A wird of Dahl and a skitch of Blake

We've been romping through the imagination of a mighty talented writer these past few weeks. My son has been studying the works of Roald Dahl at school. We wrote a story together called the Magic Sketchbook (wonder where he got that idea from!).

We're working our way through Dahl's back catalogue. Just recently we got scared by fire breathing monsters in the Minpins (which were so hideously frightening that they had to be constantly hidden in plumes of smoke), ran from ENORMOUS crocodiles (and celebrated when they catapulted into space), dug tunnels with fantastic foxes and wagged magic fingers at people with guns causing them to turn into ducks. It's been a romp!

When I had to think up a subject for my turn to host the Inspiration Avenue challenge, I consulted my imagination and it really had only one answer! The world of Mr Dahl of course.

It being another week from hell in terms of workload, I didn't have time to write and illustrate an entire children's novel... which was a shame... So instead, I thought I would try my hand at the work of Dahl's illustrator - Quentin Blake. They are surely a partnership as close as salt and pepper. I, for one, can't imagine one of his books not illustrated in Blake's trademark scribbly and spontaneous style.

It's a style a lot harder than it looks to emulate. It's a shame I didn't have time to do more, but here's a few sketches of people, a peacock and a palm tree. Somehow Blake manages to make them look child-like yet professionally illustrated; whereas mine just look like my son drew them! Oh well!

Now I just need to tie all three up into a story. I'm thinking of calling it the Peacock Tale...

I think this makes a fine case for going in Sunday Sketches too... Perhaps I should tell everyone my son drew them???

Abstraction distraction

I painted a richly hued flower for my Mum last weekend (for Mother's Day) and I was all set to show it to you for Paint Party Friday.

Now, the more observant among you will be looking at these geometric drips and failing to see a connection. Well, I can hardly blame you, for try as I might I can't see the fragrant petals and verdant foliage that made up my floral piece either.

It appears that silly Lisa forgot to scan it before she presented it with love to her Mother. Oh no. How will I go to the party now for I have no 'creation' to wear/share??

"Fear not" cried my Fairy Godmother (in a somewhat exasperated tone, and frankly I don't blame her). "You have piles of art cluttering up the entire house, allow me to wave my wand and you can 'wear' one of those instead."

Et voila! (Bet you didn't know my Fairy Godmother was French did you? I didn't either until just now). I am now swirling in what I'm calling 'raindrops on window'. Given that the sun hasn't stopped shining for two days, it hardly matches the weather, but hey, needs must.

So close

"The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever." Jacques Cousteau

I live about as far from the sea as you can get in the UK. Admittedly, in the grand scheme of things it's actually not that far. A couple of hours drive should see me there, but it's still rather an effort. When the sun shines of course, that couple of hours drive gets doubled as everyone with a pair of sandles and knotted hanky to their name heads for the coast ready for a day of sand blasting and seagulls nicking your chips.

Yesterday took me coast bound for work. I was about as close as you can get without getting sand in my sandwiches but never got a glimpse. Too busy readers. I was up to my eyeballs in brocolli and cauliflower - I bet your mind is boggling.

After a day of meetings, examining seedlings in fields and understanding packing processes I was homeward bound. The brilliant blue sky of morning had been replaced by mizzling rain and time was racing. There wasn't a moment to spare to gaze at seascapes and even the pull of a sign post enticingly reading 'Sea's End' wasn't enough to keep me from my homebound journey.

I miss the sea though. I'm rather fond of our British coastline with its rock pools, shingle banks and sandy dunes. Put me on a beach and I just want to run - not necessarily into the sea, this being the UK and all that... But I love charging about in the sea breezes and letting go, crinkling my toes in the sand and crashing through pebbles.

A trip to the seaside is never complete without returning with a pocketful of pretty shells and interesting pebbles. My son has inherited this little habit of mine. Between us we'll have collected enough for a whole beach in the back garden soon.

Do other countries enjoy the coastal fashion that is the knotted hanky I wonder? I very much doubt that the French or Italians would ever be seen dead in such an item. I can almost feel their shudder of distaste from here.

So, Monday was the day that I nearly got to see the sea. Still, not too long before I'll be dipping my toes in the Aegean... Ah bliss....

Here's a seascape I painted a year or so ago. I actually sold this one! Think I'll take the paints to Greece with me this year.

A duet of adorable cute

It is with great honour that I share with you that today I shall become Godmother to my twin nieces. I am already Godmother to their sister. What a lucky lady I am.

They celebrate their first birthday this week too. A duet of adorable cute keeping their parents dancing. You can't look at them but shower them with hugs and kisses.

