Anglesey

It started out very unpromising I was still upset from yesterday and wi h a headache and problems to sort out we were all in a bad temper and the traffic was dreadful.  We went to a beach that Matt has holidayed at since his childhood and it turned out to be a fantastic spot. We left the two of them on the beach and walked up onto the headland

Trearddur Bay

We managed to meet up in a pub for lovely fish and chips.

Drove back in a much better humour thinking that this might be somewhere that we could retire to. Once the cottage is sold not only will we have the money from the sale we will also have the money we pay in each month.

A day in Morecambe

Alan and I went to Morecambe for the day I had wanted to take him to the Midland Hotel ever since I stopped in on my way back from the lakes.  We went because I thought they were building sand sculptures on the beach but they weren't. So we ended up parking and walking along the sands. It was fabulous the enormity of the skies and  the stretch of the beach.  We came across so many aspects that I wanted to record.

           

             

                           

                           

                              

                   At the Midland Hotel Alan had fish and chips and I had potted shrimps

                                  

A day in Blackpool

Saturday 

Didn't sleep felt anxious about exhibition I felt Fiona was taking over. I emailed Kate and she rang and we talked and she had practical solutions- so much better.
To Blackpool to see Jennys exhibition at the Grundy. What a fantastic day, the show was great and so was the  library next door with lovely mosaics  in the children area and beautiful sandblasted glass

                                 
                                 

Whilst on the beach I kept coming  across these roses which are sold to tourists. I presume at the end of the day the left over stock was thrown into the sea, but of course there may have been a different story altogether.
                                   

   

Back in Manchester

Monday

Castlefield working on website - strange session two of us sat side by side struggling on our laptops but without any input. However I did ask for advice and Di was very complimentary about my blog an recommended having it at the beginning.

Home  and then to Kate's for a discussion about the exhibition with Fiona. Mostly good although we are all a bit anxious by the daunting task we have taken on

Tuesday

Studio to pick up work and give out some invites. I was surprised by how much work I had.

Wednesday

Huge splinter in my foot from yesterday causing agony -,first Alan had a go then Lucy took over and with her magic tweezers manage to expertly extract the offender!

Today we are going to ikea to buy new kitchen cabinets for the top cupboards in the kitchen, a kitchen worktop and maybe a bed for Lucie.  Hopefully it will put an end to the frustration that has been this kitchen for the entire time we've lived here or at least the last 10 years. I also need to buy frames for me and Kate. 

Whilst  waiting  for Lucie I potted up the seedlings for the lettuce and rocket and sprinkled with slug pellets. I love this new arrangement of the garden and when it's fine being able to sit on the bench and look out over the flower beds and write on my iPad. It feels more secluded and hidden.

But we did buy a the bed but not the cabinets ☹️. Worst still after carrying and packing in very heavy parts  we found we'd bought 2 parts of a different bed. So back to ikea for a thin metal brace. They were right next to each other.

                                         

Thursday

I've been a bit lax at keeping up with this....

                       

Spent the day organising the images I want to show and seeing which mounts I could get away with reusing. On the whole quite pleased with what I've managed to achieve so far, but had 12 I wanted new mounts for. I went to see mr grumpy at davyhulme diy who after his usual oooh have you allowed for this or that then said it would take a week, miserable sod as ever - I again wonder how they've stayed in business.

                                  

 I have created an event on Facebook da dah!

John next door has made a bird table with a fake grass roof. The birds love it and the line up on the wall waiting to go onto it! Today a cat came stalking across and they were all stacked up onto the eucalyptus tree(which has died so just a long thin branch) more and more kept adding on and the beach was bending over. I took an Instagram video but I keep failing with those so I only have stills that I managed to save.

                             

I have found it so frustrating working in my study, it is so chock a block and I'm constantly losing things or not being able to find what I need.  When Alan goes to bed I have got into the habit of going in there and working either on my website or tinkering with the books.  Last night I realised I needed to find the wire bits to hang the pictures up with  and spent time organising and sorting. It was quite cathartic and I found my watercolours and oil pastels!

Friday

I often seem to wake early too and If I wake with a headache I have found it much better to go downstairs and potter around. In this way I have started to clear up in the pantry and kitchen. It is strange how I keep coming across bags of things that were probably brought downstairs with the best of intentions and then other jobs took over.  This seems to be the story of my life and why the house has got so horrendously cluttered.

Contacted Bolton framing place but they couldn't do it

Meeting with Kate and Fiona.

Stopped off at unicorn on the way home and there's a framing shop across the road very pleasant and able to do the mounts possibly for Tuesday definitely for Wednesday- big relief.Alan's done the folder rack.

At home the budlea  that has annoyed me all summer and had again fallen over - flower plot looks so much better now. 

A week in the lakes

Arrived on Saturday long drive lots of jams , put everything away the to Tweedies for beers and chips and back to fish for us and burger for Lucie and Matt 

                         

                                         

Sunday 

To do a shop am at booths and then walked over to travellers rest. D&J here when we came home Cumberland sausage

                     

Alan poorly in night
Monday

Planned to go to little langdale but ended up in Conniston. First to Brantwood for lunch

Then hired bikes for Loops and Matt and we walk on other side of the lake - very nice.

                                 

                            

Back for roast lamb. I was ill in the night - another migraine.Matt seems to have a allergic reaction and I keep getting headaches. I think it might be to do with the cottage being painted.

