Homage : Stephanie Cole

No, not that Stephanie Cole! No, I'm talking about Stephanie Cole, textiles designer and illustrator extraordinaire!

Take one look at Stephanie's work and you can tell that she has lived in some naturally beautiful places, and these inspirations have seeped in to her work. Lush green places with flora and fauna,  alongside sparse coastal characters depicting everyday activities are what you will find in these surface designs and illustrations.

Wooden Hare Necklace

I first met Stephanie a few years back while at a small but excellent arty crafty type event in deepest Gloucestershire - and then promptly wondered why I didn't already know about her work, it seemed so established and professional. At the time I was managing a craft gallery that was in desperate need of newer, fresher, younger work - just like this - so I instantly set about trying to convince Stephanie to become a stockist.Years have passed and her brand has continued to grow, she has relocated to Finland and has even been voted by Channel 4 as one to watch.

Farmers Market Tea Towel

Stephanie's range is broad but everything has her signature aesthetic to them - screen printed textile wares, paper goods - my current favorite is the wooden hare necklace. I'm always interested to see what Stephanie has been up to, and where she'll go next as there is always something exciting up her sleeve. Keep up to date with new products and events on Stephanie's blog.

I shall leave you with some of my favorite postcard paintings from her Postcard A Day series....

A Mother Curtain Mission

Hello! I have several half-finished projects that have been hanging around the old abode that I want to finally take on, make some bold decisions about, and be able to ENJOY!
First up - Curtains. I have taken on the challenge of reworking a huge pair of very lovely but rather dull brown and yellow velvet curtains in to something far more exciting. I have spent too long puzzling over how to tackle this problem, until I asked myself 'Are you a textile artist or not?!' and decided to come at the milking cow from a different angle. Armed with a colour palette that will work within the pad, and aspiring to create something a little bit unexpected, I think I am ready to begin cutting. I will also be working with areas of the fabric which are already worn away and discoloured to enhance and make a feature out of them.



Im thinking triangles. After a breif bit of hunting on Pinterest I came up with these four beauties to use as a visual aid. Now, I know that usually when we think of patchwork we think of bedspreads and cushions galore, but what about patchwork curtains? But not flowery, cute cottage stuff - what about a mid-century / contemporary feel with block colours and mixed textures?

Im going to experiment with mixing the short pile brown and yellow velvet with a hot pink and a tangy yellow, with black and some natural linen to add a nice contrast of textures and shades.
These ideas often take me so long to actually realise because I deliberate about whether it will all be "too much" - but then I have to ask myself "well, what's wrong with that?!"

Sources of images used - all via Pinterest :

 Chair // Cushion // Triangle print // Patchwork bedspread

Art Flea

This weekend we showcased some items from the new collection at the bizarre bazaar event Art Flea - a very cool weekender event. The Stroud Goods Shed was full of really exciting artists and events, and although I didnt get to really see much of it as I was working my own stand, what I did see was fantastic. A big thanks to all who came and participated in my photo booth!

We set up a Photo Shop where we took portraits, using hand-drawn wallpaper and props

My stand - we had lots of stripey jumpers as our mascots

Some rather lovely Lady K Loves popcorn roller girls sitting for me!

A sneak peek at what is next up - new collection! - more on that coming up very soon!....