No Need For Photoshop - Get Stencil!

You don't want to miss this!

OK - Last year some of my biz mates got this deal and I missed it, I've been kicking myself ever since BUT the deal is open again, so of course I snapped it up this time!

So what is it?

Stencil is somewhat like Canva, you can make all kinds of posters for all your social media channels.

(This is an affiliate link but I wouldn't be sharing if I didn't thing it was FAB!)

Why is it better than Photoshop and Canva?

Well, Photoshop is great for photo imaging but isn't really making things like posters and it has a hefty price tab.

Canva is similar but is notoriously glitchy and you have to pay for most of the stock images and my biggest gripe is that there is such a limited amount of fonts available.

Canva does have a paid version but it has nothing on the Stencil deal.

So let's get into Stencil... there are a tonne of different templates to use, then you can tweak them to brand them with your own colours and fonts, super easy!

And then... once you have a design set you can duplicate it and auto resize it to twitter, Pinterest etc. Takes a couple of clicks, sometimes you might need to move or resize the text a bit but it is done in a matter of seconds...

Facebook:

Twitter:

And if quote posters float your boat, there a loads of quotes already uploaded, just search for your topic, pick one that you like and select it. Then add an image from the thousands of free stock images...

It has some other bells and whistles that I haven't had chance to play with yet!

I made this quick video to show you inside, this is the first time I had logged in so you will see how easy it is to pick up!

The deal is through Appsumo which means it will only be up for a limited time or until they have filled their quota.

Don't do a Jo, and kick yourself for missing the deal. It's LIFETIME access, no recurring payments!

Get the Stencil Deal before it disappears!

Poking Around in Shibuya

When I was looking for somewhere to spend out art date I spotted a free Damien Hurst exhibit, I figured it would only be small as it was free so kept it as a back up. From the map it looked like the place was just behind the station, it wasn't too hard to find! It was in the creative space on the 8th floor of the Hachi building.

before we found Damien's work, we came across a small exhibit of Japanese puppets, we had fun deciding what the puppets were thinking...

Then we found the Damien Hurst room, there were just a handful of prints, personally, not impressed. Especially after just seeing Murakami's work Hurst looked like a 5 years olds doodles in comparison.

We had a wander around the rest of the floor, there was a food exhibit for the 47 prefectures, not a lot going on to be honest but the set up was nice.

Then we decided to go and find something to eat and went down to the basement, the floor with all the omiyage, one thing Japan does so well is the displays... look at this chocolate...

And these were all spices, we actually spent a lot of time wandering around oooing and ahhhing but didn't buy anything! There did look like some nice cafes and restaurants on the 7th floor too, maybe we will check them out next time!

Very, Very Dangerous...

Have you seen what Spoonflower have gone and done? Make your own wallpaper and decals - removable wallpaper that is! Removable, just think of all those people in rented accommodation that have no say on the vile 70's brown flowery wallpaper that classes with the purple carpet (ahem, drudging up memories of my student digs there!)

Image: Spoonflower

I can't wait to try this out, I went to bed with my brain buzzing last night but I really don't have the time this week to start this must-do-right-now project!

unless....I quit sleeping and eating.....

Make them fall in love part IV

Here we are, Part IV of this mini bloggy series. Here are Part I, Part II and Part III.

One of the questions I got which started these series was 'How can I increase my readership' and well, there isn't just one answer, hence the whole series! You need to have quality content, you need to share (don't just write about me, me, me), your blog needs to look good so that when a random person clicks through they are more likely to stay and if they like it so much, sign up for your email list/RSS feed there and then.

So, now you have your blog looking all fine and dandy you need to get readers to the blog, there are many ways to do this but here are a few to get you going...

Quality content
If you posts are badly written, irrelevant or just downright boring, no one is going to want to come back plus no one is going to want to share what you have written. I know I have said this before, but it is important!

