Nyonya Wedding Dresses and Bridal Chambers In Pinang Peranakan Mansion, Penang, Malaysia

1900's Marital bed

Gold painted and lacquered wood with embroidered silk panels.

Bridal Garments

Later marital bed.

Silk embroidered bridal over-garment.

Marital Bed 1900's to 1920's

Detail of gold work embroidery on silk satin trimmed with rabbit fur and silk fringe.

Bridal Dress 1920's

Bridal Dress 1930's to 1940's

Each of these rooms in the mansion was set up to display what the bride wore and where she slept over 3 different eras from the 1900's to the 1950's. These rooms were also filled with lavish collections of Venitian glass, mother of pearl furniture, ornaments from around the world and opulent jewellery.

I could have stayed for a couple of hours but our guide was eager to show us treasures in the rest of this beautifully restored mansion.

Making Mola Pillows working at the Ironing and Cutting Centres

While making the mola pillows, I worked at 2 more centres in my studio.

The Ironing Centre

The ironing board has an extension to make it a rectangular shape better suited to ironing lengths of cloth. I have 2 irons a steam iron and a dry iron.

The power outlets for the irons and the sewing machine were put into the floor to keep the cords from crossing the work surfaces.

The rack under the ironing surface holds a variety of pressing clothes, water sprayers and spray starch.

The Cutting Centre

After the mola had been steamed I walked a couple of steps to the cutting centre. 

It sits in the middle of the area where I can move around all 4 sides while cutting. It saves on the number of times the fabric has to be repositioned.

The left-over cork floor tiles on the left I thought would make a useful cutting surface when using the Exacto knife but the cutting rulers bumped up against the tiles so they had to go.

I moved them across the walkway to the drawing centre.

After a minor adjustment, I found the Ironing Centre and the Cutting Centre work fine.

Studio: Sorting, Organising, Cleaning

I have been very busy these past 2 weeks setting up my new studio. Each item I touch I make the decision to keep it or not. If it is to be kept it gets cleaned, organised then stored.

I have decided to store things in used paper and cardboard, like these grocery bags for painted papers.

I raided a shoe store's supply of empty boxes. I think the owner was pleased he had fewer boxes to flatten after I left. Yes, it does look like a shoe store but it is a most convenient way to organise my many collections of precious things.

Collections that I use more often I arranged in cut off boxes. I can easily take the whole box off the shelf to a table to find exactly what I need.

Fabrics and threads continue to be stored in clear (mostly) plastic containers. I went through every bin throwing out what no longer interests me. My fabric and thread collections are organised into a bin for each colour.

The shelving cardboard is being used to extend the new garden bed. When the paper and cardboard containers wear out they too will be added to the garden to make lasagna soil.

With my family, we are hosting an open house to celebrate the completion of the Green Shed. There is nothing like a deadline to keep one working hard. I am enjoying getting reacquainted with everything I have to work with.

Kaipara Coast Sculpture Gardens, New Zealand

Here am I surrounded by Audrey Boyle's 'Tribute', (dress fabric, Dacron, irrigation tube).

From Audrey's artist statement: 'Having worked with vines from nature, most recently Kareao (Supplejack) that once covered this very land, I decided to replicate the fern and its linear quality with all of its lumps and bumps and give it back to nature.'

Blair Fraser 'Laughing No More', (Oamaru stone, wood).

From Blair's artist statement: 'The Whekau or Laughing Owl is no more, it is extinct.'

Alysn Midgelow Marsden, 'Change', (fabric, PTFE thread, stainless steel cable).

From Alysn's artist statement: 'The form of the cocoon is understood as a place where transformation occurs; an apparent miracle, an alchemic change within a quiet contained form. The form shows occasional involuntary quivers as it is suspended. It is rocked by both its internal changes and the forces of the world around it.

The question has to be 'what is going on inside?' What will emerge? Will it be fabulous or frightening, camouflaged or brilliantly coloured?

Mia Hamilton, 'Daisy Blanket', (heavy duty plastic danger tape, crocheted twine).

From Mia's artist statement: 'Mia Hamilton remembers the 'daisy blanket' her mum and dad made as a child. Dad sheared the sheep and spun the wool whilst Mum made the daisies on an old wooden bloom loom and crocheted them together.

Just a few of the 51 sculptures in the gardens.

