well.illbedarned

Lunchtime

2012-01-08T09:16:00.000-08:00

Today I made my first ever batch of Sushi - just vegetable, nothing fancy. It tastes good and looks ok - I was a little worried that I would end up making GIANT rolls, but size-wise they're just about right. I made enough to fill my lunch box for the next few days too! Yummers!

Santa Hat Brownies

2011-12-11T08:39:00.000-08:00

Last night was our 5th annual 'Uni friends' Christmas Party where it is tradition to bring along your very best culinary efforts for all to share. I whipped up a batch of these super simple Santa Hat Brownies (via Daisy's World). Very quick and easy to make and perfectly festive - I foresee at least two more batches needing to be made before the season is through!

We had the traditional french onion soup, complete with grated cheese and croutons, pigs in blankets, a vast selection of cheese and crackers, mulled wine, and an extremely yummy Nutella cheesecake made by Lucy. I'm so about the Christmas treats right now!

I've also got my hands on some reusable fabric Christmas wrap from Evergreen Wrap. The patterns are super cute, and the website is full of tutorials on how to wrap different shaped objects. It's faster and greener than wrapping paper, and you can even turn it into a bag once you're done! Win-Win!

Need a little Christmas

2011-12-04T08:42:00.000-08:00

After 20 odd years of leaving Christmas until the last minute, I've finally cracked it over the last couple of years! I'm really nearly ready, although not completely, so I probably shouldn't start with the celebrations just yet. I have 2 more gifts left to get, wrapping to do and stockings to finish making. Then I'm done...!

The Christmas cards I designed came back from the printers looking lovely. Now I just need to get them written... thats another job for the list then...!

We've also got the decorations up, having spent a fortune in M&S, whose christmas range is pretty ace this year. I'm also very happy to bang out the knitted letter and wooden snowflake decorations I picked up in Target whilst in Florida.

The tree and ten ton of fairy lights makes the living room super cosy, helped along by christmas music - I am loving the she & him christmas album, and the Slow Club Christmas EP too. I'm still making my mind up on Smith & Burrows' Funny Looking Angels,, but am rather disappointed by Emmy the Great's offering with Tim Wheeler... odd. Very odd. Anyhoo, must press on. Christmas doesn't do itself...!

Oreo Cookie Cupcakes

2011-11-20T14:48:00.000-08:00

Today was spent baking Oreo Cupcakes from Bakerella's Cookies and cream cupcake recipe. Each cupcake has a whole oreo inside! And the cookies and cream icing is delicious!

The recipe siad it would make 12 cupcakes, but i somehow ended up with 24 and still had mix left over... i'm not sure how that happened unless american cupcake cases are dramatically smaller than UK ones...! But particularly in situations involving cake: the more the merrier, and I'm sure no one will complain!

remembering...

2011-11-19T14:41:00.000-08:00

With us packing so much in to such a short space of time, and it being such a great trip, I made a little something to remind me of all the small, and big things we did, and some of the things that made us laugh so much.

Will you call on me when you're living on the sea?

2011-11-18T14:17:00.000-08:00

Florida: Part Four
Now, I'm always a fan of a good boat trip on holiday, and I'm also a fan of the fact that we managed to fit in not one, but 2 boat trips whilst in Florida.

The first was an airboat ride through the mangroves in the everglades: a perfect morning after the wedding cure! The tour guides were great: ex fishermen who knew the winding paths through the mangroves like the backs of their hands. They put on a bit of a show for us trying to track the alligators down, and raced the tow boats alongside each other! We didnt really get much of a glimpse of an alligator but we did get to see a pelican who landed on the front of our boat before we had even left the dock, and a rather friendly, but reputedly vicious racoon...!

On the way back to the dock we spotted Grimms Stonecrab, a little crab shack where we stopped to munch on some fresher-than-fresh stonecrab claws. Yummers!

The second boat trip was in a speed boat out from Naples and into the Gulf of Mexico, where we each took turns to drive it ourselves (very scary!) saw dolphins, moored up at a secluded beach, and later a private island, drank beer, and watched some wake boarding. pretty much paradise!

Where the Alligators go

2011-11-17T13:51:00.000-08:00

Florida: Part 3
Whilst in Naples we visited the swamps at the Corkscrew Swam Sanctuary. We walked along 2.5 miles of raised boardwalk through the giant cypress trees with the main aim of spotting a real life Florida 'gator.

With only a few steps left to go we managed to spot not only two little baby 'gators, but also two giant fully grown 12ft 'gators sleeping on a log emerging from the swamp. Not quite close enough to get a particularly good photo, but close enough to be able to tick it off the list!

Whilst walking, we also saw some woodpeckers, tons of spiders, a squirrel, some wood storks and some herons: All of whom, along with the various fish and insects living in the swamps eat the mosquitos, meaning no need for bug spray! Bonus!

Sunshine on a Cloudy Day

2011-11-16T13:12:00.000-08:00

Florida: Part Two
The main event was held on Friday 4th November on a beautiful beach, and later a beautiful hotel with a beautiful fountain, beautiful music, and of course a beautiful bride.

The sunshine came out just as Jimbo and Alissa took their first steps down the aisle, right on cue!

The table settings were very pretty indeed, and the order of service, menu, table settings (as well as the invitation) were immaculately designed by the very talented groom. A very lovely day for a lovely couple!

The Day We Caught the Plane...

2011-11-15T12:21:00.000-08:00

Florida: Part One
So yes, we caught a plane. 12 of us headed across the atlantic ocean to see one of our very best friends, Jimbo, marry his beautiful now wife, Alissa in sunny Naples, Florida.

Some of us were only there for 6 days, but we certainly made a jolly old time of it watching flying fish, visiting private islands, eating mexican food, cooked by mexicans, drinking beer, buying novelty cereal and plenty of american chocolate (I could turn into a milk dud any second...), and a pretty ace amount of boating and swamping - more on that later though... and generally enjoying the November sunshine!

We've been back almost 2 weeks already (time flies) but I'm still very much enjoying reliving a great time away with even greater friends through the hundreds of photos we have amassed! And there will be more to come here. I can assure you of that!

Pop

2011-11-14T11:51:00.000-08:00

I made my first attempt at making cake pops a couple weekends ago for my Mum's birthday. They are quite possibly the most time consuming things to bake in the world. ever. But they tasted good, so I guess that's what counts...!

Benjamin's Montréal

2011-11-12T13:08:00.000-08:00

It was recently my dear friend Benjamin's birthday, and for the occasion I made him a map.

Ben recently spent a year in Montréal travelling, working, and generally experiencing life on the other side of the atlantic. I got the chance to nip across said ocean to visit him for a short week, during which time he took me to some of his favourite places. I didnt want for his year out there to fuzz up in to one big memory, it's always nice to remember the little things, and one off places, so made him a map of the end of town in which he stayed and worked, and plotted out some of the places he mentioned, and all of the ones he took me to.

It's a pretty lovely city: very interesting and musical. Void of faceless chains and big brands. Very independent and traditional and highly recommended!

Mappiness Part Two

2011-09-25T14:04:00.001-07:00

I've been wanting to rave about this book ever since I first received it in the post. Not only is it an excellent read that transports you to several different million miles away from nowheres, it is also beautifully bound (in signatures), typset and illustrated - all by the author herself, and won the German Arts Foundation prize for the Most Beautiful Book of the Year! I can't recommend it highly enough!

In other map news, I picked up some great little treats whilst in venice - A clipboard, notepad and pack of 5 bookmarks depicting various Italian cities (Venice included). All by Fabriano.

Moats and Boats and Waterfalls

2011-09-10T11:30:00.000-07:00

Paul and I have just got back from a lovely trip to the Venetian Riviera. The majority of our time was spent swimming, reading, relaxing and even tanning (no mean feat for pale ole me!), but we also took day trips out to the island of Venice, and Burano.

I do love a good boat trip on holiday, so Venice was pretty much a dream! I'd LOVE to live in a place where I'd have to take a boat to work every day! Especially in a place that does such good ice cream!

Theres plenty more photos on my Flickr but heres a small(ish) selection...

Burano was also full of boaty goodness, along with row upon row of coloured houses. Apparently, historically this helped the fishermen to identify their own houses after an afternoon of heavy drinking! Nowadays, if a family wishes to paint their house, they must write to the council to request permission before being sent a list of permissible colours!

We went on a bit of a grizzly day so the whole island was close to being empty! Such a change to the constant crowds of Venice...

And now we're back home already. A week never seems quite long enough...

2011-08-29T15:12:00.000-07:00

Just 3 working days to go until we head off to Venice! Really, honestly, truly, 100% cannot wait!!

Mappiness

2011-08-14T09:30:00.000-07:00

Over the last year, a new obsession has presented itself.
Maps.
Now, I've always appreciated the beauty of maps, always loved having a good flick through an atlas, and more recently exploring the world vicariously on google maps (satellite vie - oh my goodness, technology is amazing!) and teaching myself the geographical location of countries (europe, asia, north america and africa done, south america still to go...!), but now my flat is slowly filling up with maps: handmade and bought...

