Caterpiller cage...

Ok, so after all my talking of getting creative over the weekend I got a little lazy. I did however have a little go at a computer collage - printing images over the top of one another. This is the result....I likey...you likey?

Get the creative juices flowing...

Recently I have had a huge desire to start sketching/painting/collaging again for myself. Working in a creative, albeit corporate environment all day let's me express myself to a certain degree but clean technical drawings and photoshop are not what I grew up loving. I used to spend hours and hours of my childhood sketching and interpreting anything I could find, I would create wonderfully mazes in my school maths book (I had, and still have a mini obsession with geometry and the symmetrical delight of squared paper).

Over Xmas I made myself a beautiful black, suede covered sketchbook (which I should show you in another post). Now comes the time to fill it!! I've been drawn to collage recently, not because of the huge trend for collage in fashion editorials now but purely because of the instant nature of it, and the speed with which you can quickly create an amazing visual, which I will use as a base to start sketching or painting.

Matthew Craven is a mixed media artist who reworks vintage photographs, giving them a new graphic quality.

Maurizio Anzeri is another mixed media artist who works into vintage photographs, but he uses embroidery and string-art techniques to add an eerie dimension to the portraits.

Charlotte Cory is an artist and writer who counts the Queen among her customers! She also has a collaboration with All Saints at the moment on a range of t-shirts baring her prints (if only they had men's versions!). She is also currently exhibiting here in London at the Rebecca Hossack Gallery.

Pattern Magic: the book

I've been a bit naughty and ordered myself TWO new books, even though I am practically penniless at the moment. I could not help myself, and I am in no doubt that you will agree with me. They are volume 1 and volume 2 of 'Pattern Magic', a Japanese pattern cutting book. It talks you through different techniques and methods of creating the most beautiful shapes within clothing.

There is a Flickr group with the same title, and below are some images from the talented people who have already tried and tested this book. I'll be posting my attempts when it arrives, but until then, feast your eyes...

(source)

I made my boy a throw

Christmas during a recession requires hand-made gifts. Cue patchwork...

Click to look at a bigger image, blogger doesn't like me today!

Cr'afternoon

Every now and then in my flat we have a cr'afternoon. The name pretty much speaks for itself, and this weekend with no money and with a pinch of inspiration, I had a go at customising some plain white plimsolls. The idea originally came from fashion156.com and thought I'd give it a go for myself, as I'm in desperate need of some summer shoes. I don't usually wear plimsolls as they are all over the place at the moment, but they work perfectly as a blank canvas and a bargain at �5 from the plimsoll man (notice the sign above his little shop) just off Brick Lane, London!

I decided to go for a more random approach, rather than painting a delicate design, creating a more 'natural' look and not needing to spend painstaking hours fiddling about with paints. At least this way someone might actually think I was a working artist or something equally credible.

Maybe I got a little bit too carried away with the paints...should I have stuck to just yellow? It was so quick and easy I just couldn't stop myself. Disappointingly though, I wore them to work on Monday and not one person even noticed (though they are a little backward when it comes to menswear, and tend to only comment on the ugly things I wear...unless seriously 'out-there'). I don't even wear plimsolls...ever! Pah. Maybe I should stick to womenswear? I'm not too sure about the overall outcome, but hey it was fun, cheap and I have my own little pair of unique shoes...who can complain?