this chicken

six new starter kits

2011-10-07T13:10:00.005+01:00

Now that things are pretty much back to normal, I have had a few quiet evenings to spend preparing new items for my Etsy shop - which was well in need of a restock.

The best bit about being busy creating, planning and travelling is that I have been able to save up lots of little pieces of interesting ephemera over the last four or five months.

So... I can happily report that there are now six lovely new Journal Starter Kits available in my Etsy shop!

ten days in croatia

2011-10-06T17:33:00.011+01:00

On Monday 5th September Paul and I left for Zagreb as part of our honeymoon getaway.

The holiday began with an amazing few days in the Croatian capital. We stayed at 5-star Hotel Regent Espalande and they treated us amazingly, really going out of their way to make sure we had a fantastic stay.

When we mentioned it was our honeymoon they upgraded us to a Super Deluxe room, which had a lounge, study and both a bath and shower room - I had never experienced anything like it before! They also gave us a complimentary bottle of champagne and a tray of chocolate truffles which were bought to our room shortly after our arrival.

I was surprised just how small Zagreb was, it was never designed to be a capital city so getting everywhere on foot isn't a problem at all.

Items on our Zagreb itinerary were: the daily market; Zagreb Cathedral; the galleries, boutiques and bars of Tkalčićeva; St Mark's church; the Lotrščak (Lookout) tower; and the Stone Gate, which was more of a shrine marking a fire that took place there in 1731. The fire destroyed everything except a painting of the Virgin Mary. Walking through it, you are walking through a place of worship, even though it is technically a road and through-way.

From Zagreb, we travelled across Continental Croatia to the coast at Zadar. Here we enjoyed a perfect mix of culture, sight-seeing and relaxation.

Items on our Zadar itinerary were: St Mary's Church and treasury; the nightlife of Stomorica (Zadar's Student Quarter); afternoon lounging and evening red sky sunset cocktails at The Garden; the pretty old town port; coffee on the Roman Forum; and the Tržnica (open air morning market).

We also had day trips to the beautiful Krka National Park with it's breathtaking waterfalls and scenery, and the town of Preko on the island of Ugljan.

The highlight of Zadar though had to be the Sea Organ, an experimental musical instrument played by the sea.

Designed by Croatian artist Nikola Bašić, the Sea Organ is seventy meters long with thirty-five organ pipes built under the concrete. The musical pipes are located so that the sea water and wind movements produce the most harmonious sounds. Paul and I spent a lot of our time in Zadar sitting on it's steps just reading and relaxing.

More pics over on my Flickr.

space, stars, music: transmission_001

2011-07-29T15:04:00.004+01:00

Myself, Paul and my brother, Lewis were lucky enough to get tickets for the first ever music event at Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics; home to the world's third largest radio telescope, the Lovell Telescope.

The line up for Live From Jodrell Bank: Transmission_001 consisted of OKGO, British Sea Power and The Flaming Lips. From the moment we boarded the organised bus from Manchester, there was a lovely festival feeling about the whole event.

The day could only be described as awe-inspiring. It has to be the best live music event I have ever been to! We were all incredibly impressed with just how good The Flaming Lips are live - and the setting next to the Lovell Telescope can only be described as jaw-dropping.

We were all left with goosebumps as they started transmitting the sound of far off stars and rotating the telescope around ready to project images off as soon as darkness fell.

A really amazing day in the middle of a highly enjoyable weekend in Manchester ...and I can tell you now that we'll be the first in line for tickets for Transmission_002 next year!

green, red, blue and yellow

2011-06-25T18:23:00.007+01:00

Things have been rather quiet over here of late. I can only apologise for my absence. Paul and I have been completely under it with wedding preparations recently. We only have 10 weeks to go now!

I do plan to share some of these preparations on here - including the wedding invites (which are going out in batches now), my ever-growing vintage doily collection and some of the place settings. I just need to get myself organised!

Amidst all the planning and preparing, I have been able to find a little bit of time to create a few more lovely new Journal Starter Kits (due to popular demand!) ...and I can happily report that these four are in my Etsy shop now.

instagram

2011-06-23T06:53:00.001+01:00

This has to be my favourite iPhone app of the moment, Instagram.

Perhaps I am a little late on the uptake of this one, but I am quite addicted!

four new starter kits

2011-05-04T20:33:00.004+01:00

I have been very busy these last two evenings preparing these four lovely new Journal Starter Kits. They are now up for sale in my Etsy shop. Hurray!

somerset mini break

2011-05-02T11:20:00.005+01:00

As a slightly spontaneous mini-break, Paul and I headed down to Somerset on Thursday for a couple of days of fresh air, relaxation, sunshine and sight-seeing.

The weather has been fantastic for the last month and we have had high summer temperatures pretty much all over the UK. There's been a party atmosphere over the last week or so too as much of the UK had 11 consecutive days holiday - for Easter and the Royal Wedding. I wasn't lucky enough to have all three days between the two four-day-weekends off work, but the one day I did have I made the most of.

We started by visiting Cheddar Gorge and completing the surprisingly tough 6.2km long walk up and down the inland cliffs either side. Rising to a height of 450ft above the gorge below, the route is pretty rocky and steep in places. We both felt a huge sense of achievement at the end.

We then visited Weston-Super-Mare, which I have to admit is a lot smarter than I had imagined. They have a new pier and have completely refurbished the seafront and promenade making it quite an attractive seaside resort.

Our base for the night was The Oakhouse Hotel in the very pretty Georgian market town of Axbridge, just two miles from Cheddar. We were back in time to enjoy a glass of wine in the last few rays of the evening sunshine.

Friday was spent looking around the majestic town of Glastonbury and marvelling at (and looking around) the number of witchcraft, healing, eco and herbal shops and cafes in the town centre. It was incredibly quiet - more people must have been engrossed in the Royal Wedding than we'd thought. It did feel quite strange though - being very aware of the wedding taking place (it was on on numerous shop radios and was impossible to ignore the patriotism dotted about in the form of Union Jacks and garlands), but not being a part of it. I felt oddly distant.

Whilst the wedding celebrations were taking place, Paul and I had made our way to Stonehenge in Wiltshire. It was probably the best time to visit - though at least 100 other people had the same idea as it was far from quiet!

Stonehenge was fantastic. I can't believe I hadn't visited before. I bought a book in the gift shop on the way out and read it aloud for the remainder of the journey home. What an incredible place - there are so many questions left unanswered though and much of the information in the book is speculation.

Photos from the trip can be found on my Flickr.

paper girl oxford

2011-04-21T07:02:00.001+01:00

On Tuesday I posted off my artwork for Paper Girl Oxford.

Organised by Oxford Cycle Workshop, Paper Girl is "a celebration of art, bicycles and the act of giving". It is a community art project where anyone can submit arwork - from drawings and doodles to prints and paintings - just as long as it's 2D.

An exhibition is going to be held on Friday 6th May, then on Saturday 7th May Paper Girl is going to jump on her bicycle and starting from Radcliffe Square in Oxford, at 11am, distribute artwork for free all over the city centre! What a lovely idea!

If you are local and would like to take part, there is still time to submit your artwork (the submission deadline is Friday 29th April).

featured on Moo

2011-04-17T07:31:00.004+01:00

At the beginning of the week, Moo approached me asking permission to use one of my Flickr images. Of course, I said yes, then didn't think too much more about it.

On Friday afternoon, I logged onto my email account and the number of comments on my blog, my Etsy, my Flickr and through my website had gone crazy! To my absolute delight, I had been featured not only on the Moosletter, but on the Moo website.

I just want to say thank you to everyone who has been in touch. All of your lovely messages, thoughts and requests mean so much to me. If I haven't replied yet, then please bear with me, I do intend to, it's just that I could never have anticipated the amount of interest in my work that the Moo feature has bought me!

deepdale yurt weekend

2011-03-11T07:22:00.003Z

Two weeks ago Paul and I travelled to the north Norfolk coast to spend the weekend in a Yurt. I really cannot recommend this experience enough!

I'd never visited this part of England before, so when researching into a mini-break for my Birthday last month, the idea to go to Norfolk seemed highly appealling. I had come across the concept of a Yurt holiday through the Enjoy England website last summer. After some further research, I discovered the eco-friendly Deepdale Farm Campsite. There was no doubt about it, we had to go.

The Yurt we stayed in was large enough to sleep eight; with one double bed and three double futons. It also had a wood-burning stove that kept us lovely and warm during our stay. The campsite itself was intimate and pretty - just like this part of the Norfolk coast (even in the Feburary rain). There was a café to have breakfast practically onsite (which sources all it's food locally - the organic eggs were from the hens across the road).

During our three day stay, we visited the market towns of Wells-Next-The-Sea, Holt and Cromer; ate lots of wonderful local food (including a meal in a Yurt restaurant!); relaxed and warmed in front of the wood burner; and watched the stars when nightime arrived. A perfect way to spend a weekend.

v is for vole

2011-02-04T07:12:00.003Z

This little vole illustration was part of a series of items beginning with V that I put together for Emily as part of an Alphabet Swap that took place during November and December last year.

The swap is curated by Emily of Thoughts & Biro Sketches and I was lucky enough to have Emily herself as my swap partner.

"Alphabet Swap [al-fuh-bet swop] : A curious blog-initiated game in which partners are randomly selected and are given the same letter of the alphabet. They then have one month to assemble a box of little things related to that letter before posting or literally swapping their finds with one another."

More photos of the swap can be seen in the Oh for the Love of Swap group over on Flickr.

more journal starter kits

2011-01-21T12:35:00.000Z

2011 has really started with a bang! Wedding planning has moved into full swing, I have multiple projects on the go, and ontop of all the busyness, I want 2011 to be the year my Etsy shop fills up with all sorts of fun new goodies!

Okay, so my Journal Started Kits aren't exactly new, but they are fun. So, I have been busy over the last few days putting together four new kits. They are now up for sale in my Etsy shop!

happy christmas!

2010-12-23T11:00:00.004Z

2 sleeps to go!

I am off out into Oxford this afternoon to brave the 'busiest shopping day of the year' in order to purchase some last minute Christmas-related items. I then plan to spend the rest of the day wrapping presents whilst listening to suitably Christmassy music (and most probably getting glitter all over myself and the flat!)

The beautiful gift tags on the bottom left of the image above are a little Christmas gift from Camilla and Morran. You can download them for free over on Camilla's blog. Thank you Camilla!

The equally lovely gift tag on the top right of the above image is an (albeit old) Christmas gift from Ashley over at Kitty Genius. Thank you Ashley!

