My Travels-American Road Trip

In August last year I went on a 2 week road trip holiday with my family to America inluding visiting the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Las Vegas and California, I was looking through the photo's today and decided to post the artistic looking ones...

A lovely collection of retro advertisment signs seen outside a crafty little Native American Indian shop in Arizona. Here i bought a handmade mini woolen rug coaster. Althoguh I am no good at illustration myself, I cannot resist a bit of vintage imagrey such as this and the illustration from original Ladybird childrens books. All around the town (not sure which one) in Arizona, were these decorated pigs and boars!Proving that surface pattern can be placed anywhere to get noticed.

An interesting maxi shot of a rotting cactus-textures and textiles heaven!!

As I am interested in interiors and very muh like lighting design i took this picture of an unusual pendant light in a shop in Arizona. (OK I lied, i was too scared to take the picture in the sop so my Dad took it for me!)

A section of funky carpet seen in the Belagio hotel in Las Vegas, the real reason I stopped to take this was probably just to annoy my mum as she had spent too long lookinbg after my sister who had sun stroke and therefore we missed the last entrance to the Picasso ceramics exhibition.(oh I am selfish, but my sister felt btter by the time we got back to the hotel anyway!)

Still in Las Vegas- a prime example of how bold advertising is eye catching! 'In an Absolut World' I would create big beautiful patterns the size of double decker busses in America...one day!(Tantrum.over.)

God this guy is strong...what a quirky little design for an everyday park bench!

Another one of my 'look at the pretty colours' moments in San Diego. Here I bought a lovely little book about traditional Mexican rug design.

I almost forgot to mention the beautiful vintage flower patterned dress which i bought in Urban Outfitters in Las Vegas, I love all this revival of old floral prints, possibly because I am an old person at heart and one of my favourite things of all time has to be lace! Also the retro floral print on Becky's dress is pretty cool too(mines better!!).

a little squirrel at the grand canyon :)

My Travels-China

Since I havn't posted on here in a while, I thought i would report back with some images of patterns which i recorded whilst on a college trip to China last February...

I know its obvious that everybody see's chinese handwriting aesthetic as patterns but i imply had to include this picture of two men we saw practicing handwriting using a wet sponge-on-a-stick, in the park, it's so pretty.

The next obvious thing to incude is the decorative architecture seen in China, I honestly cannot express enough how photographs do not do these patterns justice. Face to face the colours and vast beauty and scale of the imagery is unbelievable.




We also visited a Cloisonne vase factory and were able to see the copper and enamel vessels being crafted by skilled workers,al by hand...Each pattern is made up by glueing tiny bits of copper onto the vase, creating the outlines and barriers which can then be filled in with the enamel...

The finished outlines were just as beautiful as the finial vases.

The hand finishing process takes great care.(also you have to give this woman credit for her retro Sesame Street apron!)

Everything about the factory was beautiful, including the dishes of enamel powder!

A collection of finished vases ready to be shipped to shops.

It is not only vases that are decorated in this way, whole pintings and screens are hand crafted tediously. I bought some rings for my sisters and I with tiny cloisonne designs on and shockingy they only cost around 20p for 5 rings!

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I took this picture of a cool origami thing made from what looks like sweet wrappers, I cant remember where I saw it or what it is..but i like!

I absoloutley love this rug, the way the geometric background complements the floral foreground pattern in very contemporary colours and style. It is ironic that it should look so fresh and modern when it has been made in a traditional handmade manner.

Next stop... a silk factory, when in China, it would be rude not to ! so here is a snapshot of silk worm cocoons.

3 examples of patterned silk which are all very different, yet produced in the same place in the same way.

And to end this post... a real life panda at a real Chinese zoo! How cute!

I Heart Stamps!!

A

dareing title for my post but hey who cares, this week I have decided stamps are cool, after treating myself to an easter gift from ebay for under £2!

I got the wining bid on this huge collection o stamps which featured birds, a perfect partner for my personal project research...bargain!

I had ever considered it before but stamps are actually quite interesting and pretty! Its a shame you dont see more interesting stamps in the UK more often than just at Christmas, or maybe you do and I just haven't noticed them...yet!