Share, share, share
Share your knowledge, share your finds, share information, share your recipes, share your thoughts, share your hobbies, share what ever is relevant to the theme of your blog and encourage your blog readers to share your content too. Other bloggers are more likely to share your content if you are going to do the same for them.

Connect
Using social media tools such as Facebook or twitter, connect with other bloggers, leave useful comments of other peoples posts, if there is something you love, tell them, if something was helpful, tell them. Bloggers do read their comments and they do notice those who comment on a regular basis, use this to build up a relationship. Once you have a relationship it is much easier to ask about guest posting etc.

Listen to your readers
Sometimes you write what you think is an amazing post and you get no feedback, it is like a kick in the ribs, other times you put up a post that had no special content - or so you thought and the comments come flooding in. Listen to what your readers have to say and make a point to answer any questions or queries.

Keep it consistent
When I started out I blogged a couple of times a week and slowly it build up to everyday (I actually schedule some posts so I am not sitting here every day!). Last year, after the quake I was writing far more posts because I was putting information out there as I came across it but it was exhausting. Those big blogs that post 15 times a day - they do that with a team of writers and the recycle posts from their archives, us one-man shows can't keep up with that. So, decide how many times you will post a week and stick to it, I decided a while ago that I would try and post every day and here I am!

There are a lot of other ways to increase traffic to your blog, but it is not just traffic you want, you want people to hang about and come back for me, he is a list of ideas to get you going...

• share, share, share
• get featured (guest blog) on a bigger blog
• invite guests on your blog
• join blog hops
• join up with other bloggers and write a blog series between you (driving traffic from one blog to the next)
• if you still have a small blog join some weekly linkys. I usually join the Muffin Tin Meal linky. 
• once you have a following then run your own linky.
• run a contest or giveaway (great info on how to at Superlucky)
• organise a swap
• write useful comments on other peoples blogs
• build up relationships with other bloggers especially those at the same level & interest as your own.
• join online communities where you share the same audience.
• make sure your email tagline has your blog address in it
• make sure all your social media sites have a link to your blog
• make bloggy business cards to give to new people you meet.
• make good use of pinterest but don't just pin your own stuff pin lots of other peoples things too.
• when someone makes a comment be sure to reply
• use social media and spread your content around BUT make sure that your tweets for example are not all 'read my post' tweets or you will lose followers.
• install Google analytics and check where your readers are coming from. Pinterest drives the most traffic to my blog at the moment but it wouldn't if my photos were rubbish!
• give credit where credit is due and link to other peoples blogs and posts.
• survey your readers
• invite readers to comment and express their opinions
• be consistent, in your posts, in your social media networking, in answering questions and comments.

I think that just about wraps it up, if you have found this mini series helpful please share it with your friends, family, Facebook pals, twitter followers, next-door neighbours dog. I would love to hear your feedback, pop it in a comment below.

My head might implode!

I want you to imagine a place full or artists, dancers, musicians, crafters, designers, steam punkers, glass blowers, jewelry designers, paper makers, potters, candle makers, soap makers throw in a good handful of  people in costume and a good sprinkling of nutters put them all under one roof in one of the coolest cities in the world and what do you have?

Design Festa!

This time last year was just a couple of months after the quake and it wasn't nearly as busy as yesterday, the stalls were sold out and there was creativity oozing from every section of the hall. I always enjoy watching the amazing creative live artists at work. Ebi-kun always likes looking out for the 'strange people' as he calls them, people in costume that is, yesterday there were plenty about and daddy ebi always enjoys sampling the imported real ale!

top left: photographer HAGIRI,
bottom right: Tawianese Artist Mr.Ogay

I don't have all the info to credit all the pictures I took, I have no idea who the yellow and green fellas are but Ebi-kun thought it was hysterical that their noses pulled off. What bemuses me that people people hand out their cards but then the web info on it is wrong, surely if you are there to network at least make sure your card info is up to date!

