Blogging, Life and Art

I never intended being away so long but somehow blogging no longer feels like it is up there at the top of my list of priorities. I still enjoy writing but there is always so much else to do and life just feels busier than ever. I know I have felt this way before and yet have never quite been able to give it up. I have been writing this now for over twelve years and have seen many old blogging friends come and go, but I have carried on because it felt like something I needed to do, but it no longer has that same pull. And of course, the longer between posts the more there is to write about and the longer it all takes. There has been so much going on since my last post for instance...

I have come to the end of the ten week painting course I was taking and can't quite believe how much new work I have made... and so different to anything I have ever painted before. I really am loving it and want to do lots more, so it was tempting to take the six week follow up course but I was finding it really hard to keep up with the modules (and I haven't finished them all) so thought it was best to concentrate on finishing and trying more of what I have already been doing. These are just two of my recent pieces on paper.

I spent a day at the knitting and stitching show as an Artist in Action for Art Van Go. I had a lovely day working with Maria Boyle and Jenny O'Leary.

Whilst there I took some of the paintings I had been working on and deconstructed (i.e. tore up) and stitched into them, something I would quite like to explore further. I also managed to spill hot wax everywhere because I am so clumsy but that's another story!

I constructed some of the stitched pieces into little folding books.

I finished knitting a scarf from some variegated sock wool and took about fifty selfies trying to get a decent photo for Instagram. I always end up pulling ridiculous faces so I've cropped my face off this one. You really don't need to see me pulling a funny face. I think I'm the wrong generation for a selfie... no plumped up lips and painted on eyebrows for a start! I like the scarf and it matches lots of my tops but I wouldn't recommend the pattern as it's a very peculiar shape. It is the only new thing I've had this month and made from yarn I already had so I'm still on track for no new clothes for a year... ten more months to go!

I spent a brilliant day learning how to carve a spoon and was actually allowed to use an axe which was rather exciting given how clumsy I am.

 

I also got to use a very sharp knife for the final whittling and managed to get away with just a few small nicks in my hand. I was more upset that I was getting blood on the spoon than about anything else.

It doesn't bear close scrutiny but for my first time ever working with wood I was quite pleased. I've started a list of 100 new things to do before I'm 100 and this was one of those things. I'm tagging the posts with them in but not necessarily writing them all down in a list like my sixty by sixty. I have an axe and a whittling knife on my Christmas list now!

Did I mention I have been in a play too? Eight weeks of rehearsing and learning lines so I guess it's little wonder I've not had time for blogging. The performances were last week and it seemed to be quite well received. It was all a bit ridiculous being a typical farce and I think really I just like dressing up. I loved the pink boots... and  I dyed my hair pink to match! It was lots of fun but it's also quite nice that it's over.

So you can probably see why there has been no time for blogging, although I'm on Instagram most days. A post on Instagram takes just minutes and can be done on my phone. You can find me at gina_ferrari_art although it's not all art...

But then if all life is art I suppose it is. There are paintings but also stitching, knitting, food, walks... and even the occasional dodgy selfie.

I'm not saying I will stop blogging altogether... not just yet because it's hard to stop something you have done for twelve years... but you are more likely to find me on Instagram!