Thursday 27 January 2011

Work in progress...

...And seeing as I've been working on loads of stuff (see my previous post!), here's a sneaky peekerooni at what I'm working on at the moment...


Nanny S-A xxx

Curious Duck

Howdy Thursday lovers! ... ??!
Despite my cruddy start to the week (I had a run in with a rubbish truck which resulted in a nasty scratch on my car), I have really given myself a push and have been incredibly creative these past few days (well, compared to normal anyway!). I have literally been drawing in any free moment and am so much happier as a result! Check out this little experimental fellow...



I am LOVING collage and black BIROS! Yip! I can't believe I let my fear of other people's prejudices against biros put me off being freely creative once again... Sounds rediculous, right?! HA!
Nanny xxx

Tuesday 25 January 2011

Little Red Hen


Happy Tuesday all :-)

Hope you like my newest artwork for the good old personal portfolio! I took inspiration from the story "The Little Red Hen" which (despite it's short length!) is quite dear to me as it reminds me of my wonderful Mummy. She used to read this (and many other stories!) to my sister and I when we were diddy, but I think this story stuck with me because the hard working Hen is incredibly similar to my VERY hard working and excellent Mum! ... I love you mummy! ... Right, soppiness over!

The artwork was created using a mixture of collage, tea staining (I love this as a way of taming that scary white page), biro and coloured pencils. I used some of my Grandmother's stamp collection (again!!) and one of my newly aquired cigarrette cards (I got about 200 for £2 in an antiques shop near work) as this added a sense of nostalgia, well for me anyway!

More to follow soon, love Nanny S-A xxx :-)

Monday 24 January 2011

Monday?! Already?!


Hi all, hope all is sunshine and rainbows with you :-)

I'm not sure just how, but the weekend just flew by... perhaps it has something to do with sleeping lots, seeing good friends/family and drawing loads?! Speaking of which, I am hoping to have new artwork to share with you all later this week, hope you like it.

Hmmm.... I wonder if I can get some more sleeps times under my desk during this lunch break? ...
Nanny s-a xxx

Friday 21 January 2011

FRIDAY, WOOP!

Bello! Sorry for my last (slightly moody) post. It really isn't like me to be down in the dumps so I've given myself a kick and I'm trying to focus on the good things going on rather than the bad. I'm seeing a very good friend this weekend and will be working hard on my personal portfolio which always cheers me up!
I just wanted to say that it's absolutely wonderful to see that I have new followers, thank you all for your support!
Have a great weekend, Nanny S-A xxx

Wednesday 19 January 2011

An excuse I know...

Hi all J
To be honest with you, I’m not having the greatest week which has resulted in me being a little slack with regards to getting new artwork done. Not one to disappoint, I thought I’d post another page spread from my contribution to the sketchbook project. I promise I’ll have newer things to show next week (Spring Fair is next month and I want to take a mini portfolio of new work to show off and hopefully attract a bit more attention...)!!


Hope you’re feeling jollier than I am,
Nanny S-A xxx

Tuesday 18 January 2011

What a lovely blog I’ve found


It’s always so nice to find free stuff on the internets ESPECIALLY when the price of ruddy EVERYTHING has gone up, which is why The Graphics Fairy was a real find. The blog has over 8000 followers and it’s glaringly obvious from the first page why; it is simply crammed full of vintage images which are all completely free to download! WOOP! Although the images aren’t always the largest in file size, they are perfect for smaller craft projects and I know that I will certainly be making use of them in future!


What a lovely person the author Karen must be to share all these beautiful images with everyone! J
xxx

Monday 17 January 2011

Happy Monday! MIY Wreath

Howdy everyone! Hope you had a wonderful weekend :-)

According to the tabloids, today is meant to be the most gloomy and glum day of the year. Well, Nanny S-A will be having none of that. Why not try my MIY (make it yourself) Wreath? It looks pretty, costs next to nothing and takes a couple hours to make... less if you have quick and nimble fingers!


What you will need: cardboard, large round plate, small round plate, pencil, double sided sticky tape, scissors, tissue paper, assorted ribbons and string (or any general tying up thingys), costume jewellery and buttons to decorate.

1. Draw around the large plate onto the cardboard so you have a nice circle. This will more or less be the size of your wreath so be careful what plate you choose!
2. As centrally as you can, draw around your smaller plate within the circle from the bigger plate.
3. Cut around both circles so you are left with a nice round 'o' shape.
4. Tear off a large strip of tissue paper about 10cm wide (you can use any colour, I used some that came with a new pair of boots I got for Christmas). Scrunch it slightly and stick one end to the back with the double sided sticky tape.
5. Wrap the scrunched paper around the cardboard 'o' and secure with more tape each time you add a new piece. Make sure the ends are always on the reverse side only otherwise your wreath won't be nice and neat.
6. Pick out some nice ribbon, string, wire, pipe-cleaners or whatever you fancy and wrap around the 'o' making sure you have a nice gap in between the revolutions (I used normal household string and raffia). Continue with as many different tying things as you like but remember to secure them properly on the reverse with more double sided tape.
7. Add a loop at the top for hanging, securing on the reverse with more tape!
8. Add buttons, sequins etc to decorate. I finished mine off with a large piece of costume jewellery I got from a bootfair last year for 20p. I added more ribbons as I like as much 'frou-frou' as possible on everything.