Anyway... there is an amazing array of handmade goodness going on, too much maybe, I can never decide what to buy and usually end up buying nothing - and regretting it by the time I get home.

top left: doop top right: glass asobi tom
bottom left: candy fish

There are a few stalls which I didn't think were suitable for Ebi-kun so we steered him away from there and there was a lot of just weird and wonderful stuff too which left you thinking why? or how? Art that makes you think!

top right Junklaw

I also love meeting lovely artists such as Chiaki, take a look at those pictures just above her head, they are silhouettes  but also beautiful fish. She explained that they are made using wax crayon then painted with black on top and then you scrap away the black. Something I did many times as a child and have done with Ebi-kun but she takes it to a whole new level.

Ebi-kun was drawn to any stall that had people showing off their skills such as the hanko maker and the woman carving a water melon - might have to try my hand at that which they come into season. And as if all that isn't enough there were also live performances ranging from fashion shows to dance inside and a rock stage outside

All in all it was a great day but my head was banging when I got home, too much creative stimulation in one go I think! 

So, what got your creative juices flowing this weekend?

make them fall in love - blogging guide pt1

This week it was my fifth year blogaversay! Whoo-hoo, doesn't time fly?

I usually do something special for it but this year I thought I would do something a little different. I have had a few of emails recently asking for advice on blogging and I know when you first start out it is really hard to keep the momentum going. So I thought I would share what I do and why and maybe it will help those of you who are blogging or want to start a blog.

Once upon a time...
I started this blog initially for friends and family back home, I wanted to share what Ebi-kun was up to and we were just starting to build a house so that was my goal when I started out. But, the blog seemed to take a life of it's own, soon I was getting people I didn't know leaving comments or emailing me, it freaked me out somewhat at first but I realised I loved sharing what we do.

I have a lot of blogs in my reader, some are purely eye-candy, some I read if I have time and a handful are the must reads. Looking at the must reads I would say these are mostly blogs I have been reading for a long time, I feel connected to the writer, we probably comment on each others blogs or tweet each other. They almost always have something interesting to say and have a good sense of humour.

I would like to think that the same goes for my readers but I do know a chunk of my traffic just come for the free tutorials or Montessori posts and that is fine by me, if they come often enough they will start to hang around for every post.

When I started writing this and realised it would end up being an epic post, 3 miles long so I have broken it down into bit sized chunks and it will run as a mini series. So welcome to....

First and foremost you need to know WHY you are blogging or WHY you want to start a blog.

If you checked the last box maybe you need to have a re-think.
Why do I do it? Because I love it! I love sharing the crafts we do, the recipes, the crazy ideas I have, our sometimes surreal life in Japan, my love of Montessori and helping kids develop their imagination. 

Once you have your why, the rest is just a technicality.

Next you need a platform something like blogger or wordpress, you don't need to go out and buy a fancy website site since many of them are free. I started off with blogger and on a whole very happy with it. We have occasional hiccups where I assume the little google umpa-lumpas are tinkering in the background but generally I am happy with it. I have recently started using wordpress (for my soon to be revealed new project) and found that pretty straight forward and easy to use too.

Now, when someone new clicks through to your blog you have 3 seconds, yes 3 seconds to make a good impression. That means first impressions count for a lot so let's start by taking a look at design...

Think carefully about your blog design, template and colors. 

