The stuff I forget to tell you

Concert preparation continues guys and I do have some photos but of course most stuff is still unfinished so there is not a lot to show yet. Being too busy to do much of my own stuff gives me a chance to tell you about all that stuff that I plan to blog about and then get distracted. I love Cart before the Horse. I love their humour, (you have to check out Dylan's movies) I adore their art and I was the lucky winner a super long time ago of one of their paper dolls, Miss Clemontine. A rare entry into a giveaway for me as I could not resist.
That immediately prompted my purchase of Little red Riding Hood. (Do you know I have a red riding hood obsession? - total full blown waking sleeping obsession?)

I stole these pictures from Dylan and Jo's Etsy shop as it is night time and I am determined to post tonight. Dylan and Jo work together - how cool would that be? Imagine having a partner in craft, to bounce ideas off and share the light bulb moments. I mean not that I am complaining, its just that Mr Ric Rac's responses to craft are pretty much the same whether I make a pot holder or a frock of selvedges. So now I own both of these beautiful articulated dolls but I just can't bring myself to cut them out and assemble them, even though I know how good they will look all framed up.

Oh and last weeks lotto win ?... non existent.... so Finnegan won't be coming home to live with me just yet.

yep...fox obsession too (as you know)

more experiments in screen printing

After the success of the pillowcases (and no I won't be making any available for sale guys but thanks for the offer Mrs B. )I got to thinking about multicoloured prints. Of course each colour needs its own stencil so the time factor is a biggy. I knew from the outset that the danger of stuffing up was high so decided to work on paper instead of fabric.

Grey blob Blue blobs

red blobs
black blobs

and yes I made about 6 so the photos might not match up exactly - the grey blob disappeared and the photos suck. BUT I learnt that the registration thing is not too bad and if you wanted the "offset" look then its even easier. The paper is a bit less forgiving than the fabric (I was using a fabric screen) so I was happy with the amount of squidges and blurrs. All of this so far has been using a stencil method of screen printing, I just need a bit of time so I can have a go at the screen filler type method. I am truly fascinated by this idea, its is so easy and yet can be so detailed and complicated...my head is awhirl I tell you !

And if it is OK with everyone I think it might be my turn to win the lottery tonight - I mean I seriously need to give up the day job and play with screens and ink and fabric.... hmm...wonder if there is a government grant for noodling and fardarkling ?

Experiments in Screen printing

What do you give Miss 20 for her birthday ?

A choice of course !

(screen printed onto fabric and then made into pillowcase. The whole negative /positive thing nearly did my head in. I made the stencils by borrowing an image and then editing and 'posterising' it in Picnik. I'm sure if you spoke photo shop this would be as easy as winking)

yep, totally loving myself sick.

Destination dressing gown

On the week that your first born leaves their teenage years and hits 20 you need to:

• get a haircut and colour


• buy and wear new stylish flattering clothes


• receive at least 15 disbelieving "Oh my , you have a 20 year old ?" type comments


• have a rich exciting rewarding week, with people to see and soirees to attend

Do not :

• have a cold which leads you to sandpapering the end of your nose off , so you look Rudolph all week combined with a skin outbreak of High School Musical proportions


• have so little sleep that coherent sentences are beyond you


• wear the same tired clothes to work that you have been wearing for years because you are determined not to buy new clothes till you lose weight.


• get a cold sore


• be growing out your hair so you now look like you have scalped an eight year old boy for his lank, hanging dead straight at your ears type hair (only with grey bits)


• look forward to your dressing gown as a weekend destination

(The voice of experience)

Learning

I have a few more classes this year and am already booking in some for next year. I struggle a bit with things so far in advance I have to say...I mean I don't usually know what I am doing next month let alone at the end of next year.
September 23rd- Millrose Cottage Ballan, I will be teaching the tea-set pattern. I'm really looking forward to this and even though it is the last day of school term(and the week of concert) I promise I will be as bright as a button.
October 1st-I'll be back at Amitie. I didn't take my camera with me last time but rest assured it was the funnest class ever. Lucy had everyone in stitches all day.
October 8th - I'll be travelling all the way to Ballarat Patchwork to teach Smith the dog. This would be a great class if you have never made a softie before. Beginners most welcome!

