Good talk

Thoroughly enjoyed my half and hour with Sam Winston.

Shout PENIS at the top of your voice!

I adored 500 Days of Summer. The blackboard wall with a headboard drawn in chalk; the days counter which appeared over the illustration of a tree, shouting PENIS at the top of your voice! Zooey Deschanel's outfits and hair were also rather lovely to watch throughout, as was Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Trailers before the film included 'Where the wild things are', 'Fantastic Mr Fox' and 'Toy Story' in 3D. Oh sweet. My cinema blanket/shawl shall get a few outings in the coming months.

Who needs a studio?

I spent the morning re-photographing all my work so that my website is viewable. However, with no studio or lighting, my garden was my make-shift shoot area.

After having to re-wash all my clothes after a bad bird excrement/washing line incident not so long ago, I did fear for my new photography area, or worse, work. Luckily I was not in their firing line today.

Have a look at my website with all new images. www.libbyscarlett.co.uk

I think I grew up

My (temporary) move back to my parent's house was made even more traumatic by my bedroom that was still 16-year-old Libby. No more: new and old things on my walls, bare floor boards, organised boxes. Somewhere during university, I think I grew up.

My room is me once more. I am now ready to work.

Collaboration with The Vann

Done. Trip posts finished.

Today, Lucy and I begun to do some project work with our travels acting as the content. Exciting.

Already it is good to look back on our rather extensive journals. We don't do things by halves, you know. And neither will we with our first collaborative project. I'm not giving anything away just yet...

Darlin' its better down where its wetter

31st Aug '09: KORCULA

Croatia has whoa sea (super clear, super blue) so Lucy and I became obsessed with purchasing an underwater camera. On the last day, I spotted a Kodak shop that stocked just the thing. Here are some of the results.

I imagined we would resemble Ariel (as in the mermaid). As can be seen, we did not. Water does strange things to the human body.

Just draw on the walls

20th Aug '09: BUDAPEST

Went to a paper restaurant in Budapest. Thats one way to cut down on decorating costs!

Christmas came early

13th Aug '09: LINZ

Basically the best exhibition I've been to in, well a long long time. It was called Poetry of Motion and was at the Ars Electronica Centre, Linz. Christmas came early for me when I realised that the actual Absolut Quartet machine was at the exhibition! I got to type in my own 5 second melody and see the amazing machine make into music. It was so so good.

Arthur Ganson also had work in the exhibit - his work is wonderful. As is Theo Jansen's work huge kinetic sculptures that are powered by the wind. I cannot explain how amazing all of these projects are. I am excited to create once again.

Pipe dreams

11th Aug '09: LINZ

Another Guardian inspired visit: sewage pipes converted into a 'hotel'. They are a man called Andreas Strauss' brain child. Again, no fixed prices: you just leave a donation. Shame the 'shower' was in fact, a high tap...front of the bar area. We decided a swim in the Danube would be the extent of our bathing in Linz.

I did express concern that some youths outside our pipe one evening might roll us down the hill.

Musical tiles

10th Aug '09: SALZBURG

In a children's playground, I waited my turn to have a go on these musical tiles. You can play your own tune by stomping, hopping and jumping on these. Much fun.

Cheese head

6th Aug '09: BAUHAUS

A lazy morning was spent, as I like to put it 'bummng around'. We lay side-by-side reading Andy de Fiets' 'Letter to Robin Kinross'.

22-year-old Andy de Fiets, on the verge of graduating from his graphic design studies, writes to his hero: Hyphen Press publisher Robin Kinross.

A fitting read for the 2 graphic design graduates. Snorts of enjoyment came form both of us at regular intervals. He reported his friend to the police for stealing a can of tuna. And a youth called him a cheese head. I want to be his friend. I intend to compose a letter to him, which I am sure he will return to me with grammatical errors in red pen.

Well spent €7.

"0 THINGS TO DO IN DESSAU"

5th Aug '09: DESSAU

The Haus of Bau bore quite a resemblance to the Chatham Building, so Lucy and I felt quite at home. Part of the school has now been turned into a hotel, so that is where we stayed. Amazing is the only word.

Before we went to Dessau, we googled 'things to do', to which it replied there are "0 THINGS TO DO IN DESSAU". How wrong they were. The Bauhaus kept us quite amused, with Aldi and Netto to pass the time in between.

