Leisurely Lesley

Self portrait

2011-06-25T19:24:00.000+10:00

We decided to do self portraits for a challenge.

Another painting…

2011-06-18T19:18:00.000+10:00

POMEGRANATES by Lesley

POMEGRANATES by Kaye

I go to Kaye’s house and we set up easels in the dining room. We set a task – try and be loose with our painting. We did a “Masterchef’. After two hours – brushes down and step back from the bench, but we kept fiddling.

A momentous day

2011-06-13T19:09:00.000+10:00

Today I turned 55 and had my last dose of chemotherapy. Yeehaa!

I can paint…

2011-06-12T19:06:00.000+10:00

I may sound like a tosser but I have discovered that I can paint. I have dabbled in watercolours before without a huge amount of success. I always thought I may be able to paint but haven’t really had the time or opportunity to have a go.

Here is my first attempt at using acrylics on a canvas.

GARLIC

Basket making

2011-05-03T15:13:00.001+10:00

How lucky am I? Kaye made two baskets and gave them to me. The one above is from our local cushion bush picked when they were out in bud and the one below had kangaroo grass added for a sculptural effect. I love them

And this one below I made myself at our basket making day at Rocky and Margy’s. I know there is jasmine and honey suckle vine as the main components. I was very impressed with myself but I had a lot of help.

Big tides and big waves

2011-04-25T22:44:00.000+10:00

Generally around Easter time we can expect the sea to put on a show for us. During the Easter break I spent time sitting on the foreshore watching the action.

You may notice at the bottom of the crane a surfer is hooking his surf ski up to get it onto the pier. Big surf this day at Two Mile Bay reef but if any local surfers happen to read this I could get my tyres slashed. They are very touchy about keeping this a secret. On this day Kelly Slater, ten times world champion, was surfing the secret spot. We have been graced with his presence before.

This was the same day. The local people generally like to get out in the midst of the bay and get tossed around. It is quite safe within the bay and great fun.

Here is my niece, Madey, pushing through a wave.

A couple of days later and a different scene. Beautiful autumn sunshine and calmer seas.

Early evening and the tourists are making the most of the beautiful environment.

Basket Making

2011-04-14T22:07:00.000+10:00

There were a few of us. More than in the pictures. We gathered at Rocky’s and Margy’s place. A great shared lunch to get the creative juices flowing and then outside to make baskets from various vegetation found there on the farm. And we didn’t let the drizzle hinder our progress. We were lucky to have four very experienced basket makers – Margy, Kaye, Rocky and Jill.

Jill, Georgie, Kaye, Annie and sorry but I forget her name.

And here is Kaye amongst it all – her favourite place.

I was feeling fairly crap by the end of the day because of chemo side effects so didn’t get the images I would normally get – like the finished products!

But I have ended up with a basket that I will treasure. I can still take a photo of that and post it in the future.

New year new course

2011-03-28T16:46:00.001+11:00

I have undertaken to do a Creative Machine Embroidery course for 2011. Once again this course is through SWTAFE Warrnambool with Karen Richards being our teacher. The course is available on campus and off campus and I have the opportunity to do a bit of both, so I don’t have to freak out if I don’t get to classes. Just hope the self discipline part of off campus studies doesn’t do me in. The above image is a sampler that was required – FILLING IN WITH STRAIGHT STITCH.

Our weaving group was hoping to continue this year but due to TAFE restructuring their fee schedules, this became way too expensive for some. I am still hoping to weave in some way or other this year.

Life’s little surprises.

2011-03-24T19:11:00.001+11:00

I was all over the place for most of January. Discovering something lumpy in my breast and then getting the diagnosis of cancer.

February was the month of tests, scans and surgery.

March has been quiet, getting ready for April and chemotherapy. I have no idea what that will entail.

However, I do want to get back into blogging so we will see how that goes…

SUMMER ICONS

2011-01-05T20:28:00.001+11:00

Hay bales at Annie and Fuzz’s farm.

BASKETS FROM CUSHION BUSH

2011-01-03T15:01:00.001+11:00

Before Christmas got in the way of life, I was making baskets from cushion bush, a plant which is prolific in this area of Victoria. I had never seen baskets made of cushion bush and even when googled nothing appeared. And of course it wasn’t my invention…it was Kaye’s.

They were intended for Christmas presents but of course that never happened.

In Search of Wildflowers

2010-11-08T22:47:00.001+11:00

Plenty of this. Plus a beautiful copper bellied snake slithering across our path.

Will never tire of the native grass trees.

The prize of the day – a blotched sun orchid T. benthamiana – the first time I have seen one in this area. Thanks to Kaye’s diligence.

And an excellent bunch of flowers from Mitty’s garden.

Tiny Teddies

2010-11-08T22:34:00.001+11:00

A gift from Jill. A tiny teddy each in the colour we use the least of. I received the blue one.

Introducing ‘Flaps’ the mountain duck

2010-10-25T16:47:00.001+11:00

Found wandering in the local caravan park, following anyone who happened to pass by.

Flaps was handed into the Parks office and from there found his way here. Flaps would have been a lot better of with his mother but that wasn’t to be.

We have had him for almost two weeks now and he has grown A LOT!

He requires quite a bit of attention but he has been worth it.

For more information on Australia’s largest duck go to here

Just a few more.

2010-08-30T21:43:00.001+10:00

A magic mushie nestled in pine needles.

Windfall under the sheoaks.

A coastal garden landscaped perfectly by the weather.

So many earthy colours in the one place.

Shipwrecked, and this is relatively mild sea conditions. The ‘Marie Gabrielle’ was wrecked here in 1869 while carrying tea from China to Melbourne. The three-masted French barque was driven ashore at 1am on November 24.

Plenty of green stuff for the animals to eat this year.

Colours of August

2010-08-30T21:27:00.001+10:00

We have had an amazing amount of water fall to the earth this month. Everything is soggy and quite luscious. And the farmers are rejoicing.

There is water in our water holes and the water birds can be seen in great numbers.

A walk through the green paddocks and the kangaroos are not that sure they want to share.

Plenty of this going on.

And this.

But also a sign that spring is on it’s way.

There are more participants in the COLOURS OF EACH MONTH over at Sue’s blog LIFE LOOMS LARGE. Go over and check it out here.

Woven Creations

2010-08-30T21:05:00.000+10:00

Finally getting around to posting images of the woven creations of other students. These items were exhibited at the Hamilton Sheepvention Show early this month and will also be shown at The Royal Melbourne Show. The majority of fibre used was alpaca, being part of a deal done with the Alpaca Association and SouthWest TAFE here in Warrnambool.

First off the ranks are three scarves woven by Jeanette Tollerbond.

And two wraps also woven by Jeanette.

The next four items are by Georgie Crow. As a matter of interest the bottom wrap in the second image as well as the wraps in the final two images were all woven on the same warp.

