Clare Davis Etheridge

Latest Posts

Ways to Forge Creativity into your Day.

I like to create something everyday, even something small like a layer of colour on a blank page. If I don’t know where to start, colour is my kick off point most times, grab some paints and choose 3 to 5 colours and make a background to work on immediately or another day.

Things I might do to fill my creative soul daily –

I like to follow an organized prompt based challenge. This month I am taking photos with Susannah Conway’s August Break and art journalling with Creative Bug and Dawn De Vries Sokol.

Art Journal a background or finish a whole page in one of my sketchbooks.

Sketch a flower from my garden or a mushroom spotted in the woods. Maybe a quick pen sketch or a watercolor impression or a combination of the two.

I will pull out my Gelli Plate and see what I can print with it, or try and use my stencils in a new way. There are so many ways to use equipment like this, the results are seemingly endless and often pleasantly surprising.

Taking a photo of the aforementioned flowers and mushrooms or anything which catches my eye. Remember to always look everywhere, including over your head and close up. I will often get right down to ground level to capture a fresh mushroom while it is in it’s prime. They only last a day or two, so I love to see a new one pop up!

Make a sketchbook/journal from scratch, I have just discovered this and I may well be addicted to combining paper to make my own book. By making your own sketchbook, you can use all the same papers or mix them up with plain sheets, patterns, music paper, used notebooks, tracing paper and even fabric.

Add to or browse my ideas books which are full of clippings and ideas from magazines over the years. I recommend keeping a book just for sticking in clippings for future ideas, mine are full of fashion, recipes, quotes, jewelry, nature and colour ideas.

Absorbing other people’s creativity is also a fulfilling thing to do and I like to –

Listen to a podcast like The Jealous Curator or Elise Gets Crafty, usually when I am walking the dog by myself and I can look like a maximum fool as I smile and laugh along with the presenters and guests of these enlightening interview podcasts. The Jealous Curator’s chat with the wonderful Kate Bingaman Burt had me laughing aloud while wandering the streets recently!

Read a book , I am currently reading Amy Snow by Tracy Rees which is great so far. I picked it up mainly because it is by a British author and set in the UK. I am not usually a big historical fiction fan, but this is a good read.

Browsing a magazine. Current favorites are Flow and Illustoria.

Visit a museum or gallery and stop every so often to make some notes or sketch a part of a painting or a pattern. In fact, I have not done this for a while and now I write about it, I am keen to visit the St Louis Art Museum with my sketchbook! I tend to look for snippets to draw or note down, a quote or description or a colour palette.

Visit the library and browse a new section, see what is in the wild flower section maybe? How about kids picture books? Looking at kids books must be one of the most joyful opportunities in the library! Even though my boys are too old for picture books, they are full of ideas and I still love to browse for the illustrations.

So many ways to keep your creativity alive and inspired. A little everyday.

A little creativity and a little exercise for your body and your brain.

Don’t forget your notebook, you never know when a genius idea will strike!

Happy Wednesday x

Weekly Photos 31/52.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

The end of the summer holidays is upon us, this week we have all the school registrations and supplies to check. The weather is cooling slightly and the mornings and evenings are much more pleasant especially when the dog needs a walk and Pokemon need to be gathered!

1. Mushroom spotting this week, this pink one has the best gills!

2-4. Ted Drewes trip this weekend. A St Louis institution and this is the first time we have been! We won’t leave it so long before we return.

5. More mushroom goodness. I just love the textures on these little fungi.

Have a lovely week.

Happy Monday x

‘I Like’ Friday. The Get Messy Art Journal Edition.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

I have been having some great fun during this first week of the new Get Messy Art Journal season. ‘Get Messy’ is a community of art journalling ladies who hang out via the inter-webs and sometimes in real life. If you are interested in creating art journals or are a seasoned art journaler, you may be interested in joining.

For this ‘season of music’, I made a journal for the first time which was quite a leap, I thought I would not be into making a handmade journal at all. I make enough mess in my art journals and sketchbooks, what if I make the mess of all messes while making the darn book!

I chose a small music script in the form of a book which was stapled together to unstaple and add my own pages as well as keeping all of the original music. I used pamphlet stitch and added tracing paper, mixed media paper and watercolor paper. I soon ended up with a natty little handmade journal to fill.

‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’ is in there somewhere!

Only a week into the journal and I have cut holes, filled holes, stitched with my sewing machine, painted, lettered, stenciled and glued. I have started lots of pages as a result, so let’s hope I end up finishing them all!

This journal seems to be coming up with a style of it’s own, so it will be interesting to see how that develops over the next few weeks.

Happy Creating and Happy Friday x

Postcards from the Past.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

Sending postcards from holidays has always been a mainstay of my travels, don’t forget your address book and a stock of stamps or be prepared to find a local post office. I think this is a British thing, postcards don’t seem to be a big thing here in the USA. I always spent an hour or so at the beginning of any travels writing postcards then searching for a post office to post them! Of course they always arrived home after I did, but it is the thought that counts isn’t it?

