Okay, hospital I admit it, more about it’s taken me over three weeks to get around to writing about my final date on the ACOFI Book Tour… but it was all part of my cunning plan to let you all forget about it and then bring it up all over again! Plus, let’s be honest, I had some pretty darn great coverage around the time of the event. For example this beautiful blog by Alia Gargum, who describes how the process for working for me as a contributor to Amelia’s Magazine has helped her to develop as an illustrator. It’s really nice to get this kind of feedback as I work devilishly hard to promote up and coming creatives and it doesn’t exactly earn me much of a living.
All photography by Amelia Gregory.
A few ACOFI contributors also came along for the night – read lovely blogs by Emma Block (who has just graduated from Middlesex University with a first) and Gareth A Hopkins. Emily of Tatty Devine also did a round up, as did Mistry of Habs, Ickleson and Katie of The Young Creatives. Spoilt really! And they wrote theirs a lot faster than me… In the intervening weeks time just seems to have flown past and as the graduate shows have piled up I’ve let it slip and slip…
Emma Block.
Alia Gargum.
Gareth A Hopkins – pretending that the camera is not really there. I’m not fooled.
Emily Prichard of Tatty Devine helping out on the door.
Plus I just knew that this blog would become a bit of biscuit porn fest (in a good way). You have been warned.
The last date on my ACOFI Book Tour was held on Tuesday 7th June at the Brick Lane branch of Tatty Devine and it was a homecoming of sorts… mere minutes from my house. I had expected it to be a busy night but I was really quite overwhelmed by the amount of people who turned up: creatives of every age, stage of career and creative discipline, not just illustrators – although it was wonderful to meet so many contributors to Amelia’s Magazine who I speak to regularly by email.
Colourful icing ready to pipe onto biscuits.
Cassie Merrick of the Biscuiteers with her assistant Lou Newton.
Cassie and Lou had laid out a wonderful Biscuiteers display on the counter by the time of my (as usual) frantic arrival: a delightful carpet of pretty biscuits – tiny iced gem tasters in a rainbow of colours and plenty of half iced biscuits on which guests were invited to pipe their own designs. It took awhile for people to warm to the idea, but once we got going there was no stopping us. Even my boyfriend had a go! (and he wasn’t the only boy who stepped up to the mark)
Biscuiteers biscuits come in yummy vanilla and chocolate flavours but it is the handmade decoration that makes them so special. They have a rotating team of trained icers, and Emma Block (having met them at my event) will be joining them as a freelancer this summer. What a great part time job – where can I sign up?! In the meantime Biscuiteers will be helping out with the Letter Lounge event at Tatty Devine Covent Garden on Wednesday 6th July, a result of meeting up on the ACOFI Book Tour.
Sonja from Tatty Devine welcomes a visitor to the shop.
It was also lovely to meet Richard Watson, who is the maestro behind Juiceology, the new juice brand that has been supporting all ACOFI Book Tour dates. He’d brought along some updated flavours for us to try in slightly bigger bottles of the type preferred by bars. I really couldn’t have hoped for a better sponsor, and it’s nice to know that the ACOFI Book Tour has enabled yet more introductions – Juiceology recently sponsored the Andy Smith solo show at Soma Gallery, which I visited a month ago.
Richard Watson of Juiceology.
I’ve started to see Juiceology for sale in boutique sandwich shops, so make sure you check them out next time you see them on the shelf – I can’t recommend them highly enough. Richard has some other flavours in the pipeline and I’m looking forward to trying his next flavour soon.
Lahloo Tea once again provided some delicious peppermint and earl grey tea for the event, which was served to guests in dainty china cups.
And of course no event would be complete without some samples of Dr. Hauschka products. This time Heather Stanton of Dr.Hauschka was actually able to make it along and join in the fun with her hubby Will. It was lovely to catch up with her.
