New Journal

Over the last few days I have been working on a new visual journal and now it is finished and ready to work in which is just as well as the old one is all finished. It takes me a about 6 months to use up a journal so, I love to spend my time making something I will be happy to spend half a year with. This one has 6 signatures of 5 pages each, 4 of cartridge for writing on and in the centre of each signature some more specialer paper for drawings. The covers are heavy card covered in calico then I glued on threads and fabric which I coated in a starch mix. I then made up my paints with milk and pigment and finally it was all coated in a beeswax mix. The stitching on the spine is all silk thread with small semi preciaous stone bead attatched. i am mot happy with the result. Perhaps I will make up a few and add them to my etsy shop.

The front.

The back

The spine

a close up some texture

Eclipse

I stitched through the eclipse and then added my new lovely to my etsy shop.

Not much else happening, I am supposed to be doing paperwork but well I'm not. My excuse this time is that I am feeling poorly. I have a cold in the dose, which is slowing me down abit. and stitching is so quiet and soothing.

We had us a lovely time in Hobart. Dan ended up working till 4 on Friday so we didn’t get going till 5 which meant it was a dim dark trip down so didn’t really appreciate the scenery!! Arrived out our destination after going up the hill and a couple of hairpins at 7.30 meted and greeted made up our bed etc and then had to go back down the mountain to pick up some takeaways for dinner. Ok we settled for Dominos which was not an auspicious start but food is food when it’s late.
Saturday we went first to see the exhibition with India’s stuff in which was fab there was several things which I could have taken home. India’s wrap was truly splendiferous. Then we went to Salamanca (with Shirley who I met at Bunbury and she lives at Boomer Bay an hour from Hobart) which while nice was not the fabulousness I was expecting after the all the hype. But we picked up some dinner supplies, a lovely loaf of fig and pear rye bread, some marinated green olives, some sheep cheese, a jar of red pepper relish and a pear. The yummy donuts we ate there. Also had a wander amongst the Galleries which was a fav for me and into the Bookshop where we bought a book for Dan’s pressie. Then off to Mure’s for a lunch of fish and chips. Then Dan decided he needed to go for a drive and see some fish farms so we stopped at the tourista place and asked for some directions and off we went for a lovely drive we saw the Bruny Island Ferry coming in and then we went further and further south with nary a sign of a fish farm in sight until we got right to the bottom of where we could go and realised the sill woman had sent us to the wrong bit coz off in the distance we could see the sea cages and if we had gone the other way we would have been able to get to them but as it was they were just off in the distance being elusive. So anyway it was about 3 so we had to head for home, so up to Cygnet where we bought our non winning lotto ticket, had a cup of coffee and shared a piece of cake and picked up a dinner menu from the restaurant which we talked about enthusiastically all the way home well nearly. Sunday we went to themarket you know the one that didn’t want me or my stuff and it was really rather good. I think if I work on my presentation maybe I will get in next time. I bought some lovely local olive oil soap. Another wander through the galleries and then the drive home. In the interest of seeing as much of Tassie as poss and not going back over the same tracks we went home via Sorell and up the coast to Swansea before driving back across to the highway and home. We really liked Swansea and esp a little beach just before we got there called Spiky Beach where we were very much taken by the fact that someone’s privately owned land went almost to the beach itself now that’s something we aspire to. Went for a lovely walk on the beach and climbed the rocks and filled my pockets with treasure till me pants nearly fell down!!!!! And then we had to come home as the skies got grimmer and the wind increased.

Procrastination

Iam wrestling with a grant application and I dont think I am winning, so I thought I would come here and do this instead. Well its either this or clean the shower and this is way more fun.

In the process of the aforementioned struggle I have been hunting down photos to add as support and thought I might just share some of them, so you all can see that I do a little more than make scarves, well sometimes.

These are a few photos from the workshop I did last year with Glen Skein, at Fibreswest in Bunbury Western Autralia.

More stuff

I am starting to get into the swing of working afternoons down at the studio and it is amazing how muchwork gets done when you make that commitment. If only I cared as much about the paperwork I should be doing in the mornings. But there is evidence that work of some sort is happening. More stuff on etsy. A lovely nuno felted piece with embedded stripe of silk all naturally dyed.

And the pieces of resistance, but I know you cant resist.

An open network of threads and wool in a lovely deep ruty colour from my gavourite dye, good old brown onion skins.

I love my work. Today I am back to work on a large piece which is layers of pre felt and silk and wool, all white at the moment and waiting for some stitch and being converted into a vest before slowly slipping into a dye pot for a bit of colour. Yum

Studio Location

Thought I should show you a photo of my studio space from the outside.

Studio Pics

And last but its first but not least or something like that!!! The latest offering on etsy.

The large felted wrap I am slowly working on.

I forgot this loads upside down. Taken from the front and back.

Took some photos of my studio yesterday, this is of course after I had tidied up for the day.