fiveandtwo

Letter Spacings Are Wrong.

I started making my market stall sign. I thought I had the spaces between the letters right. Sigh...not so.

The f and the i need to be moved closer, when the black paint's dry I'll block it out with a couple of coats of white. Note stickybeak Micky-cat, on the corner of the table there is his "box". Micky loves to curl up and relax in that cardboard box.

I've joined the East Gippsland Makery, after thinking about it for six months, ahem. At a venue called The Stables the Makery has an area for members to display their work (cost $10 per week & 10% commission). A monthly market, the Artisan's Bazzar, is held at The Stables. So, I had a market stall today but made little more than the stall cost, now crossing that off my list of markets.  However, I've sold some things from the Makery. Yay! Interestingly, this morning I sold more stuff through the Makery than from my stall.

This is all part of the "I'm not going to get a paid work job any time soon so must ramp up the craft" scenario. Gosh, though, full-on sewing in all windows of spare time means all else slides. The garden is completely feral, for example, and that jacket I wanted to wear this winter is unmade.

Onwards.

 

Where's The Camera When You Want It?

The camera? Hundreds of kilometres away at home, that's where (insert sound of teeth grinding). I remembered when we were already two hours on the road.

We went for a long weekend to Canberra and Goulburn. This is what I did:

- drove many kilometres

- had horrible fish and chips at Cooma

- bought Clare and Ally a manga book each in Canberra (bribery)

- bought a pair of red rubber garden shoes (French!) fron a Canberra oppy

- had a truly ghastly meal at the Queanbeyan Bowls Club (frozen mixed veg, soggy chips, strangely flabby- textured steak). The other meals were equally bad.

- went to the Renaissance exhibition at National Gallery of Australia. If you have the chance - go and see it (buy your tickets beforehand though). I was so excited to be there, all that art...the general collection, the special exhibition, the sculpture garden. I kept exclaiming over paintings, kept telling the twins about famous works and those by artists I admire. We frizzed our hair in the Fog Sculpture.

- went to the War Memorial and was confronted once again, especially by the "hands on" Lancaster bomber exhibit.

- had a good meal at Goulburn

- spent three hours reading and ignoring Clare and Ally bickering while Mister 5&2 perused the merchandise at a "motorbike only" swap meet at Goulburn Showgrounds.

- finished Roger Deakin's Waterlog (loved it, along with his other books), read Marion Halligan's Valley of Grace (lovely, if you've been to Paris it will resonate) and Kate Atkinson's Started Early, Took My Dog  (I made the Mister do more driving than me on the way home so I could finish it, a page turner)

- caught up, briefly, with my oldest friend

- took no photos, obviously, but it was a good weekend.

Edited to add: While Marion Halligan's Valley of Grace is lovely it does have its darker aspects. The discovery of a child who'd been kept locked in an attic all its life, for instance.

Grade 4-5-6 Disco

A disco, didn't they disappear in the 1980's? But no, the twins' primary school had a disco. With a DJ, fully supervised, sign in/sign out and all that. Clare and Al were very keen to go. They tried on clothes, "outfits", I gave them permission to look in Leah's cupboard (she was at work = what she doesn't know can't hurt her). After a bit of time the came up with outfits that were good. Flattering and not skanky.

They had a good time. I asked, "Did you dance?". Clare answered the she "shuffled" and Ally just mumbled.

In other news : I bought a new stove. Ten centimetres wider than I intended. All gas, but this one has a fan, which will make the juggling of quiche and roast veg. a bit more even, as well as all cooking on two shelves. Baking can be no fan but a bit more rotating of pans. This stuff I'll be working out and getting used to after Tuesday when the gas fitter comes to disconnect/reconnect.

This is "old trusty". A keeper except for the expired oven door hinges. Mr 5&2 has plans to turn this stove into a barbeque. "Don't let that gas fitter take it, it's mine!". I will post the finished project. The process of making a BBQ from a gas stove is achievable, according to Mr 5&2. And it is, if you dispose of  preconceptions regarding how a barbeque should look. However, I foresee much swearing and trips back and forth to the hardware shop. This is the way of the Mr's handyman projects.

He vowed never to do any plumbing again. So when the shower hot tap stripped (wouldn't turn off completely) I called a plumber. And asked, while he was here, to change all the tap washers which were on their way out. Cost money but saved my ears from burning and other stressy stuff.

I wanted to employ someone to put the benchtop and cupboard back in and do the 10cm docking. Because I want it to be straight. I don't want gaps. I don't want it to be bodgey. Cross your fingers for me because the Mr insists on doing it.

Fingers crossed.

Contagion

We've had a "gastric 'flu" making its way through the family. Called so because you have the horrible aches and incapacitation of the 'flu in combination with vomiting and diarrhoea...fortunately it lasts about 24 hours, followed by a further 12 hours of "what the hell was that" and not being game to eat anything, followed by that splendid sort of euphoria that comes with being sick in bed and now being well - "I'm not sick, I can do anything".  It's fleeting but it's wonderful. I think that must be particularly heartbreaking with chronic illness and pain, no "getting better", initially at least. I am fortunate to only imagine it to be like this. 

