Nova: ButterflyChaser

For the Love of Paper

So Saturday aside and Sunday rolled in easily, as it does. My plan for today was to meet with my friend who has recently come over from Jamaica to study here. As it turns out, she has lots of book work to do so we decided to do this another day. I intended to take her to Spitalfield's Market then the Big Chill Bar, among my favourite places to be on a Sunday. However as our plans changed I decided to stay in and get some work done too. And that I did.

Have I told you guys how much I love paper? I had a blast today going through my supplies, organising and reuniting. I have only just realised... I HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF DESIGN PAPERS!!! Surely more than I know what to do with at the moment. With that discovery, I decided to use up some of my 6x6 papers to make some quick and easy accordion mini albums. Well, I have made them as albums but they can be used however you like, as notebook, brag book etc.

Here are a few pics of some of what I made. The pages are still a little bare at the moment as I haven't got around to embellishing and accessorising them yet. I'll keep you up to date in pictures anyway. Keep looking.

Thanks for stopping by!

Warm Sunshine London in October?! WOW!!

Oh my goodness!! What a beautiful weekend it was. I'm still in shock at the good weather we had. It's October and we're having full sunny days at 21 degrees celsius, that 69.8 for my friends who only think in fahrenheit. How pleasantly surprised I was to awake to such a glorious blessing at this time of year. I'm sure I getting some nods from those of you who have made it to London at any point in your lives. We all know that the weather, when good, starts many a conversations among complete strangers. Needless to say, it is rarely and I mean very rarely good. So with all that glorious sunshine what do you think I got up to? Yup, I got all dolled up and hit the road. When it's sunny here I seem to subconsciously follow a routine. This usually includes the below listed.
1. Early start
2. Get all dressed up in floaty summer wear & sandals (this includes getting my toes all prettied up...toes must be free...YAY!!)
3. Go shopping even if it's a small spend (which I'm hardly capable of)
4. Meet someone for lunch... Anyone!
5. Find some kind of outdoor arts related performance to amuse myself and any company I'm with or have just met along the way (London is full of these activities especially on the SouthBank)
6. Meet someone for dinner and a tipple...Most likely someone from my ever depleting list of favourite people to hang out with...yes, I am a bit more selective about dinner companions. But seriously, all my friends are packing up and leaving the UK! What on earth is up with that? Damn, I must be the less famous author of the How to Lose Friends and Alienate People handbook!
7. Head home feeling merry... by which time the temperature have dropped a bit but still comfy enough to get home without taking out that 'just in case' cardigan which, by the way, resides in my handbag even on the hottest of London summer days. I will have you know that the reason for the resident cardigan is that we often experience all four seasons in the one day. Don't be fooled by the meteorologist's predictions...I'm sure he really means well.
8. Call my Mom and sibling in Jamaica to tell them of my lovely adventures for the day. Our conversations are ALWAYS longer than an hour so after that I usually only have enough time to check my emails and get ready for bed.

So yes, that's pretty much how I do it on a sunny day. Surely you can appreciate that these are special days as we don't get them very often and they're still not guaranteed even in the summer...Oh the Great British summer! Duly note that I have capitalised the word 'great' so please don't be misled as it is not being used as an adjective here. I am merely referring to the 'summers' of Great Britain.

They got it!!!

So, my friend has finally received the gift I sent her for her new baby and I'm thrilled she's thrilled. I've even shared this 'how to' video which I recorded with my new lil' toy, the flip mino. Just thought it would be useful to share it here too.

A week of shopping....for art supplies :)

Hey there! Last week was a very active one for me. I made numerous trips London Graphics Centre, my longest was spent testing ALL the Copic markers with the aim of discovering which colours I wanted to purchase first. They have a wide range of delicious colours, none of which you'd want to leave behind. At this point you might be asking why I haven't just bought whole set. Well, the reason is that there are 322 colours and they cost £4.99 each! No, that's no typo... that is in fact how much they are sold for at LGC. And please don't ask what I was thinking when I decided to print a blank colour chart from the internet only to head down to the shop and test mark every single one of them. Oh well, it worked for me, as I now know which colours I should definitely own and in what order I will accumulate them.I am also pleased to announce that I stumbled upon this website www.cultpens.com where they are being sold for about £3.60 (good news for me!) Now although these markers cost a lot I'm still after my own stash because they are just brilliant! I just can't wait to get my hands on the lot I've ordered! But I'll have to... right? I also ordered my Score-Pal so I'm expecting that early this week. YAY ME!