• Take a look at your favourite blogs and at some of the big blogs out there, take note of their design, I think you will find that all the biggies all have a clean and simple look.
• A light background with dark text is much easier to read than the other way round and green or pink text on a black background? Please leave that to Emo teenagers!
• Limit your colour palette, you don't want your reader to feel like they are on an acid trip when they visit you blog! All the top brands have a limited palette and they do so for a reason, they also pick colours that compliment each other. Now, colour theory is a BIG topic, if you want to learn more google will turn up a lot of info for you. If not, stick with the colours in the templates on your blogging platform, or if you do change them then make a note of the colour you used and stick with it, for example the hex code for 'my' blue is #8FDCEC
• Limit the use of fonts, pick a couple and stick with them. Use the 'fancy' font for the titles but the main bulk of your text use a nice, ease to read font. The standard fonts offered are the ones that most of us are used to, they are easy on the eyes and will keep attention for longer.
• There are a lot of arguments for and against justified text which I am not going to get bogged down in, I would say pick either fully justified or left justified text and stick with it. I use fully justified just because I feel it makes the blog look neater and I find it easier to read. Having text centred is good for image credits but reading a lot of text like that makes you want to go cross-eyed because it is difficult for your eyes to scan the text.
• Remember to break long pieces of text up with paragraphs.
• Finally, keep it consistent, when a reader returns you want them to feel at home. Think about your local supermarket, doesn't it just drive you nuts when they start moving the shelves around? Readers want to know where everything is so they feel secure and nice and cozy.

That just about wraps it up for today, I will have part II ready for you next week. If you found this useful please share it with your friends and before you go, I would like to know WHY you blog or if you are thinking about starting one WHY you want to start one. Pop it in a comment down below!

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Sweeties

This is the post where I post far too many pictures of a sweetie/candy/lolly box! But just look at them, how cute are they? and it gets better.....

Of course, this little red panda is my favourite, you know I have a soft spot for red pandas. Now, as if the packaging isn't cute enough, just wait to see what else the box does....

Carefully open the box and take out the sweeties....

Pop the sweeties into the back of the box....

Close it up, then carefully...

Pull down the flap...

Put the box down... and your little red panda will poop a grape flavoured chocolate (which incidentally tastes foul but who cares when the packaging is so darn cute?

Shoe woes....

As a foreigner in Japan I am quite lucky that I have small feet and that Japanese shoe sizes fit me just great! A lot of of bigger footed friends have a nightmare trying to buy new shoes. The problem I do have is deciding which shoes I like best. Unfortunately, this time I have found a pair I love but sadly the price I do not love! Now, if each of my blog subscribers donates ¥22 I would be able to afford to buy them, what do you think, got ¥22 spare ;o)

So, they are still in the shop but I really needed some new shoes before the ones I have fall off my feet, I spotted these yesterday, they were in the sale so only cost me ¥900, not bad, although I don't expect them to last very long at that price. They will do for now, until I have saved up my yennies!

I spent all last night cutting out, it is a half day at yochien today so I am heading to the studio to try and get as much done as possible before Ebi-kun gets home. November is a bit of a nightmare month, trying to get all my Christmas presents bought and sent home, custom orders and Ebi-kuns annoying yochien schedule, I am sure he has more days off this month than he actually spends at yochien, oh well...

Design Festa Vol. 34

Well Design Festa was amazing again. This time we talked daddy-ebi into coming with us, I think he had trouble taking it all in, although he is a designer he designs industrial mixing machines so it is all very much to do with the way things work not whether they look good! He said that even though he works in design he had no idea about all the colourful, crazy, weird stuff, it was like a different world. My world! All this crazy stuff is what it is like in my head all the time! 

Be warned, This is going to be a picture heavy post, I can never narrow it down to just one or two pictures because of the vast area of artists showcasing their work. If I am able to I have linked to the artists web page but I didn't manage to get info for all the artists.

There are several artists painting live on these enormous walls, it is great to pop back at the end of the day to see how they have progressed. 

momochokkiri
this girls website is really cute!

They also have a dark area so that artists that rely on a lack of light can show off their goods, this whales was amazing, all glass pieced together.

su-ho san

There are also lots of random people dressed up and walking around, these two girls were funny and loving having their picture taken.

Each section has a theme, illustration, zakka, installation art etc. but you never know what will be at the next stall or round the next corner, like these rather amusing chairs!

