Monday, December 21, 2009

M e a d o w l a r k . . . .

While in New Zealand, I came across the beautiful jewellery work of Meadowlark. Swoon! I'm currently trying to chose some charms for my bracelet but am finding it really tricky to narrow my selection down to an affordable number!! Meadowlark also have a blog with lots of lovely things, including behind the scenes posts such as the process of designing and making the beautiful Protea Ring above. Clever bunnies.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

I'm back....

Ok, so I didn't even tell you I was going anywhere. Things were so crazy before I left for New Zealand that I didn't have a chance to say goodbye. Forgive me? I promise to make it up to you with regular posts (as soon as I catch up on my blog reading!). How are you all?! :D xo

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Shards....

I'm leaving all the creativity to mum at the moment (see previous posts for whining about work commitments). She's currently undertaking a mosaic project and I took the opportunity to rummage through her collection of broken crockery. My favourite pieces are the ones with the manufacturer's stamps, so I thought I'd share one with you.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Lowercase el....

While I'm busy working like crazy (that moment of relief was fleeting), I recommend you visit the new blog of the lovely Elly. She shares the pages of her beautiful visual diaries which she's been putting together pretty much since we met (and that means a couple of decades). I have swooned over these diaries many many many times, and am super chuffed that she's sharing them with you all.

(Psst! - Remember Elly's beautiful wedding earlier in the year?).

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

More dots?....

Are the dot-themed posts wearing thin yet? Ok, so this is a bit of a stretch, but I've beaded the embroidery I've been working on and there's a certain dottiness about it. I'll show you the full piece when I'm done. I don't recommend the holding of breath.

(Psst! - the fabric is by Cicada Studio).

Sunday, November 1, 2009

More dots....

I went to a tasting of the Top 50 West Australian wines (according to the recent Qantas Wine Awards) last week. I'd like to say that I chose wines based on careful consideration of aroma, palate, hue, balance, body, finish, taste, texture, blah, blah, blah, but if I'm being honest, I check out the label design too. The labels of Harewood Estate caught my eye. The wines we tasted had a label similar to the one shown above, but without the rabbit. All those perfect dots!

The bonus is that the wine was great too (so much so that we're ordering a case), which surely vindicates my wine selection process? One of my dream jobs would be to design wine labels. My partner's a winemaker so it's not that far out of the realms of possibility, is it? You can see my very first label here.

Salut!

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Dots....

Well there may be no time for creativity in these parts, but I did find the time to catch up on some online reading. It was at Bloesem that I came across the image above. Love it! It's by Melanie Brument, a French ceramic and textile artist. You must check out her work on her blog (it helps if you understand French). I came across this image when I had a look:
That's my birthday! Ok, only if the French use dd.mm.yy like we do here. :)

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Invisible....

Well, I'm certainly invisible in blog-land these days. My apologies to those of you who wait with bated breath for me posts (anyone?). The previously-mentioned day job is taking over, but relief is in sight, though not for a week or so. Please come and visit again soon.

(Psst! - the above is the work of Chinese artist Liu Bolin, known as "the invisible man". Be sure to google him for lots of amazing photos and information).

Friday, October 9, 2009

Rest in Peace Aislinn....

You may have seen my post last week about a fundraiser for Aislinn Andrews and her ongoing cancer treatment. I didn't know Aislinn personally, but it with huge sadness that I post now to share that she passed away on the day of the art action, one day shy of her 30th birthday.

My thoughts are with her family and friends. xo

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

A motley brew & catch 22....

Hmm, I'm not sure what appeals to me more - the print or the pun? This letterpress print, "A Motley Brew", is available from Bespoke Press. It's by Grace Lee, illustrator for Inside Out magazine (new issue out today!). The catch 22? - the real reason I'm sharing this with you is to increase my chance of winning 10 limited edition prints! But sharing with you means you might enter which means I have less chance of winning. Damn it!

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

It's business time....

(Now don't tell me you're not singing Flight of the Concords right about now). I've just finished a small business course and want to keep up the motivation to learn more (with the hope of one day finding time to dedicate to "alex sunday", the company). The lovely Bec, editor of blanket magazine, sent me a fantastic link to Australian Design Unit. Oh lordy! - so much top quality information! I'd tell you all about it, but if you're in the creative business, maybe you should just go and take a look for yourself.

Monday, October 5, 2009

Cicada Therapy....

