matouenpeluche

Thank you Marsi + Slow Readers Book Club News!

Paula and Jemma:new print in shop!

First of all, happy Tuesday! Being back at work this week was like being shot out of a cannon! Anyone else a little foggy on Monday or was it just me? Anyway, I'm pleased to announce I picked up speed today and it was like I'd never left! Not sure if that's a good thing or not....

A huge thank you so much to the gorgeous Marsi of that fabulous blog The Cottage Cheese for featuring my work today! Here is the link to the feature and be sure to explore her wonderful blog "where vintage and eclectic design reside". Incidentally, Marsi also has an Aladdin's Cave full of unique vintage home decor treasures in her vintage/ retro  Etsy store which is also called The Cottage Cheese.

And! In other news some of my favourite fabulous bloggers have asked me to join their new Slow Readers Book Club! I will post more about this terrific new movement tomorrow but in the meantime please go to Christina's Down and Out Chic for the low down on the nuts and bolts of it!!

Hope everyone is having a lovely week and see you soon!

Little Black Rabbit.

Queen Nefertiti + Boudoir

I hope everyone is having a fabulous holiday!

I have been sort of taking it easy/ drawing a lot! Above are two new drawings that are now up and running in my shop. The one on the left is Queen Nefertiti. She's always referred to as the most beautiful woman in the world - I think she is looking suitably gorgeous here with her pet parrot!

The drawing on the left is Boudoir. Some incredibly glamorous gal getting ready for a swish evening out - probably some fabulous restaurant in New York and an exhibition opening at MOMA. That would be my idea of the perfect evening!

Clyde the cuckoo.

Gosh! Pardon me for the extended blog absence! Last week was the final week of school which got a bit whirlwind-esque to say the least! After school broke up I went to my Dad's for a bit of R 'n' R. However, I'm back home now and it is officially the first day of my two week break!! Yippeee!!

I got back from my Dad's midday today and the first thing I needed to do was draw!!

This young lad above is my drawing of an Australian Golden Bronze Cuckoo. They live along the eastern coast of Australia and a bit over in Perth (which is on the west coast). His name is Clyde by the way.

What really fascinates me about cuckoos is that almost all of them have this distinctive striped chest. I think it makes them look very smart and dapper!

Here's a photo of a real live Golden Bronze Cuckoo taken in Queensland. What a sweetie!

(Image from here )

I have this young chap available in my shop here.

I hope everyone is well and relaxed and I look forward to popping in to check out all the blog action I've missed this past week!

Happy Monday!

Hello Monday! Here are my two weekend drawings. The top one is Hazel and her friend - the "friend" being a butterfly. Nobody knows the butterfly's name except Hazel. They go everywhere together.

The other drawing is actually available in my shop as an original and as a small print! It is a Sydney Seagull merrily flying off to Bondi Beach to try his luck at getting some hot chips from either the locals or unsuspecting tourists.

Hope everyone had a delightful weekend! I managed to get a large twig in my eye which caused me a few hours of anxiousness to say the least! However, all is well now, touch wood, whistle!

Monsieur Verne and the fabulous shop sale!

This is Monsieur Verne and he's here to announce a fabulous 3 for 2 SALE in my shop!

Yes! that's right! Buy any two same sized prints from my shop and get another the same size or smaller absolutely FREE! Just let me know in the notes at check out which one you'd like as your freebie!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend!!

The Patron Saint of Humming-birds : new print!

This is The Patron Saint of Humming-Birds. It was another exceptionally warm weekend but I managed to get this lovely lady out onto paper. I have actually been thinking quite a bit about humming-birds and patron Saints e.t.c lately and I'm quite pleased that this is the end result.

In fact I am quite fond of Patron Saints. This is the second one I have drawn so far. The first Patron Saint I drew was The Patron Saint of Rabbits - I made her into a greeting card. Here she is below.

