Heaven Stairways...

From here

Against the grain...

Hudson - Against The Grain from Dropbear on Vimeo.

Sunday snippets...

Whoa.
What a weekend.
Seems like I caught up on a lot of sleep.
Two early nights.
Two lie ins.
AND two Nana naps.

But in amongst it all, in all that time of rest, I have also managed to do some sewing and catching up with friends (Thanks Lyn for your wonderful patience and guidance in pulling together Nikki's purse pattern - I reckon I bought the kit at least 18 months ago) and also great (as always) to catch up with H too.

Such a nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon on a lazy weekend.
And how cute is this purse?

Hugo, I love you...

I finally went and saw the movie Hugo today. And thank goodness I got to see it at the cinema, because THIS is one of those movies that you really SHOULD see on the big screen.

And whilst I'm not a huge fan of 3D movies (they often seem to be 3D for no real reason, going for a wow factor that is perhaps absent in the actual film), Martin Scorsese has created magic that is truly enhanced by the 3D effect. It is beautiful.

If you have seen it, I hope you enjoyed it too.
If you have not seen it yet, try and get to it at the cinema while you can.
Lose yourself for a couple of hours.

Creative reading...

Autumn...

In honour of the first day of Autumn in Australia, here is a pic of my Rob Ryan autumn plate... one of a set of four that I gifted to myself at Christmas. Collecting plates is not really my thing, but this little bit of art was impossible to resist.

Happiness...

Art makes me happy... pretty simple really.

Art Therapy - Day 4...

What a weekend.
It was hot and it was crazy, and not all of it was comfortable, but I have loved every minute of it so far.

I am exhausted yet energised.

And ready, so ready, to get into it.

Bring it on!

Art Therapy Sunday...

Drawing with the left hand...

Art Therapy - Days 1 & 2...

WOW.
What a start!

Class started yesterday and I am already loving it. We are a group of 19 women. All interesting, all ages and all backgrounds. There's already a great vibe and the group is bonding easily. There is a sense of trust and respect and space for everyone, and we are all there because we want to be.

I have a long weekend (full days on consecutive Friday, Saturday, Sunday & Monday) followed by one evening class for four weeks. And that's per each module (12 in total across two years).



It was nice to start to get to know everyone, spend some time on some necessary theory and to get our hands dirty. And who can resist a new pack of pastels to play with?

Back to school... at 44...

I am going to be an Art Therapist.

This time next week, I will be sitting in my first class. Eager, nervous, excited... scanning the room for a friendly smile. New friends. New things to learn. The beginning of a 2 year adventure of personal growth and professional redirection.

I am going to be studying within a small group of 16 like minded students, part time for 2 years. Exploring creative methods, including painting, clay sculpture, sand work and music, counseling and theory... and goodness knows what else. I imagine it is going to be challenging and sometimes confronting. I expect it to be a lot of work, though I am hoping I love it so much and that it will all be so interesting, that it won't feel like work at all.

There are many directions this may lead, exactly where it is going to go for me, I am not sure right now.
Of these things I am sure...
I need to do something new.
Something creative.
Something of value.
Something that will challenge me.
It will feel good to be working with like minded people.
It will be nice to feel as if my work means something.

For the first time in my working life (over 25 years) I will feel good about what I am doing. Actually, that's not entirely true, I loved my time working at summer camp in the USA in my early 20's. But that didn't really feel like work, so does that count?

In any case, it's been a long time of being unhappy and we all spend way too many hours of our lives at work, to not like what we are doing. It is time to change.

This is my mountain.

Bubblewrap Calendar

Lovin this funky calendar...
There's a bubble to pop every day...
But I'm thinking, it would be way too easy to start the pop and not be able to stop, and before you'd know it... it would be Christmas again!

You can order one here for next year.
Hmmm... I might have to add one to my wish list!

I heart home #7...

This is my favourite room at my favourite time of day...
My bedroom, late in the afternoon, when the dappled sun rests on my bed.
And a few other things I like here too...

Creative weekend... Lino printing using an old mangle as a press

Some time ago I bought an old restored clothes mangle on ebay. It is a beautiful piece and I bought it with the sole purpose of using it to print lino artwork... pretty much giving an old piece of machinery a new lease on life, reinventing it as a printing press. It is old, it is beautifully restored, and it is extremely heavy! Given it's weight and size, it is difficult to transport and is unlikely to fit into my flat. Thankfully my parents are both encouraging of my creativity and have been good enough for me to leave it in their home just waiting for me to get motivated to put it to good use.

