Accidental Vix

Ok, so I know it’s Monday but it’s been a busy weekend and with the continual battle with my diabetes I needed a day off yesterday so here’s a delayed Sunday Showcase. It’s a busy time for me at the moment getting stock ready for a new shop opening in Harrogate in June so I’ve been trying to print in batches to calm the panic a bit and did some experimenting with some new screenprints and adding block colour. Any feedback welcome, I’m still undecided on whether I prefer them with or without the addition of a highlight colour?

Although I didn’t have a successful weekend at Hanpdpicked Hall this weekend and have decided to call it a day there for a while, I was really pleased that I made some people smile as they walked past and giggled or asked their friends and family to come over and look at my ‘even pirates eat their veg’ print. After all, that’s my aim – to make people smile

Xx

I’ve not been around for a while thanks to a lack of internet at home, so now we’re back online, albeit sporadically it’s blog time and what better way to start than by sharing a great screenprinting workshop I attended a few weeks ago courtesy of the lovely Karen from Blueberry Park. If you haven’t seen Karen’s work then what are you waiting for? As you may know I’m addicted to sketching and gocco printing because I can easily do it at home and get the fine detail of my sketches into my prints but I thought it’s about time I experimented with different techniques and I haven’t done screenprinting since my art foundation (many years ago!) so it was time for a refresher. We learnt everything we needed to know from cutting our stencils, to the best way of organising your screen to print at home, and of course the difficult bit (for me) of pulling the dreaded squeegee so that the ink was even and covered the whole image. Ok, so it took me several attempts but I got there in the end and was quite pleased with the results.

My design was 2 colours and we only had time for 1, maybe because there were 4 of us in the group and we had a great time printing but also plenty of talking! I’m really glad that I met Jess Hogarth, check out her designs if you haven’t already, her mum Wendy, and another lady with a gorgeously simple geometric design called Chrissie. Oh yes, my point was that I left the workshop with one colour still to print for some contrasting details but learnt how to make a ‘homemade’ screen with some muslin and an embroidery hoop (yes, I do have plenty in stock) so watch out for part 2 when I will reveal how my printing alone at home goes!

I’ll leave you now to check out our prints in action and say a big thank you to Karen for making it a fun way to learn and introducing me to some fab new ladies.

Xx

So much talent to write about but I’m in the mood for some printing today, so that’s where I’m going to showcase today’s faves from –  Roddy and Ginger. I don’t need to say much more so take a look at their work, and here are my top 3 reasons to see more:

• There is a good chance that we hopefully have a new house to move into by Christmas and these colours are exactly what I have in mind, bold but not too bright
• The repeated patterns and geometric shapes are so striking
• Suitable for any room, the subject matter could fit in anywhere from a nursery, to lounge to kitchen and beyond

As I’m now getting into my Gocco printing and have always had a love of fabric and patterns this shop grabbed my attention on Etsy. Blueberry Ash sells some gorgeous hand printed fabrics, and here are my top 3 reasons to check them out:

• I love the ‘retro colours’ Maria uses that have an air of sophistication to them
• The emphasis on natural materials is something that is worth considering
• The bold patterns are suitable for adults and children alike

Thinking about my next bag pattern and whether I can afford some new fabric now!

Xx

It’s an early start today for a work day out to Margate, and some rain predictions so today’s Tuesday Talent comes from a fab and quirky illustrator on Luulla with the fab name Pink Rain. Here are my top 3 reasons to check out Mafa’s illustrations:

• Gocco and Screenprinting are my latest obsession, so to see such cute illustrations on various materials is a great inspiration
• Her illustrations are quirky and have got to make you smile even on a bad day with some fab expressions
• Love the slightly muted colours

If you haven’t already then I recommend you check out the Pink Rain blog too.

Xx

When I did my gocco workshop a few weeks ago I was lucky enough to meet Charlotte Vallance, an illustrator I have been chatting with on twitter following the Sketchbook Project. This week, I have chosen to showcase Charlotte’s work for many reasons but here are my top 3:

• The detail in her Gocco printing was amazing – you could stare at her illustrations all day and find something new to smile at
• Her inspiration from her travels makes me want to visit new places and find new inspiration
• Being an interior designer I love any prints associated with architecture so Charlotte’s style is right up my street!

I hope to see more Gocco prints soon, but in the meantime there are plenty of exciting things to look at and buy in her etsy shop.

Xx

I haven’t done a Folksy Showcase Sunday for a while, but I feel motivated to do one this week as a fantastic friend has joined Folksy recently… Jessie G Designs. Jess is obviously taking to it like a duck to water as there have been 4 sales in less than a week, which comes as no surprise – I have to say I have been lucky enough to receive some of these fab cards and they are definitely worth buying. So you’d better snap up some super screenprints before they all go.

Good luck Jess!

Xx