My Tunnel Book Project Begins

The Forth Valley Open Studios is just a month and a half away and I will be participating in this event for the first time. I am excited but a little anxious as I am not sure I have given myself enough time to get what I want done. Best get a wiggle on then!
I decided to do something a little different. For the past year, I have been focusing on building on my Natty Maid brand for trade/retail. As a result my illustrative work....(not that I had a great deal!) has been put on the back burner. A couple of years ago, I treated myself to an artist book workshop at the Owl & Lion Gallery in Edinburgh. It was only a day long but it was absolutely fantastic. I trundled home happily on the train with two little tunnel books that I had made. Here is one of them...pardon the pics but it is really difficult to photograph with my existing camera skills!

Basically it has 2 concertina spines, into which pages are slotted. You can have as many pages as you want....but I am not into punishing myself!
Particularly when I have time constraints.

The principal is that you view the book through a peep hole in the front. The closest pages have the most area cut away, with the picture building up the further away the pages are from the viewer. This gives the book a 'pop up' feel and is much the same as looking at a theatre set.






So I figured, why not try out something like this for the Open Studios? I had been raking through a whole load of old books that I used to read to my lads when they were small and that's when I thought Nursery Rhymes would be really fitting for this type of book. Not only that, it would maybe mean that kids would get as much enjoyment from looking at these as their parents.
But which rhymes? I have been getting brilliant suggestions today from the lovely folks following my FaceBook page and I will definitely be trying these out. In the meantime I made a start with a particular favourite of mine....the Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear. I have been wanting to draw owls for a while and it is going to be a real challenge putting a 'children's book' twist on my drawings (I was always rubbish at that side of things at art school!) So bear with me guys....
Here are my initial sketches

I have got into the habit now of scanning in my drawings and playing with composition in photoshop......saves a huge pile of scrunched up paper in the corner of the studio at the end of the day.
Here is my mock up....purely for size mind! It is a rough, hence the scribbly marks and weird colour scheme. Now to decide on whether I should use collagraph or linocut.

A Word of Warning!

 I had to check my post dates to see the last time I had anything on here and see that it was at the end of March. This was before I attended my first ever Shows, the first being the British Craft Trade Fair in Harrogate in April and the second being the Great British Home Show in Bluewater, Kent. Quite a lot to take on as both shows were close together and with one being trade and the latter consumer, I had my work cut out for me

The Natty Maid Stand

I met so many lovely people, had lots of valuable feedback from buyers and had a great time taking in Harrogate itself each evening when we finished for the day. I am looking forward to next year.  Here are some pics of the stuff that proved most popular

Umber Cockerel Collagraph

Red Cockerel Collagraph

 There was a lot of interest in my collagraphs and linocuts and I was approached by a publisher interested in sampling my collagraphs for print. I have decided to go ahead with this and signed on the dotted line a couple of weeks ago. I am keeping a very open mind about this and may be able to post more about this soon. In the meantime, keep your fingers crossed for me. Here are two of my rooster collagraphs.








I only have one of the red roosters as the others in the edition (4) got ink smeared over them as they were drying...think someone must have lifted the tissue while they were still wet. This is the only setback with collagraphs as the printing plates can flatten quite quickly resulting in a very small number in the edition.....makes them more collectible though I suppose.








Right, this is where the 'warning' part of my blog comes in. I thought that by sharing my experience of the Great British Home Show at Bluewater in Kent, other folks may be informed and as a result be prepared if approached by an events organiser promising the world.

Now thing is, I am not naive and I do not rush into things without giving them due thought and careful consideration. Therefore, when I was invited in January to take part in a 5 day event at 'one of the uk's top venues' I wanted to know more before I made any decisions.

The information I was given by the organiser who shall remain nameless was that this 'was an event for 55,000 visitors to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee with the targeted visitors being ABC1 with household incomes of £60k plus'. I was asked to confirm that I would have enough stock to deal with a show that was expected to be very busy due to heavy promotion across TV, Radio and Print. Given the literature content I was sent at this point, I had no reason to doubt that this was a venture destined to fail, nor did any of the other unfortunate exhibitors who took part.

In short....it did. I have made more sales in a village hall. I, like a majority of other designers had committed to parting with  large amounts of money for stand fees, and worked extremely hard to build enough stock for an event that took less than 10% of the footfall.
The sad thing is, the organisers MUST have known that the ticket sales prior to the event were desperately low...yet they went ahead with it at our cost. A lesson learned.

