BUST a move.

HOORAY FOR BUST!

It is back in London to tempt us all this summer, but this year I'm in it too!

I cannot wait, the line up of designer makers is awesome so check out all the details here and all the amazing vendors here.

Remember it's July 10th!

Letter headed paper for dukes and captains.

Whilst playing around in my printing studio I made these very serious letters for a soldier friend of mine, I thought I would share them with you all....

More news!

I will be at these fairs:

We Make London: Chelsea Town Hall, London- 26th June

Handmade: Guildhall, Winchester- 4th July

BUST Craftacular: York Hall, London- 10th July

Come and say hello! x

Lasso The Moon.

Hooray! After much faffing around on my part I am finally up as a designer as part of Lasso the Moon's beautiful online boutique. Lots of lovely British made treasures to be found here.....

Bits and Pieces.

A quick post to let you all know what the blazes I have been doing.....

I have had some splendid news from lovely Lucy Jane Batchelor of young Ernest there guarding his chair until his little owner is big enough to sit in it. I'm so pleased he has settled in!

Delightful images by a favourite of mine Hannah Waldron on the wall too....

Also I shall be making an appearance at the 1st Edition Summer Craft Market so please come and say hello and marvel at lovely handmade goodness.

1st Edition Saturday 29th May

From 10 am to 5pm. Free entry. Free refreshments.

A collection of fine designer makers showcasing a plethora of quality, original, hand crafted wares. From jewellery, recycled fashion, home wares, millinery, accessories, art, soft furnishings, paper goods to beautacious and lush vintage inspired cakes!

Venue:
Beautiful Interiors shop garden
34 Orford Rd.
Walthamstow Village, London
E17 9NJ

Annnnnnd I shall be at the fabulous We Make London fair, 26th June at Chelsea Town Hall. Mmmmm. I do like fairs.

PICK ME UP

A festival of all things graphic design related, Pick Me Up was an absolute feast for the eye. Rob Ryan and his team of minions had set up their own beautiful studio and were filming the progress of a live paper-cut. I loved Mr Bingo's cheeky selection, and the collective Nous Vous had some good treats too.

An Extended Trip.

Well, what an adventure. Thanks to the trusty volcano, I was stranded in Berlin for a week, and then had to go home via Paris for two days. How lucky am I? Well while I was there I went to visit all these wonderful vintage shops I had heard about, and stumbled across on my travels.

I highly recommend Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn Sportpark and Arkona Platz on a Sunday for Flea Market splendidness. They are within five minutes walk of each other and were full of visual delights. The first is HUGE with hidden treasures and the second is much smaller with less tat.

'Paul Knopf' was an amazing shop dedicated solely to buttons, it was so tiny but floor to ceiling was boxes and tubes crammed with every button imaginable- and the staff knew the history and origin of every single one.

Next is 'Eichhornchen' (which means 'Squirrel' in German) was packed full of vintage goodies, from art deco furniture to vintage magazines and linens.

Below is a photo of the beautiful shop 'Mimi' for antique textiles- this was a pretty serious boutique full of real collectables.

'Tombees du Camion' was a delightful shop full of bizarre and beautiful oddities, we stumbled across this in Montmartre- but I hear they have three shops dotted around Paris.

For more photos of these wonderful places take a look here.

Huge thanks to Design Sponge's guide to Berlin, and Eastseven for being the greatest hostel I've ever stayed in.

S T O U R S P A C E

Oh what a day was had...

Stour Space was a very special find; hidden in Hackney Wick with one of the nicest little cafes I have ever been to (it had illustrations of Tom Selleck everywhere; a fine way to embellish any establishment)- Ruth Clifford and I set up my little stall after the causing the usual disruption on public transport with my trolley full of goods...

There was a cat called Merlin, an array of men with excellent facial hair, and lovely customers to talk to- not to mention other fantastic designers and makers, and Anorak Magazine which was very exciting as I am in the new issue (as seen freshly coloured by Ruth).

We ate cakes, coloured in, drank tea, and then packed up and caused another display of clumsiness and embarrassment while I dragged my little trolley of goods back across London.

There are monthly markets at Stour Space- have a look here.

vis/res Issue 2...(mine's the one on the left)

Here is the splendid second edition of 'vis/res', a new bi monthly little zine full of new designers and illustrators- and joy-oh-joy I was allowed to be in the second one, based on the blurred line that now occurs between reality and the virtual world. So here is mine! (the one on the left...)

There are only ever 100 printed, available to purchase here.

Notecards for Formal Informalities.

New notecards with matching envelopes for your visual delight!

Available to buy in my lovely Etsy shop.

Market Days

The market days in Stoke Newington were a lovely little treat, here is a photo of my little stand- the market is continuing monthly so have a visit (there are delicious cakes on sale too).

I will also be appearing at Stour Space Designers Market in Hackney Wick on the 27th March which should be packed full of nice things...

Stour Space
Designers Market
7 Roach Road,
Fish Island,
London,
E3 2PA

Lovely Market Dates...

