I have previously written about the New Zealand Scrapbooking & Craft Expo (SENZ) that is a favourite outing in my crafting year. Last year SENZ had to be cancelled due to COVID Lockdowns so when it was able to be held this year, my friend Steph and I knew we had to support them. There were fewer suppliers and fewer visitors than in previous years but there were still plenty of both and we had a very enjoyable time. I was delighted to find a brand new supplier that I hadn't seen before: Funky … [Read more...]
Reminiscing with Macramé
Macramé was all the rage in the 1970s. I took to it with a passion, making countless macramé pot-plant hangers, bags, wall-hangings, key rings - you name it, I tried it. I remember even being commissioned to make a giant floor to ceiling multi-level plant hanger for my parents' lounge. I still have a macramé bag that I made way back when. What is Macramé? Macramé is essentially "the art of tying decorative knots". The origin of Macramé is generally attributed to Arabic weavers during … [Read more...]
Making Chain Maille Pendants
I haven't made any chain maille jewellery for a while but whilst in lockdown I've been inspired to use some of the supplies I had already and try something a bit different. I've previously explored making various necklaces and bracelets using different chain maille weaves, sometimes incorporating different colours and sometime including beads as well. This time I decided to try making chain maille pendants using some of the different weaves that I had used previously: Japanese 12-in-2 and Helm's … [Read more...]
Sculpture in the Gardens 2021/22
Sculpture in the Gardens is held in the Auckland Botanic Gardens over the summer every two years and is something that my mother and I always look forward to visiting. This year we appreciated it more than ever as an outing that is suitable to enjoy in the crazy COVID world we are living in at the moment: it is outdoors and it is easy to stay 2m away from other people. The cafe (and an outdoor kiosk) is open so you can stop for suitable refreshments as part of the outing. As always, I love … [Read more...]
Using Hydrosols for skin care and around the home
I'll be honest - I had never heard of hydrosols before I did my Distillation Course in anticipation of finally receiving the still I had ordered. But I had used them in cooking. You will all be familiar with rose water and perhaps orange blossom water - these are hydrosols. Essentially when plant materials are hydro- or steam-distilled the resulting condensed steam is known as hydrosols or aromatic waters. In some cases the distillation is done primarily to produce essential oils and hydrosols … [Read more...]
Decorating a Silk Scarf using Alcohol Lift Ink
A couple of years ago I wrote a post about a new product called Alcohol Lift Ink that enabled you to stamp an image using alcohol ink (that wasn't previously possible) to create cards. In this post I show how that technique can be used to decorate a silk scarf using alcohol lift ink to stamp images onto the silk. Alcohol inks are vibrant, pigment rich inks in an alcohol base and this allows them to be readily manipulated to create permanent designs on non-porous surfaces such as glass and … [Read more...]
Dyeing Silk Scarves using Tissue Paper
Yes you read that correctly: you can dye silk scarves using tissue paper! But don't do as I did and race down to the $2 Shop to buy up lots of different colours of tissue paper - the dye in these is usually designed to be colour-fast (although some may not be so you can test them out). You need to use a special tissue paper called 'Bleeding Tissue Paper' or Art Tissue where the dye is specially formulated to 'bleed out' when wet. See info on where to purchase below. Once you have located the … [Read more...]
Watercolour Painting
It has struck me recently how many creative and talented colleagues and friends I have and I wanted to showcase some of their creations and stories for you. Beth has a beautiful garden in rural Victoria, Australia, and has developed her skills with watercolours to capture some of the amazing nature around her. I hope you will enjoy her journey. How/when did you get into painting? What made you start? Have you always been creative? As a youngster I was influenced by my Mum, who has … [Read more...]
Making Cobweb Scarves
Last year I wrote about award-winning textile designer and artist Barbara Wilson and her cobweb scarf kitsets. Now I would like to share with you my experience making those cobweb scarves. The kitsets come with everything you need to make a designer scarf including water soluble film, various wool and silk fibres and cotton for sewing it all together. You need a flat surface that is long enough to take the full length of the scarf. Spread out the water soluble film and hold it in … [Read more...]
Cards: Distress Inks and Die Cuts
I was looking to get my crafting mojo back after a period of not doing any card-making, and on the way found a new favourite card style using distress inks and die cuts. I started by just making a whole heap of coloured backgrounds. I used Distress Inks because they have so many interesting properties but you could use whatever you happen to have. I tried a range of different cardstocks including Distress Watercolour paper as they all interact differently with the inks and give different … [Read more...]
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