The next four are a variety of knits by Jill Hunter.

And last but definitely not least are items by Rocky Blair. Rocky has used alpaca fibre from her own alpacas and felted it to produce these hats with the final image being a skirt and wrap woven on the same warp.

And to conclude, I must thank our stunning model who suffered all types of indignities without complaint for this photo shoot.

The display at Hamilton.

Clifton Beach to Gibson Steps

2010-07-30T17:41:00.000+10:00

It was the middle of winter and a beautiful day. So we went for a walk.

Leaving the Great Ocean Walk track and coming onto the beach at Clifton.

Last time we did this walk we had to climb over rocks to get past this point, but this time nature had worked for us with a fresh cliff fall, and we were able to walk through the sand passage behind the fall.

Annie with her found treasures.

All set for the Hamilton Sheepvention Show

2010-07-30T16:35:00.001+10:00

All the designing and making for the Alpaca Association has been completed. It has been packed and shipped off to the Hamilton Sheepvention Show for display. A description of the project can be found here.

Last week was somewhat frantic finalising my required three pieces but I did it!

A very soft and thick wrap from 3 ply commercially spun alpaca.

I’m really happy with this skirt. I initially got the idea from a picture in an old ‘Handwoven’ magazine. It began as 2 ply white alpaca yarn for the weft and 100% wool for the warp (to add strength to the cloth for wear). I dyed both the warp and weft after lots of experimentation with colours. I blogged about a bit of the process here. So the yarn was dyed, woven and sewn into this skirt.

And this vest completed my contribution. The warp is 100% black wool and the weft is handspun alpaca of a natural mahogany colour. And I really like the results with this one too.

Thanks Kirsty for the pin fastener. I love it. It is made from the wood of dead bull oak trees.

In the next post I’ll show images of the work of other students in the class.

Colours of July

2010-07-29T15:30:00.001+10:00

Not a whole lot of bloggin’ the past month. Must have been having too much fun elsewhere.

But for some unknown reason I don’t like missing out on the ‘Colours of the Month’ organised and maintained by Sue over at Life Looms Large. Check out other contributions.

Early in the month we went walking in Melba Gully State Park, an amazing rainforest not far from here.

The following photographs were taken in our front yard.

Colours of June – Part One

2010-06-20T20:48:00.001+10:00

Visit this link at Sue’s Life Looms Large to see more contributors to COLOURS OF JUNE and maybe join in.

I cheated this month. I caught an aeroplane to Northern Queensland, Australia and boarded a friend’s yacht. It is tropical so their winter is not really a winter.

Every day is a different adventure. Lots of sailing, swimming, snorkelling, photography, reading, knitting, bit of cooking. Could do with more showering.

Beautiful sunsets viewed from the yacht.

Amazing landmarks.

A variety of weather conditions.

Crab patterns in the sand.

Lots of tropical flowers.

Typical island scenery.

Palm trees and their fruit.

Colours of May

2010-05-28T11:02:00.001+10:00

We have had beautiful autumn days recently but there is a definite chill factor happening.

Making the most of the sun’s warmth before it disappears into the winter miasma.

The sea is its usual unpredictable self but generally on the blustery side.

Foggy morns.

Cooriemungle vista with added sunshine.

Bush patterns.

Check out other bloggers who are contributors to the COLOUR OF THE MONTH run by Sue over at LIFE LOOMS LARGE and join in if you wish.

The birds are not sharing

2010-05-24T17:23:00.001+10:00

This was the start of it and now the apples are all gone with the crimson rosellas getting much more than their fair share. Probably would help if we netted properly.

Alpaca project – a skirt in the making

2010-05-24T17:08:00.001+10:00

Wound onto the bobbin and ready to go. The story of this yarn can be found here. It is the weft yarn, 100% alpaca and hand dyed, while the warp is 100% tough wool and also hand dyed to one of my favourite green shades.

The reason for the tough warp is WEAR. The cloth is going to be used to make a skirt and a cute one at that I hope!

It is more warp faced than I expected but I like it. The skirt will have two tiers, the next cloth to be woven being a darker shade.

Alpaca project

2010-05-18T16:56:00.000+10:00

This wrap has been made by Georgie. It’s extremely soft, thick and luscious. The warp is wool whereas the weft is handspun alpaca.

Experimenting by Jill with alpaca roving. This was intended as a scarf but became too thick with the felting. It morphed into a sash for the waist line.

100% alpaca yarn beautifully knitted by Jill (of course). These beanies are incredibly comfortable to wear – soft, light weight and cozy.

More experimenting by Jill, this time of the weaving type. The yarn used here was alpaca plied with hand spun silk. It is a twill weave with lots of body.

I generally lust over all the goodies that keep being produced and this is no exception. Dyed and woven by Jeanette Tollerbond. Jeanette used Landscape dyes and commercially spun alpaca yarn. This wrap drapes beautifully.

And this is similar but different colours – differing shades of red ochre from the Landscape dyes.

Red cabbage dye surprise

2010-05-10T16:32:00.000+10:00

To be on the safe side I thought I would knit a swatch with some of the natural dyeing I have been doing. I included yarn dyed with red cabbage and also yarn from the Mexican blossom bush.

I thought I should put it through the wash to test wash fastness. I totally expected fading.

I didn’t expect a complete colour change. The lilac colour in the skein turned a cruddy blue colour. Truly amazing. Whereas the green from the Mexican blossom bush was unchanged.

Dyeing with red cabbage

2010-05-07T16:58:00.001+10:00

I didn’t buy the red cabbage, it appeared in my fridge, the first time I have ever owned one.

“The red cabbage (Brassica oleracea) contains pigments known as anthocyanins. Anthocyanins belong to a large group of water-soluble natural pigments responsible for the attractive colors ranging from strawberry red to the blue color of most fruits, flowers, leaves, and some vegetables. Anthocyanins are commercially used as a colorant in acid solutions such as soft drinks. At various H+ concentrations these compounds rearrange their molecular structures giving rise to different colours.”

I decided to experiment. Boiling the cabbage gave the liquid the colour above right.

Into the pot I placed a hank of alpaca, with some silk roving and merino roving. An immediate colour change to ruby red. Mmm, maybe because of the alum mordant.

These are the colours achieved after a number of rinses – left pic from top: merino wool, silk and alpaca. I love the soft natural colours.

A big question mark at the moment is whether the colours will survive a wash or two or more. I’m not too hopeful after the reading I have done. But, nonetheless, it is all a fascinating learning experience.

Eco printing and dyeing

2010-05-05T22:09:00.000+10:00

This photo looks so luscious and creamy. It is white silk fabric and cream silk/cotton fabric soaking in water in preparation for the dye pot.

Leaves from a blue gum and red onion skins rescued from the dye pot – all wrapped up tightly and tossed into the remnants of the red onion skin dye pot.

