Midnight Blue Chest of Drawers Transformation

This item was a slightly more tricky number than normal.
I collected it from a lady residing near Brick Lane who was uncluttering her house.  It was, of course pretty filthy as standard, however, it also needed a lot more attention that I had anticipated.  You can see on the photo that one side is quite badly damaged, so I needed to rebuild this section before commencing with the decoration.  Additionally, the chest of drawers had been cut from a dresser, but not very well so the other side needed a good few millimetres shaving off one end to straighten it out.

Now, it was ready for makeover!  I wanted to create a dark blue themed item, as I have just sold my other dark coloured bedside table.   I like to keep a mix of colours and styles in stock and I haven't made a blue item before so thought it might be a nice challenge.  I am rather pleased with the result.  The piece of furniture is actually quite tall and thin, so therefore could easily fit into a living room space, rather than just a bedroom.



http://www.cottoncreates.com/products/midnight-sky-small-chest-of-drawers

Welcome to 1920's Style Upcycled Lamp

My task was to create a stylish and elegant ornamental lampshade from a disregarded plain version using a colour scheme of green and purple.

Often the tricky part of a commission is finding a suitable base unit, however I managed to locate a perfect one in an antiques shop in Sheffield. The lampshade was fabric and in good condition (a necessary requirement!), and attached to a solid white marble base.  A good start.

The lampshade recipient has a sophisticated taste and a penchant for 1920's style so I selected the fabrics and design with this in mind.  I spray painted the fringe a neutral grey to which enables an even finish.  As metallic embellishment is part of my signature, gold fragments provided the finishing touches. I think that it has a touch of Persian style to it.

I've included a picture below, however, unfortunately I forgot to take the 'before' picture until after I'd gone a bit crazy with the spray paint!

I Can Now Fix (some) of My Bike

I love a bit of DIY, but the main challenge is having the know-how in the first place.  And yes, of course there is tried and tested method of 'trial and error', but that error bit can be a bit frustrating and not to mention time consuming.

So, on a slightly different but related note, I'm a member of Economy of Hours (ECHO) which is a skills swap site in East London.  I had spotted the offer of the use of London Bike Kitchen, so decided to cash in some hours.   Having had a enough of my gears causing me grief (with all those potholes - a fully functioning bike is a necessity!), last week, my bike and I made our way down.

Incase you don't know the concept:

LBK is an a DIY workshop where you work on your own bike which has the the aim of:
 - promoting self reliance and confidence through education
 - making cycling more accessible
 - getting more people from all backgrounds on bikes

I was a little apprehensive about turning up because bike shops can be a little intimidating - maybe a man having a go at you when your bike has been stolen, or generally looking at you in disregard because you don't/do have a xxx, and not to mention the blond hair.

But, all was well, as I was welcomed by Jenny, the Director.  It was mid-afternoon before the after work rush so luckily I was provided with a stand straight away and a friendly bike expert and off I went.

I learnt:
- how to stop my gears from slipping
- how to fit the new brake pads I had at home in my cupboard
- what I need to clean and oil to keep the bike in good condition (not as obvious as you might think)
- not all bike places are scary
- empowerment!

They do a variety of courses, some gender specific which I might try out.  If you want to pop in and fix your bike you tend to pay by the hour for the space, then parts on top. Oh, and they give you tea.

Cybersalon: Cyborg’s New Clothes – Wearable Computing, Interactive Fashion - Review

Cybersalon's The Cyborg’s New Clothes – Wearable Computing, Interactive Fashion and Skin 2.0 held at DigitasLBi offices.

Described as a 'special feature on wearables and interactive fashion beyond celebratory reviews of the latest gadget bling'.

This was quite possibly the most bizarre evening with speakers I've ever attended - from the sublime eccentric, to the damned right brilliant to the 'What The ?'

It got off to a slightly chaotic start, whilst the Chair, Stefan Lutschinger (game designer, curator, artist & lecturer of Media, Culture and Communications at Middlesex University)  fumbled with his notes and tried to locate his ‘cathedral’, whilst 'co-host’ Adriana Smentek (student of previously mentioned University Course) hovered glamorously by his side.  

