Arts Market

Last weekend I attended my first market. I had a stall where I exposed a selection of my paper creations: paper frames, handmade cards and paper accessories.
It was a first experience for me and I really enjoyed it.
The venue (Out of the Blue on Dalmeny St) is great, a good located venue offering a lot of space and a lot of natural light thanks to the huge rooflight.  The Arts Market was organised by Out of the Blue, a company promoting creativity and art. They organise each week special events and they also rent studios.
I didn't sell a lot, just enough to pay the stall and buy me 2 coffees. I'm not complaining as it was also the first market of the year and there were 2 other big events on the same day (Edible Edinburgh Feed the 5000 and the Rosspapercrafts show at Meadowbank) attracting a lot of locals.
I also enjoyed meeting other crafters and was able to discover some original pieces. I will renew the experience and hope to sell more goodies for Christmas.

My stall:

website live!

I have not posted anything for 3 weeks as I was pretty busy preparing a craft fair and building my website...

I've been thinking for a while now to have a website where I could share my creations and why not sell a few ;-).  It got me busy the past 2 weeks to work on the layout of the website, create a new logo, decide which range to publish, select and organise the pictures...  I finally came up with a first version and it is live since yesterday. I will in the coming weeks work on a new version with an online shop, more items in the digital section and a range of printables.  Feel free to browse on [AKHATAN] paper creations.
I wanted to have the website ready for October 5th when I'll be participating to my first craft fair in Scotland. I am so excited. It will be such a rich experience sharing my passion and be surrounded by talented crafters. And I also feel privileged to be in place dedicated to promote and encourage art and creativity: Out the Blue
As I want to develop my craft and my range more and more, I also worked during the past weeks on a serie of handmade frames and handmade accessories.
The frames are made of paper and stand "alone" thanks to an "accordion" folding. I decorated the background with stamps, I added a piece of cellophane also decorated with ink and stamp.

For the accessories range, I created a few earring, rings and brooches. All made of recycled cardboard. I cut the shapes (butterflies and flowers) with a punch and decorated them with ink and stamps. I used a varnish glue as protective coating.

I hope you like it. 

Feel free to leave a comment.

Colony of Artists exhibition.

These weekend  (September 7th-8th)Edinburgh was hosting the Colony of Artists exhibition.
During an entire weekend, artists from the Abbeyhill colonies (block of houses in the London Rd and Easter Rd area) open their homes/studios to present their work.

I was impressed by the community spirit.  The community gathers artists from various disciplines: paintings, mixed media, photography, felt, silver jewelry, chocolate, animated short film, glass, ceramics, handwoven textiles. It was a new experience for me to visit crafters in their home. I must admit I felt a bit odd, like an intruder... But the artists were very welcoming, offering cakes and drinks. They were all so enthusiast sharing their craft.  I did not take any pictures of the exhibited artpieces. I strongly invite you to check on the community's website for more info on the artists and their work.  But to I took a picture that really illustrates the sense of community: a little girl from the neighbourhood selling homemade treats.

If you're interested and want to know more, check their website and their facebook page.
I actually got to know the event thanks to one of the numerous meetup groups I joined since I moved to Edinburgh: The Edinburgh High Brow/Low Brow Culture Group. It's a really nice group with friendly people interested in art and everything cultural.

Feel free to leave a comment or send me a message.

Customisation / Upcycling

I already introduced this subject in the two previous posts. When speaking of giving a new life to objects with paper, I usually refer to customisation or upcycling (with paper).

For me paper customisation / upcycling  involves 2 activities:

- upcycle an (old) piece of cardboard (postpackage, shoe box...)  and shape the material to create an object, such as a frame, a box, a bookcover,  a home decoration piece and even furniture and then decorate it.

- use an existing object made of paper or any other material, such as wood, a tinned box, a basket... and use paper to revamp it.

