great finds

Love this, such a clever idea - it is by Vector Cloud and would make a great Christmas present (or Valentine's Day).





I found it on See-Me-Everywhere blog, a new discovery and one I will be returning to.

On the weekend I read this column in The Australian by Emma Jane in which she discusses how often Christmas presents are not wanted/needed and end up being either re-gifted or put in the rubbish. She also gave a list of 'crafty' options to buy this year such as; Subversive Cross Stitch, Bust and Knitty.com. Or make something yourself, hmmm - I think I have left it a little late on that one.

However, I have been buying some gifts from 'Handmade' sellers/crafters/makers. An element to the fun in doing this is the hunt, searching the web for something cool, stalking the aisles of craft markets looking for that special 'thing' which will make someone happy when they open the gift wrap. So many things that I would like to buy for myself.

getting my craft on

One of the most common questions I am asked when discussing what I do is "So, what do you make?". My response is "oh, nothing", usually blaming this on lack of time, skills or both. I've dabbled in crocheting, done a sort-of Fashion Design certificate so I can 'kind of' sew, got frustrated by trying to cast-on when taking up knitting. However this evening I decided to give cross-stitch a go! I was spurred on by a few things; my daughter learning it at school, reading a book on Subversive stitching and some excellent examples in the 'Indie Craft'book. I also feel that cross stitch is similar to loose sketching, which is an activity I like to do.
I decided to stitch a Morrissey song lyric 'Lifeguard, save me from life' - and so far, so good! But let's see...it's not completely out of the realm of possibility that it won't get completed.

An artist whose work is inspiring me at the moment is Hildur Bjarndottir, especially her work 'Untitled' from 1998. Love how fine the thread is and of course the skull imagery.

To help with this I am going to attend a new craft collective and hopefully this will provide the push I need to get a craft project finished and then when I get asked the question I can so, "Oh yeah, I cross stitch a little...".

An update to my previous post - it was me who read the timetable wrong. Very sorry to the organisers. I am presenting Wednesday morning - eeek!

Also writing an abstract for an upcoming conference Console-ing Passions. I'm really excited about this one, think it would be a great opportunity to present my research, plus it sounds very interesting.