Here’s a doodle I did for my friends Birthday earlier this month. I hope she doesn’t mind me sharing it on here!

I have been so quiet on the doodle front but I promise I haven’t been avoiding my doodling responsibilities. Here’s one of the many pictures I’ve been creating quietly to one side, finally the time has arrived to be able to share it with you! Red Shoe Diaries (a rather groovy Nottingham based band) are releasing their single at the start of next month. Check here for more info and to have a listen!

Hello!

How was your Christmas and New year?? So much has happened since my last post. It’s been a busy house here in Nottingham with Christmas, birthdays, visitors, doodle sessions – all sorts! My dress section of the wardrobe grew a little thanks to the January sales, which is always a nice way to start the new year I think. I’ve set about scribbling down some “new year” themed lists – Mainly book reading lists, I’ll keep you posted!

ps – I ate waaaaaaay too many biscuits during December… oops!

I’ve been absent from ye olde blog lately. It’s been a busy time here in old Mapperley-topsville. Halloween’s been and gone (shocking! – no pun intended). The trick and treaters ate ALL my sweets – totally not cool. I spent most of last week either living at the cinema or buried in my paints. The painting right at the top is finished, phew! and it’s the biggest I’ve done so far so I’m really pleased with how it’s come out. As you can see there’s a handful more I’m currently working on. I’m looking forward to framing the finished pieces and who knows they might make a formal appearance in the lovely shop sometime before Christmas!

Talking of Christmas – The cards are back for sale in the shop and a new one will be joining them before the week is out. Not to forget some lovely new stocking fillers will be tagging along too – I just need a new staple gun to complete that mission.

The Makeover mission’s been a proper challenge recently but I’ll come back to that with pictures and heart wrenching tales of sighs and grumps. Until then, for those of you who have some halloween candy left over – enjoy! For those of you, like me, who don’t – Fancy a cuppa?

ps for the next 24 hours (until 11am Thursday) get yourself 20% off in my shop! use the code BLACKCATS.

pps – A little Halloween illya roar for those of you who missed it:

Here are some (very pink) snap shots of my doodle from this weekend’s “Raise the Roof” festival that was going on at Nottingham Contemporary. Sorry about the poor picture quality – I should be getting some better ones soon but I wanted to share a picture of my life size cat lady. I love doing these wall doodles!

A new Print – now in the shop! Title: Flowers in the Dark. Based loosely on one of my paintings from the “Looking for Trouble” show. Someone mentioned they would work well as prints – so tada! I tried mimicking the speckled grey card that the originals are painted on but the colours looked washed out in the print form compared to the paintings, so I settled for a darker background. The print measures around 21cm x 29.7cm (A4) and is priced at £12.

The bright colours on the black reminds me of fireworks and another print I used to stock – my last attempt at a jug of flowers back in 2009. Weird looking back at older prints and pictures, they sometimes feel so primitive. Do you find that? I know the older picture only dates back a couple of years but it just shows how subtly styles can develop without you really being aware of them doing so.

ANYWAY and more importantly ;) Autumn is nearly here which is making me greedy for Halloween, pumpkins and Bonfire night. Not forgetting the gallons of Gingerbread lattes I will be drinking when the time comes…