First blog of 2015.

January always seems to gamble past with great speed. The 31st of the month appears and I wonder where the month went. Consequently the 'to do' list never seems to get shorter and must do jobs get their deadlines shifted further back. And this January is turning out no different from any other and so this is the first opportunity I've had to sit down and work on a blog post.

To catch up from just before Christmas... we had a peaceful Christmas spending it quietly. Having family members scattered across the globe, large family gatherings are not the norm here, I have to admit we prefer the peace and quiet!

Finding ourselves living in a tiny Yorkshire Wolds village a few years ago we decided then that Christmas Day would be a great day to explore the Wolds Way, anticipating that we may find we would have the place to ourselves. So every year since we have pulled on our walking boots, packed a Christmas picnic and set off to notch more miles off the 76 mile national trail. Other than the year the path took us through the medieval village of Wharram Percy we find we are the only souls about and just love feeling that a small part of the world is ours alone. This year we found ourselves above Pocklington enjoying the long views in cold but clear weather. Spending the day walking the hills builds an appetite for Christmas dinner and the reward of sherry trifle consumed guilt free!

The winter fields with the fine lace tracery of the hedgeline

York Minster just visible on the horizon line - centre of photo

A red kite, one of a pair catching the thermals

The hedgerow decorated for Christmas

Evening light and long shadows - looking south

New Year found us back in the Studio, heads full of new print ideas. To make room for all the anticipated new artworks we decided to have a tidy up and clear out of the old. We had a number of small prints which we found useful to have at fairs but not having attended many events recently we thought we would put them in our 'Studio Clearout' in our Folksy online shop. There are a number of original prints on sale there, it's well worth a wander over...

Seedheads - on sale!

Garlic Mushrooms - in our Studio Clearout.

We have both been busy putting down all our ideas. Gary is working on a very complicated linocut which will take some time to complete, all I can say at this stage is it will fit nicely with his other wildlife prints! I have been working on another floral print which I wanted to complete as speedily as possible with it being so relevant to the season. It is a four colour limited edition linocut print of... *drumroll*...

The first ink plate...

And the final ink plate...

..and the finished print - 'The first Snowdrops'

I'm really please with the finished print, it is a short run of just 30 prints, supplied in a cream mount and would make a lovely gift for any garden lovers. I will be starting on my next floral edition to accompany this one hopefully later on this afternoon.

The Snowdrop, Winter's timid child,

awakes to life, bedew'd with tears.

Mary Robinson