fabulous

i've said it before and i will say it again
deb mclean
is so darn wonderful

her busy being fabulous blog
is truly flourishing, every time
i revisit it i am swamped,
stumbling and baffled by
all her glorious finds

deb is a food and prop stylist
here in melbourne and i have
worked as her assistant, wishing
that some faint layer of her sparkle 
will rub off on me

some day

take a look at her impeccable work
as well here in her portfolio

tumbalina's empire

a girl named kaye creates dreamy paintings,
fantastic collages, crazy beautiful illustrations
and sometimes sneaks up close enough
to photograph the golden soldiers who protect

Tumbalina's Empire

i designed a website for her to house her genius
and i know you will like it too. come to think of it,
you should come over for happy hour.

we will be having ice-cold vodkas with pomegranate seeds
sprinkled into each glass.

simply divine you say?
why yes, it is.

seren in wonderland

seren my muse.

there is nothing in the world as rewarding as praise from someone 
who really knows you. if you haven't read seren's "living opals" blog
then you may not know what it is like to stare into the face of wonder.

intelligent beyond her years, talented beyond reason, gorgeous, 
glorious friend and partner in crime.

love you kid.
so much.

a new illustration

this is a new illustration i made for a magazine

about looking at the upside of the recession.

i have started building dioramas and illustrating

over the top of them. thanks to the work i am doing 

with prop stylists, am able to add touches of delight 

unforeseen in that technical peanut sized place

in my brain.

which is to say, i am learning and i love

to learn. keeps me supple.

mexico

there are bells outside my house.

bells. bells. bells and birds and a parrot who whistles

cat calls when pretty girls walk by.

they are playing now.  a little symphony. 

i just went for a swim.

did i tell you there is a pool

surrounded by hummingbirds?

i have to cry-swim. it is so pretty.

and now the thunder has come out.

i love thunder.

i took a long walk in the sun.

and my legs ache. my face is warm.

there is also a garden. and a little fountain.

and mountains and hot-springs and cobble-stone

streets and many beautiful people's faces.

wrinkled and young. old and just born.

hand-in-hand.

the sun brings such pretty skin

to people who are always outdoors. i am envious

of their health, their pace of living, their children playing

outside on the streets till long after midnight. 

i envy the people standing eating tacos from the night stands illuminated

by old christmas lights. the food, the colors, the flowers everywhere. 

the people surrounded by their families. i want to absorb it all. i want to belong

to it. i don't want to be looking in on it.

i am romantic, yes, but tell me of anything better. even one thing.

better than being with people you love and eating tacos standing

up under the moonlight among the churches and the colored streamers.

tell me one thing. i can't imagine it. nothing is prettier.

the apartment is filled with day of the dead skulls and pinatas.

and the backyard is suffused with cactii. it is perfect for me.

i love it.

which reminds me. i am off to get some of the holy agave.

the numinous cactii, which is really more closely linked

to the lily.

they export all the bad stuff. the tequila here is sacred.

it is god's drink.

and god is everywhere in this place.

and i don't even believe in god. but i feel something so palpable

when i am here.

i want to dissolve into the wind and desert sand and the strange

blossoms that emerge from the cactii. i want to be soluble and 

not made of parts. i want to vanish into the color and lights.

i want to be part of the earth and the sky and no longer 

walk upon it. 

i want to be it.

i want to be water 

and to travel that way.

forever.

silver fuck

i am sweltering with delight 

over alexander mcqueen's immutable genius. 

yet, again, i roll over in my sheets in pain and adorable agony 

that i cannot seem to assuage myself with any more images 

sufficient to accompany this post. 

suffice to say

i would die happy 

were my body adorned 

in such a manner.

sweet sweet

bust it out baby. play your song.

http://vimeo.com/6632178

yum yum

if you are into channelling your inner harajuku girl

then simply click here

don't worry, you can thank me later

with a hello kitty pez dispenser

o i am a sucker for love

o i am a sucker for love

always have been

gosh

if you are 

a sucker too

you will adore delving deeply

into this this site

lindsey loo

more beauty-cuteness

than all my thimbles

could hold

take a look at lindsey loo

a luscious lust red

if you love the ephemeral as much as i do. 

