ink & whim

I have wood chips in my pyjamas.

2012-01-09T06:21:00.000-08:00

This time last year I was writing about The Netherlands and my new love affair with Amsterdam. Who would have thought that a year later I would be sitting in my own lovely attic apartment overlooking a canal? I had an inkling, I suppose, but am so grateful to the events, both good (meeting and falling in love with my Dutchman) and bad (being ill and having to resign from my regular work), of 2011 that led me here, to a 2012 full of possibilities.

So what is in store for me this year? I guess it is summed up in my New Year's resolution: Be kind to myself. And kindness to oneself comes in many forms; from eating as much cheese as I wish (sans-guilt!) to curling up with a book and a cup of tea whilst the European winter winds blow all around me. This year, I am allowing myself to follow inspiration wherever it may lead, rest whenever I feel under strain and, most importantly, live for a little while rather than merely survive.

Which brings me to the rather odd title of this post. The wood chips in my PJs interfere a little with my plans to lounge around all day in said outfit, but I couldn't be happier that they're there. This is because half of the living space in our little apartment is dedicated to my Dutchman's venture San's Skulpturen, and I watch from the couch as Sander (yes, such a fantastic name for a woodcarver!) hammers and chisels and chips away at a piece of wood until a beautiful form emerges. And in our conversations during coffee break we bounce ideas back and forth until before you know it our artistic sensibilities have collaborated and we have designed something new together. After all of this excitement I usually have a nap.

Butterfly Trinket Box
Our first official collaborative piece, available now on Etsy.

ink & whim is evolving a little to reflect this new adventure, and I hope that you will all enjoy coming along for the ride. Expect some random posts about my new favorite wood, for instance (it's padouk, in case you're wondering), and tales from my happy new world.

Pre-Christmas Sale!

2011-10-28T20:17:00.000-07:00

Head on over to my Facebook page for some fantastic sale items, including Little Golden Book journals 20% off, Cards from $2 and Christmas stocking fillers from only $5!

Give me a 'K'...

2011-08-13T05:08:00.000-07:00

Give me a 'K'! Give me an 'E'! Give me a 'R', 'B', 'S'! Give me an 'I'! And a 'D'! Don't forget the 'E'!
Goooooooooooo, KERBSIDE!

Looking forward to my favourite afternoon market tomorrow. On the agenda for you: $5 cards, discounts on multiple purchases and live music. On the agenda for me: quality time in the sun with my latest read, catching up with awesome stallholders like Each to Own and Whistlebait and the $7.50 vego lasagne special. Looks like a promising Sunday for the both of us!

Oh, and a great Blogger message popped up when I typed in the title of this post. I said "Give me a 'K'...", and it replied This request cannot be processed at this time. Heehee!

A sneak peek...

2011-08-05T04:01:00.000-07:00

Dear Daniella,

Thanks for being such a joy to work with! It was a real pleasure to create the invitations for your sons' Christening, Holy Communion and Confirmation. Your enthusiasm was wonderful, and I hope that you are pleased with the results. Really, your boys are so lovely that the invites could have been made out of second-hand pizza boxes and they still would have shone! All the best to you, John, Alexander and Nicholas for the service, and thank you again for letting me be a part of your special day.

I hope this photo will tide you over until your parcel arrives on Monday!

from,

Nissa

Past lives

2011-07-19T06:06:00.000-07:00

I love using vintage fabrics, mostly because I love the stories attached to the material. These new greeting cards let the world know just where they came from - and what they think of their past lives...

Jam'n'Beats!

2011-06-30T02:32:00.000-07:00

What's better than jam on toast? Jam donuts? Jambalaya?

The inaugrual Jam'n'Beats festival, of course!

"A new cultural and artistic hub is being born in the southern suburbs of Brisbane City. Artists and entertainers from all different backgrounds will start to congregate in the lush surroundings of Greenslopes..."

Come along tomorrow from 4pm at the Greenslopes Bowls Club for great music, inspiring art, barefoot bowls, fire twirling, market stalls (including yours truly) and good ol' community spirit!

As promised...

2011-06-11T02:46:00.000-07:00

Congratulations Sam and Eliane!

Wedding album - 1910 sheet music, new fabric with reprinted vintage design. The idea is that the guests will write their best wishes on the paper included, and then this will be matched with photos taken at the happy event. I was so pleased to be able to share in their special day like this :-)

Awww...

2011-06-08T05:03:00.000-07:00

Interesting development readers.

I have become a romantic sap.

I mean, I've always liked romance, and I definitely have watched a few rom-coms in my time. But lately I've been a bit more involved. Tearing up at the climactic reunion scene. Smiling stupidly after the first kiss. Getting all gooey when the Happily Ever After becomes apparent.

This is why I'm so happy to be involved with all things wedding at the moment. It gives me a beautiful outlet to indulge my soppiness! I have plenty of anticipatory excitement about my sister's wedding this July; helping with the dress, the Bridal Shower and invites, talks about the speeches on the big day, flowers and thank you cards... It's all so wonderfully romantic, and I'm doing my best to make everything that I do very special for my sister and her fiance.

I was also delighted this weekend to be asked by a lovely couple that I met at this Sunday's market to create a wedding gift for their good friends - an album to record the wishes of guests and photos of the special day. We selected some beautiful fabric - a recent reprint of an 1800s design - and I have created endpages from some stunning vintage (1910) sheet music. I can't post photos just yet, just in case I spoil the surprise! I'll be sure to put up some images after the wedding this weekend.

So, I'm off to indulge in my new 'sap' status. I have borrowed out some chick lit purely for that purpose! Yes, readers; it's that bad...

Oh My!

2011-06-06T02:37:00.000-07:00

Ah, how times have changed. I adore the old language in these 1960s romance comics. I've been known to drop a 'goodness' or two, and a good friend wields 'Golly!' like nobody's business (Cassie, this is you!). I also love the simplicity and style of the pen and ink illustrations - the era and it's fashion is captured so beautifully.

Happily presenting a new range of cards - Oh My!

Market Sunday!

2011-06-05T01:43:00.000-07:00

Really enjoyed my day at Kerbside Lane Markets today. What's not to like about hanging out in a cool place, chatting with creative people, drooling over vintage and handmade goodness and reading a good book when I wasn't doing the above? Oh, and meeting, greeting and serving some lovely shoppers, of course!

I also love the pretty, polka dot stylings of the ink & whim stall against the urban grittiness of the laneway - see the pics below. Kerbside, see you next month!

