Here in Scotland its tradition on Hogmanay (New Years Eve) to give a first foot gift after midnight. Traditionally gifts would be whisky to represent financial prosperity and good cheer, a lump of coal to represent warmth and to keep the fire burning, or a black bun or shortbread to symbolise that the receiving family would not go hungry during the forthcoming year.
Or a Dundee tradition I’ve been hearing about through Lynne Campbell (local folk singer) is the Dundee tradition of dressed herring in paper bonnets and skirts, which is meant to be a good luck charm (not for eating). Never seen it but sounds pretty unusual and cool!
A couple of alternative Scottish First Foot Gifts in Dundee would be a Dundee Cake Tea Towel from my Dundee Delights collection of illustrated gift products or some Char Coal cheese from The Cheesery (Broughty Ferry or Exchange Street), which the first all black delicious vintage cheddar cheese with charcoal. Message me on social media or by email of what you like to be gifted as a first foot?
At the bells a Robert Burns song of Auld Lang Syne is often sung (or belted out!) or the bag pipes or some cheesy tunes.
All round Scotland on New Years Day some brave people take part in The Dook, where you go in the freezing water whatever the weather. You’ve got no chance of me doing that but I’ll will be watching The Dook in Broughty Ferry, with all the fun costumes and brave people. More info on it here.
What will you be doing for Hogmanay? Tucked up cosy in bed before the bells of partying the night away. What ever you’re doing enjoy and all the best for 2020!
Photo credit: David Band Photography
I’m delighted to have painted a penguin on the Maggie’s Penguin Parade. Number 64 on the trail map, next to the 5 penguin sculptures. It’s great to be part of the trail of 80 penguins to find in Dundee and surrounding areas and the money raised is for Maggie’s Dundee. You can find out more about it 
During the month of January I took part in Fun A Day, where you do something fun every day. I wanted to explore and play with an idea with no defined outcome to see where it takes me. Adapting the ‘Five Currant Buns’ nursery rhyme as a starting point. I went on a journey and did some sketches of bakers shops, ink drawings, illustrations, patterns and then focused on creating a range of paper cuts of local shop fronts and all cool things they sell. I love local independent shops on the high street. 
The exhibition opens on Friday 13th April at 7pm, and is on over the Saturday and Sunday from 10am – 7pm at Gallery space, 4th floor, WASPS Studios, Meadow Mill, Dundee, DD1 5BY. The exhibition will have an eclectic mix of projects that happened in January.
A few of the things I created during Fun A Day will be developed in the future, I can imagine a range of illustrations to a 5 Dundee Cakes in the bakers shop counting book. Doing the paper cuts allowed me to think about the positive and negative space and keep designs quite simple. I’ve been playing with these by adding colour and texture since January. Here are some test pieces
Patterned sand looking over to Broughty Ferry castle with a happy sun shiny Dundee cake sky, evoking memories of days at the beach.
The characterful 5 bronze penguins by sculptor Angela Hunter that make people smile as they walk past and sometimes they have been known to adorn clothes and hats.
Local delicacy of the Dundee Cake, with the lovely pattern of the almonds on top.
Maggies Centre designed by world renowned architect Frank Gehry here in the city which I believe is evidence of how good design changes peoples’ lives providing a place of calm, support, nurture and tranquility created within a purposeful space. Externally, I enjoy the shape and movement of the roof which I feel echoes the local landscape.
Creative and cultural hub in Dundee with the curved face of different surfaces which is invites you in to the space which houses 2 cinemas, print studio, galleries and a bar and a restaurant.
Dundee’s art gallery and museum in the fantastic gothic revival architecture, I love dramatic staircase and the detail in the architecture. So many stories lye within this building I particularly love the ceramics, Dundee and the World exhibitions and the Tay whale.