Crossed cushion

Creating new cushions for the couch in a chunky wool with embroidered graphic images to keep me occupied on the winter nights.

Art Work

A selection of my early art work.

From Sacred Heart Series [10 x 10cm, 1994] cast bronze, NZ handmade flax paper, beeswax, ink.

'Oh Really' [20 x 14 cm, 1994] cast bronze, handmade NZ flax paper, ink, beeswax

Violet collage [20 x 30 cm, 1993] handmade NZ flax paper, beeswax, found paper, ink

Sacred Heart Series [25 x 35 cm, 1994] cast bronze, handmade NZ flax paper, ink, beeswax

'Just Calm Down' [20 cm, 1994] cast bronze, handmade NZ flax paper, ink, beeswax

Art Work:Hung, Drawn and Quartered

This work made from tissue thin handmade NZ flax paper and called Hung Drawn and Quartered [2500 x 1000 mm, 1994] went up in flames by a missed placed candle at a very rocking party!

Art Work: Spiral Mirror

I made a series of cast bronze mirror frames and sold them in NZ design shops for a few years. This is one of the few left... Spiral Mirror [30 x 40 cm, 1994].

Art Work: I Owe You A Letter

'I Owe You A Letter' [25 x 20 cm, 1994] made from cast bronze and handmade NZ flax paper, printed, sewn and dipped in beeswax.

Art Work: Good News to the Sick

These nine pieces were in my final year exhibition at Nelson School of Design, Nelson, NZ where I did a Diploma in Craft Design. Called 'Good News to the Sick' [50 x 40cm each, 1992] each piece related to a herb that had remedial powers for the skin. Made from handmade NZ flax paper, moulded, printed and waxed, and backlit to enhance the reference to delicate skin.

Art Work: Datura Crest

In a previous life I created art and exhibited in New Zealand. This piece called Datura Crest [1200 x 1000mm, 1992] won the annual Young Contemporaries Art Exhibition in Nelson, NZ in 1993 [oh so long ago, the year after I finished art school]. It is made of flax paper that I handmade, moulded, printed, painted and waxed. It is called Datura Crest due the gorgeous garden that I lived in at the time that had this mysterious plant come up every year with the most stunning and sweet night-smelling flower and very very spikey seed pods. Otherwise known as Moonflower or Thorn Apple.

Props: 10,000BC film

I made these brown baby props for the film 10,000BC in Wanaka, NZ in 2006. They were for 'mothers' to carry around in the background.

Dickens St garden

I planted this garden a year ago when I first moved here. There were no plants on the left under the eaves and poor dry hard soil.

I added compost and water retention agents and decided to plant succulents since I had heaps of 'pups' from my potted succulents.

My lovely communal gardener liked what I was doing and left a stash of succulent cuttings to plant.....only four have survived, the possums find them particularly tasty unfortunately.

One year later.....the garden has survived the drought and sporadic watering.

Since the grass between the gardens is so shabby I moved 140 bricks to create a solid pathway and extend the garden either side.  Nice. And more room for more plants, very pleasing.

The cerise Hebes will like life a whole lot more now with a bit of mulch and I am excited to watch the San Pedro Cacti grow to great heights. Planning to plant Victoria Blue Salvia (salvia farinacea) [but of course], some rose and citrus Pelargoniums, and dark red Geraniums...mmmm.

Owl 2

Ollie the Owl for new nephew number two Anthony [sadly never made it to its destination, lost in the post or stolen in the post, grrrr]

Owl

Oscar the Owl I made for my new nephew Charlie.

Exterior - Ghetto Garden up-date

Wow! I wandered into the Ghetto Garden yesterday and was thrilled to see all the lush growth over the past 6 weeks and also some pretty floral additions by a resident's lovely mum. How good does that rocket look?... and you can see the buttercrunch lettuces are a big favourite, all the outer leaves munched already by the gals and the bok choy is flourishing as is the perennial basil [ocimum americanum]. There seems to be no big or little pests (the calendula and curry plant  [helichrysum italicum] and crazy stick sculpture dangling with keys, are all doing their job), only an unforeseen crop of stinging nettle.... plucked and chucked with gloves as these gals are not into nettle tea. Proud to see 20 year olds getting a green thumb.

Bok choy looking good on the left and the rocket in the front.

Basil is top far right... calendula in front.

see here for before photos.....

Street Art

I was allowed to steal these small xmas deco card cutouts by Paul Cosgrave [laser cut from recycled cardboard packaging] from the totally stylish Matterhorn Bar in Wellington, NZ on the last night of their showing.

So I brought them all back to Melbourne and found them all a lovely new home in Elwood and St Kilda.

Tropical Exterior: Dickens St

Before: entrance to Dickens St, far too much brick and pipe action for my liking.

The rose petals [many many hours of plucking rose heads apart at work were scored as left overs from the TV show The Elephant Princess's coronation day] were sprinkled on the ground to welcome my book club gals one Sunday.

After: many many plants that love the afternoon sun.

Graffiti

I have been writing chalk graffiti in my street for a while now, just things to keep me smiling and to pass a thoughtful or silly message on to passersby [who I can see thru my studio window reading them!]. I was inspired by Keri Smith's book The Graffiti Art Kit.

'Everything will be just fine' is a good mantra to have as you walk outside your home, or 'just look up we are both under the same starry sky'. Across the road is a wedding venue where I wrote 'this day will never happen again'. Or 'you look really good today'.

It still does not rain around here much so the chalk words last for ages.  I was very moved to find this note carefully waterproofed and taped to my fence yesterday!