The marks obtained on the silk/cotton fabric – looks even better in the flesh.

Alpaca Project

2010-05-04T22:01:00.000+10:00

Remember this. It is now this colour. A blue-purple. Jill wasn’t too thrilled with the results but once it is worn it is quite striking, amazingly so.

Prolific Jill has knitted a scarf using bits of handspun and undyed alpaca fibre. The scarf has been knitted on circular needles horizontally. I can’t remember how many stitches she cast on but it was a shite load.

Maybe the Alpaca Project should be called the Jill Project. Here is more of Jill’s knitting. Short length scarves that work really well, like a cravat – knitted from commercially spun alpaca fibre and dyed with Landscape dyes.

Dye colours from left: wheat, kelp, red ochre (removed from dye pot early) and mountain blue.

Port Campbell

2010-05-03T21:37:00.000+10:00

This is where I live. So far I have lived here for 53 years. I have never got sick of the place.

For about the first 30 years I didn’t have to share it with the tourists except during holiday times.

But now it represents dollars to people, many who don’t even live here and a few who do.

They want to DEVELOP the place so it is more palatable to the visitor - so their visit is not too difficult.

More walking tracks, more viewing platforms, helicopters for the million dollar view (don’t get me started on this one), multi million dollar information centres, cafes in the National Park, oh, and close anything that is a wee bit dangerous – basically, grabbing as many dollars as possible by any means possible.

It disgusts me. They’re going to ruin it.

More colours of April

2010-05-02T21:12:00.000+10:00

A banksia bush

Grevillea

Lichen

Footprints.

Colours of April

2010-05-01T20:55:00.001+10:00

The middle of autumn.

Unpredictable weather.

Gloriously warm or wild and woolly and everything in between.

Huge seas full of white water.

Large piles of sea foam.

Intermittent rainbows.

Dramatic lighting.

And just plain sunny.

Alpaca Project – a weekend of dyeing

2010-04-18T21:16:00.001+10:00

What is the Alpaca Project? Answer HERE.

I mordanted a batch of alpaca yarn in a solution of alum and cream of tartar, and while I was at it I mordanted some silk and merino wool rovings.

First I tried dyeing in a boiling pot of CHOISYA TERNATA aka MEXICAN ORANGE BLOSSOM. I decided to place the alpaca yarn into a laundry bag to protect it from the moving foliage. It came out of the pot a pale green and dried to a creamier pale green.

Next I wanted a pale pink. So I tried red onion skins which I have been collecting whenever I visit a supermarket.

Not quite. See that ruby red liquid. It gave me an earthy green which dried to quite a nice colour but definitely not a pale pink. Beetroot is looking good. I thought it may have been the aluminium pot so I repeated the exercise in a stainless steel pot, and yes, it was different – just a little bit darker green.

I consulted all my gurus about this but I'm still no wiser. Maybe someone out there in blog land can enlighten me.

While the pots boiled I did some spinning in the beautiful autumn weather. More frothy alpaca yarn.

Alpaca Project

2010-04-18T20:51:00.001+10:00

What is the Alpaca Project? Answer HERE.

Jill continues to shame us with her quality and output. A sample of her spinning from a first shearing of a huacaya in a fawn pink.

Jill again, who is mainly concentrating on knitted items. A cute scarf knitted from the alpaca yarn, dyed in Landscape dye MOUNTAIN BLUE and knitted with the pattern - K3 wool *forward K* to last 3 stitches, K3, for every row.

Jill again. A knitted feather and fan stole in alpaca yarn. Very luscious.

Jill again. A knitted shawl from the alpaca yarn which she decided to dye in a rash moment. See below.

Photos of dried results still to come.

What the /!*?

2010-04-12T16:47:00.001+10:00

This is a new carton just opened with it’s full contents. Even allowing for settling of contents this is a bit much. Unbelievable.

Alpaca Project

2010-04-12T16:09:00.001+10:00

Here is Georgie’s completed beret, woven with alpaca fibre on a piece of cardboard.

And here is the final results of the dyed alpaca yarn. The process was shown here. I was mightily impressed with how the over dyeing with black gave the colours a bit more oomph.

The last couple of days I have been weaving samples to test the alpaca yarn’s capacity for weaving. Here’s a happy accident. I’m sure more experienced weavers would know all about this but I didn’t – the undulating effect of twill when woven on a warp with a variety of setts.

And then there is this. Not so happy. I haven’t had this happen before. When winding the warp forward and over the front beam all my careful weaving went out of whack. Why is it so? And does anyone know how to prevent this from happening? I suppose this is why you do samples.

Introduction to Botanical Illustration with Fiona McKinnon

2010-04-12T15:42:00.001+10:00

A little while ago I spent a totally enjoyable weekend being taught by Fiona McKinnon, a well known botanical artist. Fiona is an entertaining and skillful teacher who works with the Botanical Art School of Melbourne.

The workshop was organised by South West TAFE. My only complaint is it didn’t go long enough.

Below is some of the resulting art works by other students.

My Creative Space

2010-04-09T09:18:00.001+10:00

It should be “My Main Creative Space” as I have little pockets of space all over the house. One day I hope to have a studio separate from the house – my retirement fantasy.

Using the dining room table is not ideal. Usually there is much more ‘stuff’ piled on this space. We rarely get to eat here.

Space dyeing rovings

2010-04-08T07:18:00.001+10:00

DEFINITIONS

“SPACE DYEING is a technique used to give yarn a unique, multi-colored effect. While a typical skein of yarn is the same color throughout, a skein of space dyed yarn is two or more different colors that typically repeat themselves throughout the length of the yarn.”

“A ROVING is a piece of fibre which has been combed, drawn into a clump, and then twisted slightly to hold the fibers together and to prepare them for spinning and/or felting. SLIVER and TOP have a similar meaning to rovings.”

After confessing to Jude about taking a tiny piece of her space dyed roving ( and spinning it ) I received a slight dressing down, and then she agreed to try and replicate the same colours in some of the commercially spun alpaca fibre.

The end result of the furtive spinning of pilfered roving. A tiny piece of roving goes a long way.

Judy, the master dyer at TAFE, at work.

The alpaca yarn soaking in hot water.

The first addition – black.

The second addition – red.

The third addition – yellow.

Just a slight stir to meld the colours.

Let it simmer gently until the water runs clear which means all the dye has been attached to the fibres.

Almost the end result. It was decided that it needed a bit more oomph so it was returned to the pot with a little more black dye.

Still to take the photograph of the finished product.

Wedding bouquets

2010-03-31T22:01:00.001+11:00

I helped daughter no. 2 with some wedding photography last weekend.

Colours of March – representing the southern hemisphere

2010-03-31T21:49:00.001+11:00

This bush is typical Australian bush with the very sculptural grass trees, located in a paddock on a friend’s farm.

