A Sneak Peek!

This Friday evening, the annual Christmas show at Zu Designhttp://www.zudesign.com.au/index.html will open and I have finally just finished my pieces for it. The theme for this year is a special one - A Roman Christmas - as we celebrate Roman's retirement from Zu after 15 years. I met Roman when we studied Jewellery Design together at Uni SA. He was already a qualified jeweller at that time but returned to study to seek a new direction with his work. So my class and I were very lucky to have access to his knowledge and skills which he shared generously with us and I greatly value and appreicate the friendship we formed in those years. I am not sure what the next step in for Roman after Zu but I hope it is filled with all things good.

So here is a sneak peek at one of my "Hanabi" bangles I created for the exhibition. Hanabi is the Japanese word for fireworks which litereally translates to "fire flower" These are my fireworks in Roman's honour.

Bowerbird Bazaar Excitement!

I have exciting news to share! This weekend, the Bowerbird Bazaar will be held in Adelaide! Now of course this is exciting because there are so many great designers and products all to be found under the one roof, but doubly exciting is the fact that I will be displaying one of my little prints there!!!

A couple of weeks ago, Etsy Australia's new community manager, Kirsteene, contacted me to tell me she would be having a stall at the market to promote Etsy in Australia and asked me if I would be interested in displaying a print as part of her stall. Now, it is a secret desire of mine to have my own stall at Bowerbird Bazaar but the more-than-$500 price tag is still a bit scary for me, so this is just the next best thing! So although I won't actually be selling anything, I am able to advertise my Etsy shop with business cards so that is excellent promotion!

Thanks Kirsteene, thanks Etsy and thank you Bowerbird Bazaar! Hope it is a great weekend for all!

Flower Fields

Why does Heather do this to me? Just when I thought my Skinny laminx cushion family was complete, she has released these beautiful cushions in her new flower fields fabric. Perhaps I need another couch? But then we would need a bigger home too! I will just have to admire in her shop for now!

Just in time!

I have just finished putting a layer of matt varnish on these bangles in time for tomorrow evening's Art Market at Espionage Gallery. A few years ago, I made some of these bangles for a market in Japan so I will be interested to see how they are received here. Although I had some interest in the bangles I made before, I never actually sold any. When I made the move back to Australia I had to leave them behind apart from the one I had already been wearing. Now, whenever I wear that bangle here, people always ask me where I got it and so finally I have made some more! I have just one sheet of this beautiful Japanese washi paper that I used on the outside of the bangles so I will be sad when it is all finished. The rest of the bangle is made from a slice of a recycled plastic drink bottle and layers of recycled newspaper.

Cards!

This Friday evening I will be participating in the second Art Market at Espionage Gallery. So I have been busy having fun in my evenings making some cards to display along with my prints and jewellery. The first picture shows some of the new cards. The last picture shows some of the cards I made for the first market! Time consuming but love the process!

Bright Future

I have finally just uploaded my most recent black and white print to my Etsy shop.

This one is called, 'Bright Future'. The idea behind this drawing was born from looking into our daughter's eyes. Children and babies have such bright, sparkly eyes and when our daughter smiles, her little eyes light up and her eyes shine; I see a bright future for her. So I wanted to create an image that represented life, growth and many different flowers to show that she is unique and everyone is different and unique and she will grow in her own special way. I also think the image is a reminder to think positive and happy thoughts for our future. We are faced with many challenges in life but it isimportant to be able to visualize a bright future.

...And I just have to add that the poppy in the photo is proudly one from our little garden that we grew from seed! Poppies are my favourite flowers and I just love to see what colours they are when they open up!

Spirograph!

Our little boy received a small Spirograph set for his 4th birthday last week. So who has been having fun this week re-living childhood experiences? Me! So much fun! And I did share the tools with him too! Even with all the amazing drawing software available now, there is still something magical about Spirograph I think!

