Monday 31 May 2010

Statement of Intent


I should have put this on my blog earlier in the year:

I feel like I haven’t been drawing enough in the last year. I love to illustrate but find that I want to try out new media. I need to plan a project to include lots of drawing, to build on my skills.

I have always had a love for crafts; knitting, sewing, crochet. I want to research these crafts further and get better at making things. Leeds has become a creative hub for craft and there are lots of events going on at the moment. I would like to get involved and start making and selling things.

I have always wanted to learn how to make a website. I have made simple websites on moonfruit.com and .tk but they weren’t using code and I would like to make one from scratch.

I like the idea of making a video, although the idea of myself being in front of the camera terrifies me. I’ve never edited anything before, I think it would be a good skill to have.

I do have basic skills in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator but these need to be improved. I want to get myself a Mac so that I can have a mess around with software in my own time.

My weaknesses in web design and editing software need to be addressed. I think I will get lower grades on modules with these types of briefs. I also tend to procrastinate when I’m not interested in a project’s content. I will need to make sure I choose a topic I’m interested in. I know that I need to ask more questions and ask for help when I need it. I think this is the thing I will struggle with the most, as I sometimes feel like asking for help is failing.

I do think that I have some useful strengths. I am really enthusiastic about topics I’m interested in and I have a lot of drive.  I just need to make sure I’m focussed and have direction.

I think I also need to exercise more. I want to find some kind of exercise or sport that is fun as I get bored at the gym. I used to swim a lot when I was younger and I would like to start again.

I want to move closer to college next year too as at the moment I have to get two buses to college and if I miss one I’m late. I hate being late, it makes me stressed for the rest of the day.

Sunday 30 May 2010

Kathleen Hanna - GRIT tv

Sometimes I think that I was born in the wrong decade.......
Bikini Kill Archive
Kathleen's Blog
Bikini Kill Youtube Channel

People are a Trip #21: Kathleen Hanna and Idols

I love Juliana Luecking's videos. They're just simple questions but some of the answers are just the greatest.

don't need you

This is a really good documentary for anyone to watch if they're into riot grrrl or third wave feminism. I like to hear about people opinions, especially intelligent, articulate women who stand up for what they believe in. 

DIY or DIE trailer

I really want to buy this to watch the whole way through but it's currently not available on Amazon :( However, it can be watched in 8 parts on youtube - which it good but annoying to keep on stopping and starting. I really don't want to work for a corporate company, I've worked for nearly six years in one and it's not fun (apart from the people). I want to one day be free from it all and just be able to make a living from my own work. Money doesn't rule my life, although it does make things easier! I just want enough to get by.........anything extra is a bonus.

Test Space Leeds

Test Space Leeds

Craft Addicts (our collective name) will be taking part in a morning market in the basement of Crash Records on the 12th June. We don't have many details as yet, but this time there will be a plug socket for the games consoles

My badges

Here are some of the felt badges I made for my FMP. I'm really pleased with them, but they took AGES to make........I've only sold one so far at the Caught Exhibition - but a sale is a sale so I'm happy :)
I really want to make this tea cosy :) I am not the greatest knitter, although I would like to be! I need to start knitting in my spare time, on my break at work, whilst watching a film, on the bus........

Lost Crafts

I took this book out from the library, it's really quite interesting. I don't think that I'll be making a raft or thatching a roof anytime soon but it was a good read just for the idea of being able to do things yourself. In the future I would love to live more sustainably and be self-sufficient in many ways. This is a good book for that purpose. I really want to grow my own vegetables, I was thinking of putting my name down on the waiting list for an allotment but I think it would be a long, long time before I got one. Maybe for the time being (once I move to my new flat!) I'll grow some herbs in my kitchen and have some plants inside. Baby steps.

Totoro

I watched one of my favourite films today; My Neighbour Totoro. Studio Ghibli films are so imaginative and manage to cheer me up when I'm feeling a bit low. This is my favourite scene in the film. I just think it's a really good start to a friendship :)

Saturday 29 May 2010

Smashing Pumpkins - Tonight Tonight

The inspiration to this Smashing Pumpkins video was Georges Melies' films. I saw this video years before I saw any of Melies work and thought that it was one of the most beautiful videos I'd ever seen. It's really dream-like, which is something I like a lot. If I was to have a go at stop motion filming I would like to do something like this.

