purple podded peas

Laughter really is a good tonic

2013-05-12T19:24:00.001+01:00

On Saturday we went to Wembley . . . no, not to the Cup Final . . . the Arena, to see the Eddie Izzard gig 'Force Mageure'.

We had a great time (I ached a bit from laughing at the bit about dressage being useful for reversing a horse into a cupboard) and it makes quite a change to be in a massive arena full of thousands of people.

After the show we walked the short distance back to the hotel, had a beer and fell asleep . . . So much better than driving all the way back to Suffolk. This morning we decided to find somewhere to explore before heading home, so we went to Hampstead and after a lovely breakfast we went to Fenton House . . . and it turned out to be a wonderful surprise! I think it may be my idea of a perfect garden, because there were all the things I like most . . .

a lovely lean-to greenhouse,

lots of seats and lovely secret corners

beautiful but simple topiary

an orchard with wild flowers in the grass under the trees

a walled veg plot with perfectly trained fruit trees

and a very tame robin

Who would have thought you could be in such a beautiful tranquil garden, but still see the sky scrapers of central London from 4th floor balcony?!

The rooms in Fenton House are full of the most delightful treasures . . . 18th century ceramics, embroideries of the most amazing detail and some lovely paintings. Everything was so charmingly displayed; I think I could happily spend a whole day in each room looking at all the things in detail.

I came away with my relaxed mind buzzing with ideas!

Celia

PPP now means Pigeon Proof Pen

2013-05-04T20:55:00.001+01:00

Hello! I've had an enforced break from blogging (reason: illusive cable snappage = no broadband) but I'm back and I'd like to welcome anyone who has found Purple Podded Peas via this lovely recommendation by that very nice chap Ryan in a rather good magazine called The Edible Garden (I'm not a huge reader of gardening mags, but this one is full of very interesting stuff).

So, what's all this about Purple Podded Peas? Regular visitors to my blog will know that I ramble on about all sorts of things, including our garden; but the peas haven't played a major role for the past couple of years mainly do to the ****ing pigeons. Now, I don't usually swear and I hardly ever cry, but the ****ing pigeons have made me do both over the past two or three growing seasons. I used to be able to grow tall wigwams of beautiful heritage peas with just a few pigeon-distraction measures in the early stages of growth. THEN (I can feel myself getting angry and upset just remembering this) the ****ing pigeons used nasty tactics; they waited until my peas were tall and covered with beautiful flowers and tiny pods and in a dawn raid they demolished the lot!

Something had to be done.

a) I could give up growing peas (I have saved seeds of over a dozen heritage varieties, most with purple pods) – that's not going to happen

b) I could buy an air gun, learn how to use it and live on pigeon breast terrine – I seriously considered this option

c) I could install a 'fruit cage' – previously ruled out due to huge expense

Earlier this year I noticed a tiny advert in a national newspaper: Henry Cowles - netting made in Britain since 1889, could they supply the solution at a price I could afford? . . . yes they could! AND what's more, the cage is made to measure so it perfectly fits over two of the raised beds in our vegetable garden :-)

The cage arrived . . . and it had to be constructed. Luckily I have a very tall person who was up to the task :-)

The Pigeon Proof Pen (as it will now be called) has made me deliriously happy . . . for the price of one designer shoe my peas can grow, safe in the knowledge that the squadron of elite attack pigeons cannot harm them :-)

I start the peas in large deep pots in the greenhouse, when they are a few inches tall and with good roots, I plant then out around wigwams made of canes (home harvested form a giant miscanthus grass) and twiggy sticks (prunings from the garden shrubs)

One half of the Pigeon Proof Pen is now planted with five wigwams: Shiraz Purple Podded Mangetout, Tutankhamun, Curruther's Purple Podded, Robinson and Salmon Flowered.

The wigwams will be interplanted with various varieties of lettuce and brassicas.

Thanks to the Pigeon Proof Pen, the Purple Podded Peas have returned to the PPPs Blog!

Celia
xx

April evening on the South Bank

2013-04-21T21:02:00.001+01:00

After a morning working hard putting the netting on the "pea cage" (I'll tell you more of that another day) we drove down to London . . .

