Still here...

Not much of interest to report on the textile front at the moment. HAve taken scarves to the dry cleaner to be washed (to remove last of the wax and residue) and ironed. I'll post pics when I get them back (on Monday). Mum u choose the 2 that u want (only if u like them), the rest I'm going to take to work (the aged care hostel) to put on their shop trolley. I'm selling them for $25 and will donate $2 (they only wanted $1) to the hostel. Will buy some more scarves next week and start some more.

Off topic, I've been talking to my brother Z in Buenos Aires this weekend. Before he left he set us all up on Yahoo messenger and he happened to show up while I was online yesterday. I then called Mum and told her and Dad to log in and later we called my other brother so the whole family online. Mum and Dad have a web-cam so I get to see them, and Z had one the other day too so we could see how he was doing also. It's so good to be able to talk and see everybody even on the other side of the world. I think that I too will look at getting a web-cam so that thye can see me when they're talking. Good practice for touch typing too - although I abbreviate everything so I'm not sure how good it is in terms of work.

Have also started my altered book as promised. I've started with the sample workshop in 'Cloth paper scissors' just to play with different medium, but have found that drawing and painting over the gesso'd pages is quite good. Won't post pics 'cause as yet there's nothing worth seeing.

Still havent' uncovered the sewing machine - have promise to do that today. Fully intended to do it yesterday but i'd completely forgotton that I was supposed to be working and thus didn't get anything done. Good thing I dropped by work to do something else (where I was told I was early - ME: "for what?" THEM: "your shift at 2.30..." ME: "Ooops") Ahh well - least I wasn't late!!

Going now...

Lists...

Sharon b at inaminuteago posted a link to Ta-da lists this morning. The idea is to create checklists that can be updated online from anywhere to help keep us organised. I've created one just to give it a go. You can see it here...

Getting sorted

I've spent the last few days sorting through my dyeing/painting cupboard. I now have the whole cupboard sorted with storage boxes and trays for everything. I would have had it done last night but the trays I was using were a smidgin too big and the doors wouldn't shut properly.

I have dyes and dyeing chemicals on one shelf (the highest one, even though I don't have kids), other paints and colouring media on another shelf, and drawing media, brushes, prininting tools, batik tools on the last. The bottom of the cupboard houses the buckets and plastics, and the wax pan. Much easier to use!!

Next step, the work (sewing) room...

Work in progress - applying the second layer of wax to the scarf

Scarves, scarves and more scarves...

I've just applied another layer of wax to my batik scarves this morning. They are now sitting in their dyebaths (plastic bags) sucking up all that beautiful colour. Depending on how they look, and how deep the colour is, this should be the last layer - some now have 3 layers of wax and some only 2.

Next step... rinse out dye when I return from work tonight, dry and then remove wax. Then it's off to the dry cleaners for a final clean, so that they go all soft and shiny and silky again (Of course, I don't tell the dry cleaner that I've made them, or dyed them, in case he won't take them)

I was going to give the discharge dyeing a go today, but I'm running out of time before I have to go to work, so I might just go and work on the altered book/journal that I started the other night.

The dyebath - a blue black

A close-up of one of my batik scarves - with one layer of wax and the first dyeing.

The books Mum scored for me at a second hand bookshop the other day - Thanks Mum!!

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

I've actually started something!!

I've spent the past three weeks waiting for a phone call about a job that I've applied for (and been interviewed), but alas I've heard nothing. So it's time to move on and start making a few decisions. I've taken up the offer of a few days work iwht a guy I know, and combined that with the work I'm doing with B's Aunty and my Sunday job and I have the equivalent of a full time income. I'm still on the hunt for something better, but this will do for the mean-time.

Anyway onto more important things. I failed my goals last week, but I have now replenished my dye stocks and put my batik scarves in the dyebaths. They should be ready to be rinsed by the time I get home from work tonightk, so pic them for proof.

Whislt at my dye supplier I also asked about discharge dying, rather than using bleach, and splurged and bought the ingredients to give it a go. I've got tomorrow morning off so I'll try it then.

I've also started an altered book and am going to try to do something on it daily (I said try). I'm starting with some experiments to ease myself into it. There's nothing of interest to see yet, but will post pics when I've got something.

The best of intentions.....

I was all set yesterday to get in and do some dyeing. I'd pulled out the fabrics and decided on the colours and techniques that I was going to use. I'd even written down it all down (I find I need to do this when I dye - also helps when I've finished so I can record the colours/mixes).

But then I went to the cupboard to get out the dyes and chemicals, only to find I was completely out of soda ash (should have mentioned - I'm using procion dyes). Now I know that washing soda also works but I'm not sure if the stuff I have would, so I've bundled everything back into the cupboard until I can get to the dye shop to restock.

I haven't been completely idol though. I've had a go at a knitted-felted bag. I didn't have a pattern (tried to find one the other day quickly that didn't used circular needles - which I don't have- abut couldn't) so I just knitted a small rectangle, folded it in half and then felted it. It was really just a test to see if the wool I had (which had 5% acrylic) would felt and it did - well OK anyway.

Time to stop procrastinating and start doing!!

I've been mulling over where to start, what to do for long enough. I've realised that I managed to do it last year, and so I can do it now, even without deadlines and due dates. Last year I used this blog to set myself goals and then use it as a measure to guage my progress, so that's what I'll do again (sorry - not a great read, but I need to do this to MAKE myself work).

Goals to acheive in the next week (by Friday 21/1/05)

• Finishing the batik scarves that I started about 6 months ago. This is a priority since Mum has said she'd buy 2 of them when they're done.
• Sort out my work room so that I can find things and have space to work in.

I'm working almost full time this week, including Sat and Sun, so I've kept it realistic.

I'm Back!!!!

I've had my holidays and am now easing back into work and normal life again. I've been itching to get back into textiles again and hope that today I might be able to accomplish something (my first day without other committments for some time). Problem is I don't know where to start...

Perhaps the first that I should do is to sort and re-organise (I know, it's called procrastination... but if you could see the state of my (our spare) room, you would understand). That in itself is a daunting task - perhaps I'll just sit here at the puter a little longer and browse what others have been doing lately (yes, that's the delay tactics kicking in).

I did start a journal whilst I was away. Actually it ended up being mostly just little sketches but it's a start. Perhaps I can use that as a starting point... maybe some holiday postcards from the beach??

I've also been trying to come up with some goals for myself to ensure that I continue to work and acheive something. A few months ago I did a fabric postcard for a swap (can you see a theme here?) which I quite enjoyed. It was a small yet workable piece. One idea is to do one of these each week. Problem is, what do I do with them all? And perhaps I'm being a bit meek by trying to keep things small. A similar idea that I've seem done by a group of women was an A3 sized peice of work each week. Maybe I don't need to limit the size, but instead choose a weekly/fortnightly/monthly idea or theme and create a peice of work (anything). As I'm thinking of these ideas, I'm also thinking that I don't want to take up all of my time with small motivational peices, because I'd like to create some more work for sale and exhibition over the year. Hmmm... some food for thought. I'd better decide on something quickly as the first week of January has already slipped away.