Tea with Jeri.

I first came across the work of Jeri Landers when I saw her fabric designs several years ago. This lead me to her website and later her blog at Hopalong Hollow Gazette.Over the years we have become better acquainted but distance has not allowed us to meet, however let that not be an obstacle. Today we are taking tea together and invite you to join us, so pull up a chair and prepare to be charmed by this amazingly creative lady.

How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

My tea of choice is Red Rose, a simple black tea. Since 1969 they have placed a small porcelain figurine inside the tea box, some are quite sweet, and I like the tradition. I take mine strong and very sweet, please. I love this tea cup, because it is covered in acorns.

If you could choose anyone, past, present or future, who would be joining us for tea?

Our tea party would include the writer James Herriot, (he would delight us with his marvelous animal tales), Anton Pieck, Dutch Illustrator and master of meticulous detail and perfect perspective... (Perspective is my nemesis; maybe he could give me a few tips). And last but not least, the beloved Beatrix Potter. How she would delight in the fact that her "little books for small hands" are still in print, over 100 years later! But, I would actually love to talk to her about her sheep, because I have sheep as well... in fact, one of them is named Beatrix.

Will you tell us a little about your background in art and design?

My only formal art training was an oil painting course, straight out of High School. I learned 2 things: Oil paints are very expensive and I do not like using them. We were required to turn in 3 canvases at the end of the class and I turned in 3 eggs. Really, I did. I painted miniature gardens upon the surface of blown out eggs using model car paints. My teacher was impressed and I passed the class. Aside from that, trial and error have been my constant guides. I probably do everything the wrong way, but it seems to work out for me.
Growing up in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado was perfect for an animal and nature lover and I spent many years creating realistic wildlife art, until I discovered Traditional Folk art, and taught myself German and Swiss style Scherenschnitte and Early American - Painted Papercutting



This was a complete flip from realism, with a naive look and a folky feel. Over the years, I’ve utilized watercolor and papercutting for the basis of much of my work, including a line of greeting cards and lithographs. I also “grow” papercut gardens.



My art is an odd combination of folkart, realism and illustration. A few years ago, influenced by my love of beautiful storybooks, I wrote and illustrated a book about a character on one of my greeting cards, a rabbit named Hopalong Jack. During the year it took to illustrate the book, I wrote 8 additional stories and Hopalong Hollow was born. Nowadays, I spend most of my art-life working on these books, which is pure joy!



Where are you based and does it influence your work?

Twenty-one years ago, we bought a 40 acre homestead with a rundown century old farmhouse in East Tennessee. My husband and I have spent years bringing it back to life. We’ve filled the property with cottage gardens and all creatures great and small, everything from donkeys to peacocks. It is here that I get my inspiration, my models and my stories. It is the world of Hopalong Hollow.

What have you been doing/working on today?

I am finishing up a book illustration, here-


I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?

We started with tea, so I guess we should end with another cup poured from the acorn pot. This is one of the latest illustrations I have completed for new book. Thank you so much for inviting me!



Thanks for coming all this way and for sharing your world with us. I hope it won't be too long before you visit again. Your work is a delight. I especially love your paper cuttings.

HURRY! HURRY! Book Giveaway and two interviews.

I am having a very lazy week, my blog friends are doing all the work for me! I have two online interviews; the first about art licensing and you can read it here on Alex Colombo's art blog The Moon from my Attic

Secondly, for a chance to win a copy of my book "White is the Moon" all you have to do is visit "Good Books for Young Souls" where I have been interviewed by Wendy.

To enter the "White is the Moon" giveaway all you need to do is leave a comment on Wendy's blog, following the links and leave a comment but please HURRY because the giveaway finishes on Thursday. Please note Wendy can only ship to a USA address. However,I will be hosting my own giveaway on this blog next week open to everyone.

You can also try out the "Look inside feature" in the Amazon shop to give you more idea about the book.

Thank you so much Alex and Wendy and good luck everyone.

Tea with Frances.

