Past & Present: Paisley on Design*Sponge
If you’re interested in the history of the [...]]]>
Print & Pattern
This book has been curated by Bowie Style, the author of the Print & Pattern blog which was one of the first blogs I ever subscribed to via RSS!

Past & Present: Paisley on Design*Sponge
If you’re interested in the history of the paisley motif and issues of cultural appropriation, you should check this out for starters. You might get an insight into why I find paisley so fascinating!

Tibetan sky burial photographs
A huge warning here – these photos depict death and gore, do not click if you prefer not to see photos of that nature. I’m fascinated with death and ritual, and how different people have developed their traditions in line with their worldview and environmental considerations. This Buddhist burial ritual is shocking to me as a white person in a first world country, whose only dealings with death have been quite sanitary and polite, however I can also see the beauty in the sky burial. I don’t believe in resurrection or an afterlife or reincarnation, but I do believe that we are all returned to the earth and this tradition is very much in line with my worldview.

SP 2010 Speaker – Jessica Hische from Semi Permanent on Vimeo.

I love Jessica’s work and her sense of humour. I wish I’d been at Sydney’s Semi-Permanent conference, the line up was fantastic!

Unretouched Photos: Empowering or Just More ‘Empower-tainment’?
A really interesting commentary from the Ms. Magazine blog on the slew of unretouched photos and plus size models seen in mainstream magazines recently. I haven’t said much on the issue because I’m curious to see what happens next, but for a lot of media observers it has just been a bunch of “empower-tainment” porn rather than meaningful progression and discussion about body image.

Adventures in Feministory: Estelle Getty
I miss seeing Sophia Petrillo on tv. Why don’t we see any amazing stereotype-busting roles featuring older women these days, especially after Golden Girls?

Also Roseanne. Just because I felt like it! How amazing was she? Wait, don’t answer that, just repeat after me: VERY.

The Alot is Better Than You at Everything
Let Hyperbole and a Half help you with your pesky Alot problems! I get so many chortles out of this blog – if you’re not subscribed, what the hell are you still doing reading my blog?

Thanks to Nick for giving me the idea for this month’s desktop. Moustaches with curlicues! To download one of these wallpapers, click the link to go to the flickr page where you’ll have to go to “All sizes” to download it and pop in to [...]]]>

Thanks to Nick for giving me the idea for this month’s desktop. Moustaches with curlicues! To download one of these wallpapers, click the link to go to the flickr page where you’ll have to go to “All sizes” to download it and pop in to your background.

1920×1200

1680×1050

1600×1200

320×480

240×320

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.
You may not upload this desktop to other websites, nor may you use it for any other purpose than to wallpaper your desktop. This also means it’s uncool to alter it and reupload it somewhere as your own work. Soz :(

I’ve just opened up a shop on ArtFire.com to sell my original art works. This is something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time, but I kept putting it off because I have assumed that no one will want to buy anything! [...]]]>

I’ve just opened up a shop on ArtFire.com to sell my original art works. This is something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time, but I kept putting it off because I have assumed that no one will want to buy anything! I don’t want to believe that any longer! Prove me wrong and bolster my self esteem :P

I have listed eight pieces right now, but I have another three framed pieces to add as well as a bunch of drawings. All of these pieces are just taking up room in my office and I’d love to see them adopted by people who will hang them up and love them.

The other reason why I am motivated to sell my originals is because I want to start working in different media and experimenting with new things but I simply can’t afford it. If you adopt one of my drawings or paintings, you will be encouraging and prolonging my career as an artist and patronising me – in a good way, hahaha!

Go forth! Purchase some of my original art and fancy up your walls.

I’ve been wanting to start experimenting with using wood as a support, and I bought a big piece of plywood from Bunnings weeks ago but hadn’t had the time to cut it up or paint any of my ideas for personal work. This week I’ve decided is my [...]]]>

I’ve been wanting to start experimenting with using wood as a support, and I bought a big piece of plywood from Bunnings weeks ago but hadn’t had the time to cut it up or paint any of my ideas for personal work. This week I’ve decided is my week; on Monday I got electrocuted by our crappy circuit reset button (and the power died too) then I went over to use Kate‘s powertools to cut up the plywood! Horah! Last night I sanded back and stained a couple of the boards and recovered from my day (no, really I was totally ok – minor shock). Yesterday I painted up one drawing I had in my sketchbook for a month or so and took a little video and did awesomely scintillating live-action updates with my mobile phone.

I like to document the process, just so I can go back later and revise what I’ve done so I know better for next time. A few people say they actually enjoy the updates too!

Here’s the video! The music is really cute, it’s by Julandrew and it’s called “Get Back In Line“. I was introduced by Melissa to Creative Commons music and I’m really impressed by some of the things I’ve found! Also, it’s nice being able to use music in a video without worrying that anyone will sue you.

The chordae tendineae, or heart strings, are cord-like tendons that connect the papillary muscles to the tricuspid valve and the mitral valve in the heart. This is another new illustration, based on a little gesture Nick did the other week. You see, he is quite susceptible to having [...]]]>

The chordae tendineae, or heart strings, are cord-like tendons that connect the papillary muscles to the tricuspid valve and the mitral valve in the heart. This is another new illustration, based on a little gesture Nick did the other week. You see, he is quite susceptible to having his heart strings tugged by tv shows, and one evening he did a demonstration of how one would tug on their own heart strings. It was so adorable I had to draw it…

Miss @Makalita liked it so much she bought a canvas print of it and kindly took a photo upon its arrival! It looks great, I’m always impressed with the Red Bubble print quality.

