To get your calendar, click on the image below to enlarge, drag onto the desktop then select the image as your wallpaper.
the shark alley blog
Showing posts with label Otters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Otters. Show all posts
Wednesday, 30 May 2018
Shark Alley Desktop Calendar Screensaver - June 2018
I'm posting this on IOSF World Otter Day so, to celebrate, the desktop calendar for June is an otter. I'm really fond of this image - I already have it on my laptop and it looks great as a screensaver.
To get your calendar, click on the image below to enlarge, drag onto the desktop then select the image as your wallpaper.
To get your calendar, click on the image below to enlarge, drag onto the desktop then select the image as your wallpaper.
Monday, 11 January 2016
Otters Holding Hearts
The lovely limited edition Otters Holding Hearts have just gone on sale in the Shark Alley shop!
Available in taupe or chocolate brown with a red or pink heart, they are custom sewn to your specifications and are available only until 14th February 2016, making them totally perfect for a Valentine's Day gift.
Oh and HAPPY NEW YEAR, by the way.
Available in taupe or chocolate brown with a red or pink heart, they are custom sewn to your specifications and are available only until 14th February 2016, making them totally perfect for a Valentine's Day gift.
Oh and HAPPY NEW YEAR, by the way.
Saturday, 22 February 2014
The International Otter Survival Fund
Since starting to sew otters in 2011, I have donated 10% of sales to an otter sanctuary or charity every year. To be honest, I don't make much money on these as they are incredibly labour-intensive (the larger ones take about three hours to sew) so this is a big deal to me.
The recent unprecedented storms and flooding in the UK have actually had a huge negative impact on the otter population, contrary to what you might think. Holts will have been flooded out and families separated. Adult otters will have had to find alternative ways around their territory as culverts and spaces under bridges vanish under the flood waters. This usually means crossing roads which can result in the otters being run over, leaving their cubs orphaned. The quality of the flood water is very poor as it gets mixed in with sewage, which leads to infections, so any rescued cubs being brought into animal shelters can be in a very bad way and often don't survive.
This year, the money will go to the International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF).
Based on the Isle Of Skye, the IOSF was set up by Paul and Grace Yoxon to safeguard otter populations around the world. They raise awareness of otters, help improve local environments to enable otter survival and fight against the trading of otter fur, as well continuing international research into otter behaviour and populations to ensure that each of the 13 different species continue to survive and flourish.
On Skye, they take in and rehabilitate abandoned or sick otters - mostly cubs who have lost their parents. All healthy otters are released back into the wild if they can be. This is why the centre is not open to the public, as they need to keep human interaction to the minimum so that the otters remain as wild as possible.
Their work has won them two awards in the last couple of years - the IFAW Animal Action Award in 2012 and the British Animal Honour's Wildlife Conservation Award in 2013.
Shark Alley's otters are also on sale in the IOSF online shop, where a massive 30% of the price goes towards supporting their work.
So every Shark Alley otter you buy goes to help the real thing! Shop with a good conscience and wear your halo of goodness ALL DAY. Then you can send me pictures of your otter doing funny things and I can put it on the Fuzzy Otter blog. Take a look - it's quite fun!
International Otter Survival Fund
7, Black Park
Broadford
Isle of Skye
IV49 9DE
Scotland
The recent unprecedented storms and flooding in the UK have actually had a huge negative impact on the otter population, contrary to what you might think. Holts will have been flooded out and families separated. Adult otters will have had to find alternative ways around their territory as culverts and spaces under bridges vanish under the flood waters. This usually means crossing roads which can result in the otters being run over, leaving their cubs orphaned. The quality of the flood water is very poor as it gets mixed in with sewage, which leads to infections, so any rescued cubs being brought into animal shelters can be in a very bad way and often don't survive.
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| Cub rescued from the River Cam - picture Cambridge News |
This year, the money will go to the International Otter Survival Fund (IOSF).
 |
| Conrad the rescued otter cub - picture by the IOSF |
Based on the Isle Of Skye, the IOSF was set up by Paul and Grace Yoxon to safeguard otter populations around the world. They raise awareness of otters, help improve local environments to enable otter survival and fight against the trading of otter fur, as well continuing international research into otter behaviour and populations to ensure that each of the 13 different species continue to survive and flourish.
On Skye, they take in and rehabilitate abandoned or sick otters - mostly cubs who have lost their parents. All healthy otters are released back into the wild if they can be. This is why the centre is not open to the public, as they need to keep human interaction to the minimum so that the otters remain as wild as possible.
 |
| Rescued cubs Jasper and Mangal cuddle up - picture by the IOSF |
Their work has won them two awards in the last couple of years - the IFAW Animal Action Award in 2012 and the British Animal Honour's Wildlife Conservation Award in 2013.
