Nice to sit on

I made this cushion for my friend's birthday, not just cause he's 'Nice' but because he's also a biscuit fan. It's so comfy I'm not sure if I can part with it.

Selfridges

I am super excited by the fact something I designed is now available in Selfridges!! Check out the great range of nail polish pens & products by LAQA Here

I adapted a quote from S.E Hinton's 'The Outsiders' to make this screenprint for my brilliant & best friend Ellie.

New Stockist

If you happen to be near Devon, pop into this fantastic shop 'INC' which just happens to sell my prints & wrapping tape.
INC , Shop One, 17/18 The strand, Exmouth, Devon, EX8 1AF

I'm turning 30 in a couple of weeks so today i've been busy making bunting to decorate my party. x

Help Haiti

Awful things happen all too often in this world, but it's our world - do whatever you can to help - buy this print if you like many others are lost for words or a way to help. If you can't afford to buy it then do your bit by spreading the word. x

It has always been a real pleasure to work with the lovely Lucas & Hayley of Keep Calm . So i'm really happy to announce that we're furthering our relationship with a new Tea Towel
I received this gorgeous sample the other day and am hoping that the real thing will be ready in time for Christmas. They're made from lovely soft 100% organic cotton.
Ok it's not magic so it won't do your dishes for you, but I do hope that the message will cheer you up!

I recently did a little illustration for a new magazine that's coming out soon.
Will give you more details as soon as I have them.

I told you there'd be exciting stuff and I really wasn't lying!!! There's a new company called LAQA & CO that have just launched an amazing nail polish pen. They've used the artwork of up and coming designers & artists to adorn their boxes which I think is a great idea especially as I was one of the lucky ones chosen.

I've been drawing all day today but it's been slow going! All these little bits and pieces are going to form the basis for a new screenprint I intend to do. I was so horrified by the floods in Pakistan that whenever I do finally get round to producing this print all the money I make from selling it will be donated to the British Red Cross.

Well, I promised you excitement and you can't get much better than screenprinting!
As you can see from my phone photos all you need is a bit of muscle, some concentration and a handsome assistant!

I'm so very sorry there haven't been any new posts for a very long time, i'm pretty certain that i've heard myself saying these very words before and to be completely honest I feel pretty pathetic but I just haven't been coping this summer.

It's a really busy time of year - attending weddings, 30th birthdays, visiting family and other various commitments have left me with very little time to myself. It seems whatever time I do have ends up being spent sleeping or washing clothes, doing housework and other not so glamorous tasks! I really am in awe of those of you out there that seem to stay on top of everything so effortlessly!

One thing I have been doing is adapting one of my designs for an exciting new nail polish that's coming out soon. So I should be able to brighten the blog up with some nice photos. There's also a few other things in the pipeline that i'm pretty excited about so please do hang on in there! More soon. x

Spotted in Amsterdam

A good friend of mine was in Amsterdam not so long ago, while there she spotted my
"He Who Cares Wins" prints in the window of a little gallery called "Friends of Art"
If you fancy getting your mitts on one of these, please visit the lovely people at Keep Calm the red ones have now sold out but they still have some available in Blue.

I'm currently working on improving some of my previous pieces, so here's a little sneek peek.

If you squint very carefully, you may be able to see that my "It's What's Inside That Counts" screenprints have been getting a little bit of press recently.

Spring has sprung

For some people, more specifically certain ladies I know, Spring is here when the tights come off and they start airing their legs in preparation for golden brown summer legs. For me however Spring has arrived when I can finally hang my clothes outside!!! I love the smell of bed linen that has had a few hours of blustery wind travel through it.
I also love the re-appropriation of common everyday objects, this is one of the many reasons why I admire and am inspired by - Michael Marriott's work the guy is a living legend!!
So here is my brilliant mum's contribution to this topic - a potato masher clothes line prop type thing which means I can raise my clothes even closer to the clouds. Maybe it's because she's Irish or maybe it's just because she's a genius!