Tuesday 

To Allanbank

                            

Then for a walk around lake . It began to drizzle and then rain, nice but tiring

                

I was exhausted when I got home after DnJ left a bath and then bed. Didn't feel like eating meatballs

Wednesday

The weather was horrendous, Lucie and Matt went to the the cinema, Alan and I went to the Winifred Nicholson  and booths. We were stuck in traffic jam on the way back after a nasty accident.

                   

Thursday

Another frustrating morning but then we went to Whinlatter so the kids went mountain biking which Lucie found very tough, whilst we walked through lovely woodlands.

                 

To Tweedies for supper  but disappointing ( don't have pie)- all shattered!

Friday

Lovely sunny day L&M went boating on the Grasmere lake

                 

Alan and I walked up part way to Alcocks and then followed a path downwards and ended up at the Swan before heading home to make supper for dinner with Mary.

                 

Annoyingly Lucie ordered a pizza to be delivered from Ambleside at about 10pm -we were not impressed.
Saturday

It was lovely weather and we thought we might stay another day but Matt had to be back for work. Alan took L&M in his car and I went off to Blackwell to see the Laura Ford sculptures which I'd wanted to see for ages and they  were brilliant.

Very relaxing to take my own time and found a lovely Laura Ford catalogue at the end.

                   

I've always wanted to stop off at Morecambe on the way home so with none of the usual obstacles, off I went, driving through the Lyth valley - the type of landscape I'd like to live in. I didn't stop for too long but walked down to the Midland Hotel which I know Alan would like but Dand J too. I've missed being by my he sea shore and I am a sucker for the sea, mudflats and beautiful skies.

                  

And boats of course 

                  

It was only after I arrived in Morecambe  that I found that Alan and co had been stuck in an almighty traffic jam and when I finally arrived home relaxed and very happy he was fraught, shattered and and angry. It rounded off the holiday well for me. It had felt a bit hit and miss but this was the ideal end setting me up to make the final push for jobs, creating work, preparing for the exhibition and believing in myself.

Sunday

It is good to have the interlude of today to recollect thoughts, being able to sit in the garden and write my blog and take photos... and Instagram!

                    

I need to pick some of the bumper crop of blackberries, take photos of my work for tomorrow's session working on my website at Castlefield and do some of the mountains of washing.

The week before the Lakes

Saturday

To Trafford centre to buy shoes for Lucies outfit for her party

Mary came over for lunch and then we went to the Waterside to see the Rogue 21 exhibition - it is very impressive.

Came home to sit in the garden, drink tea and eat the lovely supper cooked by Alan.

                                             

Sunday

Yesterday made me realise that I could make so much more of the garden and that the unused pots were in the wrong place.  I began work on the garden, clearing the space by wall and moving all the pots to where the bench used to be.

Monday 

I managed to finish the  garden which feels more spacious and pleasant to sit in, partly because  we are less aware of our neighbours and the seating are is more enclosed.

                   

I have been experimenting with backs of the prints that I made last week.  I want to print on both sides of the paper so that I can make books. I don't want the images to be the same and also the collagraphs were very time consuming to print. I have tried placing the plate under the paper and rolling the inked up roller over the paper, which produces a much starker and more contrasting image.

 

Everyday there seems to be yet another terrorist attack in either Germany or France with many deaths and injuries

Tuesday

Pilates very tough

Met up with family at Lunya for lunch which was quite nice, but as ever with my family some are a bit raucous. I mostly talked to Richard as there was little point in competing. 

Finished about 3 and went to the City Art Gallery - beautiful fashion photography and Nzebo's portraits- lovely to see these in the flesh. But I was too tired to concentrate and my feet were agony.

I was worried that I hadn't booked for the Castlefield CG Associates talk and it looked like it was booked out, but it was OK in the end. An interesting talk from Kwong about websites and statements.

Wednesday 

I felt very low - this morning- by this stage in the holidays I had planned to have applied for jobs and MA's. But try as I might I cannot decide what to do and fear it will be too late.

To Kate's for lunch – I’m not sure how it happened but we decided to have an exhibition in her house the weekend 20th- 22nd August. Quite exciting Kate, Fiona and I for definite and one more if we can find the right person.

At the talk on Tuesday I met up with Di Terry and gave her my card, I decided to ask her to look at my website and give me feedback.  It was really useful as I knew it needed updating and constructive. I was surprised that things seemed to have moved around - I'm not sure how that has happened so I need to rectify it.

I feel my positivity returning and potential in life again.

My chest is very tight tonight after sitting in Kate's studio, so not only allergic to gloss paint but oil paint and printing ink in enclosed areas.
Thursday

In email conversation with Kate re-exhibition, trying to decide titles and possible 4th artist.To Hotbed to print the reverse side of the collagraphs- I used the oil based for the range for the of colour but it made me quite light headed and gave me a sore throat and tight chest, in future I must use water based ink.

                                         

Drove up to studio but couldn't get in as front door locked - I must find out the code.

Friday

A frustrating visit to the doctors I waited for ages then was rushed through and he refused to look at my foot  and told me to make another appointment.

We took lots of Lucie’s childhood books to Oxfam - there are always some I can't part with, (too many memories).  Back home to work on the invite /flyer for the exhibition, Alan had already started but I felt it was too complicated.

                     

Several permutations- I think this is the one we are going to go with....

Just need to reduce the file size and it Kate and Fiona. 

Tomorrow we are off to the lakes for a wet week in the countryside!