Waihi Summer Festival Opening

or alternate heading ... smile, smile, smile two, yes two, merit awards

Last night, Friday here in the antipodes, was the opening of the Waihi Summer Festival at the Waihi S. F. Exhibition which has been running for 40 years straight.  I had two pieces of work exhibited, one in the fibre section and one in the retro section.  My husband also had two photos entered in the photographic section so when we got the call, "are you coming to the opening" we didn't know which of us it was for.

It was me!  I entered Sea Spray (from Low Tide exhibition at Inspirit) in the fibre section.  Woven doubleweave

with monofilament thread and angel wing shells inserted into pockets (wish I or the organisers had straightened the bottom edge).  Because we were only allowed one piece in each section I put Coromandel Waves into the Retro section and it received a merit as well.

  When we were travelling in Crete in 2009 I had time to draw and plan projects while Pete photographed old piles of rock ancient sites and I have in my notebook plans to make this project.  Imagine my surprise to get home and open a copy of Handwoven magazine and a similar project done using wood.  The judge's comment was, I''m told, why didn't she put the wave piece in the fibre section.  The judge was Pat Old and the standard joke for the evening was "pays to know the judge".

The organisers put a lot of time into a smooth running festival and I enter work to support them.  There can only be one winner but without entries there isn't a show.  I'm delighted with my merit awards.

Whats on the looms January 1 2011

White warp for next summer and winter blankets, just waiting for the warehouse to reopen on Jan. 5 to get the weft yarn. 

 This hand dyed warp in the colour of lava is ready to tie on to the Nitsckhe loom for more blankets.

And I really should be working on the table loom threading it with monofilament from this cone for an exhibition piece.

My fibre plan for the New Year is more experimenting, fine fabrics and garments.  Hope its an excellent one for you all.

Baby and bugs

Only I could pick up a virus just before Christmas; coughing my lungs out which really annoys me because I've been going to Power Plate exercise since April and have felt so well.  Hope I don't feel so bad tomorrow as I'll have to do a grocery shop for the weekend which means a 20 Kilometer drive each way.

The great news is that Jack Andrew arrived on 17 December and is a really cute little garden gnome treasure.  I had forgotten just how tiny bubs are.

On the weaving front I really worked hard and got 4 blankets off to Pauanesia before we had our family Christmas get together just before Jack arrived.  But there was so much going on I completely forgot to get photos and one was onsold before they even got to the shop.  This is one as seen on the loom.

Shock, horror.  My studio has been reinfested with carpet beatle.  And its appeared in other parts of the house as well.  Where ever wool has been left on the carpet its been munched so I had to take everything out of the loom room, shake it in the bath and now the floor has been sprayed.  I've reorganised my yarn shelves to try to make more space but I really must use up at least some of the stash soon.

One thing which has been taking up quite a lot of space was some knitting I had done using loom waste all knotted together.  The plan was to make a jacket but it made me look the size of a house so I've stitched up across the shoulders and the front opening, frogged the sleeves and am now knitting an edge on the sides and it can be a knee rug or animal blanket.  I'll take it to the SPCA op shop which has just opened in Waihi.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and will look forward to sharing more fibre adventures next year.

Sewing, dyeing and spinning

A very long time ago my lovely daughter in law asked me to make cushions from her wedding frock - what else can you do with a frock no one wants to buy.  I procrastinated for a long time because it was just too pretty to cut up but have finally made a start with three cushions, using the beadwork from the frock and using a grey thread to machine embroider to break up the white.

As you can see the cushions are sitting on the Tree of Life throw which I threw (well placed carefully) into the dye pot and it (along with a pair of boottees) is now a lovely minty bluey colour (Landscape dye called Tasman).  Also another pair of boottees in a varigated green, mint, blue yarn.

I've been spending the evenings spinning after waffling through the days not being able to focus on anything and spending a lot of time just sitting.   This is how I spend my springs due to pollen allergies and lack of sleep due to heat and humidity.  Thank goodness I'm coming out of it with the start of summer.

This was a sliver from Little Wool Company, 50% halfbred wool, 30% kid mohair, 20% silk.  I'd query the kid mohair bit, more like grandma but very pretty.  The wool was black and deep navy running together and the mohair and silk different pastel tones, gold, olive, green, mauve, pink and more.  I've Navajo plied it to keep the quite long bands of colour running reasonably true.  There is over 400 gms so I'm thinking maybe use it for weft in fabric or ...?  Why do we call it Navajo plying?  I assumed it came from the American Indians but I've read American literature where its called "chaining off".