After reading the lovely comments left on my last post I realised how lucky I am to live in a house with lots of mantlepieces. Like many other things in my life this is something that I have been taking for granted. I do love my mantlepieces and it's just as well I have them because I have copious amounts of little things that need a comfortable and safe resting place. This mantlepiece is in our spare bedroom which is also my little studio, it's at the top of our house and home to everything I bring into our house.
The majority of the things I collect are greeted by my boyfriend with the following phrase "What the hell is that?" or "Not more shit!?"
I hope that he doesn't actually think that these little things I treasure are worthless because they're important to me, even if I'm not entirely sure why.
I've always for as long as I can remember had little collections of things, I don't regard myself as a materialistic person at all, but I do like surrounding myself with stuff I like, these things comfort me in a way so I've decided to share them with you.

Mantlepieces

The absolutely amazing Neet magazine used my screenprint as an illustration. It's a really lovely online mag and you can check it out Here

Tape!

Oh my goodness, I can hardly contain my excitement over my very own tape. I mean, I love tape and there's so many good ones out there.

I really should be getting myself organised for the Mangle sale but found myself drawing out designs for price tags, I based them on old thread cards. I've got so many little drawings of my sewing related bits and bobs that I feel obliged to do a screenprint of them soon.

I'm taking part in this sale in December, should be a really fun day filled with lots of great things to buy those you love.

I've got a little bit of an addiction at the moment.

What is it about these crazy little horses that makes most of us love them so?
I like most girls have always wanted a horse, closest I ever got was a friend in primary school who was lucky enough to have one. However my most memorable horse moment has to be from last year when Lee and I went to Petra, they have horses which you can ride down into the main site, I chose to walk - even resisted the urge to clamber ungraciously on top of a camel, what I did do though was admire all the beautiful and colourful blankets the horses had so this is a little print inspired by them. No play on words or attempts at humour so this print is very different for me but I hope it's strong enough to stand up alone just being what it is.

I had such a lovely weekend and in amongst all the fun I even managed to do some sketches for a new project i'm working on. I haven't drawn for such a long time so they're a little crude but am hoping the more I do the better they'll be.

TAG Fine Arts are currently showing my Russian Doll screenprints at ART TORONTO - The 10th Toronto International Art Fair, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, 22-26 October 2009, stand 1030,
The fair is open.... Sat. Oct. 24, 12–8 pm Sun. Oct. 25, 12–6 pmMon. Oct. 26, 12–6 pm
Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Halls A&B
255 Front Street West
INFORMATION: 1 800 663 4173
www.tiafair.com

A little drop of ink goes a long way....

Well, here it is, my first love - screenprinting! I am and will be eternally grateful to the wonderful ROB RYAN for teaching me how to screenprint. Even now three years on it still excites me, every time I pull the squeegee and lift the screen to see the image appear on the paper it makes me so happy, it's magical.

New prints coming very soon! Here's a sneak peek!

One of my prints was featured in last months Canadian House & Home mag.

A very big THANK YOU to Clare at My Own Fair Hands for passing the Kreativ blogger award onto me. However, i've been so lazy recently I'm not sure if I deserve it? Actually though in my defence I have been in the deepest windiest depths of beautiful Cornwall with barely a phone signal nevermind internet access!
I do need some more time to compile my list, but please do bear with me - I promise there are plenty of gems up my sleeve just dying to be shared.
Oh, while i'm on the subject of gems and gratitude, i'd like to thank Cynthia for the most thoughtful and considered birthday pressies, which have taken their rightful place in my other sewing box. (pictured above)

I spent today up to my eyebrows in bits of fabric and thread. I got great pleasure organising all my bits and bobs, I'm pretty embarassed to say I spent a ridiculously long time arranging pins in my pin cushion - it was more satisfying than popping bubble wrap!

I started this cross stitch portrait almost a year ago and i'm starting to wonder if i'll ever find the patience to finish it.
Last year Sharon Elphick had a summer show - the theme was Summer Holiday so my idea was to cross stitch two portraits - one of Donna Summer and one of Billie Holiday. I always seem to set myself impossible tasks. There's around a million little stitches in this one alone!
Anyway, getting back to Sharon Elphick, you should definitely check out her shop and blog as she always seems to have lovely artwork and ceramics.