BirdBrain Designs

holiday in the highlands

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Ullapool Harbour

We are into our second week in Scotland and this is the first minute I’ve had to write on the blog. When I say minute, it’s a bit of an exaggeration. It’s just taken over 10 minutes for this sketch to download. So I won’t be adding more today.

We have been in Orkney for the past few days. I’ve tried to sketch every minute I can, including in the high wind on the ferry. My goal is to finish the sketchbook this time with little drawings as well as some more finished sketches.

I loved Kirkwall and sketched both the sandstone buildings and the craggy countryside. The Scots are incredibly friendly and I’ve had lots of people stopping to talk and offer comments and critiques. The highlands provided stunning material for sketching and the bonus is that we have had sun! Everyone is telling us its the best weather of the summer.

And now the outer Hebrides. A visit to Harris with its textles and rugged landscape has long been my wish. I read Peter May’s Lewis Trilogy in preparation for the trip, so I’m even more excited to see some of the romantic placenames come to life. I’ll report on my visit one way or another–probably from Canada.

a new marimekko tote and pouches

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Here is another great Marimekko pattern made into a tote. I think it is the perfect pattern for fall and winter–fun flower cutouts in bright reds and orange on a dark background. The tote has comfortable leather handles and a wide leather base. It closes with a durable brass coloured metal zipper which opens extra wide. Inside the tote is lined in black heavy cotton with a textured leather phone pocket as well as a zip/slip pocket with a screen printed bird. This tote wipes clean inside and out. It measures 17″ wide, 15″ tall and has a base of 4.5″–designed to carry all you might want for travel or everyday use. Reports back from owners of this year’s Marimekko totes say they use their totes for both travel and everyday. They add such a wonderful splash of colour to your life.
marimekko bag 4

marimekko bag 4 int

marimekko bag 4a

And I couldn’t resist making a few pouches for the four patterns I’ve used this year. I love each one of them. These pouches are great for make-up, for your headphones and other cords, or any other small items you want kept separately in a big bag. They are each lined in cotton and close with a nylon zipper. marimekko pouches

last cottage weekend

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I spent some time sketching the cottage this past weekend, sitting out on the rocks and looking up. We are soon going on a trip and I want to sketch faster and more often than I’ve managed on previous trips. So I was giving it some practice.  The second sketch here is my favourite, even though it has a big runback. The shadows and the ink line have a light touch which I’m striving for. I want to remember to take a moment to plan, even do a value sketch, find the eye level line and draw a casual border before before beginning the sketch. We will be gone just under three weeks and I’ll try to post as I go.
sept cottage 1

september cottage 2

september cottage 3

odds and ends from our trip to Portland Maine

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I know I have not been posting very much lately. I hope to make it up this week with a few sketches and a couple of new bags. But before that, here are a few images from our August trip to Portland Maine.inn on carleton

We stayed in this great BandB in Portland within walking distance of the downtown core.  It is actually called the Inn on Carleton, but the address is right! I guess I was rushing to get the sketch done.

Below is the Court House in Montpelier VT. I love this city because of its architecture and its friendly vibe. It is a place I know well from attending Green Mountain Rug School. We stayed here coming home from Portland and had the best meal of the trip at a ‘farm to table’  called Kismet. It was across from the Court House and I had time to explore the tower again in a continuous line sketch as we were waiting for our meal.court house montpelier

Views below from the ferry rides out of Portland. We don’t count a trip complete unless we get out on the water, and this trip we managed it three times. Islands and ferries are a way of life in Portland and we loved being part of that.sunset cruise portland

sunset cruise 2 portland

And finally, we made the trek to L.L. Bean. My canoe-building partner was enthralled by the canoes hanging about, especially this one, a Canadian cedar-rib canoe.bean canoe

Lake Wes lighthouse

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Lake W lighthouse aug 2016

Here is a sketch done this week of the lighthouse on our lake in Eastern Ontario. The lighthouse was constructed in the 1930’s and has been a reliable guide around the point for many years. Apparently, it was originally designed  to generate electricity, not as a navigational aid.  And the rumour persists that both Henry Ford and Thomas Edison stayed at the lighthouse cottage.