I have on my bookcase, nestling between the works of Gennady Spirin and Cicely Mary Barker, a small collection of sumptuously illustrated books by another gifted illustrator of equal stature by the name of Frances Tyrrell. She is one of those artists whose work deserves to be more widely known, so I decided to invite her round for a cuppa for a chance to get to know her a little better. We hope you will join us.



How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

Thank you so much for inviting me. Hot, milky and sweet is how I like my tea please, and in a bone china mug or a cup and saucer – perhaps one of those beautiful mugs with a Valerie Greeley design?.

( Blushes, I did not pay her to say that! )

If you could choose anyone, past, present or future, who would be joining us for tea?

William Morris, to humbly hear whatever he would care to say about art, design, nature, literature and inspiration. If it were possible to invite one or two more I would include Arthur Rackham and Kay Nielsen, and I would love to have tea with Charles Kingsley too, and ask him for a story.



Will you tell us a little about your background in art and design?

I grew up with beautifully illustrated books in the house, second-hand volumes that my mother collected. I remember in particular a gorgeous edition of The Idylls of the Kings, and a charming nursery rhyme book from the 1920's, all of which fired my appreciation for design, detail and romance. I took fine arts at university but had to learn the illustrators' trade in the field, first with a major greeting card company and then with book publishers here and abroad.



Where are you based and does it influence your work?

Oakville, Ontario is my home, and my house and upstairs studio are just a block up the street from the lake. I have always lived in suburbs, with sidewalks on the one hand and on the other a glimpse of fairyland in nearby woods and fields. The long winters here can seem straight out of Hans Anderson's Snow Queen. As a youngster I was enchanted by the beautiful, complex frost patterns on windows and, like Anderson's Kay and Gerda, would press a heated coin into the frost to make a peephole. I still try to capture the magic of those sweeping snows and gardens of ice in my paintings.



What have you been doing/working on today?

Fairies and more fairies, as I prepare for an art show coming up in June, to coincide with International Fairy Day on June 24. Today I am sketching a fairy wedding, with a bride and groom and their attendants and a confetti of flower petals. This is the untidy stage, getting everyone lined up and properly dressed! The fairy wedding is part of the next Illustrated Fairy Gazette, the 6th in our series of miniature hand made fairy-to-fairy publications.

( Believe me, these hand made publications are exquisite, I bought a series a few years ago.)



I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?

After the wedding the happy couple, fairy royalty, make their royal progress in this water lily carriage, inspired by the story of Thumbelina..

Thank you so much for taking the time to chat over a cuppa, albeit a virtual one.

I am sure that everyone enjoyed that interview and if you would like to learn more about Frances and her work you can visit her website here.
Frances also has a blog called Treasure Seekers Studio
an Etsy shop

Frances also has a very gifted mother called Avril Tyrrell who writes her stories, lucky lady!

Tea with Elizabeth

Will you join us for tea? I thought it might cheer us all up on this grey winter's day to invite my designer friend Elizabeth Golz Rush around for a cuppa. I first met Elizabeth when I had a stand at Surtex. I was impressed by her beautifully crafted designs and I am sure you will love her too, so settle back and enjoy a tea break with us.

How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

I’d like a strong English Breakfast with milk, thank you!
I haven’t always been a tea drinker. Several years ago I created a design collection with a tea theme. (see above) While researching tea and related images, I also tried out many different types of teas. Since that time my day starts with a large mug of tea made the old fashioned way, with loose leaves in a teapot.

If you could choose anyone, past , present or future, who would be joining us for tea?

I’ve been inspired so many artists – choosing one would be a real challenge. Perhaps the first artist whose work really had an impact on me was M.C. Escher. I had the opportunity to attend two exhibits of his work and was totally mesmerized. It was my first introduction to pattern design.

I can’t leave this subject without also including wonderful illustrators like Edmund Dulac and Ivan Bilibin, cartoonists like Winsor McCay or contemporary crafting innovators like Kaffe Fassett …..you’re going to need a very big teapot!

Can you tell us a little about your background in art and design?



I’ve always loved making things and knew from a young age that I wanted to be an artist. What type of artist took me a long time to figure out and I’ve gone in a number of directions inside the art field.

