christmas freebie

If you fancy some rather fine handmade goods to give or receive this christmas then look no further than my etsy shop - I've cancelled all shipping costs for addresses in the uk - just enter the code: christmasfreebie1

these are my cards, featuring polar bears, robin and reindeer stamps

To celebrate I've added a couple of mini prints, which are at bargain prices!

Mr Kong Says Hi

Nice wheels

what's going on...1

I'm guilty of yet more blog neglect, so here's a quick catch up, hopefully the first of many-ish...so...after some long hours printing I have a few new things - cards, calendars and bags which I'm going to put in my etsy shop in next few days...I've just taken part in a fair in Widcombe (thanks to everyone who braved the rain) and next week will be at the Bear Fair - at the Bear pub in Bear Flat - it should be the perfect shopping trip - beer and handmade gifts - a winning combination!

 I've also got lots of my things in the latest Smithson Gallery pop up shop in Cabot's Circus, Bristol. I went along today and it looks really amazing, I love the chairs and cases on the wall - nice work Anna!

I also joined twitter - @lottiefarmer7 (though I don't really know how it works yet)

postcard - take two

last weekend I printed a postcard of Bath print for the upcoming art trail (nov 9th -12th i think), this weekend I printed it again using slightly different colours, the first one had an ever so slightly greeny turquoise and I just couldn't live with it, I tried but...NOOOOOOOO...

 such great colours, even the offending turquoise (bottom left) looks ok but I think the strip on the right is better - check out the gold!

this is the 2 cards side by side - spot the difference!

taa - dah!!

bonjour kitty

I printed the bonjour kitty print on saturday after spending friday silver leafing, I can tell it's been a while since I did an edition bigger than 3 as my arms were hurting on sunday...

et voila

 and here's la Margo relaxing in her usual spot...bonjour kitty

bits and bonjour

i made it to the print studio today for the first time in a while - had a hardworking morning embossing for a new print for Found http://www.foundbath.co.uk ...which I plan to finish off tomorrow...along with my first Margo inspired print

this is just a very quick drawing to get the idea, but I kinda like it!

 Yesterday I wrote on lots (4 boxes ) of very nice smelling candles and wrote a bit of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe on a wardrobe door - as you do!

top drawer

its official I am a rubbish blogger....In my defence it's been ridiculously busy recently, one of the things that has been going on is/was Top Drawer at Olympia, where New House Textiles launched my new mugs, coasters and place mats...

 I took this in a hurry using my phone so it's one of my classic blurry shots - I had the job of writing on the walls and drawing huge flashes round everything...so after all that stressful busy what better than stretching in a yoga session, run by the extremely flexible Margo!

hello august - at last

Now I realise I've been utterly neglecting my blog for ages now, but I have been busy...some of the blind fabric I designed for New House Textiles a while back has been printed - these are some colour options...one of them is green (i never go for green so I don't know how this happened - anyway it did NOT get picked)

 last week we had a photoshoot for their new catalogue - these were taken by me very quickly with my phone - so are slightly dodgy

this package arrived from california last week - hopefully I'm going to be working on a fun project with the sender - more on that when it actually happens - this is just a sneaky peek and me not giving away any clues!

and while I have been super busy Margo the kitten is also being very distracting...I thought she was being cute playing with my lovely Christine Berrie camera bag (bought from Magma on an olympic trip to London)....anyway it turned out that she was actually chewing my headphone wires in two-ahhhhhh! 

(She is doing her sneaky chewing next to an envelope containing my 'cat's out of the bag' bag, which is now on it's way to japan - whoo!)

 

Margo is my excuse

I seem to have had a bit of an unintentional blogging break recently - but things have been happening to keep me away. 

A couple of weeks ago I went to Frome to drop off some new prints at Seed, a lovely shop at the front of the Black Swan art center  http://www.designsbyseed.co.uk. While I was there I spotted someone dressed up as a red panda, drawing on the windows - as you do...turns out it was Georgina Fineman, all part of the Art Trail for the Frome Festival, George has illustrated on the windows of 7 shops around the town, a clothes shop, jewellers, SEED, the butchers, a lighting shop, a designer kitchenware shop, and a health food shop...you can see more of her work here: http://cargocollective.com/1984foryou

however meet the real reason I've not been here: Margo, our russian blue kitten meeeeeeeeeeeeow

welcome to my world

here's a few pictures from the last few weeks (some of them are blurry - it's me not your eyes)....

this is a snippet of the Bear Flat open weekend which due to ridiculously sunny weather (seems unbeliveable now) I set up camp in the courtyard...thanks to everyone who braved the sun trap in the name of art!!

the weekend after was the 'Oh So Jubilee' craft fair at the Chapter Arts center in Cardiff - great place but not a busy fair. I got up at 6.30am to make washi tape bunting....oh well...

 the chaos that is my desk....I tidied it over the Jubilee weekend and also the shelf above my desk got a spruce up too...including jubilee bunting, there's been so much bunting around and about recently, it's so bright and cheery and should be encouraged all the time.

                                      
 ahh you can't beat googly eyes....or listening to proper records on the Vestaxe portable

Bear Flat Open Studios

I'm taking part in the Bear Flat open studios again this year at 1A Devonshire place - it's a basement flat so involves stairs and really it's more desk than studio...I don't think I'll be open on the friday evening as I'll no doubt still be sewing labels on to my new bags right up until the last minute....

I printed some new bags at the weekend, seems I didn't take a photo of the finished peacock bag, so it will remain a mystery until the weekend....

 There are 4 different notebooks too, printed on both sides and there will be some small prints as well as all the usual stuff and maybe cake!

mistakes/not mistakes.....

 it's so annoying when you're printing and you make a mistake, a giant inky splodge just where you don't need it, if it's on a bag or a book it feels even worse than on paper because you feel like you've lost out.............still they're handy for practice prints. 


I've been printing new bag designs this weekend and there have been a few of those pesky splodges BUT I realised the practice bags with all their overlapping layers are looking good and maybe I should put some of this layery stuff into proper prints...hurrah!