Showing posts with label balloons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label balloons. Show all posts

Friday, 22 May 2020

Hacky sack + Heart Pillow + Freddie Prinze Jr

Life is not linear. Have you noticed? You zig zag from place to place. Memories can drag you backward. You shuttle toward the future pulled along by anxiety. Then just when you think your head might completely spin off you're dropped into a lull-less ocean, completely devoid of ebb and flow. From there you have a choice – float and wait things out, or... you can cup your hands and gently begin swimming in some direction.

I used to be a floater. I still am to some degree, but only when I'm fatigued. When I feel I've floated long enough, I choose a direction, any direction, and I begin to swim. Very rarely do I hit an island, but that doesn't seem to matter. The important thing is that I'm swimming. It's important to balance these things out – rest and swim, rest and swim.

'Cup your hands' and 'swimming' are my metaphors for the work I do, whether that be Content Creation, Illustration, Photography, Design and Doll Making. These jobs are the peg that anchor me in today.

Do you ever feel this way? Do you have an anchor? What activities make you feel whole?




With restrictions beginning to ease, I am once again excited to spruik on about my entry into the incube8r exhibit Lights Camera Fashion. The show date was pushed back to later in the year, and now here we are. This particular exhibit will not have an opening night, but it will be open for a glorious four weeks.



This week on My Poppet Makes I have created for you a 'no sew' heart pillow project. It's super easy and fun for everyone. Head on over to My Poppet Makes to access the template and instructions.



So, who remembers hacky sacks? They've been around for decades in one form or another. Balloon hacky sacks and Freddie Prinze Jr were on trend when I was in high school. And now we can get them back on trend again (Hacky sacks, I mean.). Head over to Kidspot to find out how to make these juggling projectiles.

And here's a little nostalgic appreciation for hacky sacks, abstract performance art and a certain nineties teen crush:

Thursday, 11 October 2012

A Nice Room

Illustration by Melissa Gaggiano.
    On a cold and wet day like this I cannot think of anything nicer than curling up with a bunch of nice books to read, a cup of earl grey tea, a croissant and a bowl of fresh strawberries.
    What about you? What is your perfect wet weather scenario?

Wednesday, 15 February 2012

Admiration, Projects, Ideas and Music

    So what is happening in the world of Melissa? I am reading Neon Angel by Cherie Currie and I am hooked, line and sinker. I am so into it that I have created an ipod playlist that includes Joan Jet, David Bowie, Blondie, Billy Idol, The Divinyls. What is the theme here? Well I guess it's vintage rock mixed with essence of pop - old school baby. 

Neon Angel written by Cherie Currie, with Tony O'Neill

    I am also working on my granny square project - 52 squares down. I just gotta work on that momentum.
    I am brainstorming new photography ideas. And of course Cherie's book has been inspiring me and I have had a whole bunch of fresh ideas burning a hole in my brain since 3 o'clock this morning. So you can imagine I am a bit tired this morning.
    I have saved my first piece for my eventual pinhole camera. It is a baby formula cannister. My next step will be to spray the inside of the can with black matte paint.
    Yonks ago I had a Vogue magazine with this creative fashion shoot involving balloons. I was reminded of the photoshoot when my daughters were playing with balloons the other day. The photography in question was by Sølve Sundsbø and here are some examples from his balloon fashion shoot...

Image by Sølve Sundsbø 


Image by Sølve Sundsbø


Image by Sølve Sundsbø


Image by Sølve Sundsbø


Image by Sølve Sundsbø


Image by Sølve Sundsbø


Image by Sølve Sundsbø


Sunday, 6 July 2008

A Boy and his Basket

Herein is a rough drawing I created a few months ago. I have finally decided to finish the illustration in Photoshop. The boy in the illustration is named Michael, and his pet kitten is called Plop. The idea behind this illustration is that they are flying into space to reach the stars and moon in their little basket. The boy is being adventurous and the kitten is an unwilling companion, so he is a bit scared.