Latest Posts by jen-collins - Page 2
sometimes i think about how bodies want to be sweaty & smelly & hairy & oily, & about how some of our daily routines try to achieve the opposite.
pocket-sized palm reading. i made an edition of little lino prints for the wonder that is crawl inclusive (the second coming), taking place in dundee this friday. they'll be distributed by the lovely ones of pitch & strike because they are nice like that. so, y'know, if you want one, maybe show up? that said, you might not be able to come, so there's another way you can bag yourself a tiny fortune. i'm going to include one with the next five orders* (over £6.50/$10 inc. shipping) from my shop. yes? yes. *EDIT: all gone! thanks guys.
i'd wanted to turn my circle pattern into a notebook for a couple of months & i finally finished them. they turned out exactly as i'd hoped. it's nice when that happens.
summer 2013 is the summer of making things, apparently. i just added a couple of new things to the shop in the form of the pretty little tiger you'll see above, plus another new postcard set. i've also got a couple of other things up my sleeve. it's good to be busy.
a little more positive reinforcement available in the shop in the form of a brand new* nice advice postcard set. pretty sure i make these things for myself as much as anyone else. *after almost four years, the old style is on it's way out! get 'em while you still can.
spent the afternoon binding some new mini-notebooks & listening to podcasts. a pile of these things is a pretty satisfying thing to hold.
a black cat has crossed your path, what luck! this little screen-printed chat noir can be found over in my shop.
i've been keeping an eye out for some plants small enough to put in the tiny pots i make, but until now, no joy. however, my boyfriend & i went for a walk in the sun today & came across a 'CACTUS SALE' at the botanic gardens - & voila! £2 later, a tiny cactus & a tiny succulent, the perfect size.
i've been itching to make some new totes for a while, & not long ago came up with this guy; a big ol' lion on a big' ol tote. i'm liking how this golden feline stands out against the dark navy cotton, & i hope you like it too. you can find these over in my shop for £10/$15.
did not realise how grumpy & disdainful lynxes look until i drew some. just look at this guy.
i'm a pretty optimistic person, but i'm a realist too. life is good, but there are some days when positive vibes can just get the heck out of here. for those days, i suggest the above alternatives. full blame goes to kaye & lesley. now i have the word 'WANG' in large black caps in my sketchbook.
as i mentioned earlier in the year, i'd been going to a ceramics class & i LOVE it. i just finished a second block, & can't wait to start a new one in a couple of weeks. ceramics can be a precarious process - will it look like i thought it would? will the glaze run? will it explode in the kiln? i've been pretty lucky so far. grateful for things going according to plan.
a portrait of our cooker for a few days. pasta, corn, fried eggs, veggie burgers & baked potatoes. thankfully alan actually knows what he's doing when it comes to campfires. our pillows smell of smoke.
a week off of sorts. we're journeying to the end of a peninsula on the very west coast tomorrow, to celebrate my favourite person's birthday with campfires, marshmallows, walks & trees. as much as i like normality, i'm excited to get away from it for a bit.
added a couple of lino-prints to my shop today. both have hand-applied gold details, because gold.
pretty happy to be back doing ceramics again. i finally picked up some of the things i made at the start of the year, & found out that i accidentally made some stacking pots.
a postcard that i sent off to urban graphic last week for their big draw charity postcard auction. as you can see, i played it safe with the topic (a girl! with a plant! woah!) but got out some colouring pencils that i've not used for years, & scribbled with abandon before inking with a brush on top. i also added a little gold to the plant pot, because i just want to add gold to everything lately. gold gold gold. so there's you have it. she ain't nothin' fancy, but i like her. ps. couple more days left of my sale! 15% off until sat 1 june.
okay, so if you're outside of scotland you actually might have some sunshine today, but after a weekend of glorious weather we're back to rain clouds. that doesn't mean a sweet little discount ain't welcome though, right? in a bid to clear out of a few older items plus raise funds for some new things i'm making, i'm offering 15% off everything in my shop until 1 june with code HELLOSUMMER (enter at checkout). aaaand i'm also going to throw in some freebies to all orders over £13/$20. it's always summer in our hearts u guys. have at it.
trying to worry less about looking like i'm being productive/what others think/money. focussing on enjoying experimenting/making a mess/taking my time. that said, you can generally find evidence of said mess making here & some suggestion of messes made here.
a new personal project: natural beauty. a comment on the concept of "natural beauty" being something you have to strive to achieve, rather than simply embracing what you've got. also an opportunity to use illustration as a means of saying something, which i don't do often enough (this is something that's been on my mind a lot lately). you can see the rest of the series & read more about it on my website.
