aaarrrggghhhhh!

My computer died this morning. Trying not to panic. Or think about all the things I haven't backed up on the external hard-drive... Loving that my local library is open on a Sunday but wanted to let you know that it might be a bit quiet around here ....

Well that was fun ...

There is nothing like a bit of "Christmas Craft" to help you get into holiday mode is there? I decided to have a crack at making a wreath for my front door. It turned out ok but the best part really was in the making rather than the result!

Firstly I made a big old mess - cutting up old books and drinking fortifying cups of tea.

I rolled lots of "cones" from a hymn book I got at the op shop. I live in an area that was settled by Lutherans so there is no shortage of these hymnals in the thrift stores around here! Sadly my cones are a little less "coney" than they should be. The leaves are also cut from book pages with silver leaf added - now that really was fun!

The end result is a slightly skewed wreath-like thing. I kinda lost track of where I was so it is a bit lopsided...
Never mind, I got to play with the hot glue gun and it looks kinda interesting on the door!
Now I gotta craft me up a tree ....

I love the holidays ...

Great weather, great company, great food - who could ask for more. Lovely lunch at Nosh in Tanunda today. It is impossible not to enjoy a meal in a cafe that hangs teapots on the wall and a vintage bike from the ceiling ...

Did I mention I love the holidays?

I have been remiss of late with regard to this blog. It has taken a backseat to the excitement of Christmas preparations and homecomings I'm afraid. Even getting to the op shops has been pushed way down the priority list! So in betwenn the swirl of tidying long neglected messes and washing linen and making bedrooms ready for special people, I did manage a twirl around a lovely shop that has been in the area for years. Sadly it is closing down as the owners are retiring and moving to be closer to their kids and grandkids. Really it is the end of an era here. I will miss both the shop and the owners. Where else will I be able to go on a Sunday arvo for a few tales told in a lilting Celtic accent? Or watch fascinated as the proprietor folds up little bags for small treasures from pieces of newspaper? Apart from having the opportunity to say my good-byes, I found some wonderful treasure - keys. I know heaps of people think vintage keys are all a bit passe but i just love them. Have loved them since i was a kid - I was always nicking the wardrobe keys which drove my Mum to distraction ... Now I am a grown-up (?) I can buy as many as I want - and can afford!

They are just lovely aren't they? I will have lots of fun using these in jewellery making.

I really like little keys with fancy tops ...

...and knobby bits in the middle ...

.. or ones that are just small and chunky ...

A copule of doors up from this lovely shop is an op shop so naturally I had a fossick in there too. I found this great necklace. These are bone beads. I will cut it up and use the beads in other things.

Another good find was this copper pan for $2! It isn't very large but is solid copper and will be great to cut up and recycle. Even the handle is made of nice wood so I should be able to use that too.

I hope in amongst the Festive madness you have found some thrifting time. I would love to see your treasures so please feel free to click on the link below and share your finds!

My oh my it has been a busy time around here of late! Firstly it is the pointy end of the academic year ( ok so I use that term loosely since I am doing an Visual Art degree ...) and hot on the heels of that have been markets and art bazaars and an increased demand for jewels from retail outlets etc etc. Far and away one of the bestest bits of this busy time has been the exhibition my daughter and I have going at the Urban Cow Studio in Adelaide. It is pretty amazing to have the opportunity to do a mother and daughter gig like this! It is called Woodland Whimsy and even though we didn't physically sit down and work side by side, I am amazed at how well our work compliments each other. We have had great support form family and friends but also from the Gallery and local media. My daughter Ellen even did a radio interview on an arts programme and spoke brilliantly about our show! Oh yeah - proud mamma here. Still, piccies are better than words in this instance so let me share a couple of those with you ...

I am not sure why these pics turned out like this but at least you can get an idea of how the gallery looks.

Ellen's beautiful papercuts look amazing in this space and cast beautiful shadows onto the vintage wallpaper that backs them.

I called this piece "Home is Where the Squirrel is" It is made of pewter, brass, copper and sterling. The squirrel is a little charm I found and the acorn is cast from a charm Audrey gave me. I actually had to make a tool to 'dome' the heart ... (brag alert!)

Here is Ellen with her favourite piece - "Bohemian Love Bunnies" Check out the detail ...

All cut by hand, with a scalpel, from a single sheet of paper ... !!

 The love bunnies inspired this piece -  "Woodland Love Seeker" . I even had to think like a papercutter to make it by working with the negative space to create a layered image. The bunny is cut from epns, the first background is vintage tin and the final background is paper - rescued from a thrown away screenprint at uni! The layers are encased in an old watch case. This was my favourite piece to make.

 Tumbled agate, recycled sterling and watch parts.

Acacia, sheoak and eucalyptus wood that was cut up about two years ago - it should be properly dried and "cured" by now! I added a little sterling silver leaf - simple but pretty.

I am going to leave you with this image of Ellen's work "Jumps Over the Lazy Dog"   just because I love it. It is a bit hard to tell from the pics but the papercuts "float" in front of the background so in good light the image is replicated in shadow on the vintage wallpaper. Now I am switching to holiday brain - squeeeeeeeeeee! Might get a bit silly around here for a while .....