Following a busy and successful day at the Square Tower  yesterday, preparations are now underway for our forthcoming exhibition at the Oxmarket Centre of Arts.  'Southsea Art and Design' has been invited back to the Oxmarket Centre of Arts for the third year running!  Last year our showcase exhibition  'Six in the City'  featured my jewellery, textiles by Tracy Evans and Chantelle Cheshire, ceramics by Rose Bates and Di Wren and the fabulous paintings of Samm MacKinnon, Winner of the BBC Wildlife artist of year 2011, (Under the Water category).  In addition to work by myself, Tracy, Di, Rose and Samm; February's exhibition will also feature paintings by Dominic Joyce.  His work has always received great reviews from visitors to the Oxmarket.  We are also really pleased that  Richard Oakes and Kate Cooke, both regular exhibitors at 'Crafts in the Tower',  will be joining us at the Oxmarket for the first time.  Richard's chosen medium is pen and ink watercolours but he also uses acrylic on canvas to create large, colourful paintings.  To find out more about Richard's work visit his website:  http://www.oakesart.moonfruit.com/#/profile/4552428588.  Kate produces an eclectic mix of wonderful pictures  - visit her website to browse her portfolio of work:  http://katecookedesigns.com/category/portfolio/. 

Just getting organised for 'Crafts in the Tower' which will be taking place this Sunday (having been postponed from last Sunday).  The dates for 2012 have been confirmed and 'Crafts in the Tower' will be taking place on the 4th Sunday of every month.  I am planning to be there every month (although I won't be able to make it in April).  This Sunday will be a 'show case' event and I will be joining regular exhibitors; Tracy Evans (textiles), Sharon Justice and Sylvia Tomkinson (silver jewellery), Richard Oakes (prints, drawings) and Di Wren (ceramics).  The pop-up vintage tea room will also be open and admission is free!

I've spent this afternoon attempting to take some photographs for the website with very mixed success!  There is such a thin line between underexposing and overexposing each photograph in an attempt to create a photograph of a quality that can be included in the website.  I just don't seem to have the skills (and it's not just down to the camera) to create photographs of any where near the quality of  those taken by Martin, who has taken many of the photographs that appear on the website.  Test photographs above.  Any comments, ideas or suggestions  gratefully received!

Despite my best intentions to finally create my facebook page this afternoon, thanks to the efforts of my very demanding Airedale Terrier 'Mckenzie' I have just got back from a walk down to the seafront. We had already been to Farlington Marshes for a morning walk but McKenzie had decided (quite rightly) that it was far too nice an afternoon to be spent indoors.  It didn't take long for his whining and whinging to take effect before I relented and agreed to take him out!  Whilst a bit chilly, it was a beautiful sunny walk and a reminder of how much I love living so close to the sea.  Anyway now off to finish that facebook page (honest)!

Dates for the Crafts in the Tower 2012 have now been confirmed.  For those of you who have not yet had a chance to visit, 'Crafts in the Tower' is an exhibition of work by local artists, designers and crafts people and, as in 2011, will continue to take place on the 4th Sunday of the month. All the work on display is original and hand crafted by the artists and includes jewellery, ceramics, textiles, glass, photography, prints and paintings.  The Square Tower is a 15th century naval fort in Old Portsmouth. It is a beautiful building which is definitely worth a visit and also boasts a 'pop-up' vintage tea room serving teas, coffees and homemade cakes.  It is a lovely place to visit if you are having a walk by the sea - you can have a drink, chat to the artists and buy some high quality art and crafts or just come along and browse!  I am hoping to be there every month (with the possible exception of April) but keep checking my News and Events page for details.

To find out more about the other artists who exhibit at the Square Tower visit our website:  http://www.craftsinthetower.com and for further information about the Square Tower visit: http://www.squaretower.co.uk.

It's already the 10th and have already failed to keep my New Year's Resolution to regularly update my blog!  Oh well - it's never too late to start!  November and December last year were really hectic with Art and Craft fayres and events, all of which I really enjoyed.  I'm now looking forward to a quieter couple of months which will give me the opportunity to design new collections, update my website, set up my facebook page and twitter accounts and all those other tasks I didn't  quite have time for last year.... Dates for 2012 are already in the diary so keep watching the news and events page!