Sweet and Dirty

I haven't posted for a while about Dirty Denim - I have been stitching away in the studio making my denim patchworks.  The plan is that my second large work will be finished this Friday!  Stay tuned.  The exhibition will be going up on the 1st of December - Verity and I are now putting together some sustainable textile workshops to take place later this year.

Verity has some show and tell teasers!  She has been working on some gorgeous denim purses to sell.  Completely handmade from reclaimed materials.  She has used her distinctive and alluring screen printing design - I really love her design style.

Embroidery hoop wall hangings for the Square Market this weekend

I like these ones they are lovely and calm and make me think of late 1940s hats.

They are easy to hang on your wall and would make a great gift for someone who has everything!

You will find them at the Knotty Ladies stall at Bendigo's first handmade market The Square this Saturday. The Knotties are having a fund raiser for KIVA. Doors open at 10am at the Bendigo Town Hall - closing at 4pm.

I'll be there doing last minute Christmas shopping

work in progress for Knotty Ladies

Very busy - not sure what or why or how. But I have some very exciting projects cooking for 2011! and will share with you soon

Visited my sister and her son today - he is like a strawberrry - so sweet and lovely - I have to restrain myself from cuddling him all the time. She is announcing her new etsy store site soon and in ten weeks a new bubba.

Slowly getting new works made for the Knotty Lady's fundraising stall at The Square : Bendigo's Handmade Market.

Gorgeous image by imagesbygail.

My studio

I have been kinda having a rest from making stuff and haven't really spent much time in this space. I am gearing up to do a whole lotta making here as of next week - picked up my freshly serviced sewing machine for some major making.

It is interesting that most of the projects I am working on are machine stitched rather than hand sewing - which I usually do!


The basket in the foreground is all packed up for Knotty Ladies - which took place a few nights ago.

Did you know I was published in a quilting magazine!

Remember this yoyo quilt project from Easter? Well somehow it got a little write up in an Australian magazine called The Australian Quilters Companion - this happened some months ago - but it all got lost in the mess of crazy life that has been happening around here.
This is a work by Lori Kirk that was on at Craft Victoria earlier this year - just love it!

Felt works for Fathers Day stall

Yes - its true Fathers Day was nearly a month ago - but I can still show off some felt badges I made for our local school's Father Days stall.



I have been distracted some what from the computer - preferring books (Northline : a novel / Willy Vlautin These is my words : the diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901 : Arizona territories : a novel / Nancy E. Turner - both highly recommended) and and also falling heavily into the world of Ree Dummond.


These pins were inspired by Meet me at Mikes

Check out the moustache here - now that would make a fine father's day pin.

Recent works on paper

Tired last night and couldn't think what to do with myself (as completed trashy novel the night before) and then I remembered DRAWING!!!

Here is what arrived:




On the peak



Camping in Balance

An embroidery of one of my most favourite drawings

The Story of the Signature Quilt at Kyneton Museum

My role as an artist in the Enlightenment Project is to provide a more lively engagement (through interpretation) with stories triggered by significant objects and collections at the museum - as opposed to the use of text information panels.



Working mostly in textiles at the moment I was immediately attracted to their enmormous textile collection and also inspired by the wonderful show, The Presence of Things: sense, veneer and guise, curated by Stephen Gallenger way back in 2005. (sorry could only find awful links to this show!) In this show fourteen Australian artists and crafts practitioners created new contemporary art works response to the embroidery and lace collections of the Embroiderers Guild, Victoria. Simply new sunning works were made in response to selected pieces from the guild's collection and they were exhibited together - making for a sensory joy of possible links, leaps and relationships.



On my first visit to the Kyneton Museum on my residency I fell in love with the signature quilt - for its age, quality of stitch and it's story. The story of the signature quilt was shared with me by an extraordinary woman called Pat who has volunteered at the Museum for many years and knows the collection very well.



Way back in 1905 women from a local church decided to fund raise for a charity by making a quilt - not only were women involved who had extra ordinary stitching skills but locals were invited to participate through purchasing a quilt section and writing some text to be included on this leaving the donation and the message to be embroidered at the local milk bar. (I like this touch).



So the notion of community quilt is the direction I have taken this project - inviting community members to both donate fabric to be included in the quilts, to donate a patch or their time stitching them together. I will be posting soon the very first collection of fabric and quilt stories that have so far been donated.



Here is the twist in the project the final quilts will be shown on cubby - house like frames referencing the story of the museum how its form documents story of Kyneton. The museum being an icon architectural monument documenting the towns journey from a small settlement to a rich booming town with a large and grand bank being built.



I hope also to touch on an include sampler embroidery works I have recently had the pleasure of viewing at the museum last week - but more about these later in a future post.



More details about the signature quilt is detailed below.



