Gnomes vs. Snowmen: The Battle for Mochimochiland

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Today I was lucky enough to attend the opening reception of Gnomes vs. Snowmen: The Battle for Mochimochiland, a brilliantly inventive and imaginary land created by fiber artist Anna Hrachovec.

The story was charming and told over 45 foot-long panels that are bursting with woollen delights. The details in the panels suck you into the chaotic and extremely cute battle scene. Want to know who won? Well you'll have to go and see it for yourselves! The exhibition runs from November 3 through to November 18th, 2011 at Gallery Hanahou.

Handmade zipper bag

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Fueled by my enjoyment of making the tote bag's from my Purl Soho class, I decided to get more adventurous and try a project from Amy Butler's Style Stitches book. The bag I decided on was the zipper Origami bag in small. This was my first project using zips, so I was a little nervous. However I really enjoyed this project, so much so that I made a few bags (they make great gifts!).

The materials I used here were: Ikea's SNÖA FLINGA fabric for the outer fabric - 100% cotton by designer S. Edholm/L. Ullenius; the lining was a striped fabric from Mood Fabrics and the zip was from Purl - a nylon coil 12" zip in Medium Grey #340. I really liked the way this one and my others turned out, however I would like to try them with a thin waterproof liner as I think they will make great make-up bags.

If you know of any good waterproof linings please let me know.

Sweet typographic umbrella

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A 'Spoonful of Sugar' is a gorgeous typographic umbrella, hand-lettered by the talented Leen Sadder for Stefan Sagmeister's class, Can Design Touch Someone's Heart at SVA.

Leen is a designer from Beirut, Lebanon and moved to New York City to attend SVA. Inspired by Mary Poppins (which happens to be one of my favourite films) she decided to reach out her hand - well umbrella - and touch the hearts of umbrella-less New Yorkers on a rainy day and gave out bags of chocolate dipped spoons, to those who accepted her shelter. I certainly think she has touched many people's lives with his beautiful umbrella, I would certainly buy it.

Images from the SVA site

A stitch in time: Reversible tote bag

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Back in September, I decided that my job was giving me no satisfaction whatsoever and that I needed to do a little learning to enrich my life more. And what better time to go 'back to school' than September?! A friend of mine, AM, had just finished a sewing class in one of my all time favourite shops in New York, Purl Soho. I didn't realise that they did sewing classes, I thought it was more of a 'stitch n' bitch' knitters helping hub, but it turns out they do much more than that. Anyways, she created this gorgeous reversible tote bag in just 3 Saturday classes, and I just had to take the class!

The class was called 'Beginning Machine Sewing I' and my class took place every Thursday night for 4 weeks, at the back of the shop. The hardest part of the course was deciding on the material I was going to use for the bag, Purl have so many fabrics to choose from, I was like a child in a sweet (candy) shop! Eventually the fabrics I choose were a brown heavyweight fabric (for the outer) and a lightweight material for the lining which was called Wild Thyme, Ecru Dots 249E by Carolyn Gavin for P&B Textiles. Unfortunately our laptop died so I lost all the photos of my bag's progress, but that just gave me the excuse to buy a small sewing machine (a Brother 60-Stitch Computerized Sewing Machine, CS-6000i) and make more bags! I've since made a mixture of one strap and two strap totes.

The fabrics for the other bags are a mixture from Purl Soho and Mood Fabrics. Mood is where the Project Runway contestants always go. I have to say that I was completely overwhelmed in there, there is just so much crammed in the 2 floors that I just had to get out as quick as I could. But you can find some great fabrics, especially for linings, at the City Quilter and for good heavyweight fabrics, Ikea, has a great selection and very reasonably priced.

I got this wonderful sewing bible from my husband for Christmas called The Sewing Book by Alison Smith (a fellow Brit as it turns out) I just couldn't wait to get stuck into a new project that I dragged my husband out of our cozy apartment, into the snow to go to Ikea to get some fabric! Well if we're going to be stuck in a blizzard, might as well be doing something productive, no? So watch this space to see some of the projects I'm trying to tackle.

My So Called Scarf

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Wow has it really been nearly 4 months since I've blogged? That is shameful...I hope now that work has calmed a bit and with the break coming up, that I will be able to rectify this. I have a ton of things I want to blog about so please bear with!

So I will begin with telling you about my new scarf. Recently I've just got back into knitting, and there has been one pattern that attempted several times but to no success. So after 5 years, I decided that now was the time to try it again, especially as last winter someone stole my gorgeously long and cosy scarf one bitter December evening.

I found the My So Called Scarf pattern on this blog while searching for a fun scarf to knit, and it turns out that the pattern originally came from a San Fransisco knitting shop called Imagiknit. They were giving the pattern away free with any purchase of the Manos del Uruguay wool. I was drawn by the interesting pattern and the gorgeous colours but I just couldn't knit it! It actually turned out to be a very simple pattern, and one that I very much enjoyed knitting.