I do both as I love creating as much as I enjoy decorating and give a personal touch to a piece.
As far as the decorating process is concerned, I upcycle using stamps, collage, scrapbook...depending on the object, its purpose, who it is for and my inspiration of the moment.
Scrapbooking technique, which roughly consists of cutting patterned paper, fix them on an object and add other bits and bobs (buttons, flowers, rub-ons...) to finish up. I usually use this technique on objects with a regular, straight shape.
I also use the decoupage technique to cover objects with patterned.
The Decoupage technique consist of decorating an object with patterned tissue paper or with napkins. In order to cover the surface avoiding creases (especially for rounded or uneven shapes) it is advised to tear up tiny pieces and to arrange them one by one. If you use napkins,it is very important to separate the layers and only use the first one (the one with the patterns). If you don't do so, the layers will inevitably got loose by applying the glue.
I'll share more exmples in coming posts.

Feel free to leave a comment or send me a message.

belgium and crafts

I was supposed to write about customisation and up cycling but as I took a wee holiday break, I'd like to bring up how I spent my time in Belgium.
I went back to Belgium to spend some time with my family and friends. I took advanyage this opportunity to bring some stuff back: 15 kilos of books, paper, stamps, eyelets and other crafty bits. When I was not seeing a friend or my family, I plunged into my crafty world.  Even on holiday I have to keep my hands busy crafting. I made a few cards, some sketches for future realisations and I jotted down some ideas for my notebook collection (soon to come). I also put down on paper a sort of (business) plan defining how I want to turn my craft into a business activity (might take a while to realise though :-) but I'll sure share this later on).

While commuting from one friend to another, I made some stops in a few craft supply shops I used to go to when I was living in Belgium. Unfortunately due to the weak economy some gorgeous independant shops with lovely owners have closed down.  The big stores have remained, some have even expanded their business, offering huge diversity in craft materials. They also expanded their activities by running workshops from basic to more advanced knowledge for both children and adults.
Big craft stores in Brussels and Wallonia:
- Schleiper
- Creacorner
While having a look at the new trends, I was happily surprised to see that Doodles and Zentangles have reached the european continent and are getting more attention. I have been doodling for as long as I can hold a pen in my hand (like most children do!) and I still doodle as a final touch to add text, a border... Over the past few years Doodles and Zentangles have reached another level; it is no longer used as adding touch but as a design in itself. Some artists really developed the technique to its best and offer original designs/drawings with beautiful details.
Some examples and interesting links here:
www.creativebloq.com/illustration/doodle-art-912775
www.zentangle.com
www.tanglepatterns.com/zentangles

I hope this gets you inspired to grab a pen a start doodling :-)

The next post will be dedicated to customisation and up cycling.

Feel free to leave a comment or send me a message.

Back home and commuting

I just got back from a week to my homeland (Belgium) and as usual I was feeling a bit down. But a wee walk in one of the numerous green spots of Scotland's capital city (my hometown since 1,5 years) was enough to get me back on track.
I have not visited much while in Belgium. I tried to spend as much time as I could with my family and friends. And having 2 families with 4 sisters (and 1 brother in the US) makes the week look shorter :-)  And it implies and a lot of commuting as well. I travelled by bus, subway, tram (Edinburgh's nightmare at the moment - ha ha ha) and train. And of course I walked as often as I could - and barely used the car. I must say that using the public transport went pretty well. No delay at all! That's probably the best part of commuting during holidays: there's no rush and no worries if the bus runs late and I miss the 7:51 train (YES I took the train that early during my holidays - I'm an early bird anyway and it enabled me to enjoy longer days!).

Anyway, speaking of commuting, I was happy to see that people tend to cycle more and more. The bicycle is no longer just a way to enjoy a family day out during the weekend. More and more people commute to work using the bicycle. It is a great way to stay active without spending hundreds of pounds to go to the gym. Moreover you can enjoy the fresh air (can be rainy and windy in Edinburgh though!) and nice sceneries (maybe not that much in the city centre). But most of all you contribute to reduce car traffic, which means less pollution and Mother Earth smiling! And it gets even better when the local council is playing its part. Indeed, a lot of bicycle racks are available in city centres; and almost every train stations dispose of dedicated racks to secure your bike. Many big cities have introduced a large-scale public sharing system. Bicycles are securely parked on the street and available for hire. The concept has been developed in many cities by government agencies (sometimes in a public-private partnership).
For some reason the introduction of the bicycle share systems proceeded more slowly in the UK than in the rest of Europe. Why ? Too many hills in Scotland ? Or so many bikes already ?

