PenDarrGifts on Etsy

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/215068015/christmas-gift-pocket-robin-pouch?utm_source=Pinterest&utm_medium=PageTools&utm_campaign=Share

GIFTS FOR CHRISTMAS 

PenDarrGifts

Preparation for PenDarGifts on Etsy

My sister and I have decided to try and sell on line at Etsy. She does a lot of great knitting..... Dolls, Teddy Bears, Christmas Decorations and lots more besides ...and I have knitted hats, scarves and am finishing off a cardigan at the mo.

My main passion of course is photography so I am busy sorting out my negatives and digital files so that I can start selling my work in 2015. It takes a enormous amount of time to prepare to sell. I am also finding that it takes an awful lot of time to describe an item, upload images, decide how much to sell the items for, find out what the postage will be etc etc.

I did a photo shoot yesterday of some of the knitted items but I'm not sure that they are really good enough to put on Etsy. I'm definitely going to have to do some of them again with a bit more creativity and flair. Nothing is ever easy!

As soon as all the images have been uploaded and the gifts are for sale I'll be sure to let everyone know!

Some of the images I shot yesterday which may or may not be good enough to show on the Etsy website....

Light Snow that Falls ....

Soft and Light ... the elegant different patterned flakes of snow falls quietly amongst the trees ... 

It builds upon each branch and sits ... until in one fell swoop the powder falls, a soft thump upon the ground below 

At night it lays hushed and undisturbed ...perhaps a gentle robin hops along, leaving its shallow shadow of zig zag claws behind

But in the morning ...boots and sled and cars and all will come along, make tracks, have fun, make slush, and leave behind a wish....

for more this night to fall and lay soft and light again........

Colourful Glass

 

My Website

http://penelopedaviesart.weebly.com/

Transparencies (35mm) Shot in Cornwall

Red and Black

Water Lily

Across the Sea

Rain on the Lake

 The Dragon 

Working in the Care Industry

Winter Morning Sun

(Shot on 35mm Black and White Film)

Autumn Sway

(Shot on 35mm Colour Film)

I have returned to work after my visit to London. I am able to fully appreciate the break because when I am at work for three days and three nights, I can go nowhere. For me as a paid Carer, this is just manageable, but I do often think about the families who have to care for their husbands, wives, siblings, children etc, and who unlike me, can not "go home" after three nights.

Three nights is enough for me. I do need to know that I can leave my colleague to care for the well being of our client for the next three days and nights. It is not that caring for our client is difficult, although there are times of course when there are challenges. It is the long days and nights that affect me mostly. I get frustratingly bored even though I always take various things to do to fill my time. You have to be alert to your client's needs at all times, day and night. You stay in what is effectively a strangers home, you have to respect not only your client, but also their families, their belongings, ensure that everything is done to their wishes, keep everything clean and tidy as well as caring for your client. When I go home, for the first few hours I just flop and feel tremendously grateful that I am in my home.

I'm not sure how much longer I can continue with 24 hour care. I don't feel that I am suited to it long term and I am searching and applying for other jobs, as well as trying to motivate myself to build my own business on line developing my own personal interests.

Caring is a very low paid job that has an awful lot of responsibility attached to it. It can be very rewarding and at the same time quite soul destroying. It is not in any sense an easy option.

Sarah Treanor The Grieving Process ...

http://www.visualnews.com/2014/11/18/touching-self-portraits-document-the-psychological-journey-of-grieving-death/

One of the images from www.visualnews.com by Sarah Treanor.

Sarah is also writing a Blog ... http://12moc.com/

Photography: Catherine Leutenegger's haunting photo series of a ghostly old Kodak factory

http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/photography-catherine-leutenegger

12 Years a Slave - Director Steve McQueen MBE

Image courtesy of 
http://www.history.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hith-12-years-a-slave.jpg



I knew this wouldn't be an easy watch. Slavery is always harrowing to read about or to see a visual interpretation of. This is a very good film, brutal in its honesty and its realistic scenes. It is based on a true story which makes it compelling viewing. There is always a place for history in our lives, reminding us of the weight of the human race's destructive forces. And this film does this unashamedly.

The film title speaks for itself ... the story is a familiar one but well worth a viewing.

Interesting Find ....

As I searched through my External Hard Drive I came across some black and white images that I now find quite interesting. At the time of shooting and processing, I didn't think much of them and left them to the realms of forgotten images. But now, they are interesting to me because they were processed in positivity so to speak, an error on my part and the reason for dismissing them.

I haven't had enough time to think about what they mean to me, the perspective that may have meaning, the reversal of the process, what I am going to do with them, how I can make them work ... 

About Time

Image Courtesy of theguardian.com                   Image Courtesy of wearemovies.com

       

A light hearted romantic comedy suitable for all the family. It was an enjoyable film but did go on just a little too long and lost its momentum. Once you knew how time worked for father and son, the novelty wore off a bit. Still a good film and worth watching on DVD.

