Allsorts (not the licorice ones!)

Today rosie and I carried on with creative things. We headed off to Slimbridge and spent a while sketching flamingoes. Rosie understandably struggled with the fact that they kept moving, and she wasn’t happy with the way she drew their heads, but i love the way she uses the pencil so she doesn’t get solid lines round the edges, and i love the variety of birds she’s captured with their heads under their wings and their necks twisted up in different ways, and the fact that her sketches have movement in them. It’s really interesting how we view our own work as i really like one of rosie’s pictures that she thought was no good and actually crossed out! 

I had fun trying out my metallic pencils and then getting more adventurous with pens. It was interesting to use slightly different colours because those were the ones I had. I’m a bit annoyed with both my pictures… The first because of the solid line round the edge and the second because I think i ruined it with the baby one flapping and jumping up and down… Mark thought it was a scarecrow!! That said, I’m really pleased with the shape of the flamingo with his head back, and i really like the colours together. 

When we got back we got the henna out. Rosie had never used it on anyone before so she tried a simple design on my foot and then did a more tricky bird design on my other ankle, combining bits of two different pictures in one. 

Rosie then found a floral design she wanted on her arm (so it will be covered by her blazer sleeve when she goes back to school), and i did that for her,adding birds flying across her wrist. 

After that we watched ‘you’ve got mail’ which she’d never seen before (I feel that it’s an important part of my role to educate her in great films)! And i finished off my octopus while we were doing that. His  eyes look weird but as rosie and mark both say ‘a premature baby isn’t going to mind about that’! That said… Next time I make one I think i will leave it without a face at all! 

Rosie worked hard and finished her paper cut too. I’m so proud of her as she’s put tons of time and effort into it and she’s done  a fab job, especially seeing as it’s the first time she’s ever done it. 

it’s been so much fun doing all this with rosie and I’ve loved being able to give her the opportunity to try new things while she’s been here. 

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Craft swap

This evening I went to our local library where they have knit and natter on a Wednesday evening. Tonight they also had a craft swap. I came away with lots of bits of material that will hopefully feed my new found patchwork interest for a while! 

I also spent time there and then back in my garden with a lovely Korev lager, crocheting an octopus to send to a hospital for a premature baby. After about an hour and a half i have an octopus with one and a half legs! I love how their legs curl up as you do 2 or 3 double crochets (UK terms) in each of the chain. 

It took me a while to get used to crocheting with cotton, but it’s  ok now and I’m getting quicker with it. It was fun hanging out with lots of crafty people, and bizarre because when one lady asked what I was making and I told her she said “what, one of these?” and pulled a finished octopus out of her bag! She’d already made two, so it was handy to chat to her about it.