here’s one I made earlier :: blah blah pocket monster

I love Donna Wilson. I love her products, I love her brand… I even love her outfits. The thing is, try as I may, I just can’t convince the boy that we should spend £70 on a cushion, not even a 100% lambswool, knitted in Scotland, grey with ebony robin, 40cm x 40cm, comes with a duck feather cushion pad, Donna Wilson cushion.

Donna Wilson 'Make Your Own Monster' kit

So imagine my joy when I spotted this Donna Wilson Make Your Own Monster kit in the Design Museum Shop! And for only £15! This is what was inside…

here’s one I made earlier :: graphic design with anthony burrill

A few weeks ago I went along to a graphic design workshop with Anthony Burrill at Outline Editions.

Anthony Burrill holding my masterpiece

Anthony had provided lots of his designs copied onto brightly coloured paper. The idea was to take his designs, cut them up and make them your own. 

here’s one I made earlier :: yellow owl workshop

I love the Yellow Owl Workshop so I was very excited indeed to hear that Christine and Evan were coming to London, for the launch of Christine’s new book, Print Workshop.

My copy of Print Workshop signed by Christine Schmidt and the little fish stamp she made me!

So excited in fact that I booked the afternoon of work and went along to Urban Outfitters in Spitalfields for the launch, and I’m very glad I did.

here’s one I made earlier :: screenprinting

I recently had the great pleasure to spend an evening at The Make Lounge on their Screen Printed Textiles workshop. I first tried my hand at screenprinting at the Print Block in Whitstable, during the Oyster Festival and I’m starting to think I might have caught the bug!

Screenprinting ink

We started with a demonstration from the lovely Helen Rawlinson who led the class.

here’s one I made earlier :: cyanotype

Inspired by a recent exhibition about camera-less photography at the V&A called Shadow Catchers, I thought I’d try my hand at cyanotype, a type of ‘sun printing’.

 

Cyanotype buttons

 

Cyanotype, originally used for reproducing notes and diagrams in engineering circles (blueprints)

here’s one I made earlier :: an explorer of southwold

In dire need of a bit of R&R, some inspiration and a birthday treat, the boy and I headed off to lovely Southwold for a weekend break. For a change of creative tact we went armed with “How to be an explorer of the world” by Kerri Smith and no less than four different cameras – a Fuji Instax, a digital camera each and the Diana Mini.

Southwold via Fuji Instax

These are the best of our Fuji Instax shots. To get ourselves in full explorer mode and to avoid the usual seaside photographic cliches, we set nine photographic themes. Here are the best shots from each theme…

here’s one I made earlier :: bathroom design

A while ago, I showed you my bathroom concept board, developed as part of the klc Diploma in Interior Design, and I promised you that I would show the bathroom design that resulted.

William Holland Bateau bath

Whilst I’m (still!) not quite finished inking up all the drawings and compiling the furniture booklet, I can give you a sneak peek into some of the items I’ve chosen to include. 

here’s one I made earlier :: sketchbooks

A sketchbook is a great way to collect and explore ideas – and of course the best thing is to keep one on you and get into the habit of using it every day.

Wax crayon and watercolour pencils - inspired by swimming pool

I’m not that good, but I do always try to find the time when I go on holiday.

here’s one I made earlier :: the joy of stamps

Two of my many lovely design-related Christmas presents were sets of stamps from Yellow Owl Workshop all the way from San Francisco.

 

Thank you cards made with Yellow Owl Workshop stamps

 

I supplemented them with an alphabet set from Muji and immediately got to work making my thank you cards (above). I’m really proud of them, but I think the credit should really go to Yellow Owl Workshop for the beautifully designed and made stamps.

here’s one I made earlier :: a nice cup of tea

Inspired by Kirstie’s Homemade Home and an increasing cynicism about the annual Christmas cycle of shopping-presents-landfill, I decided to get crafty and make my own Christmas presents this year.

Teacup candle

The first step was a lovely afternoon spent trawling charity shops for teacups,

here’s one I made earlier :: mini diana

I was recently very excited to open a present and discover this little lady nestled inside…

Diana Mini Lomo

And as a result, I was introduced to the world of lomography.

here’s one I made earlier :: the print block

I made a t-shirt! Well, technically, I just decorated it, but it was a lot of fun either way.

photo emulsion stencils

The Print Block in Whitstable was having an open day as part of the Whitstable Oyster Festival and offering the chance to make screen printed t-shirts, pirate flags and mono-prints, which naturally I jumped at. I decided to print a t-shirt, and…

here’s one I made earlier :: bathroom mood board

I’m still slowly making my way through project two of my klc course. This is a mood board for the bathroom project; to design a luxury bathroom for a male client’s art deco house for use by him and his girlfriend: 

klc bathroom moodboard

 

And I’ve found some gorgeous items to go into the scheme… 

here’s one I made earlier :: colour matching exercise

I’m currently studying for my Diploma in Interior Design from klc by distance learning. For my second coursework submission, the first project was a colour matching exercise. We had to take a fabric with 3-5 colours in it; and create a whole room scheme by finding other items that matched the colours within that fabric. This is my board:

colour matching board

It’s a great way to develop a cohesive scheme for a room.