in my space #1...

an evening of quirky love = etsy front page

1. Jevgenia Masks / Yevgeniya Kilupe 2. mck254 / Mimi Kirchner 3. Little Peche Jewellery / Maxine Turnock 4. ninon 5. Recultivation 6. DearDeerDesigns / Dan Leanio 7. AustinModern (US) 8. AnimalFancy / Donna Sanna 9. Foxglove Pearly / Kitty Valentine 10. Paris Couture Antiques11. David Met Grace / Marina Sheridan 12. Sandra Eterovic 13. Herman Marie 14. Karenscottage 15. dadadreams 16. lascosasdibujadas / Mariela Pessah

I'm a just little excited. I recently arrived home from spending a lovely lunch with old friends, jumped online to check my email, and found a whole lot of new people on Etsy had included me in their circle (ie, they can now follow my favourites list - of objects, shops and treasuries/galleries). It was really quite out of character to get so many at once, so I logged into Etsy, and lo & behold, my most recent treasury (where you create a 'gallery' of things you like from other shops) had suddenly received over 400 views. Reading down the comments, it seems the above collection of quirky goodness (meant to be a bit of fun, but I would seriously be elated to receive any of these as a gift - {hint!}) made it to the front page of Etsy. I'm really rather superbly chuffed - especially since I haven't even got around to getting my own shop up and running yet!

So pleased all the wonderful artists and vintage shops in this profile were able to receive the glory they deserve. Noice. Very very very noice indeedy! (The last image of the plate has been added in, because the plate I actually chose from this shop has disappeared from the listing - it's still a great one though). I do receive a lot of pleasure trawling through Etsy to curate a treasury - although sometimes it can take a rediculously long time! You can head here to view more of my favourites unearthed in this sensational handmade/vintage universe.

the blue path - lost & found

If ever there were a tale of a treacherous journey across the seas, then this is it! And how very apt, considering the imagined stories that have inspired these works.

Let's back track a bit... Renilde De Peuter of AT SWIM-TWO-BIRDS is a wonderfully talented gal who makes all sorts of things, and is probably most well known, particularly through the blogosphere, for her delectably poetic needlework. I fell in love with her practice a little while ago, posting a small example from her worm hole series here, and have continued to follow her career. So it was to my absolute delight to discover that Mr Kitly, a super fine shop and gallery space on Sydney Rd in Brunswick (beautiful wares by the way... driven by a strong Japanese aesthetic), has also taken a fancy to "our" Renilde, and now carries a range of her mobiles, pin cushions, cushions & pot holders. It's no surprise that I was even MORE delighted to hear that Renilde had been invited to participate in the exhibition 'Denim' at Mr Kitly, a material investigation into the use of denim in craft, art and design curated by Dell Stewart. All the planets seemed to be aligning!

But alas, disaster struck. Renilde's contribution 'The Blue Path' didn't arrive from Belgium, and infact became officially 'lost'. Terrible stuff.

Fast forward... two and a half months after the exhibition opening, lo and behold, Renilde's package finally arrives! Fortunately, the exhibition that was scheduled only occupied the floor and the middle of the room, leaving the back wall available to hold a kind of satellite exhibition dedicated solely to her 'The Blue Path' series. The lovely folk at Mr Kitly even held a scumptious afternoon tea of homemade goodies to celebrate.

I popped in the following week, and it was sensational to see her thread & fabric pieces in the flesh. A couple had already sold, including the large cross stitch (which was so great), but fortunately one of my faves was still available - one of the 'St Elmo's Fire' squares - check out the top image. There was no doubt that the right thing to do (despite of course a questionable bank balance!) was to purchase it without delay! It is beautiful and delicate to handle and such a well considered size (kinda large denim pocket scale) - with two tiny little hoops made from cotton to hang it. How lucky am I.

