ooops spt

I didn't realise it was tuesday - so two posts today - this is a tad scary no?

not much craftin been going on here

I have been reading about crafting on blogs and surfing various art/crafters websites and looking at books and magazines and getting all kinds of crazy inspirational surges and urges towards doing something. But then I step inside my crafting room and groan. It is covered head to foot in piles of stuff - I started clearing out fabrics to get rid of - that are clogging up my valueable space - and now they just sit there, waiting for me to wash them and sort them and decide what to do with them. Then there is bags of sheepskin pieces which my mother (mistakenly) thought and thinks I might want to do something with. Not to mention the bags of denim and leather pieces I am supposed to make some sort of patchwork bag with (not very interesting pieces either just blue and black - not inspiring me in the least). Then there is the bags of old sheets and towels that my husband cleared out the linen cupboard and are waiting for me to decide what to do with. Did I mention I was given a huge box of old fabrics that are sitting in the doorway looking at me, and a huge sheepskin rug that is waiting for me to take for its annual clean to a cleaner with a big enough washing machine. So I take a look around my craft space and then must just walk right out again - my motivation and inspiration doesn't extend to cleaning up first.



So instead I am working on craft related if not actual hands on craft. I am loving writing for whip up and am slightly obsessed by following links and discovering exciting new things. I was obsessed by the contemporary embroidery for a while - now though I have discovered some fabulous jewellery - so watch out for future posts on that.

Also I have my husband and brother and myself diligently working on getting a new website for spt up and running. Very excited about this - lots of automated features and community hub with a forum and members section etc. So keep you eyes open for this in the next few weeks.

Of course I mentioned a new job I am starting soon (uhoh its tomorrow) with a monthly art journal as design manager. Very excited by this - so all this other activity with calm down naturally. The down side is that kids will be in more day care than I am completely comfortable with - but what can you do? what are the alternatives?

What did you do on the weekend?

Weekend: - 5 things

1. rob baked sunflower seed bread with half organic wheat flour and half spelt flour. It was delicious.
2. we got 5 new baby chicks from the chook exhibit at the show - we have put them under our broody hen - she brought up the last lot of babies very well - but this time she is a reluctant mother - she is thinking about rejecting them - and then we will have to hand raise them - any advice on this anyone - how to get a broody hen to take the new baby chicks?
3. we went to the show on the weekend and the kids 5 favourite things were: 1. visiting the cows, 2. visiting the farmyard animal display (Otilija was asked to be in a promotional photo shoot), 3. buying the baby chicks and 4. having a pony ride and 5. getting a show bag at the end (i was really shocked at how expensive and crappy show bags are - but the kids were pretty happy even with their most basic one)
4. we finally got around to cleaning some rubbish up from around the backyard and took a trailer load to the tip (I really had to put some pressure on rob to do this though)
5. very excited about starting a new job next week - Magazine design - so now life gets more hectic than ever - spent some time on the weekend going on the job details and doing some learning of a new program.
   

Now I want to know what you did on the weekend - 1 thing or 5.

a shameless plug

For my talented friend Amanda- her work is pictured below. She is a ceramic sculpture artist who makes non-functional porcelain pieces slipcast from inflatable forms. This work is from a current exhibition at craftACT. Some of her work is available through the hive.







These are a couple of pieces I have at home - from my 'corner'.

some inspiration

I am breaking my own rules and not bothering with images. I can't find any to suit my state of mind. (and dani - I KNOW only feb. n e e d t o g o t o g y m.)

instead I leave you with some interesting links - which have made me smile - hope they inspire you too.

suds and soda :: catherine chalmers :: hel looks :: scribbling woman on domestic blogs ::

a book: jeanette winterson - lighthousekeeping - i loved this - what have you read lately? any good book recommendations?

things are getting hectic around here

the pace is fast
the kids are frantic
life
cooking dinner is too hard
is there any clean clothes
whats for dinner

s l o w d o w n
be calm-er
enjoy

be me

corners of my home

I realise I am a bit late on the bandwagon with the corners of home thingy but here are some of mine - and here are some other peoples.



