Friday 24 October 2014

Blog Hop

My lovely friend and fellow designer Mel of Mel Smith Designs, has asked me to take part in this blog hop.

Following on from me will be the talented Briony from Blooming Briony.

Both Mel and Briony will be at East London Design Festival this December, so be sure to pop by and say hello!

What have you been making at your desk this week?

This week has involved me starting a new collection, so I've been doing a lot of drawing (always starting with good old pen and pencil to get my ideas down)



Next I'll scan all the artwork in and start adding colour, designing a few different pattern and motif options. I'm wanting to transfer the new designs onto some stationery products and maybe turn them into a new card collection.  I'm not quite sure yet, so once I've start playing around on the computer with the drawings, I normally start to get more ideas and sometimes get that light bulb moment for a new idea.

I have also got a recent delivery from the printers, so I have been putting off sorting and folding the cards for over two weeks. So I thought it was about time I got to it!! 

Where am I currently finding my inspiration?

Currently for the new collection I'm designing, I've been looking through my own photographs of my trips out.  I often visit National Trust places in Kent for inspiration and love going to RHS flower shows, most recently Hampton Court Flower show in the summer.

Here are some of my photographs that have been inspiring me.







How important is being creative to you and how do you blend this with your work/life/family balance?

Being creative is very important, but sometimes when you work for yourself the admin side of the business can start to take over, so you have to try and find a balance. At the moment I work from my spare room, which is great but can sometimes be overtaken by boxes of stock and packaging, especially if I'm preparing for a craft fair.

I think you have to be very strict if you are freelancing at home and try and pretend to have "working hours". It can be very easy to work all the time, but you really need to have some relaxation time. 

Thursday 13 June 2013

Freya Art and Design

One of my latest design crushes is with Freya Art and Design.

I recently saw her work when visiting Pulse in May and fell in love with her colours and designs! My favourite piece has to be the elephant wooden mobile, just gorgoues!!

All the products shown below can be purchased from Freya's Etsy shop!


image © Freya Art and Design

image © Freya Art and Design

image © Freya Art and Design




image © Freya Art and Design

image © Freya Art and Design

image © Freya Art and Design

image © Freya Art and Design

Tuesday 7 May 2013

New Etsy Shop

It's taken me a while, but I have finally opened an Etsy shop!  Here's a few pictures of my most popular products, which I have added to the shop.







Friday 22 February 2013

Out and about - South Bank and Greenwich

Sometimes I forget how much I love going out wandering in London.  It's been over 5 years since I moved down here and it's just about now that I can really say it feels like home.  My parents came to visit the other week, so I took them for a lovely walk along the South Bank and across to St Paul's Cathedral. On another day we also when exploring round Greenwich market, which is one of my favourite places!













Tuesday 29 January 2013

Wedding weekend

I went to my first Hindu wedding on Sunday, so I thought I would share a small snapshot!


Friday 25 January 2013

Bye Bye Snow!

As the last few pieces of snow melt away from outside my window, I thought I would show you a few photo's from Sunday's walk. Wish I had bought a sledge, as I found a great sledging run just round the corner from home! Maybe next year.








Wednesday 23 January 2013

Print and Pattern Feature

I was very pleased this morning, as I found out that I had been featured on the fantastic Print and Pattern blog! I have secretly wanted to be featured on this blog for years, so I'm very happy!

Check out the post here