oh christmas tree, oh christmas tree

Merry Christmas!
Wishing all your hugs be warm, families be happy, presents be good, and bellies be filled.


(Our low-tech Christmas tree)

so bad it's good

This year, spooked by losing my job and running out of money, I splashed out a whole 49 cents for a 10 pack of Christmas cards!

Naively coerced into a false sense of achievement by the "promising" card on the front of the pack, with it's fine vintage appeal...
Only to discover this kind of thing inside! >>



AND THESE ARE THE GOOD ONES!!!! You should see the others... Radioactive Santa, cropped across the head. A pigeon-toed teddy with a lapfull of gifts floating off centre in too much white space. And one with a font so wacky it looks to me like it reads "Johns Christmas Wishes".

May I be so bold as to suggest they are SO BAD THEY'RE GOOD!?

But I'm not sure I can send them. It has occurred to me others may not share in the "so bad it's good" joy.


Mr You and I have a long history of delighting in all things "bad". We often frequent gigs at a local club who's insides are designed to make you think you're on a cruise ship; complete with balcony decks and portholes! Then there was the time we drove over an hour deep into the western suburbs to watch the semi-finals of the Air Guitar championships.

And don't even start me on the genre of "so bad it's good" TV shows and music. I know I have touched on our admiration of Shakira before, but we'd be here all night!...


So anyway, keep your eyes peeled on the postbox. You may be the lucky one who gets the card with elves crawling out Santa's pants!

woolly wreath

Geek + Nerds dove has found a new nest. A lush bed of felty flowers and leaves. Our new woolly wreath.

ka ching

Another International Art Exchange goody arrived in the post last week.

This one made me a little giddy as it's from an Australian cartooning icon; Mandy Ord.
I have admired and chuckled at her work before. So when I saw who it was from I did nearly pop!



Thanks so much Mandy :D

those markets hurt me badly

Dear Finders Keepers Markets,

I won't ask how you are, because I know. I know you are wonderful beyond words! Bringing glee and near hysteria to myself and Eve, my market companion, for the 3 whole hours we were with you! The degree of anticipation, pure delight and satisfaction you gave us was reminiscent of 8 year old versions of ourselves upon Christmas morning.

Yes, it is true that there were hundreds and hundreds of other people to squeeze through, but since everyone was in the same "happy place", and what we saw was so good, it was ALL WORTH IT.

My only complaint is that everything you offer was SO good, my lack of money became a real issue. It didn't stop me from partaking in some of your loveliness mind you, but it did hurt very badly not to be able to buy more.
Very. Badly. Indeed.

One of the great joys of the evening was finally meeting my long time blog-buddy Emma Kidd of Benconservato fame. I saw her and was so shy and nervous about meeting her my heartbeat tripled in tempo, I broke into a light sweat and I blushed badly while talking to her. But I DID talk to her, and she was SO nice, friendly and candid. Her stall looked amazing, with what looked like hundreds of unique works on display.


Image from Emma's blog

And guess what?! She GAVE ME a copy of her brand new colouring book, Monsters Behaving Badly!!!! It's is SO SO great!





Something funny happened too. I snuck away from my friend Eve, back to Emma's stall, to buy Eve a thank-you-for-having-me gift; a little gocco print that she was eyeing off earlier. It was only a few days later when we surprised each other with a gift from the markets did I realise she had pulled swifty on me too, sneaking off during the evening to buy me this amazing Bonnie Poplar brooch!!! She out-sneaked me! Clever, trixy lovely friend!



I also bought this sweet card by Renee Seaman:


I would have loved the full sized print, but this was early in the evening when I was still fooling myself into thinking I could "budget". Pfff!

A set of pillowcases came home with me too. I can't show you yet because they are a Christmas present for me (from Mr You... I think, I hope, I'm still working on that part of the plan). Let me just say I handed over the remainder of my food money in exchange for them. And while I realise this is seriously irresponsible spending, all I can say is that I would have cried for 9 days straight if I had left without them. It seemed only right.

Eve did even better than me. She bought herself and her friend each a porcelain pendant necklace, a cool t-shirt for her man, a beautiful cushion by Kristen Doran (who incidentally was very friendly), and my brooch! (Was there something else I'm forgetting?)

We both could have bought much much more, it was all so love-worthy. I could go on and on...

So there you go Dear Finders Keepers, my love for you is undeniable, you are my favourite!
Lots of love,
flossy-p .xx.


P.S. Catkin and Teasel has more to say plus lots of excellent photo's.

big city art

I pretty much spent my whole time in Sydney visiting friends and seeing art. It was a busy but fulfilling schedule :)

In the town where I live there are lots of people that do art, but there are very few places for them to show it. So this time I hit the galleries and soaked in as much as I could...

