Look closely and you can see my print just in the centre…now that sofa looks comfy!

A big thank you to ‘House Beautiful Magazine’ again for including my work in this lovely feature…oh and I also really want that sofa!

We have just exhibited our lovely products at the British Craft Trade Fair in Harrogate, which was so much fun. We met lots of lovely people and saw some amazing products and met the designers who created them, it was a very inspiring weekend and we learnt so much. The planning of the show has been bubbling away quietly for the past six months or so, and to our delight everything seemed to run exactly to plan.

On a personal note, I must take the time to thank my printers and framers in Cambridge for being so helpful, supportive and understanding throughout, and I would of struggled without you. Also a big shout out to my Brother who did a fantastic job of ferrying me around Yorkshire, putting up with me in his house and being a fantastic member of the Jo Clark Design sales team, so much so that many other stall holders were wishing they had him on their stall!

So here are a few photos from build up day of the show, I hope you enjoy!

Banners going up...

Framed prints being hung...

Newcomers gallery build up...

A few more pictures up, stand starting to take shape...

velcro velcro velcro ...not a rip off at all, well worth every penny in this situation!

Getting the final part of the display ready with some fancy card display shelves...and the all important velcro!

Nearly there, the cards go into their display shelves...

and for the final result…drum roll please…..

Tadah! five and a half hours later the finished Jo Clark Design stand...its SHOWTIME!!

So that is how we built our very first trade fair display stand, I hope you enjoyed seeing the step by step account!

This is one of my new cards that inspired my stand design!

Here are some shots of the literature we took with us, had to make sure we were fully prepared for the day, such as order forms and a product catalogue, oh and of course some essential mole and squirrel stickers to hand out to lovely people!

Order forms (with a little design help from my printer) notepads and business cards were essential too have at the show, so we could jot down all of those orders

Essentials for the show!

It has been a busy week since the show and we are now focusing on our next show in June 10-12th we will be exhibiting at the ‘Pulse’ trade show at Earls court and can’t wait!  If you are looking for new products for your shop or know of a nice shop, gallery or cafe that might like our products, do let us know and we will send then an invitation to visit us at stand B33.

Thats all for now folks, thanks for reading!

The show was a big success and here are a couple of photos from my contribution to the show.

It was a really inspiring show and it was great to meet  illustrators artists designers and sound engineers who all contributed their work to the narrative exhibition.

Please take a look at some of these lovely artists they are well worth keeping an eye on!

Karen Jinks - http://karenjinks.co.uk
Mandy Knapp - http://mandyknapp.co.uk
Andrew Roberts - http://www.andyrobertsdesign.com
Aurora Cacciapuoti - http://www.nekocherry.com/
Garance Monfort - http://newt.ultra-book.com/
Celia Bartlett - http://ailecphotography.co.uk/
Sara Masterson - http://cambridgecreativenetwork.co.uk/users/sara-masterson
Philip Lowndes - http://www.lowbot.co.uk/
Philip Cornett - http://soundcloud.com/philipcornett
Katharina Klug - http://www.katharina.klug-art.com/
Tiina Burton - http://www.tiinateaspoon.co.uk/
Tony White - http://www.tonewhite.com/
Rebecca Scambler - http://www.rebeccascambler.com/
Rachel Thompson - http://about.me/rachelthompson
Martin Stephens - http://www.martinstephenarts.blogspot.com/
Lauren Rowden - http://www.ellieair.co.uk/

Dont forget any orders over £10 will be sent a free art print up until the 17th March perfect to give to Mum or why not just keep it for yourself. Make sure you don’t miss out on any more offers and giveaways by signing up to my newsletter.

I am really looking forward to exhibiting my work in Cambridge amongst lots of talented artists at the Williams Art Gallery.  With great thanks to the Cambridge Creative Network for organising such a fantastic opportunity to exhibit with a fabulous group of local artists.

The exhibition at Williams Art is a celebration of the work of the members of Cambridge Creative Network and will run from Friday 23rd March until Sunday 1st April.

On Friday 23rd March, we will be hosting a Preview Evening from 6.30-9pm, where we hope you will join us for a drink and soak up the atmosphere. And if you cant make that one, join us on the following Friday 30th March, 6.30-9pm. A great chance to meet some of the artists to talk about their working practice.

Works will be for sale, including etchings, ceramics, paintings, prints, jewellery, cards and textiles, and much more. With so many works on offer, we guarantee you will find something a little out of the ordinary.

Find us at Williams Art, Dales Brewery, Gwydir Street,just off Mill Road.

Do check out the cafe next door, Hot Numbers, for delicious coffee too!