This lurgy struck Giles last week, Clare and Ally both in the wee hours of last Saturday morning. Clare I got to before...Ally came to me, "Mum, I vomited" . As I was swabbing up the far-travelling splat she said excitedly, "I vomited on my feet!", like it was some sort of special trick. 

I was struck, later, much later than 3am, how much I'll miss these kind of declarations when my 11 year old "babies" get older, like next year probably. All of the kids have made such remarks, it's just that Clare and Al are the youngest.

So, I got the dreaded lurgy next, hence my intimate knowledge of its symptoms and the aftermath description is what I felt.

Maker's Market tomorrow! Aren't those octopi (?) something? I've made a green octopus/whale/starfish as well and they're packaged, in green/yellow/red  as a Trio Of Sea Creatures. I will not make any more unless I can charge $50 for one octopus. Much as I love to hand sew, all those legs - cutting out as well as sewing - was the finish of me!

Wish me luck for good sales tomorrow!

 

In Progress And Other Stuff

Must be because it's Spring, sap rising and all that, but there's been a flurry of activity at chez fiveandtwo. Paintings languishing for over two years are being worked on.

 
The first two in a series based on the Old Laundry photos.

Two from last year are finished.

 
Scrap Yard 1, 28cm x 38cm, acrylic on canvas.

 
Scrap Yard 2, 28cm x 38cm, acrylic on canvas.

 
Scrap Yard 3, WIP. This series is based on the photos I took at the scarp yard last year.

Some more fruit paintings, I was on a roll after the two I did for the 10 x 10 exhibition. They're all 25cm x 20cm (quite small). I did an apple too, but I'm not happy with it, and I think the pear painting on the left is the most successful.

 

Three pears, three teatowels and a jar of lentils?

In other news: I've been planting out my seedlings. Too early, but we're going up north for 3 weeks and no-one will be here to water the punnets, so they've a "better" chance in the ground. A monstrous tree dahlia has been removed , the tank drained and cleaned and a new top for the stand put on. The tree dahlia was growing next too, and under, the tankstand and pushing it over. Would you believe it rained all that night and half the next day? Now the tank is full again!

I made a summer jacket!  Short sleeved, kind of 70's style, I think. Only needs buttons. Will blog about it when I return from Qld in late October. I'm jotting things down on my "lists for the holiday" as I think of them. Bags have been removed from the ceiling space. I tried the bathers on I bought only 2 years ago - they don't fit (sigh...), fortunately a pair, scarcely-worn, from the oppy recently will do the job. I do like to swim in the sea when it's not absolutely frigid (waters off Victoria  all year round, for me). 
 

Mr 5&2 had a birthday today. He is past his half century by two years now. Had all the kids for lunch - Linsey was in "the 'Dale" for the weekend, and Giles' girlfriend of 3 years came as well. No alcohol was consumed (this is for you Anna!). Splendid sitting out on the front deck eating that Pip Lincolne Teriyaki chicken - sooo easy, and very good.

Probably no posts now until the end of October.

Round Up

I cut back to ground level an enormous tree dahlia that was growing in a tiny space between the rainwater tank and the chook run. Why did I plant it there in the first place? I don't know, I didn't realise it'd turn into a monster. Weekend just gone saw Mr 5&2 and the twins dig out the monstrous tuber/root system the tree dahlia had developed and make a new platform on the tank stand...for the tank. Clare and Ally also bucketed around the garden the water from the tank as it was drained in readiness for the tank stand reconstruct. Those two are really good helpers generally, but this time we paid money due to the arduous nature of the work.

I've spread mulch and planted seedlings - too early really but we're going away for most of October and no-one will be around to nurture them in their punnets. More will survive in the ground, I reckon.

School holidays now and Clare has been sewing.

 
A skirt and a shirt. Only input from me was the "how to use the buttonhole foot and function" on my sewing machine.

 
She requested a photo without the skirt.

 Ally has been doing some very delicate weaving. Al showed me her method = sticky tape about 8 strands of wool to the shelf , then weave in and out with some other wool until you're finished.

 
Aww, look at that tiny, cute scarf.

I've been painting, making lists for going away and other house stuff.

 

 

Somewhat Minor Celebrity

Linsey and I were featured in a magazine. No. no.ot one of those national circulation mags. This one is a Gippsland wide publication called Don't Forget The Milk. It's really good, articles relevant to this area, a comprehensive local events calendar, reviews, food, culture - all Gippsland based.

 
Cover of the latest issue. The "Nudes" refers to Nowa Nowa Nudes, a periodic art exhibition which is exclusively artworks with "the nude" as subject. Much very fine work there.

Here's the article:

 

 

See, we're famous! I should point out that the writer of this article is a close friend of Linsey's. While the editor has credited the photos to Jessee they are actually mine and Linsey's. That monster-boobie photo of me is from a blog post about that dress, I suggested Jessee pick a photo from my flickr.

Ah, I can rest on my laurels now?