Remember when I won some fabric swatches from Cicada Studio about 6 months ago? Well they've turned out to be a godsend. As regular readers will be aware, my day job in the exciting world of mechanical engineering (please note sarcasm) is currently sapping all my time and energy. I needed to find something to help switch my brain off on the commute home so that I could leave it all behind. Embroidery to the rescue! I've stitched around almost all the circles so far. I've never done this before, and i'm not sure how good a job I'm doing (I think my stitches are too small), but the therapeutic side is working a treat! I'll keep you posted as I progress. Thanks Michelle!

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

FundrAislinn....

Apologies for my infrequent posts of late. Things are hectic! Not with fun stuff unfortunately. But this is something I thought I should let you know about. This fundraiser will raise money for Aislinn Andrew's ongoing cancer treatment. You can find out more at the official site (and peruse the amazing high quality artwork up for auction) and learn a little more about Aislinn at her candid blog, The Young and the Breastless.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

It's all about me....

I've been thinking about my name a lot lately. Well, not my name, but my business name. What business? Well behind the scenes here at the sunday project, things are happening. Slowly sure, but they are happening. I'm doing a small business course and thinking about what I'd like the sunday project to become. It's exciting but also a little frustrating because the sunday project is a parttime thing that I think about fulltime. I just have to be patient (and so do you, I'm afraid). Stay tuned....

(Psst! - this cup - 95c from Ikea - has been drawn on using the ceramic pens I wrote about yesterday. The bacon pencil case in the background is made from the below-par panels printed for these cushions).

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Anyone for teacups?....

Teacup by Esther Coombs
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Since starting the sunday project, I've found how much I love ceramics. It should come as no surprise - I'm a homewares addict. Alas, I'm not in a position to play around with decals at the moment, so to satisfy my desire to design I bought some ceramic pens. What fun! You just draw your design, wait 24 hours, then cook for 35 minutes in a 150 degrees Celsius oven. Easy! Oh, and the pens come in 2 thicknesses and 8 colours. I'm not really a talented enough drawer to do anything particularly interesting, which is why I'm showing off the work of Ester Coombes (here's her etsy shop)- love it!

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

More thanks....

Another lucky win for me! Last week, to celebrate the arrival of spring here in the southern hemisphere, Pigeonhole gave away 10 flower necklaces. And one came to me! I'm not the girliest-girl and would never think to buy something like this (and would never think to go for peachy-pink), but maybe that's why I love it so much. I had planned to model it myself, but got camera shy. Look for me strutting around town wearing it though. Thanks Pigeonhole!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Thank you....

You might recall that last month my plates were chosen as the 200th post on a plate a day. My prize was the beautiful plate above, handmade and painted by Mignon Khargie, the site's curator. It is even more amazing than I expected (and this photo really doesn't do it justice). Thanks Mignon!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

United Steaks of America....

Ha ha, given my well documented fascination with meat (gosh, i'm a horrid vegetarian), I just had to share this with you. Found at swissmiss.

Postnote: This is the work of photographer Dominic Episcopo (is that not THE coolest surname?!). I've been perusing his website and blog - what a talent! I love the boxing photos he took for Everlast. And his still lifes are superb.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Lovelyprettycheerythings....

You know how you come across blogs every now and then and you feel like you'd happily share a pot of tea (or bottle of tequila) with the blogger? (The last time it happened to me was here). Well, that's how I feel about lovelyprettycheerythings. Nicola writes like I think (and what's not to love about that?!). And she finds some lovelyprettycheerythings to share with us all. Ooh, and she does magical things with beautiful flowers here. What a clever girl.

Monday, September 7, 2009

Birds & the bees....

Wow, I am really slipping behind in the Amerlie & Atticus Photo Challenge. Not to worry, I think I need to just take part when I can. These photos are for last month's Birds & the Bees theme. Does the style look familiar? They're a tribute to the beautiful animal portraits by Sharon Montrose! I couldn't stop at birds, so here are a few four legged friends too. Have a great week!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Superheroes & Villains!....


Ok, so I'm running behind on my Amelie & Atticus Photo Challenge. Forgive me! The day-job is TAKING OVER MY LIFE. No time for reading my favourite blogs even! So I'm very far behind on what all of you are up to "out there". Anyhoo, back to matters at hand....

These shots are for the Superheroes & Villains theme. Now I'm not particularly knowledgeable on the subject, so had to scout out a suitable model. I could not have hoped for a more compliant one! Stay tuned - I might manage to catch up on the rest of this months challenges on the weekend....

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Consume!....

Cover artwork by Adam Nickel.
Oh my! I'm way too busy at the day-job to do anything even remotely creative, so it's good news that the latest issue of blanket magazine is here! This way, I can at least read about creative people and aspire to one day join their ranks. Of course, I'm sturggling to find the time to read it, but I can at least look at the pretty pictures. Get yours here.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Black & white....