Now,  it is standard to be approached by events organisers doing special reduced deals if you book a stand early. It is a sales tactic that is commonly used, as these folks work on commission. BUT if you do get contacted, do not be afraid to ask the following questions:-

• How many times has this show been held previously? If several times, how successful were they and could they give testimonies from previous exhibitors.
• If this is the first show, what have they based their demographic on? Do they have a report and could you see it? 
• Is this the first time the event has been hosted at a particular venue? If so, how successful have other shows been? You could contact the venue direct for a history of shows held.
• If tickets are being sold prior to the event, what action, if any, will be taken by the organiser should the ticket sales be low.

Most of these events are well organised by people who know what they are doing and as a result they should have absolutely no problem in answering these queries. It may be slightly emabarrassing, especially if they appear to be promoting a show apparently in the same calibre as the Ideal Homes Exhibition...but far better to be slightly embarrassed, than out of pocket and robbed of precious time.











                                                     

Forgive me Blogger it has been 3 months since my last post!

And here was I thinking I would be posting on a weekly basis in the lead up to the British Craft Trade Fair in Harrogate in April! Well I suppose it means I have been busy trying new designs, planning how my stand is going to look etc. In truth I am as nervous as can be about this, wondering whether I will get any interest in my work. It is daunting taking that leap, but one that needs to be done nonetheless. So, in terms of my work, I have been print, Print, PRINTING.

In addition to tote bags, I have been printing hankies. After screenprinting my own wrapping paper later last year, I wanted to look at other things that could be used for gift wrap, but more for the fact that it could be kept for another purpose. I had heard about Furoshiki and decided to start small scale using cotton handkerchiefs.





Furoshiki have been used for centuries in Japan, originally as a means of bundling and carrying goods. Now it is increasing in popularity as a more eco friendly way of wrapping gifts. They come in various sizes, the smallest being handkerchief size. These are ideal for wrapping smaller items such as candles, perfume, soap...even a sandwich!

I have decided to call mine 'Hansel Hankies' 
The word 'Hansel' is used frequently in the Shetland dialect and is derived from the Old Nordic word 'handsal' meaning 'giving of the hand to seal a promise' In Shetland it is common to give a hansel to commemorate something new as in a new baby, house etc





 I will be printing larger napkins and table cloths but all in good time. Lets see how these go first!

Natty Wrappy

This has been a busy couple of weeks! Doing some alterations to the house which has resulted in Ikea visits, checking out the Farrow & Ball colours and living in a house that looks like we have just moved in again. To add to that we have recently got two new recruits to the Natty household. Little 9 week old kittens called Alfie and Delilah. Absolutely adorable and settling in fast....but my goodness they are FAST!!!!!! Here is a pic of them chilling (very rare but hoping it will happen more so I can get some nice wee sketches of them)

Alfie & Delilah

I thought I would have a shot at screen printing my own wrapping paper. I had made tags using my gocco heart design initially for Valentine's last year. But I think it looks kinda Christmassy too. So I have decided to make some more.

Heart labels printed with my trusty Gocco

For screen printing the gift wrap, I prepared some acetates with the heart design for exposure onto a large silk screen. Having only an A4 printer meant I needed to print off enough to cover a 500mm x 700mm area. That's what I miss about art school...they had a huge printer that could print off images onto acetates as large as A1...so much easier when you want to screen print a large surface area. Anyway after a very early start I went through to www.fifedunfermlineprintmakers.org to prepare my screen and see how things turned out. Not sure if this is going to be cost effective for me using my current method, but I want to start exploring printing pattern on a larger scale for surface decoration/textiles so it seemed a good idea to try this out.

Screen Printed Gift Wrap

I got some really nice gingham ribbon from www.josyrose.com for the labels. All in all I think it looks ok...for a trial anyway!

Hand printed wrap and labels

I am going to try this out 'salewise' at an open day at the Dunfermline workshop this Saturday. We'll see if it's worth it.
Now I have got to start thinking about next year. Although my work has been  successfully selling both privately and through fab places such as www.northrockgallery.co.uk and www.lakesidearts.org.uk  I now need to start thinking about taking things a stage further. I have decided to take the plunge and I am going to be exhibiting as a Newcomer at www.bctf.co.uk/ in Harrogate in April. As a result I need to get a whole load of new designs and work together. Got a couple of new ideas up my sleeve. I am now live in the Design Edge Catalogue http://www.design-edge.uk.com/2011nattymaid.html so it makes it official. NERVOUS! There is a heck of a lot to do and I am hoping that as my work progresses I will be able to put little snippets on here.