We walked past the shiny new Shard that slices into the sky (as you look at this, imagine the bells of Southark Cathedral pealing out in the background)

We strolled along the Jubilee Walk and past the bridges

We ate ice creams leaning on balcony of the Royal Festival Hall and watched the people below walking in the evening sunshine

We took our seats for the concert (Verdi's Requiem conducted by Daniele Gatti)

After the concert we looked at the twinkling lights on the river.

Primula Overture

2013-04-19T21:24:00.001+01:00

Primula, its name tells us that it is 'the first', the first to flower in Spring; never has this been more true than than in this year's long awaited Spring. The icy wind from the North Sea was replaced by the warm South-Westerly and the Primroses in our garden rejoiced!

The Brimstone and Comma Butterflies danced over the carpet of Primroses and Violets, a few bees joined in too . . . I wonder what kind of been this is? I love its ginger fur.
btw Twitter has helped me ID this bee as a Common Carder Bumblebee, most likely a young Queen who had survived the winter and will now start a new colony . . . isn't that wonderful!

A few years ago I planted lots of Victorian Polyanthus that I'd grown from seed, these have hybridised with the wild Primroses, at first I thought of weeding out the coloured primroses but there are so many, so we let them mingle.

Last year I was visiting a local 'open garden' when I spotted two little Auricula plants that were left on a plant stall, so I bought them. When they flowered I discovered one pot had two different plants in it, so I carefully potted them up separately. I was now hooked, Auriculas have that effect on people. They are related to Primroses and Polyanthus, but they need a bit more tlc . . . never too hot and not too cold; not too dry but never too wet. If you treat them right they reward you with exquisite flowers . . . like this

I bought three more Auriclas this year, mine are 'just' Garden Auriculas, not the special named varieties, I could plant them in the garden but I think they look more special grown individually in old terracotta pots. I'll divide them to make more plants when this year's flowers have faded - and so I know which plant is which I've given them names. More photos of my small collection here on Pinterest.

Auriculas seem to be the flower of the moment, I wonder why? The history of Auriculas in England is closely linked to the Huguenot silk weavers and it is this story which is told in a beautiful collection of songs, the Auricula Suite I discovered this in a chance conversation with one of my customers - she is one of the musicians.
There is more about Auriculas and the Huguenots on the Spitalfield Life blog, including pictures of a rather lovely Auricula Theatre made from one of those wooden arbour seats that you see for sale in garden centres – now that's a clever idea!

Celia
xx

Happy Easter!

2013-03-31T13:07:00.001+01:00

Crepuscular spectacular

2013-03-30T12:09:00.001Z

Yesterday I really felt that a corner had been turned, the wind was still chilly but on the branches leaf-buds are breaking and in the village churchyard the grass is full of newly germinated Sycamore seedlings . . . signs that nature is on the move.

Late in the afternoon the sun cast a warm glow across our garden, so we decided to go for a walk; we chose one of our favourite routes skirting a large wood, snow still lay in the shadow of the ditches.

It didn't take long before we spotted others enjoying the last rays of afternoon sunshine – a hare basks with his nose facing west towards the setting sun.

Hares are difficult to photograph at the best of times, but I managed to zoom in on this one – aren't its ears beautiful?!

And there goes another . . . racing along the skyline!

It was that time of evening when the deer come out of the woods to graze in the fields – a magnificent Fallow buck followed by three hinds.

In the fading light and against the brown fields they were difficult to see, let alone photograph. This group of female Fallow deer were on the other side of a tall hedge, I managed to find a gap through which to get a good view – they had spotted me!

You can clearly see the colour variation in the herd; the classic fawn and brown, and the very dark almost black 'melanic' variation.

The sky in the west was glowing brightly and we new we were in for a good sunset . . .

. . . gold . . .

and then an extraordinary flare of colour – a Sun Pillar

Sun or Solar Pillars are the result of the Sun's rays being reflected and refracted by millions of ice crystals in the atmosphere.

You can read more about the hows and whys of Sun Pillars here.

A crepuscular spectacular! We couldn't have hope for more.