Whatever the stories about its past, the lighthouse still stands proudly, a unique marker at the entrance to the main part of the lake. It embodies the lake history and traditions and no matter how many times we pass, and that is often because the lake is 80% water-access even today, gives a sense of stability and well-being.

As for the sketch, I am experimenting with a Japanese brush pen which uses carbon ink cartridges. I’m liking it for the very darks, but in small doses.

3 more 121 day bags

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The 121 is a new design which you saw first here. We’ve been road-testing the first two and they have proved themselves great day bags. They are big enough for wallet, phone, notebook and other essentials and yet light enough to sling over your shoulder for a day out. I am finally back in the studio for a few days and here are three more in scrumptious colours. Each of these bags is made from a leather remnant, so each is truly one-of-a-kind. Mocha, denim and emerald.

Each bag is 9.5″ wide, 8″ tall and 1.5″ deep. They have a flap lined in contrasting leather which snaps shut with a magnetic closure and a narrow black leather cross-body strap which can be knotted to shorten. Inside each has a great lining–you can just see the fuchsia dot fabric peaking out of the denim leather bag in the last photo–with a pocket for phone or credit cards.

I’m making these bags and a few others for a show in November, but if you’ve fallen in love with one, just contact me. 🙂

G121 3

G121 3a

G121 3b

G121 denim

sketching the iconic lighthouse

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We’re home from our week in Portland but I still have a couple of sketches to share. We spent last Thursday morning at the Portland Head Lighthouse. It is situated in a beautiful park with lots of walking trails and an excellent small museum. It was glorious weather and I had a chance to sketch the lighthouse from both sides. There were other sketchers there as well. This is a much loved and much sketched landmark and it was a pleasure to take part in a long tradition.portland head ighthouse 1

porltand head lighthouse2

a trip away

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We have been travelling this week, to a favourite city and a new one. On the way we stopped in a book store for maps and I happened on How to Sketch People by Matt Pagett for such a sale price that I could not resist. And it is a perfect find to begin a trip where I hoped to push myself to sketch more. On the first pages he states his view of sketching: A sketch, as opposed to a drawing, its close cousin, can be characterized by a rapid yet considered execution, an instinctive response to a subject, a certain roughness, life caught on the fly.  And on the next page: …the moment I stop to look and think about what I see, it always comes with a mixture of surprise and relief. All the inner brain workings now relate to the outer world, and within that newly created space is some kind of harmony. It seemed a kind of permission and encouragement for my rough and wonky sketches. An invitation to harmony.

Se here they are. The first a 5 pm sketch in Montpelier VT after a long day of driving. The sun was still lovely on the Unitarian Church. Monteplier has so many wonderful buildings. I hope to catch more on the way home.montpelier

These photos are taken with my phone, so not the best. From Montpelier we made our way to Portland. I fell in love with the Custom House in the old port. Its stately towers can be seen from the water and from much of the city. The view from the front…

custom house 1

The back…

custom house back

And a quick sketch from a bench on the street while practising capturing people walking by…custom house sketch

And a double page sketch of the wharf behind the fish store and a couple of sketches made while eating a lobster roll. The lobster disappeared too quickly to sketch!

double page

new marimekko tote

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Here is a new coated cotton tote in the Raanu pattern–a series of bright stripes in red, yellow, green and black. This is one of my favourite Markmekko prints because it looks great in all four seasons and, of course, the coated cotton wipes clean with a damp cloth.

This tote has a black leather base and wide leather carry handles with a 12 inch drop. It closes with a durable metal zipper with a leather pull tab. Inside it is lined in dark denim with an orange waxed canvas double zippered pocket and a large canvas pocket with birdbrain graphics. The tote measures 17″ wide, 14″ tall and the base is 5″ deep. This is a great bag to carry all you need for work or for the weekend.marim 2

marim 1

marim int

hooked on lake views

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Here are a few small mats I’ve been working on inspired by my summer on our lake. The terrain is rugged with rocks in beautiful colours–it is the Pre-Cambrian shield after all– and tenacious pines bending out over the water. These pieces combine wool strips left over from other projects, as well as  yarn and fleece.  It’s a great joy to sit on the verandah, listen to the water lapping, the loons calling and hook the views around me.
2 pines

lake scenes