...and in screen printing news? I have actually printed something successfully, and it will be gifted on the weekend and then I can show you - excited ? lets just say I am now buying Depend in bulk !

pop !

Just like little mushrooms , some of the new beginner patterns are popping up completed.

Mary of Drapers of Mt Macedon has Sally in her shop.Look how she is snuggling that fabric.

Sue, who won a pattern here on the blog has already whipped up her own sweet Sally. (and is planning few more)I just love the bow- what a great idea! The gorgeous Minx, daughter of Moogsmum made a spotty Smith.
Isn't he fabulous?. Love the idea of the spots. I was so excited to see these and super excited to get the email from Minx telling me how much she liked the pattern and she also dobbed her mum in for a bit of swearing too.
I managed to stuff these guys and add their faces during couch time this week. They come together pretty quickly and I am thinking that these are going to be my new go-to gift for a while. I have to tell you I am secretly loving myself to death over these patterns, I am just so pleased that they work and that people like them and almost every fabric I look at is begging to made into a new dog.

This week in amongst the chaos I am going to make a couple of Gulliver's - these guys are about 27 inches long and take a bit of stuffing. If you would like to win a Gulliver pattern just leave a comment. Tell me what your go-to handmade gift is at the moment. Feel free to leave a linky so other people can check it out to!

(Off to the hardware shop-one step closer to the screen printing guys....)

Tis a lonely life

being a blog- especially being a blog belonging to someone all caught up in the school concert. Yes she tosses the occasional thought my way and says "I should blog that" but she inevitably has no photos and its too dark and another day passes.
To be honest she is not doing anything very exciting anyway, She has a basket of half-done stuff and occasionally a dog will get stuffed or a head will be attached. Long car trips are actually a 'sit down and rest bonus" at the moment.

One new toy is trying desperately to emerge but he is fighting an almost pathological obsession with screen printing that will definitely result in "she-who-owns-the-blog building herself a mobile screen printing press. (As soon as time permits).
She is home today, and as usual expected to achieve 50 things before breakfast. She thought about some stuff, she talked on the phone about some stuff, she should be emailing some people, she needs to buy some clamps, she needs to think about dinner and she probably should have responded to her son's SOS about being at school with no lunch - but she blogged.

In haste

I thought that bag of stuffing was heavier than usual.

Screen printing (love) or you can call me Buck.

On Sunday I attended and intermediate Screen printing workshop at Red Brick Gallery and had a ball! I have always loved the idea of screen-printing and of course some elements are similar to Mr Gocco (and you know I love Mr Gocco). This is not my stencil with very neat circles cut out- I have to admit I am more at home with a pair of scissors than I am with a cutting blade thingo- my curves were a little jagged in places.
This screen had had the design applied and the filler, then the design-y bit washed away ready to print. (also not mine)
Super cute two-toned rabbit printed on fabric
The delightful Laura (our teacher) with the screen all ready to go, pinning the fabric underneath. If you are local-ish (She is based in Melbourne) and you get a chance I recommend taking one of Laura's classes, its laid back and fun and relaxed but informative and Laura tells you everything you need to know. the FUN bit !!!! I could have easily become a screen-hog during this bit, it really is so much fun I just wanted to print and print and print.
The T-shirt. This design is Maree's, whom I met on the day. It worked out beautifully and she printed me one of her designs on fabric to bring home. Maree is the textiles teacher I wish I had when I was a kid.
This is a design that I took from the Ed Roth book Stencil 101. The plan is to use the screen print as a background to some embroidery.

I am mildly obsessing with a screen printing / embroidery combo something thingo, and have been for about a month...but if I try and put one more thing in this brain at the moment I am sure to have a meltdown. Why is it that the busier I am (and lo friends I am BUSY) , the more ideas I want to try out? It's like some sort of weird Creative hyper-drive... Remember Buck Rogers ? when he went through that coloured tunnel thing in his little rocket ? that's me guys - I am the craft equivalent of Buck Rogers.

(How embarrassment)