This month's theme for the Amelie & Atticus Photo Challenge is 'Couplings', with the first week being black & white. As I don't allow any photshopping of my images for this challenge, I've tried to take colour photos which look like they could be b&w photos (does that make sense?). I think I've pulled it off - when you look at my photos with the rest of the uploads on flickr, some of which are definitely coverted to black & white, I think they fit in pretty well (though I'm not convinced they work as a foursome).

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Are there no original ideas?....

Ok, that's a bit dramatic perhaps. It stems from 2 things I've found online today. Firstly, via a bit of a blog link journey, I came across this story of plagiarism to the extreme. An amazing Chicago-based artist Lauren Nassef (that's her drawing, above) has been blatently copied by a UK textile artist. This was not a case of one artist being inspired by another, but of a person stealing designs in such a calculated manner. Read the first link to see examples. It's shocking and indisputable. And also very sad.

I moved on to the black apple, a blog I visit every few months. There I found some adorable alphabet prints. The conundrum? I've been working on something so very similar for the past 3 months! I know the 2 situations don't compare as I certainly didn't see the black apple's designs until today, but it made me feel a little bit unoriginal. I think I'll keep working on my alphabet, as I'd like to see it through (plus, there's a bit of a twist). Ho-hum.

**postnote: It appears Lauren Nassef isn't the only victim. For a follow-up, see this post at Book By Its Cover**

Happy birthday to me....

Yesterday was my birthday and the lovely Mr Stink took me out for tapas at the new Andaluz tapas bar in the city last night. Oh my, how delicious! It's great that Perth is finally getting some kickass little bars to stop us all from moving to Melbourne. Thanks babe! xx

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

One spoon or two....

I bought some lovely sugarbowls recently. 60, to be exact. They are so creamy and smooth and I just couldn't resist! But don't worry - I haven't lost the plot. They're for my new ceramic decal designs which I've been toiling away at when I find the time.

I've got 3 different design ideas on the go at the moment, and all will be done (in due course) using the same technique I used for these.

I'll show off the first design idea later this week. I hope you like it. :)

Monday, August 3, 2009

Something to remember....

I read a lot of blogs. I love following people through their creative pursuits to get an understanding of the process. The blogs I read are generally of people who do their creative stuff for a living full time and that's where the problem starts. I work full time at a completely uncreative job (career, even) and when I read all this inspiring stuff, I forget that these people don't have to squeeze in what they do between 50 hours a week of uninspiring stuff. So this post is just a reminder to me (and maybe to you?) not to be too hard on myself when I don't accomplish as much as I would like to for the sunday project. And to perhaps be more realistic about what I can (and can't) achieve.

It's also a good time to reflect on what the sunday project means to me, and with that in mind I'm trying to address that pesky work-life-sundayproject balance which is pretty off skew these days. I've got some exciting things coming up this month which will hopefully help me change my focus a little. Fingers crossed.

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Green (finally)....

I really struggled with green for the Amelie & Atticus Photo Challenge. I tried to photograph the winter landscape but I just couldn't do it justice. I tried plants on sand dunes - no good. In the end I folded some green paper and worked with that. I still don't love the results (partly because the green is so yellow) but it's time to move on to the next challenge! Be sure to take a look at all the July photos on flickr, especially those of ernie.louise who is this month's winner.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Still blue....

James Poggin 1991-2009
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On the weekend, our beloved Jimmy passed away. He was heading towards his 18th birthday but somehow we still weren't ready for it. He will be so hugely missed. I'm so glad that we've had some fun in the past 6 months, and took him to the beach just last weekend. He even managed to enjoy a pig's ear (a favoured treat) the day before he died.

You might remember that Jimmy did a brilliant job of selecting my giveaway winner earlier this year. I thought I'd take this opportunity to remember a few Jimmy stories so I can come back and read them whenever I feel sad. Grab a cuppa - this is going to be long.

Jimmy was originally my step-sister's dog and that's where he was ruined. From day one, he slept on her bed and ate whatever he liked. He never took to being disciplined, and nor did anyone put much effort into it. I think he may have attended puppy school but I'm sure that's just where he learned about snacks.

Over the years, with the comings and goings of family members (we tend to move countries as often as most people move houses) Jimmy came under the watchful eye of our parents. I think they attempted to set down some ground rules, but Jimmy was a good manipulator (far more cunning than he often appeared).

