Things Aquatic

Those who follow me on Instagram and/or Facebook May have noticed some photos with things aqautic especially after my visit to the Aquarium in La Rochelle. But to be perfectly honest I did quite a few aquatic things in the late nineties and early 2000's as we often went rockpooling with my daughters  near Apollo Bay or the back beach near Blairgowrie when they were children. One of the aquatic quilts I made I combined machine stitch and hand stitch. The image is entirely created by machine and hand work and it measures 1.50 metres  by 1.2 metres. I don't think I ever  exhibited it as it was purchased by a visitor to my home. In hindsight ( and isn't that a valuable thing- not) I should have exhibited it- never mind. I had been searching for images of it and finally found some in a flickr account I no longer use.

From the dyeing I would say this piece dates from around 2001/2002- the little dots in the background is hand stitching, and looking at it now and given the boat trip I took yesterday to Cadaques- my mind is abuzz with ideas.

I decided to spend a week in Roses on the Costa Brava because suddenly I wanted to be by the sea to breathe it and  to just take in the colours it was also on the way to some teaching I am doing with Rosario Casanovas at her shop in Pals next weekend. I am teaching linocutting  ( Saturday), making a good design for linocuts and then the following day  (Sunday) embellishing the linocut by hand or machine. I believe there are still a few places available if you are interested- you can contact Rosario through her facebook page or simply message me and I will pass it on to Rosario.

So I have been working on a new linocut- around a sea theme and intend to make a series of them which may yet  build into something bigger.

 This linocut was inspired by the visit to the Aquarium at la Rochelle and once I get back to Australia and dye some fabric to suit it , it will be available for sale. I always do a trial print on newspaper- not sure why I started it- might have been what I have available at the time. But I find doing the trail print on newspaper gives me a good feel for whether the graphic qualities of the uis working as it has to compete with the text and/or images in the newspaper. I have been keeping my paper prints with the intention of making a book with them- one day!

Of course I had to include a sea urchin! The shapes of the coral and  life are just weird and wonderful.

Traveller's Blanket On-Line Class

There is still time to join the on-line class to create your own Traveller's Blanket- there is information on my previous post on my blog.  The idea is that you create your own visual narrative using stitch and fabric remnants. I have been teaching this class for a number of years now and am always amazed at how these blankets grow and how  many  get finished and how many wonderful stories  get told in the process. It's a way of showcasing precious remnants ( from your mother's sewing box, or travels ) and give them centre stage so they never have to be hidden away again!

 Some of the travellers' Blankets I have made in recent times when I have been without machine and preparing for an exhibition ( and this work is available for exhibition if any organisers are interested) If you would like to join the class it starts on 17 June 2019- after my return to Australia I can send further information if you message me. Cost for the course is $75AUS and can be paid via the Paypal button below or if in Australia by internet banking.

Last week I stayed with my friend Margo Bimler in Moux in Occatanie and finally  got some machine work done on a quilt i started two years ago when I was demonstrating for Bernina France at Pour l'Amour du Fil in Nantes in 2017. I store a sewing machine at Margo's house as I seem to be overseas almost as much as I am in Australia. It kind of languished after the event but recently Auriful sent me some more of their wonderful Mako 30 weight cotton thread and I felt inspired to finish the piece ! Thank you Aurifil for your wonderful thread colours!

The quilt measures 76 cm x 94 cm and has  been  entirely free motion quilted- I have embellished linocut panels- the central panel is composed of three prints repeated. The side panels were printed with a shaped pomegranate linocut which I made to  complement the pomegranates in the centre panels. The quilt is for sale for $900 AUS.  I have been looking for  a house to buy once I return to Australia- think - i will need to sell some quilts that is for sure! I really need somewhere where I can work consistently and have a proper workroom set up.