Upon the windowpanes

The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the windowpanes.

~ T.S. Eliot

It is so foggy here this morning! Almost 11 o'clock in the morning and still it hasn't cleared. As cold and as grey as it is, though, there is something quite magical, mystical and otherworldly about fog. Out driving this morning, I thought to myself "Anything could be on the other side of this!" And of course, the only thing on the other side of the fog was exactly what I had expected to be there but it's the promise of a whole other dimension emerging through the grey-white gloom that makes fog so appealing (or scary, depending on your point of view!)

Having a nose around on the Web just now, I've found some lovely Australian paintings all about fog.

Morning Fog by Janice Gumbleby. Available for sale at www.madeit.com.au

South West Fog 2 by Kathryn Ryan. Image from http://www.timolsengallery.com/

 

Passing Trams by Clarice Beckett. Image from http://agsa-colo.netspot.com.au/agsa/home/

Keefers Jetty by Clarice Beckett. Image from http://www.diggins.com.au/?artist=clarice-beckett

Sunshine

I am taking my cue from the latest posts two of my favourite blogs today - Living in the kingdom of too much and Tiny Happy. I have had some great op-shop visits lately. Today, for example, I found a terrific collection of books, including Joan Phipson's childrens' book, Hide Till Daytime. It's about two children who are locked in a department store overnight. Did you ever wish for that? I had a favourite local shop when I was a child that specialised in Snoopy merchandise. I had my overnight stay there planned right down to what I would...uh...borrow from them while I was there on my own. Little wanna-be Fagin that I was (or perhaps Oliver Twist?) - if only in my imagination! I haven't thrown any books out, though, to even things up so I'd better get onto that if I am to keep visiting op-shops...

Teddy, above, was also one of today's finds. He has been in the op-shop for weeks, looking at me imploringly. I couldn't leave him on the shelf another day today. "Relax Teddy," The guy behind the counter said as I bought him "No need to look so worried - you're off to a good home." I've called him Stanley. What do you think?

Also found some sweet little Mac's Shortbread tins from the 70s. Perhaps this is a Melbourne-only reference? When I was a child I could smell the biscuits baking from our backyard. The factory (obviously) was not far away. Love little old tins for storing crafty bits in.

And Tiny Happy wondered today about what was making me happy. I would have to say the gorgeous warm sunshine - lovely after yesterday's grey day. Autumn's last hurrah, I think. Stanley, as you can see in the photo above, is lapping up some rays.

What's making you happy at the moment?

It's not easy being green

On Sefarina's (http://windleben.blogspot.com/) advice, I bought some little houseplants to sit on the windowsills to absorb some of the summer heat bursting through the glass. Unfortunately, after yesterday's 38 degrees, the poor plants themselves have got a little scorched and I have had to move them temporarily off the windowsills to recuperate! They are still giving a lovely display of cool, soothing green though, as you can see.

I had a good week in Sydney last week. Free of the distractions which come with a home office, I got some good work done on what I hope will become a novel and I also got to visit my favourite bookstore of all time...Kinokuniya. I loaded up on craft books, so hopefully over the next couple of weeks I will have some finished projects from them to show off to you.

We always say that Sydney is warmer than Melbourne; Sydney is closer to the equator, more humid, more tropical and so on. But these last couple of days have turned all that on its head. We had some very welcome rain this morning (and more on the way, judging from the skies) but it is so humid here in Melbourne. I would quite like to be back in Sydney in my air-conditioned room, with the hotel swimming pool just down the hall...Ah well, it's only summer here until Thursday!

Making It Handmade

I watched and thoroughly enjoyed Making it Handmade last night, a short film by Anna Brownfield focusing on the Melbourne's local craft scene. As well as being really encouraged by the number of crafty folk there obviously are around town, it gave me a lot of food for thought about what crafting in the twenty-first century actually is about - and it's quite a long way from the common cry that crafters want to be like 1950s housewives. Certainly crafting women today are reclaiming the skills of other generations but because they choose to, not because they have to because it is their perceived womanly duty (to paraphrase Gemma Jones, who was one of the interviewees).

As an extension of this, I am thinking today about how I can make what I make in more environmentally friendly ways and with more of the 'cottage industry' ethos in mind. As it was pointed out by Rayne Fahey (again to paraphrase), there's not much point going to the trouble of making it handmade with cheap acrylic wool from China when there is gorgeous local wool products to be had (from the Bendigo Woollen Mills http://www.bendigowoollenmills.com.au, for example, as was also pointed out - I've just been to their website - beautiful looking yarn)

So my thoughts at the moment are crafting with more of a conscience - not just moving away from buying to making by buying to make. It might cost a little more, I don't know yet, but I'll try buying more local supplies and even perhaps making my own beads for my jewellery making. I'll keep you posted on my progress. Ironically enough, all this coincided with a visit to an enormous local shopping mall yesterday, which my husband and I emerged from irritable and dismayed by the buy, buy, buy mentality.

What do you think?

PS Making It Handmade will still be on ABC 2 I-View if you live locally.