Lavender – The Art of Cobwebs

I promised, last week, to share with you some Textile Art, made by yours truly. [grins] – So, Ladles and Jellyspoons, may I introduce … The Copper Topped Lavender Mob.

Three enchanted mushrooms mounted on a piece of aged, half round, wood which was cut and sanded smooth for me by Mr.Cobs.

The wood was treated and sealed, and then finished in a way that I love – it has a soft sheen to it and it’s as smooth as a baby’s you know what! It has a beautiful softness and warmth about it, and picks out the various shades of natures gift.

The mushrooms began life as part wire armature, with a selection of fabrics which go through a process of: washing, – dying, – staining, – then a lot of sewing, followed by colouring with a type of fabric paint, and finally, finished with whatever I felt the mushrooms needed in order to bring them to life. Everything is sewn by hand – even the gills (on the underside) are all hand pleated and stitched into place. Likewise the frills on the mushroom stalks are sewn and stitched in place by hand.

It’s not a quick craft, but it’s certainly one I’ve fallen deeply in love with.

The end result from all the work and an abundance of patience, is something magical, normally seen only in The Land of the Fae.

Although they look quite solid – they actually aren’t. They do have a gentle stiffness to them – after all, I needed them to hold their shape and be the piece of artwork I wanted them to be. But when you touch them, they have a ‘give’ or a slight ‘bounce’ – just like the regular mushrooms you buy from the supermarket or greengrocer have.

The green stuff clambering over the wooden base … isn’t moss… well no actually, it is, but it’s not real moss. But the stones and stone chippings …. well they are real. As are the trail of teeny tiny oak tree leaves. Yes, they really are real. How did you harvest oak leaves so small? [I hear you ask] …. Well, what else would you expect from the Land of Fae? Tiny fairies, tiny trees, teeny tiny oak leaves. Naturally!

The ‘Copper Tops’ aren’t real copper (of course), the fabulous colour comes from them being blessed by the Sun. These mushrooms grow in the woodland areas of The Land of Fae, and like nothing more than stretching their necks right up, in order to catch some of the sun rays, ~ from which they get their coppery sun tan!

Oh, and of course … as artists of the world do … the Copper Topped Lavender Mob are signed on the underside of the base ….

…. and the Union Jack nestled in the base is there to show they are UK mushrooms, produced in the United Kingdom by a UK artist!

These photographs don’t truly show the incredibleness of this little gang of three, the pictures don’t share their magic; nor their extraordinary twinkles which happen when the light catches various parts of them; neither do the photos share the unbelievable glow they have! I roped Mr.Cobs in to see if he could capture their amazing magical glow which my camera couldn’t….

Copper Topped Lavender Mob 8 — photograph by Mr. Cobs

Mr.C took the Lavender Mob outside and perched them on the bird bath, hoping that the natural light would enable photos to show exactly how lovely they are. Sadly it didn’t work. It would seem that only the naked eye can see these majestic little creatures in all their glory.

I had the most amazing, enjoyable pleasure making these wondersome creations and they encouraged and motivated me to continue my journey with Textile Art.

But … the next magical makes are to be shared another time, for I’ve kept you here more than long enough.

The Copper Topped Lavender Mob have already gone to their forever home. Daughter No.2 saw them and fell in love with them, so they now live with her, and her husband, and my magical grandson, Little Cobs. And it’s the strangest thing. but I feel bereft. It’s kind of like having a child leave home. I miss their presence.

But … now it’s time to go.

Hmmm ,,, – hang on – … there’s something I’m forgetting … [thinks] … oh crumbs! It’s the JOKES….

These are the Jokes Folks!

What do you call a parade of rabbits hopping backwards?

