messy Miss Kate

MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS SALE!

I'll be uploading lots and lots of new artwork, both originals & prints over the next few days to my ETSY shop.  And with all the Christmas hustle & bustle going on around here I thought I would go a bit crazy & have a...

Little sale in my ETSY shop for Christmas! Yay! LOVE crazy!

 

SO... here's the deal:

Buy an original piece of artwork = get a free print, your choice, anything in stock, any size.

Buy 2 prints [including 1 large $20 print] = get 1 free print, your choice, anything in stock.

Buy 1 print [any size] = get 1 small free print [$15 value or less]

Once you have chosen your artwork to purchase, follow these two steps:

1]  Select the items you will be paying for and "check out" with paypal & pay, completing the first transaction.

2] Go back to my shop & select the free print and "check out" with payment type "OTHER", complete the transaction, but do not pay.

*Offer valid for paypal payments only*

 

Once I've seen the paid transaction come through, I'll mark off the FREE print transaction as paid and send out the entire two orders together!  Make sense?  

If you have multiple items, like 2 originals and 3 prints or any other combination, please feel free to convo me in ETSY or email me direct & I can work out just how much free stuff we can include. Its a great opportunity to pick up some affordable prints for Christmas presents & sneak a sweet something into the deal for yourself, for free! Yay!

Sale lasts until midnight Sunday 18th December or until stocks last.

And it starts NOW!

As I mentioned, I have lots still to upload over the next few days so keep checking back at the shop!

SHOP here !

Enjoy & thank you so much for supporting my little store during 2011! 

Kate xo

Blythe up for adoption...

SOLD... pending payment.

The doll is a hybrid Blythe NEO - Cousin Olivia + Mod Molly!! Both lovely & very popular girls. I purchased both of these girls new NRFB.

I made this hybrid Blythe doll using a Cousin Olivia's head & body + Mod Molly's scalp.

Christmas planning...

I'm having regular meetings with myself these days with my beloved lists and forward planners. There's always lots to organise when you are coordinating schedules for 7 people, 2 jobs, one business, playgroup, school, ballet etc etc. I love making lists and actually I don't function very well if I don't have a job sheet to work to. Of course I almost never ever quite fit to my schedule but it keeps me working away with purpose rather than wandering aimlessly not focussing on anything.

Tonights meeting agenda, with myself, well it's all about Christmas! It takes great coordination in our house. Right now I'm working on ideas for making, making sure kids piles are even/ checking gift lists, programming in making time into the schedule, getting ideas for food to make on Christmas Day.

I love it all! And all white watching Better Homes & Gardens Christmas edition! Yay!

Through my friend Tatum I found out about about #DecDaily. From what I understand, Ali Edwards; life recorder/ scrap booker/ photographer extraordinaire does this December Daily kit program but obviously you can follow along without the kit, by making your own version. It's been a long time since I did any Scrapbooking but the whole 'recording the goings on in December' concept, is absolutely up my alley!

So I'll be following along, hopefully each year now, recording the December/ Christmas related goings on in the Mason household.

Instagram suits me most, as does my trusty little folder that contains all my lists. There's a whole post of its own that I could do just talking about my little folder of lists! Another time!

Anyway, to keep things simple, I'll be recording as much as I can in my list folder, posting pics to instagram and blogging when I can.

Maybe in January, when I have Christmas behind us, I can transfer all my lists, print out some pics and blog posts and put them into a little folder on their own.

So there you go! Kicking off my #DecDaily right here! Are you joining in? I'd love to check out some blogs as I have never seen what actually goes on. Please share yours!

Kate xo

Original art pieces now in shop!

link HERE

link HERE

Link HERE

A piece I made a while ago, one of my favourites from my personal collection. You can find it HERE

Thanks for looking!

Kate xo

Little doll...

It's been a while since I've shared some Blythe goings on...

I adore this little hobby of ours, mine & my girls. Always interesting things going on in Blythe world and I have some lovely dolly friends.

Anyway, I've had some girls adopted out recently & I've had a couple of new girls come to stay. This little girl in the photos above, caught my eye several months ago on Flickr...

And some more art to share...

I've just completed another little group of art pieces almost ready for the shop & the printer. Some originals for sale, all available in prints.

