heart on your sleave

There's something about hearts that just make me smile. Watch this space for a great Valentine's Day Mengsel blog giveaway...

Louise Gray for ASOS t-shirt Dress With Heart Panel

Vivienne Westwood for Melissa heart shoes

Sonia by Sonia Rykiel Heart Lock Sweater

Brand new print from Mengsel: "Whale"

BRAND NEW silkscreen print from Mengsel! I wanted to create a print that would be a continuation of my popular "Bigger Boat" design, so here we have "Whale". Happily floating in love on a delft blue (my favourite colour) graphic patterned sea.

Signed, dated and numbered editon of 45 prints, A3 size, (approx 30x40cm). The "Whale" print is a pretty, sweet and colourful edition to any home. It will make a fantastic Valentine's day gift or a gift for a brand new baby's nursery. I will be printing more colour options soon, so I will keep you posted.

Available to purchase in the Mengsel Shop and Mengsel's Etsy shop, where there will be more images to view too. Happy gift shopping!

"Whale" silkscreen print in Delft Blue and Black

Detail of "Whale" print in Delft Blue and Black

Good Nightingale

Yay! Yesterday, I managed to silkscreen print a new pillowcase set design of mine that I've wanted to make for a long time. It shows two little nightingale birds telling each other, "good nightingale". Even sweet little birds need a good night's sleep. At the moment they are only available in dove grey on white cotton, but I will be printing more colours soon. Which new colours would you like these couple of birdies to printed?

The "Good Nightingale" pillowcase sets will also be sold as singles, if you only need one of them. They are available to buy in the Mengsel Shop and my Etsy Shop. So hurry if you want to buy your better half a sweet Valentine's day pressie!

"Good Nightingale" pillowcase set in grey

"Good Nightingale" pillowcase set in grey

Bigger Boat print at ESP Gallery Australia for a good cause

The lovely Satu Chad contacted me last year to get one of my prints, Bigger Boat, for an exhibition in Australia that will raise money for the Asylum Seekers Centre of New South Wales. I'm very honoured to be part of this exhibition. More info at  www.esprojects.com.au 

Bigger Boat original silkscreen print in turquoise by Mengsel

Prints Charming: House and Leisure South Africa Jan/Feb 2011 issue

Mengsel's colourful 100% cotton tea towels have been featured in one of South Africa's best interior and lifestyle magazines. The green "Retro Roosters" tea towel and black "Moka Express" tea towel will definitely brighten up your kitchen. Available at my South African stockist in Cape Town, Vamp Furniture and online at the Mengsel Shop or Mengsel's Etsy shop. So wonderful to see my work in one of my favourite magazines!

Areaware animal boxes

Discovered these adorable starage boxes from the always amazing Areaware. Animals include a whale, camel, bear, rhino, walrus and more. Made out of New Growth Beech Wood. So clever and sweet.

whale box, closed

whale box, open

rhino box, closed

rhino box, open

walrus box, closed

walrus box, open

Mengsel prints now available at Heal's!

I am very pleased to let you know that Mengsel's limited edition silkscreen prints are now available at Heal's! I've been so excited about this for a while now and so so happy about it. Mengsel prints are available to purchase at the Tottenham Court Road flagship store and online at www.heals.co.uk. Heal's have chosen a small selection of framed limited edition prints for their flagship store: Moka Express, Tiny Towers and Toucans.

A little piece of history about Heal's:  

"Starting out as a bed-making firm in 1810, we've been designing and making quality furniture ever since. We love it and we're good at it. 

When Sir Ambrose Heal joined the firm in 1893, he had the vision to work with the most skilled designers and craftspeople of the day to create furniture that is comfortable, beautiful and affordable, reflecting the ideals of the Arts and Crafts Movement. Influential designers like Mies van de Rohe, Marcel Breuer and Robin and Lucienne Day have all been drawn to Heal's distinctive character and reputation for innovation.

This tradition lives on. Heal's continues to work with the designers of the future and offer home furnishings that represent the best in contemporary design."

You can read more about the history of this great British company here at the Heal's website.

It is just an absolute thrill for me to have my prints in a store that stocks most of my design heroes. Happy 2011!

Mengsel now available at brand new online store, Cow & Co.

Cow&Co. is an international online design superstore delivering new, unique & vintage items & gifts straight to your door. Mengsel's Moka Express and Retro Roosters tea towels are now available in this fabulous UK based online store. My favourites from the shop...

Ship Pillow by Gabriela Pardo. Price: £35.00

Glass Jar Light Shade by James Shaw. Price: £18.00

Teardrop Brooch by Lori. Price: £18.00

a few favourites from the week

Can't believe that 2010 is almost over! Now that I have a little time to sit down and think about all my plans for Mengsel for the new year, I've also found myself compiling a few wish lists...

Black "Florence" Velvet & Silk Bow Necklace from Melbourne designer Hopeless at Etsy

Quotes Measuring Spoons from Beehive Kitchenware at Etsy

Belle and Sebastian 2010 North American Tour Poster, Limited edition silkscreen by Strawberryluna at Etsy

GEEK and NERD recycled-wood signs from William Dohman at Etsy

Tripple Bubble silver mirror headband/necklace by Jennifer Loiselle at Etsy

yup, it's discount time at mengsel!

Hey there last minute shoppers based in the UK, plus everywhere else who just want a little treat...

