At the bench ...

Today I unearthed some old spoons - there are souvenir spoons, teaspoons, soup spoons and just about every other kind of spoon you can imagine in my collection.

I had planned to make some simple charms but as chance would have it, my simple charms grew into slightly more complex and layered pendants.

That is okay though sometimes you just have to go with the creative flow!

This one started life as a very pretty spoon but a few good whacks with the hammer soon pounded it into a nice flat piece of metal - just right for the addition of a pretty image and a flower.

I spent some time before Christmas cleaning out my magazines and mined them quite thoroughly for nice images. This owl was one I saved - he is pretty cute and fitted perfectly with the piece of glass I had to hand!

I captured this bit of a vintage doiley behind glass and thought it would make a nice component in a necklace, but then, as I was playing around it just kinda grew into a pendant in its own right! The bird and the twig are both made from reclaimed pewter that I have cast. The paper behind the lace was also saved from my magazine destash!

I am still most fond of "Alice" images - I just can't help it. This pendant is made from a teaspoon, mica, a funny old brandy label and another larger spoon that when flattened ended up in this neat shield shape. Add one vintage key and voila - a pendant is born!

This picture gives a better view of the layering . I haven't sat at my bench for a while and my shoulders are feeling the absence tonight - I am out of practice! I am working towards creating enough work to take along to a makers market that is being run in conjunction with Grampians Texture - I am attending some workshops and maybe the market stall might help pay some of my accommodation costs? It is good motivation to get back to work and stop doo-lallying about .... mind you, I don't plan to overdo things - there are still cocktails to be slurped (I mean sipped!) on balmy Summer evenings ...

Merry Christmas!

          Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a shiny, bright New Year full of love and laughter!

x

Sue

Christmas Eve.

Well Christmas is really here! This morning I had a quick trip to my favourite oppie to wish the ladies there a very Merry Christmas ( I also found some goodies which I will share with you later!) and then spent the day puddling around in my kitchen making preparations for tomorrow. It was rather lovely - I had Angus and Julia for company and a celebratory Margharita and lots of lovely smells wafting about ... Originally we had planned to just have our twiggy tree - very low key - but then when my daughter and I were dropping stuff to a local thrift store, we eye-spied a snazzy looking tree on the freebie table! It was white and silver and rather sparkly - I think all that shininess in the Summer sun went to our heads and as you have no doubt guessed by now, it came home with us! We have dressed it bright, fun colours and are both feeling pleased with ourselves. My daughter, bless her cotton socks sat and stitched some very sweet felt birds for our "new" tree.

She made a bunch of these sweeties in lots of colours. They are quite tiny - about 8cms from beak to tail, so she stitched them up by hand. Isn't it lovely to have handcrafted decorations on your tree? Speaking of which, the very thoughtful Christina sent me the dearest little Santa that I have seen in a long time.

How cute is this little bloke? Thank you to the multi-talented Christina - it was a wonderful surprise and he looks just right on our thrifted tree!

So now the presents are wrapped, the tree decorated and the food prepared all that remains is to share a wonderful day with family and friends. And maybe sip on a cocktail or two ...

Merry Christmas!

Just one more ....

Ha - I totally remember seeing these guys  at Adelaide Uni with my  brother - I was all of 14 and completely stoked to be experiencing live music with my crazy big bro! Classic Aussie rock!

Strange bedfellows ...

Question:  What do an aluminium cake pan

an old decorative tea tin

and some 'pearls' from the op shop have in common?

Answer: They make really pretty Christmas decorations!

They catch the light for a bit of Christmas twinkle and add some colour to my rather monotone tree.

So indulge me ...

I am not just strolling down Memory Lane with my 'new' record collection, I am hurtling back ready to face-plant it in 1975. Join me ...



All My Friends Are Getting Married - Skyhooks



Lay Your Love On Me - Racey




Baby Its You - Promises.


