vivid 2011

i guess this might be sacrilegious being a melburnian and all, but sydney - what a beautiful city!

we went to the opening weekend of sydney's vivid festival to catch Jason Pierce/Spaceman 3/ Spiritualized perform their wonderful Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space album in full - strings, choir, band - the whole deal. awesome!
light shows, i thought? meh! this photo does no justice to the absolutely stunning creations by Superbien beamed onto the Opera House sails. and there were fantastic interactive installations all over circular quay. even the most hardened cynics (er, perhaps myself, elmo less so) were super impressed!

and of course, what holiday is complete without adding to the stash, first: this beautiful bunch of lovelies from Leura in the Blue Mountains.**
and secondly, more japanese books from kinokuniya.
** this blog was intended as a means of creative discipline, so i hope to post completed projects soon and not just that which fuels my fabric/book obsession! (but seriously, aren't they cute?)

Op shopping

i'm a terrible sucker for op or junk shops (or maybe it's the good get that i love so much).
i inherit this from mum and dad: they too value the old or abandoned and have a collection of previously unloved things.

we spied this cute norwegian figgjo sugar bowl in the dandenongs. sadly, not too long after we brought it home, i dropped the lid. oops!

imagine our excitement when we saw this figgjo lotte coffee pot, milk jug and sugar bowl at a market on the bellarine peninsula...
aren't they the cutest? love the drawing style and the colours, very distinctive in amongst the english ceramics that you often see at opshops. once i stop admiring them, we may even serve coffee out of the pot once day far far in the future (especially since butterfingers here is likely to be a klutz with them!)

Browsing> Fimo necklaces

Stumbled across these lovely fimo necklaces by local designer Emily Green.Just my kinda thing, great colour combos and so tactile!

rave on

yay, first gig of 2011***!

m.ward's hold time was on high rotation at ours last year. it's much more upbeat and summery than the songs i've heard previously from mysterious mr m. (who falls neatly into Dan Kelly's Rockwiz Master Blaster subject, Men Who Sing High), and heartwarming string arrangements get me everytime. if you do yearn for m.ward in his doleful, wistful mode, there's a beautiful duet with lucinda williams on this album.

big thanks to dr c's gig alert: we scored tix to m.ward's first tour to aus in five years, can't wait!



*** unless Dan Kelly at the Aus Open Tennis counts??

thai dye

when travelling:
the first thought is for the stomach - what to eat? where to go? what to try?
second thought - maybe some countryside scenery or some cultural insights?
third thought - what stationery can i get my mitts on! (donut shaped tape dispenser anyone?)

this last trip, a new one: unrestrained fabric frenzy craziness.

check. it. out.now, this fabric buying thing is not new. i randomly buy fabric at home all the time, but overseas? that's space that could be filled with FOOD (we lugged home SO many jams and preserves from Paris last time, so YUM) or cute notebooks!

in thailand, something un/clicked in my brain and i gleefully bought ~25 yards of fabric.
at least.
isn't that crazy.
half my suitcase thanks.

here is a small bit of the stash:
can't wait to get stuck into them!

these lovelies are from Khomapastr Fabrics in Hua Hin, a coastal resort town in Thailand (there are also branches in Bangkok). Just behind the shop, the Khomapastr textile factory in Hua Hin has been screenprinting all these gorgeous fabrics by hand since 1948.

(...wish i had chosen a few more... =) )

ps: elmo's travel obsessions: drawing pens and, er, pork floss! do you have any travel obsessions?

hello animals!

This weekend past, we welcomed niece #2 into the world. Congrats C and S!

For her first gift, a felt animal mobile inspired by the Aranzi Aronzo book "Cute Stuff", a gift from C and S from one of their overseas soirees.

Why have I been slaving over quilts with all their batting and binding and matching fat quarters?
These felt animals were HEAPS more fun to make!
No need for patterns: I cut out these shapes freeform from my felt stash, embroidered their faces, stuffed a little bit of polyfill in their bodies and used blanket stitch to put them all together.

The animals have 2 inch lace loop at the top where the ribbon goes through. The other end of the ribbon hangs from a embroidery hoop - my makeshift mobile frame.
Yes, the animals look innocent enough, but they were slightly uncooperative models for photos. Maybe they were nervous about being stuck over the balcony? =p

Next time: need to figure out a better method to hang the mobile, but am feeling well chuffed with the final result!

Welcome little baby p! We look forward to getting you know you =)

Sawadee Kha

In retrospect, I was pretty green on my first trip to Thailand some ten years ago. Back then, it just seemed too big and overwhelming and stifling hot.

With the advantage of travelling with Elmo who speaks and reads Thai, this second visit was a much richer experience. Bangkok is major sensory overload: hot in the heat, cold in the air con, noisy but polite, crowded and dynamic, relaxed chaos.
We spent most of our time in the city with Elmo's family, but also visited the seaside and ventured inland. In the north, we visited the stunning ancient ruins of the old capital Sukhothai. These bell shaped structures are called chedi and they represent the path to heaven. They are built in the form of a lotus flower.
The scale of some of the statues of Buddha was just breathtaking.

We also drove out to Thung Luang to see the local ceramicists and pottery centres, and briefly visited Phitsanulok, a big country town to the east of Sukhtothai. The Thai countryside is so different to the big smoke - so relaxing!
Back in busy Bangkok: if you ever get the chance, head out to the Pak Klong Talat (night flower market). We cabbed it there at about midnight and were rewarded with the most vibrant and voluminous display of flowers including orchids, roses and lotus flowers. Absolutely stunning.