While I await my gorgeous new Copics, I am shopping for stacks of luscious papers, ribbons, brads, stamps and a host of other materials to make this years Christmas goodies. This is going to be great! Endless evenings of cutting, folding, embellishing, stamping etc. resulting in an amazing basket of colourful paper goodies. I've got my stamps all ready but I'm still awaiting some new card stock in the post as I discovered yesterday, to my dismay, that my local Craft Central has now moved. The bad news is, I don't know where to! In all this shopping I did over the week I only managed to make a few thank you cards with papers from a retro paper pad I've had for ages but had some how felt less inspired to use all along. The aim is to use as much of the old bits as I can now to make room for the new goodies. But trust me, my weekends are just not long enough really.

My, how I look forward to quitting my day job so I can focus on making my art the centre of it all! Guess we can't have it all, right? For now I'll just hold on to my mother's words of advice to continue to work hard and persevere and to take what I get until I get what I want.... Thanks Mommy xx

Here's one of the cards I made this weekend, the marvellous colours on my Copic colour chart and a teeny tiny sneak peek of the accessories I bought over the weekend. Thanks for stopping by!

PaperPretties

Amidst all the fun I had in the past few months, I still managed to create a few paper pretties most of which were made for clients and others were gifts for my baby-making friends. My most recent creation is a favourite of mine the 'Photo Explosion Box'. I had lots of fun making this as it meant bringing together a myriad of vivid colours reminiscent of happier teen years and playing around with the harmonic complexity of implied textures. At present I do not have many photos to hand but have a look at one such delight and keep you eyes peeled for more to come.

Nova's back!!!

Wow! That was a long break... At least longer than I intended.

I had so much going on over the past few months and something had to give. Unfortunately my many activities had an adverse effect on my blog entries too... They became non-existent. That being said, I must admit I was having a fantastic time nonetheless.

My not-so-little sister came to visit me here in London and that kinda became the highlight of my year thus far...WE HAD A BLAST!!! It was great fun having her here and (as if we didn't already chat a lot on the phone before her visit) we've been burning up the phone lines since she's returned to Jamaica. I LOVE YOU TONI AND MISS YOU MADLY!!!

As is expected from those who know me personally, I took her to all my favourite places and we roamed the streets of London in both sunshine and rain. Nothing stopped us. We did it all: shopping, sightseeing, relaxing, fine dining, people-watching, crazy laughing about all or nothing in sight. I feel blessed to have shared this part of my life with her... that five-week bonding session was amazing!

We visited Scotland for a few days and if given a chance we wouldn't have made it back to London. We stayed in Edinburgh and absolutely loved it! The view along the journey in itself was breathtaking. Five hours along the beautiful, lush countryside... MAGNIFICENT! The people are wonderful. Definitely the most friendly, pleasant and well-mannered bunch I've ever come across anywhere in the UK. Edinburgh is a smaller, more genteel and quaint version of London... and that's exactly what I've yearned for in more recent times. Another great site was Stonehenge...AWE-INSPIRING!!! This was my second time there I wouldn't hesitate to go again. Don't ask what it is about that site because it isn't something I can put into words... at least not yet.

Here's a handful of the 1,200+ pics we took during her stay. Needless to say it's just too much to share it all. Enjoy!

Location in order of appearance:
1. London's Southbank
2. Stonehenge, Wiltshire
3. The Royal Mile, Edinburgh, Scotland
4. Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh, Scotland
Click on pic to view larger

What a week that was!

Hey there! I haven't had a chance to make anything this week as I have been very busy at the office... Things really stepped up a bit a work at the start of the week and I must say that I really enjoyed it. The days seem shorter and I feel more fulfilled at the end of the day. Nothing beats the feeling you get when you've accomplished something good.

