Happy Weekend!

art. house. mum.

HAPPY WEEKEND!     g

And heck, Happy New Year while we are at it!

Expandavan Love

art. house. mum.

Is this not the cutest caravan that you have ever seen?  Cast in a single fibreglass shell more than forty years ago.  Light as a trailer and skinnier than our family car.

And apparently there were only ever 700 of them made... uh oh, I think that we just became caravan eccentrics... (my apologies to anyone who has seen us this week because you can tune out (again) now because I am starting to get excited (again).  She is just so darn cute.)

And it isn't just the original design which is cute, but also the way which she has been cared for.  We are the third owners and each set of owners has added a few things to make it more preactical.  There's the plethora of powerboards; the extra tool kits; the little dust buster; the electric cookers at the back; the daggy clock; it even came with a knife magent and group of knives.  We literally just packed clothes and bedding and hooked her up... 

The original vans were made first out of timber, then later out of fibreglass by a boat-building company in Victoria.  On each side of the van there is a double bed which folds up when in transit and doubles as a bench seat when being used as a caravan.

We couldn't believe that when the table is up a port-a-cot fits neatly long ways between the beds.  And I couldn't believe that the lino on the floor is exactly the same as the lino on the kitchen floor of the home where I spent the first 21 years of my life.

The Expandavan, as it's known, has the feel of an icecream van.  So it's not surprising that for a while the company making them was owned by Peters Icecream. 

And while there's definately things which we might be able to contribute both aesthetically and functionally to this caravan...  we figure that at least it's already done most of its depreciating.

Now we've just got to learn how to be a caravan family...

Tips anyone? (Please)

Three Things... Fresh Eyes

art. house. mum.

Thanks for all your well-wishes.  We had a very full, rather exhausting, and entirely memorable Christmas.  And now we are bunked down at an old family haunt which is packed with memories for me, but is pretty much a clean slate for the rest of our little family.  Or at least it was until a few days ago...  This has the feeling of a holiday not quickly forgotten.  And I am loving having the chance to see this land and place with the fresh eyes of our little ones...

Our biggest problem is getting those little eyes to close at the end of the day...

How are your holidays going?  (Sorry if you aren't on holidays... you could always pretend... I won't know the difference...)

PS. This won't affect most of you because you don't comment :( however, I'm trying out a new comment host, so please do find a silly remark or sage piece of advice (or even typo to point out) and test it out for me... I think that the cool thing will be that you can comment on another comment... at least that's what I think you can do... 

Christmas Greetings...

art. house. mum.

It's kind of a bit late to tell anyone local, but I guess that there might be one last night...  the Christmas Wonderland at Queens Park in Toowoomba is fantastic.  

I hope that you have a good break for the next few days (and longer if possible!)  We are so excited to be seeing all of our immediate families in one fun-packed day... Thankfully there'll be a long drive between in-laws to give everyone a chance to equalise and (hopefully) sleep...

May you have peace this Christmas.  Because they called Him Emmanuel...  God with us...  we don't have to do it alone!

Merry Christmas, from our family to you and yours...   

Prelude to my first Peacock Painting...

art. house. mum.

I did my first peacock painting last night.  And honestly, it's kind of average.  I'm just trying to figure out how to present it now.  But in the meantime here's some more worthy offerings by other artists.  Hope you enjoy.

1.  Starting with a really clasical representation.  I love the curl of the neck on this one.  And the fact that he's perched, so that his tail hangs down in full.  And the blue...  if I hadn't seen real peacocks a bit lately I would think that it was exaggerated.  Follow this Link if you are interested in seeing more artoworks by Encore Prints.  They have an interest in using old and antique paper leaves for their artworks.

2. This one has a real Kiwi flavor to it.  I like the idea that the artist has taken liberty with the fairly formal pattern on the tail of a peacock and had a really good play with pattern and even shape.  I also like the sense of character which she achieved in the face.  Follow this Link to more artworks by Michele Doherty.

3.  And let's go out on a cheerful note! 

After what seems like a pretty full-on few months (and still I've a pile of presents to wrap... and if I'm honest, a few presents to buy) lets go and have a great time remembering what makes Christmas so loaded with hope and joy.  

Follow this Link to see more from Ashley White Jacobsen.  She's got some really gorgeous looking sky paintings that are worth a taking a peek at...

Do you have a favourite of the three paintings here?

Three Things... New Favourites

art. house. mum.

A dear friend gave me a present yesterday and under pressure from the kids (always blame the kids) I opened it.  A three part present and each part was so beautiful that by the end of unwrapping I was crying. 

The first part is a collaborative handprinted calendar from the Museum of Printing History Printers Guild in Houston.  Just look at the texture and lovely layout of the January print by Monica and Charles Eskridge.

And then these beautiful handprinted notecards.  There really is nothing quite like the look and feel of hand-printed cotton paper.  This lot are by Blue Eye Brown Eye and I love also that they came tied with red and white string and in a cotton bag.  Perfect.  (I used on already because I was thinking that much as I'd love to keep them in a secrect place and look at them often, it's surely better to share the beauty... then it can multiply!)

Here's the treasure that will influence my world for good.  A book called "Open Studios" by Lotta Jansdotter.  No, I've never heard of her before (but it seems she is a Swedish designer who now lives in Brooklyn)... or any of the artists and artisans in the book either.  But that doesn't make them any less interesting and inspiring.  The book takes readers into the studios of artists in Brooklyn, Stockholm and Tokyo and not only shows photos of these spaces where beauty and function collide, but also includes brief conversations with the artists which reveal things about how they use their studios.  I really like this quote...

