CZECH-IN' IT OUT!!!!

Hellooo!!!!
So it's taken me a while to get around to sharing some photos from my trip to beautiful Czech Republic last month!!! It was my first proper time in the country aside from some random platform hopping and being stranded in the countryside there a couple of years ago on an overnight train!!! Had the most magical trip and spent time in Prague and Kutna Hora! I took about 1000 photos so I've had to be selective here! Prague was AMAZINGGG! Incredible buildings, yummy fruit dumplings and pretty baroque churches!Love this city! I also travelled to the town of Kutna Hora to check out Sedlec Ossuary, also known as the bone church. This place was one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen, the interior is decorated with bones and includes an intricate chandelier constructed out of human skeletons...totally macabe but absolutely incredible, like nothing I've ever seen before IN MY LIFE!!! After we stepped out of the church we discovered an almighty blizzard of snow had unleashed on the town which was super pretty and sparkly and of course FREEZING!!!!
Back in Prague it was a case of storming around taking in as much as possible....the castle, Jewish Quarter, Old Town Square, Charles Bridge......plenty of stops for cake and Turkish coffee!!!Lots of Christmas shopping and hunting out the tackiest souvenirs!!!

Other highlights included collecting ridiculous marzipan characters and buying pumpkins in cans!!! Sampled lots of local honey cake and tracked down some juicy vintage stores!!!!!
Such an action packed trip!!!!! I was  excited about finding a couple of my old favourite Austrian stores....the glory of finding a Billa supermarket that stocked my FAVOURITE Punschkrapfen cake was the BEST!!! Obviously my case was jam packed bringing back my haul of cakes!!!! YUMMMMM!!!!
Ok...here are a few photos!!!

Ahhh lovely Czech memories!!! Ok, so in other news I'm currently running an online promotion on my webshop....for one week only I'm offering a festive, juicy 20% discount on ALL products on my store and throwing in FREE International P+P !!! You can access the discount by popping in the code when you reach the checkout. Simple use the code: JINGLEBELLZ and your dicount will be automatically applied, so be sure to grab a bargain before the deal expires next Monday, 10th December!!!

Ok...so that's all for now!!!

Ciao Ciao

Emma xxx

Slovenian TV and New Shop Items!!!

Ooooooh Hiya!!!
Just a quick one to update on a couple of bits and bobs on this chilly, rainy afternoon!!!
So currently there are a few new products available on my online shop....these include the 'Lucky Meow' cotton tote bags, embroidered shirts and also the 'Lucky Boobs' unisex T-Shirt is now back in stock weeeee! 
You can find all  of these and more by clicking HERE!!!!!
As I'm mentioned before there are more size variations that will be available coming soon! All items include FREE International P&P to all corners of the magical globe!
The new shirts titled 'SNACK ATTACK' and 'HELLO DOLLY' feature embroidery and applique detailing and of course plenty of sparkles!!! 
So here are a few snaps of the new items!!!!

In other news the exhibition that my work was showcasing at earlier in the month in Maribor was featured on national Slovenia TV... the wonderful team at Guestroom Maribor presented a retrospective of their hosted artists at Velika Kavarna/ Casino building in the centre of the city, featuring the works of 23 international participants of the programme....here is a cheeky shot of my pieces from my series 'The Hives of Lepi Spomini' putting in an appearance on the Slovenian telly.....
You can watch the full episode HERE (presented in Slovene only) which includes interviews with the curator, Maja, and one of their current artists in residence!
Alright....so with that it's back to the sewing machine.....I'm super excited as tomorrow I'm of to CH CH Czech out Prague.....wahhhhhhh can't wait.... looking forward to churches made of bones, honey cakes, dumplings, hot souvenirs etc etc..... As ever, I have still not packed, or dyed my hair...the usual situation!!!
Anywayzzz....
Love and Sparkles,
Emma xxxx

Exhibition Opening at 'Velika kavarna'!!!

