Cordonnicot Needle Lace

There is information about my "Cordonnicot Needle Lace" in various posts in this blog, here, here, and here - but you can also read about it here: http://stitchetygrubs.wordpress.com/  just go to the home page and click on the tab Titles "Cordonnicot Needle Lace" :)

5oth Birthday Card

3D 50th Birthday card

Here are some pictures of the 50th Birthday Card I made for my best buddy - I had thought I had taken a photo of it in it's closed position - but I can't seem to find the photo at the moment...hmmm. I have neglected this blog a bit recently - I have been busy working on lace for future workshops ....all stuff that is "Secret Squirrel"..... I can now reveal that it is confirmed that I am teaching at this year's Australian Lace Guild AGM week Sept 29th - Oct 5th - and I am thrilled and really looking forward to it - I am currently busy with the students notes and alongside all this I have been madly painting bobbins for my stall at the OIDFA International Lace Congress here in Adelaide, Australia in July next year..... as well as the usual everyday orders and my new Price List stock which I need for my stall in 6 weeks time in Sydney and for here in Western Australia for the annual Cattern's Day Lace Fair at the end of November ...busy busy busy! :)

I have also been setting up a second blog - using Wordpress as it allows me to have title tabs :) ...so I have just spent the morning getting the hang of it! 

Tatting on a Needle case

Hi All- Yes - I am still here - Blogwise - I have been doing mostly lurking as the things I have been working on this year have been "Secret squirrel" stuff ... either things that I am teaching at an upcoming Lace conference or for exhibition/display ... so all hush hush - which means of course that I don't have much time to blog or even load pics on the computer or the pics that I have taken can't be put on here (yet).... however - here are a couple of pics of a Needle case I made for one of my Gals' Birthdays earlier in the year (Carol Lee),  she attends my embroidery group :) it is rather cute and I wish I had made myself one - especially as I collect needle cases - oh well - something to do in the future :)

Silvery grey panne velvet for the background :)

Textile Cuffs

Dyed Velvet Textile Cuff

Me wearing it!

 

Hi All - I can't believe another month has whizzed by .... Yesterday I did a talk/demo thingie at the West Aussie Branch of ATASDA (Australian Textile Art and Surface Design Association) meeting - they had asked me several months ago to show them my cuffs in particular - so the last couple of months I have made some more - here is one of them - this one is dyed velvet - with painted and heat gunned nappy liner machine cording, beaded "Couronnes" (rings) and extra sequins and beads, blanket stitched around teh edge (lined with felt) - it fastens by loop and buttons.

Lace Heart and Cross

Modern Greek Lace Heart

Modern Spanish Lace Cross

Hi All - Here are a couple of pics - one of a Modern Greek Bobbin Lace heart and one of a Modern Spanish Lace Cross - from the workshop that I did with my mate Ethel Zuccolotto in Sydney last October - the thread is some beautiful hand dyed variegated silk which I bought when I was at the OIDFA congress in Japan in 2010 and I had been keeping it for a special project :) I have sewn them to fabric and will probably make a couple of Kumihimo braids and turn them into jewellery :)
Tomorrow early I am  picking up my mate and driving down South for a 6 day trip to Albany - the Lace Group down there are having their Annual Lace "weekend" (actually on Thursday and Friday) and the other 3 days we are exploring... gonna be great :)

Flag Counter changed

Rotten Neoworx have taken away my Flag counter ... after a trial period - which was at least 4 years!!! now they want to charge for it !!! so now I have a free different one only thing is my 22,000 visitors (approx) aren't on record as it starts all over again neither are my visitors from 127 countries ... :p  Giant Raspberry to them !!! Mongrels!

Completed Lace piece and up date

Finished Triennial Lace, Prize and certificate

Me wearing my scarab Jewellery for my best mates 50th Birthday last month

Yes, Folks- I am still alive - it's been a couple of verrrrry busy months since I blogged last - I have been busy in my studio... preparing for a workshop that I am teaching later in the year - pieces have to be designed, made, finished, photographed etc etc.... and I have now also started painting bobbins for this year's stock now that the weather has finally cooled down here in Western Australia ... we are having the hottest April on record so far - but this week is thankfully cooler - 24-28 °c rather than the first 2 weeks when it was in early to mid 30's! I am also plodding away on a piece which will be for our country display next year in July for the "OIDFA" (International Bobbin and Needle lace Organisation) congress in Adelaide, South Australia - the first time it has ever been to Australasia woot! woot! ...can't tell you what it is exactly as it is "Secret Squirrel" LOL
  However I am taking pics and will post them on here in August next year! :D 

I have booked my flights for the Australian Lace Guild national conference week in September - as per the last 2 years I am once again going the week before... the last 2 years I have stayed the first week with a lace friend and her hubby - I am still staying with them this year but the first 4 days I am staying in an hotel in the centre of Sydney before going to my friends house for the 2nd half of that week - the 2nd week we will both be at the lace conference - I am on "the menu" this year to teach bobbin lace - but won't know until early August if there will be enough students - if my class doesn't go ahead - I will do the "Social Group" for the week and take something new and exciting to do :) My friend is also down to be teaching but we wait with baited breath to see if we will be working or playing :)

More Needle Lace and some Tatted Christmas Cards

Fillings all complete and the padding and Cordonnette underway

Close up of the padding and Cordonnette

Progressing...

still a ways to go...

