Portrait of Justin Chatwin (oil on canvas)

I had some stretched canvases lying around from the time I practised making those and I saw this actor in few movies (War of the Worlds and The Invisible, The Weeds pilot episode) and I had to paint SOMETHING, so I painted him.

This is supposed to look like Justin Chatwin, an actor from Canada. It's not too similar, heh, but I enjoyed looking at his pretty photo while I painted it so I've had enough of his real face anyway :)

Didn't give this too much time because I'm actually working on/struggling with my first female portrait ever at the moment, so
t h i s was kind of a light "interlude".

I guess it helped me "get back on track" because it reminded me what mistakes I have to look out for and h o w I could avoid them and after painting this, the other portrait started showing progress too.

Size of this thing is about 25x35cm and I painted it little by little during 3 days.

Featuring an Etsy Seller: Claire Laraine

Claire Laraine is a designer from North Yorkshire, UK.
After getting her Textile Degree in 2006 she started working on a new accessory label called The Claire Laraine. She is creating unique accessories, such as purses, cards, tags, pocket mirrors and so on. Also she likes to do a make-over for used and old things: "I have spent years gathering and hoarding scraps of fabrics, beads, buttons, ribbon, anything that "might be useful for something". Each remnant of fabric, bead or piece of ribbon I discover, already has its own story to tell, but it is a story I will never know, so I use it in my work giving it a new chapter.
My mission is to clean up the earth by finding all the "scraps" I can and make them beautiful again."

Now she is here to tell us a little more about her work and the process of creation and some tips for people with similar interests.

Is it true that you write poetry? You're starting to seem more interesting every second! Does it help you find inspiration for your designs or are these two totally different creative processes for you?
Yes, it is true that I write poetry, although for a long time it has been separate to my design work.
I seem to take the same approach to creating poetry as I do when designing I have a little notebook that I ‘collect’ words and lines of poetry as and when they come to me, the book is full of ‘found’ words, in the same way the my studio is full of ‘found’ fabrics. I then piece these collections of words together, to express a particular idea. Recently I have found bits of my poetry creeping into my design work and have now made a conscious decisions to experiment with merging the two, I like the idea of sharing a little piece of me with the world, it doesn’t even matter if it doesn’t make any sense to anyone else! I found both processes very therapeutic.


Where do you get your ideas? do they just come to you when least expected or you work on them and build one idea up ?
I often explore similar themes but would describe my work as a journey. I am fascinated by storytelling and my designs are a narrative of life’s simple little stories. I love the idea of things being ‘passed on’ from one person to another, or belongings left behind for someone else to discover, the idea that all these items have a past, a story of their own to tell, but it is a story that I cannot know, so I use it in my own work and give it a new chapter. I like to describe my work as a place where time and memory meet, portraying nostalgia, poetry and beauty in the ordinary moments of life.

Is it easy for you to think of new things to do?
Yes! I always have too many things in my head! I usually have several things on the go at once. I’m not always sure where my ideas come from , but they are always there waiting to be explored and brought to life! My main website is a work in progress too, I have so many more pieces of work I want to add.

What is the most fun thing to make from your selection, and why?
I love making my pyramid purses, I like transforming a flat piece of fabric into a fun 3D shape!

What is your guideline when designing something?
Think different. I always try to be innovative in my creations, experimental and exciting. I always have everything around me that might possibly be needed, my button box, my fabric boxes, beads, clasps, pens, paint, wallpaper books, everything, I surround myself, and pick and choose as I go along. When I have my design, I work on making it practical and professionally finished. The finish of a product is very important to me, I don’t think that because an item is handmade it should lack in quality.

What is hot right now? In your opinion?
Orange! I am currently working on ideas for Autumn, and my colour palette is Pumpkin, aubergine, olive and chocolate, these colours are so scrumptious!


What are your plans for the future?
I have many! My main aim is to grow Claire Laraine, extend my product range, and sell through more retail outlets. I would love to be able to design wrapping paper, wallpaper, interior accessories and so on. Eventually I hope to have my own bricks and mortar shop, with a studio.

Looking at all the things you do, you should be already busy as a bee, how and why do you find time for showing off other sellers on your other blog http://www.clairelaraine-partnersincrime.blogspot.com/ ?
I am very busy but I always find the time to showcase others. This is something that is really important to me and I am so pleased that people are getting involved, without great artists and designers to write about it just wouldn’t work. I decided to set up Partners in Crime as I found that there was a lack of outlets for designers to promote themselves and been seen, especially here in the UK. There is such a lot of talented crafts people out there, that deserve to be showcased. I hope to continue to grow the Partners in Crime blog and fan base, and would love to be able to have a ‘Partners in Crime’ shop, consigning all the great artists and designers I have featured, so watch this space!


You're saying you re-do things to make them "your own". Where do you find these things and by what do you choose them?
Sometimes I search for them, sometimes I stumble across items that are just calling out to be re-newed and re-used. I find things in charity shops, second hand junk shops, I love having a rummage and finding these hidden gems. Often people give me bits and pieces and clothes that they would otherwise throw away, sometimes the clothing is no good for me, but the buttons might be, often I have no idea what I will use the ‘found’ pieces for, but I will keep them along with everything else, and then one day I will be making something that a certain ‘found’ piece is perfect for. It is very much an organic process at times, a journey.

A little practical question vol 1.- how does one make a label for their products? How did you do that?
Well I have tried in the past to screen print my own label onto ribbon, however this was quite difficult to do and really quite time consuming, and I wasn’t happy with the end result. So in the end I decided to get my labels made for me. There some great companies out there who make labels with your choice of wording and even a motif if you wish, at good prices and you don’t need to buy thousands either!

