the show is hung!

Thanks to action Timmy for helping out. Lamington Drive is a cardboard gallery so I really wanted to paint something on the walls. You'll have to come to see the end result. Got a nice write up here too. Come say hi if you come along.

paintbrushes down....

...and hanging the show tomorrow.

know your product

Hope to see you there, Thurs June 2nd at Lamington Drive.

all kinds of wrong

I've been looking at lots of old ads for inspiration for my exhibition and came across this! Sizes 2-12, really? Bet Ivy would look saucy in this??!

Prints and patterns

More Surtex designs featured on Print and Pattern.

Dreaming in patterns

A few months of dreaming in patterns, and I have my folio ready for a massive licensing show which opens this Sunday in New York. My agent will be spruiking my wares and with any luck we might get a bite. I'd love to jump on a plane to check it out (any excuse to go to New York right, and to leave this hideous weather!) but I gotta get back to the studio and paint. Here are a couple of my fave designs. Oh and if you happen to be in New York from the 15th- 17th, checkout Surtex Booth #446 and say hello to Fran and Michael.

exhibition

It's been busy here in the house of neryl. I've been putting together a folio for a licensing fair (more about that later) and painting towards my solo exhibition at Jacky Winter on June 2nd...eek. Kind of polar opposites really. Here's a painting sneak peek.

Buy or the chick goes

Found this 1967 ad for Drummond sweaters. Nothing like a bit of blatant sexist advertising. I'm surprised they don't have men in those jumpers anyway?

for the love of ivy

So there has been big birthday number one in our house, in which I had to discover my inner baking goddess. There have been family visitors (one very excited Nanna), painting, illustrating and a garden that is just about complete. I promise to be back soon.


(These are the cupcakes I baked which everyone thought looked like boobs. Someone even said, 'I didn't realise this was an erotic party...ha')

Australian and NZ Illustration Awards

The results are in and I scored a couple of bronze awards for these illustrations! One for advertising (Breadmakers CD) and one for self promotion. See all the results here and they will also be published in a special supplement of Australian Creative Magazine, due to hit the news stands this week.

trailer trash

Check out these ace vintage mobile homes found via Tiki Lisa. Now that is my kinda holiday home. I would so want to stay in this caravan park. Complete with white picket fences and kooky gardens. And look at the interior in the advertisement! Lisa took the photos in Pomona, CA on Route 66 at the Foothill Village Mobile Home Park. You can check out more on her flickr site.



This pic found here. How good is the two storey trailer. LUXURY!

jsbx

This Sat 15th at the HiFi, Jon Spencer play 'Orange' in it's entirety. Yay! Could you get a better song to start an album? We both bought tix for each other as Xmas pressies so we have two spare tix to sell. Support band is the excellent Super Wild Horses...any takers?

happy holidays y'all

Xmas came and went so fast and I didn't quite get around to a Xmas tree, so this antique carved wooden deer head became it. It's one of a pair bought back from Bali. We always regret not buying travel momentoes, so went for it and spent the last day walking around trying to find suitcases to fit them into....ha. The carvings are Javanese and they would have sat either side of a house to keep the bad spirits away.

garden

It's been a long process but we are finally in the midst of landscaping our garden (just to make things more hectic before Xmas). Think mid century Palm Springs with organic shapes, crazy paving, rock features and some nice lawn for Ivy to crawl about on. Here are some inspiration pics. I'll let you know if we came anywhere close...minus the spectacular views!

rockstars and smoke

This was a fun Buxom job illustrated a while ago for the inner rock chick. Think 'the Runaways' meets 80's glam. I just noticed it's now being sold in the US here.




Plus more products released, Samantha's Smoky Eye kit available also in the US here.

gift swap

If you're wondering why I'm a bit slack on the blog front these days, it's because work has been busy, we've had family stay and my 9 month old is taking up more time especially now she's crawling (which is cute but tiresome).

So I'll try and post a few things to make up for it! A few weeks ago Beci and I did a gift swap. I sent a little folksy embroidery her way and in return this cute yellow fellow turned up. Aint blogland swell?

the balaclava blues

I heard some very annoying news about my neighbourhood since illustrating Balaclava for the Design Files calendar. As it turns out I need to add more coffee cups and ditch those records. Yep, Wall is taking over the music store Second Spin. I'm totally bummed. Wall (apparently) offered more bucks to the landlord and they succumbed. The high rent on the strip has already seen the Asian grocery and other small businesses disappear. That's what the strip needs, more cafes! While we're at it let's add some more chemists, bakeries and $2 stores.

the design files calendar

Design Files have joined forces with Jacky Winter to produce the Neighbourhood Calendar launching next week! Twelve Australian illustrators were asked to draw their neighbourhood. I was lucky enough to scribble for East St Kilda/Balaclava. More info here on the project and the artists involved.

Come to the launch next Thurs 18th at Lamington Drive 6pm. Calendars selling for $33 and A2 prints also available for sale. Preorders here.

ode to breasts

Latest fun editorial illustration for Readers Digest story, 'Ode to Breasts'. As posted on the Jacky Winter Peter-Peter. I seemed to have carved a niche as 'boob girl'. That's fine by me. Some pre job scribbles below too.

spring clean and show

You know it's time for a studio clean up when a friend drops by and says 'What the hell has been happening in here!!' But the other good reason is that I needed a clean(ish) space to get painting. That's right folks, for those who have been asking (and waiting patiently), an exhibition has been organised for June next year at the new Lamington Drive gallery. Hoorah!

find o the week

It's been crazy town in the neryl household of late. I've been super busy with work and projects, none of which I can post just yet. So when I need some time out, I pop into my local op shop and find this, a Japanese music pull down doggie toy! It's not in great working order but couldn't resist the cuteness.

ebay treats

Picked up this 'Girls from Man' calendar from 1965. It will hang next to my 1966 version. Nice! And yes that girl is wearing a cling wrap bikini, wrapped in plastic ala Laura Palmer. Girls get your Glad rags on.

chicks dig records..yes we do

Don't you just love it when you find something awesome whilst browsing the internet for something else? Well this LP cover lover blog is the ticket. With subheads like "Chicks with Guitars', "Legs', and 'Chicks dig records', I could be here all day but I'm busy so it's very distracting.

ace finds

My latest vintage kiddy finds. Two Chinese squeaky toys (love the manga fluoro deer), a cute doll and this ace weird, home made (60's?) humpty dumpty toy with houndstooth jacket and vinyl Flinstones hair. Hilarious! I love it, lets hope Ivy does too. Although she better not play with it too much and ruin it.