The Bell Jar....

Some super lovely friends of mine have just launched their print studio - The Bell Jar.  I can not begin to explain how incredibly talented and creative Elly Joel and Kylie Thévenau are.  They create breath-taking surface pattern and textile design for fashion and interiors and I have no doubt you'll see their work in your daily life before long.

Reduction linocut....

I've been a bit unwell so have missed the last few printmaking classes, but it's good to be back!  Thankfully I don't seem to have missed too much, and am optimistic that I can catch up with my reduction linocut.  Above is my first layer, ready to print.  I REALLY want to cut the second colour, but as the name suggests, the lino is cut (reduced) between colours so until I print, I can't do anything (and I can't print until Thursday).  Sorry if my explanation of reduction linocuts is a bit light - google it for more information!

One thing I've learnt from doing these classes, is that printmakers are completely under appreciated!  The simplest looking prints can be extremely complex to produce.  

Baudin....

Really?!  A month since I last posted?!  Where does the time go....  I have my excuses, but I'll spare you as they're really lame.

So finally, here is the linocut of which I showed you a few snippets.  Of course I'm not totally happy with it, but I am really good at picking faults in what I do.  (Like this photo - great forehead reflection!!).  

The slightly exciting thing is that 'Baudin' is currently hanging in the Margaret River Cultural Centre as part of an exhibition in conjunction with the Readers and Writers Festival.  My first exhibition - I'd be more excited if I like the piece, or if I thought it was a good representation of my style (which it definitely is not).  Anyhoo, that's enough of trashing my own work for one night.  :)

*Nicolas Baudin was a French explorer who mapped much of the coast of Australia, particularly the west coast.  Where I live.

Coco!....

I had to add a post because I hate the photo in the last post.  The colour of the shellac against the tiles - blurgh.  So I thought I'd post a photo of something beautiful, and what could be more gorgeous than my little Coco?!!  This was taken about 6 weeks ago and I'm sure she has a tiny bit more hair now.  Growing hair is not her strong point.  Being adorable is (most of the time).  :)

Collographs....

OK, I admit that when the printmaking class moved on to doing collographs, I was less than excited.  I mean, you make a collage by gluing stuff on some card.  Bore snore.  But then you coat it with shellac and it becomes a printing plate!  Unfortunately, I didn't put much effort into my plates (I was too busy rolling my eyes) but I'm still happy with some of the effects I ended up with.  I've now been inspired to do another plate, and am looking forward to shellacking it in this week's class.  (By which point I'll be over collographs again).

*I've taken a break from my linocut.  I'll show you a finished print when I end up with one I'm happy with.  Right now, we just need some space.  

Salads....

It's not all about printmaking around here - sometimes it's about salads, which are even more delicious when the ingredients are homegrown.  On the right is a simple tomato and cucumber salad (both from the garden), and on the left is a zucchini and risoni salad.  Delicious raw homegrown zucchinis (peeled into strips) with an equally yummy dressing - olive oil and red wine vinegar, plus fresh chillies and mint (from the garden!).  And some risoni and olives.  Who says you don't make friends with salad?  :)

Linocut 2....

Still plenty to do, but so far I'm happy with how it's going (which is not to say I wouldn't do things differently if I had the chance!).  This is just a detail - I'll show the full piece when I finish.

Linocut 1....

I think I have to stop titling my posts 'Print Thursday', as it seems to be the only thing I'm blogging about!  Last Thursday we started linocuts, something I've always wanted to try.  I've taken on quite an ambitious design (I think) but so far the cutting is going really well.  Of course, I won't know how it's really gone until I print this Thursday.  I might only get a proof done, as I've decided to use some of the monoprinting techniques I learned in the first class to print a background.  Stay tuned....

A better shot....

....of yesterday's print.

More Print Thursday....

So here it is - my monoprint from week 2 of my printmaking class.  I think I should've photographed it rather than scanning it, but hey, it's too dark now for decent photos.  Plus I think it's a bit wonky.  Just take my word that this image does not do it justice.  Moving on....