I would also like to share that this picture up top is at last the finished piece I have been working on for too long. I had despaired of ever having the perfect gift and, if you saw Friday's contribution to Paint Party Friday you will have learned the fate of versions I and II of this piece... It became an eye... That canvas just did not want to be a fairy, I am telling you. What can I say? I am weird!

There I was lying in bed this morning trying to convince myself of good reasons not to get up when I spotted the soothing portrait of Madonna and child that I have by Flor Larios. At last it came to me how my piece should look. I attribute this to Flor's wonderful style - you should pop by her websites and take a look if you are not familiar with her work.

Sharing this piece and the rather special one below for my nieces, Sunday Sketches and the perfectly appropriate Illustration Friday theme of Duet.

Let me present to you now Len and Sid. Firm childhood favourites, this little pair of scamps reside in the Blackberry Farm series of stories. My son and I thought a picture of them would be most appropriate for the other twins in our lives, and given the mischief they are apt to get up to, well we couldn't very well pass up the opportunity to turn them into a card now could we? I admit he had a little help... I sketched the outline and then, as it was for a very special occasion, let him loose with my Inktense pencils to colour in. We turned the pencil to paint together (I did the small bits!). He was over the moon when I said I would share his work of art on my blog!

Confessions

Yeah, so I'm really naughty. As far as I know, Kate Middleton does not follow my blog. I have not been invited to the Royal Wedding as a conseqence of my inane ramblings... and nor has Elvis!

What can I say? I love April Fool's Day! A good prank needs to be topical and strangely believable, but also hold a few clues as to its mischief and I always like to get more and more ridiculous towards the end of the story which catches out those who skim read! Elvis sitting next to Amy Winehouse at the wedding? Surely not!

Inserting an anagram of April Fool helps too. Floral Poi is not really a type of tea leaf favoured by royalty... although it does sound rather refreshing - possibly a blend of Jasmine and green leaves, rich in anti-oxidants blended by ladies wearing flowers in their hair.

I doubt too that Jeeves the supercilious footman personally delivers each invite - especially not to commoners like myself! And anyway, I doubt I would have invited him in, he probably had smelly feet.

And so, I apologise to those I caught out on April Fool's Day with my Royal Wedding invite - blame the internet, PhotoShop and Google image search for making it so easy! You have a whole year to think up one to get me back!

Who am eye?

Eye am creative, innovative, dreamy, full of cold (yes, still) and chock-a-block with mischief (see last post).

Eye love to watch words spread themselves out in front of me creating story. Eye look for the hidden angle, the shy wallflower in the shadows that needs to tell its tale.

Eye like to step where angels fear to tread - though often find myself looking down from scary heights and wondering how on earth I got there and might get my feet back on the ground again...

Eye have a vivid imagination which gets exercised in my dreams... Who would have imagined that there was an extra room in my house I had forgotten all about that I could use as an art studio - once I'd removed Duran Duran from using it as rehearsal space?

Eye use my creativity at work but not enough. Eye need to focus more on how I might achieve this. Eye think I might like to teach on the subject.

Eye have to go now and cook dinner...

A self portrait for Inspiration Avenue's challenge (of sorts - well it matched my old Avatar anyway, and has now become my new - thanks Heather for the idea!) and something for the party goers at PPF.

Regular visitors might be interested in the story of this painting. Just a few days ago it had a fairy and twin girls on it.... Then it just had a fairy... and then? Well, eye just don't what happened?

Canvas with more layers of paint than an onion. Eye mainly created using palette knife - reflective of my mood.

Something rather special

You cannot imagine how much I have wanted to share this news with you my readers but I have been under strict instruction from the powers that be to keep schtumm until a certain day. Well, my loves that day has arrived and at last I can tell you the rather wonderful news that has befallen me courtesy of one of my avid readers.

Yes, it appears that none other than a certain Kate Middleton has been hanging on my every written word for the past two years and could not allow her nuptuals to pass by without grabbing the chance to meet yours truly.

With access to the sneaky bods at MI5 it was clearly no problem for her to seek out my true identity - though she didn't bother with such subterfuge and just dropped me an email asking for my address. Shortly thereafter a gold-edged envelope was personally delivered by an elaborately dressed footman called, somewhat appropriately, Jeeves. I invited him for tea while I penned my response but he turned his nose up at my run-of-the-mill teabags and instead brought out a flask of the royal blend of Floral Poi - the Queen's favourite apparently.

So, clearly I will be busy on 29th April. I'll be seated on the bride's side of the cathedral if you want to catch sight of me on the telly - five rows back from Amy Winehouse and Elvis - hope I can see over the top of her beehive!

Now, there remains the ultimate challenge.... What to wear?