Starry, starry night/afternoon!

2011-06-03T23:05:00.000-07:00

Baker's dozen vintage paper star garlands debut at tomorrow's Kerbside Markets. 1960s romance comics, 1920s sheet music and pages from the 1914 French Progressive Reader.

Really looking forward to the market tomorrow, by the way. And to my regular Sunday morning sleep-in. It's so good that both of these things can happen on the same day!

A conflict of interests...

2011-05-31T06:44:00.000-07:00

I love going to the markets; flea markets, Farmer's markets, craft markets, I'll take them all! I love, especially in these colder months, rugging up in a colourful scarf, digging out the green bags, putting on my explorer persona and going off adventuring.

The day starts in the early morning absence of traffic when I crank my chosen playlist. I wonder if there's a connection between the songs I choose and the finds of the morning? Perhaps on days when I'm tuned into something that has stood the test of time - Paul Simon's excellence on the Graduate soundtrack, for instance - the universe will provide me with a beautiful vintage garment that too has stood the test of time. I'm still waiting for something worthy of Mrs Robinson's wardrobe, however... Maybe on days when I need a more predatory approach - when I'm looking for a particular 'something' for a particular purpose - I will be helped by a similarly purposeful, epic tune; Riders on the Storm by The Doors will suit nicely.

Oh, and applause to the early-morning market food seller! No, not you, ubiquitous German Sausage vendor! To the freshly ground organic coffee cart spilling its aromas for miles around. To the cupcake makers whose daintily beautiful labours of love are (almost!) too pretty to eat. To the beautiful Greek goodness at the Davies Park Green and Flea each Saturday, who keep me sane in the horrible months between each year's Paniyiri Festival. I love choosing which delights to have for breakfast, and which to take home for lunch and afternoon tea.

However; I have a confession to make.

As consuming as my passion is for markets, another passion has a greater hold on me.

The weekend sleep-in.

The snuggliness of the doona! The softness of the pillow! The goodness of the little cat curled up next to me! Especially in these colder months...

Thankfully, the folk at Kerbside Bar have come up with a solution. Such incredible ingenuity! An afternoon market! Making both a sleep-in and a marketing adventure possible! Huzzah!

The Kerbside Lane Markets Facts: Each month, a showcase of great vintage and crafting excellence is held in the (very cool) lane behind the bar off Ann Street. And are you worried about missing out on the German Sausages? Try Kerbside's famous (and free!) sausage sizzle, great tunes, and (for the 18+ crowd) beer. I'll see you all there - ink & whim goods in tow, of course - this Sunday 5th June from 1pm - 5pm.

Anne Bancroft in The Graduate
http://www.flixster.com/photos/the-graduate-anne-bancroft-in-the-graduate-11506750

So Frenchy, so chic!

2011-05-24T05:43:00.000-07:00

Croissants. Madeleine. Beret. Chanel. Crepes. Denim. Poodles. French Fries. Concorde. Ballet. Souffle. Frere Jacques. Lingerie. Monet. Deja Vu. Les Miserables. Champagne. Art Nouveau. Bic. Amelie. Baguettes.

So Frenchy! So Chic!

French vocabulary greeting card, 1914 French Progressive Reader pages.

Wallflowers #2

2011-05-18T03:39:00.000-07:00

Goodness I love wallpaper! My apologies for covering a topic already touched on, but it really is one of my favourite things. Something that I'm most upset about is that I don't own my own house and as such can't paper my wall with wallpaper deliciousness. I love retro bold florals, absolutely covet 1800s vignettes, love the whimsy in modern designs and can't get enough of 1960s and 1970s full wall murals - nature scenes being my favourite!

I've had two standout wallpaper moments recently. One was when watching daytime television. Currently The Golden Girls is being broadcasted, and I thank Channel 9's GEM so much! Not only can I delve into the lives and loves of my favourite retired ladies, but I can be inspired by 1980s glamour and design. Have you ever noticed the decorations in Blanche's bedroom? Along with carpet and armchairs in many shades of peach, apricot and coral she has the most divine banana leaf wallpaper. Apparently this paper is one of the most famous prints ever - The Martinique - and was designed specifically for the Beverly Hills Hotel in 1942. Imagine getting your hands on a vintage roll of this!

http://www.designerwallcoverings.com/

http://www.blancheonline.net/

This weekend I also had the pleasure of attending The Junk Bar in Ashgrove - such a very cool place. Best feature? Well, it was difficult to go past the gorgeous vintage lounges and the stunning tasselled lamps...

Of course, my favourite feature was the wall to ceiling forest wallpaper. It felt like the intimacy and mystery of the forest had entered the bar. So good! And all the better when appreciated with some good friends over a glass of wine.

http://www.concreteplayground.com.au/

So how do I express my love for all things wallpaper? Through cards and journals of course! Some of the great vintage buys made last year are making their debut on blank C6 size cards - 100% recycled cardstock of course - and mini journals. Check out these (and more!) during Reverse Garbage's New Beginnings exhibition May 28 - June 10.

C6 100% Recycled Cards and 10x10cm Mini Journals

Reverse Garbage Goodness

2011-05-16T01:46:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

In previous posts I have expounded on my love of the tip, and of tip shops. If you haven't checked them out, the Archerfield/Acacia Ridge BCC tip shop is amazing (opposite Archerfield speedway), and for those on the Northside the tip right next to Alma Park Zoo is full of treasure. Both are only open on the weekend, and the Northside one only open until 1pm.

For those that like their trash a little more organised, you cannot go past the BRILLIANT Reverse Garbage.

My little endeavour - ink & whim - has been invited to exhibit at Reverse Garbage's "New Beginnings" launch - Saturday 28th May from 6pm. Drinks, music, art and late night shopping! I would love to see lots of smiling and supportive faces there! Check out their Facebook page for more information.

Oh yeah, and if you haven't liked my Facebook page yet, get off your bums and do it! Unless you don't like it, that is. Awkward...

Market Sunday!

2011-05-08T01:39:00.000-07:00

Another beautiful day at the markets today, made all the better by the rain clouds holding off. I saw so many mother-daughter couples out on a Mother's Day outing, and it was a lot of fun to spot the family resemblances!

Today's crowd was quite a chatty one too, which made the morning fly by. The question that I was mostly asked was what I do with the innards of the vintage books which end up as journals. This paper gets used in many ways. I have framed pages of those with particularly attractive pictures adorning the walls of me, my family and various families around Brisbane. The paper is used as the end pages in some of the journals, or as the covers of some journals. My favourite use for this paper, however, is bunting. I've previously made bunting to decorate a friend's nursery (vintage sheet music alternated with pink-toned origami paper), and today talked with a bride about creating some vintage book paper bunting for her upcoming wedding.

