Jennifer Collier

I'm sure most of you are familiar with Jennifer Collier's work, it's so incredibly beautiful. I first saw her garments and accessories at the 2007 Country Living Fair in London where she won the best new product award. Her stand was gorgeous and really stood out from the crowd. Jennifer aims to encourage people to speculate on the nature of value. By weaving, waxing, stitching and embedding natural and found materials (stamps, teabags, fruit, vintage books, maps) into her works, all forms of clothing, Jennifer explores ideas about recycling and the fragility of the human body. Quite simply stunning!

Ties That Bind

 Print, Paper and Embroidery

 Aprons, Stories and Hidden Lives

Twelve Contemporary Designer/Makers

Louise Frances Evans, Jennifer Collier, Teresa Green, Michelle Holmes, Karen Shapley, Louise Presley, Colette Dobson, Christine Stanford, Julie Haslam, Ruth Singer, Ellie Evans and Priscilla Jones.

Curated by Jennifer Collier, Ties That Bind is a display of newly created aprons inspired by women's lives, published stories, personal memories and imagined futures. 

The exhibition runs until 25th January 2012 at Jennifer's craft exhibition and workshop space, Unit Twelve. 

Definitely one for your diaries!

 Photos courtesy of Helen Roberts (you will find more beautiful images on her site.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes - Part Two

 Camilla's daughter, remember?

Phew! I've done it, I've taken the plunge! After a good two years and over 2,000  posts I have finally decided to welcome sponsors.

I've been thinking about it for a while but didn't really make my mind up till this Summer. It's an important step, going commercial, especially when I really try to stay off the beaten track, looking for new 'alternative' artists, crafters and makers to share. But then again, I can see that my enthusiastic PR work has started to pay off for some of you...

 Yumiko Froehlich

Jenni Harley
 

Marlen Karema

Over the course of the Summer I received a number of Thank You emails from people whose work I love and frequently write about on my blog. I have been a fan of Jenni's handmade dolls and soft toys from day one and have encouraged her to believe in herself and her talent. If you follow her blog you will know that she recently exhibited at a tradefair and had an overwhelming response with life-changing consequences (she's had to quit her full-time job). She's been unundated with orders and wrote to thank me for pushing her to the fore.

"Deborah Beau is a tireless finder & promoter of unique items & artworks! 

Her discerning eye is so right & helps to generate interest in anyone who is at the receiving end of her handpicked finds for kickcan & conkers. Her daily posts are a constant source of inspiration & enjoyment...a genuine gem of a gal!"  Jenni Harley

Similarly, Marlen Karema, from Estonia, who approached me about her textile work in 2010 and has been featured many times on the K&C blog, pinterest and Tumblr and is now a friend, wrote to tell me that her beautiful clothes have made their way into the Chellis Wilson shop! 

And then there's lovely Yumiko:

"We tried to describe Kickcan and Conkers in 3 words but quickly gave up with so many superlatives running through our mind. It was Deborah who introduced us to our super talented, Paris based illustrator Yumiko Froehlich. Thank you Deborah for the link to our new friend and for all the scoops from the creative industries.

Keep up the fantastic work!

 Best from Ola & Olek team."

 Kedublock

 

I could go on and on, but I won't; I'd rather be writing about your skills than mine...

I just wanted to explain why I had decided to invite people to sponsor my blog.

Kickcan and Conkers is relatively new and doesn't boast the highest statistics on the web BUT I think all the right people are reading it. I look around and am amazed at how news gets round, how things spread and gain in popularity...suddenly products that I found and wrote about are everywhere, and that genuinely makes me happy...

 Jennifer Collier

"Sending out a MASSIVE thank you to Deborah Beau as I have now found my work on nearly a hundred blogs- I honestly believe without this amazing creative mind so many people would not have seen my work" - Jennifer Collier

 Right, that's enough trumpet-blowing for today! 

 I hereby declare the Kickcan & Conkers blog open to sponsors, big and small. 

