Washed Up

A little gift for a nice niece's third birthday - instant success and a request from a certain soon to be four year old for her birthday too!
Pattern Inspiration here.
Sustainably harvested wooden cooking set found here

Last night at the studio

Last night continued on with my home made birthday gift challenge - goodness with a birthday nearly every week and it won't get any easier with an ever expanding family! But I do love making things - would do this any day - really can't stand shopping.

Here is my second scarf attempt and also a little handbag pouch for secrete note book writings or list making stationary - something ensures my hand bag is always heavy to lug around. Again these gifts are made out of fabric cut off that would have otherwise been thrown out or discovered in op-shops. (OK op-shopping I can manage)

Here is a another treasure sporting her Christmas gift.

New Baby - she is a gift - but so far away my heart cries

How can I ever be as clever as my sister to make a precious beauty such as she?

Madeleine Joyce Whitty
3.36 kgs
Born 4.05 am 20th April

And a little passage I have been musing on from my current favourite author:

"She is the gift that carries our songs into the ocean where all stories mingle. Too soon many things will claim her - the man she loves, the children she bears, the tasks and the duties that bind her to life - and so a mother loves a daughter as something more precious than any love, because though we many love her with an infinite tenderness we much teacher to swim."

The River Wife by Heather Rose

Last night at the studio

Last night at my Tuesday night studio evening I finished off some packaging for a recent commission by the local government - possum costumes!

Then I did a bit of procrastination - from my last post you will see that I am starting a new project and just a bit reluctant to take that first big bite - come on MUMMA you can do it!


But I did turn my procrastination into something productive a little sewing project from a fantastic op shopped tea towel for me - covering my journal and my daily to do list book.

Other side projects I have on the go include sorting my business out and making business cards for my mum - check this fantastic sewing design idea for cards.

Here is my daughter's first sewing project I also mentioned in my last post - she is 3 and half - we did it next to the camp fire whilst camping last week - her brother did one - but his still is a work in progress - I made his a little more complicated. Wish I got some shots of them sewing - but really had to keep them focused and pour all of my attention onto them.

Gearing up for a new commission

This isn't my work - but from rubycrownkinglette, whom I often admire on flickr

I am collecting some images, some works that are propelling me into my next commission - The Enlightenment Project.

What I am liking here is the use of found material, whimsy and joy. I like the out door-i-ness and the collection of material to become.

Other works of mine that are ticking over include this little collection of oddments (which really what a museum is all about is it not - oddments?) Like these lovely little bits of rolled up paper.





When watching Where the Wild Things Are I nearly passed out to see in the little boy's bed room a city structure of some sort made up out of rolled up cardboard - oh to have a still of that scene.

This Friday on my visit to the museum again I need to take some additional shots of the outside collection of machines and sheds - full of inventions for men to make order of agriculture. All rusting and mostly weighing a tonne - but I like the idea of these bits and bobs complementing the shadow houses.

Actually it was a camping boredom distraction activity that I planned for the kids that has also fueled my need to make stuffed things. More about these creatures soon...

Hand Bag Embroidery

A special little find for me from a festival I put together a while back - this unknown child's drawing was stuck to the eco-cubby. When I saw this I wished and wished I could draw as wonderfully as this and at that moment I ripped it off the wall and stashed it to steal at a later date....

And this embroidery work is what arrived - another hand made gift for a family member - with pleasure time for me to kitch out.


Found another embroidery artist to admire this week - I especially like how she has commericalised herself!


Just quickly you can check out my Easter sewing efforts here. Thanks to Molly Chicken for her tutorial here. Although not sure if I will use again - receivers were a little confused - was it a bird or an egg?

Visit the yoyo dragon in Bendigo's Conservatory

I don't think this dragon would make any grrs or grunts, just a plop plop plopping sound as he trotted along sniffing and enjoying autumn gardens. He has a pleasant dreaming nature and is always hopeful to find some wings to fly.

You can visit him now during the 2010 Bendigo Easter Festival at the Conservatory. He is on show with another artist Georgina Duckett.

This light-hearted work represents a mythical creature, transformed into life by imaginary play and joy. It’s soft decorative patchwork body is hand stitched from second hand fabrics using the patch work technique yo-yo.

Inspired by a yo-yo patchwork scrap a dear friend gave to me and I have had hanging in my studio for some time now. Other background information about the work can be found here.

Comically chair legs poke out from the bottom of the work, wearing tailor made frilly socks. Invoking creative childhood cubby play. Like Sun Loong’s ancestors, its physical form takes on the combination of many animals.