For more Market Sunday photos, check out the beautiful shots over at the Boutique Markets blog, or on ink & whim's Facebook page.

Book bliss

2011-05-06T01:50:00.000-07:00

I have a great new stack of books rescued from the tip shop awaiting to be turned into journal goodness. A couple of things happened in an inevitable result from the gorgeous stack sitting in a foot-and-a-half oile high on my shaggy purple living-room rug. One - I want to keep them all! Two - I tripped over the pile.

Note to self: the middle of my living-room rug, situated in the middle of my living-room floor, is not a good place to store a big stack of books. Next time I'll use the edges of the room!

Ah, variety! Various titles, various sizes, various dates from 1949 > 1974, various prices from $25

A polka-dot kind of mood.

2011-05-05T03:04:00.000-07:00

Ah, polka dots make me feel so happy. I really don't know the origin of their power over me, however anything polka dot is sure to put a smile on my dial.

Slept in and dreading the daily grind at work? Solution: happy black polka-dot dress!
Looking for a touch of whimsy to dress up a gift? Solution: charming red polka-dot tissue paper!
Bored with the same old dance style? Solution: Learn the polka! Ok, that one is stretching it a bit...
Wanting to hold on to that Summer feeling as Autumn winds make market mornings chilly? Solution: fresh and bright turquoise polka-dot table linen!

Come along and revel in polka-dots with me and my new tablecloths this Sunday at the Boutique Markets!

Time to get technological!

2011-04-10T06:38:00.000-07:00

Yay ink & whim on Facebook!

P.S. - Great day at the markets today! Check out the photos on the Boutique Market's Facebook page.

Market Sunday!

2011-04-09T04:07:00.000-07:00

New Bookplates!

Looking forward to a beautiful day at the markets tomorrow. This will be my first market with a cruise ship in dock, and as a result I am really excited. The ships are just so big - you forget that they are seven stories tall or more! I bet that the residents of the Portside apartment buildings get a shock every now and then. Imagine living on the seventh floor and having no neighbours overlooking you, and then suddenly you have a whole deck of happy tourists, complete with cameras!

I've some new things to show off at tomorrow's market too - some of the lovely quotes that I've mentioned before have made it onto a new range of recycled cards. I've also made up some recycled-paper bookplates to grace the endpapers of your favourite books.

Hope to see lots of smiling faces there!

And here's what became of them...

2011-03-15T04:55:00.000-07:00

Here's my latest little project - turning my tip finds into lovely new treasures. New journals to fill with new stories. Gertrude would approve.

Crimes uncovered

2011-03-14T00:30:00.000-07:00

Exciting find tip-sleuths! Look what was hiding beneath the spine of my recently-aquired 1914 French Progressive Reader. A tome called The Crime Doctor. There is nothing in the rest of the book that gives away it's earlier life, just the printing on the spine - perhaps there is a WWI vintage recycling trend here?

The Crime Doctor was a book written by English author E. W. Hornung (of Raffles fame) in 1914 - the same year my edition of the French Progressive Reader was published. This version is Australian, and you can access and read the original online for free at The Internet Archive.

Any information about this would be most fascinating - drop me a message with your finds, tip-sleuths!

To market, to market!

2011-03-10T19:30:00.000-08:00

A beautiful (if slightly warm) day today makes me excited about Sunday's market. What a lovely way to spend a March morning!

Looking forward to seeing some familiar faces at Portside Wharf after my ink & whim Christmas and floods market hiatus! Plenty of new stuff to show and tell.

Here's a tip...

2011-02-22T05:42:00.000-08:00

Tips are great, and are full of treasures.

Here's a perfect example of what I love about books. A slim, hard-cover book entitled Twenty Poems, by Rupert Brooke, fell into my hands in this week's treasure hunt. Printed in 1943, the title page is graced by a cameo-style profile portrait of the author, and the volume is filled with, unsurprisingly, twenty poems. The opening lines of the first poem set the tone of the ones that follow:

Breathless we flung us on the windy hill,
Laughed in the sun and kissed the lovely grass.

Rupert Brooke, 'The Hill', 1910

Beautiful, huh?

Better still is the sentiment scrawled on the inside of the cover by who I assume was the original owner, W.R. Costa; just the sort of history that keeps me checking the inside covers of every dusty book I see. Wonderful.

"Like hell it's yours - put it back."

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-13T16:30:00.000-08:00

Here is a card that I made my beautiful friends Cassie and Loc for their wedding day. This day was one of the most special that I have experienced, and the love in the air was palpable. The card features vintage sheet music from the classic It had to be you, backed on a recycled cardstock heart. My wish to all of you out there this Valentine's Day is for you to find love as amazing as Cassie and Loc's.

Photo credit David Le

Both Cassie and Loc are beautifully creative, so their card had to be something special. Check out some of their creative adventures at http://www.cassienguyen.com/ .

View from my balcony

2011-02-07T22:15:00.000-08:00

Well, the possums have moved out - for now.

My theory is that the thirty rainbow lorikeets who have moved in to the Umbrella Tree just off my balcony are making daytime napping impossible. It's a good thing that they're my favourite bird, because they're so noisy! So beautiful though. How is it that anything man-made that uses these colours looks garish, and yet the birds look so pretty?

The evidence

2011-02-03T20:41:00.000-08:00

That makes it sound quite gritty, hey? No, this is the evidence from my Lifeline shopping spree. Apologies for the poor quality of pic - my phone's camera does not work well in low-light, awkward situations (ie, books spread out on my bed at one in the morning, with me standing on said bed to get an aerial shot...). If you see one you'd like as a diary or journal, call dibs and send me an email!

Goodness!

2011-02-03T14:24:00.000-08:00

Goodness gracious me! It's February!

Just how did that happen? I still feel like I'm waiting for the New Year. February means that school is in full swing, Easter holidays are around the corner and the Boutique Markets are on again.

Speaking of the markets, I won't be joining our friends for the first market of the year - international travelling and local flooding (ie, my laundry, garage and storeroom!) have made the beginning of 2011 busy enough, thank you very much. I'll be there with bells on in March, however.