I love blogging, work hard every day and am commited to making K&C grow.

Let's work together and get your name out there!

 I'm waiting for your email!

High Five #23

 

Hey diddle diddle,

The cat and the fiddle,

The cow jumped over the moon,

The little dog laughed to see such a sight,

And the dish ran away with the spoon.

Words Woven from Wire

With a Smidgin of Colour

And Oodles of Imagination.

I like that!

 Louise Dawn Wilson is but one of the very talented artists and makers taking part in Word Play, a new exhibition curated by Jennifer Collier at her UK gallery Unit 12, running until 28th July.

For more information, please visit Jennifer's recently revamped website, now including a comprehensive past & present exhibitions section, and/or follow Unit 12 on Facebook.

Enjoy!

My Cup of Tea

Paper Milk Jug

Paper Tea Tray

Paper Suitcase

Jennifer Collier 

Rapunzel

Witch's House

Red Shoes

Alix Swan

Alphabet Book

Lady of the Lake

Tea for All Seasons

Angela Davies

Simply beautiful

The magical versatility of paper

Three examples of the amazing work for sale at

 Made by Hand Online

Jewellery, fashion, home & garden

Lots of old favourites and many new finds

Made By Hand Online is also an excellent ressource for craft makers, offering a blog, national directories, job opportunities and information on courses and workshops.

Definitely one to bookmark.

Happy browsing!

via Pacha Design, whose beautiful work is also available at Made by Hand Online.

Give Me Three #37

 Interactive sensory sound objects by Maddie Harris

Life is serious enough so why not add a bit of silliness to one's day!

Maddie Harris's colourful sound objects made me smile this morning. Handcrafted using processes such as metal spinning and powder coating, they are designed to be held and explored; blowing into them causes them to emit an unexpected and sometimes 'silly' sound. What fun! I'd love to have a go with my kids, wouldn't you?

A trained silversmith/jewellery maker, Maddie's new product designs were inspired by music, musical instruments, sea life, cells, microorganisms and toys. 

 If you live in England, and are interested in finding out more about Maddie's work, she will be exhibiting at a new show entitled 'The Art of Child's Play', at New Brewery Arts in Gloucestershire (23 July - 4th of September). This exhibition brings together some of my favourite artists and makers - Donna Wilson, Jennifer Collier, Gillian Lee, Samantha Bryan - and has pointed me in the direction of fresh talent such as recent graduate Caroline Brown, whose contemporary take on needlefelting (felt, plaster & porcelain) is both beautiful and intriguing. 

Definitely a date for your Summer diaries, if you're lucky enough to be in that neck of the woods...

Just Paper

Typewriter

Lampshades

Alice Jacket

Polaroid SLR Camera

Singer Sewing Machine

Unbelievable but true - All of these objects have been crafted from paper.

As you know, Jennifer Collier has long been one of my favourite artists.

She has just unveiled her new website and I am once again in awe of the intricacy and detail of each of her creations.

I can but urge you to have a look for yourself....

 Please don't forget to enter my giveaway!

Which One?

Coffee

Vintage Peugeot Wood Coffee Mill - La Pomme


Vintage Café au Lait Bowl - La Petite Brocante



Collection of Old French Coffee Bowls - 3sousunparapluie


or

Tea?

Tea Wire Sculptures by Helaina Sharply

Good Morning!
I am a coffee lover, if not addict. I only like my milky morning coffee (s!) in a big French bowl, similar to the ones above. Don't they look nice grouped together?
Helaina Sharply is very much into tea, it's her first love in fact. If you live near Stafford in England, she will be showing a few of her handmade tea-inspired pieces at Unit12's Polly Put The Kettle On exhibition, running from September 2nd to October 30th. Unit12 is a new contemporary craft exhibition and art workshop space run by Jennifer Collier, one of my favourite paper artists. Keep an eye on her exhibition programme, bringing together some of the finest contemporary crafters/makers in the UK. (Off) White Christmas and Wonderland have definitely piqued my curiosity.