Now, I have to say that this was the most incongruous aspect of the evening.  An evening dedicated to technology and futuristic type things, but with the presentation style of a game show from the 80s or 90s.  I mean, Adriana was very beautiful, but her role aside from this was less than clear . Aside from introducing herself she didn’t say a word all night.  It seemed to be slightly out of sorts with the theme of the night, and in fact any respectable event this decade!

But anyway, let's leave that to one side. First we were treated to a live dance installation (Theia’s Aura by Simon Sarginson).  It took me a little while to work out that the colourful bubbles on the projector were following the dancers movements, but once I did, it made much more sense and was actually rather enchanting.  If you want a more artistic description 'the technology, rather than inviting us to succumb to its abstract inhuman interface and getting more intimate with it, hides itself from the viewer and produces a reactive cloud using the body as a language to create a fantastical spectacle manifesting the imagination of the performer'.

Next up was Prof. Johannes Grenzfurthner (founder of Monochrom an international art-technology-philosophy group, based in Austria), who is most definitely an eccentric sort.  He came to the stage dressed in a bright orange astronauts suit.  

His topics encapsulated various types of robotics interlinked with clothing and sex. He talked about some of the events that Monochrome are involved in which includes Festival Roboexotica where people create robots to mix cocktail,  which was kinda cool. See below image for Truth or Dare Shot Dress

Monochrom also hold a conference about sex and technology called Arse Elektronika about how sex influences the development of technology - especially with the advent of wearables   - I’m sure you've seen some of the potential apps designed for Google Glass?.  

Hard to beat

But actually I think Jesse Darling actually did. (she is as her biog says 'an artist, curator and occasional essayist, researching the deep links between technology, power and experience').  She had been asked to have a critical look at – and through – Google Glass (or Google ass as she calls it). There was no ambiguity in her introduction regarding her dislike of some forms of technology breakthroughs, namely Google+ and Google Glass, which was pretty awesome considering she was in a room full of predominantly techie types. She offered a cynical yet humorous insight into her perception of world of Google Glass.  

She highlighted that the advert for GG features an ethnic minority female wearing unisex apparel, however when researching which market the product was given to for testing, it didn’t exactly didn't exactly reflect the all quotas ticked poster girl.    Ah, instead white, men, generally looking oh so cool.   I have since discovered that there is actually a whole blog dedicated to this entire theme 
http://whitemenwearinggoogleglass.tumblr.com/

She made numerous interesting yet defamatory comments about Google Glass which when taking into account the actual viewing functionality of the device concluded that it is pretty much objectifying (too much to go into here).  And I agree.  It was refreshing to hear someone speak so eloquently yet without pretension whilst defying the opinions of 'le cool'.

Next up was Dr. Phoebe Moore, (Senior Lecturer in International Relations at Middlesex University).  I have to be honest, I have absolutely no idea what the Doctor was talking about for the majority of her presentation (neither did my friend), I didn’t find it to be well structured or engaging.   Towards the end I picked up some interesting comments around how companies are 'quantifying life' all in the name of increasing productivity which really interesting and it would be great to hear about this in more detail. 

A last minute fill in from Ilicco Elia  (Head of Mobile at LBi)  who spoke about how technologies might evolve. It would have been good to hear more from him, as perspectives from key people at leading agencies can be interesting. Unfortunately though, his time was rushed, as he had to make way for the next and final speaker....

Krõõt Juurak  (choreographer, performer and member of Chicks on Speed). This was about Pets. Right?  I used to listen to Chicks On Speed at after parties back in the day so I had high hopes. Unfortunately my hopes were not realised. I don't want to be mean so I think I will stop there. 

I will be going to the next one.

Upcycling Sewing Table - The Transformation Process

Cotton Creates offers a Bespoke Service and this post gives an insight into how it happens.