Nearby coast – Peterborough way.

Worm Bay – good for swimming.

Mutton Bird Island.

Boggy Creek – a little bit inland.

Lots of yarn

2010-03-17T21:17:00.000+11:00

While waiting patiently for our commercially spun alpaca yarn to arrive we have easily kept busy on other projects.

Here is Georgie weaving a beret on cardboard. In the background you can view our revamped room. Much more civilised now. Oh and BTW, Georgie has a sore knee. She isn’t really that lay back.

And Jill and Rocky hand spinning alpaca fibre.

Jill is the most productive, spinning and knitting beautifully. Below is a wee bit of her hand spun alpaca yarn.

And Georgie was unable to wait. She warped up with an unknown from the store room and used hand spun alpaca by Rocky for her weft. Georgie is experimenting with lace weaves for her alpaca project.

And I stole some fibre that had been dyed for another class. I walked past it, saw the colours and couldn’t help but take just a small bit to spin up. I love it. On the bottom left is the single thread and on the right is the plied result. Should have pinched the whole lot.

Jill again. More hand spun alpaca yarn. Beautiful stuff.

And another ebay mistake! I bought quite a large amount of tussah silk from some guy who was destashing his weaving studio. It looked luscious so I bought a kilogram of the stuff. This is the photo supplied on ebay.

Here is what I got. Very beige with no sheen and it sheds. I hate shedding. When will I learn? I’ve washed it and whacked it but it still sheds, otherwise it could still have been used in some project .

Breakfast @ the Twelve Apostles

2010-03-08T12:37:00.001+11:00

It’s an annual fundraiser. The local Red Cross and Cancer Council get together and deliver a delicious breakfast at the Twelve Apostles.

Annie and I started early and walked about 12 kilometres to get there (this was huge for me) – along dirt tracks, through farms, and National Park. It was only in the final half hour of walking that I was needing a panadol or two or three.

Inquisitive sheep thinking that we may be delivering a meal.

Egg and bacon was first course followed by pancakes, strawberries and cream.

The Apostles were looking good.

It was perfect weather.

Alpaca Project and other stuff

2010-03-04T13:39:00.001+11:00

Each Tuesday morning we congregate in the art department at the Sherwood campus of Deakin University at Warrnambool.

Below is an assortment of alpaca fleece spun by Jill.

Jill decided to experiment with the brown and white plied yarn and dye it blue. These are the results. The verdict is still out.

Jill bought in her Majacraft spinning wheel to show me. She loves it and now it is on my wish list.

Here is Georgie warping up for her first alpaca piece. Georgie is concentrating on lace weaves for her theme.

THE OTHER STUFF

The flower ( not sure what it is) was photographed for an assignment on ‘composition’ for the Photoshop course I am doing.

And these birds are corellas. There are lots of them around at the moment, having a distinctive squawking noise. They also seem to be public enemy number one in many parts of Victoria for the damage they do to crops and the environment.

Study in 2010

2010-02-27T21:11:00.001+11:00

I have returned to South West TAFE for another year of learning and doing.

I am continuing on with Textiles with the main focus being on weaving. This year there is an added dimension which is exciting. Our small group has been approached by the Victorian Western Region of the Australian Alpaca Association.

“They are looking to promote alpaca fleece, yarns and products and would like to do so by providing TAFE students with Yarn and fibre to design and weave with.

In exchange for these materials we will exhibit our work at Sheepvention in Hamilton on 2nd and 3rd August and also at the Royal Melbourne Show in September.

AAA are looking for innovative design which ‘excites interest’ and shows off alpaca as the luxury fibre it is. They are happy to see alpaca combined with other fibres but wish to see alpaca as the dominant element in the overall work.”

So the process begins.

Jill demonstrating the finer points of spinning.

At the moment I am excitedly spinning suri fleece - I love the process.

“The Suri is a rare and precious breed of Alpaca, representing less than 10% of the Australian Alpaca population and less than 5% of the world Alpaca population. It is truly a rare and precious specialty fibre.The primary characteristics which distinguish Suri fleece is it’s lock structure, high lustre, silky handle and long staple length.”

If you are interested in learning more about alpacas THIS is an informative site without being too in depth.

But there’s more…I am also undertaking a 16 week course in an Intermediate Photoshop course.

Great Ocean Walk

2010-02-26T14:31:00.001+11:00

Annie and I went walking last night.

Down here on the Great Ocean Road we have the Great Ocean Walk – a 7 night/8 day walk through National Park along a beautiful coastline.

Annie’s friends are in the midst of the walk. We went to visit and have tea with them at the Ryan’s Den campsite. The map below shows a section of the walk.

We walked down to the rocky beach – a steep incline. I wasn’t fond of the thought of climbing back up.

We sat on the rocks for awhile.

I did get back up but there was a lot of heart thumping, rests and sweating involved.

As a reward for making it we walked another couple of kilometres (more sweating, etc.) to the camp site and sat on the cliff watching the sun set as we ate our tea.

An art work

2010-02-22T17:17:00.001+11:00

I received Derwent Inktense pencils from daughter no. 1 for Christmas. I am still at the experimenting stage. This image has had a little help from Photoshop – I like it.

Colours of February

2010-02-17T13:52:00.001+11:00

Sue from Life Looms Large continues to administer a monthly activity to record the colours of nature on a monthly basis. Here’s my contribution.

Bay of Islands, Peterborough

View from the top of Gibson’s Steps, Princetown

Gibson’s Steps beach, on a rainy summer day.

Summer colour in the paddocks.

Evening light on gum trees.

Searching for crabs at Wild Dog Cove.

Passing on the love of fishing – grandfather to granddaughter ( a slightly gratuitous shot).

Walk to Submarine Cove

2010-02-14T20:04:00.001+11:00

First a drive to Moonlight Heads, park the car, and then a walk to Submarine Cove. You can see why it is called Submarine Cove. Once we started walking it started to rain and didn’t really stop until we left Moonlight Heads again. We were wet for the whole walk – very cooling. Thankfully the temperatures were more in line with summer and we didn’t get cold.

Wasn’t the best for taking photos though. Once we arrived at the Cove it was way too wet to get the camera out.

Highly unusual rock formation on the walk down to the Cove.

On the way down we nibbled on these white berries – tasted like lemonade.

And these – native red currants (Coprosma quadrifida). Beautiful.

We made it back to the top - Annie with a backpack overflowing with drift wood.

And me – soaked. And filthy from clawing my way up a very slippery and steep incline. Certainly got my dose of exercise today.

Photo shoot

2009-12-30T17:30:00.001+11:00

Kayla, one of our Year 12 VCE art students, did extremely well with one of her folio pieces. She needed some photographs of her creation for publication. She asked and I was happy to do it. We went bush early the other morning and got some great shots.

