pizza oven

We had a ball…… the pizza dough was rolled and pre cooked slightly,  the bread was a sour dough made by a 30 something boy … I watched and enjoyed the surrounding…. stitching, reading, walking and soaking up the bushland, the property owner Robert a 70 something man, is an artisan leather craftsman and we hit it off … it was nice to be mentored and encourage by him.

Our winter woollies got a work out with south westerly winds whipping around us, lucky we travel with our hot water bottles to warm our beds …..

Blood Wood

A stunning weekend lots of great food, we made bread and pizza and the chocolate pudding was a winner. The dye pot got a work out and lots of interest from the other guests, the wool blanket was too big for the pot and hard work to bundle , my guess is that it was not tight enough and may be a touch of synthetic in the blanket??? I used blood wood bark and its sap in the pot and definitely resulted in a pink tinge but alas no great leaf imprints.

blood wood sap

leaves and sap

before

after

imprints

soft colour

good excuse to go camping

We are off to a property up in the hills near a town named Crows Nest. I have a great need to bundle so the pot’s in and I have a Wool Blanket Gilet to bundle, and if it gets too cold I may have to wear it. The property has a wood pizza oven so I am looking forward to homemade pizza, bread and chocolate pudding  (by jasper) …Happy Times up

Arts in the Olives

We had a wonderful day out…….

Jasper did Blacksmithing for the day and made me a iron heart.

Ula and Pete wandered the market stalls and bought back yummy treats and gifts.

I had a fun day of sharing and networking….. and many of my  works made their way to new homes.

colours of nature

the girls

silk gilet

skeins of wool

my new heart

on the rack

wool and leather

recyled wool

our boy

my mantra

I

all packed and ready to go

Well after much stitching and finishing off we are ready for our market stall at the festival ” Arts in the Olives ” …… the trailer is packed and if it isn’t finished its not going . Our darling boy commented on my stress levels ( which in these situations can be up) but alas I’m  OK as far as he is concerned ( Bless Him )

Both Ula and Jasper are off doing workshops tomorrow Jasper is black smithing and Ula will play with clay and cloth. ( sounds like fun to me)

will post some photos next week ……

 

PS happy Mothers Day from OZ..

the linen dress

I got a chance to bundle the linen dress yesterday, boiled it up for 3 hours or so and the scent when un bundling it this morning was magic…. I used a mix of leaves,  some from iron water and some in vinegar and water, this softens some of the dryer leaves and makes it easier to roll too. This one is just for me….. another op shop gem and thanks to India Flint for Second Skin a great read….  Locals you will be able to see me wearing said dress at Arts in the Olives on Mothers Day pre

before

striching

more stitching

those magic leaves

after

close up

front

back

more cotton and linen

My gig at Arts in the Olives is just a week away ….. and just to stretch myself I decided too try the soy ( water and soya beans ) dip for the cotton and linen from Local and Bespoke, I have tried the egg dip but found the egg smell a little over powering. So a couple of cotton and linen numbers all from op shops got their treatment over a couple of days. I have dyed 3 of them and am happy with the results. The leaves have been soaking in rust water which has given off a lovely purple / mauve hue. I have a linen dress that I will dye for me to wear on the day I ran some darts in the back, cut out the lining and put a little silk hand stitching round the neck line. I hope to dye it this weekend as with a hundred other jobs that need doing……..

out to dry

cotton

linen

eucalyptus

autumn leaf

japanese maple

rose leaf

out ot dry

out to dry

linen skirt

!

the scarf competetion

I have entered one of my wool jersey scarves in the 5th annual scarf festival at  The wool museum in Geelong, it opens  7th June so if you are in the neighbourhood go take a peep for me. I finished it off with a little hand stitching round the edges, it was amiss of me not to take a photo of the finished product ! It is the print below and is one of my favorites, a big thanks goes to Nik for a helping hand on the wording for the statement.

” The Leaves of Home “

rose leaves unbundled

Well it is all about heat today Local and Bespoke has written about it too, the rose leaves bundled bought up to the boil in an aluminum pot, bundled round a galvanized pipe ( no rust ) but gets the heat through to the center. The pot probably boiled for 5 to 10 minutes then switched off the bundle then cooled in the water, about 6 hours  later I have unwrapped the delight ( am sure the % of silk has helped ) the blouse was soaked in water and vinegar first.

those rose leaves

 

The rose leaves went into  a jar of rust water for a little longer than expected …. found a light blouse 70% cotton 30%silk  and bundled them up . I am in a bit of a pickle to heat or not to heat ??? Eucs need a good blast of heat but do rose leaves need the same treatment? I have thrown in a couple of  flowers and Japanese maple leaves. I have decided to bring it up to heat then turn it off so we will see what happens…..