To Market, To Market to Buy a Great Print

"Chloe" by Fruzsi Kenez

The delightful and talented Fruzsi Kenez of Peach Patrol on Etsy has invited me to be a part of her first Artist Market at Espionage Gallery next Friday evening! Of course at first I said I was interested but wasn't sure I was ready but after meeting Fruzsi and seeing her enthusiasm and vision, I felt it was an opportunity too good to miss.

So I am excited and nervous and incredibly busy this week with all I need to organize to get ready for it but I will let you know how it goes. I am going into this with zero expectations so there is nothing to lose and everything to gain. If nothing else, the chance to meet some great artists and be inspired!

I Heart Jewellery

Tonight I did something a bit out of the ordinary for me. I actually attended the opening night of an exhibtion I am participating in at Zu Design! Sounds strange really as I always remember in the past that opening nights were something I would never have missed since they are the party and reward after all the hard work that goes into making a piece. But although I have exhibited regularly at Zu over the last few years, I have never actually made it to the opening of any of those shows. So tonight was different.

With early dinner prepared for the kids and a 6.00pm start time, I thought we could achieve it! And I am glad we did! "I heart Jewellery" is part of this years SALA (South Australian Living Artists) festival. It is a great festival which showcases and celebrates the work of South Australian artists and during August, numerous exhibitions and events are held around the state. I had forgotten just how crowded these events can be (especially when trying to squeeze through with an almost four year old in arms so he too can see inside the showcases but we loved what we saw inside and I was impressed that my little boy also seemed to quite enjoy the event. Fortunately Missy Muffet, aged 2, fell asleep in the car on the way there but unfortunately for Papa that meant he had to carry her when my arms gave up!

It was inspiring to see the work of the other jewellers participating in the exhibition and reminded me of why I really 'heart' jewellery. Thanks to Jane and Roman at Zu for having my pieces for this wonderful show.

Embrace

About 5 months ago, I blogged about an idea I had for a print. Well here it is finally finished!

It started with a hug; an embrace in the middle of the night to comfort my little girl. As we sat with our heads close together and our arms encircling eachother, I wondered what kind of visual pattern this might make. At that time it was something that was happening every night, a pattern that was forming: wake, embrace, go back to sleep. And so I translated this to the pattern in this drawing.

It is to remind us of the comfort we find in a hug. And also I see it as a symbol to remind us to embrace eachother, to embrace oppotunities and to embrace every moment...

Where o where have I been?

The answer to that question is: right here! Yes, I have still been right here at my desks most nights but not terribly productive recently. So, I started a new project a few weeks back to motivate me to make sure at least one new creation happens a week. The idea behind this project is simply to sit down, listen to music, get out my paper, scissors and glue, and see what evolves. We have lots of CDs we just haven't listened to in ages because of time restraints and ease of using you tube to find new material. But it is nice to visit the old music as it brings back so many memories of different times in my life.

When I was in my last year of highschool - many many years ago - one of my major art projects was a piece called "frozen music" No doubt it was probably my teacher's idea or at least influenced by her but I came up with lots of designs inspired by music I listened to. The major piece was made into a huge, fabric, wall mural and I am sure I still have a photo of it somewhere that I should dig up.

So my new project is based on this same idea. Listening to music and seeing what colours, shapes and patterns come to my mind. The idea is that the piece should be started and finished on Monday nights but of course so far Monday has been extending to Tuesday and Wednesday. I have snapped a few shots with my phone along the way which I will post here. Hopefully I will have the finished collages ready to show soon.

Pikelets!

Yesterday was one of those Sundays that started out sunny and full of ideas about where to go and how to spend the day. As the day progressed, however, grey clouds gathered and it looked more and more like the perfect day to stay at home. It felt like a 'proper' Sunday - like the Sundays I used to have as a child often just spending time at home with family making our own fun.

I could have done a thousand things with the time I had yesterday. I even snuck off at one point to attempt an afternoon nap hoping noone would miss me. The poppets always inevitably find me however and they are rarely interested in afternoon naps nowadays since Miss Muffet turned 2 and thinks she no longer needs them.