Ally's Wurlie

Finally, I pruned the kiwifruit vines. It should have been done earlier in winter but I don't like gardening when everything is all wet. As happens every time something is pruned around here Ally or Clare, or both, make a cubby. Kiwifruit prunings are good for this, they're long and fairly flexible. An added bonus was jasmine that migrates over from next door and gets cut back as well.

 
There's the apricot tree in the background coming into blossom. Actually, I was a bit worried about this in the cold and wet weather we've been having - no bees. And I'm down to my last jar of apricot jam! Disaster has been averted, so far, by plenty of bee activity yesterday and today.

I got around to planting the seeds for summer crops, different varieties of tomato, chilli, capsicum, eggplant, zucchini, cucumber and pumpkin, some lettuce (which is sown successively from now on), celery, silverbeet and basil. I'll sow direct in the garden some more lettuce, rocket, mibuna and mizuna, carrot, beetroot, parsnip and coriander, maybe also some more peas. I need to get seed for leeks and Lazy Housewife climbing bean. The seedlings should be ready to plant out towards the end of October, though the lettuce, silverbeet and celery can go out sooner.

 
Trays accompanied by rhubarb that I need to plant out, and my little fig tree sending out new leaves. It has graduated to a bigger pot this year.

The winter garden is working toward producing seed...the kale, parsley and silver beet are starting to bolt. I can keep the broccoli in check by continuously picking the little florets that follow the main head being picked. Cabbages...nearly ready. Lettuces planted in autumn (as seed just scattered around and raked in where the trees were removed) are going great guns, which is good because I've reached the time of year when I actually crave a green salad! Like towards the end of summer when cold weather, a warm jumper and hot soup is yearned for. I do like the different seasons down here in Victoria now. I didn't at first because I was used to "The Wet" and "The Dry" of the tropics.

So...What've I Been Up To?

After a bit of a blog silence.

I made a jacket for Leah, at her request. The Jacket. First time I've ever made a lined jacket with a bit of tailoring thrown in. It turned out ...reasonable.

 
I thought it fitted really well but, looking at this photo, I don't think so. I've fixed that twisted sleeve, by the way. Fortunately it only required unpicking of the sleeve and lining at the wrist, repositioning the lining and re-sewing. Twistyness solved.

 
Pockets you can actually use. Also a nice feature of the jacket.

 
I do like this pleaty feature at the back. Fit is good across the shoulders.

 
The buttons Leah wanted were quite large and I didn't think large buttonholes would be a good feature so I put big snaps as closures with the buttons sewn on as decoration (the snaps are black in reality).

Stats: Pattern from Ottobre Design 5/2009 "Flower Vine" jacket. Changes I made: I made the jacket smaller in the waist by increasing the waist darts (and reducing the front peplum thingy accordingly). I used the snaps + buttons described above. Fabric is a lovely lightweight wool from the oppy. I've cut out a jacket shell for myself from the rest (must've been over 4 metres of fabric). The charcoal/black of the fabric is much more subtle than in the photos. Buttons from Spotlight, annoyed that I didn't have enough of the same button in my collection. Lining is that Bemsilk stuff from Spotty.

I'd like to make this jacket for myself but it doesn't go big enough. I know I could probably make the pattern bigger, but I can't be fagged. I'm using a McCalls pattern for my own jacket. In hindsight, with Leah's jacket I should have done a full bust adjustment for a smaller size. Tiny girl with full bust. I have to do this for myself. It's not hard but, you know, sometimes I just want to sew a pattern without all the alterations. Don't think it's going to happen any time soon.

So, what else? The fruit trees arrived by courier last week. Wednesday. I was able to plant them on Thursday. Very easy digging since new trees were being planted where stumps of old were removed. Some sited over animal graves and the only one I didn't dig - Hootie-rabbit's - was the one where I exhumed a bit of rabbit. Disgusting, I nearly threw up. I then chose the apple tree with the least roots for that hole...Then went to a local rural supplies place for star pickets and wire for the espaliers.

Working on a sculpture after a ghastly inspiration drought.

Spent a long weekend in Melbourne helping Linsey move and having a break from Bairnsdale. The move was executed in one go with the Tarago, Linsey's Camry and Lachie's Mum's car. From West Brunswick to Armadale. Much cheaper rent (truly), a lovely sort-of duplex place (1920's?) and closer to her Swinburne TAFE campus in Prahran. I much prefer Brunswick, I have to say. Armadale & Toorak are a bit fancy for me. Too many antique shops and bridal shops. Not interesting enough.

I got some fabric for hot weather clothes from Rathdowne Remnants & Fabrics. Clare and Ally bought some stretch knit stuff for "costumes". I bought a couple of books at Brunswick Bound and a number of CDs at Title.

And now, I'm back in Bairnsdale. Work today, work tomorrow etc etc. Weekend becomes a pleasant memory.

Etsy Shop! I Has One!

See! There! On my sidebar! It has the grand total of four items in it , haha. I am still getting the hang of the listing business.

It's only taken me, oh...five years to reach this point, haha again.

And about the same amount of time to put a flickr badge on the sidebar. I had to put the etsy shop one on and realised a flickr badge would require the same process. It was easy...once I'd fiddled around for an hour and a half. Haha once more.