The best thing about this scarf is that with each purchased skein of Manos del Uruguay yarn you will be helping a woman support her family. The hand-crafted and hand-dyed Fair Trade yarns are each signed by the woman who made your yarn and the village she comes from, so not only is it beautiful, but you are helping someone as well.

The original pattern was knitted in Wildflowers (113), however I decided to go for Bramble (114) as it was more autumnal and I bought mine from Purl Soho. Get the pattern here. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Background Noise

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I'm not a fan of wallpaper, in general, especially when a room has been wallpapered floor to ceiling. I've seen too many wallpaper disasters in my time. But if you must wallpaper, then an accent wall with a stylish pattern is always welcome. For me wallpaper should make you want to look twice which is why I love Dan Funderburgh's designs - which are available to buy here. He also designed some Moleskine covers which you can buy from Engrave Your Book.

Another wallpaper design that definitely makes you look twice is Paper Voyeur's flora and fornication range - as Lascivious so perfectly put it; this wallpaper imbues "European eroticism with a sprinkling of English reserve, these wallpapers nod to the florid romance of Mucha or Beardsley - an outline of the idea without the pink bits."

This unique collection of wallpaper was designed by the British design studio, DED and is popular with stores such as Agent Provocateur and Coco De Mer. Enjoy!

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Paperfinger

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Since my wedding I have developed an interest in calligraphy, and Bryn Chernoff - the very talented lady behind Paperfinger - is one of the best modern calligraphers that I've stumbled upon. What I also like about this Brooklynite's penmanship is that she also incorporates hand drawn designs which are great for extra personalisations to any wedding or event invites. Click the image to see the details and her beautiful lettering. Please check out her site and her blog too.

Images taken from Paperfinger.

Don't judge a bag by it's cover

I recently read an article by a friend of mine who writes for the Salon.com, about a bag design dispute concerning Kate Spade. On googling this topic, I found that it was being discussed everywhere...

In August of this year, Kate Spade is launching a set of clutches based on "classic book covers" such as The Great Gatsby, Emma, The Importance of Being Earnest, Great Expectations, and A Tale of Two Cities. "The brand will release the 'volumes' one at a time as a sort of Book-of-the-Month Club"*. However these handbags aren't launching without controversy...


Not that long ago, French designer Olympia Le-Tan, launched a collection of clutches called You Can't Judge a Book by its Cover in Autumn of 2009. Obviously Olympia is not happy with Spade's choice of bags and feels that the design house has copied her style.


Le Tan is passionate about books, something which was ingrained during her childhood by her book collector father. She was inspired by her favourite first edition classic covers such as The Catcher in The Rye, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Moby Dick, 1984 as well as 17 other covers.

Le Tan's bags are close copies of the original first editions and it's undeniable that more craft have gone into their creations compared to Spades - for a start Le Tan only made 16 bags for each 21 covers; each made of embroidered silk with colorful felt appliqué. Spade's are new illustrated versions of their books and printed to look worn and will obviously be massed produced. But I have to say, that I don't think the idea was 'stolen' from Le Tan - the outcome is very different: differently crafted, different book covers and I'm guessing a very different price tag - although the retail price of Spade's bags haven't been disclosed yet I'm imagining that they will be the more 'affordable' of the two as Le Tan's bags cost $1,500.

I googled 'book bags' and got copious results for etsy shops and crafters. As the saying goes (and I don't entirely agree with it): there is no such thing as a new idea and Olympia and Mrs Spade are certainly not the first nor the last to have the same idea and it seem that for years people have been transforming books into bags. Michelle Pulis, a young designer who has been creating bag tomes out of actual books since 2008:


Here’s a lovely book tote bag designed by Lizania Cruz, that will unzip to become a handy shopping bag. Lizania creates many beautiful items for Anthropologie.


However I can see why Le Tan feels this way; her collection came out very recently and these gorgeous literary purses are her livelihood whereas Kate Spade is a much bigger cog and doesn't need the cash. If I were Le Tan I would take it as a compliment and reel from the amount of press this issue has received. If I could afford it, I would certainly choose a bag that had been handcrafted by a smaller fashion house over a mass produced one as it's more individual, and I'm sure she hasn't had a shortage of interest. Despite this all, I'm still a big fan of Kate Spade (and even her husband's shop - Jack Spade - is gorgeous too) and I constantly enjoy the visual feast I encounter every time I walk into the stores!

(*) Quoted from the Vanity Fair online article.
Images of the Kate Spade collection also sourced from this article.

Owls Have More Fun

I was recommended by a friend to go to the opening night of Owls Have more Fun, and as soon as I saw the show's title I couldn't agree more, I just had to go! Owls Have...is Lisa Grue's solo show in NYC, at gallery hanahou. The show runs from 25th February - Friday 26th March 2010.

For the show the Danish artist mixes bold neon colours with images of nature (and of course owls a plenty) to create beautiful designs for the home such as a very large rug; 80 one off hand-printed porcelain plates and an enormous custom made wallpaper mural allowing you to submerge into her fantasy world.

