Getting organised # 2

Kate where did you buy the Studios magazine? The articles on artists' studios are interesting to see how they organise their space & all the 'stuff'. It's like a reality TV show- the personality & curiosity factor comes into play.
Today some before photos of the sewing studio. I have various areas I work in for different processes. An undercover area outside is the wet studio with dye & paint supplies stored in the laundry & garage.
Downstairs is a design studio with a large cutting table & the tiled floor helps in squaring up larger quilts. The office is a separate room to this area.
Upstairs my sewing studio is currently undergoing the reorganisation.

Getting organised

Helen the Oxfam shops in Australia were called Community Aid Abroad before & stock ethnic arts & crafts & fair trade food items, so not at all a second hand goods shop.
Since coming back from the States at the end of May I have been in a reorganisation phase! In the past we moved house every 3-4 years & this was a good thing because it got rid of the clutter & various accumulations. However we have been happily ensconced in our present location for many years & everything in my studio was just getting "messy" & that was causing stress with my many deadlines. I will share the before & after photos later.
I happened to pick up the magazine Cloth Paper Scissors- Studios, a spa for the creative soul at a Queensland Quilters meeting. This is the first of the studio editions published in 2008. Some of the studio spaces make me feel very envious but it also brings into perspective that what ever space you have, big or small, is yours to do with as you see fit. And mess is a natural consequence of creativity. I think it's just the cleaning up I have to organise myself into!

Design wall

I've been working on one of my new workshops for 2010- Oil Stick Intensive, so have been gloriously engrossed in creating samples. It was hard to stop as I was having so much fun trying different combinations. A visit to a local Oxfam shop yielded a new Indian wooden, carved printing block & a peacock. The peacock is made of metal pieces set into the wood block.

2 in 1 collaboration

It's such a privilege hearing artists talk about the creative process. Noela Mills L & Carol Wilkes were guest speakers at 2QAQ's ARTiculation Afternoon. Their 2 in 1 collaborative touring exhibition using digital photos of an old, worn leather bag to create the inspiration was the end result of an interesting journey with this object.

Opal Fever- Joy's quilt

Joy finished her Opal Necklace quilt from the Opal Fever workshop little more than a week ago & kindly sent me a photo. She has extended the shiny angelina swathe over the binding in the upper right side.

Wholly Holes workshop planned for Patches

In reply to the comments re yesterday's post Split Complementary, yes Jan, I think the plants that we both have are the survivors of the drought conditions we had last year. Cleopatra's Tears' flowers are the most delicate I've seen on a bromeliad Erica.

If you are interested in participating in a Wholly Holes workshop with me, Patches at Indooroopilly, Brisbane has some places available for August 8-9.

Please get in touch with Sharon as places are limited. I delivered a few quilts as samples & snapped these photos while I was visiting.

Split complementary

The flower of Cleopatra's Tears, the name my daughter gave this bromeliad is a study in split complementary colours, green, yellow & pink. The fringe of purple on the green just sets off the delicate hanging arrangement.

Complementary colours

As designers we are told to look to nature for reference. Well I couldn't go past these photos of plants in my garden, which use complementary colours, in this case red & green. And while some of the red is more purple, this combination always looks good together.

Maleny Fat Quarters Quilters

Yesterday I travelled with my local group Sunnybank Quilters to Maleny for a day with the Fat Quarters Quilters. They put on a Christmas in July lunch for us & treated us to a Christmas decoration as a gift. I chose the patchwork heart R by Linda Graham. But Linda also makes delightful fabric clocks & had a few soft clox on display. Sadly she couldn't make the meeting.

Free things

Life gets very hectic at times but a short time in my garden observing the beauty of nature, relaxes & renews me. Two great sites to share with you, where the owners have free information on art quilt products- Cecile Whatman of Unique Stitching, Australia who sells a range of great products for art quilters has recently started blogging & put down loadable info sheets on her blog. In the States, Teri Stegmiller & Sue Bleiweiss have the Two Creative Studios site with free down loadable info also.

Opal Fever- day 2

Yesterday the 12 students from the Opal Fever workshop, organised by Queensland Quilters Inc put the finishing touches to their quilts with angelina and free motion quilting.
And they all look spectacular as you can see in our group photo. Traci had her rod pocket & binding on her Opal necklace quilt before she left, while Lesley & Ann display their Opal Fever # 2 quilts.

Opal Fever

This weekend is all about

Opal Fever, the workshop. Although there are 2 patterns for the students to choose from the colour variations of each opal design gives them an individual uniqueness, just like opals. Thanks Jane L & Mary R for sharing your fused Opal Necklaces which are still without stitch or added angelina.

Oil stick play

I have been using the oil sticks to create samples for my new workshop 'Oil Stick Intensive' which is available next year. The photo R, taken in Jeri's smart way, is of a plain shawl now patterned using rubbing plates & an oil stick.

And following the tale of the horse hair rugs from Yakutia in the July 15 post, Jan has brought to my attention the textile mill of John Boyd in England which still uses horse hair in the production of their textiles.

Netherlands artist Marianne Kemp is also using horse hair in very interesting ways in her woven wall pieces.

Silk Ikats of Central Asia

Thanks to Molly Waugh, Tourism & Marketing Coordinator for the Art Gallery of New South Wales who has sent links & wonderful shots of the installation of the Silk Ikats of Central Asia exhibition currently taking place in Sydney. Unfortunately I'll miss it, but because of the similarity between the garments in these 2 exhibitions I was drawn to revisit the Dressed to Rule- Imperial Robes of China at the National Gallery of Victoria.
I apologise for the blurry photos but please look beyond that at the shape of these garments. The photo above shows the uncut semi-formal court robe of the late 19th Century. No darts, simple seams & openings but exquisite symbolic embroidery & patterning on silk gauze. We are lucky to be able to see the garment in this construction phase.

The simple shape of a completed robe.

I was drawn to the double gourd purses because of their wonderful shapes & decorative tassels.

Yakutia

Bob has returned from a trip to the Yakutia region of Eastern Siberia where it is Summer & very green. Knowing I'd be interested in seeing the local handicrafts he snapped these photos of the rugs below woven from what is locally available- horse hair. The beard, hair & garments are long strands of hair. They were used for wall decoration as was the birch bark painting above. There is a strong Mongolian influence in this part of the world.

Pam's Leaf it Alone quilt

Pam from Outside the Square Samford Patchworkers had also been in my Leaf it Alone workshop a few years ago & brought in her finished quilt to show me. I was delighted to see the beautiful beading & extra dimension she had added to her wonderful wall quilt.

Wholly Holes workshop- Samford # 3

These are the last of the images of students work from the recent Wholly Holes workshop with the Outside the Square group at Samford. The diversity, originality & enthusiasm of students always makes this a wonderful workshop to deliver.

Today Leona, Gaye, Kate, Jill & Cheryl are sharing their work.

Wholly Holes workshop- Samford # 2

Liz & Robyn are working with oil sticks to create a unique fabric for their next design. My boxes of supplies look like I have packed everything but the kitchen sink! When you start to look for texture it is surprising what catches the eye & goes into the box.

Thanks for sharing your work with us Desley, Yvonne, Heather & Sue.

Wholly Holes workshop- Samford

Why is the Wholly Holes workshop so popular? As a tutor I love introducing students to the paints & oil sticks & the possibilities of these mark makers. Then there's stitching on the soluble base & creating a unique piece of fabric. Combine all these elements & each design is unique.

The Outside the Square art quilters of Samford have produced many wonderful pieces in only 2 days. Work below is by Catherine, Pam & Beverley. More to come tomorrow.