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

A busy week trying to get new designs completed and printed for the Bridge of Allan Contemporary Arts Festival. Well worth burning the midnight oil as it was a fantastic day. I met LOADS of talented folks. The work on display was sublime to say the least and this was only affirmed by the looks on the faces of the people coming in. I definitely want to attend this event again. Very friendly and well organised. Sadly I didn't get any pics of the actual day as I was so busy, but I have got my new Christmas Card designs to share with y'all! Hope you like them:D

drawing the design in carbon ink

the three designs

Three French Hens

Two Turtle Doves

........and a Partridge in a Pear Tree

FINISHED!

I have finally walked away from my paintings. I am not pleased with them and would have kept going over and over getting nowhere. But there comes a time when you know you are overworking things and need to stop. This has been such a learning curve for me in that respect. Having talked to the ever amazing Greer Ralston (check out her equestrian paintings!) http://www.ralstonfineart.com/, I am now thinking of trying out oils....and changing my pallette. Apparently, cadmiums are not ideal for figurative work. I think I've got the bug now....so much more to learn. So it looks like the art store will be getting a visit from yours truly!

'Sugar & Spice'

Slugs & Snails

Busy Busy Busy!

Well that has been a full on couple of weeks! I started painting two portraits several weeks ago.
The only problem with this is that time melts away, and before you know it 4 hours have passed. This is something which has taken some getting used to as with printmaking you instantly feel you are being prolific. I am pleased with how the paintings are turning out, but having not painted very much, I have SO much to learn....especially knowing when to take a break and when to STOP!

 

'Sugar & Spice' and 'Slugs &Snails' Work in Progress

I have been getting restless and felt that I needed to get printing too, so I  made some new bags to take to the Boutique Chique event run by  http://www.craftersandmakers.co.uk  This was a lovely day in Newport on Tay. Full of friendly and talented makers. I very much look forward to meeting them again!
The bags are now on Folksy along with cards and notebooks. The Pigeon and Heart bags have proved popular and have now sold out so I will need to print some more. If you have a chance, drop into my shop for a wee shufty!

Card Design

I have decided to have some of my gallery work published. The only problem with collagraphs is that the printing plate is not very robust because of the materials used. I like to document my pieces once they are sold. Here is one of my collagraphs that is now on someone's wall. A fantastic company called artistpublishers.com are going to be printing and selling them on my behalf. Here is a sneak preview!

Natty Maid is PAINTING!

I have been asked to participate in an Exhibition at the MacRobert Centre in Stirling this Autumn. I am very excited about this! In wondering what to do, I have decided to do something different....PAINT!
Painting is something I have not done very much of. Even whilst at Art School, I found myself focusing more on printmaking and getting acquainted with software I would be using as an illustrator. I always thought that painting is an area I could work on afterwards. So, I have finally got my easel and brushes out and I am in the process of painting two portraits.  The image here is still very much in the early stages but I feel it is taking shape already. I will post more pics as the image builds.

Early Stages of Portrait

Book Cover Design

I have been working on a book cover design for a very talented poet called James Knox Whittet. Just finished it and fairly pleased with the result. Thought I would post some images of the work in progress.

The lino plate, ready for printing

Inking up

pulling the print

the finished design

More fishies!

I have been chasing my tail these past few weeks. I was down in London a fortnight ago seeing the Foo Fighters in Milton Keynes....but also used this opportunity to drop of some artwork to a pop up gallery for the first ever CallyFest event on Caledonian Road. I couldn't make the exhibition because of the concert but I am hoping for some pics soon. Anyway I decided to take my herring collagraphs a bit further. The problem is with this printmaking technique, the plates become squashed and therefore lose their detail (well my ones do anyway due to the perishable material I use) Therefore you can't get many prints. So I take my designs into other areas. I thought I would adapt my design for screenprinting. I have been huffing with my Gocco of late as I have tried exposing no less that 3 screens of late and parts haven't exposed properly. This is a bummer as these screens and bulbs have to be ordered from Japan and cost a fortune and once its done its done. I'm not sure what has been going wrong because I'm not doing anything different than I did before. I ordered some new supplies from America (an alternative to Gocco but works just the same) Tried it out on my new design and here are some of the results.

Some cards printed in 2 colours with my trusty Gocco

Close up detail of cards

The design looks cool on manilla card so I have printed up a few as notebook covers

Seagull Linocut

Forgot to post this earlier! Last week I ran a give-away once I got to my first 100 on my facebook page.
This linocut was up for grabs. Think I will do this again as it was good fun and I got a lot of good feedback.

