The painted rock movement - Find, share, rehide

Have you ever found a painted rock? If you have, chances are it had a facebook group and a postcode on the back.

Here in South Australia, we have a 'SA Rocks' facebook group, where rock drops and finds are  shared through photos and posts, by rock hunters and painters alike.

We are only new to the concept, but the phenomenon has been in existence for a while, and active in other states of the country.

My mum, being the artist she is, has embraced it head on. She has painted at least a hundred rocks and distributed them far and wide, including taking some to drop in Tassie on a recent trip, with our local postcode on them. I haven't seen these shared on the facebook group though.

Kids love finding the coloured rocks, and it gets them active and engaged in an activity out in nature, with rock drops mainly being in playgrounds, parks and public attractions.

Just yesterday, Mum, with my help, ran a rock painting session for the  public library as part of their school holiday activities. The kids loved painting their own rocks and learning about how they can hide and find rocks as part of the painted rock movement. Even the adults sat down to be creative as well. It is quite addictive, and a fabulous way to let off some creative steam!

We use acrylic paint to paint rocks and seal them with clear varnish to protect the paintwork from the elements of the weather. Posca pens are a popular medium for decorating rocks also.

There are many talented rock painters out there and it is such a creative inspiration to see what other artists are doing.

Here are the links to some of the countries facebook rock groups.

VIC rocks
SA Rocks
NSW rocks
QLD rocks
WA rocks

Let the hunting, hiding, posting a pic, or creating begin!

My painting efforts at the library session

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Biding my time with gardening and art

As I gardened yesterday morning, I had thoughts of some smug little bastard looking down on me, smiling and nodding, all Mr Miyagi like. He'd be all happy I was learning some patience. Not that I need teaching. I think hubby needs that lesson. The lesson for me was to slow down, to live in the present, I am sure of it.

You can't get more down to earth and living in the present that doing some gardening. I deadheaded roses and cut back some perennials that had had their moment in the sun. Their flashy show of colour. Instead of wishing my present away, waiting for the keys to our new holiday house, I was tending to the house we already had. A garden that needed tending to, before it is neglected in the excitement, of a new house, that will steal our attention for a while.

I have been busy making my own art to hang at Casa Pelicano. We really can't afford to go all out and buy all the stuff. I have seen the stuff, even pinned it. I've just gone out and made it myself, for much less. It's the only way I can have said stuff!

I bought two canvases, two picture frames, brushes and paint for $23, from the cheap shop. A sheet of MDF for $10, and learnt to use(not very well) hubby's jig saw. 

The two canvases

The two frames with free chalkboard printables

rainbow fish made with old wood offcuts, painted and glued to a sheet of MDF.

A pelican for the front door and a sign for kitchen

I am suitably impressed with myself, even though they are not perfect, they are me. They are folk arty, like the way peasants have decorated their homes for centuries.  I like them and that is all that matters. 

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Painted Christmas biscuits

Recipe for biscuits:

75 grams margarine

50 grams icing sugar

finely grated rind of a small lemon or orange(I like the orange ones the best)

I egg yolk( I used a duck yolk=fine)

175 grams plain flour

pinch of salt

Decoration:

2 egg yolks

food colouring(liquid)

Beat the margarine, sugar and rind until pale and fluffy.

Beat in the egg yolk, and stir in flour and salt.

Knead until smooth, flatten into a round, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 190 degrees. 

Roll dough out gently with a floured rolling pin on a lightly floured surface, use cutters to press shapes.

With a spatula, transfer shapes to a baking tray, make features with the end of a straw(like Rudolphs nose, buttons on the gingerbread men, snowmen and baubles on the trees, and place in the fridge to chill.

I slid the spatula under and then flipped them over on to the tray. The dough is
very fragile but makes great biscuits.

To decorate,  put each egg yolk in a cup and add a few drops of liquid food colouring.

I used duck eggs, the yolks are bigger and I split the yolks to make three colours, red, yellow and green. For the amount of biscuits, splitting chook eggs would be plenty enough to colour.

Using a paint brush paint on the colour as you wish, I just did it simply, but you could get way more elaborate with the markings you make on the biscuits, the colours you use and they way you paint them. 

Bake the biscuits for 10-12 minutes, or until the begin to colour at the edges. Transfer to a wire rack, I used the spatula again for this. 

The result, perdy, tasty biscuits!

Have you handmade anything for the christmas season? You know what, it's OK if you haven't! It's all sorts of batshit crazy this time of year isn't it? I am not the most organised bottle in the six pack by a long shot! Still in denial that everything will be ok, and you know what; it will. There will be shit loads of food, and laughter, love and most importantly FAMILY.

