Bath Artisan Market

This Sunday I was at the Bath Artisan Market. It was my first stall there and I set up shop in this cute little hut! I've walked through the Old station many times as I've got friends and family who live near there. Its a very pretty venue, out side and yet covered from the elements by a glass roof, a perfect mix of inside/outside atmosphere! (Although I imagine it'll be horribly cold in the winter!!)
 The day was a bit slow for customers and other stall holders who were regulars commented on how unusually quiet it was. So I will be back in Bath to try again. This was also the first outing of my cushion display trunk, which I was very happy with. Happily all the colours matched on my stall. :D

Next week I'm at:
Newport Riverfront Sessions and Boutique Market on Friday 13th
Hereford Art Market on Saturday 14th
and Hereford Vintage Wedding Fayre on Sunday 15th!

Handmade Gifts : DK Crafts

Wow! I'm in a book. In Handmade Gifts by DK I show you how to make my popular tote bags, including the pencil design above. This was the first bag print I listed in my online shop and I'm happy to share a technique in printing it. (One that you can do at home without any expensive equipment!)
 In the back of the book you'll see my other stencil shapes for printing. Once you've copied and cut out the designs you canhave fun playing about with repeat patterns or changing scale of the shapes.

Take a closer look Here or even buy from a local retailer!? It's full of lots of lovely crafts and tips. I'm going to make the macaroons!

Tenbury Show

 I was at the Tenbury show this weekend. I've not done any county shows before so though I'd give it a go. There were some nice people and lovely baked goods in the tent next door. (dangerous for me..)

Cats

I drew these in March 2012, when I went to the local cats protection to get a new pet cat. There were so many personalities and stories I felt the need to draw a few of them when I got home again. They're funny little sketches with a few words about each animal, but when i looked back through my sketch book recently they stood out. I'm not great at drawing from memory, but in a way that meant I got the personalities of the cats across better as I wasn't focusing on the accurate look of each animal.

Felix really did have a big head like this. Some kind of condition that meant his teeth grew big too.

Pumpkin was huge, and a bit scarey, I went in to pet him and he stood up to great me, showing his full size. He was surprisingly friendly though.

 Molly was my favourite! She lay out on the floor and rolled around wanting a belly rub.

These cats were really shy and both just sat at the back of their cage mirroring each other.

These cats were a bit worse for wear! They were really cute though. They're previous owner had died of old age. :(

I've been thinking about drawing more animals to incorporate into greeting card designs. I'd like to make bright ink coloured drawings that fit in with my recent balloon illustration.

Lobster

Lobster is done! This one I've printed on a square 15 x 15cm card. Would look great framed for someone who loves seafood or has a nautical themed decor.This card is now in my Floksy Shop

Snake Print

The next print in my rainbow animals set of lino prints. This design was nice to carve with the flowing simple lines. The more I printed the design the more mottled the yellow colour became, which looked great; like scales. I think I'll have to highlight something on the snake in black thought as it looks flat right now. maybe eyes and a tongue?

The next design is for the colour red. This lobster will be a bit more difficult to carve I think, there is a lot more detail and a small image too. Can't wait to see it done though, so that will be my motivation to get it done today hopefully!

Pink Flamingo

The first of a series of prints; animal rainbow! Starting with pink yesterday it could only be a flamingo.

I wanted to try and do simple to make screen prints that were detailed and printed in just one colour, so I could make tote bags and cushions a bit cheaper. (multiple colour prints are more likely to go wrong and take much more time so are more expensive.) However I started with lino cuts of my ideas, so they're less detailed (no feathers drawn in ect) and I've highlighted the beak in black, I may have to do a bit of black in each design so they all sit well as a collection, and to add a bit of depth to each print.
This design was printed on textured paper which works well with the lino, looks like feathers!

Next colour is red! Here are some of the ideas i was playing with, feel free to help suggest animals please. :

Red: Lobster, red panda, ants, Macaw, frog
Orange: Clown fish, tiger, goldfish, squid
Yellow: giraffe, tocan, boxfish, snake, bees and hive
Green: grasshopper, praying mantis, snake, camillian, parrots, frog
Blue: starfish, blue jay, lobster, jellyfish, peacock
purple: crab, Siamese fighter fish, jellyfish,