SeaFlowerSpins

‘When I voted for the Leopards Eating People’s Faces Party, I didn’t think leopards would eat MY face…’

That is terrible, I am so sorry.

Squid in a bucket at Gwangjang Markets - the bucket is lined with a blue tarp and the squid are shades of cream and brown.

Oriental magpie in black and white against a background of grey concrete paving near the National Folk Museum of Korea

Roofs of the Gyeongbokgung Palace - terracotta and yellow paint colours against dark wood beams, and a hazy blue sky behind.

Brought my art journal along for a fortnight in Seoul with my daughter.

I’m always fascinated by how so many knitters have such different technique and yet we still end up with the same fabric. I was taught English/throwing but can’t do it without constantly taking my right hand off the needle - now I use continental instead, more ergonomic and efficient for me 😊

It’s amazing and beautiful work, and a lovely picture of you. Definitely an oversight 😊

My studio space in a small sunroom built off the back of the house. A white desk sits against a brown brick wall. A tapestry loom and tools sit on the desk, and there is a work in progress on the loom. A rack of colourful cones of yarn is mounted to the left of the desk.

Progress on my birches tapestry in shades of green and brown, with trees picked out in cream and buff colours. Some tapestry bobbins hang from the work. Marked lines can be faintly seen on the warp, showing where the next tree shape will be placed.

I’ve got my birches tapestry to a stage where the next tree is ready to go in - but it will have to wait. I’ll be working on nothing but a simple knit for the next few weeks while I’m travelling with my daughter.
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#australianhandspinnersandknitters #canberraspinnersandweavers #australiantapestry

😊 thank you

I'm pleased to report that no midnight tapestry was necessary last night! It felt very medieval getting up in the night to do more work... 😂

Stunning - they look like pottery, the artistry and skill is dizzying.

Thank you, it’s working out very well 😊

A woven tapestry in progress - the piece is being woven side to side so the pic has been flipped 90° to show its proper orientation. The tapestry shows a grove of birches, reduced to their essential elements, inspired by a grove I found during a hike last year in Ardgour, Scotland. The trees are white with buff shadows, and stand in a landscape of lush greens and browns, with blue sky behind. The picture also shows the sides of the tapestry loom, with various tools (including tapestry bobbins and a silver fork) and yarn waste scattered on the workspace.

Haven’t been sleeping well - last night after only 2 hours of sleep I decided up and doing was better than lying awake in bed. Another 3 hours disappeared in quiet creativity that ended with the first big tree.
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#australianhandspinnersandknitters #canberraspinnersandweavers #australiantapestry

I bought the biggest I could afford (a table loom) but I've never woven anything that drapes the way I want. The reed is set up in Imperial measurements and I can only think in metric - I get the calculations for ends per cm wrong every time! I get better results from my little rigid heddle.

I'm spinning and dyeing the mother yarns at least - the heaviest of the yarns in each bundle (roughly fingering weight). The fine tresses are from the Australian Tapestry Workshop. I can spin that fine if I need to but I can't spin superfine fast enough to keep up with my tapestry needs.

I love that a completely different craft will be the medium for The Rules 😆

I have a friend whose knitting rules include no new projects after 8pm 😂 she is also renowned for saying ‘That shit will block right out’. She is wise in the way of the knit.

I have an 8-shaft loom and I know people doing stunning weaving but the maths always defeats me! And I don’t like sewing much, so unless I want a lot of stoles… tapestry is as much art as craft and unites my passions perfectly. 😊

That could take some time - I am planning another 60cm in width, and need to spin and dye more green yarns! 😊

TISM nailed it - ‘I can’t wait for my generation to die’

Delish!

Thank you - it’s based on a photo I took in Scotland last year at a place that just made me happy - glad you like it too.

😊 thank you. I’m new to this art form - it’s slow and can be challenging but I’ve fallen in love with it. Very rewarding.

Thank you, you are very kind. I appreciate the encouragement.

Thank you for the encouragement - today’s been a rough one and I didn’t expect to find so many kind words here.

I’m a recent convert to bobbins, I’m a pretty new tapestry weaver and was using butterflies at first - bobbins are better! The grass texture is long loose soumak, snipped in the middle once it’s well pinned by the weaving. 😊

😊 thank you - maybe I’ve spent so long giving myself permission to be shit at something that I’ve missed what’s good. I am largely happy with it - no unweaving! - but I might add some extra lines of darker colour in the larger trunks to come to make those shadows leap out a little more.

Thanks - I am pretty pleased with it but still want to boost the contrast!

It looks stunning

A tapestry weaving in progress - shades of green, blue and pondscum with lines of white and brown. The tapestry is being woven side to side, and the picture shows the cotton warp threads and the bobbins holding the coloured wool weft.

Slow progress - 20cm completed and I’m a little concerned there’s not enough contrast on the trees, their shaded sides are getting lost. Considering options!
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#australianhandspinnersandknitters #canberraspinnersandweavers #australiantapestry

Can't wait to see it!

I don't sell much, craft is my passion, not my job. I share more of my work on Insta. In Canberra, check out Canberra Spinners & Weavers gallery and shop, and Craft+Design Canberra in Civic has good exhibitions. Reach out when you are closer to knowing when you'll be here