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Chomp! Descends on Edinburgh

Creative Stuff, Edinburgh No Responses »

Aug 062009

chomp cast 300x225 Chomp! Descends on Edinburgh

The cast of Chomp! take over the Royal Mile

This evening I was doing the City of the Dead Underground City tour at 9pm, but I was on the Royal mile from about 6.30 to see the street performers and generally hang out. At about 7pm, the cast of “Chomp! The new Zombie Musical” took over the High Street.

Usually at festival time you get hundreds of posh schoolkid luvvies who are in productions and make a fool of themselves on The Mile trying to get people interested in seeing their shows. Chomp! seems a little different – these actors are really getting into the part – a gang of zombies came sprinting up the Royal Mile, chasing each other and terrorising members of the public. Luckily the army arrived and a huge fight broke out between them and the zombies.

There was some extremely realistic looking punches being delivered between a zombie in a bowler hat and tails (who I assume is the leader) and one of the soldiers. Then suddenly two of the Zombies broke into song… “Shooting Out The Brains of the Dead” – A jolly ditty about DIY zombie lobotomy – brilliant!

The show is on in C-1, Venue 34. 5:15pm 7-8 August. I’m working both nights so I can’t make it – you should go though!

Update, If you missed the show live, Andy Evans has made a video of one of the early performances available:

Chomp! The new Zombie Musical – Act 1

Chomp! The new Zombie Musical – Act 2

My second chain attempt

Creative Stuff 3 Responses »

Aug 042009

Having made my own jump rings from silverplated copper wire, I decided to put them together into something that looks a bit more like some jewelery. The result, a 7″ bracelet with a chain made of double links and a box-chain central section.

bracelet 300x199 My second chain attempt

2x2 chain with Box section

The joins in the links are much tighter this time round than my last attempt. Things to work on for the next one are to scratch the links less with the pliers while closing them, and to make the chain of silver rather than plated copper.

I’m quite pleased with the decorative section in the middle though – really tight due to the aspect ratio of the rings.

Moo mini-cards

Creative Stuff No Responses »

Aug 022009

My second set of Moo mini-cards arrived a few days ago. I’m delighted with this set too. My last set featured photographs of Greyfriar’s Kirkyard and were intended to give to people who had been on my ghost tour and wanted my details. This new set are a bit more colourful and light hearted for general use where I don’t want to scare people away.

The thing I like about moo mini-cards is their quirky shape and size – they are different to any other business card anyone will have in their wallet (unless you’re at a tweetup where everyone seems to have them!). I love that you can get many different images printed in one order for a reasonable price. Anyway, these are my newest cards – let me know what you think!

Moo mini-cards

First attempt at jump-ring making

Creative Stuff 1 Response »

Aug 022009

coil of wire 300x300 First attempt at jump ring making

10m of 0.8mm Silver-plated copper wire

I found a shop on St Mary’s Street in the Old Town which sells jewelery making supplies and picked up a 10m length of 0.8m silver plated copper wire for the bargain price of £4.50. At home I looked around for a suitable mandrel and found a short length of metal bar from an old portable TV aerial (who said jewelery-making wasn’t glamorous?) and set about winding the wire round it. Winding will be much easier next time when I get a decent length mandrel and drill a hole in it to hold the wire. In this case, I just did it with my hands. I have a lovely blister on my index finger to prove it. Lesson learned.

Once the wire was wound, I slid the mandrel out and was left with a (not very springy) spring. It wasn’t as uniform as I had hoped for – the diameter was the same all the way along, but there were a few small gaps between each turn. I suspect this won’t make a huge difference, but some rings will be more open than others when I am finished. Hopefully it will not affect the size of each ring too much.

wound wire 300x300 First attempt at jump ring making

Wire after removing mandrel

Before cutting it, I decided to make sure that I didn’t lose the rings all over the floor. Paul had recommended taping the wire before cutting, but I am out of masking tape and Sellotape wasn’t sticking so well. I slid a length of thread through the middle of the wire and tied it in a loop – my thinking was that most of the rings would end up hanging on the thread. This was fairly successful although I found a lot of the rings ended up linked round the blade of the saw – this meant that the thread tended to get a bit tangled. Next time I may try without the thread or tape. I was holding the rings between my fingers anyway, so I don’t think too many will fall.

I put beeswax on the blade of the saw as recommended (for silver anyway – not sure what I was supposed to use with copper) and it seemed to do the job. It cut much more quickly right after applying the wax, so I stopped regularly to apply more.

After being so careful not to drop any of the rings, I was a bit gutted when I stood up and knocked them all over the floor anyway.

jump rings 300x300 First attempt at jump ring making

Hand-made jump rings

I now have 110 shiny little circles ready to link together. I suspect I’ll need more to make anything useful (Terri’s Byzantine chain bracelet took 200) but I still have plenty of wire left over to make more.

