Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

At Tag Tuesday , the current theme is Bunnies and Butterflies.... a celebration of Spring.   This is a heat appliqued fabric tag with an Australian touch.  While I love Michele's theme and have nothing against bunnies,  I have not really kept exactly to the Tag Tuesday theme  - my tag is a Bilby and Butterfly.  Why?    For some years, I have been supporting "Save the Bilby" fund - a campaign to save a native endangered animal and its habitat. A bilby is a small marsupial and it has long ears like a rabbit. Especially at Easter, the campaign increases its presence, with chocolate bilbies instead of bunnies.  Hope I am forgiven for going off on a tangent with my tag?  More info about Bilbies - here 

Together, We Play is the name of of Facebook Group, initiated by a couple of friends and myself in response to the frightening rapid spread of Covid 19 - coronavirus - a creative response to disturbing times. The idea for the group was inspired by a concept we heard about in Canada - "caremongering" . From BBC News : Just a few days ago the word "caremongering" did not exist. Now, what started as a way to help vulnerable people in Toronto has turned into a movement spreading fast across Canada. More than 35 Facebook groups have been set up in 72 hours to serve communities in places including Ottawa, Halifax and Annapolis County in Nova Scotia, with more than 30,000 members between them. People are joining the groups to offer help to others within their communities, particularly those who are more at risk of health complications related to coronavirus. The pandemic has led to acts of kindness around the world, from delivering soup to the elderly in the...

A year of creating Fearless Flowers to raise funds for ovarian cancer research and the funding fairness campaign #Pink Meets Teal came to a happy end on International Women's Day, 8 March.  It was a great celebration of the Wednesday group's hard work, commitment and sense of community, with lots of support from friends, family and politicians from local, state and federal governments.  The Wednesday Group at Timeless Textiles and Anne Kempton and I would like to thank everyone who attended, especially Deputy Lord Mayor, Declan Clausen,  State Member for Newcastle, Tim Crakanthorp and Federal Member for Newcastle, Sharon Claydon who gave the International Women's Day address.   We also thank the Rotary Club of Wallsend-Maryland who helped on the day and the Makers and Traders, Newcastle for their amazing support and publicity during the lead up to the event.  Most of all, we are very grateful to the many individuals and grou...

I feel very fortunate this week  to have visited the "Step into Paradise" exhibition at Sydney's Powerhouse Museum, Museum of  Applied Arts and Science... it was enthralling, amazing, and inspiring.  From the museum website .... J enny Kee and Linda Jackson: Step into Paradise  is the first in-depth survey that captures the dynamic energy of Linda and Jenny’s creative partnership. It draws on more than four decades of one of the most influential pairings in the history of Australian fashion, examining the influences, inspirations and the compelling stories behind their work. Honoured as Officers in the Order of Australia for their contributions to Australia’s fashion industry, Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson transformed the nation’s fashion and cultural heritage with their pioneering style inspired by Australia’s cultural and natural landscape, melded with their global influences. The exhibition begins with their creative partnership in the 1970...

Paris Chef - art tag by Wilma Simmons  I am enjoying a return to creating tags for  Tag Tuesday , an online art tag challenge group. For many years, I made at least a tag a week  but recently found that I couldn't commit to it, so I stopped completely. Anyway, I have been squeezing a little time for this fun activity. All of these tags have collaged paper backgrounds, with a feature image... Paris Chef is one of the fun fabric prints from the Loralie range on a background of water coloured collage of magazine pages.  Three French Hens in Paris : art tag by Wilma Simmons  The collaged background of  Three French Hens in Paris is a downloadable collage sheet from  The Pattern Boutique , with stamped images on magazine pages. ( I am not sure about the origins of the stamp, but I know it's been in my box of stamps for over 12 years!)  The last tag I created for this theme was using up what was left on my desk, and I think I like it th...

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY 8 March 2020 FEARLESS FLOWERS MARKET This International Women’s Day, the Wednesday Group will be co- hosting the 2020 Fearless Flower Market and auction. All proceeds from this market/auction will support the Pink Meets Teal initiative, raising money to support Ovarian Cancer research. Join us at Timeless Textiles Gallery (90 Hunter St Newcastle) for a free morning tea, live music, fun and, of course, fundraising! for the last 12 months, the Wednesday group at Timeless Textiles has been creating beautiful handmade flowers for the fundraising and we have been supported by many textile atists and groups all around the country and overseas. “Every cent from the market goes to a charity – this one is the Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) for Nikola Bowden’s research, which is very cutting-edge about ovarian cancer treatment options.” “There will be music, food, and a celebration of being women; everyone is welcome!” – Anne Kem...