Always one to over-commit myself, I'll be spending the second weekend in February at Dance Camp. No, not for me (I am a passionate but slightly awkward dancer), for my school. I'm quite excited to be helping supervise the dance ensemble on their training weekend - they're a really great bunch of girls - and equally excited to be spending a couple of nights at a great bush campsite with all meals provided...

Footloose, anyone?

"Moving things for lively youngsters" and other excellent titles

2011-01-31T06:26:00.000-08:00

Today I had three hours between classes and so I took myself off to the Lifeline Bookfest. What a wonderful way to start the week! I collected a heap of new treasures, including:

- A hardcover 'Early Reader' Heidi, printed in Czechoslovakia

- 1974 "Pluto Pup Goes To Sea" Little Golden Book, once belonging to a (but probably not 'the') James Brown

- The ABC of Hand Lettering, beautifully authored by Carl Holmes

- A February 1955 edition of "Home Chat" magazine, full of household tips, thrilling short stories and, interestingly, no less than five advertisements for remedies treating fatigue and depression. Right next to the ads for laundry powder...

- A sweet-looking German children's book featuring a horse wearing rollerskates on the cover.

Here's hoping that your week started off as well as mine!

A loosely-connected collection of thoughts

2011-01-28T07:35:00.000-08:00

I really, really like words. I love the way that certain writers can combine seemingly innocuous verbs, nouns and adjectives to strike me with it's poignancy. Back at school this week, and seeing shining faces before me in the classroom, I'm reminded just how important words are and just what I'm doing being a proper school ma'am in the first place. To each of my classes this term I've introduced myself as a word-nerd, and proud of it. It is my goal to create a few word-nerds over the course of the academic year...

I like the shape and sound of certain words, and love the effect that a typeset can have on the meaning of a text. Last year I completed some modules from the Advanced Diploma of Graphic Design, and was fascinated by my introduction to fonts. I loved the theory behind seriff and sans-seriff fonts, and the rationalisation behind certain font choices...

When I was little I had an amazing font, borders and presentation book. This book - before the world of computer formatting (yes, I am that old!) - allowed me to play with curves and cursive, bold lines and block texts. My favourite part of school assignments were the headings - goodness my headings were works of art! The report on koalas was decorated with Australiana-inspired lettering, and each character of the title 'Our Population' was communicated by little stick-figure people bending themselves into extraordinary positions...

My love of words and my love of fonts have found a natural home together in quotable quotes. I'm collecting a range of lovely sayings, and thinking about how to present them. My favourite at the moment is the simple sentiment expressed below. The sharing of a cuppa is such an universal notion, and one that I've been thinking about lately in the recovery stage of the SEQ floods. I have seen all sorts of people, from volunteers to their benefactees, sharing a comforting cup of tea. So important is this ritual that tea making supplies were one of the most requested items for evacuation centres, even here in the peak of our boiling Summer. So, if anyone is about in Brisbane and is in need of a cuppa, please drop me a line. I'm more than happy to take tea with you!

2011-01-11T03:35:00.000-08:00

Home in Brisbane again, and straight into a city-sized puddle.

Thoughts, prayers and best wishes to all impacted by the SE Queensland floods.

The bricks here really excite me.

2011-01-06T05:17:00.000-08:00

It's an amazing experience vintage shopping, flea marketing and antiques browsing in a city that's over 900 years old (although this is relatively young in European terms). I have gotten some beautiful things here, from hand made and embroidered linens to exquisite decorative telegrams from the start of the 1900s. I also scored a stunning 1950s silk cocktail dress for only 20 euro! Amsterdam vintage, you have been good to me.

Also stunning is the range of things to gawk at. In one antique shop I almost bought a lovely bronze bangle from the Bronze Age!!!

I love walking around Amsterdam and seeing the history oozing from every stone and facade. I have been taking photos of beautiful 13th century churches, a gilded gate from 1381, centuries-old canals... the usual.

Not so usual is taking photos of bricks, however the bricks here really excite me. The photo below is of two types of bricks - where a wall meets the pavement. You can really tell the newer bricks of the two - the brown ones of the wall. Oh, and by the way, these 'newer' bricks form a house proudly stamped with a date stone saying '1712'...

Along with the history and vintage, I've come across a delightful range of fabric and ribbons. These will be lots of fun to turn into journals and cards this year.

Ah, Thumper.

2011-01-03T16:56:00.000-08:00

Ok, this may not be the most visually-pleasing photo that I've posted, but it's so darn cute!

''Cute?" You ask. "It's some grey smudges on an off-white background..."

Yes. But that white background is snow, and those grey smudges are bunny tracks! See the deep shapes where his paws pushed off, and the long lines of his back legs? Imagine his cute bunny nose twitching from the snowflakes and his little fluffy tail bobbing up and down as he makes his way back to his burrow?

I can sense some furrowed brows at my bunny enthusiasm. Perhaps some context is needed here:

One: I am Australian.

Two: Australia is mostly hot and dry (despite the freak weather at the moment). Many Australians have never seen snow. The sight of said snow could turn a tough, rough, beer-swilling Aussie bloke into a little boy who just wet his pants from excitement. Therefore, snow is awesome and magical.

Three: Australians consider rabbits pests. They destroy the land and eat everything in sight. Dogs are trained to hunt them, farmers to shoot them. We have a rabbit-proof fence that stretched for over 3000kms to try to protect untainted wildernesses. It is illegal to keep rabbits as pets in Queensland. As an Australian, and more so, currently residing in Queensland, it is part of my national duty - nay, identity - to hate rabbits.

Four: Which would be easy if the bunnies weren't so darn cute! If you're not convinced, take a moment to reaquaint yourself with Thumper.

So, while I am in the Netherlands, in the beautiful snow, I will embrace my saccharin-sweet feelings and be inspired by bunnies, who are not pests here. Here, the bunnies are the ones from story-books, the ones that inspired Beatrix Potter. Here, they are cute and fluffy, and I can love them without ecological shame.

Expect some illustrations soon.

Oops!

2011-01-01T09:48:00.001-08:00

Forgot to say - Happy New Year!

May your year be filled with love, achievement, adventure and peace.

Dubai: A camel called Shane, a falcon called Miriam and an Egyptian dancer called Captain Honey.

2011-01-01T08:06:00.001-08:00

Although an excellent adventure, Dubai was not as I expected. It truly is a city of contrasts: the very wealthy and the dirt-poor, natural desert colours and flashes of bling, traditional custom in uber-modern settings (and vice-versa). I had a fantastic conversation with a falconer about training his falcon, and the importance of the practice in Emirati culture, however the conversation took place in the Dubai Mall, the largest mall in the world. And the falcon's name was Miriam...