Yes, it is discount time at Mengsel! Items shipped to all UK destinations can still arrive in time for Christmas if ordered before Tuesday 21 December 2010. Don't worry, I've left a few things until the last minute myself!

To claim your special 15% discount in my online shops, enter the twitter15 at checkout:

ETSY SHOP:  Enter the coupon code twitter15 at checkout
MENGSEL SHOP:  Enter the coupon code twitter15 at checkout

You can still get your hands on quirky "i heart robot" pillowcase sets, retro-inspired 100% cotton tea towels, tote bags and hand pulled art silkscreen prints from original drawings. This offer is available to customers worldwide until 21 December 2010.

Merry Christmas!

"i heart robot" pillowcase sets - available in black, grey, red, green, turquoise and gold 

"Retro Roosters" tea towel set in delft blue and apple green

Mini "Moka Express" silkscreen print in wedgewood blue

shed working

Somehow I got the idea that having a shed for an office/workspace/studio in the back of a garden is a fabulous idea. I don't really want studio space somewhere else where I have to pay a high rent and have to commute. Now I just need an actual garden! I've found some really cool shed offices online for inspiration.

Author Amy Bloom's writing haven. Credit: William Wright from "Stylish Sheds and Elegant Hideaways"

Vivid Green designs and constructs low-energy offices, studios and workshops. Photo from The Telegraph

Shed workshop at Real Living. Everything in its place. A huge dream of mine.

Modern, green and affordable shed from Studio Sheds. Flat packed and constructed within 6 hours! From jetsongreen.com 

Garden office by Decorated Shed

Summerwood garden shed decorated by Urban Mode. Image via Interior Design Show

Tiny Towns in England: Shere, Surrey

After our disastrous holiday experience (see earlier post: travel nightmares) we needed a little outing to get rid of the consequential cabin fever that ensued after being snowed in for most of the week. Decided to drive to the picturesque little town of Shere, Surrey. Coincidentally, this was the filming location for the Cameron Diaz/Kate Winslet film "The Holiday". See my snaps below. Very quaint town with charming houses and lots of character. And the bonus: a mere 35 minute drive from my home!

Shere high street

Tea house and gallery

war memorial

Shere church

graveyard

church and gravestones

public "facilities" in high street

Garden and Home interview in December 2010 edition

Garden and Home South Africa interviewed me a while ago and now the article about Mengsel, called "Adding To The Mix" is on the "Pat on the Back" section in the December 2010 issue. I can't tell you how amazing it feels to be recognised by such a prestigious South African publication like Garden and Home. You can click on the image of the interview below to enlarge the image and read the article or if you are in sunny South Africa, you can pick up a copy at your local news stand. A wonderful end to a very exciting year for me!

travel nightmares

I've had quite an interesting week regarding travel plans. We had plans to go to Marrakech, Morocco for a lovely 4 night break in the sunshine with our family before they go home to South Africa and things JUST didn't work out! Our flight from London was for Thursday morning 2 Dec, but Gatwick airport was completely shut down because of the extreme snow conditions and all flights were cancelled. We changed our flight to the next day in the afternoon and hoped for the best. We were very excited the next morning to find out that Gatwick has re-opened and that our flight was on schedule for the afternoon. We could still go for 3 nights out of the planned 4. Got to the airport, checked in, no problem. Yay! We were off to Morocco! HALF WAY throught the flight the pilot had an anouncement: "We have just found out some rather extraordinary news! Spanish air controllers have gone on a surprise strike and we will have more news later on." Turns out that the announcement for the strike was made at 5pm, an hour after our take off and we were now in Spanish airspace. There is no way to get to Morocco without crossing Spain. We had to turn around for an emergency landing in Bordeaux, France and waited inside the plane to refuel. So it was all the way back to London Gatwick then. We got home at about 1am, back in the freezing snow. No point in trying to get another flight as we've missed half our holiday now. Oh well, hopefully we'll have better luck next time...

Passport cover destination world by Sugarcanetrain808 at Etsy

Brand new silkscreen print: "Picnic"

Introducing my newest hand pulled silkscreen print, "Picnic". How ironic that I'm listing this during a raging snow storm outside!

Dining al fresco in the park on a red plaid sheet with a basket full of fresh French bagels, jam, a selection of cheeses and a few glasses of vino: The simple pleasures! "Picnic" is one of my orginal illustrations, drawn by hand and silkscreen printed in my studio in bright red and black on crisp white 220gsm Daler Rowney paper (made in the UK). Available to purchase in my Etsy shop, Folksy shop and The Mengsel shop. Hope you like it?

"Picnic" original silkscreen print

"Picnic" original silkscreen print

"Picnic" original silkscreen print

Christmas comes early

Hope everybody had a great weekend, despite the icy cold? I have a little GIFT for you: With every "i heart robot" pillowcase set or tea towel set (Moka Express or Retro Roosters) purchased online, I will include a pack of silkscreen printed gift tags as a little gift to you. Worth $8.00 a pack, you will receive a free pack of 5 gift tags from a selection of the Moka Express design (bright red and wedgewood blue) and Retro Roosters design (chartreuse). Add something special to your gift wrapping this Christmas from Mengsel.  Also available to purchase from my Etsy shop. This special promotion is available until the last shipping day for Christmas and until stocks last. Be quick!

Moka Express set of 5 gift tags in bright red

Moka Express set of 5 gift tags in wedgewood blue

Retro Roosters set of 5 gift tags in chartreuse