...it is finished...

this is my finished product, an art deco kinda style copperfoil lamp, which i think is quite delightful. what do you think?

the sparkle glass feature strip at the bottom of the lamp is my favourite part, i think. but i also love the water glass pattern of the opaque ivory, especially lit. i had a lot of fun making this piece, doing something different from the fusing i have been doing for the last 8 months...(some of which is in the kiln ready to be made into beautiful pieces to wear.)

the lamp is loving its home, on my bargain retro atlas desk i scored from a garage sale - i think its a nice combination of styles...

homemade granola...in the making

inspired by graingirls amy and vicki, here is what i've spent this beautiful sundy arvo doing...

crunchy cinnamon granola with oats, quinoa, almonds and the added kick of apple too (my addition). visit the graingirls yourself, and be inspired.

a.

p.s. it's still crackling away in the oven.

...family photos...

in this picture, lies the history of my family (on one side anyway). it shows my grandparents, my dad and his brother in their younger days, my family at various stages - including the cutest photo of my older brothers hidden at the back on the left (they're in matching jumpers), weddings of siblings and myself, and photos of achievements (a note to my uncle, the greatest Dr of Education ever!). it's a photo of my Babunia's piano top. she doesn't play. my Dziadzia did. so, she uses it to keep all her precious people around her. people tell her to take the old photos down when the new ones arrive, but she insists 'noo, i like zee old pictsure!'. if you imagine her saying that with a thick polish accent, you'll get a better gist.

my sweet sister, has had the idea of having a family photo shoot - just to collect some visuals of our dear family. i like the idea, nah - i love the idea. especially considering the man she has employed...Mr Tim Coulson, who shot some brilliant photographs earlier this month of my Brother, Sister and their lovely kiddlies. i'm looking forward to it, having images to collect, like my Babunia does. we'll have to send her some, for the piano.

a.

de nouveaux aliments

things i've been sampling...

Fat Yak beer; not bad, not bad at all. rich. well - richer than the corona i had drunk shortly before it...

Hot winter cider - from Sweden, none less! I stumbled upon this beauty on a cold evening browsing the bott'lo shelves. It was a no-brainer...alcohol served hot, on a cold night. mmm

radishes in my salad. a crunchy peppery pop.

curried/deviled eggs. quite delicious actually, and fun to make. hard boil yo goggies, then mix the hard yokes with mayo, curry powder, chive and parsley. replace into their perfectly now-void holes and garnish. beauty!

p.s. i don't speak french. i cheat and google how to spell things in french. sorry Carney.

a.

this evening came close...

...to finishing my lamp project. a little painstakingly close - i had to leave it, wash my hand and say, "i'll see you again, soon my friend." to be finished another day...

it came from this:

all cut, ground and foiled, ready to be put together as 'biscuits'.like this one above. pretty nice huh. then all them there biscuits are ready to go together as a lamp!

What! i put it together upside down?!!? oh no. haha (lame - i must be tired). all i have to do is bead all the outside joins with solder then put the lamp stand and cover together. woohoo. until then, this beautiful specimen will sit tucked away in the studio, all wrapped in soft cloths and padding - goodness forbid something terrible happen - and wait, wait for my enthusiastic return. keep crafting/making/loving/reading, my friends.

a.

an ode

'Ode To A Howling Night'

what howling winds!

what churning seas,

that stirs the sky this night.

the moon but glows!

behind the clouds,

its frozen in its flight.

what ticking clock!

as time does pass,

i watch the night roll by.

what joyous roof!

over my head,

i lie but warm and dry.

14.6.2011

keep watch later this evening for my latest installment of my copperfoiled lamp progress. it is looking just delightful, all blue and sparkly goodness.

a.

writing

writing, in a formal literary sense, has never been that important to me. i mean, i enjoyed studying english at school and did so at a decent level during senior high school, but i have never thought of myself as or considered being a 'writer'. my enjoyment of books and stories is only something i've developed as i've matured and i continue to indulge.

but as i read this article from Art House America (a site well worth your visit), i realised and wondered that maybe, just maybe i am a 'writer'...in some sense at least. in my early youth i began journaling, mostly prayers and lame poems - very lame poems - but since then i haven't really stopped. although there have been long droughts, i have remained fairly faithful and after reading this article am feeling quite redeemed about my secret writing history. Andi Ashworth has some beautiful histories herself, that she has 'frozen in time' through journaling. i love her sentiments captured in this passage;

'When the days were written down, they were noticed and remembered. Instead of fading with the passage of time, they were preserved. They had meaning.'

so, i write. i write to release that confusion captured inside, that beauty seen around me and respond in gratitude to the author and perfecter of all things. for what am i created to do, i am unsure. but to record and decode that around me, seems to make sense of who i am here. a little anyway.

i get very excited about buying a new journal, finding an old one and taking up in the middle of a lost-but-found-again one. i sometimes flick through the ruffled edges of days past, remembering friends who've been in my life and things that have been important to me. i think it is a real gift, being able to enjoy the act of writing down. even notes, lists - simple things. one thing i envy is the act of writing a melodious line, strung together in a tune. hmm, it is such a sweet thing. but i will remain content in the writing that i do. what about you?

a.

back on the bus!

vinyasa yoga: the technique of "connecting postures"; where poses will flow from one to another in conjunction with the breath.

a type of yoga i have been keen to practice for a long time, but my old yoga school didn't teach said style, so i used to do a little of it at home - but never had proper instruction. but alas! don't fret, as i have found my new vinyasa flow class!

you see, this last week, amongst all the business - i joined a gym. i know, a gym! i always said that they weren't for me, but after the polo season finished i found i was doing little in the way physical movement. so i paid my fees and am now a gym goer. and the greatest thing of all...among the 5 or so yoga classes i could make each week, there is this great little vinyasa instructor, Emma, who teaches a flow class on saturday mornings! win! i even pulled myself out of bed early on a saturday to get there, and sweated it out doing flows and reverse flows. i loved it.

so, if we learn anything here (which is unlikely)...it might be that you should not limit yourself by saying you will never do something, as that 'something' might lead you to something else you've been wanting to do. deep.

a.

chai in the morning

a warm cup of chai from my local coffee house, on a cold dreary morning...(a friday morning!) gets me through the last day of a crazy overwhelming and tiring week. mmm, sweet chai. its even sweeter when shared with a dear friend.

a.

my cave

last night, i was once again able to escape to the cave that is my wednesday night glass workshop. it is such a peaceful and secluded locale, that no matter how far my poor eyelids were drooping when i arrive, i leave that place refreshed and inspired.

with my head down in determination, and body warmed by my tea - i worked and worked until i had sucked every last penny from my 3 hour class. the image above is my current project. my first attempt at a copperfoil lamp for the house. i am looking forward to its completion...next week - i start to solder.

i hope ya'll finding some respite from the busy work schedules and crazy full days and weekends. enjoy

a.