Starting with a yummy brekkie at The Yellow House in Potts Point for sustenance:




Next door to the amazing Martin Browne Fine Art Gallery, with it's open roof and lilly pond, showing beautiful paintings of trees in eerie light and odd dreamy settings by Alexander McKenzie:




Onto the Art Gallery NSW, where there are two installations outside at the moment. Both fantastic and quite amusing:






Inside to revel in an exhibition I absolutely adored! Garden and Cosmos, Paintings from the royal courts of Jodhpur that flourished between the 17th and 19th centuries:



I loved it so much I wish I could go back RIGHT NOW!!!! Let me tell you why... Quirky concepts, bright colours, very fine detailed patterns, in cheerful compositions. This is work from 1739 and it's bright and pops, no murky brown dark candlelit scenes to be seen. I find it so validating to see art that is similar to this current illustration style we find ourselves immersed in, that is culturally and historically significant. Stuff that is considered art, and not pushed into an underground scene.




Still in the AGNSW, this time in the Dobell Prize for Drawing:




Another day, another gallery. The MCA:



"What's this" I hear you ask... Why it's my feet, swimming in corn of course.
A room of the gallery filled with corn where you were invited to remove your shoes, and walk through to look at photographs by Fiona Foley. The sensation was too great to miss, so I too off my shoes and swam on in.




And finally a bit of art in nature. I sat under the shade of this tree, people watching and admiring it's amazing bark:




So much art, so refilled with inspiration... and I haven't even started telling you about the Finders Keepers Markets yet!!!!!!

baby wolf quilt

The purpose of my trip to Sydney was to meet my friend's brand new baby! Their first.
And to deliver the quilt I made for him...



Cotton and linen, big squares and bright green edging...


Some of the fabric is recycled from the table runners I made for our wedding...


With a little pesonalised embroidery on the back...


Baby is so cute, only 4 weeks old, and trying very hard to focus his eyes. The quilt was well liked.

(News of the rest of my trip to follow shortly)

hiatus

Today I'm leaving for Sydney. Back to visit friends, meet a new baby, soak in the city, enjoy visiting the Finders Keepers Markets, absorbing lots of art and music if I can... And food absorption will be good too. Good food. Greek, Lebanese, Turkish, Portuguese... all the things we don't have here.

I did the same trip this time last year. A re-creation. A tradition. A boost of stimulation.

Back on Tuesday. See you then.

In the meantime, you may like to acquaint yourself with the diversity of Sydney via this great new site, 52 Suburbs. It's beautiful. Beautiful photo's, seen through a wonderful eye, to fulfill a great plan.

Enjoy!

karma comin'at cha

I was well and truly happy-slapped with some more good karma today when a surprise package arrived! A for-no-reason, not even a swap, surprise package. Completely out of the blue, straight from the goodness of a crafty heart.



Sweet sweet Geek+Nerd sent me a bag made from a thrifted t-shirt (from her home town) which will make a perfect beach bag this Summer. Also in the parcel was a handmade felt peace dove, and a card from one of my favourite arty gals Abigail Halpin.



Coincidentally, during my first time at Chunky Chooky's Sunday "Sew N' Sew" last weekend, I attempted to make a wooly Christmas wreath inspired entirely by one that Geek+Nerd made for herself. I saw it on her blog, fell in love, and made plans to make one for myself. So on Sunday I managed to get to the point of wrapping the wool, but hadn't progressed any further... Until...

A-LA-PeanutbutterSandwiches!!!!
This dove arrived today to fill the void!
Meant to be!

Please don't comment on my wreath yet, it's not finished. It needs some felty leaves and stuff yet. I'll show you again once it's done.

Anyway, I have no idea why you sent this to me Sweet Geek, but I love you for it!!!! Even more than before :D
Thank-you!!!!!!

it's working

The International Art Exchange I mentioned last week seems to be working!

In the past few days I have received another 3 parcels of lovely art.


From Helena Tay of Little Mo and Friends:



Helena is from Western Australia, and has sent me a print of one of her sweet homely gals. Mine is cookin' up a recipe of love! Thanks Helena, your work is so sweet, so detailed, and has such personality!

100 good swap karma points for you!



From Patricia Frisella of www.patriciafrisella.com/:



Patricia is from New Hamshire (US), and has constructed a lush romance-filled collage for me. Deep rich colours coupled with pops of detailed pattern, and 3D elements like a feathered horse tail. I think the poem may be one of hers too, but I'm not sure.

I love the line in the poem "She'll loose her hair and corset and bounding over hedgerows gallop to the glade..."

Thanks so much Patricia it's beautiful, 100 good swap karma points for you also!



From Pat Spiller of Pat Studio:



All the way from Maine (US), Pat has sent me 3 of her gorgeous cards. Based on her textile art, these cards look so real, you have to touch the fronts to grasp that they are prints. I can't look away because my brain keeps insisting I should be feeling texture. Either way they are incredibly alluring!

Thank-you so much Pat, I love them. 100 good swap karma points for you too!



Not only that, I actually received a really lovely thank-you email from my Art Exchange recipient, Alisa of Ink Caravan.

Good karma points flying all over the place this week people.
Grab one if you can.
They are worth their weight in gold!
******