I adored the wallpaper and rug but I'd have to say that my favourite was the hand illustrated and printed plates. The contrast of owls, words, nature, neon pom poms with the black and white imagery is just fab. There is also something about seeing objects en masse that I just love.


"Lisa, known for her playful and sometimes shocking illustrations that mix girlishness with feminism, puts her spin on owl and nature motifs, surrounding viewers with a magical world via domestic objects...Lisa's powerful and fun illustrations remind viewers to never forget the magic in everyday life. In addition, they make a statement to girls and women that wisdom and beauty go hand in hand." - gallery hanahou

Lisa's works isn't all owl focused, she has designed many pieces for graphic design, illustration and fashion magazines and labels. However she chose owls as her subject for this show as she wants to encourage women and young girls to "take pride in being clever in general, instead of acting like stupid bunnies to get attention."

Lisa was recently honored as one of the new design talents of Denmark, with a grant from the National Art Foundation of Denmark. To see more of her work check out her website and her blog.

Cupid's needle

Those of you who know me, know that I'm not really a big fan of Valentine's Day, however saying that I still think it's important to share your feelings and what better way to do it than immortalise them in cross stitch?

Alexia Brown from Chicago did just that with her Notebook Cross Stitch Hoop Wall Art. Using 6'' vintage hoops she cross stitches a notebook pattern into Aida fabric, and then stitches witty words on top of that. They are made so that you can hang them nicely on your wall. Alexia plans to create personalised notes, in the near future, for her customers such as "will you marry me?" or "i'm dumping you". To purchase her hoop wall art click to see her etsy shop here, all funds go towards her education.

Hoot-enanny!

Top row (l-r): Accessorize necklace; Owl Party paper art by Helen Musselwhite; Fingerless gloves by Manic Knitter; Thank You card by Kate Sutton.

2nd row (l-r): Cupcakes; clock by Decoylab; Paperchase stationery range; Where the Wilds things are cushion from Urban Outfitters.

3rd row (l-r): Mr Owl by Matte Stephens; Charley Harper's Twowls; Sweater by
Kate Davies (also includes free pattern); Wall vinyl by One Up Design's.

Bottom row (l-r): The Little Owl restaurant NYC; Cast-iron trivet from Three Potato Four; Door stop by Rose & Grey.

Happy New Year! and farewell 2009: the year of owls or so it seems...they kept appearing everywhere. Above is a small collection of owl things that I have spotted throughout 2009 and I wanted to share it with you, being that I am the intrepid owl.

I've always liked owls but it wasn't until I cleared out my mum's loft (attic) of my childhood memorabilia that I realised how far back it went...I actually owned a fair amount of owl ephemera. The list of owl 'things' included: 3 stuffed owl toys - ascending in height- from the 1970s (a hand me down from my mum), a photo of me with a tawny owl from when the owl man came to my primary school, a small stained glass window disc, pencil tops, a bag, a t-shirt, a small ceramic owl and the list just went on. I also found one of my favourite childhood books up there: The Owl Who Was a Afraid of the Dark by Jill Tomlinson - I still love the cover of this book!

I really liked owls and I guess I still do, hope 2010 is good for you.

Knitted monsters

Whilst having a photo clear out, I found images of knitted monsters I created a couple of years ago. Having grown up on Sesame Street, I have a fondness for cute monsters and I was inspired to knit some once I saw The Thifty Knitter's adorable own creation, Thrifty Critter with Long Striped Scarf, who is made out of scraps and leftover bits of yarn. How cute is he?!


I knew I couldn't knit something as lovely as the Critter, but I decided to make up my own pattern and see what would come out of it (I'd only been knitting for a year at this point, so I really jumped in feet first)...they turned out ok in the end, slightly mis-shapen, but that adds to the homemade charm!

Stephane Halleux

I recently got sent a link to Stephane Halleux's website, and I'm very pleased to have had the pleasure! The Belgium sculptor has developed a fascination with robotics, be it characters; animals; cars; flying objects or chairs. His style has a strong Steampunk feel to it - kind of Lemony Snicket's: A Series of Unfortunate Events mixed with Tim Burton's quirky creativity.







These cyborganic sculptures are created with with mixed medias such as leather, metal, wood pulp and salvaged materials. They look so fragile, especially the thin legged models and would work beautifully in a stop motion animation film. Although I'm not sure if the sculptures are malleable or can be easily turned into animatronics. See his website for more images and close ups of his spectacular mechanical curiosities.

Tea & Make {a great British fete}

Yesterday we went to the Tea & Make event which is a celebration of regionally-made craft and making-do from South East London.

There were some lovely stalls there with a variety of things from local honey to ceramics to jewellery and toys. There were also free workshops such as how to make your own monster, learning how to felt and making mini kites. They had a small but great variety of some of the best designer-makers and creators working in Britain today.

My personal favourite was Cornelia O'Donovan who made such fabulous toy animals. She teaches print making at Middlesex Uni, and uses many of her designs on fabrics and incorporates them in her soft animals.


I also very much liked the creations of Polly George as she specialises in intricate homeware ceramics. Very lovely!