It's been a while...

2011-08-13T10:26:00.000-07:00

Its been a very long time indeed since christmastime and my last post here... so here's a quick 20 second round up:

- House moving
- New jobbing
- Neglecting the things I enjoy the most
- Eating
- Sleeping
- Generally surviving!

It's been so busy, with so much change to adjust to... it's not all been bad though, I've holiday-ed and booked more holidays, so there's always been something to look forward to!

But now things seemed to have calmed down and bedded in a bit, it feels like i might actually have time on my hands to get making, sewing, drawing etc again. Fingers crossed!

Hearty art

2011-01-20T13:51:00.000-08:00

I came across this very worthwhile project at CatRabbit's blog and had to repost it here. Art 4 Heart is an art auction in aid of the Queensland Floods. Between the 18th and 27th January pieces donated by some pretty awesome artists and creators will be auctioned off with all proceeds going to Premiers Flood Relief Appeal. Surely you don't need a better excuse to buy a little treat for yourself than this. Go buy!

London Santacon 2010

2010-12-12T07:46:00.001-08:00

Time for some more Christmas cheer: Namely the Christmas cheer that was spread all over London yesterday by the participants of the 10th annual London Santacon. Hundreds and hundreds of Santae gathered at Trafalgar Square having marched through London, giving out free Santa Hugs, sweets and brussel sprouts to the unsuspecting public, singing their very own 'special' Christmas carols on the way. Lucy and I managed to find ourselves in the midst of the chaos that ensued...!

Now, if that doesn't make you feel Christmassy, I should imagine there's not much hope left for you!

We also took a trip to the Super Christmas Market at Somerset House for some last minute gift buying, sadly, in comparison to previous years there was nowhere near as many gift stalls, and only a handful of interactive stands, each with rather large queues, so was a little bit of a let down. The Santa's more than made up for it though!

My Christmas shopping is now complete, so I can now move on to my age old tradition of wrapping in front of Home Alone! So very excited! I'll be inducting Lucy to my wrapping regime this week, cant wait to see the living room covered in a mass of gifts, wrapping paper, ribbons and tags!
x

20 days to go...

2010-12-05T08:57:00.000-08:00

Little by little I'm managing to cross things off my monstrous pre-Christmas to do list. Today, I'm crossing off Christmas cards: The making of - not the writing of, sadly! That's a job for this evening!

I made a set of five cards, the concept being that Christmas is the perfect antidote to any bad mood, and that all those little christmassy bits and bobs can turn even the hardest of scrouges!

So yes, very glad to have these done and dusted. I'm feeling even more Christmassy today... I wonder if i'll reach the limit of Christmassy-ness soon, or if I'm just going to keep going and going? I think the latter is more probable. Last night was our annual Christmas Party complete with mulled cider and legendary onion soup, we even cracked open a tin of Quality Streets, which is probably the reason for my topped up Christmas levels today. Yes, I am aware that I have now said 'Christmas' 9 times in this post...! See! I told you: OBSESSED!!

x

Christmas is coming...

2010-11-28T09:36:00.001-08:00

Christmas can never come quick enough in my book, and so with only 20-something days left to go, I'm feeling a little bit giddy! I've been super organised this year - only have 3 more gifts to buy and my wrapping to do, and it's not even December yet!

With it being Paul and my first christmas since we've moved in together, we've had the added bonus excitement of getting our first tree. It's a rather small little number, but it does the job rather well. We've been decorating the tree using only handmade decorations, it's not quite finished yet: I'll need to make a few more pompoms, and am planning on making a second reindeer, but here's what we have so far:

The reindeer was made from this lovely little pattern here, and the angel/fairy tree topper was a pattern I made up myself. If anyone would like the pattern, let me know and I'll put it up here.
I've also almost finished my annual batch of christmas stockings: a big achievement as these are normally a very last minute job! I just need to fill them now!

If only Christmas wasn't so cold! The heating in this old house is not standing up to the frost weather outside. Time for another jumper and a hot water bottle!

x

A lion & a giraffe...

2010-11-27T13:34:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine is running a pub quiz night in London and asked me to design a poster to promote his very first night on the 9th December. If you're going to be in the area, do pop along, it's bound to be a good'un.

In other wildlife news, check out this rather lovely giraffe scarf (which rhymes in my southern accent, not so much in Paul's northern drawl...!). I picked it up this weekend at a gift fair in town whilst Christmas shopping. And speaking of Christmas shopping, I really must get on with it!

x

Old & New

2010-10-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

I recently had another commission for Insite, (the New Civil Engineer's education supplement) published. This time the brief was Wembley Stadium - Old & New. I received my copy in the post this week. Coincidentally enough I was lucky enough to be treated to hospitality tickets to an international game at the stadium just a week after receiving the brief!

Birthdays

2010-09-30T15:15:00.000-07:00

Just a couple of birthday cards from September - one for Paul, and the other for a Vivienne Westwood obsessed friend. Sadly, i've got printer/scanner/copier issues, so these cards ever actually made it into physical existence, and still remain as an intangible muddle of pixels and megabytes, but I'll be sure that the birthday boy & girl eventually gets their cards when I'm back up and running.

Am seriously missing scanning capabilities now! Can anyone recommend a decent all-in-one replacement printer - all suggestions will be gratefully received!

I am not a patient person...

2010-08-31T10:37:00.001-07:00

Bank holiday weekend involved lots of shopping - car shopping! A very fun (and expensive) kind of shopping. And now the waiting begins.

As I'm not very patient, I've taken to drawing my nice new shiny car in the hopes that it might make it arrive that little bit quicker... probably not going to happen...!

I hope you all had a lovely long weekend too. 3 day weekends make such a huge difference don't they?!

مرحبا

2010-08-23T11:50:00.000-07:00

Merhaba! I am back from super sunny Turkey having had a really very excellent time, and although it's been rather rainy and miserable back home, I'm not missing the 46 degree heat too much...! I've never experienced heat quite like it, but it was the perfect excuse to do absolutely nothing and relax, in a rather indulgent fashion every day! And also, of course, to sample many a cocktail to cool one's self down on an evening!

And now it's back to the real world - plenty to catch up on, but will be back here soon with any luck...!

We're all going on a...

2010-08-06T11:35:00.000-07:00

Holiday time is here again! I'll be flying off to sunny Bodrum tomorrow and I really can't wait! A week of sunshine, seasides and super relaxation is exactly what I'm in the mood for! So, with only 1 more sleep, the countdown has begun!
I'll be back in a week's time!
x

Housewarming

2010-07-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

Now, we haven't quite had time for a housewarming party, but I have just about squeezed in the time to make the invitations! As soon as the last few boxes have been unpacked, and we're on top of the washing (having had no washing machine for 2 weeks), it will be party time!

Keep on Trucking

2010-07-26T11:06:00.000-07:00

This weekend was Truck Festival which of course meant the annual monster production line for Lucy and I. We managed to leave it all a little last minute... (we were still attaching lanyards in the car on the way there on Friday night!) but we got there in the end, and the little blighters sold out yet again within a couple of hours!

After all that hard work, we concentrated our efforts into relaxing in the campsite on friday night with a picnic and a drink or two, before having the pleasure of seeing some of the music on the Saturday - Stornoway of course being the highlight! A very nice end to a very busy week!

x.

Grazing

2010-07-20T10:18:00.000-07:00

My first Graze order arrived on my desk this morning, and really do have to shout about it! Graze is a great little company who deliver 4 punnets of nutritionally balanced natural treats, personalised to your tastes by post, straight to your desk for you to nibble at while you're at work! Yummy! I particularly recommend the honeycomb flapjacks, and the funky gibbon (milk chocolate puffed rice, cashews and banana).

You can even have a box and a half free when you follow THIS LINK!

I've brought my box home to keep me going whilst making another pile of monsters for Truck. If you're heading down to the festival this weekend, hope you have a super time!
x.

Moving slowly...

2010-07-17T07:33:00.000-07:00

So the reason I've been rather absent of late is a good one: I've moved house! I'm making my excuses from beneath a pile of empty flat-pack boxes and there's still a pile of things to do, we've no internet, no washing machine, and so on and so on, but we're getting there. Slowly!

x.

Tales Of Montréal

2010-07-01T12:47:00.001-07:00

Even though I only have a slight whiff of jet-lag left lingering around me, my trip to Montréal still feels like yesterday!

The world is such a cruel place where a job can make a whole 5 days disappear into what feels like 30 seconds... But still, 5 days later, and I've managed to find time to slip in a whistle stop (more photos, less words...!) post about my recent travels!

So, here goes: 10 Tales Of Montreal... (in no particular order)

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5.

6.

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9.

10.

1. Casa Del Popolo & La Salla Rossa
These two bars/restaurants/venues are the source of some great nights out for Mile Enders - beautiful settings and great music. They also have some very pretty posters: screen printed and pinned to almost every lamp post around Plateau.

2. Local 23 & General 54
Two great thrift stores with some wonderfully eccentric merchandising and interior décor! Vintage clothing along with local music, and yet more screen printed delights! Definitely worth a visit at 23 Bernard W.