Once everyone had had ample time to meet, mingle, share work and decorate a Biscuiteers biscuit I invited everyone to gather around and stood with my computer held aloft on my shoulder to give the talk. Having done the spiel five times already I raced through it even faster than I have done in the past – mostly because I was aware that everyone was squished into the shop, all standing, and I felt pretty bad about that. I think everyone enjoyed it though.
Amongst the many Amelia’s Magazine contributors who came along to the event were these lovely illustrators:
Kristina Vasiljeva has just finished her FdA illustration course at Camberwell. She has been contributing some wonderful fashion illustrations to the magazine.
Hannah Simpson was recently awarded a prize at the V&A illustration awards. Here she is icing biscuits with Kristina.
Illustrator Helena Maratheftis also posted some photos of the event.
Naomi Law is of course featured in ACOFI, here with her old chum, my ex fashion editor Matt Bramford.
Soni Speight, aka Ickleson showed us her wonderful business cards.
Lou Cloud and her boyfriend.
Other guests included Katie Byrne of The Young Creatives with her friend Emma Block, who showed us through some loose collage bits in her portfolio.
Emma Block’s delicate collage work.
Alia Gargum and a friend enjoy a nice cup of Lahloo tea.
Maria Papadimitriou of Slowly the Eggs came along again (she also came to the first Tatty Devine event) this time sporting yet another amazing Plastic Seconds necklace (here with Gareth and Alia). Maria even went to the trouble of doing another write up on her blog. What a star!
New work by Gareth A Hopkins – The Intercorstal: Valentine.
I first met Karen from Stepney City Farm on my twitter feed. Since meeting Gareth and Alia at my event they have helped to create artwork for the Paul Foot Farm Favourite Jigsaw Puzzle East End Weekend which is taking place at the farm on the 9th-10th July to raise much needed funds. You can see their wonderful artwork on Paul Foot’s website.
Other attendees included Melinda Barbi, an LCF Fashion Photography student who came along with Sara Lofwander and Agnes Bataclan in advance of my lecturing visit to the London College of Fashion. Inspired by the ACOFI event they made me cookies and cake for my visit, which was MUCH appreciated.
It was nice to see Siobhan Leddy of Flamingo Magazine – with whom I did an interview awhile back.
Susannah Cartwright is a textile designer who is taking part in The Stinging Netil Art Mart on Sunday 10th July in the Netil House car park. Why not check it out?
Tatty Devine’s Harriet Vine.
My former music editor Cari Steel popped in briefly and I made her pose with sales agent Emma Crosby like they’ve known each other forever. Convincing no?
Don’t forget that you can buy Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration on my website or from all good retailers (including Amazon) – please do buy the book and support the wealth of talent within. And that, my friends, is the ACOFI Book Tour done and dusted…
Categories ,ACOFI, ,ACOFI Book Tour, ,Agnes Bataclan, ,Alia Gargum, ,Amelia’s Compendium of Fashion Illustration, ,Andy Smith, ,Biscuiteers, ,Book Tour, ,Cari Steel, ,Cassie Merrick, ,Dr.Hauschka, ,Emma Block, ,Emma Crosby, ,Fashion Illustration, ,Flamingo Magazine, ,Gareth A Hopkins, ,Hannah Simpson, ,Harriet Vine, ,Heather Stanton, ,Helena Maratheftis, ,Ickleson, ,Juiceology, ,Katie Byrne, ,Kristina Vasiljeva, ,Lahloo Tea, ,Letter Lounge, ,London College of Fashion, ,Lou Cloud, ,Lou Newton, ,Maria Papadimitriou, ,Matt Bramford, ,Melinda Barbi, ,Naomi Law, ,Netil House, ,Paul Foot, ,Plastic Seconds, ,Richard Watson, ,Sara Lofwander, ,Siobhan Leddy, ,Slowly the Eggs, ,Soma Gallery, ,Soni Speight, ,Stepney City Farm, ,Susannah Cartwright, ,Tatty Devine, ,The Stinging Netil Art Mart, ,The Young Creatives
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