Small Expressions Show, Tulista Gallery, Sidney

Synesthesia #4 Spring Green

I have just spent the day working in a team to install this year's 'Small Expressions Show' at Tulista Community Arts Centre, Sidney-by-the-Sea, BC. When we left the gallery late this afternoon all of the work  was in place and looked so inviting. It looked like a place to spend a couple of hours absorbing what it means to be creative.

Synesthesia #5 Green

The vibe on the Pacific Northwest coast attracts those who want to express their creativity actively. This is particularly so in the town of Sidney and on the Saanich Penninsula where there are literally hundreds of artists living within a small area working in every media.

Synesthesia # 6 Blue Green

The catch with this exhibition, Small Expressions, is every work has to fit within the limitations of being 12 x 12 x 12 or less. For some artists, this is their norm. For other artists, it is a challenge and often the results are surprising. A different side of their creativity surfaces.

This is my 3rd Small Expressions exhibition. I am continuing to show work from my Synesthesia series. The 3 above images are of the work I have entered this year.

Synesthesia #24 Golden Yellow

I entered the above and 2 below works last year.

Synesthesia is a series expressing how I feel the energy of different colours. They are sensing drawings in fabric and thread. I have made 10 and plan to make 24.

Synesthesia #23 Orange Yellow

Tomorrow we meet at the gallery to put up labels and to do the tweaking and tidy up until everything looks perfect.

The exhibition opens Wednesday March 4th, from 10:00 to 4:00pm. I will do my first shift that morning. Every artist who is able to sits with the show twice over the month. The exhibition closes March 29th. The gallery will be open every day except Mondays.

Synesthesia #22 Yellow-orange

The Small Expressions Show is just one of a great many different exhibitions, activities and programs under the umbrella of the very active Community Arts Council of the Saanich Peninsula (CACSP). CACSP is one of the 90 regional arts councils in British Columbia whose mandate is to nurture an appreciation of all the arts on the Saanich Peninsula.

ArtSea Artist-in-Residence at Lilaberry, Sidney BC

I am spending 8 days working next to the front window of Lilaberry Home Decor here as part of the Artsea Festival. 

Lilaberry Home Decor is a fabulous shop owned by Chris Stephen. All stock is artfully staged to appeal to all senses. There is so much to see one can easily get lost in thought, possibilities and wonderings.

During the 2 weeks of the festival over 50 artists are demonstrating, showing their work and giving talks in the retail area of Sidney-by-the-Sea.

I am working 10:30 to 5:30 every day in my mini studio.

It took several days to get this work set up so I would be able to work on it in the space.

I am needle-weaving into burlap in layers: torn fabric strips, thicker yarns, finer yarns, threads. There are 3 panels in this work which provides me with more than enough work for the week.

I get to talk to lots of the customers about my work.

The festival works to get the public closer to the arts and it helps to build the relationship between the business community and the arts community in the town.

French Bucol Fabrics

A friend gave me 2 lengths of lame-type fabric. One had this label. A search of the name revealed Bucol has been a famous silk house in Lyon since 1920.

I needed to test the fabrics to find out if they were silk, or not. Out came the burn chart.

The silver one burned briefly then self extinguished. It melted giving off an odor of sweet chemicals and formed a hard black round bead.

It is polyester.

The gold one burned and melted. It was not self extinguishing. A hard black irregular bead formed. 

It is an Orlon or Acrilan acrylic.

I am a little disappointed they are not some vintage French silk from the 1920s but their melting properties will be something to take advantage of when working with them. And they are very pretty and shiny.

Pattern Design For Artists

The students have spent the past couple of weeks learning how to make repeating patterns, developing their own designs then using them to create different patterns.

Connie cuts a quick, inexpensive corrugated cardboard stamp to trial a design.

Elisha created a design based on a building then translated it into foam stamps, one the mirror of the other so she could make a greater variety of patterns.

She chose one of 17 different patterns she could make with this stamp to print on a heavier weight cotton.

Charlotte is developing designs based on the pineapple.

Sarah is exploring pattern making with a design based on lines found on rocks.

She made quick foam stamps of the design in the positive and negative and the mirrors of both. These 4 stamps allow her to create a vast number of different patterns.  

Connie's humming bird wing design is proving to be most successful.

She has produced many pleasing and promising patterns with it.

Synesthesia #7 Aqua Green

I collected up the fabric and made a decision on the value range.

The layers of fabric were stacked lightest to darkest and the energy lines of this colour sewn on the back of the ground.

Then the cutting started.

Several hours later.

It is coming along quite nicely but there is still a lot of cutting back to do.

Cut back applique is one of my favourite techniques because it always has surprises, and some 'oops.'