And another one I am a bit late on - a meme:

Four Jobs I've Had
granny nanny - live in carer for the elderly - in the UK
short order cook - for greasy lunch time takeaway - burgers and deep fried everything
door to door sales - in brisbane - this one lasted 1 day - I just couldn't hack it
breakfast room service - in swanky hotel starting at 5am

Four Places I've Lived
Beijing, China (1 year) :: Darwin, NT Australia (6 months) :: London, UK (on and off for 2 years) :: Port Douglas, QLD Australia (6 months)

Four Places I've Vacationed
India (back packing and doing it rough) :: Poland (back packing and doing it cheap) :: Tibet (back packing again - but with my brother this time) :: Adelaide (car camping - much better)

Four of My Favorite Dishes
filet steak - rare (I can't go past this on a restaurant menu)
risotto (no-one else is a fan so I don't make it anymore)
garlic and tomato soup with lots of olive oil (robs specialty)
spicy italian sausage pasta

Four Sites I Visit Daily
Bloglines :: treehugger :: technorati :: Whip Up

Well that is a shortened version of the meme - I couldn't think of honest answers to some of the q's.

On a different topic - sort of - Did anyone (aussies only) watch dancing with the stars last night - I hate to admit that I did watch it - somehow it is compelling - I will be watching again though - my cousin in one of the competitors this time round - can you guess who - a clue - he's not a professional dancer.

self portrait challenge - all of me #2

here i am aaagh!!!



wrinkles and cracked lips, cut on my nose - bumby nose from when it was broken as a child, motherhood freckles and blotches that never went away - weathered skin - did you notice the double chin and the deep dark bags under my eyes? - well this is me I guess. What are you doing for this months 'all of me' challenge? check out spt for some very amazing and brave people.

fresh floor

Painted the floor on the weekend. The kids enjoyed the process and loved having some space for dancing while the furniture was packed away.







more info on the new floor here

dancing up a storm

Nikki might recognise the fabric in Otilija's pants (from a swap awhile ago). I made the kids a few pairs of light cotton pants that are worn for pyjamas, for lounging, for outings, for everywhere. Otilija won't wear shorts so these elastic waisted 3/4 pants are perfect and cool for this hot summer we are having. As for Orlando he wears his for pj's and since he still wets the bed occasionally it is handy having an extra supply of pants.

Speaking of swaps - afternoon tea arrived from Belinda at Taylor street. Having failed to take any pics I give you the pics Al took of her rich chocolate chip biscuits. mmmm Yummy!

We re-painted our floor yesterday, which was a bit of an endeavour, but looks fantastic. These pics are the before - tomorrow I will post the after.

excitement at our place

the tooth fairy will be visiting

nature collage

My kids love to do craft, love making collage, love anything that involves glue and lots of it.

Glue. I buy it and then buy more of it, the lid gets left off, we use it all up, we never seem to have any when we want it. So I decided to go with the nature collage we would make natural glue. That jar of creamy goo you see in the picture is homemade glue and keeps for a week or two in the fridge. That bark there is paper bark, and flakes off into paper thin slivers of bark, so wonderful for projects like this.

Of course there is a hell of a mess when complete. But look at the wonderful art that came out of it too.

recipe for homemade glue:
use a 3:1 ratio of flour and sugar, mix into a paste with cold water, and then double the amount of water to flour. stir over heat until it thickens, add a teaspoon of white vinegar.

self portrait challenge - all of me

ooooh yukky toes. Mozzy bites, torn nails, sunburnt, dirty, crusty, dead skin, hairy, flakey skin.
These summer toes are in serious need of some loving care. But this is not the end of it. These toes were born oddly shaped. My mother even tried splinting and plastering these toes into a nice straight shape when I was young. Alas my wide feet and ungainly toes would not budge from their natural born state.

