one of those mornings...

This morning I:
Sorted the kids' breakfasts.
Made the little one's packed lunch.
Made the other half a sarnie too 'cos I'm kind like that.
Fed the dog.
Packed the big one's cooking ingredients for school. (spag bol - she handed me the list at 7 o'clock last night resulting in a mad dash to Tesco) (That was me doing the mad dash. Not her. She carried on watching icarly)(I hate that programme)
Remembered the little one's buns for Bun Day.
Filled out the form giving the big one permission to have some vaccination or other at school. (Form due back last Monday)
Stuck a tenner in 2 cards for 2 twins who are friends with the big one and whose birthday it is today.
Put all the correct buns/cooking stuff/forms/cards/homework/lunch in the correct piles for the correct kid.
Had a quick shower and made an effort to look half decent. (Failed)
Raced downstairs.
Bang on time to leave the house with the little one.

The little one said "Where's Bob?"
He doesn't have a "hat" any more. He has "Bob". The bloody hat has got a name and it has become an obsessive comfort blanket type thing. Wears it all the time. Even in bed sometimes. He looks like the kid from East is East. It had August off but now it's cold again Bob is back. Only not this morning. 
No Bob. 
After a frantic search I decided the sodding thing must still be at Cubs. 'Cos I didn't pick up from cubs last night. I was doing a trolley dash in Tesco. But really it could be anywhere we just didn't have time to look.
So we had to go to school Bob-less. And of course it was all my fault. Because I didn't have time to look. Never mind that he'd been playing Minecraft for the past half hour while I rushed round like a bloody lunatic. Look for your own hat child!!

Is it too early for wine?

PS.. Thanks for all your kind messages about the end of my dream. I'm coming round a bit. I'm working out Plan B. It will be loads better than Plan A. When I get my head round it....

not a winner :-(

Well big thanks to everyone who voted for my tote bag. Much appreciated people. But sadly I didn't make it. The judges said "Thanks but no thanks". 
So my big dream is over. The dream I've had for like the last year. No Lillaland for me folks. I'm off the list! The fact that I've got so much work on at the moment and actually would have had to go without sleep for two weeks to do the final assignment is of no consolation to me. I'm gutted. And I know it was a big dream for the other semi-finalists who didn't make it either. But it was my dream MORE ok!
Unfortunately, thanks to the clever marketing people, everyone who voted is now on the Lilla newsletter list...which means they all got an email about the finalists today. So any hopes I had to just slope off, lie low and forget about it have been scuppered. No hiding for me. I've been getting messages of condolence all day. Cheers for that!

The finalists were announced yesterday when I was in London meeting with lovely new clients. I'd like to say a massive well done to them all, they're all fantastic and I wish them the best of luck...especially my lovely friend Lizzie Mackay who now has to win for both of us!

Soooo...back to the drawing board...now I have to come up with plan B.  
Ideas on a postcard...

holiday...what holiday?

Well we've been back from our hols for 3 and a half days and it feels like we never went away. Apart from the enormous amount of dirty summer clothes sitting there waiting for someone to deal with them of course. (No point, don't need them till next year)
We now have to get out of bed on a morning when it's still practically dark. I've got more work than I can possibly do. It's freezing cold and chucking it down. And I have a list as long as my arm of boring stuff to remember. Like pay for school lunches online before school writes to tell me off. And buy new trousers for Alf's Cub Camp cos the ones he's got look like pedal pushers and the other kids will laugh at him.
Will somebody please transport me back to my spot under the palm tree next to the pool. In the sunshine. Thanks.

vote dawn machell for a better world

I feel like I'm on a campaign trail! I'm not really one for loads of self promo and I hate being all 'look at me look at me'
BUT...there are loads of fab people on the GTS page with loads of mates getting loads of votes...so...
Look at me look at me!! Vote for me! Do it now! You know it makes sense. I promise a fairer world and peace on earth. Just vote now :-)
Thanks people xx 
VOTE HERE AND VOTE NOW 

global talent search semi finals

Hi folks, I'm back! We had a lovely lovely holiday in hot and sunny Spain. I wanted to stay longer. Or forever. But real life forced me to come home...just in time for the voting on the second round of the Lilla Rogers Global Talent Search. Convenient eh?
You may recall that I got down to the final 50 with my journal cover. 
Round 2 involved designing a tote bag that could be sold at a farmer's market. Based on Autumn activities. You didn't have to include people. Or handwritten wording. But both were mentioned in the brief. So... you know....
My problem wasn't coming up with ideas. It never is. My problem was selecting which marvellous idea to use. Always is. Good at ideas, rubbish at deciding. I got it down to two options. My lovely new mates from the MATS course helped. Well not really. Half liked one, half liked the other. But they tried.
So in the end, after boring myself and everyone else I know to near-death, I went for this one...

Here's the one that nearly made it but didn't...

