First up, Best dressed

Growing up as one of three brothers the phrase ‘First up, Best dressed’ was not just a saying but a way of life. There was only one rule. The first person up had free choice of clothing including any items that belonged to a sibling. There was no argument with this rule. Only later, with the power of the internet, did I learn that it is a relatively common saying in the North of the UK and historically applied to other families with an equivalent number (or more) of potentially warring siblings and was, in fact, more commonly used as a saying much along the lines of ‘the early bird catches the worm’ rather than an actual house rule. You live and learn.

Today’s piece is inspired by this rule and here we most definitely the first up. He’s gone all out and has selected a dinner jacket and bow tie and looks simply FAB-U-LOUS. He’s on a 100 x 70cm canvas and has been made using stencils, spraypaint and the ancient art of paint chucking. Drop us a line if interested.

Cheers

id-iom

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Other People’s Graffiti (Laundry edition)

For today’s edition of ‘Other People’s Graffiti’ we’ve got a cheeky little launderette sign that I spotted whilst out on my travels. Can you see what’s wrong with this picture? It might take you a second to spot it but it’s definitely there. Whether or not you’d call it graffiti is perhaps debatable but I have had the gall to do so –  so put that in your pipe and smoke it.

Cheers

id-iom

Things not to do on the hottest day of the year

Given that it was 34 degrees in London yesterday and I could easily have stayed at home in the relative cool I decided a good walk (just to work up a sweat) and some screen printing was in order. Say hello to id-iom’s new ‘faded stamp’ t’s. They’re for our percy pile so don’t think you can get your grubby mitts on one…

Cheers

id-iom

Vampire midwinter

Summer solstice is here again. Which is a good time for us humans with those long summery days but think about the poor vampires. This proud vampire lady has been reduced to taking twice daily cold blood showers in her dark and dank underground mausoleum. She hasn’t left for weeks and probably won’t for some time to come. Her neighbours think she’s off in the Caribbean for summertime – as always. In reality she’s been subsisting on a diet of fresh meat delivered by Waitrose and illegally streaming Netflix over her neighbours wifi. Even one minute in those glorious summer rays would reduce her to a pile of ash. Spare a thought.

She’s lasercut on wood at 39 x 26cm and then handpainted. Once you’ve added some crystal resin to represent the cold blood showers and a few little bats to represent her cheeky take on vampire home decor and you’ve got another successful id-iom piece. Drop us a line if interested…

Cheers

id-iom

Don’t blame it on Brixton

Over the years Brixton has been unfairly blamed for all sorts of things from gangs and guns to riots and robbery but it’s far too easy to try and sum up a place in a sensationalist sentence when the true causes of such phenomena are far more complicated and historical – but that doesn’t make good newspaper headlines.

Having lived in Brixton for almost 20 years the place I know and love is vibrant and fun loving and certainly not the one that hits the headlines every once in a while.  Sure, bad stuff happens in Brixton occasionally but that’s true of just about everywhere in London. Good things happen regularly too but are rarely as newsworthy. You know what? You can blame whoever you but just don’t blame it on Brixton…

Cheers

id-iom

Mickey or a Ringie?

Mickey or a Ringie?

In the Isle of Man there is something of a superstition whereby Manx people can’t say the name of one of those little furry things that were blamed for the Black Death, pestilence in general and a whole host of other nefarious things. The reasons for this have dissipated into the mists of time but the superstition remains and due to this quirk in Manx folklore there are a number of socially acceptable local alternatives which include joey, longtail, ringie, iron fella and roddan. Recently young people have also begun saying r-a-t, owing to the influence of English immigrants but older people on the Isle of Man don’t tend to listen to those Jonny come-overs too much and certainly not on such serious subjects as these little buggers. There is a comparable taboo against uttering the word ‘rabbit’ on the Isle of Portland. Here ends the lesson.

Cheers

id-iom

When you run out of paper

Sometimes, when you’ve run out of paper but the Muse is still riding you like a seaside donkey there’s nowt for it but to grab whatever is at hand and set to work. A newspaper advert for an estate agents was the selected canvas and a slightly sinister face in black and white was the preferred image. Don’t ask me why because I really don’t know. At least that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. If only I can find where I’ve put this then it may eventually makes it way to the Wheatpaste Department and then onto the street – unless someone demands it in their life. Which would be a bit odd. But stranger things have happened at sea. Or so they say.

Cheers

id-iom

I’ll Be Honest (No Context Required – Vladimir Putin) mini me version

I’ve already done a larger hand painted version of this piece but I couldn’t resist doing a mini me version of our ‘No Context Required – Vladimir Putin’ piece featuring a quote from Russian President Putin following an interesting bit of video where he kisses the stomach of a little boy whilst out and about in Russia somewhere. If you haven’t seen it then I suggest you put ‘Putin kiss boy’s stomach’ into Google and follow one of the links. To say it’s a bit weird is probably something of an understatement.

Anyway this quote is what he had to say about the incident but once you combine it with the angry looking man bear you have another quality id-iom piece. It’s laser engraved on wood and stands proud at 13 x 9cm and even features an out of context Hello Kitty character and I’ve even robbed the Honest Burgers logo just to really mix it up. Drop us a line if you’re interested – it’s going cheap…

Cheers

id-iom

My most awkward dance at work

My most awkward dance at work

If you’ve ever been to an office Xmas party and reflected the next day that perhaps your drunken and impromptu Justin Timberlake impression with Nicole from accounts was probably somewhat awkward and inappropriate then spare a thought for poor Chantelle here.

She had made a last minute decision to do some exotic dancing for the bikers on the Isle of Man during TT week to earn a bit of cash for her upcoming family holiday for her dad’s 50th. On her third night, in the midst of some pretty athletic pole gyrations, in walks her dad with a group of his friends who’d secretly arranged a boys trip to the TT for him for his upcoming birthday. After she’d spotted him to say she felt a little awkward would be something of an understatement but being a professional she could do nothing but continue until the song finally finished.

She’d managed to avoid making eye contact with her father and his group but as she departed the stage after picking up her meagre elements of clothing from where she’d cast them she could hear someone shouting for more. Fat chance of that she thought as she pondered the more pressing question of how to tell her dad what her job had really been for the past couple of years.

Cheers

id-iom

Man at work

I was just looking for something else on my computer when I come across this rare image of the younger half of id-iom actually doing some work! I know because I took the shot. Any pics that you may have previously seen showing him doing something that looks like work will undoubtedly have been staged or digitally generated using Photoshop. What’s more incredible is that he’s also up a small pair of steps (which are just out of shot) so that makes the whole thing doubly rare. He doesn’t like using ladders at the best of times. Even small ones. If only I could remember what had driven him to such extremes. Perhaps I was suffering from whooping cough or the more dangerous man flu at the time. Who knows?

Cheers

id-iom