renee anne // art. love. food. life

right when I thought it was time to relax after the huge Once Upon project, life thought otherwise. I mean, I work better under extreme time pressure anyway, don't I?

When it rains, it pours. Or something like that.

SO! I, along with a handful of talented others, have been selected to be a Featured Artist at the next Finders Keepers markets. Yep, that one that is on NEXT WEEKEND! It is all a bit surreal at the moment. The Finders Keepers is my all time favourite market, I have been going to it since the little Hope St days. And look. Now I am apart of all the action. In fact, for some it might be a little bit of Renee Anne overkill. Not only will I have my art on the walls of the gorgeous Carrageworks building, I will supporting my boyfriend at his Foreshore Dynamic stall, and I will be sharing the love over at the Leeloo stall where I can (at the very least to bring the team coffee and hugs). Did somebody say "clone required?"

Cool eh? So now, our tiny appartment is not only filled to the brim with t-shirts, every possible surface is also covered with my "creative projects". So many ideas. So much wall to fill. I cannot wait.

welcome home!
gosh did I even post that I was going to Brisbane? well I did! I am home now. Many of the Australian internet peeps will no doubt have heard of the Finders Keepers markets?! They are a super amazing market, that have prevously been held in Sydney (every 6 months or so). Last weekend however, they made the big trip up to Brissie, and brought the super market magic to the lovely sweet lovely people of Brisbane!!

I had my Leeloo hat on for the entire weekend which was just fantastic, and for those of you who went, I was one of the tired, sweaty, exhausted, happy, excited and hopefully friendly ladies standing behind the gorgeous Leeloo stall! It was a big task to get all the pretty Leeloo things up to Brisbane, then get ourselves up there, then set everything up and still keep our spirits up for the nine hours to follow as the people just constantly poured in (and all again the following day!)But I think we did ok.

The adrenelin was pumping at the time, and while I felt tired, I never once felt sad. The smiling faces, the sweet comments, the happy people, the kind words, the inspiration, the community element all made the whole experience more than worthwhile. Plus, I got to meet so many online "buddies", and in the 4.3 minutes I had spare, got to do a little bit of shopping!

I am just going to do a bit of a shout out to some of the peeps I met, bought from, spoke to, smiled at, or whatevers. If I have left you off, I am so sorry. Slap me and I will fix that right up!

blossom creations :: bespoke letterpress :: chi designs :: courtney brims :: electric boy :: elodi magazine :: frankie magazine :: girl made this :: kim wallace :: kindling :: little jane st :: lola & bailey :: neu creative :: and the rest of the wonderful stallholders at the markets ::

for those of you who were not there, or ran out of cash be sure to check out the stallholder directory, because lots of the talented peeps sell online!


and of course, keep your diarys marked for the next Sydney markets, which are going to be held on the 4th and 5th of December, at the CarriageWorks in Sydney’s Inner West. I am also so very excited to share that my talented boyfriend was acceped as a stallholder for these markets, and so Foreshore Dynamic will be there to enjoy all of the excitement! Yipee!

[the stunning poster by the lovely Tabitha Emma]

well, I have a feeling the Once Upon exhibition is no secret within the online artist community! If you haven't heard about it (and you are Australian) then what are you doing?!?! Rush over to the Once Upon website and check out what all the fuss is about. If you are not Australian, go check it out anyway, because there is lots of pretty loveliness to see, and much much more to come.

as much as I love talking about the show, instead of trying to explain it to you, it is probably best you go and read the wonderful words by Angela, because she does a much better job at explaining than I do. you may, or may not be aware however, that the renee she speaks of is actually me! wow what do you know!

so yes, my partner in crime (Angela) and I have actually teamed up again for the show. organising an exhibition of such size, and one that is shaping up to be quite the event is actually really changeling, in a good way. It is funny though, because my "real world" peeps don't really get just how much work we are doing and how much this actually means to the "online peeps". if I try and talk about some exciting new development (like for example that Frankie are the exhibitions main partner!!!#T^#@#$@!!!$%!) (or actually, the fact that the exhibition is ACTUALLY IN the latest issue of Frankie) I get a look that says "ok, Renee that's great" or "Frankie? who is that?" *pats me on the head and rolls eyes*.

so thank you so so so much for all your enthusiasm, because without it,
well let's just say it is what motivates us to keep on going!!!

a lot of artists have been showing sneak peeks, so I guess I better show mine. I have been on a pretty sweet "journey" with these four little works, starting, then starting again, then hating it, then loving it. I think a lot of the artists have found the size and theme specs to be a huge challenge, again in a good way! I think the best/hardest thing for me is that it all makes me a bit confused. I start going down one path with my art, love it, but then change, and I never seem to keep consistent. maybe it is my self diagnosed ADHD or something. who knows. anyway, after I have completed my works for the show I am thinking of setting myself some sort of artistic challenge. maybe something like this. but not has hard core. maybe I need to limit myself to do something over and over until I decide what feels right.

these are feeling good for now. we will see. and you will too when you come along to the OPENING NIGHT OF ONCE UPON!! WOOOPPEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[my sneak peek : oh can you guess my Fairy Tale?]



