Author: Clare at CatsEatDogs

‘I like’ Friday. Top Tips from vintage books.

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I recently picked up some excellent books from the library sale cart and the local antiques mall. Old books are among my favorite things, the covers, the advice and the illustrations.  I love the books which were obviously very fashionable and cutting edge in their information at the time of publication.  Of course some of the writing is out of date and sometimes hilarious but a lot of it is still relevant and timeless. ‘New Bodies for Old (Why, Where and How to Exercise for Figure, Beauty and Health)’ by Dorothy Nye  was written as a guide to exercise written in 1936 and it has some sage advice for would be exercising ladies. On the first page, second paragraph we are treated to the following wisdom about the ideal body shape. “It is, primarily, a figure of bone and muscle over which a silken skin stretches in taut perfection. ” No pressure then…. They use the Rockette dancing chorus from Radio City as an ideal, citing measurements to aim for –   Top tips from …

My Daily Moleskine 2017. July Pages.

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Half way through the year and half way through my Moleskine Daily Planner as I create something on each day. It continues to serve as a visual diary as much as a creative habit because I will stick down stickers or business cards or things I have found that day. Here are some pages from July. I was making some collage pages and used the left over paint here! Left over collage pieces with some paint and china marker added. My Goodwill haul and some sun prints. We were painting watercolor flowers through July and some strayed into my Moleskine along with a moon. Predictably, another flower! Black gesso and a test of some face stencils I bought. A catalogue card from an old library book and some ephemera from a parcel sent from my friend in Finland. Some flow acrylics on a vintage photo and a copy of an old cigarette card in some colour. Sumi brush and watery ink flowers. I removed the spine from an old book to use the covers to …

‘I Like’ Friday

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Lots of things to like this fine Friday! A modest trip to Art Mart to get some book tape.  Came out with deep violet high flow acrylic, gold fluid acrylic a new sepia pen and a Jon Snow key chain (for my teen).  Any art shop which sells Funko Pop key chains has my vote! Moon phase stickers from Stickerdoodles. I keep borrowing this fabulous book from the library, it might be time to buy it! Stunning cigarette cards from the gorgeous shop of Beets and Birch.  I adore these cards as I already have lots which my grandma gave me.  Mine are a mix of tea cards and cigarette cards. They were given away in each pack of tea or cigarettes until the 1970’s I think.  Grandma kept all hers and gave them to me in the 1980’s carefully kept in a ‘British Home Stores’ bag! I am very pleased to have these cards to add to my collection. The new Art Journaling magazine has two of my Get Messy friends inside it’s covers …

Art Marks 30 Day Summer Challenge, my journal so far.

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I am joining Rae Missigman again this summer for her Art Marks 30 Day Summer Challenge which started on July 15th. Encouraged to work small for this adventure, I made a little sketchbook using kraft paper and textured paper with a Ray Bradbury paperback for the cover.  I put lots of pages in it so that I could do more pages as I feel inspired and hopefully fill it up. Well, I am nearly halfway through my book and only on day/prompt 12 out of 30, so I am excited that I will fill my little book up!  Yay. Day 1. Dense. Day 2 and 3. Scrawled and Curved. 4. Geometric. 5. Ruled. I had to use part of this vintage ledger page, it is ruled and someone has written Fish and Chips on it! 6. Wide. This wide washi tape was on an envelope my lovely friend send me, I peeled it off before I even opened the letter! 7. Interrupted. I interrupted this girl with a tree. 8. Blurred. Illustrations from a discarded …

Daily Creating April-June 2017

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The 100 day project overtook my posts on my daily Moleskine, but it didn’t overtake the actual project.  I have to say that creating little daily art spaces in my Moleskine diary has been a joy this year. I literally put anything in there that I want to. I may be learning a new technique and a page will be used for practice or I may find a sticker which will be added or someone will send me a postcard and that will be stapled onto that day. It is becoming a record of the year as well as a creative practice. April’s pages were all made using Rae Missigman’s prompts for her Mark Making Monthly challenge.  It is always nice to have a jumping off point for each day.   May was back to me and I made marks, stuck stuff down and splashed colour about! These ladies were in a discarded library book so I cut them out and gave them new accessories. There is always something to draw and paint, these vintage …

What did I do this weekend?

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It has been a hot and sunny weekend here in the deep mid-west!  It did rain last night and that was very welcome. I had a single ripe tomato on my plants and this morning when I went to pick it, it had gone, stolen, presumed eaten.  One of our furry long tailed garden friends I am sure is the guilty party.  I always try to grow lots of tomatoes to share with the squirrels but to take the very first ripe one, that was mean. Lesson learnt, when I see a ripe tomato, don’t leave it, pick it! Over the weekend  I bought a few new art supplies in the form of acrylic gouache and some basic kraft paper to make sketchbooks from.  I love the colours this gouache comes in and choosing a few was a difficult job. I bought this book from the library sale cart for a whole 25cents!  I don’t think I will use it for anything except sitting on my shelf because my grandad was a morris dancer and …

100 Days of Creative Ideas 91-100. I did it!

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I did it! I staggered over the finish line clutching my energy drink and feeling my legs get wobbly.  I checked my finish time and yes, I made it.  100 hundred ideas in 100 days. Here are the final ten. 91. Go to the grocery store and find something to use as an alternative art supply. I used a toothbrush and ink. 92. Use a natural object or plant as a brush or pen. I used some ornamental grass in a bunch as a brush then one stem as a pen. 93. Write a poem about Tacos! Maybe an illustration to go with it.  Here’s mine Do you like tacos? I can’t get enough But only if they are filled With lots of tasty stuff. 94. Start a sketchbook at the back and work forward. 95. Draw or cut out two faces which are about the same size and facing the same direction. Cut each in half and stick the mis-matches together to make a new face. 96. Write a children’s story. Make it into …

Weekly Photos 2017. 27/52

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  1. We spotted this beautiful Swallowtail butterfly in the woods this week. 2. Can you see the Mantis on my basil plant? 3. We went to the newly opened Clementines Creamery  on De Man Ave in St Louis, the ice cream was amazing and I liked the floor! 4. I messed about with ink and ornamental grass for one of my 100 day project cards. 5. I am painting a watercolour flower a day along with Creative Bug this month. Happy Monday x

Get Messy Season of Colour/Color Week 5

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This season is flying by and has been one of my favorites which I think may be because I made my own sketchbook from paper bags and an old giant atlas and I have tried to not put any pressure on myself with any of the pages. This has sometimes worked and not always worked if I am honest. I don’t want a half full book, so I am working to fill it and I don’t want to turn over a page I don’t like without finishing it (I would totally do this in a bought sketchbook).  This has meant that on more than one occasion I have had to slog through a page which didn’t start at all well and keep working on it until it transforms. I am happy to say that I have ended up with successful pages in my eyes. I have been enjoying the prompts and the tutorials provided by the Get Messy team this season, to the extent that I haven’t done nearly as much as I have been …