Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

Days 5 & 7 - the Gold Rush Era Stamp Series   It seems so long ago now since we were celebrating Christmas and New Year.... hope you enjoyed a great festive season. I took some time out, not doing much at all but I did set myself a little challenge of doing some tidying up which meant spending a little time each day using scraps of fabric and paper  to create something a little playful or as the mood took, useful!  Unlike the long projects I usually undertake, this was a 12 day project ( 12 days of Christmas ) - completely random, but finishing half done projects or recycling.  For example the first photo shows some collages  I did on days 5 and 7 to use a postage stamp release, the Gold Rush Era series, first issued in Australia 1981 ... yes I probably have had it in my stash since then!   Completing some other little projects was very satisfying .... On Day 1, I assembled a folded  paper folk cube from a kit my daughter gifted to me las...

red felt carnelian wrap - close up   I n May I had a wonderful opportunity to do a workshop with Sachiko Kotaka, renowned felt maker, origami and performance artist.   www.sachkokotaka.com Sachiko Kotaka workshop    I learnt a lot from Sachiko – her unique origami/kirigami and   weaving felting techniques    as well as the virtue of patience in creating art and   repeatedly practising techniques to develop competence.  This last week I think the winter blues got the better of me, so I practised some of Sachiko’s techniques and “felt” a lot better. I was really happy with the wrap I made during the week – so happy,  I wore it to a function on Saturday night. red felt carnelian wrap  It is a nuno felted wrap, using beautiful merino wool, a scrap of sheer fabric ( I cannot remember    what it is or where it came from)  and some disks of carnelian from my bead stash. I really like carnelian, not onl...

2010 crept up on me, but I did make some New Year's resolutions. I am going to try to make less waste, especially with creative resources and to clean up my workroom after each project. I've done well so far, but 361 more days yet...  Ruth's bag (pictured) finished just before Christmas is a good example of using up bits and pieces of yarn and wool and recycling a handbag to create an altered, unique, scrumbled creation.  The wooden button is also made by my husband from offcuts of timber. By the way, my friend, Ruth was happy with her bag, too.   Between Christmas and New Year, I attempt to rid our house of unwanted clutter, so when I was going through old cards, I thought they were all so beautiful I should do something with them. Easy - I used the cuttlebug and cut the fronts of  greeting cards from years past to make hundreds of colourful and useful gift tags. I now have a supply of gift cards for all occasions. Perhaps you recognise a card you...