3. I really can't remember the name of this store, but I'll be sure to add it in as soon as someone can jog my memory! It was expensive, but in a justifiable way: in that everything inside was beautiful and 100% desirable! intriguing old globes and maps, fabric picture frames, letterpress artifacts and some very whimsical furniture. As soon as I win the lottery, I'll head here first!

4. Distroboto
Distroboto machines are old cigarette machines that now sell all kinds of art, film and music etc. For $2, you can take home your very own masterpiece! And even better, as long as your artwork fits within the size restrictions, you can mail it in to be sold in one of the 9 Distrobotos across town!

5. Monastiraki
A gallery/shop/studio/museum extraordinaire! Monastiraki sells heaps of crafty bits and bobs, paper ephemera, posters, zines, antiques, local artwork and so on. A place to spend hours scouring the shelves uncovering more and more little treasures as you go!

6. Drawn & Quarterly
The notorious outlet for the Québec based publishing house. A veritable cavern of artists books, zines, comics, journals alongside classic literature and independent magazines. D&Q also run screen printing and lino printing workshops in-house.

7. Poutine!
Poutine is a classic Montréal dish. Fries, gravy and cheese curds is the staple base, with the more recent addition of, well, pretty much anything! Poutine is in fact so popular, that even the Quebecois fast food restaurants have acquired the dish for their menus! And don't worry, it tastes a whole lot better that it looks, and sounds!

8. Montréal Festival Folk Sur Le Canal
A very lovely day out by the scenic Lachiene Canal in the industrial grounds of the St Ambroise Brewery. Very much enjoyed sipping my apricot beer to the sounds of Anais Mitchell, Lake of Stew and Kathleen Edwards.

Then of course there's the typical tourist-type action!

9. Biosphère
This was mainly geared for children, but due to it's setting in the middle of Parc Jean Drapeau, it's magnificent spherical stature, and the amazing views over montreal from the 5th floor platform, there's plenty to wow your average 25 year old tourist with!

10. La Basilique Notre-Dame de Montréal
Possibly the most beautiful church I've seen, the alter is full of the most spectacular detail, and the blue lighting is somewhat reminiscent of Baz Lurman's Romeo and Juliet. The kind of place that will completely throw you, and make you want to go back, just to make sure you didn't just dream it up!

Ok, so more words than I had originally planned, and still not enough to mention Parc Mount Royal and Tam Tams, the Yiddish Musical, the opening of the jazz festival or La Fête de la St-Jean. Or Benjamin! My very kind host for the week! It was lovely to see both Ben and Montréal. Now all I have to do is get back on Greenwich Mean Time...!

x.

plans

2010-06-06T15:20:00.001-07:00

It's my friend's birthday in just a few hours. This friend likes plans as much as I do and has at least 5 big time plans in place for 2010. A birthday plan is always essential - especially one that includes pizza, pubbage and wine! And as luck would have it, this is precisely what we will mostly be doing on Tuesday evening!

In other news, another weekend has flown by far too fast for my liking. I hope the next one hangs out a little bit longer, or failing that, a couple extra hours in each day would do just as nicely - thanks!

Lazy Soosan - F & G!

2010-05-30T09:30:00.000-07:00

So yes, as promised, it is finally time to reveal Lazy Soosan's latest offering. It's been a long time coming, but we now have 2 brand spaking new issues of The Alphabet Series!

Thats right! Not one, but two! We had the pleasure of releasing the two new zines at yesterday's Zine Symposium and had some great responses, so be sure to grab yourself a copy of each from our Etsy Shop

To celebrate our new releases, we have fully re-stocked the shop with some fresh pressings of every issue, so if your collection is missing an A, B C, D or E, heres your chance to complete the set!

Happy shopping!

The London Zine Symposium 2010

2010-05-29T07:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the sixth annual London Zine Symposium at The Old Rag Factory in East London, and Lucy and I were again lucky enough to be allocated a spot for Lazy Soosan.

Lighter, brighter, bigger and better than last year, the day saw the usual mix of zines, small-press comics, distros and radical culture. We had the pleasure of being sat amongst Tukru of the Kent based zine distro - Vampire Sushi, Girl Photographer (aka Eleanor Jane) and the Brighton Zine Fest Collective: all absolute proffessionals and ol' timers at LZS, so it was great to be surrounded with such experts!

Other highlights include Love To Print/Girls Who Draw, Mark Pawson, Sh*t Birthday, Forest Publishing, Bel's Art World and of course, Josie Long who was there promoting her zine: Drawing Moustaches in Magazines Monthly, which you can dowload here, and also giving zine readings along with Charlotte Cooper, Isy Morgenmuffel and Patrick Saff.

It was also great to catch up with Fever Zine who, despite an epic print fail, which was a giant shame, still managed to be there to help on the main zine table, and of course, shop! And speaking of shopping, I picked up some great little treats, and although I've had a quick flick through them all (I couldnt resist..!), I'll be saving the big read for my fast approaching flight to Canada. I'm starting to feel a little anxious about the 7 hour trip alone, and am collecting each every distraction I come across! Suggestions are most welcome!

The main Lazy Soosan news from the day, was of course that we launched 2 new issues to coincide with the symposium which made it a little bit more special, and was great to see such a great response to our now 7-strong collection of zines. More news will follow soon on that though!

But yes, going back to the big day, we had such a great time, met some super people, discovered some perfect little zines and we're very much looking forward to next year!

Meltdown...

2010-05-24T14:15:00.000-07:00

It has been so very hot the past 3 days, well, very hot for England, 28ºc today, which I suppose in the grand scheme of things isn't all that hot, but definitely hot enough to warrant a constant desire for ice cream! It's reported to be cooling down over the next few days which will be a bit of welcome relief! Although soon enough it will be winter again, then I'll be cursing myself for ever wishing the sunshine away!

It's coming....

2010-05-19T14:12:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again - the busy time...! And Stimpfield time! Well, in 2 and half months it will be, so time to get planning, organising, making and buying! And finally, the first two items on the list can now be crossed off! 1 - setting the date. 2 - designing the logo. Now there's just the small matter of the remaining 582 items...!

Good enough to eat...

2010-05-17T15:03:00.000-07:00

... well, at least I hope they are!
I've spent my Monday evening making a batch of cupcakes for a bake-off at work tomorrow. I used a brand new buttercream icing recipe from this delicious book - unfortunately it is quite possibly the naughtiest thing you could ever eat (butter, eggs, sugar etc) but its dangerously tasty! Yum Yum Yum!

Dynamite

2010-05-16T13:50:00.000-07:00

Napoleon Dynamite is almost, if not my favourite film of forever and Jon Heder is far too awesome for words. Even more awesome - the city of Preston in Idaho held an actual Napoleon Dynamite festival for 4 consecutive years following the release of the film including events such as a tater tot eating competition and of course a dance competition for recreating that most excellent dance. So, with my last two hours of Sunday night, I'm going to watch the film, join the happy hands club, borrow a chapstick from the school nurse and do whatever I feel like I wanna do, gosh!

Birthday Cake

2010-05-10T11:37:00.001-07:00

T'is the birthday season it would appear! This time it's a veryvery happy birthday to my 91 year old grandma. Now thats a pretty huge achievement if you ask me!
x.

Glastonbury 2010

2010-05-09T08:23:00.000-07:00

The Glastonbury T-shirt Competition for the 2010, 40th anniversary festival was launched back in April, and here are my two entries.

I've had a peek at some other entries and theres some pretty stiff competition so I won't be holding my breath just yet! Mr Eavis will be hand picking the winner himself any day now with less than 40 days to go until the festival kicks off...If you are lucky enough to be going - I wish you a super fantastic time. Although last year will take some beating in both the music AND the weather department!

Wish me luck!
x.

Bon Anniversaire!

2010-05-08T08:12:00.000-07:00

Hier c'était l'anniversaire de ma ami Hélène. Et parce que Hélène est la meilleure belge je sais, j'ai fait une carte pour lui dire tout ça! Hélène Joyeux anniversaire! j'espère que vous avez eu une belle journée d'hier!

Sadly, because of the sorry state my french is in these days, I managed to somewhat mess up the gender...! I had best get practicing my verb conjugations before I get to Montreal - time to dig out the GCSE French Dictionary methinks!

x.

Rummage

2010-05-04T01:34:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, Lucy and I took part in the first ever Rummage at Superette organised by Leona Clarke of Lady Luck Rules OK. It was a rather rainy start to the day, but having eventually braved the elements and the busses with our trolleys full of jumble, we had soon managed to set our space up and were raring to go!

The doors opened at 12, and the shoppers came streaming through for the next 5 hours! It was pretty much non-stop from the word go, but we did manage to sneak a quick look around the other great stalls, see some very lovely prints and illustrations, meet some great people, have a bit of a natter, and munch on cream cheese bagels and cup cakes!