And then I had the idea to make pikelets! Something I love to eat and the perfect afternoon tea for a rainy day and the perfect afternoon activity for Master T my little helper.

Colour

At last, my coloured pencils and paper are out and I am having fun!

And yes, this is the mess I usually create once I get started with those coloured pieces of paper! It usually ends up covering the whole desk. But it is always a great way to discover a new colour combination when two random pieces of paper end up sitting next to eachother.

The Last 40 Minutes!

A mother's day is indeed full. We have 2 children, so if I have had a tough day I always think about mums who have 3, 4, 5 children or more. My youngest Missy Muffet who has just turned 2 is always easy to put to bed. 2 stories, 3 lullabys, goodnight Missy Muffet and close the door.

Master T on the other hand has always taken, shall we say, a little bit longer to settle. He will be 4 in September and has recently been going through an, "I like Papa, I don't like Mamma" phase. So the nights that I need to put him to bed can be quite difficult.

This has been the last 40 minutes for me:

"I don't want Mamma to read my stories, I want Pappa" x 10
Ok T, I will just go to sleep next to you"
"I want Papa to sleep" x 10

So, I distract him by talking about his day, talking about what he will do tomorrow. Play the candle tickle game where I hold up my fingers like candles, he blows them out and then I tickle him. He notices that I am wearing jeans and not pjs. He say, "But Mama, you need to put your night time clothes on" So I put my pjs on. We talk some more. I had a haircut today. Master T says, "But Mama, your hair is not beautiful. The lady needs to cut some more." I must teach him tact, I think to myself.

So he goes quiet, we say goodnight. And then, "But Mama, we haven't read a story yet!" Mama sighs internally and says, "Okay, what story would you like?" He replies, "Mr McGee and the Big Bag of Bread" So we get the book and I open to the first page and he says, "I'm sorry Mama but we need to read 'Mr McGee and the Biting Flea" So we change books, read the story and say goodnight -again. And then, "But Mama, I need a drink of water" Of course he does after all his talking. So he goes to get a drink, comes back to his bed and we say goodnight. It is quiet and then, "Mama". "Yes" I reply. "I like you". My heart melts. "I like you too, T" I reply, and add, "goodnight T, sweet dreams, I love you." " I love you Mama" he says. And then silence. And then, "Mama, your hair is not beautiful!" And then he is asleep. At last.

And now time for Mama to do some work while the poppets recharge for another day!

Time for Action

After a conversation the other day, the phrase, "actions speak louder than words" has been floating through my head. I have been contemplating it a lot. How true it is. How many empty words do we give and receive.
It is time for me to take action. Time to give my words meaning. Enough said.

Orla Purchase!

Well it might seem that I am obsessed with Orla Kiely and her duvet covers at the moment but finally the search is over and we have made a purchase! When our old quilt cover had finally torn from top to bottom it became an urgent necessity to go shopping for a new one. As luck would have it, the day we went into the city, David Jones was having a 30% off selected duvet covers. A friendly sales assistant was going past as I was admiring the Orla range and I said to her, "I don't suppose that 30% off includes the Orla range?", expecting a negative affirmation of my suspicions but to my surprise she said, "Yes, it does!". Well considering I had a $25 voucher to use at the same store and with the discount, the deal was done!

It wasn't the design I first thought I would choose but the colours in this one we seemed to mutually agree upon. As soon as we got it home, I had it on the bed (yes without ironing!) and very soon after that I had two little people to test it out! I think they approve! And the best part is I get to keep the beautiful packaging!