Kayla designed, made and modeled her creation beautifully, along with plenty of support from her teacher, Annemaree.

Weaving and Roses

2009-12-26T22:19:00.001+11:00

The seashell themed honeycomb weaving, blogged about here, here and here,framed with watercolour paper.

And a perfect rose photographed in my mother’s garden.

Christmas Day

2009-12-25T07:35:00.001+11:00

Our last minute Christmas tree – minimalist look this year.

I’ve won something else!

2009-12-17T09:19:00.001+11:00

All my luck seems to have come at once. I have just found out that I won two hand woven towels from Sue at Life Looms Large.

Beautiful. Can’t wait till they arrive. And being a novice weaver myself, they will truly be appreciated.

Late reporting of trip to Grampians. Beware – photo laden post.

2009-12-13T19:48:00.001+11:00

Mitty and I went to the Grampians for a couple of days in late Spring, specifically to check out the wildflowers.

Well recognisable landscapes of the Grampians.

So many kangaroos in the one spot.

Looking for wildflowers.

Had to drive very slowly to avoid a head on with kangaroos.

Grass Trees are very slow growing with mature plants being centuries old.

‘The grass tree Xanthorrhoea, aka ‘black boys’, is a uniquely Australian plant, which epitomises the Australian landscape and is as tough as goats' knees. It will withstand drought. Bushfires will burn the foliage and blacken the stump, but then it regrows. Often a bushfire will encourage flower development. These remarkable plants have a lifespan of 600 years.’

Another typical Grampians scene.

We kinda left for our holiday on short notice and didn’t get organised for food. We had to buy in Hall’s Gap at the supermarket. We actually thought this would be a more economical way than eating out for our meals. Not so. This photo represents $95 worth of groceries. We went into shock at the cash register. In retrospect it probably would have been cheaper to eat out.

And this is kinda embarrassing. On the left we have my luggage and on the right we have Mitty’s luggage.

THE WILDFLOWERS

Common correa

I know it’s a daisy but that’s about it.

The common donkey orchid ‘diuris’.

Everlasting daisy.

Fringe lily.

Goodenia.

Green combed spider orchid.

Holly Grevillea.

Grevillea but unsure what type.

Pea flower.

Pink Finger orchid.

Running postman pea flower.

Salmon sun orchid.

Swamp goodenia.

Tinsel lily.

And sighted amongst the native flora and fauna was a feral deer.

Not surprisingly, we decided that we needed to stay a lot longer to do a proper job of exploring the Grampians.

P.S. If anyone who happens to come by, and knows the correct identification of any of these flowers I would appreciate you passing on your knowledge.

Surprise, surprise

2009-12-13T18:17:00.001+11:00

How lucky can one be?

2009-11-30T17:53:00.001+11:00

I have just found out that I have won this book

by leaving a comment on this blog post by Erin – House on Hill Road. I have been a fan of Malka’s work for quite some time.

What’s happening?

2009-11-29T20:13:00.002+11:00

What I have made recently…

Lime cordial – a thirst quencher with soda water. Goes well with vodka and gin also. We have a lime tree and every lime produced is appreciated and used in some way.

Spun baby suri alpaca fleece – so very soft. I’m slowly getting better at spinning, not that I am worried about my skill levels as I still think it is gorgeous yarn with all it’s lumps and bumps.

What is happening in the back yard…

Water lilies in the duck pond.

Plentiful supply of yabbies.

Truly amazing…

2009-11-28T17:54:00.002+11:00

I went to a clearance sale today – something I’ve never really done before. I certainly haven’t ever bid at an auction before, other than ebay. The sale was at Glenormiston and I went because I knew there were a few looms on offer. I would like an 8 shaft table loom. However, there weren’t any of these on offer.

Glenormiston is primarily an agricultural college managed by South West TAFE.

Anyway, on with the story. Georgie, a student in my weaving class, happened to turn up. We had a quick chat, and soon after the auction began. Things happened very quickly. The weaving equipment was the very first to go under the hammer so to speak. I was hoping to get an old drum carder and a raddle, but wasn’t too worried if I didn’t.

Shock no. 1 – they offered it all as one lot.

Shock no. 2 – Georgie and I had a bid and got the lot for $30. We’re talking about 2 x huge floor looms, 6 x four shaft table looms ( on a recount there are seven of the table looms), and a huge assortment of accessories like raddles, reeds, a warping mill and much more. We literally need a truck to cart it all a way. Luckily, Georgie does have a truck and an unused shearing shed to house it all. We are returning Monday to pick it all up.

I bought one of the smaller looms home and Murray got to work on it. It has cleaned up beautifully.

As I said, truly amazing.

Part 2 of today’s story – Also at the auction was Karen, our weaving teacher, who also happens to do machine embroidery art work. We now have to bow down to her as she recently won the PFAFF International Embroidery as Art Excellence Award for her piece Ruined Forest, which can be viewed at:

http://karenrichards.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13&Itemid=26#

As part of her prize, she got to fly and stay in London to accept her award as well as receiving a whoopee do sewing machine. Truly amazing… More details here .

And so I don’t have a post without an image, here is the feted artist herself.

Amazing colour from beach flotsam

2009-11-26T19:44:00.001+11:00

A visit to Crazy Kate’s beach near Peterborough produced this…

Weaving – Interior Project Part 3

2009-11-13T16:20:00.002+11:00

Following on with the SEASHELL theme I decided to make use of the 8 shaft loom at TAFE and experiment with HONEYCOMB weave. For the last honeycomb weave I did, I used my 4 shaft loom.

With an 8 shaft loom I had more options. This was the sample piece.

And this is the where I went freeform – varying the size of the honeycomb cells in width and height, and varying the colour.

Now I’d like to start over again and perfect it as this piece has a few imperfections.

To be continued…

Another adventure into Kaye’s bush

2009-11-09T17:54:00.001+11:00

And what did we find today?

Not sure. Will have to ask Kaye.

Ditto.

A potato orchid (Gastrodia Sesamoides), sometimes called Cinnamon Bells. More information here.

A spider orchid, and that’s all I know.

But here it is again from a different vantage point.

A Spotted Sun Orchid (Thelymitra Isioides)

And to finish off the walk we spied some koalas taking it very easy in the heat. That’s a cute little baby on mother’s back but it refused to turn around for the camera.

A bit too hot

2009-11-09T17:36:00.001+11:00

As the northern hemisphere heads into winter we here in the southern hemisphere begin to heat up.

And I don’t like sweating – very unattractive.

Went for the first swim of the season today with Mitty.

The beach was magnificent. The water looked tropical but was farkin’ freezing. By the time we swam out to the pier and back we had thawed out.

At this time of the year the beach generally belongs to the locals as the summer visitors are yet to arrive.

