My creative space

 In my creative space today I've got some kowhai leaf drawings that are ideas for part of a fabric design I want to make.  The other parts of the design I've been practising are here.  I was reading in a craft book today about photocopying fruit and using the photocopies to embellish your dinner plates - it made me laugh but I think I've done a version of that here scanning the original kowhai leaf alongside the drawn ones!

I also just learnt how to do a repeat pattern in photoshop - here's one I've been playing around with.  It's my "dots on sticks" pattern I made up a while ago but repeating properly this time.  The green needs a bit of tweaking I think - I'm always searching for the perfect green fabric.  One day I'm hoping to get some fabric a bit like this printed by Spoonflower. 

How about you, what have you been making?

To see more creative spaces head to the "our creative spaces" blog.

Happy Thursday!

Silo Park wanderings

 On Good Friday we had a Silo Park excursion, my favourite city destination.  True to form, someone was playing the Amelie theme on the outdoor piano and we fed our pretzel crumbs to the seagulls. 

 This photo reminds me of the opening credits of Twin Peaks.

Practice

 Last night I learnt how to make a repeat pattern in Photoshop, something I've been wanting to work out for ages.  So now I can work on designing an image to repeat on fabric...here are some of my ideas - trying to get the feather right has meant lots of repetition of the hand-drawn variety!

My creative space: a bird in the hand

 This week I've been making a tiny bird painting, small enough to fit in the palm of my hand:

 It's a kind of prototype - one day I want to make a giant painting like this.  The background is acrylic on a tiny canvas that a friend gave me and the bird is ink and gouache on a piece of brown parcel wrap.  I glued it on and varnished over the top to keep the bird secure. 

And I've been tracing the pattern for this dress:

 from this book:

It's called the "too cute tunic dress."  Sounds promising! 

To see more creative spaces take a look at the "our creative spaces" blog. 

Happy Thursday!

Fush and chups

 I found this beautiful mural on the outside of a fish and chip shop in Blockhouse Bay.  The raindrops made it look extra aquatic!

My creative space: big stamps

Today I've been having a lovely day off and having a go at printing with my stamps on a bigger scale.  I've been covering this big piece of calico with stamps and I'm hoping to use it for bags, linings for pouches or maybe to make some obi belts. I've been meaning to try making some D ring belts for a while so it might end up as one of those. 

 I like the shadows from those ravelly ends

 I think I might have to make a banana passionfruit flower stamp next.  I can't get over how pretty those flowers are!

Next on the to do list is sorting out whether I can get my sewing machine fixed after the other day's mishap.  Here's hoping I won't have to replace it, I'm very attached to the poor old thing!

Hope you're having a good Thursday; to see other people's creative spaces head on over to the "our creative spaces" blog.

A gingko pouch, a sewing machine accident

 I've been loving making these pouches; I just made this one for Mr. Millicent Crow with my gingko stamp:

Then, this morning when I was getting ready for work I knocked my sewing machine off the coffee table, where it was precariously balanced, and completely broke some of the metal innards - mainly the bit that holds the bit that winds the bobbin.  It's a pretty ancient "Waltons Celestial" brand sewing machine, so I'm really hoping that I'll be able to find a replacement part...and get the pouch making production line up and running again!  Fingers crossed.

My creative space: dotty

 I've just made this fabric, that I screen printed the other day, into this spotty dotty canvas tote bag. 

 It kiiiind of goes with my weird spotty dotty trousers.  I bought these on a whim from the op shop the other day in my frustration at finding trousers that fit/are comfy.  I had high hopes for altering them somehow...they're a weird 3/4 length, baggy like pyjamas and kind of high-waisted.  I've got a feeling though, that they might end up being reincarnated as zippered purses rather than a garment...I might just keep on wearing skirts all the time. 

And I just bought one of these.  It's wonderful, even if I am terrified of its sharpness.  

What have you been making?  To see other people's creative spaces, take a look a the "our creative spaces" blog. 

Happy Thursday!

Little corners

These are some of the trinkets that live in the corners of our house.  I don't think I could be a minimalist!

April fools

I was giving Mr. Millicent Crow a lift to work this morning when we realised we'd forgotten to put our clocks back for daylight saving.  So we had a bonus hour to wander around Parnell, have a coffee at the (appropriately named) Strawberry Alarmclock and watch a bedraggled and ancient daschund try to keep up with its equally ancient owner.

On the way home the radio announcer said "I wonder if having daylight saving on April Fool's day will make us an hour younger, or an hour wiser.  Probably not."