Profile: Soft Constructions

We would like to introduce our new 'profiles blogger', Alira Callaghan. Alira has a strong interest in supporting local artists, designers and creatives and she will be bringing you articles on talented local creatives. The subject of her first profile is Seonaidh Murphy’s Soft Constructions.

What sort of things does Soft Constructions encompass? 
Soft Constructions is a Perth based illustration and design studio focused on creating unique, original and playful designs and products for their customers and clients. I use popular culture as inspiration and then utilise both hand worked and digital techniques (combined with a twist of humour) to create designs that can find themselves on any number of products.  There is a retail side to the business as well as a design side that is more focused on creating custom designs and products for clients such as menus, uniforms, logos etc.

I know you have a background in both art and design, what was it that attracted you to the textile side of design?I had always been involved in working with textiles.  Even at art school I did a lot of experimentation with textiles and sculpture.  I guess there is something about the tactility of it being able to be used to create 2d and 3d shapes.  I enjoy working between the two spheres of art and design because it gives me a creative outlet but I can still be business focused.

Can you briefly explain what is involved in your design process?
I do a bit of trend research and come up with some ideas.  Then I collect imagery and after that I start piecing together my designs.  From there I start incorporating puns and drawing them and painting them as I see fit.  Next I scan the design in and do any digital alterations and edits to it and it gets made into whichever product it needs to be.
 

Images courtesy of Soft Constructions

Does Soft Constructions offer you a creative outlet that is different to when you have done work in the fashion industry?
Definitely.  Soft Constructions allows me to utilize more of my skills and gives me the freedom to cross over into multiple disciplines.  I also get to indulge in my illustration skills, which is great!

A lot of your designs incorporate humour, have you always enjoyed the pun game or did that come through developing your practice?
I’ve always had a bit of a sense of humour.  Some people enjoy it and some people don’t, it wasn’t always very well received when I was in art school.  I feel like I have the ability to switch between serious and funny though and know the circumstances in which to use my comedic devices. 

What is your favourite aspect of your work for Soft Constructions? 
My favourite aspect is constantly growing the business into new and exciting places.  As I grow more opportunities come up and I really enjoy the challenge of being faced with new problems to solve.

Do you try to source your materials and services locally?
I try to source as much locally as I can and if I can’t source it locally I use Australian suppliers.  It can be hard but I seem to be able to make it work at the moment.

Images courtesy of Soft Constructions

How important has it been to the success of Soft Constructions to have support from the community and likeminded people?
It has been really important.  Being able to be inspired by the people around you gives you the strength to grow and flourish as a business.  I love being around people that are as excited as I am to make a difference and create unique and successful businesses.

What project/s are you currently working on?
I have lots of little things in the works.  I have a few custom products with local businesses that I’ll be able to let you in on soon.  I also have plans to grow the business into a very exciting place next year but I can’t say too much.

Where can we find your designs and products?
You can find our products at www.softconstructions.com and in:
Sugar and Nice, Inglewood        The Little Cheese Shop, Bayswater
Common Ground, Fremantle      Kakulas Sister, Fremantle
The Tenth State, Nedlands         Perth Upmarket

And soon to be in: 
Compendium, Fremantle       Addison and Steele, North Perth
Beehive, Fremantle


Alira Callaghan

Big Hearted Business Morning Tea

Big Hearted Business is the love-child of Clare Bowditch, who first began mentoring “creative-types” over a decade ago as the leader of a “Musician’s Self Management and Promotion” course at her local community house. Clare Bowditch has gone on to become one of Australia’s most successful ARIA Award-winning songwriters and has a long list of accomplishments.

Big Hearted Business is here to teach creative people about business, and business people about creativity, in ways that make sense.
Join Clare for an intimate morning tea, where she’ll serve you tea and oranges and biscuits and tell you everything she knows about building a creative career/business, living the life you yearn for, and taking care of yourself as you “step up”.


This is a two hour event including
 Clare’s best career advice EVER, a Q & A,  tea and special biscuits and a chance to “connect with your peeps”.

Date: 31ST August
Time: 10am-12pm
Location: Perth City Farm, Exhibition Space, 1 City Farm Pl East Perth
Cost: $57 Inc GST

Book your tickets here.

Style and Focus blog

Style and Focus is an exciting new blog that is Perth based. It concentrates on creatives that have taken their style and designs to the next level. “We have called ourselves a ‘blogazine'!”, says Jody, as we show original images and writing, much like the magazines that we freelance for. The articles will continue to grow in their focus and style to bring together all aspects of what makes beautiful homes. 

