Hmmmm

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...

Time to Come Clean

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...

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.

Linen

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.

Success!

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

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!

On the home front

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!

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

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*

OAMSAT

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...

aaaand, we're back!

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.

Major Project for 2010

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.

Work, work like a real person

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.