Thursday Thoughts...

“Reading for me is spending time with a friend.”

 Gary Paulsen

As the new year arrives and we ponder what it may hold, and how things shall be, it is lovely to start the  with the idea of books as friends. And books and friends.

Two of my favourite things and things that I hope will both play large parts in my 2026.

When I think about books and how they have accompanied me through life thus far; how often I turn to them for companionship and for passing time; there is definitely a through line that connects them with friendships.

Books offer me a lot of the qualities that my friends do - a chance to sit and think, to smile, to sometimes laugh out loud; to feel connected and to enjoy time together. They also go well with a coffee catch up! With friends I often chat about books, we recommend and share them between us and we purchase them for each other for gifts. I often say you are never alone with a book. And you are never alone with a friend.

Books and friends and books as friends go hand in hand.

We have spent time in the recent days printing and writing our 2026 cards. This year mine are full of feminist purple and multiple varied 2026s in wood type. As they head out into the world I wish for a year of hope; of peace; and of kindness. A gentler year in which we find our way back to our best selves and in which we create and make and continue to share.

Thank you all for the time you spend here - I look forward to another year of connecting in blog-land. Go well.a

Elements of this and of that...

 It's the time the year where demands seem to stretch you and pull you this way and that; and there is not often a steady run at anything. Life as a maker creator becomes about grabbing small moments; following up small things; taking a chance on a spare half hour; and doing things in small stages and with small steps.

This post reflects just that.

I handed over the wee book I stitched during the week; and was fortunate enough to view and handle the original. What a delight and special thing that was.

You can see how it would not have survived a new generation of regular interaction, so what a wonderful heirloom kind of thing to do, to re-imagine it as a new book, with lots of love.

I also started to play around with thoughts of my 2026 card. 

I pondered wood type; in a couple of ways, but am yet to land on exactly the design and layout I am after. And also yet to decide what colour I want to print with. But I have begun...

And the studio clean up and tidy up continues with decisions being made every which way (decision-making is exhausting may I say...). 

We have a bunch of collectable type things in the studio so we are in touch with our local vintage guy and are putting together a bundle of items for him to consider. I went through my calligraphy nibs and decided he could have a lot of them, but that I  would save the ones I use the most.

Which sent me looking through all the little packets of nibs I have and sorting and re-packing them. 

Starting afresh with full sets; buying new nib holder so they are clean and shiny (not stained and rusty...). 

And don't they look fine!

A full set of William Mitchells, 

and the spares below...

 

A full set of Brause nibs, with the spares above.

It's funny how good a clean and tidy up can make you feel!

Finding moments at the moment is gold; achieving small things feels medal-worthy.

New Year cards

 And so after faffing about as much as I did in trying to work out how to set some simple numbers, I managed to print the New Year cards.

I had also hoped to do a bit of a blended ink print and so that meant I inked and printed each card individually. It was no drama really, and good practice for me re inking.

I went with a gorgeous green and a deep blue - and they melded nicely. The colours were a bit hard to photograph, but in real life they worked.

The first proof showed that it wan't as simple as I had hoped using 36pt Empire and 72pt Empire. The smaller numbers on the outside were not lining up evenly and so I needed to adjust some spacing.

And then I needed to work out where to position the print on the card. I was using the proofing press which is much more about using your eye for placement that the Adana, where the card slips into a position held by a couple of bars. With the proofing press you line it up by hand and place it down - and there can be ever so many tiny movements...

In the end, they worked out well and have dried well in this heat we have had.

And as ever, before I cleaned up I just wanted to play around with some moving and over printing. I like how this approach makes them look like ripples in water...

They have begun to make their way out into the world, with all best wishes for 2025.

Preparing for the new year

 We often use the time between Christmas and New Year to set and print our New Years cards. It's a thing we started doing because when we were super busy work-working in a previous life, there was no way on Earth we would find time to make, write and post Christmas cards, so we went with New Year. And in the end, it has worked our fine for us, as so many of our wishes and hopes for folk are about the year ahead...

