This 7 day project comes from prompts within wheesht which is a new book by Kate Davies that I’m thoroughly enjoying reading.

I took 7 b&w photos & wrote 7, 17 syllable poems based on the photo. 
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I found the combination of photos & poems came quickly & easily which meant the ‘assignment’ was a lot of fun and hilarious !
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Nothing quite like laughing at your own jokes hahahaha

mā te wā
​Sal x

*Kate Davies is a knit wear designer & can be found here on Ravelry

All heavy seriousness aside, this month's personal map making class on Creativebug is colourful, light, thought provoking & fun - OMG, so.much.fun. 

e bonds’ daily mixed media Creativebug class celebrates maps in all forms, most importantly, the abstract concepts of map making. 

e’s teaching style is amazing. She ever so gently guides you through a method or technique that is then yours to play with. The most wonderful thing for me is that each day presents a completely new aspect of ‘mapping’ about which I have never thought. It’s brilliant. 

Here in NZ we’re a day ahead & kind of a day behind at the same time.
​Every night, at about 9pm, Hugh & I sit on the couch together & watch the next day’s class which means I go to sleep thinking about it & usually by the morning I’m pretty excited to get my morning routine shizzle out of the way so I can scoot over to the studio & play. ​

I cleared my table deliberately the week before the class started & ironically the work I’ve put to the side is a map of sorts. It’s an extension of our ‘Listening to the Land’ series, it speaks of connection to place, also my leaf litter project & laments the loss of wetlands from the NZ landscape. 
There’s an aspect of this new work, well several aspects actually, which i believe are incredibly significant for us as kaitiaki of this whenua . . . & that’s a story for another day. 

A real positive of this class for me is that it's given me with an idea that is likely to be the basis of my next muka artwork and that for me is the most exciting thing of all !

I’ll keep you posted 
 
Sal xx

Anyone ?!
Yeah - nah, me neither !

I thought it would be fun to do a little abstract painting . . . well 3 actually - if you count the one I'm also painting over 
& it was fun
​for a little while
& then I lost interest

I ran out of enthusiasm for placing layer upon layer & kept wanting to break rule #1 which is that nothing is 'precious'. I kept liking what I had done so didn't want to cover it up which, therefore, makes it 'precious'.

I'm pretty sure rule #2 is when you lose 'direction' with your 'painting' it's ok just to put it aside til you decide whether or not it's finished
Hahahaha; I find that hilarious & also exactly what I've done with them.

Backstrap loom weaving WOW what an adventure !

I have a very clear vision for what I want to achieve with the loom so I got a terrible fright with my 1st foray into the technique, which was working up to be a beautiful dense strap & absolutely, totally almost the polar opposite of what I see in my head.

​A little further reading & being able to borrow a rigid heddle from Isla has been a godsend as it enabled me to warp up again & thankfully the fabric I'm making is more the style I'm after.

This month I really have been using what I have available to me (or can borrow) which is great as it means I have to be resourceful & think beyond the beautifully made tapestry bobbins that I don't have to the 2 small wooden sporks, from a long ago takeaway dinner, that I do have & they make the most wonderful little bobbins/shuttles.
However, not all sporks are made equal & one of my little companions is a bit rough on it's back surface which means it's a little catchy on the warp & this is not ideal. 
I need to see if perhaps I can sand it a little smoother. 

Originally I was using an old hunting ammo belt as my backstrap which was amazingly comfortable & worked fabulously but unfortunately the smell of the gun oil was overwhelming & it had go !
​I found an old denim tie & that is working well in the interim while I weave myself a new one. 

Hugh has been teasing me mercilessly about being a quilter which I actually don't mind at all.
​The techniques quilters use are absolutely fascinating to me & I've been very happily playing with needle appliqué techniques, sashiko & boro stitching, hand stitch quilting techniques & most recently QAYG (quilt as you go) which basically makes patchwork pieces.
I love them all.
Creation, reparation*, decoration, exploration, expression, connection . . . .
I say yes, yes, yes, to all of the above.

also collaboration . . . but more about that another time ;)

We are having a superb winter this year.
Sharp cold nights followed by gorgeous sunny days followed by sharp cold nights.
Perfect for preparing sites for planting, cleaning harakeke & getting plants ready to divide & replant.
​This also means it's perfect time for making muka.
Currently the studio is filled with the luscious smell of green & I'm happily spending my days listening to music & stripping beautiful soft long silky fibres from my favourite plant.

It's been a funny old month filled with creative explorations which in the first instance don't seem to have any connection at all.
I'm happy to follow these whims of mine as I absolutely trust my instincts & I know that it will weave together in time. 
 
talk again soon
​Sal x