Few more days and I'll get myself ready for the upload! A few things on the home front to take care of first. Lots of paperwork! Aargh!

With the exception of the 'just breathe' girly on the bench, these little works are quite tiny. I dream of doing a whole exhibition of these tiny little pieces of girlies in windows from around the world, looking out over balconies and peeking from behind doors. Each girl with her own story. I'll try to make that a reality some day soon!

Anyway, it's late, just wanted to share. After this batch it'll be the word art pieces and then I'm basically finished creating for this year. I have a few commissions I'll work on over the holidays but I can't imagine there being large batches of work coming through after this lot until the new year.

I want to soak up lots of family time, do projects around the house & enjoy fewer formal commitments.

Nighty night!
Kate xo

First family school pic...

Excuse the poor quality pic, but wanted to share recent school photo - the family pic - of our two big girls.

Georgie & Charlotte are actually very similar in height now, even though they are 12 months apart. They are often asked if they are twins. Of course they are not, they are 12 months apart.

So proud to see them together in a school family pic. I recall having those pics with my brother, many years ago! I'm not sure I had any with my sister, definitely none with my littlest brother.

We were all spaced out in age, 3 years, 3 years and a surprise 5 years later! And we moved house sometime during primary school and my two youngest siblings then changed to the new primary right across the road from our new house. So there was certainly never the opportunity for all 4 of us together in a school family photo.

With my crazy age gap however, 5 kids in 5 years, I'll have at least 2 family school photos with all 5 kids! Maybe 3? Too hard for my brain to work that out right now!

Can't wait to see them all together and with Buddy in reception next to all his big sisters! Hehe I can picture it in my mind already!! Cute.

Kate xo

Vintage Caravans...

OK, some finished works. Little caravans of love hehe

Totally inspired by my friend Mel's new caravan [waaaaa, I want one!] and Fox's Lane blog etc etc.. You can read more about my caravan inspiration post here.  For now, I'll just have to make do with making them!

Originals for sale, will be uploaded to ETSY tomorrow night. If you want to reserve a particular sized print, please email me or leave a comment as I'll be going to the printer later this week.

Original for sale: $35.00 including shipping

10cmx10cm, canvas panel [can be sat on tiny easel or framed in most frames that can handle thicker than paper behind glass]

Prints:  12x12cm only 

Original for sale: $70.00 plus shipping

20cmx20cm, 5cm thick edged canvas

Prints:  both 12x12 and 20x20cm will be available

Original for sale: $45.00 plus shipping

12cmx12cm, 5cm thick edged canvas

Prints:  both 12x12 and 20x20cm will be available

Original for sale: $75.00 plus shipping

20cmx25cm, 1.5cm thin edged canvas

Prints:  19x24cm rectangle PLUS a square version; both 12x12 and 20x20cm will also be available [see below for square version]

Thanks for looking!

Kate xo

Creative house...

Had a lovely few days here.  

The kids have been doing lots creatively & I've even managed to do a little creative stuff in daylight while Bud has been napping too!  I've been finishing off some works in progress; word art, vintage caravans, girls in windows etc...  I put much of this aside to finish my exhibition stuff so it feels good to be nearly ready to roll out with this lot this week!

Hope to post about my caravan canvases tonight before I go to bed, including close ups of fully resolved works + prices & print sizes etc.

And unless sold beforehand, caravan canvases will be uploaded to ETSY tomorrow. Prints will come later in the week, probably Thursday or Friday.

Here's one batch of work almost nearly finished. 

And another new line from me - Word Art - which I want to add to regularly when I hear little things that resonate with me & that also warrant a reminder now & then.  Happy to take commissions on word art, just email me with your ideas.

I've seen lots of wordy artwork, and I love it all. I always remember drooling over the word art & lettering in Somerset Studio magazine years ago, especially the alphabet samplers. I've aways been interested in fonts, words & letters. This is certainly nothing unique or new but it is my own version with hand cut letters made from my paper scrap collection. I love using every tiny morsel!  

I think I'll be giving the alphabet original to Bud for his bedroom for Christmas but there will certainly be prints available soon, maybe next week?  I haven't yet transferred any of my monsters aliens or robots from my visual diary to canvas just yet so I need something a bit boy appropriate. The boy needs stuff on his walls! Actually I have sketched up one "rob-ien" [robot alien] onto canvas but thats how it has stayed! LOL  I will get to it eventually.  Maybe for Bud's 2nd birthday next June LOL.