Photography By Jody D’Arcy. Produced and styled by Jo Carmichael

The blog is a collaboration between photographer, Jody D’Arcy and stylist, Jo Carmichael who have an eye for beautiful things and want to source and share with their readers some serious eye candy. Their backgrounds include work for publications such as Inside Out, Home Beautiful, House & Garden, Country Style and Scoop magazine. From all their combined experience, they want to showcase people they have come across (all proudly sandgroper talent), beautiful things they have discovered, style and design hints, tips and forecasts and project it all onto one special blog to share. They focus mainly on the home and garden and all its trimmings, discovering the people behind the design and things they love. 

Jo and Jody specialise in creating beautiful and thoughtful styled images for websites, advertising and online stores. Their clients range from architects such as KADA, online stores like Bowerhouse and builders such as National Estate Builders. If you are stumped on how to showcase your products and style, Jo and Jody can round it up, story board, create sets and photograph it for you for all your business needs.

Their vision is to connect, grow and support Perth burgeoning talent base, fostering all that is original and beautiful for example, Made on the Left stallholder, Fluid Ink. 

Fluid Ink Letterpress

So be sure to check them out! Sign up to their newsletter, like them on Facebook to follow what they are up to. It will also give you a fresh insight into what’s happening on your own doorstep. 

Q & A with Lucie from "Magpie House"

Tell us a bit about your business.Magpie House is an eclectic mix of jewellery made by me, Lucie Basinger, using new and recycled pieces. The name Magpie House came about as I have always had a fascination with Magpies after being told as a child that if you see one alone you must greet it by saying “Good afternoon your Lordship”. Also they are cheeky and like to collect shiny things, which I think is great!

What inspires you?I am often inspired by my friends and by travel. I find odd combinations of shapes and textures intriguing and love animals and the outdoors.

What do you love most about selling at markets?I love the atmosphere; right from the set up it is an exciting energy. I love seeing all the other stalls and the fantastic outfits of all the shoppers!

What materials do you use?I use brass, copper, plastic, recycled bits and bobs found in op shops, all sorts really. I also use paper, card, old books and felt for my card making

What is your favourite part of the creative process?I love coming up with an idea and getting lost in doing trials and making mistakes, making mistakes often takes the idea on a totally new track. I like making a mess and the whole practical element. And then of course the feeling of selling something that you have made for someone else to enjoy is just awesome.

What’s been your most popular item or line to date?My brass triangle necklace or my mint green bead necklace has probably been the most popular.

What new products are you working on?I am working on a few new necklaces and bracelets using a lot of geometric shapes and bright beads. I am also making a lot of collaged postcards and gift tags, using old travel books and cat pictures. I really like to manipulate the old images using patterns, and painting back into them.

Where can we find you? www.etsy.com/shop/lucie2427

www.magpiehouse.tumblr.com
housemagpie@gmail.com

Q&A with "Marina's Ambrosia"

Tell us a bit about your business?

My name is Marina Herlihy and my business is Marina's Ambrosia. Marina's Ambrosia started out in 2002. I had been suffering for a long while with bad skin. Irritation, break outs, blotchy skin and small rashes and burning on the skin and it was very upsetting having to go to different doctors and trying different types of prescription creams. By accident when I was studying my Natural Therapies certificate I realized that it must of been one of the 100 different things i had been trying and using over the past 2 years. I made the primrose moisturizer in my determination to do it myself and create something that was comletely non toxic. Within a year the range grew and the customers came.

Since then the range has expanded to include 100% pure mineral make up and close to 100 eye shadow colours using the purest of mineral powders mined in Europe without titanium dioxide. Raw shampoo, conditioner and body wash are manufacturered by hand and sold in large 1 litre pump packs, 100% herbal hair colours and hair treatments have also been put together and we are now exporting these to the USA and Canada. The Cancer Support Assocation in Cottesloe have since gone through the products and approved them for use on people with Cancer and those whom are chemical sensitive. We also are very proud to have a 24K gold range also which is only avaliable to salons.

What inspires you?
What inspires me are the people that come to me in desperation and as a last resort and follow up with me a week later telling me how grateful they are to have found me. Helping people to get off the chemical roller coaster gives me a tremendous sense of achievement. I have parents whom bring their teenage daughters to me saying “if you want to wear makeup this is the only type of makeup you are allowed to wear” and the teenagers are so grateful that they can safely use the products with mums blessing because it is good for their skin and isn’t going to harm their skin.

