Spooked! - Top Six Picks

Get your freak on!
For the day that’s in it happy Halloween folks

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Beatlemania

Got to see these lovely illustrations - inspired by Beatles songs up close the other night at The Grand Social where they shall be hanging all week. If you can't make it down you can still play 'name that tune' and make a purchase on the exhibition website here.

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Glass Trick

You know those dinner party situations when you attempt to show off (and inevitably over estimate) the amount of glasses you can carry in one hand -  sound familiar? Well then you'll love this nifty product design by Grainne Lyons, the "Bouquet" wine glass holder. It allows you to carry 4 or 6 wine glasses and a wine bottle safely and easily while at the same time makes for a pretty centre piece on your table. Dinner guests will be suitably impressed!

"Bouquet" is currently available in frosted white acrylic in two styles on her  website here  and also soon to be stocked at the Malthouse.

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Cartoontastic! - Top Six Picks

Cartoon-tastic
Sylish beings with their fingers on the pulse will know cartoon prints are a big trend this A/W. From jewellery to kitchenalia nothing’s escaped a touch of comic humour.
Time to invest!

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It's a disgrace Joe!

For all those who love or loath the moral panic on Irish Radio that is the Joe Duffy show this one's for you.
A Hilarious 16 page A5 zine by illustrator Fuchsia Macaree , available to buy here.
In fact she has a whole collection of quirky, cute, clever illustrations that will make you smile out loud on her website gallery - check out her 'look alikes' - a personal favorite!

[IMAGE CREDIT - http://fuchsiamacaree.com/]

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Stud Muffin

Great little find this, a brand new Irish street-wear clothing and accessories line located at 14 Dame Lane, Dublin 2 specializing in studded apparel. But get this, they have their very own studding station! A what? 
Well basically it works like this - if you have something you want customized with studs - like a pair of shorts, cons, t-shirt, leather jacket...anything (see above) - just choose from their range of studS and they will do it onsite for you. Sweet!

You can drop them an email at sickstuds@gmail.com to make a custom job appointment.

[IMAGE CREDIT - SICK STUDS]

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FLASH SALE - Merle O' Grady right now!

Hey folks there's a flash sample sale happening right now on www.merleogrady.com!  We're talking serious stylish gems from the Irish designer Merle O Grady . Don't miss your chance to grab the best goodies! Ex-Press Samples and one-off Studio Samples from only £15 to £6. Right now, right here.

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Another great looking genius design...

From the design gurus at Klickity.  Their latest design product, Fruit Block is a cool contemporary take on the traditional fruit bowl. The thick wooden block contains 9 holes allowing the fruit to be stacked in a pyramid shape and here's the science bit - "The stacking mechanism promotes airflow allowing fruit to remain fresh for longer." It's a beautifully designed,simple, clean, creative yet practical centre piece for the table ad comes in these fab pastel colours. Sold!

[Image credit- Klickity.ie]

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Celebrate the &!

Love these ampersand paper sculptures from Little White Dog. Reckon they'd make cute wedding/romantic gifts by themselves or even combined with other letters of your chosen crushes name! They can personalized to represent something that the couple have in common such as the place where they met or got engage, where they live, their wedding location or honeymoon destination - or  where ever your creative mind thinks of.

Prices start at €50 for a large, 14.5cm, customized ampersand but smaller ones are also available, see their online shop here.

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Top Six Picks - Drama Queen

If it looks at home on the set of Downton Abbey it's in! - to all the Lady Marys out there.

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Great Art in the Park.

The pretty little Farmleigh Gallery in Dublin's Pheonix Park currently has a fantastic exhibition on show.  It's called ‘Bricks in the Rain’ and features beautiful ceramic artworks by Irish artists who enjoyed a 5-week long residency in China in 2011.  I got to see it a few weekends back, and would highly recommend a trip up to our national Park (not that one should ever need an excuse to visit it :). Journalist and writer Eleanor Flegg accompanied them to China, and working with Galway sound-maker Declan ÓCualáin and film-maker Andrew Standen-Raz has combined archival interviews, film and sound recordings which add a truly creative twist within the show.


While you there, take a gander at the veggie gardens of the house, at this time of year, it's pumpkin season and they have some serious contest contenders in their plot.

The exhibition runs until Sunday 14th October but fear not southern folk as this gorgeous showcase and will open for a month in the Wandesford Quay Gallery in Cork commencing April 2013.

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HOLLER HOLLER. Calling all Dublin Creatives.

CHECK IT OUT! We are launching something amazing! A brand spanking new  Damn Fine Print Studio at  Block T, Smithfiled Square Dublin.

Details of the Call Out for artwork for our December fund raiser and exhibition are now on our event page -click here. Know any amazing artists who would look great in screen-print? - share it, like it!

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DIY - Turn an old Frame into a Chic Jewellery Organiser

As much as we love 'oohing and awing' the gorgeous work of Irish design here on This is Álainn, I thought it'd be fun to help you flex those creative muscles and embrace your inner makers. So I've enlisted the help of craft queen extraordinaire Emily Westbrooks of wonderful lifestyle blog From China Village.

Once a month Emily has kindly agreed to share with us some of her nifty tips and tricks in this new DIY series on This is Álainn and to kickstart things off in her first post she shows us how to turn an old frame into a chic jewellery organiser. Simples!

"There's nothing worse than knowing exactly which necklace will dress up the perfect outfit, only to be met with a tangled ball of strings and beads when you go to put it on. I searched long and hard for a stylish jewellery organiser that would keep my necklaces from ending up in a tangled mess, but to no avail. I finally decided to make one for myself - and I'm so glad I did! With minimal tools, time and skills, I turned an ugly frame into a chic jewellery organiser."[Emily Westbrooks]

What you'll need

• Frame (you'll want something sturdy with enough space to screw in the hooks)
• Pliers /wire cutters (mine are cheap jewellery pliers - a great tool to have for many projects!)
• Paint (the sample pots at Woodie's DIY are more than enough and come in great colours!)
• Paint brush
• Glue gun
• Garden mesh
• Screw-in hooks 

Directions

[Photo's by Emily Westbrooks]

What to do

1. Use the pliers to take out any staples on the frame. The frame I used had staples holding in the ugly picture.
2. Use a damp cloth to wipe any dust off the frame.
3. Paint 2-3 coats of paint onto the frame. Just let the paint dry in between.
   
   
4. Cut the mesh with the wire cutters so that the piece of mesh fits just inside the frame.
5. Attach the mesh to the frame using hot glue - simply dab the glue on top of the mesh in a few spots on each side of the frame.
6. Hold the mesh down while the hot glue dries completely, just a minute or two.
7. Flip the frame over and screw in the hooks along a flat part of the frame. If your frame is made of very hard wood, you might want to start a hole using a thumb tack.
8. Once the hooks are screwed in, your jewellery organiser is finished! Hang necklaces and bracelets on the hooks and store your earrings by hanging them on the mesh. 

You'll never be caught untangling a big ball of necklaces or searching for the second in a pair of earrings again! [Emily Westbrooks - www.fromchinavillage.com ]

Thanks Emily, look forward to next months!

 

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