In the centre of Brussels I came across an original concept : a private locked bicycle rack. It's an initiative of the Brussels City council for people disposing of a bike but no place to store it. Thanks to this system you can safely leave your bicycle on the street without the fear of having it damaged or stolen. It will cost you 60€ a year. If you live in Brussels and are interested by the concept, you can get more info on www.cyclo.org.
But is it really useful or more to be considered as a gadget ? I leave that to your own appreciation.

 

Feel free to leave a comment or send me a message.

Fringe 2013

Just like every year in August, Edinburgh is packed with people. The Fringe along with other festivals in the city gather thousands of locals, tourists and artists from all over the world. All sorts of  artistic acts are performed everyday. And Music is surely playing an important part. There are concerts everywhere and throughout the day. You can attend all kinds of music performances, from buskers to well-established music bands (locals and internationals) in dedicated venues such as pubs and theatres . You can also assist to great performances in the open, such as parcs (Meadows walk) or on the street (Princes St, the Mound...).
I attended a few performances and made some interesting discoveries:
On 14/08 the Sneaky Pete's (pub on Cowgate) hosted three folk performances:

The evening started with Bevan and his solo act. Bevan is a young singer, songwriter and guitar player from Wales. He played original songs regulated by his great guitar skills.  Check out his website for more information.

Holy Moly and The Crackers came second on the stage. They gave a lively folk performance and got everyone on the floor, stomping and dancing. Absolutely brilliant! Check out their website for more information.

The last group to perform that night was The Last of Barrett's Privateers. This folk-indie band based in Edinburgh closed the show interacting with the audience. Check out their website for more information. 

For their 10th Anniverary, the Foakies organised a series of concerts at St Cecilia's Hall (on Niddrie St), as part pf the Fringe. The evening hosted music (Tom Fairnie, Stephen Harrison and guests) and poetry (Louise Peterkin).
On 15/08 the Foakies hosted Lindsay & The Storm. The band did a great performance combining delicate acoustic folk (acoustic guitar played by Lindsay Sugden) powerful harmonies, vibrant percussions and strings. An excellent performance in a place with wonderful acoustic.

Album Behind us is Water by Lindsay & The Storm

Feel free to leave a comment or send me a message.

The next post will be dedicated to my one week journey to Motherland.

from tissue paper to cardboard - part 2: versatile material

Paper is such a great material to work with.
It exists in a variety of thickness (very thin like silk and tissue paper to thick and sturdy like corrugated paper and extra strong cardboard) enabling you to crease, fold, create tiny shapes with details (flowers, jewelry...) or build resistant objects (such as boxes, furniture...).  Paper is proposed in a infinite range of colors and designs . Yet I often make my own to create backgrounds or ornaments. I might draw a pattern in Illustrator, print it and use it as a whole (for a card or notebook) or as background and add some embellishments like buttons, ribbons... Or I might just take a blank card and make an original lay out using stamps, painting, doodles... Another great thing about paper is that it can be used for many different purposes : it can be used as object (flower, box...), as holder (card, frame...) or as garment (as decoration).

For example when I make a card I use cardstock as basis for the card. I might use blank cardstock and add decorations using patterned papers, chipboard... But I could also just use paper as support and use garment from other material such as fabric, rubber, buttons, wood or I can print a design on the card.
I also often turn to paper, usually patterned papers, to decorate objects. I love using existing objects (mostly boxes and frames) and give them a new look. (I will dedicate the next post to customisation / upcycling).

• Scrap card

• Blank card + illustrator design

• Blank card+stamp design

• Notebook + illustrator design

• Notebook + scrapbook

• Frame+scrapbook

I am both interested in the creation of an object as to decorating it. And paper is so versatile that it enables me to do so. For example, I use corrugated paper and cardboard to make gift boxes, picture frames, doorhangers, and I turn to tissue and crepe paper for their flexibility to make flowers.

