The Crow

Lost

2010-05-28T10:48:00.000+08:00

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

So hilarious!

Ahh, Lost.

Goals for the week

2010-05-24T08:48:00.000+08:00

I have a lot to do in a week and a half; a ridiculous time frame but not one of my making. So, here are my goals for the week. The photo is where I'd like to be to recover when it is all done and dusted. From here.

1. Marking. I have 9 programs, 27 exams and some other bits and pieces to do. Should take two days if I really get stuck into it. The programs should be done for tomorrow and the exams I technically have until Friday week. Might need that extra time in the end.
2. Thesis proposal. I have all the major bits except the abstract written but there other bits that need to be done too. The due date is Friday but I have a meeting tomorrow to discuss it and it should be pretty much finished for that.
3. Research for exhibition. Yeah, I haven't really done any. It is due on Wednesday week.
4. Exhibition brief. Again, done nothing. Due Wednesday week.

Right, so today is marking. Tonight is thesis proposal.
Tuesday is thesis proposal, meetings and I really want to get to a writers' workshop in the evening.
Wednesday is thesis proposal plus teaching plus uni class plus another evening thing I want to go to (and LOST finale!!!!!!)
Thursday is thesis proposal.
Friday I will send in the thesis proposal and start on the research.
Saturday will be research.
Sunday I will start the exhibition brief.
Monday I'm off to my volunteer job and I'll probably need a recharge in the afternoon and do nothing!
Tuesday will be research and exhibition brief.
Wednesday I teach then will go to my class, hand it all in and then collapse onto the couch.

There are some other little things that need doing, like visiting students who are on prac and actually working on my business, but they'll have to be done around all the other things.

Looking forward to the next ten days been over and done with!!

Have a great week - I hope it is nothing like mine :)

Today I'm....

2010-05-21T11:42:00.000+08:00

...waiting for the rain

....watching my fish, Gilli, die

....feeling good about my business

....looking forward to supervising an exam, but only because I'll get some marking done

....feeling tired

....enjoying proper tea

....wanting my thesis proposal to write itself

....wondering how I can have so much work due now for a second semester subject

....wishing I'd organised to go to the farm this weekend

....trying not to clench my teeth so much

....wanting more time in the week

....looking forward to watching the footy tomorrow

how about you?

The Lost Thing

2010-05-20T11:25:00.000+08:00

A quick drive by....

If you haven't read his books or don't know who Shaun Tan is then you must, I say, MUST, go to a library and find out.

I've just become very excited about the news that his favourite book of mine (one that I've used in my English classes so successfully before), The Lost Thing, has been made into a short animated film and, get this!, it looks just like the book but alive! Love the people at Passion Pictures, love Shaun Tan, can't wait to see the film. Go and see the trailer and more here.

The Goddess Within

2010-05-08T19:32:00.000+08:00

It is the weekend here and I have lots to do (marking) and lots I'd like to do (footy, sleeping). I'm sure your weekend looks something like that too, perhaps without the marking.

This week I listened to this incredible talk by Naomi Wolf - you know the one - she wrote The Beauty Myth in 1991. I've never read it, but I think I should. Half a dozen times at the start of her talk I almost turned off because I didn't fully agree with her but then, wham! She hit me with her conclusion, which she'd be building all along. It is that if women spend their time thinking about their bodies, their appearance and measuring their desirability against other women they are not using their beautiful, smart and incredibly creative brains to think, solve, create and believe. That the enslavement of our brains to this 'beauty myth' means we are not free and that we cannot become all we could be. Breaking away from this, she argues, is freedom; is happiness.

A big call, yes. I have to admit to spending stupid amounts of time in my day thinking (obsessing) about these things and I think many women do this too. Since I listened to Wolf I've tried consciously to stop those thoughts in their tracks, which has been an interesting exercise. It is about being mindful - using mindfulness to alter habits. Something I've been working on for a while now, but not in this area.

Anyway, well worth a listen if you have some time.

The "Other" Me

2010-05-04T09:24:00.000+08:00

To save my readers here, who joined up to a craft blog(!), the tediousness of my history obsession, I've been writing my proper "history" posts in another blog. But, there are those here who might be interested so I direct you to: Historian @ Work for lots of history-goodness. But, I do understand that not everyone loves it as much as me, so please just stick around here for various other bits and pieces instead. I will keep both blogs going.

A little teaser from one of the posts over there.

Morning at the River

2010-05-01T10:01:00.001+08:00

I've never really considered rivers as things to be fond of, although I've been aware that others do. I guess I've haven't lived near enough to a significant one to spend time there so that I became fond of it. But, that is what is happening now. The Swan River is a lovely river. It meanders gracefully around the suburbs of Perth and almost everywhere its banks are lined with trees dipping their leaves into the water and wonderfully sandy tiny beaches.

Today Bess (the dog) and I went off in search of a new stretch to explore. We arrived in Bassendean, a suburb that sits in a curve of the river just across from the historic Guildford. We went to Success Hill Park and discovered a wonderful little oasis of bushland and riverbank and had it all to ourselves (granted it was 7am on a Saturday). Besides being beautiful, Success Hill is a bit famous and a bit infamous. Famous because perhaps Stirling (our intrepid first Governor) 'watered his horses here' in about 1830 and infamous (although that is not really the right word) for an Aboriginal massacre that happened there a little later on. The Australian ability to take on this little known information and then continue with a morning's walk amazes me, even though I am also very capable of it too. I found out this information from an interpretation board - one of about eight in the park - and I could write a little essay about the way the information is presented, but I won't here.

So, let's just get onto the photos and let go of that prickly, difficult national issue, shall we?

This walk at the river I did take my camera, although I'm having to relearn my old lens because my newer and better one is, sadly, broken. Not all the photos I took worked out and that hasn't happened to me in a long time!

But, Bess and I had the glorious experience of wandering through bushland together, just like we used to. She with her nose to the ground, tail wagging and me with my camera and wide open eyes. Lovely.

New Book!

2010-04-30T18:46:00.000+08:00

What heaven to be in Paris, to be young...everyday after we'd dunked our brioches in our bowls of chocolate, we sallied down to the foyer [...then out ] to explore Paris. It was not spring, the chestnuts up the Champs-Elysees were bare - but it was still the most beautiful and romantic city in the world and has always remained so to me.

So Australian Eugenie Louise McNeil (nee Delaure) wrote in 1902 and so Rosemary Lancaster opens her book Je Suis Australienne: Remarkable Women in France, 1880-1945 and which I will be starting, sinking into, devouring and gloriously enjoying tonight.

Superhistorian!!

2010-04-29T08:24:00.000+08:00

This morning was lovely; I went walking with my puppy dog down to the river and I wished I'd brought my camera but I didn't, so I thought I'd do a post just with words and with my amazing words you'd all know what I saw this morning...

But then!

I watched this video which is all kinds of awesome!

So you should watch that instead and I'll do my little word painting another time.

My Favourite Thing

2010-04-27T08:20:00.000+08:00

My mum bought this small quilt for me from a antique shop in Fremantle last year.

It comes from England and is about seventy years old.

I love it for a number of reasons but not least because when it is over my feet it makes them warm. This seemingly simple thing is actually quite amazing because for years I suffered from frozen feet that won't warm up when I get into bed.

And now it is getting cooler it is back on my bed and I love it all over again.

Louis Vuitton

2010-04-26T07:44:00.000+08:00

Love getting to look into other people's houses, especially very famous, very rich people?

Go here http://press.louisvuitton.com/TheJourneyOfaWardrobe/ and click on Paris then the family house - there is lots more to explore but most of it isn't live yet. Make sure you have your sound on!

Smart Woman

2010-04-21T19:18:00.000+08:00

I'm always so excited to hear from very smart women who made it to the top of their field, especially when they defend their way of doing things as different because they are women, instead of insisting that gender has no impact on decisions and ways of working.

Anyway, just let me step off my soapbox for a moment to link to this interview with a very smart Western Australian woman, retiring chief judge of the WA District Court, Antoinette Kennedy, in which she discusses the role of the courts and argues against the media's representation of judges and the judgments they make. She makes so much sense that I wanted to cheer.

If you aren't from Australia this might not be so interesting for you, but she is really so clever that if you have a little time spare and find things about law interesting I would highly recommend listening. Or just save it for one of those times when you look to the Internet for something interesting and engaging and it fails miserably!

Find it here.

Cute!

2010-04-17T15:03:00.000+08:00

I'm not the hugest fan of little kids but this kid is so cute and so French and, wow, what a great story!!