As I am also a mum of 4 children and 3 of them happen to be girls, I can relax with the fact that when they are in at the age where they want to wear makeup and are starting to take a little interest in what they put on their faces, I have peace of mind that I have that covered and I am not challenged like a lot of other mothers whom are at their wits ends and cant find what they need unless they research for a long time.

What do you love most about selling at markets?
I am very much a people person and the one on one contact with customers is what I thrive on. Selling at the markets is a real buzz for me because I am taking my products directly to the people and they can get up close and personal with the products and speak directly with the manufacturer (being me) and I can answer all the questions that they have.

What new products are you working on?

I am always working on new product development. For the past 7 years I had been doing private manufacturing for many private labels and people wanting to start their own business label and they have a recipe without the knowhow of product making and I have been responsible for starting up over 20 new brands and many of which are now bigger brands and I have since moved them on.

The new product that I am currently working on is MR. Natural. Which is a mens range of products and I am aiming to make it a 3 step system so that it is quick, no fuss and easy to use.



What is your favourite product and why?

My favourite product has to be the primrose moisturizer because it was the first product in the range. The very first product which still is made using the original recipe from all those years ago. When I first made it and used it, I went to bed that night without the itchy feeling on my cheeks and that was when I knew I was onto a good thing. After a week of using my primrose moisturizer which I also used it as a cleanser too and added walnut shell to it to exfoliate and also used it again as a moisturizer, my skin started clearing up so very quickly that 2 weeks later I had perfect skin and you wouldn’t have thought I had any problems at all with my skin.

So for this reason I love my primrose moisturizer. It’s my baby and my favourite!

Q&A with "A Story Of"

Tell us a bit about your business

Everything you buy has a story.  Whether it has come from a factory or handmade; if it's recycled or completely new; the people who have made it.  All these things make up the story of an item, and that's what A Story Of is about.  I create a little over half of the products on my website myself in WA, using things like vintage plates, recycled leather and local wool.  I also collaborate with some fair trade artisans in Thailand on designs and source yet more that have been designed and made by groups working with women at risk.  I try to make the stories of my products accessible and help people to feel the heart in what they are buying. 

What inspires you?

All sorts of things - a good book, movies, architecture... I get most inspired, though, when I travel and get to know different people, cultures, and the arts that are a part of them. 

What do you love most about selling at markets?

I love meeting new people - sellers and customers - finding out what they're upto and what they love about handmade items.  I also love to see the huge range of work on display.  WA has some amazing creativity to offer!!

What new products are you working on?

I'm just starting work on our first clothing collection, actually!! I want to collaborate with artisans in Thai hill tribes and use their traditional fabrics in modern designs.

Apart from that, I'm always working on new jewellery ideas, playing with different bits and pieces I can recycle. My most recent thing is using leather from belt offcuts, and I'm starting to get into cutting wood from naturally fallen branches.

What is your favourite product and why?

I do love working on my necklaces made from pieces of vintage plates. Finding the plates in op shops or receiving broken ones from friends which I can give new life to. They already have such a history, I can only imagine what their stories are!! I love being able to add my own paintings to make them into something new people can enjoy and feel good wearing. Each one is so unique with different pictures and character.

Business name/your name/website

Candice Tout from A Story Of

www.astoryof.com 

Stallholder Profile: Spotlight on "Christobel"

Christobel was the winner of our "Best Stall Display" at our Winter 2012 market. Here we find out what goes on behind the scenes.

The Christobel stall at Made on the Left market

Christine Lovitt of Christobel was born in Dublin, Ireland and migrated to Perth in 1988 with her husband and three small children. She has worked as a lawyer since arriving in Perth and only when she changed to part-time hours in 2007 did she find the time to pursue more creative activities.

What inspires you to create?

Sometimes an idea will just come to me – other times I will see something when I am out and about which will give me an idea.

What materials do you use? 

Almost everything I use is pre-loved. I make paper sculptures out of old books, sheet music and atlases, journals using old books covers, jewellery using old bakelite buckles and buttons, cushions out of vintage leather and any other treasures that I pick up from time to time which can be put to another use.

What steps do you take to prepare for a market? 

First I clear my workspace, then I think about what time of year my next market is going to be and what seasonal things I can make. Then I look at what new treasures I have collected and work out what to do with them. Because I am always making things, one market kind of rolls into the next fairly seamlessly without having to say up all night making enough stock.

