Here kitty, kitty...

I'm loving these fantastic illustrations by artist Jamie Shelman...each is so full of life and fun that you can't help but smile when you see them. Each cat is so simply rendered, but so full of character, that it's hard to pick a favourite!

Her work is available on etsy and bigcartel, and through her own website...and, if you're in full stalker mode, why not have a peek at her blog, too!

ryan@abigail*ryan

Tiny pleasures...

It's always been said that the best things come in small packages, and this could never be more true than when speaking of the work of artist, Sarah Neuburger and the work she creates under the label "The Small Object".

Cuurently based in Savannah, Georgia, Sarah adorns all sorts of lovely, little things with her adorable illustrations, and allows you to do the same by also producing a large range of wooden stamps...everything from matryoshkas to dust bunnies, and hedgehogs to smiling ice-creams cones is covered in the collection and can be sprinkled as liberally as you please using the tiny inkpads, in glorious colours, she also stocks.

Alongside the stamps, is the most wonderful assortment of other tiny things that add the perfect touch of delicate sweetness wherever you decide to use them- storage containers, cake toppers, trinket boxes, bookmarks and loads of other prettiness besides.

I love her simple, almost childlike style of drawing, and can imagine getting terribly carried away with my credit card next time i'm in a spendy mood! Before long, my house could be completely covered in a glorious confetti of her splendid little characters :)

Enjoy her blog here.

ryan@abigail*ryan

Oh, bee-hive!

I can't wait to order this gorgeous looking book...i've always loved bees, and am fascinated with the possibility of keeping my own in the garden (along with the chickens and the neatly trimmed rows of planted vegetables- it's becomming the veritable "Good Life" aound here!).

Ever since researching the "Eglu", mentioned in this post, keeping bees in the garden has seemed to be a real possibility, so a little light reading (i.e. obsessive research- I can't help myself when I get a *cough* "bee in my bonnet" about learning something new...the sheer amount of useless information in my head is staggering!) is in order.

Has anyone read this book, or any others they can recommend...the 2872 listed on Amazon is a little overwhelming!

ryan@abigail*ryan

Pyromanic..!

If they were paintings, the work above by artist Lauren Gray would be gorgeous enough, but it becomes absolutely mind-blowing when you learn that it is all done using "pyrography"...the art of burning wood.

As described by Lauren, "Pyrography is the traditional art of using a heated tip to burn images onto natural materials such as wood or leather. It is a challenging medium to work in because the permanent nature of burning requires constant precision an missteps are not easily corrected. It is very much like drawing in a sense, but done with a hot wire tip instead of a pencil. The different tonal values and subtle graduations are created carefully by varying the pressure and temperature of the pen tip."

The level of accuracy, skill, and sheer concentration required to create such stunning works without the ability to re-do areas, or erase any mistakes is utterly staggering!

It would be incredibly difficult to decide which piece I love the most, and it's currently a war raging between my love of bees, and the breath-taking detail of the piece "Cathedral"(the woman's portrait above)...I also adore the image of the knot being untangled... Oooohhh decisions, decisions..!

Lauren's work is currently available on etsy, and you can enjoy her blog here.

ryan@abigail*ryan

Trippin' over these shoes!

I have a deeply secret shame...I LOVE shoes. Not in a manly, cool, distanced fashionista kind of way, but a full on girly, squealy, giggly love for them. For the longest time, I even considered becoming a shoe designer (a milliner, too...I was/am rather indecisive!).

Anyway, pottering about online today, I found this shoe collection and gasped...I may even have wee'd a tiny bit.

So...for all you fellow shoe lovers, make yourself a nice cup of tea, get some biscuits, maybe even light a scented candle- get yourself in the zone for some shoefull bliss.

Click here, and enjoy. The samples above are just a tiny taster of what's to come!

ryan@abigail*ryan

Golden Eye...

I'm sure you remember the stunning work by Natsuo Ikegami, mentioned in Abi's post here...

Well, while browsing her website, I followed the link to Gallery Keiko Goto and it's here I first saw the beautiful paintings by Takahide Komatsu.