Cutest French Kid in the World! - watch more funny videos

One door closes and another opens

2010-04-16T16:00:00.001+08:00

The thrill of just leaping out into the void and seeing what happens, following a dream or goal, knowing what you want your life to look like and just making it that way, is thrilling.

Yesterday I finished off my first consultant project. I worked at the tail end of a very large project, bring together everything and handing it over as complete as I could make it. I even, in the stresses of the last minutes, started delegating work to the people who'd employed me! Oopsie. They didn't seem to mind though and I brought home made jam cookies to soften them up. :) It was a fascinating project, lots of itty bitty research to do and I now know almost the entire history of a random small town in WA. Just the sort of thing I love taking space up in my brain.

It is a little bit annoying not being able to talk about what I did, but it doesn't matter too much. You just need to know that I throughly enjoyed it and my business earned some money. Win-win!

Look how pretty it is!

WA has just published its first Historical Encyclopedia (well, a proper one anyway) and I bought my copy today. Apparently they are a bit hard to get a hold of (who knew there were so many history geeks in Perth!), but I managed to waltz into a little independent bookshop and buy mine with a business cheque. Hooray! Now it is sitting on my bed, tempting me with its secrets and you'd better believe I'll be reading it cover to cover. Oh, I know, so sad!

The open door then, is a pretty exciting opportunity that I've put my hand up for. Again, I'm not going to tell you much but hopefully I will be able to say more after Tuesday. I don't want to jinx it! It involves a little museum and a fabulous chance at some real experience. More next week.

And now, well...I might just take it easy and do a bit of pottering around. Hopefully manage to drown out the sound of Red Bull Air Race planes that are currently buzzing the city. Did you hear one crashed into the river yesterday? I find that unsurprising.

Swanees!

2010-04-10T21:57:00.000+08:00

Oh I love my footy! Tonight mum and I took ourselves to the sports bar at the casino to watch the game (it was only being played on paytv). Beers and deep fried food and the game on a H-U-G-E screen, so huge in fact that it almost felt like we were sitting at the ground.

And best of all? The boys slaughtered the Tigers. Awesome!

(For those of you slightly perplexed by this post, this footy would be Australian Rules and my team is the Sydney Swans - 'cheer, cheer the red and the white'!)

Julie & Julia

2010-04-09T21:33:00.000+08:00

Okay, so it has taken me a long time to getting around to seeing this film. Partly because I don't seem to go to the cinema much anymore, partly because when Mum saw it she said all the food made her feel ill and partly because I wasn't convinced I was going to be able to stand watching Meryl Streep as Julia Child - not because I don't like Meryl but because Julia seemed so...overbearing, effusive, excessively larger than life.

But, I just watched it and I loved it. Really. I loved how it was shot - going back and forth between the two stories, I loved watching someone who had just turned 30 figure out what she wanted to do, I loved seeing the beautiful love stories in the film, especially that of Julia and Paul. Of course I also loved the sets of 1950s Paris and the food! I really haven't eaten enough French food but all the food (contrary to what Mum said) looked amazing. I especially loved the way it was prepared by just getting their hands in there and doing it. I loved the bit with the trussed chicken and the bit with the duck because it required such physical, raw engagement with the food.

It was also really fascinating to watch the beginning of blogging - well, of blogging leading to books and movies and all that. It is so, well, historical (!).

But I've got to say that most of all I loved Julia and the way she was. So generous and thankful for her life and everything that she achieved.

What a lovely, lovely surprise. And exactly what I needed tonight.

Paris

2010-04-03T20:16:00.001+08:00

Instructions before reading this post. Click to open this page in another tab/window/whatever but don't look at it yet. Music will start that will set the scene for this post....Go on, I'll wait. You can look at the website (which is beyond awesome) afterwards.

I don't think I've really waxed lyrical about how much I'm in love Paris and how I am actively planning and plotting to get there and stay for three months in September 2011. Well, I am. It is a rock solid goal of mine. I'm going to rent a studio or one bedroom apartment somewhere awesome with a view over the rooftops of Paris. I'm going to eat cheese and bread and drink a lot of wine. I'm going to walk and walk and walk, take photos, breathe and generally experience Paris. I'll probably try to take some "work" to do of some kind. Sewing, writing, photography...I don't really care. I want to be in my apartment as the autumn sunshine lengthens over the chimney pots and be creative.

Does this all sound very romantic? It is supposed to. I have only visited Paris once before and then only for three days. It was the end of my last Europe trip (six years ago now!) and I had just enough money to dash over the channel for a couple of nights. I'd never been to Paris before - I thought, how can it be that amazing? It is just a city, I'm sure I'm not really missing out on anything. Wow, but I've never been so wrong about anything in my life. And it hit me from when I stepped off the train. I really find it difficult to explain why I loved it so but I did. I think about those three days more than all the rest of my trip combined (although the six weeks in Sweden were pretty incredible too). I rode a bike around the city, including around the L'Arch de Triomphe, and if you've seen this you'll know how dangerous that is. I giggled insanely while I did it and felt immune to death or injury. I wandered museums, visited Versailles, ate a market-bought picnic beneath La Tour Eiffel, did a cooking class in a chef's house in suburban Paris and learnt to clean a squid from scratch. I ate at a restaurant where there was no menu, just what the chef had bought at the market that morning and at cafes where the price of a hot chocolate included people watching for hours and at crepe stands where mountains of crepe and fillings cost hardly anything and were delicious. My hotel room had real french doors that led onto a tiny Parisian balcony where I could watch the coming and going from the cafe across the street.

I did have one bad experience there when I saw a fight in the street but even that, which shocked me to the core at the time, has not dampened my love for the city. And I can't wait to get back there.

Okay, now you can go and look at the website...ahhh Paris. See you next year!

Hmmmm

2010-04-02T17:56:00.000+08:00

I am going to make this:

Thanks to this very talented quilter

Wow, so life really gets in the way of blogging, huh. I know I am constantly saying how busy I am and I guess that's boring, I'm sure if you're following or subscribing you would probably just prefer posts a bit more regularly.

April. The 1st was the official start of my consultancy business and, oops, but that just totally passed me by, except that Katrina and I went out for a all-out dinner last night to celebrate other things so I'm just going to pretend that we also celebrated that. But! I do have my first project going and my business is actually earning money, (and in fact has already made my sales target for this month) which is beyond exciting and I'm probably not really appreciating it enough or taking a bit of time to be amazed and thankful for it. Mostly, I think, that is because I'm trying to focus on lining up my next project, or that's what I'm telling myself anyway. The work is fascinating and I'm really, really enjoying it but the way these things go mean that I can't tell you a lot about it. So, it will just have to be all mysterious. Suffice to say that it is about local WA history and has a research focus, which is the answer I'll almost always give when asked about projects I'm working on. :)

Uni is relentless too just now. I'm finding that the switch from teacher to student I need to do regularly to be rather confusing. I have to keep telling myself that I know a lot of things in one field (Education - where I'm teaching) but not so much in the other field (heritage - where I'm learning) and my poor brain is finding it tough. Plus, assignments are flying at me thick and fast and I am trying to sharpen my thesis topic. So, when I'm not teaching or working I'm doing things like going to museums, reading and meeting my supervisor. All great fun, but exhausting.

Today has been my first day off in quite a few weeks. I slept in (an a futile attempt to sleep through my hangover), Katrina brought tea and toast to me in bed (if you know me you'll know how incredible this is to happen), I read, I watched telly, walked the dog and generally just did NOTHING. How lovely it has been. Tomorrow and Sunday are marking days then, although Monday is a public holiday, I'll be back to work.

I hope everyone has a lovely easter. Tell me you're doing something exciting - camping, perhaps? I'd love to go camping...

Goodness me!

2010-03-22T08:09:00.000+08:00

Browsing through my Google reader this morning and finding a few interesting things but nothing to send me off on a 'net adventure' I checked my stats for this blog and my subscriptions have gone up! I haven't even been blogging! Oops!

So, welcome to new readers and hello to old. I'm here with a post and because I don't really have anything particular to say, I'll just do a bit of a round up.

First, I think it is actually going to rain today. This is exciting because it hasn't rained here (Perth) since way, way last year. Some kind of record was broken. I was watching a movie on the weekend where in every melancholy scene it was raining and I really ached for some rain. But it needs to be a bit cooler too, so snuggling under the doona with a book is possible. At the moment, while it might rain, it is still going to be 30degC. I guess you can't have everything. And I am glad not to be in the cold in Victoria anymore.

I'm a tad excited about perhaps finding a bit of a research goldmine, historically speaking. I don't want to say too much and I may be getting a bit ahead of myself - I have to make a few calls today - but it is an exciting prospect. In other history/study news, I have an assignment due on Friday which I haven't started in any meaningful way. Must get onto that today.