A line is all I need from Natalie Perkins on Vimeo.

I decided I’d better start submitting drawings to things because I really ought to be promoting myself, and one of the first zines I wanted to submit to was the Underground Art School. [...]]]>

A line is all I need from Natalie Perkins on Vimeo.

I decided I’d better start submitting drawings to things because I really ought to be promoting myself, and one of the first zines I wanted to submit to was the Underground Art School. The theme for the next issue is Simplicity/ Back to Basics, and after thinking for about thirty seconds I realised that if I get back to basics, all I really need is a line. All any drawing is built on is lines; and actually, everything is built on lines isn’t it? A few months ago I was really keen on physics and learning about String Theory and I watched a few rad videos that explained dimensions in quite simple terms and how there are LOTS of dimensions and possibly even lots of universes. At the crux of it all, dots and lines build everything (in my overly-romanticised view of it all!) I have seen people look at my drawings and talk about how complicated and intricate they are, but to me, they’re just a mass of lines and everyone’s just over-complicating things.

You can see a bit of me drawing the piece in the above video.

Et Voila!

June is serious business. In Australia, June is the time for stock take and if you are an employee who has to do end-of-financial-year activities (like my husband!) it really sucks. Even though I have a creative job, I am feeling the pressure… I’m in the [...]]]>

June is serious business. In Australia, June is the time for stock take and if you are an employee who has to do end-of-financial-year activities (like my husband!) it really sucks. Even though I have a creative job, I am feeling the pressure… I’m in the middle of setting a business up, and also fielding enquiries and doing lots of work within my creative practice – which I run like a business as well. Sometimes I just want to run away and forget about everything for a few hours, and I guess I get these sort of visions in my head. Sort of like Mary Poppins on a carousel in the Red Queen’s garden.

To download June’s desktop, find the one that suits your resolution and click on the image to go download the original size:

1600 x 1200

1680 x 1050 – widescreen

320 x 480 – iPhone

240 x 320

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.
You may not upload this desktop to other websites, nor may you use it for any other purpose than to wallpaper your desktop. This also means it’s uncool to alter it and reupload it somewhere as your own work. Soz :(

I think I am in a holding pattern right now. So I’m trying to keep a little momentum up by defacing frankie pages with my doodling.

I think I am in a holding pattern right now. So I’m trying to keep a little momentum up by defacing frankie pages with my doodling.

I’m not sure where you’re from in the world, but May is generally one of those in-between months and you can never really predict what the weather is going to be like. Fortunately right now in Brisbane there’s a cool nip in the air [...]]]>

I’m not sure where you’re from in the world, but May is generally one of those in-between months and you can never really predict what the weather is going to be like. Fortunately right now in Brisbane there’s a cool nip in the air that takes the edge off the strong sunlight. I have a bunch of felt that I bought for random purposes, and this month I thought it would be nice if I played with it a little bit in Photoshop! The lettering for May was inspired by the marigolds in the gardens of the homes of my childhood. They are such bright and welcoming flowers and make me feel warm looking at them.

I’m proud to offer the following desktops, including wallpapers for a couple of phone resolutions too since that went down well last month! Follow the links to flickr and download the resolution that’s perfect for you.

1600×1200

1680×1050

320 x 480 – iPhone

240 x 320 – Check it out on my Samsung u700

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.
You may not upload this desktop to other websites, nor may you use it for any other purpose than to wallpaper your desktop. This also means it’s uncool to alter it and reupload it somewhere as your own work. Soz :(

I deface my magazines. Yes. I do. I’m not one of those people who keeps a collection of pristine magazines, spines uncracked, ink still smelling… inky and page corners the exact opposite of dog-eared. I admit, this issue of frankie is still current. Tens of… [...]]]>

I deface my magazines. Yes. I do. I’m not one of those people who keeps a collection of pristine magazines, spines uncracked, ink still smelling… inky and page corners the exact opposite of dog-eared. I admit, this issue of frankie is still current. Tens of… tens on the frankie forum would gasp in horror, but quite frankly it’s my gorram magazine and I’ll do with it what I please!

To be honest, I feel as if I’m too old for frankie these days. Things grate with me: the advertising strikes me as trying too hard to fit into this niche little market of teen crafting mavens; and the tone is all… “omgz when we grow up we’ll crochet for a living and save the world by collecting milk cartons and making jewellery out of them but we’ll still have time to look moody in sparsely decorated rooms littered with vintage knick knacks”. I feel like I really ought to be reading a magazine for the late-twenty-something resourceful lady who likes to wear the odd leather moustache now and then.

I keep buying frankie because of the layout and photo editorials I guess, when it comes down to it. There’s heaps of negative space for doodling, and I can exercise my snark bone. I’m so glad I’m not a teenager anymore :)

~~omg massive eta~~

I forgot to tell youse about these! They taste exactly like Reece’s Peanut Butter Cups and about a third* of the stupid bloated price shops charge just because they are “imported from Americaland”. I heartily recommend them if you like peanut butter. I’m going to make cupcakes out of them one day!

* I don’t know fractions, but I know savings!