Sunsets, silhouettes and a painting

I always feel a rush of excitement when someone loves my work enough to commission a painting. It's a joy to work with customers trying to interpret their ideas and come up with a design that they will like.

The painting above was for a wedding gift and needed to have thistles and shamrocks in it, combining the bride and groom's Scottish and Irish heritage. I can't share the whole image yet as the gift hasn't been given! The sun I finished in 23.5 carat gold leaf so that it glimmers when the light catches it.

I always have my camera to hand for I love taking photo's and many of my paintings are inspired by the photo's I take near my home here in beautiful Dumfries and Galloway. You might have guessed that I love the gloaming, sunsets and silhouettes, quiet times and magical moments.

I love to take a moment to sit quietly in the garden at this time of night to listen to the world softly settling down to sleep. it feels like I have stepped into another time, another place. Just the sort of place for me to conjure mystical images to work into my paintings.

This last photo was the view I caught on my way back from home one evening, driving along the coast road, it was so dramatic I just had to stop and try to capture the light!

This is one of the things I love about living here in South West Scotland, the light and the sunsets, and every day when I drive along this road I feel so blessed to live here

I wonder, what do you love about where you live?

Summer workshops at Kirkcudbright Galleries, Dumfries and Galloway

There has been a hustle and a bustle in the studio lately as this Summer finds me putting on my 'ART EXPLORERS' hat! My brand new business partner Susi Briggs and I have been designing a whole heap of crafts for the family drop in workshops we are running at Kirkcudbright Galleries.

We were so pleased to be asked to work in this beautiful B listed building which has recently been completely transformed into a gallery of National significance here in the Artists town of Kirkcudbright in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. You can find us up on the mezzanine floor every Wednesday throughout the Summer.

We have developed a lovely range of topics to delve into and are thoroughly looking forward to meeting all the busy bees who come along to participate. Our 'Nip Nebs' workshop with crafts inspired by our new book (more about that in a later post) was a huge success. We did wax resist painting, web weaving and peg doll pixies.

and the paper stained glass inspired by Charles Rennie Mackintosh went down a treat today too. 

18th July - Mad Hatter hats

25th July - Puppets, 1st August - Clay house tiles, 8th August - paper portraits, 15th August - Masks

22nd August - Lanterns

29th August - Create your own family tree

5th September - Art Journaling for kids

So do hop along and join us every Wednesday through the Summer for a fun filled workshop!

The workshops run from 10.30 am -12.30 pm.

There is a minimal charge of £2 per child.

No need to book just pop along.

All children must be accompanied by an adult.

Aimed at ages 7-12 years, though we can accommodate younger children too.

A treasure trove of gems and books and sketching

Last week was a time for family. My daughter and Grandaughter came to stay and we had lots of lovely times together, creating clay sculptures, walking down the lane, finding treasures in the garden.

Having a tiny person in the house is such a reminder to slow down, I love that she notices all the little things, a tiny daisy still growing in the winter grass, the funny shapes of clouds, the sound of the wind whispering through the branches of the trees.,  All the little things that we often forget to take the time to notice in our days.

With visitors to entertain it was a perfect excuse to take a trip to the 'GemRock Museum' in Creetown. A fabulous collection of jewels and gems, such vibrant hues and colours. There is a crystal cave to explore and a trail of gem bunnies that a certain wee person was excited to find. I even came across a tiny carved mermaid tucked away. And to finish off we had a delicious home cooked lunch in the cafe and then a drive through the stunning Galloway forest, a perfect day out.

A few days earlier I found myself over in Wigtown, Scotland's designated book town, a must for any book lovers out there! The reason for my visit was a trip to 'Curly Tale Books', a wonderful treasure trove of a children's bookshop that has agreed to be the latest stockist for my cards! They will be in good company for the shop is stuffed with loveliness of all kinds and is run by author Jayne Baldwin and illustrator Shalla Gray - creators of the lovely 'Beltie' story books. For those of you not in the know 'Galloway Belties' are stripey black and white cows found here in Dumfries and Galloway.

 With visitors here and trips to and fro to hospital to visit my poorly Dad, who hopefully is on the mend now, my sketching took a wee bit of a back seat.  I have managed a few though and am loving the variety of topics: eye, small bird, cafe life and the colour blue, I am determined to keep my sketches to within half an hour, but sometimes it's very tempting to keep going! I would like to get it down to 20 mins per sketch soon!

For folk interested in joining in the sketch a day but who are not on Facebook,  I do have a Pinterest board for where you can find the daily topic as well here.

