truly spacious

keepingonkeepingon

The creation of the pages has begun. More pics over at my flickr set.

xxx

multimedia retroproductions

Happy to be in on Our Lady of Dispatches latest course: Remains of The Day.

I'm enjoying a creative Christmastime, hanging out with a big bunch of other fired-up creatresses, all over the world, somewhere out there/ in here, all in our interconnecting caves, experimenting. Some kind of wonderful.

These pics can be seen full screen, I believe.

Through here if the slideshow doesn't click direct.

And go through here to see more Remains of the Day artistry.

And in other RetroBaby-gets-busy news; I created a little chilled playlist today - link is in sidebar, and also thru here - my first forray into online musicness.

The playlists on U.S. blogs usually don't allow playing here in UK, and itunes gifts don't play intercontinentally, I figured with a non-English Lady today.... but I think this Blip thingy might work all over the place. Could you have a listen and let me know, please?

I've included 4 tracks there which are in my solsticemix - these are seasonless tunes tho; lovely all the time.

And here's one of my favourite seasonal tunes, too. A bonus track, you might say:

Now. On with the experiments... Papers to be gathered and sewn..... the ecstasies of juxtapositions...

xxx

Winter Charms

Wishing you Peace, Comfort and Warmth this Winter!

And pointing out (as if we hadn't noticed the trickster's shadow already) that Mercury goes retro on 26th.

You can check out the dates thru here. And the 2010 continuations here.

Whoooooooooop says the retro~born Tigress.  My kinda Winter charm. 

Happy Restorative snuggling, pottering, diddling and gently carrying on wishes to yoooooooooo.

Here's a fine vid for you to dance yourself warm with.

And my favourite For Now radio station - Christmas Remixed - by the wonderfully named yelo_snoman.

And my third wise gift to you and your ears is this, my favourite delicious chilled version of Carol of The Bells.

And thassaboutitfornow. More seasonality posts as and when.

As and when the impulse comes upon me, that is.

Meanwhile; Thank You to everyone who visits, comments, google-hoovers, or lurks sweetly silent overhere.

Peace Be With You!

xxx

sol stetit salutations

"~The Winter Solstice was the turning point of Time

and the birthday of the Sun,

the moment of new beginnings.

All of Nature was poised then
to step over the border of the year." ...

From Krupp, 'Beyond the Blue Horizon', quoted in

The Winter Solstice ~ The Sacred Traditions of Christmas, by John and Caitlin Matthews.

And ~ "The word solstice itself comes from the Latin sol stetit, literally "sun stands still" which recognizes that for approximately six days in June and again in December, the sun appears to rise and set at more or less the same point on the horizon, appearing to stand still in the sky". 

Solstice Blessings to you! Happy Stillness and Good New Beginnings...

Farewell, Sagittarius 2009, and Welcome, Capricorn Times, 2009.

"This day will never come again."

xxx

snowylove, continued

 

My outside decorations went up as the snow came down yesterday.

Altogether Lovely.

A little GingerBread House~ness. 

And a little freeform Winter Wildness around the pole, by my 19 year~ole assistant.

And the ageless Wind.

xxx

just 2 say

It's been a while ~ there's a new post over at My Lovely Garden. xxx

December discussion

My newest friend, Roo-dee-ee, is discussing things with his pal Robin.

They reckon that sharing a shelf with a rolling pin, a flask, a rainstick, and other sundries, is fine.

They agree that the Winter Making Season seems to be coming along nicely,

and that the raw materials are particularly elegantly displayed this year,

in the recent charity-shop treasures.

They understand the need for discretion at this time. 

In the interests of seasonal secrecy, some things are best kept under wraps.

For Now.

xxx

testing testing

Trying out my new onscreen editor. ecto.

The copied+pasted info for the mosaics was messing with the linespaces in the Typepad editor, and after some helpful mailhelp, this seems like an option.

