Yellow Panda

Poppies

2011-12-02T06:22:00.000-08:00

Latest papercut for a wonderful friend's birthday. By the way she's a November baby, hence the poppies!

Framed in lovely wood

Close-up of details

Beautiful vintage box found at an antiques fair

Homemade vanilla fudge by moi

Dylan Thomas and the plump bald man

2011-11-21T09:28:00.000-08:00

Dear me! I have meant to post photos of my life drawing for weeks but you know how easily I get distracted. So here are the fruits of my labour:

Recently I've strayed from the normal classes and with my friend Laura Harvey we checked out the National portrait gallery's "Late shift" session on the Friday. This is where we participated in the drawing sessions they hold there. That evening was all about caricatures. We were lucky to be able to have a hold room full of exciting portraits to sketch from. Lots of fun and a brilliant way to finish off the week!

Vintage Sunday...

2011-11-17T16:57:00.000-08:00

Spent a lovely Sunday with my family at an Antique fair in Potters Bar. It was a sunny but chilly day and luckily the fair was held indoors. There were rooms filled with lots of stalls. Some stalls had specialities such as coins/stamps while others sold jewellery and vases. All were beautiful and we spent many hours admiring each item. It was very hard not to want to take all of it home. Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of the fair but did of my spoils.

At the moment I'm so in love with the gold and blue glass brooch. Makes me feel very regal!

Just outside the centre where the fair was taking place was such amazing looking pub. If only we had time to visit for a spot of lunch. Definitely will have to visit it next time I'm in Potters bar but here's some pictures to hook you in.

After the fair we headed into St. Albans to feed more of our "vintage/antique" habit... There is a wonderful little treasure of a place called Fleetville Emporioum which is a warehouse that holds many vintage/retro/antique stalls all in one place. They also have a delightful tearoom which I've visited on numerous occasions where they have gorgeous cakes and delicious ice creams. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of the place which is a shame. Instead you'll just have to go and check it yourselves!

However down the road from the Emporium was another vintage shop. Loving the pink chair as part of the Signage! There were some lovely things and I had my eye on a green tablecloth with flying ducks... it was terribly hard to walk away.

We ended the day in Morrison's of all places but needed a few items for supper. This Morrisons was really nice and was recently re-furbished. Their veg and fruit section was so enticing and not all like you were see in a normal supermarket. Check out the pic!

They even had their own mist...

For me?

2011-11-08T04:52:00.000-08:00

Look what I got in the post!!! My sister brought me a "tintin" mug to replace the one I got from Brussels which broke.

Somehow tea taste that much sweeter in a Snowy mug... Thanks bean!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T11:10:00.000-07:00

Trick or treat... you decide.

Puppets are here!

2011-10-31T08:39:00.000-07:00

An impromtu baby shower gift. Very last minute but I quickly sketched up an idea and using what materials I had in my magic box, conjured up this little fellow...

He came out better than expected and mother and bump seem pleased. May make some for my little shop but not 100% sure if people really want them. If you do then hit me up by leaving a comment here or facebook or twitter.

Mermaids...

2011-10-28T03:29:00.000-07:00

Need to get this idea out of my mind and onto paper... Just some initial sketches. Not really sure how I want the final piece to look.

Close up of sketch one

early stages of sketch 2


More details added to sketch2

In the same week I did a quick birthday sign for my roomie. She was going to let her birthday sneak by under my nose but "not on my watch!" This lead to a surprise birthday meal of pizza and beer! Result... she was surprised and very pleased!

Sorry for the poorly cropped photo but didn't want to include her name. Playing around with curly writing... not sure I can pull off that kind of script. Practice makes perfect...

Nudes...

2011-10-20T07:27:00.000-07:00

Some more photos of my life drawing sketches. Unfortunately as they as A1 sheets there isn't a way for me to scan these into the computer so you'll have to deal with the poor quality photography.

The model was great and did some really interesting and at times challenging poses. However I was struggling to get into the flow of things unlike last time. Experimented with shading and light and shadows. I suppose practice makes perfect!

I heart Animation

2011-10-19T07:31:00.000-07:00

Whilst exploring the realm of cyberspace (via Drawn) I came across this piece of animation created by the animators and recent graduates of EMCA’s animation program. It's a beautiful piece that surprisingly moves you.

Poussière from Poussiere LeFilm on Vimeo.

It's magical work like this that makes me fall in love with the medium!

Islington Art Fair and more papercuts!

2011-10-12T04:32:00.000-07:00

Here's some photos of some papercuts finished and some I'm still working on.


Mixture of collage and papercut

Little illustration on a special message to a friend

Last Sunday I decided to visit my friend Laura Harvey as she was exhibiting at the Islington Contemporary Art and Design Fair. Last weekend it was an exhibition of painting and sculpture. It was a really interesting show with lots of amazing work. Here are a few that really caught my eye...


"Kevin" image from www.andrewnewtonart.co.uk


"Green Shavings" image from www.carolinemccready.com


"Head Study #2" image from www.nataliadavis.tumblr.com

And last but not least is Laura Harvey's work. Unfortunately my photos do not do justice to her work but there were some lovely pieces.