Well over a year ago now, a friend and I gave it a bit of a test run, but it was quite hit and miss and we didn't do a great deal, though some results showed promise. Since then the mangle has sat dormant in my parents home.

Another friend has been saying for a while now (knowing our shared love of the art) that he would like to come and give it a shot too. At last we finally managed to organise it and Timmo came and stayed this weekend and we gave the press another run. This time round (after a bit of trial and error) we managed to get some great results.

Take a look...

This is Timmo's beautiful piece which measures about 6" square.

These are both my pieces and are around about postcard size. 

The bird is a rerun of of a lino I carved a couple of years ago.

Here we are with the press - note Timmo's newspaper printer's hat.

Thanks Mum and Dad for hosting our creative chaos this weekend, and thanks to Timmo also for a great weekend, a great chance to catch up and to get creative. Now it's time to get carving more lino's, so we can get back there soon and give it another go!

Love at first sight...

Seriously...
How could I resist...

He's totally adorable, he's got a cute smile and a great sense of fun. He's cheeky and just a little bit bananas...

I think he might just be the man of my dreams.

Meet Monkey Moo!
(My amazing Birthday gift from the super talented Marion and her hubby Mal).
Thanks guys, I had a great weekend, and  I just love the new man in my life!
xx

Goodness gracious, great balls of fire!

This is what it sounds like...

A friend from work is part of an all male choir and they'll be performing this weekend in Caulfield in Melbourne. Unfortunately I won't be able to make it, but maybe you can...

“THIS IS WHAT IT SOUNDS LIKE”
Saturday 25 June 2011
3pm & 7.30pm
Glen Eira Town Hall, Caulfield

They do songs like Chasing Cars and It's My Life.

Tickets
Concessions $20
Adults $25

Expect that the child ticket would be less than concession.

Check comments as Sam is dropping by my blog this evening and will hopefully add the details there.

Closed for business? No way!

I'm not closed for business... quite the opposite. I know it's been over a month since I last posted and there is lots to catch up on, so let me at least begin.

The new job is not so new any more. And whilst there's been a lot to learn and it's taken me a while to settle in, the feedback has been good. I'm doin ok. Mostly. Unfortunately (whilst I think I am doing a good job) I am not enjoying the work particularly. Try as I might, I cannot be inspired. At best it is tedious. At worst, mind numbing, frustrating, uninspiring. It is not my dream-job for sure. 

BUT. 

The great thing about my new job, is it's closer to home, and I am now working 7.30am - 3.30pm, which I love love love. The combination of the hours and the location, means that if I head straight home, I arrive home TWO hours earlier than I used to from my old job. Yes, TWO entire hours! 

And THAT is the clincher. THAT is the payoff. THAT is what keeps me getting up and going to work each day (at least for now). And in the absence of enthusiasm for my work, I have been using my 'bonus' hours to redress the work/life balance somewhat.

So with all this additional free time, why haven't I been blogging? Dropping by and leaving comments? Why have I been so silent?

Well... I have been trying to use this time constructively to do more (other stuff) that I want to do... more writing... more art... more creating... 

I have started writing my book. I have chatted with a few select people about it to get some constructive feedback. I have been journalling. I have been doing a bit of painting. And drawing. I even picked up, tuned and strummed my guitar last week. I have been out on my bike. I have been making the most of the gorgeous autumnal sunshine and sitting in the park with a favourite magazine. I have been watching TED video's and being inspired. Listening to podcasts and audio books while I 'work'. I have been to the movies. And I have done a bit of a clear out. I have walked on the beach.

And whilst I need to do more of the above (and certainly more blogging), at least I am doing SOMETHING.

So no, I am not closed for business... quite the opposite.

Where to begin?

I have an absolute stack of books that I am attempting to read at the moment (this is just the first pile)...
I have so many, I'm not even sure where to begin...
Any recommendations on where to start?

Sometimes it's the little things...

I had to post this little pic today, because it was so much fun to create... I just love the the tilt-shift effect.

Thanks to Bricolagelife for her post, filled with her fun photos that inspired me to go take a look myself.

What do you think? Want to give it a go too? Well, here is the link to the Tilt Shift Maker to try for yourself. You can do it to. Go on, give it a go, it's super easy and it's quite addictive.

Once you've created some pics you like, post them and leave me a comment - I'd love to see how you go! I am going to post a couple more over the next few days.