Author: Rag Tag Magpie

et me introduce myself, my name is Nic and I love to spend my free time drawing, painting, sewing, knitting, in fact trying anything that lets me experiment and explore my creativity. My love of all things arty started when I was a child, my dad was a printer so there was always lots of paper in the house and things took off from there. I stopped drawing when I went to university and didn’t feel I had time when my career took over but rediscovered my love of all things creative about 5 years ago and I haven’t looked back. Since then I’ve taken life drawing classes and started painting again and then a couple of years ago I took an evening class in pottery. This re-sparked my passion for trying new things. My husband and I set Rag Tag Magpie up to share ideas and inspiration with like minded souls. Our mission is to get people to do something that makes them happy. THIS BLOG IS FOR PEOPLE WHO WANT SOME INSPIRATION AND TO BE PART OF A COMMUNITY OF CREATIVES – AFTER ALL A CREATIVE MESS IS BETTER THAN IDLE TIDINESS!
Art and Drawing, General Craft

Nursery Rhyme November: Hey Diddle Diddle

The rhyme is thought to date back to at least the sixteenth century and there are several theories bout its meaning. One is that refers to star consellations; another that it is about anti-clerical feelings; another that its about Catherine of Aragaon; another Catherine, wife of Peter the Great and the list goes on; I like to thinks its just a bit of nonsense to … Continue reading Nursery Rhyme November: Hey Diddle Diddle

Rag Tag MagpieLeave a comment
Art and Drawing

Remembering Those Lost

Thought I’d take a break from Nursery Rhymes given the importance of the date. I’ve shared war poems in a few of my previous blog posts – Robert Laurence Binyon’s For the Fallen; Rupert Brooke’s The Soldier; John McCrae’s In Flanders Field and Philip Larkin’s MCMXIV.  I’ve also tried very unsuccessfully to draw poppies so thought I’d do the same the poem is by Alan … Continue reading Remembering Those Lost

Rag Tag Magpie1 Comment
Art and Drawing, General Craft

Nursery Rhyme November: Bobby Shafto’s Gone to Sea

This is a republished blog as I covered this rhyme in November 2017. Thought to be based on a real life person from County Wicklow, Ireland.  It was used by the supporters of Robert Shatfo, an eighteenth-century member of parliament (MP)  for County Durham, a region close to where I grew up in the North East of England. For those who like a sketchbook challenge how … Continue reading Nursery Rhyme November: Bobby Shafto’s Gone to Sea

Rag Tag MagpieLeave a comment
Art and Drawing

Nursery Rhyme November: Goosey Goosey Gander

Goosey goosey gander, Whither shall I wander? Upstairs and downstairs And in my lady’s chamber. There I met an old man Who wouldn’t say his prayers, So I took him by his left leg And threw him down the stairs Most theories seem to agree that this is based on the priest holes built into the homes of Catholics during the Tudor period where Catholic … Continue reading Nursery Rhyme November: Goosey Goosey Gander

Rag Tag MagpieLeave a comment