Pick Me Up London

Last month I was fortunate enough to visit the Pick Me Up exhibition at Somerset House in London. It was like an illustration and design nirvana!

Brothers of the Stripe	Dan Hilliar
Telegramme (Bobby Evans)	The Handsome Frank Emporium!

Tom Edwards	Malark
Malika Favre	William Goldsmith

Blab Talks

BLAB is a series of talks in Manchester, organised by Matt Booth, which feature speakers from all across the creative spectrum. From designers to illustrators, photographers to UI developers. No matter what your job in the creative industry (arguably any industry) or background, BLAB offers a look into the lives and inspirations of some exciting, accomplished people.

The most inspirational of which I believe is Gavin Strange, senior designer at Aardman. His talk was so motivating and heartfelt, and his can-do attitude left everyone glowing with positivity afterwards. 

Luckily, all the talks are recorded and uploaded to Vimeo, so I strongly recommend making a pot of tea and settling down to watch it for yourself (you can hear me woop at the mention of Adventure Time at 43:25, sorry..)

Some of my other favourite BLAB speakers include:

Mr Bingo - Illustrator

Kevin Meredith (LomoKev) - Photographer

Peter Crawley - Multichannel Designer/Illustrator

Nik Roope - Industrial and Digital Media Designer/Entrepreneur

If you're interested in attending a future BLAB talk you can do so through their Meetup page. 

Follow their Twitter for updates on upcoming events. 

You can also watch videos of past talks on their Vimeo page.

Draw North West

Since moving down to Manchester at the beginning of last year I discovered a bi-monthly meet-up group in the city centre which goes by the name of Draw North West.

Through which I have met so many lovely illustrators and artists, and learned about creative events and exhibitions around the city.
The creative community of Manchester is something I find incredibly heartening, and makes me proud to be a part of such an accommodating community.
Attendees range from students from the local university to well experienced freelancers. Everyone is eager to talk about their latest ideas, recommend inspiration and just have a laugh and a doodle.

Tonight is the 10th DNW meetup- a little bit of a milestone. Here's to many more!

This meetup's poster was drawn by the uber talented Emma Reynolds. I think it perfectly captures the spirit of DNW.

If you fancy rubbing shoulders with other arty types, head down to Common Bar tonight on Edge Street in the Northern Quarter of Manchester.

Draw North West
@drawnorthwest

Owl You Need is Love

New in the One Owl Please shop- tote bags perfect for any owl or bird lover!

Screen printed onto 100% natural cotton, unbleached and undyed. 38cmx 43cm with long handles which make them great for everyday use.

To ensure delivery before Valentine's Day, make sure you order before the 8th. You can grab one here.

2012 Christmas Cards

Here's last year's Christmas cards. Better late than never as they say!

2012 in Review

Well 2012 has probably been one of the most intense years of my life. It had its fair share of brilliant things and horrid things, but all in all it was an amazing year.

Here are my resolutions for this year (they're a bit more practical and abstract than last year's but I like that.)

2013

Eat more fish

Relax more

Take more baths

Start Yoga again

Attend at least one life drawing class

Organise an exhibition

And here's a review of 2012's resolutions:

• Get a job in Manchester
  I'm pleased to announce I am a junior digital designer at Just Search in their recently established design and development team. I'm excited to be involved with developing the department further in 2013, it's going to be a very exciting year.
• Learn a new craft/new piece of software
  Since starting at Just Search I've been using Adobe Fireworks for the first time.
• Create/print/sell my first ever zine
  Alas this didn't happen. I've made a few prints, but that's just me making excuses. I still really want to make and distribute one.

• Finish the Alphabet Bestiary series
  Another resolution that didn't come to pass. I haven't given up on the Alphabet Bestiary series yet though. When I've completed all 26 beasts I'm hoping to have them organised as an exhibition (which ties in nicely with one of 2013's resolutions).
• See an animal I've never seen before
  I wasn't sure how I was going to achieve this one; considering the amount of zoos I've visited and time I've spent ambling around Cumbria. But I realised I have actually completed this resolution. I've never seen jays before, but I saw loads of them on the way to my job interviews in Adlington.
• Go to a music festival
  I didn't manage to make it to a music festival this year, but I've seen plenty of brilliant bands since moving to Manchester. You can see a post on some of them here.

Curtis Eller's American Circus

I illustrated and designed the poster for Curtis Eller and his American Circus performing at the Ruby Lounge in Manchester.

I realised I was a bit overambitious with the concept, but it was too much fun drawing all the different elements!

Very much looking forward to seeing this guy perform, it should be quite a show!