The delicacy, yet intense vibrancy of the subjects (usually butterflies), is balanced, and even enhanced, by the incredible pure silver or gold backgrounds. They have such lush richness that they seem, somehow, from another time...decidedly oriental, yet also reminiscent of russian orthodox religious icons with their stylisation and use of precious metals.

ryan@abigail*ryan

Hatch...

Ryan showed me these drawings by Natsuo Ikegami last night, and gosh, my boy has fallen hard for them! I have to admit, I am extremely drawn to them too...

Their beautiful textured detail, woven like a patch-work of hatching, adds such depth and interest to the pieces and gives such lovely contrast to the simple white figures with flowing hair. There would always be something to look at in them.

Find more of Natsuo's lovely work in her etsy shop, Chana Bean!

Abigail@abigail*ryan

Video killed the radio star...

Hold on a moment...I just have something in my eye... *sniff*

Advertising can be wonderful...beautiful, moving short films that touch you in surprising ways (who can forget the first time they saw the Sony Bravia bouncing balls advert..?). This latest effort from John Lewis is one of those few that manage to surpass their origins as adverts and become something more...helped, in no small part, by the gorgeous soundtrack.

As well as being so very lovely, I hope this ad will do two other equally marvelous things- remind the world of the genius that is Billy Joel, and introduce everyone who hasn't been introduced already to the wonders of Guillemots (the advert soundtrack is sung by their lead singer, Fyfe Dangerfield)...their 2008 album, "Red" was, by far, one of my absolute favourites of that year...and remains on heavy rotation in casa del abigail*ryan!

ryan@abigail*ryan

Stop motion gastronomy...

Whilst browsing the archives of fantastic food blog, "Serious Eats", I found this short, stop motion animation clip by French artist, Alexandre Dubosc.

I always find something slightly sinister about stop motion animation...a creepiness in the slightly disjointed, awkward movements of the items being animated (redolent of the final scene of "The Ring", possibly) that unsettles me (something used to superb effect in the work of Jan Švankmajer...someone who i'm sure i'll blog about soon!).

Anyway, this short film was made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Annecy International Animated Films Festival, and features my favourite thing- Cake!*

Enjoy! ;)

*(edit) I've just been informed that cake is my SECOND favourite thing...after Abi, of course!


ryan@abigail*ryan

Take-Away Food...

Out shopping today, running a few errands in the middle of unpacking all of Abi's boxes (her whole life ensconced in cardboard!)...not that we were procrastinating or anything like that *giggle*... we found these fantastic bento boxes from the company Aladdin.

They're so funky and useful, we almost wished we didn't work at home so we could make full use of them! Available in all sorts of colours and, according to google, all over the place- I can't believe we've never seen them before!

ryan@abigail*ryan

Double Dipping!

A short while ago, Abi and I were wandering around the Denby shop, fantasizing about all the gorgeous china we would have when we became rich and famous! Each Denby item is still entirely handmade, making every mug, plate and jug a unique work of art...and, after much deliberation over which of the massive selection of gorgeous glazes and patterns we would have, we noticed these beautiful mugs hanging, slightly hidden, in the corner of the shop.

We loved them immediately, and now wish they had a full range of tableware, including the beautifully shaped "Curve" mugs, available with these gorgeous "double-dipped" glazes...I think our penny jar will be taking quite a beating next time we visit the store!

ryan@abigail*ryan

Paint by Numbers...

I love these paintings by Paulina Archambault, a Polish artist now living in Munich with her American husband.

At their best, the stark simplicity, somehow, still manages to evoke an emotional response...a quiet sadness or delicate melancholy...their deep, dark, wide eyes suggesting an, almost overwhelmed, inquisitiveness.

I'm probably getting carried away with myself, but combined with the sadness...much more evident in some than others, and the dark eyes that could have seen too much, deadened but still wide with horror, the numbers scrawled in the corner of each painting begin to resemble holocaust tattoos; the little hats, yarmulkes.

What can you see in them?

Available at Etsy, and Dawanda.

ryan@abigail*ryan

Here kitty, kitty..!

Whilst searching for images for my post about Heidi Burton, I found these wonderful animal prints by Eilidh Borland- they are so simple, yet have such life, that I had to mention them here...anyone who's ever had a kitten will immediately recognise that pose!