More details can be found at http://williamsart.co.uk

Participating artists:

Karen Jinks - http://karenjinks.co.uk
Mandy Knapp - http://mandyknapp.co.uk
Andrew Roberts - http://www.andyrobertsdesign.com
Aurora Cacciapuoti - http://www.nekocherry.com/
Garance Monfort - http://newt.ultra-book.com/
Celia Bartlett - http://ailecphotography.co.uk/
Sara Masterson - http://cambridgecreativenetwork.co.uk/users/sara-masterson
Philip Lowndes - http://www.lowbot.co.uk/
Philip Cornett - http://soundcloud.com/philipcornett
Jo Clark - http://www.joclarkdesign.co.uk/
Katharina Klug - http://www.katharina.klug-art.com/
Tiina Burton - http://www.tiinateaspoon.co.uk/
Tony White - http://www.tonewhite.com/
Rebecca Scambler - http://www.rebeccascambler.com/
Rachel Thompson - http://about.me/rachelthompson
Martin Stephens - http://www.martinstephenarts.blogspot.com/
Lauren Rowden - http://www.ellieair.co.uk/

This weeks greetings card is this subtle and simple illustrated card Purple Stalks which captures the essence of the early signs of spring. Simple budding wild flower design with a touch of colour.

Some shots of some of the patterns and shapes that caught my eye, enjoy.

One of my favourite places to visit are the antiques shops on Gwydir Street, I go there in search of inspiration and this time I most definitely found it. Two fab books one on ‘Baby Birds’ complete with beautiful colour book plates from 1940′s and a poem on each bird as well a description of each of the birds their habitats and individual traits. I just love the way the pages have aged with tea colours spots and fluffed edges to pages, even the spine has gone but someone has taken the time to stick it back together.

Then we spotted the second book, a stunning scrap book.  It is full of beautiful ‘Brooke Bond tea cards’ all different subjects and about forty pages full of cards, thats a lot of tea! Lovingly collected over many years and carefully stuck into the pages of this book, I can’t wait to sit down with a cuppa sometime soon and turn the tactile fragile faded old pages, which you can’t do with an ebook! I may have to start my own a scrapbook!

There is a lovely page with a collection of dog breeds, I felt inspired and just had to draw this chap!

Don’t forget to sign up to my newsletter you can read the latest news here for all the latest offers for Mother’s Day at www.joclarkdesign.co.uk.

See you soon!

One of my newest cards ‘pigeons in love’ hope you like these cheeky little guys.

 I love how the snow completely transforms the places you see everyday, so I had to take a few snaps of the sights around Cambridge, all a few minutes walk from my front door, I’m so lucky to live in such a beautiful inspiring place.

So how do you take photos or draw outside and keep your hands warm? Well you need some of these amazingly cute Baby Owls gloves. I am totally smitten with my new mittens…(sorry)!

Take a look at Olivia Kovacs beautifully designed and handmade creations there are lots of gorgeous animal designs to choose from.

A very unhappy Daisy this week, don’t be fooled by that cute face…she is so upset about the cold snow and really did not want to go outside. I think she blames me for the weather, so sorry Daisy.  If only she had some mittens then she would of been just fine.

…ahh thats a very happy Daisy snuggled up next to my Valentine…I can see its going to be tricky getting to the best spot on the sofa!

How time flies when your doing your tax returns, ah I’m glad thats over.

I had a lovely visit from Ella Walker of the Cambridge evening news, who interviewed me for a feature on their website. I must admit I was so nervous but Ella did such a fantastic job of putting me at ease, and wrote a lovely article even makes me sound like I knew exactly what I was talking about ..hehe, I’m not sure I do, I just like drawing things. You can read the article here

As the weather continues to get colder this week, makes it impossible to imaging flowering plants emerging in the gardens. Well already snowdrops have been spotted poking through the ground at Anglesey Abby  So the obvious choice of card this week is my brand new ‘Snowdrops’ card. this design also features in the Floral 2012 Calendar.

Its been a very busy few weeks and lots of things are happening, all at once! I’ve just received my copy of the gorgeous little book by Charlotte Rivers called ‘I Love Stationery’ which is (as you might of guessed) filled with beautiful examples of stunning stationery and a little bit about the artists and makers too.

This lovely book is packed with inspirational and contemporary examples of bespoke stationary and appeals to a wide and varied audience from designers to craft fans and collectors. Read professional advice directly from the artists on techniques, tips and breaking into the stationery industry.

The left page features the work of Anna Fewster from Brighton who works with letter press techniques and produces beautiful crisp prints book plates and invitations. Anna’s work has a real art deco feel and I love the flat block colours throughout her work.

On the right page shows the work of printmaker Katherine Watson who resides in Washington DC. Katherine’s work has a lovely tactile feel enhanced by carefully chosen papers for her woodblock prints.

I managed to put together a Animal Calendar after I had several requests to make one. The 2012 Calendar features many of my little animal characters baby rhino, field mice, little fox and a few brand new ones. A little late but hey its here! If you would like to buy one of these please drop me a line and I will make one just for you!

Even more exciting news…(by the way this has been an exceptional week for being in things, I’m sorry to go on about it, but I am very excited) my Seed Spheres print has been featured in the March issue of  ’House Beautiful Magazine’ its is very tiny but its there. I’m so very flattered to have my work shot in the same room as the beautiful St. Jude’s fabric covered furniture, I am a big fan and truly made up about it! Thank you ‘House Beautiful Magazine’.

This is a photo I took walk through beautiful Cambridge, its getting cold the river Cam is trying to freeze over. A lovely bright day but bitterly cold and I couldn’t wait to get back indoors.