Dober Dan!!!
Just a quick one to give anyone who happens to be in Slovenia, the heads up on an exhibition that I will be showcasing my stuff at as of tomorrow in Maribor!
As you know I was based over there as artist in residence and now the programme, 'Guestroom Maribor', will be presenting a retrospective of works that were developed from all of the international artists that they have hosted throughout the past year.
To date they have supported 23 artists/collectives from all over the world in collaboration with Pekarna Magdalenske Mreze and European Capital of Culture 2012. 
I will be showing elements of my collection of works, 'The Hives of Lepi Spomini' that I produced whilst in Slovenia with the project.
The exhibition opens at 8pm tomorrow evening (Thursday 29th September 2012) in the GLORIOUSSS former 'Velika kavarna' building on Glavni trg 1, so if you happen to be in Maribor, then pop along!
Love, Sparkles and Gibanica,
Emma xxxxx

Juicy New Shoot Images!!!

Helloooo!!!
Here's a little peek at the recent collaboration I did with Tokyo/Paris based photographer,
Yuji Watanabe and team. Yuji and I first teamed up in Tokyo when I was working in Japan so it's been AWESOMEEE to work together again, now that he's based in Europe!  You can see our previous project together HERE!!!
Our recent editorial was featured in US publication, Estela Magazine, and the pieces of clothing are from my latest collection 'The Hives of Lepi Spomini' that I developed in Maribor, Slovenia. Mucho thanks to the wonderful team that worked in producing our shoot!!!!

Image Credits:
Clothing: Emma Bell/ Photographer: Yuji Watanabe/ Make-Up Artist: Sophie Cottam/ Hair Stylist: Marion Lemarchand/ Styling: Daisy Davidson/ Model: Olga B @ Leni's Model Management.

Absolute pleasure to work with these guys!!!
Love and Sparkles,
Emma xxx

'Lucky Boobs' T-Shirt Back in Stock!!!

Ooooh Hiya!
Just a quick one to let you know that the unisex 'Lucky Boobs' T-Shirts are back in stock on my webstore!!! Printed cotton T featuring lucky cats and flowers galore!!!
You can find it by clicking HERE!!!
More items en route sooooon so keep your eyes peeled for more juice!!!!
Also, I shall be posting the full fruits of my latest photographic collaboration with Yuji Watanabe and crew, so hold your horses and I shall whip that up also! There's a couple of sneak peeks of it floating around on my TUMBLR already and they can also be seen in the collections section on my website HERE!!!
Love and Sparkles,
Emma 
xxx

My Online Shop...IS LIVE..!!!

Hello Hello!!!
So as I recently mentioned, the cogs were in motion to set up my own online store which, is something that I've been working on for a while! I'm super excited that it is now live and there are already a few items on there up for grabs! It's the first time that I will be launching ready to wear pieces directly through my site, aside from my commissions and collaborations, so it's a whole new ball game which is pretty exciting!
It is still somewhat of a baby so over the next few weeks there will be new items and further size availability being gradually added, so keep an eye out for juicy new pieces etc!
The majority of items are made exclusively in either small runs or as one off pieces in the UK and everything comes with free international P&P!
Also on there is a dress featuring my brand new graphic artwork titled 'Lepi Spomini' that was developed as part of my recent exhibition and artist residency in Slovenia, which is digitally printed on super stretchy Lycra! 
In addition, for the first time my 'Skyliner' printed dress, that has done the rounds as seen on Knoxy, Cher Lloyd etc is currently available as a limited edition item!
There's a bunch of other items also on there and you can have a peep HERE!!! 
Love and Sparkles,
Emma xxx

Weaving and Updates!!!

