not your everyday cappuccino

Yyyyyyyuuuuuuuummmmmmmm!!!!


image by Andy Wade, from pocket cultures

Kas Australia

Whilst in Sydney I bought a new duvet cover (pictured above) from Kas Australia, a company I'd only recently discovered, although they've been around for many years. I just wanted something to brighten up our room as most of my duvets are white cotton. I also bought 4 'new bone porcelain' mugs from Kas: Scythia Coffee Mug. All on sale of course!!

Andre Marty

The other day when I went into London (one of the coldest days when the snow was heaviest and the trains almost stopped running) I spotted a poster advertising the tfl shop, which sells London underground memorabilia. These beautifully designed mugs and cake stand caught my eye and when I got home I looked up the artist. He is:

Andre Edouard Marty - 1882-1974

Andre Edouard Marty studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris. He worked as an illustrator, engraver and theatre designer. Particularly known for fashion plates produced for the Gazette du Bon Ton and Vogue. He also illustrated de luxe editions of French books, fashionable during the 1920's.

Composite poster is the collective name used for posters that can be displayed in sequence. Each component part can stand alone as a poster, but when displayed together they create one large design.

Andre Edouard Marty, born 1882, died 1974. Designed posters for the Underground Group and London Transport 1931-1933.

from tfl

Angus and Celeste

Angus and Celeste are a duo from Melbourne who create beautiful ceramic pieces for home, garden and to wear. I'm in love with their vases and home pieces - absolutely beautiful! Check out their website here.

all images from Angus & Celeste

Margaret Olley: Home

Whilst in Sydney I was lucky enough to go to the Margaret Olley: Home exhibition at the Museum of Sydney. It was amazing to say the least, and overwhelming, because, although not many paintings were displayed, her paintings have so much detail and colour, I couldn't take it all in and would have needed a couple of visits to feel I'd got the most from it. My favourite painting was her last, the triptych (above) of her 'yellow room', particularly the left panel with the natural light flooding in the window which she was such a genius at painting, perfectly capturing the 'colour' of natural light hitting the objects in the window.

In the exhibition there were 2 small areas with still life objects and furniture set up as they were in her home, next to paintings of those objects. 'A Life in Paint', a film about her paintings and home, was playing in the exhibition. This was also shown on the ABC (Australia) with people from her life talking about her and showing her home, which really is as full of stuff as it appears in the paintings. Apparently she had a vase of pomegranates still on display after 12 years! Of course they were all rotten! Her home is to be carefully dismantled and put into a museum. Shame they can't just make her home the museum!

Sydney and Manly Beach retro travel poster style prints in my etsy shop

Today I have listed 2 new prints in my etsy shop. Last year I was inspired by retro travel posters to design my own, depicting various lovely areas of Sydney. So far 2 are complete; Manly Beach and Sydney. I hope to create 2 more and I hope they don't take as long as these 2 did - 6 months in the making!

Sydney homes and dwellings

As anyone who reads this blog will know, I'm a bit obsessed with buildings, particularly dwellings. Most of my photos from Sydney are of homes and the variety of styles of architecture spanning over Australia's short 200 year history of building. These are a bit mixed, but are labelled as to where they were taken. Most of these were taken as a reference for more 'houses' prints!

 beach flats at Bronte Beach

 small cottage in Berrima

 Berrima

 Berrima

 The Rocks, Sydney

 Kangaroo Valley

 The Rocks, Sydney

  The Rocks, Sydney

 Clovelly

 Clovelly

 Camperdown

Camperdown

We went to Sydney!

Arrived home yesterday after a wonderful trip to Sydney to visit family... back to the grey and cold, brrr...
Here is a timelapse video made by my son for his A level final piece which sums up our trip, visiting beaches, mountains and the city.