I suppose anything in the mail is no longer a big deal, until you get something like a surprise postcard or letter. I love to get a card from a friend, for no reason, just because. Handwritten and chosen for me!

I try and send out cards regularly too, I will grab a few postcards from Ikea or some vintage cards and send them off into the world.

I have collected a few old cards over the past few years and I really enjoy the ones which have been written on. Anything from holiday trips to a highway intersection features on these cards which date back to the early 1900’s. A running theme seems to be when the sender is due home! ‘We are having a nice time, back on Sunday’ type thing.

One of my favorites is the postcard of the highway in New York from 1969 and the message reads ‘Rolling along to school. See you soon, Love Marguerite’. It is the perfect card for the message but still, I have to ask who on earth in the postcard printing department decided that a shot of the highway would be a winning postcard! I would love to have been a fly on the wall when that meeting was held. I am sure it was a breakthrough move in road building circa 1969 and merited a lovely postcard. Mind you, no worse than the postcards we used to send of the hotel we were staying in with a biro cross on the room we were in!! Did you send those? I did and I spent ages working out where our room was on the card!

Looking through these cards I have found at estate sales and thrift shops makes me want to pull out my old postcards which I keep in an album and have a browse through some 1980’s and 1990’s cards. I suspect there are lots of Athena type pictures in there.

Well, whaddaya know, I found my postcards! Most of the ones I kept are advertising or were free from stores or cafes. I am pleased that I didn’t let you down with the ‘Athena’ card promise! The dolphin is part of a whole series of cards featuring kids in cute costumes and of course my 1980’s self bought them all. Fifty five pence per card!

The one of the girls chatting on the fence is from my friend Helen and is typical of the cards I would send and receive from friends.

I used to work in a jeans shop so I am sure that is where I got the Levi’s card which is also part of a set. The others I think were free cards I picked up while out and about.

Do shops and cafes in the UK still have free cards? I thought they were the best thing!

Are you a postcard fan? Still send them? I hope so, everyone needs some happy in their mailbox from time to time. A nice picture and a little note to make someone’s day!

Happy Wednesday x

Weekly Photos 30/52

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

Today we are enjoying slightly cooler temps and some rain. I walked the dog in light rain this morning and we both were grateful for the relief from the scorching weather we have been having lately.

Having said that we are going to see more heat for at least the rest of the week. Sunscreen and hats always at the ready!

In the meantime I am sitting on my porch writing this and listening to ‘Steve Wright in the Afternoon‘ on the BBC iPlayer. Crazy lady sitting on the porch listening to the radio!

Here are some photos from the last week.

1. Some weeds I picked up along the dog walking route. I sketched them and took this snap.

2. This leaf was almost glowing with colour as it sat on the floor of the path through the woods. Is Autumn coming? Not yet I don’t think!

3. We have seen some beautiful cloudy skies this week, these yellow leaves are the perfect contrast.

4. Fabulous tomatoes at Tower Grove Farmers Market here in St Louis.

5. An array of fresh veggies at Tower Grove.

6&7. I was overjoyed to see the lotus flowers in bloom in one of the ponds at Tower Grove Park. The place was full of Pokemon hunters, but I was happy to just gaze at these beauties.

8. One of the pavilions at Tower Grove Park. It is full of ornate pavilions with red, yellow and striped roofs.

9. The base of an ancient tree, it looks like it is about to speak!

School is almost back, only two weeks left before the kids are back. I think we had better start getting up earlier!! We have almost all of the school supplies and new shoes, so I think we are nearly ready.

When are you back to school? Are you out for the summer?

Happy Monday x

‘I like’ Friday. The Crochet Edition.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

Making stuff is the best thing!

I haven’t pulled out my crochet for a couple of weeks and today I thought I would hook a few stitches onto one of my blankets in progress.

I have two blankets on the go because one was getting big and I wanted to take a crochet project on vacation earlier in the summer. So I started a new blanket and a new stitch to take away with me.

The ‘vacation’ blanket which is at very early stages in size, is made using ripple stitch and I am very proud of myself for managing a new stitch! The pattern is here if you fancy a go.

The grey blanket is a giant granny square and I am starting with dark grey in the middle and getting lighter as I work my way out to the full size blanket. The pattern is from the book ‘Craft for the Soul’ by Pip Lincolne.

I am super pleased that I learnt to crochet, it is one of those activities which really makes you slow down, concentrate on what you are doing and create something snuggly all at the same time. Hopefully one or even both blankets will be done for the winter.

Along with some crochet, I had a lovely slice of lemon bar. These delicious desserts are made using a whole lemon in the topping and the recipe is from the Smitten Kitchen book. It was super fun whizzing up a whole lemon to make the bars!

I hope your Friday is going well and you have a lovely weekend coming up.

Happy Friday x

100 Days of Altered Cards 81-100

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

All done. Finished. Hurrah!

100 days of drawing, painting, inking, gluing, stenciling, printing and embellishing vintage playing cards.

I am so pleased with my pile of one hundred little pieces of art.

Never have I worked on such a small area and I have loved the tiny ‘canvas’ which a playing card presents.