A 'Bazaar' Mother's Day Gift

I don't think shops understand what mums really want for Mother's Day. While the slippers, flannel pjs, anti-ageing creams and perfumes are all lovely, the best gift I received this year was a few hours to myself to visit Adelaide's Bowerbird Bazaar on Saturday morning. I have been anticipating this design market for some time since I missed the last one and it is currently only a bi-annual event. It is held at our Queens Theatre here which is apparently the oldest standing theatre on mainland Australia (this I learned reading the sign outside as I arrived 10 minutes before the door opened) It is no longer used as a theatre but is the perfect location for this kind of event; outdoor markets are great but it leaves the stall holders praying for fine weather to make sales!

I was so excited when I got inside that I hardly knew where to start. When you are with your kids pretty much 24/7 365 days a year, it feels very strange to suddenly not have to worry where they are or what items they are touching. I was really impressed with the quality of the products and had a lovely time chatting to some of the designers and creators about their products and experiences. It was both inspiring and a bit overwhelming but really good to see so much local talent and beautiful things made here in Australia. So many of the products we buy here in oz are made abroad so it was wonderful to see products with "designed and made in Australia" on them.

I had to have some cute t-shirts from the clever girls at Ink & Spindle. They screenprint their own fabrics and have recently begun a range of children's wear called "Inklet" which I spied on their blog. There was also a little gifts purchased for myself at Sunday Morning Designs and Messagemark. If money was limitless I would have come home with a lot more! I will be looking forward to the next market and when I get the courage may even apply to have a stall myself.

Of course the loveliest gift of all was spending time with my family today and the handmade card from my little boy that he made with his Dad while I was out at the market.

Happy Mother's Day to all mothers, grandmothers, great grandmothers, mother-in-laws, Godmothers, fairy Godmothers, all those who mother and all mothers who have walked before us. What a wonderful and important job you all do.

Orla Duvet cover

So I am wondering if a small tear (thanks to the kids jumping on it!) in our quilt cover is enough to justify purchasing a new Orla Kiely one like this one above?

And would it be too much to ask Mr i to sleep between the multi coloured stem print? Hmm, I wonder.

Paper + Scissors

When I make jewellery, I always have a detailed drawing of what I am going to make before I start cutting into the materials. Of course some things might get slightly changed along the way for either technical or aesthetic reasons but in general I know exactly what the finished item will look like.

So sometimes it is nice to work in different ways and with paper and scissors, I have the freedom to just cut shapes out and see what happens. I enjoy nothing more than sitting down with my collection of coloured paper and then cutting away to see what shapes can be revealed in both the positive and negative. It is often through this process that new ideas are generated for something else I want to make or draw. These little paper and scissors sessions often result in greeting cards to use for family and friends' birthdays.

Lime Green

We have been lucky to inherit a lime tree on the property where we currently live. And I am happy because this colour green is my very favourite shade of green!

Safe in my Arms

I am just about to put this second print in my Etsy shop and I realised it is one I haven't shared before on my blog. This is one of the first little drawings I completed last year but it has been an idea in my sketchbook for much longer.

When my little boy (who is now 3 and a half) was a baby, he wasn't much of a sleeper and woke frequently at night. I read books about self settling and 'crying it out' but I chose to simply pick him up and cuddle him and watch his tears disappear and a look of contentment come across his face. I felt like a big strong tree and my arms were the branches. He was completely safe and happy in my arms.

And so I made a little sketch about this at the time which last year turned into this picture. The bars were for my baby's cot. The droplets for his tears. The flowers were ones we had passed on our walks together and I wondered if he dreamed about them. And the big tree on the side - that one is for me. Even as a big strong mummy tree, I also feel the need to be protected and safe. Perhaps that is Daddy tree!....

Master T sleeps soundly now at night. This print is for my friends with little ones who are going through the sleepless nights. There is an end to it, so hang in there.

And here it is!

After weeks of procrastinating and weeks of work, here it is: my first little print in my etsy shop!

I spent Sunday afternoon trying to make friends with my husband's camera and lenses. I am not sure we will ever be best friends but I would like to think that we could come to some kind of arrangement where I speak nicely to it, and it does the work! Unfortunately it doesn't matter how flash your camera is or even if you switch it to the auto mode - you can never take a great photo unless you know what you are doing with it and what is is you are trying to photograph.