Enjoy the festivities everyone!!

collecting owls

2010-12-19T12:21:00.006Z

I collect owls. Owls of different shapes, sizes and materials. Some 3D, some 2D. These six are a few of the small owl figurines in my collection. They all stand between 3-4cm tall.

The second owl on the left is a Japanese Netsuke miniature sculpture. Paul bought this for me for Christmas - but ended up giving it to me early in a state of excitement! I absolutely love it! (The addition of this owl prompted me to write this post).

If, like me, you have a soft-spot for owls, there is a wonderful customisable owl calendar that you can download for free over on My Owl Barn blog. I already have mine printed out and ready for 2011! Thank you Shivani!

how-to: layout & organise your journal

2010-11-26T07:32:00.006Z

After a small delay, I can now present the next in the series of step-by-step how-tos! Those of you who are familair with my journal keeping will know that I work to quite an organised layout. Below I have listed the numerous ways I like to organise and structure my journals.

1. Working to a grid - I always like to have a clear layout to my pages. The first thing I do on a new page is rule a pencil line around the edge of the page. Anything pasted in is aligned with this line and it also helps to keep writing tidy.

On pages where the entry does not require the whole page, I split the page into two columns. To do this I measure the middle of the page (I know the measurements off my heart now!) and draw a pencil line vertically through the middle of the page.

Note: I have very small handwritting, so can easily fit sentences onto the 'half-pages' vertically, but if your writing is larger, you can always try this by using the page horizontally, and dividing the page in half this way to give yourself more space.

2. The calendar - At the beginning of every new month, I create a little calendar. This is great for reflecting back on events, but can also help with daily planning. To do this, using a pencil I measure out seven equally spaced intervals along the top of the page, then do the same down the side of the page (the number will depend on how many days are in the month). I then draw in the lines to create the calendar grid where the boxes represent days.

If you are using a Pocket Moleskine, the box measurement is 12mm².

When you are happy with the layout, trace over the lines with a pen.

Note: Monday is always the first box in the line, so if the beginning of the month starts on the Thursday, make sure you start outlining the boxes from the fourth box along. Respectively, stop outlining the boxes on the final day of the month (which may also be mid-page).

Finally, you need to write in the dates.

3. The page marker - Something I have started to do with my more recent journals is add in a piece of ribbon to act as a page marker.

You will need a length of ribbon, string, wool, fabric or thread. Cut this to suitable length so that there is enough to appear from the botton of your journal (about 2cm). Also allow an extra 2cm for the piece that needs to be attached into your journal.

Open your journal at the inside back cover. Applying glue (a glue stick usually works fine) to the top 2cm of your page marker, press it in at the top left hand corner of the back cover, aligned next to the opposite page.

To ensure the page marker is fixed firmly, cover it with a piece of tape.

Close your journal and bend the page marker down. You can then place it inside your journal at the current page.

I hope these three simple ways to organise your journal will inspire you. If you have any little tips on how you organise and layout your journal, please feel free to share in the comments below! I'd love to hear about them!

more kits now up in my shop

2010-11-24T17:04:00.002Z

By popular demand, there are now five new Journal Starter Kits up for sale in my Etsy shop!

Also, for those of you awaiting the next 'how-to', I haven't forgotton, I've just been very busy over the last few weeks (as I'm sure you can sympathise with!). I am working on it now, and as a little teaser, I can tell you that it will be about laying out and organising your journal.

how-to: cover a journal

2010-10-20T19:28:00.012+01:00

Here it is, the first in a series of step-by-step how-tos! Big thanks to the people who have approached me recently with questions about how I create my journals, as you have inspired and prompted me to publish these little guides.

You will need: A journal (1) (I am using a Moleskine Cahier Plain Pocket journal) and a sheet of brown paper (2) that is at least twice the size of the journal you are using, with an additional inch to spare on all sides. Crumple the brown paper into a ball, then carefully flatten it back out. Scrunching it up gives it a nice texture.

With a metal ruler and a scalpel, score a line about 1/8 inch either side of the journal's binding (3). This will create the spine (4).

Note: if your journal already has a spine you will not need to do this.

Using spray mount (my preference) or a glue stick, cover one side of the brown paper with glue. Keep the journal closed and place it onto the glue side of the brown paper about an inch from the edge lenthways. Press it down to attached the brown paper, then roll the journal onto it's spine and attach that next. Finally, attach the other side.

To give the journal an obvious spine (5), squeeze the folds with your fingers where you scored the cover.

Open out the covers of the journal and using a pair of scissors, cut slits (6) up to the edge of the journal cover. Repeat this all the way around the journal, until you have lots of flaps ready to fold.

Fold the flaps over and onto the inside of the journal covers (7). They should still be sticky with glue. If they are not, use a glue stick to renew the stickiness.

If you are using a Pocket Moleskine, make sure that you cut free the pocket at the back (8).

Cut off the small flap (9) that remains at either end of the spine. You have now finished creating the brown paper cover (10).

It is now time to decorate your journal! Decide on a title and write/draw this out onto a piece of paper (11). Don't forget to write the title again, but smaller, for the spine of the journal. Next, gather up some pretty pieces of paper ephemera or some of your own small drawings (12).

Using scissors and/or a scalpel, cut out the title of your journal (and the smaller title for the spine). Arrange your title and piece(s) of paper ephemera (and/or drawings) on the journal's front cover (13). It may take a few goes until you are happy (14).

Finally, glue all the paper elements in place (15). There you have it, your journal is covered and looking very pretty!

For more ideas and inspiration on decorating the front cover of your journal, visit my journal [covers] set on Flickr.

journaling step-by-step

2010-10-18T19:58:00.000+01:00

Over the next two weeks I am going to be posting a number of 'how tos' relating to creating and keeping a journal. The first one (which I plan to post either tomorrow or Wednesday) will be a step-by-step guide to covering a journal. Other posts will feature ideas from laying out journal pages to how to record the everyday; with lots of tips and ideas along the way.

october journal 2010

2010-10-13T07:02:00.000+01:00

It's all about journals over here at the moment. I'm actually going a little bit journal crazy (I've even started dreaming about them!).

My journal keeping seems to have got quite intense just recently. At the moment I'm churning them out at a rate of one a month. I realise that this is quite some obsessive journaling (as many people have pointed out), no wonder they are present in my dreams.

View more pages from my October 2010 journal over in the set on my Flickr.

five new starter kits

2010-09-28T19:26:00.000+01:00

I was completely taken aback when my first batch of journal starter kits sold out within two hours of their launch! I had become quite fond of looking at them sitting in the rack by my desk, and rather ridiculously was a little sad to see them go - although I know that they have gone to some really good new homes.

As promised, there are now five more fun and totally unique starter kits for sale in my Etsy shop. Hurray!

journal starter kit

2010-09-24T17:38:00.002+01:00

Over the past year I have been approached by numerous people asking me what journals I use for my journaling, what inspires my daily journal keeping and in some cases, whether I would create them a journal like mine to get them started. It wasn’t until a couple of weeks ago, that the idea came to me to put a little pack together so that other people can create a journal in the same way as I do.

…and here it is! A little do-it-yourself kit which contains a Moleskine Cahier Plain Pocket Journal, at least 20 items of completely unique paper ephemera which have been carefully collected up by myself over the course of time (with intentions to use in my own journaling), four pieces of mixed craft paper and a tips and ideas sheet full of all the suggestions needed to get a fun and interesting journaling hobby started.

The first four journal starter kits are going up in my Etsy shop today. I am already working on some more, and hope to have them ready to go by the beginning of next week.

I have even documented the creation of the kits over on my Flickr.

goodbye bloglines

2010-09-17T07:12:00.000+01:00

Like many people, I was quite sad to hear the news that Bloglines is closing down on October 1st. I have been a Bloglines user since 2005 when it was first set up and it was also one of the first online 'push' applications I bought into.

Basically, Ask (the people behind Bloglines) have decided that real-time information RSS news feed technology just isn't their focus anymore. They want to expand other areas of their business, mainly building on their Q&A website (a search engine which finds the best possible answers to users’ questions by optimising information from both the web and real people at the same time).

I had a look around and decided to move my feeds to Google Reader. It seems to have some pretty good reviews and feedback, and as I already have a Google account, it was really easy to set up. It wasn't such a pain to move either (as I had first antisipated), as you can quite easily export all your feeds to OPML format and import them straight into another RSS feed reader application (it even keeps your folder structure).

ephemera collection no.1

2010-08-20T12:21:00.000+01:00

I have finally have got around to sharing my ephemera collection! I created it back at the beginning of July with good intentions of taking some snaps of it's contents to share on here.

For those of you who are unfamilar with the word, ephemera is basically all the little, mainly paper items that we pick up and collect from day to day; like bus tickets or train tickets, or flyers for gigs or craft fairs we have been to, or bus time tables or tube maps, or postcards, or instruction booklets, or Birthday cards...
Ephemera counts for all things that are not intended to be kept, but we do keep because they mean something to us or contain memories.

I have two large boxes of ephemera hiding away in the wardrobe. They are full of old school books, paintings I did as a child and postcards from old school friends to name a few of the items. I decided to take a handful of these items and display them in an old photograph album which I have turned into a journal-style folder.

To take a look at the collection, head on over to the set on my Flickr.

mail me art: medium without a message

2010-08-03T20:35:00.002+01:00

Friday night was the opening reception of the Mail Me art 2 exhibition. I had been looking forward to this weekend for ages, and would not have missed it for anything. So, come Friday lunchtime, Paul and I headed to Camberwell, south London.

We stayed in the bright and inspiring Church Street Hotel. I wanted to mention it here, as we had such a nice time there. The staff were very helpful and the hotel itself was friendly and relaxed with it's quirky Spanish-Americana theme, honesty bar, complimentary Green & Blacks chocolate, freshly squeezed orange juice and Clipper fruit teas (always a winner with me).

The exhibition too, didn't disappoint. It was great to see my decorated envelope hanging amongst some such amazing pieces of mail art. The standard of art was so high and so much effort must have been put into each and every piece on display. It was also great to meet Darren (the exhibition/Mail Me Art organiser and founder of the Little Chimp Society and Hire An Illustrator! - yes, he's a very busy man) in person. Unfortunately the new book wasn't back from the printers, but it is due this week, so hopefully it will be on sale at the exhibition during the second half of the week.

The exhibition at the Red Gate Gallery runs until Thursday 5th August and if you are in the area and can spare half an hour, try to go along as it is well worth a look.

