Flower Pop Series 2025

Hi everyone!

At the beginning of this year I set out to create a series of floral paintings. I wanted them to be colorful, cheerful and expressive. These 20 x 20 cm artworks are painted with acrylics on wood panel, which give them a unique textured feel. While each original painting can be displayed on its own, the whole series comprises six panels, and when displayed together will turn an otherwise plain wall into a colorfeast for the eyes! I used premium wood panels and primed them before adding a base color. For my motifs I drew inspiration from flower shops, magazines and my own garden to create little bouquets of expressive flowers. I built up the layers over several days, shading and adding details. I sealed each panel with a semi-gloss finish. I enjoyed painting this series. Which one is your favorite? 

20 x 20 x 2 cm acrylics on wood panel

Thanks for reading along and Happy Friday!

Wordless Wednesday

...well almost :)

I planted these Azaleas last month. They are only about 30 cm tall, but happy to report they have started blooming. I love those clusters of tiny funnel-shaped blooms. I'm sure by next year they will be more lush.

Last year I planted a very young cherry tree. Actually, you can barely call it "tree" - it's more of a thin stalk with a few branches shooting from the top. Nevertheless, it gifted me with a few cherry blossoms a couple of weeks ago. I had the presence of mind to take a picture before they wilted. Their flowering time is sadly short lived.

I felt like I needed a bright pop of color in the garden, so I treated myself to this gorgeous pink rose (Leonardo da Vinci). It's currently in a plant pot just outside my studio. I might have to replant it when it grows. Pink is such a cheerful color!

And finally, I had a sweet visitor the other day! There are a few regulars who pass through my garden every now and then, but I haven't seen this tuxedo cat before. It was resting on the mat, but when I opened the door to gently put food out it scurried away. A strong indication that it's a stray cat. I will keep my eye out for it and who knows? I just might become a cat mom again :) After all, this is how Leo came into my life all those years ago.  

Easy Mixed Media Tags

Hello crafty friends!

Making tags is one of my favorite paper crafts. Type "gift tags" in the search bar at the top right of this blog and plenty more tag tutorials will show up.

Today I am creating my tags from scratch or rather from one of my gelli prints. The paper I used is 160 gsm, as I find this is a good weight for making tags. Scroll down to watch the video, which also explains how I made the gelli prints. Be sure to read the info in the description box as well. Today's craft is all about layering. I adhered tiny paper scraps including ticket stubs, which I found in the back of a drawer the other day. Looking at the date...wow, they are so old :)

Here's a step-by-step instruction - unfortunately it was an overcast day, so the photos aren't the best.  Scroll down to watch the video, which is a lot brighter.

Step One: measure a rectangle 7 x 14 cm on the gel print, mark with a pencil and cut along the lines. 

Step Two: flip the tag over and using a set square align the top edge with a parallel line and until the corner meets the edge. Mark with a pencil and snip off. 

Step Three: Add stamping

Step Four: Add marks with crayons

Scroll down to watch the video in full.

Step Five: Glue down pieces of collage.

Step Six: Embellish with a focal image (leaves, flowers, animals, words etc.)

Step Seven: Loop a ribbon through the hole

Tip: Plan a gelli printing session a day or two beforehand, then flatten the prints with a stack of heavy books. This way they are ready to go when you decide to make those tags. Happy crafting!

Studio Makeover

Hello lovely creatives!

Those that have been following me for a long time may remember, that we've been fixing up, renovating and generally updating our house, including the garden. To date this has been our biggest project. We started with the garden in 2018 and apart from planting some shrubs and flowers, we are pretty much done now! Our main goal was to make it low maintenance.

Here's the view from my studio:

The house, which was built in the 50s is another matter. The last time it was renovated was in the 70s, complete with 70s decor! We've been updating the upper rooms slowly for at least a decade - then last year it was finally time to relocate my then studio to a new space downstairs. This coincided with my transitioning from fabrics/sewing crafts to mixed media art and developing and teaching private workshops. The designated space needed new flooring above all. I found some suitable floor boards in a vintage grey, which are durable and easy to clean. In the below pic you can see how it looked before and after. The door was still missing in the second pic.

I'm super pleased with the flooring, but of course, most of all I'm loving the big garden-facing windows, letting in so much more light than in my previous space upstairs.

The two white cupboards above are the only furniture items that I bought. I was lucky that they had been on sale at the time! I placed a bookcase in between - it's a bit shorter, but overall it doesn't look too bad. All other furniture is from my old studio and/or repurposed from other rooms. The big work table used to be my cutting table from when I still had my shop. Now it's perfect for my art making, as I prefer making art standing up. Plus it's where I make video tutorials for my YouTube channel. My set up is really simple, but it works just fine.

As you can imagine this is my absolute favorite place to be. I like to sit in the chair in the corner by the window in the early mornings with a cup of tea and look out into the garden, listening to bird song. It's here that new ideas form. Below is a short clip of my art studio. I've hung some of my abstract pieces on the walls.

And this final clip is from my beloved Leo, two weeks before he passed. He used to hang out by my studio. I miss seeing his cute, fluffy face.

I hope you enjoyed a behind the scenes look at my new studio. I've been told mine looks very clean and organized :) Well, I don't believe artist's studios necessarily need to be cluttered, even though that is the general vision people have. What's your take? Tidy or messy?

Wishing you a beautiful weekend, wherever you may be.