I finished my Certificate in Small Business Management (yay!) and am all set to officially start my consultancy business on April 1 (no jokes, thanks!). It is a very arbitrary selection of a date, but I have to start somewhere. So, if you need any historical research or writing done, I'm your gal!

In slightly less happy news, and I don't really want to announce this in a formal way because these things are always in a state of flux, but I've decided that Eight Crows is going to go on the back burner. There are a number of reasons, mostly to do with my existing time and energy and my passion. While I love making things, working creatively is very hard for me, so while I'll still make things I will mostly be making for myself. I'll still take commissions, with conditions, and am still going to Upmarket this coming Sunday (at which most of my stock will be on sale!). I think one of the biggest reasons I've taken this decision is that I can't run this business properly - there is so much I could do to increase sales and the presence of Eight Crows, but I don't have the time or, frankly, the passion to do that in a way that it deserves to be done. Does that make sense? I'm excited that I'll get to make some things for me - up until now it has kind of been difficult to justify not making to sell - and maybe that was one of the problems I was having. Anyway, there you go. If any of you have seen things here that you want to buy but aren't in Perth for the market just let me know.

So, with that in mind, my first project will be a quilt (nope, I don't really do things by half, why do you ask?). I'm very excited about this, but I really have to do my assignment first!

All the photos are ones I took at the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition...

Have a lovely week everyone, hopefully I'll be back later on with something more....

2010-03-16T12:01:00.000+08:00

I'm finding it very difficult to get motivated this week. Some semi-big things have happened that should be exciting and energising but instead have left me without energy or motivation. I have no idea what to do next, even though it is very clearly written out in a to-do list as long as my arm.

It really is ridiculous to be so de-motivated because I've done some lovely things in the past few days too. Last night Katrina and I saw Beneath Hill 60 at a free screening for teachers (officially I'm still a teacher until my financial membership runs out at the end of the month). The film was excellent - a new Gallipoili. I would recommend it if you are interested in Australian or war history. Have a look at the trailer at the link above.

My brother and I also got up early yesterday morning to see the Sculpture by the Sea at Cottesloe. This is the first time I've seen it and I really enjoyed it. I liked almost all the sculptures and it was lovely being on the beach early in the morning with the old people shuffling along their morning run in the sand before a dip in the water. I didn't get a swim, although I wanted one, which was the only pity.

And now, somehow, I need to snap myself out of this funk and get on with things. I really do have so much to do.

At least I've managed to blog, I suppose.

Oh!

2010-03-13T09:17:00.000+08:00

No fabric for me from here (that's okay :) but oh, the colours and the sheer amount of material. They know all about presentation in northern Africa. This so reminds me of all the wonderful markets in Egypt.

Still working....getting there slowly.

Shower Power

2010-03-11T19:40:00.000+08:00

So busy with non-crafty stuff, but hopefully after tomorrow I'll be back in the swing of it in a serious way and with news too!

In the meantime, I want this bathroom!

From one of my fave blogs - The Selby - because it is just like walking along and looking at the outside of houses and wondering what happens inside (which I do everyday) except you get to see inside the houses and wonder what happens (way more exciting). Plus, they are always smarty pants artists and designers and clever creatives. Bonus!

Other Brilliant Brother

2010-03-08T19:01:00.000+08:00

My other brother has just returned to London (where he is living) from Morocco. Jealous, much. Anyway, he posted this awesome pic of himself on his blog and I just love it, so had to steal it and put it here.

I love the cheeky look in his eyes and the colour of the...scarf (I'm sure it has another name). Fantastic!

Also, trying not to hyperventilate at the thought of all the fabric he *could* (but probably didn't) buy for me.

Oh, and I miss him being around.

Oh be still my camping heart!

2010-03-08T13:41:00.000+08:00

The utter fabulousness of this - I hate to call it a caravan because it is so much more than that - is so beyond gorgeous that I spent the morning leaping about in my chair with happiness at it.

Oh the style, the design, the *white*, the elegance, the shapes. I would sit gazing at it until it got dark and forget to look at the scenery of where I'd travelled to.

It is clever and stylish inside too! Oh, I LOVE it so!

Plus, it is only available in Europe so I'll just have to go a-camping to spiffy places in France and Italy, how utterly perfect!

And then get it shipped home because I couldn't bare to part with it.

This goes firmly at the top of my all-time wish list. If you too are in love (and seriously, why not!?) then you can see more at the Opera website (did I mention the awesome name!) and see a little video of it opening out like a flower. *sigh*

Lovely Sunday

2010-03-07T22:29:00.001+08:00

Today, Mum and I went to Ellis House. It is an old house in Bayswater (just near home) that is now an art gallery/community.

Their art markets were on today where their member artists were painting and selling their wares on the lovely shady verandahs of the house.

They also had tea and cakes available for $5 (bargain!) to eat under the shade of the huge old mulberry and jacaranda trees in the backyard.

While we tea-ed we watched a woman painting

And enjoyed the lovely things found in nature. The Bougainvillea around here is glorious at the moment and I need to get some more shots of it. And a Kookaburra feather lying on the grass. It was such a peaceful way to spend the morning.

But best of all - I spent a bit of time nurturing my creative spirit and hopefully this will allow me to get into the groove this week as I need to get serious in the lead up to market day.

What a Week!

2010-03-05T20:37:00.000+08:00

At least I'm here to bookend the week that was. So busy and exhausting and totally devoid of creative energy, which is the real reason why I haven't made it here.

And now it is Friday night, so I'm going to crawl into bed with a book and cuddle up to my dog. Tomorrow is a new day.

Autumn? What?

2010-03-01T13:39:00.001+08:00

The first of March has arrived and with it, technically, autumn. I should be mourning the last of summer, the end of balmy nights and ocean swimming and looking forward to changing leaves, a renewed vege garden and the AFL. And of taking photos like these...

I took the above photos in Victoria, where autumn actually exists, But here, in the city of endless summer, it is 36degC and really very warm (last night I don't think it got below 25 until the early hours of the morning). And photos like the one below are still very appropriate!

So, I suppose it isn't all bad!

Edited to add: it has just hit 39degC now, 4pm. It really doesn't have to be this hot, does it!?

A little inspiration

2010-02-27T09:58:00.000+08:00

I watched this lovely video a little while ago but have been thinking about it ever since. It is relaxing, inspiring and intriguing. There are a lot of art journal vids out there, but I think Friday Eudaemonism's 'Bliss' is one of the better ones.

Plus, it is a chilled out Saturday morning and it suits the mood I'm in at the moment.

Time to Come Clean

2010-02-26T07:39:00.000+08:00

It is Friday! I'm so happy about this because all of a sudden my life has turned into a busy, working, exhausting, get up at 6am every morning, life. It has been a bit of a shock as I last worked in June last year. A good shock - I'm so very happy and pleased to be doing the things I'm doing at the moment, but there is a bit of adjustment going on too.

One of the things that I feel happening is this blog turning into a more day-to-day blog, rather than a cafty one. I guess that's okay, but I do want to get back to posting a bit more about my crafty work.

So, in the interests of full disclosure, and perhaps so you can forgive me when I stray away from fabric-y goodness (and believe me, it pains me too!), I thought I should just come clean about all the other hats I wear just now.

Not in any order; I'm teaching at a university, assisting a visually impaired student, completing *another* graduate diploma (in heritage studies) which involves *another* thesis plus more, working on getting my consulting business off the ground, completing a Certificate in Small Business Management (a requirement for the funding I'm getting) and around all that trying to find time to sew for upcoming market deadlines. Phew!

It is exciting times and I'm glad to be doing it all. When I left full time high school teaching last year I really was looking for more variety in my work and while it has been stressful finding things that work with each other and keeping a lid on doing too much, I'm really happy with how things have worked out.

As you can see, I have managed to do some more sewing here and there, but today, after I've done the reading for my class, I'm going to spend it sewing. Then I'll go and teach and after that, throw myself into the ocean. Can't wait.

A Book I Want...

2010-02-25T17:56:00.000+08:00

Over on True Up - one of my favourite all time blogs! - is a little interview with Natalie Chanin who is all about sourcing sustainable and organic fabrics and materials. I haven't read her book, but would love to.

Plus, the designs are beautiful!

So fecking hot here that I can hardly stand it.

Last Night

2010-02-25T07:16:00.000+08:00

My house mate/best friend/all-round awesomeness cooked dinner last night. We had pasta with HOMEGROWN tomatoes and zucchini. So delicious. We also had some wine, and then the camera came out.

Yes, it was hot yesterday. 39degC. It will be 42degC today. Charming.

