Sunday Stash #1

I am playing Sunday Stash, as started by Tam at 1/4 of an inch, so here goes…

I bought this fabric years ago at Lincraft, back in the day when they sold decent stuff. Lincraft lost the plot somewhere along the line since then and sadly isn’t worth venturing into anymore.

I bought the fabric with the intention of making a dress or a skirt but have never quite got around to it. I actually have enough fabric to make a few things, what you see in the photo is doubled over. I still really like it so I should probably use it while I still do.

Thanks

I am sending out a big thanks to etsasketch for including one of my brooches in her latest Australian Christmas Picks Gift Guide, which you can check out here.

If you are stuck for Christmas ideas like I have been head over to her blog. She has lots of gift ideas, and you just might find the perfect present to buy. Many of her picks are made locally (Australia) so there is still plenty of time to order before Christmas.

I have already used one of her suggestions as a Christmas present for a family member but I can’t tell you which one in case they are reading.

Buttonmania Sale

This is what I bought at the Buttonmania sale today. They didn’t have much in the way of vintage buttons but there were a lot of buckles on offer and I bought some with the idea of making some brooches. It is hard to shop when you don’t know exactly what you are going to make, so I chose some buckles in some colours and sizes I thought I could use and hopefully I can do something with them.

Most of the buttons and buckles are on sale for $70/kilo and my stash cost me $9.80. The sale is on until Saturday.

What to call them...

I finally finished some pink and purple brooches made out of pink Liberty Tana Lawn and some purple kimono silk from Kimono House I had a lot of trouble with the fabric covered buttons, they refused to co-operate with me and I battled with them for days. In the end I had to glue the backs on just to make sure they don’t unexpectedly come apart while someone is wearing them. If I make anymore I will have to come up with a better solution.



The hardest thing for me is working out what to call the stuff I make. I am not particularly good with descriptions, in fact I suck at it, but I understand that it is more exciting to have an imaginative name for something rather than just “pink fabric brooch”. As soon as I figure out some half decent names for the brooches I will divide them between my etsy and made-it stores.

The Start of an Addiction

I bought these vintage buttons off ebay and they arrived in the mail last week. I had never bought vintage buttons before so I wasn’t sure what to expect, especially since it can be hard to tell what they are like with only one photo. Well I think I am officially addicted, they are beautiful. The colours are really bright and they are in excellent condition. I plan to use some of them for my brooches. I am also waiting on some more vintage buttons to arrive from America that I bought off etsy.

What kick started this all was my plan to go to the latest Buttonmania sale. I have not been before but from written reports it sounds exciting. It only happens twice a year and the latest one starts on the 24th November and lasts for a week. Apparently you are given a tray to pick through the buttons and you pay by the kilo. When I rang up to enquire about the sale I was told they were sending out email reminders so I was put on the mailing list but I think they might have written my address down wrong because I haven’t heard anything from them yet. I will let you know how it goes.

Testing Testing

I have finally tested out one of my screens and I am really excited with the results. The final images are clearer than I was expecting. My technique needs improving though, I didn’t lay the ink out evenly on the screen to start with and I had to keep pulling the ink back and forth trying to get the spots I missed. Not bad for a first go though and at least I know that a good image is achievable.




The first print I did was the best out of the three. The only thing wrong with it was that I failed to see some calico thread lying on top of the fabric where I was printing, so you can see a fine line towards the end of my bird’s tail where the thread was.




It was a pretty messy process, especially with black ink. My fingernails are stained black and it looks like I haven’t washed my hands in days (par for the course I think). I got a bit of ink on my clothing, so I need some dedicated screen printing clothes or an apron to wear. When I was in primary school, (a long long time ago) everyone had to have a smock to do art in that was worn over our school uniform for protection. The smock was basically a man’s (dad’s) old shirt worn backwards with elastic around the neck to keep it on. Maybe I need to make myself one of those.

Get Printing

I have had these screens sitting around my house, waiting to be used for a while now. I won’t tell you how long. My official excuse is, I have been waiting for a space in the garage to be cleared so I can set up my screen printing there. It doesn’t seem like that is going happen any time soon, so it looks like the dining room table is my only other choice.

My friend Shogo Saito, who is a very talented illustrator, did the artwork. The doily print was done by me and was the result of too many to mention hours spent playing around with a photo of a doily, Illustrator and Photoshop. I am sure that for anyone who knows how to use these computer programs, it would have taken all of 10 minutes to do.

Stay tuned….

Amitie

I took my first ever trip to Amitie last week. I have been in Melbourne for over 2 years (I have lost count exactly how long) and it has taken me this long to check it out. It may have something to do with the distance from my house. I live in the Western suburbs and Amitie is in Bentleigh, which is a bit of a trek.

To get there, I drove to the train station took a train to the city, got on the Frankston train to Bentleigh and then took a short walk to finally arrive in the store.

I wasn’t disappointed. It is a huge shop packed tightly with loads and loads of beautiful and unique fabrics. It’s the type of place I could easily spend hours wandering around and looking and dreaming.

I came away with two fabrics for a new project I am working on. More on that later. I will definitely be back and I won’t be waiting another 2 years for my next visit.