Metallic Inchies & More Rusted Fabric

(Clockwise from top left - Diana Hess, Jenni Strachan, Sally Ambrose,
Charron Trainor, Kathryn Robertson & Kali Neel)

Yesterday's mail was wonderful again - I received (finally) my copy of the Nov/Dec Somerset Studio and the metallic inchies from the latest Inchie Swap coordinated by Kathryn Robertson. It was very hard to get a good photo of these inchies as the metallic bits are so reflective but I am sure you will get a good idea of how wonderful they are. Such variety and so many interesting ideas. They are going to look fantastic once they are all mounted and framed - a future project for when I have time to really fiddle around!

I also participated in the associated goodie swap bag and these are the contents of the terrific bag of fabrics, trims, sequins and bits and pieces that I received from Diana Hess. They will all be very useful and I especially love the fabrics - I love having lots of interesting bits and pieces of fabric.

Earlier this week I had a "serious" go at doing some more rusting of fabric. I was much more particular this time and wrapped the vinegary/salty package up in plastic , weighted it down and left it in the sun for several days. It may have helped that we have had absolutely stinking hot weather all week (in the high 30s or in the lands of Fahrenheit between 100 and 102). I used a lot of quite large rusted items including an old saw. This morning I unwrapped the package and I am really pleased with the results. All of the fabrics worked really well included sheers, cottons, silky synthetics etc. Some of them had been previously rusted so the additional rust has just made them so much more complex in the patterns/shapes that have developed. The first photo was taken as I unwrapped the fabrics.

This is the collection of metal bits I used this time.

This the fabrics on the line after they had been soaked and then washed. Gorgeous,hey?

This is a close up of a couple of the results.

And this is a picture of the rusty pieces I am planning on using next!! (Old metal bands from wooden cart wheels found in the outback by Joseph who thought I might like them!)

100 Posts & Other Assorted Stuff!

My pages for Tina's Hexagon (Tag) Book

Well this is my 100th post - I love blogs - reading others and keeping my own. If I analyze why, I think it is because of the wonderful connections I have made as a result of having a blog - for example, connecting up with Kari, Jacqueline, Lynda, Barbara, Peggy, Sephi & Keron (all as a result of blogs!) plus I love the motivation and "accountability" blogging creates for me. It makes me much more aware of how I spend my time and whether I am using my time in a way that I will be happy with (later on).

While I was away I was nominated for a Rockin Girl Blogger Award (thanks Kelsey) and also for a Creative Blogger Award (thanks to Kari over there in Texas!). I am really chuffed on both counts and while I am not going to "pay it on" this time, I can recommend each and every one of my blog links as wonderful creative places to browse for a few hours! Actually I need to spend some time updating them as my list of favourites is much longer than my blog list.

Since I got back from Perth, I have been trying to reorganise my creative space (so I can fit in the new bits and pieces), making a few "Australian" ATCs for the "Wall of ATCs" in Belgium, doing my pages for a Hexagon (Tag) Book exchange, making background papers and trying to finish my sister Marrijane's very long overdue birthday "gift". Oh, and playing with the embellisher of course!! On a non-creative note, I am also trying to come to terms with yesterday's news that we need a new solar hot water system - man, those things are expensive!! Especially after a lovely extravagant week of holidays...

These are my three Australian ATCs for the "Travel the World - Wall of ATCs" -

Colours of Australia - Vineyards, Ochre & the Beach
(Paint chips with stamping, sequins and postage stamps)

These are some backgrounds I have been playing around with today (mostly water soluble oil pastels finished off by scraping Golden Satin Glazing Liquid over the top with a discarded credit card, but one is oil pastels with an overspray of Adirondack Color Wash Spray in Stream, and one is just the Stream Color Wash with Moon Shadow Mist in a gold shade).

And this is my piece of rusted fabric with patina as well. It has benefitted from being left for a full week without interference! I love this and will have to really think how to best use it to accentuate the markings which are a bit more vivid in real life.

Rusted Fabric Experiments & Assorted Stuff!

Well I have just got back from taking Mum to catch her train back to Perth (it will take about 7 hours) and then she will overnight in Perth before catching the bus to Margaret River tomorrow (about 4 or 5 hours on the bus I think because of the stops). We have had such a lovely time although it always surprises me how quickly a fortnight can go!

The picture at the top is of my patchwork applique quilt that I started for Mum several years ago (before I was doing anything experimental with fabric or surface embellishment). It is birdhouse themed because of Mum's love of them. I used a Debbie Mumm pattern and adapted it a bit - it will look nice in Mum's living room I think (that was the plan and the reason I originally used those colours!)

The next photo is of Mum's No-Knit scarf drying on the pool fence. It is very pretty and lacy looking. You can see from the photo that Saturday here was an incredibly sunny winter's day!

The photo above is of my rusted fabric experiements when I first unwrapped them. The rest are scans of small sections of the fabric once it had been washed. I learnt a lot in the process and I think re-rusting and over-dyeing will yield really interesting results so I am going to try that too. I was surprised that all sorts of different fabrics reacted to the rust quite well. I think I like the results best on the soft silky fabric (it isn't silk but a soft fabric remnant I bought with no details). The markings are very crisp on that fabric and it is a fairly large remnant so I will be trying some more variations with that one. It is the top piece in the second photo below. I also love the copper rust patina effect on the small piece. It was a very old hair adornment that was very rusty but it must have some copper content I guess!


Tonight I am hoping to finish the beading on my "Paint Metal Fabric" quilt for Fiona - I am now weeks late with that and feeling very bad about it. I keep changing my mind about what I am doing on it!

PS I have made any inchies for days!! (I am suffering withdrawal symptoms ...)

Mum is 75 today!!!

I haven't been blogging because I have been making the most of my Mum's visit. It is her 75th birthday today and here is a quick snap I took of her last night. 16 year old Zach was actually in this picture as well and they were posing for me but I know Zach will kill me if I include his pose. We went to a new Italian Restaurant here in Kalgoorlie (Villa Maritana) to celebrate the birthday and Mum wore her scarf which you can see a little of. It really looks great and I am now a convert to the benefits of soluble fabric.

I finished Mum's Birdhouse quilt yesterday (after all these years!) and I must admit I am relieved that it is finally finished. I don't like to leave things unfinished especially when the bulk of the work has been done! So Mum is having to find a space in her case for it.

Tomorrow night I will upload some pictures of my rusted fabric - some worked well and some are pretty ordinary but all will get used in one way or another. I have a much better idea of the sort of things I will need to do to get a specific result next time. Now I'm off to bed.