This week I went to view the Luton Hoo Hotel where my company is planning to host an event. The property was splendid and the grounds, AWESOME! I was particularly impressed by a lovely staircase within one of the buildings which was made famous by the movie 'Eyes Wide Shut'. Here have a look.

......Earlier in the week I also went to view the private dining rooms at the top of 30 St. Mary's Axe affectionately known by most as 'The Gherkin'. For those who are not that familiar, here's a picture of the building.

It is 180 metres (591 ft) tall, making it the second-tallest building in the City of London, after Tower 42, and the fifth-tallest in London as a whole. The building's name is its address — St Mary Axe being the street it is on. Due to the building's somewhat phallic appearance, it has been called other inventive names including the Erotic gherkin, the Towering Innuendo, the Crystal Phallus, and the glass dildo.

I went to view the space as I was organising an evening of champagne and canapes there for my firm. We were celebrating the completion of a very important deal so the venue had to be special. The big guns wouldn't have it any other way! It turned out to be a lovely evening although I went into panic approximately one hour before the scheduled start time due to the haphazard weather conditions. As most of you know the weather in England is so unpredictable, you can experience all four seasons in one day. There was a thunder storm just an hour before we got there but luckily by the time we arrived at the top it was all sunny and summer was back! Here a a few pics from way up there.

Unfortunately, I have no photos with the city lights as I left before dark at about 21:30. I think I'll have to go back up there either really late at night or during winter because night falls much earlier then. I want to take pictures from the top with the city lights glowing. You'll know when I have accomplished that!

Thanks for visiting...

...And the most excited stamper in town is...Nova Williams!!

So, I've finally decided what to buy from the Stampin' Up catalogue! I've had it for nearly a month but just could not decide on what to get as the catalogue is filled with super gorgeous goodies which were bound to get me very excitedly confused. They have such pretty stamps and cool tools that just makes me want to lock myself away in a studio for hours and hours giving life to my creative thoughts.

Although I've been making cards and stationery for a while I must admit I haven't really experimented much with stamping. It might be clear to you from the pics I've shown so far, that I mainly use design papers/cards and ribbons. However, since getting a few rubber stamps for my last Christmas card collection I discovered the versatility and added personal touch which stamping brings to this creative process. There's a much wider scope for mixing and matching!

These cards reflect the versatility of a sole 'Merry Christmas' stamp. There are many elements of design to explore with stamps... Colour, texture, composition etc. All the stamps I currently have are text only but thanks to Stampin' Up that will all change in a few days as I promise it will not be long before I share the photos of neat little paper goodies stamped with lovely images we all like to see.

Oh the Power of Dreams!

I dream of beautiful colours, floaty ribbons, butterflies, ladybugs, dragonflies, daisies, dandelions and the magical flitter-flutter of fairies wings. Yeah, I know, sounds crazy doesn't it? Well, I'd like to have you know that without that kind of escape I'd be super crazy by now. Besides, this kind of daydreaming gives me the push I need to create paper goodies when I get home from a seemingly endless day at work. It's such a good thing I never tire of making them!

I've introduced my collection to my colleagues and a few have shown some support through purchases. Surely you will agree that's a great place to start! I made this pack of notes last week. Unfortunately I do not have photos of the matching notes and envelopes inside. It was influenced by an old favourite. This design has always been a hit with the mature clients. I get many enquiries about it so I try to give it a different look each time. That way everyone gets something unique.

A new beginning...

My art has been the center of my life for as long as I've known myself. So surely anyone can understand that I am distressed by the harsh reality that after obtaining a Masters degree in Fine Art I'm now 'slaving away in the corporate world' in the name of paying bills and catering to other events and activities of the temporal world. In efforts to spare myself from the dreaded 'corporate death sentence' I will dedicate more time to creating and sharing my thoughts and ideas through this blog until I can confidently hang up the 'office lady robe' for good.

Most of what I will share here is handmade stationery, greeting cards and other paper creations as I am working on developing a personal website for my paintings, assemblages and installations.

Here are a few images of what I've made in times gone by. Making these have been so much fun and I know I will make a lucrative business out of this someday.