If you're interested in any of the artists' work mentioned in this post please feel free to contact me or you can contact the artist via their website mentioned under the images.

Life drawing and Sunflowers

2011-09-02T07:27:00.000-07:00

What a lovely day! Hope the Sun is shining where you are. Recently been to my first life drawing class since Uni days. It's a great drop in type of life drawing sessions and at a decent price, which you can check out here. Thought I would post some proof.

Detailed close up

I also received some wonderful sunflowers from a wonderful friend! Flowers always make me smile... have a lovely weekend peeps!

Tweet tweet!

2011-09-01T07:46:00.000-07:00

Yellow Panda Draws has finally joined the world of Twitter. Follow me via this link!

Everything will work out because it has to...

2011-08-15T06:13:00.000-07:00

Another papercut commission. This was on gold card with bright orange highlights.

Shhh...

2011-08-12T09:40:00.000-07:00

Just a sneaky peek on something I'm working on. Will post about it soon!

Beware of the Snow Queen

2011-08-11T07:08:00.000-07:00

Headed back up north recently to see my sister's Costume exhibition and her Graduation. It was a show that showcase all the hard work, blood, sweat and tears she had gone through in the last year. Her final project was to create costume for either a film or a play. She decided on C.S. Lewis' "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" but in Russian Royal Court style (influences).

After seeing her costumes on display I couldn't have been more proud of her!

Close up of Snow Queen's collar

Photos and idea boards displayed

Here are some pictures of other student's work.

My sister's course mate's final piece

This is a close-up of a dress that was made from paper


Amazing illustrations with the costumes

There were some exciting and intricate costumes on display, unfortunately I didn't write down everyone's names. However if you are interested in either my sister's work or others than just drop me an email: yellowpandadraws@yahoo.co.uk

Just a little something to say "congratulations" plus it's based on this little gem. Love you sister!

The Whale's Way

2011-08-04T07:25:00.000-07:00

Been meaning to post about this piece! It's a mixed media/collage/papercut piece based on the poem "The Whale's Way". Unfortunately the author of this English poem is unknown but it is from 9th century.

The Whale's Way

My heart leaps within me

My mind roams with the waves

Over the whale's domain, it wanders far and wide

Across the face of the earth, returns again to me

Eager and unsatisfies; the solitary bird screams,

Irresistible, urges the heart to the whale's way

Over the stretch of seas

Below are some pictures of the work in progress, from sketching and planning to final image.

Unfortunately this didn't get into an Art show down south but gonna enter this bad boy in some more art shows. Fingers cross peeps!

Big Draw - the aftermath

2011-07-20T04:40:00.000-07:00

I had meant to post about this earlier but you know how life happens! My flatmate and I went along to "The Big Draw" event last Saturday in the Aviva Square, Bank. We were excited to see what was going to happen as we only had a vague idea of what it was going to involve. When we arrived we were given t-shirts to wear but alas all the blue "Big Draw" t-shirts were gone. You're probably wondering why I was so sad about it... it had a really cool illustration by Quentin Blake on the front. Instead we wore "Festival of City" red t-shirts.

Anish Kapoor's Sky Mirror courtesy of S. Norman

We were worried about the day as the weather was not great and the huge grey clouds looked sinister. we begun grabbing lots of cardboard and setting up tables and chairs for the art workshops that were going to take place in a matter of a hour. The workshops that were being held was Print bike (print making), drawing and walking tour of the city, cartoonist workshop, bring a mini city (sculpture/cardboard) and lots of drawing on huge sheets of paper.

Cardboard city

Adults and children mucking in with the sculpture

There was also an old ice cream van which was changed into a chalk van where you could doodle all over it. My flatmate and I had a marvellous time drawing on it that it progressed onto the pavement!

Hopefully our chalky improvised signs encouraged more people to join in the drawing fun!

The Big Draw

2011-07-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

Campaign for Drawing is organising "The Big Draw" with "The City of London" Festival this week. The Big Draw is hosting free drawing activities this week between Thurs 7th July till Sun 10th July. Activities take place in and around Great St Helen's, Undershaft and Aviva Square, EC3P 3DQ.

Source: www.campaignfordrawing.org.uk

I'll be volunteering tomorrow (Sat 9th July) so pop down and doodle and say "hi"! Speaking of doodles here are some of mine.

Bargains!

2011-06-27T02:44:00.000-07:00

I adore charity and vintage shops and can spend hours searching for some treasure among the shelves and rails. My bargains so far... a framed embroidered owl picture and a copy of "The Hobbit", which I haven't read since I was 12 years old.

You're probably wondering why I picked a copy. Once I took a look inside I knew I had to take this bad boy home.

On the inside pages someone has lovingly made notes and must have completely immersed themselves into that world. It has been a long time since I've done that with a novel!

Here's a little picture of something I'm working on... will reveal details later on. Now enjoy the Sun people!

Monsters, Monsters, and More Monsters!

2011-05-23T13:11:00.000-07:00

Last Friday was marvellous fun! My friend and I volunteered our services to our buddy who is organising an awesome exhibition at the Discover Children's Story Centre in Stratford. We spent the day painting and tidying the area ready for Monsterville show. Much of the work had already been done and it was starting to take shape by the time we got there.