Linen

2010-02-24T08:41:00.002+08:00

In the morning I try to take my dog on as long a walk as I can. This morning was lovely and cool and we set out just after 6am. These walks aren't nearly as interesting as the ones I used to do from my little farm, but I do enjoy looking at people's houses and thinking about things. Today I wondered as I walked about what linen is made of. It struck me that I didn't know, although now I've done a bit of research, it seems really obvious and familiar, so perhaps I did know...

Anyway, I thought I'd share some interesting linen facts because, well, I found them interesting. And it doesn't surprise me that linen is one of the oldest fabrics - of course I'm going to love the old stuff!

The parts of a flax plant

First of all, linen is made of flax. It is a fairly labour intensive process to get it from plant to cloth with quite a few steps, but interestingly, some of the steps, such as retting, can happen naturally on the plant. Oh, and there are some cool words involved here too. So, first there is winnowing, which is removing the seeds. This is done after harvest, which is best done by hand to make sure long, intact stalks are harvested. Next is retting, the first part of the process to remove the fibre from the stalks. This is usually done in water. The next part of the process is scutching, which can be done by machine or by hand. Basically, the fibres that you want to make the cloth are inside the stalk and it takes quite a bit of work to get them out. There is a cool video that demonstrates some of the process when done by hand here. After quite a bit of scutching, heckling needs to happen. This is done with combs and is to make the flax straight and smooth and ready for spinning.

The Spinner, by William-Adolphe Bouguereau

Of course spinning is a very well known process and can be done by hand or by machine. The thread is then ready to be woven into cloth or fabric and, well, the rest we know.

Linen has been found intact in tombs in Egypt, thousands of years old. I can completely believe this because when I went there the original colours on the walls of the tombs were so stunningly perfect it blew me away. It is one of the oldest forms of textile, along with wool I suppose. I like this fact a lot.

A linen mummy shroud (with the mummy inside it) Egypt, about 1000 BC (Vatican Museum, Rome)

There is a whole other post here on the environmental impact of the production of linen and other textiles. While it seems that cotton is the worst, linen isn't really that far behind. If you're interested in this have a read of this article, which is a good intro to the issues.

Inspiration

2010-02-23T20:32:00.001+08:00

I think the most influential design style or period for me is the Arts and Crafts movement. And while I love William Morris, I think far more delicious, more sensual, more lovely, are Charles Rennie Mackintosh and his wife, Margaret MacDonald Mackintosh's work. I have eight postcards stuck on my wall above my desk and four of them are from these two artists.

Source

When I was in Glasgow a few years ago their work, mostly absolutely beautifully preserved, were my favourite things to see.

Source

I'm finding that more of my work and the ideas swimming around in my head come from their work. I'm endlessly thinking about long lines and circles, about flowers and natural motifs.

Source

But it is interesting because I don't think my work is much like this amazing stuff. It is a lot more simple, there is a lot 'less' in my work, but I can certainly see the places it has come from.

Source

There isn't a great deal of information about the Mackintoshs on the internet. They seem to be a bit lost - except in Glasgow of course. And my best advice is to go there and see their stuff, walk in the rooms they designed and decorated, eat in the tearooms they created and immerse yourself in their beautiful, beautiful work.

Bike, vintage shopping, eggs, cleaning!

2010-02-21T15:23:00.001+08:00

Yes, basically that was my day. I feel very productive!

This morning my housemate and I set off on our bikes for Cycle Sunday (commonly known in our house as CS - pronounced 'sssss' - just like our Facebook Free Friday, known as FFF - pronounced (you guessed it!) 'fffff') and headed for a vintage garage sale where we were promised buttons! old linen! vintage clothes! and where I bought all of those things.

I spent about $30 which was awesome. The dress will become a bag and the linen and lace will be parts of cushions, I think. I already have some old linen like these pieces but they've come from my family and I've hesitated cutting them up until I knew what I was doing. Now I'll be able to practice with some of these. Although not the clogs - the clogs are so cute!

Then we cycled on to the Coode St Cafe where we were lucky to get a table as they were all booked out (!) and had tea and eggs - so good! Then home via a little tyre mishap.

We had psyched ourselves up for cleaning day and dutifully started when we got back. About four hours later the house is sparkling and ready for inspection on Tuesday. And, more importantly, lovely again for living in.

This post seems very report-y. But there you go. I'm tired! Tomorrow is the first day of my new job and I'm so looking forward to it.

I hope you all had a lovely Sunday too.

Speechless

2010-02-20T13:05:00.000+08:00

Credit: Copyright Viviane Dalles. Used without Permission

Go here and watch the 'Growing Debt' slideshow (I mean, watch all of them, but particularly that one).

Now go here and look at this photo shoot of a one-year-old's birthday party. I saw this the other day and it has been on my mind ever since. I don't want to be mean to one family or anything but I'm scared this is not considered completely unnecessarily outlandish, over-the-top and decadent (in the bad sense of the word) due to all the fawning that has happened here over the 'cute!'. I just think that sometimes I have to stand up and say, 'no, actually, that is a hideous waste of resources and money'. I decided that my own blog was probably the best place to do that!

And here I am, somewhere in the middle, trying to be moral and good, growing some of my own food, not using plastic, trying not to drive the car too much and existing on the smallest amount of money I've ever had but still participating in ways that I don't think I should and that I could do better.

Sometimes the world just doesn't make sense.

Success!

2010-02-19T16:36:00.001+08:00

As I was making this cushion I could feel the sewing block that has been haunting me for about a month start to lift. This cushion represents all the ideas I have in my head but haven't been able to realise for one reason or another.

I was also thinking about how, as my mother's only daughter, I was drowned in pink when I was younger. When I turned 21 I told Mum 'that's it! no more' and she dutifully filled the front lawn with pink flamingos on my birthday morning as my 'last pink treat'. It took me a lot of years to get back to pink, but now I quite like it. Now, in fact, I really enjoy making cute, pink things. Not for children, but for women who like a bit of pretty in their lives.

I'm really happy with this cushion. Every time I do hand-sewn embellishing or applique I drift off into a wonderful place where there is nothing but the next stitch to worry about.

Watch out for this cushion and others like it at the Upmarket and my Etsy shop.

Frustrations

2010-02-19T10:52:00.000+08:00

I'm really happy with the way this reverse applique turned out. And the branch worked really well as well.

I'm not loving the yellow background colour - in fact it looks better in this picture because it is more grey than yellow. But I can't do anything about that now.

But a slight sewing mishap on one side that was completely undoable meant that I had to make the whole thing smaller. It was originally supposed to be a cushion cover but now it isn't cushion cover size (unless I tailor make an insert). I was thinking of turning it into a tote, but, hmmm. I'm not sure. Perhaps I will make an insert. See, I know writing about it would help!

Veges

2010-02-19T08:27:00.000+08:00

Although it is almost the end of February (eep!), my summer vegetables are still going strong. Gotta love the Mediterranean climate here in Perth! The first two tomato plants I had have well and truly finished now and really need to be pulled out, but I have another that has just started to produce lovely ripe red fruit.

The capsicum (pepper) plants are still producing fruit and should for a while yet. You can see a tiny one up the back of the basket in the shot above.

I was a bit afraid that I'd planted the zucchini (courgette) a little late but the plants have burst into flower, grown so quickly and produced the first fruit ready for picking within about 5 weeks! There are plenty more zucchini to come too, which is great because I LOVE zucchini.

But autumn is coming and it is the best time for gardening. Although I'm loving the summer (as always) I am looking forward to digging around in the garden in the cooler weather, planting beetroots and cabbages and beans ready for the winter months. And, really, that is the best thing about gardening, there is the pleasure of now and the excitement of what is to come.

Fireworks!

2010-02-18T22:16:00.003+08:00

One of my favourite things! I used to have to wait all year for the New Year's fireworks (or in Perth, the Australia Day fireworks), but possibly the coolest thing about our house is that we can see ALL the fireworks at the racetracks, casino and various other events from our front yard.

Tonight was the loudest fireworks yet. It really did sound like bombs going off and my poor doggy was scared out of her wits. But it was awesome - huge, huge fireworks that reverberated through the cooling night air. So cool!

Firework photography is so hard, especially when you just run out there in your nightie and are not using a tripod, but I thought it was worth a shot. A nice reminder, anyway.

By the way, a really warm welcome to those new peeps who have been reading my blog of late. I love to know that you are out there, why don't you drop me a comment some time?

On the home front

2010-02-18T07:55:00.001+08:00

This week has been crazy busy getting ready for a new job - the kind that needs lesson plans and photocopies - but I think everything is sorted for my start on Monday. I've been staying close to home and feeling the need for a little cocooning. So I wanted to post about some the things I have around me at the moment. Starting with my favourite craft tool.

