SHOP :: Gypsy River

Melbourne based Kerrie Nelson is the seemingly tireless hunter and gatherer behind Gypsy River. Bright and colourful pieces of ethnic homewares, jewellery and accessories are sourced from far flung places and curated into an exotic collection.

The combinations of colours and patterns of these global treasures are just beautiful.

I just checked in on the Gypsy River blog and found some lovely new additions to the shop, including some fabulous rugs and bright and detailed umbrellas.

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My Home :: Bathroom Makeover Sneak Peek

I have almost finished my bathroom makeover and I've accomplished it for under $200. I got busy one night last week and painted the entire bathroom including the tiles and now I'm just getting together some things to style it up. I can't wait to share it with you here, but in the meantime here's a little sneak peek.

All went well with the tile paint undercoat. I let it dry for the required 6 hours then got to painting the tiles. I was finished by 11.30pm... paint all over my hands and clothes and splashes on my face and in my hair! It was then that I realised that the paint, unlike the undercoat, was turps clean-up. I realised it after rubbing my hands with a wet rag and spreading the paint so it literally covered both my hands and writsts. No turps! I headed downstairs to my garage and rummaged around with a torch. No turps. I made an 11.45pm dash to the supermarket - covered in paint and looking like a mad woman - running in the door at 11.57 just before their 12 o'clock closing time. Luckily Roxy was on a school excursion sleepover that night or I would have had to go to bed with paint all over me.

But I'm so happy with how the bathroom has turned out. It's so light and bright now and I don't get depressed every time I open the door. I did however get depressed when I realised that I had to cut the paint out of my hair.

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INSPIRATIOn :: Dane Lovett

Australian artist Dane Lovett - beauty in the everyday.

Genius way to exhibit!

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Sydney abcd winter wrap up

Our abcd bloggers meet-up was held last week and judging from the feedback it was a huge success. I think it's so great that all these wonderful women who blog about art, craft and design come together to meet and share. Sharing was our theme this time and we had some great and lively small group discussions where ideas, experiences and thoughts were offered and exchanged. It was really enjoyable and enriching to hear everyone's input on the various topics.

Our goodie bags were also based on the theme of sharing for this meet-up, and the contributions were thoughtful and creative. They included some delicious recipes, gorgeous stationery and even a stamp from a thoughtful lass, lots of lists including great tips and links, fabric, and a vintage hanky with a little note saying "Do share your happy tears. Don't share your sniffles". So perfect for our winter 'sharing' meet-up!

The goodie bags are always a highlight, but the best part is making connections and creating a community amongst like minded women who we usually only know through our online lives. We had a lot of new faces at this meet up which was lovely. Unfortunately neither Steph or I managed to snap any photos of the actual event - a terrible oversight! Next time we plan to get that organised. You can see photos of our last meet-up - our Saturday Soiree - here. A big thank you as always to Steph of Bondville who spends time planning and organising with me to make the abcd meet-ups happen. Stay tuned for our next abcd meet-up in a few months.
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INSPIRATION :: Sydney Biennale on Cockatoo Island

Way back at the beginning of July we spent a wonderful day on Cockatoo Island seeing the 18th Biennale of Sydney. It's on until 16th September, so if you're in Sydney I'd highly recommend a visit for a great family day out. For a start the ferry ride across the harbour is a fun treat for the kids, especially on these glorious winter days and Cockatoo Island is worth a visit even when there's no art to be seen. There's tunnels and old buildings to explore and lots of climbing to be done, and the bar and cafes are a drawcard too.

My favourite work from the Biennale is Philip Beesley's interactive kinetic environment. We could have spent all afternoon looking at this one work and come away happy. Beesley's work incorporates lightweight digitally produced textile structures with touch sensors and LEDs that respond to the actions of the viewer. Walking in the interactive installation felt like you were part of a beautiful ethereal living organism.

I've blogged about Cal Lane's work before, so I enjoyed seeing her 'industrial doilies'.

And I particularly loved this collaboration between polish artist Monika Gryzmala and Euraba Artists and Papermakers, who are a group of northern NSWAboriginal artists specialising in handmade paper art. Breathtaking.

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