back to school

Just registered for another year of graphics at CPUT - it felt strange being back yesterday after having such a nice long break but it was great to see everyone from our class. After standing in lines for a while we had fun laughing at each other's photos!

kingston scribblings

Vuyani

Maresa

I went through the notebook I kept on my trip to London in October and found these drawings that I had completely forgotten about - I did these while we were all sitting down after lunch at the university and used the Faber-Castell PITT artist brush pen that I had just bought. They are not the best drawings, but I think there is something interesting, or maybe just funny about them!

Vuyani is in my class in Cape Town and Maresa and I shared a room during our stay.

finnish fashion

Since starting out with this blog, it's never been my plan to simply refer to other people doing cool things and then forget about posting any of my own work, but when I came across this while researching different styles of composite photography for a project we were briefed for at Kingston, I had to make an exception! And anyway, I always like to see what other designers get inspired by, so maybe you will also find this interesting... These photographs are from the various lookbooks on the website of Finnish fashion label, GILLES ET DADA.

I love the mix of photography and graphic design throughout their campaigns.

 

They actually have a pretty cool site and philosophy behind their work, so their website is well worth the look.

Playing with pencil crayon

I can't remember the last time I did an illustration with pencil crayon, must have been sometime in junior school!  So last night I decided to give it a go and I think it went quite well! I really love working in different shades of just one colour and pencil crayon is a great medium for that. 

using the watercolour pencil crayon, i made a kind of collage drawing in my sketchbook

A detail shot of some washes made by mixing the pencil shavings with water

another one

Just look at this awesome flyer - it just makes me wish there was a swing dancing class near me, then I would definitely join - and I usually never dance, maybe because I'm really bad, but I would try!

This is another one that I brought home from Brick Lane.

london find

When I was in London we all went to the Design Museum and one of the things i picked up at their shop was this awesome little set of photo hangers - so cute and clever!

 And I bought a 3D drawing pad!

 and a set of origami sticky notes - 

each page has instructions for a different origami object

lucky

Look at this cool present I got! It's called a Mugo and is made and sold by Industrial Design students from CPUT. Looks like a disposable, but is actually a really well-made ceramic mug. And it comes in great packaging too! 

"The ceramic mug is double walled with a standard capacity of 250ml. The ergonomic lip is comfortable and ensures safe sipping. With love and care this mug will last you a life time." says the tubular cardboard packaging. 

If you also want one, email Mugo@meantobe.co.za

I'm going to make my first coffee in it right now!

weekend project 1

Now that second year is over and it's summer holidays, I finally have some time to do all the little projects that have been on my list of non-college related things.. the first thing i did was to stencil this mirror - not very original i know, got this idea from the mirrors that line the stairway at the Grand Daddy hotel in Long street - but i'm still very happy with it!

Hopefully it will lead to many 'good mornings' from now on...

Woodgrain, retro-style illustration and typography - wow!

I'm a sucker for woodgrain... and retro-style illustration and type... oh yes

Brick lane flyers

Brick lane is a great place to check out if you are looking for creativity and curry in east London - a great mixture of independent design galleries, amazing vintage shops and Bangladeshi curry houses! -oh, and it's also home to "the best bagels in Britain"!

I've always been a hunter/gatherer of flyers for gigs and shows, so when I found these I was over the moon. Even though I didn't actually go to any of these events, I still felt lucky to be holding these little pieces of design. There is a nice range of styles in this collection, which I think is pretty reflective of London - a mixture of different people and experiences (ah, so cheesy, Aimee).

This is not the last post about Brick Lane....

London bikes

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this already, but I was really lucky earlier this year because, along with three other second year design students, I was sent to London on a student exchange sponsored by the British Council. We spent two weeks in London and attended classes at Kingston University . 

One of the things that I kept noticing about London was the amount a bicycles - especially really beautiful vintage ones... Someone told me that London has recently undergone a kind of 'bicycle revolution' with more and more people choosing bikes over cars. I think this is really nice and am planning on getting my own bike as soon as I have the cash!