It's a magical and scary (in a fun way) exhibition that was designed and illustrated by 3 amazing illustrators, Ed Vere, Sarah McIntyre and Neal Layton. With burping monsters, eyeballs in jars and an eerie cinema there's much fun to be had! It opens on Saturday 28th May, so pop along... I know I will!

Follow the monsters if you dare!

Smallest Monster cinema in the world

Monsterous bandstand

Painting the checkered floor

Dobby, Dobby, Dobby!

2011-05-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

Hooray for Huddersfield!

2011-05-16T14:03:00.000-07:00

Oh Boy! The Bank Holidays have been and gone and I have been a busy bee! I spent a weekend visiting my sister up in Huddersfield. The dear girl is doing her final year in costume design and textiles and has been working crazy.

Sketches of her final design

Work in progress

Sneaky pics of her coursemate's work

I love the way this sketch is growing out of the page

Where my sister works and lives till June

Buildings of the University

After a grand tour of her working space she took us into the town and onto the Market where bargains were to be had. I love the hustle and bustle of markets and always the electric collections people would sell. At this market there were lots of vintage goods, ranging from antiques, jewellery to clothing.

After many hours of hunting for bargains we decided it was time for high tea. Gorgeous tea ware and delicious tea with scrumptious food! I was sad when it was over!

A little surprise at the bottom of our teacup

An amazing work outside of the loos!

Found this saucy lady in the middle of the wall

Before I forget here is the evidence of the treasure I brought at the market. Nice little wooden sewing table and some fifties looking plates for 25 pence each!

Also some pictures of my sister's old school singer sewing machine. It's beautiful, don't you think?

Sweet Blossoms

2011-05-13T10:55:00.000-07:00

Another papercut gift but used fuchsia coloured hand made paper with gold design. Difficult medium to work with in this format but still liked the overall effect.

Shout out to Bean!

2011-05-02T14:52:00.000-07:00

Springtime posy

2011-04-21T12:10:00.000-07:00

They were getting rid of these lovely flowers for 26p per bunch... how could I say no! Flowers in Spring always makes me smile...

Doodles

2011-04-18T04:02:00.000-07:00

Knit 1 Purl 1

2011-04-15T03:07:00.000-07:00

Since the age of 11 I've always loved crocheting. Like many people who learn, they are usually taught by their relatives, and in my case it was my mother. As soon as I felt the coolness of the metal of the hook in one hand and softness of the wool in the other, I knew there was no turning back. It's a love affair that's still going strong but with knitting that was a different kettle of fish...

I decided to first learn to knit when I was 16 and turned to my mother again as teacher. She is a brilliant knitter as well as a crocheter and a great teacher but for some reason I still did not understand knitting, and I'm sure I'm the reason for some of her grey hairs! (sorry mum!)

It took a chance meeting in Hobbycraft nearly 3 years ago with a very nice lady named Gill for me to finally grasp knitting. She taught me so many things and was so patience and encouraging that I will always be eternally grateful to her to finally help me jump that last hurdle.

With that in mind I always promise myself that when it came to knitting and crochet I would pay it forward and would try and teach anyone who was willing knitting/crochet. Recently I have been teaching my colleague during our lunch hours. And she's doing brilliantly so far. At the moment it's early steps and she's learnt to cast on and stocking stitch but I am impressed with how she is picking things up. I'm sure in no time she'll be making scarves, socks and jumpers.

Pink yarn was the 1st thing I grabbed!

Some doodles whilst she was knitting...

Papercuts and birthdays

2011-04-12T12:21:00.000-07:00

The last months have been full to the brim with birthdays. I have been carving and cutting away to make some birthday cards/gifts! Here are 2 examples, one for a special "Cheer girl" and the other for my Uncle. I hope they will enjoy them as much as I did creating them.

I sketch the image in reverse onto the back

My workspace... yes, I do have lots of stuff!


Final image

Framed and happily residing next to my uncle's decks

Peacock feathers and butterflies

2011-04-04T13:31:00.000-07:00

I recently went to a friend's wedding which was a fabulous Indian affair. I loved the fact that she kept it traditional but with a modern twist by linking all the little details to peacock feathers. Even her wedding party wore turquoise/green saris and Indian suits.

The lovely bride requsted some help with her donation box. With Asian wedding it's more traditonal to donate money than to give gifts. Below are some pictures of my attempts to decorate her wedding donation box.

Discover Centre

2011-03-30T15:39:00.000-07:00

This month my flatmate and I went to visit our uni buddy who works at an amazing place called the Discover Children's story centre. It's so wonderful and I wish it was around when I was a little girl! Just check out the pictures!

Spoon puppet theatre

Spaceship in the garden

As well as a brilliant Lauren Child (illustrator/author of "Charlie and Lola") exhibit there were some workshops with illustrators and children's book authors.

Lauren Child's exhibit

We had a chance to check out Ed Vere's workshop and Axel Scheffler's workshop. Ed Vere read from his book "Mr Big" and then taught us how to draw his character Mr Big. I drew Yellow Panda in my version.