This particular item hasn't undergone the full Cotton Creates Transformation Process, because it is infact going to reside in my home, and therefore, the first couple of stages have been omitted (one would hope I know what im looking for!)

Plan
Source a small table that could be used as a key table in my home.  Luckily I was home in Sheffield for Christmas which is a haven for antique goods, definitely preferable to the over-scoured London town.

Discovery
And here is the pretty little item I found. A Victorian sewing table, perfect to turn into a key table.  As you can see, it still contained the original interior, however it was in very poor condition so sadly needed to be removed.

Pre-creation


A chisel, hammer and file later and this was it's current state. As you can see, the interior lining was well and truly stuck down with copious resin. Which, so my dad informs me, back in the day would have been made from melted down horse hooves and bones.  I discovered that the table had a number of scuff marks, at which point my mum disappeared off into the kitchen and appeared with this bottle of Topps stainer and polish, from the depths of the cupboard with a price sticker of 19p on it....

Completion

Then, fabric, ribbon, glue and staples later here is the finished item.  Ready for it's new home.

 

My First Foray as a Start-Up into The World of Networking

Oh networking, the lovely world of networking. Some people’s passion many people’s nightmare. For me, it is most definitely, the latter.But, as every entrepreneur, coach and mentor tells me it is a necessity when trying to build a business. Especially when you’re a start-up like me. I went all out there and attended four events in two weeks!

So, I made EventBrite my friend and as a result discovered a moo.com Networking Start-up event held at at the aptly named Cotton's Rhum Shack within Box Park (no coincidence that they have a shop there). Perfect, as it’s on my cycle home from my consultancy day job that currently pays the bills, and therefore, I really had no excuse not to drop by. My feet tried very hard to pedal past but no, the will to show my face stopped them in their tracks. It was a nice atmosphere, and since I arrived early, I managed to avoid the ‘it looks like everyone has known themselves for years’ scenario. I left having had real conversations with four people, which if it doesn’t sound like a lot to you, it sounds like loads me! (me who sometimes likes to make friends with the sofa in the corner at parties). The whole experience was made easier by it being Moo’s first event so everyone was in the same boat – i.e. a little nervous, but with a passion. 

Note to self, get there early.

My second event was hosted by S. E. Alley, and I’m very glad this wasn’t my first event as it may well have been my last! I have no doubt that there were copious, interesting and inspiring people at this event, however I certainly wasn’t able to verify this assumption. The venue was very small, cramped and hot, I had no idea who was who, and despite going with a friend who was familiar with such events we left as quickly as we arrived - we looked around to see if we could see an organiser but without much success. Yes of course I could have introduced myself to all the many groups in deep conversation….but I didn’t…. 

I also came to a realization that different rules apply to parties than to networking. Parties = arrive late, Networking = arrive early (if a shy person wants to stand a chance of making connections, that is). That is one strange concept to get your head around!

Note to self, get there early. 

And to event number three. This was a paid event (£9) called ‘How to Become A Social Entrepreneur’ which provided three inspiring presenters: Oli Barratt who invented Make Your Mark With A Tenner, Ben Ramsden who developed the Pantrepreneurship Challenge and Lily Lapenna who developed Enterprise in a Box, and the evening was chaired by Alistair Wilson who runs the School for Social Entrepreneurs. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a huge turnout for this event which is a shame as the speakers were excellent. It was held at Lime Wharf in Hackney, which describes itself as a ‘cultural innovation hub and artistic laboratory’ and holds a number of events which, from what I can gather are normally well received so it must just have been an off night, and I certainly plan to go back if something catches my eye.