What’s your number one market tip? 

Practice setting up your stall at home beforehand so that you can perfect the overall appearance and not be stressed on the day. How your stall looks can make a big difference to how shoppers perceive your products.

What is your favourite part of the creative process? 

Experimenting with new ideas. For every new thing that appears on my stall there will have been an equal number that didn’t work out and ended up in the bin. I love scouring church fetes, Sunday markets and op-shops for old treasures and then the challenge of making something new with them.

What’s been your most popular item or line to date? 

My paper sculptures and my tiny plants in vintage teacups.

What is the most exciting thing that has come out of selling your designs through markets? 

The most exciting thing was getting an order from overseas for some of my paper sculptures which had appeared in a Sydney Morning Herald article on craft markets.

What advice would you give someone who wants to sell their crafts? 

Think about your brand and where it fits in the marketplace, then just get out there and apply for stalls at markets like Made On The Left. It is the best way to test your ideas and to get feedback.

What goals do you have in store for the future? 
Ultimately I would love to have my own studio space from which I could sell my pieces. My husband loves finding and restoring old furniture and both my daughters are very creative so it could be a family venture!

Thanks Christine!
xx MOTL team

Stallholder Profile: Spotlight on "Little L"

Made on the Left first came across Lauren Mills at the KickstART Youth Markets in April of this year. We were so impressed with her display, we awarded her Best Stall Display with the prize being a free spot at the July Made on the Left market. Here we get the scoop on Lauren, her inspirations, creative processes and market tips!  

Lauren with her prize winning display at the KickstART Youth Markets

Tell us a bit about yourself.

My name is Lauren Mills; I am 23 years old and currently finishing my final year of Interior Design at university. I started up my small business Little L at the beginning of this year and have loved every moment of it since.

What inspires you to create?

The materials I use are my main inspiration. I love repurposing old materials and giving them a new life, for example: my stamp collection from my childhood has now turned into necklace pendants and brooches, old books from the top shelf of a second hand store are now a myriad of ornaments and artwork, paper dress patterns are now mini and large bouquets of flowers.

Turning trash into treasure and just making beautiful things is what inspires me to keep on going.

What materials do you use?

As said above I like to reuse old items and repurpose used materials. Books, dress patterns, postage stamps, sheet music, lace, buttons, dominos and scrabble letters make up to main collection of my materials. I also use all recycled pieces of furniture for my market displays, all found at bulk rubbish collections or at second hand markets.

Little L at the Made on the Left July 2012 market

What steps do you take to prepare for a market?

A lot of preparation goes into the week prior to a market, usually I clear out a space in the house like the living room or garage and layout my whole display with all my furniture and pieces so I can get it just right. I get my whole family involved getting feedback and help with planning so everything runs smoothly on the day.

What’s your number one market tip?

Be prepared! I always pack a toolbox with everything I might need from masking tape to blue tack to safety pins to my pliers. You never know what might happen. For outdoors markets tarps are always a good idea especially in winter, and for indoor markets materials to fix your signage and displays with are a must.

Lauren's workspace

What is your favourite part of the creative process?

The best part of the creative process is that moment in the middle when you can finally see your ideas taking shape and coming to life. That point where whatever you’re working on starts to resemble the finished product you have pictured in your head. That’s such a rewarding moment to know you’ve overcome the difficulties of creating and things are finally turning out right!

What’s been your most popular item or line to date?

My most popular item has definitely been the handmade paper flowers from recycled dress patterns. They have consistently sold out and I can’t seem to make enough of them fast enough!

What is the most exciting thing that has come out of selling your designs through markets?

The interactions with all the other market organisers, stallholders and potential stockholders. The contacts and networking that can come from just one market is so inspirational it really keeps me eager to continue my hard work and keep pursuing this dream.

What advice would you give someone who wants to sell their crafts?

I think the best thing to do from the beginning is to research. Research the market, the product, the people you want to sell to and where you will be selling. The market scene in Perth is booming at the moment so now is definitely a good time to get involved, so have confidence in your products and take the chance. It’s a fantastic experience and the people in the Perth market scene are just lovely J

What goals do you have in store for the future?

Ideally I would like to open my own store selling refurbished furniture, and more of my handmade wares. I love what I am doing and love the creative process, but I also love the thought of the people of Perth wearing my wares and having them in their homes. For now I am just happy to get out there and keep holding stalls and enjoying every moment of it. 

