Framed fabric hoop art

Spoonflower is the fabulous place where I make my fabric designs available to the public. There are so many talented designers there I feel very privileged to be sharing this platform with them. If you are looking for something a little more unusual, then this is the place to go. If I could afford to I'd be blowing my budget on there regularly, but usually I have to save my cash to proof my own designs. One day when I'm a little more flush I'd like to order lots of  8" swatches of all my favourite designer's and just make hoop art out of them. But for now, here is just one.  It's one of the very first fabrics I fell in love with and its called Incognito is Neato by an extremely talented designer called vo_aka_virginiao



I've used a 6inch hoop to frame an 8" swatch, and I've sewn tiny reflective yellow seed beads onto the fabric to catch the light and give it even more of a 3d effect. It's now hanging up on my wall, pride of place, next to my laptop. A little reminder of how amazing fabric design can be.

Irish Graphic Novels for kids

[caption id="attachment_977" align="alignnone" width="490"] Alan Nolan, and his comedy mystery series for kids[/caption]

In keeping with my 'Everything Irish' theme this week I'm pleased to announce my interview with writer and artist Alan Nolan, the hot new talent from O'Brien Press, is currently featured on the Inis Magazine website brought to you by Children's Books Ireland. 
It was a pleasure to interview Alan for Inis Magazine, not only he is one of my oldest friends in independent comics, but I love spotlighting the success stories of small press creators who are taken on and given an opportunity by mainstream publishers. It's big deal that he's getting to produce 'graphic novels' for kids, he's building up the comic readership of tomorrow.  I'm really proud of you Al!  Not one to sing his own praises,  I'd like to take this opportunity to thank him for agreeing to the interview!  You can read all of it here: Alan Nolan's 'Big Break' into Graphic Novels

[caption id="attachment_978" align="alignnone" width="490"] Alan Nolan, Never one to sing his own praises ;-)[/caption]

Holy Batgirl Embroidery !

I often come up with my embroidery designs in pairs, so this is the sister stitchery to the Catwoman I showed you just over a week ago.
I agonised over whether or not to fill in the mask, so I left it to last, but I'm really pleased with the finished result. Again this little beauty is just 3 inches in diameter. (Sold)

[caption id="attachment_954" align="alignnone" width="490"] I like how the purple glitter ribbon echoes her mask![/caption]

TWIN PEAKS: Double R Diner & Cherry Pie fabrics available now

I'm pleased to announce my latest Twin Peaks fabrics are now available through Spoonflower. Inspired by the Double R Diner and Coop's love of Cherry Pie, you can see the complete range here: Twin Peaks Inspired fabrics by Cherry and Cinnamon
They feature the Double R Diner logo on coffee cups, cherry pie slices:



And proving that Cherry pie isn't always cute one fabric features cherry pie with a mysterious splatter, is that pie spill or something else? I also made a cherry pie filling fabric- a little less obvious and a lot more sinister, for those who like their Twin Peaks creepy!
I'd just like to thank my Twin Peaks quilter Jess for spurring me on, and for all of you out there who got excited by these designs: I wanna see those 50's dresses!!!! Seriously though, I can't wait to see what you make!

Bowie: Conversation Piece

Today I want to share this song that’s been haunting me. Conversation Piece, by David Bowie, was written in 1969, recorded in 1970, and the version here re-recorded in 2002 and offered as an extra on Bowie’s penultimate album ‘Heathen.’ (2002) I find it so evocative that I’m barely able to listen with out a few tears.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4h2S3xmELo&w=420&h=315]

The album Heathen is tinged with sadness and a sense of old age, and although different in style this song fits with that theme, especially this version sung as it is with Bowie’s mature baritone. One interpretation I read of this song claimed it is written from the perspective of an old academic, (“You wouldn’t think to look at me that I’ve spent a lot of time in education, it all seems so long ago”).But to me I can’t help thinking of a student,Bowie wrote it as a young man, and I imagine him as living alone above the grocer store, a lodger of sorts. Someone who doesn't belong. (And I did always wonder about that album title).

I believe this little known gem of a song spawned a relative in the largely overlooked 1995 album ‘Outside’. In his segue the aged character Algeria Touchshriek “a broken man”, is living in a run down area and “thinking of leasing the room above ‘his’ shop to a Mr. Walloff Domburg. A reject from the world wide Internet” He is also a broken man, and Touchshriek muses: “It would be nice to have company we could have great conversations…” PerhapsBowie’s lodger in Conversation piece has found a home at last and a friend for Mr Touchshriek, “I don't get to speak much to anyone or that sort of thing, if I had another broken man…Oh, I dream of something like that.”

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGbyfSOtQgI&w=420&h=315]

Thanks go out to to Nick Abadzis for making me think of all of this.