my creative space

My space this week has stuff everywhere but I am liking it that way.  It reminds me how happy I am to be working on something. I have a few things in progress and the plan is to finish them before starting anything else.  (yeah right, I've said that before but I mean it this time!) The one project in particular that is making most of this mess is a bit of a secret.  For a few more days anyway. 

I am just a tiny little bit addicted to designer papers lately...but I do need them for this particular project which is to be gifted.    I have only been buying papers on sale, except for just a few I couldn't resist.....this collection is from from Graphic 45.  Here is one of the few I bought...

I can share next week...Pop in over at Kirsty's for many more creative spaces

the last station...

I watched this movie about 2 weeks ago and have been wanting to gush about it since for you girls to decide whether to check it out or not...

I LOVED it.   It is about the period at the end of Leo Tolstoy's life and how he changed his philosophy on his work and life.  It is about his wife Sofya who bore him THIRTEEN children and faced losing it all to the people.

Helen Mirren is Sofya and she is BRILLIANT, I loved her in this.  Their relationship is so intense and passionate for a pair of old wrinklies.   Christopher Plummer is great too.  I always just think of him as the voice narrating the animated series of Madeline.

There is another love story too.  That's where James McAvoy comes in.  I am quite partial to James and I must say he is rather gorgeous in this.  His real life wife is in the movie too.  She is Tolstoy's daughter.

So if you are looking for a DVD to watch and come across this, pick it up and take it home.  I think you'll love it

too cute

This adorable YouTube video I am putting up here for Bec to see.  Bec has an adorable bunny and I wanted her to see this.  He is 2 weeks old and at first I thought this little guy was a toy but he's not...hope you enjoy Bec xx

and two makes three

do you remember this from a few weeks ago? an op shop find.....

well when I told mum I had bought it she then gave me these because she said she doesn't use them anymore

so now I have a family of three.....

thank you mum xx

Stravinsky's Lunch

The book Stravinsky's Lunch is not actually about Stravinsky but about two Australian women artists Stella Bowen and Grace Cossington Smith.  Both women were born close to the beginning of the 20th century.

Both women wanted to devote their lives to their painting.  Stella Bowen moved to London then Paris to pursue a Bohemian life and Grace Cossington Smith stayed close to Sydney.

The point of the title is Stravinsky's work came before everything else in his life including his wife and children.  His children were made to keep silent during meal times as their father may not of been actually writing music at the time but maybe he was just thinking about his work.

Women on the other hand are always expected to put their work and interests after other obligations and people, no matter what the chosen career.

Stella fell in love and was expected to put her work second to her man and Grace chose to never marry so she didn't have to chose.

But apart from the story of the struggle between daily life with creativity, I found this book so wonderful about the life of two Australian women at that point in time.  The hardships and happy times. Life in London and Paris as well.   It's a great social history.

Stella still painted and became a war artist and Grace went on to become one of Australia's first Modernists.

It's an easy read and one that's hard to put down.
I read it about 5 or 6 years ago and I am going to read it again.

I'd love to know if you read it, and what you think of it.

stamps n stuff

oops I seem to have been away from my blog longer than I wanted to be.  I wanted to pop in and say hi and to thank you guys for reading and commenting lately even though I have been a bit absent.  It means a lot.  I apologise for not getting back to visit you.

I am struggling health wise, also I have the worry of a very unwell mum at the moment.  Hubby has basically done everything for her for quite a while now which is an incredible thing for a son-in-law to do I think.  I thank him immensely for that.   I do what I can by speaking to mum each day and visiting when I can, and my sister and I have her to stay when she is able to.  She can't at the moment. 

Things are already not quite as smooth running as they should be as a family due to me being chronically ill.  When hubby gets a bit run down I am the one to cop the flack and then the whole household is grumpy. But he does an amazing job with running around for us all.

A great help now is that mum does her own grocery shopping online and has it delivered.  We do that too sometimes.  It really is quite cheap.  Coles deliver for as low as $5.

It's quite funny when I visit mum actually.  Mum can't get out of bed at the moment so I just lay on the bed with her too because I usually need to lie down.  We drink loads of tea and watch the Lifestyle channel together, like a couple of old farts!

Anyway, creatively I have been rearranging my work space.  I just can't get on with mixed media work when I have my machine and fabric and bits everywhere and it is driving me crazy.

So I have tidied up a bit and I will be sewing on the dining table when I want to sew (like I used to) then I can just move the machine for dinner times.  Then I can keep all paints, glues, inks and papers etc out and can just work on something when I am up to it without setting up.  It's the putting away sewing then setting up art stuff that puts me off a lot of the time because I have such limited energy.

I am feeling inspired though because I have been gathering some new supplies lately and today some of them arrived.   They are stamps put out by Suzi Blu, a fave artist of mine.  They are limited editions and have been hard to get.  I have 2 on their way from the U.S. and then I managed to find some in Australia and so I ordered 2 different ones and they arrived today.   I love them.

Today's task will be to set up my table with tins of pens, baskets of paint etc so I am looking forward to that.

I have had a play with the stamps this morning.  I have to practice a bit though, I got covered in ink! I'll get there though with more playing. My hat goes off to stampers!!

I haven't forgotten I was doing a post about the book Stravinsky's Lunch because I know a few of you are interested in hearing about it and reading it.  I will be back with that next, I promise.

happy weekend xx

tablecloths

What a couple of cuties these are.   From the op shop, they were sitting together.  They feel like they haven't ever been used.  They are so cute and only about a metre square.  I had the strongest feeling I already had a blue one.  But on a little search when I got home (admittedly it was a boys look not a girls look so it still may be somewhere in the stash) I couldn't find it. 

Maybe it was just wishful thinking...

I will have a proper girls look later...