.

I am also in the process of making some more watercolour postcards with my Dignity and Tolerance 'country'.

So, why not show us yours?  Pop over to the Queen of Desks, the lovely Julia (link over on the right) and link up.

Happy crafting

Kyla

Free art around Bristol

 As part of the "Art Abandonment" project (search for it on Facebook if you fancy finding out more) I have abandoned some more pieces, this time across my home city of Bristol.

Bristol is an amazing city.  I have lived here for about 14 years and it is a vibrant city full of art (we have many galleries, art schools, the largest street art festival in Europe) and social enterprise (from an old police station turned into art studios through to state of the art digital centre and start ups, Aardmen Animation studio and we are also a cycling city) so I am hoping my abandonments go down well.

 This piece was one of my watercolour postcards, as shown in a previous post, based on a country/state with words such as "Respect", "Hope" and "Tolerance" which I abandoned at the Folk House cafe,  A fabulous cafe and centre that runs art and music courses.

 This tag (also mentioned previously, is made from a stamp I carved) with the words "Imperfection is Beauty" was left outside Forbidden Plant (a graphic novel store-which I may have popped into a made a new graphic novel purchase!)

 This one was on the bridge in the harbour-lots of lovers walk over the bridge and place padlocks on the sides so I thought it would be a great place to leave a piece.

and the final one was on Park Street on the approach to the museum just outside Cass Art and down from the Design Guild.

I hope if someone finds them they will contact the facebook group (there is also a generic gmail address on the labels) but I haven't had any reports to date of any 'finds' for any of the drops I have made over the summer, so I don't expect I will-but the art of creating and releasing is fun and something I think I will continue to do.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

Free art for you and me too

 I often take part in Free Art Friday and the Art Abandonment project.  

My latest piece I set free was a watercolour postcard.  

It is not based on any particular country or province but rather the green was a mop up from an earlier painting and after carrying it around in my sketchbook for a few weeks I suddenly realised it looked a little like a map outline!  

I added some blue for  the sea and used my new Uniball pens to add some outlines and lettering (see my earlier post about the set I was given, they are great fineliners and are waterproof so I can doodle over watercolours without fear of the pen bleeding). 

Following from the whole Brexit debate reminded me that regardless of whether one agrees with other peoples views we are lucky to live in a country that allows free speech and the right to vote and we should respect that.

I am lucky that I work in an organisation with a very diverse workforce made up of many different races, religions and orientations and this means I am regularly exposed to many differing views (and some SERIOUS lunchbox envy at the canteen-boy they look and smell much more appetising than cheese sarnies I can tell you!!) and I believe I am a better person for this.

With this in mind I chose the words to represent different 'Countries/States".

 As I am in hospital regularly there is also diverse workforce there and the words also struck a chord with me as to how patients should also be treated so I decided to abandon it there.

 Imagine my surprise when further up the hospital I came across a box and lots of knitting with a sign saying "Knit with me"....so as I had time to kill, I did.  Now, I am not a great knitter but I was thrilled that I remembered the basic knit (which is what all the little squares were)

 

 Upon closer inspection I realised that the many of the knitted squares had been made into envelopes and had signs on them saying "open here" and "To: You....really you" and  "I'm not lost I'm for you".

So I picked one up and opened it up and found this message!

On the back it said that the words had been collected from patients, visitors and staff to the hospital in the hope that they maybe just what you need to hear today!!

It is the Envlop Project (https://www.nbt.nhs.uk/fresh-arts)

What a fabulous idea.  I love seeing the changing art installations around the hospital.  When you are there it makes it SO much more welcoming and how lovely that whilst I was there abandoning art there was another doing it too!!

If you fancy abandoning art or taking part in Free Art Friday then just search for them on Facebook and the groups should come up.

Happy crafting

Kyla

Urban sketching in Malta

I have to admit defeat as I have tried linking my Instagram account to my blog but for some reason the coding refuses to recognise my account so I thought I would blog a few of my latest sketches I have done whilst I was in Malta recently.

The top sketch was at the airport (lets face it you have a couple of hours to get bored so why not paint!) and the second sketch was some of the sayings on the wall at a local vegan cafe in Valletta (The Grassy Hopper).  They had sayings such as "Collect moments not things" and 
"All children are artists the problem is how to remain an artist once you grow up" 

The bottom sketch was a fountain in St Anton Gardens, a beautiful green oasis amid all the dry brown fields at the moment.

The next page shows another sketch of The Grassy Hopper again, but this time the staff behind the counter and the bottom sketch is across the water from Valletta (this is from the swimming hole that the hotel built straight into the sea-I swam off this point several times).

 

The final sketch was a postcard I painted and on the last day decided to post it to my husband (as I was away with my Mum), painted once again from the swimming hole.

My full account can be viewed at:

 https://www.instagram.com/kylacotterell/

Not sure why I haven't shared my urban sketches before on this blog, but a friend (waves at Carmen over at http://whoopidooings.blogspot.co.uk/ and also her instagram under the same name) suggested I blog them-so I have.

Happy crafting

Kyla

 

WOYWW

 Another What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday.  The excuse for us to bare our desks, good, bad or indifferent!