Hang tags

2009-11-08T13:37:00.001+11:00

More time playing around designing – a hang tag this time.

Passing opportunity

2009-11-05T21:45:00.002+11:00

Just happened to be going past Mum and Dad’s front yard tonight when I noticed these great shadows.

And of course I had to have a fiddle in Photoshop.

This, to me, is more dynamic with a slightly abstract edge. I like it. I like the hard copy too.

Interior Project part 2

2009-11-05T21:34:00.001+11:00

The SEASHELL theme suggests to me lightness, airy, breezy, delicate, fragile…so I’m going with open sett weaves and natural or muted colours.

Winding the warp – I’m getting better at this.

And beaming the warp – this was the first time ever that I didn’t have any dilemmas, which I put down to good quality yarn. It didn’t catch or shred or anything, just did what it was meant to do. Truly amazing.

I began with plain open sett which I am quite partial to.

I noticed as I wound it over the front beam that it has gone out of whack. It’s not a bad look. I will photograph it when it is off the loom.

I experimented with the leno weave structure – reminiscent of seashells. This image is confusing as the woven cloth can also be seen winding on below.

I also tried Brook's Bouquet weave structure.

And the Danish Medallion weave.

Looking forward to seeing what happens with the weaves once off the loom but I still have more experimenting to go.

To be continued…

Interior Project – Weaving

2009-11-04T20:11:00.001+11:00

As a part of the WEAVING MINOR unit that I am studying at TAFE I have to undertake a project that involves producing woven fabrics for interiors.

Firstly, I had to select a theme. I selected SEASHELL after coming across this image.

The muted colours and delicacy of the shells appealed to me.

The aim is to weave a range of six coordinating samples related to the theme, using more than one warp. Following this a final piece has to be woven.

To be continued…

Visit to the Grampians National Park

2009-11-03T20:05:00.001+11:00

Had an overnight stay with Mitty at Hall’s Gap last week. We went to check out the spring wildflowers.

The township of Hall’s Gap is situated in the heart of the Grampian’s National Park

This image is three photos stitched together to create a panorama – a typical Grampian’s vista.

Walking at Egan’s Track

2009-11-02T22:14:00.002+11:00

Morning phone call from Annie. Do you want to go for a walk? If you say yes, you can generally count on being absent for the rest of the day, and because I was moping around lacking motivation I knew I had to say yes.

We had a chauffer – Isobel Younis, it being her 78th birthday. Issy enjoys revisiting the countryside and while we walked, she enjoyed herself with reading and the odd fag.

It was a perfect day for walking. And why does simple picnic food taste so much better when eaten outdoors?

We walked Egan Track, slightly south of Carlisle River. Driving there takes you past some beautiful land – lush farming land, forests, national parks, heath lands, rivers, creeks, valleys and more.

Our driving route – Rounds Road to Eastern Creek Road to Melrose Road to Princetown Road to Fords Road to Valley View Road to Boulevarde Road to Gellibrand River Road to the turnoff for Egan’s Track. After the walk we drove the short distance to Carlisle River to check it out.

Egan’s Track

Lunch time where the food tasted wonderful.

Coral fern

Coral fern again, mainly dead and dried out.

Only saw this once. Photogenic pods but what are they?

I’m guessing a leafy purple flag.

This plant was beautiful. Most specimens weren’t at the flowering stage until this one at the top of a hill. Will have to find out what it is. Have found out - WOOLLY EVERLASTING.

Rug weaving

2009-11-02T21:12:00.002+11:00

I really need to update my computer. I am starting to strum my fingers in between mouse clicks. Oh so frustrating.

This is Georgie busy on the rug loom.

One of the projects we have to complete for our course with TAFE is to weave a rug. Some kind soul donated this loom to the Art Department and Georgie was the first person to tackle it. It has been a challenge but she has managed to tame it and is busy producing a rug from her own design.

Information on the loom - built by Stanley Dann.

Will give it a go…

2009-11-01T21:16:00.001+11:00

But if I don’t make it I’m fairly sure no-one will either notice nor care.

Day One – My friends Mitty and Russell travel extensively for a couple of old farts. And one of their many favourite places is Guatemala.

“The Republic of Guatemala is a country in Central America, in the south of the continent of North America, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, Belize to the northeast, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast.”

Before I started weaving I didn’t really take that much notice of the Guatemalan weavings they had brought back from their travels. I appreciated them and liked them but didn’t really study them. But now I have – pretty amazing weaving and gorgeous colours.

Too many distractions

2009-10-21T14:35:00.001+11:00

Like designing business cards for no particular reason other than loving doing it when there is a heap of other stuff I should be doing.

Just one more…

2009-10-09T08:37:00.001+11:00

Love the softness and lushness of this image.

Sorry T – large file size again. The reason for this is that one day soon I am going to turn my blog into a printed book and images such as these need to have good resolution to print out effectively. I want to record my blog in case, for some unknown reason, it disappears into the blogoshere one day. Having a book will then sooth my angst as I will still have a hard copy of my blog. The plan is to do this at the end of each year.

Therefore, any images that are ‘art’ images need to be a decent file size but all others that are merely record shots I will reduce for quick downloading time.

Photoshopped

2009-10-05T20:41:00.001+11:00

Mitty’s flowers

2009-10-05T20:36:00.001+11:00

Mitty’s Garden

2009-10-05T20:29:00.001+11:00

Learning to card fleece

2009-10-04T11:51:00.002+11:00

Another day with Rocky – I have now learnt to use a carder. I have spent the last week spinning whenever I have had time. Mainly a relaxing activity, but interspersed with the f?*! word on occasion. It can be very frustrating during this learning stage. I rediscovered my bad temper a number of times – not attractive. Using carded fleece cut down on the ugly bits.

This is my first hank of yarn, washed and dried. I am feeling quite satisfied and proud and wanting to keep doing more.

While I carded away in the sunshine, Rocky worked on her tapestry which she is also studying through TAFE.

Her current assignment involves weaving curves. Southwest TAFE are renowned for the tapestry weaving course they offer and have been doing it for many years. It is also one of the courses they offer off campus.

Ecoprints and ecodyeing #2

2009-09-24T14:51:00.002+10:00

I tried lemon scented gum leaves for the second time with the thought that I may have failed the first time, but alas no…will use for over dyeing in the future.

Hate to admit it but this looks somewhat better than in real life.

As with all of the silk fabric in this post I placed it into a pot that had been sitting with soggy blue gum leaves for a long time, thinking I would get a rich colour but alas no…I must have exhausted the dye from the previous dyeing session.

In a few places you can just see where I used banksia leaves as a resist and used my favourite – red onion skins. I believe the really bright splotches came from the juicy red onion layer beneath the actual skin layers. Job to do – confirm this.

This piece was also wrapped around a tin. Not sure how the black colour happened.

