Ruffling feathers

Finding these sweeties in the park cheered me up on a gloomy rainy day last week...

Look at those feathers all messed up by the rain.Whenever I see doves or white pigeons out in public I always imagine that they might have escaped from a magic show, and that there might be a magician out there somewhere waving his top hat in a fury, wondering how he's going to put the show on without the birds!

Inorganics

It's inorganic collection time in our suburb at the moment, time for all sorts of treasures to emerge on the footpath. Sarah Laing has drawn a great comic about the inorganics, which you can read here. I can identify with the way she feels like a tormented werewolf trying to resist all the things that other people have put out. I've been trying really hard to resist picking up more treasure...so far I've only acquired a stash of 1970s National Geographics, and a whole lot of photos, mainly of the beautiful fabric on old mattresses. And some funny looks, while I've been taking photos of said mattresses.

I love the way all the old chairs waiting by the roadside look so inviting. You just want to sit down and have a cup of tea in them!

Well, maybe not this one!

Or to sit down and play your stringless guitar!

My creative space

My creative space today is a sneak peek of a painting I've been working on for ages. It's going to be part of an album cover for Mr. Millicent Crow's forthcoming album, Spring Summer, Awesome, Winter. Drawing the giant rat was a bit gross!

I had a bit of a drama with this painting last night when I managed to spill red paint on it, but I think a bit of gouache has sorted it out. I'm still getting used to watercolours and not being able to cover up mistakes the way you can with oils or acrylics. I think I'll just do a couple more touchups, chop off a surplus bit at the top and call it done!

To see other people's creative spaces, take a look over here.

Happy Thursday!

Paper dolls

I found a girls' annual to add to my collection the other day at the op shop - it's Bunty for Girls from 1968. In between such highlights as "The Missing Bride" and "Hairdresser on Wheels" it's got these great paper dolls. I'd definitely wear some of these "super winter outfits for an alpine sports holiday."

Or those red and white stripy stockings!

My Creative Space

My creative space today is a little bit of procrastination. I was playing around with my watercolours and drew this little seedpod when I was supposed to be drawing the coat of arms of Berlin, of all things. I've just got some watercolours for the first time in about 10 years and I'd forgotten how fun they are!

I liked the way it kind of matches this old fabric, which I'm hopefully going to use in my next project!

To see other people's creative spaces take a look over here, at the new "our creative spaces" blog.

Happy Thursday!

Under the bridge

We found a great painted alleyway the other day.

Complete with enchanted forest, friendly photo-taking joggers, and a giant tui!

Rabbit o'clock

Do you have familiar markers on your morning commute that let you know you're on time? If I'm on my way to work and I pass the woman who leaves a trail of Theirry Mugler's Angel perfume behind her near the top of the hill, I know I'm doing ok. If she's down the bottom of the hill already, I know I'd better start running.

And if I pass this guy in his garden? Then I'll be there bang on 8.00...as long as I don't stop to take photos!

Next Door

We had our weekend coffee at Next Door in Mt Eden the other weekend. It's beautifully decorated, with doilies stuck on the walls and lots of great 60s? 70s? glassware. I couldn't resist taking some photos of the decor and the mirror wall, seeing as we have a similar mirror wall at home (and were very restrained and didn't spend $39 on a swan mirror in St Vinnies the other day)...







And this beautiful wallpaper they have on the walls comes from, um, the shop next door to Next door!

Lovely weather for (drawing) ducks

I don't want to moan about the weather too much, but it's been raining...
and raining...
and raining...
and raining...
Lovely weather for ducks, they say. So I drew some!

My creative space

My Creative Space today is a bit of a his and hers effort. For some reason (I think because I was being scatty and not getting round to doing the drawing on time) Mr. Millicent Crow and I decided we would both draw covers for his new single, which you can listen to here. They're a limited edition of gocco prints - 50 of mine and 50 of his. We've been having fun getting people to guess who drew which one. Spoiler alert - I drew this one:

And Mr. Millicent Crow drew this one:
But I've been told that my one looks very masculine!

To see other people's creative spaces take a look over here.

Happy Thursday!

Thank you

Firstly, thank you to everyone who made purchases from my Felt shop in the month of April. It meant that I was able to make a donation to the Red Cross Japan Earthquake/Tsunami appeal on Sunday night.

Thank you to the op shop gods who helped me find:

An old postcard of Dunedin...

One of Oamaru...

I love that old bus in the foreground, driving past the Waitaki Electric Power Board.

And a new fella. Sorry Mr. Millicent Crow.

I also found a mother of pearl starfish brooch to replace my other mother of pearl starfish brooch (I know) that is missing a few tentacles.

And speaking of brooches, thank you to Susie from Flowerpress who is organising a brooch swap, exciting! You can find out how to enter here or click on that button over to your right.

How about you? Had any good op shop finds lately?