the green gal

Top photography tips from A Beautiful Mess

One of my favourite blogs to read is A Beautiful Mess by Elsie Larson. I started reading Elsie's blog a few years ago and it's definitely my go-to site when I need a lift, a blast of energy or inspiration, or just want to look at pretty pictures! Recently Elsie has posted several features on photography which I've found super useful and so thought I'd share them with you so you can benefit from her expertise too:

5 tips for lifestyle photography

5 tips for great indoor photos

5 tips for great outdoor photos

Photographing with backlight and sun flare

5 tips for better self-portraits

Photography: 10 things not to do

iPhone app mixology

Elsie's camera list

The last link is to a post all about Elsie's camera collection, she uses a lot of different fun and serious cameras to take a variety of different snaps and until I read the post I didn't know some of the cameras existed!

If you haven't come across A Beautiful Mess before do check it out, it's a brilliant blog packed with DIYs, tips, vintage fashion ideas, recipes and loads more with a real insight into Elsie's creative life and the store she runs with her sister, Red Velvet.

PS If you haven't yet take a look at this giveaway I'm running and be sure to enter!

Lots of lovely new stuff + a giveaway!

We've been doing some work on the green gables website and finally I can show you the changes made and the new products added!

First up, to make life a bit easier the bunting and stationery sections now have sub-sections, so you can easily see the different types of paper bunting…

and the different types of stationery…

As you can see from the first pic there are a couple of new lengths of bunting! There is flag paper bunting featuring my union jack illustration, perfect for Diamond Jubilee and Olympics celebrations…

and also a new shape of plantable wildflower paper bunting so if you're not a heart person you can opt for flags instead!

While we're on the subject of plantables I've made an alternative to the heart gift tags – luggage label-style tags cut from the same wildflower seed paper…

And as if that isn't enough (I know, it just keeps coming!), some of my hand illustrated patterns and designs are now available as iPhone, iPad and laptop cases and skins at Society6.com!

These covers and skins are only available from the Society6.com site in America at the moment (but they do ship worldwide), I'm working on getting them made in the UK and will let you know as soon as I do.

Phew! So, to celebrate all this new loveliness, and because the sun has done such a good job of shining this week, I'm having a giveaway! One lucky reader will win an extra long length of the new plantable wildflower paper flag bunting (that's five metres long with 24 flags!). It can be hung indoors or outdoors (just don't let it get rained on) to add a touch of natural gorgeousness to your home, and when you're done with it, tear up the paper, plant it in soil and wait for English wildflowers to grow! 

To enter you can:

:: leave a comment on this post

:: like the green gables page on facebook

:: like, share or leave a comment on the giveaway post on the green gables facebook page

:: follow me @thegreengal on twitter

:: retweet my giveaway tweet on twitter

:: sign up to receive the green gables newsletter on the website

I'm so sorry but this giveaway can only be open to people living in the UK as I can't send wildflower seeds out of the country. My next competition will be open to the world, promise!

The giveaway closes at 9pm GMT on Monday 2 April, good luck!

Tutorial: How to make a bookmark

It's been a little while since I shared a tutorial and this one is a speedy little number! In just a few steps you can make a lovely stitched paper bookmark so you'll never lose your place in your chosen read again.

1. All you need is a piece of A5 paper (I used handmade paper made from recycled cotton rag so it has a lovely texture and an uneven edge), a piece of leftover ribbon, and either a needle and thread or a sewing machine.

2. Fold your piece of A5 paper in half lengthways and sew all the way around the edge in a contrasting coloured thread, to sew the two sides together. I did this on a sewing machine as it's super speedy but you can just as easily sew it by hand. Punch a hole at one end of your bookmark.

3. Thread a piece of ribbon through the hole and knot it. Voila! You have a pretty little bookmark! You could further embellish the bookmark by embroidering or stamping or whatever you like to make it your own.

I hope you found this tutorial useful!