• Tissue flowers

• Gift box

• Doorhanger

So it doesn't matter if you love creating objects, making cards, scrapbook or add some color to a piece, paper is the perfect companion for all sorts of projects. Ther's no doubt paper will add an invaluable dimension to your craft.

If you have questions or suggestions feel free to contact me or leave a comment.

Fringe 2013 and Belgian presence

Here we Fringe again!

When I think about the month of August here in Edinburgh, I might visualise summer, a holiday period crammed with happy tourists…  But what naturally comes to my mind is  the Fringe Festival. Last year I wrote a few posts in which I explained what the Fringe is and I also gave information about a few acts I attended. I will dedicate the next posts to the shows, events and any particular thoughts about the 2013 edition.

You can find the posts from last year's Fringe here.

Like every year the Fringe festival offers performances in major artistic disciplines such as comedy, theatre, dance, music…  Artists from all over the world entertain us with their acts in the hundreds of dedicated venues. Pubs, theatres, art galleries…are transformed in venues for indoor performances. And thanks to the numerous outdoor stages built all around the town we can also attend shows in beautiful surroundings.  And YES, the summer 2013 is particularly sunny and mild in Edinburgh, which is a great opportunity for each of us to enjoy the outside acts while adding some colour to our pale skin :-).  Needless to say that outdoor venues attract a lot of people. And as you can imagine the numerous open bars and drinking spots are also very popular; the perfect place for a get together in the open. I've already chilled out at The Famous Spiegelterrace on George Street and had a few iced coffees (yes I'm a coffee lover) at the Assembly George Square Gardens with its lovely bars and food stalls built on synthetic grass. There are also barbecues at disposal so we can really make a great moment of our time out.

If you want to know more about the outside drinking spots during the Fringe, check out this blog. 

You can find more information on the venues and shows of the Fringe 2013 edition on the official Fringe website 

Belgian presence at the Fringe

The Fringe welcomes thousands of artists from all over the world each year. And my precious homeland, full of great talents, is also taking part. Indeed, a few Belgian artists have taken the opportunity of this internationally renowned artistic event to share their passion and craft. I will start the Fringe series with the Belgian acts. I have listed below this year’s Belgian performances. And I am happy to say I attended 2 of them.

Micheline Van Hautem

The Fringe officially started on August 2 and I was lucky enough to attend a great show on that very evening.  My friend Celia had won 2 tickets to see Micheline Van Hautem, a Belgian singer known for her French cabaret (Brel and Piaf) interpretation. This show was dedicated to a few of  Jacques Brel’s best songs, such as Ne me quitte pas, Bruxelles, Amsterdam, Les Flamandes….. Micheline is a great singer and performer. She has a beautiful and powerful voice and she sings with the heart. On that night she offered us a great performance interacting with us. Each songs came to life. For sure, singing Brel’s songs is not an easy job as there are so much emotions involved to render the  profound meanings of the lyrics. Micheline did a great job, her performance was so good that if I didn’t know the songs before I would easily have thought they were hers.

She was accompanied by Bert Verschueren who offered strong acoustic sounds on the piano and guitar. 
I really enjoyed the act. 
Micheline will be performing every evening (except Mondays) at The Famous Spiegeltent on George Street until August 25.

Booking info: www.afringe.com
If you want to know more about Micheline Van Hautem, have a look at her website   or follow her on twitter.

Les Taupes qui boivent du lait

Last Saturday, I was invited to the Mediterraneo festival at the Summerhall. The Mediterraneo Festival is a celebration of Italian and Mediterranean music. It gathers over 30 musicians from Europe offering a mix of tarantella, brass beats… everything to bring you in the mood for dancing, singing and being connected to one another. I really enjoyed the performances of the Edinburgh based Italian collective The Badwills and Les Taupes qui boivent du Lait, coming all the way from Brussels.

Their music is different but oh so entertaining, and most of all, it had the same effect on the audience: everyone was dancing, stomping, clapping hands – in a positive and collective spirit.