As I have probably said before on this blog, photography was never my best subject at uni and I still have visions of doing whole assignments and having the slides developed only to discover the battery in my light metre was flat and my readings were all out!

The weather was not the greatest yesterday and although I picked the brightest room for the job, by the end of the shoot I was chasing the light and reaching for the tripod. The images are far from perfect but for now I will be content with what I have produced and keep working on improving them.

From here it does not matter what happens - it is just the fact that I have started that is important. Now I have to keep going.....

Almost out of Excuses!

What a week it has ended up being. Who would have known last Monday in Japan as eveyone trudged back to work for the week, that by Friday their houses might be floating on water and they might be running for their lives. Few things shock us on the news anymore but the images coming out of Japan at the moment are truly horrifying. It is so surreal for us to sit and watch from the comfort of our homes these images of loss and devastation; trying to empathize with people when we really have no idea. I have felt a couple of magnitude 5 ish quakes while living in Japan which had me running for cover under our kitchen table but I really can't imagine how frightening an earthquake of this magnitude must have been.

Fortunately for us, most of our family and friends are located in central Japan and have not been affected by the quake and those that are near Tokyo are also okay. It really puts our lives back into perspective. We run around in our material world climbing imaginary ladders and filling our homes with all the latest thinking we are quite in control and quite clever. Nature knows better and recently has been reminding us of our vulnerability. These are the times when we feel helpless but can at least take the time to reflect on things that are really important to us. Life is affter all very precious.

On the work front this week I had a long list of things to achieve and have crossed off a good third of them. I am pretty happy with that. My husband keeps asking me when I will put my first print in my shop and I am now excited to say that I am running out of excuses as to why that hasn't happened yet. Some packaging arrived this week and I have just spent tonight updating my shop policies and shipping details to include prints. So really now I have just two things to do: take some photos of a real print and make a listing for it. So it will be soon, very soon.....

The Start of Something New!

Recently, I find myself caught up in the admin side of running a little online shop. I spend the little time I have to work searching online for supplies, appropriate packaging and estimating postage costs etc. I am itching to get started on a new drawing and would love to start on a piece in colour, however, progress is also slowed by my littlest poppet who occasionally still wakes in the night and will not go back to sleep without a hug from me.

Since March has arrived, a crispness has crept into the night air and I wonder if Missy Muffet wakes because she is a little cold. The other night I was working away when her desperate little cries came from her cot. Yes, it was time for a hug from Mum and as I sat with her I started to imagine how that image might be represented graphically. A hug is such a simple gesture but so warm and comforting. It got me thinking this might be a theme for my next print. I made a few quick rough sketches and have filed them away for a time when I can see past all the little jobs I need to do first. Hopefully soon, very soon I will be able to list my very first print in my Etsy shop. If it doesn't happen in March then it will definitely be April - I hope!

Cushions for the Couch!

Belbird by Melbomba

Mari by Kalla

Orla in lemon by Skinnylaminx

Cloud birds by Skinnylaminx

Karlstad lounge by ikea

Aah, this is the time in my week where I assess what I have achieved in the last 7 days; this week, I have to admit, there is no progress to share. It has been a week filled with an unforseeable chore that stole my work time but, instead of feeling bad about it, I am just going to focus on all that will get done next week.

And so I have decided to blog instead about my ongoing search for cushions for our lounge. When we moved here from Japan we shipped some of our furniture but in general we had to start from scratch and so, an impulse buy on a trip to ikea saw us ordering the Karlstad lounge with the removable covers which I thought would be very practical having two little ones who don't always have the cleanest of hands. We have had the lounge almost a year now but it is still in need of some cushions to make it really comfortable.

I keep spying great cushion covers or fabrics on etsy which I love but I have no idea what colours or patterns to choose or whether to just make an eclectic mix of my favourites.