Do let me know if you join in and maybe we can find a way to share our sketches!

Creating with HeART ~ workshops & journals

What a whirwind February has been, filled with creativity, writing and workshops.    

I mentioned back in the Autumn, my first HeART Journaling workshop and why it was something I really believed in & wanted to continue (see here). I am happy to report that five months on, I have lots of workshops lined up.

 There is always much chat and laughter in the air at the workshops which makes for a great atmosphere, helped along by lovely folks such as Franca,  the owner of the Franca Bruno shop  our Gatehouse venue.  She not only keeps us topped up with cake,tea and coffee but endless supplies of clean painting water too!

 It brings me immense pleasure to share my creativity with others, encouraging them to let go and play, and what wondrous creations they make. The pieces below were done at my 'playing with colour' workshop.

 I often hear folk mention they haven't 'played' for years, some since childhood, so it it a joy to stand back and watch those creative muses showing face at last, being allowed free rein to get messy and have fun with all the delicious art materials to hand.

Hearts seem to work appear often, I wonder is it anything to do with the fact it's called 'HeART Journaling perhaps!   This was the  'Introduction to HeART Journaling' Valentines workshop.

 Last year I was asked by storyteller, author and poet extraordinaire Renita Boyle,  recently  appointed  'Reader in Residence'' for the year for Dumfries & Galloway, to see if I would be interested in running my 'HeART Journaling' alongside her own 'Memoir in a month' workshops, part of an innovative partnership between Dumfries and Galloway library service and the Scottish Book Trust. Renita is a wonderful, whirlwind of enthusiasm and inspiration and I just knew it would be a pleasure to work with her, so dates were duly set.

 I have held two of these workshops so far in Castle Douglas and Whithorn (there are more on the way) and they have proved such a huge success that I  have been asked to return and hold monthly HeART Journaling workshops in the community centre in Castle Douglas which start on 12th March! .

Many of the folk attended both mine and Renita's 'memoir in a month' workshop, and I was right, we have all been hugely inspired by her teaching, words and readings of her magical work. There has been much wonderful writing a-happening, and a coming together of folks over it, but that is to be saved for  another day.

 There is something very soothing and therapeutic about putting things down on paper whether it is words or images and since I began creating in my own  HeART Journals I have learnt to be brave let go and had great fun in the process and so it is wonderful to see that my workshops are now inspiring others to do the same. 

Talking of journals, I have a real passion for them and wanted to try making my own using materials I had lying around.  It was great fun and I loved the outcome, particularly the fact that I had found a use for those often discarded cardboard boxes, used pieces of wrapping papers etc, I am all for re-cycling!

Of course this inspired my next workshop 'Journal making' which is on Tues 3rd March, The Franca Bruno shop in Gatehouse of Fleet.

If you would be interested in coming to any of my workshops you can find a complete list along with dates and info over on my brand new,  re-vamped website, which I hope is much easier to navigate. www.ruthieredden.com    I hope to see some of you very soon.

Beach combing, bonfires & driftwood creations . . .

 The unexpected sunshine of the last few days was the perfect excuse to pack up a picnic and head for the beach to hunt for treasure. Beach combing has to be one of my favourite things to do.  I always go home with pockets full of jewel like sea glass, shiny pebbles & sea shells. 

 The limpet shells  (top right & bottom left) remind me of the Cornish legend of  Jan Tregeagle who was set the gloomy task of trying to empty a lake on Bodmin Moor (believed at the time to be bottomless), with a limpet shell with a hole in it. We have a much better use for the limpet shells with holes in them,  we string them into garlands for the garden!

I love driftwood and pieces find their way into some creation or another, my favourite of the moment is wee "Cloth Ears" the pup who lives in our garden!

On my beach hunt I discovered these wonderful trees clinging to the rocks, their roots curling & stretching to find a hold.  They look like there ought to be magical creatures  living in there!

There was lots of wood on the beach too, cast up during all that stormy weather earlier in the year most probably, it inspired my boy to build a beach sculpture.

 Later in the evening, once the stars were out, the driftwood sculpture became a roaring bonfire sending tiny sparks flying into a deep blue night sky.

 A glowing sunset  made a perfect end to a beautiful day, everywhere looked so magical bathed all in gold and it reminded me how lucky I am to be able to call this beautiful place, Dumfries & Galloway, home,  such a magical wee corner of Scotland!