If you couldn't make it down yesterday, heres a small selection of the excellent illustrators you missed out on!
Suzy Q and the Owls, Cat Sims, Noodoll, Anorak Magazine, Garudio Studiage, Leona Clarke, Belinda Chen, Katey Harvey, Girl Gang and Brennan and Burch. For details of everyone else who took part, visit the Rummage Facebook page.

Roll on Rummage number 2!
x.

Pick Me Up

2010-05-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I went to Pick Me Up - a contemporary graphic art fair at Somerset House. Alongside some limited edition prints on sale and works on display from the likes of Mr Bingo, Melvin Galapon, Claire Scully and Siggi Eggertsson, there were pop up shops from Nobrow, Le Gun, Concrete Hermit and the amazing Peepshow Collective.

The big treat of course, had to be the perusing around Rob Ryan's studio that had been temporarily transported in it's entirety to Somerset House for the duration of the exhibition. Seeing the man and his crew in action - screen printing and cutting out those obscenely intricate paper cuts was pretty damn interesting!

Plus, Print Club London ran a series of screenprinting workshops and live demos featuring a very long list of guest designers - a veritable feast of up and coming graphic design and illustration goodness!

x

Is it a bird...?

2010-04-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

No, it's an actual plane! Thats right! actual planes are actually flying again after almost a week of down time due to the airborne Icelandic volcanic ash - and just to prove it, here's one I saw earlier making its way into the sky from LHR.

Now there's just the issue of getting everyone back to their homelands... no mean feat at all. I hope everyone is safe, comfortable, being treated well, and not having too much of a nightmare, and perhaps enjoying an extended holiday...! (I know I know I know, its not quite like that...!) Safe (and speedy) travels.
x.

Lazy Soosan - back in action!

2010-04-20T12:42:00.000-07:00

So it's been an awful long while since we last saw some sign of life from ol' Sooz... but she has been living up to her name and has been particularly lazy for the past however long.

But, today I can exclusively reveal that not only are we participating in two particularly super events in May, we also have two brand spanking new issues waiting to be launched at said events! Scratch the old myth - good things come in twos these days!

1.RUMMAGE! @ Superette The Illustrators Special

Leona of Superette and Lady Luck Rules OK has kindly asked Lazy Soosan to participate in the first ever Rummage: an arty afternoon jumble sale focusing on different artistic disciplines each round. 1st up - Illustrators! Come along on Sunday 2nd May from 12noon - 5pm to 66a Sclater Street - just off Brick Lane. There will be some excellent illustrators selling their wares including Anorak Magazine, Noodoll Laura Bird, Cat Sims and plenty, plenty more!

2. The London Zine Symposium 2010

We will also be at this year's London Zine Symposium 2010 on Saturday May 29th at the Rag Factory, again, just off Brick Lane. We had such a great time last year and are super happy to have made the cut again this year!

Tell us you're coming by signing up to the facebook pages for each event. We'll look out for you and give you a big ol' smile and a wave!
RUMMAGE!
The London Zine Symposium 2010

Exciting times at Lazy HQ!
x

Dallas Green

2010-04-10T08:04:00.000-07:00

Last night I got my tickets booked up for City and Colour in June. I've been listening to him all day whilst working away, and found myself getting distracted in to drawing the man himself... His tattoos are pretty immense, as are his glasses!

Right... back to work!

Pug-Tastic

2010-04-06T11:39:00.001-07:00

It was Lucy's birthday on Friday and seeing as she is pretty much pug-obsessed, it seemed only fitting that her birthday gift should be pretty pug-tastic!

Above is her card, an extra-specially-wrinkly, gift-wrapped, party-hat-wearing pug, and below is a pug phone cover I designed for her, and a wooden pug brooch using the same drawing. I think she named that one Fred.

The phone cover came out great and I desperately want one for myself, but as I can be terribly fickle, I'm having trouble coming up with something to put on it that I won't get bored of...!

But yes, a big Happy Birthday Lucy, my pug-loving pal!

In print

2010-03-31T14:11:00.001-07:00

My illustration of Sir John Wolfe Barry was published today in Insite, the New Civil Engineer's education supplement. John, as i now like to call him, engineered the build of Tower Bridge 106 years ago this June. The full image (it didnt all quite make it...!) is below:

what would morrissey say?

2010-03-29T13:46:00.000-07:00

When my Morrissey/Smiths loving friend's birthday rolled round yesterday I couldn't resist channelling the words of the big man himself. Of course I don't actually wish him a miserable birthday - birthdays are far too much fun and should never be miserable occasions, I just thought that perhaps if Mr Morrissey were to be handing out a birthday greeting, it would be this.

Also, i just need to say ta ever so much to Lucy for helping me out with the new blog layout. It's her Birthday-Eve on Thursday, her last day of being 24, and her actual Birthday on Friday. I'm very much looking forward to helping her celebrate her quarter century this weekend!

mum's the word

2010-03-14T14:35:00.000-07:00

This is me, when I was 5, wishing my lovely Mum, a very happy Mothers Day. And she seems pretty happy today, so I think it worked!

x.

home sweet home

2010-03-13T14:48:00.000-08:00

Two of my good friends recently moved in to a very lovely new flat. This occasion of course called for a house (flat) warming gift and card. I made a CD full of house/home related music which was super fun to compile, and has some real treats mixed in with a few curve balls! (track listing below)

1. Our House - Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
2. House of Diamonds - Bowerbirds
3. Susan's House - Eels
4. You Remind Me of Home - Ben Gibbard
5. Long Walk Home - Bruce Springsteen
6. Hometown Fantasy - The Wooden Birds
7. Weather With You - Crowded House
8. Country House - Blur
9. I'll Take Us Home - Matt & Kim
10. House of The Rising Sun - The Animals
11. Our House - Madness
12. Jump Around - House of Pain
13. To Go Home - M. Ward
14. I Don't Want To Go Home - Elvis Costello
15. Head Home - Midlake
16. This Ole House - Shakin' Stevens
17. Little House of Savages - The Walkmen
18. Home On The Range - Roy Rogers

x.

hip to be square

2010-03-12T14:19:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday, Lucy and I travelled to the particularly beautiful Stoke Newington Team Rooms for a Crocheted Granny Squares workshop run by Claire and Bee of Make Do Mend. It was a really great evening - educational and fun! My previous knowledge of crochet was rather limited, as despite being able to make a simple granny square, I did not know what stitch I was doing, nor how to do any other stitch, so it was super super useful to pick up some of the theory, and start to understand how to translate written patterns and diagrams.

The Tea Rooms were scattered with crochet goodness and more tea and cake than you could shake a stick at, which is always a plus of course! (chocolate and almond was my slice of choice, although it was a tough decision between that and the lemon cake...!)

So now I just have to remember the difference between my trebles and treble-clusters and I'm all set for granny square heaven!
My challenge, if I choose to accept it: A blanket in time for Christmas 2010! Watch this space!

x.

Down the Wimbledon

2010-03-01T14:09:00.000-08:00

On Saturday night, I went to the dogs for the first time. It was absolutely packed, and very different to the horses. No frills, no fancy hats, no airs and graces in sight. Just silly amounts of money changing hands, and children up past their bedtimes.

Retired Greyhound Trust
finding loving homes for ex-racers

x.

Welcome back!

2010-02-28T14:16:00.000-08:00

Welcome back!

Almost exactly a year ago today my work friend left work, and then nine months after that, moved back to her hometown a very very long long way away. However, tomorrow - she comes back! This is clearly excellent news, and I'm super happy to have her back, so happy in fact, that I had to make a card to celebrate!
x.

A Roaring Twenty-Third...

2010-02-25T14:43:00.000-08:00

A Roaring Twenty-Third...

Happy Birthday to my sister, Jo!
Above is the card I made for her which was inspired by her twenties themed party coming up this weekend. We've just got back from a really rather delicious vegetarian/vegan meal at Blah Blah Blah to celebrate her old age. It's a great little place - even Sir Paul McCartney would agree with me!

So yes, once more, for luck - a very big Happy Birthday to Jo :o)
x.

love.love.love

2010-02-15T12:09:00.000-08:00

love.love.love

So, Happy Happy Valentines Day for yesterday! I hope that everyone has had a lovely one. Paul and I had a very nice day indeed. It started with a rushed breakfast half-in-half-out of bed followed by a mad dash to make our train in to town. Oh, and presents and cards of course! Above is the card I made for him, and below is the pair of felt hearts I made at The Make Lounge's Valentines Craft Evening (he keeps the one with my name on, and I keep the one with his name on), and a pair of TocToc hearts. More on gifts later...

So yes, we made our train with about 30 seconds to spare, and headed in to town, walked to Westminster and boarded one of the city cruisers to Greenwich. It was absolutely bloomin' freezing, and I now realise that boating is not the wisest choice for a February Sunday afternoon, but nonetheless it was rather a nice way to travel through London.

We go off the boat at Greenwich, and made our way to the Dome, and had a rather scrummy lunch at the S&M Cafe.

After a bit of a wander around, we made our way back home... with a quick stop off for a heart shaped donut! Filled with strawberries and cream of course! Yum!

