+ Franz Tormers

F - number two!

Ok, I'm feeling bad! ... I said I was going to do something (well I said I was going to do TWO things) and I haven't!! And now I feel terrible.

Before I started Alphabet*ten I got an email from Jo-Nanda Teuber about a fab bricks 'n' mortar and online store based in Christchurch (NZ) - Franz Tormers.

After clicking through the link I immediately knew that Franz Tormers was something that I wanted to share with you here. I proceeded to let Jo know how much I loved it, and that I would share it in our 'F' post - and, how I would tell you all about a great poster design competition they have running at the moment.

"What's that?" I hear you say. "You haven't told us about that." Yep, I haven't, and that's why I'm feeling really bad. You see, F was yesterday, and I missed writing about it, so, here we are at F number two!

But enough of being a misery guts! - Franz Tormers is a super cool store and here's the lowdown...

Franz Tormers

After working together in their design studio Out Of The Blue, three from this creative collective decided it was time to branch out and do what they really love - produce a collection of handmade limited edition designer goodness.

The name Franz Tormers is a play on the word Transformers, but also gives the collective a German sounding label, and since two of them are German, it seemed to all fit rather nicely.

"Most t-shirts, bags, prints and monsters are products of certain moments, moods and smells. To make things with your hands can be so rewarding, the day to day life as a graphic designer happens to be too computer based so your creativity gets blocked sometimes - it helps to just walk away and start sewing, drawing, printing….to express the moment you’re in."

And the collection? Well, I'll let the gallery of images below speak for themselves... This artspace and store is just one more reason why I must head south to Christchurch again, so much good stuff!

You really should take a peek:

(images and quote from Franz Tormers with thanks to Big Cartel)

NOTES:
visit the Franz Tormers website
visit the Franz Tormers online store
visit the Franz Tormers artspace and store - 16 Bedford Row, Christchurch. Open Mon - Friday 12pm - 3.30pm

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Keen on a Poster Competition?

The Franz Tormers crew have one going...

"We encouraging everyone to take part. The 'prize' is being in the exhibition where the artists can make the price for their poster and hopefully sell it. Winners will be featured on the toobig website and posters will be for sale online if they haven't sold in the exhibition."

Sounds great!

Entries close on March 16th so don't dilly-dally! All the info can be found HERE.

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Please do check it out. Not because I'm feeling bad, but because I know you'll love it!

and G? well that will be here tomorrow. We might do a letter double-up closer to the end of the week, we'll see how we go...

In the meantime, have a great day! enjoy!

See you tomorrow! xxoo

+ Justine Fahd

Happy Monday!

I hope you have had a lovely weekend!

Our weekend was great. The big soccer game we went to yesterday was a huge success. Our team won which was very exciting! I am not a huge sports fan at all, but I tell you, I did a heck of a lot of yelling!! Because the stadium was full, the crowd noise was amazing, my youngest son seems to turn off when he is somewhere really noisy so he managed to sleep through the majority of the game and the 30,000 or so fans screaming and chanting. Luckily the game went into overtime and he was awake for the most exciting part, and got to enjoy the rapturous celebrations at the end - a great way to start the week!

I have been really looking forward to sharing today's loveliness with you. Are you ready?

Justine Fahd

Justine Fahd has been a starlet in the blog rounds lately, and it is no wonder, have you been to her Upon A Fold store yet?? Oh my! talk about heaven!!

Justine's store is where all your paper related fantasies can come true - it is full of all the best paper creations and artistry, everything from paper architecture to absolutely divine letter sets... you really must check it out!

Based in Sydney Australia, Justine has a passion for paper like no other, and her blog? -well that's a whole nother melting pot of paper goodness!

"Here, you will find a unique collection of paper artistry from around the world – some items you’ll not have seen anywhere else. From beautiful jewelry and pretty stationery to fun paper planes and perfectly engineered pop-ups, this is a magical journey into the world of paper."

Enjoy!

(images and quote from Justine Fahd)

NOTES:

visit Justine's store
read Justine's blog

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Have a wonderful start to your week!

See you tomorrow! xxoo

+ Luci Everett

Hello!

It's Friday! It's Friday! I hope your Friday is going well. It's another stunner of day here, we really must remember to make the most of it as we creep in to Autumn.

Are you ready to take a peek at this E?

Let's jump right in...

Luci Everett

Luci Everett is a super clever graphic designer based in Melbourne. Luci's portfolio contains some amazing posters for different Melbourne bands plus some beautiful promotional material and packaging for various clients.

I love her collage and illustration work; her posters are so textural and definitely appeal to my "oohh I want to touch it" nature! I have chosen a few of my faves to share with you here, but I do suggest you jump on over to Luci's website and check out the rest of her collection...

(images from Luci Everett)

NOTES:
visit Luci's website

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What do you have planned for the weekend? My boys are super excited about a certain football (Soccer) game that is happening in Wellington this weekend. The stadium is a sellout (35,000 people) so its going to be a fantastic atmosphere.

We also have dinner with friends, and hopefully some more warm weather.

Thanks so much for joining me this week, have a fabulous weekend!

See you Monday! xxoo

+ Debra M Smith

Hi!

Here we are at Thursday, sliding towards the end of the week already! How has your week shaped up so far? I do hope it is coming together nicely for you.

Shall we get going?