This piece had been dyed before but was fairly insipid so I threw it in for a second go. I had placed moldy unknown leaves on it that had been stored in a plastic bag, and tied it into a parcel.

Tulips (dried out) and kangaroo paw, wrapped around an iron bolt and placed into a separate container in the pot. Nothing to write home about.

My favourite. This one saved me from despondency. And it was the most straightforward – an insipid result from a previous session, screwed roughly around a rusty piece of iron.

Had to add this image. When I started photographing the silk I hung it in front of a window. The blue and green are sky and grass. Would be great if it was the real thing but alas no…

Karen’s exhibition

2009-09-24T11:54:00.002+10:00

Karen is our teacher at South West TAFE for weaving. Her website is worth a visit.

Learning to spin

2009-09-22T20:21:00.002+10:00

I really needed to learn a new craft like I need a hole in the head. But Rocky, a spinner from way back, came to my place today and began the process of teaching me how to spin. And of course I love it. Now the aim is to get the raw fibre, spin and ply it, dye it and then weave, knit or crochet into a finished piece.

To complete the whole process I will have to seriously look at growing my own fibre. Might start researching goats that produce cashmere. Murray will be thrilled.

My initial efforts with corriedale fleece from a roving. Next I am trying alpaca fleece from one of Rocky and Paul’s alpacas.

We were hoping to spin in the sunshine but the sun was uncooperative. We have another day planned for next week.

Experimental Weaving

2009-09-20T21:26:00.002+10:00

After not being too happy with my first weaving project using novelty yarns I decided to have another go. This one started out with quite a bit of excitement when I went to the local Spotlight store when they were having a decent sale on some of their yarns. I purchased a few balls of an angora and wool blend produced in Italy. It felt beautifully soft and I thought I was on a real winner at $2 a ball. Huge mistake!

First sign of trouble came when winding the warp – the angora fibres shed very easily and kept entering my nasal cavities which was discomforting to say the least.

Next sign was the breakages in the warp when wound on the loom. By the time I’d finished weaving I had had 24 warp breakages. By the 24th I was hating it and didn’t persist any further.

The following picture shows the woven cloth off the loom.


		1. warp and weft same coloured yarn 2. warp and weft different coloured yarn 3. alternating colours in weft 4. 2 picks of each colour alternating in weft. 5. twill structure

By the time I had finished weaving the cloth the area around the loom was afloat with angora hair – everywhere.

The next step was to cut it up and I did this with abandon as I secretly was quite comfortable with the thought of destroying it.

And then, full of resentment, I sewed the damn thing up into a whole cloth again.

Once again, fibre all over the place, including the mouth as well as the nostrils this time.

And finally I washed the thing and then spent ages cleaning out my washing machine.

Things improved after washing. It seemed to have done with the shedding and the cloth is incredibly soft. But now the question is – what should it become? And it doesn’t help that I really aren’t fond of the final product.

I was going to sew it into a scarf for a male but in the midst of the process decided against it because of the annoying shedding factor, thinking it would drive the wearer nuts. So I proceeded to sew it into a broader cloth. Oh well, live and learn.

Moral of the story – investigate yarn properties before purchasing, especially the cheap stuff.

Double cloth weave complete!

2009-07-23T23:23:00.002+10:00

However, I’m not that fond of it. But it was a great learning experience and really tested the brain with calculations, colour schemes and patterns. I learnt quite a bit from this project. And I should have photographed the back as it is quite different to the front. Will do that in the future.

Novelty yarn project

2009-07-17T08:34:00.002+10:00

Weaving course at South West TAFE – one of our projects is to experiment with weaving novelty yarns.

After a lot of searching I decided to use a cotton chenille yarn, a cotton tape yarn and a cotton blend yarn as the main yarns. I purchased them from Colinette. It was cheaper to purchase them directly from the UK than it was through their agent here in Australia. And it arrived just as quickly in the post.

At this stage I am still weaving samples. I love the way the cotton tape weaves.

Collecting alpaca poo for the garden

2009-07-17T08:13:00.002+10:00

Alpacas are thoughtful and tidy enough to poo in the same place – ready made piles for collecting.

Chasing Killer Whales

2009-06-16T23:42:00.002+10:00

A phone call from Annie – killer whales had been spotted on our coast. They were feeding on the tuna that were doing their seasonal run. Did I want to join them on the boat and maybe get some photos? Would love to.

Annie and Fuzz own Port Campbell Boat Charters.

If the crane breaks down the fishermen get upset as this is the only way to get their boats into the water.

Local fishermen getting their boat back on land. The boats cannot be moored in the water and need to be lifted in and out with each trip.

Looking for the water spout. BTW we missed the orcas but we did find…

Lots of bird activity which meant that the tuna were about. Those rocks in the background are the Twelve Apostles.

Gannets waiting for the leftovers.

Plenty of dolphins to be seen, often cruising alongside the boat.

The captain giving instructions on how to reel them in.

Two tuna were caught in a short time. After that it was decided to stop fishing as two large tuna were more than enough. Many more could have been caught. Legally, each person with a fishing license is allowed a limit of two tuna.

Being a girl, I felt sorry for the tuna.

Annie having fun.

A friendly observer.

Jim the Fisherman with his catch for the day.

Preparing dinner.

Birthday Lilies

2009-06-16T23:06:00.002+10:00

My Mum gave me lilies. Freckles was admiring them as well.

Mum was concerned that a bunch of flowers was inadequate. Not so.

Birthday Adventure – The Otway National Park

2009-06-16T22:58:00.002+10:00

For my birthday Raelene organised to take me to lunch at the Ridge Organic Food Store and Cafe in Beech Forest.

Before lunch we worked up an appetite by doing the walk to Beauchamp Falls – one of a number of waterfalls in the Otway National Park.

The many attractions on the walk down to the Falls.

The destination. Only problem was getting back to the car – all uphill – nearly killed me it did.

Annie and Raelene.

We continued our adventure after lunch by exploring a bit more. We drove to Forrest, visiting the West Barwon water reservoir on the outskirts.

Then onto Gellibrand and home.

Island Archway collapse

2009-06-16T21:15:00.002+10:00

Another one of our iconic landmarks succumbed to erosion last week. If you are interested there are more details here.

This is what it did look like…

And now it looks like this. I took these photos, from the two different viewpoints, the morning of the collapse. You can see the sea is full of the resulting dirt.

Georgie’s doubleweave

2009-06-16T20:50:00.002+10:00

This is Georgie’s doubleweave cloth – the first to be taken from the loom. You’d think I would have remembered to photograph both sides considering that is what doubleweave is mostly about, but no. Georgie still has more plans before this is fully finished. It’s final role will be as a wall hanging.