> Renilde's beautiful blog
> Renilde's flickr
> Mr Kitly
> Maker's profile @ Mr Kitly
> 'Denim' exhibition blog

careful... plated love is addictive

Since I can't seem to get my act together to make some work for my Etsy shop (ho hum), I decided to push the ol' inspiration button by creating my first Treasury. I definitely have developed a love of hand painted, hand drawn & stencilled plates, and grouping this little collection was an absolute delight, although far more difficult than I anticipated! And of course... I found myself buying a couple... oops.
But hope is on the horizon! I'm very excited to be having an exhibition in November, so during the next couple of months the creative juices will be flowing to develop a new body of work. Already I'm dramatically overthinking ideas and fastidiously bookmarking images of inspiration. Good lawd I know how to over do this stuff... I've never thought of myself as an obsessive compulsive, but alas!

a view from above - circles

Since my fingers seem to be incapable of drawing, I found myself in an impromtu moment (15 minutes before leaving for the Yarra Valley wine region for our anniversary!!) capturing a few circles. It was uber fun, despite terrible lighting. Here's a list of what you're looking at (left to right).
1. My absolute fave, the kitchen door knob. Looks like a paper mache planet!
2. A good ol vegemite lid. For those you unaware of Australia's favourite spread (certainly not mine, can't stand the stuff!), it's a thick dark brown gooey smelly yeasty sludge that folk slather on their toast, on crackers or in sandwiches. Yuk!
3. This type of wafer with cracked pepper or herbs has taken off here in a big way recently. They were always available in good delicatessens, but every single company out there seems to be producing them. Very fabulous with Tasmanian smoked salmon, Maggie Beer pear paste (South Australian) and King Island (a brilliant foodie island between Victoria & Tasmania) blue vein cheese.
4. Just to add a bit of colour. We do all love a container of coloured paper clips!
5. One of three beautifully crafted hand held wooden percussion objects brought home from the Bauhaus Museum in Berlin many years ago. Wish I had remembered to write down who made them. The ball in the middle rotates, and the whole thing is kinda representative of a wooden flying saucer. Nice.
6. Died paper twine left over from Xmas. Perfect for all matter of things.
7. The top of the head of a set of babushka dolls of Russian presidents. Guess who this one might be?!
8. An inside peek of a glass candle holder. I do like a captured bubble in the sun.
9. Jelly! Mango & pears.
10. One of those castor cups to put under your chair/couch to avoid scratching the floor. Never used because they were too big. This one comes complete with a hair.
11. Candle in a glass. Lucky you can't see the charred pantry moths in the bottom. Silly bastards, do they not know that flame & wax = impending horrid death?
12. There's not a lot of these left around the neighbourhood. A metal garbage bin survives the wheely bins. Goes exceptionally well with a Hills Hoist.
13. An Aerogard lid. Yet another Australian iconic product, to help keep the mozzies (mosquitoes) from sucking your blood dry! More than happy to spray myself with this stuff and reduce my life span, than to be bitten by these opportunistic little critters (just like pantry moths) - as they come from far & wide for my blood.
14. M's new plunger juicer - fresh orange juice for brekky.
15. A rather disgusting (now that I look at it this closely) kitchen sink plug. The texture here looks a little like a mushroom - though definitely more rubbery and devoid of flavour.

superbly sandra

Where are my manners... (and where has January disappeared to)? Not sure why everything has been so difficult this month, all I've wanted to do is sleep at every possible opportunity. So the best way to get back on track is to share two works I recently bought from two gorgeous Australian artists, who I got to know late last year through ye ol' blogosphere.

Sydney artist Sandra Winkworth held an exhibition of her stunning painted bird studies (inspired by the 19th century collection at the Uni of Sydney’s Macleay Museum) with deconstructed books and discarded ephemera (frayed & aged with hues of brown & hints of mould), in November last year at Hand Held Gallery in Melbourne. Since we had engaged in a number of online exchanges, I was uber excited to hear she'd be here for her opening. I popped in to this great little gallery and shop (located on the upper level of a small city plaza - well done Megan - it's a fabulous project!) and before long found myself faced with the difficult task of choosing a piece - because... welll.. I just had to! Her delicate assemblages enticed the viewer closer with their detail, and once they held your attention in this way, often surprised and always delighted. I was tossing up between a few pieces, when finally, I of course, took home the more kooky one - with spotted birdies flying the loop the loop. I'm so predictable sometimes!

