I made this wallpaper by first of all creating a landscape from shirts, which I scanned into my computer. The robot is hand drawn and then also scanned and the colour to the robot's eyes and body were later added in PaintShop Pro.

This wallpaper is available for free to download in the following screen resolutions - enjoy :)

• 320x480 (mobile/cell phone .jpg)
• 640x960 (mobile/cell phone .jpg)
• 1024x768 (.jpg)
• 1280x1024 (.jpg)
• 1680x1050 (widescreen .jpg)
• 1920x1080 (widescreen .jpg)

Elsa Lambent is a French designer with not only a degree in Product and Packaging, but a Masters in Advanced Studies in Luxury. Sweet Play is a diploma project she created as part of her studies, which explores greater interaction with food, namely chocolates.

Sweet Play is a selection of sweet components which can be fitted together with syrups, fruit and nuts to create unique chocolates, designed entirely by the consumer. You start off with either a white, milk or dark chocoate shell - each shell has a slot for a variety of different fillings including wafers, biscuits, nougat or caramel - and each shell has a depression on top that indicates which type of topping would complement each chocolate best.

I love the whole concept of being able to make your own sweets. There are probably an infinite amount of combinations that you could create, as long as you have the imagination, and the courage to do so. To me, this is like Lego for foodies, but, after you have had the fun of building your own, personalised chocolate treat, you also get the pleasure of devouring it. I would probably opt for a milk chocolate shell, a slice of marzipan in the middle and a nugget of crystallised ginger on the top. Yum.

You can read more about Elsa Lambent and Sweet Play at her → website.

Valentines day, the universal day of romance is the day where we traditionally exchange cards, flowers and chocolates with the people we love. But I think that the day is best for those who suddenly get the courage to tell the person who doesn't know that you fancy/like/love them that you, indeed, think that they are kinda special and fancy/like/love them.

Forget about texting, tweeting or even the classic Facebook poking, to me, the best way of telling someone that you have secretly had a crush on them for the past 12 months is to send them an anonymous card, and then hope that they either realise or don't realise that it is from you depending on how brave you are.

This is a selection of Valentines cards that I have designed. I have used a variety of techniques, including paper cutting, illustration and collage. You might feel that my designs are a little cute, wobbly and quirky, but in a way, so is love!

So feel free to download, print and use these free Valentines day cards, and go on, tell someone you fancy them!

• I love you 1
• I love you 2

This is officially the 100th post on Majolo, so in true illustrator style, I have made a picture. Under normal circumstances any celebration would have involved logging onto Hungryhouse and ordering either a Pollo alla Milanese (Chicken fillets coated in Parmesan cheese served with Spaghetti) or a very large Holland Pizza (hollandaise sauce, bacon, red onion and Italian sausage, topped with rocket salad). But sadly it's gone all healthy in Camp Ralph at the moment so now we stretch our celebrations to doing an illustration and drinking a glass of cold London tap water. I am so hungry I may just pretend my yellow and orange ProMarkers are lumps of cheese, and eat my pens!

Anyway - here's to the last 100 posts and I am truly looking forward to reaching my next goal of 200.

I always find the beginning of a new year to be quite exciting, it's a chance to reflect on the past 12 months and plan for the next 12. For me, it's all about how I can be healthier, happier and more creative! The expression 'Out with the old and in with the new' is so cliche but, it also does have a lot of truth in it. To me, as an artist, the new year is like starting on a new sheet of paper, however, this year I may need a bigger metaphorical desk as I am hoping that, with what I've got planned for 2012, I'm going to need a huge piece of paper.

At the time of writing this post it is the start of January 2012. And as the start of the new year isn't complete without a brand new calendar, I felt it appropriate to round up a selection of the most creative and inspiring calendars that I could find.

First of is a really cute DIY papercraft stand-up calendar made by Scout Creative, a design company based in Portland, Oregon. The downloadable PDF, which includes easy to follow instructions is available to buy from their Etsy shop. Each month has it's own character and theme and some come with special accessories.

The rest of these calendars are also available to buy from Etsy - these are just a few that I loved, but trust me, there are lots of great ones out there...

• Cute printable animals by Loopz - view Etsy shop
• Don't count the days, make the days count - view Etsy shop
• Letter press - view Etsy shop
• Little colourful peacock - view Etsy shop

This Christmas card design was made for my Mum and Dad. The letters and trees are all cut by hand using a Fiskars finger tip craft knife, the stars are made with a craft punch. I like the way that some of the letters are actually cut into the background of the card to match with the trees at the bottom.

