Magnolia/Tulip Tree

Update.........it appears we are all correct.
The tree is known as a magnolia tree and a tulip tree...see here.
There are lots of different varieties...I think this is an evergreen.
In England most magnolia trees are pinky/white and they flower before the leaves appear and you tend not to get the two together.

 Thanks for all your comments....we learn something every day!!! :-)

Collage....And More Of Thassos

Had a day to myself yesterday so indulged in my favourite pastime......playing with ink and bits of paper!

Made a couple of tags and some backgrounds for mini-pictures which will be mounted on wood when they are finished.
(I was inspired to make tags by these lovely people....Sue at Heloise and Lorraine at Love of Collage.)

Just a few more photos of Thassos......

 We had to travel by ferry to the island from the greek mainland....a 40 min journey.

Spotted this sculpture in the ferry port (Keramoti).

The entrance to the apartments where we stayed....the gardens were so peaceful.

There was a fabulous tree in the garden; can anyone help me out here.......is it a 'tulip tree'?

This wonderful old olive tree was close by....it could be over 1,000 years old. (Click to see a close up of the trunk.)

We saw this tree by the beach and wondered what it was. Then I saw Patty had written about one exactly the same on her blog. Apparently its a Mimosa tree.Thank you Patty! You can see her post here.

And finally...I photographed some sea holly (top right) and had a play with it in Photoshop. I've printed the turquoise one onto fabric and have started a quilted picture. If it turns out ok I'll show you!

 

Thats it! Thanks for sticking with me and getting to the end..... ;-)

Thassos

We arrived back late on Sunday.....my husband drove from Birmingham airport with the England match on the radio. I wouldn't say it was the best he's ever driven .... and I was relieved to get home. Have you ever listened to a football commentry on the radio? The commentators get over-excited when the ball goes near the goal and start shouting and their voices get higher and higher! Not a calming experience....
Anyway, we had a great time in Thassos and all my wishes were granted:

 a Mythos lager at a beach taverna

 

swimming in a turquoise sea

 

photo opportunities (our resort in the distance)

 Greek salad, wine

and interesting wildlife!

This insect was around 5" long (with antennae even longer!) ...I think the 'false eye' on its side is meant to warn off predators. If you click on it you may see its real eye. 

In the mountain village nearby I found a heart tree... 

 ......and this was our village bus stop! Very sensible.....

Final photo for today; we stayed in a resort called Golden beach (or Scala Panagia) and this is the tiny village church.

Back in a couple of days with some artwork and more photos.

Time for tzatziki, souvlaki and Mythos......

I know you're used to me going missing every now and then ;-) but I have a good excuse this time! I'm off to a lovely Greek island this weekend.....  its time for a 'fix' of my favourite things; Greek salad, tzatziki, souvlaki, sunshine, beaches, Greek wine, Mythos beer........










This is a photograph I took last time we were there.....I like the way they  use catering cans for plant pots.

 
I've used clipping masks on both pictures (Lynn Grieveson at Designer Digitals) -  love them!





Back in a couple of weeks.......when I'll enjoy catching up on all your wonderful artwork.

Flowers and Books

I bought some EcoArtboard from here last week.....its actually for a project I'm doing for the Suzi Blu Piety and Passion class (but more of that another time). Anyway, its lovely stuff; I like using thick card for inchies, twinchies and ATCs and this is REALLY THICK! (Its like wood.)
You can buy them in packs of different sizes - this is an ATC size....

Above is my Paper Whimsy flower (downloadable sheet). I've added fabric, hand-made papers and machine-stitching.
In Greek, anemone means 'daughter of the wind'.

 More digital art....

I know you can't improve on the beauty of a flower, so I'm just presenting these (from my garden) in a different way. I've done loads of these but I won't bore you with them all in one go :-)

I've also been making lots of Lotus Flower Books this week as I think I may have an outlet for selling them.

(Update: forgot to mention......the trees and the Madonna are stamps on Shrink Plastic.)

It was great to see some different examples of these books on Sue's blog see here. Her fabric version is very special .......

And finally........

Sharne at Sharne's Bits 'n' Bobs is having a great give-away........ such a pretty journal with a wonderful embellished cover. Don't go and enter because I want to win it...... :-)

How to make Lotus Flower Books

Quite a few of you have asked if I would show a tutorial on making Lotus Flower Books. I'm not up to making videos yet so I hope step-by-step instructions are ok for you. (Thanks to Alysn at the Beetroot Tree for giving me the 'ok' to do this.)





You will need:   4 squares of paper 10cms x 10cms
                        2 squares of thick card 5.25cms x 5.25cms
                        2 squares of paper (for covers) 7cms x 7cms
                        fibre or ribbon, glue

1. Make a horizontal, vertical and one diagonal fold on each of the 4 larger squares of paper.

2. Push the diagonal folds in so that the paper folds into a smaller square.

3. With the folded corners in the same orientation, glue 2 squares together.

4. Continue with the remaining squares.

5. Cover each piece of thick card with the 7 cm square cover papers. Trim the corners.

6. Glue one cover onto the top of the folded papers.

7. Place the ribbon or fibre over the inside of the second cover, tape it down, then glue to the back of the folded pages.
This can be as long as you like, depending upon how many times you want to wrap it round the book!


Decorate your cover and tie the ribbon (or fibre).

I hope that explains it ok for you! If there are any parts that are confusing, please let me know so I can do some editing.

Please link back to me if you decide to have a go.....and show me what you come up with.
Of course you can adapt the sizes if you wish; I have made them in all different sizes but the one above is the cutest!

I hate days like this........

Well I'm sitting in my studio looking out at a depressing scene today....sorry, but I'm not one of those positive people who can look at rain and see beauty. I love bright, sunny days - they make me happy!!

But it does remind me of a fantastic performance by Mika on a recent TV show....see the end of this post.

I had a great day yesterday teaching at the Beetroot Tree but forgot my camera so unfortunately have no pictures! I'm still making Lotus Flower books though and hopefully tomorrow I will put a tutorial on my blog showing how to make them. (Thank you to all those people who have emailed me and asked - I will do my best!)

Here are two more postcards...the first was made for Emma and her 50 swap.....

   

.......and this has one of my digi-collages transferred onto fabric. Both flowers are from Paper Whimsy digital downloads. Click for more detail.

I was lucky enough to win a give-away on Sue's blog (Heloise) last week. She makes wonderful fabric creations.......like this gorgeous pendant......and these funky earrings (which I have already worn twice!) Love the tag as well...thank you Sue :-)

Now for the song....enjoy!! (If it doesn't play well - here's the link instead)