love print studio blog

Friday, 29 January 2016

This & That...

This gorgeous illustration by Studiosjoesjoe

That beautiful floral shot

x x x

Whistlefish...

Whistlefish have galleries selling contemporary and traditional art and greeting cards across the south west of England; Padstow, Dartmouth, Newquay and many more.

I've been fortunate enough to be able to visit a couple of their galleries on trips to Cornwall and have always admired the array of talented artists they work with; Hannah Cole, Daniel Rieley, Liz and Kate Pope...and have blogged about them in the past, here.

A lot of their handpicked artists are local to the area but they also use international talent too, and much of the subject matter focuses on the beautiful areas around Cornwall.

Many of my favourites feature the wonderful harbour in Padstow.

They have a vast collection of greeting cards for every occassion, of which they will be adding to very soon with new card launches in February, and I was delighted to be contacted by Whistlefish Galleries to see if I wanted to review the new collections available next month.

Of course, I jumped at the chance!

There will be over 120 new designs added to their current lines featuring artists such as Rose Eddington, Lyn Thompson, Katy Hudson, Liz Thomas, Gerry Plumb, and my personal favourites; The Pattern Collection by Jessica Sweeney, Pavo by Sian Summerhayes and Florette by Lola.

Here are a few favourites from those collections...

Florette by Lola is a very pretty and feminine collection with a lovely colour palette of white, soft lilacs, pale mint and peachy pinks. They features subtly textured card with lovely, delicate illustrations and foil detail.

Lots of occasions are catered for from Birthday and Wedding through to New Home and New Baby.

Sian Summerhayes 'Pavo' has a range focussed primarily on the outdoors and many of the designs have cats, dogs, birds and ducks.

These are blank inside and therefore perfect for many occasions.

Jessica Sweeneys card designs feature strong colour palettes and bold illustrations.

The Pattern Collection includes cards for different ages, New Baby, Thank You's and many more, with lovely little ditsy florals and conversational prints.

(all photographs above are taken by me for use on loveprintstudio blog)

Click on the below links to follow Whistlefish on social media...

facebook | pinterest | twitter

*Disclaimer*

I was provided with free products by the company for the purpose of reviewing.

I only recommend products and companies that I use and genuinely love.

All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and not influenced by the company in any way.

x x x

Inspired by...Studio Sjoesjoe

Based in Amsterdam, Studio sjoesjoe create the most beautiful illustrations and prints.

The designer behind the studio is Joelle Wehkamp.

You may be familiar with her designs for Rice.dk whom she has created gorgeous prints and patterns that adorn many a plate or two, and also styling and art direction.

The SS16 catalogue looks like its going to be a goodie!

Joelle has a society6 and etsy shop and a website where she showcases her stunning artwork.

The colours are amazing!

You can see more if you follow her over on instagram too.

Below are a few of my favourites, but be sure to check out more of Joelles beautiful work, you won't be disappointed.

(Rice.dk)

(images above are taken from either Studio sjoesjoe's website or instagram account

and all copyright belongs Studio sjoesjoe / rice.dk)

x x x

Colour crush...

Ooh todays colour crush post might be a new favourite, sooooo beautiful.

Peachy, pink tones with soft rusts and oranges, and a few aqua blues thrown in for good measure.

(clockwise from top left)

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

x x x

Etsy shop find...a chat with Ana Zaja Petrak

I've been chatting to Ana Zaja Petrak aka Anek, for this months etsy interview.
Ana is a graphic designer from Croatia and creates beautiful illustrations and hand lettering with the simple pleasures of food and cooking being the focus; herbs and spices, fruit, vegetables, wine, desserts...
Aside from her etsy shop, she has worked for some amazing clients including Carluccio's, Ikea and Mr. Jamie Oliver! (never a bad thing in my book!)

You can buy Ana's artwork in the form of art prints and tea towels and she is currently offering a 10% discount on purchases using the code 'ANA10'
Perfect for food lovers!

Lets get to know a little about the fabulous illustrator behind the shop...

1. Can you tell us a bit about you and your background...

My name is Ana, I'm a graphic designer and illustrator, working and living in Zagreb, Croatia.

I worked for many years in graphic design field, than few years ago I returned completely to drawing which has always been my first love.

Since than I'm working on various illustration projects for clients all over the world, and I run my Etsy shop where I sell my art prints.