Leave it alone

5th Aug '09: BERLIN

The east side of the Berlin wall was not quite as I had expected. Huge parts of the grafitti had been painted over and spaces were given to artists to create works of "art" on. They all just looked ugly and seemed insignificant in comparison to the beautiful reality of the original wall.

No prices

4th Aug '09: BERLIN

Pelin is a bar where there are no fixed prices: the customer leaves a donation of whatever they feel is fair for what they have consumed. We had read about the project on The Guardian website (where else?!) and wanted to visit.

We arrived to a friendly, relaxed atmosphere and were told to help ourselves to wine. A Brigitte Bardot/Serge Gainsborough film was playing on a big screen on the wall. Then the food began to come: soup, followed by lamb and spicy tomato rice. Had I not had crippling heart burn, it would have been delicious.

I left €20 for 2 glasses of wine and my half-eaten dinner. In general, I imagine people leave more than necessary, rather than be stingy.

Do You Read Me?

3rd Aug '09: BERLIN

Super good book shop in Berlin. While we were there, Lucy recognised a guy called Andy de Fiets who worked in W139 in Amsterdam. He had his photograph on the front of a little book called 'Letter to Robin Kinross'. We both bought a copy.

Hey Ladies; Ray Bans; Shhhhhh; Mwah

Back to the trip posts...

2nd Aug '09: BERLIN

The black and white strip photograph booths in Berlin are the best.

Getting old and moving to the big smoke

The lack of funds situation also means I have been making cards. It was my mum's birthday yesterday (I made sausages roasted with cherry tomatoes, garlic, onions, rosemary and thyme and mashed potato - success!) and my friend Alex (who showed me how to make the concoction) starts his internship today. However, he is Mr Got-no-credit and so has not managed to tell me his London town address. The card is therefore still being kept flat in my moleskine.

No money, no jumpsuit

How amazing is this jumpsuit? I stalked it on ebay for days, trying to work out how a bank card that keeps getting rejected could buy it. It would seem it can't. The white dream was not to be. Job hunt must begin.

Stick arm island

31st July '09: FLEVOSTRAND

Waiting for the ferry to the tipi island (in Flevostrand, The Netherlands), we notice all the other campers have boxes upon boxes of food and supplies. Lucy and I have nothing. Oh dear. This really could be stick arm island we joke. Thankfully the man that moulds us into one ("Lucyahhhhhhlizzie" - I also become known as Lizzie for the weekend) takes us back to the mainland to purchase food. He also gives us a courgette from the island's vegetable garden. It certainly perks up our pasta which we cook on the little stove in the corner of the tent.

Our sahara tent (we can't afford a tipi) also appears to be home to an alarming amount of insects and bugs. Earwig massacre has to be performed. Aside from this, it is very homely. There are hammocks dotted about the island, a huge communal tipi with a fire in its centre, workshops that tipi dwellers can join in with. I swum in the lake and rowed around in a boat singing "Be my baby" rather too loudly.

The island and lake are just beautiful. It is so peaceful. Really pleased we visited a really interesting project and saw a bit more of Holland.

"City of contradictions"

30th July '09: AMSTERDAM

W139 is quite a contrast to the Red Light District in which it sits. Another good example of mine and Lucy's 'city of contradictions' jests. The front of the store has a wonderful collection of art and design books, but as you come to the back, the space opens out into a huge kitchen and communal dining area. I was there on an evening when they were cooking up a storm - it all looked very exciting. Turns out you can email to book yourself a seat at the dining table. I wish I'd have known about the project beforehand.

The rather dashing chef duo would have been an added enticement to the evening!

Slide along

30th July '09: AMSTERDAM

My dear friend, Brigitta introduced me to the wonderful Droog a couple of years ago. Their showroom-cum-shop in Amsterdam did not disappoint. Seats made for queues with marbles under the seats so you can slide along, swings, high chairs with markings of where to saw so as to allow the furniture to grow with the child: it eventually becomes a chair. All very inspiring. I would like to design something that Droog would stock, or work for them.

Hands of clam

29th July '09: AMSTERDAM

I saw, whilst browsing Nijhof & Lee (a more than lovely book shop in Amsterdam), there were some creativey type's business cards by the till. I ummed and ahhed as to whether I should ask to be added to the collection. Of course, I should have - what was to lose? Anyhow, I wound up getting nervous hands of clam so didn't. Instead, I waited until the cover of dark and posted a few through the closed shop's letterbox with a note of book shop admiration! I wonder if they put my cards out or binned them.