I love fabrics and textile design, but it wasn’t until I was on my trip around the South Island of New Zealand that I ever felt compelled to consider putting any designs to paper or the digital equivalent. Of course I haven’t, but if I had such talents I’d base some of the work on these incredible sand and water formations. I took these photos by Farewell Spit: the first two are of sand dunes, while the third is closer to the water on the beach.
A zipper pouch made for a friend using Lara Cameron’s Bonsai Forest in deep red. Thankfully I nabbed a decent amount of this fabric so more sewing to be done!
Some people may be familiar with this print as I made a skirt from it a few years ago. It’s a vintage Sheridan cotton fabric called Sunrise. It’s vibrant and happy, and I thought it would be great for an apron. It’s being modelled by the lovely elisabeth, who was the perfect Christmas present!
(Ja, it will be for sale when I finally set up shop… maybe in a matter of weeks!)
It’s mostly been a slack Summer season but that applies more to posting than to making. Many of the sewn have been gifted before being photographed but there are a couple that can be shown off.
Here’s a set of cushions that I made for my brother and his wife as a housewarming gift. Not the classiest of photos but I was doing the finishing touches en route on the train! (typically last-minute) Thank you CityRail for such an attractive backdrop.
I’m a bit of a fabric hoarder, and a decent proportion of my collection includes vintage kimono fabrics, and here some of them feature as panels in these cushions. I find I’m always thinking of panels when it comes to kimono fabrics.
More to come shortly…
I have several cooking blogs in my feed reader, and just about all of them have a post on their quest for the ultimate choc chip cookie recipe. Well, I haven’t been so busy searching high and low; I’ve pretty much stuck faithfully to the one recipe (except maybe during a brief affair with Martha Stewart…). It’s not that I’m not particular about my cookies, it’s just that these from Sweet Food are just that good!
CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
(This is a slightly modified version of the recipe from the American edition of Sweet Food, so you may want to adjust the cup and spoon measures slightly.)
1/2 c unsalted butter
1 c light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp milk
1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips (milk or dark work equally well, I find)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F or 176 degrees C. Line a cookie sheet with baking paper.
2. Cream butter and sugar with either an electric mixer or whisk.
3. Mix in vanilla and gradually add in egg.
4. Stir in milk.
5. Sift flour and baking powder, and fold into the butter and egg mixture.
6. Stir in chocolate chips with a large spoon.
7. Drop desired amount (about a tablespoon’s worth is good) of cookie dough onto cookie sheet, leaving enough space for them to expand, then lightly press them down.
8. Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly golden. Allow to cook on a wire rack.
If you’re in the mood for soft and chewy, take a minute or 2 off the baking time. And these cookies keep their shape quite well, so you also have control over their thickness. When done right, these babies melt in your mouth.
And *finally*, I got to give my cookie scoop a burl. Check out those uniformly-sized pearls of cookie dough! Love it.
You might be amused to hear that in Australia, Sweet Food is part of the “Chunky Series” — the books are short and stout. However, in the US, these books (which are the same size) are part of the “Little Food” series. So awesome fat, wouldn’t you say?
Have been sewing too, but haven’t gotten around to taking pics so I’ll update on that front later.
Ever since discovering the Japanese craft books at Kinokuniya and purchasing this one with bag patterns and this one with bag patterns and more, I’ve been obsessed with felt and hemp. Unfortunately, I’m not really in the know as to where I can go to get my hands on thick, sturdy felt. I’ve found various online sources for hemp though, but want to be able to feel the fabrics before I order them, so this weekend calls for an excursion.
I also happen to be in the market for a laptop bag and came across the usual standard neoprene sleeves. Then, I fell upon these:
Meet one of Hard Graft’s minimalist yet lush laptop sleeves. Absolutely gorgeous.
I guess I am going through a bag phase….
I actually finished this one before the Fujiwo Ishimoto bag but hadn’t taken photos of it. It’s made using Lara Cameron’s Rainy Day Autumn, which is hand-printed on an organic cotton/hemp blend. The base of the bag is reinforced with sturdy interfacing to hold shape and anything else that needs holding.
What I really enjoy about Lara’s textiles is her use of colour. My mum has a bit of a knack for combining colours that you wouldn’t expect to match traditionally. I, unfortunately, did not inherit this, so really appreciate when I see that blue, teal, grey, and mustard can come together to create the feel of the cutest rainy autumn day.
Made a trip to the button shop in Newtown to add the finishing touch. God, I love that shop, yet am still surprised that there are always several other people in there whenever I drop by…
Perousing blogs can be the digital equivalent of a pep-talk. When you’re feeling a bit of a creative lull, it’s amazing to discover what other creatives out there are working on. It provides such an energy boost.
I’ve just come across some more inspiring bloggers who demonstrate how infinitely wide the scope for creativity and artistry is.
From moyou, a Canberra-based textile designer :
Whenever I’ve attempted any sort of arty pursuits before, I’ve found myself frustrated with my inadequacies when I see the exemplary work out there. Shortsighted, but true… but also probably common for a ‘hobbyist’.
I haven’t yet put my finger on exactly why, but I find I don’t have the same erk-y feeling when I read craft or design blogs. I’d like to think it has something to do with maturation (hah), but it’s more likely connected to being able to relate to others’ reported creative processes, which is important for beginners like me, and paradoxically, I think it also has to do with feeling some sense of private experience through blogging. Perhaps it has to do with documenting your processes. Perhaps it affords you time to think through your steps. Maybe it’s the freedom of knowing that no-one is required to respond or react to what you put out there. Whatever it is, it works, and I wouldn’t dismiss the correlation between the recent arts/craft/design revival and the accessibility of blogs and blogging.
From Maditi Likes:
I’ve added a few more links to my blogroll. Perouse and be inspired.
