Into the light.

When I woke up this morning

the sunlight was making the most beautiful patterns

everywhere ...

I was reminded of why I love blogging so much: it makes me notice what I didn't see before.

It makes me see everything in a new light ...

A B C

Paging through an old Vanity Fair today, I came upon a reference to Peter Blake's An Alphabet (published by Paul Stolper/Coriander Studio). It's a wonderful book, full of letters, and you all know how I love letters. Well, maybe you didn't, but you do now!

(Images above from Paul Stolper. View the other 23 here.)

Blake also created an alphabet of 'found' polaroid letters for TATE.

(Find the others here.)

Oh, dear, I feel a Project coming on ...

Fate, fate, how harsh you are.

I saw a book in the library today, just lying there on a table. It was thick - almost 800 pages of illustrations, in a style that I love - very reminiscent, for me, of Maira Kalman. So I grabbed it to take home with me.

I've now had time to read and look at it more closely. It is a heartbreaking book.


Leben? oder Teater? (Life? or Theatre?) is Charlotte Salomon's opus of nearly 800 gouache paintings - relating the story of her life.

"Ride, ride, ride - through the night, through the day, through the night - and courage has grown so small, and yearning so great."

Shortly after finishing it, she was captured in the south of France and sent to Auschwitz with her husband on 7 October 1943, where she was killed a few days later.

'...I've no one left now. Fate, fate, how harsh you are."

She was 26 years old and five months pregnant when she died.

Here's what I learnt ...

Last paper project! Phew. Subconsciously I left the most difficult for last, although I didn't realize it before I started.
Attempt #1:

Attempt #2:

So here's what I learnt:

1. Some paper is crap for cutting out. Oops. (Sorry.)
2. Use good tools. I specially bought a new little craft knife, but it just isn't very good. I should probably have spent more on the better quality one.
3. Plan before you start. I just did a freehand drawing and then gaily started cutting out. Which is why my O looks the way it does. Learnt my lesson just in time for the D, R and A.
4. Start simple. My first attempt was quite complicated with lots more going on in the headspace and the word 'courage' going down the backbone (Get it? I thought that was pretty clever, pity it got ripped to pieces ... in a fit of pique ...)
5. Have patience and cut slowly. I didn't which is why some of the flowery bits got torn off.
6. Focus. Lack of concentration is not good. Which is why the M looks the way it does.
7. Practice makes perfect, which is why I should do this one over. On a rainy day.

I must still do the release cuts on the red paper (the white is just a guide - the red is the actual cutout).

I'm Hoping ...

"I'm asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington ... I'm asking you to believe in yours." - Barack Obama
(Poster by Robert Indiana)

A Monday Morning

Yes, this is exactly what it felt like when the alarm went off at 6 am this morning ...

Maybe I should have had some chocolate cake for breakfast ...
before attempting to mix with the rest of society ...

I just love Karen Kurycki's work!! Particularly her Women Out of the Box series. See more of it here. Fantastic.

The Story of a Lucky Draw - and why there are two winners.

I was happily writing out the names from the comments screen of my Giveaway post, on neat little strips of paper, when L'Usband poked his head round the door.

"How many?" he asked.

"Ten comments," I said proudly.

"Only ten?!" Clearly he had hoped for hundreds of entrants, so that he could (behind my back, no doubt) give away all the STUFF that I have been collecting over the years.

"Oh, well," he said, bravely hiding his disappointment, "good for you, dear," and tootled off to drown his sorrows in a can of Hansa.

A moment later Ms Mirabelle peeked around the door. I had booked her specially to do the draw, and even made her a beautiful big new hat for the occasion.

"How many?" she asked, patting her hair and pulling at the hem of her dress.

"Ten comments," I said proudly.

"Only ten???!!" There was no mistaking the tone of her voice.

"Well," I said, "that is pretty good, don't you think?"

"Mmmmmm," she sniffed. "What's this?" She poked her little paper finger at the screen.

"Oh, that is L'Usband's comment," I answered, a bit nervously.

"So!" she said, narrowing her eyes."So, ACTUALLY, what you MEAN to say is, you only have NINE entrants..."

"Yes, but ..."

"No buts!" she said. "That is pretty pathetic!"

"No, it's not," I said, feeling my face getting hot. "Look, this one's from the UK! And this one too! This one is anonymous - it may be from anywhere - Russia, perhaps! And this one from the States, up north! This one is from Durban and this one from Cape Town! And this one is from Spain, Bilbao! And this one from Andalusia in Spain! And look, look, this one is from Finland! I'm known all over the world! In fact, you could say I am world-famous!!"

"HaHaHa!" she shrieked with laughter. "Oh dear!" she cackled rather unattractively, clutching her sides, her little paper-body bent over, shaking with mirth. Finally she stopped, and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Well," she said, taking off her new hat, "there is no way I'm associating myself with such a small-scale event, Anairam. Anyway," she added, "I'm quite busy with my memoirs, and now I have another little something to write about." She sniggered. "Perhaps," she flung over her shoulder, as she stomped away on her little paper legs, "perhaps you should have taken a bit more trouble over the prize, put a bit more effort into it," and she cast a withering look in the direction of my three little Paper Birds.

I tell you, Ms Mirabelle may look all charming and sweet, but she has a mean mouth on her. I'm simply not going to let her put me off.

So, let me just shuffle them all around ... and pick one ... and the WINNER ... is ... LINDA SUE!!

Congratulations, Linda Sue, please send your postal address to anairamtraws at hotmail dot com and three little birds will be winging their way northwards!

"Ummm, ummm, Anairam ...." a tiny little voice said. (Ha! She's back - can't bear the thought of a party going on without her, of course ...)

"What is it?" I said curtly.

"Well, I was thinking, maybe I'll do the draw after all ... and then you can publish a photo of me on your blog again, with my new hat ..."

"Sorry, no can do, Mirabelle," I replied nastily. "It's all done. Finished. We did it all without you."

"Well, can't we maybe ... perhaps ... just this once ... do a runner-up?" her voice quivered.

Oh, my goodness, who can resist her when she asks so sweetly, and when you can see a big wobbly paper tear just ready to drop?

She closed her eyes, shuffled the remaining slips around, and ....

"The SECOND WINNER is .... ESTI!!" she shouted excitedly and clapped her little hands.

Congratulations, Esti, please send your postal address to anairamtraws at hotmail dot com and three little birds will be winging their way to Spain!