2012

Happy new year! So, last year's motto was Work Hard, Play Hard. I think I just about achieved that. It was quite a year, what with starting my first full-time job as a designer in January (and my second in November - going well so far, if you're wondering!) and moving to London and everything. Combine that with a good dose of freelance work on the side, and I think that equates to a year of working hard and playing hard(ish).

So for 2012, I intend to "make the most of it". Just about settled in to this London life now, and got my bearings much more - so now it's time to make the most of everything it has to offer.

Fa la la la la, la la la la etc.

Made by Mortimer

So, my lovely flatmate Nicola and I have started a new little venture called Made by Mortimer. It currently exists as a Folksy shop (madebymortimer.folksy.com), selling bits and pieces made by the pair of us.

However, I can't take any of the credit yet (well, apart from the logo). All jewellery listed is made by Nicola. Her grandfather was a watchmaker, and each ring, necklace and brooch uses a vintage watch face from his collection.

We're soon to expand in to other goodies such as screenprinted tote bags and illustrated things (which is where I come in), so keep an eye out.

SHOWFLAT

Prepare yourself for a photo-heavy post, folks. Last night was the launch of SHOWFLAT, a publication designed for Metal to document a series of exhibitions by Southend-based artists. The artists temporarily transformed their private living spaces in to public exhibition spaces during autumn 2010.

I started designing the book in the spring, liaising with all the artists involved to try and capture the atmosphere of their exhibitions through their ten allocated pages. Anyway, the launch last night was the first time I'd seen the book printed! The limited edition of 100 books are individually stamped, numbered and signed by the artists. Really pleased with how it all came together.

The bunnies are back.

I've been a bit quiet on here again haven't I? There's a couple of things I've been working on that I'm excited to show you. HOWEVER, I can't. One of them is back from a printers but I'm yet be receive my copy. And the other is in development and is a bit hush hush until its release...

In the mean time, I've given my website a bit of a refresh, so have a look at www.lucyplayer.com if you like.

Also, remember Hoppy Bunnies, the project I launched last year then neglected a bit? Well, www.hoppybunnies.com has also had a bit of a facelift, and this year's Hoppy Christmas cards and next year's calendar are now in the Folksy shop. 

Picture frames

Lettering

A bit obsessed with adding shadows to my lettering at the moment...

What the hell is Cloud Computing?

What the hell is cloud computing? I worked on this diagram a while ago to try and help explain (and to be honest, I hadn't a clue what it was until I researched it for this!)...

A couple of shiny new websites

I've given my website a little bit of an update (not a redesign just yet... just give me time!). A couple of website's I've been working on have recently gone live, so thought I'd share.

Firstly, a portfolio site designed at Matt&George for film director Matthias Hoene: www.matthiashoene.com

And secondly, a site which combined both my love of illustration and web - Tamesis Dock, a floating pub moored on the Thames. Now, there's still a few things that need fixing with the build, but here's the design anyway:

Home sweet home

Long time no blog! I haven't updated since I moved to London. So far so good. All settled in and loving it. I've had to leave my lovely massive desk with my mum in Essex, but I'm pretty happy with my new setup on a smaller scale:

The novelty of being in a place where there's interesting things to do on your doorstep is yet to wear off. Bizarrely, on my first weekend in London, the southbank was dedicated to Southend (there's no escaping Essex!). I popped down to see the guys from The White Bus and picked up a few postcards I'd designed for them. Went to the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy a few weeks back too, and last weekend we went to The Museum of Brands and The Museum of Childhood. Alas, this weekend I have a cold and I've stayed in this evening drawing ampersands, feeling sorry for myself (geekily enjoyable, though...).