On the top of my list are some of the designs by Heather Moore from her shop Skinnylaminx. And then there is another of my favourites called Mari from Kalla. Recently I also discovered Melbomba in Melbourne who makes some beautiful fabrics. All these shops have wonderful patterns and so many colours to choose from. Perhaps I will never be able to choose and may just keep on admiring and adding to my wish list!

A Celebration of Diversity

Last night, I finally finished my first drawing for the year. I sat down for almost two hours straight just inking in the circles at the bottom which were the last part to go. These are just a couple of snaps from my phone camera so not the best images but a record of sorts.

A Celebration of Diversity is something that has been sitting in my sketch book for a long time. It celebrates the fact that we are all different and yet live and grow side by side and learn from each other. Sometimes we try to make people more like ourselves when in fact we should just appreciate and celebrate our differences. I think this one came to mind recently when I was shocked by some very narrow views of a person who was unable to continue a relationship because the other person was from a different culture. How sad, I thought. How much that person has missed out on.

I can only speak from my experience as an 'Australian' married to a Japanese. I have been asked a number of times if I think international marriages are difficult. My answer to that question is that all marriages or partnerships can be difficult at times but more importantly they can be wonderful. I think how much richer my life is that I can share it with another being regardless of nationality; a person who is kind, warm, generous and loving. And how fantastic that I have been able to experience the beautiful culture that he is from and how that has influenced my life.

There are no doubt many differences between us all.

Let's celebrate that....

The Fun Part

This is the part I love. When all the sketching and rearranging of elements is finished; when all the pencil lines are in place and I all I need to do is ink in the black areas. It is tedious and time consuming and a bit nerve wracking when you only get one chance to create a single, permanent mark with that pen; But this is the part I enjoy the most.

My husband often tells me, "You know your style of drawing could be created in Illustrator and it would be really quick and accurate". "Aah yes," I reply, "but it is not the point". I go on to explain that it is the process that I love. I love that it takes a long time and that it really is not perfect - it is touched with a human hand and we are imperfect. It is the best part about creating when you get to the part where all the design is worked out and then you just have to go ahead and make it. That is my time to myself and takes me completely away from everything else I do in my day.

I guess that is the sort of person I am. There are many ways to get to work and many would choose to take a car or ride a train. For me, if I have a choice I would probably walk or cycle. If I were a bug or insect it would be romantic to picture myself as a butterfly or dragonfly but in reality I would be a snail. When a plane lands and the doors open and everyone rushes to exit, you will most likely find me at the back of the queue.

And so while I realize there are faster and more efficient ways to do things, this is the medium I choose at the moment and I love it!

Sketchy progress.

I have decided to make Friday or Saturday night 'blog night'. It is a chance for me to reflect on the week and by writing things down I can hopefully quantify what I have achieved rather than thinking of all the things that I haven't finished yet. I did spend some time this week on a new black and white drawing but most of the week was taken up with admin and computer stuff as I continue to work out how to reproduce my work and then package it. I narrowed down my choice of 12 kinds of paper to two that I really want to work with. Firstly, I have chosen a bamboo paper which is only 10% cotton and 90% bamboo and I think I will use this for colour prints. For the black and white prints I have chosen the Hahnemuhle Museum etching paper. In all honesty the prints probably look better than the originals.

So I ordered more paper and was strangely nervous doing so. I have spent thousands of dollars over the years buying silver and other materials to make jewellery and yet spending a couple of hundred dollars on paper felt very indulgent and for a minute or two the old doubt bug crept in and I wondered if I would end up with a stack of very expensive paper that I would end up having to cut into squares to write phone messages on.

Pushing that feeling of doubt aside, I have moved on to retouching the scanned images for the drawings I have from last year just to remove the odd specs of dust that sneak in; so soon, very soon I may have something new to put into my etsy shop. Next week I will have to work out postage costs and order supplies for packaging and hopefully above all else try and finish my first little black and white for the year. I will finish here and upload some of my sketchy progress.

Floating and thinking.

