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Friday, February 28, 2014

More Christmas Knitting Completed

Amber's Christmas knitting is finished - for the 2nd time. I guessed her head size and made it too small the first time round.

It is Fleece Artist's Ana Bandana in their luscious Woolie Silk (65% wool/35% silk).
Amber lives in New Zealand and there is no rush to send it to her because it is summer there. I am sure she doesn't want to be reminded winter is coming, just yet.

I was successful with an auction bid for this copper kettle and tankard.
Now I am set to do some natural dyeing with a copper mordant.

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Composting Up Close ....

We make compost in wire sleeves held together with twist ties - real simple

But in our winter-wet climate the pile gets a little too wet.
I need to make some winter hats for the piles.

We took 1 pile apart to feed the camellia at the front door.
 It is having a rough time this winter. With the 1st lot of heavy wet snow it had fallen over.

Luckily there is a sailor in the house who knows knots.
I think it is the engineer who added the containers full of water as a counterweight.

Its not pretty at the front door but it appears to be working.

The camellia needed compost & mulch because it has woken up already and is working on its flowers.
Once it has finished blooming we can prune it back so it can stand up on its own again.

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Ready To Make Compost

Ever since Ron & I did the Gaia College Organic Master Gardener course we have made compost together - not the most romantic of dates but always most interesting.
The key is to have the materials on hand before a compost-making session.
We have been collecting and will be ready to make compost once things warm up a bit.
Above is a pile of our wood chips produced when we had a pile of small branches shredded.


A pile of horse manure that is maturing nicely.
I collect it in my car, not Ron's, from a nearby stable.


The reason why I have to visit coffee shops is to collect their grounds.

All of our 'non-shiny' waste paper gets collected in a pile outside to start decomposing.

As does all of our 'non-shiny' cardboard.
I have been know to raid our neighbour's when they put it out on recycling day.

And most valuable of all, our raked up leaves.
Now if it would just warm up a few degrees so we can use the compost we have and start making some more.
We know how to have a good time together.

Monday, February 17, 2014

More Christmas Knitting Completed

Take some delicious yarns: (left) -3 ply wool & silk hand-dyed by Fleece Artist & (right) Diamond's lace weight pure silk...

... add needles & follow Fleece Artist's Ana Bandanna pattern.

The 2 yarns blended together so well into a softly draping sunset-looking fabric.

Younger daughter modeled it before it was packed up and sent to her older sister.

The pleating at the back looks like origami.
I have heard it fits well.

Monday, February 10, 2014

'Articulated Materials: Bridging Waters' in Saskatchewan

The 4th showing of Articulation and Material Girls' response to the Bay of Fundy and the River Thames, respectively, will be shown in its 7th exhibition - 3 in the UK & 4 in Canada.
This time it is in The Gallery on 3rd, Watrous, Saskatchewan. 
It is the last time before the individual works will be boxed up and returned to owners in the UK and across Canada.
This international collaboration has been an exciting and rewarding project for both groups.

Feb 19 - March 10, 2014
Opening Reception Feb 20, 1 - 4 pm
Gallery open Thursday to Saturday 1 - 4 pm

Articulation member, Donna Clement has designed all 4 posters for the Canadian exhibitions. This last one features one of her works, 'Erosion as Joggins Fossil Cliffs -"Ammonite".'

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Carole Sabiston 'Everything Below All of the Above'

There are 2 galleries full of Carole's work.
This one gave me a start because I used the same PK Page poem in my degree studies. 

'Planet Earth:after PK Page' 2013
It was so interesting to see how Carole worked with the same words.

'Connecting Threads: Arc of Carol Shields' 2013
This is a tribute to her friend, Carol Shields, the Noble prize winning writer of short stories.
This image doesn't do justice to the complexity of the silk layers.


3 friend, Esther, Kati, Sarah, all artists, enjoying looking through the large 'Touch Book.'
It is a large exhibition with lots to see, so I have visited twice so far and may go again.

Sunday, February 2, 2014

Carole Sabiston Opens at Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

We attended the opening of Carole Sabiston's exhibition at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, a retrospective solo called "Carole Sabiston: Everything Below All of the Above"

Curator Pat Bovey, a former director of the gallery and now from Winnipeg, spoke to a packed audience about her long friendship with Carole and her observations over the years as Carole's oeuvre grew.

Left: Pat Bovey, Carole Sabiston, Jon Tupper, Director

Pat's text panel.
 Hope you can read this.