This card is part of a set that I designed for Christmas 2011, the 3rd of which can be viewed → here.

This card was designed for my family who live in Cyprus - my brother, sister in law, and 3 gorgeous nieces. I wanted to use a combination of warm tones mixed with some gold. The letters and trees are all cut by hand using a Fiskars finger tip craft knife, the stars are made with a craft punch.

This card is part of a set that I designed for Christmas 2011, the 2nd of which can be viewed → here.

Inspiration for this card came to me whilst watching the BBC's Frozen Planet. I made this card for my sister and wanted to keep the colours very soft and pretty. The textured white card in the background is supposed to resemble snow and the snow flakes are made with a snowflake punch. You can buy similar at Handy Hippo.

This card is part of a set that I designed for Christmas 2011, the 1st of which can be viewed → here.

Every year I make the decision to only give out handmade cards, and every year I end up in a mad panic because one minute it is August and then next minute it is December and not only have I not started making any cards, but I have also realised that I have family in Cyprus and North Wales that I need to post the cards to ... *pauses for breath* Christmas always comes too quickly.

I love getting a handmade card from someone. I still have Christmas cards that my niece sent me when she was younger where she has gone through a variety of crafting techniques and experimenting, including painting, collage and of course, glitter pens! There is something so special about receiving a handmade gift or card from someone, the uniqueness, creativity and love that goes into making something yourself can never be matched by something that is mass produced and sold in a shop.

Making cards using cut paper is a fairly new concept for me, so I have started with fairly basic shapes and designs. I enjoy using typography in my artwork so using mainly text in the design of this card made it more fun for me to make. I wanted the colours to be warm but with just a hint of seasonal sparkle.

This card was made for Beth and Janet who are part of my extended family in North Wales.

Growing up, our family always had a big tree. Sometimes we would buy a real tree, and sometimes we would get the fake one out of the loft. But either way, it was always green and always around the 6ft mark. Now-a-days due to size constraints (my flat is what you might call spaciously challenged), I have had to be more imaginative with regards to my choice of seasonal decorations. I've decorated house plants, made paper trees and my favourite to date is the Lego Christmas tree I made last year.

This Christmas tree however is on a completely different scale to anything that I could build in my current home. This tree is currently (December 2011) taking pride and place in St Pancras railway station in Central London. It is approximately 10 metres high, has 1,000 baubles attached to 172 branches, took 2 months to build - and is made entirely from Lego. Duncan Titmarsh from the professional Lego building company Bright Bricks created the concept for the tree. Children from local schools along with the Harpenden Explorer Scouts helped to put the tree together.

To me, this tree encompasses all the good things about the season of goodwill. It is a fun idea which not only brought people together in the creation and construction, but it will continue to bring people together throughout Christmas as visitors to the station will gather to see this amazing example of creativity and innovation. I know myself, that I can't wait to find an excuse to end up on that side of London before the new year.

Other fantastic trees that I would like to share with you are:

• Recycled plastic bottles and zip ties tree - Kaunas, Lithuania - 2011
• Pac man tree - Madrid, Spain - 2007
• Knitted Christmas tree - The Eden Project, Cornwall, UK - 2006
• Recycled cardboard tree - Kit from Makedo - instructions from Instructables

This is a design for a moving house card. I had an idea in my head for this card to look like a wall in a home that was full of someone's favourite pictures and treasured mementos. Also I like the idea of re-using images from old designs, giving a sort of familiarity to my work and a recognisable style. There are the two love birds which come from an engagement card and the cute house which comes from another welcome to you new home card I made. Also you may notice the ubiquitous cup of tea has made an appearance too.

I am pleased with the background, I chose the white spotty paper because it reminded me of a cross between Artex and textured wallpaper. My customer who asked for this design wanted me to make something cute - and I think I've been successful in doing so.

The idea that I had for this card design was stripes of colour in the background. This idea was based on the different colours of the sand and sea at the beach, I also thought that they looked like the stripy fabric that is synonymous with deck chairs.

I like the way that the different textures of the card compliment each other. I am also pleased with the cute beach house and funky deck chair.

A while ago, I was commissioned to create a birthday card for a Gran who just loved her cats. I had immense fun making the card, and I especially enjoyed creating the different characters of the 20 different cats. This is why this wallpaper may seem familiar to some of you, the cats are taken directly from the card design. I admit that I have 'upcycled' the design a little, so it isn't a direct copy. I have taken out the singular dog (I think he deserves to have a wallpaper all to himself - watch this space). I have also given it a bright blue background and a paler blue circle in the middle to add some depth. If you look closely, I have also added a few subtle drop shadows with Photoshop.