The yellow was printed through some crazy 70's polyester curtain material, making the grid pattern and also embossing the paper.  I printed the black lines by cutting pieces of paper to block out most of the drawing.  The black at the bottom was an afterthought because it didn't seem finished without it.  I inked the surface very lightly so that the black ink was thin enough to pick up the embossing.  

I'm really happy with it.  This Thursday we start linoprinting and already my design is wildly ambitious.  Hopefully I can pull it off.

Print Thursday....

OK, let me start by saying that yes, I know it's not Thursday.  Now that's of the way....

A couple of Thursday's ago I started attending a printmaking class.  2 weeks in and I'm loving it.  The first week was spent playing around with monoprints.  I created about 20 (quite prolific, apparently!) and the one above is a favourite even though it's far simpler than many I made (it makes me think of a wine glass stain).  The one below is a collage of the torn paper used to make the one above.  The second class was spent making one monoprint, so obviously a lot more thought went into that one.  I'll show you that print tomorrow.  I'm really happy with how it turned out.

Hello....

Gosh, I'm not quite sure where to start after such a long absence.  How are you all?  Are you still there?!  All is grand here at the House of Sunday.  We spent December visiting family in Australia and New Zealand.  We spent January without a computer.  Can you imagine?!  Damn viruses.  The important thing is that we're back!  Hello.  :)

Happy first birthday, Coco!!....

Project finished, and my little bunny loves it!  Apparently, the best thing about having your own teepee, is walking in and out and in and out and in and out....  Coco turned one on Sunday.  Apart from walking in and out of teepees, Coco's favourite things to do are turning pages of books and being generally cheeky.

I didn't use a pattern for the teepee, I just winged it.  It turned out really well, though I'd make some changes if I were ever mad enough to make another one.  Happy birthday, baby girl.  :)  xo

(Bunting made way back here).

Hello Herman Marie....

How cool is this lil' yellow bear?!  

It's a wood-cut piece by when skies are grey (creator of the brilliant mooks), and is available from her new etsy store, Herman Marie.

Stop the press!!....

Well my, my, it would appear that I've started a project, the first serious one in over a year (the last one being Coco's bunting).  Of course, by showing you that I've started something, I've probably jinxed it.  Stay tuned!!

My bearded pigeon....

Oh, my bearded pigeon, how lovely you are!  I came across my bearded pigeon's blog today while blog chasing (you know - you're on a blog you know, you see an interesting comment, you check out their blogger profile, you see the list of blogs they read, one jumps out enough to click on it, and so on....).

I'm a sucker for maps.  And anything mustard-yellow.  I the one above is my favourite, but quite frankly there are SO many different ones (even more than shown below) that I can't be sure. You can buy them here.

Playing with logos....

Thrifting (as the Americans say)....

I found this cabinet at the Lion's Garage Sale which happens every second Saturday here in Margaret River.  I spotted it across the room and RAN (towards it).  Obviously it needed a bit of lurve, so I visited The Brick House to find Morgan's post on refreshing vintage wood (tried and tested before).  First job was to put the drawers in the right order so that the veneer lines up and they close properly!  I'm super happy with how it's turned out, but it's not quite finished yet.  I'll show you the inside soon....  

Oh, and it was all of $15.  Shazam!!

Paper Blanket....

Those of you who've been along for the sunday project ride since way back when, will know that I used to contribute to the Blanket Magazine blog, which was lots of fun.  For those of you who don't know, Blanket is an online magazine which was first released in December 2006.  The lovely editor, Bec Brown, has now finally seen her dream of a printed magazine come to fruition.  Exciting times!  I've just ordered my copy and can't wait to get my hands on it.  You can get more information and order your copy here (limited edition of 500 so don't dilly-dally).

Good intent....

Some time ago I posted a music video by Melbourne singer Kimbra (here it is).  Now I know this blog isn't about music, but I just love her songs and her clips are so cool.  So here's her new one.  Enjoy.  :)