Month: June 2014

East London Comic Arts Festival 2014

Uncategorized
Poster by Chris Ware for ELCAF 2014
Poster by Chris Ware for ELCAF 2014

A few weekends ago I went along to the East London Comic and Arts festival in Hackney. I heard about it from a couple of different friends. Not a particularly big fan of comics but I do love anything that is creative especially graphic arts. It was very busy with a large queue so my expectations and excitement levels were very high.

ELCAF exhibitor hallI

I was interested in looking for some new and exciting prints for my flat. I was not disappointed! Here are a few of my favourites….

European Children's book publishers.
European Children’s book publishers.

Planeta Tangerina are a European children’s publishers with a lovely list of writers and illustrators.

They had a selection of books but what really stood out was this bright swimming print from Madalena Matoso. It reminded me of my sunday morning swims in London Fields Lido. Her work has a bold graphic handwriting. I would recommend you check her books and illustrations out. 

Madalena Matoso - You're Gonna Win
Madalena Matoso – You’re Gonna Win
London Fields Lido on a Sunday morning.
London Fields Lido on a Sunday morning.

Philippa Rice is an illustrator and comic book author that I also want to highlight. Particularly her new comic Soppy which is due to be published by Square Peg imminently.

by Philippa Rice
by Philippa Rice

I really love her simple use of and black, red and negative space. It has a strong visual aesthetic whilst cleverly subtly expressing emotion and lots of character.

Page from Soppy
Page from Soppy

I ended up buying the last one of her prints for my flat. I couldn’t resist! It is now hanging above my desk.

Perfect above my desk
Perfect above my desk

Let me know if you attended ELCAF and your thoughts?

Advertisement

The Bear Essentials!

Crafting., Uncategorized

 

Bear pattern using vintage Liberty fabric from Purlbee

So my friend is having a baby boy and I had been looking for ideas of some gifts I could make. When I remembered a post I had saved from the purl bee website. It was for a lovely shaped teddy that used vintage liberty fabric. See post here I had never made a stuffed toy before so I was abit apprehensive plus my sewing skills aren’t the neatest at times! I had some double sided soft fluffy material that I had kept hold of but never had a clue what to use it for. This was the perfect project! Plus if my sewing wasn’t 100% then it should be quite forgiving. 

2 right arms… Woops!

I needed to look for some contrast fabric for the paws, feet, nose and ears. I already had in mind that I wanted to use up some scraps of silk that I had. So settled on some light blue polka dot. Ideal for a baby boy. The instructions and clear pictures made the actual process of making the bear fairly simple. You make all the head and limbs first. Then the last section is the body where it all comes together and your bear is born! Although I did misread one part which meant that I made two right arms by mistake. Woops! 

Nearly finished bear – just need to find him some cute button eyes!

For my first attempt I was really impressed with myself! It did take me about 7 hours in total including the arm mishap but he’s a lovely size and shape. Would thoroughly recommend the pattern from Purlbee and am now hooked. Mmm what other animals can I make! Any suggestions? 

 

A few of my favourite things

Uncategorized

I thought I would start off with my first post about all the things that I love in my own home.  Just so you could understand my own domestic aesthetic. Personally I’m not sure how I would describe it. Eclectic, maybe. Vintage, abit. Practical, definitely! I’ll let you judge!

 

Starting with my bedroom. I’ve always had a love of red and white. Think it’s because the contrast is quite stark and has a Scandinavian aesthetic to it. Hence the curtains and duvet being from ikea. The blanket was a gift. It’s made from British wool, manufactured up in leeds and I absolutely love it. It’s white with red hearts as you can see below and has red with white hearts on the reverse. Bronte do absolutely beautiful homeware items. Definitely check them out. The lamp is from M&S and is a really affordable alternative to the iconic arco floor lamp. Plus it’s smaller so is perfect for a bedroom! The print is one of my sisters of a bird sitting on a coconut. Abit of a strange juxtaposition but I think that’s why I like it. And last but not least some cushions that I designed as part of my degree project. They are watercolour and pen drawings of some colourful Chinese scenes. I also have the originals framed in the front room. 

Everyone’s favourite place! Their bed!