IF - Undone

Happy Christmas to one and all!

IF - Hatch

Not even had time to scan it this week, never mind finish it. Will try to finish it before end of week. But don't hold your breath.

Happy Holidays!

IF - Crunchy

Handing this weeks spot over to my 5 year old Edie, these are what she came up with for Crunchy - apparently this is the noise reindeers make when eating the carrots left next to Santa's mince pie and wee dram.

Edie's self portrait, with new angel bobbles.

IF - Entangle

Shakespeare's Pun

This was a commission for a company providing disability equality/awareness training. This was to persuade people not to use the disabled toilets as a store room, apparently it happens.

Birthday Painting

This painting was my wife's birthday present for yesterday. Done by the very talented artist Jenny Birchall from Cornwall, I came up with a list of her favourite things and this was the brilliant end result. My wife was chuffed to bits about it and so were my daughters.

Jenny's work can be seen here and a here, there's some great paintings of St Ives with a Beatles theme to them. When I was in St. Ives in summer I spent ages in certain galleries studying them.

IF - Music

(click to enlarge and enjoy)

This one really is a rave from the grave, a boom from the tomb - done when I was mere slip of a lad. This was from a mini-comic called Lounge Lizard that I use to self publish.

IF - Unbalanced

Most people entering the Hacienda nightclub were chemically unbalanced at sometime or another - Rave On!

At the height of Madchester it was the place to be. If you are unaware of the Hacienda you can read more here. Or better still get this book by Joy Division/New Order/Revenge/Monaco bassist Peter Hook it's on my Christmas list.

IF - Blur

Drink can sometimes blur your emotions aswell as your vision.

Jumpin Germ

Show Tune Homage

Loads of rain here today.

Waiter from Hell

Not someone you'd want to see serving you soup.

IF - Skinny

Some people just can't carry off skinny jeans - me being one of them - and shouldn't try too!

IF - Fast

Better out than in!

Inspired by some guy in Eddie Rockets Diner in Liverpool, while treating the kids. Tho' the service wasn't fast.

Happy Blogday to Me!

I just noticed that I started this blog over four years ago on 17th October 2005, so I'm a wee bit late in celebrations - but nothing unusual there.

Just like to thank everyone who has visited over the years and left a comment - especially to all the regulars who leave comments, you know who you are - it's greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

IF - Frozen

(click on image to enlarge)

More birds - when will they ever stop?

Had a bit of trouble trying to simplify the penguin, so asked my daughter to draw a penguin and bingo - took her literally seconds, so kudos to Macy.

The Wedding Chucker

IF - Flying

Those blasted birds have returned, blame the topic, how could I refuse.

IF - Germs

Monday Art Day - Fire!

Talk about recycling - enough with the birds already! Juvenile I know, but as a great man once said, sorry - no strike that - as Ben Elton said "There's a little bit of Benny Hill in all of us".

No birds posting for a while.

IF - Pattern

(Click on image to enlarge)

Don't birds sometimes make pretty patterns in the sky?

IF - Infinite

They just go on and on and on and on and .............

IF - Welcome 2

Another idea I had for welcome but didn't get time to finish.

IF - Welcome

There are some places you are made to feel welcome, and others you're not.

IF - Strong

Strong sense of smell or strong smelly feet - you decide, very busy this week and it's all I could come up with- sorry.

IF - Magnify

The sound of breadcrumbs dropping is magnified by 100 to a birds ear. FACT! To be honest I wouldn't know, but they're there pretty damn quick for some reason.

Old Me Portrait for Monday Art Day

IF - Caution

Those "don't feed the seagulls" caution signs aren't put up for nothing you know.

Thinking like a Dawg!

IF - (Gift) Wrapped

Just returned from holiday in St Ives, Cornwall and thought this photo and cartoon leant itself to this week's IF topic Wrapped. These gulls found there crab prey gift wrapped by the tide - it was utter carnage, at least it kept them from diving at ice cream eaters, like my daughter.

IF - Modify

This is probably the most tenuous link yet, yesterday I modified my picture to this on Edwyn Collins website .... oh please stop the groaning.

The background is in reference to the band Orange Juice, which he formed in the early 80's and belonged to the influential Postcard Record roster. This is them below, they released four albums and had a big hit single in the UK with Rip It Up, before splitting in 1985.

Edwyn went solo producing some critically acclaimed albums, but didn't really hit pay dirt until A Girl Like You in 1994. Sadly in February 2005 he suffered a major cerebal hemorrhage, he underwent an operation, reportedly after suffering a second hemorrhage. The procedure was successful, miraciously he toured last year and I was luck enough to see him play twice. His partner and managerGrace Maxwell has written a book about his illness and rehabilitation - Falling and Laughing: The Restoration of Edwyn Collins. I was lucky enough to meet them both at a book reading and signing in Manchester earlier this week.

Jazzhooves

Cartoon went live on jazzhooves.com at weekend, quite chuffed about it. Can be seen here .

West Lancs Open

Edie celebrates dad's accepted entry into the West Lancs Open Exhibition, a case of one in one out - my dog with bouncin' boppers didn't make the cut - but I over heard one of the gallery staff saying there was over 250 rejected works, so I feel quite lucky I got one in, and for the third year running too. My first was the original of the blog banner and it sold too, which also meant I didn't have to go and pick it up, though I did miss seeing the red dot.

http://www.chapelgallery.org.uk/

IF - Idle

Brain running on idle - sorry just a quickie this week - preparing for hols.

IF Tango

T in the Park

Edie's First School Report

Found this drawing by my daughter at the back of her first end of school report, I loved her attention to detail.

Deb n Deb

Not sure about this one yet, think it needs work around the eyes. It's a commission for my wife's friends.

IF - Hollow

Been wracking my brains on this one, but then noticed a man on the bus to work without his dentures and hey-presto - Hollow Mouth.

IF - Shaky

On shaky ground - I wouldn't want to be in his flip-flops!

Jazzhooves

Previous drawing tightened up and shaded, going to be used on a friend's website soon, called jazzhooves.com.

IF - Worn (belatedly)

He'd worn out the keyboard repeatedly playing The Entertainer by Scott Joplin.

HELP!!

I bought this t-shirt over 10 years ago (and yes it still fits!!) in NYC (Urban Outfitters), but I've never bothered to find out what the wording means. My daughters keep asking and I always repy 'it means you wait for one bus and then three come along at the same time'. Which I'm positive they don't beleive, and I was wondering if anyone out there could enlighten us. Ta.

First Tooth Lost

This is a drawing that my youngest daughter Edie did to commemorate the loss of her first tooth, it was on the way to see the Colour Chart: Reinventing Colour, 1950 - today at Tate Liverpool. The fairies gave her £1 for the tooth, it was sixpence in my day, but as she pointed out, that was a loooooong time ago.

In one room they covered the floor like above.