If you are not in the area and can't make it along, then photos of the exhibition (including the piece of Mail Art we bought) are over on my Flickr photostream.

happy packaging is back

2010-07-16T13:51:00.001+01:00

I have been busy this week creating a number of new pieces of artwork ready to restock the shelves of my Etsy shop.

The Happy Packaging artwork series was originally launched back in 2008 due to the popularity of my recycled packaging is happy packaging characters here on my blog and on my Flickr photostream. Almost exactly two years on, I have decided to create another new series of limited edition original artwork featuring my happy packaging characters.

As before, each piece of original artwork is different and features characters completely unique to that piece.

For more information (and to get your hands on these little guys) please have a peep in my Etsy shop.

upcoming mail me art exhibition

2010-07-09T07:10:00.001+01:00

Do you remember, back in October, I sent off an intricately illustrated A4 envelope to become part of the community art project that was Mail Me Art 2 and won October's prize? Well, the exhibition for that project is fast approaching.

‘Mail Me Art: Medium Without a Message’ is taking place from Friday 30th July to Thursday 5th August at the Red Gate Gallery in London. The project received over 700 pieces of mail art in total, sent in by dedicated illustrators and artists from around the world.

"What makes the work special is that every single piece of art was sent through the postal system, exposed and on view as regular mail. We will be displaying the art at the exhibition in its delivered state, as handled by the postal workers during transit! This will be your last chance to see the collection as a whole before the work is sold to private collectors."

There will also be a book, ‘Mail Me Art: Medium Without a Message’ which will go on sale to coincide with the exhibition. Advanced signed copies will be available to purchase from Red Gate Gallery or directly from the Mail Me Art website for a limited time during run up to and during the exhibition.

our cornish camping holiday

2010-07-05T22:20:00.004+01:00

Yesterday Paul and I returned from a week camping at Penhale Caravan & Camping Park, near Fowey in Cornwall. In contrast to our two camping holidays last year, the weather was glorious all week.

Aswell as visiting the towns of Fowey, Newquay and Charlestown, we spent a bit of time on Polkerris beach and Perranporth beach (a place that I have many fond childhood memories of), with visits to the Blue Reef Aquarium in Newquay and The Lost Garden's of Heligan in Pentewan.

We booked tickets to the 2010 Eden Sessions back in March, and decided shortly after to make the weekend into a week-long holiday. The highlight of the holiday then, had to be seeing Mumford & Sons and Doves at Friday night's Eden Sessions - an annual music festival that takes place inside and outside the biomes at the Eden Project. As dusk draws in, they light up the biomes which make such a perfect backdrop to the stage. We had the most amazing time and were completely taken aback with everything about the Eden Project - the scale of it, the ethics behind it, the flowers and plants in it, the biomes... If you haven't yet been, then I highly recommend it!

As ever, holiday pics are over on my Flickr.

cloud collecting

2010-06-24T18:36:00.007+01:00

About a month ago, I purchased Gavin Pretor-Pinney's book The Cloud Collector's Handbook after coming across it whilst browsing in our little local bookshop. Since then, at every opportunity, I take the time to look up and get lost in the clouds.

Last Sunday evening, as a complete coincidence, there was a one and a half hour long documentary on BBC4 television presented by Gavin Pretor-Pinney all about Cloud-Collecting (based on his book). Gavin founded the The Cloud Appreciation Society back in 2005 to bring cloud-spotters from all over the world together to share their photographs, stories, art and poetry.

I am member 21597, "...and will henceforth seek to persuade all who'll listen of the wonder and beauty of clouds".

You can see the beginnings of my cloud collection over on my Flickr.

creating characters

2010-06-15T17:59:00.001+01:00

I've been experimenting a little bit recently with some new characters and illustration layouts. I'm not quite at the stage of revealling the illustrations themselves (they still need a little bit of 'evolving'), but here is a sneak peak at some of the characters that are included in the designs.

Clockwise from top-left: Wonkycat, Button-nose bunny, Swimswim and Lionel.

25 years of oxfam summertown

2010-06-15T17:47:00.006+01:00

My local Oxfam store is celebrating it's 25th Birthday this month. To mark the occasion, the shop has gone back 25 years to the 1980s. It's quite a sight to behold: all those bright colour combinations; the shoulder pads; the huge pleated skirts and leg warmers; the chunky, elaborate and colourful jewellery; the stirrup trousers and stripey leggings; the over-sized tops and one-size-fits-all pieces - all the elements that made up 80s fashion.

The store in Summertown, Oxford was one of the first Oxfam charity shops to open (the very first one being the famous store on Oxford's Broad Street). Princess Diana and The Queen have been among the visitors to the shop over it's first quarter-century and a massive £3m is predicted to have been earned for the charity at this one site alone.

I took the above photos with my iPhone (so the quality isn't great), but they give a rough idea of just how incredible the rails look in all their colourful glory.

diy wallpaper* cover

2010-06-02T18:35:00.002+01:00

For their August issue, Wallpaper* magazine are giving their readers the chance to design their very own version of the 'Handmade issue' cover. Using an online design-it-yourself app which enables you to scale, rotate and arrange numerous shapes, illustrations and typographic elements (designed by James Joyce, The Hort, Anthony Burrill, Kam Tang, and Nigel Robinson), anyone will be able to create their own bespoke cover. Wallpaper* will then print, bind and post your unique magazine to you and all for the very reasonable price of £6 (UK).

I spent far too much time creating mine - at first I thought that the creative options might be a little limited, but once I started experimenting it became obvious that there are so many possibilities to be played around with.

The deadline for submitting your own design is June 8th, so if you're interested, get yourself over to the website and start creating quick!

You can even have a peep at other people's covers in the gallery.

draw it, write it, record it

2010-05-13T18:26:00.003+01:00

I love keeping a journal and recording things - from the everyday, small things in my life (that will only mean something to me) to things that have been happening on a much larger, more global scale. Just recently, I have started to record events quite religiously, it's actually becoming a bit of a light obsession.

The general election is one such event. I feel the need to record every aspect of it - it may be interesting to look back at it in years to come. What makes it even more special is that this election has become quite historical. I have recorded (in quite some detail) different moments; from the prime minister first announcing that there would be an election, to the forming of the new government coalition.

It's nice how different events merge with one another too. Elephant Parade London has three special elephants sitting in Victoria Embankment Gardens - a certain Mr Brown, Mr Clegg and Mr Cameron. They are dressed in boxing shorts and gloves.

Back on the subject of recording events and keeping a journal, Michael Nobbs is sharing one of his eBooks for free at the moment. Head over to his blog for your free download of Start to Draw Your Life. Even for the most dedicated 'life recorder', Michael's book contains some fantastic little tips and inspiring suggestions.

elephant parade london 2010

2010-05-09T13:03:00.001+01:00

We were in London again this weekend for the second Saturday in a row. It wasn't a planned visit as such, Paul managed to purchase the wrong size jeans last week so we had to return to Covent Garden this week to exchange them. I was secretly pleased though, as it meant we would be able to go on a bit of an elephant trail whilst we were there.

Elephant Parade London is a massive outdoor exhibition dedicated to the conservation of the Asian elephant. From 3rd May until 24th June, life-size baby elephants decorated by artists, designers and television personalities are dotted all around the streets of London. The entire herd will then be moved to the Royal Hospital Chelsea for week and a grand auction is to take place on 3rd July. London's biggest outdoor art event on record is predicted to have an audience of 25 million and aims to raise £2,000,000 for the Asian elephant and benefit 20 UK conservation charities.

Equipped with a map of elephant locations (downloaded from the website) and camera, we did a huge circuit on foot of the Holborn, St James's and Soho areas, discovering a total of sixteen elephants. Our favourites were the entire set of IPL teams at Trafalgar square (two of which shown above) and the Pearly Prince inside Coutts Bank on The Strand.

clicky happy camera tee

2010-05-09T10:40:00.010+01:00

It's exciting news... one of my characters finally has his debut on the front of an exclusive new tee.

Clicky is thinking heart-shaped thoughts and is printed on a 100% cotton American Apparel black ladies t-shirt; as Shana puts it 'Cute Cute Cute!!'. Please check him out in the Shana Logic shop.

pick me up

2010-05-04T21:02:00.000+01:00

On Saturday, Paul and I went to Pick Me Up - the first contemporary graphic art fair in the UK - at Somerset House in London. I have to say that I was absolutely in my element!

There was some fantastic art, illustration and graphic design on display; from both up-and-coming artists and more well-known names in the design world, like The Peepshow Collective (including one of my favourite contemporary illustrators, Andrew Rae) and James Jarvis.

Print Club London had a working studio at the fair where they invited some of their favourite designers to print a poster live in their workshop. These were then available at purchase in the shop in limited editions of 50. It was great to be able to just walk around the studio whilst they were working.

One of the highlights had to be seeing Rob Ryan at work in his open studio. He actually relocated his paper cutting studio and printing presses from his studio in East London, to the Ryantown space at Somerset House. It was such a treat to see him and his team at work and walk around the fully-functioning studio.

There are lots of photos of the artwork, plushes, zines, prints, collectables and one-of-a-kind craft pieces - which were all available to purchase - over on my Flickr. You'll also find a few pictures of Rob's Pick Me Up studio there too.

ladyfest 2010

2010-04-30T07:42:00.001+01:00

I've been busy over the last few weeks working on the poster and flyers for Ladyfest Oxford 2010.

The festival, that promotes and celebrates women in the arts, takes place over the weekend 14 - 16th May and events range from gigs featuring local women artists and bands, music projects and talks by inspiring women authors to craft afternoons and feminist film screenings.

The festival is open to everyone (yes, guys can come along too!) and most of the events are free. All festival profits and collections will go to Oxford Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Centre, so it's all for a good cause too.

oxford university botanic garden

2010-04-26T17:58:00.002+01:00

Spring is a wonderful time of year to marvel at the beauty of nature. Yesterday, Paul and I visited Oxford University's Botanic Garden. After a string of beautiful sunny days, yesterday was a lot duller and we even had a few rainy spells, but the flowers and plants looked as pretty as ever.

The garden also has three reasonably sized warm glasshouses, where you can see all sorts of plants that are native to different parts of the world. Our favourites were the banana plants (shown above), coca plants, 100 year old cacti, tequlia cactus and the giant lillies. The outside gardens and botanic family borders were in full bloom and they even have an English Yew that was planted in the 1600s - the oldest tree in the garden.