A receding hare-line!

~~~ ❤ ~~~

What rhymes with Orange?

No it doesn’t.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

Why can’t you hear a pterodactyl dinosaur go to the toilet?

Because the ‘p’ is silent.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

I’ll be back with some more Textile Art in the next blog post – only next time it will be something a little different. Thank you so much for coming and sharing a coffee moment with me. Have a beautiful Monday, and a truly blessed week.

Much love and and a bunch of squidges ~

Morning all, and a very Happy Monday! Something a little different from the norm today.

Some folks might already know exactly what an ATC or an ACEO is, but some may not, so I’ll give a short explaination to make sure that we’re all reading from the same hymn sheet and no one is at a disadvantage!

ATCs and ACEOs are 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inch works of art. The only real difference between the two is the commercial (for sale) intent of the art piece by the artist.

ACEO = Art Cards, Editions, and Originals are virtually the same as ATCs, EXCEPT they were created with the intent to be sold.
ATC = Artist Trading Cards were created with the intent to trade them only. (i.e. given as a swap with someone else, and no money changing hands).

While art is subjective, the quality of craftsmanship and materials used are important, so there are guidelines:

Examples of ‘Sub-par’ works are:

Collage elements falling off / poorly glued / glue showing
Cards of the wrong size (It’s a very strict size of 2.5″ x 3.5″)
Computer print outs which haven’t been made by the ATC maker, and poorly drawn over.
Cards created with little to no thought (i.e. a sticker or rubber stamped image on a plain piece of cardboard with little to no extra effort)
Scribbles on a plain piece of paper

Basically you should make what you would dearly love and want to receive.

Ok .. schools out.

I like to paint my ATC’s & ACEO’s – but have been known to make the odd fun art card which may have beads, images, book pages, musical manuscripts and all manner of other things attached to them. It’s just as the fancy takes me. However, these ATC’s / ACEO’s which I share today have all been painted, on water-colour card, pre-cut to the correct size.

This first one was inspired by the Lavender plants in my garden.

Lavender pot — The colour of the mount is actually more like the green in the photo at the head of this post. The flash has changed the colour here and made it look more like a sage green.

The mount in the photo (the surrounding green board) is from a selection of different coloured mounts I asked a framer to make for me, in the right size, with the ‘hole’ cut to the correct size to take the ATC/ACEO. The mounts are not a requirement for an Art Card – but personally, I really love having the mounts if I want to frame a card. The Art Cards themselves are so small, they could easily get lost inside a frame, so I love to use the mounts to draw the eye inwards to the art.

This next Art Card is again inspired by my garden (and again, the green mount has been washed out by the flash):

British Bluebells — Bluebells. ATC/ACEO – 2.5″ x 3.5″ in size.

I have Bluebells in little groups of flowery hats for fairies, all over the garden. When in bloom they look like a fairy milliner has set out a selection of different sized Bluebell Hats, ready for any passing fairy to try on for size.

Of course .. there are some Bluebells which are of the larger size … and I should imagine that the Fairy Dress Designer is kept busy making beautiful skirts and frocks for those fairies who wish to be dressed by the best!

This next Art Card is something from the Fairy Gardens up and down the lands …. It’s official name is Taraxacum – or – to you and me: – a Dandelion Clock. But you and I know them as they really are: Fairies, or Fairy Wishes … which are meant to be picked and blown whilst making a wish!

Dandelion Wishes — Make a Wish! An Art Card ATC/ACEO of 2.5″ x 3.5″ in size.

Although it first appears to be painted simply in black and white, it has three different greens, two different whites, a very soft grey colour and black. It also has some cheeky dots of glitter dust. Well … it’s a Fairy Wish …. it would have been rude not to include glitter dust!

Information about Dandelion plants from that font of knowledge Wiki:

Taraxacum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, which consists of species commonly known as dandelion. They are native to Eurasia and North America, but the two commonplace species worldwide, T. officinale and T. erythrospermum, were imports from Europe that now propagate as wildflowers. Both species are edible in their entirety.

I’m teaching my Grandson, Little Cobs, this poem (which I loaned my Art Card to, as a background) and trying to get him to remember to say it before he blows a Dandelion Clock and makes a wish ….

1 Dandelion poem by SA Hall — *Dandelion poem written by S.A.Hall.*

And finally, in this set of four ATC’s (Artist Trading Cards – aka ACEO’s) is a little bunch of Delphiniums, tied up with a bow of green …

The spring green coloured bow is something which is allowed in an ATC/ACEO. It’s all part of the art.

If you’re interested in finding out more about ACEO’s/ATC’s, and perhaps making some yourself then there are lots of forums which are dedicated to this art form. One here: ATCs For All .com and I’ve also found another site which gives information which you might find helpful here: artpromotivate.com … but Google will be your bestest friend if you’d like to see more.

There are also a bucket-load of video’s on You Tube which you can watch – ranging from a couple of minutes to …. oh, well, how long is a piece of string?!!!

Some people take their Art Cards extremely seriously and will spend hours on them. Some make them for fun and to pass a bit of time doing something which has no stress. Other’s make them for no reason, and some folks make them, and swap them with other makers. Some people make and sell them … and some of these artists have quite a following and can command quite high prices for such a tiny piece of artwork. And then there’s me …. who makes them and will either keep them, send them to someone as a surprise, or I’ll use them on a handmade card … or even use them in scrap-booking.

Have a go! You don’t need to paint, you can glue, stick, draw, … anything! Just do have a go … and if you do … please blog your lovely artwork and let everyone see it. You might just be the person who inspires others to take up this fabulous little pastime, and you might also find out that you really like playing in this tiny frame!

Before I toddle off ….

May I take a moment to say HELLO to some new followers who no doubt will become friends with us all eventually. I won’t name names, but please feel welcome to comment on blog posts and introduce yourself. If you have a blog yourself you can bet your sweet bippy that people here will come and visit your blogs and you might even pick up some new followers yourself too!

Anyhoo … Happy Monday and … have a truly wonderful week! Thank you so much for coming and joining me in having a coffee round the kitchen table. I love seeing you here.

Sending squidges and lots of Monday love to all. Be good to each other, and … may your God go with you. ~