Tatted Christmas Cards that I made for the Gumlace (Australian Online Lace Group)swap

I made 4 altogether...

All four :)

 

 

Well -January has been and gone and we are into February - I have been incredibly busy for the last couple of months and it will be like that for most of this year and the beginning half of next year! So my blog posts will be somewhat erratic - a lot of the work I have been doing recently - is "Secret Squirrel" .....that is....either for gifts, competition or future workshops - so I can't put pics on here or post about it ... if I do get a chance to do any "fun stuff" I will be sure to pop it on here :)

Needle Lace and Bobbin Lace Heart's Desire part 1

Picture 1 

Picture 2

Picture 3

Hi All - Well here are the first picture's of the progress of my Heart's Desire jewellery - The design was based on the Dorothy Mackellar Poem as mentioned in my previous post. The sides of the neck part were worked in Milanese Bobbin Lace - right side in Blue Moravia Linen thread and the left side in a salmony coloured Moravia Linen thread. The pattern is "Meander in Braid 2". I worked this on a lace pillow ... ended it off then couched the bobbin lace pieces into place on the needle lace pad ... The rest of the design was then outline couched....and the needle lace fillings begun ..... the outer flames first in single corded Brussels with beads added.... and a couple of the parts of the coiling "Lithe Liana's threads used for the needle lace were mainly silks but some cottons too... The white base of what will be the feature "Opal" is in place (Single Corded Brussels Stitch)....The 2nd picture shows the background "Sapphire Misted Mountains" worked in single corded Brussels and also Pea Stitch Variation... the Lithe Liana on the left has now been filled in with single corded Brussels stitch with "Venetian Gros Point" four hole included as well as a version of this with 4 beads in formation rather than the holes... The "Sunburnt Country" in the foreground (right) is now worked - again in Single Corded Brussels stitch but this time with a Venetian Gros Point 9 hole feature and also deep charcoal coloured real pearls... the dry "River bed" is now under construction in single corded Brussels with beads every now and again on the straight return ...

My Triennial Lace 2012

My Triennial Competition piece 2012

Hi All - I have been a slack blogger in recent months - mainly because I have been busy in the studio - painting bobbins for the recent Australian Lace Guild AGM at the beginning of this month and also on my Competition piece - which you can see in the photo above. The theme for This year's Triennial was "My Country" poem - by Dorothy Mackellar. I made this jewellery set to go in the Mixed Lace Class but as my entry was the only one I was asked if it could be moved into the Contemporary/Innovative... not really the correct class so I didn't expect to win - but I did get a "Highly Commended" and the prize was the most FABULOUS glass dish you can see also in the photo - (The first place glass dishes appeared to be much larger so goodness knows how the Interstate winners (if there were any) manged to get them home on the airplanes!) Mine fit quite nicely in my on-board back pack! hehe. I will be posting some photo's in the next blog entries as I took lots of it as it progressed :D

More Lace from Japan

The Leaves and Tally's in this piece are exquisite!

Beautiful work

Sorry this one is a little blurry -some of the pieces were very hard to photograph as they were behind glass

Here are another 3 pics of some of the stunning lace I saw during myJapan Lace Congress Trip :)

Bobbin Lace from Japan

Beautiful oval mat

I loved this piece - amazing!

A gorgeous sampler of Milanese stitches

Hi All - I have been very busy getting ready for my trip to the other side of the country - Sydney in 3 weeks time, staying with my friend, Ethel for a week then we go up to the venue for the Annual Australian Lace Guild conference week! Can't wait to catch up with my friends. Every 3 years the conference moves to a different Australian State - this is the 2nd year in New South Wales which means that it is also the "Triennial Lace Competition" - I have entered again this year - the theme is the Poem - "My Country" by Australian Poet Dorothy Mackellar (1885-1968) - a fabulous poem - amazing imagery - I had designed my piece within 2 hours of receiving the magazine with the information in it!!!! - very inspiring! Of course - no pics as it's all "secret squirrel" LOL...However I have been looking through the photo's that I took during from the International Lace Congress that I attended in Japan two years ago (I can't believe it's been 2 years!!!) I took many photo's of exquisite lace made by very talented Japanese people here are just 3 images :D