Blogging in the real world

Creative Stuff, Techie Stuff 2 Responses »

Jul 152009

A couple of years ago, I got a Nokia N-95 mobile phone with a piece of software installed which would read 2d barcodes knows as ‘QR Codes’ (The QR stands for Quick Response). QR Codes were developed by Japanese corporation Denso-Wave in 1994 and were initially used for tracking parts for a car manufacturer. They can store 4,296 alphanumeric characters (or 7,089 numbers) – much better than the standard 10 digits you get with a ‘normal’ barcode.
The codes are very popular in Japan as most people have a smart phone, and any smart phone equiped with a camera can read and decode the matrix. They are used to store URLs, phone numbers, addresses etc. and are often seen next to contact details in adverts in magazines. They can even be used as billboard adverts to be read at a distance. This allows mobile users to access your website without typing in URLs.

Japan qr code billboard 225x300 Blogging in the real world

A giant QR Code linking to a website, to be read with a mobile phone.

Photo by Nicolas1981

It occurred to me that 4,296 characters is easily enough to write a short, informative description of a place of interest, and include a URL which could be clicked for more information.

This would integrate nicely with a blog where you could have a post describing a place and its history, other interesting areas nearby etc. The excerpt could be encoded as a QR code and printed as a sticky label (as small as possible so it is not intrusive) and stuck on a post/wall/information board at the physical location. This would allow any visitor to the area to read the excerpt without an internet connection. The excerpt would contain a link to the full article on the blog and the comments fields could be used by visitors to record their experiences and recommendations of other places to visit.

As more mobile phones have the ability to read these codes, I think this could be a really useful tool for visitors to a city. A nice crossover between the physical and virtual world!

Chainmaking tools ordered

Creative Stuff 1 Response »

Jul 102009

German style jeweller's saw frame

I think it would be extremely satisfying to turn a length of plain silver wire into a beautiful bracelet, so it’s time to try making my own silver jump rings. I’ve ordered a Jeweller’s saw, blades and (for fashion reasons only) a clip on loupe from TickInTime. Tickintime has been great so far, he quickly answered my question about combined shipping costs and invoiced me about 2 minutes after I asked for a total price. If they arrive safely, he definitely gets my vote as a top EBay seller.

I’ll hopefully be able to find some silver wire in town and will take Daws‘ suggestion of using knitting needles as mandrels. 144 blades should keep me going for a while, but I really have no idea how often these extremely thin blades will break.

Classy looking loupe!

I didn’t order any files yet, and I suspect there will be burrs on all the cuts which will need to be removed – I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Having looked at the price of silver wire online, it looks like I’m not going to save any money by making my own links but I am really looking forward to making everything from basic materials.

I’m off to sit by the letterbox an wait for the postie.

Update: 09:33 11/07/09 Items have been shipped – more great service!

Update: 10:00 13/07/09 Items arrived safely! – thanks Tickintime!

My new hobby – Chainmaille Jewelery

Creative Stuff 2 Responses »

Jul 082009

byzantine chain complete 300x202 My new hobby Chainmaille Jewelery

Byzantine Chain in Sterling Silver

A schoolfriend of mine who now lives in Australia has recently been posting some extremely impressive photos of silver jewelery he has been making from scratch. He has designed his own workbench with various size mandrels for winding his own silver wire to make links for his chains. He has been experimenting with many different patterns of joining the links to make some beautiful and intricate jewelery. He has inspired me to have a go myself. Rather than winding and cutting my own links, I thought I’d buy a bunch of links to see if I enjoyed chain making.

After spending a few hours online looking for good reviews of link makers, I settled on the DragonFly Company who had lots of positive testimonials and are based in the UK. I ordered a small batch of jump rings – 200 x 2.75mm x 0.8mm in sterling silver (about £12 including postage). While I waited for them to arrive, I bought a clasp and two pairs of jewelers’ pliers from Helios Fountain which also has a huge range of beads, baubles and bling which I might use in future projects.

2 days later, my package from the Dragonfly Company arrived – A DVD box-sized cardboard box containing a tiny ziploc bag of 200 super-shiny silver jump rings which it turns out are hand made to order and then tumble polished before they are sent out. I also received a very cute dragonfly charm as a free gift – nice touch! and all safely wrapped in tissue paper.

I’d been looking online for sites which would explain the different chain patterns and picked up all sorts of tips on the best way to open and close the links. There are hundereds of sites dedicated to chainmaille which show many different patterns of chain. I decided to bite the bullet and go for a reasonably complicated one to start with, a Byzantine chain.

