At My Little Desk

This is my little desk that John made me. It is here that I do most of my painting and charm making. I needed somewhere that I could tend to the washing, cooking and other daily duties that was close to it all but out of the way. I use to do it all on the kitchen table but that isn't very practical as you can't just up and leave it. I still need to sew and paint large pictures at the table but it is really good to have the desk for all my fiddly work. We also attached a little old vice to the desk for holding the charms while they are being soldered.

The little mat on which the desk is sitting is a floorcloth that I painted a couple of years ago. Most people are horrified to see me using a "painting" as a mat but it is made to stand up to wear and tear. Floorcloths were the precursors to lino and were made out of old sails. Mine of course, is not but is the next best thing I could find- a heavy painters drop sheet. There are plenty of instructions on how to make one on the web so the hardest thing was the design. What I like about them is that you can get a design or certain look that you can't get in mass produced floorcoverings. Very unique!

I paint both miniature and large paintings. These pictures in the charms are tiny original watercolours. They are quite quick to paint but require a lot of concentration. I can ruin a whole painting with one wrong brushstroke....intense. On the other hand the larger acrylic paintings I do are very liberating as you can apply paint quite wildly. Very enjoyable. I mostly paint because I would like a particular look somewhere. So instead of buying a painting or wall hanging, I have a go myself.

I have also tried my hand at some fabric painting. Some days I just get the urge to do a painting so with brush in hand, on this day, I decided to paint some fabric for deck chair covers. I always feel much better when I have gotten the painting bug out of my system. It always seems to happen most in Autumn- I think because of the beautiful weather.

All I know is there is nothing quite like the feeling you get when you create something with your own hands.