busy

I have to admit I've been ridiculously busy over the last month. I don't know why exactly, it's not like I've got anything amazing to show you  (like I built a crocheted car in the backyard or anything) but I just feel like I've been rushing from one thing to another but never getting a huge amount of anything done. I also feel like I've been letting emails and blog reading/writing slip- but that probably has to do with having more INTERNOT than internet. That problem has been almost fixed. 

So a big shout out to Elvis and Char and Elsie (if she's out there still) and the girls at Prick Your Finger (if you haven't dropped in to the best little haberdashery store in the whole world then you better! Check out the UFO project and their short wearing handy-man and do a search for their completely knitted and crocheted wedding........ brilliant!).

Closer to home, my favourite girls at HML, Dell, Shules, Emma (who's probably wondering why I haven't left a comment!)..... hell, just check the (un-updated) bloglist in the sidebar.......... and especially Lil............ I really haven't had much chance to skip through blogland lately, although I do have to say that I don't ever spend hours trawling the internet, there are too many other things in real-life to do, but I do love visiting my special favourites.

The things that have been happening lately include Jethro turning 8 months old and continuing to grow....... he's huge and fluffy and really sweet and silly. The photo is from this morning as I left to run errands. He was in the bedroom window silently meowing at me. He loves sitting on the top of the lower sash window, he leans against the security bars in a kinda of lazy teenage boy way. He's a twit. His latest trick is to climb the cedar doors in the back of the shop. Ridiculous. What's he going to do when he gets to the top of them? I think he just likes to show-off.

Like I said- typical teenage boy.

snowball

This week has been full of stops and starts. 

The studio was so cold today that I didn't take ol' brown parka off and had to wear my gloves whilst I worked. The 15ft warehouse ceilings in the studio make heating near impossible. I may have to resort to wearing thermals under my jeans. And I must get new leather boots, they really are the only way to warm footsies (along with possum wool socks- toasty!).

So to honour the snow we've been having up in the hills and the icy days down here in town I am proud to introduce Snowball the Beanie. Hand spun Finn wool and cashmere plied with hand-dyed and spun silk. It has a huge pompom on the top. It's a bit of fun..... and kinda luxe at the same time.

and a final note for this saturday

I'm very tempted to wear my ugg boots in the shop today.

Stay warm.

There might be snow on the way.

Happy Queen's Birthday Long Weekend.

memory lane

Having managed to tame the Beast I also managed to get a few other things sorted and for one reason or another as I worked I had a little trip down memory lane.

It started because of a converstion the other week and some fabric I pulled from the shelves.

 

I have a few pieces of tie silks- no not Thai silk- silks (or rather rayons) used in making ties and I was chopping them up to make bag linings. I have a clap-trap memory for where I found fabrics and the one below was from the wonderful Michael's Corner Store. 

Ahhh..... Michael's Corner Store!

It used to be on the corner of Russell and Bourke Streets in the city, yes where the Evil Hungry Jack's is now.

It was seven floors (I think) of pure textile heaven. Job lots of every type of thing made from fabric, from clothes to napery and hundreds and thousands of metres of fabric. Fabulous. And the lifts! You all think the ones at the Nicholas Building are great- phthhhwt I say!- the ones at MCS were an experience in themselves! 

I was studying Textile Design at RMIT and often on the way to the bus I'd drop in and buy 2 1/2 metres of the most outlandish 60s and 70s curtaining material to make a shirt for the next day. $1.99 a metre......... I wish I had these fabrics now......... I'd be as rich as Croesus! It was an Aladdin's cave of the most crazy fabrics, all bought at the big warehouse auctions which heralded the start of the end of the Australian textile industry. 

These were the last of the golden days. On Flinders Lane you could still see trollies of clothes being wheeled from workrooms to agents, and hidden away up rickety stairs and creaking lifts were  fabric and haberdashery sellers. Within a few years all these people sold up and retired and an era ended. 

I still dream longingly of Michael's Corner Store and, in hindsight, what I missed out on.

i am the beast master

I realised on Thursday that the studio has become a chore lately. All the same long boring production jobs to do. I needed to have a bit more creative time. Which is where the Beast comes in.

He's my walking foot sewing machine. You need to feel strong when using him, as with any wild animal you have to have your wits about you, he can turn at any moment. The poor thing has been barely used in the last year and he regularly has to be scraped clean of all the dust that settles on him. 

I gave him a half-arsed wipe over, squirted some oil in his holes, changed the needle and off we went. 

He only caught my finger in the belt twice and I managed to stay clear of the walking-foot-feed-dog nips. 

I can't show you the new project yet, I have the 'home' part of the work to finish on it. Maybe tomorrow......

wan

Someone yesterday told me I looked 'wan'. Such a great word. Sums it up really.

I think my internet is also a bit wan at the moment. Hmmmm. That's probably a bit on the understated side..... (I feel like I keep getting bumped off, just like in the old dial up days!)

I'm hoping if I just put up with it it will suddenly right itself. Bit like a pinching pair of shoes. 

I need to get a lot done tomorrow. Today was an early start, I had to get to school for the little dears' pattern exam. I got there early. Damn. I could have had 1/2 an hour extra sleep.

I think tonight may be an early one. I just don't seem to be in the black in the sleep bank. 

Monday is Queen's Birthday holiday and I'm planning to get a huge pile of stuff done. I always find I get a swag of work out of the way on public holidays because I have no distractions. Fingers crossed.

not perfect.....

.... but better than nothing.

The internet thingy is working a slight bit better than it was. If running repairs to the web involved a screwdriver, a pair of pliers and a hammer I'd be much happier. Instead it makes me feel like I should run out and get a sledge-hammer, an axe and a stick of dynamite........

Decided to stay away from the studio today and get as many errands and as much dyeing done as possible. I can't wait until Kraftkolour is up and running again, my colour palette at the moment is a bit limited. 

(Goddamn internet keeps crashing. Grrrrrrrrrrr.

I am writing this for the third time so if it feels stilted that's my excuse!)

I have 6 weeks to get my sh*t together and I am thinking that I may need to make a LIST. You know how I feel about LISTS and if I run into you anywhere please don't say ask me how my LIST is going- OK?

I'm going to attempt to post this before the damned evil net crashes for the one billionth time.

Fingers crossed.