A close up of the lino being cut

Linocut prints ready for shipping up to the North Rock Gallery

"Whit'll we dae wi the Herrings Heed"

So much for thinking this would be easy! I thought I would do some herring collagraphs in keeping with the theme of work I am currently producing for North Rock Gallery. I really enjoyed putting the plates together.

Making one of the herring collagraphs

I decided to try out some new water based ink and try out the relief method of inking up (where the ink is just rollered straight on and printed straight onto dry paper) instead of intaglio (where the ink is pushed into the plate and then wiped off gradually and then printed onto dampened paper). I do prefer the intaglio method, but I don't have the proper inks and drying facilities in my studio so I have to go through to the print workshop in Dunfermline (which is fab by the way!). Sadly it didn't work out as well as I hoped. The colours were peely waaly (wishy washy!) and I just wasn't happy with the outcome.

Herrings ready for printing

So Dunfermline it was. I decided to use my old favourite 'Prussian Blue' and 'Turquoise Lake' as colours. The result again was disappointing as some areas were underwiped and some overwiped leaving the prints patchy in areas. The pressure from the press was also flattening the plates too much and I therefore had to stop or else lose the detail completely.

Collagraphs printed using the intaglio method

So back to the drawing board at the Natty Maid Studio! I decided to use my oil based inks and this did produce a better result.

Although these are collagraphs, I have decided to adapt these for screen so that the herrings can be printed individually or in groups on loads of different things like fabric, notebooks etc.......now for a name!

An eventful week

Well, a lot of good things have been happening this week.

Lloyds TSB have used my image in some publicity material.
It is really good to see it used in context.

Geese image for Art of Nurture used in publicity material

I also got news that I have won an award in conjunction with Forth Valley College.
http://www.scotlandscolleges.ac.uk/business-week/business-week/business-to-college-awards-2011.html
This is very poignant for me in that I began Further Education with the College in 2002 when my youngest started nursery. Little did I know that it would lead to 5 fantastic years at Art School. When I set up on my own, Forth Valley College were there yet again with a funded course to help folks like me make a go of it in the Creative Industries. I cannot thank them enough!

New Linocut

Having seriously huffed with my Gocco....it is not printing at all well, I have moved on to a linocut. Pleased with it so far. Will post the finished result by the end of the week.

Cutting new lino design

New Work for North Rock Gallery

I am very chuffed to have been asked to prepare some work for the North Rock Gallery in Shetland. The are holding an exhibition to run throughout the Tall Ships Event which will be in July. I'm thinking TOURISTS!!!! from all over so this will be a fantastic opportunity to get my work seen.
I don't have very long to do this (less than a fortnight) so I started on new designs yesterday. I have decided to begin with a Gocco design. This is not very large, but it is ideal for cards and the nifty thing is, it can be scanned in once printed and enlarged to be printed on bags etc. That way I am getting the most out of my Gocco as believe me, the screens and bulbs for this little contraption are like gold dust!
Here are some images of my initial sketches and design ready for exposure.

Sketchbook work and gocco design

 I am going for a sea/coastal theme....yes...birds again. Anyone would think I'm a bird fanatic, but I have just grown to love drawing them these past few months. Similar to the pigeon, the gull is seen as a bloomin pest. So I have decided to prettify it!

I purchased my Gocco last year. I don't have many screens left so I am almost scared to used it at times, as if it goes wrong its a bummer. Anyway, I am trying this seagull design out in the hope that it works.

Gocco Design ready to be exposed

The design exposed onto the screen

You can see where the image as been burnt on to the screen. This is where the ink will go through, just like in the normal screenprinting process. Here's hoping it is successful! I will post the outcome if it is!

GEESE!

I was starting to panic there as I was having trouble getting into my account. All fixed now though!
The trip up to the Bonhoga for the Progressions exhibition was enjoyable. I had a lot of interest in how I create my images and most couldn't believe it was out of any old junk. The trip back was dire! Force 8 gales and I have not inherited my Grandfather's (Daa Gibbie) sailor gene....I'll say no more!
Anyway here are some pics of the work both on display and close up.

Work on Display in Shetland

Haven (collagraph)

Tenderfeet (Collagraph)

Gathering (Collagraph)

Passage (Collagraph)

Bags for Sale!

I have some stuff for sale in my Folksy shop already and these are two new pieces I have been meaning to showcase. I would like to know what folks think so your comments would be appreciated.

Hand printed using Red Permaset Ink

Close up of detail

Hand printed using purple Permaset fabric ink

Close up of detail