I know, you're thinking, wha...? that's not a tool! But it really is to me. It is an Ikea piece, but I don't think they sell it anymore. It is on wheels and fits perfectly under my table when I'm not working and then wheels out next to my chair when I am. I can change my thread easily, find a random button for embellishment, grab clasps, zips and whatever else I need without having to get out of my crafty-groove. I keep fabric that I want to use on my current project in the top drawer, threads and other extras in the second and use the third for storage. So, perfect! It makes me happy every time I reach for it.

This week I also sold a TV cabinet that I was using for storage in my work room (on Gumtree - LOVE gumtree for selling things!) and bought an Expedit bookcase from Ikea.

So much more room, so easy to see things and it fits in the room a lot better too. I haven't, obviously, put all my fabric in it yet, but the plan is to have everything sorted by colour or type (I haven't decided which yet) so it is easy to see what I have. Down the bottom are my three baskets of wool and I'm looking forward to getting back to knitting when it gets a bit cooler.

And, just because I was in my workroom with the camera, here is a sneak peek of some new products that will be available at the Perth Upmarket (at the end of March) and after that at my Etsy shop. These little baskets are so quick to make but have a lot of potential for really creative use of fabric. Plus, they are lovely for keeping all those little random things that collect on a bench or desk neat and organised!

Postcard Swap!

2010-02-16T15:19:00.000+08:00

Today, among other very important things, is postcard swap sending day! And as my first postcard arrived in the post today (yay!) I really have to get to the post office. But just quickly before I go, I thought I'd just let all you know. Especially those of you who are waiting for my postcard!

Only teaser shots though, don't want to give too much away!!

I'm a material girl, so mine are based on my love of fabric. It was completely freeing for me to create these postcards - I just let myself go and enjoyed the process and what I ended up with. Some are very abstract and others not so much.

And now, off to the post office!

Wishes and impossible desires

2010-02-11T17:59:00.002+08:00

I know I promised more news yesterday, but I'm not ready to spill just yet. Instead I give you exciting V&A - my all-time favourite museum and the ONLY reason I'll ever venture back to the UK - news. They are just about to open their Quilts: 1700 - 2010 exhibition. Oh! for some kind of sci-fi machine to zap me over there just for this!!

(I love this image but there is no source info. I got if from here).

I'm becoming so excited about quilting. It has grown slowly over the last six months, inspired by my love of applique. So, it is almost tortuous that my newest love - quilting - and my oldest love - history - are coming together and I can't see it!

Walter Dendy Sadler, Nearly Done, aquatint, published 1898 (Private Collection)

I will have to just try to satisfy myself with the curator's blog, the conference details, some specially-released-for-the-exhibition fabric, and, hopefully (if I can convince my brother to get it for me) the book.

Small quilted patchwork cover, silk velvets and satins, Priscilla Redding, cica 1690s, T.615-1996

And thankfully, the internet, through which I can still find out really fascinating things about some of the quilts that will be in the exhibition.

*sigh*

Eye-popping

2010-02-10T07:55:00.001+08:00

This just had to be posted! From Romantic Threads. Look at this dress! The photography! The wonderful juxtaposition of the hair! Love it. LOVE IT!

Today will be exciting...I'll be back with news...

Just Go For It

2010-02-09T23:18:00.001+08:00

I used to 'just go for it', or at least I have done it before.

I once bought a little 20acre farm in rural Victoria on the day I went to see it. I wasn't even looking for a little farm, I didn't even know what towns were nearby, I had never been to the area and had never owned property, let alone 20acres of it, before. When I think about it now, it was madness! Buy a farm? Crazy, right?

I always wanted to live in the country but I had to quit my city job to move there, I had to learn about running out of water and chopping wood and dealing with lizards, mice, snakes and spiders, I had to get used to driving 15mins to get to civilization, I had to learn what frost will do to plants and how to start a pump and a generator. And many other things besides. Thing is, though, I loved it with all my heart and when I sold that little property six years later I was very sad, even though I knew I had to do it.

I still miss the quiet and the solitude, the mornings as the sun crept over the forest that surrounded my farm and the evenings when my music would waft over the paddocks as the shadows deepened. I loved being able to wander freely across my land and into the forest with the dogs off the lead. I still miss chopping wood, setting a fire, lighting the stove and being oh-so-cold while I waited for the heat to spread.

So, why am I telling you all this? Because I need to take a leaf out of the book I used to live by. I need to be that person again who takes risks and jumps in and just sees if things will work out. So, look out! I might be slow to wind up and get started but I can feel the momentum building.

(You can see more of my photography of my farm and surrounds here.)

OAMSAT

2010-02-08T09:21:00.001+08:00

I've joined a club run by a friend called the Once A Month Sew And Tell where each month we have to sew something to wear for ourselves or friends/family - that is, not for sale. I really needed this motivation to start sewing my own clothes again (I used to make myself shorts when I was a kid) and I actually managed to make something for January!!

In the end the whole thing took about four hours from going to the shop and finding the pattern and fabric (about two hours) to cutting and sewing (another two hours). Really quick and REALLY cheap - all up I think it was about $15 for the fabric and a bit more for the pattern (which I can use again, of course).

I chose really slippery fabric that wasn't fun to work with at all, but it ended up okay. I will probably make another one of these in a cotton fabric that is a bit longer with a lower neck line, just to make it a bit more 'me'.

Exciting! And now, onto this month's task - a simple circle cape....actually I'm not entirely convinced that 'simple' and 'circle' belong in the same sentence! Check back in a month or so...

Brilliant Brother

2010-02-07T22:23:00.001+08:00

Just a quick post to crow about my brother; amazing artist and musician, and his current project. He is the artist-in-residence in a vacant shop in the city.

He has to work there during the week (you can see the painting he is currently working on on the easel up the back) and at the end of his stint he has an exhibition. Today we set up the table in the foreground with some of his sketch books for people to browse. I'm trying to get him to put signs up welcoming people in too.

So, if you happen to be in Perth, go and say hi and have a look at his amazing work. He is in the little arcade at the Parmelia Hilton on the corner of Mill and St George's Tce. He is mostly there until about 2pm.

aaaand, we're back!

2010-02-04T14:59:00.003+08:00

I've just spent that last week or so without my computer, which has been especially challenging because it was totally unplanned and completely disruptive to all the things I've needed to do. Luckily, I did have access to another computer to use the net with, but keeping up with emails and blogs was the limit of that little computers ability.

I guess, though, the positive to come out of this is that I have managed to collect quite a few blog post ideas! So, I'm hoping that this will give me the head start to get this blog running regularly and smoothly for the foreseeable future.

Something I was just about to post about before my computer decided that waking up in the morning was just all too hard, was the little curtain I made for my drawers in my bedroom. This was really my first home-project - the first thing I'd made specifically to solve an issue in my house. It was also on my New Year's list of projects for January (this makes me sound so organised!!) and so I'm inordinately pleased with myself for having done it.

I don't have a proper chest of drawers at the moment and am making do with two Antonius frames with clear plastic Antonius drawers from Ikea, naturally. When I bought these units they were to sit inside a built-in wardrobe, but in this new house they just sit out in the open. Which is okay, except I didn't like the mess of being able to see the clothes in the plastic drawers. And my budget stretching to a proper set of drawers (and wardrobe, for that matter) is a long way off.

I had some Toile de Jouy fabric sitting around not doing much and decided it would be perfect. Really, the whole thing was ridiculously simple - just measure, cut and sew. Seriously. I bought a thing called a lace curtain rail (about $4) which is basically metal encased in white plastic. There were hooks and eyes to screw into the rail and whatever it is attaching to to fasten it. I did things a little differently, but the concept is the same.

The difference this curtain has made to my bedroom has been quite amazing. It adds a more peaceful element and makes the drawers part of what I'm trying to create in there rather than just an extremely functional object with no aesthetic value at all.

Some of my favourite things now sit on top of the drawers - my stack of jewellery cases, a crystal plate my grandmother gave me, a plate my brother painted, my mittens from the winter I spent in Sweden, a great book and, most favourite, my childhood night light - a mushroom with a family of mice living in it! So cute.

Things to love and inspire

2010-01-27T20:48:00.001+08:00

I think the motivation for all the things I want to do with 2010 has finally arrived. One of the things I am totally in love with at the moment is my Google Reader. So much to love, inspire and enjoy there and so fun to find new blogs to add all the time.

And, because I don't have my own computer at the moment (it is in the laptop hospital!) I can't show you my new projects and other interesting things happening here but I can show you a few things I'm loving from my Reader.