On a drier day I'd like to go back taking both a sketchbook and picnic with me. That is what summer is all about.

design for mankind banner

2010-04-12T20:08:00.003+01:00

Erin and I first met (in the cyber-sense of the word) when she stumbled across my Flickr photostream by chance and approached me to design and illustrate a banner for her new, exciting, up-and-coming blog, Design For Mankind. That was three years ago now. Since then her blog has recieved extraordinary recognition; it brings in 12,000 readers daily and has recently been listed as one of The Times Top 50 design blogs in the world. I have always felt quite honoured that Erin chose me in the first place and incredibly overwhelmed at having that many people see my banner!

At the end of last year, Erin let on that she was going to give her blog a bit of a makeover and to my pleasure, asked me if I would design her a new banner (I immediatley agreed, of course!). On April 5th, the new look was unveiled and I think it looks pretty amazing. Thanks Erin for letting me loose on the look of Design For Mankind once again!

lately

2010-03-29T18:13:00.002+01:00

Things have been busy-busy around here lately. Not only are we wedding planning, but we've decided to start looking for a proper little house to purchase (preferably an old cottage, full of character, in one of Oxford's surrounding villages). We have been living in our flat in North Oxford for five years now. It's lovely, but I think we are starting to out-grow it. Plus, I really would like us to have a garden of our own to grow fruits, vegetables, herbs and pretty flowers in pretty planters.

We were up in Cheshire this weekend visiting Paul's parents in their new house. We also went to a friend's 30th Birthday party on Saturday while we were up there. Last weekend we went to see the lambs at Hill Farm, Little Wittenham (part of the Northmoor Trust). It's so lovely to see them all - so small and so adorable - and the ones chasing each other around in the fields too (I have lots of photos over on my Flickr if you want to see for yourself the definition of cute).

This weekend is the Oxford Jazz Festival. We were lucky enough to get tickets to see the Gypsy Fire Trio on Sunday evening at the Ashmolean. It's the long Easter weekend this weekend too, so lots of chocolate and lazy mornings. I can't wait!

flickr favourites: nov08 - mar10

2010-03-24T07:04:00.001Z

Yes, it's been a while since I last shared my Flickr favourites... a year and 5 months to be exact. It makes me think how time does fly.

My selective taste seems to have picked out quite a few 'boho home' photographs this time, along with some quite crafty ones. The pink wafer biscuit photograph in here was a nostalgic decision. Pink wafer biscuits bring back childhood memories of visiting my nan - my grandparents would always have a big tin full of them (and Nice biscuits, remember those?).

1. meowpaw, 2. hens teeth, 3. kaycatt*, 4. lyckeliv, 5. LoisInWonderland, 6. Matt Forsythe, 7. invisiblemadevisible, 8. i like pens, 9. milk & kisses, 10. decor8, 11. Linzie Hunter, 12. Kitschy Galore, 13. doc18, 14. skarpetka86, 15. Ninainvorm, 16. Ninainvorm, 17. andrea joseph's illustrations, 18. H is for Home, 19. ayco311, 20. hens teeth, 21. Janick • Nea {Jewelry & Wall Wear }, 22. MadeByGirl, 23. ClickForArt.com, 24. Vivi Hack * Mercado Imaginário

lisa larson, dachshund

2010-03-17T19:32:00.002Z

I love it when I come accross a great vintage find. At least every two weeks I do a circuit of our local charity shops. Even if I don't end up making a purchase, I always come away full of inspiration. I like to look at items and wonder just where they have come from, who has gained pleasure from them or made good use of them before they came to sit on those shelves.

This amazing little ceramic dachshund is a purchase from the Blue Cross charity shop that I made a couple of weeks ago. I saw him and immediatley fell in love!

I got home and did some research to discover that he is part of Swedish designer Lisa Larson's 1955 Lilla Zoo Series from Gustavsberg Pottery. I am so pleased that this little dachshund has led me to the discovery of her work, which is so beautiful and inspiring.

felt chain garlands

2010-02-19T17:07:00.000Z

To celebrate our engagement, Paul and I are throwing a party tomorrow evening - what better reason can there be to make decorations! Infact, I've been very keen to make these pretty felt chain garlands since Alice of Quaint Living had a go at them last month (thanks for the inspiration Alice!).

I made four in total and all have different colour combinations: light blue, navy blue and white (shown here); navy blue with a smaller amount of white; light blue and white and red and white. I think that they look fantastic - and are so simple to make. You can find the full directions over at the Purl Bee.

journal birds

2010-02-12T12:34:00.000Z

I have started to see a number of Buzzards on the way to and from work recently and because of this, the RSPB Handbook of British Birds has re-emerged from the bookshelf and has inadvertently inspired my recent drawings and sketches.

Flicking back through my journals too, I didn't realise just how many birds of all shapes and sizes (cuttings from magazines, stylised doodles, stamps and even the packaging from the RSPB bird brooches) feature on the pages - I have shared a few of them above.

Speaking of birds, is anyone else completely smitten with the Robinsons Be Natural advert on the television at the moment with the little bird in his little bird house? It makes me go all weak inside! You can watch the advert and even the making of it on the Robinsons website. Adorable.

moose loose

2010-02-02T17:00:00.001Z

It occurred to me this afternoon that I haven't shared any new artwork on here for a while (and it certainly isn't due to me not creating any!). I think that I have been so caught up with my social activities recently that the whole point of keeping my blog seems to have been lost a little. I will make a conscious effort to get back to art from now on...

This is a commission piece that I created at the end of last year. I was flicking through my first snippets journal last night and there was the first rough sketch of this moose looking back at me. I think it is quite important to keep the little elements that go into producing a piece of artwork, though I do seem to end up with a lot of odds and ends of paper after a while!

exciting news

2010-01-21T18:34:00.001Z

I've had a whole week now and I'm still not sure whether it has properly sunk in! Paul and I have been together for nearly five years and have known each other for nearly ten. We met as work collegues, working for a little technical illustration company back in 2000.

Paul asked me the big question in a pretty little restaurant on our last night in Bruges and I immediately accepted! My ring is beautiful - it was Paul's Grandma's engagement ring and has been in the family for a long time. I feel so honoured that it is now mine! I am missing it greatly at the moment as it has been sent off to be resized (I don't wear rings, so Paul had no way of telling my size - I didn't even know until the weekend!).

Well, we are both very happy and I am thrilled to let the world know! I will no doubt keep my blog updated with wedding planning progress and ideas. I'm off now to smile some more!

a little late, but with a smile...

2010-01-07T16:54:00.001Z

Better late than never: Happy New Year! We had a really lovely, relaxing Christmas break this year, yet still managing to fit lots in.

In no particular order...
We rambled (in the snow) to the top of Alderley Edge - enchanted by the story and taking in the fantastic views - then thawed out in front of the open fire at the end of the day; laughed (and cried) at The Wild Things; spent a blustery day in the magical and historical town of Chester; stood in the terraces to watch some League 2 football; got crafty with paper snowflakes and bunting; danced into the early hours with drums and maracas and even managed to see some amazing Steampunk art.

I'm quite excited about things at the moment. We've had an incredible amount of snow fall in Oxford over the last two days and even though it causes quite an inconvenience on the roads, it brings people together and makes everyone smile. Romantic walks and snowball fights - the year really has started the way it means to go on!

more snippets & stuff

2009-12-21T17:22:00.004Z

This isn't really a Christmassy post as such, though it really should be with just four days to go. I suppose quite a bit of the content of this new Snippets & Stuff journal is Christmas-based, but the cover itself doesn't reflect that.

I have been churning out journals at an extremely speedy rate recently, especially these little Paperchase ones (which, as you will already know, I always cover and take time to personalise).

The Only Me character on the front is actually about 9 years old. I had a bit of a pre-Christmas tidy out and came across a plastic wallet full bits and pieces from old craft projects and quite a few misplaced drawings. Many of them now have a new home pasted into this journal.

the new ashmolean

2009-12-02T10:15:00.007Z

How exciting it is to have such a historical and world-renowned museum in my hometown. The Ashmolean was the first of it's kind, originally built in 1683, to display a collection of interesting artifacts which had been gathered from all around the world. It is the UK's oldest public museum.

At the beginning of November it reopened after a £61m redevelopment. It is now twice the size, has 39 new galleries, a new education centre and houses several conservation studios (aswell as a pretty impressive roof-top restaurant).

Yesterday was my second visit to the Ashmolean since it's reopening. The building itself is a sight to behold - our first visit was spent just marvelling at the new open-plan layout, the glass walkways and it's magical airy feel. Yesterday though, I intended to come away with a whole load of inspiration. Not only did I spend a good hour and half exploring the new displays, but I also attended a lunchtime talk and tour which gave an intereting insight into the hidden treasures of the museum.

I definately recommend it (even if you live a little further afield) - just make sure you remember your sketchbook and be prepared to be inspired.

to my surprise...

2009-11-19T17:48:00.002Z

On following up my last post about the Mail Me Art 2 project... I am absolutely overwhelmed to say that I won October's prize! I'm thrilled to bits about it as there were so many amazing entries last month (have a look at them all on the Mail Me Art website). A signed copy of the first Mail Me Art book and a very lovely signed limited edition print by Catalina Estrada arrived at my door last Friday. I'm still looking for the perfect frame for the print, but it'll be up on our livingroom wall very soon.

I had another package waiting for me when I got home yesterday. To my surprise it was The Sewing Book by Alison Smith (a book I've had on my Amazon wishlist for a while). At first I was a little confused, wondering if I'd ordered it by accident (easily done on Amazon!), but then realised I had won it in a Cloth Magazine competition - my luck must really be in at the moment! Both of these things have made my month!

mail me art 2

2009-10-22T17:39:00.002+01:00

I posted my Mail Me Art 2 submission off on Friday. I wanted it to arrive at its destination before the Royal Mail postal strike starts today, but I have so little faith in the service at the moment. It's bad enough posting off normal letters, let alone ones which have taken me over twenty hours to decorate with my illustrations.

After the success of last years's Mail Me Art project, a second community art project now invites more artists from around the world to turn enevlopes and packages into artwork. Submissions are open until 31st March 2010 (so there is still plenty of time to take part). There are monthly prizes to be won, a planned exhibition and even talk of a second book of postal art to be published.