There has been a flurry of activity here with garlands, wee boats & wind chimes being made.  I love making my wind chimes, which can be made to order and cost £14 each plus p&p.  Each chime is embellished with ribbon & shells, as the breeze catches the chime you can hear the delicate song of the shells, a peaceful sound with echoes of the seashore lingering, and as the mobile moves in the breeze it's pieces shift and change about forming beautiful sculptural shapes.

For now I am away back into the studio to work on some new driftwood creations ready for an exciting new happenig that I shall reveal very soon.

Glen trool magic . . .

To walk in  Glentrool Forest is to walk in a place
that has the magic to soothe the soul & clear the mind.

Discoveries to be made include the martyr's grave tucked into the woods
with its tale from long ago of 6 Covenanters killed by soldiers
while they were holding a service in Caldoris Wood in January 1685. 
read more here (from pg 399)

Discovering the mist laden hills as they climb above the trees.
Sitting at their feet, beside the stillness of loch trool
simply being and hugging a warm cup of coffee,
was to be enveloped in a sense of peace & wonder

The quiet only broken by the call of geese as they circled overhead
and the breeze as it stirred green branches.
So much beauty, just on our doorstep!

Our walk took us on the circular route around glen trool
three hours later, we returned to the start feeling as though we
had emerged from another time & place and making
promises to return very soon to taste the magic again.

Dumfries & Galloway, home of my heart . . .

I have created a board on Pinterest called 

Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland ~ Home

Home ~ Because it is the place I call home in my heart

Such a wonderful place to live tucked amongst the heather strewn hills
and the ancient forests. 

 Here I shall pin some of my own photos and those of others & interesting links.

Above is my photo of Cairn holy. A magical place to visit. 

For info on the cairns see here

A taste O' Burns . . .

With Burns Night upon us I thought I would give a  "Wee taste o' Burns"

Born in Alloway 25th Jan 1759, he lived not so far away in the town of Dumfries
He wrote many well known songs such as ‘Auld Lang Syne‘and ‘To a Mouse‘

 In the town there lies still  "The Globe Inn" Robbie's howff (haunt)
His favourite seat survives & poetry he scratched on his bedroom window!
There is still a Burns "Howff" club held in the town

There is a great wee video summing up his life & works here.
and here "The beginners guide to Burns" a good introduction
here to Burns Birthplace site for a collection of all things Burns related.
(Globe Inn image courtesy of Visit Scotland, the etched window from BBC News)

All around the world tonight folk will be raising their glasses,

making toasts and tucking into haggis, neeps & tatties. 

The Selkirk Grace

Some hae meat and canna eat,

And some wad eat that want it

But we hae meat, and we can eat,

And sae let the Lord be thankit

Here's my offering "A taste O'Burns" treasury
from folk all around the world

Galloway scenery, sculptures & sunsets

Needing a taste of the sharp frost filled air

we set off exploring, into the heart of the Galloway forest. As our eyes soaked up beautiful colours,

i breathed deep & felt the stresses of the week slide away.

We discovered hidden treasures, "the Quorum",

sitting silently, carved faces built into the old stone dyke.

Now beautifully weathered & looking as if they have always belonged.

We watched clouds race as we climbed to Murray's monument

& listened to the song of tumbling water at the "grey mare's waterfall".

At the waters edge unusual patterns, in sparkling jewels of ice.

Darkness settling over the hills told us it was time to head home

with happy hearts & a deep sense of peace now restored.

I have been having a great deal of fun printing my own cards,

choosing images, designing labels & deciding on packaging.

Each card has relevant snippets of folklore & traditions on the back.

Finished at last, the first ones are in "mythweaver" my etsy shop,

I shall be gradually adding more designs as the weeks go by.

* * *

*You can see more images of the Galloway hills sculptures here *

cairnsmore of fleet . . hidden treasures

remembering adventures from last summer . . .

when we followed signs up into heathery hillson to the beautiful cairnsmore of fleet

hoping to discover hidden carvings by matt baker
we mused over poetic clues to find the treasures

clues such as

"before the river is bridged, don't get your feet wet "

or "twixt viaduct & forest, we lived here once "(see the sculpted face tucked away?)

the ancient ruin of the medieval township Cullendoch

feral goats, pegrines, dragonflies & grouse

bog-cotton, sundews, sphagnam mossso much to see there on the
scottish natural heritage site

september sunset evenings . . .

taking time out to

make the absolute most

of these golden hued

silky september evenings

with the sun sinking swiftly

into gilded seas

leaving tinted clouds

in painted skies

for the nights are creeping softly in

the hours are ticking by

and its time to head steadily homeward

sooner & sooner as each day passes

* * *

carrick shore, near kirkcudbright