Hellooo!!! Ooopps so it's been a while....I've been tucked away working on a couple of cheeky projects which has basically taken up alllll my time, hence my lack of updating my blog... thought I would share this picture from one of the side projects that I worked on during my position as artist in residence in beautiful Maribor, Slovenia....
A main feature of the concept  of my collection 'The Hives of Lepi Spomini' was the idea of physically utilising both the aesthetics and actual space of my environment in Maribor. '16th Century Wall Weaver' was a developmental installation that I carried out within the gallery space with the aim of progressing this exercise into a final garment. During my time working on the programme I was based in the studio in the Koroski 18 Gallery, a 16th century built building in the heart of the city. The concept was to physically embrace the space by turning the archways into a board loom and using fabrics produced in the local textile industry to create a woven garment that was both showcased at the 'Call Me Human Torch' exhibition and as part of the photography collaboration with Iris Aman Cara. 
Post residency I have been continuing developing the project and taking the collection further from my documentation and research carried out in Slovenia. I have since designed a piece of graphic artwork which has been digitally printed on fabric here in the UK featuring aspects of all things Lepi Spominiiiii! The project will be used as part of a collaboration with a creative team in London next week which I'm super excited about!!! I will be shooting with the wonderfully talented photographer, Yuji Watanabe, who I had the pleasure of working with whilst I was based in Japan!!!weeee exciting!
In other exciting news.....I shall be launching my online shop in the upcoming weeks which will run via my website...I will be gradually adding more pieces over the next few months ranging from ready to wear items, one off pieces and occassional wearable art garments from recent projects and collections....Coming up pronto is the London Skyline dress featured at the 'Fish and Chips Twice, Please?!' exhibition in Vienna aswell as spotted on popstar Cher Lloyd on ITV's the 'Xtra Factor' and not to forget worn by the awesome Alexis Knox on Swedish 'Mi Lajki' TV....Also in the mix are items featuring the brand new digital print from my recent collection that I just mentioned and other delights....so watch this space for updates on that!!!!!
Ok, so it's back to the old sewing machine- sequins and rhinestones galore today!!!
Love and Sparkles,
Emma
xxx

ARTE TV & NARC Magazine...

Hello Hello!!!
Just a quick one with a couple of bits and pieces then it's time for tea!!! As I mentioned I recently showcased my stuff as part of NE1's Newcastle Fashion Week as part of their action packed programme of events, shows and other joys highlighting design talent in the North East! Pieces from my collection, 'Colourful Creatures are Often Poisonous' shot by the wonderful photographer, Yuji Watanabe, in Japan were featured in an article all about NE1's Newcastle Fashion Week in NARC Magazine...There it is above...
In other news some of my work was also featured in the recent London edition of the series 'Tracks' produced by French/German TV station, ARTE.... queue the slightly fuzzy pictures courtesy of my screen-grabbing digitzzz below!!!
Right....that's all for now!!!! Catch you laterzzzz!!!!
Love and Sparkles,
Emma
xxxx

 

The Hives of Lepi Spomini!!!!!

Zdravo.....
So the past few weeks have been amazing and I have enjoyed enough magical and unforgettable memories to last me a lifetime and a half.... woaaahhh cheesy!!! As you know (because I've talked about it wayyy too much!) I've spent the past few weeks working in Slovenia living as a faux-Mariborian... doing things such as sewing in a creepy yet amazing 16th century ancient gallery with ghosts....posing as a pretend professional gingerbread maker....sampling every cake on offer....having a near death experience with a wayward umbrella....and too many antics to mention....

My reasons for being in this lovely city were to carry out my projects as part of my artist residency which was something I had been working in preparation for, for several months prior to touching down in Magical Maribor....so finally it is awesome to see it all come together! One aspect of my work there was the development of the pieces for my collection which is titled 'The Hives of Lepi Spomini'- Lepi Spomini is a Slovene phrase that translates as 'nice memories'...now if you click HERE this will take you to the project text on my website which basically gives the full low down of the concept, influences and all of the info about my new series of works- as it's a bit too long to pop onto the blog! So please check it out!!!
Another element within my work in Slovenia was to interact and collaborate with creatives who are working and living in Maribor to involve their input and creative ethos into my projects. I had the honour of working with the wonderfully talented, local photographer, Iris Aman Cara, as part of a collaboration which was also showcased at our 'Call Me Human Torch' exhibition... these are a few images from our shoot and of course you can see the full line up HERE!
So that's the deal with my latest works... and of course there was the exhibition that opened last week in which I was presenting my work alongside awesomeeeee visual artist, Jérôme Souillot....it's been A.M.A.Z.I.N.G to be able to work alongside Jérôme for this past few weeks as he's super talented and also finds things like musical lollypops funny....

