paddington bear

nine cool things on a tuesday

~ jama ~ 11 Comments

1. April Come She Will: Nothing lifts the spirit and fills the heart with hope like Spring. Flower buds on trees, daffodils abloom, enchanting greening of the land.

Enjoy some of UK artist Lucy Grossmith’s lovely paintings which showcase the delicate beauty of nature in exquisite detail.

Lucy grew up in the Lincolnshire countryside and now lives and works in Suffolk, England. She’s always been surrounded and inspired by nature and enjoys walking outdoors, where she sketches and makes mental notes of flora, fauna, colors, textures, and weather conditions – all ingredients for her work.

She paints with acrylics on canvas or textured paper, focusing on gardens, wildlife, countryside, and coastal landscapes. I like the soft, feminine feel to her pictures and immersing myself in her idyllic scenes which seem to say, relax and stay awhile. 🙂

For more, visit Lucy’s Official Website, “Heart to Art,” where you can purchase original paintings and prints. Greeting cards are also available online via several different sites, including Orchard Cards and House of Cards. Keep current with her Instagram.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

~ jama ~ 16 Comments

1. Hello, December! How quickly you’ve arrived. As we anticipate snowy days and frosty nights, we’re dreaming of snuggling up in a cozy cottage with a warm cuppa and a good book. UK mixed media and collage artist Kate Brazier will transport us to the beautiful countryside with her lovely pictures. 🙂

Originally from Devon, Kate now works from her home studio in Worcestershire. She studied Graphic Design and Illustration at Hereford College of Arts and briefly worked for a Birmingham art gallery.

She’s inspired by the rolling hills and villages around her, and her pieces reflect her keen interest in light, color and texture. I love the delicacy of detail and feelings of peace and harmony her scenes evoke. Idyllic!

To see more of her art, visit her Instagram, Facebook, and Etsy Shop. Check out these bio links to purchase originals, prints, greeting cards, and cross stitch kits.

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[festive review + recipe] Paddington’s Christmas Post by Michael Bond and R.W. Alley (+ a holiday blog break)

~ jama ~ 18 Comments

Remember how exciting it was to receive snail mail when you were little? Well, the 70-something resident Paddingtons are over the moon because recently somebear sent them a very special holiday book. Let the merrymaking begin! 🙂

Paddington’s Christmas Post, based on the original stories by Michael Bond and illustrated by R.W. Alley (HarperCollins UK, 2022), is a fun and festive interactive novelty picture book and a companion to Paddington’s Post (2019). It contains five envelopes for eager munchkins to open, as they read about Paddington doing his beary best to help the Browns get ready for Christmas.

As the story opens, Paddington hurries over to Portobello Market to see all the wonderful Christmas decorations and visit Mr Gruber. Over a steaming mug of cocoa, Paddington sadly tells him that he doesn’t have enough money to buy special Christmas gifts, even though he’d been saving up.

Wise Mr Gruber reminds him that there’s a lot of truth in the old saying, “It’s the thought that counts.” This gives Paddington a great idea.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

~ jama ~ 22 Comments

1. It’s Octo-boo-ber! Come join this friendly autumnal gathering courtesy of children’s book author-illustrator Naoko Stoop. You may know her as the creator of the Red Knit Cap Girl picture books — see her up there with her woodland friends?

Originally from Japan, Naoko now lives and works in Brooklyn. Her favorite mediums are pastel, pencil, watercolor, gouache and acrylic, though during the pandemic she started to draw more and more digitally. She paints on used paper grocery bags and leftover plywood from a speaker factory in her neighborhood. She has loved art since childhood and is entirely self taught.

Inspired by everyday life, her mottos are “Stay authentic. Stay at your finest.” I enjoy following her on FB; her pictures are true to her description of being “cozy and comfy art therapy,” and I like the gentle innocence and sweet animals. Her intention is to “bring out the five-year-old in people” through her artwork.

For more, visit Naoko’s Website, X (Twitter), Instagram and Facebook Page. To purchase prints, please email her directly via her website.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

~ jama ~ 8 Comments

1. April showers bring May flowers! We’re celebrating the merriest of months with stunning images by Japanese artist Shinya Okayama.

I wasn’t able to find much biographical information about him online in English. Wish I could read Japanese so I could have done additional detective work. 🙂

But we do know Okayama was born in Ibaraki Prefecture in 1982 and that he studied at Sokei Academy of Fine Art and Design (2003-2007).

I stumbled upon his work on Pinterest and was immediately taken with his beautiful colors, extraordinary level of detail, and gentle depictions of children and animals, who are portrayed on equal footing and living in total harmony.

He paints an idyllic world, where children are free to explore their surroundings and enjoy wonderful adventures with many wild creatures on land and from the sea. He injects elements of the surreal in some of his pictures, as boundaries between earth and ocean disappear.

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