Design around us

I was reading the Sandra Meech book 'Connecting art to stitch' and of course it stimulates you to look around your immediate environment for inspiration. It also reinforced for me that design is part of our everyday environment. Design doesn't have to be a scary subject, but it can be studied further and we can get a deeper understanding of it by working at our art practise.

This beautiful tile is not in my home environment and neither are these pine trees, but they both caught my eye for different reasons.

Have fun with your designs today.
 

Slowly

I am making slow progress on India Adventure work, as I tackle a number of other things that need to be done now!

These pieces are on the design wall for consideration. I rubbed and printed the top pieces in India, so they will be part of the exhibition. 

Lunch

I had lunch with Kate yesterday at Riverbend Books teahouse, Bulimba. We both chose a salad and mine was watermelon, feta, prosciutto with candied sunflower seeds, balsamic and fresh mint leaves. It was refreshing and sitting on the outside deck area surrounded by bamboo was relaxing.

We ended our meal with coffee and a sweet something, in my case orange and almond cake.

Cake art

I loved the organic nature of the icing on the wedding cake. I had not seen this style before and found it fresh and surprising.

Under the icing were separate cakes of rich chocolate and poppy seed.

MoB's

We were in Cairns for an afternoon garden wedding and the weather was cooperating beautifully. I treated myself to a salon hair style, much better than I can usually do!

And as 3 of the Mexette group, we had our usual photo pose! L-R me, Marg and Di- we are all in the MoB group- 'Mother of the Bride'!
The Quilters Companion diary is available through the newsagents. I have seen it at most of them recently.

Cairns

Had a lovely weekend in Cairns, north Queensland. We were asking ourselves why we don't this more often, as it was so relaxing!

 

Leaves

You may already know that I am drawn to Nature's inspirational world and in particular the world of leaves, so it was lovely to see the variety appliqued on a quilt at a recent quilt show. Just walking around my neighbourhood provides me with the raw material I need if I want to print foliage. Thanks Mother Nature.
I'm having computer free time over the weekend but will be back on Monday with a blog.

Bromeliad

As I said I'd do yesterday, I took my camera out into my garden and snapped a few photos for the Focus on Nature project by Tricia Smout. Most were very ordinary but this bromeliad was perfect, with water from the overnight rain held by the central stems.

Focus on Nature project

Tricia Smout is the Artist-in-Residence at the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mt Cootha and has a number of projects that you can be part of, with minimum effort and maximun reward for you and Tricia. Focus on Nature is the project that requires you to e-mail a digital  image close-up of a plant or plant related item. I'm going out to my garden today to snap some photos and send 1 on to Tricia as the deadline is September 30.

These lovely plants are in Mary's garden. The other project is the A-I-R ENVELOPE and further details are on Tricia's blog.
Welcome to a couple of new blog readers; it's nice to feel connected to a world wide community through blogging.
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Go baby cutter

This is a fun little fabric cutter, the Go baby that can cut up to 6 layers of fabric at a time. You buy the dies that you like and roll it all through the machine. I couldn't resist it so got one for my daughter and we quickly made up some little Summer t-shirts.

Yes Chris, I made sure I wore a long top to cover the bum when I worked! I used paint rather than oil sticks which can get very messy.

 

Wood blocks

I packed this bag with some art supplies yesterday and went off to a local shopping centre, where I had permission to use the wood blocks that decorate a small section of the front of the store.

Came home with 3 pieces of fabric that I can use in the India Adventure series. I was intent on getting the work done before closing time and being on my own, with my back to the walkway, didn't see how many shoppers stopped to look, but 1 lady stopped for a brief chat.

This is a truer indication of the colours. I'm auditioning some Indian sisha embroidery for possible inclusion.

Sometimes

Sometimes........something will catch your attention, when you are speeding by in a car- 'King Kong safety helmets' Tainan.

On my design wall

If you are familiar with the Indian Bollywood style of movie you may think there is 'bling' everywhere in India, but of course this is not so. The poverty and grim is as much a part of life there as is the movie industry glamour. Many old palaces had screens made of sandstone or marble called jali. I took some of my rusted fabric, not knowing what I'd get to rub, but was lucky to have the opportunity at a small boutique hotel to capture some of the balcony sandstone balustrade.