I have fine arts degrees and majored in printmaking. After college I started a line of silk screened greeting cards that sold mainly in galleries and museum shops.
This introduced me to some product design but got me stuck in a lot of production with not much time for creating art. When my son was born, I made a leap into illustration – I had a lot to learn!

Once I had brushed up on my drawing and watercolor skills, I began to get jobs in editorial illustration. Then I found clients who needed illustrations for products like scarves and linens. I began to feel I had really found my niche. Eventually, for products like ceramic ware, I began to design the forms as well. Understanding production has always been important to me and I like to participate as much as possible.

Where are you based and does it influence your work?

My husband and I have moved around a lot but we’ve spent most of our time in Massachusetts. Right now we live in a beautiful seaport town near the New Hampshire border. It’s a classic New England town with lovely shops, parks and nature reserves. Birds and flowers have always been a major design theme for me and this area is full of inspiration.



What have you been doing/working on today?

I’m preparing to exhibit in May at a major trade show for textile and licensing designers called Surtex. It’s been several years since I’ve exhibited and I’m sharing a booth with two other artists under the name of Artists Direct. I have a lot of designing to do to come up with new work! I’m working on my “classic” watercolor bird and floral themes but also trying to develop some coordinating geometric patterns for a little more contemporary flair.



I’ve also developed a “Cut & Assemble Fairy” design collection that I have been offering locally in workshops and classes. I hope to have the opportunity to push this new direction into more products. It’s a real flight of fantasy for me!



Thanks Elizabeth that was fun, we all wish you the very best of luck with Surtex. Meanwhile I am going to visit your blog once more to see of your fairy creations.

Tea with Amandine Labarre.

Won't you stay a while with us? Pull up a chair and pour yourself a cup. It's time for another "cuppa" interview, this time with the French illustrator extraordinaire Amandine Labarre and I know you are going to love her work! You may already be familiar with her blog Epine Blanche



How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

Answer-Without sugar, in a tall mug to keep it very hot… My favorite one is a blue ceramic one, homemade by a friend. If a cat could jump on my knees while I’m drinking from it, it would be just perfect.

If you could choose anyone, past , present or future, who would be joining us for tea.

Answer-I think I’d like to invite the great Arthur Rackham. I discovered his work very early and was astonished by it. There’s a real word in his watercolors, the shades talks to my heart, and so do his vision of fairy tales: his characters are full of grace, but there’s also something gloomy, mysterious and frightening in it...I find his Nordic myths paintings really mesmerizing. He seemed to be a quite lonely person, but I’d be honored just to share a cup of tea with him, perhaps evoking old tales quietly. I’m not very talkative either.


Tell me a little about your background in art and design.

Answer-I studied at the faculty, intending to being an art professor. But while writing my final dissertation, dealing with art and shamanism, I took the time to think about what I really wanted, and finally realized I definitely wasn’t made for doing this job..I wanted to be an illustrator, which had been my dream for the very beginning…I just was afraid to fail, but I had a lot of luck, and a year later I was earning my living with my drawings-thanks to my first book I wrote and illustrated, on the theme of faeries and herbs.



Where are you based and does it influence your work?

Answer-I live in Touraine (France), and really love my town. I live next to the Loire and run along it each morning: each day, the sight, the colors, the smells are different and inspiring. This afternoon I saw a kestrel flying just above me for a long moment, as if wondering if I could make a good breakfast for it; I was delighted!



What have you been doing/working on today?

Answer-Today, I took my bicycle and went taking some photos of trees for a personal book project, I also picked some lovely hawthorn berries I found on the way back, I think I’m going to paint it, but I don’t know yet to what purpose, perhaps just for the pleasure of taking a quiet time exploring their beauty.

I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?



Answer-Well, It’s a picture from a little children’s book I made with my brother, an eerie tale dealing with cats, a quest for the return of light in a shadowy land ..It’s the 3rd book in that collection (this one will be published for next Christmas) and I’m particularly attached to it, they really are done with heart.

I think that is evident Amandine, thank you so much for calling by and sharing your work with us.

Tea with Angela Cater.

