Sticking to the animal theme we also love this perpex cat brooch from Lazy Oaf complete with its own little bell at £12.

Just received in to the Fused inbox this morning is Brennan and Burch’s gorgeous new homes range. We especially love their Wallpaper designs.

The limited edition “Emily” textured wallpaper is our favourite and drawn by London-based illustrator Lisa Brennan. However we also love ‘New Forest’ – also by Lisa.

The paper is supplied in 1 metre drop of wallpaper but can be supplied in longer lengths by ordering mulitples of 1 metre – these will be supplied on roll(s) of wallpaper and cost £88.

Here they tell us there culinary memories of Kraft macaroni and slaughtering your own meal with Ivan Smagghe, Simian Mobile Disco, Deepgroove, Shaun Reeves, Bones and Heidi.

Fused is co-hosting another Know Your Place event at the end of August that offers advice and guidance to creative freelancers, sme’s and graduates. We’ve booked 4 great speakers and there is also information on funding and incubation space that is currently available.

4-7pm on Wednesday 25th August 2010
At Zellig, The Custard Factory, Gibb Street, Birmingham, B9 4AA

Knowledge for creative freelancers

If you’re a recent graduate* and about to set up your own business, or already working as a creative freelancer or SME then join us for the third (in a series of) Know Your Place event(s).

KYP is a free event that offers advice on pitching for those much-needed contracts and how to instil an entrepreneurial spirit. There will be a chance to hear from 4 inspiring speakers and network with likeminded individuals, as well as receive one-to-one advice from a Business Link advisor and join the BSEEN programme (info below).

RSVP to book your place by visiting: http://knowyourplace.eventbrite.com/

Refreshments will be provided and there will be an opportunity to have a look around the beautiful new space at the Custard Factory.

BSEEN OPPORTUNITY
If you have graduated (Degree, Post Grad cert/diploma, MA, NVQ level 4 or above) from a UK university in the past 4 years, have a Birmingham postcode and want to set up your own business or enterprise you may be eligible to join the programme. Benefits include

-Free incubator space
-Business Grant of £500 each month
-Networking Opportunities
-Training Sessions
-Mentoring
-Membership to the Graduate Enterprise club

For further information and an application form please visit the BSEEN page on the website here.

KNOW YOUR PLACE  – THE EVENT

4pm – Registration and refreshments

4.15pm – Welcome and introduction

4.20pm – Session 1: An entrepreneurial spirit
Hear from experienced speakers who will offer advice on the benefits of adopting an entrepreneurial approach to working in today’s challenging economic climate. Why you should have the confidence to go out and showacase your skills and how you will find work and stand out from the crowd.

5.15pm – Session 2: Pitching for work
Hear from 2 successful speakers who have experience in pitching for work in a very competitive market. How do they succeed? What are the secrets to building relationships and gaining repeat business? What makes a good pitch?

6pm - Networking and refreshments
This is your chance to get up closer to the speakers and other delegates while taking a look around the gorgeous newly refurbed space at The Custard Factory over a glass of wine.

BOOK A BUSINESS LINK ADVICE SURGERY
If you would like to book a surgery with a Business Link Advisor there are several hour slots available which will be provided on a first come first served basis. Please email your name and contact details along with your preferred time (9.30am / 10.30am / 11.30am / 12.30pm / 2.00pm / 3.00pm) to: KYP@fusedmagazine.com.

This Know Your Place event is funded by BSEEN.

The event is supported by Business Link, Fused and the Custard Factory and there is no charge for attending either the event or the clinics.

KNOW YOUR PLACE is funded by BSEEN

Know Your Place is managed by Lorraine Francis from Weave Marketing and Kerry Thomas from Fused.

Set in a beautiful valley at Eastnor Castle in the Malvern Hills the festival is plenty big enough for its revellers meaning there are no issues around getting from stage to tent and back again or, most importantly, not having to wait 45 minutes for a beer.

Compact enough to get from the main ‘Deer Park’ stage to the huge ‘Revellers’ tent in 5-10 minutes meant you wouldn’t miss any acts you were hankering to see. The lack of big sponsored areas, stages and banners was a refreshing sight and gave the whole experience a refreshing twist the some of the bigger festivals.