This was a tiny bit of singles left on a bobbin so I plied it with commercial navy cashmere and everytime I came to a bit silver I made a bobble.
I have been weaving but no pictures yet.  I've made a piece to put into the Waihi Summer Festival Exhibition in January.  I've started weaving a pale pink cotton scarf in bead leno on the table loom which, if it works out OK, it can be used to raise funds for breast cancer at the Waihi Garden Ramble in January and I've just tied a cherry red warp on the dobby loom for more blankets.  No rest for the wicked.

Knitting projects completed

Lion Brand Yarn's Tree of Life baby throw for Kicky McFidgit.  Now I have to decide, or rather let DiL decide, whether to leave it white or paint it greens and browns.  There is a mistake in the cabling but I'm not going to cut threads to fix it.

I chose to make this because I loved the pattern.  Excuse my ignorance but does the tree motif have any religious significance? 

This is an awful photo of this project partly because I'm nearly twice the size of the dummy but just to show I did persevere from the post at the end of July and complete the tunic.  (I can't make the link work.)

Maybe a little more stitching where the plait crosses and it stretched from a jumper to a tunic.

Continuing the tale of November

The exhibition "Oarsome Waipa" hung for nine days and out of 30 pieces we had 5 sales so that wasn't bad odds.  Many things went wrong in that things promised didn't eventuate, but it was a great learning experience.  If doing it again I (or the group I was with) would want full control, with maybe a small committee with overall say and onsite to pick up the pieces when things went haywire.  I was proud to have been part of the exhibition.



Bikes Te Awamutu

About midday on the last day of the exhibition approximately 70 motor bikes came around the corner into our street and parked up just opposite the venue.  They only stayed about half an hour and as they were leaving I beetled out and asked anyone standing around if they had 5 minutes to view our exhibition.  Quite a few came in and as I was talking to one lady it transpired she lives not far from where I grew up and new my folks well - small world!

I had hardly got my breath back from Oarsome when I packed the car again and went off to Whiritoa early Wednesday morning to set up a display of my weaving at my friend's home and helped her serve tea and scones to a bus load of gardeners from Avondale.   About the third lady off the bus announced "my daughter tells me you have a blue jacket I should buy" and that was the last I saw of Esther until the bus left.  She had a very successful morning sales wise.  Me, naught.  (Emma, the dummy, was dressed but the poncho sold.)



Esther's studio

On to the next project - a haberdashery sale to raise funds for the Waihi Museum.  I sorted through embroidery fabrics and books from my mother's stash and went along.  Needless to say my best customers were the ladies from the Waihi Embroidery Guild on the stand next to me.  It was a long day though; by 11 we were saying "another hour to lunchtime".  It was enjoyable talking to my next door stall person who is a spinner/knitter from Hamilton and has a bach at Waihi Beach so hopefully we'll meet up again before long.

Homunga Bay

The past week has been a blur of making the most of fine days to go bush walking, shopping in Tauranga and working on the Poutama (Stairway to Heaven) blankets in between times.  I might add that the walk down to Homunga takes 45 minutes and over an hour to walk straight up a very steep hill.  I was nearly crawling by the time I got to the top but had no choise but to keep going.

Rocks at Homunga

No pics of weaving as Pete has flown to Wellington today to his Aunt's funeral and taken my camera.  Later in the week maybe.

Oarsome Waipa - a Weavers' Response

To continue from the last post, we were walking along the beach and as we neared people I was handed the lead and told "its a woman's accessory".  I ask you!

This knitting project has been so much fun.  Baby Tree of Life Throw from Lion Brand free patterns.  I've actually finished the body of the throw (another row of trees at the top) and about 1/3 of the edging is done.  Only 7 more weeks but I think I'll get there. 

I don't think members of the Loom'nUs weavers cooperative will mind me showing pics of our exhibition on in Te Awamutu at present.  We had the opening of Oarsome Waipa last Friday and it runs till next Sunday.  This exhibition represents each artists interpretation of what the Waipa area means to them in terms of land, rivers, lakes, outdoor activities.  Just incidentally the World Rowing Competitions are on at Lake Karapiro at present.

Two very clever members did the display for us.  It was a challenge as the screens I had been promised were nonexistent as was a lot of other things including signage.  I think we got a more interesting display by having to think outside the box.  There are a couple of other areas with work displayed as well.  The blue striped blanket is my work, Karapiro - Morning Mist and I have a couple of scarves in the top image.

The opening was the start of the Te Awamutu SCREAM Festival and our exhibition was included in that.  Shock, horror, I had to make a speech!  As we had already had the Mayor and someone else talk I was short and sweet.  While in Te Awamutu I met up with quite a few people and friends I had known from way back.