Only 5% of the population of Dubai are actually Emirati, so what one finds in the malls, in the souks and by the marina is a real blend of cultures, and what is experienced as Arab culture is often a mix of Lebanese and Iranian sprinkled with psuedo-bedouin flair. Playing out their lives on this foundation are English, Australian, South African and Canadian expats - mostly teachers, lawyers and business-owners. There is also a huge Central Asian influence, as virtually all labour is imported from Pakistan and India.

This clash, appropriation and (contradictorily) seamless mélange of colours, patterns and peoples was an inspiration in itself. I think I have renewed commitment towards my own practice of ink & whim pastiche...

And what's not to love about a camel called Steve?

The most glamourous Starbucks in the world.

Very traditional, yes? Until you see the 'Made in China' sticker on the back of the lantern...

Captain Hany (pronounced 'Honey'), an amazing Egyptian tanoura dancer. Check out his YouTube channel.

There's that melangé again...

2010-12-09T01:56:00.000-08:00

Ta Taryn for the shout-out!

Boutique Markets BLOG: Exciting new product...: "Just in time for Christmas! The lovely and very creative Janissa from Ink and Whim has sent me these gorgeous piccies of her personalised d..."

Wait, it's December?

2010-12-02T02:05:00.000-08:00

I had one of those moments yesterday when I was reminded of just how fast time flies. I saw a moustached friend who was newly bald-faced. My first thought was that he couldn't hack having a mo for the whole of Movember, and had given in to the temptation of the razor. I then realised - shock horror - that it was the 1st of December. The last month of the year. Almost 2011...

How does the time fly past so quickly? When I was little a week would be a lifetime, and I couldn't even fathom the concept of a year.

So many things that seemed to take forever now appear to have lasted only the blink of an eye. Take high school for instance; the anxiety and excitement of first year, the routine of the years that followed, the agonising wait for Graduation Day. Now that I'm a teacher I see my students leave year after year, and think about how they have just ended a major chapter of their lives that in the future will seem like such a distant memory. 2011 is my fifth year at my current school, and I have been hit with the realisation that the cohort that I started with in Year 8 will next year graduate from Year 12. I have been a part of their entire school experience, and yet it has seemed so quick for me.

Enough of this borderline-melancholy reflection and back to the point... 2011 means 2011 ink & whim diaries. Below are some pics of personalised diaries made to order - the fantastic monkey fabric is recycled from the customer's favourite Peter Alexander PJs. Drop me a line if you'd like to see in 2011 ink & whim style!

Twilight markets - no, not the Edward and Bella kind.

2010-11-24T00:48:00.000-08:00

Glad to have some uniquely Brissie Christmas adventures before my white Christmas adventures begin. Come down to our special Christmas markets in December -flyer below!

Uitwaaien

2010-11-23T05:02:00.000-08:00

I am going to Dubai.

And Amsterdam.

On a whim.

In three weeks time.

For almost a month.

I will take my camera, and capture sand and heat and windmills and glamour and Arabic and history and snow and smiles and Christmas and souks and adventure and camels and Fireworks and clouds.

I wonder what amazing textiles await me? Must remember to take an empty suitcase to fill with paper and fabric...

Current ontological position: uitwaaien (Dutch, vb.) - To walk in the wind for fun.

Movember Madness

2010-10-31T02:47:00.000-07:00

Monday sees the beginning of Movember - a wonderful month for moustaches and men's health awareness. I love watching the mos grow throughout the month, and towards the end of the month truly appreciate the creative manscaping of some of the participants!

My favourite Movember game is 'Mo or No?' - spying men with moustaches throughout Movember and trying to ascertain whether it is grown especially for the occasion or part of their regular appearance...

This month I have been very happy to support Movember by donating some moustache-themed prizes to a Mo-lympics event (check out pics below, orders welcome!), and offering a 20% discount for Movember supporters. So if you've a growing mo pop down to my November stall on Sunday 14th @ the Boutique Markets, Portside.

If you'd like to support Movember, check out http://au.movember.com/ for events, sponsorship opportunities and the like. Happy Movember!

A Preview...

2010-10-18T06:01:00.000-07:00

Rain...

2010-10-11T02:38:00.000-07:00

- noun

1. water that is condensed from the aqueous vapor in the atmosphere and falls to earth in drops more than 1 / 50 in. (0.5 mm) in diameter. Compare drizzle ( def. 6 ).
2. a rainfall, rainstorm, or shower: We had a light rain this afternoon.
3. rains, the rainy season; seasonal rainfall, as in India.
4. weather marked by steady or frequent rainfall: We had rain most of last summer.
5. a heavy and continuous descent or inflicting of anything: a rain of blows; a rain of vituperation.

- verb (used without object)

6. (of rain) to fall (usually used impersonally with it as subject): It rained all night.
7. to fall like rain: Tears rained from their eyes.
8. to send down rain: The lightning flashed and the sky rained on us in torrents.

- verb (used with object)

9. to send down in great quantities, as small pieces or objects: People on rooftops rained confetti on the parade.
10. to offer, bestow, or give in great quantity: to rain favors upon a person.
11. to deal, hurl, fire, etc., repeatedly: to rain blows on someone's head.

- verb phrase

12. rain out, to cause, by raining, the cancellation or postponement of a sports event, performance, or the like: The double-header was rained out yesterday.

- idiom

13. rain cats and dogs, Informal . to rain very heavily or steadily: We canceled our picnic because it rained cats and dogs.

Usage (ink & whim): We cancelled our market on Sunday because it rained cats and dogs...

Hello World

2010-09-23T19:31:00.000-07:00

I love Spring! This year I have an 'up close and personal' Spring experience - a possum and her baby have made a nest on my balcony. Quite strange though, is anyone aware if possums have a penchant for red hues? Or is it just my possum?

The phenonemon started during windy August (see my post 'How the time flies' detailing the challenges of craft practice in a windy environment!), just after my birthday. As part of my birthday parcel my lovely mother gave me a great set of a dozen assorted red tea towels - stripes, checks, plain and the like. I gave them all a wash, and really enjoyed watching the line fill with red flags flapping in the breeze (To all those out there who enjoy colour coordination as much as I, I used red pegs too, so the red and red was quite a spectacle). A day or so later I went outside to collect my now-dry towels, only to find most of them off the line and blown to the other end of the balcony - wedged in behind a potplant no less. What extraordinarily strong wind, I thought to myself. I gathered up the tea towels and put them into my next load.