Shark Alley's otters are also on sale in the IOSF online shop, where a massive 30% of the price goes towards supporting their work.
So every Shark Alley otter you buy goes to help the real thing! Shop with a good conscience and wear your halo of goodness ALL DAY. Then you can send me pictures of your otter doing funny things and I can put it on the Fuzzy Otter blog. Take a look - it's quite fun!
 |
| Tarquin, Mungo & Splash - picture by their keeper, Bosun Smee. |
International Otter Survival Fund
7, Black Park
Broadford
Isle of Skye
IV49 9DE
Scotland
Monday, 28 October 2013
London Zoo
When my boyfriend proposed a trip to London Zoo, my (default) response was (adopts whining tone) "I'm too busy. I have to work".
But most weekends have been devoted to non-pleasurable activities of late, so I thought yeah, why not? The zoo is always a great place for reference too - the photos I took there in 2010 formed the basis for the otter sewing patterns that I created.
Despite the rain, we had a great time (not too crowded either!). Here are some of my favourite pics.
But most weekends have been devoted to non-pleasurable activities of late, so I thought yeah, why not? The zoo is always a great place for reference too - the photos I took there in 2010 formed the basis for the otter sewing patterns that I created.
Despite the rain, we had a great time (not too crowded either!). Here are some of my favourite pics.
Monday, 9 September 2013
Creating Resin Necklaces
After thinking about it for quite a long time, FINALLY I am making some new resin necklaces to add to the existing Shark Alley collection.
It's quite a time-consuming process even before the pieces are actually cast and finished.
Here's how it starts.
1. The images that I'm going to use for inspiration are collected together and I have them in front of me while I draw.
2. The designs are sketched out and then refined until they're simple and graphic.
3. I cut the shapes out of cardboard and practice putting them together to make sure they will hang together properly and work as necklaces. This is also the time to work out where the holes will need to be drilled in the finished resin pieces.
4. Each design is then placed over rolled-out modelling clay and tiny pin pricks are used to transfer the design onto the clay's surface.
5. Then the shapes are carefully cut out using a scalpel.
6. When the clay has hardened, the shapes are smoothed and refined using sandpaper and sanding and buffing tools.
9. Ta-dah! Three moulds all ready to be filled with resin.
Stay tuned for the finished articles! Hopefully not too long to wait.
It's quite a time-consuming process even before the pieces are actually cast and finished.
Here's how it starts.
1. The images that I'm going to use for inspiration are collected together and I have them in front of me while I draw.
2. The designs are sketched out and then refined until they're simple and graphic.
3. I cut the shapes out of cardboard and practice putting them together to make sure they will hang together properly and work as necklaces. This is also the time to work out where the holes will need to be drilled in the finished resin pieces.
4. Each design is then placed over rolled-out modelling clay and tiny pin pricks are used to transfer the design onto the clay's surface.
5. Then the shapes are carefully cut out using a scalpel.
6. When the clay has hardened, the shapes are smoothed and refined using sandpaper and sanding and buffing tools.
7. Each finished piece is laid into a mould made from acetate, then silicon is poured in.
8. After 24 hours, the moulds are turned out. Unfortunately the silicon has oozed underneath the shapes, so I'll have to trim it away with scissors.
9. Ta-dah! Three moulds all ready to be filled with resin.
Stay tuned for the finished articles! Hopefully not too long to wait.
Saturday, 9 March 2013
Tamar Otters
This is the third year that I have been making and selling hand-stitched otters and donating a percentage of their sales to an ottery organisation or charity.
This year the money is going to the Tamar Otter and Wildlife Centre near Launceston in Cornwall.
We spent a great day there in 2011 (despite the rain) and I was particularly struck by the fact that it costs over £5,000 to care for and/or rehabilitate EACH otter, excluding vet's bills. This is an incredible amount - I had no idea - so they were high on my list of recipients.
The centre really is a lovely place and I wish it was a bit nearer so I could spend more time there.
Amusingly, three of the otters share my birthday (though I was born some time before 2005).
We spent a great day there in 2011 (despite the rain) and I was particularly struck by the fact that it costs over £5,000 to care for and/or rehabilitate EACH otter, excluding vet's bills. This is an incredible amount - I had no idea - so they were high on my list of recipients.
The centre really is a lovely place and I wish it was a bit nearer so I could spend more time there.
Amusingly, three of the otters share my birthday (though I was born some time before 2005).
