Thursday 24 December 2009

Its here!

A big thank you to all who have been following my blog
and leaving lovely comments over the last year.
I been really enjoying posting and hope continue doing so throughout 2010!

I'm signing off now to relax and celebrate Christmas and the new year with my loved ones!
Hope you all have a great festive break!
take care and best wishes

Wednesday 23 December 2009

pretty pictures....

Such lovely work on a recent post by stylist Polly Rawlings.
This is a shoot she worked on with photographer Sussie Bell

Tuesday 22 December 2009

Well Christmas is very nearly here!
I'm braving the supermarket tonight...
thank goodness for 24 hour Tesco!

3 days to go!!!!!

Monday 21 December 2009

nicola pearson

Here's some gorgeous illustrations from Nicola Pearson. Check out her blog here
This little band is part of some artwork that
she created for the Creative Northants website.

She really is such a talent!

excitement has kicked in!

I've awoke with pure Christmas excitement today!
Its time to get completely swept up by the build up....
there's snow on the ground, every other song on the radio is a christmassy one
and I'm off for a christmas meal and get-together this afternoon!
Hoorah!!!

Thursday 17 December 2009

A snow day!

well only a little snow so far today...
wouldn't it be lovely if for once here in England we had a blanket of snow on christmas day!

Wednesday 16 December 2009

Recipe recommendations!

This is the first year we have hosted Christmas, we have guests on both Christmas Day and Boxing day. We're really looking forward to creating some feasts!

I love cooking so have been thinking about all this food for a while!
I still have to decide on what stuffing to do with the turkey...any recommendations are welcome!

Here's some of my recipe tips: Nigella's Bread Sauce, Red Cabbage with Cider and Apple, Cranberry Sauce (I didn't realise how fast it was to make!) and Brussels Sprouts

Tuesday 15 December 2009

10 days to go!

oh Christmas is coming round fast now! I cannot wait!
I'm planning to take 10 days off to relax, enjoy, eat, eat, eat
and spend time with lots of family and friends! Hoorah for Christmas!

Monday 14 December 2009

thank you Dee Puddy!

I spent what felt like hours yesterday wrapping presents last night while watching a very long winded X-Factor final! The present wrapping was the fun bit!

Its all thanks to Dee Puddy that my presents look so lovely....I bought these cute gift bags, just perfect toput smaller presents in and decorate with a little parcel paper tag and ribbon!

Friday 11 December 2009

a festive activity for the weekend!

Look at this lovely post from Poppytalk.
A great suggestion for something to do over your weekends!
Hopefully I can find some time next week to make some snowflakes...I hope so!
have a great weekend everyone!

christmas cards...tick

This week has gone far too fast with not enough ticked off my to do list.
Though one thing that I have done is to get my christmas cards sent off which is pleasing.

I'm always a fan of Paperchase cards,
but I used the designs below to send out to the people
I've had the pleasure of working with over the last year!
I though it was best to make the most of my back catalogue of Christmas designs!

Thursday 10 December 2009

our tree is UP!!

we had a lovely evening last night putting our tree up!
We bought it from the Thompson Brothers grocers around the corner...
its a little bigger than expected so we had to do some cropping!

We love it!
I wanted a strictly white and silver theme but a touch of red was forced!
But begrudingly I agree it was the right decision!
Decorations are from B&Q, Dee Puddy and RE

next job....present wrapping!

Wednesday 9 December 2009

A little gift guide from me!

I've still got some shopping to do for Christmas but most presents have been bought!
I'm very proud of myself this year...
with 32 friends and family to buy for I think I've done quite well!

I've done a lot of my shopping online...here's some website tips from me that will hopefully be of some use to last minute shoppers.....
Eclectic Eccentricity is a lovely website with a beautiful range of jewellery at reasonable prices. The delivery is always prompt and beautifully packaged.
These are some of my favourite picks shown above...Light as a Feather bracelet,


I've been a big fan of RE for a while, they have such great products which are more often than not made of re-found and recycled objects.
I've bought the paper snowflakes ready to decorate our home, and we already have a couple of the picture frames shown above made from old tins. They would make a great present...complete with a little personal photo in!
Think a cardboard stag head would make a super gift for a man of any age!



I love todryfor! Their range of teatowels is fantastic! I've bought a few for gifts this year and plan to make some of them into cushions, perfect for friends or family who have recently moved into a new home or are planning to decorate!
Above are some of my favourites...


I love these crayon mugs from Gift Republic, they come in such a large range of fun colours...check them out here. Great price of £5.99 too!

So those are my favourite online shopping tips....along with amazon of course!
How did we ever survive without the ease of Amazon shopping!

Blue Christmas!

Another Christmas design from me...I was really pleased with these colours! Muted blues with turquoise and silver. I'm a very big fan of all tones of blue!

Monday 7 December 2009

time for giving...

I braved the shops and bought my Mr a lovely new jacket for Christmas yesterday!
Now I wonder what I'll get...I'd like an atlas please!!

