Journal covers

I spend a lot of time sketching and drawing designs.  I love putting my ideas down onto paper and seeing them come alive.  The greatest thing about my journal is I can save all my ideas and not have them swimming around in my head. 

 I quote I heard a lot in my childhood was 

'a goal not written down is just a wish'

I feel the same way with ideas in my head for my art work.  Ideas not drawn down will never become anything they will only ever be a idea that will never grow into anything for anyone else to see.  For dream to become a reality we need to do something with them.  

Our dreams are really important,  they are part of our make up and make us unique and special.  When we dream we say I can think of new possibilities,  I can create and I am.   

I recently did a 5 day course with Hollis Chatelain.  She is the most amazing and generous woman and an incredible teacher.  She believes any thing is possible and we can all can create beautiful works of art.  

She has faith in dreams.  I appreciated her comments about giving ourselves permission to dream, to think and to act upon our dreams.  If we do this dreams become a reality.

These photos are of a collection of journal covers I have just made with sample and experimental fabric I created.  They hold some of my dreams and one day I hope to see some of them in my completed art work. :)

photography this week

Trees

sketchbook this week

Sketchbook This week

Black ink pen and water colour

What to do with quilts with a mind of their own

I had a quilt that I had made a while ago that I just couldn't get to sit flat.  I tried a new way of constructing a quilt but it just wouldn't flatten out.  We have all had these quilts that take on a life of their own and no matter what you do it just won't work. I had put a lot of time and effort into this piece of work and did not want to just throw it out.  

I had done a lot of dying and stitching and I really loved the effect of all the blocking.  

So I decided to chop it all up.  It took a lot of courage but I am so pleased I did.

I have made 6 journal covers with the different sections of the quilt. 

Close up of the small journal

I also made dust covers for all my sewing machines. I just edged them with a satin stitch and put a piece of narrow elastic on each end to keep it into place.

I still have lots of wee scraps of quilted fabric left that I am going to stitch together and the consider the possibilities....... 

What I have learned

• That when a quilt doesn't sit flat there are still many possibilities.
• That there is always a way to make something work
• Something beautiful can be created from something that seemed to be a failure
• There is no such thing as a failure
• You learn the most when something doesn't turn out the way you planned
• You may start with a plan A and then move onto a Plan B or C but it doesn't make it wrong just a different path

I challenge you to take a quilt that hasn't worked and try to make something else from it.  You will amazed at the possibilities.

Photgraphy this week

 

Photography this week

Photos from the new house



Sketchbook this week

 

 

My sketchbook pages this week

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our new home

No I have not fallen off the end of the earth and I have not decided to stop Blogging.  We have had some major challenges with our move.  It has taken weeks to get Internet at my new house.  What we thought would be a minor issue has become a major one which now thankfully is sorted.

We have had other issues with the move which have left me with very little time or energy to blog even if I wanted to. Things seem to be coming right now though. I am hoping our life is going to get back to 'normal' (whatever normal is) and that I will be able to spend more time in the studio than at the doctors this year :)

Today I want to show you our new house.  It is such a beautiful spot and so peaceful and quiet.  A neighbor told us that the road is getting quite busy.  I said "oh I only saw 6 cars go down it yesterday" and He said "like I said it is getting quite busy".  I had a smile to myself as the last road we lived on probably got that many cars in a couple of seconds. 

 

The front of the house.  We thought it was built in 1910 but the next door neighbour who lived in the house for 40 years before they built a new home said they were told 1883.  So we're are not really sure how old it is.  We can say definately though that it is over 100 years old.

 

 

 

It is rough sawn and originally had toungue and groove walls.  Most are jibbed now with a few scrim walls still in a couple of rooms.

 

 

 

It is a lovely sunny house and keeps quite cool in summer so hopefully that means warm in winter.

 

 

 

One of our 3 paddocks.  The house in the distance is the next door neighbour.  The only one we have close to us.

 

A view up the driveway

 

The view from the garden of Mount Pirongia.

 

 

The view from the top of the driveway looking out towards Te Awamutu.

The view from the other side of the driveway.  We are perched on the flat of a hill so we overlook a beautiful valley. 

 

This is certainly a place to get a lot of inspiration from.  My hands are itching for new work to be done.  But first I have to finish another few projects.