Its a farewell to the two english language students who have been staying with me for the past few weeks, they both have long journeys returning to the sunshine in Brazil and Taiwan. They had to suffer through my vegetarian cooking for long enough. Good luck guys!

 Finally I’m now pleased to offer framed prints for sale in my online shop, and this is a photo of my little Daisy wanting to be in on the photo shoot of my framed pine tree birds print.

Bye for now, stay warm and remember to feed the birds!

I’ll be featuring a new card every week on my blog which I hope you will all enjoy, as I have some new designs I can’t wait to show you!

First card hot of the press is Squirrels Card available to order now!

So, I think squirrels are lovely, and wouldn’t it be nice to see both greys and reds getting on just fine and sharing their acorns and living happily ever after.

Well thats whats happening here on my new card, two very content little guys just getting along.

There is a matching squirrels mug too…makes a great little Birthday gift for any squirrels fans.

Forget Yogi bear, dinner is served to this lucky squirrel with his very own picnic bench! He’s a pretty happy chap, although I’m not sure if he’s been stood up as there is an empty space there…

Get you very own picnic bench  squirrel feeder on Etsy.

How cute is this little guy!!

If you find you have a little bit of time on your hands, you can find out how to make a ‘Nutty Squirrel’ costume like this here on this fab blog. I don’t think there are instructions for grown-up’s costume unfortunately, but hey I’m sure it could be adapted with a little imagination somehow!

Bye for now, have a great week from me and the squirrels!

x

]]> http://www.joclark.co.uk/blog/new-squirrels-card/feed/ 0 http://www.joclark.co.uk/blog/new-years-resolution-to-be-a-better-blogger/ http://www.joclark.co.uk/blog/new-years-resolution-to-be-a-better-blogger/#comments Sun, 01 Jan 2012 17:50:45 +0000 jo clark http://www.joclark.co.uk/blog/?p=367 [...]]]> A very Happy New Year to everyone, I hope that 2012 will be a year filled with fun times, good health, happiness and success!

My blog has been seriously neglected over the past few months and I’m really sorry about that, so I am starting the new year as I hope to go on…by becoming a regular blogger.

Thanks to everyone that came to visit me and supported me at any of the craft fairs that I exhibited at over the last three months around the UK. Its always so lovely to meet my customers face to face and I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas.

So this year is going to be a very exciting one for Jo Clark Design with lots of big things happening in the coming months, so much so I’ve made myself a calendar to keep track of things! You can get hold of one of these from my shop if you need one too. This was a very popular item at craft fairs over Christmas, and  I hope it is brightening up the start of the new year for all of you who bought one.

I’m looking forward to exhibiting at the British Craft Trade Fair in April, and again in June at Pulse Trade fair London which is all very exciting, I’ve actually been dreaming about setting up my stand already.

I’ve been working on new designs, products and ideas for the new year, and I can’t wait to launch them. This is one of my popular card designs digitally printed onto lovely cotton fabric and beautifully made into a soft cushion ideal for the living room or to decorate the bed with, you can get hold of these now!

Its been a very busy year with not a lot of time for new drawings or ideas, but I plan to keep on drawing and showing you my latest ideas right here, so I hope you will like them.

This is a little fish doodle for Kate who has just transferred her lovely fish into a bigger better tank, but we are all a little worried about the little crabby guy.  Look…he’s just fine see, my gold fish of tanks gone by are looking after him now.

I was so flattered to be asked to do a commissioned piece of my little Fox character, he does always get a lot of attention on my stall.

This piece is made with collaged papers pen and pencil…and I loved getting my scissors out for this one. It was great to get back to collaging, its been a while since I used this in my work, but I can’t wait to do some more.

Ah pigeons in love!

Watch out for these guys…they look like trouble to me, they will be making an appearance very soon.

Speaking of trouble makers…here is one of my new products with some cheeky little squirrels on, the red ones and a grey, but they are all living in harmony here with enough nuts to go round and keep everyone happy. Just don’t forget where you’ve stashed them chaps!

These were a very popular gift this Christmas, did you get one of them? These will be back in stock very soon and a matching squirrels card coming too!

So thats my first epic blog post of 2012…I hope you’re not asleep yet! meeeooooow yawn… like the very lazy Daisy cat!

Summer glassware hand painted 'Daisies' design

Hand painted daisies jug, perfect for summer alfresco dinning

Long summer drinks in these tall 'Daisy' design glasses

Hand Painted Jo Clark Design Daisies Design Hurricane Lamp

Keep the evening atmosphere alive with the beautiful glow from this stunning hand painted Daisies design hand painted hurricane lamp. To view the full range of products please visit www.joclarkdesign.co.uk

So there are lots more products to look through so please take a peek and dont forget to use the discount code to get you 15% off just put this code into the checkout ‘SUMMERSALE’ to receive your discount.

Keep up to date with all the latest exclusive offers for JCD customers by registering at www.joclarkdesign.co.uk today!

Follow me on  Facebook too…

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jo-Clark-Design/159771920712056