New work

Despite the cold Melbourne wind today, I managed to get a lot done and was so grateful for the sun when it appeared in the early afternoon. It was glorious addition to the day. My yarn has arrived and I'm going to wind the warp tomorrow. This sample was simply to test the technique, as the plan is to use a combination of baby alpaca and coloured cashmere. I wanted to keep the weaving simple and use beautiful yarn and colours that I haven't ventured towards before now. It is all a little bit of an experiment. My next project will be to give my pin board a lick of paint. It's looking a tad rustic, but for now I'm off to bake delicious lemon treats. Stay warm. 

Sydney Road

A much anticipated visit from a missed brother and his girlfriend was the inspiration for putting these up. Sydney road is dotted with empty shop fronts and signage dating from a time when Europeans were the new migrants and established businesses along this strip. It's often the little things that I love - hearing foreign languages being spoken, salty Lebanese pizza or squeaky cheese pie, coffee, dried porcini mushrooms, parmesan, pasta bought in bulk, nut filled sweet treats and lemon trees. I think it's time to make some lasagna! Perhaps I'll have to postpone that mammoth task until David gets here.  

Colour

Right now, I'm working on a small range of scarves for a friend's exciting new venture. The idea was to use bright colours in combination with a few different shades of grey and a pastel or two. I've been in the studio, working with paint and mixing up colours. This time I don't have the yarn to work from, just a small sample card. Learning how to mix colour was akin to sitting through a painfully boring lecture, but I must say those lessons inform my current practice. Colour choice is probably my toughest hurdle at the beginning of any work. The constant question repeating itself is; is it going to work? I guess you never know that until you sample. Yes sure, you can simulate how colours might interact with each other in Illustrator but sampling is about the only way of being sure. Yarn after all, is not flat. So I'm going with my instinct, ordering some beautiful coloured yarn and hoping it all comes together. While tidying up my storeroom/bedroom, I came across this. I swoon over grey and bright orange.  

 

Getting out of town

There is nothing like having a weekend off and taking a short trip to the beach. Especially if one is blessed with wonderful weather and there are events to celebrate. It was Helen and David's wedding part two, for which I made this cake. Part one took place in London. Called Devils Food Cake, it is similar in texture to a chocolate chiffon cake. I made this one with a caramel filling and covered it in ganache. Running out of time to make crystalised rose petals, the fresh ones worked a treat. Luckily the garden was full of beautiful blooms to choose from. The views and sunset were spectacular, the dancing fun but most of all it was lovely to be surrounded by friends and be a part of it all. I figure, there isn't anything in the world like fresh sea air.