It seems ages since I did my last "Cuppa" interview, so here without further ado, let me introduce to you the author/illustrator Angela Cater. Angela illustrates her own children's books and publishes them at Tabby Cat Press, She draws cats beautifully and is a cat lover herself which I think shows in her work.
Won't you join us for a cuppa, there's plenty of tea left in the pot!

How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?
Answer - Just as it comes please with a drop of milk, and in a pretty bone-china mug.

If you could choose anyone, past , present or future, who would be joining us for tea?
Answer- I'd like to invite Norman Rockwell. The stories he told about the characters that modelled for his paintings are often hilarious. Also Lesley-Anne Ivory as I'm sure we could chat about cats until the cows come home. More than her cats themselves, I really admire her detailed backgrounds; the background is always the thing I enjoy illustrating the least.

Tell me a little about your background in art and design?
Answer- I've been painting and drawing animals ever since I was old enough to hold a paint brush and consider myself to be self-taught. I read a lot of art books but don't use them to influence my own work or the decisions I make. As a mature student, I took the Foundation Art course at Chesterfield College of Art and Technology. I quite enjoyed dabbling with all the different facilities there, but resent the tutors' attempts to draw me away from a more illustrative style into the abstract oil paintings they so favour. After that, I studied Advertising at Doncaster College (at HND level), but graduated in the early 90's recession and by the time things picked up, my skills were well and truly out of date.

Where are you based and does it influence your work?
Answer- I'm based in Manchester. When I first moved here, I lived on a really rough estate (the sort of place where everyone turns out at the weekend to watch cars burn), and my art became a form of escapism. It was then that I first developed my “Character Cats” and I would build stories around them. Most people either love or hate them, but Sailor Sam later became the star character of my first children's picture book, and “Cat Dracula” is a best-selling greeting card at the Whitby Bookshop.

What have you been doing/working on today?
Answer- Today, I have baked my coloured pencils to strengthen the lead as I am working on a portrait of a siamese cat for submission to the Society of Feline Artist's annual exhibition. I am currently off-work with sciatica and it has given me an unexpected fortnight in which to work on various exhibition pieces. I also exhibit annually with the UK Coloured Pencil Society.

I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?
Answer- “Beautiful Dreamer” (see above)
This is a coloured pencil portrait of my late tabby, Samson who was one of my all time favourite models. It was the first time that I have attempted working in 'reverse' on black paper, and I was so scared of making a wrong mark that this picture took me almost 4 months to complete, but I am very pleased of the result.



Illustration for “Brogan's Good Turns” - I have recently started work on another children's book that is about a stray cat who is so grateful to his young mistress for saving his life that he tries to repay her with many misunderstood favours. My new cat, Pablo is the model here – someone dumped him on my doorstep just before Christmas and he's the best present I've ever had! I am also in the process of writing and illustrating “A Lifetime of Cats” which will be kind of a memoir of every cat I have ever had and the art that they have inspired. Yes, all this and a full-time job! Thanks for the cup of tea, I really needed that.

Well Angela, I can see that we have lots in common and share an admiration for the work of Lesley Anne Ivory. I once worked with an editor who knew her well, in fact Lesley had given her one of her cats and no doubt painted it too! I have also learnt something new about baking coloured pencils and have discovered that you have a blog so no doubt I shall be visiting you again soon. It was a pleasure to share a cuppa with you and hope that you come back soon.

A "cuppa" interview with illustrator Celia Hart.

My blog will be one year old this week and I have been reflecting on how it felt to post my first entry, it was a bit like talking to the ether! I cannot tell you how exciting it was to get my first comment but then again you will no doubt have had the same feeling yourself. I wanted to create a place where I could share inspiration, a meeting place of like minds and also I wanted an inexpensive and easy way to link to my website information about work and products etc.

