Inspiration

This is a picture of the fabric inspiration pack I bought yesterday in Esperance - beautiful fabrics, lemon angelina (the colour is a lot more intense than the photo shows), threads, silk ribbons, prima flowers, orange gutta, braid, sequins, fibre etc - just stunning vibrant colours that call to me (deeply!) You can't really see it in the photo but the top and bottom fabrics are just beautiful in terms of the embellishment on them.

This is a photo of some of the extras I bought - some more paper of course (necessity didn't enter into the equation) and these gorgeous puffy heart and star trims!


And this is the photo side of my "Stamping & Papercraft" article on using the Oxford Impressions Birds Nest stamps as unconventional Christmas stamps. I am really thrilled with the way the cards were photographed together. My long distance friend Sue Smith also has a great article in the same issue (actually she is in virtually every issue!!) - her Christmas card article is just stunning - stamping with paper patchwork, stitching , bead trimming, velvet ribbons...

And now I am off to dinner for a work colleague who is moving across to the other side (Canberra!). We'll eat out on the balcony of a historic goldfields pub enjoying a lovely warm dusk/evening...

Artwords - Fabric

The theme this week at Artwords is "Fabric". This should be easy for me but all of the things I am working on are "in progress" so I am uploading a photo of a canvas I did for the Somerset Studio "Retro" theme some time ago. Colorwise it is quite consistent with yesterday's post!!

This piece uses fabric I have hoarded for a VERY long time. The first piece on the left is from a fabric sample that Nana Wilkes (my maternal grandmother who would have been a 100 this year) gave me in the 1960s to use for dolls clothes. The other two pieces are from fabrics I used to make clothes while I was at uni in the 70s - a hot pink caftan (the groans are audible!) and a psychedelic shirred top (even more audible!). I loved both of them at the time, needless to say.

This theme has had me reflecting on the part fabric and sewing has played in my life and then today I received in the mail a piece of needlerun lace from my Mum's 27 June 1953 wedding dress (how is that for timing!). I had asked for a piece so that I can create a special memento but to have it arrive on the 27th of June was special. This of course has led me to reflect on the young woman that wore that dress and who only dreamed of the lives (three) she would create and of the ongoing circle of family and love that has flowed from her life and love.

PS And before I get totally sentimental I should mention that I have been tagged for the first time as a blogger (by Sarah) and I am to list seven random things about myself and tag seven more bloggers. This requires some thinking and will need to wait until tomorrow!