Secrets of a Butterfly

The Light Garden

 

The lovely Verity of The Light Garden blog, makes some beautiful cards,tags and prints. She lives in Istanbul after moving there from Australia almost 2 years ago with her husband and baby son. Verity has to be one of the nicest sellers i have shopped with on etsy and i know she loves doing her illustrations and personalising them especially for babies and young children. You can have their name added to prints which makes a special gift.
 To browse the Light Garden (isnt it a beautiful name!) etsy store click through here. Above you can see the lovely package i recieved lately of christmas cards. The angel of peace is my favourite though i also love the bunnies above. The only thing is i have put them somewhere safe and now that i am recovering from the virus i have gone to find them and can't place them!! They are in amongst sooooo many presents to sort out for christmas giving,hopefully they will come to me,anyway here are some more photos from Verity's shop enjoy,wishes k x ps i have changed my header...fancied something different using one of my photos, what do you think?

 

Magical Magnolija

I love it when you stumble across a new find don't you, your heart skips a beat, whether it be to purchase or to just be inspired. I never share my 'finds' thinking i am the first to find them, i am sure Inga is well known already, with a pretty etsy and a flickr stream. But all the same i document her here because this space is where i collect together what inspires me and she certainly has. In her own words

"my name is Inga. I live in Vilnius in Lithuania and I'm in love with this city.
I am a student, learn to be a designer. I can't imagine my day without create something.
It's my Hobby, my Job, my Daily Life and I really love it!"    isnt that perfect!

Holly wrote a feature about staying true to what you love upon your blog which i read recently.
 She says... " I must confess, that blogging for nearly four years now has definitely improved my eye and sharpened my ability to curate and pull things that fit into my aesthetic. I believe that blogging, based upon my own personal experience, works wonders in this area. The more you “curate”, the more you come across a sort of pattern or spot a theme – you’ll notice that your tastes and interests start to become very, very obvious to not only your readers but to you" read the full post here

She was also saying how she always seeks to share only the things she loves not any that she is persuaded to feature or feels obliged to. I think this truth serves two purposes. One it keeps blogs heartfelt and two the blogger themselves charts their own personal course of loves and and finds what speaks to their hearts,which as Holly writes can be a handy way of finding your direction or your personal style or tastes in decorating and clothing and a whole host of things. it should never be all about publicising work just for the sake of keeping up a stream of posts should it. That takes the magic away.

And anyways though blogs are read by others they do initially stand as a journal for personal account, reflection and inspiration of the writer. I dont know about you but i always find the best blogs are those that share personally and from the heart of the writer. In the same way that art is most treasured and felt by the viewer when the artist or designer puts something of themselves into a piece. Otherwise its soul-less. Regardless of what their content focuses upon blogs need to be full of soul.
Speaking of soul i'd like to add the beautiful poem i found on Inga's etsy profile below, all the images in this post today are by Inga at her etsy shop, where she sells pictures and gorgeous clothing and accessories....love kathryn x

I wish I were a bird
Resting in my nest
By the tree
Under the open sky
Sun shining bright

All seems perfect
Star studded night
Moonlight perfect
The gentle breeze
Rustling of leaves

Music so vivid
Enjoying every bit
Sleep without tensions
Life of perfection
Free to fly

Liberated bonds
No fears
No hopes
Only a life to live
I wish I were a bird.....

Adorable cuteness

 
Isnt this just adorable. a little rabbit family. Its made by Myko in Washington,US and her shop Myko Bocek studios is over at etsy. she also has just started blogging here. I have to show you some more of her work as its so expertly crafted from wool and vintage flowers and ribbon.

This pair of mice have a little baby nestled in a cradle I LOVE it so much i have to show you it in greater detail and from the back you can see their little tales entwined, Myko has thought of every last detail!

 Here is what Myko says " I am half Japanese and grew up on a rural farm in Delaware. My eclectic upbringing reflects my love of vintage and cute. Because of my love for vintage I try to incorporate it as much as I can into my work. I also use eco friendly materials such as wool yarn and wool felt which is sustainable. And I have repurposed many of the materials I use as well! :)
 I sculpt, draw, and love to create and have done so since I was a small child. Art has always been part of my life. I briefly attended the Art Institue of Portland in Graphic Design but consider myself a self taught artist. I currently work a full time job as a visual merchandiser for a beautiful (and large) Gift, Garden, and Home Decor store. And I'm a mom of four wonderful children, my youngest being 11 and my oldest is now 21."
"To make the cute animals I meticulously hand sculpt and shape the pom poms from wool yarn, wool felt with wool roving."

 
two sweet kittens in the grass and below the mouse with candy that i have ordered! i will be sure to share her with you when she arrives, at present she is on a plane somewhere over the ocean, cute wishes to you today, hope this has brightened your hour wherever you are reading from, kat x

Treasures on etsy

I found these treasures while browsing on Etsy the other week and just thought i'd share them with you.kx

Peace dish   Wolf print   Deer bag   Butterfly&jug canvas   

Dreamy aquamarine

 

I used to make jewellery in my teens and have wanted to get back to it for some time, so i was really pleased last week when i made up an Aquamarine, Moonstone and pearl necklace which is in the picture above on the right, (mixed in with a 'lola rose' amazonite bracelet) I love gemstones and wanted to make a long necklace from these Aquamarine rounds and roundels when they arrived in the mail because the colour was so dreamy to me. I was drawn to them So much i checked their properties in my crystal book and found that the stones are for calmness and aid the nervous system among other things. So that definately fitted with what i need right now.

