Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from everyone at Anzu!

(the above image is our Holly & Ivy mule card)

The office has been looking very festive for the past month and I thought I'd post a couple of the photographs. I shall be taking a break from the blog until 3rd January. So see you in the New Year!

Inspiration no. 5, Jermyn Street

Whenever I need inspiration for my Men's cards I head to Jermyn street. The Anzu gigolo card above was especially inspired by the classic style of the shops that can be found on Jermyn street

Jermyn street is one of those places that just seems unchanged by time. The shops are staunchly traditional and English and primarily aimed at the Gentleman's market and I always find inspiration for ideas for my men's cards.

This statue of Beau Brummel, the quintessential English dandy and embodiment of elegant sartorialism stands in pride of place. Brummel famously shopped on Jermyn Street in the Regency period, although he would not have bought his boot polish here. He preferred to polish his black riding boots with champagne!

Whilst Savile row (which I also love) remains the place to go for the best suits, Jermyn Street is the street for fine shirts as well as selling gentleman's accessories be it shoe horns, shaving brushes or cigars.

It also has Paxton and Whitfield, which has great cheeses as well as pickled walnuts!

Peacocks

A few years ago the Peacock as an image almost seemed a little bit outdated, almost a little Victorian to be used on anything. Now it's come back in full force and peacocks seem to be everywhere. I love this amazing photo from google images

Unfortunately, there are reflections on the photo above, but I think it's still possible to see how amazing this peacock is in the current window of Kokon Tozai. I also love the peacock scarves and bags Liberty are doing.

Wallpaper magazine & the Berkeley vespa

I had another meeting at the Berkeley this week, and was so excited to see their new delivery scooter that they have put my illustations onto!

I like the pistachio green and pink, and that the front of the scooter says "let them eat cake!"

I was also pleased to see that my designs for the Berkeley were featured in Wallpaper magazine, and that they described me as "a stationery maven"!!

Why not (no. 13)

Why not display your Christmas cards by attaching them to a festive wreath? If you have a shop, the rest of your cards can be laid out below, and the wreath can be used just to draw attention to your collection.

Tiffany at Somerset house

Over the weekend I went to Somerset House. It looked magical with the skating rink and specially decorated Tiffany tree. There is also a Tiffanys cafe, complete with Tiffanys cupcakes.

Whoever came up with the distinctive Tiffany blue is a marketing genius!

Jasmine and I in a winter wonderland inside the Tiffany box.

Anzu for Wellicious

The Wellicious tea has arrived, in packaging designed by Anzu! I couldn't make up my mind which picture to upload so I decided to put all of them on in the end. There are three teas to choose from - relax, invigorating, and beauty detox.

I chose a different colour palette for each of the teas, with illustrations of the different ingredients on each be it rose petals, cornflowers, or lavender. Each tea is topped with the signature Wellicious bow and packaged in manilla bundles, reflecting the natural 100% organic quality of the teas and I love the way it has turned out! Go to www.wellicious.com to buy

Allsopp wedel

This morning as I walked along the street where my office is, I saw these men moving this art installation. The gallery is called Allsopp Wedel and they always have interesting things going on.

They have also exhibited Tracey Snelling's work. Tracey Snelling does amazing miniature replicas of gritty urban scenes, be they city scapes or motel rooms.

The recreation below is one of a street in Istanbul. You can see more of her work on her website www.traceysnelling.com

Portobello road

I am so lucky that Portobello road is just around the corner, and at the weekend I went to the market. I didn't find the picture frames I was looking for, but it was still fun!

Why does vinyl always look so good?

A little Victorian style violet silk posy. It rather reminds me of Audrey Hepburn in the beginning of My Fair lady

Wild roses

These amazing flowers are actually made completely from sugar. My Mum in addition to working for anzu, teaches an art evening class and this is the patient and beautiful work of a student of hers, Pat Robinson.

Why not (no. 12)

We think this Christmas stocking idea is a really nice and different way to draw attention to your Christmas cards (for your shop or home). Jasmine made this stocking out of a couple of anzu brochure covers stuck together. You could use one large piece of card. Draw the shape out on the back, remembering to curve it around the heel and foot to make it look extra cute, and then cut out. Keeping the back facing up, place your chosen cards onto the stocking at random angles (making sure they don't overlap or go over the bottom cut line). Use the cards to indicate how long the slits should be, and where they should go. Place cards in slits, if necessary reinforce the back with extra card, attach the ribbon and give yourself a pat on the back!

Inspiration no. 4 Marianne North

A place I love to go to is the Marianne North gallery at Kew gardens, London. The gallery is in a small quite plain building that doesn't hint at the wealth of work inside. The paintings aren't old masters, but there are some really lovely ones and what really makes it is the collection.

Marianne North was a Victorian naturalist and painter, who, on her father's death, set off around the world painting hundreds of paintings on her travels. She even collected wood panels from everywhere she visited and these decorate the bottom panels in the gallery.

Miss North travelled across many different continents painting a mixture of broader landscapes and in depth florals. Above is a distant view of Mount Fujiyama, Japan and below floral paintings from her trip to India

I find her sheer determination to paint everything she saw and the sheer volume of her work completely inspiring. I also love the way all the paintings are displayed in the gallery - I myself have a huge box containing over a hundred anzu paintings as well as a portfolio full of work and it would be great to see them all displayed at once.

Burning the midnight oil

Sometimes things don't always go to plan! For the last couple of days, I have spent time doing a painting only to decide at the end that I am unhappy with it. I did still like the original drawing however, so I had to trace the whole thing and start from scratch again. Grr. 

I am working to a couple of deadlines so there was nothing for it but to stay up well into the night. Thankfully Jasmine was a partner in crime.

Autumn

Although it is miserable now, I think this autumn has been especially beautiful. Click on the anzu tree above and watch the leaves fall.

I love these intricately carved leaves by sculptor and artist Jen Stark (via thebedlamofbeefy.blogspot.com)