A little practical question vol 2 - what do you keep in mind when selling on etsy or somewhere else. What would you say to others who are just starting on etsy or need advice?
I still consider myself to be a newbie in the Etsy world, and maybe not qualified to give such advice, but here are my top five tips!:
1) good clear photos are very important, because people cannot physically see or touch your products it is important they look good on screen.
2) make sure you always have shop policies so people know what to expect when they shop from you, in terms of - returns and refunds, delivery etc
3) Try and make your Etsy shop or other online shop reflect you and what your items are about.
4)Promote yourself - EVERYWHERE!!!!
5)Be friendly and approachable as well as professional, and remember to have fun and keep enjoying what you do.

Final question: Do you have something you wish to add here?
If anyone is interested in becoming a ‘Partner in Crime’ they can contact me at criminals@clairelaraine.com.
In September I will be running the first monthly give away on the Partners in Crime blog


Thank you for answering!
These are really great questions, and fun for me to answer, thanks for taking the time!

Tädidele rohkem spämmi!

Kui mina hakkaks spämmi kirjutama, siis ma ei kasutaks nii palju "make penis big" "paris hilton super nakddddd with aliens" pealkirjasid,
vaid
kui vaja niiväga samas klassis neid välja leiutada, siis vähemalt midagi mille sihtgrupp oleks...eee.....tädid?

Väga palju naisi istub kodus ja surfab netis ja
mõni on tööl ja surfab, kõik sekretärid ja emad ja ma ei tea kes veel.
Täiesti avastamata maa spämmi jaoks ju.

Nii et kui sa kunagi millegi sellisega tegelema hakkad,
tee kindlaks, et sa kasutad selliseid pealkirju nagu "ville valo super naked with aliens" ja
.....eee.....
rohkem ei tea :D

See on täiesti tõsine teema, sest iga kord
kui ma gmaili sisse login ja ootusärevalt spami kausta avan siis on seal jälle samad pakkumised ja
ma pean jälle viagrat ja peenise suurendamise oppe ostma.
Mul on kõik riiulid neid täis juba :(

4D kino Lõunakeskuses Tartus

Seda peab nägema :D
Pilet on hommikupoole(1. on kell 12.00) 40 ja õhtupoole 60 eeku,
seansi kestus on umbes 5 või 6 minutit.

Täiesti väärt käik,
lähen varsti uuesti.
Praegu käisin kosmose teemat vaatamas, veel on olemas kaevanduse teema ja
tulemas mere teema (kuuldavasti).


Lähemalt saab ilmselt lugeda Ahhaa lehtedelt või kuskilt,
aga võibolla on endal huvitavam, kui pole enne midagi uurinud eriti.
Nii et ma ei tahaks ka liiga palju ette öelda.

See on juba mõnda aega avatud olnud vist, kuu või paar.
Inimesi on üsna palju, nii et soovitatav on piletid ette broneerida, ühe päeva võrra või nii.
Ma olin enne 12 seal ja osa aegu oli juba siis kinni.
Samuti ei tasu sinna minna pärast šoppamist, sest kotid ja asjad tuleb ühte väiksesse kappi panna.

Window Stickers

These "stickers" are made with a special liquid paint "Glas Line. Window Colour"
I was just testing the colours :)

The Pants of the Century

Oh, and these.
my granny gave me these pants for garden work.
When I found out these are from actual stagnation time
we had to stop everything and test them out immediately!
Who knows what might happen while standing in the garden, so I needed to be prepared.

Couldn’t do much damage though, because I can’t throw my leg any higher,
but my last pants ...didn’t live up to even my standards...when I had to
make a foot print on someone’s back (no violence included!).
So I highly recommend having these for such cases :D
And the testing part didn’t look weird AT ALL :P

And this is my lovely granny. She never sleeps
and is always fixing something:

This year was very generous to us.
I guess she didn't know I hate picking berries.

The Town of Pump – Wells and Roses: Põltsamaa

These pictures are taken in the wine-capital of Estonia – Põltsamaa.
I was just browsing the town the other day.

This castle is built in 13th century. It’s pretty cool. You may not want to go there at night,
because whether a ghost or a guard tells you on a microphone to go away. It’s pretty scary. But the entrance is free during the day and there is a wine cellar and a art gallery there, so it’s worth to check out.

Courtyard looks like this:
Moat from a closer look:

This is the castle from up above.
Found the photo on the town’s homepage.

The church was originally built in 13th century, as the sign told.
I once went to listen a sermon there too. I think the minister spoke very well.
It was interesting to me too, even though I’m not very religious.



And these cute little duckies would bite your fingers off, if you only let them :) I was there for only 10 minutes and they managed to bite me three times. One of them ran after me when we started walking away and bit my trousers. My sister said it was because they were the same colour as the white bread. The duck just couldn’t let this size of a piece of bread to just walk away. Jup. That was probably it.

The town looks like this:

Most of the town is decorated with roses.
It spreads from the local rose garden I guess.
The parks, the streets...

...and even the river is decorated with roses.

And we walked a bit downstream

And this is another bridge over the river.
The newest one. There's no gorge under it,
but it's a very properly shaking chain bridge though:

View from the bridge:

And this is the backyard of Felix, the great food factory.
They have this great camera surveillance there.
I read it from the signs
in every 5m.
But the burglar would probably get lost in the hay
anyway. Double-protection - never fails.