Swap Shop Poster!

The illustration is one of mine, and the poster design, layout, text etc. is Jim McDougall my beloved boyfriend!!

So a Swap Shop on the 5th of March! whoop! that's Sooooon!
"stitched up" is a new venture I'm embarking on with Sara Han my partner in crime! Who is a stylist and amazingly talented eco-designer, her attention to detail and perfection is admirable!!

I just hope she likes the poster!! We shall see!!

Anti-Racist with Katie Hanratty and FC United

The Workshop at FC United at Gig Lane in Bury was a success, the prep time was quite a lot.

I invited my illustrator friend Katie Hanratty to join me, as apparently there was going to be 30-40 people!! I'm not sure how many there were in the end, but it's a shame that we didn't manage to get more photographs.

We made Anti-Racist placards and a large banner. We made the placards with cardboard left over from Katie's new fridge freezer...

The wooden sticks were slats from an old Ikea canvass wardrobe, as was the banner. I knew hoarding it would come in handy eventually!

The letters on the banner were made up from old jeans, dresses, t-shirts etc. It was great to be a part of, I got interviewed by the local radio.

Here are some of the photographs of prep, the participants enjoying the workshop and then walking over to the football ground to watch the match!!

This is the most recent workshop at FC united. A re-cap of the previous activities gave the participants a chance to ask any questions and have ago at teaching each other. It was good fun had by all, and the last session with MYVP, which is very sad. MYVP are having there funding cut, which is a terrible shame.

It feels like a long time since I've done any actual pattern cutting for a while...so in order to refresh myself...I have decided Beth is my project. She's a good friend of mine and she recently asked if I could make her a dress. So well I said "how about I teach you how to make a dress and you help me learn to pattern cut again?"

She loves it "It's just like geometry" (which is MY idea of hell...I'm creative and can sew...but measuring things, well it just freaks me out!!)

These are pictures of us measuring ourselves...which was brilliant fun and we're starting from scratch...First thing we're doing is a basic bodice block measured to our own forms....

I love how much Beth seems to be enjoying it and well, I work best with other people...I'm hoping to persuade her to be my business partner...I think she is more creative than she reckons she is!! Watch this space and see us progress...

This is another untouched photograph, there is a lot of flash...but I think in this scenario it works nicely...I took it in 2007 and it's my friend Carly. She's at the bottom of some stairs...

Finished...ish, I might alter it some more, as I'm "top heavy" I think it might be wise to turn it into more of a v-neck...I'm wearing it as I type...and it's a really really comfortable dress...

It's elasticated around the waist to help it keep it's shape...

Grr it put the pictures in backwards...OK so here are the next lot of pictures...for my aforementioned upcycled T-dress...maybe these are in order...I had to make patchworks in the end as there were not enough panels to create the "skirt" part of the dress...This is what I like about upcycling...it's a constant experiment and you're designing spontaneously all the way through, it's a lot more "organic" I feel like it's the permaculture way of design!!! - Or maybe now I just sound pretentious...hehe...

I love these colours together, they're complimentary colours...they clash, but hey, that's what I love about the combo!!

This is my Upcycled t-dress it took about 4 tee's to make...here are various stages...I'm afraid I didn't take photographs at all stages because I got carried away...and too drawn into it...but see what you think...

a video for Action For Sustainable Living...I was un-rehearsed and put on the spot...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVqsmM8l4nk

This is a photograph of my friend Cara I took in 2007 for a series of illustrations I was making for my final exhibition at uni.

I like taking photographs and I'm traditionalist in the sense that I frame the picture in my camera. There is no cropping or re-touch. The image on the left is a Dave Lachapelle photo of a girl squirting milk from her breast over to the other girls bowl of cereal...Genius.

I thought I might add a few of my favourite photo's that I never really show...I don't put them on facebook because I like them too much...and I have issues with the copyright.

MY quick zip fascinator. I made it on the train over from Manchester to Liverpool, I sat down on the floor of the carriage because it was jam packed full of people!! It looks alright though and I received a lot of lovely comments!


I've worn it a few times since, and everyone seems to have nice things to say about it! Green is my favourite colour and these zips were donated to me a while ago.