Celia
x

How to make an Easter Garden

2013-03-28T20:34:00.001Z

I'll quickly mention the weather and then move on. Spring? well, it nearly happened for an afternoon at the end of February, but since then we've been plunged back into the grips of winter – the coldest March for 50 years. As the winds bringing the Arctic chill are nor-easterlies, that mean that here in East Anglia we're on the front line and although we haven't had as much snow fall, it is the bone numbing wind-chill that has prevented any progress in the vegetable and cut flower gardens.

It's unbelievable, but this weekend is Easter. And it was while I was longing to spend time enjoying spring flowers, that I remembered my favourite thing about Easter when I was very young . . . no, it wasn't the chocolate eggs or egg hunts or the Easter bunny . . . what I loved doing was helping my Gran constuct an Easter Garden in the village church.

Then I thought, why not make a mini version!
Here's how –

You will need: a tray, small rocks and some pebbles, some small low containers (jars and lids would do); sand or grit.

Put the pebbles in the containers and fill them with water; arrange them and the rocks on your tray.

Collect some moss . . .

. . . and arrange it among the containers and rocks; make a path with the sand or grit, winding through the garden.

Now you need some twigs to make trees . . .

. . . find some with the leaves and blossom about to open and they will bloom for Easter.

Add some leaves, pushing the stalks among the pebbles in the containers, so they stay in place.

And now, add the flowers – as I was doing this I remembered that the best thing about helping Gran make the Easter Garden, was visiting Aunt May's garden and being allowed to pick any of the beautiful Spring flowers that grew under the trees around her little wooden bungalow.

My Gran's Easter Garden was used to tell the Easter story and was complete with a rocky tomb and some lovely figures of the disciples, Mary Magdalene and Jesus, and (my favourite) a beautiful serene angel to sit inside the empty tomb on Easter Sunday morning. But, it would look beautiful with little foil covered eggs hiding among the flowers and an Easter Bunny.

A little gardening fix, while we wait for Spring to arrive . . .

Happy Easter!

Celia

Cambridge . . . shhhh don't tell – there's a secret Ark

2013-03-20T19:18:00.001Z

I didn't have any high hopes about today . . . the Tardis needed its annual service, which meant driving to 'car land' on the outer fringes of Cambridge and while the mechanics tinkered with its bits, I could use a complimentary pass to catch the bus into town . . . probably a whole day traipsing around in the cold and rain – quite frankly I wasn't in the mood.

But then, I remembered somewhere I'd been meaning to find for years . . . I had a plan!

After some errands in town and a brief uninspiring wander around the clothes department of John Lewis, I headed off to the Fitzwilliam Museum for 'elevenses' – a pot of tea and a Duke of Cambridge Tartlet (not a euphemism) – I felt better already :-)

So then, let me take you down some lesser known lanes of Cambridge . . .

Retrace your steps from the Fitz, back towards town and on your left set back behind trees you'll find Little St Mary's Church. Go down the lane, stopping to look through the railings at the charmingly wild graveyard; and you'll find this building tucked away down a little side lane . . . it is, or rather it was, the Ark.

Between 1884 and 1984, this was the Museum of Archaeology and it contained a collection of hundreds of plaster casts of Ancient Greek and Roman statues; students of Classics and Art History could study life size replicas of all the great sculptures from antiquity . . . and I have very fond memories of spending hours sitting with my sketch book among the crowded dusty plaster figures.

The old Ark is now Peterhouse Library, so where did the largest intact collection of 19th century plaster casts of antique statuary get moved to?

Follow me, and I'll take you there . . .

Past the boatyard and down Laundress Lane to Silver Street and over the bridge . . .

Cross 'The Backs' and carry on straight down Sidgwick Avenue, lined with stately London Plane trees; and you will get to the Sidgwick Site – an eclectic mix of modern buildings which house the HQs of various faculties of the University of Cambridge.

I found a suitably academic looking information board and worked out that the Classicists HQ is in SO50, which just happened to be the building I was standing next to. I found my way to the door via some very low-key signage, but don't let that put you off – go through the glass doors and up the stairs and . . .

OH! good gracious me! you'll find yourself in the most amazing gallery filled to the gunnels with every classical statue you ever saw in an Art History text book . . . and many more!

