high up in the trees

Can I ask a favour of you?

{We just can't understand why the land here is going so cheap.}

{We can't understand why the land is going so cheap here either.}

I have a favour to ask of you… do you mind if I pick your brains, so to speak? I’m thinking of making four gift cards, printed in full colour and about 15 X 10cm in size… how does that sound to you?

At this very moment, I have a small white dog at my feet, a white and furry house guest here until Sunday, and I was wondering what four collages I should pick… care to help me with the process? At present I seem only to be able to think of keeping said house guest, Wilbur, and the cats, Omar and Olive, comfy. That and the order for 1,000 A7 scribblers. 200 down, 800 to go, the mind boggles at the amount left to do. Tomorrow the courier comes to collect the 200 thus far cut, glued and wrapped. Three boxes packed to capacity; such a small dent in the order. So, as I seem incapable of thinking of little else but placating canines and felines, and cutting small fabric covers, do you think you could lend me a hand? I’d love to know what you think.

As I can only print four different designs, here are a few to choose from… just pick your top four or mention a favourite and leave a message in the comments section, or wing an email my way (gracialouiseAToptusnet.com.au), whichever you prefer. I’d love your feedback on this… I am sailing on an inky sea without the aid of a torch on this one. These little mock-ups aren’t exactly in proportion either, but with night falling about the ears, you get the general idea.

{Please click to enlarge.}

You’re also welcome to suggest an alternative image too, if one doesn’t take your fancy. Head across to flickr and you’ll find many collages and works from this year and the last. Thanks, friends, this is a really big help. And, I promise, there will be a little something in it by way of thanks.

Wilbur, has come to stay for a short spell, and when not slumbering on the couch, belly up, he is remarkably mobile and can get up quite the speed when let loose in the park in the leash free zone. Free to converse with other hounds of varying shapes and sizes, he’s settled in to the area with ease. Whilst Omar has failed to acknowledge the temporary addition to the roost, Olive is behaving every inch like a deer caught in the headlights. When she does finally decide to move, a little, it’s slowly, slowly, creep, creep, and in a peculiar sideways crab scuttle. To this Wilbur casts a sleepy eye in her direction before being pulled back under to dreamland.

{Wilbur takes in the local surroundings.}

In between walks with white dog, and life in the factory of hammer & daisy, there has been the fortuitous arrival of yet another piece of snail mail. From Babelfish, in Manchester, came a book on Eugène Atget’s Paris (thanks, Crust Station ♥). It couldn’t have arrived at a more perfect time as Louise and I set to work on two large collaborative drawings for a group exhibition. We have been given, for the exhibition, two books by Molierè, Le Bourgeois gentilhomme (The Bourgeois Gentleman) and Le Médecin malgré lui (The Doctor in spite of himself), and now we have the perfect source book for watercolour scenes. A different century perhaps, but scenes of the Jardin des Tuileries and the facade of Saint Julien le Pauvre take us a little closer to French pockets than strolling to the local supermarket with a white dog leading the charge.

{This will do nicely.}

{Are you the one for me?}

all in a green letterbox

{In the garden.}

Best intentions have flown the coop. I believe them, my best intentions, to have flown somewhere in the direction of the coast. If you should chance upon them, do send them home.

I had intended to pull together a 'thank you for the snail mail’ post late last week, but it wasn’t to be. I had intended to thank you all for your generous comments in regard to the thirteen Sweets Party collages created in honour of Wendy’s birthday, but that didn’t eventuate either. Nor did my thank you to Julie for nominating myself, and Louise, for a Thinking Blogger Award (and in such fine company as Cally, Camilla, simply photo and Lisa). I had intended for a great many things last week; it’s been one of those weeks. It’s been as slippery as an eel, and it has disappeared before my very eyes. Trying to trap smoke in your bare hands, a salmon swimming upstream… it’s been all of those things, silly but true.

Last week didn’t so much lump past or chug along, it raced along at tremendous pace. Large and fantastical hammer & daisy orders have been placed (one for no less than 1,000 A7 scribblers all individually made by hand with different fabric covers), and artists’ books have needed their finishing touches before moving on to their new homes. All exciting big things, but big things which have left me with little blogging time (both the reading and the posting).

I have however been busy penning imaginary posts in my head. I had wanted to share with you all a book I am currently reading, Dreams of Speaking by Australian author Gail Jones. Into this beautiful novel I have plunged. I have forged a friendship with Alice and Mr Sakamoto, and now I am looking at xerox machines (Chester F. Carlson “was a man passionately at odds with the world’s brute singularity”, p.24.), telephones, cinema screens and cellophane (invented by “Monsieur Jacques E. Brandenberger, a Swiss man with a hefty nose, a large moustache and an imperious mien, (who) was one day seated in a restaurant when a customer at the next table spilled wine on the tablecloth”, p.16.) in a whole new light. All these modern technologies, all those lights in the city, neon lights and brightness, inventions and machinery.

I had also planned to take you to Heide with me on the weekend. Here is the cat house and the kitchen garden you would have seen were you there.