I watched it mainly because of Bill Nighy. He is one of my favourite actors and never has a big enough part for my liking! There is not enough of him in this film. The actor Domhnall Gleeson, who plays Bill Nighy's son is really good. I don't recall having seen him before but I hope to see more of him. He was very natural in this film and an ideal cast member.

A Visit to London, Thriller, The Tate, Poppies at the Tower, The River Thames ....

I was excited to visit my daughter in London. I hadn't been to the city for a couple of years and I do love a little culture.

My daughter has started her university course this year, I'm so very proud of her. She is studying Physics, a total enigma to me. I am an art person through and through. But her passion for science has always been prevalent.

The train journey from Wales to London was smooth and uneventful. There weren't that many people on the train, Why they had eight carriages was a bit of a mystery. But maybe they were expecting more passengers after leaving London.

My daughter met me at Paddington and then we had quite a long journey on the tube and trains above ground to the South East.

Four days with my daughter was wonderful, I have missed her, and since I left her to come back home, I miss her more. How can a mother do anything else except worry about her children. Parenthood never stops, no matter how old they get.

I had bought tickets for us to see the show Thriller at the Lyric. What a fantastic treat that was. We were both completely enthralled by it. The singing was phenomenal and the dancing, especially by "MJ" mind blowing. It was a true hommage to Michael Jackson and I loved every minute of it. I would go and see it again if there weren't so many other shows that I'd like to see. Anyone who enjoys Michael Jackson music is sure to enjoy this show. I would recommend it to all ages.

There were a number of school children at the theatre, and although they are far too young to remember the younger MJ, they're concentration watching the acts before them was testament to their having a good time.

We visited the Tower together. What a spectacle the poppies made. There were thousands of people walking, looking, photographing, and taking in the significance of the red river surrounding the Tower, I'm so glad I was able to see it. Such a simple idea turned into something magnificent. Remembering lives lost, respecting their sacrifices and reminding themselves in the motto of "Lest we Forget".... truly touching....

My daughter had to attend Uni sessions while I was in London, so there were times when I was alone, I walked the length of the river Thames taking in all the sights it has to offer, and on one day visited The Tate. I cant say that I am a great fan of the Tate. I find it too big and impersonal, a spacial emptiness accompanies me when I am there. But I have to say that there is always something there to inspire me. On this visit it was the work of a French artists ... I'll talk about her in my next Blog.

(I will upload the photos when I my films have been developed)

Now I have to prepare some lunch ....

The Quiet Ones

I found this film pretty dire really. I wasn't impressed with the script, the story or the acting to be honest. I didn't like the 70's look of the film, I found it all a bit contrived. Its not that it was the worst film I've ever seen, but it just didn't live up to its thriller/supernatural name.

At the beginning it states that this film was inspired by an experiment carried out in Canada in the 1970's. An experiment to rid a girl of an unknown evil entity.

There wasn't enough use of imagination, nothing that made me want to hide behind a cushion and I got bored with it. Shame.

I do enjoy a good horror... supernatural.... scary film, but this was a let down. I'm glad I saw it on DVD and had not made the effort to go to the cinema to see it.

All I can say is "don't bother"

Hidden

I've been studying the images that are the beginning of the series Close to Nature ... I'm not sure that this will remain the title as the project has some way to go yet. 

When I look at this one and the name I've given it Hidden ... the trees are hidden by the mist and I love this. I feel the spiritual companionship of nature and I feel I belong. There are many reasons for my sense of belonging in nature. I was fortunate to be born in a picturesque small village in Wales. As a child I would spend all my time playing in the woods, on the river side, exploring for hours on my bike, just always being outside. Although I had many older siblings, I have never had any problems being alone, quite happy to entertain myself both as a child and as I grew to maturity. I enjoy my own company. The reason I enjoy photography so much is that I can lose myself in the landscape and use my intuition to photograph what I see.

In photography there is always a hint of the autobiographical. The life I live in the present is a quiet one. I don't spend much time out in the world, happy for now to be immersed in nature and home. So hidden has a second meaning, apart from the spiritual element of nature and its hidden qualities; I sometimes see myself as hidden from the world.

Grove Colliery,Stepaside

Small Digi Camera Pics .....

Mwnt, Ceredigion

At the beginning of this month I visited Mwnt. I uploaded some digital images on Oct 2nd, but I have now received the processed 35mm colour film, and as I am an anologue photographer, of course I have to upload these too!

Mwnt is a beautiful spot where the water is clean and clear, the views spectacular and where there is an Ancient Church at the top of the cliff. I hadn't visited Mwnt since I was a little girl, but it is a place that sticks in the mind and it is exactly the same now as it was back in the 1960's.

Looking out of Mwnt Holy Church window

 

Looking through one Church window to another

Further information about Mwnt can be found at this website http://www.friendsofmwntchurch.co.uk/