And what's more, there are comfy armchairs that you can sit in . . . it's as if I'd stumbled upon Professor Mary Beard's personal sitting room! Do you think she's trying to keep it a secret so she has it all to herself?

Well, for an hour or so today, I had it all to myself :-) it was pleasantly warm (not hot like in John Lewis) and beautifully light; it was quiet and peaceful – I sat among the statues. Someone (maybe Mary?) had thoughtfully typed out some classical verse in either Ancient Greek or Latin (helpfully translated into English for people like me who didn't do Classics) neatly laminated the pages and blu-tacked them next to the relevant statues . . . so very 'Cambridge'.

This little chap caught my eye . . . I think he's Mary's pet owl ;-)

When you're feeling calm and refreshed enough to return to the real world out side the Ark, it's only a short walk through the Sidgwick Site and out onto West Road; turn right and you'll see the iconic Cambridge view of King's College across the meadows along the River Cam.

I took my usual route into town, along Garret Hostel Lane (probably the first time I've ever seen it completely deserted!) and then down Senate House Passage – stepping in the footsteps of probably every person who has ever studied at Cambridge University over the past 800 years.

I was really uplifted by finding the new Ark . . . don't tell anyone, it's our secret . . . and Mary's ;-)

Celia
xx

Phoebe's special day

2013-03-17T18:41:00.002Z

Six year's ago today we bought four young hens.

We named them Ruby, Sylvie, Dawn and Phoebe.

Phoebe was the first to lay an egg; but she was the bottom of the pecking order.

Then the Spice Girls arrived . . . three young hens with outragious hair-dos, Phoebe pecked them!!!

Sadly Dawn, Ruby and Sylvie have died and are under the primroses in the orchard; I worried for Phoebe, how would she cope with being the oldest member of the flock?

So, last autumn when I decided to get three new pullets, I got Coucou Marans just like Phoebe . . . because I really believe that "birds of a feather stick together" and Phoebe would like to have the company of hens that looked like her (and her dear best friend Sylvie).

And . . . it worked! Phoebe has a new bounce in her step :-) she has young hens to aim a peck at and give a stare to that says "age before beauty!" . . . Phoebe is now a Dowager Duchess of Grantham among hens!

Over six years Phoebe has probably layed more than 1200 eggs, she layed this one yesterday. As always she took her time . . . about 2 hours! An hour to get comfy, then another to cuddle the egg and go all dreamy.

Today, we had a little celebration in the garden for Phoebe; I made a 'cake' (cooked rice, porridge, bread, seeds and yogurt, flavoured with Poultry Spice)

I made sure Phoebe took the first slice . . . she grabbed it and ran!

She took it far enough away so that she could eat it in peace and none of the others would get it!

And then Phoebe carefully wiped her beak on the grass :-)

It was quite a party!

We hope that we share many more days with Phoebe in our garden, she is the most amiable of hens and we love her lots!

xxx

Celia

And now we are six

2013-03-14T14:59:00.002Z

Last year when Purple Podded Peas was five years old, I did a live blogging event – I can't think of anything to out-shine that but I thought the 6th anniversary of starting this blog should be marked somehow . . . maybe Cheep and the under-gardeners could help?

Filmed at PPPs HQ on 14th March 2013

Directed and filmed by Celia
Starring Cheep
with co-stars: Phoebe, Saffron, Ginger, Nutmeg, Holly, Ivy and Bryony

Whether you are a new visitor or
someone who's been popping in for years,
thank you for visiting PPPs
and here's to the year ahead . . .

Cheers!

Celia

Light Night

2013-03-11T09:34:00.002Z

In the previous post I promised to tell you about the Sudbury Light Night, an event to celebrate the artistic inspiration of the Stour Valley . . .

After two glorious Spring days earlier last week, the weather deteriorated and the forecast for Friday evening was dire . . . wind and heavy rain! Cliff and I went along prepared with waterproofs and umbrellas, luckily the heaviest rain held off for the time we were there but not surprisingly crowds were sparse, which was a shame because there were some intriguing things to see.