{From the cat house...}

{to the bottom of the kitchen garden.}

{From Abigail.}

Snail mail? Yes, here is another thing I had intended to share. From Abigail, my sweet horse chestnut studs I had ordered. They arrived and I have three times leapt the moon.

From M (who now owns this), two postcards singing out to be used for collage arrived unexpectedly. One of the old harbour, Newlyn, near Penzance, the other of George Square, Cenotaph and municipal buildings, Glasgow. I’ll show them to you soon, and with their new additions. They make a fine pair.

From Briana came Player's cigarette card (Bactrian camels, Indian ox, Snow leopards, alpacas and Klipspringer antelope) memories perfect for future small scale collages or perhaps just for the adoring. Wrapped in all manner of finery it seems that it is a prerequisite for all those with a blog to be excellent parcel wrappers.

{From Briana.}

From Fliss, speaking of brilliantly wrapped packages, arrived further snail mail on the front of which her son, Max, had drawn the path the parcel was going to take… from Queensland to Melbourne by plane, from person to person, giver to receiver. Inside, a penguin handmade friend to call my very own. In a trade for a print, a green penguin with floppy orange paddles for feet and a handsome, dare I say, bewitching face (yes, I am smitten)? Isn’t he marvellous?

{From Fliss.}

And from Frips in Belgium, escorted the long distance by a tassie devil on the envelope, paper ephemera and other stamped and folded delights... hand drawn and inky cats, ATC invitations, polar bears and a clipping which reads: "Un tirage sur presse lithographie". How generous, no?

{From Frips.}

♥ Thank you, Abigail, M, Briana, Fliss, and Frips. You’ve kept me more than happy with your mail. I am grinning ear to ear.

And now before I flee, five blogs I would like to nominate for a Thinking Blog Award (it proved hard to whittle it down to a mere five so apologies to the many not listed here. If there were no limits on the amount, I’d have listed you all and then some. From A to Z, from 3191 to the very end)…
micasa - for the collections, the groupings.
bugheart - for the polaroids, for the bugs.
sprink - for le camping in a field in East Sussex.
true nature - for those Montevideo grabs in word and photo.
the glass doorknob - for the observations and little views.

Please, play along if you choose and it takes your fancy.

Le rules: "If you are nominated and decide to join in you should reveal the original source, say who nominated you (Julie), nominate 5 blogs which you read that really make you think and finally display the thinking blogger logo/button" (technically minus the badger friend below... though I've never be one to adhere to rules).

See you Friday when I plan on bringing Friday Five Senses to the treetops once more (though please understand, my best intentions don't often come to fruition).

{P.S. We've also opened an etsy store... xo}

sweets for everyone

{Pull up a chair. Please, click to enlarge a smidgen.}

In January (was it only January? Surely not... really?) it was Risa, in Quito, who threw a tea party, this time around it is Wendy, in Los Angeles, throwing a sugar-soaked, knees-up for one and all. A Sweets Party in honour of all things sweet. A Sweets Party to celebrate delectable jam fancies, almond kipfels and almond biscuits, melting moments, strudels, jelly, snakes and sherbets, chocolate in all its guises, butter biscuits and lemon tarts... mud cakes, cheesecakes, and a mixed berry gateau thrown in for good measure. Bring out the shortbreads, the serves of pancakes drizzled with lemon, the gelati in a cone (for those in warmer climes) and the pastel hued plate of bite size macaroons.

Today, on Monday the 11th at 11am, it's time for all things sweet not savoury. For all things dusted with sugar or coated in icing. For all things to make the teeth whirl in their gummy sockets at the mere mention of a little bit of sugar, today is your day. Let me hear those cries of jubilation!

{A chameleon shooting out its tongue to capture a compote of fruits.}

{How on earth are we going to catch the sweets, Sweets?}

{That's not the kind of table I had in mind.}

So, here are thirteen collages especially for Wendy's sugar ceremony. Spot the sweets, it is easy to do. Jam roly poly pudding, a compote of fruits, raspberries in a bowl and lemonade in the pitcher... pull up a seat and let us begin.

{They really were, despite appearances, an excellent help.}

{"Who ordered the Charlotte Russe?" cried the waiter.}

{All this for me?}

{We feasted like the King of Kings.}

Last time around I brought along a host of animals to warm the seats until those in the northern hemisphere arrived whilst Louise brought with her Japanese teapots from the Edo period, late 17th century. This time the scurry of squirrels have already commenced with their feasting so you'd best be quick. Look out, there goes the last of the rhubarb crumble.

{Not too much for me.}

{Twas the roly poly pudding that proved too much.}

{Trifle for four, and that includes you.}

{Iced pudding? Well I never.}

{Sweets for Black-footed penguins.}

There you have it, folks... thirteen lucky feasts. I do hope you were able to acquire a lamington or two, then again those penguins are not known for their sharing. They'll make you feel very welcome so long as you don't go near their chocolate sardines.

(Thanks for inviting me, Wendy. Your Sweets Party provided me with the perfect motivation to create some new collages... and it has given me plenty of ideas in relation to our food zine, Shari.)