I was also thrilled that Melbourne based artist/designer Sandra Eterovic arrived. I've been a fan of her body of work since it appeared on Etsy and at Craft Victoria. Beautiful hand sewn scarves, painted plywood sculptures, 'make your own man' cubes (hilarious!), knitted delights, handpainted mirrors with pipes & hats & hairdo's & lips & beards, vertical hand clocks (so wonderfully innovative), illustrated paper goods... mmmm. Her quirky, unique, illustrative style carries a surrealist folk aesthetic, with a charismatic eastern European twist - and will often make you chuckle aloud, or smile with recognition. But it was when the newly created tattooed sailor appeared on her blog, that I knew we had to share a life together. So once delectable muffins filled with her mum's pineapple (and ginger?) marmalade were consumed with chats (in amongst a vast collection of splendid objects) about the woes of perfectionism, the chap and I headed home... very, very, very contented... and a couple more muffins in hand. And here we are, rosie cheeked, breathless, gazing at each other across the desk. (I think I need some help coming up with a name for him... suggestions welcome!)

Sandra Eterovic: blog, etsy, flickr, Craft Victoria, The Design Files profile
Sandra Winkworth: blog, Hand Held Gallery

climbing out of the vortex

... hello everyone! I think I've finally managed to pull myself out of the Xmas / New Year spiralling vortex! Most of the food has been finally consumed (we had monstrous amounts to get through!!), I'm half way through a novel (a rare event in itself), I'm several kg's heavier (so NOT good), I have a temp job for the next month, and I'm ready for a truly brilliant year.

For Xmas I gave my partner the 'Best Friend Monster Mooks' (pictured above) figurine by Kim of ilovegreyskies - check out her wonderful Etsy shop. I fell in love with her anatomical Mooks ages ago, but when I saw these guys, I just knew where they belonged. The masks are removable, so M has been changing their position just a little every couple of days. If they are representative of us... I'm not sure who is who?!

And finally... thank you all so much for taking the time to follow this blog and leaving such encouraging and heart felt comments. It's been an absolute delight. Wishing you all a sensationally fabulous 2011 (I'm going to start counting how many of the following words I use throughout the next 12 months: fabulous, lovely, sensational, gorgeous, wonderful, brilliant, marvellous, devine, incredible, beautiful!) - and I can't wait to endulge in a year of creations and posts from you all. Happy days.

friends come out to read

I'm so pleased these little friends have greeted my recent second hand book purchases with such enthusiasm! Besides an obvious natural affinity with the subject matter, they have become captivated with the ageing beauty of the covers and pages within. They agree as a whole (even the birds) that the first book, 'The Life Of Spiders' (1912) is indeed a special find. J.H. Fabre, scribes his research with a poet's prowess, and there is something about the tone of writing in this era that I personally love - and I'm sure they'll agree. The pages smell dusty and woody, and one feels drawn into the drama of an unfolding tale, as though we've been shrunk in size so as not to miss anything in this eight legged world. The second book 'An Australian Bird Book' by J.A. Leach (1923) is in contrast far more literal. Facts accompany colour and b/w plates, preparing us for a day of serious bird watching with binoculars, safari hat and a thermos of tea(!) in hand. Tally Ho!

> Ceramic spider: by Megan Bogonovich - her work is wonderful
> Yowie Birds: Once upon a time, Cadbury chocolate developed a product a bit like Kinder Surprise. I just happened to REALLY like the birds the most.

allyson mellberg

Flourishing micro organisms cultivate on the skin, as vegetation and organic formations - moody dreamscapes unravel and entice - resting and compromised figures, forlorn and betrothed in tender sweet relations.