Ooooh it's so exciting, I will be at 'Of Cabbages and Kings' new market on the 6th and 7th March tempting you all with my writing finery. Brand new writing notecards will feature, so come and say hello and get inspired to write a letter and buy handmade.

As well as yours truly, some of my favourite designer makers will be there too; Lady Luck Rules OK will be there with trendy jewellery, and one of my favourite illustrators Hannah Melin.

Fetch the Trumpets!

Well well well....this is Captain Hector. He is a very important little chap who likes cigars and shooting (clay pigeons only, of course).

Made with a vintage Coronation Medal, he is on his way to Sandhurst for some new adventures.

I also wanted to show off this charming writing tin that I found that is joining Hector on his travels.

It's been a rather surprising month for me, I shall be appearing in the latest vis/res, a lovely limited publication which should be out towards the end of February. I shall also have some drawings in the Spring edition of Anorak magazine, which is possibly the most beautiful children's magazine I have ever laid my eyes on.

AND I'll be at Of Cabbages and Kings new monthly design markets on the 6th and 7th of March, in Stoke Newington, with new writing sets and other splendid treats.

But for the moment, rather unexpectedly, I am temporarily somewhat of a boarding mistress at my old prep school.

I am also holding a workshop this week teaching 10 year olds how to monoprint which I'm very excited/terrified about.

How did this happen?!

Roll Up, Roll Up...

Finally all of my favourite original prints are now for sale in my Etsy shop. Keep your beady eyes out for some new writing stationery too....

Artist of the Day.

Today I pay homage to Lizzy Stewart, illustrator extraordinaire. I bought her splendidly splendid zine of fine vintage women, and here it is for all to see.

Lots of her other work can be seen here.

Happy New Year!

My etsy shop is now fully stocked, ready for the new year ahead. I have a pile of projects yet to do that I'm very excited about.

But for now, here is George. He is a king.

BUST.

Saturday was the day for Christmas shopping and I went to get myself some fine treasures. Bust was splendid as usual, beautiful ceramics by Louise Graham, Glazed and Confused, and Me me me, and general lovely things by Jessie Chorley, Jill and Custom Made and the most beautiful but slightly disturbing taxidermy by Jazmine Miles-Long. And of course my favourite handmade cosmetics by Andrea Garland.

The Mangle Xmas Fair was a pleasant surprise too, I purchased an A1 newsprint screenprint from Rob Ryan for £5 and he signed it for me. JOY! I totally abandoned buying anything for anyone else and bought myself a tote bag with one of my favourite prints by James Brown of General Pattern.

Now for my favourite festive part... wrapping!

Letters for the Regal Writer.

Finally some of my new writing paper is available from my shop. It is all screen printed by me, in hope that you will all write more letters. Hooray for letters.

Available here.

My First Ever Craft Fair.

On Sunday it was the Christmas Craft Guerrilla Fair at the lovely William Morris Gallery. I was a little nervous as it was my first fair but it was a very good day, with the help of my assistant Mared Edwards who also makes lovely things.

There was a cheery, festive atmosphere, surrounded by the beautiful architecture itself, and a choir even came to sing to us.

A very good day indeed.

Bust Craftacular!

Cripes! Only a few days until my favourite event maybe ever (apart from my annual camping trip). Yes, Bust Craftacular has returned once again in Bethnal Green. Possibly the finest selection of crafty designs one could hope to lay one's eyes on.

There'll be D.I.Y lessons, a Pop Up Tea Shop from Lady Luck, and some excellent records being played all day, and over 60 designers.

What more could you possibly want?

Also on the same day is an excellent Vintage Fair which looks well worth a visit.....

The World Famous Tea Cosy Tearooms.

Today I visited Brighton to deliver all my work for the Brighton Ourhouse Fair, and decided to visit the Tea Cosy. I had heard that there was a strict tea room etiquette, so I read all the rules on their website and wore my Sunday best. It was exactly as I had hoped; a shameless shrine to the Royals, every crevice piled high with incredible memorabilia. I got to sit underneath a splendid portrait of Queen Victoria, and whilst embracing the spirit of the venue, listening to some of my favourite songs, including Vera Lynn, we decided to order the full works:

"Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales, Queen of Hearts, 10 year Anniversary, Your Death Has Torn Our Lives Apart, Fairwell Dear Princess Queen Of Hearts, Forever In Our Thoughts, Memorial Afternoon Tea"

Oh my days, it was the most glorious afternoon tea I have ever had. A giant tea pot of almost never ending tea, and a cake stand which featured unashamedly soft white bread with no crusts, and lashings of salad cream, scones and all the biscuits you could ever want for. To top it all off 'Candle in the Wind' was played on the piano when it was served to us (this may have been a coincidence).

So even though I couldn't really make much of a dent to the biscuit mountain, and I kept having to silence my mother, loudly singing the words to, 'We'll meet again', whilst clearly breaking etiquette rule number eight of, 'Conversation should never be louder than two tones above the chink of a tea cup and good table manners are expected at all times.', I highly recommend a visit.

But seriously, don't break the rules. I've heard there are consequences.