Saturday, October 11, 2008

Studios! Cloth Paper Scissors



This week I have some really exciting news!

I am in the next issue of "Studios" put out by the wonderful team at Cloth Paper Scissors


I was very lucky to be a featured studio. It looks so tidy I was quite surprised! Please believe me - this is not the case very often. Although I do believe in one type of item per storage unit. Also labelling them!

The other thing is finding a day each month (or whenever) to tidy said storage units and get back into Tidyland again.



Friday, October 3, 2008

The Changing Seasons - Wall Installation






I have been hard at work trying to make sense of the mountain of felt that I have made with the Grade 3's from PLC Junior School (Presbyterian Ladies College).

Two great boxloads of felt have resulted in a lovely tree that changes throughout the seasons.

It will be installed at the end of a corridor outside the main hall so that students and staff may see it as the move along this section of the school. This is the background so far and then there are all the pieces to add on top................................Can hardly wait to show you!


Sunday, August 31, 2008

Peace At Last






The last week has been particularly hard as our 21 year old cat has been ailing. Basil died on Friday and I really can't begin to tell you how awful it feels without him. He slipped away in our arms and we truly could not have asked for a more beautiful day. It was sunny and mild and the whole family was with him - sitting around him in our garden and trying to cry silently.

Only yesterday someone on the radio said -
"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened." I am trying to remember this.





Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Press and photos!


I am back at another school so have been silent for a few weeks. In the last week or so I have had an article in this German Felting Journal and guess what! I made the front cover!
I am so pleased because it is such a high quality publication and the images look great - even if you can't read German the photos speak a thousand words. The piece on the cover is called "Breakaway" and now lives in South Korea http://www.filzfun.de/index-2.php
Good quality shots are ESSENTIAL if you are going to keep track of your work over a long period of time. It is so easy to forget pieces the moment they leave you. With a brain that finds it hard to slow down on possible creations and designs, it is the only record of what I have done.
When I am unable to come up with a new idea, a good folio of photos is the only way to refresh my mind. So my advice is - don't let it get out the door - even if it is a gift - without
a photo or two to add to your records. Clients love looking through your folio to see what they can order as well.
When I am 80 and can't roll my felt anymore and my memory is less than perfect - at least I will have a reminder of what on earth I did for all those years!

Thursday, July 31, 2008

New classes listed!

Finally my new class list is up. This will give you an indication of my schedule for studio workshops between now and November. How wonderful it would be if you could all come over and have fun playing with wool and paint and pencils and crayons and paper and threads..............

Maybe one day!

www.frostfair.com/classes.htm



Wednesday, July 23, 2008

A little of this and that.........

Over the last few days I have been working on this new piece and I am quite pleased. I have been struggling a bit - I can now admit to you, that I have been totally flat and uninspired. Being creative when you have time - seems to be very elusive - and yet when time is short and you grab what precious moments are to hand, new ideas are ready to come on stage. Thank goodness!



A combination of different textile techniques.......

Felting and drawing and painting and stitching and.......

Saturday, July 12, 2008

SALE!

SALE SALE SALE !
I am having a sale starting today at my etsy shop
until the end of the month! Grab a bargain today!

Friday, July 11, 2008

My oh so talented students!

Here are Maureen and her sister Marissa who have been coming to the studio for a few weeks now and have done some really beautiful work. I am so pleased to unleash 2 new felters into the the world!


This is Ros who made a stunning bedcover from many pieces of felt. I am sure she has forgotten the many hours of rolling and the aches and pains following it! I must say it was even more beautiful to see it for real though - and yes she is sleeping under it this winter!


Friday, June 27, 2008

Working with Grade 3's

Over the last couple of months I have been working with 2 Grade 3 classes at PLC Junior School.
We have felted to our hearts content and created a bundle of felt.
Every year the school holds an auction and each class creates a group art piece.
This year the Grade 3 classes got to do felting as their medium.
The next couple of months will see me working in the studio with the remainder of their felt pieces to create similar themed installations for the school.


If ever you want to get inspired just hang out with children for a while. Sometimes I feel as if I have been walking around with my eyes shut when I watch them create!


I just love the one soaring at the top

Funny how the slightest change in positioning the eye makes such a difference to the attitude and character

Auction pieces 1 +2

They went for a really good price last week at the auction - not sure how much but will try to find out!