Excuse me while I post in an exploratory manner... can't seem to shift the indent... or the line spacing...

There is another mosaic waiting in the digital wings, but for now, this recent collage play, in a little 6x6 inch book.

xxx

Splendid Things

New Love.  Or, really; Love Rekindled: My seventh-son-of-a-seventh-son Grampa used to bring me precious gifts: wallpaper sample books from his work, when I was about six. To match my body size to the book, now as then, I'd need a book at least a metre square.  Wouldn't that be something...

These are recently acquired samples, of somewhat lesser proportions than the anaglypta delights of my childhood, but nonetheless swoonworthy. They've brought me memories, and good dreams. Wallpapers have evolved Beauty-fully, I was delighted to find. Textures, colours, patterns. Altogether marvelous.

  

And in an ecstasy of photographing, earlier, I got around to snapping pics of some recent playing, too.There are more, of course. For now, these. (Pics click clearer.)

 

And if I can get another of my dreams to come on thru, I will make a new cyber~gallery soonsoon, specially for this new wave of play-produce. The more collage I do, the more I recall having done, all through my Life, since I was Quite Wee.

Seeing Mary Ann's sublime pics today reminded me some more, too. As did a browse thru this gallery.

Talking of Our Lady Of Dispatches, it was she who pointed me in the Tattered Angel direction recently.

So now I await Glimmer Screens and Glimmer Mists. Even the names are Splendid Things.

Awaiting also tonight's last session in the Mother Night series. "Mining the Mother Lode: How to Bring Diamonds from the Darkness (for Working Artists and People Who Want to Create)"

I imagine the recording of this one will be especially good for listen-while-u-work mode, thru the Winter. The download will become available (to buy) in a few days - at Sounds True.

"Our work is not to criticize, condemn, or complain. Our work is to do. And then do again. And again, and know for once and for all, that seeking perfection is the abject enemy of "done." " ~ C.P. Estes

xxx

congruently

Saying Thank You to Rho for bestowing the 'Kreativ Blogger' award upon me... I am honoured.

And..... deep breath... in the spirit of aiming to let congruence lead the way now ~ I'm going to let my initial wince guide me, in terms of not Exactly following 'the rules' with which it arrives. I trust Rho will forgive me, with that grand Aquarian heart of hers...

As to the seven bloggers towards whom I would have aimed you, were I to do this Properly - let me simply aim you to those in my 'real cyberpals' sidebar (for seasoned GoogleReaders; you will find that overhere). Splendid creative bloggers galore in there.

Ok. I'm done. 

Handled. 

Care Taken... everyone's needs attended to...

Integrity intact. 

Just gotta go with That Thing these days, and nights.

xxx

Crows Brought The Message...

Continuing the Scorpionic vids season overhere.... 

I've loved this song for a Long Time, listened to it several million times, driven far away roads to it, danced in it, and tonight I find a Beauty-full vid of it to share. 

With thanks to the kind fellow who put the images so exquisitely together with the song.

xxx

glint

I forgot. I forgot this thing I have that lets me put something from inside onto the page. Deep, strong. Made visible, palpable, with a few simple gestures and pure focused intent.

I remember. I got a little scared. But it's time for courage again. Time to bring it on thru. "Something Is Being Learned."  

 

 

The lighting is a bit late-night in these pics - but I am impatient to post. I'll post more daylit versions too...Rekindled enthusiasm is such a sweet delicious thing.

 

And further sweet deliciousness ~ scone-making is being learned, too.

Is it just me or is this scone also smiling?

xxx

True Diamonds

A few hours in the cyber-company of Dr Clarissa Pinkola Estes last night,

thanks to Sounds True and the Mother Night (Learning to See in The Dark) course,

has brought me greatly renewed Heartyness. 

Diamonds In The Dark is a free podcast of a chat between CPE and Sounds True's Tami Simon.