It was a very lovely (if a little cold), day - well more of a weekend really; I do have a habit of dragging these things out... if I can make my birthday last a week, then Valentines Day deserves a weekend at the very least!) I suppose I am just a very lucky girl to have a boyfriend who has learnt to deal with my over-excitement, and need to plan everything 4 weeks in advance...! Speaking of being a very lucky girl and having the acest of all boyfriends, this is what he got me:

A beautiful antique 1934 AM/FM radio that I had spied a few weeks ago in a charity shop window. Not only does it look great, it sounds great too - yup thats right, it's in full working order, even the tiny little lights in the dial work! It feels so strange and almost wrong hearing the likes of Zane Lowe playing The Ruby Suns and Stornoway... I feel like I should be saving it's delicate old speakers for some Debussy or Holst perhaps! It's not quite DAB, but it seems to be coping just fine! Now, if only it had a USB port...!

mmmm! thank you very much to my lovely lovely Paul :o)
love.love.love.
x.

More Purses!

2010-02-14T12:08:00.000-08:00

More purses!

Yup, that's right. MORE purses! It's become a slight addiction, but I am very much making the most of The Make Lounge's teaching!

A very thoughtful friend asked for me to make one for his lovely girlfriend for Valentine's Day, and I just couldn't resist picking up some extra supplies while I was at it, so ended up making another batch of 3.

It's a really great pattern - not too complicated or time consuming, and they somehow end up looking rather professional! Heres to a lifetime of making many many more metal snap frame purses!
x.

Happy Bloomin' Birthday

2010-02-06T06:51:00.000-08:00

Happy Bloomin' Birthday

Yesterday was my best bud Bloomie's birthday. This is the girl that i have to physically remove from the accessories section of every shop we go in to, the girl who makes me promise not to let her buy another hairband, pair of sunglasses, hat... etc. Her accessories collection is pretty impressive, and ever expanding with new purchases from her most favourtie website! To celebrate her birthday were heading out to Luck Voice tonight for a good old sing song!

Happy Birthday Bloomie!
x.

TocToc time

2010-02-01T13:43:00.000-08:00

TocToc time

TocToc has been steadily ticking over the last few months and we've had plenty to be getting on with. It's great to be challenged with such diversity - we've had requests for birthday cards, leaving cards, anniversary cards, thank you cards, even some wedding stationery and gift tags!

This wedding TocToc was commissioned for Carrie and David who are to be wed this saturday in Wales. Unfortunately the store had run out of crimson bookbinding cloth tape, (it sold out in 3 hours apparently!) so we've gone with blue for this one, which has kind of worked out pretty great as it ties in with the "something old, something new..." rhyme.

The big TocToc news, of course, is that Ben has now moved across the pond, and is living in Montreal. This makes business a little unconventional at times, but thanks to the likes of skype, digital cameras, email and the internet in general, we're doing pretty well at keeping it all running smoothly. He's even managed to source an etching place over there, so from here on out: TocToc is GLOBAL! As always, please get in touch if you'd like to order a personalised TocToc for absolutely any occasion via any of the mediums below:

Email: mytoctoc@googlemail.com
Website: mytoctoc.com
Etsy: International
Folksy: UK

x.

Elton the Snowman

2010-01-06T10:35:00.000-08:00

Elton the Snowman

Meet Elton the Snowman!
My sister and I regressed to childhood and rushed out back to make this cheery little chappy having escaped work early on account of all the snow. Turns out that Snowman Making, though heaps of fun, is a pretty tiring and cold business - who'd have thunk it?! We finished out our snow session with some snow angels, and rushed back inside for some hot chocolate!

So now Elton is all alone in the back garden getting colder and colder I should imagine. I was worried about him getting a bit lonely, but he looks pretty happy, so he must be fine!

x.

Rob Ryan @ YSP

2010-01-04T13:28:00.000-08:00

Rob Ryan @ YSP

I picked up the new Rob Ryan book on a recent trip to Ryantown on Columbia Road. The book contains heaps of lovely pictures of Mr Ryan's studio, shop, and of course his work, but mainly focuses on and accompanies his recent project/exhibition at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park: Rob has designed 11 huuuge paper cuts - one for each of the windows in the visitor centre concourse. So, as i was heading up north for Christmas anyway, it seemed a perfect opportunity to pop along!

They're pretty amazing to walk amongst, not only due to their size, but also due to the shadows they throw across the space, the way the intersect the (snowy) landscape behind them, and of course the lovely little details.

Upstairs there is plenty more Rob Ryan goodness to soak up - an exhibition packed with all sorts of paper-cut and screen print treasures...

And then of course there's the shop...! I nearly spent far much more money than was wise, but managed to rationalise my load down to just a mug, which is sitting proudly next to me now full of pineapple squash.

Paul and i had a lovely time drifting in and out of Rob Ryan world. Its a pretty romantic date, this exhibition, and one that i would highly reccomend if you do manage to find yourself up'north before 21st February. Plus there's heaps of other great stuff to check out around the rest of the park, and some lovely walks too... although a little slippy in the snow!
x.

The Make Lounge

2010-01-03T12:42:00.000-08:00

Metal Snap Frame Purses @ The Make Lounge

Back in September, Lucy arranged a super fantastic hen party for Colette which included a jewellery making workshop at The Make Lounge in Islington. It is a seriously amazing place with workshops for pretty much everything crafty: cupcake decorating, cushion covering, amigurumi, embroidery, overlocking, you can even sew yourself a pair of knickers!

We couldnt resist the Metal snap frame purse workshop, so booked ourselves in just before Christmas. And these are the results!

The Make Lounge has the perfect atmosphere for crafting. Very relaxed and friendly, the workshop and store are just beautiful, and the teachers are all very clever and helpful.

The purses were a lot easier to make than they look, thanks to the imparting of wisdom from the experts, and we got to take the pattern home, so we bought ourselves some supplies (yes indeed - some more lovely Michael Miller fabric!), and rushed home to make more. Ta daa: perfect Christmas presents for little sisters!

mmmm, cupcake decorating next methinks!
x.

Christmas lights

2010-01-02T13:16:00.000-08:00

Blinded by the lights...

To mark the official end of Christmas, i thought i would finally post the pictures of the extra special display of Christmas lights at one particularly festive house in Northolt, as promised last month.

They're nothing short of spectacular - you can see them for pretty much miles up the road! They have pictures being projected onto the house, and statues in every window!

Pretty special eh?
x.

That's a wrap!

2009-12-23T13:56:00.000-08:00

That's a wrap!

Thats it - I am done. 100% Christmas-ready. Stockings are hanging, cards have been sent, my bags have been packed for my Yorkshire trip on Boxing Day and all my gifts have been wrapped. Of course I honoured the age old tradition of wrapping whilst watching Home Alone 2 - the best Christmas movie ever! I also managed to squeeze in enough time to watch The Flint Street nativity afterwards, which is very very funny indeed!

And no Christmas would be complete without a trip down the road to visit this rather marvelous display of Christmas lights! They have their own nativity scene, CCTV cameras, charity donations box, and pretty much gets bigger and better every year...!

Having said that, I think I did spy an even more outrageous display today on my way to Greenford. I was going to take a photo on the way back, but ended up going on an alternative route on account of the disastrous Christmas traffic...! I'll definitely try and take a trip back before the 6th January, as I'd say it needs to be seen to be believed!

So, now we have mince pies on the go, mulled wine ready to serve, Christmas CDs on repeat, the Royle Family Christmas Special set to record, enough potatoes to feed an army ready and waiting to be peeled and all the family present and correct, Christmas can officially start as of tomorrow morning!

Have a Merry Merry Christmas one and all! And heres hoping that the snow hangs around long enough for it to be a White Christmas! x.

Merry Little Christmas Cards

2009-12-22T11:08:00.000-08:00

Merry Little Christmas Cards

I have finally managed to get all my Christmas cards printed, written and sent. They are rather little, more so than I had originally planned for - but this way they fit inside the stockings, which is rather nice!

Thats one more thing i can check off my list then...!
x.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2009-12-21T10:52:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Christmas is super-super close now, and with 4 days left, I have finally found myself with some time on my hands. Not much mind you, but just enough for a quick christmas update!

I decided to make stockings again, like I did a couple of Christmases ago. This year I used some great Michael Miller christmassy fabric, and got some little TocToc gift tags made up.

So now they're all hung up by the fire place, ready and waiting for Father Christmas to come and fill them up tomorrow night!

The one in the centre is a vegan version for my sister - hence the different fabric. This way, they definitely wont get mixed up!

x.

TocToc action

2009-11-14T08:48:00.000-08:00

TocToc action

The TocToc blog is now up and running, along with the new look website. Click on the picture above to go and check it out.

We've also got two new great TocTocs to show off:

A wedding TocToc made For Tim & Colette, who wed on the 7th November in a beautiful barn in Bramley.

And a thank you TocToc for my excellent parents for taking me to Sunny SA.

More pictures over at the TocToc Blog

If you would like to order TocToc for a absolutely any occasion, pop over to the shop at Etsy or Folksy

x.

quack

2009-11-13T13:52:00.000-08:00

quack

October/November is birthday season! This is a card made for my now 26 year old buddy, Jimbo. And whilst on the subject of birthdays, today is mine!
x.