It's been such an incredible experience working with the Guestroom Maribor programme and all of the wonderful people who have supported and worked with me along the way... I totally fell in love with the city and it's been awesome to work with so many new ideas, influences, creatives and medium...  I've put further info about the project and my activites HERE!!!
Ok, so this blog post is turning into a book...so I shall wrap it up.... be sure to check out the full low down on the new collection and project on my website: www.emma-bell.com....
I was sad to wave farewell to Slovenia a couple of days ago as the whole thing was so much fun and offered so much food for thought for my upcoming projects.... I still have a zillion photos from my final days there so I shall savour those for another post!!! HUGE HUGE thanks to all of the team at Guestroom Maribor and for the wonderful support of the project partners.... super duper thanks to Jérôme for the ongoing entertainment and special memories involving burnt toast etc.... Massive thanks to Iris and the photoshoot team, Katra and all of the lovely people that helped make my time there so great!!!
Alright...so image credits for the photoshoot: 
Photographer: Iris Aman Cara.
Make Up Artist: Mateja Skočir.
Hair Stylist: Luis Roldan.
Models: Urška Lipovž & Tanja Popovič.

Right with that....I'm off the watch the Queen's Jubilee concert....

Love and Sparkles,

Emma xxx 

'Call Me Human Torch' is OPEN!!!!

 

Zdravo from Slovenia!!!!!
So just a quick one..... last night our exhibition, 'Call Me Human Torch' opened in Koroski 18 Gallery in Maribor...here is a sneak peek of some of my stuff including my photography collaboration with wonderful local photographer, Iris Aman Cara.... plenty more photos and full info to come when I get myself turned around!! The exhibition features my new series of works titled 'The Hives of Lepi Spomini' developed here as part of my project as artist in residence in Maribor. But, all in all the opening event was awesome and we had squillions of people come to check it out so, I was super happy!! We also had cakes (which were gone by the time I got around to going to grab one...eeekkk!) and plenty of Jägerbombs!!! So more photos to come soooonnn and HUGE HUGE thanks to all of the people who supported us and helped us out!!!!
In other news my stuff will also be shown this evening in the UK.... My work is going to be showcased as part of NE1's Newcastle Fashion Week which, I'm so excited to be involved with as it's great to do something in my hometown!!!  HERE is link to the event and if you happen to be around go and ch ch check it out!!!
Love and Sparkles,
Emma
xxxxx

The Slovenian Road Trip of Dreamzzzz!!!

Helloooo from Slovenia (Eurovision Style!)
So the past few days have been awesome...and some of the favourite days OF MY LIFE wahhhh!!!! I had the chance to be kindly taken on a magical, whirlwind road trip around beautiful Slovenia....I had the best time EVER!!!!

First up was an adventure to AMAZINGGG Lake Bled where we checked out the castle and sampled the gourmet local vanilla slice!!!! One of the prettiest places I have ever been...I'd be more than happy to have a fairytale view like this everyday!!!

Next on the cards was something I have wanted to do FOREVER!! We headed to the town of Radovljica to attend a workshop at the Lectar Museum- which is basically a chance to watch the masters at work as they craft the famous gingerbread hearts- and then get in there and make your own! This was sooo much fun...one of the best places in the World for sure!!! The best part of our workshop was when a tour group of about 30 business men rocked in and we ended up with a this outrageous audience- The real pinnacle was when I was
mistaken for a member of staff in the bakers paradise- obviously I look like a professional gingerbread maker.... we also had the most incredible lunch with a beautiful view over the mountains at the Lectar House and a spider dropped on me from a tree....
After the glorious session at the gingerbread palace we headed to the capital, Ljubliana and it's also one of my new favourite places!!! Plenty of curly buildings and an abundance of deluxe cakes!!!

Also in the mix this weekend was a wonderful trip to the countryside where I was kindly invited to the 'house of dreams' by two lovely girls, Katra and Iris! AMAZINGGG house full of trinkets and treasures complete with orchards, an old brewery and magical views!!!!  We were staying in Zalec  and also popped to Celje to check out the castle!!!
Ok, so words are not enough...so I'll round this off with some pictures...obviously I've been selective as I was so excited that I was in total tourist mode and snapped about 600 photos!!!!
Love and Sparkles,
Emma
xxxx