OUR FAVOURITE BITS

Our favourite part of the weekend – other than watching the amazing visuals and HUGE stage invasion when M.I.A. played – were the non-music parts of the festival.

Mr Scruff – Make us a Brew

Mr Scruff was back at the Festival with a forever-busy tent of tea-loving festival-goers. Chilled out tracks came courtesy of the revolving DJ’s throughout the day and night while fans supped tea and munched on fairy cakes.

Rubber Ducks on the lake

The rain pretty much stayed away all weekend leaving people to rest up by the lake and await the next band or DJ to hit the stage.

Spencer Tunick’s painted people

On Sunday morning people painted in Yellow, Pink, Blue and Black started to appear in the crowds. Most were modestly dressed and what we started to find out was that they had been part of Artist Spencer Tunick’s latest piece of work where they had appeared naked (and painted). The concept for the piece was to highlight the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.

Tunick is famed for his images that get the general public naked in cities around the world. A recent piece included over 5,000 people who posed nude in front of Sydney Opera House.

Attention to detail

Big Chill is a really pretty festival with giant flowers, hearts and decoration everywhere you turn. At night the valley looks amazing from a high point with lights sparkling everywhere. Some of the lights are even covered with old lampshades. Giant balls, at the side of the main stage, fill with light during the evening and dance to the beat of the music.

Transport was provided by the good folks at Nissan Cube and camping equipment courtesy of Vango

We all watched enthralled as bakers created an edible Skoda for the car advert and then as Heston Blumenthal created a real life edible house with cake and icing as the bricks and mortar.  Now edible art is available to the general public with the launch of Cake Britain, the world’s first ever entirely edible art exhibition.

The creative geniuses behind The Mad Artists’ Tea Party, sponsorted by Tate & Lyle Sugar, have teamed some of the best bakers with artists who want to focus their creativity into sugar, cake and other yummy sweet things.

Participating artists include David A Smith, George Morton-Clarke, Jason Freeney, Peat Wollaeger (AKA stenSOUL), Stuart Semple and Jon Burgerman while the food artists who are collaborating with them include Prudence Staite, The Jellymongers, Crumbs & Dollies and Lily Vanilli.

Cake Britain focuses on the theme FAIR.  All of the art created for the tea parties will use Fairtrade products and exist only temporarily as visitors can buy a slice of the action to eat at the events.  There’s no sense of waste at these tea parties so you should probably visit as soon as possible before there’s only a few crumbs left.

Can’t make it to Covent Garden?  The Mad Artists’ Tea Party have created a life-size edible cupcake tree that is currently touring cities throughout the UK giving out free cake.

The Future Gallery, Covent Garden
27 – 29 August

Words: Laura Booth

Tate Modern’s amazing Turbine Hall will be taken over this Sunday…by you if you fancy a sketch. Lazy Oaf’s Let’s Face It event is inviting everyone to come along and draw their own self portraits on those epic walls.  A 7m wall will be covered with dozens of colourful pages all dying to be filled with your scribbles.  This is Tate Modern’s biggest live drawing event to date so if you love to draw get your pencils at the ready.

It won’t just be us amateurs though, live drawing from established illustrators Zeroten, Joe Baglow and Ian Stevenson will nestle together.  Despite their unique styles the bold use of shape and colour that each artist adopts is sure to make for an interesting and eccentric collection.

Turbine Hall, Tate Modern
Sunday 8 August, 11am – 5pm

Words: Laura Booth

A new festival is born and this one is starting with a bang.  Not only has this festival gathered together the dance scene’s greatest talent in David Guetta, Soulwax, Calvin Harris, Goldfrapp, Friendly Fires and Aphex Twin; but Leftfield will be returning after almost ten years away to headline the whole show.

Cream, Goldenvoice and Loudsound, have joined forces to create this exciting outdoor electronic dance festival set in the picturesque surroundings of Victoria Park. Plus they’ve let Canadian electro super producer Tiga, and Radio One DJ Annie Mac, join the bill to host their own Arenas.

We have 3 pairs of  tickets to give away, just tell us the first name of Goldfrapp’s lead singer.

Send your answer to competitions@fusedmagazine.com before 10/8/10

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.