North Petherwin, Nr. Launceston, Cornwall PL15 8GW
tel: 01566 785646
Saturday, 2 February 2013
We're Glad It's All Over
Thank God it's not January any more!
It seemed to go on for ages and I couldn't get to grips with it at all, blinking like a mole into 2013. And it's been over a month since I posted on here. Bad girl. Baaaaaad.
It's been a while now, but I hope you guys had lots of Festive Fun!
The highlight of my Christmas was spending some time with the delightful Nemo Otter at the Aquazoo in Düsseldorf. What a treat! Dr Wolfgang Gettmann and Aquazoo friend Heike Degen were so nice to Paul and I and let us spend ages with Nemo, as well as showing us behind the scenes of the zoo. I got to hold a tarantula! Squeamish folks, look away now.
We could have stroked an octopus too, apparently, but sadly it had died a few days earlier.
Anyway, let's cut to the best bit.
A sleepy little ott! Nemo's fur is coarser that I expected, as were his whiskers. He also has an incredibly muscly tail which was really quite heavy and fleshy underneath the tip.
Nemo is made to appreciate some quality Shark Alley workmanship - an otter keyring I made as a gift for Wolfgang.
Now, could I sneak this otter into my handbag? And would they notice?
Taking Nemo for a walk in Nordpark, where the Aquazoo is set.
Nemo hunts for juicy fat worms, which he dispatches with a couple of quick gulps. DELICIOUS.
It all seems like a dream now! We were with him for three hours and were invited to stay longer, but we had to catch a train up to the north later that afternoon. We can go and visit him again whenever we are next there, though.
Aquazoo
Kaiserswerther Straße 380, 40200 Düsseldorf, Germany.
It seemed to go on for ages and I couldn't get to grips with it at all, blinking like a mole into 2013. And it's been over a month since I posted on here. Bad girl. Baaaaaad.
It's been a while now, but I hope you guys had lots of Festive Fun!
The highlight of my Christmas was spending some time with the delightful Nemo Otter at the Aquazoo in Düsseldorf. What a treat! Dr Wolfgang Gettmann and Aquazoo friend Heike Degen were so nice to Paul and I and let us spend ages with Nemo, as well as showing us behind the scenes of the zoo. I got to hold a tarantula! Squeamish folks, look away now.
We could have stroked an octopus too, apparently, but sadly it had died a few days earlier.
Anyway, let's cut to the best bit.
A sleepy little ott! Nemo's fur is coarser that I expected, as were his whiskers. He also has an incredibly muscly tail which was really quite heavy and fleshy underneath the tip.
Now, could I sneak this otter into my handbag? And would they notice?
Taking Nemo for a walk in Nordpark, where the Aquazoo is set.
Nemo hunts for juicy fat worms, which he dispatches with a couple of quick gulps. DELICIOUS.
It all seems like a dream now! We were with him for three hours and were invited to stay longer, but we had to catch a train up to the north later that afternoon. We can go and visit him again whenever we are next there, though.
Aquazoo
Kaiserswerther Straße 380, 40200 Düsseldorf, Germany.
Thursday, 1 November 2012
Otter Country
Some of you may well have twigged by now that I'm rather partial to otters.
Yesterday I thought it would be really nice to combine them with another one of my favourite activities - shopping for beautiful things for Shark Alley.
So up I travelled to London to trawl the fabric shops around Oxford Street and Soho for lovely big prints on pale fabrics to make into fox & otter purses. Unfortunately, I didn't find as many as I'd hoped, but I did stumble across this little gem in John Lewis. Yum yum!
After all this retail excitement and a hastily consumed rubbish supper of crisps and a flapjack, it was off to Waterstones in Gower Street to attend a talk on otters. This featured otter expert Dr Daniel Allen interviewing author Miriam Darlington about her book, Otter Country, which documents her quest to see UK otters in the wild after being obsessed with them since childhood.
The three extracts she read were very evocative and sometimes moving, especially as she described carrying the heart of an otter in her hands whilst attending an otter autopsy. Her descriptions of being alone in the countryside and encountering wild otters were incredibly vivid - so much so that all day today I have had the strong sensation that I have recently been in the countryside myself.
One of the other joys was meeting so many other otter afficionados. Thanks to the wonders of Facebook and the internet, I have connected with otter-lovers all over the world, but it's always nice to meet face-to-face. Daniel Allen is a friend-of-a-friend many times over, and I feel quite sure we could have chatted all evening. I also had the privilege of meeting (albeit very briefly) Daphne Neville, who has cared for otters for over thirty years and is the author of a book about these experiences - 'Bee - a Particular Otter'. Having had a brief online exchange with her daughter Sophie in the summer, it seemed quite a coincidence to meet her. She was incredibly lovely and let me have a signed copy of her book.
