23 May 2011
Graffiti
22 Apr 2011
Folksy Friday
11 Apr 2011
The Panda's back with some little monsters!
It's been a little while huh? I've been pretty busy lately dealing with non-Deviant Panda issues so I haven't had time to make anything new for a while, but all that is coming to an end now and I'm itching to get Panda-ing again! :) Got lots of ideas, lots of shiny new supplies, and in a week's time I'll have alot of free time on my hands! I finish my day job on 15th April (now long now!!) so I'll be a lady of luxury soon. I get a payout from work too so I have some capital behind me so I'll be making some tough decisions soon, like whether or not to push my jewellery as a full-time occupation or whether to supliment my income with a part-time job, hmmm....anyways, lots to think about! :)
I've booked myself and my OH a holiday first though - we need it after the last couple of months! - We'll be travelling to Paris then to Prague, before staying in Berlin and then back to Paris. We are both very, very excited and it'll be our first foreign holiday together. I will be shutting the shops while I'm away (30th April - 14th May) so if you need something now get in there quick! ;)
Oh yeah, did I mention shops? Yes, I think I did! That's because I'm not just on Folksy now but Etsy too! I thought it was about time to start expanding so I'd like to say hello and welcome to all International friends and fans. I've put a little link to the side which you can click on to go to Etsy, or just click here: Deviant Panda on Etsy
Whilst setting up I took the opportunity to have a look around and oh my goodness gracious, there is such a wealth of talent!! I made a treasury (I love this feature, I could make lists of pretty things all day!) going with a theme of little monsters. I love wierd little dolls, pictures and things that you sometimes just can't catagorise! Looking around the many wierd and wonderful things on offer at Etsy I had to put my favourites into a list and I'd to share it with you here! If you like Deviant Panda's you will love these! :) Enjoy!
'Little Monsters!' by DeviantPanda
Deviant Panda likes monsters. Little furry ones, Big slimy ones, and everything in between! Look at these gorgeous monsters in all their wierd and wonderful glory!
Necklace Brain Mons... $12.00 | Monty the baby blue... $38.00 | Big Pink Monster an... $16.00 | Yeti Monster $7.50 |
Monster Tea Party F... $15.00 | Felt DiDi Doll - He... $13.00 | Fleece Felt Handmad... $25.00 | Doug the brown mons... $38.00 |
Mound of Monsters -... $50.00 | Paul the mini monst... $20.00 | Fuzzy monster trio ... $20.00 | Cute monsters godzi... $3.00 |
Pirate Monster Bulw... $8.00 | two green monsters.... $30.00 | Monster Giclee Prin... $23.00 | Zombie Cake Toppers... $45.00 |
6 Feb 2011
The Panda Is Still Alive!
After a LOT of uhming and ahing I applied for the initial 'application sifting, procrastinating' stage (this is the civil service after all) thinking "what the hell, it'll give me more time to make a decision because I'm rubbish at making important decisions about my future". And then, I got through the application process! Thanks department heads, it's good to know that nearly 4 years of hard graft, and smiling through gritted teeth at every shocking management decision was for nothing after all, am clearly not worth keeping, hmmmm. So now me and my OH are planning for the future, I'm waiting for a final 'compensation/redundancy-but-not-actual-redundancy' offer to be made (just gimme the effing money 'kay?) and I am outta there! Goodbye time recording, goodbye case work, goodbye flex time, goodbye efficiency savings, goodbye IT system which isn't fit for purpose, goodbye mid-year reviews, goodbye lovely colleagues, goodbye monthly team meetings, goodbye technical manual, goodbye O.R. Norwich!
Still, me and a mate/colleague who is in the same position have joked that when the office decides to recruit temps (when they realise they don't have enough staff to do the work) we'll be first in line! :)
So all in all this is why I've been so quiet - got alot on my plate trying to figure out the next stage of my life, figure out what it is that I ACTUALLY want to do as a full time job and planning a holiday for me and my OH (who incidentally works at the same office but has decided not to leave so that we have a stable wage coming in, GODBLESSHIM) for after I actually leave my job in April/May. Ideas for Deviant Panda come up now and again and get scribbled down ready for my triumphant return to the cool and interesting part of my life, but for now I'm concentrating on me and mine. :)
The shop is still open (I can still cope with putting stuff into envelopes and going down the post office!) but new stuff may have to wait for now!
Take care you gorgeous guys and gals, see you on the flipside!
Kate xxx
12 Dec 2010
Latest Commision...
I'm always happy to take on commissions so if you have something in mind just get in touch either via folksy, facebook or twitter (the links to my sites are all around the page) or leave a comment for me on this blog. I hoped you liked the pictures of the bracelet as much as I enjoyed creating it! :)
3 Dec 2010
Sugar Skulls and other inspirations... pt 2
I'd go to Forbidden Planet to buy Sailor Moon and Urusei Yatsura manga. I loved Chibi Moon and the kawaii-ness of it all. Whilst at university I even wrote my dissertation on the shift of influence between the East and West focusing on anime and manga to argue my point. Let's just say that some of my predictions from 2002 have materialised, you can call me Pythia if you like! :)
As a result of being a fully paid up fangirl from an early age these influences have crept into my work. I've always leaned more towards the abstract but in the last few years I have become more and more influenced by Japanese art and design. One of my big inspirations is vinyl figures - designer toys if you will. One of my favorite books on the subject is Full Vinyl by Ivan Vartanian, a look at the history of the vinyl toy phenomenon featuring some of the most exciting pieces of subversive toy culture. One of my favorite designers is Junko Mizuno (her manga are pretty cool too) although KAWS is a pretty big influence as well.
Another recommended read is RackGaki - Japanese Graffiti by Ryo Sanada and Suridh Hassan. I am a big fan of Esow, Sasu and Tenga featured in this book.