This hand appliqued camel has been liberated from a cushion and will walk onto a quilt.

India Adventure designs begin

I think the serenity of this statue equates to how I was feeling yesterday when in the flow of designing for India Adventure, a collection of quilted pieces in response to my trip to that magical country in January this year. Once I stopped struggling with myself and let go of trying to push the design and came back to my preferred methods, things began to take on a more pleasing composition.

SAQA auction online

My quilt Leaf was donated to SAQA for the annual online reverse auction, which is on now.

There are many great quilts up for auction and 2 pages at a time are on offer with the highest price up first and then progressive reductions on each successive day. Leaf is among the quilts that will be auctioned at Houston International Quilt Festival.
All the quilts are 12" square.
Yes Jan, deadlines always- I'd better get busy!
 

In the threads

I am preparing some cloth napkins to use, so am unpicking the sewn edges and I casually placed the threads in this bowl, that was close at hand. When I looked at it later, it reminded me of the custom of tea leaf readings. I wonder what my threads are telling me?

Lovely sentiments

So lovely to catch up with friends at the Samford Quilt Show. Sorry I don't have the maker's name but I  was taken with the lovely sentiment expressed in these embroidered pieces on one of the quilts.
life without love is like a tree without fruit

 

live like every day is your last- I hope not, for some time, but sieze the moment!

live well, laugh often, love much

live with no excuses and love with no regrets

 

 



New inspiration

We are off to the Samford Patchworkers Quilt Show this morning. It's always a great day out with craft items for sale too. It is on from 9am- 4pm today and tomorrow at the Community Hall, School Rd, Samford. There is a $5 admission charge and morning tea.

Earlier this week I put up new inspiration ideas on my design wall. These are fabrics from the January India trip and will be incorporated into new work for India Adventure a small exhibition I'll begin working on.

This is a wood block print and I love the bright colours.
 

Spring

The Spring weather is so lovely and a stroll around a friend's garden to admire her skills in nurturing it was rewarded with delight for the eyes and senses and many colourful photos.

This rose was named the Chameleon as it changes colour from yellow/orange to pink/white as it flowers and matures.

A huge Petunia!

I wished you lived closer too Deb!

 

Repetition and SAQA

In workshops I often say to my students "repetition, repetition, repetition" for your design is good. These images reinforce that for me.

And how nice to get a different perspective.

So where does SAQA, Studio Art Quilt Associates fit in with this? Well I'm happy to repeat the special offer for any students who have taken workshops with me recently- if you join SAQA now and put in this code SDW, you will receive a 10% discount on your membership fee. The benefits of being a member of this international organisation based in the US, are great. Think of where your work could be seen and by how many people.

I have had many great opportunities with SAQA since becoming a member in 2004- volunteering as Oceania representative and being on the Exhibition Sub-committee, attending 2 conferences, reading the colour journal, being part of numerous juried exhibitions and making many new friends.

If you love what you do, take the next step in your journey.

 

 

On my design wall

I am having another busy week, but am happy with having finished my Quilt National entries. Now I am working on the third quilt in a little series about Wattle, Australia's National Floral Emblem.

This is the work in progress on my design wall. You can see the free motion writing on the hand dyed lime green and printed photo.

When I have finished quilting this small panel it will be trimmed and edge finished before being positioned on the prequilted, printed background.
 

New challenge

Have you looked at the Viewpoints 9 new challenge? This challenge has so many possibilities it will be as interesting as always to see what the members come up with.

Thinking of Christmas

How can this be? Christmas, already! At the end of August I was walking through a department store in Brisbane and saw they have put up their Christmas merchandise section already. This seemed very early to me, but then I saw this 2013 diary and bought it.

Yes, I am planning ahead for some events in 2013 and even Christmas this year, but I'd prefer not to see Christmas decorations until the month before.

Today I am.....

going to enjoy these amazing decorations on the temple roofs,

and marvel at the contrast of old and new, history and the present day,

and remember the spot I stood in to take this photo and how amazed I was when I saw this sight!