Originals & prints of all the others also coming soon. I'll blog about those & post full completed works later in the week along with pricing & sizes etc.

Last week, Thursday or Friday after school, when it was stinking hot outside, we closed all the shutters & made the house into a dark cool cave and we did arty things.

Buddy had his own pot of pencils but he mostly played drums, packed them up, unpacked them, dropped them on the floor, picked them up.... and all that again. And again. Its always lovely & peaceful [well, mostly] when the kids are being creative. Everyone has something to go on with so there is no need for squabbling.  Art = peace?  For the most part, I think so!

Charlotte today, working away on a pretty garden scene.

Georgie painting a vintage caravan!

Mimi & Chels even love getting creative, regardless whether or not they have paper on hand! Hmmmmm.

Here's Georgie's caravan painting complete with bunting. I love it! Straight to the pool room!

And here is Mimi's caravan, drawn by Georgia, meticulously coloured by Mimi. She still wants to get it all finished tomorrow, she tells me!

And Mr Bud basically just looked cute all weekend.  No finished artworks just yet but he has taken to carrying around a notebook & any sort of writing implement he can find. Oh and he enjoys scribbling on his sisters sketch books too. Rascal.

Kate xo

Weekend in the Barossa Valley...

So much life happening & being lived to the full around here & I'm terribly behind on recording it all so here's a quick wrap up of our lovely weekend away in the beautiful & world renowned Barossa Valley, South Australia! My home state and under 2 hours drive from my house.

We were there for a wedding for one of the guys in Jeff's team at his work. I had never met the bride or groom or any of the other work employees also attending the wedding. Eek! A bit nervy.  Turns out, ceremony location was AMAZING!!!!!!!  Stevens Estate Gardens at Williamstown.  It was the very first time they had opened their property for a wedding, outside of their family. I am sure they will do very well, the property was so beautiful & the ceremony overlooked a lake with gorgeous surrounding gardens.

Love the entry sign...

  

I wore black. Of course.  I also wore a fascinator in my hair, first time. It was very windy, I don't normally do the swept back look.

  

Reception at Barossa Valley Estate at Tanunda.

Boutique in size, beautiful & intimate. Food was delicious. Loved the desserts and I'm not really a dessert kinda girl. Company was great, met the parents of the groom - delightful.  Wedding dance, choreographed & so so sweet.

While we were at the ceremony & reception, our kids were back at our family size cabin in Tanunda with my niece Shannon & my mum who came with us for the weekend. I wanted them to be close, not all the way back in Adelaide so we all came up together. It was a perfect arrangement & I was able to relax at the wedding and enjoy myself knowing the kids were only about 15 minutes away & we would all sleep under the same roof at night.

Next morning we checked out of our cabin & headed to the Whispering Wall at Williamstown.

I hadn't been there since I was a child and it still amazes me.  My kids freaked out & thought it was so cool. It sure is very cool!

    

We all had turns at one end or another of this long long bridge and whispered to the wall, which could be heard as clear as anything from the other side.  Sound travelling is incredible!

Next up we trundled off to head to the Big Rocking Horse at Gumeracha but found a country market on the way, also at Gumeracha.

Of course we stopped to have a go looksee!

  

Balloons, country fresh baked cookies, plants, little knitted hats, perfect for Blythe a bargain at $5 each.

  

  

We then headed onto the Big Rocking Horse. Its big. Thats my niece Shannon right up the top!

  

My kids, scaredy cats, just went on the little rocking horse. Then off we went into the fauna park. Buddy just kept saying, "WOW!"

  

Lots of great animals & birds. Beautiful surroundings.

  

After having  lunch in the cafeteria, Jeff & I having THE best country made hamburgers we have ever eaten, the girls went for pony rides on little 'Trippy' the pony.

  

  

I think everyone slept in the car on the way home, including me, I'm always the first to drop off, with the exception of driver Jeff.  Fabulous weekend. Look forward to the day that Jeff & I can have one night away up in the Barossa and do some antiquing & thrifting, book shop moseying & cafe eating.  Might be 15 years away but that's ok.

Kate xo