I hope you have an awesome Christmas. With lots of love and Christmas cheer, the O'Brien clan. Hugs and kisses xxxxoooo

Add your christmas cheer, love and #openslather below xxx :)

From black suede to pink wink #openslather

Boggy changed jobs a few weeks ago, he's back driving a truck to Portland from the Mount everyday again. More money(fist pump) and a much happier hubby.

He had a week off before starting the new job and decided that Izzy needed a pink wall. This room used to Jakes, and the black suede wall served him well, but it was time to make it a bit more girly.

There were a couple of photos at the start of the wall, but too
much 'brickies cleavage' showing ;)

I bought some new pink blockout curtains from KMart for thirty bucks, bargain. Izzy has been sleeping in until 8 most mornings, I'm not sure if they have something to do with it, but I am not complaining one bit. Best $30 I've spent in a while. 

I know I wouldn't have got curtains ready to go at Spotlight for that price, and after the crappy time I had with their service and two kids in tow last time I was there, I wasn't keen to go back.

We had some left over ceiling white in the shed, and used this to lighten the wall, before Boggy put the pink on. He did a fantastic job, for someone who has never liked to paint, maybe because he never had a little girl to paint pink walls for ;)

Yes, Izzy has a queen size bed, she moved right on in to Jakeys old bed.
The painting on the wall is one he did at school too. It's been hanging
in this same spot for years. 

Painted pinboard

Creativity kicked in this week, I'd been wanting to create some sort of pinboard for quotes, photos and stuff.  I'd seen great things made out of old pallets and really wanted to create something using an old one we had in the shed, but it all seemed a bit too hard.

While googling for ideas I came across a fabric covered pinboard that things were held on with criss crossed elastic. My budget is thin, so using my thinking cap, I opted for a canvas, a tube of white paint and elastic, all from the cheap shop for $12.

When we built on a couple of years ago, I did a painting using the paint we used for the walls, and some leftover bits in cans we had sitting in the shed. I can't take credit for this design, I ripped it off from one I had seen for sale on the internet for $150, the canvas cost me $15, big saving. The colours are different and I added the dots, and just a little bit less professional. 

When creativity is ripe, it's very hard to wait for paint to dry!! 

I used Isabels water colour paints to tint the white acrylic paint. When you buy tubes of acrylic paint it always pays to water it down so it's easier to work with, and it goes a bit further.

I paint the canvas with a light grey background, I tried to get it as close as the Dulux White Duck( I think I went with the half duck) that is on the adjacent wall to where the board will go.

I then use tape to section some lines and stipple them with white, so the colour is not so solid. 

I darken the grey with some brown and black from the water colours and section off some more lines. It was at this point I run out of sticky tape and call it a night, if I had the supplies I would have stayed up all night finishing it!

The left over space I put some pattern into. I opt for a pink flowery design. The pink is made with the Dulux Murray Red that is on the walls and lightened with the white acrylic. I drew the pattern on with chalk, and wiped it off when the paint was dry.

I stretched the elastic and spaced it about 15 cm apart, securing it with a staple gun at he back. Voila!!

I think it fits in quite nicely, and it doesn't look too bad!

Shoe box

So many things go unnoticed in our busy lives and there are always little things that we forget. One of these things was the date I had painted on our shoebox, it was just a quiet moment sitting in the kitchen that I glanced and noticed it. This has been where all of our shoes have lived for 12 years.

The box was from Dads shed, I think it was a crate that truck parts had been delivered in. I painted the inside black and adorned with wild flowers, then oiled the outside to highlight the wood. When I was pregnant with Jake, 20 years ago, my mum and I, went and did a folk art class. It was the start of a love of painting old things and making them useful and interesting pieces for my home.

My potato and onion bin, is another favourite. There were many comments from people when I started it, that it was an old outside dunny can. Probably was, but it was hardly used. It was slightly rusty inside, so I took to it with a wire brush, and made sure I washed it well. Painted it all black and painted dolls on it. I painted a purple ribbon coming from one of the handles into the bin, where a dolly is climbing in. I love it. It's been housing my spuds and onions for about 15 years.

 A more recent project is the toy box. I found it at a market for $25, when I was pregnant with Isabel, about 3 years ago. It was already painted black, so all I had to do was add some artwork. I painted the teddy bear panel on the lid from a picture in a craft book.

I don't do much painting, but there will be something that comes along once in a while that I see potential in, this inspires me, and ideas and creativity flows.