We met up with fellow Suffolk blogger, Su, inside St Peter's church; where there was a good selection of paintings and other artwork exhibited. After a few teething problems – and competing with the Market Hill street lighting! – the video projection on the tower got underway (well done to installation artist Jacky Hutson). It was pretty exciting to see some of my images so huge!

We then headed off towards the water meadows behind the Quay Theatre (luckily Su knew the way) further along, the route was lined with lanterns – really pretty – unlike the path which had become a quagmire of slippery mud!

We were just too late to see the painting tableau performance on the river bank opposite the Quay Theatre, so I can't tell you more about that . . . the crowd that were gathered seemed to have enjoyed it.

Onwards, through muddier mud, we walked to the water meadow along the River Stour; the trees illuminated with coloured light looked beautiful.

Lining the edge of the river bank (useful, so we knew when to stop walking!) were coloured lanterns . . . this must have taken ages to set up, but was very very effective.

Su and I couldn't resist poking around inside one of the lanterns to see how they were made – and we found they are amazingly simple to make: a white plastic bag with some holes cut in it, some soil in the bottom to weigh it down, and one of those led party table lights. Please do try this in your garden!

Our favourite thing was the flying swan lantern, attached to a small boat and with human-opperated flapping wings, it 'flew' low over the water of the River Stour . . . beautiful!

Well done to Managing a Masterpiece for conceiving a lovely event. I've put an album of photos on my Facebook Page here, and there is also a video of the projected images on the church tower and the swan.

Afterwards Su joined us for a hearty supper at The Black Lion in Long Melford, tucking our muddy shoes well under the table, we looked as clean and tidy as any of the other diners ;-)

Celia
x

The source of inspiration

2013-03-05T19:01:00.003Z

The southern boundary of the county of Suffolk follows the Stour Valley, from its western edge bordering South Cambridgeshire all the way to the coast and the North Sea. The landscape along the Stour Valley has been the source of inspiration of many artists through the centuries; probably the most famous are Thomas Gainsborough and John Constable who gives his name to "Constable Country" a stretch of the Stour Valley that runs through Dedham Vale.

'Dedham Vale, view to Langham church from the fields just east of Vale Farm, East Bergholt' by John Constable

The Stour Valley's unique landscape and heritage is very special, but it is also in an area of expanding population and infrastructure. Managing what happens to the landscape in the 21st century is crucial for it to survive as an inspiration for future generations . . . Managing a Masterpiece is a 3 year project which brings together organisations throughout the area to "to conserve, celebrate and improve understanding of the Stour Valley".

There are many projects underway and planned for the future (I can recommend looking at the wonderful panoramic views from the church towers along the valley) and another event will happen this Friday (8th March 2013) in Sudbury, a small market town right on the River Stour and the birth place of Thomas Gainsborough; LIGHT NIGHT will celebrate the Stour Valley as inspiration for artists and writers through the centuries, in a series of light and video installation from the Market Square all the way down to the Quay Theatre on the banks of the River Stour . . . and I'm very excited because some of my linocuts and woodcuts will be included projected light installation on St Peter's Church tower. I'll try to take a video of it and show you next week.

Meanwhile, this has made me think about the landscape around my studio which is in the valley of the Stour Brook, a major tributory of the River Stour itself; I wondered where the source of the river is . . . there's an interesting web site about the Stour here . . . and I found that the main source of the Stour and the source of the Stour Brook are very close to each other on Wratting Common in South East Cambridgeshire. The Stour runs North before curving round to flow East and the Stour Brook flows from almost the same place, but South-West; the two channels join just before the village of Clare and then continue to Sudbury and on through Dedham Vale to the sea.

This afternoon I walked from my studio to Wratting Common, following the Stour Brook; on the way back I recorded the course of the stream in photographs, all the way back to where it passes our vegetable garden and flows past the end of The Wild Wood on its way to the North Sea . . .

The music is “Corelli - Concerto Grosso, Op6 no4”
(by Advent Chamber Orchestra) form here

If you couldn't view the video, you can also find it here.

Celia
x

A few days away

2013-03-04T22:19:00.000Z

It was our wedding anniversary last week, so we thought we'd go somewhere for a few days . . . we caught the train and four hours later we were

here . . .