Here it is anyway, my finished envelope for the project. I made sure that I took a fair amount of photographs of it before placing it in the postbox. You can find a selection of these photos (including ones of my envelope after various stages of compeletion) over on my Flickr.

sir paul smith talk

2009-10-12T19:49:00.004+01:00

On Friday 2nd October, Paul and I went to see Sir Paul Smith do a talk at the Design Museum in London. The 75 minutes that he stood just six rows in front of us and talked about his life and his achievements were, for me, probably the most inspiring of the year so far.

In the intimate conference room, set out with no more than 100 seats, Paul Smith told us about how he started out; how he concentrated on getting the money in during the week doing anything he could, then at the weekends how he worked in his little storeroom-come-shop (based at the back of a fashion boutique in Nottingham) selling his handmade clothing.

He is now one of Britian's best known fashion designers, with his take on traditional British styling and adding a twist. The Paul Smith stripes are instantly recogniseable, as are his floral printed men's shirts.

You Can Find Inspiration in Everything (And If You Can't, Look Again) is one of Paul Smith's mottos (it is also the name of his book). Floral prints inspired by vintage seed packets, tailored jackets inspired by the colours of Indian bazaars, blue skies contrasting with brightly painted buildings... cakes, leaves, paintings... it's everywhere.

Paul and I both left the Design Museum that afternoon with heads full of inspiration, feeling empowered, ready to take on the world.

You can view my notes from the talk over on Flickr.

that time of year again

2009-09-24T19:34:00.003+01:00

I'm half way through this journal already and I only started it at the end of July. It really has been a busy few months in terms of travelling and events. The weekend just gone was our first quiet break since the start of the summer, which I happened to spend being ill and feeling more than a little sorry for myself.

In an ideal world I would have written a post about all of the exhibitions/events/places that Paul and I have seen/visited over the summer, but as I've left it all so late on I am going to have to make do with a summary:

• 3 weddings; 1 in Cheshire, 1 in Dorest and 1 in Gloucestershire; and a beautiful Jewish blessing in London (which was a first for me and quite an amazing day).

• Visiting the Museum of the History of Science in Oxford to see the Compass & Rule exhibition.

• A weekend in London to see the Invader Low Fidelity exhibition at the Lazarides Gallery (along with doing a bit of Invader spotting out on the streets of London); Walking In My Mind at the Hayward Gallery and Fantasy & Fear in Contemporary Design at the V&A.

• Picnics in Oxford's beautiful University Parks, and spending sunny afternoons watching the cricket.

• 2 week-long camping trips; 1 in Wales and 1 in the New Forest, aswell as our barge trip.

• Finally, last weekend, Bestival 2009; where we got to see the likes of Kraftwerk, Elbow, MGMT, Doves, Bat For Lashes and Massive Attack. I love Bestival as it is a really laid-back and fun festival.

...and all at home in the UK.

camping in the new forest

2009-09-09T21:43:00.001+01:00

Last week Paul and I had a last minute holiday camping in the beautiful New Forest National Park. Originally it was planned to be a bit of a relaxation get-away, but I'm not really one for just 'sitting about' (I always end up becoming restless, feeling the need for adventure), so we ended up doing a lot of sightseeing around the area. Days out included visits to Lymington, Yarmouth (on the Isle of Wight), Burley, Barton-on-Sea and Bournemouth.

The campsite we stayed at was called Hollands Wood - a beautiful woodland campsite in Brockenhurst where the ponies roam freely and the squirrels are incredibly mischievous (it's important to remember never to leave out any opened food or bags of rubbish!). On the Bank Holiday Monday we stayed in Brockenhurst for the local carnival.

Photos from the trip are over on my flickr.

wonkycat lost - limited edition prints

2009-08-25T17:16:00.002+01:00

There are now some brand new prints in my Etsy shop! The new series of just 25 limited edition prints are based on my highly detailed original illustration 'wonkycat lost'.

Wonkycat is a character that I've been doodling quite alot over the past month - he seemed to change with every little sketch, until he finally took the form above. I've become quite fond of him and now he needs to find twenty-five new homes...

all aboard the eagle owl

2009-08-20T16:30:00.006+01:00

On Friday afternoon our crew of 10 boarded the Eagle Owl. We were in for a very enjoyable long weekend on the water, aboard our 70ft canal barge. Starting from Alvechurch, we cruised up the Worcester and Birmingham canal, through the 2.5km long Wast Hill Tunnel (quite an experience in itself!) towards Kings Norton, where we moored for our first night (map: 1).

On Saturday, we all dressed up as pirates for the day - raising our Jolly Roger at the front of the boat (and attaching Jeff) and generally all acting the part much to the amusement of people on the tow-path. Upon turning onto the Stratford-on-Avon canal, we made it is far as Shirely before invading the Drawbridge pub (map: D) for refreshments. Back aboard the barge, we cruise a further 4km and moored up near Hockley Heath (map: 2) for a BBQ and the night.

Sunday was a day of travelling the reverse route back, where we moored up (map: 3) and walked into Alvechurch (for the boys to watch the football and to stock up on a few supplies). In evening we decided to treat the people of Alvechurch to our singing skills, taking part in the local pub's karaoke evening (much to their delight, I might add!).

On Monday, we were all up bright and early to return the barge back to the Alvechurch Boat Centre at 9am.

Although it was cosy, hiring out a barge with your friends is hightly recommended (provided you can put up with their snoring!). It's something I've wanted to do for absolutely ages and living right next to a canal I have spent many an afternoon wondering what it'd be like aboard one. And now I know.

doodling for inspiration

2009-07-29T17:55:00.000+01:00

When I'm feeling in a bit of an uninspired mood, I like to flick through a random book or magazine that is full of photographs (it makes no odds what the subject matter is) and absent-mindedly draw what I see on the pages.

It's a great excercise to do as the results are always different and it prompts you to draw outside your normal boundaries (I wouldn't normally think to draw a jar of pasta, for example). It also produces some quite abstract results. Try doing the same thing whilst watching the TV - this is a good one because you have to draw quite quickly and may even have to do some blind-contour drawing.

These little doodles were inspired by the September issue of LivingEtc, hence the odd homeware/kitchen theme.

three things

2009-07-21T12:52:00.001+01:00

..that I'd like to share:

1. I love the graphic design of this box of fairtrade green tea from Clipper. The design agency who created both the new packaging range and the lively new website are called Big Fish; the same company who created the eye-catching branding for Dorset Cereals.

2. Design Directory Italy - a recent charity shop find. From the Vesper Motor Scooter to the Alessi Giovannoni series, it showcases the best in twentieth-century Italian design. I love it when I make great charity shop finds like this.

3. The Howies Summer 2009 catalogue: West to East. These publications always inspire me - they are more than simple clothing catalogues - they are full of fun snippets of information and some great graphic art. I have quite a blacklog of these which I still love to pick up and look over every now and then. I am a fan of the Howies company as I admire their ethics towards the clothing business. Visit their website to view the catalogue online or request a free tactile copy.

another journal started...

2009-07-17T13:38:00.002+01:00

I was a little sad at having finished my first journal of 2009 three weeks ago - I've been carrying it around with me everywhere for the past three months. It never was meant to last long though, it only has 40 pages afterall.

I'm back to my usual size journal now. I sometimes worry that WHSmith will stop stocking the little A6 refil that I like to use and have even toyed with the idea of buying them in bulk and stockpiling - just incase.

I'm up to page 14 in my new summer/autumn 2009 journal. All of the pages so far document our holiday in Wales. Like the journal I had at the end of last year, this one is also going to be an everyday/travel journal.

camping in wales

2009-07-13T18:38:00.001+01:00

It takes a good four hours to drive from Oxford to St David's. Infact, as the crow flies, Dublin is closer to Pembrokeshire than Oxford is. No wonder it feels like a lifetime away from the hustle and bustle of the city life I know.

On Saturday we returned from a week long camping trip staying at the most beautiful campsite I have ever visited. Our pitch at the Caerfai Bay Caravan and Tent Park had views out over the ocean. Even though the weather was pretty stormy and gloomy for much of the week to say the least, it's quite something to watch the weather moving in from the Atlantic and the rain approaching across the cliffs and the waves producing the most breath-taking rainbows.

We had a fantastic week experiencing the great outdoors at it's most powerfull. From Coasteering along the rocky coastline of Abereiddy, jumping a terrifying 35ft from the cliffs into a roaring swell of waves below, climbing the rock walls and being thrown around at the peril of the waves (which makes you fully appreciate the power of the sea), jumping into the Blue Lagoon; to body-boarding on the waves at Whitesands Bay; strolling along the beautiful beach of Newgale, exploring the rock pools and caves; spotting some of the UK's most amazing wildlife (we watched a family of puffins feeding from high amoung the cliff's of Portgain) and BBQs on the cliff top... come Saturday, I really didn't want to leave.

More photos of our holiday are over on my Flickr.

apple on toast

2009-06-19T16:22:00.003+01:00

This is actually a new drawing of an old character I created some time ago. Searching around in the bedroom cupboard the other day whilst looking for unused items to take to the charity shop (I'm going through a clear-out phase at the moment), I came across the old sketchbook that I first drew this little apple character in. Written above him is the line 'dress up as an apple - like me!' - and that is what I always remember him being called. He must be about 8 years old now. Wow, doesn't time fly.

Oh, and Toast is a favourite shop of mine. I only recently discovered they have a store in Oxford, much to my delight.

a long weekend in cheshire

2009-06-15T20:55:00.003+01:00

This weekend Paul and I went to stay with his parents who live in beautiful rural Cheshire. Though it was quite a contrast to the days that followed, we actaully kicked-off our mini-break by going to see England v Andorra at Wembley on Wednesday evening.

We were a little concerned about our travel plans because of the London Tube Strike that took place last week - yet amazingly, travelling by car, our journey was smooth both ways. The game wasn't the most exciting (final score 6-0), but it was great to see the squad in action.

After travelling 'up north' on Thursday morning, we spent the weekend doing a lot relaxing, catching up with family and friends, as well as exploring the countryside (which looks wonderful in the sunshine). On Saturday night we went to see The Doves at Delamere Forest. The event was organised by The Forestry Commission to raise awareness of the work they do for Britain's rural areas, with all profits going back into forest and woodland restoration. This is the second Forestry Commission event we have been to (we went to see Massive Attack at Westonbirt Arboretum two summers ago), and I highly recommend it - it is just a fantastic feeling to be out in the open air, surrounded by nature and getting to see some amazing live music from big name artists who are from the local area.

More photos of the gig (and the football) are up on my Flickr.

eco friendly business cards

2009-05-26T20:38:00.002+01:00

I received another new batch of Moo cards in the post last week - but these ones are a little different to my usual Minicards.