PS In case you missed it, check out the desktop wallpaper designs to download from Thursday's palette pingpong post :)

Lovely Monday

Love this video (found via the caroline johansson), it's a bit like a book version of Toy Story :) Enjoy.

 

Palette pingpong no43

Who's up for a spot of palette pingpong? You are? Great stuff.

So, today I have been challenged by Kirsty to come up with a palette from a super Spring-y pic which you can see over at Kirsty's blog, ginger and george. I just love the image, so pretty, and this is the palette I pulled:

It's funny how you look at a photo and see certain colours as prominent but when you start investigating other shades come to the fore and grab your attention.

So, in the spirit of trying new things I thought I'd design a couple of desktop wallpapers using this palette, and offer them up to you. Here's a scattered bobbin version:

and with a dark background:

and then a more orderly version:

which has a dark background version too:

Save the images (or ctrl+click for Mac or right click for PC to set as desktop) and swap and change your desktop wallpaper to your heart's content! If you'd like to share these with others that'd be lovely, just be sure to link back to this original post, thank you! 

Lovely Monday

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How lovely is this table setting? The colours, the flowers, the books, the crockery – just beautifully laid out. This image is from a page in the latest edition of Sweet Paul magazine – a beautiful online magazine that is so packed with features, recipe and style advice, all illustrated with stunning photography, that I feel a little bad that I get to read it for free! You can find the Sweet Paul design blog here and the Spring 2012 issue here, prepare to be enthralled…

Who loves a blank page in a new notebook?

I do. I love notebooks. I collect them and look at them and touch them and wait for ages before I blemish the clean, blank pages with pen or pencil. And that's part of the reason why I've wanted to design my own range of notebooks for so long. Plus I wanted to create notebooks that are gorgeous, top quality and filled with recycled paper. So I have!

There are six designs to choose from, all of which match other stationery already available at the green gables – note cards, postcards, wrapping paper and decorative tape. The notebooks are A5 size, have 32 pages (64 sides) of recycled white plain paper with a thick FSC paper cover covered in my illustrated patterns. The corners are rounded and inside you'll find a matching stripy design for a little extra oomph. Plus, they're printed and finished by my lovely printers who are all of one mile down the road from me. Eco-friendly, locally-made, British – yay!

And you can find them all at the green gables online store. 

So, what do you think? 

Character and pattern designer

That's how Ian Dutton describes himself and I think it's pretty spot on when you see the brilliant illustrations and patterns he's created…

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I love the clouds in the first picture so much, so simple and so perfect. Ian's illustration style is really engaging and I can see how his designs work on so many items from wallpaper to pyjamas to stationery. 

I recently came across Ian's work while wandering the virtual corridors of the interweb (he caught my eye not just because of his designs but also because my unmarried name is Utton and many a time I've been called Dutton, Sutton, Button etc, when people couldn't believe there wasn't a consonant at the start of my surname. Now I'm a Treanor I have different pronounciation challenges…) and you can find his website here, and he's on twitter too. 

I'm not competitive

And I'm really not. But recently I entered this competition by Tigerprint with two greeting card designs. I'm trying to push myself to try new things and stretch myself and so thought I'd have a stab at entering a competition. And I was pleased I did because, although I didn't win (you can see the winner here), one of my designs was among the shortlisted final 18 out of 248 entries! Here's the design that made the final cut, in case you fancy a nosey…

It was great fun trying something new and playing with greeting card messages and designs, and I'm rather chuffed I made it into the final selection. What have you done to stretch yourself recently?

Lovely Monday

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I love this sitting room nook. I have no grey or yellow in my life – not in my wardrobe or my furnishings – and yet I love how it works in this room. But my favourite thing is the skinny shelf with artwork, letters and frames all casually (yet artfully, of course) jostling for position. Such a great way to display plus super easy to change things around when the mood takes you. It looks so relaxed and stylish, those comfy cushions and blankets are calling me to snuggle in… lovely.