Frick. That is way too much typing for my liking.

morning lovelies!

it seems super weird saying this, but that isn't going to stop me. {twin set} has launched. {twin set} is something I have been excited about for months (! WOW time flies) now and you don't understand how excited I am to "reveal".

{twin set} is an online shop (based here in Australia) that sells off beat retro & quirky vintage. It has gorgeous dresses, pretty pictures and I know you are going to love it. In conjunction with the shop, the {twin set} blog also launches today. Be sure to follow this blog for all things pretty, eco-friendly, Australian where possible, vintage and just generally sweet things and finds.

So why all the fuss from me?? Oh right. Because super amazing Angela (Leeloo.com.au) and I, well, it is our business! So much hardwork, laughs, fun and crazy times went into this business, and we are so so super proud to be sharing all the excitement with you today!! Hear more about our story and ideas here.

be sure to check out our SUPER COOL LOOK BOOK!

I think this was one of the most exciting parts,

seeing this "book" come together the way it has!!!!

so, do you remember this post from a few months ago? you know the one, where I went on, ranting and raving about how rubbish Sydney is for poor little artists like me?

it generated some fantastic discussion. and it really got me, and a whole bunch of other people thinking.... so guess what?

a few months ago, I teamed up with the fantastically amazing Angela from Leeloo to make our ideas a reality and start organising an exhibition. After fun times and hard work, we now have Once Upon; an event that will be celebrating Leeloo's 2nd birthday, and ongoing mission to support local artists.

here is the exciting part…

friends, family and strangers, just a little reminder that the fantastic online shop Leeloo, is not only a super place to buy sweet Australian handmade things and gifts, but also stocks pocket mirrors made by, well, me!. [excitement I KNOW!]

It is a super sweet place to shop, especially for gifts. Leeloo is my go-to place for my favourite Mags and Zines [like Peppermint and Mix Tape] and look, they even have father's day covered with this super cool deal!.

I love what Leeloo has done, and is continuing to do for this "community" as we know it, and at risk of sounding mushy, it really is rather heart warming. Naww.

I am super excited to announce art4friends (that's me!) now has some more goodies for sale over at my most favourite indepentent online retailer Leeloo!

And if you don't like my mirrors (ohhh!) then be sure to check out the rest of the shop, beacuse Leeloo is all for supporting all those things that we all love and value highly; handmade; eco friendly; Australian designers; to name a few!

You can even grab yourself a copy of Peppermint Mag, which I believe are selling super fast so get yours today!!

I was so excited to be able to be apart of this lovely cause. A few of my Leeloo friends and I have added our own special touch to some of Cat Davison's sweet record bowls. Not only are they now available for purchase, but the proceeds go to the RSPCA, a charity of particular relevance and importance around Christmas time when people may not been thinking wisely in regards to new pet choices. 

Check them out here and help out. And remember to steer clear of pet shops this christmas, if you are serious about adding a pet to your family this time of year, pay your local animal shelter a visit.

Merry Christmas!!!

please go and check out the wonderfullness that is Leeloo , the online store that supports fresh Australian artists and designers, (which in turn you can support too! hehe) I can't believe she has turned one! nawwwww. And like most of us, she is only getting better with age, so run along over my friends!!!

That you can now get pretty little art4friends pins from Leeloo!.


Yes, some time ago I got two little badge sets organised especially for Leeloo, and now they are over in the shop, among other greatness like creations from mycharliegirl and Ali J and many many more.

If you like the She's no wallflower series, that you will love these little pin sets! :D Go on! Check them out!

.... who hadn't heard of N.E.E.T mag? I mean I think I had heard of it. But today was the first day I actually read it. And far out I am ten issues behind! What a lovely magazine, perfectually suited to my interests, and its all available right here online! From Lottie Frank to beautiful vintage finds, I dont know what I have been doing with my time.

And the advertisements. Not the kind that irritate you to the point where you wonder where the actual magazine is. The good kind. I mean there are a lot. But they are all promoting people like me, and you, wonderful little handmakers and sellers of things we all love. Its great. You can even click on them to go to the shop! Super I know. And even our favourite little Leeloo had a cute little add in there!

Well I think that is enough rambling on my behalf, I think its time you went and checked it out for yourself (and sorry to those who are already aware of its wonders.)

xx