                                      * * *    * * *    *   * * *    * * *

And these wonderful illustrations come via the kindness of Liam Quin at fromoldbooks.org

xxx

gettin a wiggle on

Suddenly seeing echoes, between my new Proper on-Canvas Painting, and this pic of my splendid black hose.

The latter I just posted in a Medley over at My Lovely Garden, with some other lovely wiggles.

It's spiral-Love time again. Once previously, I posted about my SpiralLove, in 'flourishing'.

I have a bunch of new swirling stamps winging their way to me too. 

Creativities brew, as the chill Autumnal winds come twisting on thru...

xxx

Just Put

Once again, dear Mary Ann catalysed some creativity overhere.

Her links today gave me that gottogettoit artistic jealousy that is the only good kind of jealousy I know. The one that wishes it was doing it's own thing too. So I got to it, and did my own thing too, and here are some views of what the product of that process looks like.

With warm Thanks to the Divine Ms Moss for keeping on keeping on so very bright heartedly; keeping me keepin on too. 

 

 

 

 

There are Archetypal Autumnal pics galore, and some Proper Painting beginning to happen, overhere. More of all that andandand as and when...

(all pics click clearer)

xxx

Germination Anniversary Whoop

Happy LovelyNewHomeBirthday to me!

One Year here already. September 19, 2008, to September 19, 2009.

And what a Lot of changes overhere, these past few months, too. So much newness, so much Beauty and expansion and settling now after the slow storms of workmen. Germination, indeed, alongside the evenings drawing in, and the leaves beginning to leave, again.

The quote above is from Wayne Dyer, whose wise words often help me towards comfier alignments.

I had that quote printed out and constantly around in the times leading up to having this new Home manifest, and while the World in general wasn't sure it could happen... I remained utterly convinced throughout. And here we are now.

And as I looked around me the other evening, I saw a new wheelchair which came to me since I got here, and a completely renovated wetroom, and a whole new accessible zone in My Lovely Garden.

It is all quite astonishing. Really.

My big Thanks to Life for giving me all this loveliness in which to play.

And here's to the next phase of My New Life.

The one in which I intend to go adventuring further into my surroundings.

In this reality.

xxx

synergy swoon

1. enchanted forest, 2. Pecos Ruins 3, 3. Cabin Corner,
4. Castelluccio 1, 5. Castelluccio 2, 6. white door; old adobe,
7. Canyon Road Door, 8. _DSC5052, 9. Undry The Sky

Oooh my big thanks to today's mosaic's generous flickrphotographers.
These images are each so lovely. And together, the colours, textures and shapes make me swoon.

This last fortnight I've had building renovations going on overhere in my sweet Cabin; my nearly-a-year-here-already New Home, and the sight of dugup floors and drying plaster has me adobe-dreaming again. 
I'd like to leave my new wetroom so much rougher round the edges than the building regulations allow. I may get away with bare copper pipes left as-is... that's something... Builders are generally flummoxed by my taste for the 'unfinished'.  WhatcanIdo? I like it like that! But rules is rules, and things have to be 'finished properly'...

As always, click pic for larger mosaic, and click the links above to visit the individual pics,
and the worlds, sets, pools and streams beyond.

New Groups discovered along this morning's trail: Doors and Windows in Decay, and Trees & Tree Bark - from around the world. 

How I love flickr.

xxx

Like Stars

It seems the Summer Break is upon me, in terms of not posting much overhere....

So for now, here are details from a card which I made for a Star-like friend recently, 

and a stitching, finished in new-departure style onto canvas, for a recently-met Stellar pal.  

Who was kind enough to fall in Love at first sight (of said stitching) and ask to purchase it. 

Flattered and delighted, I rustled up a way of making it hangable for her, 

which may prove to be a fine way to finish some of the stockpile of stitchings-in-waiting....

Some stitching-and-stencilling speriments will be happening soon - with some happy encouragement from The Divine Miss Moss.  

Hallo to my new playclassmates peeping on thru from there!