Working from my studio, a.k.a. my dining room can be lonely at times and apart from dog walkers and neighbours, opportunities to meet new people are few and far between. Since I have started my blog however, I have found a whole new world of artists, gardeners, writers, dog walkers, designers, quilters, bookbinders and all round lovely people who have enriched my life and brought great joy and that all important ingredient to the life of any creative individual, that is inspiration; so for that ladies and gentlemen I thank you and invite you all to share a “cuppa” with my special guest artist Celia Hart, otherwise known as Magic Cochin from her blog Purple Podded Peas. When I first saw Celia’s blog I felt so inspired that I went out and bought myself some lino! This will be my third such interview to date so whatever your nationality, wherever in the world you have traveled from, pull up a chair and pour yourself a nice cup of tea on this Saint George’s Day.

Q1) How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

Today I’m drinking Clipper Organic Everyday Tea with semi-skimmed milk, no sugar; in an Emma Bridgewater Birds mug – this one has Fieldfares on it.

Q2) If you could choose anyone, past, present or future, who would be joining us for tea.

I’d like to invite William Morris and David Hockney to join us to tea. Morris was one of the first designers I really got enthusiastic about, I think we could chat to him about gardens and wildflowers; textiles and furniture; poetry and illustration; typefaces and book binding. Hockney could tell us about how he uses a computer to help him work on his paintings and about the optical instruments used by artists in the past. I think they’d both be partial to a cup of tea and a toasted tea cake – don’t you?


Q3) Tell me a little about your background in art and design.

I went to Brighton College of Art & Design, my degree course was called ‘Visual Communication’ – which covered typography, graphic design, illustration, photography, advertising, etc. It was just before the advent of Desk Top Publishing so everything I’ve learnt about digital illustration and DTP has been hands on, for ‘real’ publishing projects. Today I use my computer as just another tool to achieve an end result – for instance my prints start as a sketch, the designs are worked up digitally, then they become hand-carved blocks before I print each colour by hand.


Q4) Where are you based and does it influence your work?

I work in an office and studio which is attached to our house. The building was once a Victorian billiard hall and it is within a walled garden. My latest set of prints are inspired by working in the garden this spring and include our six hens. I tend to think about a possible print for a long time before actually starting work – this is an indulgence, as by contrast commissioned work is usually done to a very tight deadline with no ‘thinking time’ allowed. I love going for long walks and the things I see as I walk inspire ideas for new prints: hares and deer running over the fields; the textures of trees and field furrows; a flock of birds landing in a hedge.

Q5) What have you been doing/working on today?

Today I have been completing some digital illustrations for a GCSE Spanish student’s book for a major UK publisher (sounds boring – but I enjoyed working on these ‘vector’ illustrations). Later I will finalise the pages of the May edition of the village magazine – I’ll also need to take a photo for the cover, which will mean going for a walk to search out a good ‘May’ scene. Sadly, there’s no time for printmaking today, but there are prints hanging up in the studio ready to be numbered and signed. And I need to get the framed prints ready for an exhibition in Norwich. I should think I’ll fit in some gardening too, I usually do.


Q6) I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?

(Let’s pretend it’s July) I’ve brought some Purple Podded Peas from my vegetable garden – one of the ten varieties of pea I’m growing this year. I’ve also brought along a cast iron fish which sits on my drawing board, I bought it in Japan. It’s both a brush rest and paper weight. I think the pea-pods and the fish are both beautiful and useful so Mr Morris would approve! And both sometimes appear in my prints too.




Well thanks so much for being my guest Celia, I know we have lots in common, we share a love of William Morris and David Hockney, of Japanese prints and country gardens. I am very envious of your walled garden, that is my idea of the perfect garden and something I have tried to create here. I am sure your work will continue to inspire and delight fans old and new.

"A cuppa" interview with artist Patricia Papps

The beautiful artwork featured below is the work of Patricia Papps

I have recently come across the rich and decorative work of Patricia Papps through my art dealer Books Illustrated. I was particularly drawn to this beautiful artwork and decided to invite Patricia around for "a cuppa" in order to get to know something more about this very gifted artist. I know you will love her work as much as I do, why not join us for a cuppa too?


Q1) How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

I like my tea with only a little milk and quite strong. I sometimes have green tea which is very refreshing. I love flowers so china decorated with flowers, particularly wild flower designs are my favourite. They remind me of summer days while drinking a nice hot 'cuppa' in winter. I often use mugs for tea and my favourite mug has comical cats on it. I am mad about cats.