The next day, I went out onto the balcony to collect my dry washing, a mixed load of the tea towels as wellas t-shirts and the like, only to discover that again a selection of items had been blown back into the same corner. On closer inspection I realised that only the red items were in the corner - blue facecloths and green t-shirts were untouched on the line. In fact, even coloured things that hadn't been pegged were still on the line! I pulled out the bundle of fabric from the corner, and discovered three of my new tea towels, a deep red singlet top and a bright pink pair of undies... Then, when pulling out an orange shirt, I saw a little furry nose and two beady eyes - a possum with a very fat belly had made a nest!

Since then I have donated some old red tea towels to Possum, as well as a great orange retro tablecoth (she certainly has taste!). Possum also shredded a potted palm to make a canopy for herself, and I have been rewarded by glimpses of baby. Each morning now, Possum, Baby, my cat and I share tea (me) and apples (Possum, and strangely, Cat) in the Spring sunshine.

I'll be having two stalls in October to celebrate the beautiful weather; my usual Boutique Markets on the second Sunday of the month (10th Oct), and the Milton 'Fair On the Green', hosted by Milton State School (Saturday 23rd). I'm quite excited by the latter, and was very happy to be invited. It looks to be a fantastic day with rides, fair food (bring on the cakes!), music and craft stalls. Hope to see lots of smiling faces there!

I'll leave this (rather long) post with a couple of snaps from the Boutique Markets last month. The lovely Taryn writes a fantastic blog for this, full of lots of great crafty tips and yummy recipes. Check it out here: http://www.boutiquemarkets.blogspot.com/

Full of it.

2010-09-08T23:56:00.000-07:00

My walls are getting full. Too full. Which is such a pity, because I've started framing some of the full-page illustrations from the Don Quixote book. They look beautiful, and so nice as part of a set. But my walls are full already: family photos (including some lovely B&W ones of my mother as a child), photos of travels blown up to poster-size, selected prints by Alphonse Mucha, Georges Barbier and Fred Packer (how I love Deco and Nouveau depictions of women!) a lovely red fish scroll picked up in Hong Kong... and a few framed pictures from books.

So, these ones are off to market.

Wallflowers

2010-08-15T22:04:00.000-07:00

A preview of some lovely recently-acquired vintage wallpaper. This will adorn some A5 journals soon.

I'm in love...

2010-08-10T22:59:00.000-07:00

... with my new Xyron Creative Station (thank you eBay!). Another machine to add to the lovelies on my work bench. Goodbye to the old days of messy glue on the kitchen table, and welcome to a new era of perfect edge-to-edge adhesion...

Yep, I'm a craft geek.

http://www.xyron.com/enUS/Home/default.html

A little bird once told me...

2010-08-05T00:35:00.001-07:00

Hope is the Thing

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all.

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chilliest land
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.

by Emily Dickinson

Monkey business

2010-06-29T18:08:00.001-07:00

A friend of mine is a little obsessed with monkeys. He was born in the Year of the Monkey. He has a cat named Monkey. He does a terrific monkey impersonation by blowing up his cheeks and searching for nits. He recently got a large monkey tattoo on his chest (a bit of a responsibility for me, who was asked to design it!). He eats at least two bananas a day. He climbs anything that poses a challenge, often forgoing ladders at his work to reach the stock placed up high on storage racks, instead scaling the sheer shelving and fetching it on his own steam. His recent Facebook picture was him up a tree… you get the picture. This monkey kinship is quite selective, however. My friend isn’t interested in Paul Frank merchandise, and is not a fan of the Coco Pops mascot. He would probably sell his left foot to cruise around on a pink cloud like Monkey Magic though.

So what do you get such a friend for his birthday when over the decade that you’ve known each other you’ve already run the monkey-themed present gamut? Imagine my delight when I stumbled across Adventure Parc in the Gold Coast hinterland. Adventure Parc is a developed version of the high-ropes course that used to terrify us at school camps – except this high-ropes course is open to adults, and has a special ‘black’ rated course just for those over 160cm. An access-all-areas pass is now in the mail for said friend, and he can swing like a monkey to his heart’s desire. I’ve also designed him a monkey journal to record his monkey adventures in – heavy gold paper with a wooden die-cut primate. Keeping with this theme I’ve included some other animals in the range. Enjoy! Note – the gold colour is a lot shinier than my scanner can pick up…

As promised...

2010-06-09T01:33:00.000-07:00

As pomised here is a photo of my new Little Golden Book journals. These were created from battered and bruised books found in op shops, at the back of the cupboard and on eBay, cleaned up and then filled with fresh white paper. I love the idea that these special books will have a second life.

At last month’s stall I realised just how special they were. Almost everyone that stopped to look had the same reaction: “I used to have these!” This would then be followed by tales of which stories were their favourite, and where the books now resided (in most cases, in a box ‘somewhere’ in the garage, or given away to the kids across the road). All of the books used are vintage – my earliest is from 1954 and the latest in the early 80s – and I loved seeing adults of various ages sneak a look inside the front cover, just in case they saw their name scrawled on the infamous ‘This Little Golden Book Belongs To…’ nameplate.

Children got excited when they saw the covers too – many recognised current favourites (albeit from later print runs). At first I was concerned that kids would be disappointed that the colourful pages inside had been replaced, but my worries were allayed after overhearing one little girl’s comment. She picked up a ‘Scuffy the Tugboat’ (one of my faves also), looked inside and then proclaimed, “Look, Mummy. The pages are blank so I can write my own story!” How sweet!

In the picture below are some of my favourite titles, and the image also shows the bookmark attached to the spine. Each bookmark features two illustrations from the inside of the book, laminated for durability.

Baby Love

2010-06-05T22:33:00.001-07:00

A friend of mine is having a baby and I have made/am making three cards for her – one for the baby shower, one for our workmates to sign at our staff afternoon tea and one now ‘under development’ for the actual birth. It means a lot to me to give this friend handmade cards as she has been one of ink & whim’s greatest supporters – even voting on the ink & whim name when my crafty ideas were still in their infancy. She bought a load of journals and cards the weekend before my first stall, giving me the confidence that I needed to feel as though I wouldn’t flop on trading day, and she visited me at this stall bright and early so that I would see a friendly face in the crowd. She is also beautifully honest in her feedback of my designs – it is a real friend that can be truthful about the things that don’t quite work out! Needless to say (but I will anyway!), her friendship is greatly appreciated.