I usually go for the Minicards as I think that they suit my illustration style being small and compact, but on discovering these new Eco Friendly Business Cards (after reading both the April fools post and then the real post on the Moo blog) I decided to order myself a batch.

They are a bit more expensive than the Minicards (costing £10.99 for a pack of 50 or £34.99 for a pack of 200), but I am always for more environmentally-friendly alternatives - plus, I think that they work well with the message I am trying to portray with my happy packaging characters.

without fixed pieces

2009-05-08T12:11:00.000+01:00

I'm trying my best to get myself organised at the moment. I am aiming to get some prints done in the next month or so to sell in my Etsy shop. It's been empty for the best part of six months whilst I've been getting myself up-to-date with other projects. I think this design (which I dreamt up about two weeks ago) would work quite well on a small notecard.

Hehe, aren't people nosey? Yesterday lunchtime I was browsing my Flickr groups, when I re-discovered the what's in your bag? group. I decided to add a photo of my bag contents to it. The photograph has been online for less than 24 hours and has already had 322 views! I'm just as bad though, spending far too much time in Flickr groups like this, looking at other people's personal possessions!

Well, I'm off to sunny Dorset this evening. We have our second wedding of the year tomorrow and I'm very excited about it! Have a great weekend everyone!

the first signs of summer

2009-04-21T18:41:00.000+01:00

The weather has been beautiful today and I was lucky enough to be able to have my lunch down by the canal. I wrote a small entry in my new 2009 Journal, then just sat back and enjoyed the sunshine and the fresh air.

April has been a pretty busy month for me; with a trip to London last weekend, Cornwall the weekend just gone and this weekend Paul and I are heading up to Cheshire for our first wedding of the summer!

On Friday I travelled down to St Anthony in Cornwall for a Hen Party. 11 of us spent the weekend in a cottage up on the hill with amazing views of the bay. Highlights were taking a couple of motor boats out to sea and having a Champagne picnic on a secluded beach, Pimms rounders dressed up as nuns and tarts (with our Butler in the Buff!) and Saturday night out in Falmouth. I think I'll be remembering that trip for a while! Excellent fun!

I now also have all my photos up on Flickr from our London trip.

goldie, brick lane and ether 09

2009-04-14T19:39:00.001+01:00

On Saturday Paul and I went on a day trip to London. Just the thought of visiting our capital never fails to excite me. There is always a long list of sites and sounds to take in and even though we only live 60 miles away (an hour and a half coach ride), I am always filled with a sense of the unknown and discovering something new.

As always I had everything planned - from a visit to see the Goldie The Kids Are All Riot Exhibition at the Maverik Showroon in Shoreditch; a visit to the new Rarekind Graffiti Art Gallery on Bethnal Green road; a trip to Brick Lane to see the London Police Exhibition at Stolenspace, aswell as a peep around the market; a few hours in Covent Garden; then finally onto the Southbank Centre for the third day of the Ether 09 Festival.

I booked us tickets to see Röyksopp at the Royal Festival Hall as part of the Ether festival back in January - it felt like a long wait, but the gig was fantastic! Fever Ray (aka Karin Dreijer, one half of The Knife) was the supporting act and they preformed a number of their collaborations - just amazing. We even managed a spot of dancing at the Clore Ballroom afterwards before we had to hurry to catch the last tube train back to Victoria.

I shall be posting about the individual exhibitions shortly...

of bricks and walls

2009-04-02T21:13:00.004+01:00

Those of you who know me will know that I am a collector. I will collect anything, from pretty pebbles and pretty ribbons to souvenir pencils and beer mats. It's something I have always done and have no plans so stop doing.

Around the same time that I started drawing my Happy Packaging characters on used envelopes, I started to take more notice of the patterns on the inside of them. I started a collection of carefully cut and flattened envelope paper, putting them aside and using them in future projects. About a month ago, a particular design caught my eye: tiny brickwork. I was inspired to put the paper to a different kind of use and make this little house.

A couple of pictures of it are on my Flickr to give you more of an idea of how small it actually is. It exists for no other reason than that I just saw the tiny brickwork and thought of a tiny house...

I know I've mentioned it before, but used envelopes really are a fantastic free art resource.

are you ok little rabbit?

2009-03-19T17:26:00.000Z

This is a piece of artwork I did the other evening to try to get myself into a more 'inspired' mood. You may have noticed my lack of activity on here of late. I wouldn't necessarily say I have a 'creativity-block', just rather I seem to be leading a bit of a hectic life at the moment and my mind is usually elsewhere.

Both Paul and I have agreed that we need to make a few adjustments to our lives to balance things out a little. Since the start of the year, we seem to have fallen into a routine of doing our daily activities at different times. Too much more of this and the cracks will start to show.

As from this week, things are going to change. It's about time we both started to do more of the things we enjoy, more often.

another year older...

2009-03-14T07:56:00.005Z

Ok, so it has been over three weeks since my Birthday, but I turned 28 on the 18th February. After a long and ridiculously busy day at work, I came home to find myself to be the proud new owner of a sewing machine! I've been after one for about 6 months - since it became apparent that my crafting was limited without one. The funny thing was that as I unwrapped it, I thought Paul had bought me some sort of accessory for my car! The make is a Toyota. I had no idea that Toyota even made sewing machines, but Paul really had done his research (with the help of his mum), and I'm thrilled to bits with it!

The following Saturday we went to Marwell Zoological Conservation Park. I've been eager to visit the park since Alice of Peapods posted about Lola the baby Pygmy Hippo at the end of last year.

The weather that weekend was fantastic, bright blue skies and lots of sunshine. We had a thoroughly enjoyable day out - not only did I see Lola have a little run, but we also got to see her and her mum at feeding time. Photos from the visit can be seen on my Flickr.

keyhole flats

2009-02-22T18:32:00.006Z

I don't usually post about every single purchase I make on Etsy (there simply wouldn't be enough space, or time!), but I am so in love with my new Keyhole Flats from Hydraheart that I just had to tell you all about them! They arrived at my local Post Office last Monday, just in time for my Birthday. Aren't they gorgeous!? And completely vegan too!

(My bag was also purchased on Etsy from Sparrow Originals)

blanket issue 14

2009-02-03T17:17:00.001Z

After submitting my work at the end of last year, I was thrilled to discover that I am featured in the current issue of Blanket magazine.

For those of you unfamiliar with Blanket, it is a bi-monthly online publication dedicated to uncovering creative talent. It really is a fantastic source of inspiration; showcasing a broad range of art and design work from across the globe.

The Blue Issue (Issue 14) is available to download for free as a pdf. You'll find a selection of my illustration work on pages 15 and 16.

google homepage graphics

2009-01-26T17:29:00.001Z

I noticed again today that the google.co.uk homepage has another fun and relevant-to-the-date logo design. This time it represents the Chinese New Year, 2009: the year of the Ox.

Above are four of my favourite Google logo graphics from the past year. Infact, I took the screen-shot of the Lego one on 28th January 2008, nearly a whole year ago. The George and Dragon one made me giggle (which dates back to St George's Day last April 23rd). I think it's nice how Google has it's little quirks - unessential, but fun!

here we go!

2009-01-22T17:20:00.000Z

Two thousand and nine really has started at 100mph! Not that it's a bad thing, mind you. I have had a lot to focus on over the past month, so it's hardly surprising that my blog has been left a bit unattended of late. Here are a few things I'm bursting to tell:

Some exciting news is that I am starting a lot of new projects over the next couple of months, both on a personal and professional level.

I have bought my first car - a cute little silver Ford KA - thanks Adrienne and BB for the suggestions from my last post! I opted for the KA in the end as it's small, quick, cheap to insure and economical.

I'm in the planning stage of getting my own shop set up on my website, which I'm really excited about. There'll be a new selection of bits to purchase, including art prints and notecards.

I'm also looking at continuing my education (possibly with the Open University) - something I'm eager to make time for, and this year Paul and I are going to start to learn Italian together.

*The photo above is of the journals sitting on my desk. The top one is my old 2008 journal and the one under it (shown without a name yet) is my new 2009 one.*

thank you, tony

2009-01-21T17:54:00.004Z

I just want to pay a few respects to Tony Hart, an artist who really inspired me as a child, who died on Sunday, aged 83.

Tony encouraged the budding artist in me from the age of five to thirteen. I remember always looking forward to watching Hartbeat when I got home from school, thinking about all those fun new art and craft projects just waiting to be started, then raiding the kitchen cupboards for lentils and pasta shells.

He believed anyone could draw; that any child could pick up a pen, paint with their fingers, be creative with glitter and glue and create a masterpiece. By looking at the blog response, it is apparent that I am not the only one who's career was formed from those Take Hart and Hartbeat days.

A big talent and an inspiration to generations. He'll be sadly missed.

hello 2009

2009-01-06T19:33:00.003Z

Happy 2009 everyone! I know it is a tiny bit late. Catching up with blog browsing this evening, I realised just how behind I am over here.

Amazingly, before I was back at work yesterday, I managed a whole week and a half away from the computer. Just before Christmas, I decided to have a complete break in order to get myself out and about in the fresh winter air, but I went and got the nasty flu-like bug that has been sweeping the UK over the last month. Christmas Eve I was tucked up in bed eagerly willing myself to get better; Christmas Day we spent at my mum's; but Boxing Day, I had lost my voice to deep croaks and was back in bed again.

Another annoyance is that the flash has broken on my trusty camera (I suppose I have had it over 6 years, and it is used constantly, so should have been no surprise really). Anyway, I won't continue on this negative note. I am feeling much better now, with exciting plans for this new year. I am currently searching for a little car to get out and about in - it's been a while since I passed my test, but this will be my first ever car and even though circumstantial changes have led to this decision, the idea has really grown on me I must admit.

the little things, illustrations

2008-12-17T08:57:00.001Z

This is another new journal I started a few weeks back, the little things, named after the very first Illustration Friday topic I ever took part in. I suppose it's not quite a journal, but a collection of new illustrations. The title is very fitting for a number of other reasons, one of the most obvious being that practically everything I create seems to exist on a tiny scale.

Perhaps taking things a little to the extreme is the other new journal I started recently, my journal of inspiration. The original little notebook is from a Christmas cracker I pulled on Friday; I just trimmed down the cover and added my brown paper touch to it. It fits right in the palm of my hand and I even found a tiny blue elastic band to wrap around it to match the others!

a weekend in wales

2008-12-08T12:14:00.006Z

If there is anywhere in the British Isles that can inspire thoughts and feelings with scenery alone, then it has to Pembrokeshire in Southwest Wales.

