Blanket News {Exciting Update!}

The start of a new year is always a chance to refresh the creative juices and I have exciting plans for Blanket this year!

My plans include a relaunch of the Blanket brand and a new-look website and to finally bring a long-cherished dream to fruition and release the first printed version of Blanket!! {I told you it was exciting!}

What this means is that the online mag will be taking a short break while I prepare for these changes. The first step for these initial changes is to also ask my readers what they think.

As Blanket’s readers have helped to shape Blanket into what it is today, I’m now seeking your feedback by releasing a survey. After the last survey {2 years ago!} it gave me greater clarity on what my readers wanted and I was just buzzing with enthusiasm and ideas on how I could move the magazine forward – and I know it will be the same this time!

I’ve deliberately keep the survey short {it should just take 5 minutes or so} and just as an added little thanks you will also go into the draw to win a MINI DIANA LOMO or 1 of 5 Exclusive Blanket Packs.

It’s a really important {and to be honest – scary!} step I am taking with Blanket and I want to make sure I do it right – so your feedback would be truly appreciated!

Please click: TAKE THE BLANKET SURVEY!

many thanks!
Bec

The Publishers Club x Inkygoodness {Manchester event!}

Image via Concrete Hermit

I am excited to announce that The Publishers Club will be teaming up with Inkygoodness to create our next event in Manchester!


Some of you may know {especially if you were at our first London event!} that I am involved in a little side project called The Publishers Club with my fellow independent publishers Dave Hughes of AMMO Magazine, Julian James of NewSugar and Gordon Reid of Middleboop.

Founded in 2009, The Publishers Club aims to support the continued evolution of the independent publishing scene – both printed and digital – through a series of collaborative events and workshops held around the United Kingdom and further afield.

The Manchester event will be held at Cord Bar in the Northern Quarter on Saturday 12th March from 1pm to 7pm.


We have organised activities to happen during the day including live drawing from artists onto Character Totems {confirmed artists are Moot, Matt Saunders, Fon Fon & Toy Factory} and LIVE screenprinting by one69a{www.one69a.com}. We will also be releasing the very first Publishers Club Zine! {Read below on how you can get involved in this!}

Were hoping the day will be a relaxed networking event where people can just come and go during the day (or stay all day if they want!). So please come and join us for some creative fun!

You can find our more about the event via our Publishers Club mail out {sign up here} or RSVP on our Facebookpage!

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS {THE PUBLISHERS CLUB ZINE!}


If you can’t make the event you can still get involved! As part of the Publishers Club x Inkygoodness event in Manchester we will also be putting together our first zine!

The theme for our first zine is ‘Totummy’ and we’re looking for original art, design or photography submissions to be featured in it’s pages. As an extension of the Totem draw with Inkygoodness we are looking for submissions that continue the Totem theme. Need inspiration? Look here, here and here!

This is your chance to get involved in the first limited edition Publishers Club zine!

Submissions Info:

1. Complete your submission by the 1st March 2011
2. Make sure your piece is A5, portrait, black and white and 300dpi (print ready)
3. Attach it to an email with your full name and a short paragraph about you and your piece.
4. Send it to us at: submit [at] thepublishersclub.co.uk

Page to Page / Face to Face

Blanket has always been about bringing creative people together from around the world – and this feel good story is where this ethos was taken literally!

The story starts back in Issue 24 {The Landscape Issue} when two artists both submitted their images to Blanket and were featured in the issue. Joanne Thies from Australia submitted the image on the left and João Bento Soares from Portugal submitted the image on the right.

When it came to laying out the pages of the magazine I decided to place their work side by side as I thought their work complimented each other beautifully. I did note at the time that it was a coincidence that their first names started with the same first 3 letters… I love things like that.

Just after the magazine was released Joanne contacted me to say she would be traveling to Portugal {another happy coincidence} so I suggested she should get in touch with João while she was there so they could meet face to face… and they did!

You can follow along the story on Joanne’s blog I Love Saturdays. The first post is here {where João and Joanne first make contact via her blog} and the second here {after their meet up in Portugal}.

