Netball

I loved playing netball, I love tearing up and down the court, I live in another world when I play netball its me the ball my team mates and the competition, and I am oblivious to anything else. Winning wasn't important but a game well played where the score was pretty even was the best, win or lose. Of course I haven't played for over 25 years, the mind is willing but the body won't keep up, oh well!!!! Recently I went to a National competition game with Joanne and my Granddaughters to see the West Australian team play the Bay of Plenty team. Now if it had been another Australian team I would have yelled for the local team but as it was against a New Zealand team, I supported them, Joanne and I where voices in the wilderness, think we should have gone and sat with the very vocal Maori contingent on the other side. NZ won and they are leading the competition, there's something about seeing a live game you get caught up with the atmosphere and the excitement.

Can you see in this photo, the girl in the black leaning back on her player if the other girl stepped away she would be flat on her backside, this part I do not like, you would have been pulled up for contact when I played, it must be so very tiring to have someone leaning on you all the time. I guess the rules have changed? All my grandchildren play sport, the girls netball and the boys football, I get the opportunity to go and watch them occasionally but really prefer playing to watching.

Washing

I like hanging my washing on the line, it brings memories of other clothes lines I have stood at, chatting with my fellow participant. In Wellington with the wind blowing a gale, where you dash out in gumboots and raincoat in a squishy muddy lawn, with clothes whipping you in the face as you struggle to get the pegs on, then a mad dash back inside where its all warm with sister Sharon. Or chatting with Paddy as we companionably shared this chore in Auckland on a sunny day. Or in Europe with my other sister Phil and the only clothes line was a couple of metres of twisted cord that you untwisted and poked the edges of underwear which it held as it twisted back, or driving through Germany with damp clothes draped over suitcases and seats to dry in the sun, anyone walking past our parked car would have had a giggle, no it wasn't our undies. In dear old Gisborne my home town, checking nappies that where stiff as boards after a heavy frost many years ago. Now in Perth where you can hang your clothes out in summer and two hours later they are all dry with the lovely sweet smell of sunshine. A mundane task but it gives you the opportunity to day dream of doing this chore with others, or just to day dream.

A gift for me

A gift for me from my dear sister Phillipa, she made this lovely necklace just for me. She hammered and made the large links on the left side and made the bezel with the little bird image. Go to her blog http://shabbychateau.blogspot.com to see more of her jewellery.

New friends and long time friends

The most beautiful thing about this business Artistic Journey that we started is the wonderful friends we have made. It has opened up a whole new world, some of the wonderful customers that have stepped into our shop have given me hope that we are doing the right thing. I could have just retired and disappeared into my home, instead I have 5 days of making wonderful art and meeting old friends and making new ones. I truly believe that we attract to us like minded people and this has proved true for me, I don't think I ever want to retire, I will still be splashing paint around for a long time, it may get a bit doddery but I will embrace it all. We have had several days of good rain, hah my New Zealand family will say we have it in bucket loads all year around, but here in Western Australia rain is something to celebrate and give us a break from hand watering our gardens. My vegie gardens is bursting at the seams, the beetroot that I thought where no good because they hadn't grown any juicy roots have now gone crazy I have pulled several and baked with other root vegetables and then steamed the leaves with the broccoli (haven't grown them yet, but think i will give it a go), lovely parsley has taken almost a quarter of the space in the tank, its all good. Sorry no photo's this week, no time. Before I go we got in 3 different magazines from Stampington yesterday, Somerset Studio, Handcrafted and Life, Jo will put them on our online shop www.artisticjourney.com.au hopefully in the next few days.
Have a wonderful relaxing weekend
Jacky

Setting up my etsy shop

Well I am having another go at this Etsy shop thingy, tried it once before but I didn't know how to change it, think I have a handle on it now, or I should say Joanne does. I am doing up kits for making romantic journal pages using silk, vintage laces, buttons, ribbons and all those sort of things. Above is a photo of the cover I created last year in memory of my mother, I taught this class to the wonderful girls who come to our classes (I don't know what we would have done without the support of these lovely girls, most have been coming to classes since we opened the shop, any of you girls reading this, we do appreciate you). Photo above is the cover of the journal. I will add photo's of the pages from time to time. Below my first 2 items in my Etsy shop.

This box I have covered and would look nice with a small journal made from the items inside.Photo above of all the items inside the cigar box, all colour co-ordinated.

Items inside the uncovered cigar box. This would look lovely covered in fabrics, buttons etc.This is one of the pages from the above journal for my mother, do you get the idea, I will post some of the other pages, and think I will cover one of the cigar boxes in fabrics and perhaps put a couple of smaller pages inside mmmh, when I get time. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Bye for now

Wendy Addison's special book

Sometime last year I ordered a very special book that Wendy Addison was making 400 limited editions. Yesterday my book arrived mine was issue 111 of 400. The title Theatre of Dreams gives you an idea of what was to follow. Amazing sketches of fairies and amazing illusions of Grandeur of the world of Theatre on craft colour cardstock. Lots of little hand touches making it very interactive. Above is the specially wrapped book just to me, love the craft colour tissue and mossy green ribbon tied in a bow with a round tag with a face image.

This is what I found inside, now isn't that just beautiful, thank you Wendy.... and just a peek inside....

For further information on Wendy Addison limited edition book look on her blog, you will be impressed!

Well that was a marathon of entries for me, I am amazed. Good news we finally have rain for the last 3 days and more coming, my garden just loves it. I cannot remember when we last had rain.

Little black petticoat

My boyfriend at the time now dear husband John, gave me a lovely boxed black lingerie set, with burgundy lace for my 19th birthday. (mmmh now that was a long time ago) It was quite risque to wear black underwear and I just loved it.

I was absolutely horrified when washing it in my mum's electric washing machine with the roller wringers it jammed in the rollers, In a panic I tried to release the rollers but by the time they released I had a few tears. First thing what an idiot not hand washing ( I was only 19, think it was the first time I had used a washing machine). Second thing can you see my very rustic hand mending, I have learnt a lot since those days, but it is a special memory and I still have that petticoat, couldn't possibly fit into it now, I think the waist was 20 inches wide.We have had a class recently on covering cigar boxes and I made one as a memory box with said petticoat inside, will also do a letter about my memory of this, maybe one of my granddaughters may be interested.The top and sides of the box I painted white and used vaseline underneath in parts to give an old worn look. I painted some 300gm watercolour paper and an image of self wearing said petticoat, to the left a photo of John and I taken around that period. I stitched together some ribbons and lace to give it a feminine touch and a 7gypsy knob to open. Words from a song printed around edges in black pen.