Drawing

A lot of my friends tease me about how much I talk about my childhood- I guess you could say it was idyllic. My parents are pretty amazing- they're both artists, my Mum was a children's librarian and my Dad was a carpenter at the St Kilda Adventure Playground, a magician and he flew hot air balloons for a while. My brother and I grew up in a  house with lots of friends, food, art and music.

I try to give Casper an interesting and loving home life, we play records most of the day and from the time that he could move, Casper has always danced and been very musical. He dances to anything with a beat. He has shown an interest in drawing and painting, but not so much as with music, which is why I relish the times that he sits down for more than a few minutes and draws with me.

I can't wait until he's big enough to do some sewing with me and we can make costumes and toys and I'll teach him how to knit and crochet. I loved doing that sort of stuff when I was a kid, I think I'm lucky that I had people around me who wanted to help me learn and now I'm even luckier because I can experience it all over again with Casper.

Hawaiian Quilt

I had been wanting an excuse to make a Hawaiian quilt ever since I read about them in a library in Marin when I was 15. When we received a very open-ended project in one of my painting classes last semester, I decided to make one.

I don't think I knew what I was getting myself in to.

I did very little preparation for the design, I mainly improvised which was scary because I used some very old silk (1940s I think) and an expensive bedsheet to make the top.

Construction of a Hawaiian quilt is fairly straightforward. Basically, it's like cutting a "snowflake" out of fabric by folding it in half twice and then appliquéing it onto a larger piece of fabric, in this case a bedsheet.

Here is a link to a great tutorial on how to make your own.

I spent about 50 or 60 hours making this quilt and I think it will be a long time before I try anything remotely intricate again. Although I am a fully fledged quilt-addict, so it probably won't be too long.

I quilted with my machine (free motion) and by hand with crochet cotton. I really like breaking the rules with that sort of stuff and just going with whatever feels right. 

It's so gorgeous to have in the house; on the bed, dogs and babies snuggled up in it. I guess that's why I make quilts, so that I can provide warmth and comfort to the people (and animals) that I love.

I hope that's not too sappy. 

Mum's Quilt

My Mum recently had three couches made in some delicious blue, green and lavender velvet. I had been thinking about the colours a lot and decided that since she does so much for me and I haven't really made her something for being such a beautiful grandmother to Casper, I would make her a smallish quilt to compliment her new lounge suite!

 I bought a triangle template ages ago and I haven't had the right project to use it on, so I decided to make a simple, colourful quilt. Simplicity is not something that I tend to do with sewing, so it was refreshing to concentrate on the placement of colour and relax with some smooth sewing. I really like being neat and matching edges up and this was a very satisfying project in that regard.

I used quilting cottons and bound two of the edges and set fringing on the other two.

We snuck into her house while she was at work yesterday and put the quilt over the blue couch so that when she got home she would have a nice surprise!

Thank you Mum.

Old

Painting

Velvet Hood

It has suddenly become Autumn in Melbourne and I have been so enjoying the crisp mornings playing in the park with Casper, who only ever wants to be outside. I try to take him to the park as much as possible so he doesn't get crazy inside the house. Since the weather has been getting cold, this morning I set out to make him a really warm hat. 

I just made up the pattern by measuring his head- I think I could make a tutorial as it was pretty simple pattern drafting.

The hat is made from this wacky tartan velvet that is very old and very beautiful to touch. The lining is made from an old lambswool jumper that had a few too many holes to be saved. I think it will be perfect for this winter especially for wild and windy walks on the beach.

How to Make Hand-Painted Shoes

Ingredients:

an old pair of leather or vinyl shoes

acetone

paintbrushes

good quality acrylic paint

a pair of rubber gloves

an old rag

acrylic based clear gloss sealant in a spray can

a container of water

Step 1: In a well ventilated area (outside is best), gently wipe down the shoes with acetone on an old rag. This will help to break down whatever paint or primer was on the shoes originally, and prepare the surface for painting on.

Step 2: Mix a base colour, and paint directly onto your shoes, being sure to cover evenly and neatly. You may need to tape off the edges of the shoes if you are using a bold colour. Set shoes aside to air dry.

Step 3: Mix the colours that you will paint your design on with. I have chosen to paint with a coral pink and a mint green.

Step 4: Start painting! Remember to keep the design simple as you will be painting both shoes fairly rapidly- acrylic paint has a drying time of about 15 minutes.

Once the first colour is on, wash your brush and begin to paint with the second. Repeat this step until you have used all the colours and your design is complete.

Step 5: Spray shoes with clear sealant. Be sure to spray from a distance and keep it evenly distributed. Less is more! You can always repeat this step if you feel there is not enough coverage. According to instructions on the bottle, let air dry for 2 to 24 hours.

Step 5: Thread your laces on and admire your new one of a kind painted shoes!