10 reasons to love South Africa

2009-11-08T13:33:00.000-08:00

10 reasons to love South Africa...

It's been a whole week now since i returned from South Africa, and it is pretty safe to say that I am in love. Theres a whole bundle of reasons that make it such an interesting and beautiful place, but i've managed to narrow it down to 10 (in no particular order) from my travels that i never want to forget! There are heaps of photos following here, but i promise that i have been very restrained. Having returned with over 400 snaps, I think I've done well to whittle it down to this many!

1. Stellenbosch
An historical European settlement in the Cape Winelands housing some very attractive dutch architecture, some lovely little shops and restaurants and surrounded by many a vineyard.

2. Cape Winelands
Breathtaking views of rolling hills and rows upon rows of vines, and the free sampling is a bit of a treat too!

3. The shopping
Particularly in Stellenbosch there are some really lovely little shops. Exhibit A, B and C...

4. Camps Bay
A very beautiful suburb of Cape Town nestled behind table mountain and overlooked by The 12 Apostles. This is were my Grandma grew up, and met my Grandad, before she moved over to London.

5. Cape Town markets
Right in the centre of Cape Town the market stalls are full of life and colour. The stall holders go for quite a hard sell, and pounce on you as soon as they see you looking, and make it very difficult for you to turn them down, but still, very much worth a good look around.

5. Table Mountain
The journey up to the top of Table Mountain is a must - you can hike, which takes about 2.5 hours (apparently) or you can take the much easier option - the cable car, which takes about 2 minutes to reach the top - 1,086 metres above sea level. On a clear day the views are endless, however, when the "table cloth" is out you can end up with views of pretty much nothing!

6. Two Oceans Aquarium
The Two Ocean's Aquarium is located at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town and houses some great aquatic exhibitions - particularly the 5 story live kelp forest and the 2 million litre predator exhibit, where qualified divers can actually jump in the with the ragged-tooth sharks, rays and loggerhead turtle.

7. Victoria & Alfred Waterfront
The Waterfront is a residential marina area developed by Prince Alfred and is great for shopping, eating and drinking, as well as providing great views of table mountain. The renowned craft markets are located here, along with the gateway to Robben Island.

8. Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens
Kirstenbosch is nestled on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain and is home to mostly indigenous plants, and largley native to the Cape region. We went on a rather cloudy day, the clouds were actually spilling over the mountain tops which made for some rather eerie views.

9. Muizenberg
I was desperate to make it out to Muizenberg, (meaning "Mouse Mountain") purely to get a quick look at these legendary beach huts. The beach itself rolls on for what looks like miles and the white sand in the sun is close to blinding. However, it is not a wind free beach, so is great for kites, but not so good for a relaxing day of sunbathing!

10. Guineafowl
I love these birds so much! Their huuuge bulbous bodies and tiny, brightly coloured, gremlin-like heads! Plus, they are monogamous, so thats nice too!

And I've missed so many other great things out - like Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope, Hout Bay, the penguins on Boulders Beach, Bo Kaap and Robben Island, but I think this is enough for now. This little re-cap has not helped my post-holiday blues at all, and I'm itching to go back already - best get saving then!

But as for now, I will leave you with one of the most exciting experiences from the trip - I got to see the water drain down the plug hole in the other direction! CLOCKWISE! Imagine that!

x.

I love Whitby

2009-09-17T14:25:00.000-07:00

I &hearts Whitby

Last weekend, Paul and I headed off up north as a pre-birthday (his, not mine) treat. I managed to strike a deal for us each to choose how one day was spent. His choice: Middlesbrough (football - how did i not see that one coming?!) and my choice: Whitby. So, super sunny Saturday was spent in a crowded football stadium, and grey, miserable Sunday was spent at the beach. Of course! But nevertheless, we had a jolly ol' time both days.

Whitby was lovely. Extremely busy for a cold, wet, Sunday, but lovely all the same. We saw seagulls, coloured beach huts, the sea, boats, the 199 steps, a fortune teller, tea shops, fudge shops, fish and chip shops, a very odd knitting shop/church, and we even treated ourselves to a bit of culture with an audio tour of Whitby Abbey.

(More photos on my flickr)

We had such a lovely time that I'm rather sad to be back in the south. I even got used to driving over the winding, meandering moors, breaking for the sheep who wander out into the roads, and the complete lack of street lights ANYWHERE!

Lets go back soon please!
x.

TocToc

2009-09-06T13:55:00.000-07:00

TocToc

TocToc is a project i have been working on with Ben Gerlis for a while now. Yesterday we finally got the website and shop up and running which is all very exciting!

TocTocs are personalised and bespoke wooden cards, suitable for any special occasion. A unique design is etched into high quality walnut and finished with 200gsm cartridge paper, and book binding cloth. They look, smell and feel great and are such a nice way to celebrate a loved one's special day - birthday, wedding, christmas, anniversary, new baby/home/job, or even just because! Pop along to the website for more information, or drop us an email if you have any queries.

www.mytoctoc.com
mytoctoc@googlemail.co.uk
x.

always...

2009-08-03T13:25:00.000-07:00

always...

x.

funny how...

2009-08-02T21:29:00.000-07:00

funny how...

x.

somehow...

2009-08-01T13:32:00.000-07:00

somehow...

summer-so-far

2009-07-31T12:42:00.000-07:00

summer-so-far
Seeing as we reach August tomorrow, it feels as though summer is pretty much half over. And so far its been rather darn good! I've been a bit slack with updating here, but hopefully this lot will go some way towards making up for that, and also possibly explain where I've been hiding for the past month or so!

This entry is extremely picture heavy - i will warn you now!

Glastonbury

Summer began on Worthy Farm at the end of June: Glastonberry was super: immense and awesome in every sense of the words. Sunset up on Pennards Hill on the first night has to be a highlight. As was the lovely Park stage and the excellent Stornoway.

Over the course of the weekend (more like 6 days), we were lucky enough to see such delights as Bon Iver, Lisa Hannigan, Regina Spektor, Lamb, M Ward, The Specials, Madness and the almighty Tom Jones to name but a few.

The weather held out rather well indeed. (after an initial tantrum of thunder and lightning on Thursday and a little bit of rain on Friday) The toilets of course were the big bummer, (no pun intended) the toilets and the mud. Although now, looking back the horrors of both have wildly attenuated in my mind and i seem to have managed to forget that i even whinged about them once! (I'm sure Paul could put you straight on that one though!)

And now im dying for next year to roll around already! somehow! And I'm keeping my fingers are well and truly crossed for Radiohead!

Wireless

I was treated to an education in urban music at Wireless by my best bud Bloomfield. We had an excellent day watching the likes of NDubz, The Noisettes, Calvin Harris, Tinchy Stryder, Mark Ronson and Daniel Merriweather and Mr Kanye West. Far too many guilty pleasures than i should really admit to, but it was a really rather excellent day indeed!

Malta

Lucy and I decided that after a week of slumming it in a field at Glastonbury, we deserved a week of relaxation, so we jetted off to Sliema in Malta for just that. We lay out in 34ºC heat everyday, with not a cloud in sight! I did manage to steal some shade from a nearby ledge and the occasional umbrella, but still came back with a very respectable tan!

We went on a day cruise to the Blue Lagoon at Comino on a Turkish Gullet. I have never seen the sea so clear and so blue in my life - it was absolutely beautiful! The boat docked and we were able to swim in the crystal clear waters which was lovely, if a little salty, but we were soon chased out of the sea by the HUGE fish that were gathering waiting to be fed!

Sliema was lovely. not quite as fancy looking as St Julians, but it had some lovely restaurants and beach bars where you could take your drinks down on to the rocks and watch the sea lapping the shore as the sun set. mmmm! i'd go back in a flash!

Aside from the coastline being rather beautiful, the winding streets had their charm too. Everywhere is quite dusty and dilapidated, but the stone architecture is really rather charming with little jems hidden along every path.

We had such a lovely week, away from everything at home and were super sad to come back to the british rain, but these things must be done. And now i have my brand spanking new passport i am the biggest fan of summer holidays you will meet. FACT! I'm so ready to start planning next year's travels...! Although nowhere else in Europe feels quite as exotic as Malta now - I had no idea it was going to be quite so hot!

V&A village fete

On our anniversary weekend, Paul took me to the V&A Village Fete - the last ever V&A Village Fete for that matter. Its such a shame that it wont be continuing next year - it's such a great platform for some really novel ideas that you wouldn't normally get the chance to witness.

Check out the cardboard piano! Tattly Divine had everyone 'fishing for victory' on their stall, where i managed to bag myself a rather spiffy bracelet from the lucky dip. Paul and I competed on the Garudio Studiage's Economic Meltdown Office Challenge. I won and received a nice big fat (25% discount) cheque and Paul was handed his P45! heehee!

