ALICE SPRINGS BEANIE FESTIVAL EXHIBITION

Examples of the type of beanies which are entered in the festival. Check out this link for more pictures.





Alice Springs Beanie Festival has a travelling exhibit which will be coming to the beautiful Taree Art Gallery in April. As part of the exhibition, the Taree Craft Cottage is organising for local crocheters, knitters or felters (and their friends) to make an arty beanie, some of which will be selected to also be exhibited. So please read the brochure for details if you are in the area and would like to take part.
We will be holding a special day at the Craft Cottage on St Patricks Day, 17th March, where you can be inspired, helped with design and embellishing your beanie, or just a general get-together of interested people who are taking part, it should be a fun day so come and join us.

LITTLE BIRDIES

I made this felt bird hanging for my dear friend Bethel and the pictures show it hanging in her garden. We had the pleasure of staying with her on our recent trip to visit our daughter in Bundaberg. I really enjoyed making these birds and would like to make some more, oh for enough hours in the day to achieve all I would like.

CUP AND SAUCER PINCUSHION

I have a wonderful group of creative friends and we get together for several weekends during the year. Today, we had a late Christmas get-together, due to many of us having lots of commitments before Christmas. Apart from having a lovely day in each others company, we exchange Kris Kringle gifts, where we each draw a name out of the had and make a gift the one of the Belle friends. This is the gift I made for Martina, I hope she liked it. The English Bone China small coffee cup and saucer was one from a set which I have had for many years and not used for coffee, so I thought that it would make a lovely gift for my friend with lots of pins and embellishments to complete it.

A HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

Here's wishing you and your loved ones every happiness for the New Year ahead, may you have health and happiness in abundance.

We are leaving on a 15 hour road trip to visit one of my daughters and her family, so I spent today making her a bag to take along with me (a belated Christmas present).
Although the photo doesn't show it all that well, it is purple velvet (I always seems to have a problem capturing purple the way it really looks) also lined with purple with an inside pocket, and on the outside, where the lace doily is, another pocket for her mobile phone, car keys etc. Hope that she likes it.

Blessings all,

Rob

HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF MY FRIENDS

Christmas seems to have come around so quickly, but sure enough it is here once again and I am trying to catch up with last minute shopping. I'm going out early this morning to try and beat the crowds, but not matter how early or late you are shopping there always seems to be a crowd of people.

"IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS"

Thanks so much to everyone who comes to visit during the year, your support and comments so much appreciated. We are all on a journey with our art and lives, and it is so nice to have friends come and visit from time to time to share the journey. I would like to wish you all a very happy Christmas with your loved ones and look forward to having you visit and to me visiting and being inspired by your blogs during 2011.

Love and hugs,

Rob

CHRISTMAS TAG A LA T!M

I really liked the look that Tim achieved with his Day 9 tag, so I decided to give it a try. I didn't want to embellish quite as much as he does, but am quite happy with my finished result. Looking forward to finding some time to try out some of the other techniques, although I don't have all of the products that he has used. I love the new Hero Arts background that he used on this tag, methinks it will have to be included in my tool kit.

Hard to believe that it's only two weeks until Christmas, I'd better get myself moving.

QUICK AND EASY CHRISTMAS CARDS CLASS

These are the cards that I've made for this weeks "Quick and Easy Christmas Cards" class.
We ordered some of the gorgeous Webster's Pages "Waiting for Santa/Sweet Season" pads to use in the class, but unfortunately they haven't arrived in time, but perhaps we may still be lucky and they might get there before the class starts.
I have included four cards, which we won't get through in class, but the girls can choose which ones they would like to do.

TRASH TO TREASURE ART IS CELEBRATING.

Lynn Stevens is celebrating her three year blogging anniversary over on Trash to Treasure Art. She has some fantastic art pieces to give away, so go on over and take a look around at Lynn's beautiful art pieces and perhaps be one of the lucky winners.

STAMPSMITH CHALLENGE - RIBBON AND LACE

This is a easel card that I've made for my friend's birthday and it features the beautiful Ophelia image from the Stampsmith, one of my very favourites. I have this stamp in both sizes and both orientations. This is the first time that I've entered in the Stampsmith Challenge.

CLASS PROJECTS THIS WEEK.

I really enjoyed teaching this class as much as the girls in the class enjoyed doing it.
One very feminine and one quite arty project. I loved using "My Mother's Dress" stamp on the Side Step Dresser card, and the "Papillon" stamp set for the pocket card.

I FOUND SOME TIME TO PLAY TODAY

I have had two of my grandchildren staying for the last week and so haven't had much time to go to my studio, but today I managed some time to make three cards and an ATC. One card is for a friend for her birthday and the ATC is also for a friend, so I haven't included those, just the other two.
I really enjoyed my little play today and look forward to finding some time next week when I have my days to myself......although I will miss having my little darlings around.

MY STAMP CAMP PROJECTS

I was away for four days at a stamp camp at Quorobolong in the beautiful Hunter Valley. We had a great weekend meeting up with friends and having plenty of time for creativity. These are pictures of four of my creations from the weekend, a couple are still not completed. Our tutor for the weenend was Julie Van Oosten from Collections,who had so many beautiful products to help inspire us.

SOME PICTURES FROM MY WEEKEND AWAY

I went away for 4 days to a stamp camp and along the way, I just had to stop and capture these pictures from a farm gate with the old barn in the paddock.

SOFT COLOURS ARE MY THING RIGHT NOW

Although I usually love lots of colour, this week, I've had a real "thing" for using soft muted colours in the cards I've made. A couple of these cards are for friends who just need a little surprise this week, the others are for later down the track. Later, I'll upload some more pictures of what I've been up to this week.

BEESWAX COLLAGE CLASSES

This month, I'll be doing two "Beeswax collage" classes, one for the regular Thursday class and one for the Mixed Media Artists group on Saturday. I simply love the look, the smell and the feel of beeswax. All of the elements of this collage are fixed in place with the beeswax, giving it a lovely muted, dreamy appearance. I hope that the girls enjoy this adventure into a new medium......so many great things to do and there never seems to be enough time. Oh and by the way, I was compelled to use this gorgeous girl although I did use her a few months ago, isn't she beautiful??