Celebrations 26 January

Happy Australia Day and Happy Chinese New Year - Year of the Ox
Here is my husband , Jim, resplendent in his Chinese coat (a traditional garment worn by dong ba, Chinese scholars from the Na xi ethnic Chinese group) and Brandon, our oldest grandson in his

trendy Aussie T-shirt. We have quite a few family celebrations happening this week - all featuring lots of great food, of course. Our son and daughter and their families are both hosting parties this weekend, so there has even been cooking here in our kitchen. Brandon has been learning to take photos with my digital camera, and here is one of his images of Chinese New Year - he took many photos of food from various angles in various stages of preparation.

This week I have been trying to catch up with the work from the online class I am taking from the Thread Studio - I have been working so furiously that I broke one of the felting needles in the embellisher machine. The "underwater" sample (left) is not quite finished - a few beads and hand stitching - I really enjoyed making this piece

. it's amazing what you can create from oddments of yarn and wool. The lessons are so easy to follow and so much fun! Lots more feltfollies too, waiting for faces!

Three creative friends this week ... Wendy Hawthorne (also "retired" from "Education") held a wonderful fashion show of her work - an open house with afternoon tea, champagne and of course her beautifully made clothes in exquisite fabrics. Wendy has started a business called Forgiving Fashions , Clothing for Women of Substance . Isn't it a great name? Wendy does beautiful work and is really making a name for herself for one of a kind fashions here in Newcastle. I am hoping to collaborate with Wendy later this year - I would love to make some felted accessories to complement her winter range of fantastic jackets and suits. Please contact me if you would like to see some of Wendy's work and I will put you in touch with her.

Bobbi Oliver from LamboArt completed her amazing sculpture ( plane and aviator ) called "Blue Skies Forever". Please check it out on her blog http://lamboart.blogspot.com/- it is truly an exceptional piece of work.

My walking companion and friend, June, who sometimes finds it hard to understand my passion for the creative arts, with her daughter Julia, spent the afternoon on Thursday at my place making silver jewellery (Precious Metal Clay). They both achieved really good results for their first time working with silver - such beautiful, well -designed pendants and earring sets.

Julia's pendant and earrings ( above)

June's pendant and earrings

Too Precious to Waste

Stitched tea bags/ old doily "tea lights" - Wilma Simmons More than a year ago, a decision was made. The annual exhibition of NCEATA ( Newcastle Creative Embroiderers and Textile Artists) 2015-2016 will have the theme "Mottainai". Mottainai in Japanese refers to more than just physical waste (resources). It is even used to refer to thought patterns that give rise to wasteful action. Grammatically, it can be used in Japanese as an exclamation ("mottainai!") or as an adjective phrase ("it feels mottainai"). There is no plural form. The collection of mottainai things could be called mottainai koto ( もったいない事 ? ). As an exclamation ("mottainai!") it means roughly "what a waste!" or "Don't waste." [2] A simple English equivalent is the saying "waste not, want not." A more elaborate meaning conveys a sense of value and worthiness and may be translated as "do not destroy (or lay waste to) that

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks .... The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or my husband or from off cuts gifted to us from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks. Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as wrapping str

Wednesday's Child /2

Work in Progress - 3 of the 193 for "Stitched Up"- Wilma Simmons The work for the "Stitched Up " Project continues. See the previous "Wednesday Child" post for the background to this art project celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Newcastle Industrial School. I have been documenting the progress of my work, so I thought it might be interesting to share some of the early stages of the "stick dolls" ... Here are some of the beginning steps.. Sticks collected while walking the bushland in my neighbourhood Drying and getting rid of any insects - oven heat 75 degreesC for approx 1-2 hours. Trimmed and cut if necessary Ends sealed with matte sealing solution. Drying - solution goes on white but dries clear. First wrapping - foil to create a body shape Second wrapping - stretch fabric. Third wrapping - fabric strips Some stitching - more stitching and embellishment to come. Follow thi

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

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