The cats were all drawn by hand into my sketch book with black marker pens and Letraset ProMarkers. They were then scanned on to my PC with my Epson Scanner. I don't tend to alter anything drastically in Photoshop, but I do find that it is handy for taking out any 'dirt' off the final artwork. I also like to adjust the curves to get the colour balance and contrast just right.

This wallpaper has been resized for various screen resolutions, including mobile/cell phones:

• 320x480 (mobile/cell phone .jpg)
• 640x960 (mobile/cell phone .jpg)
• 1024x768 (.jpg)
• 1280x1024 (.jpg)
• 1680x1050 (widescreen .jpg)
• 1920x1080 (widescreen .jpg)

Do you remember the post I wrote about the Rubik's cube Battenburg cake. I just felt that Vicky (writer for foodie blog S'tacy) deserved a mention for her yummy take on the classic 80's puzzle. The idea of combing classic geek with home bakery was nothing short of genius.

Well, I have found another example of equal skill to share with you. Elliot McNally, also known as The Alligator Bride, is a Fibre artist and self proclaimed science fiction quilter. Her quilts cleverly combine traditional home-spun crafts with irresistible retro kitsch and just the right dose of tounge-in-cheek.

One of my favourite parts of Star Trek - the original series, was the Transporter. The idea that a machine could turn your body into particles and then beam you to a set destination seemed so logical, I used to wonder why someone hadn't invented one already. Therefore, this is the reason why I have chosen the Transporter quilt to illustrate this particular post, and why I have made this one my favourite.

You can buy more of Elliot McNally's handmade, one off quilts at her → Etsy store.

This particular greetings card may look very familiar, well that's because it is. I previously designed a card for my friend who was moving house and was pleased with the unique twist on the traditional good luck in your new home card. One of my regular customers liked the teacup and check list concept so much that she asked me to replicate the design for an engagement card. However, in this version, the house has been replaced by two love birds.

I am really happy with the finished design. The pens are my usual Letraset Promarkers and the textured card in the background is from Hobbycraft.

UK based graphic designer Nick Sayers has mastered the art of geodesic sphere making using reused and re-purposed materials. When you read the list of items which he uses, it is difficult to envisage just how captivating and beautiful these unusual sculptures are. From coffee stirrers and cocktail sticks, to bicycle wheels and car tyres, Nick experiments with a vast range of textures, materials and scale and the results are an outstanding success. All of his spheres are made without any glue or adhesive and rely solely on strategically placed cuts in the materials to hold everything together.

My favourite sphere is the design made from the British rail train tickets - these little orange and cream tickets are practically iconic which helps to create something wonderfully familiar. The finished piece feels homespun and cool at the same time. This is everyday art made from everyday things.

To view more of Nick Sayers imaginative sculptures, go to his → Flickr profile

Lorenzo Duran is a self-taught Spanish artist who uses Chinese, Japanese, German and Swiss paper-cutting techniques to create beautiful and delicate creations out of dried leaves. By trial and error, Lorenzo has perfected his craft, but on the journey to perfection, many of his efforts have ended up in the artist's most used tool - the waste paper bin.

The process to get to the finished product is a labour of love. The leaves are picked, washed, dried, pressed, cut and then framed. Through experimenting he has found some species of leaf are easier to cut than others, and his preferred type of leaf are ones with a thicker consistancy as they are easier to cut. Lorenzo always cuts his leaves when they are dry and uses just a scapel.

I am a big fan of art made with recycled objects or items, and to me, creating art with things that appear in nature is the ultimate in upcycling. There is no paint or ink, no papers or books and a complete absence of technology. But the end results are breath taking and well deserved of a second, third and then a forth look.

To see more of Lorenzo's art go to his → website

This post is going to mark the start of a new tradition in Majolo world, every Friday I am going to post a Lego article. It will be called the Friday Lego post, or maybe just Frego for short ;)

This video is of the CubeStormer II, which apparently can solve the Rubik's Cube puzzle faster than the human world record. The mechanics are constructed entirely from Lego, including four Mindstorms NXT kits with the addition of a Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone running a custom Android app as the robot's brain.

I've got a Rubiks cube, I am in the process of solving it. If there is a record for the longest time spent trying to solve a Rubiks cube, then at approximately 3 years and counting, then I think I may be on to a winner.

John Caswell is a designer and maker living and working in Bristol. He graduated from the University of Plymouth in 2006 with a first class honors degree in 3D Design. He works on his own projects from a small studio as well as working for Bristol based company Cod Steaks.

