Friday 12 October 2012

Floral Friday: Rosie Simons

This weeks Floral Friday is Rosie Simons, a University of the Arts London graduate. Despite having a degree in Graphic Design, Rosie warmed towards surface design and has created some really gorgeous prints. 

When I first saw her designs, I immediately thought how cute they were! Sweet, ditsy florals with bright and bold colour ways. 

Rosie talks me through her design career and her plans for the future:


"I am a graphic and surface designer naturally inspired by things around me, from day to day items to nature. I automatically visualise how imagery and objects will translate into designs, motifs and patterns. Graphic and surface design have always run parallel in my interests and I have developed my style to incorporate both these passions, a simple and clean but colourful aesthetic; combining simple graphic illustrations and typography. My passions lie in making something eye catching, whether that be a great logo for a company or a surface design used on products from wrapping paper, to clothing and homeware.



I am a keen and proactive designer, I love to go out and find new inspiration, taking photos of flowers, forms, shapes, textures and typography, reading blogs, collecting printed and tactile matter, wrapping paper, labels, to inspire motifs and creation of new work. I love to explore, see and experience new things. Colour, texture and shape are some of the most important aspects of both my personal life and my life as a designer. I generally work using my Wacom tablet, hand drawing motifs from photos or my imagination. I love the freedom and organic lines this creates and then develop the designs in illustrator.



I graduated in 2012 from University of the Arts London with a degree in graphic design and have previously worked for Dorling Kindersley and Croudace Homes among another places. I recently graduated from 'The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design' with Rachael Taylor and Beth Nicholls. The course has helped me learn the business side to Surface Pattern Design and develop my style and confidence as a freelance designer. I am currently looking for representation, commissions, licensing so please contact me via my website for more information. My dream is to have my designs licensed across many different surfaces all over the world!"

Rosie is just about to start selling her designs in an Etsy shop, rosiesimonsdesign.etsy.com. She'll be selling greetings cards and christmas cards, so check back on the shop this weekend to be the first to buy her stock!

Rosie's links:


Twitter: @rosie_simons

Rosie also sells on Society6: http://society6.com/rosiesimons




Thursday 11 October 2012

I can't stop listening to...

There's a new advert on TV for the Citroen DS3 with the tag line of 'Make a Scene'. The soundtrack to the advert is by a frenchman named Sebastian and the track is called Tetra.
It remind me of the kind of ringtone you'd find on your old Nokia 3310 mobile phone where the sound was very monophonic as it tried to re-create a grand classical song. However, this piece of music is great and excites me!

Take a listen:


Wednesday 10 October 2012

You can now buy Kate Lynch designs at Ooh Deer.com!


​Hello all!
​After entering myself into the Ooh Deer Pillowfight Competition a while back, I finally heard more news concerning the next round of the competition. 
Ooh Deer have decided that the best way to decide on the winning designs is to put every design entered onto the competition shop. The design that sells the most amount of pillows wins! ​
​Please take a look at my designs here http://ohhdeer.com/blossom-deer and here http://ohhdeer.com/vintage-radio and if you feel like they would fit perfectly in your home, please buy them!
Despite it being very unlikely that I'll win, it is still very exciting to say that my designs are actually on sale somewhere. Nothing like this has ever happened before and it's enthralling!​
I would really like to get more of my designs on sale elsewhere too.​
​That's all for now, folks!


Friday 5 October 2012

Floral Friday: Zoe Barker

This weeks Floral Friday is Zoe Barker, who runs her own design studio and online shop. Focusing on her 'Beautifully British' tag line, Zoe's print designs are just that. Her hand-drawn and painted prints are incredibly gorgeous, with a fantastic array of warm, bright colours in many of her florals.

I especially love Zoe's 'Liberty View' collection; a stunning collection of prints that show off her illustration skills with a great mixture of florals and wild British animals such as fox's, rabbits and many breeds of bird. The colours are beautifully understated, bringing a hint of vintage to the collection.

Here, Zoe talks about her work:


"I embarked on a fashion and textiles adventure in 2004, having spent 5 years in the digital design industry. Successfully combining my love of drawing and painting with my expert digital design skills, I developed a unique digital textile design style that relies on traditional painting and drawing techniques which are so often lost in the fast world of digital textile design.

I now have a BA and an MA in Fashion and Digital Textile Design and after studying in London at the prestigious Chelsea College of Art and Design, University of the Arts London, I have returned to my Hampshire roots from where I’m most inspired.

In my Hampshire design studio, near Winchester, I am surrounded by traditional villages, gorgeous woodland and an abundance of beautiful, English countryside and coastline, all of which feature regularly in my textile designs. I’m also very lucky to be close enough to London to visit regularly.

My experiences have honed my textile design skills and confirmed my passion. I hope this is reflected throughout my collections, which take time, love and skill to produce."

You can visit Zoe's website here and follow her on twitter here











Thursday 4 October 2012

I can't stop listening to...

That Girl - The Noisettes


A lot of people have compared this song to The Beatles track 'Please Please Me', and to some extent I agree! The chorus notes are very similar, and the great up-beat pop track is akin to the sounds of the sixties. 


I've seen The Noisettes twice live before, and they are always amazing. Fantastic vocals!! I've not got the new album yet.. but I'll be sure to get it very soon! I can't wait to hear what other fantastic songs they have lined up!

Enjoy!