Inspired - J'adore Paris!!

I took my eldest daughter, Eden, to Paris for the weekend (her 16th birthday present from me) and now I'm feeling very inspired.  I love Paris!!  It's one of the cities I just want to go to again and again and again!! I love the French people too.  I've always thought that from a distance they look so preoccupied and serious, but as soon as I start a conversation their faces light up and are the most expressive I've encountered anywhere.  They really are a friendly nation.  My French is pretty bad, but I do try and I'm always graciously answered in English, which I do find rather amusing.  Before we left I sent our hotel an email in French to let them know we'd be arriving really late, and they responded in English, which just goes to show how bad it must be.

I couldn't believe how busy it was considering it's meant to be off-season.  I guess there's no such thing as off-season for Paris.  We made a point of going to the Eiffel Tower early and only waited 30 minutes in the queue (I have waited over 3 hours in the past).  We weren't quite so lucky with the Louvre or the Catacombs (2 hours), but they were both worth the wait.  Everywhere you look in Paris there is some form of art, whether it's the architecture, sculpture, painting or graffiti, it's just everywhere!  Something that really stood out for me was the texture.  I wish I'd taken some mould maker and been brave enough to take moulds of everything that caught my eye!  I did take a notebook though, which is now full of new ideas, and of course my camera, which I'm quite attached to.  Here are some of the photos I took....

Thanks for reading. xx

February Art Bead Scene Challenge

Amapolas, 1913

Illustration published in "News of Spring and Other Nature Studies"

By Edward Julius Detmold

In case you hadn't guessed, today’s post is all about this month’s Art Bead Scene Challenge.  This beautiful watercolour illustration has filled me with a sense of anticipation for new life after very a long and cold winter.  You have no idea how happy I was earlier this week when I noticed my crocuses had started to flower!  The movement within the image doesn’t just suggest life, it’s screaming it, and yet the tranquility of the colour scheme gives me a peaceful calming sensation.  None the less, I find myself sitting here willing summer to come quickly!!  Having read the insightful history of Edward Julius Detmold, it’s almost impossible to fathom how someone with such insight and capacity to create such beauty could have been such a tormented soul on the inside.  It’s truly tragic!!

This has been an exciting month for me because I have finally taken the plunge to start selling some of my creations.  I’ve been doing the Art Bead Scene challenges for a number of years now, but this is the first time I’ve entered the ‘Bead Makers’ section, so naturally I’m excited about this too.   I chose to focus on the butterfly and aimed to express the movement and tranquility I felt when looking at the illustration.  My two entries (pictured below) are both made out of ceramic clay and are both are available in my Etsy shop.  Thanks for Reading. xx

The beginning....

Hello and welcome to my first ever blog post.  I've been procrastinating about starting a blog for years, the main reason being the time commitment. I'd hope Facebook would make a good substitute, having used it for years to keep in touch with family and old friends overseas, but I’m quickly learning that a Facebook page is not quite as straight forward or as easy to negotiate as I'd hoped it would be.  So here I am at the beginning of a new journey, one where I hope to make new friends, one that I hope you will find interesting, and one that I hope we will both find rewarding.

Now for the bio bit.....

My name is Melanie McGready.  I live and work in a small village called Spa in a beautifully scenic part of Northern Ireland.   I’m not originally from here.  I was born in England and brought up all over the place: Australia, USA & Saudi Arabia to name a few.  My Dad's Australian, my Mum's English, and I’m very much a mixture of the two.

I studied photography at College many moons ago in the pre digital era, and although I have an absolute passion for photography, I have always had creative impulses to do more with my hands and when I discovered polymer clay back in 2010, so began my journey with clay.  I fell in love with the versatility of the medium and set out to learn every technique going.  The possibilities are endless and five years on I still can’t wait to try the next technique on my ‘to do’ list.  I bought a small electric kiln in 2014 and now I’m hooked on ceramic and precious metal clay too.  Subsequently Cherryhill Studio was born.  I'm very passionate about what I do and every piece I make, and feel blessed that I can.

If I’m not hiding in my little studio sanctuary you’ll find me kept busy by my husband, four daughters, six alpacas, two Cavalier King Charles Spaniel’s, and a gorgeous British Short Hair kitten named Casper, who I’m considering renaming ‘Claws’.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post and becoming part of my journey. xx