. . . in Ghent, in Belgium. This is the view as we approached the city centre walking along the cobbled streets from the hotel; the three vast medieval towers rising high above the stepped gabled town houses.

The weather was cold, temperatures barely reached 3C for the whole time we were there; nor did we see the sun, clouds wrapped Flanders in a grey cloak – the colour palette was muted and subtle with accents of red tiles or green railings – like stepping into a winter scene painted by Avercamp or Bruegel.

At night the illuminated buildings looked like the points and picots of Belgium lace against the black sky and reflected in the water.

Despite the cold we walked all around the city and found lots of places to visit and things to see.

10 things to do in Ghent when it's flipping freezing!

Go to a classical concert in the breathtaking medieval hospital hall at De Bijloke.

See the Van Eyk brothers' "Lam Gots" (the Ghent Altar Piece or Mystic Lamb) in St Bavo's Cathedral

and also being cleaned in the restoration laboratory in the Museum of Fine Arts

Look at lots of cool stuff in the Design Museum

Learn stuff about all sort of stuff at MIAT

Laugh at the films of bands and drum majorettes in The House of Alijn

Have dinner at the Pakhuis

and a vegetarian gourmet banquet at Avalon

Stumble upon a lovely place for lunch

Buy a jar of mustard and a red nose.

Celia
xx

Walking =

2013-02-15T17:53:00.000Z

Unwinding

Gathering inspiration

Drawing in my mind's eye

New boots

Following a herd of deer

but not seeing them

Blue sky

Red tiles

Hedge

Sun in my eyes

Sun on my back

5 km

Niggling achilles

Celia

A guest blog post for the Red Nose Day Dolls

2013-02-13T14:58:00.002Z

This morning Emma entrusted me with the key to the Red Nose Day Dolls blog . . . so I've written about making tiny books (all in a good cause).

Please pop over to have a look and follow the Red Nose Day Dolls' further adventures leading up to their auction for Comic Relief on Red Nose Day.

The Red Nose Day Dolls on Facebook and on Twitter.

Celia
xx

It starts with a seed

2013-02-07T17:56:00.001Z

Seed potatoes

are chitting in my studio's porch . . . Foremost, Arran Pilot, Charlotte and British Queen.

Saved seeds

of Crimson Flowered Broad Beans have been planted in pots in the greenhouse.

Self-seeded
tiny seedlings around one of my Auricula plants.

Sprouting seeds
the Sweetpea seeds are starting to grow.

The Seed of Inspiration

this was a surprise gift for being the 100th person to follow ceramic artist Karen Banks on Twitter. By complete coincidence that very same day, I'd seen Karen's beautiful framed collections of ceramic hearts being unpacked when I delivered my work to The Church Street Gallery in Saffron Walden; and when I drove past today, our work was side by side in the window display!

I've planted The Seed of Inspiration
in a pot in my studio.

Celia

Testing my new online shop

2013-01-26T18:11:00.004Z

I've been busy framing and packing my two new woodcuts 'My heart leaps' and 'Love song' for sending out to galleries; and the new range of 'not just for Valentine's Day' cards is in my card shop. But I wanted an online shop for selling my original unframed prints directly from my web site . . . and I think I've found a way . . . there's nothing like jumping in the deep end, is there?!

I've found that the only way to really learn and test these things is to go live in a small way and see if it works. You can find my new online shop via my web site (when you get there, click on 'the new online shop' in the web site menu, I'm not giving you a direct link, because I want to test that it all works).

I'd really appreciate feed back, so please let me know about the things I've missed that you'd need to know about the prints that are for sale; or stuff that doesn't work; or anything bad (or good). It's the only way I'll learn and make the shop work.

And if anyone does really want to buy one of the new unframed woodcuts via the new online shop, hopefully it will work but in case it doesn't please give me a shout and I'll put on my 'customer services hat' to sort it all out for you.

**** The shipping prices to UK mainland addresses are now working ****

**** Found a solution for additional overseas shipping charges ****

Celia
xx

Snug

2013-01-25T18:12:00.000Z

The room next-door to my studio has a multitude of uses . . . study, gallery, meeting room, bedroom, breakfast room, guest room. We call it 'the book room' – er, because it it full of books . . . and maps, many many maps!