Thanks Lauren!
xx MOTL Team

Finding Inspiration

Surely I am not alone in the never ending search for inspiration? The sort of search that I can lose myself in for days, bypassing teeball training, essential meals, ignoring telephone calls and cries for help?

Okay okay, I am not that bad but I am always searching for inspiration to add that extra dimension to my creative work and in turn my life.

So, where does one start?

Flickr

I discovered the joy of Flickr about a year ago but only in the last few weeks have I truly begun to understand the pull of looking through Groups, through people's wide and varied interests, through colour co-ordinated photostreams, themed shoots and happy snaps.

One such person I found on Flickr (I can't explain how I found her, only that I had two cups of coffee and a white chocolate Kit kat wrapper by my laptop when I came to my senses). An article about her project was featured in the Notebook magazine in April of this year; 365 Reasons to be Grateful. Hailey Bartholomew is a photographer and mother of two who felt she was lacking spirit - inner happiness. As a way of finding this, she began documenting each day with a photo of something she was grateful for. To read her interview... click here. For her photostream click here. There are other image hosting sites such as Photobucket and Imageshack.

I found that particular idea resonated with me, and I found it immensely inspiring that she sought inspiration in her own life. I will actually come back to the notion of Gratefulness in a future post as I believe that practising gratitude enriches our lives and allows us to be better at whatever we do.

So the Internet as a whole.... who doesn't find inspiration online? Depending on your craft or your persuasions - there are zillions of sites that cater to almost every passion one could possibly have. I subscribe to several sites, home, fashion, interior, parenting, jewellery supplies - you name it - my inbox is full of it.

In particular I love Etsy's treasuries. Created by real people, they are a carefully curated collection of items on etsy that someone has sought out and recorded as their favourite things. PS. There is even a blog or website of past front page treasuries.... I will update this as soon as I find it.

UPDATE: http://www.flickr.com/photos/28488923@N05/

People Watching.

How much fun is this! Either you are a born people watcher or you aren't. I used to come into the city and spend at least an hour in Forrest Square just watching the world go by. Talk about streetwear! I still do this now, and find it refreshes my mind and creative process. In my day job I deal with thousands of people everyday and I love that you can get a sense of a person (or be curiously surprised) by the way they present themselves.

History.

Now don't go to sleep on me but don't you find old films fascinating? The language, the dominating culture of the time - my husband interrupts me here to say that he finds old Government/Political advertising inspires him. Hmmm. Not just old films but he has a point there - I love old advertising, signs, posters for films, record covers..... nostalgia with a twist.

Children.

Having my children - I have to admit I thought would be the end of my individuality and creativity. Boy was I proved wrong! As a mother, I am inspired to provide and create a sanctuary for my kids, to ensure that they grow up without prejudice, with compassion and a love for the world in which they live. I am inspired by their fascination with the minute details that pass me by (Why do snail shells have lines on them? Why does that flower have yellow dust on it?) There is much we take for granted! I am often on Kindy roster duty and I just love watching children draw, paint and glue without inhibitions - pure creativity.

Markets.

Now like everything else, inspiration is about gathering ideas and translating them into your own creations. And respecting other people's designs and creations in the process. I love the riot of people at markets, the colours, the buzz, although usually exhausted after a market, I always make time to write notes down of what I liked and didn't like.

Op-Shopping

Colour combinations that should never be seen, and yet they are strangely appealing. Enough said!

Okay - the usual suspects of course - magazines, television, movies, books - I feel guilty piling them into one big lot - but we all know how much of this we absorb, almost as normal as breathing. I am a big fan of Interior and Architecture magazines, and have noticed over the years, that colour trends on the catwalk mirror that of interiors - which comes first? I really don't know. But I love the infusion and the borrowing of ideas. I have to be honest and say I am not a big television nor movie watcher - I guess it's about whatever takes your fancy.

Some of my favourite online sources...

www.designspongeonline.com/ - interior design at its best

www.flickr.com/ - image hosting site

keithlobue.blogspot.com/ - the Stuffsmith jewellery creator

jeanettes.typepad.com/ - Absolutely Beautiful things

www.sweet-juniper.com/ - Photos and blog of life and decay in Detroit

www.instructables.com/ - How-to site

Yes, incredibly random but I enjoy the insight into other people's lives, and indeed their creative process. Perhaps, you may wish to keep a wee record of things that catch your fancy - everyone in my household has a visual diary (boys included) and we carry them with us, along with the camera to record things which bring us inspiration.

Enjoy your weekend!