Not sure now I look at them again if I made the right decision. But too late to be worrying about it. 

Anyway. Voting's open people. Here. Please be a darling and get your lovely self over to vote for me. Just ignore the other fabulous designs. I know... They're ace. But don't let that concern you. You're MY friend not theirs...vote for me :-) 

PLEASE. 

Thanks soooooo much xxxxx Love you forever xxxxx

adios

Woo I'm up to date with all my work. I'm packed. I'm ready to go...as soon as I get some Euros...and take the dog to my mum's...and get a birthday card for the little one who is having his birthday in Spain this year.....Adios amigos x

Oh...and here's August on my blog. Early. Cos I won't be here on the right date. It's a bit lacking in content I'm afraid. But I won't be doing any bloggery while I'm away. It's a holiday dontchaknow.

wall art

My Mum and Dad have had a new bathroom put in. My mum was threatening to put a picture on the wall that I did in 1990something. I said I'd do her a new one cos I didn't really want a 20 year old picture sitting there for the world to see. I've moved on a bit since 1990something.
She liked the wall art I did for MATS so I did a version of that. In their 
bathroom colours. But not a bathroom theme. She didn't want a bathroom theme...

beachwear

We went to buy school shoes today. 'Cos I'm super organised like that.
And I threw the old ones away on the last day of term so I daren't risk the kids being sent home in September for wearing slippers. Or wellies. Or flip flops.
I was also hoping to pick up a few last minute essential purchases for our jolly holidays next week. I should've known better. I should know that in August when it's sunny and warm - and we're about to go somewhere sunnier and warmer - that all the shops are full of woolly jumpers and winter coats. 'Cos this happens to me every year.
Of course I should really have bought that rather lovely coat I saw. Because when it's freezing cold in November and I go to make a purchase the shops will no doubt be full of bikinis and short shorts...

maize maze

Yesterday me and my sis and the kids went to the York Maze. It was fab! Me and my sis mostly sat on our arses while the kids ran about like loonies. We got  up briefly to go round the actual maze but we lost the kids after 2 minutes and in the end we had to phone them to rescue us. Yay for modern technology. The big one said that clearly we had no sense of direction and should stand still so that they could find us. Which they did. Nice one!

weirdy beardy

The other half is going away for the weekend tomorrow. To Switzerland. To stay with his friend DJ-Mark-who-used-to-be-a-DJ-but-isn't-any-more. I've only been to Switzerland once. We nipped over to St Moritz when we were staying at  Lake Como one year (as ya do). It was LOVELY. I'd love to go back. But not this weekend, it's boys only this weekend.

I've got this lumberjack dude on my GTS tote bag...everyone seemed to like him so as a special treat for Lizzie Mackay I've made him into Mr Beardy Swiss Goat Herder. She likes a man with a beard.

owls

As well as drawing loads of people for my GTS semi final piece I also drew lots of other Autumny things. Like owls. Very Autumn, don't you know, owls. These are owls taken from the owl page of my sketchbook.

I've made them into an owl-y sort of pattern. Just 'cos you know like now I've finished my GTS piece I've got loads of spare time on my hands to just make owl patterns. And everything. 

I'll put my tote bag design on sometime soon. When everyone else does.

my week....

This week I have been juggling work and kids and school holidays. And drawing people. Lots of people. Cos people were mentioned on the GTS brief number 2. It said people drawings would be very welcome. But I'm not really loving any of my people. I'm not really loving my designs full stop. They are all a bit rubbish! So I'm off to bed. And I will come up with something fabulous tomorrow.
I hope!

pigeon poo

Is getting poo'd on by a pigeon good luck?
Flipping hope so cos that's what happened to me today. Whilst I was sitting on my own with the dog. In a busy town full of people chilling in the sunshine. I was waiting outside the toy shop for the other half and the kids to come out. And I didn't even notice till I looked over my shoulder and saw it there. On my sweatshirt. Bet the town full of people chilling in the sunshine noticed though. Bet they were all chuckling quietly to themselves at the mad woman with pigeon poo on her shoulder...

print & pattern kids book

Yay! ...my copy of the new Print & Pattern Kids book arrived today. 
I was proper excited when Marie Perkins, aka Bowie Style, contacted me in January last year to ask if she could feature me in her new book and use my illos from the sketchbook project I did in 2011. It was finally released last week and I'm on page 92.
I also appear on the Mamas and Papas page - 192. I designed the characters and graphics for Rosie and Rex and Jamboree that were put together so well by the lovely Victoria at M&P.
Buy your copy now on Amazon.

global talent search

Woohoo! I am sooo giddy! I made it to the semi finals of the Lilla Rogers Global Talent Search!!! Yay!
Over 1500 people entered and Lilla and her team narrowed it down to 50 yesterday. I had the biggest smile on my face all day.
Actually I'm still smiling.
And I will be all week :-)