Lotta: What is your best space-saving solution?

Yuko: Cleaning.  After I have done my work, I clean up.

And guess what?  Last night I cleaned my (micro)studio.  And it not only looks better, but it gave me a bit of mental space to start a painting...

The down side was that after I'd done some over-achieving I fell into bed and should have gone to sleep... but how could I sleep with such a lovely book beside my bed...  I might have been a bit less than elegant this morning.  Maybe.

So, thanks!  To my dear friend who know s me so well that she gave me a gift which I couldn't have known to wish for...

Have you opened any presents early this year?

The King pays our humble peasants a visit... (maybe he's lonely)

art. house. mum.

He sure did seem social when he stopped by again and paid our little birds a visit.  (Was he collecting taxes?)

But I don't really care what he was up to.  He's in my good books at the moment because on the weekend he (finally) put on a show for us.  Their tail feathers really are rediculously big when they are up...  I didn't get a photo becuase we had five kids under six running around and sometimes taking a photo is just going to spoil the moment.

So here are a few standard photos of His Royal Highness.  Can you believe how many different colours and patterns are on his coat?  And  I am itching to draw him, but I'm afraid I won't do him justice...   just waiting for a time when I might be a ble to concentrate...

Okay, I've still got half my pile of presents to wrap...  but then, inspiration is priceless.

Thanks King Peacock, for making us look up and out today a little more than usual.

Playing with Papa's Toys...

art. house. mum.

This lone glove (where it came from, I am just not sure...) I was told is "for fixing trains"...

Who was I to argue?  And I hadn't even realised that we had a train housed in our carport...

Let alone one with so many mechanical issues.  But they were very gracious in their long-winded explainations of what had to be fixed.

On a serious note, our pour old Cox does appear to be in need of a service, but we are hanging out til after summer... they say that it can take months to get them back from the mechanics at this time of year...

So, well, this is all the attention that the old girl will get right now...

So I'm sure that she enjoyed it as much as they did.

Not that she looked any better by the end of it. 

But at least she started and did her job when Matt came home and got into cutting our ever-growing grass (this will be a theme all summer, I'm afraid... the never ending chore... rivalled only by the washing and taking out the rubbish).

I wonder if the train services will continue so that she will be able to see the summer through...

Have you got any old work horses that need some love to keep them going?

Once Upon A Time In Europe...

art. house. mum.

In a previous life I travelled.  The last oversease trip was five years ago.  Five years...  unbelievable.  Matt and I spent a month in Europe for my brother's wedding and our general education...

I kept a travel journal filled with sketches which I just rediscovered as we cleaned out the laundry this week (in the laundry?)  and again, it is really nice to find that I like these old drawings.

They start out a little tight and self-conscious as I drew fellow travellers in airport stopovers.

But then, I guess that those drawings are heavy with the weight of expectations and hopes of a big trip into new places.  They are fraught with the fear that they will be the only drawings to make it onto the crisp new white pages...

Thankfully they weren't the only ones...  But thinking back, none of these drawings came without a price.  Just time, concentration and sometimes a little bit of embarassment.  A little bit of being demanding and saying to my (then fairly new) husband that it was important that I sit down here and do this... despite there being more things to do than we had any chance of doing...

We loved Berlin.  I have loved Berlin since I read an article about her re-building and re-defining process as she has moved beyond her unique and confusing past.  So that the areas which were tangible memories of the Wall between communist and democratic life now are becoming places of remembrance and hope.   The buzz of this city was enchanting and we spent a great week there with a dear friend.

It was in November that we were there and the people of Berlin were already dressing her up for the coming festive season.  We had fun at various outdoor markets, and enjoyed mulled wine and crepes a few times...

I distincly remember sitting and doing this drawing of a beautiful wrought iron lamp before turning round and seeing this gorgeous scooter...

I'm not sure how much time I spent on that particular park bench (sending Matt off with the camera on his own) but I think now that the time was not wasted.  After spying the scooter, there was a perfect specimen of the old communist Germany cars (Soph, what is their name?) just begging to be drawn.  It sure looks cute, but I'm not too sure I'd want to own one...

After Berlin there was Italy... another country another post...

But tell me, are you taking the time to draw this holiday?

Happy Weekending to You and Yours...

art. house. mum.

Last time my brother was in Australia we sang a song to his guitar at my sister's wedding.  This time we are singing carols and come-what-may with three generations round our dinner table.  These are prescious times indeed.

Small World Nativity... set for play

art. house. mum.

So, my Nativity set is much more compact than I intended.  But plans have changed, and some of the other dolls now seem destined for other forms of greatness (maybe of the Jedi nature...)

But I seriously love these wooden dolls and especially these large ones which fit so nicely even into my hands.  They are the type of thing which make my hands itch when I walk past them... and evidently my little ones feel exactly the same way.

And there sure has been some theologically questionable play going on, but at least I did hear a few snippets like "Oh yes, poor donkey, Mary IS fat..."  

And "Hello, I'm Jofess can we stay here? ... Oh, no that'll be fine we can sleep with the aminals..."  That was before Abby Dabby and a few other fairy dolls joined in. 

But frankly, there is just something so fantastic about seeing toys that I've made with love for my kids being used in just the way they were intended to be.   


And did you notice the "O Holy Night"wooden candle decoration?  Made by my talented friend Megan!  Still much-loved years after it was given...


And there is a lovely pair of these large wooden dolls for someone else's hands here!




What are you making for your kids this Christmas?