A happy afternoon making little print blocks

...and listening to plays on the radio (catch up, via the internet).

Let me tell you, I am now an expert on the later Stuart monarchs and Bonnie Prince Charlie. Did you know he died in Italy and had a daughter, Charlotte? No, me neither. She too had children, though it seems very unclear what happened to them.  Bearing in mind the somewhat tenuous family threads that seemed to pave the way for the later monarchs (I still don't get where the Hanovarians came from) maybe, if there are any Jacobites out there, there could be a claimant to the British Throne (though I guess they would have popped up long ago if there had been.)

Any way, I digress.

I am between projects (Ok, so I still have the collaboration piece to finish off and I do have a few things brewing). So time to play.

First of all, a weed from the garden,

and my interpretation of it. I sketched the outline on to a sheet of soft play foam ( you can get it at places like Hobbycraft.) It is sometimes self adhesive, but if not stick it onto a background using a bit of PVA.


On the subject of Hobbycraft, convenient for me here in MK, but boy is it an annoying shop! Nothing in stock that you want and they overcharged me but I did not notice until I got home. Unless you really have to go there, I suggest you stick to the internet for your arts materials. Just use them for cheap foam sheets!

Meanwhile, back to my afternoon.

Then I prepared a spread in a sketch book using an old credit card (see the last post)

And tried out the new stamp.

Yep, liking it. Though I have no idea just now where and how I am going to use it just yet.

And then, using a tub of recut shapes (bought from the kids isle in HC many moons ago) and because William of Orange was just about to 'invade' and I needed to follow the story, I sat and made these.

A very happy afternoon.

And yes, William of Orange did invade, though he met with no opposition whatsoever because King James II was so unpopular, and a Catholic.  He was the William of William and Mary (they ruled jointly, she being the eldest daughter of James the Unpopular but raised an Anglican) but had no children.  She died of a fever. He fell off a horse.

Her sister Anne succeeded them. It was under her rule that England and Scotland finally united properly (up to then it was just the 'crowns'). She was best buddies with one Mrs Churchill, of that dynasty and Marlborough House in Oxfordshire. Anne had a lot of children, but sadly none survived her. So after her the throne passed to a German cousin - and the start of all the Georges.  I am pretty good at my English Monarchs - till that point.

I cannot begin to tell you how the Georges fit into the picture. I think it may have been something to do with the sister of Charles 1st, the daughter of James I and VI (in turn the son of Mary Queen of Scots). We need some more radio plays!