Friday, April 29, 2011

a postcard from Hawksburn Village

Yesterday we were delighted to take part in a Postcard shoot showcasing the gorgeous Hawksburn Village shopping strip where ak traditions is situated.  Rebecca, Leanne and the crew were warm and friendly and made it very easy ...thank you all very much.

So if you'd like to see what the inside of ak ...and yours truly... looks like, watch Postcards on Channel 9 on May 8th at 6.30pm  or check out the Tourism Victoria web site.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

The perils of life in a creative house....

We live in an extremely animal-centric house...doona strewn dog beds are found in most rooms, under tables and in front of the hydronic heaters.
Every animal we’ve shared our lives has been a joy with their own unique characteristics but several have shared a fetish for eating totally inappropriate things.  PB, my much loved and long departed black lab x almost died one January after cleaning out a kitchen bin containing  left over Christmas plum pudding, flour and assorted out-of-date pantry dry goods.  Squidge, a black oriental suffered from pica and obsessively ate wool, linen, and even rubber leading to several medical emergencies, substantial vet bills, much nerve strain and serious damage to clothes.  As a puppy Lara, our standard poodle who died last year at 17, destroyed 9 pairs of glasses over one twelve month period and went on to eat silently and efficiently through successive car seat belts throughout her life...Mercedes belts and not inexpensive. 
Our current team includes a rescue litter of 12 month old J. Russel X’s ...utterly gorgeous, loving little people but dedicated hunters and collectors like all terriers.  Unfortunately they also seem to have inherited their predecessor’s fondness for chewing questionable items ...in this case small shiny objects like needles and pins.  Much more worrying than seat belts...and absolutely lethal in a creative house where my work ‘in progress’ is never neatly confined to a dedicated work space.   
Over past months we’ve had a couple of close shaves but managed to retrieve said items...however on the Wednesday night before Easter... at night, of course...Oona swallowed a sewing needle while sitting companionably on Charles’s knee.   This despite my very best efforts to dog-proof the room before inviting them to join us...I’d carefully vacuumed, obsessively pulled out cushions before getting down on my knees and running a magnet, then a clothes brush over the slate and the rug.  Where she’d found it remains a mystery but luckily there is an excellent Pet Emergency centre fairly close by and so at 11pm there we were sitting and waiting for results of Oonas x-ray.
Major surgery was judged the best option so there was nothing else to do but go home to wait for the results...happily around 4am the call came telling us she was fine.   Another very costly adventure but other than being kept apart from her rough housing brothers for 10 days Oona is recovering well...I just wish she could make the link her enforced holiday in hospital, her rather tender tummy and the momentary pleasure of chewing on sharp shiny objects. 

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Life beyond Bilbys and new directions...

As you’ve probably gathered, Bilbys have been my constant companions in recent weeks...I felt in my sleep and my hands feel permanently raw and unnaturally ‘tight’.  But after working into the small hours for the past few nights I’ve have finally finished all the Bilby orders in time for Easter...along with Jimmy, a custom made felt mouse and a white felt rabbit for a special customer who gets more joy from each seasonal celebration than is imaginable.
With one exception...to be picked up tomorrow...every Bilby has left the building. 
School holiday workshops also come to an end tomorrow and while I thoroughly enjoy the children’s workshops, I’m certainly looking forward to some headspace to complete on-going orders and plan the projects and patterns for Winter.  

Saturday, April 16, 2011

And still more Bilbys ...

Just home from this afternoons Bilby workshop with six interesting women, each skilled in different aspects of fine art and craft but new to felting...a very pleasant, if full-on few hours...the process probably took far longer than any anticipated however the results were wonderful.  And I’m absolutely certain the lucky recipients will love their unique gifts
I hope they had fun and have been inspired to go away and explore other uses for felt.
We worked on a high wooden industrial bench near the front of the shop and being a Saturday lots of passersby dropped in, fascinated by the rather messy, soapy proceedings... many itching to have a go.  I’ve realised very soon after opening ak that our customers really enjoyed seeing ‘work in progress’, getting a glimpse into the development of products...Similarly, they like nothing more than checking out the textiles, fabric scraps, baskets of trims and jars of buttons in the ‘back room’ where much of the creative action takes place.  Over the years they’ve also grown accustomed to hearing me signpost my about new ideas as they evolve and develop... the level of interest today was a timely reminder that I need to work on more hand felted projects , a collection Australian animals perhaps ...and other new projects for winter.
baby bilbys

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Awash with hand felted Bilbys

Horray!  Checking details for this post I’ve just read that the proactive approach of The Foundation for a Rabbit Free Australia and their supporters, in particular Haigh’s Chocolates in Adelaide, seems to be producing positive results ... Bilby numbers are on the rise in the wild but also at ak where we’re risk of being overrun by the quirky little creatures.  I’ve long been an Bilby advocate and designed ak’s own wet felted version several years ago...since then every Easter our ‘house models’ sit shyly in the shop window, small wicker egg basket in hand, attracting admirers.  But unfortunately their popularity has now grown to the point where I have to limit the number of custom orders for readymade Bilbys... oh, for more time. 


We do, however, run hand felting Bilby workshops in the weeks leading up to Easter which offer felt enthusiasts a novel way to explore this traditional and versatile method of creating a textile ...or more specifically; the chance to create their own small, three-dimensional, seamless marsupial with overly large ears and delicate feet.  
All materials and equipment provided... participants to supply elbow grease, a willingness to get wet and soapy, patience...felting is not quick...and a curiosity about the way in which wool fibres morph into a sturdy thick fabric as you manipulate them between your hands.
This year, Easter and the school holidays run into each other meaning that children taking part in ak’s school holiday workshops have also had the option to create Bilby characters.  The new baby Bilbys are the perfect size for small hands and have proved especially popular...and happily, they’re a little quicker to make than their full grown relations.