A pinafore for Granddaughter no. 2

2009-06-08T14:55:00.002+10:00

This is the first of two pinafores I’m making for granddaughter no. 2 who is two years old. I used a pattern from Simplicity, no 5284. I quite enjoyed getting back into the sewing again. However, it confirmed that I definitely need a new overlocker. Another thing to wish for.

One of the many crimson rosellas feasting on the seeds from our birch trees. The same ones that eat most of our fruit before we get a chance to pick it from the trees.

Double Weave progress

2009-06-04T19:42:00.002+10:00

I know how to stave off Alzheimer’s disease – keep on working out design drafts for weaving double cloth.

Every time I make a mistake I know I probably won’t make that mistake again as it takes much time and brain power to rectify it. Well, that’s the theory. The first half of this weaving is my practice piece.

This is the top cloth showing (excuse incorrect terminology). Once I began weaving it soon became obvious that I had threaded the heddles incorrectly in one area as the honey comb pattern was all out of wack where I have circled. Solution – pull the offending warp ends from the cloth and re-thread the heddles correctly. Am pleased to say it worked.

This is the back cloth. I shoved the camera under the loom, pointed skyward and hoped for the best. And it worked too.

Rocky at work. You can see that space is at a premium in this room. It is very challenging reaching the looms at the back.

Rocky’s work in progress. Those loose threads are going to be cut and ‘eyelashed’ for a 3-dimensional effect.

A couple of days in Melbourne

2009-06-04T19:24:00.002+10:00

Murray wanted to watch the football as his obsession (The Cats) was playing. So we headed to Melbourne and stayed overnight.

We left home early and got to see the early morning light which generally manages to transform the sights.

Bleeding to death.

I got out to photograph some trees and discovered an emu staring at me. He/she was very curious and happy to model.

Then onto the highway and this is what we passed. These pigeons were having fun. How do I know? They had smiles on their beaks.

Melbourne at night – a great place to visit.

Felting book by India

2009-05-30T10:23:00.002+10:00

I purchased this book on felting for $20 when I was in Lincraft recently. The RRP is $29.95.

Once home I was surprised to discover that India Flint is one of the authors, along with Toyoko Sugiwaka. I didn’t hear a mention of this book during her recent workshop. Maybe because it was published in 2007 and I am one of the last people to hear about it. It’s an inspirational book. Details of the book can be found here.

Weaving Loom space

2009-05-29T13:05:00.002+10:00

I really want a studio space. This is supposed to be the dining room.

Re: artwork. This is a treasured piece created by two of our grandchildren for Murray’s birthday. I chose the colours from their paint stash so it fits in with the colour scheme of our home. Then Lisa stripped off the kids and let them go for it. Nice.

Yoga with Annie

2009-05-28T18:50:00.002+10:00

Yes! I am back doing yoga with Annie – my own personal guru. So lucky!

Ecoprints and Ecodyeing

2009-05-28T18:43:00.003+10:00

Which translates into leaf prints and dyeing from nature.

It is truly amazing how a new branding can completely change a person’s concept about an activity that has been in existence for centuries and very clever of those people who do the re-inventing.

I am so enjoying collecting foliage, wrapping it up into felted or fabric bundles, throwing foliage and bundles into an old pot and seeing what happens. It is such a restorative pastime. And it even smells glorious.

Into these pots I put blue gum from my mother’s property. In the back pot I also added a rod of copper to see if there would be any difference in the colours obtained. There wasn’t.

Into this pail I put some cotton and soaked it in milk overnight and hung it out to dry before dyeing it. I would really like to be able to produce vibrant colours on cotton. Silk is gorgeous but not quite as functional as cotton.

I also tried a kangaroo paw that I have growing in a pot.

The kangaroo paw left the marks on the left of the photo and bloody hell, I can’t remember what made the leaf marks on the right. I am going to have to be a lot more rigorous with my record keeping.

I love making pre-felts and can’t wait to put all my pieces together and felt into one large piece. Knowing me though, this will be a long process.

Brilliant markings from blue gum and it’s buds.

Below is the markings from Bushy Yates – my favourite piece of fabric so far.

This is the cotton I soaked in milk. I wrapped it around red onion skins and bloody hell, can’t remember what else. I am getting very weird looks from the checkout chicks when I hold up my bag of onion skins for them to check. But I’m really liking the deep purples they produce.

Not sure but maybe lemon scented eucalypt.

Not sure but the orange print is probably Bushy Yates. Definitely need to take better records.

A gratuitous picture from Granny.

A Recipe of Mine

2009-05-24T09:17:00.002+10:00

Fillet of Lamb with Mint and Sweet Chilli Sauce

Fresh mint leaves	1 handful
Red wine vinegar	2 tablespoons
Capers, drained	2 tablespoons
Sweet chilli sauce	2 tablespoons
Dijon mustard	1 tablespoon
Grapeseed oil (or oil of choice)	2 tablespoons
Garlic cloves, chopped	2
Lamb fillets	Approximately 8

Place all ingredients, except the lamb fillet, into a processor and whizz until very well blended. Place lamb fillets and whizzed ingredients into a glass bowl and mix thoroughly. Marinate for a minimum of an hour.

Cook fillets in a pan or on the BBQ. Serve with whatever takes your fancy.

Controlled Burn - Discovery Walk

2009-05-24T08:47:00.002+10:00

Yesterday Parks Victoria undertook a controlled burn on the walking track from Port Campbell to Two Mile Bay.

India Flint Workshop

2009-05-24T08:37:00.005+10:00

I had a wonderful five days at the workshop organised by SouthWest TAFE and led by India Flint – learning how to colour cloth with ecologically sustainable dyes from plants.

India is a r(eco)fashion designer, writer, feltmaker, cloth colourist & costumiere.

Jill was there.

Rocky and Sue also.

And Judy as well. Judy teaches textile subjects at SouthWest TAFE.

We went in search of plants. We felted. We experimented. We watched pots boil. We got excited about opening bundles of cloth.

India Flint

A small selection of our resulting work.

Admiring a completed “landskin” by India.

Coffee

2009-05-18T20:41:00.003+10:00

It’s not often that I accept an offer for someone else to make me a coffee, especially Raelene. For some reason they usually taste disgusting. This is what she made recently. Rather than drink it I used it as photo opportunity.

P.S. I do appreciate the effort though.

Another Big One

2009-05-16T21:33:00.002+10:00

Today’s tide and waves were bigger and better than a couple of weeks ago.

And yes, out there amongst it were three local surfers having a different kind of surfing experience, one of them being my nephew.

As a photographer, it is always potentially exciting when non-locals saunter out into the midst of it.

Damn, he realised just in time.

This was taken a second later.

This guy wasn’t so lucky. All that water came down on top of him.

This is meant to be a road, not a river.

A couple of the surfers are right in the middle of that.

To think that only a couple of months ago we had our umbrellas up and towels laid out enjoying the sand and sea.

Wow, nearly got another one.