Paul and I spent a long weekend visiting my Dad and family who live in a sleepy little hamlet about five minutes drive from St Davids. What a contrast to our normal everyday life - the pace of living out there is many times slower than the pace we live back home in Oxford. The first thing that strikes you is the sound of silence. No traffic noise, nothing. Just the sound of the breeze and the birds.

We got to experience village life (although St Davids is technically a city due to the existence of the world-famous Cathedral) within the small community of St Davids first-hand with the turning on of the Christmas lights and street festivities on the Saturday night.

We'll be back in the spring to take full advantage of the outdoor leisure activities that it's just a little too cold to take part in at this time of year.

More photos from the trip are over on my Flickr.

mankind mag issue 6

2008-12-03T08:15:00.002Z

More exciting news! There is a new Mankind Mag out today! The reason this excites me more than usual is that I am featured on page 15. Erin asked me a few weeks back if I'd like to contribute an article to the consumerism issue and I was more than happy to except! Thanks Erin!

The digital version is free to preview and download, but you can also buy a copy (if you live in the US) over at MagCloud.

the best way out is always through

2008-11-28T08:32:00.005Z

It is the penultimate day of Reveal today. This week has really shot by.

Thank you everyone for your encouraging comments! I can't tell you just how nervous I was last Sunday on set-up day, coming home to see how many of you were offering me your encouragement was so nice. Thanks too for those of you who made it along! All your support is greatly appreciated.

I just wanted to share with you one of my favourite drawings I did for the exhibition, Always Through. This little character has really grown on me and I can see him going on to bigger things in the future... which perhaps makes this original all the more special.

reveal winter 2008

2008-11-24T08:17:00.002Z

After a very early start yesterday morning, Paul and I braved the wind and rain to set off for Henley-on-Thames. The whole day was pretty exciting and more than a little over-whelming.

We arrived at the exhibition centre at around 9 o'clock and joined my fellow exhibitors in setting up our displays. The event was officially open at 10am and the first of the viewers started to arrive. We disappeared off for a pot of tea and a sandwich until the private view started at midday. My mum, her partner and my brother joined us for a little bit of moral support (and to also marvel at all of the other lovely displays, making a Christmas purchase or two).

I was thrilled to bits to make my first sale (of a Zinzi's Garden illustration) at around 1 o'clock, which was a great start to what will hopefully be a successful first exhibition!

Reveal runs until Saturday, and is open late on both Thursday and Friday night. If you live local and can make it along, I promise you won't be disappointed with the high quality art and craft Reveal has to offer - and just in time for Christmas too!

reveal sneak preview

2008-11-21T12:05:00.000Z

A little late, but as promised, a quick sneak preview of a few of the illustrations that I will be taking with me to the Reveal exhibition. It's crept up on me really quickly, but I think I'm just about prepared.

There are a few more sneak preview photographs over on my flickr if just one isn't enough for you.

Reveal starts this Sunday at the Henley Exhibition Centre in Henley-on-Thames and runs until next Saturday (29th November). Paul and I are going to be down there from 8am on Sunday morning and the exhibition officially opens at 10am. I'm feeling a mixture of nervousness and excitement at the moment. I guess that won't go away until we've set up and I can admire all my hard work displayed up on the wall.

Well, my first exhibition is now just days away. Wish me luck!

flickr favourites: may08 - oct08

2008-11-13T12:22:00.001Z

I've been having a bit of a nightmare recently involving frames for my exhibition artwork and Marks and Spenser. Just as I thought things were going well, Marks and Spenser seem to have decided to stop stocking the fantastic little white wooden frames (which I have been using up until now) for some unknown reason. No one seems to be able to help either.

One slightly promising thing is that they have got them back on the website (after three weeks of absence), which at least gives me a bit of hope. Unfortunately though, so I'm informed, they won't be back in stock until the middle of the week that my exhibition is due to be taking place. How frustrating.

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of my recent Flickr favourites. I'm trying to lift my mood and looking at inspiring imagery usually helps.

1. employed, 2. 愛斯小姐, 3. ninainvorm, 4. damejiar, 5.Fla Martina, 6. H is for Home, 7. Geninne, 8. pi_vegan, 9. s. jane!, 10. el niño extraño, 11. icecream_drops, 12. nickgraywfu, 13. tigapics collective, 14. cakespy, 15. d e b b i e, 16. ^w^ *o* `-´ u_u, 17. yc0526, 18. ms.lume, 19. Romanywg, 20. kalandrakas, 21. jamfancy, 22. bumblesweet, 23. zzhenia, 24. gnip

this chicken is one!

2008-11-07T07:36:00.000Z

It's been a whole year (wow) since I set myself up here on bloglines. I remember writing my first post rather nervously on Wednesday 7th November 2007, after a lot of persuasion from Paul. Little did I know then, how far I would come in the year that followed.

I have documented some quite fun and self-accomplishing firsts here. From the first time I submitted work to Illustration Friday, the flyers I produced for my friend Harriet, the banner I illustrated for Design For Mankind, the launch of my website, the launch of my Etsy shop, all the way to the recent announcement of my first exhibition.

Perhaps most importantly, I have made some amazing fellow blogger friends here - from all over the world. Thanks to you all for your supporting comments, they mean a lot to me, even if I don't always get the chance to reply to them all.

I'll stop myself there, before I get too soppy and just say 'Happy Birthday this chicken, cheers to a successful year!'

...and this is just the start!

visual journal 2008

2008-10-28T12:36:00.003Z

One thing that I am good at keeping up to date with is my treasured little everyday/travel journal. For some reason, however busy I may be, I always find the time to add to it.

It's basically a visual diary of everything that goes on in my life. I will stick in cuttings from magazines about gigs and exhibitions I go to, train tickets, boarding passes, cut up flyers, bits of envelopes, email print-outs, text messages, snippets of info I find interesting on the web, sketches, personal opinions, pieces of packaging - all the tiny elements that make up my day.

To see bigger versions of any of the images in the mosaic above, head over to my journal 2008 flickr set.

getting ready to show

2008-10-23T12:28:00.006+01:00

So, I've been busy recently getting the artwork ready for my upcoming exhibition in Henley-on-Thames. It's not an easy task actually, I've spent many hours trying to decide on new illustration designs and which of my characters to use to make sure the pieces compliment each other.

I also want to make a good job of the presentation of my display area and already have an idea about how I want it to look. It's all about attention to detail, as I may have mentioned at some point before.

I was quite excited to receive a bundle of exhibition posters and flyers in the mail yesterday and I can't wait to start distributing them.

Once I have a small collection of artwork ready, I will give you all a sneak preview.

I'm off to London tomorrow, to spend the day at the Creative Pro Expo at the Olympia National Hall in Kensington. I'm also hoping that there will be some time to take in a few token London sites and sounds (and maybe visit to a shop or two).

it's time to reveal...

2008-10-13T08:12:00.003+01:00

This is quite an exciting moment for me. It is finally time to announce my first exhibition! I have been looking forward to this moment for over three months, and here we are!

Reveal is a week-long arts exhibition, bringing together the work of twenty-one local artists and craftspeople from Oxfordshire and Berkshire. The items, that will all be for sale, range from ceramics, glass and textiles to fine art, illustration and photography.

The exhibition will be taking place between 23rd - 29th November in the picturesque town of Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. I hope to have at least 10 new pieces on display and for sale, as well as a fair few of my favourite older designs.

Admission is free and the centre will be open from 10am - 5pm daily, staying open until 8pm on Thursday and Friday.

yoshitomo nara + graf at the baltic

2008-10-09T08:22:00.002+01:00

Finally I have been to a Nara exhibition! I'd been looking forward to seeing the fantastic new installation at the Baltic Centre of Contemporary Art since I first found out about it way back in May! I have no idea how I kept my excitement in for all that time (well, actually, there were points where I couldn't contain myself - I've had a little print out stuck up on the wall near my desk all summer).

For the Baltic A-Z Project, Nara and design team Graf have constructed three houses that make up a tiny village. Two of them are connected by a raised wooden walkway, which features a miniature dog castle halfway. The third house, named 'Baltic Castle' was specially constructed for the exhibition using local reclaimed materials. It was inspired by Newcastle Castle Keep which connects the work with the local area - such a nice idea.

The exhibition really is quite magical and has a fantastic way of capturing your imagination. It is certainly unique, with so much attention to detail; some of the thoughtfully constructed rooms are covered with Nara's sketches taped to the walls to fill every space, with dozens of rickety little shelves displaying what looks like a lifetime's supply of trinkets. You can see the items that Nara has customised and put his own personality into.

Nara's work both fascinates and inspires me. The Baltic is a great gallery too and as with every other modern art gallery I have ever been to, the shop is a treat in itself! I managed to spend a small fortune on Nara goodies - it's actually pretty difficult to find the Nara merchandise they had on sale there (even on the net), let alone come face to face with it!

great north run 2008

2008-10-07T08:23:00.008+01:00

I have so much exciting stuff to share with you at the moment! I just need to make time to post about it all!

The Great North Run half marathon (13.1 miles) on Sunday was absolutely fantastic! I was amazed at the energy of my fellow runners (all 51,999 of them!) and supporters alike. The atmosphere was just amazing - with shouting and cheering and bands playing at every roundabout - I even had tears in my eyes at a few points it was that overwhelming!

Despite being full of cold and having a rather irritating cough, I had a reasonably strong start. I started to feel the pain of running up hill close to the 4 mile marker, then had to rather annoyingly queue for 5 minutes to use the toilet (waiting around for 2 hours at the start took it's toll!). I did manage to keep quite a steady pace, perhaps even increasing it a little as I went on (see the performance chart of my run); walking just a couple of times when I thought my legs were going to fall off around the 10 mile and 11 mile markers.

I found that little bit of remaining energy to speed up for the final mile along South Shield's sea front just as the Red Arrows were starting their display and finished with a time of 2hrs 32mins. Not as good as I really wanted but quite respectable all the same, considering how I was feeling. Still, there is always next year to improve on that!

Nine months of hard work - from running my first kilometer in the mist one cold Sunday morning in January, all the way to the big event 2 days ago. My first half marathon and the furthest I have run in my entire life - I'm actually feeling quite proud of myself. Thanks Paul for all your support (and getting me out there on those days I really wanted to stay in the warm) and proving to me that I really can do it if I put my mind to it!

time for a deep breath

2008-10-02T17:54:00.003+01:00

Typical how I have to go and get ill at the last minute before my half marathon. I suppose I was asking for it a little with the hectic lifestyle I've been living for the last, well, four months. Sunday morning I woke up with a head full of cold. Just perfect.