Some sketches during Ed vere's workshop

Posy came to say "Hi"

Both children and parents seem to be having fun and it very inspiring to see another illustrator at work. Makes me pine for the days on my uni course when we did children's book illustration...

Bunting and dickie bows!

2011-03-27T06:09:00.000-07:00

Recently I went to my best friend's baby shower and had decided I would make some bunting for the party as well as putting together a gift basket from my friends and I. Here are some pics of the rainbow bunting.

I didn't make the bunting from fabric as I was limited on time. Instead wrapping paper and wool came to the rescue! They weren't too shabby my friend!

When it came to the basket I brought lots of little gifts for the parents to be but also wanted to get that little extra "something". As I'm Chinese and following my own family's tradition, I brought them a toy animal in the year that the baby will be born. A little bunny companion.

Unfortunately the poor thing looked naked and so I decided I would crochet a Dickie bow, similar to one I made before but less time-consuming. Plus I added a little flower button. I hope baby will love it and take it everywhere!

I cannot wait for the little one to arrive! Little bump will be here in April and in time for Easter! Hooray!!!

2011-03-23T15:19:00.000-07:00

This last month has been the craziest and busiest one so far! I have been creating and drawing like a mad woman and will be posting all projects spread over this week.

I've finally begun to re-upholster my dining chairs in the lovely fabric I posted earlier.

I've done about 3 chairs but need one more to go but I am very much in love with them!

Sketchbook Project - Final installment

2011-02-25T16:08:00.000-08:00

Hey you guys!

I realised that I haven't posted all the pages from my sketchbook. These are the final pages and seeing them again is making me sad that I no longer possess it. However if anyone did want to see the book they should be able to check it on tour. Just click here to see where the sketchbooks are touring in the U.S.

Happy Belated Valentine's Day Peeps!

2011-02-15T14:39:00.001-08:00

You know who you are... x

Blooming Brilliant!

2011-02-07T14:24:00.000-08:00

Been working on a baby shower invite for my best friend. Unfortunately I can only show you the first stage of the work as the final image has details of location, etc... Prefer to keep those personal as it's a private function.

I added gold paper to the wings and buds to give the image more life.

Printing crazy

2011-02-02T13:59:00.000-08:00

Lately I have a real yearning to go back to what I used to love and that's print making! My friend Emily has been running Textile Design Evening classes which involve some print making. When she asked me along I jumped at the chance to go remember the media!

Here are some lino cuts I did for Chinese New Year and Valentine's day:

Here's a print of the Valentines one. It turned out better due to the thicker lines used.

Sometimes you forget how to manipulate a medium to produce the effects you want to achieve. I'm afraid it's gonna be a steep climb before I'm able to get back on the print horse again.

Sketchbook Project - Pages 13 -20

2011-01-30T12:06:00.000-08:00

Sketchbook Project - Pages 9 -12

2011-01-24T11:26:00.000-08:00

Both girls and boys grew up on stories, folklore and fairytales. I wanted just to play around with images and ideas.

I couldn't scan these pages as I had lengthen them to be able to fit the tower/beanstalk.

Polka dots and tea

2011-01-22T13:49:00.000-08:00

It's always nice when the day surprises you. Sometimes I really love living in a village and more so today when I saw that there was a "trampoline and inflatable" fair... Hey, why not!? I did have a chuckle to myself as I drove to the post office.

Whilst there to pick up a package I decided to pop in and see my friend Emily. We had a good old natter over some digestives and tea. Before sending me on my way she lent me some Adobe Illustrator books. Unfortunately I'm not as proficient on the program as I would like to be and spend many hours screaming at the computer.

I mentioned that I needed fabric to re-upholster the seats of the dining chairs my parents kindly donated to me. Emily recommended Dunmelm Mill and Boy! was she right! Not only did they have loads of fabric to choose from but also 20% off. Who doesn't like a bargain?!

What do you think? I'm loving the cream and blue palette.

I also brought some vintage looking scales and polka dot and rose mugs. There's going to a great deal of baking and tea-making in my flat!

Don't worry... I'm still sketching and am currently working on something that I'll post later! It's going to be blooming marvellous!

Sketchbook Project - pages 7 & 8

2011-01-19T13:13:00.001-08:00

For a few days I have been contemplating whether I should post the all pages, good, bad and even the ugly. Finally decided to show all pages as no piece of work is always completed in perfect form first time round.

It's always interesting to see the processes and the random scribblings... Not sure how interesting people will find mine but let's throw caution to the wind!

Sketchbook Project - Pages 5 -6

2011-01-18T13:13:00.000-08:00

Sketchbook Project - Pages 2- 4

2011-01-16T06:10:00.000-08:00

Sketchbook Project - Front cover & First page

2011-01-12T13:31:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

2011-01-03T12:45:00.000-08:00

Hello people! I hope you all had a lovely time over the Festive season. It was a break I badly needed to get back on track. The weeks have entailed lots of fudge making, present wrapping, wonderful catch ups with friends and plenty of eating and drinking!

Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of my fudge but there has been many happy fudge filled people. I tried out the recipe and went for a batch of Vanilla fudge and also Chocolate and Chili. Both tasted lovely but the Chocolate and chili did not have the kick I was hoping for. I may have to tinker with the spice to get the right effect.

My second try I thought I would be more adventurous and came up with my own flavours. Amaretto and cranberries fudge, and Baileys fudge. I think the Baileys was the outright winner. The recipe I used was from Craftzine and the guy who came up with it is a genius! It's hard to get it wrong with his recipe, you can find it here.

We even had a little bit of snow just before Christmas! Below are some shots of the walk to work as I couldn't get the car out of the drive.

I even made a friend on the way...

I have been a busy bee and am frantically trying to finish my sketchbook in time for The Sketchbook project in New York. Just some shots of the piece I'm working on for the cover of my sketchbook.

Here are some pictures of some doodles and sketches. Mainly playing around with watercolours on A3 sketchbook. Apologies for the bad quality but the sketchbook was too big for my scanner.

Stickers!

2010-12-01T12:08:00.000-08:00

Yippee! My stickers have finally arrived from Moo cards! It's just a shame I couldn't get these done in time for the Craft fair last Saturday. Here they are...

I like some of them but not so sure about the colours on others. I originally sketch them before using a calligraphy brush pen to draw the outline. After that the images were scanned and tidied up in photoshop.

I hope you guys like them! If so, I will be setting up shop and selling them. If you can't wait then drop me a line via my email fern_ng23@yahoo.com. I'll you know when I do have the shop ready.

Stockings, birds and pom poms

2010-11-28T12:00:00.000-08:00

It's been an uphill struggle lately but things seem to be coming along. Recently been sharing a stall with the lovely Emily at another craft fair. This time at the Royal Masonic school for girls in Ricksmanworth. The building is stunning with beautiful lanterns and intricate stained glass windows. Unfortunately I completely forgot to take some pictures!

However I did take some of our stall and my goods.

Pastel felt ornaments with crochet & button embellishments

Polka dot felt stocking ornaments

Woolly pom pom baubles

It was a fun day with lots of Christmas carols, mulled wine wafting into the room and Santa greeting all the children. We saw some lovely items at other stalls and had lots of interest in our items. But recession has hit hard and not many purchases were made. We don't do it for the morning but it makes it hard when you're not breaking even.

I'll be selling some of cards and ornaments on Etsy soon but in the meantime you can message me if you're interested in any items.

A snapshot of Emily's part of the stall.

Her beautiful jewellary

Emily makes some lovely pieces. There are some that have small ceramic pieces she made and painted. As well as silver which is hand-hammered into intricate shapes. All finished off with leather made on these fair isles. My favourite are her cushions that she design the print and also digitally printed. All sewn by her with british leather tags. The photos don't do justice to the quality of her work!

Anyways here's a picture of the chaos I left behind.

WIP

2010-11-22T04:13:00.000-08:00

Just a little "something" I'm working on at the mo! Will reveal later...

The bird and the teacup

2010-11-21T15:34:00.001-08:00

A-baking and a-creating!

2010-11-15T14:31:00.000-08:00

Well people! It has been a manic and fun week! Last Friday my friend Emily and I had a small stall at Parmiter's school Craft Fair. It was an area where the little ones could come by and make a Christmas card or colour in a hand puppet.

Close up of the last minute made sign

Another last minute sign plus a sneaky shot of Emily in our stall

I even roped in Yellow Panda to entice some customers!

Close of my cards made and waiting to go to new homes

The wonderful people at Moo cards managed to get my order in time for the Craft Fair but alas... No one brought a card. I suppose they were distracted but the elaborate and wonderful equipment spread Emily had laid out. There were paints, colourful card, crayons and lots of glitter! I even to get glitter in my hair!

We had a great day and had lots of fun helping budding new artist create cards and customise their hand puppets.

Working on more items for the next craft fair at The Royal Masonic School in Rickmansworth on Saturday 27th November. Here are some WIP pictures.

At the moment I'm frantically crocheting and stitching these bad boys! I have a few other designs that I'm hoping that I will get done in time. But for now here is "some I made earlier!

On a different topic, it's Children in Need time of year again. On Monday my workplace had a Bake off, little ole me couldn't resist taking part! I decided on 2 types of cupcake flavours. A chocolate with hint of orange cupcake with orange frosting and Red Velvet with vanilla cream cheese frosting.

There was an amazing array of treats and cakes that there was almost too much choice! Lots were brought and eaten and a great amount was raised for Pudsey!

Don't they look heavenly?

Craft Fairs and more!

2010-11-09T12:33:00.000-08:00

Last Friday I attended the Blurb London pop-up workshop, which was organised with Etsy and Moo. It was a really good event! I learnt a great deal about Etsy and about self-marketing. The people from all 3 companies were really helpful and lovely. Plus they even fed us delicious cupcakes and yummy sandwiches. All went down a treat with lashings of tea and coffee. Armed with new found confidence and knowledge I've spent many hours designing these card designs for the upcoming Craft Fairs.