I bought my stones from a Spanish seller on ebay. I then cleansed them in the sunlight and used flower essences in the water bowl, before stringing them on white silk thread. Cleansing any crystals you have or gemstone necklaces too, restores their vitality and is very benefitial. It removes any negative, low energy from the stones that they may have absorbed on their journey before reaching you or through prolonged wear. It returns them to their inherent uplifting vibration, the one that has such a postive impact upon us, in body, mind or spirit. Its also nice to then dedicate them to a particular cause such as calming, or grounding you.

 Imagine them being beneath a waterfall and the clean, vibrant look they would have when you lifted them out, thats the aim of cleansing. You can achieve what a waterfall achieves by running under a tap, placing in sunlight or moonlight, or upon the earth. A good crystal book will tell you which method is best for each stone, as some don't like water,and sometimes sun can fade others.

I have an Energy Muse necklace which is charged with reiki, which is what gave me the idea to make one in a different colour to have different qualities. love Kat

Fairies to treasure

 

  This is where Sam McKechnie creates her beautiful vintage fairies...her 'shop' is named The Magpie and the Wardrobe. Based in London Sam specializes in making beautiful things from antique and vintage treasures sourced in England and France.

There are necklaces, fabric covered journals, T shirts and the dolls. Fly by and see her magic for yourself here whether for inspiration or to purchase an extra special keepsake her website is a little alcove of treasures nestled in the web.kat x

 

 

Lucy's Secret Garden

 Thanks to the lovely Tracey of the blog Tracey Loves Pattern...i discovered the gorgeous art work of Lucy Grossmith..above is a painting entitled Secret Garden by Lucy and this is a snippet from her website about what her art means to her....
  

 "All my life I have been passionate about art so over the past 15 years I have made my love my work, painting canvases for exhibitions and commissions and illustrating for books and cards.I live in beautiful rural Suffolk with my family and work from my garden studio where I run  
heart-to-art.I grew up in the countryside so I have always been surrounded and inspired by nature...

I paint wild birds and animals, countryside and coastal scenery along with gardens, old buildings and snippets of country life. My paintings are a magical interpretation of what I see mixed in with happy thoughts or feelings about a place, illustrating special moments in time. My aim is to inspire others and capture their imagination too."

  You have certainly inspired me Lucy, and i found your website so beautiful to browse. if like me, you want to see more of Lucy's beautiful paintings, purchase originals or prints from her website click through here.with wishes Kat x

Wings of delight

 

Just had to share these beautiful butterflies part of a collection avaliable from Jeska's etsy shop over at Lobster & swan. kisses n wishes K

The embroidered countryside

 

Anne Kinniment makes embroidered pictures using a combination of painting, appliqué, machine and hand embroidery. Her main interest is the textures shapes and colours found in plants and nature, with a lot of her work inspired by her garden and the Northumberland countryside. The picture above is of the famous view of Bamburgh Castle in our local area here. Anne has been exhibiting and selling her work for 25years in such far away places as Tokyo, Japan, and more locally in galleries around Northumberland.  

Many years ago i used to do embroidery kits by the company called Rowandean. Finding Anne's work in Kirkhale has inspired me to consider sewing again. I love her colour combinations and how she picks out the detail in the foreground. Below is another of her embroideries, this one is of Lindisfarne. on her website anne offers a project, and gives some instructions on what threads and paints to use to complete a spring flower meadow picture, check it out here. love kat

Kayo's magical art

 

Just over a year ago i did a post mentioning Kayo Tamaishi a Japanese illustrator who's designs full of detail and originality, are avaliable through Moo cards, as postcards,mini cards,stickers and greetings cards.click here to see her range. And here to visit her website for more of her pieces such as that above.

 Recently i heard from Kayo herself and its been wonderful to email with someone who lives so far a way in Japan but who likes the same things as me. Kayo very kindly did an illustration for my blog banner, which features butterflies obviously! but also you may spot a certain pair of bunnies on the right hand side too. Its an honor to have such a sweet hearted person, who also happens to be an amazing drawer, do a design just for me. I love it,and it makes me smile everytime i see it. THANK YOU Kayo

My blog is just over 2 years old now, thank you to everyone who visits and adds their vibe to it,it wouldnt be the same without you. i hope you find it like a secret place in a woodland, where you can come and chill,lie beneath a tree,enjoy the flowers, be yourself and ask the butterflies and fairies to sprinkle you with a bit of their magic....love and good wishes kat x