I'll be twinkling around not very far away, and will shine on through here again, 

flapping stencilry and allwhatnot around, some clear night afore very long....

And, Yes. That is indeed a Broomstick. And a Drumstick. Andandand.

Click pic to see clearer.

XXX

Disintegration Collaboration

(All pics click larger + clearer.)

Wayback in February 2009, the bundle was bundled.

I'd found Seth's invitation to disintegrate and document, and o it seemed like a fine thing to do.

bundle love was my first post of it, Feb 11; followed by this one on Feb 23rd.

On May 1st, the bundle came inside again.

Not hugely disintegrated, but thoroughly imbued with the experience. 
Time passing.    Weather happening.   Buds and warmth coming, after coldcoldcold days and nights.

And today, August 1st, 2009, is the Disintegration Collaboration final reveal day.

Sitting in the Sunshine, on July 31st, with a Blackbird eating the already-ripe Rowan berries overhead,
I made a little Something from some of the weathered treasure:

Thank you for visiting. Thank you, Seth, for the sweet Inspiration you bring.
Thanks to all the Elements who contributed so Grace-fully to the making of this, along the way.

It's been a joy, indeed.

xxx

blatant publicity

rolluprolluprollup! Fine new mosaic of gardenartistry over at My Lovely Garden!

xxx

such delicacy

"We say, "While I am alive, I can love."
We say,"While I am alive. I can learn a few things."
We say,"While I am alive. I can help in some ways."
We say,"While I am alive. I can create"
We live because we can and because, unromantically but utterly sincerely, we must."

from the Van Gogh Blues ~ (The Creative Person's Path through Depression - 'Successfully Manage the Anxieties of the Creative Process'), by Eric Maisel, PhD.

These exquisitely delicate visitors photographed in My Lovely Garden yesterday.
Click pics for larger + clearer views.

Happy Creative weekend wishes to us all.

xxx

Loveliness

2 x glimpses of my Lovely Garden, in brightness. Such pleasures, in so many details.

Happy Creative Weekend wishes to us all; waving fond goodbye (already) to Geminitimes,
and welcoming the Cancerian 2009 department on in, on Sunday overhere...

xxx

The Thrill of the Storrum

Ohhhhhhh we had the Best Storrum here this evening.
The first Real Storrum since I've been here. I've been waiting.....

My Silver Birch turned Eagle for a moment, while in the Symphony Department, the new Beaky Boys - Baby Blackbirds - hidden in the dark leaves of the Cherry Trees over the fence, sang their exquisite bell-like hungry newsongs, and the Mighty ThunderBeings belted it out in rumbling crashing glory over all our heads.  The delicious contrast was such marvellous music to my fine-tuned ears.

Later there was Proper Fork Lightning, way too fast to snap, as my GoodPalNeighbour and I Ooohed and Ahhhed over the phone, wondering if we were to be flooded in the torrents.  We were not.

Ohhhhh I do Love a Good Storrum.

There are other recently snapped Sunny pics of the Glorious Garden to show, but for now these darker documents of Wildness shall suffice....

xxx

turnarounds

Well, now, that was quite a week.
I've been super-ill, and am glad to say I am bouncing back now.
In time for my Birthday on Sunday, but not with enough gusto yet to have the party I'd hoped to.
I'll wait till I can enjoy the preparations too.
I have designs on a balloon-festooned garden, and an array of Butterfly-ness to be created....
as and when.
Meanwhile, I'm glad that something in me knows how to bring 39+ temperatures back in to land, and to turn around all kinds of suboptimalness. Amazing, how it all goes on.
And the week brought me further gladness of being here, with the kindness and availability of the home-nursing people. Everyone is so much more at ease here than in my previous habitat.
Well, most folks, anyways.
Ok, that is all I have to say for the moment.
Except: I am really really really in Love with my Garden now.
O, and; Mercury Direct again already? Are you sure?
xxx

revised synergy

1. 注連縄(Shime-nawa), 2. Kitakyushu City Manhole Cover, 3. Ceramic Donuts,
4. Kyoto026, 5. Korin-in, dry garden.jpg, 6. Ammonite revealed,
7. Int'l Community House, Kyoto.jpg, 8. Untitled, 9. Shosei-in2 (Kikoku-tei), Kyoto.jpg

An altered version of yesterday's (now-deleted) delicious synergy. (I'll spare you the details...)