Oh I so wanted to be the chick in that last video - I had the jeans, I had the braces, I had the moves - so what happened? Ok so I didn't have the boobs or the talent but still ...  What were you doing when these classics were hitting the airwaves? I was busy being YOUNG! If you weren't born when these songs were released please don't bother commenting. (only kidding - sort of - no really - that is just my middle-agedness talking, comment away!)

Flea Market Finds

I had a fun stroll around a local oppie on Saturday - I haven't been for ages and it was good to see lots of new thngs had arrived since my last visit.

Bearing in mind that Christmas and the obligatory, celebratory cocktails that go with it, is just around the corner, I was dead chuffed to find a little jigger thingamy - no more using the medicine glass to measure out accurate shots. Mind you as the day progresses accuracy goes out the window but at least we can start off with a little class! The set was apparently part of "The Corporate Collection" (according to its label anyways!) and there is a handy champagne sealer, a wine stopper and what appears to be a bit of a dodgy "waiters friend". All quite useful and for the grand sum of one dollar, much too tempting to resist. I found some silverware that will eventually be cut up for jewellery although the tea tin is rather intriguing.

It is really heavy - definitely NOT tin but rather some kind of silverware. It is a facsimile of a tea tin really and I wonder if it was for some kind of comemeration - there are no dates engraved on it though. Perhaps it is someones metalwork project? Part of an engravers training? It has me stumped and I would love to know what you think. The score of the day has to be awarded to a bunch of old LP's. I resurrected my record player recently and so I was looking to add to my collection.

This lot include some British pop music (Manfred Mann, Dave Clark Five, The Hollies etc), the very lovely Sade, The Black Sorrows and believe it or not a Patsy Cline album.

What record collection would be complete without The Eagles Greatest Hits? As a child of the 70's I had to have Mr Stevens and those compilation albums featuring such greats as Disco-Tex & The Sex-O-Lettes (Get Dancin"), Sherbet, and Kraftwerk. I also picked up an old looking LP that is sung in French. I thought I could play it when I am cooking and get in touch with my inner Julia Child. Hope it works for curries! I spent all of Saturday afternoon spinning my discs and inflicting a "proper" musical education on the younger members of the household!
To see what everyone has hunted up in the oppies this week, head over to Sophie's.
And just in case there are holes in your own musical education or you simply want to stroll down memory lane, let me just share this little gem from "Whopper Original Smash Hits" 1975 - "The Hustle" by Van McCoy. Oh yeah - I challenge you to sit still!



Not sure if this will take off on "So You Think You Can Dance"! but you gotta love the cheesiness! No wonder feminism took off!

 And if you want to know a little more about the phenomena, watch this!

Pop Ups and Presents

Whew what a month it has been ! Makers who sell all know what a crazy time of year this is - it pays to make hay whilst the sun is shining so no complaints but ... well I am glad to be having a bit of a break now! The Ethel and Girty pop-up shop was great fun and I need to thank all the wonderful people who came and visited on the day. It seems everyone embraced the idea with fervor and we spent the day chatting, sipping champers and daintily nibbling the beautiful cupcakes.

Prettiful things on display ...

Audrey Harnett's beautiful sterling silver jewellery.

Paper cuts by Ellen and prints by the multi-talented Audrey.

Some of Ellen's paper-cuts in reclaimed frames. Aren't they gorgeous?

A handmade Christmas tree festooned with white birdies and guarded by two colourful reindeer.

Calorie free cupcakes stitched with love (and lots of patience!) by Audrey.

Outside everything was set for tea ...

Just look at these beauties - all baked by the amazing Lucy and Amy duo - now nominated as the Cupcake Queens!
Just when I thought the day couldn't get much better, the lovely Melissa turned up bearing beautiful gifts for us!

Isn't that a treat! I am a morning person so Melissa chose this great doiley to include in mine!

This was an amazing experience - Audrey opened up her home to host our show and it was a beautiful setting for a wonderful gathering. I think we were tired but beaming by the end of the day!

Thanks Girty!