RED RED RED

did you know i love red
red clothes, red walls, red fabric.

exceptions are red flowers and red lipstick - they are almost too too much

second hand skirt

This fabric is a skirt. A girls skirt. A second hand skirt. A handmade second hand girls skirt. I think it might have been a pillow case before that. It is gathered at the top and has ruffles at the bottom, it ends below the knees. It is light and summery. It is loved. Its owner runs free in this skirt, plays in mud and climbs trees and swings upside down. This is a good skirt.

poster walls

I love these sorts of walls, in cafes, rest rooms, community centres. I love scanning them for local events and classes and entertainment, I love reading the classifieds and lost pets posters. I love reading about what classes and which comedians are on. I always grab the free postcards and brochures thinking that I will definitely go to that rally or join this yoga group or go to this other cool jazz band - I never do go, I always lose the postcards or add them to the kids craft box. But still next time I go I am inspired anew.

girls drawing time

I loved Amanda post at whip up about family drawing time. And felt I needed to reinstate this as a regular thing. I suppose we stopped doing it for a while as the kids were interested in other things and Orlando is often a big distraction for Otilija. So I decided to do a regular girls drawing time as part of our girls afternoon once a week.

noticing the cracks in the pavement

taking up betsy's challenge for whip up readers

today had some girl time with Otilija, first week back at school after the summer and I have a new resolution to spend more time with her. We walked and noticed things, and chatted, and talked, we talked about rainbows and giants, and leaves and writing letters.

What colour are leaves? are they always green?
What do colour do giants think leaves are?
Can giants see people? if they step on them they aren't really bad are they?
giants might think leaves are rainbow coloured.
who do you write letters to?
can you write letters to anyone? how to they get there?

Endless curiousity.
I love it.

self portrait tuesday - 'all of me"

Oh my God! who thought of this challenge. Any way here goes.

Beware - gruesome bloody pictures to follow

What could be more all of me than when giving birth. No inhibitions in this room, spread those legs, probing hands and intruments.
Pain, searing pain, shooting up and back again.
Tearing
Blood
crying
relief, exhaustion, excitement, content
This is all of me.

dark chocolate and red wine

This is my favourite combination of colours.
I feel warm and safe just looking at these two colour together.
Dark chocolate and red wine
but also a bold curry and cinnamon
chocolate hitting your tongue
brown velvet and ruby red corduroy
burning wood, glowing coals

its fun and hot and safe and rich and bold

pink and blue

skin and ice
hot and cold

the colours of opposites
extremes
life
light
the sky
sunset

green - soothing

grass
bushland
water and mountain
green tea
apples
leaves and moss
basil and olives
sage and parsely
cucumber and avocado


looking at green instantly soothes your eyes
green is a transitional colour
it enables you to get a calm state of being
to appreciate everything else first spend time with green

orange - sunshine

Sunshine
farm fresh eggs
movement and light
rockmelon
carrots and oranges
fresh crusty bread
delicious and warm and energising
lively and fun and rich

pink and red and blue

Following on from yesterdays post - I thought I would revisit some old images and think about colour.







There are a number of reasons I love these images - the children are, of course, delightful and gorgeous and serene. The setting is so peaceful. But most of all the colour is entrancing, enveloping, enticing. So reminiscent of bright beach days, hours spent fishing or hunting for shells, sitting with dad, feeling safe, playing in the mud, losing shoes and hats, waiting watching dreaming.

The candy pink and the soft pink, immediately catches your eye and clashes wonderfully with the red, and blends so soothingly with the blue. The creamy pink and gold of the childrens skin and the straw green of the grass combines everything together.

its all about colour for me

I love colour, then pattern, then texture, then design. In that order I think - although the last 4 change about - its all about colour for me.

Red wine with chocolate and cream
smoky blue with stormy grey
fire red with eggplant purple
cucumber and avocado and sage green
milky mint milkshake
so many different combinations
I love white in alls its manifestations - warm linen white, icy blue white, stony grey white. White adds to the intensity of colour, frames it, enhances it.

And speaking of colour and design and all things crafty - whip up is up and running, lots of great posts to kick it off.
Camilla talks about her love of paper, Nicole has a great post on felting, lisa is doing a monthly column on fabrics and design and making - starting off with a great post on thrifting, mav is doing a monthly column on paper arts and inspiration her first post in on vintage ephemera, and lots of other posts to keep you busy.

Don't forget - email your story ideas or link suggestions to the email on whip up. have fun, enjoy reading and let me know what you think -