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I sort of had a break from stressing myself out for a few weeks, hence my lack of posts. Sorry, about that – then again, who knows if anyone missed me!

A few things have happened – I went on a week’s leave from work to start to rehabilitate my arm. I’ve mentioned my RSI before; but my work’s Rehab Officer got really concerned about it when I told her about downing codeine every day, and she sent me off to relax so I could start on my journey to full movement and no more tingling and/ or pain! I’ve seen a Musculoskeletal doctor and some Occupational Therapists, and endured cortisone shots and poking, prodding, pushing and non-stop bandage wearing! People are actually nice and helpful if you’ve got a bandage somewhere, it’s rather odd!

I’ve also sold a few paintings, which has done wonders for my confidence. While I know I can design advertisements and billboards, sew outfits and draw and paint I have very little confidence that I can actually do those things well. Selling some of the things I’ve made has been very satisfying. People actually get a kick out of what I can do, so it’s nice. It’s hard to get over the attitude of “they’re only buying this painting because they feel sorry for me”.

My fiance bought me a Riso PG-11 Gocco system for my birthday (so, my birthday’s in December….!!) and it arrived today. Look forward to a whole new bunch of craftiness!! Most of all, I’m looking forward to designing and printing our wedding invitations for next year.

Below are some gocco prints that have caught my eye tonight. There are more on my favourites page!

from little paisleys big paisleys grow
watercolour pencils, acrylic and ink (painted sides, ready to display)
20cm x 40 cm canvas stretched over frame
SOLD

blood reds garden
watercolour pencils and ink
30cm x 60cm canvas board (requires framing or mount for display)
SOLD

Prices are in Australian dollars. I accept paypal and direct deposit (Australia only), and shipping and packaging costs will be extra. If you live in Brisbane you can pick it up from me (inner east Brisbane).

Art I Love

Breath Portrait (favorite colors)
by Ann Tarantino

The Faceted Couroucou
by Carrie Marill

These prints are available from 20×200 and you can buy one of these, or heaps of others, for $20 – that’s right, you can buy a print from as little as $20. Amazing.

Art I Make

This piece is called “Paisley Patch” and it’s an extension of the paisley garden drawing I posted earlier last week. By my own admission I’m not a very good painter, I much prefer drawing; which is why watercolour pencils are pretty much perfect for me! I used Derwent watercolour pencils on canvas for this piece.

I have done a few more of these pieces, but I haven’t photographed them as yet however when I get some time (and the day star is shining) I’ll take a few pictures to post here.

This is a study of a couple of Alphonse Mucha motifs in watercolour pencils again. I recently bought a book on Mucha with loads of stunningly reproduced poster and packaging art. I’d never seen his pieces in such detail before and I was struck by the gorgeous ornamentation and use of motifs. You can zoom in to a piece about 10 times and see as many different and beautiful things.

Reverie by Alphonse Mucha

I have to apologise (again?) for my sporadic entries. I’m on a week’s leave from work due to my wrist injury, and the death of my friend is getting to me a little bit as well. I’m finding myself doing a lot of research and drawing, seeking solace in design and beauty.

I saw a peacock in a vintage piece of fabric and copied it. I think they’re rather magical animals!

Download CS3 .ai file – Vector Peacock & Ornaments

Download .svg file – Vector Peacock & Ornaments

My friend Craig comitted suicide on Wednesday. He was a gorgeous man with a lot of love inside, and he will be missed by more people than he probably estimated.

As someone who has had experience with depression and suicide, I strongly urge anyone with these feelings to seek help; whether it be from your friends and family, or from services like Reach Out and BeyondBlue. It’s hard to get through difficult times alone, and more often than not you’re NOT alone.

I grew some paisley in the garden for you

I’ve decided that paisley is the new flourish. Paisley is named for a town in Scotland that ended up manufacturing the symbol repeated in pattern on fabric and woven into wool. Originally the buta motif was designed in Persia and it decorated royal robes. There are a few schools of thought on what the paisley symbolises – harvest time, protection from evil, life, eternity or rebellion. Some even say that the symbol is a stylised medicinal leech….!!

Many people probably don’t care to learn the story behind such a symbol, but I find it fascinating. As designers, we must be aware of the symbolism that we utilise in our work – we can inadvertantly put our audience off side, or win them over forever through design!

I have promised to do a tutorial on flourishes, but my RSI is quite chronic at the moment so I’m reducing the amount of fine pointing activity I do – unfortunately this includes flourish work in Illustrator! I do have some free vector shapes lined up (peacocks!), but I’m quite snowed under at work right now and tend not to want to sit on my computer at all when I get home!

Right now – it’s my lunch break, and I’m sneaking in a quick blog entry just to let you know I’m still alive and thinking about you.

As I approach the upcoming flourish tutorial, I’ve been thinking a lot about individual style, and what I’m inspired by. A lot of my flourishes are derived from the lines and forms I see in gardens – albeit highly stylised. I’m also an avid fan of lurid patterns in textiles and anything tactile in general. I try to bring as much of this aesthetic into my own design work as possible, so I keep an eye on lots of interior design, craft and graphic design blogs.

The other night I came across a mother lode of gorgeous vintage floral and paisley fabric images on ebay, so I’ve transloaded many of the images to my flickr account. I’ll post my favourites here, along with a selection of other flora inspired items that really inspire me.
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