Pop Up Shop this weekend

Everything is ready for tomorrows opening!!

9am - 4pm Saturday 22nd & Sunday 23rd November 2014

in The Auditorium at Mt Coot-tha Botanical Gardens 

A Pop Up Shop full of handcrafted items made by members of the

Brisbane Visual Arts Community

impromtu day down by the bay

We'd had a little sleep in, toasted ham, egg and cheese sandwiches for breakfast, our morning coffee

and I'd moved on to hanging the washing out. 

As I hung the washing, the sun felt so warm and welcoming. 

My mind wandered to thoughts of bright blue skies, leisurely strolls and breathing in the sea air. 

Husband, do you want to go for a mini day trip? Where? He says.

What about Wynnum along the waterfront we haven't been there for a while?  

Sure, why not. Most days are planned, but sometimes you're just meant to roll the dice and go with it.

from the sketchbook - exploring our river city

A friend and I recently went a sketching near the Story Bridge. It was a fabulous day and a beautiful breeze was coming off the water, very pleasant. Later on in the day when looking through my sketchbooks and images I realized just how much and how often I enjoy getting out and exploring along the River. There are many well maintained walking & bicycle paths especially through the inner city areas. These are a few of the images & sketches that I've captured (thus far) along our river front.

powerhouse farmers markets

As we head into summer here in the Southern Hemisphere the selection of summer fruits is wonderful - a great time to re-stock the homemade preserves. Last weekend we enjoyed an early morning visit to the Farmers Markets at the Powerhouse in New Farm. I firstly grabbed a couple of photos of the Powerhouse Building and then took in the wonderful selection of summer fruits available. The raspberries and strawberries were too good to leave behind as were the nectarines and peaches. The kilo of berries became 4 jars of Berry Conserve with a little bit left in the pot. That little bit went perfectly into the center of a sponge cake - yum. The markets at the Powerhouse are held on the 2nd & 4th Saturdays of each month. 

out exploring the mangroves

Another weekend exploration across to Nudgee Beach this time. If you time your visit to Nudgee Beach when the tide is out or on it's way out you can walk along the Beach and get down in amongst the Mangroves. When the tide is fully out you can actually walk out a fare way and from time to time you'll see people riding their horses. Nudgee Beach is on the northside of Brisbane and is approximately 18klms from the CBD. When we lived on the northside of town we visited the Nudgee area quite alot and enjoyed the numerous bike & walking paths that are in and around the Nudgee and Boondall wetland areas.

APT7 & GOMA

Written Word by Parastou Forouhar

I went along to the APT7 (Asia Pacific Triennial) exhibition this morning and was blown away by the scale of a few of the works. Installations filling entire rooms, utilising all surfaces, walls, floor and / or ceiling. Enjoyable and fascinating to move around the room and absorb the works from various aspects. 

Paramodel by Yasuhiko Hayashi & Yusuke Nakano

I was on a bit of a time restriction this morning and could have easily spent more time exploring the various installations including the above collaborative piece by Japanesse artists Yasuhiko Hayashi & Yusuke Nakano.  An entire room filled with intricate architectural drawings and raws materials. 

the reflections of an installation by Sopolemalama Filipe Tohi

I also found the shadows & reflections from a few of the installations just as intriguing. A very inspiring exhibition. The exhibition is on until the 14th April 2013 at the Gallery of Modern Art at South Brisbane. 

a couple of exhibitions to enjoy this weekend

An exhibition by textile and mixed media artist Sharyn Hall

on at Gallery 54, 54 Latrobe Terrace, Paddington, QLD

and an exhibition by artist Dorothy Haig

on at Gallery 159, 159 Payne Road, The Gap QLD

Enjoy

crossing bridges

I've wondered across The Kurilpa Bridge a few times since the bridge opened in 2009 and always been intrigued by the patterns the overlapping wires form, the size of the bolts and cables. I also enjoy the views from the bridge. At night the bridge is lit by LED lights which are solar powered and can be programmed to change colors - always a pleasant evening stroll. In recent years the bridge has also been included in the RiverFire Fireworks display. The pedestrian and bicycle bridge is 470m long and connects Kurilpa Point near GOMA in South Brisbane to Tank Street.