When he moved in with me about 10 years ago he was still carrying on like a puppy (in fact, that only changed in the last year). The day he moved in, he came barrelling down the hallway, pissed on the kitchen doorway, then ran outside and jumped into the pond. He always loved the water (and a few weeks later, when the neighbours installed a pond, he broke into their yard for a swim).

He was a bit of an escape artist, and for a while was escaping daily though we couldn't work out how. It turns out he was getting over the back fence (using a pile of wood as a ramp) where he would eat the food of the 3-legged dog living there before kicking the dog out of it's doghouse so he could have a nap and some shelter from the rain. Too rude! Especially considering he had food and shelter at home! We put a stop to that as soon as we figured out how he was escaping - thankfully the owner of the little 3-legged dog was quite forgiving (but did take our phone number in case it happened again).

Jimmy returned from one of these unsolicited trips one day with a bag of minced meat. We can only assume someone had left it on a windowsill to thaw and he just couldn't resist (thought I doubt he tried very hard to).

His most famous escape was a few years earlier when he was living in Kalgoorlie with our parents. He went missing for a few days. There were tears as we thought he'd gone forever, lost to the bush. He returned one morning, and mum heard him bark. She ran out excitedly and gave him a hug - only to find (too late) that he was covered in shit. The 2 of them had to be hosed down outside. Rolling in stinky stuff was another of Jimmy's favourite pasttimes.

About 8-10 years ago, 2 of my closest friends got puppies and Jimmy became their teacher. Jimmy's can-do attitude taught his little friend Olive not to be afraid of the park and how to roll in stinky stuff (the 2 of them found a rotting bird to roll in when Olive was just a tiny thing, and they proudly came to show us - it took days to wash that stink out). Jimmy was like a dad to little Edie, with the 2 of them sharing a house in Edie's first year. If anything, this rekindled Jimmy's love for chewing on squeaky puppy toys, though not his ability to share them.

His internal clock was impeccable - dinner was at 5pm and his reminder was a single bark. He even adjusted for daylight savings. He also knew that breakfast brought snacks, and if we hit snooze too many times, he'd bark at us to GET UP!

As Jimmy hit his teens, we'd say things like "this will be his last Christmas" but he kept proving us wrong. I think his recent years in tropical New Caledonia worked wonders for his aging joints, and the laidback lifestyle suited him just fine. His eyes had started to fail him by then, and it was a relief that mum had retired so she could become his guide. He spent his last few years following her like a shadow. But please don't think he was a frail old man! He still enjoyed "rough games" and racing into the water at the beach.

Suddenly, he was an old man. He had fatty lumps, a dodgy shoulder, horrid breath, cataracts. He wasn't exactly the adorable puppy he had once been, but he was still so beautiful and I would certainly put up with his breath for a cuddle. And the important thing is that he was happy right to the end. When his time came, it was thankfully swift and peaceful.

I'm going to miss him so much and don't know that I'll ever meet another dog like him. I doubt it - he was one of a kind. xx

Monday, July 27, 2009

Blue....

Better late than never, right? Blue photos for the A&A Challenge. Green photos in the next couple of days, then I promise I'll stick to the schedule! You can see all the submissions here.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Wasabi Wagyu anyone?....

A chip company here in Australia is running a competition to find a new chip flavour. Mr Stink came up with Wasabi Wagyu so I thought I'd whip up an entry and submit it. I'm not really convinced that it's a winner, but I do think it's funny. My photoshop skills are very amateur, but I managed to turn a photo I took in New Zealand into a green cow, so I'm learning.

This week has flown by and suddenly I'm off on a mini-break tonight! We're heading to wine country, so I anticipate a few days of wine and cheese and warming fires. It means you'll have to wait until next week to see my new designs. Plus I still haven't posted my blue photos for the A&A Challenge, so you can expect the blues and the greens when I return on Tuesday.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

In shock....

You may recall that I recently wrote about a competition being hosted on a plate a day to find the 200th plate for the blog. Imagine my surprise when I found my plates have been chosen! I'm still a bit overwhelmed, as there were some brilliant entries, all of which will make an appearance on the blog in the coming weeks. A big thank you to judge Karen Templer for appreciating my sense of humour, and to painted fish studio for nominating me. I'm so looking forward to receiving my prize! Must sit down, feeling giddy. :D

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Blue delay....

So I'm not quite ready to post my blue photos for the Amelie & Atticus Challenge. I'm just not happy with what I've done, so give me a day or 2. Ok? :)

Monday, July 20, 2009

Hoorah!....

