Sometimes inheritance means money or property, but recently I 'inherited' something much more unusual than that. Namely an industrial sewing machine, and box upon box upon box of raw sewing material from many years ago....

My late Grandfather immigrated from India in the 1950s, brought a house and set up his garment making business in London. He had a large factory in which many of my aunts and uncles worked in at some time or another, making leisure wear for many top high street brands, right up until the 1980s I think.

After my Grandfather retired and the factory was closed my Grandmother saved loads of raw materials and squirrelled it away in the many cavernous cupboards at home. I grew up seeing a large industrial sewing machine at each of my Indian Auntie's homes, which were the last few survivors from the factory, not really considering where they came from, and long before I ever considered learning to sew.

My Grandfather wasn't one to go on about himself and I've grown up not realising how little I really knew about him. I will be 30 this year, and I am only now learning and perhaps appreciating what it means to be Indian, and what my Dada's life was about. During the inevitable clear out I was invited to come over and take any fabric that I might want, and to have the very last sewing machine from the factory that was still in the family. I was so very happy that I was finally going to have one of the factory machines! - I thought my chances of that were long gone a few years ago when many of them were given away. But I also found much more than 'just a bit of fabric' - I found some really amazing and wondrous treasures and I thought they were too good to keep to myself......

This really is just the tip of the iceberg. For some reason there were boxes and boxes of this army green binding, still in its original, fabulous packaging...with hundreds of green buttons to go with it! There was trimming galore, many of this still with a 'Made in England' or 'Foreign' stamp, hinting of their age....I've also saved several old 1970s saris...I really like the classic old Indian fashions, I always have, but obviously most people who wear them regularly probably feel they are outdated... Indian vintage was like an epiphany to me. It's like ultra retro! There were also many a shoe box with little trinkets and mystery objects which were so magical to feel like I was discovering them. I'll be sharing more of these treasures over the next few week (I'm not sure how long its going to take, there really is so much!)

So, keep your eyes peeled for treasures, both the weird and the wonderful. 
Until next time, TTFN.

So here we are, already in the second month of the new year and already so much has happened!
Is it me or is there something in the air for 2013? Everyone I've been speaking to over the last few months in fact have been preparing to launch their energy in exciting new ways this year, like lots of ideas that have been waiting to bloom are finally ready to come to fruition. Thats certainly how I felt. I started the new year self employed- which at the start felt remarkably like being unemployed!- but now finally I have the time I need in order to make things happen. I have lots more energy to work, and I have the time for things I never did before- like making work at the local print coop in stroud, and lots of things are falling in to place.
Not working a day job full-time meant that I also had time to generally sort my life out, which included having a massive sort out at home, selling furniture to make room, and making the studio a nice place to be.....

.......More on my lovely new machine soon!

I dont really like the concept of 'new years resolutions' - why wait till the end of the year to improve yourself/your life?- but I do like the idea of making a year planner so to speak- what do you want to acheive or do more of this year? Well, I want to eat out more, go for more evening walks and to not make myself feel guilty about the amount of cheese and wine I eat! 
How about you?

Who me? Apparently nobody says 'Dear' anymore except for me and OAPs. Is this true? I think it a most romantic, endearing sort of term. I used details from my own minty 1950s spectacles for this one and did several drafts in order to try and try and capture the right feeling with the right lines.....

  

Available in the shop

There is a fantastic printing place in Stroud called GPC where I have done some printing a few times, but not nearly as much as I'd like to. I had a lot of fun just being spontaneous and experimenting, using oils and found bits and bobs. I had these prints knocking around the studio, not really sure what I wanted to do with them, and as they are so different from my usual work I went for the chop and mounted them for unique greetings cards. Even though its a simple thing I'm pleased with how they turned out, they make me think of street art, peeling layers of wall paint, faded markings and cover ups.

 I made several and I intend to make more, but they are all different so I only put a small selection in my shop  but I will keep updating it. Gloucestershire Print Co-op is definitely a place I'd recommend, they've got some amazing artists and courses. I've been wanting to go back and become a member for a long time but so far I've not had the funds or the time (same old story) but I think the time is nearly here. Its also only a 10  minute walk from where I live now so it's super easy.

Check out their website and upcoming courses here

Happy bank holiday!
 Today I thought I'd just leave you with a few images of the designs currently available online, because I kind of forget about these early designs when they really do show what my work has been like for a long time, so I want to show them some love.

I love black and white illustration, line and form, wobbly, thick marker lines and simple expressions made with only a few lines but that tell a lot.

Visit the store

The telephone character that's waiting for a call was done a few years ago when I first moved to Gloucestershire and I was having a hard time looking for work, so I was spending a lot of time alone at home while my man was off getting the bacon. I would wait for his calls all day and felt very lonely for a time. Years later and things are the total opposite now of course,  but I think the longing for a loved one or needing to make the time to have a catch up with a friend is something that we all experience.

You cant get much better than that- telling someone how flippin' marvelous you think they. Perhaps it's something you often think but never take the time to say? We are all too buy rushing around living our busy lives, but what about taking time to smell the roses?

I spend a lot of time playing with ideas for characters and trying to capture the right energy and feeling. 

On My Table This Week..

 This week, amongst other things, I am trying to get in to the rhythm of sharing my ideas regularly here, which apart from anything else really makes me consider my time management (or mis-management as the case may be!)- I have to ask myself what have I done? and do I like it? which is really important. Life after art school means no deadlines or presentations set for you, and so time becomes a little endless and less urgent, so doing things like this to enforce structure is really helpful. I also started clocking in my time spent in my studio and it actually showed that I do work quite a lot, which is funny because I usually spend a lot of time feeling guilty for not working enough, so that's good too.

Anyway, lets get down to business. I spend a lot of time doing quick spontaneous drawings which I then spend ages trying to make more neat and formal and perfect, when a lot of the time I always prefer the first one I did in a moment. Here are a few things I've got on my table this week, which I am going to be turning in to the next lots of greetings cards. I've got a few more up my sleeve for sure, but I have been thinking a lot about comic books, street art, tattoo art, and not losing the essence of my drawings by perfecting them too much ...

1/ Hands and hellos. I don't really need to print any more hello cards but it's something I always want to say to people I miss, and something I always draw...

2/ Paint and pen, washes and dry brushes

3/ Pencil and pale washes of paint

4 / Paint, pencil, pen, layering, tester