 So towards the end of last year on one of my visits to GOMA I had my camera and sketchbook with me and wondered up onto the bridge and spent sometime pausing in the viewing platforms and rest areas to take a few shots and enjoy a little bit of sketching - very pleasant.  

markets around town

Where has the year gone? With only a few weeks till Christmas it's time for me to finish projects and start Christmas shopping. Totally enjoy creating and making handmade but I also really enjoy purchasing handmade. Here are a few of the markets I enjoy visiting and shopping at for 

handmade, fresh produce and / or atmosphere.

Fair Trade Christmas Market

Sat 1st & Sun 2nd December 2012 :: 9.30 am-3.30 pm both days
St Aidan's Anglican Girls School, Ruthven St, Corinda QLD 4075

BOTANIQUE Christmas Bazaar
4 – 9 December 2012 :: 10am–4pm
at Richard Randall Art Studio
Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mt Coot-tha Road, Toowong.
A wide range of artworks and gifts

Handmade Twilight Market

Sherwood State School (cnr Sherwood & Oxley Roads)

Saturday 8^th December 2012 :: 3pm-7pm
handmade art, gifts and yummy edibles

BrisStyle indie Twilight Markets
King George Square, Brisbane City
Friday 14th December 2012 :: 5pm-9pm
local designers and handmade

Chandler Markets: Twilight Market
Friday 21st December 2012 :: 2.00pm - 9.00pm
Cnr Old Cleveland Rd and Tilley Rd, Capalaba
Fresh Produce, plants, handmade, bric a brac

Brisbane Markets @ Rocklea
  Saturday 22nd December and Sunday 23rd December
  385 Sherwood Rd, Rocklea
Extended trading hours 6.00am-2.00pm for the
The Saturday Fresh Markets and Sunday Discovery Markets
 fresh produce and gifts



handmade stars by friend Kaylene

Brisbane Craft & Quilt Fair

Went along to the Craft and Quilt Show today. It's on for the remainder of this week 17th - 21st October 2012 at the Brisbane Convention Centre. Had a wonderful day shopping, viewing the displays, watching demonstrations and catching up with friends including my lovely friend Pauline from Funky Friends Factory (Pauline and I first met each other when we were both working for an optical retail company and discovered we both harbored a driving passion for creativity)

Today was also my turn to be on the 2QAQ (Queensland Quilters Art Quilts) demonstration table. There were four of use there throughout the day and each of us sharing one of our favorite techniques and/or inspirations. I had samples of the image transfers that I enjoy doing so much. I had samples for three of the methods I use to transfer image - the glue transfer method, inkjet printed using bubble jet set & ink jet printed using ink aid. The glue transfer method is the most transportable so I also had a couple of works in progress. Had a lovely day chatting with people, hearing and sharing the inspirations and learnings of each others creative journeys.

SAQA - Brisbane gathering

Had a very enjoyable evening last Friday night, with a few SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) members. 

L-R Lisa Walton, Ali George, Brenda Gael Smith, Sue Dennis, me & Felicity Clarke
Lots of creative talk, including the Studio Blog Hop that will start on the 1st of May - love seeing peoples studio spaces and where all their wonderful pieces are created. I'll be popping the links on my blog.
Lisa and Ali are the current Oceania reps for SAQA.

out and about town

After dropping husband off to his computer land day today I headed over to a friends place for a couple of hours and then onto the city. I've been wanting to wonder around the city area and take photos of the architecture with a focus on the contrast between heritage and modern buildings and how they interact. I mostly wondered around the King George Square area today and plan to do another field trip. I also did my bit to support retail and purchased a pair of shoes.

Through our Eyes