Jane Ormes

These beautiful prints from Jane Ormes are a form of printing new to Nook & Cranny.
We actually had to look into the history of Gocco printing to understand this great traditional technique that really deserves shouting about.

"Print Gocco is a Japanese color screenprinting system developed in 1977 by Noboru Hayama.  Resembling a toy, the compact and completely self-contained printer is clean, quick and easy to use. The system works using flash bulbs, a carbon-based image or photocopy and an emulsion-coated screen. When the bulbs are manually flashed, the carbon in the drawing or photocopy burns the screen into a stencil. Several colors of Ink can then be applied at one time and multiples can be stamped out, as many as 100 before re-inking is needed." Extract from Save the Gocco!

Jane says "I am a screenprinter primarily, but discovered the fantastic and clever little machine called the gocco last year. It's very smart and portable and acts as an exposure unit and printing bed all- in- one. It makes printmaking very uncomplicated!"

We're very excited about Jane's group of beautifully coloured and textured animal prints that really show the detail you can get from such a small printing gadget - hopefully we can try it for ourselves soon!

Liverpool Biennial 2012

For nearly 3 months, every 2 years, something magical happens to Liverpool. The city plays host to an extraordinary range of artworks, projects and a dynamic programme of events. The Biennial continues to grow, sharing artists from around the world, culminating in the largest international contemporary art festival in the UK.

This year, the Bluecoat is where the adventure starts with the visitors hub inside. Here you can pick up your guide and begin the Biennial city art tour! Outside Nook & Cranny, the amazing art work that greets Biennial visitors here in the courtyard of the Bluecoat, is from Dan Graham. Dan's 'Reflecting Cylinders interrupts the main walkway of the Bluecoat, reflecting the beautiful archietecture of the Grade 1 listed building and encouraging a further interaction with the Bluecoat - one of the oldest buildings in Liverpool. 

Many installations, exhibitions, talks and seminars happen over the period of ten weeks with many smaller shops and galleries involved with exciting displays and celebrations of local talent. 

Be prepared to expect the unexpected! Already we have a lift that has crash landed in a shopping area, a security guarded VIP door in the middle of a walkway, colourful pigeons taking over the Walker art gallery and a hype surrounding a performance piece involving a naked person wrapped in bubble wrap, allowing the audience to pop the bubble wrap while poems are read out.

Starting this Saturday, 15th September, we're looking forward to another global gathering joined together by art.

Patrick Murphy at the Walker art gallery

Jemima Wyman at Fact

 the bright red colour trend for this years Biennial

Elmgreen & Dragset in Liverpool One

Oded Hirsch in Liverpool One

Dan Graham at the Bluecoat

It's set to be another jam packed few months while we try and tick off every art work in Liverpool specifically for the Biennial. Keep us updated with your finds and don't forget to call in after your inspection of Dan Grahams installation! You can keep updated by visiting the Biennial Facebook page here, or their site, here.

Payments via Paypal

We're still jazzing up our website, adding new nuts and bolts to make shopping online easier and more enjoyable (expect lots of lovely photos of all the goodies we have instore!). Until then, we still accept payments via paypal. Have you seen something on our Facebook or here on this blog that you love? No where near Liverpool or just not up to leaving the house? We can post anything out to you! Just email us at enquiries@nookandcrannyshop.co.uk for more details on the item, or comment on the picture on our Facebook. Payments can be made to orders@nookandcrannyshop.co.uk

DIY: How to make an origami business card holder

Another brilliant little DIY from this great blog. Using patterned paper (wallpaper samples would be great for this!) or coloured paper, you can easily create your own business card or gift card holder with just a few folds.

To make a standard 3.5 x 2" business card holder, start with a 8.5" square of paper. For a standard gift card, use a 9" square.

Start by placing the paper pattern side down. Fold the paper vertically and open back up.

Fold both left and right sides to meet the middle fold.

Open the paper again. Fold each corner inward so that the corner points meet the nearest crease. 

Close the left and right sides back in again, keeping the corners tucked in.

Turn the paper over and fold the top down so that the exposed diagonal edges meet precisely at the fold.

Fold the bottom up in the same way, this time, tucking the bottom edge into the diagonal opening. They should overlap slightly letting you do this. 

Make sure your card fits, then fold in half. Origami business card/ gift card holder DONE!

Let us know what your DIY outcomes look like!