I love so much about this story and I am happy to have played a small role in bringing these two amazing artists together. For me it sums up exactly what I have always wanted Blanket to be – a place where creatives all over the world can get together to meet and share ideas {of course I always thought it would be limited to virtually…}
I do hope this story might spark some more creative meetups around the world! Or maybe you have a similar story of meeting someone? I would love for you to share if you do – it doesn’t have to be related to Blanket – just if you have met up with someone after getting to know them through their blog or twitter. Email me at editor {at} blanketmagazine.com

Enjoy your weekend!
Bec

Let’s Celebrate! {Issue 25 is here!}

Celebrations are all around us at this time of year but we have something extra to celebrate here at Blanket – our 25th issue! Scroll down to see what we are celebrating…

best wishes,

Bec

PS/ A big thank you to We Are Willow collaborative musicians Chris Butler and Simon Connor for allowing us to use their track ‘Pictures You Drew’ as a free download this issue. It’s our extra special gift for you this Christmas. Enjoy!

The Blanket 2011 Calendar!!

All Blanket Subscribers will receive the Blanket 2011 Calendar free with Issue 25 {or you can purchase it separately for $6 in the Blanket Online Store}

Blanket’s Cover Art

Our cover this issue was a collaboration between UK illustrators Thereza Rowe and Simon Wild. In our feature article we speak to both and ask them how they came up with the concept for our cover and they give us tips on how to achieve a successful collaboration.

Blankets Featured Font {FREE with this issue!}

Manuel Viergutz {aka EM-VII} a design student from Germany took inspiration from the Times New Roman font to create our featured font ‘Hand Times’.

The Blanket  Calendar Artist Interviews

We introduce you to our 12 Blanket 2011 Calendar artists: Adam James Turnbull, Mark Malarky, Patrick O’Leary, Santiago Merino, Niki Pilkington, Devon Smith, Stephen P Loya, Ekaterina Koroleva, Rohan Fraser, Christopher Davison, Amy Friend and Reena Makwana. Read their interviews and see more of their work inside this issue.

Creative Writing

Blanket writer Jonathan Hulme invites us all to join him on his New Years Revolution.
Illustration by Nicola Rowlands.




Gwendoline Watson gives us helpful advice on how to be merry this Christmas (and no it doesn’t include drinking too much mulled wine}. Illustration by James Cotton.

Interviews

Our newest Blanket contributor and writer Charlotte Rivers interviews Liss Winnel from the distinctively dreamy blog Daydream Lily {Liss also introduces us to some stunning photographers!}.

DIY Tutorial

Our crafty Jessica Wilson {aka Jek} shares her Christmas memories and a DIY Tutorial on how to make Clay Ornaments.

Here’s my work… I hope you like it…

Artists featured inside this issue: Randi Antonsen, Claire Bradley, Kate Bushuk, Jo Cheung, Cinaski, Anne Cobai, Stella Asia Consonni, Oleg Danilovich, Philippa Garrard, Daria Hlazatova , Christine Johanson, Jough McLeod, Lin Mei, Nicole Mueller, Monica Rizzolli, Nicola Rowlands, Aida Sabic, Emily Sams, Fake Sartorialist , Christina Song, Åsa Wikman, Yuk Kee Yip and Eddie Yuen.

Issue 25 {sneak peek!}

Issue 25 is almost complete so I wanted to release a little teaser to show you all what we have in store {including a snippet of our very colourful front cover collaboration between Thereza Rowe and Simon Wild!}

Once again this issue will be jam packed full of goodies – including a brand new Blanket Featured Font!
Blanket writer Jonathan Hulme invites us all to join him on his New Years Revolution.

Gwendoline Watson gives us helpful advice on how to be merry this Christmas (and no it doesn’t include drinking too much mulled wine}.

Our newest Blanket contributor and writer Charlotte Rivers interviews Liss Winnel from the distinctively dreamy blog Daydream Lily {she also introduces us to some stunning photographers!}.

And ever so crafty Jessica Wilson {aka Jek} shares her Christmas memories and a DIY Tutorial on how to make Clay Ornaments.

Plus we will finally be able to reveal our 12 chosen artists who will feature on the Blanket 2011 Calendar! Find out more about them and their work in our exclusive interviews.

Don’t forget all Blanket Subscribers will receive the Blanket 2011 Calendar free with Issue 25 {or you can purchase it separately for $6}