Ben & Jerrys sundae on the common

And finally, last weekend was the Ben and Jerry's Sundae on the common complete with petting zoo, (full of ducks with the oddest of hair do's) carousel, helter-skelter, and of course scoops and scoops of free ice cream!

Camera Obscura played a rather lovely set, and The Human League headlined - which of course made mine and Louise's day! They were so much fun that we hardly even noticed the rain! The whole day was done and dusted by 8'o'clock - which suited us just fine - we were home and in bed by 9:30! perfect for a sunday night!

And that is that. A very exciting couple of months - and its not over yet. I still have lots to look forward before summer is through, i just need to get over this flu that i've managed to contract. And no, i'm pretty sure that it's not swine flu, but i'm hiding out at home, just to be safe!

And now that all that has been said, i promise that i will be back soon with some pretty exciting news :o)
x

truck monsters

2009-07-24T10:22:00.000-07:00

truck monsters

So the lovely people at Truck Festival asked Lucy and i to make them some monsters based on their little monster logo to sell at the festival this weekend. If you're lucky enough to be heading on down to Hill Farm in Steventon be sure to bag yourself one of the handmade limited edition little blighters!

Each monster has a screen printed patch displaying the Truck logo on their bottoms, and a festival lanyard with a little bit of information about their dispositions.

We ended up slaving over them for quite some time and naturally became rather attached. Of course we were very sad to see them go so please, go buy, and make sure that you give your Truck monster a good home!

x.

London Zine Symposium 2009

2009-05-04T14:11:00.000-07:00

london zine symposium 2009

The London Zine Symposium yesterday was bigger and better than ever. With an apparent record number of zines, crafters, writers & distros spread across the two rooms at the Rag Factory selling their wares and celebrating DIY and zine culture.

Lucy and I arrived bang on schedule having made an effort to not be early as usual! We set up our Lazy Soosan table, complete with banner and bunting, and watched in awe as people began flowing through the doors: a veritable stream from midday right up until six o'clock.

Our manic day of prep payed off and everything went rather swimmingly. We even managed to squeeze in some precious time to make a batch of alphabet biscuits to draw in the punters! In all honesty they turned out to be more like shortcake... a slight overkill on the flour quantities, but no one was complaining and they all got gobbled up with 2 hours still to go!

It was an absolutely beautiful day despite the threats of rain from the weather forecasters, which led to somewhat tropical temperatures in the rooms, but it didn't seem to put people off one iota.

We met some lovely people and saw so many great zines - the 6 hour stint flew by without us really getting a chance to take it all in and see absolutely everything. From what we did manage to get to, highlights include Fever Zine, Bel's Art World, Shebang and Girl Photographer, to name but a few.

Not the main attraction perhaps, but definitely one worth mentioning... the floor, which i was informed had been installed sometime between last years event and this one, was rather special! A recycled school gym floor perhaps? whatever it is i seem to have come away with quite a few pictures of it! Looking down whilst walking around the room, the colours and shapes danced around your feet - very neat indeed!

So, it's all over for another year now, and a great day was had by all... roll on 2010!
x.

2009-04-07T12:36:00.000-07:00

lazy soosan at LZS

So we've been waiting rather impatiently for this news, but today we received confirmation that Lazy Soosan has been allocated a spot a this year's London Zine Symposium - hoorah!

So yes, we will be manning our table all day, so please do pop along - it was a really great event last year with some rather special workshops, and a great selection of zines to peruse your way through, and even a radical history walk, touring the sites of housing, class and gentrification around spitalfields market. The day is sure to be just as fabulous as last year and is well worth a visit - i kid thee not!

And now for the science part:

London Zine Symposium
Sunday 3rd May 2009
12pm - 6pm

The Rag Factory
16-18 Heneage Street
London
E1 5LJ

Be there or be square!
x.

2009-03-22T09:58:00.000-07:00

happy mothers day!

I hope that there has been plenty breakfasts-in-bed, flowers and chocolates, and freshly baked cakes doing the rounds today!
x.

E-E-E-Ever so Exciting!

2009-03-17T12:06:00.000-07:00

E-E-E-Ever so Exciting!

Issue E has arrived! It's been a while coming, but we promise that it is well worth the wait! with such spectacles to behold as Elvis himself, a trio of eager beavers, a pretty rubbish employee of the week, and a rather interesting young chap called eugene, its all ever-so-exciting! So head on over to the shop to get your hands on our latest labour of love! (sneak preview below!)

In other Lazy Soosan news, we now have alphabet badges up for sale, which we think will look just smashing on a lapel, a bag, a sweater or maybe even a hat. The options are endless!

And as always, keep checking the Lazy Soosan blog for up-to-date, last-minute, hot-off-the-press Lazy Soosan news!

x.

giveaway

2009-03-12T08:26:00.000-07:00

lazy soosan giveaway

If you've been itching to get your hands on a copy of The Alphabet Series, then head on over to Design for Mankind and enter yourself into the giveaway! We've teamed up with Erin to offer you the chance to win issues A, B, C and D, and a pack of our postcards too! so head on over quick-sticks and add your comment to the list to be in with a chance!

More Lazy Soosan news coming super soon - so stay tuned!
x

snow time!

2009-02-02T13:32:00.000-08:00

snow time

So, its been brewing for a while now, but last night, the snow finally hit. The heaviest snow in the last 18 years that is...! London trains and buses were cancelled, airports and schools closed, and the office was pretty much empty.

I do love snow. especially when its this thick and crunchy! i decided to make the most of the beautiful weather and take an afternoon stroll down to the duck-pond. (very picture heavy...!)

Their green and indigo flashes are super pretty. and their legs seemed to be extra-specially orange! I wasn't allowed to feed them, but they seemed to be happily munching on goodness-knows-what under the snow.

I continued my walk up to the Great Barn and Manor Farm House before finding myself in St Martins Churchyard all of which had been completed transformed by the heavy dusting of snow, and looked all rather quaint indeed.

The snow didn't really stop all day, and by 3pm it was threatening to get heavier, so, while i still had a tiny amount of sensation remaining in my feet, i carefully dashed home along the slippery, slushy pavements, back to the saftey of my own back garden, a cup of hot chocolate and a steaming hot bath! (very much in that order!)

There are heaps more photos from my wintery walkabout on my flickr, so if you're not all snowed-out yet, click on the picture below to take a peek!

Now all thats left to do is hope and pray that it wont have all disappeared by the time i wake up tomorrow morning. that would be very sad indeed! I hope that everyone is enjoying this lovely spell of snow, take care, and try not to slip up!
x.

Between the Covers

2009-01-26T13:39:00.000-08:00

Between the Covers

Between the Covers is an exhibition about women's magazines and their readers, currently showing at The Women's Library in Aldgate. At the back end of last year, lucy and i got an email from Melanie Maddison, (editor of the Leeds-based 'zine Colouring Outside the Lines) asking if we could provide some Lazy Soosan work to be a part of 'Zine Fest' - a series of zine related activities and seminars supporting the exhibition. So on Saturday, we toddled along to the exhibition to see Soosan, and all the other lovely zines in action.

To read more about zine fest take a peek here and to read reviews of the comic exhibition, pop along here, here and here.

and i couldn't not mention the beautiful cake stall! Yum indeed!

x.

roll up, roll up!

2009-01-25T13:34:00.000-08:00

roll up, roll up!

Lazy Soosan do colour!
Come pick up a pack of 4 full colour postcards from our little Etsy Shop!

Lovely stuff!
x.

amigurumi

2009-01-04T13:29:00.000-08:00

amigurumi

hoorah! my second amigurumi attempt has come up trumps - and I'm hooked! The pattern for this super cute pear is by amigurumi girl, and can be found here.

x

festivities

2009-01-03T07:00:00.000-08:00

festivities

christmas is already over, which is rather sad. it seemed to come and go all too quickly this time around. its been super lovely to have some time off from work, and just to have some proper quality family time both in the south, and the north too.
it has been quite a while since my last post, hence the large number of photos that follow! so yes, heres a few bits and bobs from the christmas/new year period:

Christmas tree decorations

Gift wrap and handmade gift tags

Tiffany's cupcakes from the somerset house ice rink

Oliver - who absolutely loves the christmas tree, and everything that dangles from it!

New year's eve fireworks

My mum knitted me these beautiful endpaper mitts. you can find the pattern hereThey re quite possibly the softest mitts i have ever worn. i am absolutely in love, and am now after a pair in every colour combination imaginable!

books.books.books! note the red 2009 moleskine planner. it's so satisfyingly chunky!

And Paul bought me this fabulous moustache ring from Tatty Divine :o)

buttons.buttons.buttons....

...and a tape measure of course!

I hope that y'all have had a lovely time over the holidays too, and that 2009 has started out well. I am still finilising my list of resolutions, but thats ok... im giving myself until the 5th - thats when the real hard work starts again!
x

merry christmas

2008-12-25T07:14:00.000-08:00

MOvember

2008-11-19T13:54:00.000-08:00

MOvember

Movember is a charity set up in the name of men's health - prostate cancer in particular. Throughout the month formerly known as November, men across the world grow Moustaches to help raise awareness about the very real health issues they face.

