Saturday, July 31, 2010

Cabinets of Curiosity part 2



This is one of the Cabinets of Curiosity which was on display at Behind the Monkey. It is called "Buttons & Bottles" and if you look closely that is what you will see on the shelves (amongst other ephemera).

It was my first exhibition and I am greatly indebted to Elaine, Brodie and Gemma at Behind the Monkey for their unwavering enthusiasm and support.




I will have some more crafty things to show you soon.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Cabinets of Curiosity



Some of the old books that I find in op shops are damaged but I can use them to make interesting paper sculptures. The paper in old books is usually lovely and thick so you can fold it and it will hold its shape.

This winter I started making what I called "Cabinets of Curiosity" (two miniature ones are pictured below) and the challenge was to make paper sculptures small enough to fit into the cabinets.


These are some cushions I made with pieces of vintage leather which I found - one side is leather and the other is deckchair canvas which I got from one of my favourite shops - Ici et La in North Perth.

Underneath are some brooches I made with old bakelite buckles framing pictures from old books. I am hoping to sell some of these at the next market I take part in.


And these are two of my smallest Cabinets of Curiosity. These ones are made using old cigar boxes but I have made bigger ones using discarded wooden drawers which are currently on display at Behind The Monkey in Highgate.


Friday, July 23, 2010

Winter Windowsill

It was such a beautiful day today I went to the beach for a walk. I was surprised by how much flotsam and jetsam was still around after the storm a few weeks ago. Some of it looks quite interesting so I took a couple of pictures.



This is my kitchen windowsill which gets a lot of winter sunlight so I have a miniature winter garden there. It looked particularly cheerful today as it was so sunny and blue outside.

And this is a flower on one of our camellia bushes which has suddenly burst into flower this week because it has been so warm during the day.

I am loving this winter weather and so is the garden it seems!




Wednesday, July 21, 2010

My Workspace




Here are a couple of pictures of my workspace. You can see that I am a bit of a collector - old books, old tin picture frames, old sewing things - pretty much anything old and interesting actually! I find it helps be to be a bit more creative having these things around me - I don't think I could ever do anything creative in a sterile workspace, but it can somethimes be a challenge to find enough space to actually work in!

Monday, July 19, 2010

My daughter suggested I should have an online presence so that I could showcase some of the things I have been making and let people know what I am up to, so, with some trepidation, I am venturing into the online world.......

I will post some pictures of the latest additions to my vintage paper works in the coming days so please visit again.