And the final event which was perhaps the most nerve racking of the lot. ECHO (Economy of Hours, a skills swap organisation), were having a little get together at a bar called Curio Cabal on Kingsland Road. Im no stranger to ECHO, having been a member since when it was originally called Hackney Shares and have benefitted from a couple of members' skills. So I thought this would be a great opportunity to meet like minded people. The trouble was, when I arrived (which was a little late – yes know!), the bar was almost full, and most probably 80% male so I felt a little out of sorts already. Anyway, I was keen to run a mile, but stayed strong and headed to drop my bag off in the corner. Just by luck there were a couple of approachable looking women so we had a chat, and I found out that they work in one of the studios above the bar and are trend forecasters which sounds like a pretty awesome job. Also, one of the women, Jane writes the successful blog called The Women’s Room. It turns out that many of the people were from the studios above and did actually already know each other so getting there early on this occasion wouldn’t actually have made a difference! I spoke to Sarah Henderson, one of the organizers who inspired me to offer my Marketing Procurement Consultancy skills which are now added to ECHO, and I left feeling like I had achieved something (I hadn’t really considered that I have something to offer creative people . However, now it seems obvious that they may wish to benefit from understanding the pitch process and fee structures from a client perspective!) 

Onwards and upward to events in 2014. I already have three booked: Clearly so - Teatime (sold out), Publicity Shy – An evening of creative inspiration from ad man Mark Denton and Cybersalon Digital Futures - The Cyborg’s New Clothes.

The Emerald Lady of the Night

My products are not just vintage inspired furniture.  They are lavish pieces of art with the eccentric personalities to match. The Emerald Lady of the Night can be found here: http://www.cottoncreates.com

Art in a tree. Clerkenwell Design Week #cwdw

Illuminaires. Clerkenwell Design Week #cwdw

St. John’s Tiles. Clerkenwell Design Week #cwdw

Engineering Temporality. Wrapping wooden furniture in metal rings then burning away the wood 2013 #furniture #designmuseum

Recycled high-density polyethylene chair 1996

2013 Catwalk Influences

Cotton Creates is loving some of the styles gracing the 2013 catwalks such as this brightly coloured ensemble from Peter Pilotto, below on the left, Alexander McQueen on the right and Versace at the bottom

New Cotton Creates products coming soon representing these styles.  See the various influencing mood boards on Hazel Cotton’s Pinterest, the artist behind the brand

Melbourne Observations

Cotton Creates is in holiday in Melbourne, and here are some of my initial observations of the city whilst I take a break from fabric.

• 
  
  There are a lot of rules in Melbourne
  
  

 

• 
  
  Everyone appears to abide by the rules, possibly because the enforcers enforce the rules with vigour which I guess indicates that enforcement and punishment deters rule breaking. I’m not sure how I feel about this militancy, but I suppose it is better than Sudan.
  
  

 

• 
  
  The green man traffic signals sound like a demented woodpecker. It’s very unsettling.
  
  

 

• 
  
  I’m allergic to Melbourne grass, it brought me out in a rather unsightly and painful rash that has lasted for days –  feel grateful that my SD card is not co-operating.
  
  

 

• 
  
  It gets very hot here, hotter than England unbelievably so,  especially yesterday, potentially the hottest day in Melbourne history. Unfortunately the heat causes fires, which is not a good thing at all.
  
  

 

• 
  
  However, it’s  not always hot, four seasons in one day they say and this requires layers, a bit like packing for an English festival one might assume.
  
  

 

• 
  
  It’s difficult to buy bad food in a restaurant Melbourne. Free range and rather palatable, although one pays for the privilege.
  
  

 

• 
  
  Free tap water is proactively provided with every single meal in every (non fastfood) eating establishment.  This makes me very happy and i haven’t yet got over the shock/delight. The English should take heed.
  
  

 

• 
  
  The streets are very wide and there are many trees even in the city centre, big trees with leaves. 
  
  

• 
  
  The suburbs, which start practically within the city even put Bow to shame. Hard to believe, I know.
  
  

 

• 
  
  Syringe collection boxes are present in McDonalds toilets and other such city establishments.  They came in very handy.
  
  

 

• 
  
  One Direction, Ellie Goulding and Little Mix are equally popular here as in the UK which is reassuring.
  