A number of my fabulous friends are joining in this year and are all looking remarkably hairy and very nearly Magnum P.I-like!

But yes, it is a very real, very serious, very important cause - to find out all about it, or to make a donation, click the button!

x.

5-a-day

2008-11-18T13:29:00.000-08:00

five-a-day

I finally got around to making these postcards using the fruit and veg patterns i have been working on.
Each set includes 5 different postcards: cherries, apples, lemons, mange-touts and aubergines. Each of which can be eaten as one of the 5 daily reccomended portions of fruit and veg that help to maintain a healthy diet. The postcards themselves however, should not be eaten and will not in any way improve your daily diet...!

Being healthy means nothing if you are not happy, and one of the most effective ingredients that helps to maintain happiness is good friends. It's important to keep in touch with loved ones, so with these super healthy postcards you can keep in touch with your recommended quota of 5 friends per day! How very handy indeed!

Lucy kindly invited me to share her stall at super.market! last week in Camberwell. We had much fun selling our wares and eating slice of homemade cake after slice of homemade cake... and the most fabulous biscuits ever, made by The Biscuiteers!

There were a lot of other lovely stalls: The collected adventures of b. b. barry, Jess Turnbull, and Mr PS to name but a few.

And here is our little stall in all it's glory :o)

x.

driedonpaper

2008-11-17T12:53:00.000-08:00

dried.on.paper

So, I am a little late posting about this, but nevermind...!
A couple of weeks ago, i received a mysterious email inviting me to a 'VIP launch party', with very few clues as to what the whole business was about. When my invitation arrived in the post, there were even fewer clues; just a time, date, place and a company name: driedonpaper. The invitation itself however, was rather special indeed:

A stamp, an ink pad and a piece of yellow card: a print-it-yourself invitation! Fabulous!

Any way, yes, after a few more days of trying to unravel this cryptic conundrum all was revealed in Shoreditch Studios last week. The launch was for a new mobile phone with more features you can shake a stick at. Now this is not really my general area of interest... I'm happy as long as i can send a couple of (preferably) free text messages, make a few quick calls here and there, and play a few games of su doku... and if it looks pretty, well that's a bonus..! But yes, regardless of that, the party was still rather excellent.
pictures pictures pictures:

It was all rather 'art' focussed. Inside the first room there were several installations with themes such as time, music, robotics, the world, telephones, and so on.

There was also a wall of prints created especially for the event. Some designs were even included in the goody-bag for us to take home at the end of the night. (the goody-bags also included a t-shirt, and a memory stick)

It did infact turn out to be quite a nice night - I should mention that it was also my actual birthday night, so it was rather excellent to be provided with unlimited free champagne all night! And plus, they had my absolute dream clock there! I have been eyeing up a similar (newer) one from Habitat for about a year now... I may well just have to cave in and buy it now! Although... do they make much noise...? I wonder if it would keep me up at night with its flap-flap-flapping?
hmm... Answers on a postcard please!

x.

2008-10-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

knit.wit

So, what with today being the last day of national knitting week an' all, i reckon its jolly well time for a knitting (& crotchet) themed post.

These knitted condoms were made for a friend's birthday. i wouldn't recommend them as an effective form of birth control, but i would definitely recommend knitting a couple, as they're super quick and easy, and rather silly too!

pattern:
Using 4mm needles and 4 ply wool
cast on 22 stitches,
knit 36 rows (or add a few more for a larger size...)
knit 2 tog for the next 2 rows (leaving you with 6 stitches)
knit 2 rows
knit 2 tog (leaving you with 3 stitches)
thread the end of the wool through the remaining stitches and pull tight.
sew the sides together - and you're done!

You can also add some special touches by knitting a few of the purl rows, to give a ribbed effect!

And in other news: crotched squares!

Since debbie's crochet masterclass on the beach last month, i have been on a mission to crochet a whole blanket, which has been going a little slower than i initially anticipated, but anyway, yes, this is my progress so far!

Sadly, at this rate, it will be more like summer by the time i have finished, so i will just have to get chilly this winter, but goodness, am i looking forward to next winter already!

x.

paper n stitch

2008-10-18T13:19:00.000-07:00

paper n stitch...

A big thank you to Brittni for inviting Lazy Soosan to feature on paper'n'stitch: a brand new online exhibition space, created to promote artists, designers, makers selling handmade goods, and independent boutiques. Come visit the lazy soosan paper'n'stitch shop right here!

Lovely

x.

an apple a day

2008-09-26T16:11:00.000-07:00

an apple a day...

x.

D is for DIY

2008-09-25T10:21:00.000-07:00

D is for DIY

Issue D of The Alphabet Series has finally arrived and is very much up for sale in our shop.

In the spirit of all things D, this issue is DIY-tastic: handmade from start to finish. and thats how we're going to keep it from now on! So go snap yourself up a copy of the new look Alphabet Series: its packed from start to finish with more love, care and attention than ever before!

visit the Lazy Soosan blog for more info, or take a look at my flickr for more pictures.

Delicious!
x.

crochet-at-the-coast

2008-09-23T15:07:00.000-07:00

crochet-at-the-coast

This weekend, Lucy and i headed down to Brighton to see Debbie, who ever so kindly gave us a quick crash course in crochet squares - many many thanks indeed - i have been practicing religiously so that i wont forget the knack! It also just so happened that it was a super lovely day - heaps of sunshine, and fortunately for us we were able to sit on the beach and soak up the last few hours of summer in the process.

(Mine is the blue one... the expert ones to the right are Debbie's!)

Lazy Soosan news coming shortly, so watch this space!
Ta ta for now
x.

stimpfield

2008-08-19T13:40:00.000-07:00

stimpfield 08

So, I've finally got round to posting about stimpfield:
a home-grown, back-yard, lo-fi, d-i-y, festival dreamed up by louise and me.

It was such a fun day, and well worth the endless planning. The invitations were tickets, and guests were instructed to bring themselves, their tents, their wellies and a musical instrument of their choice, along with an mp3 player for the silent disco.

Each guest recieved a lanyard with a detailed site map on the back, incase they managed to lose themselves in the garden!
There were games of cricket, pass the parcel (the prize being original stimpfield merchandise), inflatable bowling and sack racing accompanied by giant bubbles, face painting and silly amounts of glow sticks.

much fun indeedio!

Roll on stimpfield 09!
x.

up'north

2008-08-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

up'north

My boyfriend and i spent last week up in north yorkshire with the cows and the sheep, which was rather nice.

On our last night up there, we went to the last night of the proms at Castle Howard: a classical music spectacular if you will.
The rain managed to hold off so that we could enjoy our pic nic and not get soaked whilst waving our flags to the William Tell Overture and other such delights.

And... i couldn't resist - The T Pot!

ey-up, ee-by-gum and all that other northern nonsense!
x.

2008-07-14T12:40:00.000-07:00

cooo-eeee!

Its been a much longer time than we anticipated since issue B hit the shelves, but finally-finally- C has arrived.
and its crammed full of lazy soosan goodness. so yes - you know the drill: pick yourself up a copy right here from our etsy shop

and also, for those of you have already bought yourselves a copy; click here for the answers to that practically cryptic crossword...!

x.

hello stranger!

2008-07-02T11:50:00.000-07:00

yes, hello stranger!

hope everyone is having a lovely time in the sunshine. thank good-ness that summer is finally upon us.
In other news, i've been shopping. shopping for ribbon. a very good kind of shopping indeed.

be back soon.x

wood

2008-05-20T11:31:00.000-07:00

wood

This weekend, lucy and i went to wood festival; a brand-spanking-new, eco-friendly, folk festival celebrating music and nature. fabulous!

As well as live music for entertainment, there were heaps of workshops to participate in; Print making, jewellery making, harmony singing, tai chi, mural painting, aerobics and junk instruments to name but a few.

Lucy and i were most upset, however, to discover that the 'make our own costume and march in a parade' workshop was actually for children...!

What with it being May an' all, and the weather having taken a turn for the worse, it was rather darn cold! So, rather understandably, the campfire became the place to be as the night drew on, and also, the perfect place to start the day feeling a little worse for wear whilst waiting for the workshops and music to begin!

To help minimise any negative effect on the environment, each stage was powered by a different renewable source of energy: the wood stage by solar power, the tree tent by bio diesel (chip fat!) and the most exciting: the magnificent revolution dj/cinema tent was powered by people cycling on a row of bikes lined up at the back of the tent; a perfect way to work off those 'one too many' beer calories!

The eco-friendly self-composting toilets however, weren't quite such a novelty, as you can imagine!

The music was folk-and-country-tastic! best of the weekend though has to be Stornoway and the wonderful Sam Isaac for sure. I downloaded everything they both have available on itunes as soon as i got back, and haven't stopped listening since!

And now we're back in civillisation, although we almost didnt make it out of the field due to my car being stuck in a ditch..! but yes, we're showered, rested and back in the land of the flushing toilet, which will never be taken for-granted again!
And we're doing it all over again in a couple of months at Truck festival! hoorah! roll on July!

x.