On my desk this week is my carving from the other week (haven't had time to do much crafting so its still sat there).  At the front is a card I have actually had time to make (shock horror!) and on the left are some recent purchases.

The card has an alcohol background and an octopode stamp of the crow and visible image text (I do love their text stamps).

 

 My new purchases were from last weekend.  We went to a local antique/flea market and I bought some old photos (I am a sucker for old 'miserable' photos)

and some old postcards (not written-I like to post vintage cards to friends, much funnier than modern ones)

 

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week....'Nude Judge Nails Blonde'.....well, not much I can comment on that!!!!!

Happy Crafting

Kyla

 

WOYWW

 Once again it is hump day which can only mean one thing..."What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday" when many of us across the globe do the bidding of the lovely Julia and bare our desks in all their glory.  Sometimes clean (not mine), often messy with WIP's (Works in Progress), a floor (Helen) and many that leave me envious with space and organising skills that I only practise on Pinterest!!

My desk this week has the start of my August 365 Journal challenge...not sure why red and black maybe watermelon or lady birds?  Who knows it was just the colours I was drawn to-it usually works out ok though.

 On the left is my now very dirty poundland (again) paint spreader pad that Shaz Silverwolf put me onto, spritz water on it and clean your stamps-just as good a job as those VERY expensive purpose made pads that cost over £10!

 On someones blog last week they had some lovely postcards (sorry I cannot remember whose blog it was) and it prompted me to take photos of my postcard wall!

Yep, I love receiving as well as sending postcards SO much I have an entire wall dedicated to them in my craft room.  Some have been made, some are from my family on their travels

 Some are from my penfriend in the states

 and some are from my fellow Coven friend, Julie, who sent me random vintage postcards nearly one a day for a couple of weeks when I was in hospital and 2 years later she still sends me a random card (usually from the 1970's with a random Tommy Cooper joke often written on the back!). I keep them all as they are special and attach them to the wall.

My "Man Bites Dog" cards this week are: 'Lawyer Attacks Mayor'....look out George Ferguson (our elected Mayor in Bristol)....the writing is on the cards!!!

Happy WOYWW

Kyla

Flying art

Hello peeps, I hope you are all well.

I thought I had spoken too soon enthusing about the well overdue improvement in the weather-mid week saw some of the worst fog I have ever seen (let alone driven in!!) but mother nature has done us proud and this weekend is a beautiful sunny one,so the windows are thrown open and washing is on the line and hubby even managed to cut the lawn!  Long may it continue!

Some of you may know that I have a love of postcards, especially making them.  I love to make a postcard and then put my faith in Royal Mail and post it around the globe!!  This all came about because Donna at the last WOYWW get together convinced me to take a leap of faith, and I am glad I did as they have all been well received.

This is my latest one (I know its been received so I can blog it now!).  I painted the background with watercolours and stamped gingko leaves (masking some of them) on the left.

I stamped a dragonfly and coloured it with inktense inks (I love the depth of colour these produce) and added a little glitter.

I then added some faux stitching around the edge and sprayed it with an acrylic spray varnish to protect the card in the post.

I made two of these,this one is a birthday card for my friend in Switzerland and the other was an acceptance card for a friend who is getting married next month.

So, if you were ever thinking of making a postcard...go one, I encourage you to put your faith in the postal system and let your art fly!

Happy crafting

Kyla

Postcard from America

Hello peeps, I hope you are all ok and those of you with snow are keeping warm.

Only a quick post today to say thanks to Jane Davies at the post office in Rupert Vermont.  A few blog posts ago I mentioned that via the cloth, paper, scissors blog she runs the small country post office, threatened with closure and asked fellow crafters to send in handmade post cards to boost numbers going through the office!!

Well I did, and look what I got in return.

 

A post card of one of her paintings of the post office (isn't it the cutest one ever!!).

All the details if you would like to see all the postcards she has already received (wow, there are a LOT) can be found here 

Happy crafting

Kyla

Naked art!

So, I have finally girded my loins and sent some 'art' in the post naked!!  No envelope...just sent as a postcard!!  Now, I was worried about sending it so I even phoned the Post Office head office and asked if this was ok and whether I need to keep certain areas free of paint (because of automated sorting machines)....their response was 'bemused' to say the least!!

This is my first one, I sent it to America.  Jane Davies is an artist who owns a post office in Rupert, Vermont in the USA.  Now this has to be the prettiest post office I have ever seen, a small beach hut type post office, all painted white with picket fence, so pretty.

However, there is a threat that it may be closed so in an effort to increase the through put of post she asked people to send handmade post cards.....I am not sure she expected quite as many (there are 15 galleries of cards already!!)...see all the details here

I also decided to send one to my Nan (in NZ) who has been poorly since before Christmas to brighten up her day.
 

Now I am a little hooked on this!!  Fellow WOYWWer, Donna  (http://www.adonnathing.com/doings-of-doone-blog/) takes part in a European collabor-art project who also have a mail art circle where you post handmade postcards naked too!  Donna has challenged me to join and I am proud to say I have just emailed them asking if I can join in (fingers crossed).

Right, my craft room is calling me (its what Sunday afternoon's were made for!).

 Happy crafting

Kyla