Next week, Lilla Roger's Global Talent Search semi-finals go live to the world so I thought I'd better give you a sneaky preview of my entry.

The brief was to design a tote bag for a farmer's market using the theme of autumn activities, to include a figure and lettering if you wanted. A dream brief really!

I found out I got through to the semi's half way through my holiday in Cornwall so I was doodling everywhere, still enjoying my hols, but badly itching to get home and get started. 

I had many inspirations for my final design, old photos of Cornish fishing women that I saw in the 

little museum at Durgan, the tradition of apple-picking for cider in Somerset where I live and my lovely M-I-L's displays of squashes and pumpkins. I really liked the idea of gathering new finds at a farmer's market, that they're always a wonderful hoard of things to discover. I'm liking the folky feel that it ended up with. 

Here's my final design...

So, now it's out of my hands! 6 finalists go through to the next round.... 1 of them will be 

through a public vote..... live next Tuesday on September 3rd. I'll be posting about it every day to remind everyone, ha ha! 

I am truly honoured and proud to be a part of a competition with so many talented people, the other designs I've already seen are amazing.... there's some seriously awesome talent to choose from. 

Whatever the outcome, I am so happy to be in this round...to have got this far...to be in front of an amazing panel of judges is prize enough! (But still, fingers crossed.... I will make it through :-) !)

Now don't forget, September 3rd, you can vote!

Big achievement for me this year... my olive tree came back to life! Hanging by the thread of one little leaf in the spring, my husband wanted to throw it out but I nurtured it back to health! Blooming marvellous I am! :-) 

Happy weekend everyone.... may yours be wasp free!!! 

Spotted my Grizzly on some jim-jams over at babyGap. I remember this print, the texture nearly exploded my old mac! The placement's been changed loads but I'm loving their new one! :-) 

On another note, whilst I was away, my mailbox became too full and I lost all emails sent to me from last Friday to yesterday, Tuesday night. So, if you sent me anything and I haven't replied, it's not because I'm rude, it's that they've disappeared into cyber space. My biggest apologies, please email me again if you can! Thanks so much. 

Back from my Cornish Hols and time to say a proper WHOOPEE...... I got through to the final 50, the second round of Lilla Roger's Global Talent Search. Yay! 
I found out on holiday, we don't have wi-fi in our little flat so I knocked on the door of our friend's at stupid o'clock in the morning and got them out of bed to find out! Nervous, oh yes....scrolled down on my phone and saw my name.... so so happy! 
So, I've spent the last week thinking up ideas, enjoying my holiday but also a little bit itching to get back and get started. 
Well done to everyone else who got through, there's some amazing journal covers... and my love to those who didn't, especially my MATS buddies..... you're already all winners in my book anyway :-) xxx