Straws, Straws, Straws

Mel's suggestion is to use straws. I haven't wound on yet but the straws are very thin and the ones on shalt one slides through the reed so I need to find straws with a wider dimension.

I only had a few so will try some weaving and get back to this and let you know the results!

Belinda

White Blankets

These photo's are some happy snaps I have taken tonight, It gives me an excuse not to think of the problems involved with the weaving process and how to over come them.

Fluffy white blankets are my latest thing. I have yet to work out the best way to wind on and weave with mohair. It sticks all the time and while winding it breaks very easily.

Weaving is another problem, or more the winding on it all mats in the headles and you need to separate very thread/headle as you go. A bit of a pain really.

The next thing I need to think of is how to get a selvage of some kind on, as you can't have threads in the reed to close or snap! so what is the solution?

I have had one suggestion Hair spray can keep the brushed fibres in place, this works in the very short turn but find you can use a full can on one meter of weaving and you chock in the mean time from the fumes. Any ideas anyone?

Where do I go next? Dying that's what and how to dye large quantities of brushed mohair with out it matting and it being easy to separate.

There are plenty of thing to distract production like and exhibition thinking of Lacroix, colour colour, colour. But no white blankets for a while and the reward at the end will be Lacroix. It would be nice ( well one can dream) to have a conversation with Mr Lacroix, even if it was via email. What drives him and his colour combinations and textures. His designs are sublime I would love to own a small piece of Lacroix. Well that's another dream and focus for full investigation.

http://www.christian-lacroix.fr/

Beauty and Burlesque

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In Montana

I am in Montana. I have not thought about weaving other than the gifts I wove for family for Christmas. I return to Australia this week and will be back working on Fybermotion and some production work . Its snowing today!

Here a a few photos of Whitefish Montana, where I am staying.

Bug Art

I went for a bush walk the other day and came across an absolute delight! An entire Scribbly Gum forrest! I adore Scribbly Gums, I think probably since reading May Gibbs' 'Snugglepot and Cuddlepie'. According to the story they are bush creatures' messages left on the trees.

Standing in the middle of a whole forrest of them, I imagine a mass of little conversations around me. In such a quiet place it seemed very noisy!

After a little trip into childhood memory I went looking for May Gibbs on the net - and discovered you can visit her house Nutcote. I'd post some pictures but am too worried about copyright.. so sad! Here's a link tho.

But back to the bugs! Apparently the squiggles are caused by a particular type of moth larvae that inhabit the scribbly gums Eucalyptus rossii and E. racemosa. The CSIRO has a great page on interpreting the scribbles. There has been a lot of recent research as to which bug it is, but the scribbles become thicker as the grub grows.

This moth photo is from the CSIRO site here.

Hmm... imagine if all our newspapers were actually written by a bunch of never-seen grubs that evolve and then fly off leaving us with their scribbles to read. A new take on the legion of monkeys theory.

The marks they make are very beautiful in their quasi-random way and do inspire me - each one is different - I spent hours in that forest!

--Mel

Happy Christmas Mel

I have a very weird quirk, I love these blown glass Christmas decos'. All shapes and sizes are on my tree. Some are so tacky you just have to love them. If you can't love a bit of glitz at Christmas when can you? Images are still a little blurred I will get the other camera and take some more later. Merry Christmas every one.

Belinda

Julie Ryder Textile Artist.

This is a bus shelter Julie Ryder produced for Domain 2007 in Canberra. The shelter was in Alinger ST civic, Julie and fellow artist Sara Freeman were interviewed on The Program. Here is a link to the interview, The Program . There are images and a link at the bottom of the page to the Audio interview. Julie is an amazing artist, a mentor and friend, as a textile artist she has an amazing affinity with colour and pattern.

Colour and pattern always inspires me, after so much white weaving colour is next on the loom.

Belinda