Skullduggery...

And here is my skull, at home in my natty corner unit. He looks forward to greeting those of you who come to Dorset Art Weeks! 

A new kid on the block ...

Lately a lot of over-made-up dolls are getting a younger, fresher look. I decided to have a go myself. I can paint, I just wasn't sure about having a steady enough hand! But I found this Alice Moxie Girlz doll for 50p and she came home with me ...

With a few pieces of magic eraser, and a lot of nail varnish remover her make up and fat lips disappeared! Well ok, those lips still looked pumped. Some careful painting would take care of that. 

With white acrylic I shaped new eyes. And with a gentle pink and some 12-year-olds front teeth those lips have changed!

After that point I was on a roll. I do believe she needs some hint at eye lashes, but I'm really pleased with my first attempt to create a doll that looks like a real person!

Simple clothes next, but in the meantime, I found a hat for her to wear. 

What do you think her name should be?

Don't be board .....

Found a superb chopping board in a charity shop and snapped it up for collaging ....

It already had red sides, so I covered each side in pages of prayer book, and overlapped the edges, sanding them once dry. I covered both sides and then scumbled white paint over the top. 

Now for some fun, cutting lettering from pretty paper using a sketch as a guide. All the letters were drawn on the back of the paper in reverse. 

After gluing them to the heart, I rubbed in some pastel colours and fixed them before varnishing the piece ...

Here is the other side of this truly double sided art! 

House work ...

I forgot to take the before pic, the everyday view of the hall prior to Mike taking down the false wall with the crack in the wallpaper ....

My that cream was a nasty colour ... The old door and frame have been recycled to cover up the electoral thingies that we don't need to see. Also there is space in the bottom for candles and a torch!

Next it's time for an old moth nibbled carpet to go, and those ceiling tiles that look like rice cakes too. 

It's gonna get more messy before it gets better!

An Up-Cycle ... Dressing Table

I bought a dressing table for £30 which had been given a shabby-chique effect. Sadly though the paint was peeling, so Mike has been giving it some TLC out in the garage ...

Underneath was a varnished dressing table, that's why the paint peeled off. Mike stripped the lose paint with blades then sanded the piece to ready to paint it once again ... Paint does not want to stick to a varnished surface!

The dressing table will be a joint project too. Here are the drawer fronts painted with undercoat and ready for me to collage! I will have fun doing that. 

The top has a nice piece of glass. I recon I could do something nice under the glass too before installing this in our bedroom!

I like lady birds!

I like lady birds so much I decided to add one to the house using some of the red paint already used ....

I sketched it out and rubbed the painting area with ESP or easy surface preparer which I've used for years on various projects ...

After that had dried and with the sun away from the front of the house I applied black paint that is also in use on our home ....

From below it really looked like Banksy had slapped a quick stencil on my wall!

Then I was brave one last time as I took an old, small brush to colour in the lady bird. 

Yay did it! What do you think? 

The front of the house is nearly complete!

Do you like steampunk?

I picked up these folding biker-goggles in a local charity shop for 99p. I have a little steampunk project in mind ....

After priming with good old ESP, I painted the frames with acrylic and the lenses with some glass paint which is more shiny!

Such fun!

Steampunk texture...

I found some old collages on artist board and decided to work back into them ...

I don't even remember when I first made them, but painting them was good fun!

I wonder can you guess how some of these textures were made?

The metallic effect is made using bronze acrylic paint ...

Art and the Spirit Exhibition, Bridport ....

I have 5 pieces on display this week, This one i borrowed back from a good friend ...

I really like these mixed media pieces, plus the altered frames, I had a lot of fun.

And these Cartoon ones were taken from Mary's current favourite song, which makes her laugh out loud.

All set up and ready!

Altered art finished ...

And with a couple of licks of Rosenthal on the frames, the pictures are ready to take over to Bridport on Wednesday!