True Up is a blog all about fabric *swoon* and today they had these stunning swatches on show from Giselle:

CraftyPod has a great tutorial for a very cute sachet. While I'm not into the V-day stuff, I think this could be modified nicely - butterflies, birds, books, even things like rain drops or tomatoes perhaps?

I seem to have a pink theme going here. One of my fave general inspiration blogs in Abby Try Again. She has beautiful photography and these two are no exception:

And I love it when my blogs send me back to etsy to lovely things to discover. I found this lovely "print" via Decor8. It is by sarahandbendrix:

The best thing about all this is that tomorrow I get to look again at lovely, surprising, inspiring, cute, wonderful things! I think all the hearts on this post are for my Reader and the fabulous blogs it brings me.

Limes

2010-01-21T10:08:00.001+08:00

Almost a year ago I bought a whole lot of plants, including an 'Australian Outback' lime tree. I picked my first harvest the other day.

They, unfortunately, weren't very juicy - such a pity as we were making drinks at the time - but they smell delicious. They are also the size of a fingernail!

I love weird plants! They are black when they grow and gradually go a very dark green. Developed by the CSIRO (use the link to read more about the varieties they've developed) from a native lime, and, now I read the info sheet, good for making sauces. There are a lot more on the tree so I might just try out some sauce recipes.

And, don't worry, I have a normal lime tree too, especially for drinks!

Things getting done

2010-01-18T08:10:00.001+08:00

Ever so slowly and steadily, things are getting done. I haven't managed to get back to here because I had to fix an issue with my camera (all better now, although I can't use my favourite lens - boo!), but other things are getting done.

Like yesterday morning Dad came over and put hooks in our bedroom walls! We have picture rails in every other room in the house, so it has been frustrating, but now there are things on our walls! Hooray!

This shot is above my bed. The print is of an important, if controversial, early Australian painting - Fish Catch at Dawes Point, Sydney Harbour by John Lewin. I've had it forever and it makes it home when it is up somewhere. Below that is my bedhead and my fantastic Ikea bedside light.

The little sign on my bedhead. One day I'll tell you about my plans that this relates to.

The other print I love up on another wall. I'm all about the clean, clear surfaces at the moment, so everything is put away and I feel better for it. The two pictures on the book shelf are part of my personal history. The one on the left is of the York Hotel where my great-gradfather, grandmother and grandfather, father and aunt all lived and ran for a long time. The photo was taken during the time that dad was a kid there. The other picture is actually pressed wildflowers that I picked and pressed in the early 1980s. In the bottom corner is a photograph of me picking the flowers...awww.

I'm going to put things up in the shop today. It is too hot to be anywhere except right in front of the air-con, with all curtains closed and iced water to drink, so it is a day for the computer and for reading when I get sick of that.

Major Project for 2010

2010-01-03T12:37:00.002+08:00

Last year, while recovering from a particularly bad time in my life, I learnt to applique and I made this quilt block with beautiful liberty fabrics. I loved doing it and would applique all day long if I could. It is medative and relaxing. It is an old skill with an old action that makes me feel connected to the women who have done this before me. I didn't worry too much about fabric placement - there is a lot of theory about where on a quilt block certain colourways should be placed and how they should be balanced. Instead, I choose my fabrics for the shape I was doing. Flowers for flowers, paisely for birds, my favourites in the centre and randomness when I couldn't decide. It came out reasonably balanced, I think.

It was compeltely handstitched. Each shape was traced, cut, folded, tacked, placed and then appliqued with silk thread using invisable stitching. The steams were made with a tempramental bias tool and an iron and were my least favourite to make but my most favourite to stitch.

It isn't perfect - there are some little untidy bits here and there (not to mention my pigeons have club feet!). It didn't really look good until I finished it and ironed the whole thing. It now hangs on my wall above my sewing table.

So, the major project for 2010 is to do the patchwork so it can be on my bed by next summer. I'd like it to be a summer quilt - just light - and am considering using an old rug for the back. I'm not sure what fabric to use for the patchwork. If I was doing it properly it would be Liberty, but I worked out that would cost about $200 and that is not possible right now. So I will either be using random fabric that I have here already, or...not sure. It will come to me I suppose.

A New Year

2010-01-01T13:33:00.001+08:00

Last night (New Year's Eve) I had some family and friends over for dinner. I've never really been that excited about New Year celebrations - only really for 2000 - and I gave up staying up for midnight years ago. The deal we all made was that the party wasn't to go on late. Most of us were tired and wanted sleep and that suited me fine.

I set up my market table on the front verandah and decked it out with a lovely red tablecloth, fairy lights, candles and a red lamp shade over the light. It was so much fun doing it and getting ready.

Our verandah is hemmed in on all sides by buildings (which is why our beautiful 1930s bungalow is so cheap!) but it never seems to matter. The setting sun comes through the two townhouses at the front and the breeze still blows there. Plus, there are no overlooking windows, so it is very private.

It was a lovely summer's evening - some thought a little cold, but I was fine. We ate homemade mountain bread chips with homemade roasted carrot dip and homemade olive tapenade then a bbq and salads, including tomatoes grown in my vege patch roasted with cous cous, basil, rocket and parmesan and a roast pumpkin salad. To finish we broke open the fruit cake my mum made my aunt for Chritmas (just three ingredients - mixed fruit, chocolate milk and sr flour!), which was delicious.

So, all in all, it was a really lovely night. We watched the blue moon rise and talked, drank and shared our resolutions. My visitors left at 10.30 or so and I fell into bed, happy to be able to sleep.

This morning Katrina and I took the dog to the beach - a glorious sun-drenched, breezy beach with dumping waves and miles of white sand. Bess chased the ball a lot, we all got wet (some of us got dumped as well) then came home and showered and ate left over salad. Yum. Such a great start to what I'm determined will be a great year.

Best wishes to all for 2010!

A Trifle Trouble

2009-12-26T11:08:00.000+08:00

For Christmas lunch this year, I made a trifle. Trifle with moscato, actually, from Gourmet Traveller (the only magazine I'll read). I started cooking it three days before Christmas, after spending two days before that going to a wide variety of shops to find the ingredients, including Creme de Cassis and real creme fraiche. Thank god for the RE store in Leederville!

Amazingly I found fresh blackberries (expensive!) in Coles.

It wasn't until I got to this point that I realised I was making blackberry jelly from scratch! It took 50mins to infuse this mixture of blackberries, sugar, vanilla bean, moscato and creme de cassis. Then it took two days to set because I didn't have the gelatine amounts right - I had halved the recipe (originally for 20 people) and I find the maths a bit tricky. But got it eventaully and it was worth it!

Then, at the last minute late on Christmas Eve I realised I didn't have enough sponge and had to make another one! Finally finished at 9.30pm and fell into bed thoroughly exhausted.

The syrup topping was also handmade and oh, so rich and yummy. The layers were jelly, sponge and creme fraiche with lemon rind and vanilla bean seeds.

So rich and so delicious! I couldn't find a big enough glass bowl to show off the layers, so it had to go in this bowl, which was a little disappointing, but didn't detract from the taste at all.

And, best of all? It has stayed at mum's place. No stupid overconsumption of trifle for me!

Etsy Treasury

2009-12-24T17:53:00.000+08:00

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=101906

Wow! Look! I'm included in my very first Treasury. This really makes me feel motivated to get on and work on my shop. Not today though - too tired after late night baking and early morning airport run and family lunch - and not tomorrow either, natch!

Happy Christmas everyone!

Mexican Stand-off

2009-12-23T07:49:00.000+08:00

I'm off to appointments today to help sort out the year. There will be a proper post soon, but as it has to do with Christmas pressies for people who look at this blog, I think it would be sensible to wait until after Christmas day to post about it.

So, here is my dog and my best friend's cat. They sit like this often. The cat really, really wants to be friends with the dog, but the dog is fairly terrified and won't let her come any closer than that. So, they just sit staring at each other. The cat will roll over and stretch and meow and yawn and do all kinds of showing off things. The dog just stares. She is just a bit OC...

Another baking summer day

2009-12-19T20:23:00.000+08:00

Today was hot, hot, hot. I think it got to about 37 or so. I was out visiting a market that I'm thinking of applying to and while it was lovely - all the stalls were a good fit with my stuff - it was too hot for marketeering. Both for buyers and sellers.

I got home and slept the heat away and this evening watered the garden just as large drops of rain fell into the heat. Not really rain so much as a sprinkle. I kept watering the garden. But the clouds over the city in the sunset were lovely. The top shot is our view of the city from the eastern side of the house - through two buildings and the bottom is a zoom in of the same image. I'm glad the sun has gone today, but the night is not all that cooler, certainly not in the house. But Tom and I have yummy fancy meat from the posh butcher for dinner and I've downed two very cold Baccardi and cokes, so I might just survive!