Friday 4 December 2009

Megan Hess

I had a lovely day in London yesterday, it was a brilliantly jam packed day! I will share some of my purchases with you soon...though a lot of the day was spent nattering with friends and family with a sprinkling of shopping of course.

It was great to go to the Lets Play Exhibition...great to see the variety of artists that The Art Group work with.
Megan Hess was one of the artists that caught my eye in the exhibition. Such great style to her artwork which has been used for fashion and interior publications as well as book covers. Recently Megan has been working closely with Bloomingdales to create a signature look...can certainly see why they picked Megan!

Thursday 3 December 2009

Lets Play Exhibition

I'm off on my way to London for the day today! Can't wait! Hoping to squeeze in seeing some shops for inspiration and shopping (including Anthropologie, Paperchase and Selfridges) as well as catching up with a super friend, brother and sister in law.

I've recently been doing some work for The Art Group, they are such an exciting company with lots of new projects. One being their Lets Play exhibition which is running this week....can't wait to have a look this afternoon.
Certainly be worth checking out this exhibition if you're in London over the next few days.

Wednesday 2 December 2009

Christmas is coming! Hooray!

I'm really excited about Christmas this year...
we're having lots of guest and I'm already getting busy deciding
how to decorate our table and house!
There's even a suggestion of the christmas tree going up this weekend!!

These excited snowmen have been bought already
to go on a christmas card for christmas 2011!

Tuesday 1 December 2009

a lovely new blog!

its always exciting to discover a new blog....
this blog from surface pattern designer and aspiring stylist Polly Rawlings is pretty new
and already has some really great things posted for us to see.
She is a lovely friend of mine and it sounds like she has some very exciting projects in the pipeline so certainly watch this space!

Monday 30 November 2009

hoot hoot!

Here's a bright and cheery owl to start the week off! Hot off the press!
Really enjoyed creating this little creature!
I think it would make a good birthday giftbag!

Friday 27 November 2009

Friday...a funday

I've had a lovely day today...managed to get work done and
fit in seeing my folks for lunch at the Little Deli round the corner!

Above is an old-ish design of mine, I loved designing it....a cutesy birthday theme!
A party feel is just right for friday I thought!
We've got friends coming to stay and I'm going to cook a big pan of Paella! Cannot wait!!!

Thursday 26 November 2009

Cockpits Arts open studios

This is a great event which is on this weekend! f
rom Friday 26th through to Sunday 28th at Cockpit Arts, Holborn
and then the following weekend in Deptford.

I would highly recommend a visit.
Its a great opportunity to meet the designers and makers of great item
as well as buy a christmas present or two!

My lovely friend and wonderful bird maker Abigail Brown, based at Cockpit Arts, Holborn
will be there all weekend surrounded by her beautiful birds.
I love her latest additions....see here

Wednesday 25 November 2009

a complete set

I've finished the set of cards that I mentioned in an earlier post.
I'm pleased with them I think and might try and adapt them to suit the US market.
Just need to get printing now so my Mum can
get on with selling on Sunday to raise money for Hawane Farm

Tuesday 24 November 2009

Designer Forum

I'm off to the Designer Forum trend library today to get all up
to date for Autumn/Winter 2010. An inspiring day I do hope.
Designer Forum is part of Emtex and is a great organisation that helps designers,
manufacturers and companies from the fashion world in many ways.
I'm fortunate to have them on my doorstep...but its worth travelling to now and again if you live further afield. See here for more details.

Monday 23 November 2009

ready for the bride and groom to be...

I'm working on a wedding invitation order this afternoon. Am hoping to get it done this week, ready for the soon to be Mr and Mrs to get posting at Christmas!
They look a little plain here but once printed, with some gold ribbon and pearls added they look very special indeed.

Friday 20 November 2009

Peace on Earth


Imagine...Peace on Earth even if it was just for one day only!
Here's a design I've done today....one of hopefully
4 Christmas cards for my mum to sell at her church
to raise money for a home in Swaziland were the children are orphaned by AIDs.
Lets hope she sells lots!

Wednesday 18 November 2009

looking back to the summer

its a cold rainy day here today so here's a summery design to brighten the day.
These pretty peacocks were printed onto some girls pjs and were available to buy in the summer months of this year at Tu

Monday 16 November 2009

Hereford Contemporary Craft Fair

I had a very good day with my dad yesterday, we went to Hereford Contemporary Craft Fair.
We saw some very nice things and bought a present or too.
My dad bought a piece from wire artist Helaina Sharpley, it was lovely to meet her and her stand looked great. She's open to commissions and has work for sale through notonthehighstreet.com

Friday 13 November 2009

I've got that Friday feeling!

Here's an old-ish design of mine....suitable to suit a friend filled!
Work is pretty busy at the moment, full of exciting new things that I can't share with the blog world yet....
but am looking forward to when I can share!
But now....Hoorah its the weekend! no matter how much I'm enjoying my work I'm always glad of a couple of days off!
I'm going to Birmingham to see family and friends. Cannot wait!