This year I thought I would just do some numbers, and maybe turn them this way and that.

Sounded so easy, but took me quite the while to sort. I have 'flipped' the photos here so you can see what they might print like; rather than try to work out by reading the numbers back to front, if it might work.

At first, I thought that numbers could be read clockwise as you moved around the square. But I got 25 wrong on the bottom and in the end wasn't sure that they looked nicest that way.

Then I thought maybe all the numbers would face inwards, but then when you put the big number inside, I wasn't sure that that worked either. And again, I had stuffed up the bottom numbers!

By now, I can't even work out what I might have been trying to do here! The numbers are wonky every which way.

But for whatever reason I was feeling confident enough to pop the big numbers back in!

Then I thought maybe all the ones you could read horizontally should be easily read, and the two R and L could face inwards. 

But then I went back to all the base lines being towards the centre...

And honestly, this seemed like a good enough place to stop. So I went and set up and inked up.

Before we went to Scotland back in August, a neighbour had given me one of her favourite rocks and asked if I could wrap it for her like I had done with some cement ones for our Pebbles exhibition. I said I would and it went onto the "Before the end of the year" list.

Which seemed to arrive with a rush and a roar this week! So on Boxing Day, I managed to collect the thread and some twigs and happily wrapped the rock just in time.

The before the end of the year list is getting done!

2023, the year in review.

 As is my want about now, I take the time to look back over my year of making and record the ones I like best. It is such a worthwhile thing to do as I can oftentimes barely remember if I made anything at all! In disruptive times it can be hard to keep track and time has become ever more fluid as I get older and the times we live in affect how I view and remember things and events.

And so it was once again, that I surprised myself as I went for a wander through the year and found a bunch of things I had made. In alphabetical order, no order of merit or preference here are the ten things I did this year that I like the most.

On reflection, our trips to Scotland meant that I undertook different types of making; whilst the collaboration I shared with Annwyn became a real focus for my book-making.

1. Charred I

I love this simple and elegant post, inspired by some charred fence posts, cove rocks, rope and rust it became a lovely sentinel in the front garden of the cottage.

2. Charred III

Its not that I didn't like Charred II; its just that I never really photographed it! Charred III is also a lovely reminder of how much fun it can be to simply play together and make something from random things. We had been so busy, and this small piece was just the remedy we needed.

3. Earrings

Still in Scotland, we try to take the opportunity when we can, to do a workshop with silversmith and jeweller Lindsay Gallagher. I really wanted to learn how to solder this year and was thrilled with what I managed to achieve (with help from Lindsay). I love wearing these earrings with their shine and movement. These pebble shaped forms have also become the mainstay of my own jewellery making and I have carried so many of the lessons with me...

4. Grief is a Stone

I was wanting to test and take my calligraphy in new directions and really liked the idea of a sculptural form. Working with rocks from the Scottish cove and beaches, these small sculptures have emerged, with a message that describes the weight of grief at times. 

5. Pendant

On return from Scotland I wanted to try and see if I could remember things about silversmithing and making jewellery, so pretty much went straight into the shed to put into practice the things I had learned. I like the layered movement in this pendant and am proud that I resolved each and every step.

6. The Shape of Things I

This was such a lovely way to begin to re-focus my making. The times of Covid had felt very disjointed and shapeless, so working on this really did help give shape and form to my work. This first unbound book just reflects so many ways that time felt different...

7. The Shape of Things II

By book two I had begun to see the shape or outline of some things...

8. The Shape of Things III

This book had lots of pages, and was a diary of sorts of our collective amnesia; the way in which we avoid thinking about or talking about or acknowledging those times of lockdowns and separation.

