Hillsborough Forest Park

Some snaps from a recent walk at Hillsborough Forest Park. The sun was shining, birds were singing and red and brown leaves crunching beneath our feet - autumn is a beautiful season!

Natasha's Things

Today it is the 22nd birthday of a great Australian friend of mine - Natasha. She is one of the most creative, enthusiastic, loving, dreamy, fashionable, talented people I know, and I wish she didn't live hundreds of miles away in Australia!

Happy Birthday Tash! 

Amsterdaming

This summer I was busy working at a great summer camp in Belgium, and on the way back myself and a few friends stopped by my favourite European city - Amsterdam! We stayed at the Hotel Van Gogh - a modern, clean hostel and hotel with a great location in the centre of Amsterdam. This was my second time staying here and it was just as good as the first.

As a gluten-free eater (I'm a coeliac, not a faddy dieter) I can highly recommend two amazing places to eat at:

1. The first is a tiny pancake cafe along the famous Nine Streets (De 9 Straatjes) called Pancakes! Amsterdam who do a range of gluten-free savoury or sweet pancakes alongside their normal menu. I opted for a paprika, mushrooms, cheese and bacon pancake, washed down with a bottle of fresh lemon and mint juice. Other topping options were strawberries, chocolate or lemon drizzle sauce, to name just a few. 

- DELICIOUS -

2. Bagels and Beans is a great place to go for lunch. I tucked into a gluten-free bagel with smoked chicken, rocket, hummus and sunflower seeds topped with a pot of mango chutney and a glass of strawberry juice - yum! They have an allergens booklet which was really handy for knowing what I could and couldn't eat, and we were able to sit outside along the river, enjoying the view and feeling the buzz from the nearby busy streets.

When we weren't stuffing our faces, we were lying in the sun in the beautiful Vondelpark, checking out the pubs and bars along the main street and browsing the many wonderful shops on Nine Streets.

Episode is a quirky vintage clothes shop with four stores in The Netherlands and more in Brussels, Copenhagen, Paris and Antwerpen. Definitely worth a visit for both male and females as they have a tonne of oversized jackets, cosy jumpers, denim, colourful shorts and shirts, cute dresses/ pinafores and much more!

Shopping in Amsterdam has something for everyone; whether it's clothing, art, jewellery, designer labels, tasty food or just a relaxed browse along the numerous canal streets. The city is bright, colourful and clean and the people are really friendly (plus most of them speak perfect English!) They have daily walking tours throughout the city, street performances and art exhibitions - the city really is a hub of energy and excitement!

Farewell for now Amsterdam, but I hope to see you again soon!

DJCAD 'Ones to Watch' Degree Show 2015

Well it has really been an outrageously long time since I last wrote on my blog! A lot has been happening since my last post - rushing to finish hand-ins, preparing prints and cards to sell, painting and general organising for our big DJCAD 'Ones to Watch' Degree Show opening night on Friday (which was so much fun, and all streamed live on the DJCAD website). The show continues to run for the remainder of this week so is highly recommended to visit if you are in the Dundee area.

I'm currently selling cards, prints and ceramic food plates at the show alongside lots of other books and prints, so all the more reason to visit us!

Some exciting things:

Artist and illustrator Hazel Terry (check her website out for beautiful paintings, drawings and textiles) kindly featured me on her blog The Art Room Plant.

I was featured HERE as one of the exciting fashion and lifestyle blog 'Wardrobe Conversations' top five degree show picks.

Also, HERE is a review on DURA (Dundee Review of the Arts) which talks about my work too.

Here is a small selection of the work of my brilliant classmates in the illustration department, with a second instalment of work to be posted up soon. What a talented little bunch!

Jill McDonald

Eve Spears

Brendan Donnet

Anna Doherty

Jordan Hunter

Paula Caffrey

Nancy Wallace

Elena Lam

Lewis Gillies

Kat Hughes 

Lauren McNab

Edward Campbell Woods

Deborah Pow

Thomas Albert

Sam Hubbard

Lauren McCreadie

Angela Kirkwood

Alison Hogg // Ekaterina Sedykh

Ceramic Memories

For one of my recent university projects I have been working on creating a number of delicate ceramic objects that have personal significance and links to memories of my childhood. I don't want to show them all fully finished just yet but here is a little peek into the working process and development that has been going on (this selection are all pre-glazed).

And here is also a beautiful album I have recently discovered which I just CAN'T get enough of:
Gregory Alan Isakov - The Weatherman. Perfect for all the late night painting/researching/drawing I seem to be doing so much of at the moment!

London Town

This weekend I visited my sister who is currently living and working in London for a while. What a place - bustling with people and all sorts of exciting things everywhere you look.
We visited the House of Illustration's Folio Society exhibition, catching a glimpse of the shortlisted entries and winner of the compiled book of Ghost Stories. Then we headed to Portobello Road with a friend where we ooed, aaahed, haggled, ate and took in the busy street life. It was starting to get dark by the time I picked up my camera but here are the few I managed to snap:

Gargunnock

This weekend I was staying at my flatmates home in a little village near Stirling. We spent Saturday and Sunday walking Lottie the puppy through the woods and glens, cooking a breakfast fry and enjoying chocolate cake, Earl Grey and the Scotland vs. Wales match by the wood burning stove. Delightful! Below are a few photos taken on our little adventure - look at all the snowdrops... it is definitely almost spring time now!

I'm also loving this RAC remix of Porter Robinson's 'Sea of Voices' at the moment - it's very dreamy, check it out.