Over the years I have given this friend handmade Christmas and birthday cards, which were all given with love, but a baby is something very special and so I wanted something very special to give her. So, thinking cap on, I thought about what I could do that would best fit.

My friend and I first bonded outside of work with sushi. After work and before evening events we would skip down to the local sushi train and delight in the beautifully prepared delicacies – her; fresh salmon nigiri, me; hot salted edamame beans. Our mutual love of sushi was complemented by a mutual love of Japanese textiles, and so I decided that origami paper should feature on the card – an origami-bundled baby. The bundle ended up in a similar shape to a babushka doll, which was a lucky accident, seeing as for my last birthday my friend (recognising my love for all things babushka upon seeing the decorations around my home) gave me a babushka scrabble-tile pendant.

The second card had more of a vintage flavour. I browsed the insides of some of the Little Golden Books that I had collected for journal making (pics to come, I promise!), and found a sweet-faced Eloise Wilkin illustrated baby to feature on the card. Looking at the publishing info, I saw that the LGB book was from the same year as my friend was born – a very special coincidence*. These were matched with some stars and scalloped, recycled card.

So, now I’m up to the third card and I’m still playing with ideas. At this point I’m pretty sure that cotton scraps and buttons will be involved – maybe I’ll use some of the same fabric that she’s used for her new nursery’s curtains? I have a few weeks until the baby is due, so plenty of time to come up with something extra special.

And you know how I mentioned how incredibly supportive my friend was of my crafty efforts? Upon opening each card (amongst a crowd of clucky and cooing women), she took the time to mention what I do, promote my website and announce that I take orders! At the end of each present-giving ritual, she leant over and said, “I hope I see this design at your next stall!” So, at my friend’s request, adapted versions of each card are below – handmade with love.

*Apologies also to my friend regarding the publication year of this book. I may be good at gluing, but I’m hopeless at maths and so I apologise for adding two years to your age…

How the time flies!

2010-04-17T19:22:00.000-07:00

It is so surprising that it is April already. It seems as if one moment I’m putting away the Christmas tree and the next I’m gorging on chocolate bunnies! My year has been particularly full so far: I’ve moved house, had relatives to visit and celebrated with friends who have had babies. I’ve also been in the swing of work again, which may explain my hesitancy in going on the computer once I’ve gotten home – too much square eyes during the day!

In the rush of 2010 I’ve still been crafting and creating, however. My new apartment has a lovely east-facing sunroom that has been set up as my studio, and it’s so lovely to have everything organised. Down the length of the room, under the windows, I’ve a long black desktop with open shelves underneath. On this three-metre length sits my binding machine, sewing machine, laminator, laptop, scanner and printer - Pretty maids all in a row…

Another feature of my new unit is a deep balcony off the living area and sunroom. This is a wonderful place to have a cuppa and some toast in the morning, however it has brought an unexpected complication to my craft making. With April comes the autumn winds, and my windows and doors off this balcony seem to catch them all. A peaceful afternoon’s playing with origami paper and glue becomes an extreme sport as the wind transports my creations all the way into the kitchen! I’ve never been very good at catch, however I can’t bear to shut the house up. Hence my scissors, rulers and TV remote have been called into double duty as paperweights.

Pictured below are some mini journals that survived the wind’s game of fetch. Each measures approximately 10.5 centimetres square, and each is unique. Sturdy and wire-bound, the mini journals are covered in either washi origami paper or a hundred-year-old Don Quixote page. The end papers contrast with the covers – thrown in the mix here also is some 1950s music paper (look out for the Canadian Boat Song).

I have the radio on as I type this, and you wouldn’t believe it. Playing right now is Blowin’ in the wind...

2010-01-06T16:58:00.000-08:00

I'm at the tail end of my Christmas/New Year holidays, and have so far been disappointed by my reading efforts - only a few novels have been consumed, and the pile left unread is quite big considering my usual appetite. My goal for the next week is to read, read, read before my brain has to deal with the reality and responsibility of work again!

My reading tastes are quite eclectic. I'm just as likely to have my head in a biography as I am to be reading science-fantasy, and I also take great pleasure in candy-covered chick-lit. I'm also working my way through 'the classics' - I can get quite caught up in the societal rules laid out in Pride and Prejudice and then delight in the commentary on the same in any Oscar Wilde play. My favourite genre at the moment, however, is historical fiction. I love reading the detail of characters' lives set against an unfamiliar era. Most interesting is the inclusion of the minutiae of daily life: eating and bathroom habits, fashion, transport, housing.

Quoting from books is another pastime. As a teenager, when others were writing lines from their favourite songs in their diaries and the singers' names on their pencil cases, I was finding words of wisdom and enjoyment in novels and by authors. Two of my favourites have been put together below - printed on raised card and backed quite aptly on an original Don Quixote page.

Which reminds me, I may have to add Don Quixote to the reading pile. I struggled with the complicated and drawn-out plot when I was younger but now may be more successful. If only I hadn't chopped my copy up...

"She is too fond of books, and it has addled her brain!" Louisa May Alcott

"It would be so nice if something made sense for a change"

Alice in Wonderland

A blog about journals

2010-01-02T03:42:00.000-08:00

I am very proud of these – thank goodness I’ve an online journal otherwise I’d be tempted to keep too many for myself…

The details:

Fabric-bound hard cover with contrasting origami paper end pages
ink & whim illustrated decal
Approximately 16cm square
100 pages (50 leaf) of carbon neutral and FSC certified paper, lined on one side and blank on the other for both writing and imagining
Sturdy wire-bound spine, opens flat at any page
Each journal is 100% handmade and 100% unique

Binding bliss!

2009-12-15T18:25:00.000-08:00

My Wiremac arrived yesterday - the next few weeks will be book-binding mania at my house if last night's blitz is anything to go by. This binding machine punches so crisply through so many textures. I punched holes in everything that wasn't nailed down! Especially exciting was the satisfaction of slicing through red polka-dot cotton.

P.S. Family: I think you'll all be getting handmade journals for Chrissy...

Stuck on Don Quixote

2009-11-10T18:42:00.000-08:00

I'm really impressed with the 'up-cycle' or eco-craft trends that are booming in online spaces and cropping up in markets across the city. It is very inspiring; I've a list of scribbled ideas in my little art journal and a stack of telephone wire, spent tealight candles and op-shop pillowcases (to name just a few of the random materials I've collected) awaiting transformation.