Wednesday 11 November 2009

a day of remembrance

I confess....
at 11am today I was thinking about work, what emails need to be sent
and how I'm going to fit in going to the post office
AND I haven't even bought a poppy this year!!

BUT this certainly doesn't mean that I don't appreciate all those who have in the past or are now willing to put their life on the line to fight for the rights of other people.
Here's some poppies to show respect to them all.

Tuesday 10 November 2009

Fantastic Mr Fox

We went to see Fantastic Mr Fox on Sunday afternoon....we enjoyed it!
The look of it all was good and the soundtrack too, though I still enjoyed the book more and I did find Mr Fox a little annoying.
I'm sure Roald Dahl didn't make him annoying in the book.

Valuev Vs Haye

On Saturday night I watch the Valuev and Haye boxing match...it was built up to be like David Vs Goliath! Valuev is pretty huge, 7 stone heavier than Haye, the equivalent of a heavyweight fighting a featherweight!
One report said Valuev's head was the size of a smart car....but I think that's getting a little far fetched!
But yes I enjoyed watching it and was even better as little Haye won!! Hoorah, it was a well deserved win, Valuev was pretty slow!

Hoorah for Sesame Street! 40 years!

Good ole Google is celebrating Sesame Streets 40th Anniversary!
I'm sure the show will go on for many many more years to come.
Wish I was in the US today...there is a special anniversary show with Michelle Obama!
How wonderful it would be hang around with Sesame Street gang for the day!!

Thursday 5 November 2009

My first 3D film....Up

Here's a speedy doodle of me last night viewing my first 3D film!
I'm getting fed up of my hair length so crimped it as a last resort....I'm sure it looked better in real life than on this drawing!
We went to see Up, it was such a novelty to see the 3D action,
even a couple of the trailers before looked so so fantastic! So clever.
I came out with a bit of a headache, not sure if this is common for these 3D films or just me being tired!
It won't put me off 3D though!
I wonder how long it will be before we all have 3D in our homes!

Wednesday 4 November 2009

Happy Birthday Wallace and Gromit!! 20 today!

Can you believe its 20 years since Wallace and Gromit's Grand Day Out!?
Times flies...I remember watching it on video.
Google are celebrating this 20th anniversary on their home page, see image above.
Squint a bit and you can read 'Google'!!
Click here for an interview with the
very talented Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park

Tuesday 3 November 2009

instore at Tesco.....2008


this was a little while ago now...Spring 2008 I think....
but I was so delighted to see this range of products with my designs on in Tesco.
The artwork was on photo albums, giftbags, gift wrap, pens, erasers,
pencils, rulers, notebooks, folders...
I spend way too much but just couldn't resist!
I've popped the original designs in the background. Doesn't show too well in the pics but the colours turned out really well on all the stationery and other products. Thanks Tesco!! :D

Monday 2 November 2009

more pumpkins!

two more pumpkins! One cheeky, one evil!
There was lots of scary folk about on saturday night...
think pumpkins are the best thing about halloween for me!
I loved carving these, I found my old lino tools from school so they helped a lot!
Got me thinking about lino cutting again so watch this space!

On with work now...has been a very lovely weekend, full of family visitors,
would be so much better if we all lived closer.

Friday 30 October 2009

my first grown up pumpkin!

a day to go...but I carved my first pumpkin of my adult life yesterday!
A little gift for a lovely friend who cooked me tea last night.
Going to get carving again later ready to decorate the house for our weekend family visitors.
Hoorah for the weekend! :D

Thursday 29 October 2009

Matte Stephens

I've been a fan of Matte Stephens work for a little while now, he has a lovely blog
where a lot of his work can be viewed. He's based in Portland, Oregan and has an impressive client list. He's represented by Lilla Rogers.
It really is a joy to see his work, such lovely colours and painted in his really very charming style.

AND....I've treated myself with some birthday money and
bought this print from Matte's Etsy shop:
Oh I just can't wait for it to arrive!
I have just the right wall for it in our living room and its going to finish of the room just perfectly!

Wednesday 28 October 2009

Boo!



Halloween is coming round fast now!
I bought some vampire teeth yesterday ready for the weekend!
they were 3p...yes 3pence! Good old Wilkos!

Monday 26 October 2009

Storytime.... Little Red Riding Hood

I created this little sketch to submit to a company who needed an
illustrator for a range of storybooks.
They seemed to like it but it wasn't what they were looking for.
..though it was great to have the chance to go for something new....
a change from the fashion and greetings world.
I really loved creating this.

Friday 23 October 2009

Birthday Tea Party!

Its my Nans 80th birthday this weekend....its very hard to know what to buy an 80 year old so I thought instead of a present I'd put on a little afternoon tea party for my Nan and have made her this invitation.
Now to find out what her favourite cake is and put my baking skills to the test.

baby baby


I think cute lions and birds are some of the my most favourite things to draw!
I'm ready for the weekend...
a brummie family weekend coming up for me!
Hooooorah! :D

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