Debra M Smith

Debra M Smith's name has been written in my catalogue for a while now - and looking through her portfolio I have to question why I haven't shared her work with you earlier... I really have no answer, except that I am really glad to be sharing it with you now.

Debra's work consists of a variety of vintage fabrics that are cut and sewn back together in a somewhat haphazard, yet beautiful way. Each piece comes together to form a striking collection of works. Debra's pieces fondly remind me of what the land looks like when I fly into my hometown - patchworks of paddocks, roads, rivers and ponds, the square roofs of the farm houses and the odd blue rectangular pool. It is a sight that takes my breath away every time I see it.

"I am not a poet or someone who draws, but I feel that my use of vintage textiles as a medium brings a history, a weight, a poetry to the work before I even begin to cut, sew, and piece the work back together. Allowing the work to intuitively flow through me I do feel the end result is similar to a drawing or poetry."

(images and quote from Debra M Smith)


NOTES:
visit Debra's website

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Thanks so much for joining me today, it's a pleasure having you drop by : )

Have a wonderful Thursday!

See you tomorrow xxoo

+ Caroline Slotte

Happy Wednesday!

Hows your day going? Good I hope : )

I'm going to jump right in today - ready?

Caroline Slotte

I've been on an online journey this morning - you know how it can be, right? You start off somewhere, maybe a regular stop, and you end up, through a series of clicks and links, somewhere you would never had found on your own. That is exactly how I came upon the work of Caroline Slotte. Luckily we happen to be up to C today, which means there's no waiting to share the work of this clever gal with you...

The work of Helsinki born Caroline is breathtaking. It ticks all my boxes - vintage ceramics? check. Intricate cutting? check. Completely in awe? check.

Working mainly with found vintage ceramics, Caroline carefully cuts into the patterns, removing and re-gluing pieces to create gorgeous layered scenes or images.

"I’m interested in how the interventions direct or obstruct the associations of the viewer. The manipulated objects are characterised by a tension between the recognisable and the mysterious, the familiar and the unfamiliar. I rework the ceramics by cutting directly into it, by sculpting and sanding, and by combining elements from different objects. In this way, the work process becomes a way of questioning the material and highlighting stories contained in the objects."

take a peek:

(images and quote from Caroline Slotte with thanks to )

NOTES:

visit Caroline's website

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It has turned out to be the most glorious day - a tad windy but sunny all the same : )

Have a wonderful day where ever you are!

xxoo

+ Bird and Banner

Hello!

Nine years ago this April my lovely husband and I tied the knot. We only decided about 6 weeks before hand to do it so there wasn't much time for any in depth planning. It was a really simple affair; we got married outside on Wellington's south coast (in the tail end of a cyclone - no less!) and afterwards we joined guests indoors for cocktails and nibbles.

Nine years ago we didn't have the online inspiration we have today. Local art supply stores barely held a range of special papers, and nice envelopes? well they were pretty much non-existent! - Oh how things have changed!

The creation of new beautiful invitations alone would be enough to see me renewing my vows. My recent visit to Bird and Banner had me oohing and ahhing at Erin Mulcahy and Nicole Michels' gorgeous collection of printed loveliness - have you been? If you are in the market for invitations (for any occasion) or just something sweet to send to the one you love, I suggest you drop by and take a peek...

(images from Bird and Banner)

NOTES:
visit Erin and Nicole's website
visit Erin and Nicole's store
read Erin and Nicole's blog

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Have a wonderful day!

See you tomorrow for C!
xxoo

+ Anna Church

Welcome!

Ahh! Alphabet*ten! What an incredible journey we've been on together! This alphabet in particular is such a big milestone - our first to hit the double digits! I've lost count of how many creative super-stars I've written about, but if I estimate correctly this alphabet*ten should see us come pretty close to reaching 1000(!), and we should easily hit the '300 posts' mark too!

As it seems with every alphabet, this one is shaping up rather nicely. I do still have some spaces to fill though, so if you know of anything or anyone you think should be included (and feel free to ruthlessly self promote : ) just drop me a line.

I am so happy to have you join me as we start on this new adventure - Are you ready for another alphabetical journey?

Let's go!

(Here's one that will get the hearts of all you ex-pats yearning for home...it's a perfect start to this new series, and I know you'll love it!)

Anna Church

If you have ever read a NZ interior or home magazine you will no doubt be familiar (if only subliminally) with the work of Anna Church. Anna is a super talented stylist who freelances for a number of leading New Zealand magazines, homeware brands and advertising campaigns.

Anna is the wearer of many hats; not only has she carved a niche for herself as a sought after stylist, she is also the co-creative director of wholesale and online linen and homewares company Gorgi. She juggles all her work with being a new mum, and still manages to pull together her own impressive series of artworks portraying NZ iconography through an assembly of NZ vintage design pieces.

"My work explores New Zealand culture and history through sculptural assemblage. My sculptures are then photographed and sold as limited edition prints. I use iconic objects such as vintage Crown Lynn ceramics, a Jackie Howe singlet and vintage wallpaper to form iconic images which, once assembled, emerge and create unique artworks with a Kiwiana twist. "

Take a peek:

(images from Anna Church, Clever Bastards, The Poi Room and Gorgi. quote from NZ Herald)

NOTES:
visit Anna's website

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It is so lovely to be back. Thank you so much for joining me. I am so pleased to have started this 'milestone' alphabet with someone like Anna - will you join me again tomorrow for B?

See you soon!
xxoo