One of the more amusing aspects of the evening involved sniffing an otter spraint - or poo. Before you recoil in horror, it's definitely NOT what you imagine and turned out to be quite fascinating as each person was asked to describe what it reminded them of. The answers were unexpected and diverse - 'prawns', 'newly-mown grass', 'citrus', 'musty' and my favourite, 'a church crypt'.
After a rather harried and stressy day dealing with London crowds and rude people, I came away feeling very uplifted and happy to have spent time in the company of such friendly and similarly-obsessed people.
Yesterday I thought it would be really nice to combine them with another one of my favourite activities - shopping for beautiful things for Shark Alley.
So up I travelled to London to trawl the fabric shops around Oxford Street and Soho for lovely big prints on pale fabrics to make into fox & otter purses. Unfortunately, I didn't find as many as I'd hoped, but I did stumble across this little gem in John Lewis. Yum yum!
 |
| Detail - Loulouthi Summer Totem in Grapefruit by Anna Maria Horner |
 |
| Love the beautiful illustration on the front by Kelly Dyson |
The three extracts she read were very evocative and sometimes moving, especially as she described carrying the heart of an otter in her hands whilst attending an otter autopsy. Her descriptions of being alone in the countryside and encountering wild otters were incredibly vivid - so much so that all day today I have had the strong sensation that I have recently been in the countryside myself.
One of the other joys was meeting so many other otter afficionados. Thanks to the wonders of Facebook and the internet, I have connected with otter-lovers all over the world, but it's always nice to meet face-to-face. Daniel Allen is a friend-of-a-friend many times over, and I feel quite sure we could have chatted all evening. I also had the privilege of meeting (albeit very briefly) Daphne Neville, who has cared for otters for over thirty years and is the author of a book about these experiences - 'Bee - a Particular Otter'. Having had a brief online exchange with her daughter Sophie in the summer, it seemed quite a coincidence to meet her. She was incredibly lovely and let me have a signed copy of her book.
 |
| Sniffing the spraint! |
Saturday, 22 September 2012
Scampi Moo
After thinking about it for aaaaages, I've finally got on with designing a little 2D otter character - Scampi Moo.
This is a concerted effort to move forward into products that don't take so much time to make as her image can be printed onto other things (I am currently sporting a fetching Scampi Moo Tank t-shirt).
So far, I've been making purses (more about this in a future post!), tote bags and badges, mostly experimenting with iron-on photo paper, but hoping to expand into proper printing.
Anyway, cut the crap, let me introduce you to Scampi! Here she is.
I see her as having a particular personality (very cute but a little bit naughty - like all the best things are) and being slightly eccentric. She enjoys tanks for example.
She is based on Scampi, a particularly loved soft otter who has been bestowed with some strange personality traits (I know I'm definitely old enough to know better, but I don't have kids or pets, so that's my excuse!).
'Moo' is a derivative of 'mou', a Greek term meaning 'mine' that is sometimes put after someone's name. Not that I speak Greek or anything - I think I read it in a book set in Corfu.
Anyway, here are some of the things I've been Moo-ising so far. I would love to know what you think about them!
If you want to keep up with all Scampi Moo related stuff, she has her very own Facebook page so why not pop across and get properly introduced - she'd love to meet you.
This is a concerted effort to move forward into products that don't take so much time to make as her image can be printed onto other things (I am currently sporting a fetching Scampi Moo Tank t-shirt).
So far, I've been making purses (more about this in a future post!), tote bags and badges, mostly experimenting with iron-on photo paper, but hoping to expand into proper printing.
Anyway, cut the crap, let me introduce you to Scampi! Here she is.
I see her as having a particular personality (very cute but a little bit naughty - like all the best things are) and being slightly eccentric. She enjoys tanks for example.
She is based on Scampi, a particularly loved soft otter who has been bestowed with some strange personality traits (I know I'm definitely old enough to know better, but I don't have kids or pets, so that's my excuse!).
'Moo' is a derivative of 'mou', a Greek term meaning 'mine' that is sometimes put after someone's name. Not that I speak Greek or anything - I think I read it in a book set in Corfu.
Anyway, here are some of the things I've been Moo-ising so far. I would love to know what you think about them!
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| Coin purse - front |
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| Coin purse- back |
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| Totes |
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| Badges |
If you want to keep up with all Scampi Moo related stuff, she has her very own Facebook page so why not pop across and get properly introduced - she'd love to meet you.
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