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Soooo I have been redoing my entire shop look

Soooo I have been redoing my entire shop look the past couple of weeks and I guess I was pretty pleased with my new style shots, bright, clean, clear and attractive and I thought it was how my look was going to be for the foreseeable future, well as it turns out so much for that. Browsing the gorgeous pinterest I came across a blog post by one of my favourite designers Sparow Salvage  all about product photography.


I was lost, I adore  the way she styles her shots, I love  her designs and the realism and practicality of her blog posts (  a comment about camera settings and the color purple is one of my standby remarks becuase mine is just the same).

A trip to the antiques center was required and with a little help from some lace doilies and my own stash of vintage poetry books, paper ephemera and a vintage photograph of my grandmother I set to work

I must say I'm pretty happy with the results. I've got a romantic and attractive look that  doesn't go too far into the  'bridal' and goes well with the rest of my shop.

So my old shots

 

and here are my new ones

Some of them need a little extra editing and lightening but I do like the general feel of them and I've been getting some good feedback from my Etsy team members so its all good to go with some tweaking and maybe some more layers in white and cream but I'm feeling confident that I'm on a good track

This is the original Sparrow Salvage post for you all to look at.Its a great post about  photography in general and getting a good 'feel' for your shop
http://sparrowsalvage.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/back-stage-with-sparrow-or-how-to-get_15.html

New Photograph Style - Inspired by Snails

So I've been playing around with some new photo style the past couple of days. I'm also a little obsessed with snails at the moment due to the delightful silver trails that are left on the path overnight by their nocturnal wanderings.

Trying to combine the two I've started rolling up my scarves into little snail shape designs and shooting them from a low angle and I must say that I am  utterly delighted by the result. The finished images are cute, understated and bring out the texture of the muslin perfectly.

Turquoise blue hand dyed cotton muslin

Green and White ombre cotton muslin scarf

Looks like I'm not the only snail loving person around either

A4 Print of 'Snail' by Suzi Ovens on Etsy

The fabulous Mr Finch's take on the creatures

I'd love this in my bedroom.

Plush Yellow Snail Pillow by Laura Finch

 

Fairytale Snail Jewellery from my friend Laura

 

and last but no means one of the original creatures themselve.

 

Unfortunately I  am unable  to give credit to this last image so if you know who's it is or if its yours then drop me a line and I'll include info

Bridal Wraps

Mollie Makes Feature

I am delighted to announce that one my my Crochet Cowl designs will be featured in the spring/summer Mollie Makes Bridal feature.

The design is my 'Woodland  Bride' made with lightweight yarns and chiffon fabrics and whilst the original piece is now sadly sold I still make to order for this piece in the Bride's own wedding colours.

WabiSabi - Gold and Dark Greeen

I've been experimenting with gold paint just yesterday. I had a  green hand dyed scarf that has been calling out for something unusual for months and I recently rediscovered my metallic gold  fabric paint so seeing as I've been inspired by Japanese aesthetic I thought a little experimentation was in order.

As well as the Wabi-Sabi inspiration I have found  some amazing examples of Kintsukuroi just lately, another Japanese art this one means repairing with gold.

 My colour palette is worn oak green and gold and its hand worked texture and design seems a perfect match between the two

 

Spring Inspiration

Some of the colours for Spring/Summer 2014


Pantone Spring/Summer 2014 colours

A SEASON OF COLORFUL EQUILIBRIUM Designers take a modern twist on the traditional for spring 2014 by pairing soft pastels with vivid brights to create a colorful equilibrium. Inspired by a mixture of blooming flowers, travels abroad, and strong, confident women, designers use color to refresh, revive and defy conventional wisdom.

 Personally I feel that Hemlock and Freesia are going to be my favourites.I love a soft,subtle steel green tone and the bold yellow adds a touch of saffron sunshine without being too harsh. Cayenne also hold promise with its connotations of  Indian summers and festivals vibes. Quite a lot of this seasons colours are designed to add highlights to the ever popular neutral tones beloved of so many

New Directions

Some may know that I have been thinking of the direction I want my work to go in for the future. I  have made a recent foray into the world of  fabric dyeing and I feel so comfortable in it I'm focusing my energies onto that medium for the foreseeable future.

I will be keeping on with my wrap bracelets and silk rose brooches as smaller items but I feel that for myself to mature as a designer I need more focus, more singular work and a single platform from which I can launch my ideas.
I also feel that I am going in a more genuinly creative and artistic direction with this as will involve me being able to create my own collections, be more experimental in my colour and design choices not mention the joy of focusing creativity on one aspect of design that  means I can go upwards rather then spreading outwards in the way I want to take Shalotte in 2014.


I will be stopping making anything from commercially printed fabric and may do a spring sale to destash some of my current stock.

Dyeing  Inspiration for Spring 2014

I'm torn between doing a sea inspired collection in blues.greys, greens or the bold and exciting colours for Spring. I would love to make my own Indigo vat but I know I require more research before commencing such a large and intense project. I want to experiment with Stitch Shibori, my early works in this field are very promising and have sold quite well over the winter season.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrr its cold

                    
I think winter has decided to give us a taste of what is to come in the next couple of months.The sun is shining and the frost is covering everything and I'm beginning to wonder if its time to get the super chunky knits and warm winter coats out of the loft

Still, we have Halloween to come in the next couple of days, then bonfire night and we all know that means pumpkin soup, devils roasts, hot spiced apple juice and something with custard (and possible sticky toffee if we find ourselves lucky) and all those lovely edibles that warm our cockles wherever and whatever they are.

I'm currently working on some designs for a set of Christmas scarves in muslin for gift giving or for yourselves working with metallic gold paint and 100% cotton that is so warm and soft you would think you were wearing nothing but are still 'oh so warm'


My plan involves some gorgeous star and snowflake prints and dip dyed edges that are perfect for jazzing up your winter party outfits

Sneaking back into my blog

With many apologies for my laxness of late.

I do however have some yummy goodies to show you in the form of NEW recycled sari wrap bracelets but in this case they are made  from a gorgeous Linen art yarn

Frosty Morning - Grey linen wrap bracelet with amethyst bead charm

Autumn Blossom  - Orange linen wrap bracelet with orange and brown glass beads

Heart of the Mermaid - Teal linen wrap bracelet with smokey glass heart charm