  

 

• 
  
  In clothes shops, the changing rooms are kept locked, presumably to prevent theft, yet the attendants don’t count the number of items and then proceed to wander off.  Some what counter productive.
  
  

 

• 
  
  There is a Spitalfields equivalent called The People’s market, but it has 6 stalls (and some art).  It was very cool though.  Ive heard that Rose Street Market would be up my street too but it was closed.
  
  

 

• 
  
  It’s very expensive, well Melbourne is the 15th most expensive city in the world compared to London at 25th, I always knew London was well cheap.  Im sure I will be in for a pleasant surprise when I visit Sydney at number 11
  
  

Photos will follow at a later date when my SD card decides to co-operate. 

Maybe Day 4 will meet my expectations

A four day entrepreneur conference boasting ‘the biggest business and entrepreneurial event of 2012’.  Ive seen the list of speakers and it looks impressive.  Well with a couple annual leave days left to use up before Christmas what could I possiblly have to lose?

No agenda had been provided prior to the first day, but hey that’s not unusual, it will be provided upon registration.  Surely?

So I arrive bright and early on Tuesday morning and join the crowds waiting to enter this monumental event.  Hungry, and in need of a nice cup of tea, I decide to wait until im settled since I dont want to lose my place and everyone else looks parched too.  Ah, we are allowed in.  Oh a massive big room with loads of chairs.  No hot drinks allowed.  Hmmm.  Marvellous.

My plan was to check when those very important people I wanted to see were speaking so i could work it around my ‘working from home’ commitments.  Plan fail.  And I wasn’t the only one up in arms with this clever little strategy of theirs.   Well, clever in that you feel as though you have to stay just a little bit longer in the mere hope that someone inspirational will appear anytime soon, whilst simultaneously making the large room look full (ish).  But perhaps stupid in the fact that no one will return next year.

So out comes the MC (Master of Ceremonies) a bloody yank, an annoying, loud yank as it turns out (no surprises there).  No i don’t want to shout out your name RAYMOND, or holler YEAH!, or any of that stuff.  Roll on the first speaker.

Ah Andy Harrington ‘the world’s leading public speaking expert’ - an hour drags by whilst he witters on with his ‘motivational speech’, it’s tolerable though cos Raymond said everyone was on for an hour.  Oh, Andy then informs us that he has another 2 hours left!  Right, that’s it I’m off, i have to be at work in the afternoon, and since Im actually there, I’m already ‘motivated’.

Day 2 (today) - I go for the afternoon - surely there will be someone who will instill me with some wisdom?  Ah, Marco Kozlowski (yes him!) another yank, a multi-millionaire who proceeds to pitch his $7k training course for 1.5 hours with loads of ‘YEAHs’, ‘hands-up guys’.  Claiming he could change our lives but of course he doesn’t inform us of this slight catch until the end, so we wait in vain hope for a little gem which doesn’t happen.  Followed by Jeff from the Industry Rockstars (also a yank) also pitching for 1.5 hours claiming that they too could make us millions if only we signed up for their course.   FFS.  I left.

So, Im giving tomorrow a miss.  But Friday, they claim is the day, the day the world erupts, the day the worlds elite, including President Clinton will bestow their knowledge upon us eager delegates.  With panel debates and everything!  I have high hopes and I’m sure they won’t be dashed.

The people who might return next year, are the minority who paid loads for their front row seats (I got my 4 day ticket for £17), shouted RAYMOND, YEAH!, ran up to the stage, jumped up and down, and will probably invest in a course which will make them millions.  Its lucky everyone isn’t as cynical and miserable I am.

Creating cottoncreates.com

After many frustrating months my website cottoncreates.com is finally finished, well as much as it’s going to be anytime soon.  Ive heard many people say that launching a website is easy peasy, especially when you use WordPress.  But I vehemently disagree!  This is not, I think because I am more mentally challenged than your average person (heaven forbid!) but because this ideological view is based upon the assumption that the perfect ‘theme’ will be ready and waiting for you at your local friendly ‘theme site’.