For the first time in a very long time, the sunday project had a constructive weekend! The extremely wet weather meant I couldn't be distracted as easily as I usually am, and as a result I accomplished things I've had on my "to do" list for a very long time. Having said that, I'm not going to show you any of them today (what a tease!).

Instead I'd like to share the sketchbook of Alex Eben Meyer which was a feature over at Design*Sponge last week. I love his style and wish I could draw like this. I need a LOT more practice.

I'll be back during the week to show you what I've been working on....

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Red....

Ok, so I'm a little late posting my photos for the Amelie & Atticus Challenge - it's turning out to be one of those weeks. Forgive me.

This week's colour was red (obviously) and I thought I'd stick with a theme - fire hydrants (again, kind of obvious). I pass plenty of hydrants on my way to the office every morning so finding them wasn't a problem, and it was a good exercise in overcoming the embarassment of taking photos of odd things amidst peak-hour foot-traffic in the city.

I've imposed some rules of my own on the A&A Challenge. Namely, all images must be in portrait orientation and no cropping or adjustment is permitted. It means I have to put more thought into the composition when I'm taking photos which can only be a good thing. You can see what the rest of the challengers submitted here.

(P.S. Don't blame me if your dog pees on your computer).

Friday, July 10, 2009

One little studio....

I'm taking part in some reciprocal blog love today. I was super chuffed when Kylie over at one little studio wrote about the sunday project on her blog today. I've been meaning to do a post about Kylie's blog for a while but was just waiting for her posts to be a little more frequent! Kylie is a freelance graphic designer/illustrator and Sarah Blasko lover. At the moment she's showcasing lots of beautiful finds, but I'm looking forward to her showing off some more of her own brilliant work. I bet you all are too....

Thursday, July 9, 2009

i heart diem chau....

For me, last week's exposé of ceramics just wasn't enough - I missed out so many people I admire! So I'm back with another one. This plate is the work of Diem Chau. Isn't it brilliant?! It appears to be an embroidered plate. I've figured out how it's done, but won't spoil the illusion. She also has a blog and a great flickr set of her art. You MUST go and take a look at her carved crayons! Go on!

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Blanket update....

As you may know, I'm a contributor over at the blanket magazine blog. It's a great outlet for me to share some of the cool stuff I find on the net and around town - but you know that because you read all my posts! I thought I'd give you a couple of updates - firstly, you can now subscribe to the magazine for $12USD per year (what a frickin' bargain!), and you have one more week to get your submission in for inclusion in the next issue. Go for it!

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Yellow....

I was doing my usual rounds of blogs and sites last week when I came across something on the wonderful Frankie site. Amelie and Atticus is a blog running a year long challenge which started on the 1st of July. To copy+paste out of sheer laziness: "Each week there will be a challenge to take 4 photos and create 1 craft project in response to a given theme". This month's theme is colour, and the first week's colour is yellow. Things are just getting started, but you'll be able to check out the photos here.

For this week's challenge, I wanted to have a play with blur. I've noticed that I've been admiring blurry photos lately, so I thought I'd take some of my own. Check them out on flickr if you're wondering what they are....

Monday, July 6, 2009

How timely....

Thanks to a twittering Skinny laMinx, I now know about A plate a day. The blog is hosting a contest for post #200. You just need to comment with a url to your favourite plate and you could win the beautiful plate above in return. Obviously the problem is picking a favourite plate. I know you'll all pick one of my plates, but what will I pick!! :P

Friday, July 3, 2009

I heart trixie delicious....

I love these plates. They make me laugh. Each one is a vintage handpainted plate, so you know it's unique. Trixie is based in New Zealand and when I was living there I often saw her work at markets and regret not buying myself a piece. Not to worry - I'll be back there at the end of the year so will track something down for my new kitchen. Besides, if Trixie's work is good enough for Meg White of The White Stripes, then it's good enough for me.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

I heart karin & camilla....

Further to my last ceramic-love post, I bring you the work of Karin Eriksson, and more specifically her collaboration with Camilla of Studio Violet. These works are from their show last year, and they're currently working on their next show which will be held at manos (in Solna, Sweden) next month. I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with (online only unfortunately). Karin is also the brains behind manos. Impressive.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

I heart studio violet....

Now I'm not into cutesy design, but I love the ceramics by Studio Violet. They are so lovely! Again, hard to limit myself to showing off just a few photos, so be sure to take a look at their site for more lovely shots.

Studio Violet use the same technique that I used for creating my plates, so I'm interested from that perspective also. And I love the colours they choose.

(Studio Violet are Camilla Engman and Elizabth Dunker, who both have great blogs too).