Keeping it sweet here at truly spacious.

Thank you to the generous flickr artists for these and many other images in their sets and pools.

Click pic for bigger clearer synergy.

Happy New Gemini Moon to us all. 
Two weeks till the Big Bright Fullness; my 2009 BirthDay gift.

This time last year I was preparing to recce my possible new homeground.
This time this year, I am home, on new ground,
singing the praises of My Beauty-Full New Garden, every day, and many nights too.

xxx

patio pleasures

Lani asked me, earlier: "where are you?".  
Here I am!

Often to be found on my newly created patio, enjoying being in ways entirely new to me.
Creating a garden is feeding me deepdeepdeepdeeply. 
So much enoughness, just sitting with it all, sometimes. And in pottering.

This swoonably lovely Spring evening, after Watering, after some sweet planting with my goodneighbourfriend, brought Stars and Bats.
After days of unsettling winds, the air is stiller, calmer, warmer, altogether delicious, this first Gemini 2009 evening. 
Welcome Gemini Time! Whoooooooop.
And we have a few more Mercury Retro dances to go, too. My kinda back to front strange flittery times.

Words fail me, sometimes. While othertimes, they serve me rather well...

In other news, I am spending a lot of time lying on my sides while I heal some more tricky skin probs.
And my legsore continues healing well, too.

It's all rather simple overhere. I like it like that, for now.
xxx

naturally

The light round here some days is utterly astonishing.

There are many, many,
lovely recent Garden pics,
to be posted, in time.

But for now, these.

Fresh Rowan-ness,
lit only by Sunshine,
against a battleshipgreysky.

Click pics for greater depths.

xxx

stencilry andandand

 

 

 

 

This was/is week 3 of Pure Experimentation, and O I am pleased with my splashings this weekend.

I made two 12x12 Things.

I just Like how these details all look. Little worlds within the bigger Thing.

Collage from magazines, hand-cut stencilry (the starburst-flower and petals), Proper stencils, and inks, paint, pens, stamps ~ whatever was handy....

Good to be making pics I'm proper proud of!

xxx

Beautiful Things

"A beautiful thing, though simple in its immediate presence, always gives us a sense of depth below depth, almost an innocent wild vertigo as one falls through its levels."

~ Frederick Turner, quoted by John O'Donohue, in 'Divine Beauty'.

SpringProfusion, 2009.
These are mostly in my Beauty-Full Garden,
and the Nettle Tribe and Big Grasses are in the Enchanted Woodland,
on the 5 minute path between My House and The Nurses, and The Shops.
It's a simple Life overhere at the moment,
with So Much Things To See. And levels Galore.
Taurus 2009, trumpeting forth, in grand style.
xxx

pure folio

This week's Pure Experimentation class direction was to create a portfolio to contain the products of the stencilry fun which we'll be having in the forthcoming weeks.

Seeing the richly inspiring vids had me rummaging yesterday in stash bought long, long ago.
And today I set to.
Enjoying the shadowplays that come with synthesising multiple patterns.
And being quite Happy with what I've put together. Inner and outer, both with their own flavours.
It's about 13 inches square: I intend to work on some of the 12x12 card stash I amassed years ago...

Good to work loosely, tho I didn't get quite as splashy with it as I think I will.
MA's freedom with paint and stencil and overpaint and wipe andandand, made me realise I'd like to play more easily with it all, too.

Still, it's a fine start, eh. Good to be in Beginner mode again.

Here are some detail pics. All pics click much clearer. 

xxx