A good few years ago now, I was very devoted to attending yoga classes. At one stage I even had all the paperwork ready to begin the yoga teacher training course. But life got filled up with many other things and although I have practiced on and off it hasn't been consistent. I started this new year enthusiastically trying to do a little each morning and while it is often only 5 minutes and sometimes ends with a little one jumping on top of me, it feels good to stretch and begin to reverse my stiff and hunched posture that has started to set in after cradling babies and doing not much more than general household chores and strolls to the supermarket for the last 3 years.

When I first began doing yoga, I was purely interested in the physical benefits and didn't realize how good it would be for the mind as well. This is one of the things I have missed most I think. Today, I spent some time in my parent's swimming pool and after a few laps, discovering how very unfit I am, I simply lay back on the floating foam tubes that we had been playing with earlier and just gazed up at the big blue sky. There was a tall gum tree in the neighbours backyard and the sun was shining on the white branches and I was just looking at the shapes the leaves were making as they were clumped together. Later, my husband commented to me that floating had been good thinking time and it had been. And for me it was also a short time to quiten my mind from everything it is filled with. And it felt good. It reminded me we need to take that time out even if it is only short. So while the weather is warm I hope to do more floating and thinking and then thinking nothing at all...

Progress

What can I say? Progress is slow but there is progress at least and my goal is to achieve more than I did the previous week.

I am venturing into the 2D world. A few kind people (naturally family and friends) have said "make prints"! It feels like it should just be a case of pushing two buttons: scan and print. But it is not that simple. In creating a print I am trying to create something that is as close as possible to the original and maintains the same essence. So with the help of my husband I have spent my week photo scanning, document scanning, and photographing original drawings to compare the digital data and the subtle differences that each method produces. In addition, I have 12 different varieties of beautiful Hahnemuhle fine art paper to choose from to print on! I then need to consider how I will package these prints and the cost to ship to different countries. It all takes time.

I am not feeling extremely confident with the work I have done so far but I keep moving forward with the line in my head that , "everyone starts somewhere. There will be room for improvement. I have also managed a little time to work on a new drawing this week. IT has basically gone from a small thumbnail to pulling that apart and trying hard to work on each section. I hope to have more to show by next week.

And the loveliest progress of all this week: a little sale to a friend in Melbourne. I think it would be nice to keep a little world map pinpointed with all the places my jewellery has found homes.

And so one step at a time I keep on going....

2011!

Yes it is mid January already - about the time I realize that the new year has started and it is time to get moving on all the well intentioned goals I have for the year. I have begun the year with renewed enthusiasm, renewed inspiration and renewed motivation. About a week into the new year however I realized that in fact I have been given no extra time to work on all the things I want to achieve. In fact with all the out of the ordinary outings and visits plus the stretched evenings with daylight savings enticing us outdoors in the evening for a stroll or playground visit - the little ones have been going to bed way too late and I actually seem to have less time than usual. So I have decided I have to make more efficient use of the time I do have and remain focused on what I want to do.

One of the things than greatly inhibits the progress of my Etsy shop is the fact that almost every piece I have made is different or a very limited production so that requires me to photograph every single piece and write a different description for each. I did study photography at uni but it was neither my favourite or best subject and while I enjoy looking at other people's photos I find it a real chore to take them myself. I have been very lucky to be married to a professional photographer who helps me incredibly with this side of things but my etsy shop is something that I want to do without taking away his time for other things he needs to be doing.

So one of my favourite things to do is look through all the photos we have stored on the computer and sometimes I am lucky enough to come across one that I have forgotten that my husband has taken that I can use for my Etsy shop. Such was the case this week when I found my rather poor images of a moon pendant I had made a while ago and then came across an image shot with stars in the background that Hiro-san had taken for me which I could use to list a new item. Yay! My Etsy shop was barely breathing when I checked in on it at the start of the year but with continued effort I hope to bring it back to life.

Happy New Year. I hope it is a great year for all.