My trip to Hannover was fantastic though. I got so much from the trip, both on a professional and personal level. I got to meet different people from all over the world. The high point for me was probably having a traditional German meal with a mix of people from different cultures - 9 of us in total - 2 of us being English, 1 Finnish, 1 Dutch, 4 Swedish and 1 Brazilian. Scania were such fantastic hosts too, giving us full access to their hospitality lounge and looking after us the whole time we spent there.

Hannover is a beautiful city, I hope to return to see more of Germany (Berlin is a must, so I'm told) at some point in the not so distant future. You can see some photos from my trip over on my Flickr.

Well, I'm off to get some more much needed rest.

no time to spare (2)

2008-09-22T08:24:00.009+01:00

After a very hectic week last week, I managed to get a little bit of time to myself this weekend. Unfortunately though I don't feel as refreshed as I would have liked to. This has much to do with the fact that I ran 11.5 miles yesterday afternoon as part of my training for the half marathon I'm taking part in in less than two weeks time.

I'd also love to say that I have a quiet week this week, but no chance. I am off to Germany on Wednesday to see the IAA (Internationale Automobil Ausstellung) Exhibition in Hanover. The company I work full-time for do quite a bit of illustration, web and new media-based work for Scania Trucks. One of the jobs I am currently involved with means I get to attend such exhibitions with some of our Scania clients. I'm expecting to arrive home in time for the weekend thoroughly exhausted.

Before I go, I just want to say thank you for all your lovely comments on my blog recently. Sorry I haven't had time to reply to them all; I really do appreciate all of your positive support and feedback! I'd also like to say thank you to Alice of Peapods, who sent me a lovely surprise package in the post last week as a thank you for the Pay It Forward package I sent her a few months back. Thanks Alice for the fantastic goodies - I have already used a few of the notecards!

bestival 2008

2008-09-14T20:48:00.003+01:00

These are two pages from my new(ish) A6 journal. Those of you who have seen my Flickr photostream recently will know that last weekend I went to the fantastic boutique music festival Bestival on the Isle Of Wight. It absolutely tipped it down for the majority of the weekend and even though we had our tent flooded, had to put up with relentless torrential rain, wading through knee-deep mud and being cold, wet and filthy for four days, we had an incredible time!

The highlights for me were probably seeing George Clinton & Funkadelic / Parliament on Sunday afternoon; singing Don't you want me baby? along with the Human League and 10,000 other people at the end of their set; mystery guests The Specials (who haven't played together for 27 years!) and the closing headline set by Underworld.

This weekend has been no less hectic. Paul and I travelled up to the Lake District on Friday evening (a journey that took no less than 7 hours) so that Paul could take part in the first ever Great North Swim on Saturday. I watched Paul and 1,999 other enthusiastic people swim a mile across Lake Windermere, England's largest lake. Another amazing weekend to say the least!

three shadows

2008-09-04T08:22:00.002+01:00

I'm a huge fan of graphic novels. They capture my imagination in a completely different way to the standard text novel. Every month or so I will go and sit in the graphic novel section of Borders (sometimes for hours) and eventually find myself a new book to buy. This time, I came away with two; Sin City (Book 2): Dame to Kill for by Frank Miller, for Paul and Three Shadows by Cyril Pedrosa, for myself.

It's been a while since I've read such a moving story and it's been even longer since I actually cried at the end of a book, but Three Shadows is such a beautiful tale that it had me gripped with emotion from start to finish.

Living in a little house in the country, Louis and Lise enjoy a happy and simple life with their young son Joachim. Everything seems perfect until one day three dark figures appear on horseback on the horizon. As the days pass by, the figures come and go, getting closer with every visit. Every time Louis attempts to approach and challenge the shadows they simply vanish. Soon Louis and Lise realise that these shadows are stalking their child, watching and waiting. With an over-whelming feeling of powerlessness and desperation, Louis embarks on a journey with Joachim to try to escape the fate that awaits his son.

Heart-breaking and harrowing, Three Shadows is a stunning fable of love and grief — how far will Louis go to try and save his son? When is it time to let go?

getting to know you...

2008-09-02T08:07:00.001+01:00

I saw this fun and simple activity over on Leslie's great little blog good-ness yesterday - I just had to go away and do my own! I haven't included all of them though as I was trying to focus more on the positive things. Click on the image to see it bigger.

Please let me know if you do your own, I think it's a lovely way to learn a bit about each other.

the scavenger project

2008-09-01T12:23:00.006+01:00

Last week I signed up to the Scavenger Project, the latest collective art project announcement from The Art House Coop.

The project is based around a book that will be published at the beginning of 2009. Participants will each receive a list of 24 different moments or scenarios which will represent the 24 different chapters within the book. The participant will have to represent visually their interpretation of each item on the list in the most imaginative way they can. The best bit is that everyone who sends back their images will have at least one published in the book.

Originally, when Shane announced it on the Art House blog a week ago, it was only open to US participants due to the website set up, but within a day of being announced over on Design For Mankind, it has opened up to the rest of the world! So wherever you live, get yourself signed up for the project to see some of your work published in what is bound to be a truly inspirational book.

display rack

2008-08-26T19:52:00.000+01:00

The idea to purchase a large wire display rack to use as a kind of 'inspiration board' came to me about 4 months ago. I liked the idea of having a wall-mounted rack to display my current favourite books, mounted illustrations, journals and other inspiration that is too large or too heavy to simply blue-tack to the wall.

The one I finally bought is actually a library rack designed to hold children's books; it has 6 tiers and can hold up to 60 paperbacks. It's from Gresswell Online.

the travelling moleskine project

2008-08-21T12:25:00.003+01:00

Today I registered myself for The Travelling Moleskine project! I heard about it via the notebookism group on Flickr and immediately signed myself up.

Many of you have probably heard of, seen blog posts about or even taken part in something similar before, but for those of you who have no idea of the concept, here's how it works.

A large, plain moleskine journal will make it's way around the world, arriving with different participants and staying in his or her possession for two weeks. Each participant will have up to eight pages to add their thoughts, sketches and ideas (basically anything you would add to your own journal), then post it onto the next participant. To make the project even more interactive, photos and scans will be continuously added to the Flickr group so everyone can follow the moleskine on it's worldwide journey. Everyone involved is also invited to write small note about its travels and what it did while it was in their possession.

The travelling moleskine is due to start it's 18 month journey at the beginning of September.

For more information or to get yourself involved in this exciting project, get yourself over to The Travelling Moleskine website.

more etsy love

2008-08-20T12:51:00.004+01:00

I just wanted to share with you a few of the beautiful things I've bought over the past six months on Etsy. The most recent being the Womyn Wrap with hood, which I ordered last week and now eagerly await it's arrival in the post - I'm looking forward to wearing it at this year's Bestival!

1. Bud Pencil case in natural linen from paperiaarre
2. Hemp and Organic Cotton Sleeveless Womyn Wrap from Indigo Inspired
3. SHELL in brown - spring and summer bag from ninu
4. Wood log Pillow from enna
5. The Wren - silhouette charm necklace from The Mymble's Daughter
6. Tea For Two Hedgehog Mousepad from mirrorgirl

journal cover designs

2008-08-19T08:32:00.000+01:00

I recently rediscovered some of my old journals dating back to summer 2005. They were looking a bit sorry for themselves stacked away in a dark little pile, so I decided to give them a new lease of life by making them new covers.

I have a thing at the moment for the scrunched-up brown paper bag design, with simple black and white typography and illustrations. I first started to use this style for my Sketchbook Project sketchbook (which, by the way, will be on display at the Art House Gallery from this Saturday, the opening day of the exhibition), it has really grown on me since then and I've used it for various different projects ever since.

It also seemed a shame to have the journals put away in a box as they really do offer me a great deal of inspiration and are lovely to keep close to hand to have flick through every now and then.

imagination and other randomness

2008-08-11T17:43:00.000+01:00

I don't usually like to write random posts without a fitting subject or add unrelated links here and there without any explanations, but I have come across a few things today that I think would be nice to share. With button-nose bunny and friends making a happy appearance above, here are 5 things that are (also) worthy of your attention today:

1. A secret that had me giggling.
2. An alternative way to read the news.
3. Another little date for the diary.
4. Life in pixels.
5. A group of hard working goats.

gary hume at modern art oxford

2008-08-10T20:32:00.006+01:00

Sometimes it's easy to let Sunday's slide, especially with the Hollyoaks omnibus to watch on T4 and enough Olympic coverage on the BBC to happily consume the whole day. Today, however, I decided I would make the most of my Sunday. I got myself into town and went to see the Gary Hume 'door paintings' exhibition at Modern Art Oxford.

'Door paintings' is a collection of around 50 paintings, 18 of which have been carefully selected for the Oxford show. The paintings represent the institutional double-hinged swing-doors of hospitals and have been painted on a large scale (much larger than I had imagined infact) using household gloss paint.

At the same time as being captivating to look at, the paintings also have an eerie feeling to them, with subtle suggestions of exits and death - the positioning of the porthole windows and kick-plates resembling human skulls.

Humes' first pieces were painted onto canvas, but as his style starts to progress you can see where he has switched to large sheets of MDF and aluminium to get a much 'smoother' finish. The early pieces he produced around the time of the Freeze exhibition back in 1988 were impressive, but I found that those that caught my eye the most were his later pieces, with their highly reflective surfaces and much more radiant tones.

The exhibition is on until August 31st and entry is free; so if you are in the area and can spare some time, it really would be a shame to miss out on this one.

the sketchbook project (2)

2008-08-07T12:13:00.003+01:00

It was a little bit of a rush towards the end, but I did manage to finish my sketchbook and send it off before we went away on holiday. I attached a little note to it (along with some Moo Minicards and stickers) to ask the organisers Shane and Steven to send me a quick mail to let me know that it had arrived safe and sound. I was relieved when that mail arrived in my inbox and also extremely flattered to see that they liked it enough to post about it on their blog!

It was a thoroughly enjoyable project to take part in and although it is a shame I won't be able to experience the exhibition for myself when it opens on August 23rd, I hope that my sketchbook gives a little bit of inspiration to whoever may flick through it.

Scans of the entire sketchbook and additional photographs can be found on my Flickr.