Apparently it will be a hot Christmas this year. So very different from the frozen north.

Market Recovery

2009-12-11T21:11:00.000+08:00

It takes me about a day to recover from a market. This involves sleeping until as late as possible, eating then reading then sleeping again. I actually didn't come good until I went to the beach and threw myself into the cold but oh-so-lovely ocean. Then I ate a burger, had a beer and an icecream. All good now!

The market was hard work. Because I've rearranged my stall I can't now sit down on a normal height chair and still see what is going on (without looking ridiculously squat anyway) so my feet were killing me by the time I got home. So much so that the pain kept me awake even though I was beyond tired. And my back packed it in too. In the end I was so glad that it was only four hours and I absolutely need a stool of some kind for Sunday.

For all the hard work it wasn't that rewarding, not for the fee anyway. Plus the lighting was pretty bad. But it was still good, I'm still glad I went, although I must admit that I'm coming to think that spending my energy on selling online might be more rewarding and only go to a few select markets so I can meet customers....still a nebulous thought borne during a trying evening. On the positive side I got a lot, a LOT of very positive comments and I was really happy to receive them even if they didn't result in a sale. It made me feel much better about my product. I do find that I get very despondent and unsure of myself when I just sit at home with no contact with customers.

This time I need to thank my special friend, Tom, for being there all evening and being so supportive and helpful and only getting annoyed once ;).

Things to love and be inspired by

2009-12-09T15:42:00.000+08:00

Struggling between jealousy and love at the gorgeousness of these products by Petals

and Pine Blossoms

and looking over at my mass of bags and feeling very inadequate. Trying to get over it.

It is useless to be jealous, I know, and a difficult emotion to control and admit to. It isn't really that I wish I'd made these exact things, just that I wish I had a recognisable style. I'm getting there, slowly, but I'm impatient to be there already.

Subi Upmarket tomorrow. Eeek!

New ideas

2009-12-06T11:36:00.000+08:00

I really should stop having new ideas just before a market. It completely throws me and my plans - I just can't resist trying something out, which usually results in a new direction and my previously planned out 'collection' is warped by this new idea.

So, the story goes that last night Mum and I went to the opening of the George St Artist Group exhibition in Hamilton Hill. I love openings because they have a vibe and it is lovely seeing the people who make the art there. Plus with my current funds crisis free food and booze doesn't go astray either! Anyway, there was some great art there. I decided, while looking at one piece in particular, that I needed to start and art collection fund. Just small amounts to be saved so that when I go to something like that and see something I really love, I can actually buy it. But this is beside the point...

One of the women there had made this incredible wall hanging of silk and hand dyed...something, silk perhaps, and had used a technique she called something I can't remember (I was in awe of what I was looking at, okay, not taking in the details!) but I saw it as reverse applique.

I've been thinking about reverse applique for a while now. I love, love, love applique - the kind that you do with silk thread and minuscule needles and liberty fabric. I first read about reverse applique in a book about using Charles Rennie Mackintosh's designs as inspiration for embroidery and thought it was intriguing. However, I find it hard to use books for inspiration - I really need to see and touch something to get an idea of how it is made.

Anyway, this morning I got up at 6am and made the bag below. My first reverse applique and I'm pretty happy with it. I have lots of other ideas for smaller applique...

Like I said, it is annoying having new ideas just before a market!

New Bags!

2009-12-03T13:43:00.000+08:00

Just quickly, because I have to get back to the sewing, but this is what I've been working on the for the last few days. They are sturdy, practical totes. Made with either canvas or duck canvas - very usable and also pretty!

Check out the rest of them at flickr.

Carrots Interrupted

2009-12-02T09:00:00.000+08:00

Nothing more disstressing than waking up in the morning and seeing carnage in the vege plot. Puts one in a grumpy mood and it is such a violent change from sleepiness to devastated that it will take numerous cups of tea to get over it. You can see the culprit in the background of the second picture, blithely eating her breakfast. And okay, my carrots wouldn't have been perfect, but they would have been a bit *longer* at least. The weird bit is that I dreamt about eating them last night and they were super carrot-sweet. I will eat these - probably just munch on them today.

The other damage amounts to the top of one capsicum plant broken off and a few worse for wear garlics. Plus, the big hole she dug in the soil. Never mind. Guess I'll need that fence after all. Alternatively, don't let the cat out at 2am!

Laneway Market Day and Big News!

2009-11-30T16:21:00.000+08:00

Today was supposed to be a total rest day. Sleep in, gym, laze around, do some (very neglected) housework - including some much needed washing - read my book, walk the dog, chill out, watch telly and all those sorts of things people do when they take some time off. And I deserved it as I've been working well into the night getting ready for this market.

It sort of worked out like that. I woke up at 5.30am to deal with the animals and could only go back to sleep once I'd written down all the ideas I had swimming around my head. I then managed to convince my dog to wait to be walked and slept in until 8.30 (very late for me), had a lazy breakfast, lay back on the bed, read. I've made it lazy until now (3.30pm) when I can no longer ignore the pile of work that needs to be done....but before I get there, let me tell you about yesterday's market.

The Laneway Market was just small - only eight stalls, although more were booked. One stall left after an hour saying it was too dusty (bad form as far as I'm concerned!). Only a hundred or so people browsed through and I only made one sale (although she bought two of my most expensive products). One sale is good though especially for such a limited number of potentials. I spent most of the day looking really objectively at my stall and how it can be improved - because it most certainly does. But the market was lovely, it was a bit tucked away, but in a really pleasant treed and shady lane. The day was hot, but the Doctor was in (that would be the sea breeze that cools Perth most summer days) so it was actually very nice sitting there with not much to do. Of course yummy food and a beer or two would have made it better, but I can't have everything. Thank god mum was there to keep me company otherwise I might have gone a bit nuts.

The thing that was so glaringly obvious at this market was the sort of thing people were looking for - not the 'pretty' stuff I currently have - and I'm going to have to work hard to develop a line of bags to sell at the next Freo market I'll be at.

I've had to make some hard decisions about how to sell the stuff I've spent a lot of time making, but I'm getting there - things become clearer all the time.

Now for the big news!! I've been accepted into two more markets.

The first, on Thursday 10 December is the huge Subi UpMarket (hopefully my link on the page will be fixed soon!!) - a very large shopping festival that is held once a year in Subiaco. It runs from 5-9pm and the stall is very expensive, so I'm gambling a bit and I really hope it is worth it! It is exciting though and rather prestigious, so I really need to have everything up to scratch.

The second market is called The Great Freo Flea and Artisan Market and is at the North Freo Primary School on Sunday 13 December (yes, just three days later, yikes!). I don't know much about this market, but it is well advertised (not online, though) so that is a plus.

This means I have just 10 days to get organised. I have ideas for new products and new ideas for display. Much work to do - hence the end of my little break.

One thing that will be happening over the next few days is that I'll be listing four of my Dilly Bags on the etsy shop, along with all my sari jewellery. Drop by and have a look.

Back to work!

Seven-seven-four

2009-11-26T08:53:00.000+08:00

I used to listen to 774AM in Sydney - the local ABC radio station, but in this case 774 is the number of folds I just finished to make the individual layers of brooches as you can see in the photos below.

The above ones are made of Liberty fabric - scraps from my lovely applique quilt block that nursed me through the worst of this year. The ones below are from pre-cut squares from Materialise my most favourite fabric shop.

None of the brooches are finished yet. I need some plain fabric to put between the printed then sew the pieces together, put a button on the top and a clasp on the bottom. Still a lot of work. To get this far took me about five hours. Four last night watching telly and another hour this morning to finish off. That was after a solid day's sewing bags too. Phew! I'm loving it though, because it is always exciting when a piece is finished, when a brooch is done and can be pinned on or when I turn a bag out the right way or hold it up finished. I find it very satisfying and when each is done I look forward to meeting the person who will take it away and use it.

I've been wanting to include some of the lovely things I see on the net in this blog, but I haven't really had time. On Monday I'll have more market announcements to make, but suffice to say that I barely have time to blog at all. This post has been a quick stolen moment and now I need to get back to it. Perhaps with another cup of tea...