I also met some other fellow entrepreneurs and it was really interesting to see the different stages people were at with their business and craft. There were knitters, photographers and jewellery makers.
I also met Irene Strange who is a crochet pattern designer. She was lovely and I was surprised to find out later that I had seen her stuff before. I wish I had known that at the time, unfortunately I was a little dazed by all the information I had collected from the talks. She is talented lady as you can see from the images below (from her website) or you can check out her stuff on her Flickr photostream.

Speaking of crochet I'm creating some to go with more items for the Craft fairs. More details will follow about locations and dates but here is a taster of what is yet to come...

Wait a minute Mr Postman!

2010-10-25T12:38:00.000-07:00

Look at what I got in the post... Vogue 1950's dress patterns! Been waiting for these beauties for yonks. Can't stop dreaming of the possibilities.

Alas the sewing machine and I are strangers. I have yet to master the dials, buttons and whistles of that marvellous machine. I will have to wait for my sister to teach me the ropes. But aren't the illustrations on the packets just divine!

I should really apologise as I have already broken my promise of keeping up with my blogging. I promise I have a valid reason... that being that I'm in the process of moving to a new place. All of that has kept me busy! As exciting as setting off on your own is, the spending on the essentials and decorating is stressful!!!

On an earlier post I mentioned my mother's crop for this year. She's gather the last of her veg and it these little guys.

I don't know what their real name is but they are sometimes known as "Angry Melon". I don't suppose you know why someone would nickname them that?

Project...completed!

2010-10-09T14:20:00.000-07:00

It's been a while guys since my last post but I promise you that I have not been idle! I can finally post a project that I have finished recently. It also helps that the recipient has now received it so it doesn't ruin the surprise for them.

It's another papercut art piece for my friend's wedding. It was a lovely and special double wedding and I wanted to give them something very unique.

Here are some photos of the process. I begin with some sketches in my sketchbook. I play around with the layout and design.

Once I'm satisfied with my design then I hit the lightbox and sketch the image. Another opportunity to tweak the image.

The design is transfered to the card/paper and I begin cutting.

I'm really happy with the final image. Which is rare for me! But as you can see that the art work was mounted and framed, then in post!

Saturday Night out!

2010-10-03T01:06:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I headed into the big city to see my best friend and to celebrate her birthday. She decided on a comedy club in London who do "Big night out". It was brillaint fun and all the comedians were extremely funny. The lineup consisted of Bob Mills, Stefano Paolini, (MC) Paul T. Ayres and my favourite comedian of the evening, Steve Williams. I liked him so much I did a little tribue art for him.

Unfortunately I did not have enough time to add some colour. It took too long trying to figure it out on "Illustrator"! It's just a sketch for now, I still need more practice on the whole digital thing.

This is a belated birthday illustration for my homie, J9!

Many faces

2010-09-22T13:19:00.001-07:00

Just inked up some self portraits. It appears that the things that sums me up physically are my long hair and my glasses. I just wish I could afford some colourful and fun shaped glasses. Do you think I may have been influenced by Timmy Mallet from my childhood days? Not sure if that's a good thing or not...

Above image Timmy Mallett's website

J'adore... books

2010-09-14T14:03:00.000-07:00

I love my books and am highly addicted to these rectangular shaped objects! Nothing thrills me more than the sensation of the pages beneath my fingertips while my eyes and brains feast upon it's contents... Swoon!

Imagine my excitement when I found this little beauty and at half it's retail price! I marched straight to the till before a shop assistant could dash my hopes by saying it was a priced incorrectly. That's right people! It's "Pattern" by Orla Kiely.

As I like you enough I'll let you have a sneaky peek...

To my delight something special arrived in the post...It was the moleskine sketchbook for my participation in The Sketchbook Project.

Inside the book was a sheet containing do's & don'ts when it comes to sketching within it's pages! Also my very own library card for Brooklyn Art Library. Nice!

And here is the theme...

I am very excited to start and will post some of the pages for your viewing pleasure!

Bloglovin...

2010-09-10T14:10:00.000-07:00

Yo People! I've just joined Bloglovin which a place where you can follow several cool blogs that explore art, fashion, lifestyle, photography and etc... Just click on this link to follow my blog and to also receive new posts and updates!

Peace out! x x x

Fruits of my Labour

2010-09-10T12:55:00.000-07:00

"Organic!" My mother shouted with glee. I was confused by this sudden outburst. It turns out she was referring to her tomatoes, which were sweet and juicy.

My mother is an avid gardener but due to recent years of spending more time running the family business she has had to neglect it. This year she's made a small attempt to grow a few things. Her chosen crop was tomatoes, red peppers, runner beans and hot chili peppers.

Look at her bounty!

There was a bumper crop of tomatoes and chili peppers but not all the vegetables were a success... The runner beans didn't produce very well and any produce ended up too tough to eat. Whereas the sweet bell pepper plant only produced 2 peppers! Oh well! At least the rest of the vegetables were tasty!

Been working on a little surprise for some lovely people. Here's a peek at what I'm working on.

I can't show too much in case they see. So all will be revealed once they're given to the recipients.

Before I forget check out this photo!

Monster tomato & baby tomato hanging out!

