The Pulp Press Art, Textiles and Photography Site

The Pulp Press is a new site that is offering something slightly different. Art is art, and textiles is textiles etc. but the Pulp Press is a place where nothing is compartmentalised.



The Pulp Press is split into two sections, the first deals with art based subjects, like hand and machine sewing, felt making, hand made paper, screen printing etc. and the works that can be obtained by combining all the different skills. The second section deals with the different skills of black and white wet process photography.



Qualified to teach, the Pulp Press not only make and produce different and unusual art pieces but offer the general public the opportunity to learn these skills by teaching courses of general interest photography and "AS" level qualifications in photography as well as general interest textile workshops in Winchester, Hampshire.

SymVolli Launch Event

Try and spot the 2 second cameo that I play in this film. It's quite obvious that I don't look that comfortable in a suit but they wouldn't let me wear motorcycle gear...sheesh.

Support Your Local Small Business

All bloggers should have a sabbatical...

At least that is my excuse for shamelessly neglecting my personal blogging duties, however, it should be noted for all would be blogging enthusiasts (and I have said it before) that starting a blog is all too easy, but maintaining it is a completely different kettle of fish, and without getting all philosophical, nothing ever lasts...which goes double for blogging.

And so my first post in several months is not going to be deep and meaningful or full of worldly wisdom but is instead a shameless plug of a website that I have just created for a friend.

As part of many web designers life, freebies are an integral part of helping out family and friends with what can be a daunting investment in online presence generation. So, when Andy a friend of mine came and asked me for my services I didn't hesitate to offer him the benefits of my experience. Andy Jewell is based in Southampton and offers a mobile dent repair service in the surrounding area. What I like about Andy's business is that he is competing with a heavily competitive automobile industry that is dominated by some heavy big garages that would normaly drive small businesses out quite quickly. By operating a niche that is so specialised he offers a great service that the big companies cannot offer in both customer service, price and convenience. As plugs go, I am quite proud to shout about this chaps business and hope that I can offer him a helping hand in his online marketing effort.

A Bitter Sweet Stumble

Installing the stumbleupon toolbar and hitting the stumble button has been both an insight and a curse as I've got thoroughly addicted to stumbling sites that other people have found. As a social networking/web 2.0 application, stumbleupon has been a phenomena in the simplicity of it's idea yet it's genius in understanding the complexities of social interaction and human curiosity. It's been one of those things that I have understood more the more that I have participated, and I have genuinely been intrigued by the humour, style and creativity of the sites that people find.

On a stumbling session I will find usually a smattering of decent humour, well designed sites and inspirational artwork that I wouldn't have normaly found if this facility wasn't available. However, there is the very rare circumstance when you find something that is truely remarkeable that mere words can't describe. Pure luck of hitting the stumble button found myself looking at A Mother's Journey a photographic masterpiece following the traumatic events of a childs final months battling cancer. It is no wonder that this work won a pullitzer as the energy and emotions are captured so vividly and dramatically. It is hard to not be touched by looking at these photographs and following a journey that some would say is the hardest a person can take.

It is nice to be reminded that there is a human touch to working on the web sometimes and I for one feel better for knowing and sharing such important sites like this and being reminded that the internet is not all about cool widgets and clever designs.

A Typical Conversation Between Two Bikers On a Motorway

One of the main benefits of being on a bike is that we don’t get stuck in traffic having the ability to filter through stationary and irate cars crawling at really slow speeds, so when I filtered the other day through a particularly long bout of congestion it was a surprise to end up at a full stop at the beginning of the queue. Apparently, not even bikers get past waiting when the motorway is closed, as it was in this case due to an accident. The accident didn’t look at all serious and there were no ambulances so while waiting I took the opportunity to do what is a rarety, having a look around the motorway while at a stop…it was really boring.

It was then no surprise that after a few minutes another bike ended up along side me having experienced several miles of stationary cars. Now, bikers are usually a social bunch of people who share in some way an affinity with one another in experiencing the same lifestyle. If you watch bikers pass one another on the motorway, some will wave or nod and it is customary to nod to another biker if you a travelling in the other direction on a road. So, when this biker pulled up along side me, I guess we both felt the need to converse or acknowledge this situation we were in and in a comradely way bond in a bikerly way. There is one difficulty in this and that in keeping the elements at bay we usually wear such things as neck protectors and helmets which tiresomely prevent the optimal expression of speech. Here then is a transcript of the conversation that we had:

Biker: Hrmph, mumble (nod) mumble (gesticulate wildly) mumble, mumble some more for a bit (guffaw) mumble?

Me: Sorry, didn’t quite catch that.

Biker: mumble mumble mumble etc. (only a little louder)

(Haven’t the faintest idea what he just said, but would be pretty rude to ask again)

Me: Yeah, (laugh) isn’t that the darndest thing. (I have never used the word darndest and am not entirely sure where I picked up the Americanism but it sure seemed appropriate at the time and it didn’t matter anyway because he couldn’t hear me anyway)

Thankfully, the road was cleared and traffic started again which was lucky as it was becoming quite embarrassing.

Aren't MOT test's just a pesky nuisance...

Apologies for the long absence but it appears that our home computer decided that it didn't like us any more and stopped working. This has happened to me before and I lost quite a lot of work a week before a college deadline when a lightening strike blew my Mac up, so I know what a pain in the arm it can be, but the Missus was none too pleased at losing all her work and photographs. Another reminder that though technology is here to make our lives easier, over reliance can mean a whole heap of inconveniance when things go arm over tip.... and yes, I am still a little shy with using certain language on such an open medium, so you will have to get used to the annoying connotations.

Anyway, I haven't posted up anything bike related in a while, mainly due to me being reliant on public transport while it has been fixed up to pass it's MOT. What a bloody nuisance that was. I'll have nothing to say bad about my Yamaha (pictured above), it is after all over 18 years old and can out accelerate many cars today. It was also very cheap to buy and insure, being a classic motorcycle, as well as being economical to run (or at least compared to your average family saloon). Unfortunately, MOT time is when the odds are then stacked against my poor machine as the bits that keep falling off need mending and things like indicators and the such need to pass pesky safety standards. All in all, the bike has cost me as much as it cost to buy to keep it on the road. Do I regret it? Of course not. Will it pass next years MOT? We'll see...

Donating Organs - Something Close To My Heart...And Lungs, Kidneys etc.

I completely forgot that Blogcatalog were organising a world wide blogging awareness exercise today and only when I read Rippin Kitten's post on organ donation just now did it occurr to me to write anything.

I, like Ms. Kitten, ride a motorcycle which I am fully aware is a dangerous if not enjoyable pastime. Some years ago, I became a blood donor on the premise that since the likelihood of me spilling blood in the future and requiring a transfusion was slightly higher than the average person, I should at least give back by donating some of my own. A little while ago, I also became a bone marrow donor... this was a purely selfish act. I was persuaded by the month off work that I would get if I donated bone marrow.

Anyway, I feel quite happy in myself at making these decisions, and will probably donate any non-mashed organs in the event of my death. I would, of course, recommend that everyone do the same and the world would be a better place.

For further information in donating organs in the UK visit the following sites

• NHS Transplant site
• Department of Health's Donation information
• British Organ donors Society - They really need a redesign of their site...

Sorry about the haste, but I am still at work...

PS. This topic in the UK has is quite relevant at the moment due to proposals that 'presumed consent' be given in organ donation. I fully back this proposal due to the unforseeability of one's demise a lot of people don't get around to making the effort to become an active donor.