 

(You can find her here)

I am also a big fan of Roberto Rossellini's film about the Franciscan monks and the Patron Saint of animals: Saint Francis of Assisi. It's called The Flowers of St. Francis. There are lots of delightful scenes of Saint Francis with animals - and having them gather round him in rapt attention. If you haven't seen this movie, I strongly suggest you do so as it is truly wonderful. Astonishingly, all the actors in this film are actual monks and non-professional actors. It is very touching and I think it has left a lasting impression on me.

 

(Image from here)

Speaking of flowers, a very delightful aspect of all this warm weather is my Dad's gardenia bushes. They are bursting forth all over the shop! My Dad has two bushes: one has small button hole blossoms that totally cover the bush and the other has enormous blooms that are as big as your hand! Both smell like heaven so I never mind which ones he picks for me. Below are two photos I took of some flowers from the "big" bush. They are a little yellow but they still look all waxy and fit and of course they smell divine!

 

  I hope everyone had a restful and relaxing weekend!

Charlotte = new print!

This is Charlotte and she loves to dance. The tango is her favourite but she's also quite partial to the fox trot, the charleston and the flamenco. She has been known to inspire the odd choreographer too and several dances have been thought up with her specifically in mind. You may recall "The Charlotte" which was incredibly popular last summer.

However, it is her dream to one day star in a Busby Berkeley musical...

(Image from here)

(Image from here)

...and I can't blame her for that!

Happy Monday all - and yes, the weather has settled down from yesterday's scorching 41.5 degrees Celsius (= 107 Fahrenheit) to a very reasonable 20 degrees Celsius (ahhhhh....much better!).

The Girl Who Loved Birds : new print in shop!

Here is my drawing from the weekend. It's called "The Girl Who Loved Birds". I like the idea of someone tattooing their favourite animal all over their back. I think with me it'd have to be pussy cats...bien sûr!

Happy Monday all - I've actually done the hard slog and am currently relaxing at home - phew! For those of you yet to experience the full blast of Monday-itus: all the best. It'll be over soon take my word for it.

Irish Eyes and Poppy part 1 and 2.

Here are the three drawings I worked on over the weekend. Above is Irish Eyes. I just thought she looked incredibly Irish for some reason. Maybe it's her green eyes and the pretty green collar on her blouse?

...and here are two gals - actually the same gal Poppy. She's a bit more stylised than I would normally draw but I am pleased with how she turned out. The one on the left is Poppy at the Ball 2 and the right Poppy at the Ball 1. I loved how in the roaring 20s there were plenty of feathers and pretty headdresses. It seems the only time we can wear a feather in our hair these days is at the races!

 

All three are now in my shop!!

P.S. I now have a SALE section in my shop!

Hope everyone had a terrific weekend!

What I've been up to...

Above is a drawing I did of two sisters over the weekend. It's called Sisters II because I already have a Sisters I as you may or may not recall. I've actually realised that I have a thing for drawing two gals together and that I have well over five "two gals together" prints in my shop now! I think I like the idea of sisters or best friends, compadres if you like. ...and these two gals are in my shop!

 

Also on the weekend, I went to The Museum of Sydney to check out the Martin Sharp retrospective exhibition. Sharp is a famous Sydney pop artist but more on him later - he deserves an entire post to himself - I'm thinking later in the week with any chance! However, I went to the shop at the museum and found some choice Sydney Harbour Bridge painting and lithograph postcards! Yippee because I collect postcards and images from the '30s of the bridge! Here above Sydney Bridge Celebrations 1932 by Adrian Feint, a front cover illustration of The Sydney Mail 1930 by 'F.W' and Building the Bridge by Ralph Emmerson Curtis 1933.

...and I've been thoroughly enjoying wearing the two delightfully pretty rings by Christina of Etsy shop Down and Out Chic (this is her gorgeous blog) seen here above on the right being modelled by Clyde that naughty rabbit. On the left Clyde is modelling a sweet pair of earrings handmade by Gabbi of beautiful blog Felinofelice! I feel very lucky indeed to have these in my earring collection - thank you so much Gabbi!

Hope everyone is having a lovely week!