Skip to main content

That was August ...

 August  Instagram Photo Challenge - a photo a day challenge as a daily reminder to be well in Winter  #bewellinwinter.  left to right, top row to bottom row. 
1. Stockpile - my stockpile of used tea bags, ready for art  projects. 
2. Blankets - tidied up the spare bedroom - don't the blankets look great so neatly folded? 
3. Animal - there's a bear in there! 
4. Soup - my favourite soup recipes are from a very old recipe booklet 
5. Social -  the Flying Free project is as much a social activity as a creative one. 
6. Strength - my tai chi teacher demonstrating that there is nothing stronger than gentleness. 
7. Refresh - the instructions said 'refresh your browser' .... so I did. 
8. Flowers - woolly flowers on my friend's hat
9. To do list - "put the suitcase in the boot of the car" - only one thing on my husband's to do  list today - yes, it was done! 
10. Fire - smoke alarms are mandatory  ... in case of fire. 
11. Mantra - instead of a  New Year resolution
12. Get moving - have shopping trolley and get moving! 
13. Connect - connecting with  my aunt at the craft show. 
14.Water - more water , more steam, easier ironing? 
15. Learn -grandchild minding is always a learning experience.   
16. Inner Child  - making dolls feeds my inner child.
17. Heat - hot curry! 
18. Play - playing with photos on fabric - textile art project.  
19. Cook -  no cooking , just reheated soup on a sick day. 
20. Birds - more birds from the Flying Free project 
21. Fun - daily nerdy fun - cryptic crossword 
22. Keep Warm - no need to keep warm on an unseasonally warm day. 
23. Art -Flying Free Community Art Project
24 .Leaves - upcycled wool jumper, eco dyed with eucalypt leaves 
25 .Mindfulness - some zen doodling. 
26. Shopping list - efficient husband - shopping done. 
27. Tea - first pickings Dragon Well green tea. 

28. Earth - playing 'earth" related games 
29. Colour - no prizes for guessing Miss Five's favourite colours.
30. Clean - I was supposed to clean up but I used the rubbish to make new fabric! 
31. Spring - Change of season .... The seasons are what a symphony ought to be - four perfect movements in harmony with each other.  

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

May I Present Mrs Chalumeau...

Finally Mrs Chalumeau takes a bow …She is a Pearly Queen … 695 buttons on the doll and 10 on the journal.(I think – could be more). I would like to thank Paula from Antiques and Collectables here in Hamilton, Newcastle and Raku Buttons ETSY seller for supplying me with about 500 of the vintage mother of pearl buttons, and the rest I had in my stash. I think they look great on my pearly queen, but I am truly tired of sewing on buttons. It made me think however, how many buttons must be on the elaborate clothes of the real pearly Kings and Queens! I drew my inspiration from the lovely lady pictured here, and the following description from Wikipedia. ... A Pearly King ( feminine form Pearly Queen) is a person dressed in a traditional Cockney costume covered in mother-of-pearl buttons. These costumes were treasured heirlooms, hand made and sometimes representing much of a family's wealth. .... This doll is all cloth – a little different from most of my other dolls which generally h

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

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