Markets and Friends

2009-11-24T07:04:00.000+08:00

This little guy was on my tomato plant the other morning and kindly stayed put while I went to get my camera (click on the photo for a close look and check out his amazing wings). My veges are going bananas at the moment after all that rain and now the heat. There are thousands of little green tomatoes (cherry and yellow pear) and even a new baby cucumber. The capsicums are flowering and the garlic is looking almost ready to dig up. The artichoke, which I really need to move, is threatening to take over everything. I do need to find time to plant seeds in the new bed I made, but I'm so busy sewing that I haven't had time (plus, hot!). Yesterday I compared my roma tomatoes to shop bought ones and the difference in taste was incredible. The shop bought ones didn't taste anything like mine - not even really like tomatoes.

I'm going to be at another market - The Great Freo Flea and Artisan Market at the North Freo Primay School on Dec 13. I don't know much about this market - guess I'll find out on the day! It has been good to have markets coming up as it forces me to keep sewing. I hope to put a bag or two up on etsy today or tomorrow, which will be exciting. My Google Analytics tell me that I've had quite a few visitors to the shop from all over the world. I always find these stats fascinating but I'm going to have to use them properly to figure out how these people get to my shop so I can figure out good promotional strategies. Hmm, again, hard. Back to the sewing I think!

No link today - feeling a little bit off colour and can't muster up the energy to find something.

Work, work like a real person

2009-11-21T09:49:00.000+08:00

Yesterday was all about working. Over the last couple of days I spent time cutting up material for a new range of bags. I haven't worked like this before - that is, doing all the cutting then all the sewing - usually I'll cut up one bag and sew and finish it then have to recover for a day or so(!). But I am enjoying this new process. It is easier to go onto the next bag when it is already cut up, I can make sure I'm reducing my wastage and the bags feel finished much quicker therefore I can make more in one sitting. This wasn't my own brilliant idea, by the way, I saw some photos of someone else's piles of cut up fabric and had one of those light bulb moments.

I'm very happy with how these bags have turned out. I'm using Japanese linen again, which I just adore and which I can't wait to get more of - especially the stuff that is $70+ per metre. And now I've become more sure of what I'm doing, I make less mistakes and feel more confident about cutting up expensive, not to mention, beautiful, fabric.

It is perhaps easy to sew at the moment because I'm finding the whole web side of the business a bit overwhelming. It requires so much work and I can't work out a system to make sure that everything gets done and how to implement the ideas to increase my presence on the web in a ordered way. I get anxious when I'm trying to do things on the net without a system - I worry that I'm missing things. Something new to work on I suppose.

Something completely different for my link today: Cheeseburger Gothic is the blog of John Birmingham who is an author I really enjoy. Interesting for its discussion on the process of being creative and working creatively, as well as everyday crappy and happy things that happen.

Photographs

2009-11-18T07:44:00.000+08:00

Look at anything that even remotely smells like advice about Etsy and you'll find a statement, sentence, paragraph, essay about photographs. They are important, I realise that, but what I'm just starting to realise is that they take a.g.e.s to do and get right! It is the one thing holding me up on putting things up on my shop. I like having a person in my shots and my flatmate, best friend and admin superstar, Katrina is perfect - plus she doesn't mind a little camera action - but trying to find time when we are both available, the energy to be bothered and good light is difficult.

Yesterday we had a go and got a few brooches done, but then it started to rain!!

I also need to do some close up shots in my "lightbox" (I can cheat because my desk is in a perfect position under a window and really looks like a lightbox in shot). Then of course all the downloading, fixing up, resizing, etc, etc.

I guess I'm lucky that I have been taking photos and putting them on the net for a long time (see my old photoblog at http://nullaverba.my-expressions.com) so am at least comfortable with the process. Still! Hard work.

In other news, I will be at another market on the 29th. This time in Fremantle - it is a new, little market, called The Laneway Market. It is in Tum Tum Tree Lane from 12-4pm. New bags and brooches will be on offer, so come and say hi if you are able to. Otherwise, keep an eye out for more stuff on etsy - as soon as I get these photos organised!!

Market Day!

2009-11-15T09:31:00.000+08:00

My very first market - at the Made On the Left market in the Hyde Park Hotel - was a lot of fun and very successful. Not only did I sell quite a bit (and I didn't have any expectations on how much I would sell, because I didn't really know how people would respond) but I learnt A LOT. And am now psyched to have my next market, using all the knowledge I've gained, to do even better!

I had my ever-supportive best friend and admin superstar there - Katrina (with her back to the camera) - all day. She made sure that everyone who looked at the table was engaged in conversation and also looked after the money. And my brother, Tom, was there a bit too - in this photo being a big help by moving swing tags from one side of the bags to the other! - and helped do paper cutting and other odd jobs. Mum and Cynthia came and bought bags and lunch for us, Ange came and bought bags, Dawn dropped in, Dad came and also bought things, plus a few of Katrina's friends too. Yes, some people I didn't know bought things as well!!

I learnt what products got people looking at the stall, I learnt about prices and layout, I found out that some concepts are too hard for people to grasp at a market stall (sari brooches - I'm not sure people really knew what they were!) and may do better on etsy. I also got so inspired to keep going to markets with better and better product - more of the things that made people smile.

It was such a rewarding, exciting, satisfying and wonderful experience that I'm so looking forward to going to the next one.

So, thanks to all who passed by, who bought things, who looked and had their day brightened and especially to my friends and family for supporting me so thoroughly.

Oh, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATRINA!!!!

Tags, labels and why markets are hard work

2009-11-09T10:37:00.000+08:00

Eight Crows has its first showing at the Made on the Left market on Saturday. A teacher I had a few months ago, who was inspiring and generous, encouraged me to apply. I found out that I got into the market about a month and a half ago. At that time I had about five bags and eight brooches. Suffice to say that my time since then has been taken up with sewing, sewing, sewing. I've enjoyed it, although it has been hard work.

When I put up my hand for the market, however, I hadn't really thought about what it would mean and after I got in, I wrote a list. Besides my product, including making sure each is as perfect and complete as possible (I do have a mantra: it doesn't have to be perfect - it's hand made!), there is a lot to do.

One of the things I've enjoyed getting ready the most is the swing tags and labels for my work. It has been an ongoing process - I think I perfected the design and materials for the main swing tag about four months ago - and I've enjoyed how creative starting with little can make me. Because, of course, there are no personalised tags letterpressed by an artiste or even custom made stickers for the start of this business. I've had to make everything. The only things I've bought were sticky labels and of course ink for the printer. I actually like the idea of this too - not only is my product handmade but my labels, packaging, stickers, signs are too. Well, handmade in the sense that I (and/or my wonderful mum who came yesterday for a label and tag blitz) typed the stuff into the computer, printed it out, stuck it on, cut it out, wrote on it and put ribbons on it. That's pretty handmade I think.

And because I'm so pleased with how they've turned out, here is a picture of the jewellery tags:

Finally, to the link. This is the author Elizabeth Gilbert speaking on Ted.com. I have mixed feelings about Gilbert. I enjoyed Eat, Pray, Love and I think she has a very interesting life and perspective. But I did feel a bit cheated to find out that she used her advance for the book to travel to write the book. Still, I'm willing to forgive - how else is a writer able to make money anyway? And this talk has put her back on my 'worth listening to' list. Enjoy.

Crow All About It!

2009-11-06T17:55:00.000+08:00

Ahhh, the fresh scent of the first post on a clean, empty blog! Of course, I have had a few blogs (even a LiveJournal back in the day) in my time. I don't want to make any grand statements here and now that 'this one will be different', 'I'll keep up this one'. I think, like many, we start with promise and then it slowly but surely, or quickly like an avalanche, goes downhill.

I don't want to turn you off, before you've even got though my first post however!! So I will tell you a bit about what I plan for this blog:

Links and lots of them. I want to send you off to places you haven't been before to things strange and ordinary. And I hope you'll return the favour.

A little bit about what I'm making, but honestly, with the amount of effort I will be putting into my shop, I want you to go there. After all, that's where you can buy. But I'll keep you up to date in a broad, overview kind of sense.

All things Paris. Random? Not really. You see, I'm on a mission to get to Paris for a three month sabbatical in April 2011. I need funds to do this, naturally. I'm starting from a significant minus-funds position. But I have hope (and a bit of faith)! My Etsy shop is key to this, but more as it develops.

And finally, an image or three. Everyone likes pictures, after all.

I'm no art critic - I only know a little bit, but I love this painting. The dresses! The fabric! The leisure of it all. But especially I love how they are all turned to look at the viewer - just like a photograph.

So welcome to The Crow!

....and here is the first link: I love the ABC (that would be the Australian Broadcasting Corporation), especially ABC radio. Love, love. Anyway, some of our very bestest newpeople work there and some of them have their own blogs - oh joy and love! Go check it out. I particularly like Leigh Sales' posts coz she has links! Hurrah!