Ducks and Camels and Bears! Oh my!

Weak title? Meh.. you can't win them all!

As promised, here are more of the amazing (and I mean that) brooches in the same style as the fox one featured a couple of posts back. Apparently these brooches and others by the same hand, can be bought from here although the site isn't currently working for me so I can't tell.

Lost In The Woods comes from the mind of Simon MacEwan who is based in Australia. Check out his Flickr for more of his handmade jewellery along with some of his photography.

I am in love with these brooches of animals with elements of their environments sort of growing out of them....

Blue and Green should always be seen...

BluGrn Designs featured in my last post about fox jewellery but I felt they deserved more of a mention because some of their other, non-foxy jewellery is really unique and unusual. Along with braille necklaces and tags, you can get your hands on some really nice hand-cut animal sillhouette jewellery and other bits and bobs.

Inspired by nature and the built environment, BluGrn's products range from the jewellery you can see below to pet dog tags, paper goods and photographic prints. Make sure you check out BluGrn on flickr.

This last one reminds me of a necklace I have by Alex Monroe :)

Thought fox

I'm currently lusting after fox-based jewellery, I'm not sure why but all of a sudden the fox in all its autumnal glory is my woodland animal of choice! (Only slightly ahead of the deer/fawn).

So all this has inspired me to make some fox brooches (pics coming soon) and hunt for other foxy jewellery online. Here are some nice bits I've found so far...

From BluGrn Designs (More on BluGrn in an upcoming blog)

This one I found on Flickr (more jewellery of this style in an upcoming blog)

This vintage locket holds a cute little painting of a fox inside and is by Septembear.And this one I found via a Google Image search and apparently it's from Built By Wendy, although I couldn't see it on the site.

Pomme

Pomme is a Brooklyn-based shop selling some really nice stuff. Unfortunately, I'm not in America and they don't ship internationally so I'll just have to window shop online (I can never afford shipping costs fromAmerica anyway, damn it)... but if I were to buy from Pomme, I'd by these things:

(from top: bird mobile; mushroom lights)

I like birds.

Ok, so by now it's no secret that I have a soft spot for jewellery/homeware that in some way depicts some kind of non-flamboyant bird - so imagine my delight when flicking through the G2 on my lunch break I came a cross a whole double page spread of bird-based homeware! I literally cooed.

Anyway, by far my favourite item on the page was unfortunately one of the most expensive! This cushion is by Louise Body. She sells perfect wallpapers and equisite cushions on her website.

Wallpapers I wish I could afford:

Oh crumbs!

Bedcrumb specialises in "self indulgent home accessories" - from giant floor cushions to tea cosies, peg dolls and purposefully missmatched tea sets - all the work of Heidi Cannon. Heidi works from her studio in the Lake District and includes many of her original illustrations in her work. Her products are available through her website, Bedcrumbs, and also via the Betty Joy boutique.

I love the little flourishes in the site design:

"Be self indulgent - eat cake in bed and forget about the crumbs!"

Two For Joy

Shoegazer Creative: This series of two canvases was made as a gift for my boyfriend to be put up in our flat when we eventually get it (...he is superstitious about magpies so I thought that constantly having two in our flat would be lucky for him!) In the bottom right hand corner of the lower canvas are the words "two for joy" very subtly. I am pleased with the outcome of the canvases but not of the photos! They don't do the colours justice and the flash has wiped out most of the detail, but you get the idea I hope. The leaf shapes are fabric-paper and are raised and feel like almost velvet.
Materials used: Acrylic paint, various handmade papers/fabric-papers, small black gems, art pens, transfer letters.

Gloomy Frogs

Shoegazer Creative:
I made this Gloomy Bear decoration a few months ago. It's made of felt with a ribbon to hang it up by. It was just an experiment project really but I am pleased with the outcome!
This Keroppi plushie was also made a few months ago, again just as an experiment . . .If you would like a Gloomy decoration or a Keroppi, I am in the process of developing a webshop with one of my close friends, so watch this space!

Brooches

As promised in my last post, here are the Rosie Wonders brooches I got for Christmas:
And here is another brooch I got as a gift. It's engraved wood and a really nice font, though unfortunately I don't know who made it . . .

Discoveries

Firstly, Happy 2009 to anyone who stumbles across this humble little creative blog of mine! I plan to make 2009 a much more creatively productive year which involves actually doing something with the things I make!

Over the Christmas break I finally managed to visit two places I'd been longing to visit all year - Sunday Up Market on Brick Lane, and the massive Paperchase on Tottenham Court Road.

Unfortunately, due to the pressures of last minute Christmas shopping, I didn't have as much time as I would have liked to browse Sunday Up Market but it was really nice to see stalls and products from websites I like to visit such as Custom Made, Bobby Dazzler, I Like Birds and Buddug (who create really nice bird-based jewellery amongst other stuff).

A new discovery for me was Rosie Wonders. I can't tell you how much I've fallen in love with Rosie's creations, she makes beautiful brooches, necklaces and greeting cards amongst other things (I feel very lucky because my boyfriend bought me two brooches as Christmas presents - I'll post some pics later)


Some of Rosie's work:
As for the Tottenham Court Road's Paperchase... wow... I thought I'd died and gone to heaven! The top floor was full of art materials and unusual papers and supplies. I bought some canvases and a basket full of other bits and pieces including some really nice paper that is so delicate it's almost fabric.

On another note, I hope to update this journal a lot more this year so please do stick with me if you've seen anything at all here you like. I may also set up an Etsy to sell some of the things I make but I've just got to work out how it all works! Watch this space!