In this area my Don Quixote text has had another workout. The original line drawings in the book are beautiful, and quite intriguing when viewed out of context with the story. Keeping with a stationery theme I've partnered this paper with soft-drink cans, buttons and magnets to create some pretty and useful fridge/noticeboard art. And the best thing - all eco!

I'd forgotten how fun it was to play with magnets - remember in school Science how making the magnets move across the laboratory desks was like a little bit of magic? The super-strong magnets were great for tricking others in the class to believe that you could move a paper-clip simply by staring at it, and although we knew it was impossible we would always try to get two repelling magnets to attract... When my magnets arrived in the post I whiled away quite a bit of time playing and revisiting these experiments!

Arigato, sister!

2009-10-23T20:30:00.000-07:00

My sister recently had a trip to Japan and has returned with some lovely paper for me. There are the usual suspects of textured washi paper, stunningly detailed printed paper and some lovely big sheets of handmade wrapping paper, however the most exciting contribution she has made to my paper collection is a big packet of almost A3 off-white paper textured with thread and printed with maple leaves. She was beautifully resourceful in this find - straight from a kitchenwares supply shop away from the tourist strips. Apparently, this is the paper found lining obento boxes and used as placemats in restaurants. Just the sort of quirky history I love for my crafty stuff!

I've been playing around with some simple pen and ink drawings backed on various origami paper patterns. It seems that myself and all the world are infatuated with bird imagery at the moment, so a couple have featured here (as well as in my profile pic). All of these are available as a greeting card (printed on linen-textured cardstock) or 100% recycled cardstock gift card. Drop me an email with any questions - pack discounts available.

Foiled!

2009-10-13T16:41:00.000-07:00

A combination of an electricity blackout, indecision and forgetting about daylight savings meant that I missed out on my binder. Very disappointing, although I've been thinking lately that I have to be careful about eBay. Sometimes I'm unsure if my drive to buy an item is motivated by my wanting that item or my desire to win the auction... It was a very clever person that made shopping a competitive sport!

So, if anyone has a wire binding machine that they want to get rid of - preferably a WireMac 2:1 - let me know!

Almost forgot...

2009-10-09T21:23:00.000-07:00

I'm currently bidding on a wire binding machine on ebay - I'm getting excited about seeing some of my card designs on the front of handmade journals.

I'll keep you posted!

Buddhas, Buildings, Paper and Lace

2009-10-09T20:22:00.000-07:00

Judging by the date of this post and of the last I expect that my presence here is going to be random at best!

Lately I have been playing around with some photos taken on holiday. I can spend hours playing around in photoshop - it isn't uncommon for family or friends to find their heads super-imposed on google-image sourced bodies, or for their face to feature on the head of a bowling pin... I also love taking photos. I try not to be one of those tourists that spends so much time behind the camera that they forget to actually engage in the new world around them, but sometimes that is the case when I'm in a photogenic place like the Grand Palace in Bangkok or the 10,000 Buddhas Monastery in Hong Kong.

I spent six weeks in Hong Kong a few years back and was completely taken with the Buddhist imagery surrounding me and the way that it was integrated into the busy, modern metropolis. I was completely snap happy in this city - I barely left my apartment without my camera! My photos from this trip were nice shots - engaging and accurate - but when I got home I realised that they didn’t really communicate the juxtaposition of city and religion that I had experienced as a green Aussie traveller. My trusty Photoshop helped me to play with these images to remind myself of this conflict of sensibilities; mixing temples, buddhas and stone lions with lace, neon and origami paper.

Most of these images were taken at the 10,000 Buddhas Monastery. If you're ever in HK it's well worth a look.

'Paper Temple' ‘Buddhas, Buildings, Paper and Lace’ Blank Greeting Card

Digital collage on a layered background of origami paper

'Buddhas, Buildings, Paper and Lace’ series Blank Greeting Cards
Digital collage on a layered background of origami paper or handmade paper sourced from South Korea

Hello Blogland!

2009-09-28T17:53:00.000-07:00

The task of committing my thoughts to (virtual) paper in this forum is a bit intimidating, so to ease myself in I am going to start my expression in list-form:

I make things

I love to make things

I do not make things for a living, but I should

Hence, ink & whim

ink & whim is the culmination of my umming and ahhing about being productively creative.

My latest inspiration:

I grew up in a reading household; my mother, sister and I always had our noses in books. Our library cards were always maxed out and our weekends were spent trawling op-shops and the local book exchange for the next good read. Pilgrimages were made annually to the Lifeline Book Fair. With this love also came great respect; my mother ensured that we were careful with our books and passed them on when we were done. Reading in the bath was permissible, but the book was not to get wet under any circumstances. Drawing in books (even ‘beautifying’ my Little Golden Books by colouring in the pictures) was a strict and punishable no-no!

Much of my love of reading stems from a love of books themselves – on a philosophical level of course they’re a portal to amazing places, situations and characters, but on a physical level they interest me greatly as well: the smell, the binding, the cover. In our op-shop journeys my sister and I would keep a special look out for old books. I’m sure my sister’s motivation was to collect books of distinction, however I was more interested in each book as an object. I pictured each book sitting in book shelves of families in the 80s, being part of a stack on a bedside table in the 50s and being purchased before the war in the 30s. Aside from this imagined history I also enjoyed the beautiful printing techniques that used to be the fashion: the bold serif typefaces, illuminated chapter beginnings and block-printed illustrations. What made a book truly special, however, was when evidence of the book’s history made a physical appearance. I looked out for hand-written birthday messages in the front covers (To Sally on her birthday, with much love Father and Mother) and pasted-in award plaques (Presented to John Smythe, Form 1, for excellent penmanship).

The ‘Don Quixote’ I came across a couple of years ago presented me with a great opportunity – here was a book that was over a hundred years old, had beautiful pen and ink illustrations, interesting layout on each page and beautiful language use to boot. The best thing, however, was that the book was damaged – pages missing and covers crumbling. This allowed me to go against my mother’s teachings; if the book was already falling apart then it would be alright for me to tear pages out! I could also draw in it! I love working with the book to create something new. Some of these finished pages are shown below in their new greeting card forms.

'Promise'

Pen and ink illustration on original Don Quixote paper

Printed on 100% recycled cardstock
Print available as a greeting card, blank inside for own message

‘Pleased’

Pen and ink illustration on original Don Quixote paper

Printed on 100% recycled cardstock
Print available as a greeting card, blank inside for own message

***

As part of a printed origami collage:

And on metallic cardstock, backed with block-printed South Korean paper: