Glastonbury Creek

So, as you may (or may not) know, I spent the last five days out at Glastonbury creek at an un-manned, un-powered campsite; just my mother, the dog and I with the power of the sun and a half empty gas bottle.

I seem to have lost the ability to relax, so this trip was all about the both of us bonding (as I have been out of home for a few years now) and remembering how to relax.

What did I get up to?

I read a book - Abarat by Clive Barker. He is a phenomenal author, by far my favourite (thus far); I have to say that Weaveworld is my all time favourite book. But Abarat may have crept up closely behind. I recommend his books to anyone who likes twisted, uncensored, gorey fantasy that still maintains a feel that you could be living each page. Not only that but throughout the books you feel as though the story could end there but it never does, it goes on and just gets better and better.

My mother is a fantastic artist (though she will never admit it), so of course we sat and did some painting, we chose water-colours as it's something I have never been all that good at and I really enjoy challenging myself by sitting next to her and trying to produce something to her standard. This was easily the closest I have ever been :) I am very happy with how they came out:

Now that I am feeling a bit more confident about using the medium I now have to work on shadows and perspective, something that I used to be really good at, but that's what happens if you hide the water-colours for years and years.

Something else I haven't done in years is sketch. I sat down on a rock in the river and did this:

For some reason the scanner did not pick up all of the detail, but it still came out ok.

Finally, after being given a set of Prima Colour Sketching pencils I was determined to start something in my sketchbook, I have a fish that I have owned for about three years so I thought I'd draw him as he's quite interesting to look at:

I used a selection of 2H pencil, black Biro, water-colours and the coloured pencils on acid-free sketching paper. It is officially the first finished picture in my new journal. I am still thankful to Jane Davenport for her inspiration on journaling!

I'm not a big fan of my actual "art" as such, but I have finally gotten over the fear of imperfection, so I am happy just drawing/painting until I come up with something good. Plus it's fun to get off of the sowing machine for a bit!

I have lots of catching up to do, so off to work I go :)

Busy Bee

Well, it really has been a busy couple of weeks! For those of you who follow me on Facebook you'll have some idea of what is going on; for those of you who don't... you should ;)

So, a bit of a catch up:

Today I handed in my submission for the Reverse Garbage end of year exhibition "I Heart Handmade". This one is all about sustainable gift giving. All pieces will be available for under $50 and there are about 15 different Brisbane artists work's on show and available for purchase throughout the night, there will be the usual beverages for purchase, live music and free nibbles! Plus all sorts of entertainment and the chance to meet some of the artists exhibiting.
Come along on the opening night to be part of the festivities and for the best pick of the goodies.
The exhibition will be a long running one and will not close until Revere Garbage closes for the holidays on the 24th December.

I also entered the inaugural Mystery Bag Challenge, which I am quite excited about. I was given a sealed paper bag with some hand-picked goodies from Reverse Garbage and had to use every item to come up with a singular or series of gifts for the exhibition. Come along on the night so have a look at them!

Along with the submission the beautiful Rosina asked me to do the photo-shoot for the promotion of the Exhibition. The photo will be printed in colour in the Brisbane MX (free daily city-wide newspaper) some time before the 26th (their words not mine), so pick up a copy and keep an eye out for my ugly mug and the chance to have a sneak peak at my submission.

This may possibly have been in my box for Reverse Garbage:

Photo (c) Yun 2011

So that takes us up to the 26th...

From then on; the 3rd, 10th, 17th December I will be at the West End Twilight Markets on the corner of Wilson and Boundary street. I can have any custom orders put in before the 1st available for pick-up at the market on the 3rd all orders after that all orders will have to wait until the 20th December. I am hoping to have a selection of journals ready for these markets.

"West End Twilight Markets is a specialty marketplace, featuring an eclectic mix of treasures, tucker and performance.

Open every Saturday, 4pm–9pm. (at) Reclaimed Hangar - Corner of Wilson and Boundary St, West End, Brisbane." - From the West End Twilight Markets website.

The 11th I will be making my debut at the Kerbside Lane Market from 12 - 5pm.

"Held in the laneway leading down to the back of the bar off Ann street, the markets showcase local art, design and handmade & vintage clothing ...and accessories. Market goers can expect up to 15 stalls from creative stall-holders. With some great local music to entertain you throughout the day. The market is free entry and open to all ages." - from the Kerbside Lane Facebook.






In the mean time I am also offering one-on-one beginners sewing classes followed by four project classes throughout the week and on weekends. Sewing machine and materials provided. Please send me an email to book.*


I think that if I'm not completely exhausted after all of that I may get around to finishing the website, making the shop fully functional and adding all of Yun's photographs along with coming up with some new designs.

On that note; what would you like to see me bring out in the new year?






*Due to some inconsiderate cancellations (after class was supposed to begin), you will be required to put down a small non-refundable deposit.

Photographs

I just received a lovely email from a Brisbane photographer called Yan. He took some photos of me at the November Suitcase Rummage.

Here are the two that made it to his blog:

You can see the whole album at: http://lefugitif.wordpress.com/2011/11/13/600/



Talking of photographs, here is my stall from the Village Life Market today:

(My photography leaves a lot to be desired).

It was a fairly quiet market today, but I met some wonderful people and got to sit in the sun all day, so there's no complaining here! :)

And finally, the lovely Yun came last week to photograph all of my stuff, here's a sneak peak:

I will be adding her photos to the website very soon. I can't wait to share the rest with you.

Christmas

I finished another lot of Christmas cards:

They will be available at the Northey Street Village Life Market tomorrow from 8am - 12pm.

See you there!

I will also be bringing my latest journal and bag, along with all sorts of festive goodies.

Available at Good Concepts

How exciting! You can now purchase Pixie In The Park items at Good Concepts in West End. You will find Good Concepts at 58 Vulture Street (up past the Cupcake shop). I dropped a few things off there last week including these three Journals, most of my gift bows, some Christmas Cards and some bookmarks. Head down and have look.

Other places you can find me this month include:

Northey Street Village Life Market on Sunday 13th from 8am to 12pm.

Reverse Garbage's I HEART HANDMADE Exhibition on Saturday 26th from 6pm to 9pm. This exhibition will be open Monday to Friday 9-5 up until Reverse Garbage closes for the holiday.

Mad rush to the end of the week here I come!!
Hope to see more of your friendly faces soon.

Something for me

Every now and then it's ok to be a little selfish.

So what if I spent a whole day designing and making myself a bag?

Here is what I ended up with:

I'm pretty happy with how this bag turned out. It has two internal pockets and is big enough for my journal, water bottle and book. It has my first recessed zip, is fully lined and has a 12cm wide strap. As a back-pack lover the only way I have been able to convert to a shoulder bag is because the one I bought had a really wide strap that covered my shoulder spreading the weight, so I wanted to replicate this.

Other news:

I will see you at the Northey Street Village Life Markets this Sunday!!! Be there at 8am before all the goodies go.

The market can be found at Northey Street City Farm, Northey Street, Windsor and runs from 8am through to 12pm. There is an organic produce market as well as the eco-market.

This design is a 100% original Pixie In The Park design (c) 2011.

Last Exhibition for the year

So, now that that hectic week has passed I can now focus on the next big thing. The Reverse Garbage end of year exhibition. This time it's all about sustainable gift-giving:

Come down and do your festive shopping early and all gifts will be under $50. 

I will be exhibiting my gift bows, journals, Christmas cards, some purses and lots more!

Spread the word; the opening night is 26th November at 6pm. It runs until 9pm there is a bar and nibbles too. There will be some brilliant live music and a great atmosphere. See you there :)

New Shop

As promised the shop is fully functional as of two minutes ago.

How is works:

You click on any image on the website and it will take you to a bigger picture and allow you to purchase it.
It's that simple. As everything is unique each item is only available once. With the bows there is no guarantee of it being the one in the photo. I just make a few from the same magazine.

If you want to order anything at all, scroll down to the bottom of the relevant page and you will see an order form. Fill it out and I will let you know within a day.

You can find the shop at: www.pixieinthepark.com

Happy shopping :)

Rummage Time

Tomorrow (6th November) I will be at the Suitcase Rummage at Reddacliff Place, which is at the top (river end) of the Queen Street mall. See you there! Come down and order for Christmas.


Sorry I've been so quiet. It is, as always, a good thing. This week I spent the week hidden away to get a box together to take into a shop in West End called Good Concepts. Good Concepts is a brilliant eco-shop full of everything you could ever need and more. They also sell some pretty amazing bikes. I have been ooh-ing and ah-ing over this one in particular. It's the perfect transportation for anyone living in the inner city. It carry's up to 130kg, it's electric so no pedaling up those horrible hills and the only fuel it needs is a little bit of leg power (and some electricity every now and then). I LOVE IT!

As I was saying; I took a box of goodies into Good Concepts today and they should be on the shelves as of next week. You can find Good Concepts at 58 Vulture street. That's just past the Cupcake shop.


Other news:
I have teamed up with another Brisbane artist who has left me in charge of a box of her wonderful EYEpads. What's that all about?...

For superior relaxation & meditation, you need the new EYEpad. With it’s specially designed weight to area cover ratio it gives you a total blackout experience and with enough gentle pressure to the eyes to make your relaxation feel like double the time you actually spend relaxing. You will love it so much you will want all your friends to have one for Christmas.

At a special price of $5 while stocks last, this hand-made, limited edition EYEpad is made from up-cycled and reclaimed materials and filled with red split lentils. Add a gentle spray of lavender for the ultimate in relaxation because you know you’re worth it. Sorry no postage on this item. It is collection only due to special price and weight. 

I use mine for relaxation after yoga. I love the way that it moulds to my face and is weighted just right to keep my eyes closed without being irritating. I also recommend it if you struggle falling asleep. They come in many different materials and colours. They make great little stocking fillers too. These will be available at the Rummage tomorrow.


But wait, there's more:
I am slowly getting on with the website and once I add the postage weights and locations tonight I will open the shop officially. First 10 orders get a special free gift plus some vouchers. Keep an eye out. I will  post a blog and a message on Facebook once it's open.

I have lots of new photos and products to put up later too.