*** Head over to Louise's sweet tooth posting to glean a little more. You'll find also sorts of watercoloured puddings, apple pies and, of couse, a roly poly pudding. ***

the postie has been! the postie has been!

{Not my car but my house.}

{Weather not fit for a convertible.}

{With three emus on the property.}

Today I had intended to take you all on a little sojourn. A little scenic spin, a trip out of the city, a drive to Castlemaine, but alas, as all plans so oft do, my plan has come happily unstuck.

Several days ago now, L & L & I did indeed motor to Castlemaine, 2 odd hours drive away from the city. We drove in the pouring rain (for winter has just arrived). We drove across the Westgate Bridge in heavy downpour and were blown by gusty winds that forced our vehicle to 40km per hour. It rained from the minute we left the city and it rained until we unlocked our front door, some eight hours later. So, my friends, what I can show you of Castlemaine is a view from the back seat of the car. Windows wound down, rain on the lens, here are several emus, several ducks, and several handmade balls of coconut ice wrapped up in the recycled plastic tubs that ripe strawberries had once come in.

Buying fresh leafy basil in a pot, quince paste and a bag of pink lady apples from a store by the road… fine mini road trip fare. Munching on an apple with a browned leaf attached to the stalk, it was an enjoyable, albeit soggy day.

{New green growth abounds almost overnight.}

{A bumpy old ride... with coconut ice treats, a packet of sour squirms and a bottle of water on the back seat.}

The day prior to our little damp, wet-cuffed adventure out of the big smoke, a powder blue convertible with the top down, parked in front of the house. An all white interior of leather, and every inch gleaming, it made for quite a sight. Its length was as wide as our single fronted terrace house. From one end of our veranda to the other, this car reached with ease. Its rear bumper lined up with the far wall of the bookbinding studio, its front bumper perfectly in line with our front door and hallway. It beckoned to be photographed, it sung out for a drive, but this was neither our car nor a friend’s car either, and it was not the car we drove to Castlemaine and back with one cd on repeat.

What do I instead have to share with you? Why, the immense kindness of dear blog friends. Today from Lisa S arrived a yellow package of untold splendid contents. Inside was a pair of beautiful periwinkle bow tie drop earrings made from pale blue Czech beads which I had ordered through her Underdog Ink store (photos of them dangling from my ear lobes in due course… I promise, Lisa), an assortment of collected papers (again, what I do with these papery gems, I promise to post here), two beautiful art school dropout owl pins which I have already pinned one to the lapel of my new blue coat (Louise has hers pinned to her canvas tote), and an invitation, one apiece, to Lisa and Kerri Rosenstein's recent exhibition at Richard Levy Gallery (I'd have been there if I could... next time). Such wonderful gifts complete with port2port stationary and all wrapped in perfect blue tissue. Thank you, Lisa, thank you (♥)…

{Periwinkles and found paper delights, invites, owl pins and more.}

Also included, and I have saved the best for last as is my want, was a beautiful artwork… a grey hued paint chip card embroidered with a fetching squirrel (further squeals of delight really ought to be inserted here). A lone squirrel on a sea of Granite Boulder, Dusty Mountain, Black Bean and of course, the colour Squirrel… how marvellous is that? LJ & I plan upon getting this work framed so as to admire it constantly (another photo of which you’ll also find here in the coming weeks).

How exciting to receive by post. What a thrill, what a frightful honour! I’m completely overwhelmed (which seems to be a somewhat constant state with everything to do with this little blogging community).

{A squirrel to call our very own.}

The postie also delivered this week, Louise and my new membership to Mav’s The Card Society, which only recently celebrated its first birthday in fine style. Two beautiful May numbers arrived in our post box and really, I can’t seem to say this enough, I couldn’t be more chuffed. Thanks Mav (♥), your polar bear ought to reach Portland sometime soon, especially if the speedy arrival of Briana’s package is anything to go by. That polar bear will be hollering for his tea and making himself at home very, very soon.

With Wednesday nibbling at my heels already, it seems a fine time to introduce you to {On a Wednesday}, a new flickr group for you all… “Ah, Wednesday, that near to midway point... that day happily sandwiched in between Tuesday and the favourite of many, Thursday. Here is a group all about Wednesday, be it a photograph taken or a drawing or collage created on a Wednesday, or perhaps something you'd rather be doing on a Wednesday. It can be something a little less literal too, something that suggests a Wednesday, or something where the word 'Wednesday' appears. It's up to you where you want to take it. There are no limits to how abstract or literal your Wednesday contribution can be, and no limit on how many images can be added to the group. Enjoy!”

So with that I prepare to bid you farewell. And, as always, find me lurking on Sew Green, until next time. I’ll leave you in the hands of several collages recently taken down… three giant postcards from Shari (♥).

(If you’d like to own a collage work, do, please, drop me an email and we can figure something out. Each one is $50 (AUD). I’d also be happy to trade, which is just what I’m doing with Fliss… an owl and companion for a mightily handsome stitched penguin – marvellous, no?)

{Hoping no one would find my sanctuary.}

{No flop-eared mule, but a bear and cub.}

{Mirroring the other.(Hope you like the additions, Shari.}