Following the diagrams at Maille Artisans, I struggled to hold the tiny ring with the pliers and dropped the whole thing on numerous occasions but, after spending a bit of time with it and building up some muscle memory, the whole thing got a bit easier and actually became quite relaxing. As the weather was so nice, I popped the tiny chain, the links and the pliers in the cardboard box and headed out to Greyfriars’ to sit in the sun and finish the chain. After a few hours work, it was complete – I’d used all 200 links without wasting any and the chain fit perfectly round my girlfriend’s wrist.

I’m delighted that my first chain was a success, and after tidying up a few dodgy joins it looks pretty professional. I’m now looking for something else to make – possibly a necklace with a couple of different patterns or a chainmaille ring.

I’m also trying to decide whether it is worth the effort of making the jump rings myself, or just continue buying them from a professional who knows what they are doing and makes links with a precision saw and very tight tolerances. I think it would be very satisfying to know that I had made every part of the chain… anyone know how to make silver wire from a lump of silver?

Do you have any suggestions for a nice challenging second chainmaille project? Leave me a comment with your suggestions!

Invasion of the Not Quite Dead

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Jul 072009

lesaultzombie indywood aged 300x220 Invasion of the Not Quite Dead

Lesault as a Zombie

Filmmaker Antony Lane is attempting to revolutionize the way films are funded here in the UK, by putting some life back into an almost dead film industry. In a quirky new concept Antony has launched an epic film fundraising website called “THE INDYWOOD MOVIE PROJECT“. His goal is to independently raise the £100,000 budget needed to make his debut feature film “INVASION OF THE NOT QUITE DEAD” which is already being tipped as one of 2010’s most anticipated horror movies. In only 60 days of fundraising he has already raised nearly £8,000

When the project originally launched In November 2007 Antony was able to make headline news with his Guinness World Record attempt at a zombie gathering in the city centre of Cardiff, this made national TV news, giving the project a huge level of media attention.

Some of Hollywood’s top film-makers have backed Antony’s enterprising film project including Kevin Pollak, James Gunn, Lloyd Kaufman, Tom Savini, David Hess, Leslie Simpson, Warwick Davis and the infamous Ken Russell who has agreed to take on the role of consulting executive producer.

“Invasion Of The NOT QUITE Dead” has already become a cult sensation across the internet even before entering pre-production, due to a year long marketing campaign which has reached out to the Zombie fans of the world, giving them nothing more than a poster and synopsis, but at the same time whetting their appetite for more. Within less than a year of promoting the movie Antony has managed to get the film advertised on two of Europe’s leading online DVD rental stores as well as being featured on several theatrical blockbuster lists for 2010.

Classed as NOT QUITE a Zombie movie, fans of the genre will not be disappointed with the direction Antony has decided to take with his new Zombie horror franchise.

On the fundraising front, Antony has teamed up with visual arts studio DESTINATION CREATION to give every customer to the project a complete photo Zombie makeover, making it the only place on the net to get yourself transformed into the undead without getting covered in makeup – all for only £20 including a pre-order DVD, or push the boat out and be a VIP Executive Producer for £150 and get a role in the film.

The Project also plans on raising money through business sponsorship, product placement and to sell 1000 limited edition pre-order DVD’s.

“Since my pre-order customers won’t get their movie for a while I want to offer them something in the here and now, which is why I am offering them a chance to appear in the movie and to also receive exclusive merchandise, not bad for the price of a DVD.” Antony Lane

Other filmmakers that have come on board to help Antony include Hollywood Special FX artist RICH KNIGHT (Beowulf), Make up artist CORRINE BOSSU (King Kong), and Emmy award winning composer Misha Segal who will be giving the film a very chilling score.

Antony has began to negotiate with some of the industries biggest names in horror, including: TOM SAVINI (From Dusk Till Dawn), DAVID HESS (Last House On The Left), EZRA BUZZINGTON (The Hills Have Eyes), LESLIE SIMPSON (Dog Soldiers), WARWICK DAVIS (Leprechaun), DAVID BAILIE (Pirates Of The Caribbean), ANTHONY HEAD (Buffy), and SEAN PERTWEE (Dog Soldiers).

Shooting has been scheduled for early 2010 at various locations around Kent, Cardiff, Grimsby and the Isle Of Scilly where the movie will be set. A teaser trailer is scheduled to be filmed in August 2009.

The film will have an official London premiere on Halloween 2010, before being shown at top film festivals worldwide, including Cannes.

One week before launching the project Antony and Ken Russell auditioned a celebrity for a role which was also filmed for a documentary that will air on BBC 2 in August.

“We hope that this unique and quirky idea will catch the heart and minds of people around the world and will help us to independently fund our film and put the Kent film industry on the map.”

David Lesault was the 10th person to pre-order a DVD and receive a zombie make-over. He was delighted with the results and is eager to see the finished movie. This is a fantastic opportunity for you to be involved in one of the most exciting films of recent years – if you , too, want to show your support, please visit www.theindywoodproject.com and get treat yourself to a DVD and a makeover!

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