Available at Folksy.

ryan@abigail*ryan

Love in the Time of Smallpox...

Heidi Burton works in all sorts of styles, but, by far, the one I love the most, are her totally endearing, absolutely adorable greeting card illustrations...each little person has so much character and charm, yet they're rendered in the simplest of ways.

It's a great skill to know when to stop while you're drawing, and I think her work exemplifies that completely- neither a line nor a dot too many...and they absolutely make you smile.

I even love the style of her blog- each post hand written, then scanned in...it's full of gorgeous little design touches.

Her work is available on both etsy, and folksy, and she has a flickr, too...not that i'm suggesting you stalk her, or anything! :)

ryan@abigail*ryan

Pots of Fun...well, plates, anyway ;)

Ceramics are, truly, my first love... ever since I went to a ceramics summer school when I was 16 or 17 (over 10 years ago, now...*sob*) I haven't been able to get the wonder of working with clay out of my system. In fact, when I first went to art school, I went to do the ceramics course, and it was only by chance, and circumstance, that I ended up in photography.

As I don't have the facilities to work in clay, I entertain myself by gorging on the wonderful eye-candy produced by the many fabulous ceramics artists out there...it has taken a massive effort to resist posting ceramicist after ceramicist on this blog (Abigail shares my passion...luckily, or unluckily for our bank balance!) but, as we're now trying to post as often as possible, sharing our loves and inspirations as well as our own work, it seems only fitting to show *everything* we love- eve if it means an inordinate amount of posts about pots!

Anyway, I saw the work of artist, Sharon Bloom, today on etsy and thought it was fantastic...perfect for the animal lover, ceramics lover, or just anyone who wants something vibrant and sunshiny on their wall. You simply couldn't help but smile every time you caught sight of your smiley dog, googly-eyed fish, or sneaky looking cat! :)

ryan@abigail*ryan

Sleeping silkily...

This stunning quilt from Ouno designs caught my eye while browsing the front page of etsy earlier today.

Nine vintage, designer silk scarves have been painstakingly patch-worked together, before being backed with a fresh, eco-friendly, naturally coloured, hemp backing- an excellent way of recycling vintage materials, and one that would look stunning in any modernly schemed bedroom.

ryan@abigail*ryan

Whatever...

I adore children's books, and wondering around the John Lewis toy department a few months ago, I spied this absolute corker.

Billy is a sullen, moody boy with a bad attitude which his father tries to overcome using increasingly outlandish methods- each marvelous spectacle being rebuffed with a churlish "whatever". Until, of course, poor Billy learns his lesson in the most dramatic of ways in the shockingly hilarious finale!

Written and illustrated by William Bee in a subtly retro, but undoubtedly modern, 50's inspired style which suits the tone perfectly, the simple writing and captivating moralistic tale makes the perfect read along book for weeny children, as well as an excellent addition to anyone's collection of lovely illustration (come on! I can't be the only grown-up with a stack of children's books!).

ryan@abigail*ryan

Jelly for Grown-ups!

With summer finally rearing it's head, and the sun peaking it's way through the clouds (however shyly), and with Abi and mine's thoughts turned to gardening...garden parties and BBQs are just the next logical step...

With that in mind, i've idly pottering online this morning, vaguely thinking about parties on our patio, and what fun we'll have once the garden (and the house, for that matter!) is finally prettified enough for public consumption...when I found this this gem of a blog.

Whilst the blog is not exactly pretty, it is very new, and the central idea is certainly unique- jello shots taken to the Nth degree.

Everyone loves cocktails, and everyone loves dessert...so they've cleverly put them together to make some wonderfully intriguing alcoholic, wibbly-wobbly treats.

Ingredients are listed, but the posts are more inspirational- you come up with your own ratios, matching each little cocktail to your own taste...just remembering that each sachet of gelatine jelly-fies a certain amount of liquid. They use "Knox" brand, which, I believe, can be substituted for this by our UK readers.

Even if you don't wish to use their recipes- the blog is completely inspirational...and the suggestion of flavouring your own vodka, and making your own syrups, could be useful in all areas of cocktail making.

ryan@abigail*ryan