At the end of the show The Badwills and Les Taupes qui boivent du Lait got together for a last performance, offering us a moment of great music full of passion and the sense of being connected. They finished off leaving the stage to join us on the dance floor. There was such a positive and collective spirit floating around.  I had a lot of fun and felt so good being part of it.  I’m so thankful for having the chance to live such great human experience. 
I have a special thought for my sweet Love who let me enter his world, enabling me to enjoy great moments like this.

Apart from the music scene, Belgian artists are also present on the Fringe theatre programme. I’ve listed below the other Belgian acts that are performed this year.

Bonanza, contemporary theatre

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/theatre/bonanza

Crying Out Loud presents Daydream, short music show (for children)

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/childrens-shows/crying-out-loud-presents-daydream

Fright Night, contemporary theatre

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/theatre/fight-night

Freeze!, devised, performance art theatre

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/theatre/freeze

Good Mourning!, new writing theatre

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/theatre/good-mourning-vostbil?day=16-08-2013&performance=1%3A51454#book

A Marriage Proposal, comedy/drama theatre

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/theatre/marriage-proposal

Parkin’Son, devised, modern dance and physical theatre

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/dance-and-physical-theatre/parkin-son-giulio-d-anna

Robin Hood, storytelling (for children)

https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/childrens-shows/robin-hood

Tourniquet 2013, contemporary theatre

More info: https://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/theatre/tourniquet-2013

The Fringe Festival is such a great opportunity to discover next-door talents and international performers. Artists from all disciplines get the chance to share their passion and craft with a large audience.  Thanks to the Fringe we can enjoy moments of entertainment and we open ourselves to a world full of creativity.

The next post will be dedicated to music.

Feel  free to post a comment or send me a message.

From tissue paper to cardboard

I love working with paper as it is such a versatile material. Paper exists in a variety of textures and thickness, giving you the opportunity to create small, precise and flexible objects as well as larger and stronger ones, such as boxes and even furniture.
Thin paper
You can create lovely flowers with tissue paper and crepe. The thinness and flexibility of those papers enables you to work on the shape by creasing for example. And it is perfect to render the texture of flower petals.

Cardboard
If you want to create a more resistant or larger object I'd suggest using cardboard. You can find cardboard in a great range of thickness, from thin if you need to fold or work the shape, to thick if you need to make stronger objects such as frames, boxes and even pieces of furniture.

Yes this cupboard is made of cardboard. I realised this piece two years ago during a workshop given by Valérie Chauvenne at Le Show du Carton. In a next postI will explain how I realised it showing pictures of every stages.

The next post will be dedicated to customisation. I'll explain how to give a new look to objects with paper using techniques such as scrapbooking and stamps.

Creation: triggers and process

I've been crafting with paper, scissors and glue for as long as I can remember.  Maybe I should find another word for crafting as it does not really express what it means to me. For me crafting is a real moment of fun in which I can fully express myself, let myself go... well, be me.
I really enjoy to create with paper,especially making cards.  
But what triggers the making of a card ? It varies from the followings: the birthday of someone I care is coming on, another creation has inspired me, ideas running in my head or simply the need to create.
My crafting process is pretty much the same everytime: it begins with one of the triggers mentioned above, then I come up with a design, I gather the needed material, I create, I finish up with adding The  final touch (doodles doodles...) and it's done.  I love each part of the process with probably a preference for the design part. To come up with a design I usually think of the purpose of the creation and the person it is meant for.  When making a card for example, I first think about the type of card: is it for a birthday, a wedding, a celebration, a new-born baby... (quite logical indeed). Then I think about the person who it is meant for: what does he/she like (hobby, passion, favourite colour...) and I make sure my card will reflect this. This can be done using special patterned papers, stamps... And believe me it works; the comments from the one who got the card are the greatest reward ever.

A few examples below:
 - a card for someone passionate about music and birds

- birthday cards for someone who loves flowers

- a congratulation card to motivate someone excell (star) in the new job

Feel free to leave of comment and / or ask questions.