Coles Miller Solicitors sponsor a lion!

"What?" I hear you cry? A solicitors and a lion in the same sentance..read on! WOW!
Coles Miller have sponsored me to create a stunning mosaic lion for the 'Pride in Bournemouth' next year.
The law firm, work in many different ways within the local community and this will be a new way to reach the community!
The lion will be mosaiced by the public, staff and with a little help and guidance by me next year in Bournemouth centre. The design is still top secret and all will be revealed after Christmas...watch this space!

Julia's House butterfly mosaic

Here is the finished result - not the best light..what do you think?

One cold and windy Saturday, a couple of weeks' ago, I had such a lovely day working with the siblings, affected children, staff and families creating a butterfly mosaic for the hospice's new extension. The butterfly was a Dorset Blue flying around the heather (shaped as hearts). Most people think that hospices are sad places, but as Julia's house logo states 'A happy place' is just that due to the people and wonderful atmosphere as you walk in the door.

Much laughter, glitter, other activities, butterfly cakes ( see the connection there?!) and sparkle mosaic tiles, everyone had a great time. The butterfly uses much calmer colours, mirrors to reflect the light and give the butterfly slight movement. I will leave you with this thought:

Martin Edwards, Chief Executive wrote something so beautiful in the lastest newsletter that I would like to share it with you:

'The butterfly is the symbol of the children's hospice movement. For butterflies, like the children whom we help during their short lives, are not with us for long. Like the children, they are beautiful but fragile. When they are gone we are much poorer for their loss, and long winter darkness follows. Yet they leave behind vibrant, colourful memories for all who knew them, because while they were among us they lit up our world.'

The Dolphin Shopping centre winners..a little taste of fame!

A little taste of fame!
Following the release of the charity Christmas cards, we simply needed to let the world know how wonderful this project really was with a press afternoon. All the five winners had their photos taken and each winner was presented with a prize of a £50 voucher per and £100 voucher for each school.
The smiles were almost as big as Rudolph's!


Can you spot the winning design in the group from St.Mary's Catholic School? Many of these designs were also transformed into floor vinyls that can also be seen in the centre (upper floor). What a talented lot!

The Dolphin Shopping Centre Children's Christmas card project

Wow! What a couple of months we're had! So many wonderful projects that show creativity isn't dead, but a shining beacon.

I have been lucky enough to have worked with 5 amazing local schools in the Poole area, designing simply the best Christmas cards for The Dolphin Shopping Centre Christmas Card project.

The project involved many talented children designing Christmas cards, that capture the essence of what Christmas is truly about, from robins, Father Christmas, decorated Christmas trees galore, angels, traditional subjects....these cards simply rock!

The Dolphin Shopping Centre have pulled out the stops - 5 winning designs have now been printed into cards to be sold for two wonderful local charities: Lighthouse and Julia's House. Both charities really make a difference. What a great way to raise really needed funds from local school children designing fab. works of art, to then be sold in the Dolphin Shopping Centre, bought by local people to enjoy - a 'win win' situation!

Not only have 5 winning designs been printed into Christmas cards, but 60 designs have also been printed into A1 floor vinyls that will create a magical 'floor gallery' for all to see!

Working with the children, it's evident that there is a great new wave of creative talent just starting out.

Each pack of 5 designs, will be available to buy for £2.99 from shops in the centre..smiles all around!

Lions are coming to Bournemouth..

Not long now before the big launch of the pride in Bournemouth 'The mane Event'. Over 50 lions will be decorated and placed outside for all to enjoy next year in the streets in Bournemouth. Have a look at the website: www.prideinbournemouth.com for more details. I promise to post some news tomorrow...fingers crossed some photos too..

Bugs, seaside and mosaics!

We here at Poppies have been very busy with fabulous mosaic workshops working with Children's Centres and lots of sticking and having fun! Stokewood Children's Centre have been working hard to create 2 mosaics - the first based on ground bugs such as ants, beetles and the other flying bugs such as dragonflies, ladybirds.
Southbourne children's centre have been sticking tiles into their 'By the Sea' design with land train too!
Many other projects have also been started and are in the process of being completed..more info. coming soon!

Poppies have been busy..

Poppies have been very busy this summer after the auction of the wonderful Kubella the Seaside elephant mosaiced for The London Elephant Parade.

We have been running fun and messy childrens' art workshops during the summer holidays including exciting eco projects such as painting eco bags to save using plastic ones, creating eco cities using household recycling, making memory boxes for ' found treasure' found during the holidays. We have been mosaicing panels based on drawings from 'Bug week', which will showcase our native garden bugs we can all find and help to survive. Making bee hotels and ladybird homes, along with sewing wild flowers all help the survival of bugs and are a simple way to help, as well as being fun to make and watch!

We also enjoyed making many hundreds of badges to the very popular 'Big Fest' festival in Andover last weekend, with lots of happy children drawing. colouring and stickers galore in a beautiful Indian tent.

Big Fest had loads of cool eco stuff too.. from willow weaving, making bee hotels, wild flower quizes, free eco bags with refillable water bottles from Southern Water, recycling challenges, hand painted flags, storytelling with a great big stage for music and dancers to entertain.

We have also enjoyed working with the wonderful Children charity Julia's House, a hospice for children based in Corfe Mullen and made many badges, handbag mirrors, keyrings during their summer BBQ at the rather beautiful The Orangary in Winborne, with the sun shining, the smell of BBQ in the air, magicians entertaining, a great time was had by one and all!

We are looking forward to creating a Dorset blue butterfly mosaic at Julia's house in a couple of weeks to brighten a bare brickwall in the new extention, with help from children, thier siblings, families and staff. Watch this space for photos after 22nd August!