But I don't think it ever looked loved, it was usually a dump for stuff in transit between other rooms.

For years I've had a plan, but never actioned it . . . what the room should be is a 'snug'.

____________________________________________

Snug, noun
British English : a small comfortable room (usually in a pub) with seats for only a few people

____________________________________________

Last week Cliff and I drove over to a nearby furniture store to see what was in their sale, and now – ta-daaah!!!!

The studio snug :-)

The pale gold velvet upholstery wouldn't have been my choice, but it was a bargain and it's a sofa-bed too. It is also the perfect place to use my crazy patchwork quilt . . . I made it over many years and has hardly ever been unfolded since I finished it about 10 years ago.

So, now I have a convenient cosy place to sit when I'm planning ideas, or packing cards, or just putting my feet up for five minutes.

Surprise, surprise! of course the studio assistants think this has been done just for them! The trouble is they aren't very good at sharing (with each other or with me).

Celia
xx

The shop is open!

2013-01-21T10:33:00.002Z

Many of you have already found my new-look Etsy shop . . . and my Etsy iPhone app has already "ker-chinged" Thank you!!!

On the blog layout, you'll notice there's a new button to take you to the shop (if you're watching in google reader, mobile version or whatever, you may not see it).

While dusting down the shelves I noticed a new Etsy thingy . . . 'About', so I've added a fun little intro – you can see it here.

I though you might like to see the 'real' shop . . . yes it does exist ;-) it's a red shoe box and looks like this

. . . and as you can see, I need to get busy packing and posting those orders; which means I'll have to go outside . . . in the snow! Yes, like most of the UK our corner of Suffolk is looking very wintery indeed.

This is our village green . . . don't Suffolk pink cottages cheer up a snow scene!

Celia
xx

Re-stocking the shop

2013-01-17T19:21:00.001Z

I'm surrounded by boxes full of printed cards . . . the new 'not just for Valentine's Day" range has been printed and arrived this morning – and I took advantage of the sunshine this afternoon to photograph them.

I promised that my Etsy shop would re-open early in 2013 – well, I've dusted down the shelves and the new shop front is up . . .

. . . I'll re-stock the shop over the next few days; and update all the links and update the web site, so "bear with".

This morning, after Lorna had delivered the boxes of cards, I drove over to the picture framer's to collect some more frames – these are for the new woodcuts 'Love song' and 'My heart leaps' – they will be in the galleries soon.

It was a glorious day, cold (well below freezing all day) but the sunshine made the remaining snow and hoar frost twinkle; so it was a pleasure to drive up to Depden, a little village not far away, where I had arranged to meet Tim to persuade him to stock my cards in his lovely farm shop/café.

At the farm shop it was a pleasure to meet Cheryl, she is a very keen stitcher and knitter and was holding a 'stitch'n'bitch' session in the cosy café, so I joined her and had a bowl of Tim's delicious lentil soup for lunch.

And the good news is that my cards are now for sale in Depden Farm Shop.

Must go, I have cards to pack and prints to frame!

Celia

Snow Country – Japanese woodcuts at the Fitz

2013-01-10T09:18:00.002Z

The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge has a wonderful collection of Japanese woodcuts and about once a year a selection is displayed in the Shiba Gallery . . . a small room at the top of the stairs from the entrance lobby. These exhibitions are always a treat – beautifully displayed, sensitively curated and with fascinating information in the labels.

Utagawa Kunisada (1786 1865) Winter – Shinobazu Pond

This winter the theme has been Snow, the exhibition closes this Sunday (13th January 2013) if you haven't seen it yet and are able to get there, I can recommend going along (entrance is free!) – there is no substitute to seeing the real prints for appreciating the scale, intricate details and meticulous printmaking techniques. But if you can't get there or even if you can visit (or, like me, you have visited but didn't have time to read all the labels thoroughly – there's a huge amount of information to take in) 'Snow Country - woodcuts of the Japanese Winter' is now online . . . and the Fitz does this sort of thing very very well!

