Back-tacking across the universe

I signed onto to BT3 and have received my swap partners and now the pressure is on. I am feeling the old waves of procrastination crashing over me, just like they did all those years ago at Uni.

On occasion, I observe my life from a step to the side, and the usual pattern I fall into when there is a deadline, is to wait until the last minute. I try to convince myself that it is not procrastination, simply the time needed for my unconscious to work through the task at hand and come up with the best solution, which cooincidentally arrives on time in my head as the clock ticks down.

The weird thing is somehow I feel more pressure to come up with something original and creative for someone I have never met, than passing my university degree. Go figure.

But when you see the talents of Moonstitches you can see why I am nervous, and I can't understand a word of German, but whatever I make will be winging its way to Japan, which is pretty cool.

I am also very stoked to be receiving a lil' softie from the equally talented Larissa all the way from the USA.

I am not sure if I will be posting any work-in-progress shots, I will wait and see if I can get the old grey matter working a little faster.

Everyday Creativity

A couple of weeks ago the theme for Whiplash was everyday creativity. I was thinking about making art from toast, because that was as far as my uncreative everyday mind could stretch. Of course, after I had thought about it for a while, I googled toast art and lo and behold...



And if Elvis on toast isn't enough... how about a labrador latte (I think it is actually supposed to be a lion, but looks more like a labrador to me).

More everyday latte art here.

Luna-tic

Luna Park is one of those memories etched in my psyche. I have a sense of going there with my Dad when we lived in Sydney, and we left when I was about 3 so it is buried pretty deep.

If you haven't been there it is an old 1930s or 40s amusement park and the entry in is through his mouth. It was just down the road from my hotel, so I took a stroll down memory lane.

You can see why that memory stuck. This face is big and weird enough to burn a whole in any three year old's brain.

And then there was 3.

I was dreaming of snow flurries against the window, marshmallows toasting on an open fire, a moose bellowing outside and lo and behold another log cabin pillow was born.

... for some reason this one reminds me of an opal. It is was supposed to be a gift, but when I turned it right side out, I realised I had sewn it up with the zip going up and down, instead of side to side. That sort of thing gives me the hebes so I might have to make a another one for baby C, and keep this one for myself.

I am off to Sydney tommorrow (whoo-hoo) for work and some much needed big city shopping, may the shoe-gods be with me!

Monster Rabbit

Happy Easter, 2006

We observe them observing the rest of us. . .

I started writing this blog in this little outpost of cyberspace to be a place where I could keep notes to myself. To record ideas, images, stories about the everyday events of life that will so quickly be forgotten, and to keep a record of the things I make and do.

I didn't really imagine I would include the children as often as I do, I thought it would be of a more personal nature. Of course the little ones are really concreted to me and part of the fun of my life is to watch them make their own observations of the world.

So in a round about way of getting to the images attached, I am sharing some of Luka's observations of his world with you. The world of being 4.

Log Cabin Fever

I am nearly convinced that my wee sensitive soul becomes ill with the constantcy of the daily grind. It seems that for weeks and weeks of just treading water there is a point where I either sink or swim. That is the point where I need to make time to create something, it seems to be the panacea.

So with a studio overflowing with the family's flotsam and jetsam and causing a major blockage of the creative energy, I simply cleared a path (literally) to get to the sewing machine and the ironing board and whipped up these Log Cabin pillows.

Just in the nick of time, I feel much better now, and they will double as overdue birthday presents - so 2 birds 1 stone.

Luka's Leaves

On the same vein as the last post, this is an unabashed continuation of the theme 'my child is a genius' (sorry, this wasn't planned - it just happened today, please forgive). But Luka created a bunch of Autumn-like images on Photoshop.

I help a bit by opening a new file for him, but he chooses the colours and the brush (the leaves are actually a photoshop pre-set brush), plays around with the mouse and then I come back and save it for him. There are some more here.

Generational Supremacy

At 4 and a half Luka is already expressing an aptitude at poetry that greatly surpasses his mothers. Which needless to say is not hard. I particularly like the expression of his childlike innocence, yet, already in touch with the undercurrent of the zeitgeist and the thought that someone or something else is pulling the strings.

Gaaaaaaaaaardening

The pressure is on... R's two sisters are coming over from the US to visit in 6 weeks time. I know all they want to do is take it easy and hang out with the boys, but I am using their visit as an impetus to plant some things in the garden.

Since moving into our house I have had to let go of my fantasy that I am a great gardener without a garden. I now have a garden and have had the overwhelming realisation that I am not a great gardener or even an ok one. However, I forge on, buying seedlings, moving plants (eek, I even moved the peonies, in my gung-ho enthusiasm), planting green things and god forbid actually watering the plants.

I am not sure how long it will last as I have a posse of garden predators to contend with... one free-range sheep (good-bye roses), 5 peacocks (they scratch the 'blood and bone' fertiliser from the beds), countless wild bunnies (we love kale and lettuce yum), and, a possum who lives in our roof and does nightime raids on the newly purchased seedling punnets (at least I think it is the possum).

So you see the odds are stacked against me, add two pre-schoolers who love to help, and the garden and me bio-relationship is mostly strained. Still, I live in hope of a reunion.