9. The Shape of Things IV

Whilst for the first part of our exchange I had focussed on time and Covid implications, for the second part I used the theme to encourage me to work with the existing shape of things in the studio. Book 4 used pre-cut and prepared Perspex as its covers, and some previously cut and prepared papers (extended slightly) for the pages) and took a different colour way entirely. Using botanical-like prints from Annwyn, this books tells a story of unfurling...

10. The Shape of Things V

Continuing my approach to using things up, for book 4 I turned to these pre-folded zig zag books of khadi paper. The addition of a pebble suddenly created ripples and the words began... reflecting how ripples grow, even as they diminish. 

There were quite a lot of smaller things that didn't quite seem as substantial art-wise: my YES posters, my pebble cards, my lovely pouches and threads and some wrapped pebbles.  I also did a couple of courses which helped mightily with my making, but didn't produce actual finished pieces, so it has been a varied year in many ways.

As ever, thanks for coming along on the wander and for being part of my year - I appreciate each and very person who reads and comments and shares their thoughts. 

Go well into 2024, and may we all find, and share, love and care and hope and kindness along the way.

New Year

 Here we are again, on the cusp of a new year as the calendar turns a page.

Once more our tradition of sending new year cards has begun. We have printed and illustrated and written and addressed, and when the post office next opens, we will send.

This year I thought of flowers; sending a small bouquet of flowers to folk across the world; a little something to brighten and to cheer the day. I love flowers and hope others do too!

With wishes and hopes for health and for happiness; for finding ways through; and for loving and enjoying the small and simple things.

New Year

Here we are.

Well and truly ensconced in 2021 already.

And today we finished writing our new year cards, popping stamps on them and getting them packed and ready to post tomorrow. So hopefully they can begin winging their way towards new homes carrying message of hope for us all for the year ahead.

This is a cropped close up of a glossy yellow one; that ink is just glistening!

But here is the card I chose to make. I used our beautiful Amelia wood type (from Italy) at the 25 cicero size.  I wanted it to bleed over the edge; and it does, but I think you can still read its message. I let them dry and went back with a blue print of 2021 using Empire 36 point.

I had no idea how or where I was going to print the year; and originally intended to use larger figures, but when I realised I could print into the counter I thought I should have a go for sure!

Colour wise I was also a bit stumped for the second print and tried out some close to yellow oranges, apricots, deeper reds and then went for quite a bright blue. It stands out.

I quite liked the idea of softer prints as well; so as I went along, I printed hope three times before re-inking.  It has created a lovely blend of prints and a bit of a random selection.

Delectable!

But possibly not as delectable as this cake my niece made for our after Christmas gathering - mango and sublime! And of course, the colour matched so here it is in all its glory.

And this was the dining room table today as we finished writing and stamping cards.

And a quiet corner on the kitchen bench - the last of some agapanthus buds.

The beginnings of a brighter and better year we hope.

Getting ready

 As we wind down 2020 we began to think about our new year cards for 2021.  Our tradition of sending new year cards rather than Christmas cards began way way back (15 years ago?) when we found ourselves just too busy at work in the lead up to get organised enough to buy, write and post cards.  So we gave ourselves a break, and said let's do them in the down time between Christmas and New Year and make them NY cards and so we did.

This week we went to the studio and quickly got going on our cards - inked and printed and now they are drying.

Here are a few glimpses of mine. Partly because they aren't ready to show just yet; partly because I just love all the side glimpse imagery!

I went for a sunny yellow this year - just figured we could all do with some cheering up and there is no doubt that yellow is cheery.

Because I was inking, I was wearing one of my aprons and looked down and thought you know, these things become artworks in themselves.  I love the way the apron marks the passage of time and of the various prints made...

And one of the pockets is looking particularly fine.

And to finish with - a magnificent shot of our Scottish Highlands Village - Armadale.  What a cold but sunny day it must have been (taken just this week).  I love that we can see our wee cottage and it makes me wish to be there. I know we can't be; and I don't know when we can be; but the place sings to my heart and my heart replies...

Right in the middle is our wee cottage, facing the road, opposite the frosty field.