Hope this keeps those hands, heads and hearts busy on this supposedly glum day.
Nanny S-A xxx

Thursday 13 January 2011

Sketchbook Posted to New York

Hello all! Sorry I didn't post yesterday, I've been busy working on my lovely sketchbook! I am currently very proud of myself as it is now completely finished and I have just posted said sketchbook to New York for my contribution to the Sketchbook project. I took lots of photos and also scanned the images in as I unfortunately won't be able to get the book back :-(  Hopefully LOADS of people will be picking up what I've done and will enjoy it.

I really wanted to draw/write/collage whatever came naturally (rather than feel like I had to be restricted to what may be considered 'correct' or fashionable) and I'm happy to say I've achieved this. As a result I am incredibly freed up artistically at the moment, lets hope that continues! :-)

Ooh, do have an oggle at the below artwork!






Next up: PREPARATION FOR SPRING FAIR!! ooh dear not very long left to prepare :-S  I'll post some bits and bobs asap, hope you likey!
xxx

Tuesday 11 January 2011

Inspired and HAPPY!


I am feeling very jolly today after seeing that some of my uni classmates are doing really well in their creative lives, always nice to hear good news! It's put me in such a good mood and makes me feel like I can do the same, I'm not going to let low confidence get the better of me! I'm not going to be like the headstrong hamster and stay in my mushroom hut any longer... 2011 is definitely a year for meeeeeeee :-)
Thanks again for all the lovely feedback I've been getting, it really is giving me the boost I need xxx

Monday 10 January 2011

Ahhhh!! Sketchbook project final date draws near!

Hello all, hope you had a nice weekend :-) I've been busying myself with the final bits for my contribution to the Sketchbook Project. My theme was Make Mine a Double but I didn't just want to create a bunch of pages related to boozeo so I had a good long think and decided that the double bit could relate to double acts and therefore things that go hand in hand together. Here are a few pages to show what I mean...


Peanut Butter and Jelly (Jam)


Shirt and Tie



Hug and Kiss

More to follow later this week but to see the whole thing you'll have to join the tour!
xxx

Friday 7 January 2011

Fantabulous new sites I've discovered this week!

Morning! Despite the continual downpour outside I am trying to stay bright and cheery and what better way than to share the websites I've discovered this week with you all.

First up is MoCo Loco, a beautiful, online magazine style site encompassing all that is modern, design orientated and architectural. I was introduced to this site (very surprisingly) by a grumpy colleague who normally talks of nothing more than the state of the economy and what a terrible world we live in. Obviously said colleague thinks there may be some good out there or else they wouldn't have been looking or indeed (and also more importantly!) sharing this site with me! Once you get used to the site scrolling left to right, you'll soon be discovering a whole host of design juicy-ness. YUM.


The second is more of a blog really. It's called Book by its Cover and is about gorgeous books the author (Julia Rothman) finds interesting. She also has a personal website (click here) but I am saving that until I have exhusted the blog!

Enjoy! xxx

Wednesday 5 January 2011

MIY (make it yourself): Stamp Pictures


I recently posted about a gift I made for my sister for Christmas which she adored; well here it is! Well, actually, it's not the exact one but it is very similar and here's how I made it  :-D

Luckily for me, I inherited one of my Granny's many collections, this one in particular being used stamps. She had multiple penfriends from all over the world so the collection is incredibly varied and some stamps are from the 50's (NB. I simply LOVE going through all her stamps).

(1) I picked out the ones which complimented my decor and carefully arranged them on paper the same size as the frame.

(2) I wasn't entirely sure as to their value so I stuck them down with a tiny bit of pritt stick just in case! 

(3) I then put into the frame (which I bought in a £1 shop would you believe?!) which I had previously spray-painted white to match my home.  ET VOILA!
xxx


Pikaland Link

Hello and happy Wednesday everyone! Just thought I'd add this as I've had quite a bit of feedback with regards to the Pikaland Bootcamps. It would seem that my blogging skills aren't quite up to scratch yet (!) and my links aren't all that clear. Apologies for that! Click HERE for a link to Pikaland's latest courses! Hope that helps :-)
Keep all your comments coming, it is so encouraging to receive them all and I will do my best to act upon your requests/advice! xxx

Tuesday 4 January 2011

The latest project...

As well as enjoying the festivities, I have been busy gathering inspiration and creating artwork for my contribution to this year's Sketchbook Project which is due to finish on 15th Jan. I haven't entered this before but thought the concept was a fantastic one and it was definitely worth being involved. For those of you who don't know, the project calls for approximately 3000 artists/designers/illustrators (tbh you don't have to be a creative but I am sure it helps!) to each complete a sketchbook. Once all sketchbooks are filled and then returned, they will do a tour of several galleries in America. I'm wondering if I can afford a ticket over there as it would be great to see my bok amongst all those others! I'll post some pages from my contribution over the next couple of weeks... x

Happy 2011!

Bello! May I start by firstly wishing you a very Happy New Year and say a big thank you for the support I've been getting since starting this blog both off and online! :-)  I hope to fill these pages with things to inspire and hopefully meet like minded souls along the way. Before I begin with all that, here is a little taster into my Christmas! It was filled with family, friends, amazing food (I had two separate Christmas dinners!) and all gifts were simply wonderful. Later on this week I'll post about a gift I made for my sister which I am told is one of her favourite presents this year! *huge grin!*