Unfortunately for me, this was not the case as my requirements were not matched by ANY theme, and goodness me did I search!.  I attempted 3 themes, all of which ended in frustration when it became apparent that my requirements were not in agreement with the protocol.  Well, if you take a look at my website, you will notice that it isn’t exactly the most complex and extensive site in the world.  The main problem derived from one issue: that every theme designer has decided all images must be landscape.  Without fail.  Now, as much as I tried, I could not make a portrait mirror landscape, and so the tribulations continued.

So what are the options if you need to customise a theme that doesn’t exactly fit your requirements?  Hacking.  And yes you are correct, hacking is a highly skilled activity - and hackers come in all shapes and sizes.  So finding one who is able to effectively weedle their way around the WordPress theme’s code is not an easy task.  Most people I spoke to shuddered at the mere prospect.

So, after doing some of it myself, getting some terrible advice from some apparent ‘experts’, outsourcing it to a guy in Macedonia who then gave up, my friend Rachid Belaid who is a top notch developer finished the task.  This whole process took months, but now it is done.  And I am very relieved.

The other option of course is to spend thousands on employing a web designer and developer.  You need both because generally developers cant design and designers cant develop (you can spot the sites which have been built by one skillset). Being a lowly start-up, my pockets weren’t deep enough for this option - so I did it the long and hard way.

The only advice I can give you to help ensure you don’t face the problem I did is to only take landscape photos, or make sofas, or bikes perhaps.  Definitely not ladders, giraffes or full length mirrors.

preparing the wood

i kept away from that machine

tyre cutting is heavy work!

skate rink venue

Furniture Jam

Last weekend, Cottoncreates took part in an ethical furniture workshop.  It was run by Electric Pedals on behalf of the London Festival of Architecture and the aim was to create ethical seating solutions from discarded stuff like old furniture, motor and bike parts, wood, metal.   Upcycling in it’s element. The seats were to be used in the evening for a bicycle powered cinema experience in the White’s Grounds Skate Park under the nearby arches - unfortunately i had to leave before then so missed seeing the finished seats in use.

Dressed down as much as I know how  - in new shorts, tights and top (clearly not quite as suitable as others who turned up in their old jeans),  I didn’t know quite what to expect but rocked up at 11am to find a concrete area, empty aside from a couple of the guys from Re-fuze along with a multitude of machinery, tools and random scrap materials.  The workshop filled up as the day went on, and attendees, many of which were trainee architects got stuck in designing their own uniquw seats.  I didn’t think it wise to attempt the generator powered saw so stuck to de-nailing bits of wood, and cutting the metal wire out of tyres.  I’ve become a big fan of the electric screwdriver so i’ll definitely be investing in one of those for my projects!

Charlotte from Electric Pedals did a great job of keeping the day together and I would definitely go back to other workshops they run.

i wasnt allowed to take him home

'let them eat cake'

the personalised touch

my mum probaly had one of these

Anyone for cheese?

Vintage Glastonbury Wedding of the Year

I had the pleasure of attending my good friends’ Stu and Lou’s wedding in Sheffield on Saturday and it wasn’t just any old wedding.  Being avid visitors of Glastonbury and taking advantage of it’s year off, they opted to celebrate their wedding on the same weekend and the weather did not let us down with the frequent showers and the inevitable mud!

This wedding oozed creativity with a vintage and festival theme and the photos depict only a fraction of the event’s charm.

Quaint gatherings of worn leather sofas,  vintage dressers, family photos, and lanterns were scattered around the grounds of the Botanical Gardens.  An extensive marquee which housed 150 guests was decorated with bunting, fairy lights and yet more vintage delights.  Table centre pieces included badgers, typewriters and suitcases.  And not forgetting the cheese table complete with gramaphone and cake stall with copious cupcakes and other offerings. The bride, bridegroom and bridesmaids looked perfect in 50’s style.

Music from the last 4 decades and live band topped off the perfect ambience.

Lou runs www.bangbangvintage.com and www.thevintagefair.com