Weekend away

Mural in Northam last Friday

Yummy Arvo tea at the Grandhouse B&B in York last Friday

The Beverley Agricultural Show on Saturday

Local residents at Mundaring Weir 9.30am Sunday

 Hubby and I went away for the weekend - First stop on Friday morning was at the Margaret River Choc Factory in Swan Valley for morning tea (and to replenish stock! LOL) then out to Northam where we had lunch at a lovely Greek Cafe Yassou.... then down to York where we were booked into the Grandhouse B&B for 2 nights in the "Spa" suite! Arrived in tome for a lovely homemade arvo tea- yummy choc muffins in the first pic! and later in the evening - a complimentary Sherry or Port and we were given a complimentary bottle of white wine too! :D 
Saturday was a beautiful sunny late Winter's day (Spring starts here in Australia on September 1st) so we drove down to Beverley - not much to see there -but we went in the Tourist Bureau and were asked if we were "up for the show" ..."what show?" we said ....it was their Annual Agricultural show- we spent several hours watching the horses and riders being judged and the cattle too and just generally snoofying around - in the big shed was crafts and Art on display and i purchased home made Lemon butter - mm mmm! Scoffed a big stuffed jacket potato for lunch - drove back to York and had a glass of wine at the pub there (only one left - others have all closed down) which was a bit pricey! but it turned out to be a great day! On Sunday we stopped off at Mundaring Weir and communed with nature - well 5 Kangaroos that were grazing there! Didn't do anything crafty - just read my book in the "down time".

But I am now back in the studio each day frantically getting ready for the Sydney Australian Lace Guild AGM for which I leave in 4 weeks and 5 days! eeeek!

Felted Scissor Keepers

Felted Scissor Keepers

Another view

A close up view of 3

Close up of another 4

and the last 4

Felted Scissor keepers which I made earlier in the year - put onto some pretty little embroidery scissors which I bought at a local craft shop - they made for Birthday Pressies for my lace making and Stitchety friends :) and of course one for me :D

Tatted bookmarks

Hi All - Yes - I am still here - been really busy the last few weeks in my studio - back in April I participated in a tatted bookmark exchange - I decided to look on the internet for some inspiration and visited a tatting blog which I go to regularly - Singtatter and saw a picture of a bookmark called "Floral Vine" - I couldn't find a pattern so I "blew up" the photo and printed it in black and white and drew up my own pattern - I made the first one (the pinky purple one on the far left) but fell in love with it and didn't want to give it away LOL! so I then made the next one from the left - dark green and orange and that is the one which now lives in South Australia - I received a beautiful one from the lady in return but haven't taken a pic of it yet - when I do - I will post it on here :D I have not done a huge amount of tatting and I have never used 2 shuttles before -so actually learned something new :D

End of Autumn and finished Scarab Jewellery

Hi All - It's the end of Autumn here in Western Australia- the first day of Winter is this Friday! which means more hours indoors doing crafty stuff - yay! including Lace making - by the way for those Lacey friends of mine reading this - there is the chance to win a Pair of Spangled bobbins or a decorated tatting shuttle over at wickedtats so do pop over and have a look. 
I received my free copy of a rather gorgeous Lace book -full of "Lappets". OIDFA (International Organisation of Bobbin and Needle Laces) turn 30 this year and to celebrate they have sent everyone who is a member in 2012 a copy - which is a rather wonderful surprise! Today at Lace Group we finished early and all went for a cuppa and cake at a local cafe at lunchtime then 3 of us went to a nearby Library where there was an art show on -some really fabulous paintings/artworks there - my 2 mates and I spent a lovely hour looking at all the pieces .... so it's been a good arty day today hehe.

Scarab rocks necklace - with background masked out and sequins placed

Finished Scarab necklace, earrings and 2 matching cuffs :D

Tassie Rocks Egyptian Jewellery set

Using the Angelina Fibre version of the "Rocks" photo- I started Machine embroidering a "Scarab".

Another view

I was trying to load 3 pics on here - but this new format for Blogger was giving me grief so only 2 today - It wouldn't do it in the order I wanted and when I tried doing it the opposite way around - it still didn't do what I wanted ...*sigh!*

Black Rocks Jewellery Set

Here are the final pics of the Black Rocks jewellery set:

Gillian B - I can now put you out of your suspenseful misery LOL :D

 The Cuff, Necklace and Earrings

The Necklace and Earrings

The Pendant pieces were attached to a machine embroidered cord with Pear shaped crystal beads between and the Earrings were made using the cord and beads.

For anyone coming to visit my blog for the first time - scroll down to the last few entries for the story of this jewellery set - I have done another project on based on the rocks photo ....

.....and it involves the "Angelina Fibre" version :D ..... stay tuned...

Black "rocks" Necklace, Earrings and cuff

Hi All - 0h well you'll have to bear with me as it seems that since my last post and after being with Blogger for 6 years they have gone and TOTALLY changed the format on me in the entry composing area.........grrrr- I HATE change :( So I have no idea what this entry is going to end up looking like! - it's all a bit hit and miss... any way continuing with the "Textile projects from a photo" - here is the "Cuff"...

Apparently I can now type in between the pictures - but maybe when I press the publish button it could be anywhere! LOL ....we will see...

Another pic of the cuff - this time with the buttons and cords on... 

 from the front....

and from the other side

Finger's crossed that this entry will look halfway decent hehe!.....