Viaje a la Luna, de Georges Méliès (1902)

I truly believe that Georges Melies was a genius of early cinema. I love the idea that he would narrate to the screening of his films. I wish I had been shown his work when I was younger as I think children would love this. 

Tuesday 25 May 2010

Toolulu website
Blogging for your business!


Fresh Nest Design
Organising your creative space!

Tight Pants / Body Rolls

I really admire Leslie Hall. I think she has real guts and I love how she is just having fun and doesn't care about what people think about her. She would be considered an internet celebrity I guess, as she is famous through youtube. I find it really odd that people can become famous through the internet, but I guess that's the way the world is going. It's great that normal people can have their 15 minutes now and connect with people around the world. I think that most women would not dare to be jumping around in a lycra cat suit if they're not a size 10 - but Leslie Hall does and I think she's a legend. 

Sunday 23 May 2010

Roller Derby

I've been aware of Roller Derby for a few months now and really want to have a go myself. I think it would be good exercise and a good way to get rid of some excess aggression that I have. There was a taster session in early May but I couldn't make it, so maybe I'll pop down to one of these events to ask some questions.

Roller Dollz (2009) [Part 2]

Roller Dollz (2009) [Part 1]

Craft Talk

This made me laugh! I don't dance my way to the craft shop..............but I do get a bit excited!

Handmade Nation's Faythe Levine, Threadbanger

Napoleon Dynamite title sequence


I just love this lo-fi way of filming, plus it's one of my favourite films :)

Handmade Nation: stop animated opening title sequence

Handmade Nation Trailer


I've just emailed Faythe Levine about possibly organising a screening in Leeds of the Handmade Nation Movie. I've never done anything like this before but I think it's worth a try. The worst thing to happen is I get told politely no.
I think that there are many crafty people in Leeds that would come to the screening, so I would need to think about advertising the event and also making contact with a venue. From the blog it seems that the venues are mostly galleries or visual arts centres. I think that perhaps Hyde Park Picture House or Nation of Shopkeepers would be great venues. So I would need to approach them about holding an event.


Fingers crossed...... 

Thursday 20 May 2010

Summer Fete

This looks like a good day out :)

While Stocks Last

The Big Knit

I definitely need to head down to this!!

Wednesday 19 May 2010

Calling all old school gamers!!

As a special treat for everyone at the Caught Exhibition, we will be bringing some old school games consoles down to Templeworks for people to play on :)


Hopefully there will be the following consoles:


Sega Megadrive
N64
SNES
Atari


possibly also a Sega Master System


I just hope we can get enough portable TV's!!!

Monday 17 May 2010

Handmade Nation Movie

Indie Craft Documentary - blog


Handmade Nation Movie - trailer

This film should be screening very soon, there is are contact details on the website for organising your own screening. I think it would be a great idea to get in touch with maybe Hyde Park Picture House or even Nation of Shopkeepers to see if they would be willing to have a screening??

I think I'll email Handmade Nation just to see what the conditions are.........

My cross-stitch!

Saturday 15 May 2010

Craft stall




We now have a definite stall at the Caught Exhibition at Templeworks with Best Joined Up. It is essentially a graffiti exhibition but Bodie seems really interested in the things we're been making :)


It's invitation only, but there will be some amazingly talented artists there, that hopefully have a guilty craft pleasure.

Wednesday 12 May 2010

Tuesday 4 May 2010

Cross-stitch ideas







I've been looking at cross-stitch as part of my major project. I found these images that I really like. I think that the simpler designs look the best and that using cross-stitch, which is a pretty old craft, with modern designs can have a wonderful effect. I really like how the 70's ad 80's computer game designs like pac man and mario look in cross-stitch. I think that because originally there were less pixels on older computer games, cross-stitch is really effective as the characters were never detailed anyway. They look pretty simple to make - I just hope they don't take too long to make as I need to make quite a few of them to sell at the craft fairs.