What a hoot!

Kim's challenge for Texture Tuesday is 'Gardening'.  I've had a whale of a time rushing in and out between showers, trying to take some inspirational pix of the 'tools of the trade' we have in the log house, inside an old wooden wardrobe!

Perhaps I should explain the loghouse is an original stone and cob smithy, a place for shoeing horses, about 200 years old.  It was reroofed when our home was built, and we keep all our gardening equipment in it, plus all the logs for the fire - thus Log House!

More tools, at the bottom of the cupboard ....

 Gardening to me definitely means slugs, snails and slug pellets .......

The very old rusty wheelbarrow we inherited with the house, when we moved here 20 years ago!!
We bought the old tools with us ......

Well, I quite like this image, perhaps I could do something with that.   These three items are in constant use at the moment, mostly for weeding ......

 Some good pots, some bad, and some in between - lovely texture on that rim!!

Well, I finally decided to crop this one and have a play in Photoshop Elements.   The free textures I used from Kim were Yesteryear, History, and the new one for this week Old Linen.

This is really what gardening is to me (as well as the hard work and all that digging!)  A poppy I bought some years ago called Patti's Plum - and she makes all the hard work well worth while.
If you'd like to see how the others have risen to the 'gardening challenge' do click on Kim's Tuesday Texture button, on the right hand side.
Till next time .....

On a recent walkabout .....

I'm getting quite excited (!) about some of the photosgraphs I've been taking lately, using the 'macro' on my camera.  I love the ability to be able to look up close at something, and see the beauty that you can't really see with the naked eye. 

Just look at the perfect circle of the curly bits around the edge of this newly emerging fern.  You may be able to click on it to make it a bit bigger, before it 'pixelates'!

Same with this dandelion.  It is just magical to be able to see all those seeds!

The may blossoms were wonderful this year, but until I got up close to take this picture, I never did realise that some of the stamens are pink!!

Till next time ........

A closeup for Texture Tuesday

The challenge from Kim this week is to use at least one layer of her free texture Yesteryear.

 I took this photograph in my garden yesterday of a Foxglove (and a cheeky insect!).  It's a wild foxglove, they pop up all over the place.  Did you know the wild ones only flower on one side of the stem.   (Cultivated ones flower all around the stem)

I cropped the picture and then used two layers of Yesteryear texture.  Comparing the two, the unedited version is much clearer - but then the idea was to soften the overall feel.

Not too sure I don't prefer the unedited version!   I used a 'rubber' to remove some of the texture from the inside of the flowers - yes, I reckon I DO like the 'misty' effect I achieved!

A Flower Cloth - in progress ....

Inspired by Christi Beckmann's article in the Quilting Arts Magazine Issue 50, I decided to have a go at making a Flower Cloth.  I already have quite a few pieces of dyed (in a coffee jar) fabric, so I decided on a brightly coloured piece, then stamped it, stencilled and sprayed it, drew on it etc., sandwiched it up and started to stitch it.  I've done some more work on it since I took this picture.

So far I have only quilted the top third, but it is coming along nicely, so I thought I'd share it with you.  The piece is approximately 15" x 33" and below are some closeups of the finished bits, so far.

Lots more to do, but I am rather enjoying the process, and will keep you posted as I progress.
Till next time .........

Texture Tuesday - Vintage

This weeks challenge for Kim Klassen's Tuesday Texture is 'vintage' - however we choose to interpret what we consider vintage to be, using at least one of Kim's lovely textures.

I looked up the word 'vintage' in my old Oxford Paperback Dictionary and it says, among things such as vintage wine and vintage cars ..... adj. of high quality, especially from a past period.   Well I have this very high quality Simon & Halbig doll, this very old but high quality Frister & Rossman hand sewing machine my husband bought secondhand for me when we were courting,and some high quality but rather worn beautiful hand made lace, as the photo above shows.

I played with the image in Photoshop Elements first usng a highpass filter on soft blend mode 100% opacity, then Kim's Golden Texture on multiply mode 100% opacity followed by two layers of Worn Thin Texture from Shadowhouse Creations.

I had another play, this time I reduced all the colour to a soft sepia using Hue/Saturation sliding the hue button until it changed to a colour I liked, then added just one texture layer History.  Did you notice the old wooden cotton reel  ..........?
Till next time

Favourite Foto for Texture Tuesday

This week's Texture Tuesday challenge is very simple - just to link up with our favourite photo that has been layered with any of Kim Klassen's beautiful textures.

I took some pictures of the amazing hoar frost we experienced here last Winter, and this one, I think, is my favourite.  It really does look very unreal and is a photo of the top of a Devon bank, the dried ferns were everywhere, but I honestly don't know what the straight plant is that had been frosted, probably what was left of some dock.  The whole scene was really magical.

I played with Layers in Photoshop Elements, and used Kim's Textures Silence and Start, using both blend mode on soft light with the opacity at 100%.  Amazingly simple, and I love what happened, especially to the sky!
Please do click on the Teacup opposite to see what the other people have submitted for this Texture Tuesday.
Till next time ...........

Tuesday Textures with a vintage cup

This week at Kim Klassen's Cafe the challenge is to use a coffee or tea cup and use any textures we wish.  This is a bone china teacup and saucer, made in Japan.

I wanted to try for a 'pale and interesting' look, but I think there is too much 'pale' and not enough 'interesting'.  Quite pretty though!

I then decided to go for something more English ......  English cup and saucer, Earl Grey English Tea and Lilacs gathered in the spring (again).  Can't get much more English than that ....

Interesting, but the lilacs are far too pale!!

How about adding some interest with English Literature ....

Not bad - but I've realised I don't like wonky cups ....!!

Just a cup, saucer and lilacs then .......

Love the reflection in the tea - very poetic ...!

One more go with the Earl Grey tea - love the background with the various colours.
I had great fun playing - do click on Kim's Teacup on the right hand side to see what everyone else has been up to.
Till next time....