Q2) If you could choose anyone, past , present or future, who would be joining us for tea.

I think William Morris would make very interesting conversation as he had such a lively mind and he was interested in so many things. His work is a great inspiration to me. It is his wonderful harmony of design that really appeals to me. The German artist Sulamith Wolfing is also a huge inspiration. I really love looking at her mystical and lovely work. The pre-Raphaelites and the Symbolists have also influenced me and it would be difficult to choose just one to invite for a 'cuppa'. Perhaps Waterhouse as I love his beautiful ladies.

One the biggest influences on my work has to be the ancient Egyptians. I have been particular drawn to their art and have produced a range of paintings based on Egyptian myths. They did of course inspire a whole art movement in the West - Art Deco - the art and design of which particularly appeals to me. I don't think they drank tea in ancient Egypt! But it would be interesting to invite one of their talented anonymous artists of that era round for a 'cuppa' to find out how they trained and what their working methods were etc.

Medieval illuminated manuscripts are also a great source of inspiration for me. I love looking at all the detail in them. My 'Language of Flowers' paintings were very influenced by these so perhaps we could invite a Medieval artist monk round for tea and have a good chat about miniature painting and spiritual inspiration in art.

Q3) Tell me a little about your background in art and design.

I didn't start out initially as an artist as I lacked confidence in my work even though I loved drawing and designing. I took a secretarial course and worked as a secretary for a few years but realised I had made a big mistake as I wasn't at all happy. I went back to art school and attended the life drawing classes at the college to brush up my drawing. It was there I met my husband the illustrator and artist Andrew Skilleter who was also 'brushing up' his drawing. He was working as a freelance illustrator and he really encouraged me to develop my work and 'do my own thing'. He introduced me to commercial illustration which was something I knew very little about as most of my training had been in the 'fine' art area - oil painting and the like, which didn't suite my style of work at all. With Andrew's encouragement I got a folio together and went to see publishers in the days when one did walk around London and actually went and see art directors with a folio. It is very different today. I soon had commissions which was so exciting and fulfilling. That was quite a long time ago! I think my real training and learning about art and design has come with the work - there is nothing like a commission to focus the mind and create ideas and inspiration.

Q4) Where are you based and does it influence your work?

I live in the heart of the Dorset countryside, near Wareham, on the edge of Wareham Forest and we are surrounded by trees and countryside. It is very peaceful and beautiful, and very tranquil. We have only been here a couple of years and before that we lived in a busy town. I am more relaxed and focused out here I think and that is definitely have an effect on my creative work.

Q5) What have you been doing/working on today?

I am working on a fairy painting although the wings have become very impressive so I think it is becoming an angel. I love painting fairies and angels for they are such great scope for the imagination and as they are very involved with nature I can use my love of nature and wild flowers to decorate the paintings and illustrate special meanings for the fairy/angel.

I am also working on some ideas for a series of Celtic paintings focusing on Celtic Goddesses and heroines. I have so many ideas at the moment there are not enough hours in the day!

Q6) I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?

Yes, a ball of wool! I am a knitting addict when I am not painting and I am fascinated by the texture and colours of natural yarns. This particular ball is from a rare breed of sheep, the Blueface Leicester, that is bred in the North of England. It is very soft and cosy and the natural colour of the sheep. It makes wonderful warm garments. The whole process I find wonderful from the spinning of the wool from these beautiful animals, and then the designing and knitting process of producing a garment or a knitted work of art. I love natural hand dyed yarns as the colours are so beautiful. Each ball or hank is unique with a blending of different shades of colour - they are a work of art in themselves!

Thanks so much for joining us Patricia, I look forward to seeing more of your work in the future and hope that your work finds an appreciative audience. You can see more of Patricia's work here on her website.

If you are interested in purchasing her original artwork you will find it here at Books Illustrated

"A cuppa" interview with Patricia Shea.