Thursday, June 26, 2008

Weekend Workshop

I have just been away down the coast teaching an enthusiastic bunch of gals feltmaking
We had the best time - they all felted like crazy for 2 solid days and went home with some stunning pieces. I do hope they keep felting - they bought enough wool to felt the whole community, but if they don't, I guess they could always insulate the roof!
Some of the ladies hard at work on Day 1 - mushing around in
soap and water is just the best fun - clean mud pies really!

Getting it just right......


A bag and little purse created on Day 1

More gorgeousness!

Saturday, May 31, 2008

Mini Landscapes - Aerial views




I have been having a lot of fun creating some little felt landscapes.

They are about 7-8" square and also have a little hand embroidery on them. Funny how you have fun with one technique or idea and all of a sudden a whole new series of work is born.

It is a magic feeling when this happens to me. Thinking about it, it is nothing that you can manufacture - you can't force an idea - it seems to steal upon you and voila!
A grand new set of images to explore. I would appreciate any feedback on these little pieces.
You can see them all at www.frostfair.etsy.com
I think I will be doing some large scale work with this theme. I don't normally do landscapes very well - so here's hoping!

Monday, May 5, 2008

Deatil in the centre



These are a few more pics of the centre seascape. Really had a lot of fun doing this with free motion embroidery some hadn stitching and my embellisher. What I did before the embellisher I can hardly imagine now - I think I spent a LOT of time hand sewing!


Sets of 3






Well excitement in the studio! I have finally fnished 3 pieces of work I am rather pleased with.

They consist of felt and hand painted cloth that combine to create 3 sea scapes. They look good as a set but can stand alone as indivual pieces as well.
Funny thing about the set of 3 - by th time I am finishing off
the third, I am ready to move ahead to a new subject!
The centre piece contains more detail and holds the other 2 together. All 3 have machine embroidery on them.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Workshops



Workshops are far and away the best fun!I had 4 excited ladies felting scarves last weekend in the studio and after completion we shoved then in the dye pot and oohed and aahed over the results. The great thing about dyeing is the unexpectedness of it all. There is always a surprise even if you have quite a bit of experience with colours.
At any rate a great day - tired but happy!

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Painting Again!

I took a break from felting over Easter and started painting.
I really had the best time - tubes of paint everywhere, about 5 palettes of different colours, sponges, brushes and I just
couldn't stop!
The equipment I had used in the past all came out and had a go. Getting inspired for this stuff is really easy. Shapes are all around us.
The thing that I find challenging, is knowing where and when to stop. I tend to over coordinate and consciously try to avoid this in any piece of work I tackle. Having the courage to throw in a completely seemingly unrelated colour often works wonders.
I will certainly be painting again soon - I just need another Easter type scenario - ie 4 clear days to work uninterrupted!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

In the studio





Corners of my Studio

To put you in the picture, these photos show you where I work - or more correctly - where I go to play.
Here you will find good music, good coffee and lots of stash to
make art with.

I am very lucky - the studio is under the house and stays warm in winter and takes quite a long time to get hot in
Summer. There are 2 smallish windows one that looks out onto the garden - currently very neglected - and one
that looks onto a grey wall. On this side I installed glass bricks which are fab. Light without the ugly view.

Before I had this space it was a dark storage area. I can hardly remember those days now. I spent very little money on it - just the window, waterproof carpet, bit of paint and
cork for the walls. Oh yes and the plumbing - of course the
biggest bill and apart from the tap you can't see a thing.
Typical!
All the furniture is recycled stuff from the house. I even have
the first wardrobe I had as a baby.

The creative process










These are some of the new shades from earlier in the week. Handel was floating around the studio from the CD player and all felt right with the world. It has been raining at long last and the pressure in the air, that has seemed so very oppressive, has gone!
I find that after 2 or 3 days straight of working in the studio, experimenting and ideas come very quickly. I have often wondered if this is due to the colours being used at the time, or the creative process itself. Perhaps it is simply a state of mind or a good environment.
Maybe having a clear slate with no immediate pressures or deadlines is conducive to productive studio time. What EXACTLY is it that makes it so easy to produce satisfactory work on one day and then feel like you are crawling up a mountain on the next?

Monday, March 24, 2008

The start of something new!



A new project to plan for - excellent!
All my felt is created with hand dyed merino wool. After many years I am still surprised with the endless colour combinations that are possible. It certainly remains a challenge to come up with new selections.
I have had the best fun this week working out new shades for a school project, coming up in April. This is the first batch and represents the colours of Spring.
The project is a wall installation of changing seasons with trees and birds. Am really looking forward to starting!