The only real rules that applies to the festival is that whatever you are presenting is your own original work, there was a lot of work that I loved and quite a bit that was just, well, strange...

Not only are there the stalls where some people are just showcasing their work others selling things, there is also an outdoor and an indoor stage plus people spotted around and about playing instruments too.

I must admit, I am guilty often of thinking in my head 'oh. I could make that' but then there are somethings when I think 'how on earth do they have the patience to do that?' This was one, the whole dragon was about 5 foot tall and made out of paper, amazing.

We watched this punk band for a couple of tracks but we spent most of the time trying to decided if one of the groupies was male or female!

These little fellas seem to be popular with the blokes, I'm not sure what they are but there were several similar stalls selling their own version or design.

black rabbit

The boys got tired so I left them to watch a fashion show and some Bali island dancing whilst I had a mooch...

When I came back for them I spotted these people with their backs painted.

This was one of my favourite stalls and of course I am now kicking myself for not buying something, just look how cute these little dolls are! They remind me of something from when I was little but I can't think what.

cokets

Each time I have been I have tried to pay attention to how the stall owners are displaying their work - which stalls work the best but often I get distracted, there is just too much great stuff going on...

happado

These fish were amazing, the girl I chatted to said the smaller fish take up to two years and this one and the other bigger fish take up to 5 years. They are real fish and somehow they dye the bones and cartilage, I couldn't get a shot of the display because everyone was trying to get a close look at the fish but it was pretty cool!

New World Transparent Specimens

One of the great things about the festa is meeting all the weird and wonderful people, some people seem to hide at the back of their stall others are out there and in your face, some artists just sit and carry on painting/sketching/sewing or whatever it is they do. So, the next one, I will get myself a stall (I missed it this time because all the stalls were taken :o( )

New Skills Festival - designing fabric with Monda

I first stumbled across Monda's blog a long time ago when following a link for monster softies and ended up staying, it has been great watching her grow as it were and delve more seriously into the world of surface design, today Monda is going to take us through the process from sketch through to fabric printed at Spoonflower.

Creating a design for fabric by Monda 

In this post I'm going to walk you through a very basic version of the design process used in creating a simple surface pattern design, which can then be printed onto fabric.

Every design I create starts out as a pencil sketch in my sketch book. I usually have a idea in my head of what I want to create, but having reference material is also crucial to the process.

The design above is based on a drawing of a dried poppy seed head which I collected from my garden. I also cross referenced this with images of poppy seed heads which I found on the internet.

Once I have enough sketches, I then pick the ones that I think might work well in a pattern and I draw them digitally in illustrator.

At this stage, I also chose the colours for my designs. Once I'm happy with my digital drawings I lay them out and duplicate them to form a pattern. There can be lots of moving around of different elements within the design at this stage, but that's the beauty of digital design - it really gives a lot of flexibility and scope for creating multiple design layouts, until you find one that works well for you. I've chosen to go for a simple linear design. It's important to think about spacing and how the design might look when it repeats. You'll see that this design is currently in a square format, so imagine what it would look like if you placed another identical design next to the original one.

Once the design is complete it is then ready to be printed onto a fabric. There are various printers out there who print onto fabrics but I can definitely recommend www.spoonflower.com Spoonflower is a US website which can be used by anyone who wants to create (and sell) their own designs on fabric - no minimum yardage is required, so you can order swatches, fat quarters or yards of your design onto various different fabrics. I've uploaded my fabric design to spoonflower so all I need to do now is buy a swatch and wait for delivery:

Spoonflower is not only great for printing your own designs. You can also purchase fabric by other designers too, and unlike many fabric shops and stores, you can choose the fabric you'd like to have the design printed onto. Quilting weight cotton, Jersey cotton, Canvas/Linen cotton, and Silk are just a few of the options available.

You can check out Monda's Spoonflower designs here (and mine are here) and she also has an Etsy shop selling all kinds of monstery goodness.