Finished Projects and WIPs

2010-09-02T13:21:00.000-07:00

Oh boy! The last month has been another crazy one! Finally a moment to catch with what I've made and what I am currently working on. Below are some pictures of the dickie bow I made for a friend's wedding.

The wedding was a real country affair with lots of gingham, bunting, country dancing and real Stroud ale.

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of me modeling it on the day so these after shots will have to do. The last picture is a close-up of the button but it doesn't do it justice. It's a lovely wood textured button I found in my wild rummaging in charity shops. Thinking of making these in different colours and slightly different styles. What do you think?

I forgot to add the "before" photos of the pinup sailor girl tattoo... so here they are

Another project I've finished, was a crochet belt for one of my sisters. It was her summer prom and she wanted a belt to finish off her outfit (a cream lace strapless dress.) So began the brainstorming between us. Eventually we came up with a cream crochet belt, embellished with beads, pearls and flowers.

Unfortunately neither one of us were any good at sewing. Luckily sister no.2 helped out in that department. On top of that she supplied she with the finishing touch... the silk ribbon to tie up the belt. What a star!

Yet again I did not get any photos of her in the belt on the day as there wasn't any time. So you will just have to put up with this last picture.

Tattoos!

2010-08-28T07:31:00.000-07:00

Recently I have been speaking to my friends about tattoos. I am still undecided over whether I should get one. But after my conversation and even though I am undecided i felt inspired to sketch up some tattoo designs.
As a joke someone suggested I should get a skull tattoo. So i made up a design and ran with it!

The following is for a friend! She mentioned she would an anchor tattoo and maybe a pin up girl with it. I'll add colour to the finished image.

Hong Kong... Part 2

2010-08-25T14:21:00.001-07:00

Unfortunately the weather was not always sunny during our stay. However it gave us opportunity to see the Hong Kong Museum of Art in Victoria harbour.

Just near the entrance was a mirrored abstract sculpture.
Inside there were various exhibitions of historical artifacts and sculptures to modern art installations.

The exhibition that really stood out to me was the work of artist Wu Guanzhong. He was a contemporary Chinese artist. His work mainly focuses on the different aspects of life in China. The medium he uses varies from oil to watercolours. Unfortunately these photos do not do justice to the vibrancy and movements his work contents.

"Bitter Melon Homestead"

One of my favourite pieces is the one above. There was also a quote from Wu Guanzhong which I found moving.

"The bitter melon plant bears bitter melon fruits. This is blood. This is destiny. Time and again, halos and wreath, they are fruits of nothing but bitterness. Bitter melons are not bitter since, as I have inscribed, I have fully tasted the bitterest of the bitterest."

When we arrived back in the apartment that day we saw on the news that Wu Guanzhong had passed away that very day at the age of 90. He has left a wonderful collection of work and will be sorely missed.

Hong Kong... part 1

2010-08-10T13:19:00.000-07:00

I know it's been a while since I went to Hong Kong but better late than never! We started our journey with some lunch at the airport. There was a Bagel place I've never seen before but they serve such delicious bagels that I am willing to go back again for those Bad boys!

After eating we were checking the shops to while the hours away till boarding where we noticed this little number... a pink Austin Helsey car in the middle of the perfume section of the airport duty free!

After boarding we had a stopover at Helsinki Airport for a few hours. We stopped for coffee and my sister and I couldn't stop staring at the trays... Moomin Trays and cups!!! We had to restrain ourselves from stealing them. After tearing ourselves from the lovely cups and trays we were on our second leg of the journey. A 10 hour plane flight to Hong Kong.

The next day we went to see the Golden Buddha on Lautau Island. The view were spectacular!

Unfortunately the day was a littel cloudy but in some sense it made the place have a more mystical feel. After a spot of lunch we said our prayers at thetemple and bid farewell to Buddha till the next time.

I'll post more of my adventures later!

Home sweet Home

2010-08-03T13:26:00.000-07:00

My poor neglected blog... I did not mean to have such a long holiday from my blog but life happens. There have been lots of mini adventures and days of fun, including a wedding, a birthday and an engagement party!

For now here are some sketches from my sketchbook. There are some drawings I drew whilst at Helskini airport and on the plane to Hong Kong.I'll post Hong Kong adventure later this week.

The view from here...

2010-06-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

My mate Lisa Denyer has given me some updates on some pieces she has been currently working on. She has kindly enough sent me some pictures. At this point they are work in progress.
I asked her to briefly explain this paticular piece and here is what she said:

"It's much more minimal and abstract than my previous work but still based on the mountain scape motif. I had an idea in my head of a cordillera made of crystal and I wanted to give the impression that it wasn't necessarily a place that exists in the physical world."

Her colours are astounding! The finished piece is below:

You can see more of her work here or if you're in the Manchester area you can pop over to the Nexus cafe on Dale Street to see the exhibition of "The View from Here" - a celebration of the created landscape. The preview evening will take place on Friday 2nd July from 7:30pm - 10pm.

Well people... I won't be around for two weeks as I will be heading out East. Hong Kong to be exact! I will post details of my adventures when I get back but I will leave you with this:

Squids ahoy!

2010-06-16T13:24:00.001-07:00

Here's a sneak peek of some sketches for some pieces I'm working on.