The orchids below are on sale for 10 baht a bunch (about 30 Aussie cents). And have you ever seen lotus flowers presented like this?! They are so architectural and beautiful. Happily, we also frequented the local markets and street food stalls. I must end this post with a picture of one of my favourite discoveries: kanom krok.

Kanom are a snack or sweet that is normally purchased on the street, and there are many different types of kanom.
Kanom krok is a type that is cooked on a hot iron plate. It is a coconut sweet that has a crunchy bottom and a soft, coconut-y filling on top. Sometimes kanom krok has corn or spring onion added to the soft filling. I'm a bit embarrassed to confess that we were too busy scoffing the kanom krok to take decent photos!

Hmmmm, Thai food. After only a week home, we are now both nursing serious cravings for Thai street food!

rest in peace

for my grandfather
we will miss you

miss hazel

i've been sick for the last week, i'm officially over it.
and during a lovely warm spell in melbs too - damn you virus!

daytime tele is so unappealing - who watches this stuff? so in between coughing, sleeping and eating congee, i made this monkey from the mabel pattern in my favourite softies book.

this is for one of the newest little people in the world, welcome hazel.
i left out the fabric button from the tail - it never fails to amaze how little folks like to put everything in their mouths!
congrats dr h and mr p =)

patched

Source

nerdalert.
Science and patchwork? I was thrilled to see this cover on the latest issue of scientific journal EMBO.

have a great weekend all!

fried green tomato

i super love this glaze ... it's a tomato/red that becomes this gorgeous green colour under oxidation firing - fast becoming my favourite mode of firing.

the first public holiday in six months and i come down with a cold. bah! hope you were lucky with the horses today!

Watching: Project Runway Season 8 Finale, spoiler alert: Mondo was robbed!
Exploring: BBC world service podcasts

for cindy

another miss polly, this time for cindy (xin yi).

recently, xin yi moved to melbourne from northern china with only a few phrases in english, and now, in only a few months, chatters away about this and that in perfect english.

cindy's favourite colours are pink, light blue and light green (light, not regular ok!).

welcome to melbourne cindy!

PS: the ladybird button is from Adelaide's Button Bar, courtesy of Eky - thanks chick!

Fresh out of the kiln

Slowly, slowly, I am learning how to throw bigger pieces on the wheel and about different glazes and firing methods.

The outside of the first pot has lovely specks of brown throughout that arises from oxidation firing. On the inside, I used a runnier glaze that produces blue and grey flecks.
For the second pot, I used a neutral glaze both inside and out, but using reduction firing that results in a shinier finish.

And since I can't help but be a scientist, here's some fruit in the second bowl for scale purposes.
Elmo immediately deemed them suitable for noodle soups - perfect for the won ton dumplings he made last weekend, yum!

It's so exciting to see the pots when they come out of the kiln; there's plenty of room for improvement, but I'm happy with how these have turned out. So much fun..

Eating: Delicious blood oranges (YUM) and ...won ton noodle soups =)
Watching: Mr Barry Morgan at the Melbourne Fringe Festival - so cheesey!

good get

our team went to a scientific conference recently - a combined meeting of societies from three different disciplines.

i felt like a science anthropologist: interesting to see the plant/ protein/neuro talks and glimpse into different tribes and dynamics. fascinating!

here's the best get from the trade displays:

it's a usb key and he's awesome!

>browsing

Image source

Ever since I visited Coral Bay in north west Western Australia and then Cape Tribulation in far north Queensland a few years later, I have longed to travel along the very northern coast from east to west (or vice versa, i'm not fussed!).

The Opera Camper, designed by Axel Enthoven, would be perfect! I just love the elegant unfolding roof and the design details in the interior...amazing!

>Browsing

Image source

I have a terrible weakness for paper: was immediately taken with this happy collage by Jared Schorr for the Paperquilt Project.

tokuya goodies

Thanks to a tip off from Kate, we made a bee-line for Tokuya last week.

I grabbed a few sewing bits and pieces, as well as some paper dotted with little colourful squares. How cute are those little pins!

I mentioned Tokuya to workmate S, a fellow stationery freak, who came back from lunch break, excited and wide-eyed, reporting all the amazing paper gifts she had just acquired.

With all the stationery, storage solutions, lunch boxes, cups, more stationery, crockery, origami papers, tee shirts...even gardening supplies (!), S and I enthusiastically agreed that this was indeed heaven on earth, and congratulated each other on managing self-restraint.

Now we just need another excuse to head back into town...

(More) Browsing

I'm enjoying posting these random finds rather than whipping out my credit card - online shopping is just a little bit too easy =)

I love UK artist Gemma Correll's patterns and illustrations, especially the pugs and kitties...

See if you can resist these and other lovelies here.

Correll's Kitties blog is gorgeous too: love the dead pan sensibilities of the conversations...

We're off to celebratory drinks tonight for two brand new phuds - congrats drs j and c =)
Happy weekend guys!

>Browsing

As someone who likes to make cards now and then, this envelope template would be so useful...

But! this will be filed in the cute-but-don't actually-need-it category!

Speaking of which, in October, the Salvos are reminding us to practise sustainable consumerism and Buy Nothing New. Elmo and I are going to take up this challenge - please join us!

>Browsing

Browsing: Mexican artist Gennine's Etsy shop. Aren't these prints gorgeous?

My sis hates birds. She visibly shudders at the mere mention.
Workmate S doesn't like birds: "I don't like their beakiness".

I reckon these delicate illustrations from Gennine would convert even the most ardent bird-hater (sis included! =p).
Listening: Wishing for the summer with the Beach Boys classic "Pet Sounds"