So, if the snow is falling outside your window this weekend, find a comfortable and warm place to sit and be transported to 18th/19th century Japan.

For printmakers I can highly recommend the section about the various techniques for depicting snow.

For a taster . . . here are two of my favourite prints . . .

Hiroshige lets the paper do the talking . . .

A triptych by Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) Mountain and river on the Kiso road

ばちゃ bacha splat!

Utagawa Kuniyasu (1794-1832)
Kabuki actors Segawa Kikunojô V and Bandô Mitsugorô III

Stay warm!

Celia
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New Year confession . . . my desk is a mess!

2013-01-02T09:04:00.002Z

I'm back in my studio and raring to go . . . er, but . . .

. . . yes, my desk is a mess!

Does that happen to you when things get busy? Or are you always neat and tidy?

Celia
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A sunny start to a new year

2013-01-01T21:35:00.000Z

Sunshine makes a big difference doesn't it? I like the winter months, but mild and muddy get me down; so to start a new year with sunshine and a blue sky was refreshing in many ways.

We decided to seize the day and drive to the coast . . . well, almost the coast, we went to Woodbridge and walked along the waterfront of the Deben estuary. Then we went to one of my favourite places - Sutton Hoo, where we had lunch before walking around the burial mounds.
Did Mrs Pretty (or her friend) really see ghosts in the grounds of her house? Or did she make that up . . . it's a good story, whatever. The Sutton Hoo treasure discovered when archaeologists dug in the hummocky field in the grounds of Mrs Pretty's home on the banks of the Deben estuary, is now in the British Museum; but the exhibits in the visitor centre are very informative and include a reconstruction of the Saxon Kings's burial.
I love the sense of connection to the Saxon heritage around the shores of the North Sea, that this place has. Suffolk looks very much like Denmark when viewed from these fields sloping gently down to the estuary snaking out to the North Sea.

I also love the sunshine yellow gorse blooming on the first day of the year

I hope you too had a good start to 2013.

Celia

Farewell 2012 – Welcome 2013

2012-12-31T11:00:00.001Z

I hope you had a peaceful and happy Christmas, the festivities came and went before I realised that I hadn't put a Chritsmas post here on PPPs. The weeks before Christmas were for me, busier than I could have foreseen – but thanks to my very efficient and reliable frame maker, I was able to keep the galleries supplied with framed prints for their Christmas/New Year exhibitions. Then, in the week before Christmas two non-festive things happened . . . we were woken in the night to learn that Cliff's elderly aunt had passed away, she was frail and approached her life's end slowly but although her passing was inevitable we were sad. Then, just two days later, a dear friend, weakened by past cancer treatment, lost his battle to withstand a chest infection . . . his death was a jolt and saddened us much more.

So Christmas for us was a quiet and reflective time.

We are now at the turning of the year . . . a time for new beginnings and looking forward, which is just what I need.

Here's to an inspiring and creative 2013,

Celia
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Frost after fog + sunshine = magic

2012-12-12T18:37:00.000Z

This week began grey and foggy, what few hours of daylight we get at this time of year was filtered through a double layer of dirty 'nets'. Yesterday I went for a walk with friends before having lunch in the local pub, we walked over fields frozen solid and dusted with frost – like icing sugar on a giant chocolate log cake.

In the evening I had to drive over the border into Cambridgeshire, along dark winding lanes; visibility was about 20 metres and the car warning message continuously flashed to remind me of "danger of ice" . . . it was -3C. On the way home I sensed that something strange was happening, in places the fog was becoming thinner and the trees seemed different . . . white and glittery!

This morning the fog had completely gone! Overnight all the tiny droplets of water in the air had formed ice crystals attached to every twig and leaf . . . this was a opportunity not to be missed, after breakfast I went out for a walk with my camera.

I crossed the road opposite my studio and walked down the path behind behind the village church . . .

. . . and emerged into a magical glittering ice-crystal world . . .

As I returned along the field edges I heard a strange sound – the crackling, splintering, tinkling sound of ice crystals falling from the branches high above.

The winter sun's warmth was enough to melt the crystals and they fell like snow all around me, onto the frozen ground.

Celia
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