When I visited Allyson's Etsy shop recently, I became completely smitten with her paper cuts. I seem to have a thing for hairless androgynous figures at the moment - I have no idea what that's about(!!) - so it's no surprise that I was drawn to buying the top image. It's just beautiful. In contrast to these, her charismatic drawings/paintings are created with a soft palette made from natural pigments/washes such as walnut, spinach, organic paints from the Kremer series and egg tempura - which seems to very much reflect the lifestyle choices she and her artist husband Jeremey Taylor (they often collaborate) make. All incredibly inspiring.

> Allyson & Jeremy's blog, Allyson's flickr, Allyson's Etsy shop, Cinders Gallery profile page, nice interview on Readymade about painting naturally, interview on Concrete Hermit blog, Juxtapoz mag article, Gallery F.J. France, Kremer Pigments, Third Drawer Down tea towel

petra hilbert

I found these gorgeous gorgeous painted plates on Etsy last night by Slovakian artist Petra Hilbert - I really really want one - (I'm developing a painted/drawn plate fetish I think)! Petra graduated from the Department of Puppet Stage Design of the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava - what amazing experience I imagine that would be, as puppetry has a remarkable history in Eastern Europe. Her drawings are pretty wonderful too - there's certainly a strong 'heart organ' iconography running through the works - at times just ever so sinister. She doesn't have a website link on Etsy, so I had to pull on my investigator's hat and conduct a little searching with the o-so-handy google website translating option (LOVE this!). You can find some extra links below to learn more about her.

> Etsy shop, website, Slovak Illustrators Association profile/portfolio, nice long profile on Citarny - choose your language when you get there!

feathered friends

Earlier this year I bought a couple of very gorgeous birdies. They were looking mighty fine in the Spring filled air today... I'm sure they wanted to take flight... but somehow they seemed happy to just hang together... funny little feathered friends...

> large bird, small bird

lovely laura

I've been very lucky to have made several trips to the post office this week because of my recent online, well... lets just say... 'activity'!! Amongst the beautiful items that have graced my desk, I'm very excited that my wonderful, wonderful painting from the 'new england' series arrived from the stunning Laura Ferrara. The front of the box itself made we almost squeal (and I'm not a squealer by nature) aloud in delight, because she included this sensational quirky fella - a little thought bubble stemming from his crown with my address details enclosed. Oh my!!



The painting was wrapped with blue gridded paper and a set of her tender little drawings greeted me, begging to be framed immediately. I have to find a spot for the painting, but at the moment it's on the bedroom table (yep, next to the phrenology head and a worn copy of 'What Bird Is That').



> previous post about Laura's drawings, Larabee and Liza blog, Etsy shop: emerson's bookcase

kelie bowman hanky

I've been feeling awful this week. The dreaded lergy (a nasty cold) took hold, and it's taking a very very long time to leave. Most unwelcome! So on this mildish, wet spring day, I headed out to buy some filing trays, and found myself detouring past Luft, a lovely shop of fine goodies in North Fitzroy. And I just couldn't help it... really... I HAD to buy this gorgeous handkerchief by Third Drawer Down with one of Kelie Bowman's works from a few years ago. And no... I'm not going to use it to deal with my snuffly nose, I'm going to find a way to hang/peg it on my wall, because the stitching and printing is wonderful. Does anyone actually still use hankies anymore??!! They were certainly used when I was growing up, I remember my brother and father in particular, stuffing their man size hankies back in their pocket after use - eew.



Third Drawer Down sells seriously funky stuff. Their limited edition teatowels printed with the work of contemporary artists such as Camilla Engman (image above, and her work was highlighted here on the 1 Aug), Betsy Walton (I bought this one for my mum last Xmas), Luke Best & Allyson Mellberg, are now known far & wide - and in many ways, kicked off the trend of artists printing their own teatowels that is now so popular (and rightly so!). Director Abi Crompton has grown the business into a 'storefront museum', online retailer & consultancy/agency that works with international art and design museums on the production of art souvenirs. But despite the growth of their products, it's their textile range that continues to hit the spot for me.

Links: Kelie Bowman, Third Drawer Down, nice little interview with Abi Crompton