John's speciality is interior product design. My personal favourite of his is the fantastic Mr Button. On first glance they are simple wooden buttons with oddly positioned holes. But once coloured thread has been applied, facial hair suddenly appears and a character emerges - expect eyebrows, handlebar moustaches and even monobrows. Your shirt will thank you for giving it personality.

For more inspirational creations seek John Caswell out for yourselves at his → website.

Anton Tang is a talented artist and photographer, he also takes photographs of cute little cardboard people. Even though he claims he is not the creator of what he calls the little box people, in his photographs, he manages to create not only personalities in otherwise inanimate objects, but an emotional connection between the box people and the viewer.

Anton captures so much humanity in his photographs, it is almost impossible not to sigh a very contented 'awwww' when looking through his portfolio of work. A common theme that I have noticed is either families of the box people being together and helping each other out, or scenes where an older and large box character is teaching/helping/sharing with a younger smaller box child. I would love to see these characters in an animation, I think that would be pretty amazing.

To see more amazing photography by Anton - visit his → website

This is a stop frame animation by Katarzyna Kijek and Przemyslaw Adamski. The video was created with approximately 1850 drawings and took about two months to make.

I really like how simple the video feels because of the medium it has been created in, which is just coloured felt tip or marker pens. But at the same time, the clever use of reflections in the water, as well as the way materials are portrayed make the overall film look stunning instead of cheap.

To see more work from Kijek and Adamski check out their → Vimeo profile

UK artist Debbie Smyth creates the most unusual yet fantastic large scale art installations with thread and pins. On first glance, the monochromatic images look just like pen and ink illustrations, but then on further inspection, instead of finding fine lines of ink or charcoal, you find a complex network of threads connected by a series of accurately positioned pins.

Debbie manages to find a perfect balance between precise and erratic in her work. She uses the strong architectural lines of buildings combined with more fluid, loose thread work which gives her pictures a sense of movement and freedom. The houses, bridges and electricity pylons give a wonderful feel of scale and perspective, yet there are small details if you look closer, a man on his mobile phone, the road sweeper and even birds in the sky.

Her work reminds me very much of string art which was a popular decorative craft in the 1960's. However, Debbie has taken this traditional form of art and given it a contemporary and young feel.

To see more of Debbie's work you can visit her → website.

This is a video of the construction of the Lego T1 Camper van and was created by Msmatlock98. It was created using:

• DIY light tent
• Nikon D3100 DSLR
• Paint.net
• Windows Live Movie Maker
• The soundtrack is Truckin by The Grateful Dead

This authentic camper van is a replica of the classic Volkswagen Camper Van from 1962 - and it looks amazing. For starters, the van looks just like the real thing, but one of the things I love about Lego, is their attention to detail. There's the familiar 'V' shape three-way colour split at the front, rounded roof and window frames, opening doors and the iconic pop-up roof. Also on the inside you'll find a folding dinette table, a wardrobe with a mirror, a sink, a painting and even a t-shirt which says Make Lego models not war.

I am not able to write a proper review (yet) about this particular model as I have not had the pleasure of being able to build it. But looking at the facts available, I would be surprised if this isn't going to be amazing. For starters it just looks really cool, there are 1332 pieces, so there are easily enough fiddly bits to keep me happy for a couple of afternoons, plus it includes curtains. It also has a really nice nostalgic feel to it, and the interior looks so cosy.

You can → buy the classic Volkswagen Camper van from the official Lego website

Even though I have a bit of a soft spot for pens, I never really fell in love with highlighters. Its odd, because they should, as a pen, tick all the boxes for me:

• They come in ridiculously bright colours
• They normally have big chunky nibs
• You can make yourself feel really important by randomly highlighting words and sentences in the newspaper (okay, maybe the last one just applies to me)

These highlighters however did grab my attention. They are a sort of cross between a plastic fiber tip highlighter and a coloured pencil. They come in a natural wood finish and are also long lasting as well as being biodegradable. I particularly like the style of these pencils because they look so stylishly simple.

I have only seen these come in yellow - you can purchase them from → Stubby Pencil Studio

On a visit to my sister's flat in Crawley in Sussex, she made me a cup of Yogi Tea - classic cinnamon spice tea. Not only does this cup of tea smell just like hot cross buns, but the mix of cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves and black peppercorns gave it a deliciously warming flavour as well.

I bought a box of 15 tea bags on my way home, and then proceeded to drink the whole lot in approximately 3 days, which I think may well be a new record for me. I got my tea from a local health food shop but you can buy Yogi Tea online at Eco Green Store and Tea World.