Summer Beasties

Ummm yes it has been a wee while, I do apologise.

So I am sure many of you have been enjoying viewing the 'Spy' series that is currently on TV 1 on Tuesdays evenings. This latest one has just been delightful, such amazing footage derived from some very ingenious cameras designs. 'Tiger - Spy in the Jungle' reminded me of when I was fortunate to capture a glimpse of a trio of tiger cubs in Ranthambhore National Park, while I was on holiday in India. It was one of the most fabulous experiences in my life so far.

One of my better photos of the tigers.

As you can see, it is fortunate that I quickly realized my ambition to be a National Geographic wildlife photographer was not a feasible one. Yes my images are a far cry from the excellent footage that we get to see via elephant cams and rock cams and the like. The tigers themselves were so similar to what we saw this evening, as cubs they are quite hilarious creatures. One minute they were in plain sight  play fighting and as soon as you got the camera focused they would duck down to be camouflaged by the undergrowth. It was as if they were trying to foil our attempts to document them.

Seriously, there were the best two shots.

So I had been wanting to do a series based on large cats for a while and this latest wildlife documentary helped to inspire me to complete the sketches I had started. Unfortunately the lion had a mishap and ended up being like the Essex Lion, basically a thing of myth. It is unfortunate when a painting gets stuffed up. When compared with oils or acrylics; with watercolours if you make a mistake, there is not much you can do to hide it. Watercolours are a very honest media. I will have to do another lion as they are such stunning and majestic animals.

'Summer Beasties' in progress

Cheetahs have amazed me since a kid, the fact that they can reach speeds of up to 70kms an hour is astounding, even if it is just for a short span of time.

'Cheetah' 2012

As for the tigers, they really are my favourite big cat. The contrast of the orange against the black stripes and white under belly is just gorgeous. 

'Tiger' 2012

Soon I will get a new lion completed. Watch out for listings of the original watercolours and gilcee prints on my Felt and Etsy stores. Enjoy watching next weeks episode and I am so hoping that there is a happy ending after tonight's episode.

It's still my favourite cap :)

Auckland Art and Craft Fair

Along with a whole plethora of other fabulous vendors, guess where we will be tomorrow?

If you would like a sneek peek as to what you might expect from our stall, have a nosy at the interview posted on the official site here ellaquaint interview or you could look at some of the pictures that have been and will be posted on our facebook page here ellaquaint on facebook.

Matariki!

We have just had our 50th sale on Felt over the weekend so to celebrate . . .

If you love surprises now is the perfect time to pop on over and have a nosey at our store on Felt.

Pink Ribbon Breakfast

Yesterday in little ol' Kingsland we had a fabulous time at Crafternoon Tea, partially due to the delightful company and wonderful browsers and customers. I think that the scrummy baking that lovlies like Emma from The Little Card Factory, Alice from Absolutely Alice and Kylie from Broken Bits (whose excellent idea it was), might have had something to do with it too.

Yes we had cake for breakfast!

Well I can bake, however not consistently. It is not a skill I aim to develop as I seem to end up eating it all which does not do fabulous things for the figure. Instead I decided to do what I am good at, and paint a pink animal. The first thing that sprung to mind was a pig, which are cute, but not necessarily what people would like to have on their walls. The next idea was of course, a flamingo. They have such a lovely retro feel to them, combined with their stunning colour, I decided they would be the beastie to paint.

Their gorgeous hue is derived from the krill they eat.

Here is the final illustration here, which I framed using a pink ribbon and reference old copperplate flourishes. 

It is painted on 300gsm water-colour paper and available on Felt

From this water-colour I did a limited edition series of 25. There are still 15 at this stage left which I would love to move quickly so as I can get the funds to the NZBCF. There are available to purchase too, just follow this link to ellaquaint on Felt

Little A5 digital prints on 185 gsm watercolour paper.

This poor blog has been so neglected this year, in part due to the number of markets I have been doing and I fear that it will stay a little quiet due to the fact that I am back in the class room again too. Hopefully I won't neglect it entirely but my apologies if it gets even quieter.

OnceIt

If you have not been introduced to the fantastic sales that appear on Onceit, you might like to join up as some cute and quaint things are about to emerge on there.

They specialize in designer brands and fabulous artisans whose wares include jewellery, fashion, accessories, home wares and more

I only have a limited number of invites so . . .

Invitation to Onceit

 . . . and I hear there might be some manu on there too.

Road Trip!

Yay! So excited! ellaQuaint will be venturing outside of Auckland and joining the handmade, crafty fabulousness that is The Little Big Markets. 

That will keep me busy over the next week or so, trying to come up with some fresh visual treats to bring with me as well as some of the old favourites. I will try and keep you posted on new items as they are completed.

For more info on The Little Big Markets click on the name to follow the link to their facebook page :)

Latest Hi-Jinx

It has been a wee while but finally life has settled down again and I am able to get caught up on things. ellaQuaint has been busy creating new designs for handmade cards. The 'Warm Fuzzy' range has expanded to include robins and cats.  They seem to resurge when the weather cools, something about the association of warmth that felt brings with it I think.

Some of these have been sent off already :)

Some fresh colours have been added to the ellaQuaint palette which has worked wonderfully with some old favourites. There is something rather meditative about the process of hand embroidering things and the contrast of the matt card against the lustre of embroidery silk is very effective.

Chevron Hearts in fresh hues.

Part of the reason I have been focusing so much upon cards lately, as well as the advent of Mother's Day is because I intend to put together a catalogue of some of my favourite designs and go and attempt to sell them to stores.

I love masking tape. 

Sometimes you have to fix or even remake old templates. Today I got to make some new ones which was exciting also. The perfect activity for the shocker of a day we have had in Auckland.

I really love masking tape.

The old maps that I use can be problematic to cut so lining them on the back with tape allows for a cleaner edge and makes them less likely to disintegrate.

A fresh design and one that I think is pretty special.

Maps are so evocative of travel and that sense of freedom and adventure that comes with it, which is why I have been so selective with the imagery that I have chosen to collage on the cards. Many folks think that it is bordering on madness to hand-cut such intricate designs but when you end up with a result that you are happy with and that people might treasure for sometime to come, then in my belief, it is worth it.

Two old trusty designs one of which has had a bit of a make over.

Some of these are already listed on ellaquaint on felt or ellaCute on etsy should you be interested in seeing the designs in better detail.