you will find yourself in a land of wonder 

when visiting ms. dextras' works:

delicious

sarah beetson

i am being kinda blown away 

by the work of sarah beetson today

you know 

when you have had someone

orbiting your orbit but neither

of you ever quite landed

count me a prisoner on this planet

i cannot leave

she is too good

yum

candyland

human beings are beautiful creatures

take a look at the pretty and very intricate

world of the divine linda dolak

excited sigh

(if that's possible)

happy. happy.

let's face it

girls are fun

to look at

they are all

nice and

curvy and

good

take a look 

at my new 

favorite

circus

Illustration Now! 3

GOOD NEWS!
the new version of
ILLUSTRATION NOW!
is coming out

(best illustrators from around the world!)

Taschen Books
i love you

thank you for including
little miss sugar power
and her lint museum

all good things
happen in 3's

they say

something about the devil and idle hands

something about the devil and idle hands II

lola devola

hey guys look!

it is my ma, lola devola.

ain't she something?

any fan-mail you wish to

send to her you can send

to me and i will print it out

for her

she is still learning the

"internets"

i love her i do

hi mom!

my new home

i am going to build a home

and it is going to look

a little something 

like this

pip & pop 2

i know, i know

i have included pip & pop 

before but

mother of pearl

just look at this!

if all our meals were made of those

colorful little flinstones vitamins

maybe, just maybe

we could conjure images like this

too 

on a really, really, really

good day

lolita

this girl lolita 

is a real gem

if you ever need a dose of

sweet inspiration

fall into her blog

it dreams the dreams for you

it is a kind of sigh machine

photo illustration

okay this week's obsession is 

photo-illustration

there are many kinds but 

here are a friendly few

melody cassen

grace weston 

just to get you started

photo-illustration 2

or how about marie taillefer

for a little french fashion 

photo illustration

inspiration

now 

try to say that 

3x

really fast

with a pack of jelly babies

in your mouth

sugar shop

o dear!

i think i forgot to tell you

i opened my very first shop

yes

i am selling 

limited edition prints that 

come with some secret

mystery features

only

you will have to buy one

to find out

in the meantime

keep checking in

the collection of images

will evolve 

inevitably

twins

ever feel like you are being followed or

someone is saying the same thing to you

they might have said to your other self

or maybe you are being blamed for things

you never did or haunted

by a feeling of being doubled

i found increasing evidence this week

that i have a twin a

self that i have never seen a

secret self

walking the streets

posing as me

saying "hi, i am sugar

...o yes how i do love grapes and potatoes"

and persuading people to listen to a whole load 

of other malarky

well, just

beware is all i can muster

at this point

though the clues are mounting i am still

building my case

schmuck

what do hand-cuffs, white lotion,

simulated body parts, earth and

flocked psuedo-computers all

have in common?

the jewelry show 

called schmuck

at the 

rmit gallery in melbourne

i haven't seen anything like it

well...

ever

stylists

there are so many different kinds of stylists.

there are food, table-top, wardrobe and 

costume, interior and the list goes on.

in my search for intriguing stylists

i have come across a few people

who lead just plain interesting

lives

what makes them interesting 

i think 

is a kind of intimacy they are willing

to share with regard to their work

this is certainly true of photo stylist

Annette Joseph

kat macleod

kat mcleod

is a favorite illustrator too

ethereal, playful

sometimes kinda

somber or

sad like a rainy day sad

maybe

her work is really 

worth a peek

oslo davis

one artist

i particularly love

at the jacky winter group

is

oslo davis

he is witty and

dark a little

and good

in all the right

places

the hatch

i am very lucky to work with a few
really great agents 

the hatch is an offshoot

from the jacky winter group

and is very special

take a look.

polaroids

as i learn about styling

food and props 

with various stylists, i have started

to play with some of the tricks

of the trade

and what better way to showcase

this garden of interior delights

than the polaroid

pure joy

next 

i will build a little 

online shop to house 

all

these moments