The 2 Ronnies

2010-06-13T09:14:00.001-07:00

I found this piece among some work I have done a while ago. I loved the "Two Ronnies" and adored some of their shows when I was little. I even remember when I was six that I saw Ronnie Corbett in China Town having dim sum with his wife. I Couldn't believe my eyes when I saw him in the restaurant and I was too shy to say "hello." He is still one of my comedic heroes and I hope there's many more years of comedy.

Enjoy!

Hello Petal!

2010-06-10T14:01:00.000-07:00

Bear Invasion

2010-06-08T14:42:00.000-07:00

I found these guys in a sketchbook from a few years back. They've been scanned and tweaked a little on photoshop.

I've even got this little fellow to bake you some muffins!

You make me feel like dancing...

2010-06-07T11:57:00.000-07:00

I received a postcard in the post last week that made me smile. Here's a mini collage/sketch to say "thank you buddy!"

Geeky Sunday

2010-05-30T14:24:00.000-07:00

Today I went with my friend to the London Expo at London ExCel. We began the day by eating dim sum at Yi Ban Restaurent.

Scrummy! Plus the views of the docks were a lovely accompaniment.

After our delicious brunch we took a quick walk along the dock and saw people practicing their rowing for the "dragon boat" race.

We rushed over to ExCel to get our tickets and head into the "London Expo". The sight when we headed into the building was surreal. As this was the first time I had been to an event like this I wasn't prepared seeing so many people dressed up.

It was amazing! There were so many different Anime, Manga, Marvel characters and many others that I did not know. I couldn't believe some of the time and effort some of these people had put into the costumes. I doth my hat off to them!

I've saved the best for last... It's Sailor Moon! I loved the fact that the people who have dressed up are happy to have their picture taken. They are all friendly, lovely and creative people.

To be honest I wasn't sure what to expect at the London expo but I was pleasantly surprised by the people and by some of the comics and exhibs. It was an awesome day!

Lomo competition

2010-05-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

Hello people! Sorry I haven't been updating as often as I would like to. However I have been a busy bunny of lately. My most recent endeavor was the "Urban Outfitter's Lomo camera" competition. I just managed to get my entry just before the deadline.

I had many ideas and originally was going to go with a "birds in flight" theme. But looking at the favourite entries that Urban outfitters uploaded i wasn't the only one.

In the end I went with robots moving coloured pixels into the camera. What do you think?

The winner won't be announced till June so fingers crossed!

"Thank you" is finished!

2010-05-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

After a little tweaking on photoshop, here is the final image from my papercut.

It's not quite how I wanted it to be and I think I need to push the medium more. It's tricky cutting into paper as with each cut there is no return. Next time I will try different paper and plan the image before cutting.

There is a purpose for the piece and it's on it's way to 2 people in particular. I hope they like it!

Papercuts

2010-05-07T09:20:00.000-07:00

Just something I'm working on. I will post the final image later folks!

The Great British Weather

2010-05-05T14:23:00.000-07:00

The Bank holiday weekend has been and gone... I went to visit my friends in the lovely city of Bristol. Where I was met with a cheery smile and a deliciously warm Brie, honey and ham baguette. Bliss! Tragically I did not take a picture of this yummy baguette...

It has been a few years since I have seen my friends and it is a joy to spend time with them. They took me on a tour round the city. Where little boutiques and cafes nestle and perch themselves on these little hills. Which are full of fun and pretty things. They showed me round the lustrous parks and meandered along the streets where the houses all have their own character and wisteria growing along their walls.

While we were walking we came across this little fellow.

That's right folks! This monster cluster of mushrooms has managed to break through the pavement! It was a sight behold... Also a reminder not to mess with Nature.

My friend wanted to take me to see the views from Cabot tower. The views are lovely and the park surrounding the tower is lush.

Above is Cabot Tower perched on a big hill.

That is the end to my trip and here is a little picture as a little "thank you" for my hostess with the most-ess!

How time flies...

2010-04-29T13:28:00.000-07:00

I was reminded recently, by a special friend of mine, of a project I did nearly 2 and half years ago. It was a baby mobile I made for her lovely niece Ruby. Unfortunately the photos I took are not great.

I played around with different textiles and patterns. The letters were handstitched and the beads and butterflies threaded and attached. Unfortunately the photos do not show the lovely royal purple and blue dotted friendship glass ball, which hangs within the middle.

I am hoping that now the mobile is up high that my little friend can enjoy the colours that will scatter across her room when the sun beams hit it.

Above is a sneaky peek at a piece I have been working on recently. At the moment it's a pencil sketch but I may try some colour. Not sure what media it will end up but all will be revealed later...

Plunge into the unknown...

2010-04-25T14:20:00.000-07:00

Where do I begin? I have long toyed with the idea of having a blog and to be part of the creative and craft community. They have been the greatest inspiration for me to begin this journey. I originally studied my degree in Illustrating but never really pursued it. But life has caught up with me and it's time to at least try doing something I love and not fear rejection.

The above image is a character i drew a few years and everytime I see him, he makes me smile.

I hope you will enjoy what I will post and welcome to my blog!