Moby says...

Have a safe and happy Christmas and New years. Thank you to all who take the time to visit my blog. See you in 2013!

Art and Christmas and a baby.

HI! well guess what? The Curiosity shoppe? It SOLD! on Saturday..so just barely a week in the shop and someone has snapped it up.. I am so happy. (And kind of smug now seeing that THAT was the first piece to go and Hubby thought I was wasting too much time on it.. heh) I showed him..
It has inspired me to get stuck into another project.. but not until the new year because...

We are going away for Christmas!
Never done it before, but we are mega excited. We are throwing the pressies into Anna Cabana and heading up north a little to a beach side town where my parents are, to spend the week with them. It's going to be so good. We are actually driving up there on Christmas eve..yeah I know crazy huh. But that's the way it's got to be because...

My horrid sister in law had her baby. Today apparently. A boy and both mother and bub are doing fine. So we are going to see them all before we go. To exchange gifts etc. Don't quite know how I am going to handle seeing her with the baby, but I will have to just grin and bare it I guess. *sigh* Did I tell you that she conceived that baby the exact time I lost mine? I know, it's not her fault.. I know it's irrational.. but I still kind of hate her right now.. Hate is a strong word...I don't like using it, but I can't help it. I know I will get over it and I slowly am, but it still hurts a little. So many friends I know announced they were pregnant at that time (my birthday as well), and I guess she was the last straw for whatever rational feelings I had left in me.
I'm getting better.

Lastly I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and a safe New years. (We are driving back home New Years eve.. I know! We live on the edge of crazy here! lol!)  I love this time of year here. We live a few streets back from the beach, up a hill, and spread out around the area are more apartment blocks, and everyone has lights strung up on their balconies. It's so pretty. You walk out on to our balcony at night and it looks like a giant twinkling christmas tree. Just magic. Anyway... until I post again.. Merry Christmas everyone.
Love Sprite.

I love my Aspie kid.

So after the tragic events in America recently. people are now playing the blame game. The media is  jumping on every little fact be it truth or not and spewing out these untruths like a noxious gas. They are saying that the shooter may of had Aspergers, and that is why he went on this killing spree. They are linking Aspergers with other mental illnesses.

Aspergers is NOT a mental illness!!

My son has Aspergers.

 He recently graduated from junior school with mainly B’s on his report card. He successfully completed another karate grading last night with glowing reports. He is artistic, highly intelligent, sociable, cheerful, and empathetic. He does have his angry moments but does that make him want to go on a mass killing spree? NO it does not.

To say that all people with Aspergers are capable of this is ridiculously insulting and extremely uneducated. I am absolutely livid at the thought of people now seeing my beautiful, sensitive son in a new light.

My husband and I will now have to be extra careful when we talk about our son and it's all because of the stupidity of today’s media. It shouldn't be like that. We shouldn't have to defend and justify our son.

I am proud of my son. I love my Aspie kid. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

First art showing

Hi there.
Well I now have all my art work in a shop in a ritzy part of the city. I attended a function there the other night and it all looked so good. My paintings up on shelves and my little steampunk pin cushion, miniature houses, and Curiosity shoppe in a class cabinet. 
Anyway, fingers crossed I sell something..lol.

Here are some pics of the Curiosity shoppe. I spent so many hours on this thing.. finishing it only hours before I had to take it to the shop. There are hand made miniature leather books, bottles filled with mysterious substances, hand made toys, a pretty dress, a butterfly display, hand made shadow boxes and a parasol. Each and every corner, nook and cranny is filled with something. turn it one way there is something new to see. I love it.

Locked section

Hand made butterfly display and parasol.

Those front doors open.

The writers corner

miniature houses

I received the missing piece from the house printers tray in the mail today (along with some extra free goodies! The folks at Twiddleybitz are beyond amazing!).
Anyway I have finished the miniature project so I can start on the tray. Excited. I just hope my ideas in my head look as good in reality :) I'll keep you posted on how I am going.
Here are the houses. The pack is called Wisteria Lane, but I think I will call mine "Whimsy Lane" (thanks to Stephen and Ant for the compliments on my touch of "Whimsy" in my work).

2,4,6 Whimsy Lane. Which house would you live in?

No.4 has the black kitty. You can't see in this photo but he has sparkly yellow eyes.

Notice the little birdie perched on no.6's roof?

The kit comes with just the raw houses and the windows and doors. The rest is from various Scrapmatts laser cuts I have been collecting over the years.
Next project...the printers tray!

My art space and more crafty things..

Hi there. 
Just thought I'd show you a couple of projects I've finished. One is the Advent Calendar and the other is a cute little mixed media canvas I whipped up late one night. 
Oh and also I have included a photo of my art table, in case you were wondering where I create all these things..lol.
So here is the Advent Calendar... (oh, apologies in advance for the horrendous quality of the photos. I am yet to find a spot in my house where I can take good pics)

Now I just need to decide what to put in all those little drawers!

Here is the canvas..