There were some cards I didn’t alter because there was only one of them and I wanted to keep them as they are. I also kept one of each card I used in it’s original state.

The ‘Wild West’ illustrations are so cool, I wish I had more of them and the girl in the checked trousers looks like she is equal parts innocence and mischief!

Here are cards 81-100 –

That’s a wrap!

I think I will look for an album to store them in, maybe like one of these Project Life albums. Or I could keep them in a nice box, but they might get damaged just loose in a box.

If you completed The 100 Day Project, well done you! I hope you have an amazing body of work, I bet you do!

Happy Wednesday x

Weekly Photos 29/52

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

Lots of poppies and mushrooms in my world at the moment. The poppies were a happy surprise as I thought they were all done, but no, some lovely ruffled petals bloomed in the sunshine.

Although it has been a hot hot week, there is still enough damp in the woods to produce a new mushroom or two.

There was a funny little crop of mushrooms all jostling for growing space.

We have been clearing the honeysuckle from around the shed and found this sign written by the boys and their friends years ago. An arrow pointing round the corner and the words ‘Hide Out’. They all wrote their names under it!

Happy Monday x

‘I like’ Friday.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

This week I have been liking all kinds of things, it has been hot and humid so there has been more indoor activity than outside.

Grace and Frankie.

I am at the last episode of Grace and Frankie on Netflix now, so I am looking forward to season 3 next year (I hope!).

Marcella

I have only just started to watch this series (also on Netflix) and I am only a few episodes in, enough to have me gripped though. Part of the reason I like it is because it is a British drama and I eat those up, just to see the UK is enough to make me happy. Even if it is part of a police drama.

Hitman Anders and the Meaning of it all by Jonas Jonasson.

I was drawn to this book because it sounds like my kind of dark humor and it was written by the man who wrote ‘The 100 year old man who climbed out of the window and disappeared’ which is one of my favorites. I am not far in, just getting to know the characters, but I am enjoying it so far.

Boden

I haven’t bought anything from Boden for ages and ages, I used to love their kids clothes when my boys were younger. I spotted an ace top in their new catalogue and after a browse, it turns out there is all sorts I would like. This coat, these sandals, this top and this bag!

Stencils

This week I ordered two stencils from Stampington and I am delighted with them. I am not the best stencil user in the world and consequently I don’t use them much, but I think I will be using them more now. Isn’t it funny how you are drawn to some art supplies and not others. Sometimes all it takes is a very talented art journaler to inspire you, Karen Gaunt, I am looking at you.

Homegrown tomatoes.

Are the best. That is all.

Collection of found stuff

This article about found items on the beaches of the UK is so good. It makes me want to arrange all of the stuff we have found in the local woods and creek, not that we have quite this kind of collection. It is amazing what you find!

Gelli Plate printing with seed pods.

Published by Clare at CatsEatDogs

Sometimes I find printing with my gelli plate very confusing. There I said it. Like trying to direct something while looking in the mirror, it is just a skill I do not have. I still love to play with it though, even when I am not sure whether I am going to get a print with negative or positive colour! I really think this is sometimes when I get my best prints, when I am not sure what is going to happen.

I have seen some great prints lately using seed pods so I decided to use some dried honesty plant to make some pages of print and colour.

Firstly I decide on my colour palette and in my mind I wanted these prints to be all blues and blue/greens which as you can see I strayed from a little. This often happens when I get my paints out and start to put them together, some get taken out and some get added. I will sometimes paint a few sample splotches to see what looks best together. For this session, I grabbed colours and got on with the prints.

The Gelli Plate I used is a 4″ circle which I can use directly onto my sketchbook pages.

My sketchbooks here are Ranger Dylusions creative journals small and large, some old music paper, a Moleskine Art Plus small sketchbook and an altered book which I use as a sketchbook and I primed with transparent gesso.

I like to have lots of paper and/or sketchbooks on hand to make many pages at once while I have the plate with paint on it. Of course I don’t want to waste the paint, I want colour everywhere!

I started with the neon so that I can gauge how much bright I want and I can print over it if I gets too much. I can never tell which way I will go with neon, love it or hate it.

Once the paint is rolled onto the plate I added some seeds and printed by placing the sketchbook directly onto the plate.

When all the ‘outside’ paint has been used in prints, I carefully remove the seeds so that I can make a positive print of the seeds and I also use the painty seeds to make little seed prints.

I use new seeds for each colour and the same process to get all the different print options. As I was getting lots of print opportunities from each colour I printed in all of my sketchbooks to make a variety of backgrounds.

I love the stick/branch images I got from the stalks of the dried plant in that grey circle.

To add more random colour to the pages I used the paint left on the breyer to roll colour onto parts of each page.

The music pages ended up with colour rolled onto them using the left over paint from the breyer and I like how the colours are together. I had some bean pods which I used for the small sketchbook print in the middle of the picture above.

The question is, if these are backgrounds, what am I going to add? Well, I am not sure right this minute, but I will share when I finish them.

Honestly!

Happy Wednesday and happy creating x