Some of my clients are: Carluccio's, Jamie's Magazine, Whole Foods Market, Fairtrade Foundation UK, IKEA, Conde Nast, Penguin Random House, BBC, Papyrus.

2. Tell us about a typical day for you...

My daily schedule is never the same, it depends of my mood and the inspiration.

The only constant is that I'm not the morning type and I can't start the day without my morning coffee.

And I never skip breakfast!

I work from home so I try to do most of the work while my kids are in school.

I'm balancing between family life and my work every day.

3. Who are your design heroes and how do you stay inspired?

There are so many of them, but these are the first on my mind: Sister Korita Kent, Saul Bass, Matisse, Alan Fletcher, Rob Ryan and Bruno Munari.

People who are life enthusiasts inspire me a lot.

I'm always amazed by life and all it's wonders, by small, everyday things and situations.

I often find inspiration in movies, music, nature and dance.

But my 2 boys and our little chihuahua are definitely greatest source of inspiration for me.

4. Can you give us an insight into your creative process?

It's classic: it always starts with pen and paper.

I do the sketches first.

I play with the ideas, approaches, techniques and colours.

After that I work on the computer using tablet and pen.

5. Like myself, one of your big loves is obviously food,

what are your five favourite things to eat?

1. warm bread + butter on top

2. pancetta

3. dark chocolate

4. pasta (one of the biggest inventions of all time!)

5. sarma (stuffed cabbage rolls)

6. Whats the most popular item for sale in your etsy shop, and also, your favourite?

Each work represents some moment in my life and therefore I love all my works, but if I need to choose one, that would probably be "Limoncello".

It says "Summer without limoncello is not summer." in Italian, there is something sweet and naive about it.

It became one of my most popular artworks in my Etsy shop and it was available in IKEA as a part of their poster collection 2 years ago.

7. What books/ magazines are currently on your coffee table?

I love reading fiction, biographies of artists, children's books, poetry.

Currently I've been reading "Strange Pilgrims: Twelve Stories" by Gabriel García Márquez, and "This is Pollock" by Catherine Ingram. "Jamie's magazine" and few cookbooks are always on my coffee table.

8. Where do you work? Describe your studio/work area...

I work from a home studio.

My working area is a large desk with my Mac, lots of drawings, papers, my kid's artworks, photographs, pens and many little things on shelves that have a special meaning for me.

9. In three words, describe your work...

Simple, graphic, colourful.

10. What makes you laugh?

Woody Allen's movies, my kid's jokes, life absurdities.

11. What’s the most rewarding thing about being a designer/illustrator?

Being an illustrator gives me the opportunity to look at ordinary and make it extraordinary.

I have a freedom to choose my working hours and I can do my work literally everywhere.

I enjoy this play of creating now as much as I enjoyed drawing in my notebook as a little girl.

12. What are you working on currently? And any big plans for the coming year?

I'm working on a lovely commissioned project for one UK client.

It's food related, of course. I'd like to experiment more in different techniques, to make paintings, to travel more, to continue to be happy as I am in this moment!

A big thank you to Ana for giving us a little insight into her world!

You can follow Ana here...

http://www.anazajapetrak.com

http://www.aneklife.tumblr.com

http://pinterest.com/aneklife

http://twitter.com/aneklife

x x x

Inspired by...Bloomingville Mini

The Spring/ Summer 16 catalogue of the lovely homeware brand Bloomingville is out now, and their children's collection 'Bloomingville Mini' is adorable, and features so many beautiful items for your little ones.

The styled rooms, the colours, and the gorgeous illustrations are all so lovely, you'll want to buy everything!

(all images above are taken from the bloomingville mini SS16 catalogue)

x x x

On my bookshelf...A Dog Day

As you probably know, I'm a bit of a book magpie, and love nothing more than to surround myself with fabulous cooking books, beautifully illustrated childrens books, craft and interiors books, and generally just good reads!

So, new year, new blog feature, and I thought I'd share some of the little beauties on my bookshelf, new and old.
So, first up...

Written and illustrated by Emily Rand, 'A Dog Day' is the story of a dog who desperately wants to go to the park, but instead, is walked around the town doing errands with his owner.

No spoilers here but it all turns out well for our terrier friend in the end!

It's such a lovely book, beautifully illustrated and all done in tones of grey, black and white.

Emily has used some wonderful mark making and textures within her artwork, you'll want to look at every detail page after page.

Highly recommended!

You can buy the book here and here