Monday 30 March 2015

Things that made me happy in March...

Here's a little bit of March happiness...
Buys, wants, reads, bakes and more!
There have been some lovely things going on in instagram land this month; some new follows and shares here and there so I thought I'd round up some faves...
Check out these accounts for some daily eye candy!


Following...
@liefsvanmaantje
@inge_ceramics
@emmajayne_designs
Listened to...
Ed Sheeran - Sia - Noel Gallaghers High Flying Birds
Adam Lambert - Fleetwood Mac - Estate - Laura Marling
James Bay

Feasted on...
This chicken and broccoli mushroom stir fry
A yummy roast dinner with these glorious yorkshire puddings
Jamies Chilli con carne (made by the boy and a good job he did too)
This gnocchi with creamy tomato and spinach sauce

Discovered...
Beautiful lifestyle/ home accessories brand Broste, Copenhagen

Loving...
the idea of having a summer garden studio, aaaaaah bliss
this photo-shoot with a teeny tiny door..intriguing

Buying...
New books that fulfilled the brief of looking extremely pretty on our new bookcase 

and classics I want to read again or discover

Wanting...
lots of things from the house doctor catalogue, ooooooh my...
this gorgeous book
to make these very very soon

Sharing...
the prettiest Jamie Oliver magazine cover I ever did see

Crushing on...
these gorgeous colours

Reading...
The Miniaturist

Watching...
Game of Thrones season four (ooooooh)
A walk among the tombstones (Liam Neeson can do no wrong really)
Jack Reacher (pretty good)
Mockingjay part one (yes yes yes!)
Hangover III (worth the watch for Bradley Cooper alone)

Inspired by...
these beautiful colour combinations...greys and yellows, yummy

Wishing...
I was little again, and having this

Dreaming...
of travelling somewhere lovely and sunny this summer; this would do very nicely thankyou

Laughing...
at this

Baking...
Lemon curd cheesecake from the April issue of Red magazine
(the best cheesecake ever)

Enjoying...
pinning lots of lovely images to my 'nest' board
time with lovely friends when it's been too long...

Favourite things that happened...
Taking some time off with my boys, filled with days out, painting the hall and buying new furniture.
A chilled, relaxed Mothers Day with one very special lady, and the men in my life.
Being featured on Emma Jayne Designs blog
(Thanks Emma!)

So, that was a round up of my month,
how was yours?

x x x
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Friday 27 March 2015

Etsy shop find...a chat with Jane Ormes!

I can't even remember how long I've admired the work of Jane Ormes...
a good few years, let me tell you.
I'm really excited to be able to share her work with you today as part of the etsy interviews.
Jane is a designer and printmaker from Bristol and produces the most beautiful, 
whimsical artwork that she sells in her etsy shop in the form of gocco prints, 
wall art, brooches, pocket mirrors, etc...
She is also part of a collaborative called Fig, which is a shop in Bristol selling her own work alongside other craftspeople.
Jane is really well known and her handwriting style so distinctive, so I'm sure you're familiar with her work, but let's get comfy and get to know a little more about the super talented Jane Ormes...


(above image from www.boxbird.co.uk)

1. Can you tell us a bit about you and your background...

 I loved art at school , even if we did only ever draw onions and goats skulls.
I did an art foundation, and went onto Leicester Polytechnic to do Fashion and Textiles, where i specialised in Surface Pattern Design. 
I was lucky to be sponsored by the Design Council to show as a promising Graduate at Fabrex ( a large textile trade show ) and then started working freelance for a greeting card company . 
I had my children and then drifted back to work and moved into a shared studio . 
I rediscovered my love of screenprinting then and concentrated on producing prints that I wanted to hang in our new house with all its white walls! 



2. Where do you work? Describe your studio/work area...

At the moment I have a very small studio at home , but am just about to move into our loft extension to have about 4 times the space. 
I do my actual screen printing at Spike Print studio in central Bristol. 
It's great to be part of something bigger and to work alongside other printmakers who work in a variety of ways.
I've been lucky enough to have some amazing commissions; Marks and Spencer 
(I illustrated their easter packaging), Ikea, English Country Pottery, and I've just finished my first childrens book. 
I often work with an interior designer for the BBC, and my work has featured on DIY SOS several times. 



3. Can you give us an insight into your creative process?

I work primarily in collage. 
I make marks, textures and patterns and then cut and arrange them until I am happy with a composition. 
Quite often I'm inspired first by a phrase or sentence and the image comes second. 
Once I'm happy with my image I then create stencils for the screenprinting stage. 
Each colour must be separated out. 
It's sometimes the most laborious element of the process. 
Those stencils are then exposed onto a screen and the printing begins! 



(above image from www.mulberrytreegallery.co.uk)

4. What are your top three blogs?

I'm not a huge blog reader to be honest. 
I dip into Print and Pattern every now and again. 



5. Do you have a favourite book from your childhood?

I've always loved Brian Wildsmith and have built up a collection of his books. 
One of my favourites is The Circus; and there's a a beautiful book of his featuring just fish, which inspired my degree show work. 



6. Who is your design hero/ heroes and how do you stay inspired?

I love Marimekko, Orla Kiely for pattern - I'm really excited by childrens books of the 60s with their flat and limited colours.
As a designer it's very important to keep looking, collecting, cataloging images, scraps of colour, drawing and keeping sketch books.
I don't think you ever switch off as a designer - inspiration can come when you least expect it! 


7. What are you currently passionate about/ fascinated by, 
and how is it influencing your work?

I am currently working on a big hospital commission which is based in it's very rural grounds and surroundings. 
It has been lovely to design images with specific plant life and flora and fauna and to research the hospitals history.
I am also finding much inspiration from Poldark, 
especially the actor that plays him (snort).