Isn't it super cute? Not normally my type of style, but I thought I'd give it a go and now I am kind of in love with it. It's all paper layers and paint, watercolour crayons, pitt pens, stamps, and rub-ons. Something like I do in my Art Journal, but on canvas. Oh and I know the saying is one of the most cliché out there "Home is where the heart is" but I like it and I think it is totally true.

So here is what you've been waiting for (lol) my art/craft space. Not everything is in this photo, I have a couple of little shelves down on the right side of the table filled with stuff, but you get to see where I work anyway :) I know it's cluttered, but that's how I like it, because everything is within my reach. Handy for when you are working with wet and drying things. 

As you can see, my art journal is there open to my latest page, which is actually a re-do on one I made earlier which I hated, so I stuck one of my poems over it and drew in the waves with my watercolour crayons. Then drew in some bubbles and spray with white pen. I wont explain what everything on the table is, it would take too long..but the table is really cool. We found it at a second hand shop. it can be raised and lowered and tilted! 
So that's my space. My happy place :)
My painting place is was down in the dungeon garage which is in the process of being sorted out so I will have my painting place back again soon..yay!

My next project was supposed to be the printers tray house but when I opened it I discovered a missing piece essential to the putting together of it. So I am waiting for the makers to send me a replacement part. In the mean time,  I am working on some miniature houses.

Bovine Choreography

I love this!
Check out his other videos, especially Kitty Town.

When do you let go?

I am struggling with the concept that my one and only son is growing up. 
Recently we celebrated his 12th birthday and while I acknowledge that yes, he is becoming a teenager, he is still my little boy. Having gone through all the heartbreak of failed IVF treatments, I guess I am being a little clingy to the only child I will ever have given life to. You can understand that..can't you? 
He has been bugging us lately, asking if he can go for a walk on his own down to the beach. The beach which is probably a three minute walk away, but to a mothers eyes, miles and miles. I am not paranoid in thinking that anything could happen while he was down there without one of us to watch over him. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those mothers that wraps their child in cotton wool and never lets them do anything. He does have a lot of freedom. It's just that the beach opens up of whole new protective feeling in me that I do not really know what to do with. Should I let him go and stand on the balcony fretting until I see him walking back up the street? Or secretly follow him down there and keep out of sight ninja style? Or do I just refuse his requests? All kinds of thoughts enter my head when I think of him down there, alone. There are nasty people out there who would see my son as a easy target. 
I think about the parents of Daniel Newcomb, a boy who disappeared in this area and was never heard of again until recently when his murderer was caught and showed police where he buried the boy. He was nothing but a pile of bones by then. He was 14, my son is only 12. And even though he knows karate, he is kinda puny. I'm his mother, I'm allowed to say that..lol.
 Apart from my fear of him being taken, he does have Aspergers, no road sense at all, I mean...a dog has more road sense than him. And he walks around completely oblivious of his surroundings at times. I know he is getting older and frustrated at what he sees as me being over protective, but I just don't think he is ready. My Husband thinks he is. Maybe I am being a wee over protective, but in this day and age, sadly, I think I am justified.
So when is it the right time to let go?

Steampunk Pincushion.

So remember the photo of the little white frilly pin cushion I showed you?

Well white and frilly really isn't me so I decided to do a Steampunk themed one instead.

Coming soon: Advent Calendar. 

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Yes..it's that time of the year when I blow a whole wad of cash at the Craft Show! And this year I did not disappoint myself. I won't say how much, but I am certain that the amount I spent doesn't compare to the visa card wielding old ladies that bowl you over with their little wheelie carts.  I am serious! It's like trying to squeeze though a death maze of tinted hair and oversized knitted handbags. I barely made it out of there alive.
This year I had a plan. I did my research and marked on the site map the four stalls I wanted to visit first, and headed to those places when the doors opened before the mad rush that was inevitable. Then I went back to the beginning and did the show aisle by aisle. Four hours of wandering around there and I was done. Here is my loot. I will tell you where it's from in case any of you crafty's out there are interested in any of the items.

Inks and craft mat from Ranger

12x12 and 6x6 templates from Crafters Workshop

art stamps and clings from Hero Arts

Clear stamps from Rosies, acrylic block, and Art stamps by Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Collection  "Mini Classics"

paper laser cut packs from Art Stamps Australia

Chip board laser cuts from Scrap Matts

Scrap Matts as well. (I met the guy who designed the parasol, isn't it beautiful?)

Little hinged cupboard from Twiddleybitz

Funky Attic House, Funky Townhouse, Twiddleybitz (these people make amazing stuff) .

 small printers tray.. Twiddleybitz.. (der Sprite)

This printers tray house is gorgeous made up..I fell in love with it immediately.

chair pin cushion, mini houses and binder rings, Twiddleybitz

Shadow box . 

I"m not addicted. 
I'm not...
So the ones that have the pictures of sample ones, of course mine wont look like those, not really my style, but rest assured I will show you when I am done.. lol. I am starting on the pin cushion first. I'm thinking....steampunk...