and another thing

while sorting piles of papers
[in pursuit of rendering aforementioned guest room habitable]
i found various amusing things

including

a copy of 'Beyond the Bale' , a publication of Australian Wool Innovation


which describes a clever printing process
whereby leaf images can be digitally printed on to cloth
[forgive me, i may have mentioned this before]

i think there may be easier ways to do this
especially

on wool

work for idle hands

while most folks are having a bit of a rest i'm enjoying being at home for a change

which means spending time with my family

and also

making a few things for Planet

the design store in Sydney that stocks my work

this year i seem to have been on the road teaching for much of my time

it's satisfying work

and keeps body and soul together

but sometimes it seems as though everyone else is having all the fun of making

so between Saturnalia and the Gregorian New Year

i hemmed, stitched and dyed cloth [yes there's a difference between hemming and stitching...the former requires a bit of discipline, the latter is more akin to drawing and play]

this nice piece of vintage wool crepe is much more useful hemmed and dyed than stored at the bottom of a box

this piece of milkymerino now looks as though a leopard might have taken a snooze on it

and the smaller piece [centre of photo] is wool "nun's cloth" available from Beautiful Silks. i highly recommend it as it just loves plant dyes of all sorts

bright sunlight isn't recommended for textile photography

but it's either that

or

darkness

here in Oz

Kip is never far away and from time to time tells me to "put the needle down, please" as she needs a pat.

in the event that any of these pieces interest you, they should arrive at Planet in about 5 days from now and if you like you can email them via their contact page to make an enquiry

have a splendid and peaceful New Year, with satisfying work as well as quiet moments

weeds as well as flowers

good books, kind friends and pleasant walks

enough to eat and a warm bed at night