It's been a packed summer break for me which I thought was best explained through some pictures. First a beautiful holiday to Croatia which was amazing wish I was still there. 
Next stop was to the Crafty Fox Talks at the MOO headquarters in Shoreditch. It was based around using social media to help grow your business, I met some lovely people and found it a very interesting talk. 
I also took part in the Liberty's Designers Open Call this past weekend which I honed and developed my collection in the previous weeks. It was a good learning experiences about pitching in the real design world. Although anyone preparing to do it themselves be prepared to queue and wait for hours on end (it was 7 hours for me) it's quite an endurance test! There was also a new commission combining fabrics for a lovely lady!
Finally I was also proposed to by my lovely boyfriend, now fiance so have been trying not to get distracted too much with wedding plans! 

Two weeks ago I received a last minute email asking me to enter a competition with a chance to pitch for a space at an Intrigue Emporium event at Shoreditch town hall. Even though I was a little bit overwhelmed with packing for the move I thought why not give it a go. I selected as one of the creatives with the chance to pitch. 
I was unable to make it down to London but sent a video pitch along with other interviews I had done in my place and I was lucky enough to be one of the chosen artists to be selected for the show. It was on Sunday the 22nd of June, it started with a very early morning wake up call to get to Leicester station on time. I was looking forward to a quiet relaxing train to London but I had forgot that Kasabian had been playing the night before in a big festival in Leicester city centre so the station was full of sleeping fans many of which were still a little drunk!

The Town Hall was a beautiful venue and it was a great opportunity for me to show again in London and in such a stunning location. There was some other lovely stall holders that I met and my new work gained a lot of interest and seemed to go down well. This was a little confidence boost to show I'm going in the right direction. 

It's a pretty hectic time at the moment I'm just about to move house with my boyfriend so there are boxes everywhere but I'm still trying to get a few last pieces finished. I've started a new collection with my artwork combining the stitchwork and painting together, it's still in it's experimentation phase at the moment. I've embroidered the tattoos on some beautiful models that I have found so watch this space hopefully plenty more of this type of thing coming. 

At the start of May I had my first Solo show in an empty unit in the Highcross Shopping Centre in Leicester. I took over the old Tie Rack shop unit which was in a fantastic position in terms of footfall within the shopping centre. 
It was a great experience and enabled me to showcase my work in a location I have been really wanting to exhibit in for a long time. During the exhibition I was also working on some pieces bringing in my stitchwork into my paintings. 

In February I along with other creatives was given the opportunity from Somewhereto_ to access a space I have been passionate about for several months. 
I spotted the old Rachel Hammond Salon in the Highcross last year it was vacant and I thought it would lend itself so perfectly to an art exhibition. It's blank walls, enormous windows and alcoves were perfect for it, finally in February I got the chance to exhibit. 

This is something a little different for my blog, but for anyone who knows me will know that I have such a big sweet tooth. I am always looking for healthy alternatives to satisfy my cravings. 
So here is one that I have found and tweaked to my taste for Black Eyed beans Brownie Recipe.

Each batch that I make I cut down to around 28 pieces the nutritional values for each piece are:

68 Calories
1.3g Fibre
2.3g Protein 



Black Eyed Beans Brownie Recipe:

1 can Black Eyed Beans (400g)

80g Honey

80g Apple Sauce

60g Coconut Oil

80g Cocoa

45g Dark Chocolate chips

3 eggs

(Optional 1 scoop chocolate flavoured protein powder)

(Optional handful of raisins)

·         Using a hand blender blend the beans in a bowl until smooth.

·         Add the apple sauce, honey and coconut oil into the mix and blend till smooth.

·         Sieve the cocoa powder and add the optional scoop of protein powder using a wooden spoon gently stir in the powder until it is combined. Then use an electric whisk to properly mix the ingredients. 

·         Once the mixture is smooth add the eggs one at a time and combine thoroughly each time an egg is added.

·         Add the chocolate chips and optional raisins and stir through with wooden spoon.

·         Pour mixture into a lined tray that is greased butter or coconut oil will do.

·         Bake in the oven at 170°C for around 30 mins. I usually turn the oven off after 30 minutes and leave the mixture in whilst it cools.

·         Don't cut until fully cool and store in an air tight container in the fridge the brownies can last up till about 2 weeks refrigerated.

Excuse my lack of updates, but I have been away for a little break with my boyfriend to the Amalfi Coast and Sorrento. Such a stunning place so I thought I would share a couple of my holiday snaps! 
I should have some new events happening so keep you eyes open for lots of new things! 

Speaking of Libertys these little gems popped up in my inbox! Liberty has had many new collaborations recently and this one with Nike works brilliantly. I feel it's along the same lines as the pieces that I created, using their fabric in an unusual way!

Just after Christmas I was watching a programme that was about the shop Libertys of London and it's run up preparation for the Christmas period. I was really inspired by the way that the shop was run and it's passion for the products that it stocks. 
I have wanted to find a way to incorporate my stitching and paint work in some way for a while and I had a idea pop into my head which resulted in the paintings featured. These new pieces are Acrylic paint on canvas with cotton fabric hand stitched on top. My themes behind the pieces are 
                                        'Classic Icons, Timeless Fabrics, Modern Interpretation'
I am aiming to add more to this collection, I'm really pleased with the outcome. 

I have been quiet recently but have been busy getting commissions finished! To see all of my commissions up to date go to my commissions page.