8. I literally cannot pick a favourite item for sale in your shop, there are sooo many gorgeous things… but I do really like your gocco prints. 
Do you have a favourite? 
And whats the most popular item?

I am lucky to have a little gocco printer and those prints have been very popular. 
I still like the birds I did first when I was experimenting with it; the quail, 
the bluebirds, etc..



9. What books/ magazines are currently on your coffee table?


I subscribe to Elle Decoration and Living Etc; 
I always buy interiors magazines when I'm abroad. 




10. How would you describe your work/ style?


I will always love retro illustrations and work that has pattern and texture within it. 
My screenprints are a combination of strong composition, texture and flat colour.
Hopefully they often raise a smile.


(above image from www.mulberrytreegallery.co.uk)


11. Tell us about a typical day for you...

The children leave for school at 8, I tidy around for a bit then have a big bowl of tea 
(it has to be a bowl - no idea why!).
If it's a screenprinting day I'll get to the print studio as early as I can. 
Expose the images on to the screen, cut my paper, mix my inks and then start printing. 
I ve worked an 18 hour printing day a few times when there were nasty deadlines and I wouldn't recommend it as it's exhausting! 
If it's a design day I'll be working from home, listening to radio 6 
(my faves are Radcliffe and Maconie). 
Quite often one of my elderly cats will wander in and sit right on top of what I'm working on.

I'm also part of a cooperative and we have a shop on our local high street in North Bristol on the amazing Gloucester Rd,which is known for its large number of independent shops. 
I work there one day a week, serving customers, getting design work done and sorting out orders or wrapping work for galleries.



12. The best things in life? 
Can you list 5 things you couldn’t live without?

My family and friends ( technically 2 things but I m cheating ) 
Cocktails 
Chocolate 
Hand cream 
Beautiful pens to draw with


Thanks so much to Jane for taking the time to be part of the etsy interview.
You can follow her, and see more of Janes lovely work here...


(all images above, unless stated otherwise, are from Janes etsy shop and are copyright of Jane Ormes)

x x x


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Wednesday 25 March 2015

Midweek moodboard...

Happy hump day!
Time for a mood board me thinks...

I'm loving these colours at the moment.
I think its a sign of spring being just around the corner.
These gorgeous images show off the nice, fresh, sugary pastel shades so well.
I'm collecting all those jam jars ready to do no.5... how nice are they!
And the prettiest of pretty spoons, yum.


1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 

x x x
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Monday 23 March 2015

This & That...

An ode to the strawberry in todays post...
This yummy looking strawberries and cream no-bake cheesecake
That gorgeous strawberry print


x x x

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Friday 20 March 2015

Swiden...

As it's a happy Friday kinda day, I thought I'd share a lovely brand with you...
Swiden creates beautiful homeware and accessories, 
from cards and giclee prints to silk scarves and quilt sets.
The designer behind the brand, Charlotte Swiden, utilises hand printing, drawing, cutting and pasting within her work and creates a lovely playful feel to the products.
The colour use across the designs is gorgeous too!
Here are a few of my faves from the website and Facebook page.












 (all images above are copyright of swiden)

x x x



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Tuesday 17 March 2015

Cable & Cotton...

I've been wanting some Cable & Cotton string lights for some time now, and every time I check out their website, I fall down at the 'pick your own colours' hurdle.
Sooo much choice, soo many colour combinations!
Too much choice for someone who clearly can't make decisions lately.

Do you own a set of these wonderful lights?
Which colours did you opt for?

I'm going to do it... 
at the weekend, 
I WILL decide on a colour combination or four and order some.













x x x

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Friday 13 March 2015

Three lovely things...

Three lovely things for you today...

Loving these super pretty candles (1) from Anthropologie
'The future is bright' (2) beautiful watercolour print by Cat Coquillette
This absolutely gorgeous skirt (3) found on Sarah York Presents! Those colours, mmm



x x x

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Wednesday 11 March 2015

Colour crush...

Here's a lovely colour crush for a little mid week lift,
happy hump day!


1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

(clockwise from top left)

x x x

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Monday 9 March 2015

Moodboard Monday...

It's that time again...some moodboard loveliness for a Monday.
Have a good week everyone!



1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

x x x
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Friday 6 March 2015

Something for the weekend...Caramel upside down banana cake

This caramel banana upside down cake is to die for, seriously good.
I had a few bananas to use up, sitting there, slowly getting browner and browner as the days went on, and rather than going for the typical banana bread, I went for something more 'puddingy', and definitely wasn't disappointed.
I found the original recipe over on 'pretty simple sweet' blog.
I used greek yoghurt instead of sour cream and halved the amount of sugar in the cake (believe me, it's sweet enough with all that gooey, caramel gorgeousness, mmm)
Here are a few snaps of the end result...
(don't worry, it wasn't burnt, thats all that sticky goodness I was telling you about, nom nom nom)


(all above images copyright of louise/ loveprintstudio blog)

x x x
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Thursday 5 March 2015

Mini colour crush...

Here's a lovely mini colour crush post for your Thursday.
How beautiful is this photograph...



x x x

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Tuesday 3 March 2015

Little reminders...

We can all do with a bit of a motivational reminder right?
These lovelies were featured on designlovefest blog recently and I wasted no time in downloading a few.
I'm especially feeling the 'let yourself rest'...hell yes!
Things have been super busy lately but I'm taking some time off soon for some much needed r&r, and some time with my boys...lovely!



This one is currently adorning my desktop!




(all of the above were originally featured on design love fest and all copyright belongs to alexandra nelson of yay kindred)

x x x


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