Turning Three and other adventures

It's been nearly a month since I last posted. And SO much has happened in the last month.

We celebrated 3 years of my design practice. What a fantastic journey so far!

The Big Three

The other exciting news is that I will be showing my work at a solo exhibition next year at the Devon Guild's lovely gallery at Bovey Tracey. More on the exhibition & how my ideas are developing in subsequent posts.

Riverside Gallery, Bovey Tracey. For more pictures of the gallery, look here

And meanhile, Autumn has crept in. There're glorious colours everywhere. I so enjoy my walk to the studio, walking under the tall trees near the Heath, tuning out of the traffic noise and listening to the sound of leaves crunching under my feet.

That orange makes me think of Halloween pumpkins

Origin 2010 : Thank you all!

Origin 2010 closed on Wed 29 Sept, after an exhilarating, exciting and exhausting week. I had such a fantastic show! Thank you everyone who came. Thanks also to those of you who couldn't make it because of geography but took time to send good wishes!

The venue- Old Spitalfields Market

My stand

I wish I could take pictures of everybody's work- it all looked so fantastic. Here are some pictures I did manage to take. These are artists/designers showing next to me:

Louise Frances Evans- her work is inspired by women in history

Louise Frances Evans

Amanda Caines- her lovely eclectic jewellery

Rachel Gornall- textile wall pieces in gorgeous colours

Tube or False

I usually remember tubes not by their names but by their seat fabrics. For instance when I think of the Overground I take to the studio, I think of the lovely brown and ochre retro-looking moquette which works perfectly for the relaxed, spacious air-conditioned interiors. The red, green pattern on the District line seats reminds me of African textiles. Usually there are very little interesting textiley things to spot on the tube, that is, if one discounts staring at beautiful clothes. So, on days I forget to carry a book on the tube, I usually look at the moquette and imagine the designer's inspiration or possible colour variations or what I might have done.

Imagine my delight when I began spotting moquette posters on the tube. Images of textiles on which text seemed to be embroidered, woven or printed. On closer inspection, the posters turned out to be a series called Tube or False, asking commuters to pick fact from fiction about the history of the tube. What fun!

See all the posters here.

This post is an attempt to get up to speed with all the pictures I take, but don't get around to uploading. I hope to post more often :)

New Studio

After spending 3 very happy years at Bath, we have now moved to London. I'm really lucky to have found a studio space at Livingstone Studio, a beautiful gallery where exquisite handmade garments sit amidst delicate ceramics, quirky pictures and textiles. Originally part of Burgh House, the Studio is an early 18th century building in Hampstead, lovingly restored by the owners, Inge and Kate.

The Gallery

All Mac-ed up : My Apple desk

My drawing, doodling, thinking, dreaming desk

The Making corner

Stairs to the mezzanine- My favourite spot for sitting and embroidering

The skylights- perfect for cloud gazing

The Studio Terrace- occasional lunch spot and perch for making phone calls when the signal drops in the studio

Minutes from the studio- Hamsptead Heath

Ideal spot for more dreaming

or some duck watching

or simply gazing at the London skyline

So this is where I work from. All are welcome to drop by. Just pick a day and drop me a line. :)

Origin- Made not Manufactured

The Origin The London Craft Fair selection results are out. I have been selected to exhibit this year too. That's three years in a row! With a new venue and a new format, this Origin promises to be really exciting. Here are dates for your diaries

23-29 September 2010 at Old Spitalfields Market, London.

See you there.

Stroud International Textile Festival

The Stroud Textile Festival was an absolute delight, as always. I'd exhibited there last year and was eagerly awaiting the 2010 edition. Lizzy Walton, the curator, didnt disappoint. She has done an excellent job again.

Some of my favourite artists viz. Kate Blee, Norma Starszakowna and Jo Barker were exhibiting at the Museum in the Park. Both Norma and Jo have a Scottish connection. Jo Barker studied Tapestry at the much respected Tapestries Department at the Edinburgh College of Art and now lives in Edinburgh. Norma lives in Scotland too. After years of admiring her work in books, I finally got the see it 'in flesh' as it were at the Scottish Parliament. The installation is called Hinterland.

Norma Starszakowna's Voices in the Mother Tongue

It was a delight to see her work at the Festival again. Kate Blee's sculptural red wool pieces were beautiful. I had exhibited alongside Kate Blee at 'An Eye for the Detail' last year at Ruthin Craft Centre.

Kate Blee

Jo Barker's tapestries were a joy to experience.

The surprise find- Henny Burnett's work at the exhibition. And such a pleasant surprise! It was graphic, bold and absolutely lovely.

Invited as a guest speaker at Ulster Museum

Ulster Museum

Last week, I was invited to Ulster Museum, Belfast by Craft Northern Ireland for their Making It seminar series. Craft NI’s making it + is a 2-year programme offering studio space to designer-makers in arts, cultural & business venues across Northern Ireland.

At the lovely Ulster Museum, I discussed Developing Creative Income with a group of designer-makers. After the morning session, met with a friend from college for lunch. Much laughter and nostalgia ensued. At 5pm, I headed back to the airport bringing my short visit to Belfast to a close.

Although the temperature was minus 3 degrees , Belfast came across as a warm city full of welcoming, friendly people.