This is the first in what I hope will be a series of interviews with inspiring and creative people. Working freelance is often a very solitary way of life, opportunities for meeting others are few and far between and therefore all the more precious. How nice it would be if the friends that I have met lived near enough to pop around for a cuppa! I first met Patricia Shea whilst exhibiting at Surtex, a mutual friend introduced us over a cup of tea. I have grown very fond of both Patricia and her work over the years and we have kept in touch by email. Although we both studied at the same art college and did the same course, we were in different years and by the time we met Patricia was living in the USA. I find Patricia's work inspiring and exciting, I love her sense of colour and pattern. I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to join us for a cuppa!

Q1. How do you take your tea and in what kind of cup do you like it served?

A1. I really like a good strong cup of loose Irish Breakfast tea with just the right amount of half and half (do you have that in Blighty?) I prefer my tea in a mug to a cup but my fave 'vessel' right now is halfway between the two and it has a lid to keep the tea warm whilst you work. see pic 'cup and lid').It actually features one of my designs and was made by Andrea by Sadek, sadly it isn't available anymore but I did just feature that image on some items at my Cafe Press store.

Q2. If you could choose anyone, past , present or future, who would be joining us for tea?

A2. I think my choice would have to be Alphonse Maria Mucha who had the uncanny ability to combine art/design and illustration in a perfectly cohesive and spectacular way. I never know if I am a designer, an artist or an illustrator and I look to Mucha to help me figure that out. I frequently refer to his work for inspiration and am constantly awed by the exquisite beauty of his line and his delicious textile design-like repeats.

Q3. Tell me a little about your background in art and design.

A3. I have done artwork of some kind all my life starting as soon as I could pick up a pencil. As a child I was crazy for paint-by-numbers and spirograph both of which have greatly influenced my work...I always feel the gripping need to stay within the lines and I love the consistency and repitition you achieve with spirograph, certainly helps with repeat patterns! I attended Manchester Poly. for Textile Design and to be honest dropped out after my first year which is ironic as I ended up in New York running the Textile division of a big company there who let me learn everything on the job, how INCREDIBLY lucky am I? When I decided to leave the textile job, due to lack of creative fulfillment, to go freelance in NY I veered more towards home decor and did a lot of designing for porcelain companies as well as for paper products.

Q4. Where are you based and does it influence your work?

A4. I am based in Belfast, Maine USA. (See pic 'blueberry hill')...a view from the top of the blueberry barren next to my house) It is a lovely little coastal town at the top of Penobscot Bay which is a very beautiful part of the world. It's influence on me is somewhat abstract in that the beauty of the area doesn't show up directly in my work but it does put my mind and emotions in a very good place to be creative. The winters here are truly brutal....many days you don't even go out of the house and that certainly gives you a lot of time to really get down to work!!! In winter there is NO colour here and I find my artwork getting brighter and brighter in direct response to that lack.

Q5. What have you been doing/working on today?

A5. Today I have been finishing up what I call a "Daydream Mandala"( See pic 'daydream mandala')...this is kind of my fun/play work that I do to meditate...again it is a grown up combination of spirograph and paint by numbers...I figure out the repeating design, transfer it to a large circular piece of MDO and then fill in the shapes...being very careful to stay within the lines. My illustration work really requires my complete attention and every step of the way deicisions have to be made...with the mandala work all I have to do is decide on the colours and fill the shapes in....I find it very rewarding and relaxing and it gives me time to think about my daydreams.

Q6. I hope that you have brought along something wonderful to show us, what is it?

A6. This is one of my favourite watercolour paintings...(see pic 'Gilding the Lily'....ha ha!) I did it for no reason other than I wanted to see it exist. I haven't used it for any purpose other than to inspire myself with the possibility of being able to do what Mucha did with art/design and illustration combined.


Thanks for calling round for a cuppa Patricia! When I am rich and famous, or maybe when I win the lottery, I am going to commission you to make me one of your fabulous couture rugs! The landscape in Maine looks beautiful, lucky you. It's a shame the pretty cup is no longer available.
I am sure we will be seeing much more of your work soon.

To see more of Patricia's work you can visit her website. She also has a Cafe Press shop. Patricia's partner James Strickland is also an artist with his own website. All worth a visit.