346.00 Object Name : Table - Cloth

"AUTO GRAPHED TABLECLOTH"

Brief Description: Linen cloth embroidered with Kyneton local organisation symbols and the names/autographs/signatures of donors, by the congregational church ladies guild as a fundraiser for a mission to India in 1905. The cloth comprises seventeen sections stitched together with torchen lace insertions and edging. Bought by Mr Albert Young at a Dutch auction. Full list of transcriptions of names from the signature embroider is stored with card.

Length 2220mmm

Width 1610



Donated by the Kyneton Historical Society









The signature quilt









detail : torchen lace insertion







detail : embroidery patch









The resulting works will be on show during September during the annual Kyneton Daffodil Arts Festival. I hope through viewing these new works that the audience appreciate the historical relevance of stitch in community life. Also accessing objects/items from the museum that are rarely shown due to the challenges of showing textiles - their fragility and also sheer space that is required to show them.



Lastly I wanted to acknowledge here an artist who has worked a great deal with museum collections in Victoria Malcolm Mackinon



And from the UK a research project that is within a university, rather than a museum that collects clothing stories from the local project local communities and every day people.



And finally a note about a contemporary community fundraiser quilt project I have just been invited to participate in called Project Patch Work - but more about this later

Orange Scarf

I am on the hand made - eco-friendly birthday gift roll for May - having completed a gift for an old uni girl friend whose birthday I simply can't forget as it is a few days after mine!

Although I have dabbled in the world of scarf making a little this one is much more ambitious and is inspired by the Ballarat based artist Nin Coutts-Slater. Year ago when I managed an artist run space she did a residency of stitching up found fabric into fantastic creations. I was very jealous but it has taken a few years to get around to having a play.

Proudly I took it home from the studio and my husband asked if I had cut it up from a table cloth - resulting in an instant sulky me .

Card board city - made by father and son
Image from the book called Heads On and We Shoot: The Making of Where the Wild Things Are

Remember yonks ago I was carrying on about this cardboard city - that I saw in the film Where the Wild things Are - I dearly love this work for it sheer playfulness and joy in making - not to mention the colours.

Recent Stitching

Last night at the studio

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

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

Here is a another treasure sporting her Christmas gift.

Gearing up for a new commission

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

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

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

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





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

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

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

More gifts

Living up to my hand made pledge here is my next gift, placemats, for a certain sister in law - who also happens to be a super star. (can you iron out those wrinkles for me?) - pleased to note all made out of reclaimed fabric - aside from the threads.


Unfortunately this is not my creation - but that ruffle has most certainly stolen my heart - a bit of a fan of frills.

I would happly hand my soul to the devil for this table cloth - especially if it comes with a matching apron.

You can read more about the creative frill girls here.

The Handmade gift giving challenge 2010

Waste.

As a mother I can't seem to stop creating it.

One way I thought, and a way also to enhance my skills as a maker, is to attempt to give all handmade gifts this year.

After a disasterious Christmas due to a extreme sporting (!) injury I simply didn't get half of the presents made that I would have really liked to have made. There are some bloggers out there who have really drilled into me the need for planning and scheduling. Especially when you are a working mother.

Some resources out there to help me get going include:

• Balancing Everything: the Daily Stuff that Needs Doing
• Planning with Kids explains why her Christmas Planning spreadsheet is completely essential

So I wonder - does more planning mean less waste?

Any howse in the fever of January making New Years promises last forever I have been planning gift making and some how achieving my modest goals.  (although making a few minor short cuts here and there)

Baby gifts for Ariya

These gifts pattern and instructions starting points are from Bend the Rules Sewing, which is a fab book and I have called upon often.  Resulting in large library fines.

Pumpkin Eaters

A few Saturday nights ago a wonderful thing happened - I turned on ABC2 and came across the film, "The Pumpkin Eaters". An extraordinary film from 1964 about a mummy, and her life. LOVED IT!!!! - I loved it because she was just making her way through life and finding strength after strength to give love to her husband (who was a real pill) and her children. (oh her poor darling boys at boarding school).

Oh did I add that she always looks fabulous and so does her home!

A blog I found writes "By my lights, a "pumpkin eater" is a gullible person, one who (figuratively) can swallow most anything, and doesn't seem to be daunted by whatever the pain of doing so is." But you know I don't think you are gullible for swallowing pain - I think Pumpkin Eaters is really exploring the notion of unconditional love.

Here is a photo of my special place that heals me and helps me build love and understanding inside me.




And here is a source of pure love - a drawing by my son - the source of inspiration for my recent embroideries.

my studio - work in progress

Not just Frills

Today was my first official day in my new studio (pictures to be posted soon) - as well as yesterday my first day at my new job!!!

Loved the day in the studio - complete BLISS and JOY

Working mostly on frills thanks to the loving instructions of my good friend Ellen Coyle.

These frills are to finish off my quilts for A Little Lady Like Tinkling and Smearing show coming up at Craft Victoria.

Very happy with how they have turned out.